[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-the-system-protagonist-joined-a-cross-dimensio":3,"chapter-i-the-system-protagonist-joined-a-cross-dimensio-i-the-system-protagonist-joined-a-cross-dimensio-chapter-71":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I, the System Protagonist, Joined a Cross-Dimensional Chat Group",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2292731,4485,"Chapter 71: Do You Still Remember Xia by Daming Lake?","i-the-system-protagonist-joined-a-cross-dimensio-chapter-71",71,"\u003Cp>Chu Zihang frowned in confusion; he was merely stating facts objectively—where had he used imprecise wording?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I didn’t expect you to observe so closely, Senior Brother.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mingfei rubbed his temples and smiled helplessly, not embarrassed at being caught in his awkwardness, but instead feeling a warm glow inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mingfei knew Chu Zihang treated him well and cared deeply for him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the news of NoNo and Kai Sa’s engagement broke, Chu Zihang was the first to find him in the cafeteria—he was turning grief into appetite, shoving a buttered bun into his mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, actually there was no anger—those two were perfectly matched, made for each other; if he still felt resentment, he’d be nothing but a clown. Besides, Senior Brother Kai Sa had always treated him well, even just now saying he wanted to borrow a few thousand yuan from him back in middle school to go online.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’d be even better if he didn’t charge interest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sometimes he couldn’t meet Kai Sa’s gaze—he still harbored feelings for the man’s fiancée...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What could he do? That girl, at his lowest point, had shone like a brilliant meteor, illuminating his world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At Zhao Menghua’s graduation party confession to Chen Wenwen, Lu Mingfei was merely a lowercase “i”—a background prop, a joke, enhancing others’ youthful beauty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Throughout all three years of high school, everyone in the school knew he liked Chen Wenwen, secretly pining for her—yet Lu Mingfei, foolishly, believed no one knew, treating it as his own little secret.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He never planned to confess to Chen Wenwen; he was insecure and realistic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did he have to offer? His skill at Xingjidadehao ? His precise CSGO aim? Was he the protagonist of a novel called Dragon Clan, the classic underdog hero?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Forget it—his grades were the worst in class. Though he secretly hoped a girl would love him, Lu Mingfei truly had no such strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He only imagined that, years later at a class reunion, smiling, he’d calmly tell Chen Wenwen, now happily married: “Chen Wenwen, I once liked you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That would be the best ending.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mingfei never dreamed of touching that unreachable white moonlight—it was too distant, visible but untouchable; just seeing it at night was enough to keep the darkness around him from swallowing him whole.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had already sunk so low, yet someone still wouldn’t let him be—on his one and only high school graduation party, they turned him into a plank to be stomped into the mud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Made him use mud as makeup, playing the clown for everyone’s amusement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unsurprisingly, his already worthless, even disgraceful youth would forever remain caked in mud, becoming an annual topic at every class reunion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t really care what others thought—truly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He simply lacked the strength to climb out of the chasm named “loneliness,” unable to accept the reality that his youth had held not even a sliver of light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Lu Mingfei, NoNo at that time had been like a meteor—no, more like a comet, Halley’s kind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moon gave Lu Mingfei no moonlight; she strode through the party’s doors in radiant glory, handing him a suit and a Ferrari, letting him live out the plot of a modern urban fantasy hero, brutally humiliating the “short-sighted little worm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She left behind the Ten Legends of Shilan Middle School: “Lord Lu.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now thinking back, thank goodness the times restrained NoNo—otherwise, Lu Mingfei had no doubt this crazy girl might have hired more actors to stage:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The three-year term is over! We humbly summon the Dragon King’s return!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Lu Mingfei would just smirk crookedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Forget about a comeback and humiliation...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back to the point—he developed feelings for NoNo because of this incident, and they grew uncontrollably.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Occasionally he wondered: would things have been better if he’d known sooner she had a boyfriend?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe not—so Lu Mingfei began questioning his own moral standing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how brilliant a comet, it still passes over Earth—it’s never truly yours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if he had to name one joyful memory worth remembering for life since entering the Cassell Academy, one was making Chu Zihang his true brother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even just two days ago, he’d wanted to help him crash the wedding car axle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Senior Brother wasn’t just a senior—he was a sworn brother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cold-hearted but warm-souled, handsome, powerful, driven, and utterly charismatic—he even “charmed” the Dragon King himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he’d risked angering Kai Sa, a top-tier bloodline family with immense wealth and influence—Chu Zihang surely knew the trouble such an act would bring, yet he still did it for Lu Mingfei.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having a friend like this—what more could one ask for? Just be glad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Lu Mingfei, I don’t know what you’ve been through these past few days,” Chu Zihang said after returning to the room, removing his colored contacts—his ever-burning golden eyes calm and commanding. “You can tell me—if I can help, I will.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Zihang finished, sensing his words sounded too arrogant, too condescending, and quickly added: “If you’re willing, more people mean more strength, don’t they?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mingfei laid one arm on the wooden table, slumping sideways, resting his head on it, closing his eyes as if exhausted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt Chu Zihang should’ve been the protagonist—cold exterior, kind heart, handsome, powerful, driven, with unmatched personal charm and character—even the Dragon King had been “charmed” by him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet someone wrote a novel with him as the hero—sigh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Lin claimed his popularity surpassed Chu Zihang’s, so one night Lu Mingfei took the new smartphone he’d borrowed from Kleine and browsed online.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A search revealed—holy cow—there really was such a poll. The top-ranked anime character had “Lu Mingfei” written beside it in large letters. Lu Mingfei was so thrilled he couldn’t sleep all night, secretly grinning under his covers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later, he thought harder: what was there to be happy about?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chu Zihang’s life path resembled a typical urban fantasy novel protagonist—this archetype would be wildly popular among female readers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only, he’d likely end up like him—in a novel where every story ends in tragedy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His beloved junior sister was a dragon, his rival and “fated enemy” Kai Sa was suspected to be the Dragon King’s son, and his closest brother seemed to be the final boss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Holy cow—this was heading straight for a heartless path to enlightenment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mingfei lay there, head propped up, eyes closed, lost in random thoughts, while Chu Zihang waited silently beside him, not pressing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mingfei looked up, resting his chin on his arm, and asked Chu Zihang wearily, “Senior brother, can I ask you a question?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Mingfei lifted his head, chin resting on his arm, and asked Chu Zihang wearily: “Senior Brother, can I ask you something?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ask.” Chu Zihang nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do you still think of Xia Mi?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...” Chu Zihang hadn’t expected this question. He paused, then answered honestly: “Occasionally.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why ask about this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Senior Brother, suppose...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[60] Lu Mingfei paused, then continued: “Suppose I’m also a dragon—what would you do?”\u003C\u002Fp>",1156,"2026-06-20T04:17:29.700Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","3739bc0592f6c838ebe6cc17eea984b885f5973d662ca1f9bbf5c7160a65902a","i-the-system-protagonist-joined-a-cross-dimensio-chapter-72","i-the-system-protagonist-joined-a-cross-dimensio-chapter-70",720,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-the-system-protagonist-joined-a-cross-dimensio-cover.jpg"]