Beyond the Apocalypse - Chapter 39: Hippopotamus Monster

Takahiro Nao, a 25-year-old drowning in debt and despair, lives only for his struggling family. Every sacrifice he makes is for them—until a selfless act costs him his life. Instead of the end, Nao encounters a Goddess of Benevolence who offers him a miraculous deal: “Live in a new world, and your efforts there will support your family back on Earth.”Reborn into the dead body of Naoki von Blackmore, the so-called “Failed Hero,” he finds himself burdened with the daunting task of saving the world by defeating the Demon King—all while supporting the family he cherishes. Armed with formidable powers yet haunted by his past failures, Nao steps into a dangerous realm of swords, magic, and ferocious monsters. Facing relentless enemies, harrowing trials of life and death, and an unyielding fate, he’s forced to confront the ultimate question: how far is he willing to go to protect the people he loves?Filled with emotional struggles, determination, unexpected humor, and a touch of romance, this story asks a powerful question to the readers: What would you sacrifice for the people you love?

[Warning: Mature Content]

“Master, are we going to keep what happened last night a secret between us?”

“For how loud you moaned and cried, Qing-er, I think the whole world has already learned all about it, and your concern is irrelevant.”

Yun Qing-er, the only disciple of the legendary immortal swordmaster Bai Ye, has been hiding her feelings for her master for years. Unaccepted by norms and morals, it is the darkest secret that she swears to bury deep within her heart.

But life has other plans. Bai Ye's desire for her burns hot beneath his solemn appearance. He will teach her not only the art of the sword, but also the pleasures of life that she never knew existed before.

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Smut starts at Chapter 17, with a teaser in Chapter 11. A bit softcore at first but will get wilder quickly as the story moves on :)

Note that this is NOT a typical cultivation romance. Immortals and spiritual power and whatnot are all plot devices… You'll see what I mean in just a few chapters!

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[Sneak Peek]

He pinned me against the poplar tree at the center of the garden. A breeze rustled past, stirring the sunlight sparkling through the autumn foliage above us, and a sprinkle of gold fell over his shoulders. “Say you want me,” he whispered.

“Bai Ye—” I breathed, but the rest of my words were replaced by moans the moment he traced his kisses along my neck and took my earlobe into his mouth.

Familiar tingles roared through me as he nibbled and suckled gently. His hand slid up my chest, and he played with my sensations with his lips and tongue and fingers until my arms trembled around him. All other thoughts vanished from my mind. The only thing I knew was the irresistible feeling of him on me, so overwhelming that my knees started growing weak. I would've fallen if he wasn't pinning me hard against the tree.

“Bai Ye …” I moaned again, clawing at his clothes. “Of course I want you … Right here, right now.”

He let out a soft puff of laughter, and his hand grazed down, gripping the folds of my dress. With a rip of fabric, he tore them away.

“Congratulations, you're now a Handler. You'll serve the state with utmost loyalty and pledge your life to its causes.”That was what Trent heard just before being handed an envelope—and a whole lot of disrespect.Mocked for his poor combat performance and labeled pathetic by his superiors, Trent finishes Handler training humiliated and underestimated. But they made one mistake: they judged him by his strength, not his mind.What Trent lacks in brute force, he makes up for with a rare genius in finance.So when a mysterious voice speaks to him in the bathroom—“Hello, Host. This is Ave-511e69.”His world flips upside down.Now equipped with Ave, a mysterious financial system that seems to know everything, Trent is about to rise through the ranks in a way no Handler ever has.Through stock markets, black-market missions, and calculated chaos, he will prove that money is the greatest weapon of all.They looked down on him. Now, they’ll look up in fear.

Light and darkness are twins, blessings and curses coexist.Oh girl who stands upon the stage of destiny,May your path ahead be filled with blessings.------------Anko Probabilistic Narrative Writings：It's like telling stories by rolling dice. Just as many games offer various action and dialogue options that lead to different branching storylines, this book creates characters, advances the plot and builds the world view by providing a large number of different branches and using dice rolls to determine the outcome.