MTL - Rebirth 1999: Opening the Age of Black Technology - Chapter 548 what! Defensive! (2 in 1)

“Shameless Xia Ping, not only did you steal my martial arts manual and medicinal pills, you even took my fiancée! We’re not finished!”

Themes: Black Market Trading, Global Crime Networks, Boundaries of Human Nature and Morality, The Struggle Between Truth and SurvivalStory Background:In a modern metropolis, the surface level of prosperity conceals the darkness and corruption lurking beneath. Ethan, a highly skilled detective, spends his life navigating the shadowy corners of the city, uncovering the hidden secrets buried beneath the mundane facade of everyday life. When he is drawn into what initially seems like a simple suicide case, he becomes entangled in a conspiracy involving the global black market, power struggles, and transnational crime.Main Characters:Ethan (Protagonist): A seasoned, calm, and intuitive detective who excels at finding the truth in complex cases. On the surface, he is a quiet, solitary man who prefers to avoid social interaction, but deep down, he is haunted by unresolved cases from his past. Faced with dark forces, he is both determined and full of doubt.Lila (Female Protagonist/Key Ally): Ethan's investigative partner, an intelligent and resourceful intelligence officer with a mysterious background. Her past is also shrouded in secrecy, and she seems to have an undisclosed connection to the “Black Angels” organization. She provides crucial assistance in Ethan's investigation, but her motives remain unclear, casting suspicion on her true intentions.Victor Saville (Antagonist/Main Adversary): A charismatic yet dangerous businessman, who appears to be a successful entrepreneur but is, in fact, one of the central figures of the global crime syndicate “The Black Angels.” Cold-hearted, clever, and ruthless, he controls a global black market network, overseeing arms trafficking, human trafficking, and drug smuggling. He is not only a key figure in Langley's death but also the biggest obstacle in Ethan's investigation.The Mysterious Woman (Key Character): An elusive woman who repeatedly appears during Ethan's investigation, warning him not to delve deeper into Saville and the “Black Angels” organization. Her identity is unclear, but it is evident that she holds vital secrets about Saville and his network. Her appearances leave Ethan bewildered—whether she is an enemy or his only ally remains uncertain.

Yeho is a distant relative to a king in a small kingdom. Even though he is a distant relative, his house was very poor, and his mother was addicted to gambling. One day North Empire asked for Princess Sooyoung to be a concubine of an old Emperor because she was known for her beauty. But the king really loved his daughter so instead he ordered Yeho’s older sister to disguise as Princess Sooyoung and marry the old Emperor.

Yeho told his sister to run away with her lover, and his sister had to leave her younger brother alone with his mother. After she ran away, Yeho asked his mother to give the things back to the king that she got for trying to sell her daughter, but his mother already used the gifts to pay off her gambling debt. He was trying to give the gifts back to the king to take away his order, but now he can’t do that anymore. He tells his mother to run away, and he disguises as his sister to go to North Empire.

After he got there, he was trying to tell the Emperor the truth and take away his life, but the Emperor went out for few days to look around his empire. When the emperor came back, he wasn’t as old as he thought.

Lu Qingyan was once the perfect daughter—an obedient, soft-spoken high school girl known for her academic excellence and fragile health. But the one person she loved the most was her older brother—hentle, dazzling, and far too burdened for his age, he was her everything.. No one noticed his silent suffering… until it was too late. The day he took his own life, she shattered.Months later, while saving a child from an oncoming car, Lu Qingyan dies and awakens inside a familiar story: the school novel “A Thorn in the Crown”, one she read during her lowest days.But she’s no longer just a reader.She’s now Lu Qingyan, the infamous younger sister of Lu Mingxuan—the novel’s violent and cold-hearted villain feared across campus. A notorious delinquent, and ironically, the sworn enemy of her favorite character: Wang Jingyuan, the story’s tragic antagonist turned misunderstood villain.In the novel, Lu Qingyan is little more than cannon fodder—a delusional girl who idolizes her brother, gets caught in the crossfire between Lu Mingxuan and Wang Jingyuan, and ends up being dead.Determined to change the plot, she initially plans to curry favor with Wang Jingyuan—to save him from his doomed fate.But everything shifts the moment she lays eyes on Lu Mingxuan.He has her brother’s face.The same weary eyes.The same lonely back.The same silent cry for help no one else hears.And in that moment, Lu Qingyan’s plan shatters.This isn’t just a story anymore.So Lu Qingyan vowed to protect him this time, even if it means dragging her brother out of gang fights, squaring off against entitled rich kids, or defying the other villain himself—Wang Jingyuan, the school’s cold and brilliant golden boy... and Lu Mingxuan's sworn rival.In the original novel, Wang Jingyuan was one of the big villains—the cunning and miserable friend of the male lead. Now, he’s front and center... and watching her a little too closely....Lu Mingxuan always disliked his bootlicking sister, but one day he discovered that she had stopped following him around.Later, he unexpectedly found his sworn enemy, Wang Jingyuan, trapping his sister against the wall and between his arms. With an ambiguous and languid expression, he coaxed in a soft tone, “Just give up on that useless brother of yours. What Lu Mingxuan can give you, I can too.”Lu Qingyan: ???Wang Jingyuan, you dog!!That’s my sister!! Stop daydreaming!!