The Nightmare Wizard - Chapter 7 - Echoes of Stone and Shadow

In a world where 99.9% of all men were wiped out and future births only had a 0.1% chance of being male, the role of men in society became that of celebrities graciously donating their seed to the masses. With the world population declining, pregnancy has become a social status, affording women government assistance, health insurance, and citizenship should they find a man to bless them with seed. With an only 1 in a 1000 chance of finding a guy, many women will do anything it takes to get close to a man and become pregnant. And should those women bear a male, it’s like winning the lottery, the remainder of their lives set as they receive massive stipends and no responsibility but to nurture their sons. Clyburn was reincarnated into such a world. Can a former unsuccessful business man properly navigate a female-centric world full of woman who just want to use him for his seed? With an overprotective mother, two caring sisters, and the mind of an adult, he might just.

Meet Gu Yu—a college dropout and a talented incense maker, and at the same time, the rather stoic protagonist of this story. Despite his somewhat introverted manner, he has a tendency to make sarcastic remarks in his thoughts. One day, after saving a squirrel, a windfall (metaphorically and literally) dropped into his lap. Stumbling into the cultivation world with little help, he was not turned into Superman overnight (as he would like). Apparently, becoming a cultivator would not make your life easier, at least in the beginning.

Somewhere along the road, he ran into Jiang Xiaozhai, a young woman who’s got the brains, the beauty, and maybe one or two secrets of her own. As it turned out, the two made a perfect team—Mulder-and-Scully style. Motivated by many unanswered questions, they had been running up and down the country, getting into all kinds of trouble, and learning more of the modern cultivation world, which is by no means the same as in the ages long past…

- Description from Novelupdates

As part of the imperial family, every move by Chu Yuan in this game of chess is made with apprehension, fearing that with a moment of inattentiveness, the whole match will be lost in a single move.

Ascending to the throne at eighteen, not half a year passes before civil strife erupts in Yun Nan. Though the thoughts of the old guard at the imperial court are not exactly identical, they are all waiting to see how the new emperor will put an end to this.

Unexpectedly, before this side could make a move, a few thousand miles away, the King of Xi Nan, Duan Bai Yue, had already personally commanded troops to attack in all directions; not half a year had passed when peace was restored.

Sparse moonlight shines into the palace; Chu Yuan stamped the wax seal himself, and had a secret letter sent urgently to Yun Nan 800 miles away — this time, what must we(1) give in exchange?

Brush marks passed through the back of the paper; it almost can be seen, when writing this line, how angry the young emperor was.

Duan Bai Yue spread out a piece of paper unhurriedly, replying with only one word.

You.

Notes:
(1): Chu Yuan is using the royal ‘we’ here.

- Description from Novelupdates

First of all, this is not a story where the cannon fodder chambermaid counterattacks and gives the main wife a beat-down! As a lowly s*ave who had been sold a total of six times, Xiao Hua has long become apathetic to her situation. In her past life, she was a cannon fodder chambermaid who was beaten to death. In this life, she decided to turn over a new leaf and live honestly, yet in the end still ended up being sold off. This prince’s estate seems to have pretty good benefits? She could be released at twenty-five, and they’d arrange a place for her to live under their jurisdiction? They’d even get rid of her s*ave records? Great! That’s great! Xiao Hua thus decided to stay in the Jing Prince Estate and do her job properly. It’s a shame she could never overcome the whims of fate…. The master she serves is a “mute boy”, with several influences above him watching like tigers eyeing their prey. To say she doesn’t want to be pampered is definitely a lie. This is the road to survival of a “discreet girl” who clings on to her master’s leg and is solely pampered, yet feels that he never pampers her. The road from a cannon fodder chambermaid to a beloved imperial consort is a little long….