Chapter 12: Yellow-Hued IllusionsLeo Xu had deliberately kept his identity concealed, and there was far more behind that decision than mere mystery. After dropping a million credits in Li Shurui's streaming room the previous night, the digital world had rippled with intrigue. The reaction had been dramatic, even causing Li Shurui to initiate contact with him directly, yet Leo understood one immutable truth: this interaction alone was insufficient to win her over.The glamorous, elite-trained beauty from Aurora Arts Academy clearly exhibited a taste for wealth and an air of aloofness toward anyone who failed to meet her standard, but Leo knew deep down that money alone would never be enough. There was still a sliver of principle in her. She was not someone who would bend easily for coin.Unlike her, however, Amber Lin — her close confidante — operated under an entirely different rulebook. Amber didn't flirt with gray morality: she practically built her personal economy around it. She

Chapter 14: The Ghost Behind the Screen“Amber, you’re back!”The dormitory door clicked open just as a ripple of excitement spread among the girls crowded by the balcony. One of them, eyes sparkling with mischief, waved Li Amber Lin over with frantic urgency. “Hurry! Leo’s roommate is down there telling everyone Leo’s planning to chase after you! The whole campus is about to know!”Amber raised an eyebrow and stepped in calmly, the slight clink of her designer boots muffled by the polished dorm tiles.Disappointed by the lack of an explosive fight outside, Amber turned away from the balcony with mild disinterest. “If this rumor spreads unchecked, it could damage your image,” she said, her voice laced with apparent concern. “You should go talk to him, set the record straight.”Her advice sounded sweet on the surface, but it was honey-coated arsenic. Amber Lin wasn’t one to play fair. She had no intention of helping her roommate escape Leo Xu's persistence. Quite the opposite — she wa

Chapter 16: Hundred-Year ConfessionThe mood within the live stream exploded the moment Leo Xu confirmed his hundred-year Guardian renewal.A sea of neon comments raced across the screen like psychedelic fireflies, each one competing to scream louder than the last:“Wait, wait — a hundred years? Do the math, class rep!”“One million two hundred thousand! Bro, you’re not a simp — you’re a divine benefactor! Please accept my bow!”“My sister’s prettier than the streamer! I’ll pay you to date her!”“I have a twin, untouched by love. Bro, please, consider us!”“Delete this stream! My eyes can’t handle this level of wealth-induced romance!”“Ten thousand years to achieve immortality, but this mortal just dropped a mil for love? This is how legends begin!”Yet none of these pleas, praise, or poetic comparisons made it to Leo Xu’s eyes anymore. The live stream had ended for him the moment he confirmed the hundred-year transaction and closed the interface.In two nights, over two million cred

Chapter 18: Invitation and IntentionBeneath the tower of the girls' dormitory, where the late afternoon sun cast molten orange shadows across the freshly waxed blacktop, a vivid red Maserati reclined with quiet menace. The supercar’s sleek form gleamed like a blood-slicked blade beneath the waning sunlight, the very image of excessive, arrogant wealth.Leaning languidly against the driver’s side door, hands casually tucked into the pockets of his cream-colored designer trousers, stood a figure whose posture had been curated with obsessive deliberation. A pair of obsidian-tinted sunglasses rested imperially on the bridge of his sculpted nose, half concealing eyes sharpened by conceit and calculation. The crisp cuffs of his tailored summer jacket were slightly wrinkled where they hugged his forearms, revealing a glimmering Seagull twin tourbillon watch from the Heritage series. The girls passing by were visibly affected, their conversations breaking mid-sentence as they stole glances a

Chapter 20: Velvet NightSaturday afternoon draped the university in an expectant hush, the kind that stretched the silence between heartbeats.Leo Xu was halfway through tying his shoelaces when Li Shao's voice broke the quiet.“Didn’t you say you weren’t picking up any more part-time shifts?”Leo paused, looking over his shoulder, his hand still on the laces. “Manager Kai took care of me a lot back then. He called in a favor, and I figured I owed him.”From the other side of the dorm, Bai Zheli adjusted his glasses, pausing his TV series and rotating in his computer chair. “One good turn deserves another,” he said, half-watching the screen. “But it’s probably going to rain later. Better take an umbrella.”Leo walked over to the sliding balcony door, pulling it open just enough to catch the breeze. The sky wore a heavy gray, like a bruised lid swollen with clouds, and the wind felt sharp enough to cut.He nodded silently, grabbed a black collapsible umbrella from the rack, and exchan