Forces of Temptation Chapter 145 Discussion

tldr;

Story: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨

Incredible worldbuilding and engaging plot, not unexpected given author of the tr*shbin novel. But, romance kinda gets in the way sometimes -- like, there's too much going on. LOL. Intriguing story, ruthless game, BAM, MLs having a moment with each other while LYH exists in the corner.

Translation: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨

Really great, some typoes here and there, but a high standard that makes it easy to read.

Romance: ⭐⭐⭐️

ML shows a kindhearted, gentlemanly facade at first, but has an inkling of being a tragic male lead with hints of possessive, manipulative and OP-KILLER tendencies while living somewhere in self-denial. Sometimes, I feel like he's boiling MC in a pot of hot water slowly so he doesn't notice, and MC is too naive to comprehend. When MC'S brain is suddenly online, ML starts to backpedal his pursuit and I'm like what. The romance doesn't really engage me at all so I end up side-eyeing them for how they interact with everyone else. Their backstory is pretty interesting (MC's in particular), though the DPUBFtr*shbin author already used amnesia trope in the other novel? Communication skills are left wanting since hiding stuff from each other because ✨tragic backstory✨ is the default route to go, lol. Anyway, it's good if it's your thing.

Rating here is generally my own interest level, and will definitely vary if you actually like the pairing.

Side Characters: ⭐⭐⭐✨

Li Yinhang is the third "main character", as she's on their team. She's kind of the "reader's viewpoint" in terms of normal person accidentally falling into the game. Since readers are more likely to relate her, JF's regard towards of her is iffy. Sometimes, her treatment is nice, sometimes it's bad. She's not as developed as NZ or JF, and not as important or cool as MC/ML, answers simple questions to reveal the way for MC but is generally going the wrong route. In fact, sometimes, it feels like she's a caricature of a person with how much the author brings up money in regards to LYH, I really hope she displays more growth and can act more independently by the end. Nan Zhou treats her well enough, and is teaching her on and off.

Spoiler

As for ML... if both MC and LYH a prisoner? ML: as long as I reach MC... (LYH: *air*). Even one of the bosses who had MC and LYH captive was like "what about the girl?" ML: does it matter since they're both there?

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The good point is that LYH is aware she's baggage to these "gods", and while I'm riled of ML's bias, she's incredibly self aware and just handles herself accordingly while they make eyes at each other. It's also no surprise that when asked what her greatest fear is, one of her true answers is that she's afraid of dragging them down and getting left behind. Anyway, I really like LYH, but she could stand to be more developed as a character, even without being one of the parties in the romance ship.

Another good point is that most of the other characters that are shown longer than a few seconds have their own motives and it's possible to win them over even if they were originally antagonistic. They have their own goals and motives.

Also on side characters... how many people are taking steps towards same-s*x relationships? 👀

Edit: My initial impression is somewhere towards 3.5, moving up as I start to enjoy the story and characters getting fleshed out... and then back to 3.5 since it's actually a possessive/manipulative ML.

Spoiler

Initial ramble:

The first game is fairly fun and interesting (though I'd be riding on people's coattails to pass, for sure). I like Li Yinhang, as she's by far the most relatable person to the reader - along for the ride, but at a level that matches the average reader. The fact that she started searching for her roommate was sweet and human... but I wish she was able to help the two MLs a bit more or figure out a clue without the direction being wrong, lol. The other thing I like is that the MLs don't entirely treat her like air when she's not needed to chime in as a prop. They make sure she's safe and keep her guesses in mind. (Edit: I spoke too soon on this, lol. I think Nan Zhou is genuine (relatively) ; Jiang Fang is just pretending to be nice for Nan Zhou. Haaa.. JF helped LYH solve a psychological problem, but immediately changed face when he was done - "didn't want a burden dragging his team down." Ew. Understandable since life and death situations, but putting it like that after going through several instances together is just sociopathic... and he's starting to reveal that he's a faker and his obvious bias for Nan Zhou. It gives me the chills.)

On another note, the two MLs just seem... out of this world, as if the author needs to make them standout to make us like them and put them in a low-worry mystery genre rather than a life-and-death game. I can already tell the MC will be dense when it comes to EQ and the ML slow cooking him with sweetness until he's ready. (As I read more and more gets revealed, I can see why author does make the Nan Zhou stand out; JF is just a stereotypical ML with a tragic back story).

Their introduction definitely made them bigshots, but also extremely eccentric. Nan Zhou's 5 seconds to suddenly gauge and decide on an identity to avoid suspicion? For me, the situation was jarring, especially when the POV suddenly switches to his perspective and all I can do is wonder how geniuses' brains worked. Also, why are the "NPC"s annoyed at him just because he does things a little off? It seems like an attempt at humor where you make fun of the System, but ends up falling flat and makes the story lose the "horror" atmosphere. (There's some inkling of why revealed where I'm at now, so I'm glad it isn't a random trait).

Romance-wise, I WANT TO ROOT FOR THE SHIP, but if I don't understand the logic behind a pairing, showing it too early makes me balk from it. I believe there's a reason why Jiang Fang immediately liked Nan Zhou, otherwise I feel he's a bit too quick in trying to romance MC. (Edit; where I'm at, there is a reason for this as well... but now JF is just a possessive, manipulative ML I find uncomfortable since he's onesidedly focusing on NZ. You don't end up a good guy just because you're good to one person and nice to everyone else because you don't want to drop your mask in front of the person you like. You can tell JF would drop LYH in a flash if NZ said he didn't want to bring her any more, no arguments).

Also, despite being tagged manly gay couple, the author's notes were quick to call Nan Zhou Jiang Fang's wife...... It's a pet peeve, but I personally wish people stopped feminizing men just because they're likely the bottom.

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