Thriller Night Talk - Chapter 77: The Mantis Catches the Cicada

I died a heroic, powerful, male Archmage… so why did I wake up as a sixteen-year-old girl?!Theo’s last memory is of a glorious, failed last stand. His next is a beeping hospital machine—and a terrifyingly handsome guy he’s pretty sure is a demon calling him “princess.”Now, he’s Thea Montrose, youngest daughter of a powerful family in a world run on magi-tech and corporate espionage. Between navigating floating cars, enduring his new mom’s hugs, and figuring out the horrifyingly complex mechanics of using the bathroom, Theo has his hands full.But his new family is hiding secrets, and their rivals play for keeps. Good thing this spoiled heiress’s body now holds the soul of an ancient wizard. They wanted the real Thea back? They’re about to get way more than they bargained for.He failed to save his old world from an apocalypse—now he just might save this one (and finally figure out how this bra works).

“Help me, please,” Bella pleaded, grasping his hands.His dark eyes, devoid of warmth, pierced through hers with an unsettling coldness. “Why should I mess with those goons to help you?” he asked callously.“I’ll do anything you say,” she said without thinking, desperate. “Just save me from them.”He demanded something that Bella had never anticipated even in her dreams.A contract marriage!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Bella Dawn was already in distress to pay her step father’s debts. To add her misery, her mother was diagnosed with liver disease and needed immediate transplant.Where would she get that much money?Then, like a cruel twist of fate, she accidentally encountered a handsome man, Theodore Reid, the enigmatic CEO of Ace Group.Rumors said that he was a ruthless businessman with a heart as cold as ice. Yet, to Bella, he was kind, rescuing her from the clutches of those who sought to exploit her.She was grateful to him until he demanded something weird, shattering her pervious assumptions. He wanted to marry her.NoHe wanted a contract marriage.In exchange, he would take care of her mother's treatment and compensate her generously at the end of their arrangement.For Theodore, it was a solution born out of necessity, a means to appease his grandfather's demands for an heir while he searched for the one who had once saved him, his angel.Bella’s appearance reminded him of his savior. So, he offered her a contract marriage. It was a temporary solution to his grandfather’s demand to get an heir until he found his angel.With no other options left, Bella reluctantly agreed to the terms of the contract. But little did she know it would test her resolve and resilience like never before.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~“Remember one thing, never fall in love with me,” he said, cold and dangerous.Bella gulped, nervous. “What if I do?” A sliver of defiance, a foolish question escaped her lips. She was already attracted to his handsome appearance.He squeezed her jaw and hissed, “You will regret it.”“What if you started liking me?” she dared to ask.He leaned closer, his breath warm against her ear. “No chance,” he scoffed. “You're not my type.”Bella’s heart sank.

To pick is to choose. This is a story about choices. Three thousand world full of gods and demons, with a daoist scroll in your hand, you are able to control the entire universe…

At the beginning of time, a mystical meteor came crashing down from outer space and scattered all over the world. A piece of it landed in the Eastern Continent. There were mysterious totems carved upon the meteor. Through viewing these totems, the humankind comprehended the Dao and established the Orthodoxy.

Several thousand years later, the fourteen years old orphan Chen Changsheng left his master to cure his illness and change his fate. He brought a piece of marriage vow with him to the capital, thus began the journey of a rising hero.

Starting as a fallen noble? Struggling with hunger? Having to pay high taxes to the king? If you don’t pay enough, your head will be chopped off?Romon activates the Lord Simulator and begins with a village...[Your subjects discover a large amount of magic crystal ore while digging on the western side of your territory!][Your territory's culture improves, and your rapid-fire mage develops: Orbital Magic!][You successfully expand your territory and discover an underground labyrinth city on the new land!][You annex the land and gain a new title: Duke of Thune!][The king passes away, war breaks out, and you decide: to annex all lords and establish a new kingdom!]Romon: “Annexing the world is for better simulation, leading the world to ascend efficiently—how can you call it personal ambition?”