Regarding the Credit Point Commercial District, it requires a real economy as its backing to truly develop. Every item sold in the Credit Point Commercial District is scanned from real-life products, and every item purchased by consumers must be physically delivered in the real world. If any fraudulent or deceptive practices occur, a company will have its virtual in-game business license revoked. Moreover, constructing each Credit Point Commercial District requires paying a significant number of credit points to Faith, making it a highly costly endeavor.
To develop the Nie family’s company, Nie Yan had to start with capturing strongholds, and to obtain strongholds, they had to seize them from the Tuoba family!
Nie Yan recalled Tuoba Shi, a young man he hadn’t been in touch with for quite some time. After Tuoba Hongye’s defeat in the game, that kid must have already taken action. Nie Yan wondered how things had turned out. If Tuoba Shi had failed, Nie Yan might never see him again in the game. The results of family conflicts were often this brutal.
Nie Yan had already begun envisioning a grand plan in his heart. He wanted the Nie family’s company to rival major conglomerates like Zhengrong Group and Longyue Group. Only then would he have the qualifications to marry Xie Yao and avoid being seen as someone who had married above his station!
After a while, Xie Yao approached, accompanied by her father, Xie Jun. Nie Yan quickly stood up.
“You’re Nie Yan, right?” Xie Jun looked at Nie Yan with a smile. His tone was very warm and friendly.
“Yes, Uncle Xie, nice to meet you,” Nie Yan greeted politely. Meeting Xie Yao’s father made him a bit nervous, but he maintained a composed demeanor.
Behind Xie Jun, Xie Yao made a face at Nie Yan, pointing at her father and shaking her hand, indicating that she hadn’t invited him over.
Seeing Xie Yao’s mischievous expression, Nie Yan smiled slightly. Xie Jun then noticed Xie Yao behind him and pulled her out.
“I heard you’ve just been admitted to the elite program at the First Military Academy. That’s quite impressive. Young man, your future is bright; make sure to seize the opportunities ahead,” Xie Jun said kindly.
Xie Jun was a kind and amiable father.
“Thank you, Uncle. I will definitely work hard.” Compared to Xie Yi’s sarcastic remarks, Xie Jun’s words were truly heartwarming.
“I won’t interfere with your relationship. You two are grown up now and must take responsibility for your own actions,” Xie Jun said earnestly to Nie Yan. Teenagers nowadays matured early, and dating at eighteen or nineteen was quite normal. However, he still needed to evaluate Nie Yan carefully. If Nie Yan turned out to have ill intentions, he would have to resort to special measures.
Xie Yao blushed, not expecting her father to be so direct.
“I understand,” Nie Yan replied earnestly.
Xie Jun nodded. Based on his initial impression, Nie Yan seemed to be a decent young man. Still, he needed to send someone to investigate further—check out his background at school, etc. He had heard that Nie Yan had some conflicts with Liu Rui, son of the Liu family, but he personally didn’t like Liu Rui much. The boy lacked stability, although his admission to the First Military Academy did show talent. Xie Jun had originally planned to wait a few more years to see if Liu Rui would improve, but recently, Xie Yao had clearly shown little interest in Liu Rui, so he decided to let it go.
Nie Yan’s family background couldn’t compare to the Xie family’s, but Xie Jun didn’t care about that. The Xie family was already wealthy enough; more money was just a number. As long as Nie Yan had good character and was hardworking, he might be capable of taking over their business one day.
Nie Yan had already proven his abilities by getting into the elite program at the First Military Academy—only three students from Huadai High School had ever achieved that in its hundred-year history.
Xie Jun asked Nie Yan about some details regarding his relationship with Xie Yao, and Nie Yan answered each question respectfully.
“You two kids chat. I have some work to do and won’t disturb you,” Xie Jun smiled and walked toward the center of the hall.
Nie Yan bowed slightly, feeling a sense of relief.
“Nie Yan, were you very nervous?” Xie Yao smiled, her dimples showing as she looked like a beautiful doll under the hall’s lighting.
“Not too much. Your father is very approachable,” Nie Yan replied. He was indeed a bit nervous because this was Xie Yao’s father. If Xie Jun didn’t like him, things could become complicated.
“My dad really is easygoing,” Xie Yao said, sharing some amusing stories about her father, hoping Nie Yan would get to know him better.
Nie Yan listened quietly.
The banquet hall was bustling with people, but no one disturbed Xie Yao. For these business elites and high-level executives, Xie Yao’s birthday party was merely an excuse to provide a networking platform. At such a gathering, deals worth billions might be made.
Nie Yan glanced into the distance and saw Cao Xu and Xie Jun seated in a corner, engaged in a tense conversation. Several representatives from Longyue Group were also nearby. Nie Yan guessed that a conflict had arisen and they were trying to find a suitable solution.
Nie Yan speculated that with the alliance between Zhengrong and Longyue Groups through marriage, any conflict among the three major conglomerates would inevitably target Century Group. Nie Yan, of course, would be delighted to see Century Group suffer more losses.
As Nie Yan’s gaze swept across the room, it met with Fan Yuan’s. The two exchanged icy glares.
Fan Yuan looked at Xie Yao sitting beside Nie Yan, revealing a hint of jealousy. He turned his head and started chatting with several women nearby, smoothly navigating between them.
“Xie Yao, do you know who Fan Yuan is?” Nie Yan asked her curiously.
“Mm, he’s the second-in-line heir of the Ouyun Group. However, he has clearly overshadowed his older brother. In Faith, his name is quite famous—he’s known as Angelic Demon, the leader of the Angelic Dominion guild,” Xie Yao replied. In the game, she still believed Nie Yan was stronger than Fan Yuan.
Hearing the name Angelic Demon, Nie Yan’s mind immediately recalled some related information. Angelic Demon was one of the acknowledged geniuses of the Saturn Empire, always leading in level among the Lawful Good alignment players, even surpassing some naturally gifted giants who leveled up extremely fast. It was said that he played an Elven Demon Hunter. Demon Hunters were archer-class players specializing in long-range attacks, with bow ranges longer than mages, slightly lower damage output than mages, but dealing piercing physical damage, occasionally enhanced with magical effects. A skilled Demon Hunter could be extremely powerful, a formidable solo class.
The name Angelic Demon had been legendary in the previous timeline. Besides his exceptional skills, he had gathered a large group of top-tier professional players around him. The Angelic Dominion guild had conquered the entire Saturn Empire, building a vast empire. It was said that at the time, the combined strength of five guilds—Triumphant Empire, Holy Flame, Mage Alliance, Sacred Guardians, and Bloodthirsty Blade—was barely equal to that of Angelic Dominion alone. Such was the scale of its glory.
The name Angelic Demon represented a mythic presence in Nie Yan’s past life.
Nie Yan’s eyes gleamed with interest. He wondered what it would be like to face someone like that.
“It’s said he’s very talented. At our age, he once won second place in the All-European Karate Championship, with the champion being seven or eight years older. Later, he got into the Royal European Air Force Academy. However, his character isn’t very good. I have a cousin who dated him for a while before they broke up. He’s always been surrounded by scandals,” Xie Yao said with disdain. Even now, Fan Yuan was never short of female company.
Nie Yan smiled. Xie Yao rarely expressed dislike for someone directly, so it was clear she had a very poor impression of Fan Yuan.
Xie Yao’s mother and grandfather couldn’t attend due to last-minute emergencies, which puzzled Xie Yao. Her mother usually had free time, so why couldn’t she attend her birthday banquet? After the event had gone on for a while, some guests began to leave.
After glancing at Nie Yan, Fan Yuan left.
As for Cao Xu and Xie Jun, they had more matters to discuss and moved to a meeting room inside the building.
“Let’s go,” Xie Yao said, tidying herself up and putting on a coat.
Nie Yan and Xie Yao went downstairs together, retrieved their car from the underground garage, and drove home.
Driving through the bustling streets, Nie Yan dropped Xie Yao off at her doorstep and stopped the car.
“Park in the garage,” Xie Yao said.
Nie Yan hesitated slightly.
“Come inside for a bit. My dad and mom won’t be back until evening,” Xie Yao explained. In fact, if her father got busy, he might not return at all, and her mother might not either. Being home alone could be quite lonely.
Nie Yan had never been inside before, but he didn’t have any ulterior motives. He parked the car in the garage and entered the villa with Xie Yao.
The layout of Xie Yao’s villa was a bit different from his own home, but the environment was quite peaceful, with many plants planted in front of the house, giving it a lush green appearance.
The living room was elegantly arranged. Xie Yao took off her shoes and put on a pair of oversized slippers, walking further inside.
“Nie Yan, welcome to my home. Have some tea—it’s homemade barley tea, very fragrant,” Xie Yao said enthusiastically.
Xie Yao looked very innocent. Nie Yan smiled slightly and said, “Okay.”
“You sit here for a moment. I need to change clothes. This outfit is too inconvenient,” Xie Yao lifted her skirt and walked toward the bedroom.
“Alright,” Nie Yan nodded, glancing around Xie Yao’s home. The warm-toned decorations gave the house a cozy, homely feeling.
After a while, Xie Yao came out wearing pink loungewear, looking very cute.
Looking at Xie Yao brewing the barley tea, Nie Yan felt a warm, gentle emotion rise in his heart.
They sat down on the sofa together. For some reason, Xie Yao suddenly recalled the incident that had occurred between them in the KTV room, and a charming blush appeared on her cheeks.
Nie Yan picked up the tea, took a sip, and savored its rich aroma.
“What do you think?” Xie Yao looked at Nie Yan with anticipation.
“Not bad,” Nie Yan nodded.
Hearing Nie Yan’s praise, Xie Yao’s face lit up with joy.
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