Douluo Dalu: Starting Evolution as the Man-Faced Demon Spider - Chapter 196: Assessment Failure

“Block him.”“He's technically still my boss.”“Then block him with dignity.”The call ended again.And then started again.I let out a sound somewhere between a growl and a sob, then finally answered with the enthusiasm of a snail crawling through salt.“Yes, Mr. Walton?”“Have you changed your mind yet?”I collapsed onto the towel and gazed at the sky as though it might consume me entirely if I pleaded sweetly enough.“Do you ever take a break?” I asked, shielding my eyes with one hand.“You're avoiding the question.”“Because it's a dumb question.”He exhaled, the sound sharp and irritated even over phone. “It's not a dumb question. It's a business offer.”“It's a weird offer-one that I already said no to.”There was a brief pause, and I could practically hear him clenching his jaw through the speaker.“You are acting unreasonably.”“ Unreasonable?” I sat up. “I'm not the one drafting fake girlfriend contracts like it's a normal Tuesday.”“Isabella-”“Certainly not, Mr. Walton.” I mimicked his tone perfectly. “I told you I'm not doing it. You need to find someone else to play pretend with.”SYNOPSISIsabella Miller thought saying no to her boss’s fake dating offer was the end of the story.But Adrien Walton doesn’t take no—especially not when he’s convinced she’s a gold digger.Suddenly, her student loans are piling up, her father’s vet clinic is on the brink of eviction and her brother is about to be kicked out of college. Coincidence? She thinks not.Adrien Walton is calm, calculating—and he's just pulled every string to corner Isabella into the perfect position.Now she’s stuck choosing between pride and survival.So she agrees to his offer: be his fake girlfriend.No feelings attached. No drama. Just business.Or so she thought.“Conference Room B. Fifteen minutes,” he said, passing by without a glance.The folder he pushed across the table landed with a thud.I opened it. The contract. All of it.---Enemies to lovers? Check.Slow burn? Hmmnyea.Banter so sharp it might file your nails? Yes.Delicious workplace tension? Of course.Tension that could melt steel?Absolutely.Smut?? Wanna find out?Welcome to corporate romance warfare. There’s no escaping this contract.

|| To all the readers who are grieving over Caelestis Lanister’s death. I deeply apologize but this character always deserved death in my eyes of justice. Although he was a good leader, a good friend, probably a good son, yet he was never a good friend or boyfriend to Stella.Even after going through all his sins, if you still sympathize with him. I have an offer for you.Would you like to change the destiny of Caelestis Lanister?Yes/No||A translucent blue window appeared in front of Eleanore, who had just opened her eyes in a strange white place, after meeting her end in a Traffic accident.Eleanore finds herself in a new world, with a mission to change the destiny of her favorite character from a book she had recently read, “Revenge is her only desire.”Tired from her daily struggles, she was ready to venture into a new life of the rich, but to her dismay. She finds herself in the body of the villainess that dies in the first chapter of the novel, who shares the same name as hers, Eleanore Sinclair.Moreover, the day she enters into her body is the day she gets killed by Caelestis for harming his lover, Stella.Eleanore binded by the system that guided her through in her mission of changing Caelestis’ fate, realizes that the system favoured Stella over her. She struggles to keep herself alive, while working on Caelestis and Stella's relationship.As she tries to save Stella from the obsessive grasps of Caelestis, she finds herself getting entangled with the notorious villain. As tension and hatred between them rises, a love blooms between them which gives nothing but pain in return.The male lead being her own brother, will she be able to save Caelestis which is no longer her mission but her love?_______“Lies!” he spat again, his voice rising. “I will kill you, Eleanore. If you ever try to do that to her again, I will kill you.”His words cut through her, burning with hatred and fear. Anger surged within her as she fought against him. She had never intended to hurt Stella, not once. The blame lay with the original owner of the body, not her. Why must she listen to these accusations?“I have no such intentions!” she shouted at his face, gasping to find breath. “Let me go!”Her foot lashed out, kicking him in the thigh, but he quickly pinned it down as well. Exhausted from her useless struggles, Eleanore realized she had to gather her strength and then perhaps bite off some skin from his handsome face.“You are just an obsessed man,” she snarled. “You don’t know how to treat a woman. You’re killing her!”Before she could finish, Caelestis silenced her with a violent grip around her throat. His hand tightened around her neck, cutting off her breath.Her wrists were free, but now her neck was caught, and every breath became a struggle. Panic surged through her as she struggled to find, her nails digged deep into at his arm in a desperate attempt to free herself.Caelestis’ true nature had finally appeared in front of Eleanore, and it scared her. She had already been afraid of him, but now the fear felt like it was gripping her very soul.

99 is one, and nine refinements are returned to Xian.

A young town boy, stepping on Xiuxian Road, is not a family, no gold fingers, with his own determination and wisdom, the nine major cultivation system, the nine realms step by step to the peak, and finally ninety-nine one, the achievement of true immortal.

- Description from Uukanshu translation

In the realm of cultivating the nine states, the Taoist court is unified, the aristocratic families are oppressed, the sects are monopolized, and the barriers to Taoism are tight.

The monks at the bottom have no way to practice Buddhism, lack spiritual stones, and have a hard time living.

Ten-year-old Mo Hua was born with a weak body, was born as a Buddhist monk, and came from a poor family.

Even if he practices hard, he may only be a humble ant-like Qi-refining monk throughout his life.

Until a Tao tablet appeared in his sea of ​​consciousness.

You can comprehend the heavenly formations and infinitely enhance your spiritual consciousness.

Ink painting will use the Taoist stele to break down the barriers of Taoism, create supreme spiritual consciousness, fully understand the formations of the Immortal Tao, and strive for the road to immortality…

- Description from novelbuddy