"Lin Zhao!"
Not far from the tarmac, Leng Yan personally greeted him. Dressed in a white shirt, a black tie, and a black pleated skirt, paired with small leather shoes, she looked youthful and energetic. Despite being a 25-year-old, Leng Yan's outfit looked perfectly natural. After all, she was beautiful, with long, slender, and radiant legs. Combined with her attire, Lin Zhao, who had just stepped off the plane, was momentarily stunned.
He stood frozen, looking at Leng Yan not far away, and suddenly recalled an old song lyric—
The spring breeze, unaware of affection, stirred the heart of the young man.
...
At this moment, Lin Zhao's heart felt as if it had been struck by something powerful. Leng girl's attire today was truly lethal!
"What are you still standing around for?"
Leng Yan smiled, "I ordered a split pot, it's almost boiling, let's go."
"Oh, okay..."
Lin Zhao nodded and walked alongside Leng Yan. The group from Feiyue Transportation remained in the cabin. Huodao sat at the cabin door, his eyes full of envy, "If I could live like boss for even one day in my life, it would be worth it..."
"Hush!"
A young escort team member chuckled, "Boss Huodao, keep your voice down. This is Xu family territory in Ningcheng. If someone overhears your sarcastic remarks, it won't be good. Besides, Boss Lin Zhao earned Miss Leng's favor truly through his own abilities as Lin Baiyi. Don't be envious; you can't envy what you don't have. You're not good-looking, and in the game, you're a support profession. What can you compare with him?"
Huodao scoffed, then jumped up and slapped the young team member on the head, saying, "Have you forgotten the ancestor's words, 'Are kings and generals born to be so'? Everyone is born equal in personhood. I'm just complaining a little, and you're lecturing me. Earlier, when you were staring at Leng Yan, your eyes never left her legs. I'll report this to boss later!"
"No, no, no! Brother Huodao, have a cigarette and calm down!"
...
On the rooftop, Lin Zhao and Leng Yan sat opposite each other, eating hot pot. Leng Yan had already ordered all the ingredients. After all, they had eaten together many times, and she knew Lin Zhao's tastes. Lin Zhao, having had a difficult life since childhood and growing up in the slums, had never had very good meals. He often made do with instant food, which resulted in a sensitive stomach. He couldn't eat hard or spicy food, so he could only sadly eat the three-delicacy pot. Leng Yan, on the other hand, didn't seem like a Ningcheng local, but more like a girl from Rongcheng. She casually ate the bright red tripe and marbled beef, but to maintain her ladylike image, she ate in small bites. She even worried she wouldn't be full, but it was okay; she could have a late-night snack later.
"Lin Zhao."
Leng Yan said, "How do you use your Immortal Gourd?"
"Middle Refinement!"
Lin Zhao replied, "Refine it into a semi-natal item through Middle Refinement, and then you can see the spatial distribution within the Immortal Gourd, just like formatting hard drive space back then. My orange gourd is divided into two parts. One part stores wine, and the other part is like the Sword Nurturing Lake, used for nurturing flying swords."
"Oh..."
Leng Yan pursed her red lips. "I'll do a Middle Refinement as soon as I log in. By the way, during the fight today, I saw many fine, dense flying swords fly out of your orange gourd. Those flying swords were very small but seemed quite lethal. What's the origin of those flying swords?"
"Oh..."
Lin Zhao hesitated for a moment, feeling he had nothing to hide from Leng Yan. "Those are Mayfly Flying Swords. It was my fortune during my journey to Baihua Tianxia. Back then, I was boating and fishing on a large river. When I cast my line, it snagged the skirt of a young girl on an official boat, and I pulled her down. That girl looked almost exactly like you, Yan, like a younger version of you. Her name was Qingyan. In fact, she was a heart demon of mine. Wu Yuanzi, the umbrella-wielding heart demon of Baihua Tianxia, intended to use Qingyan to break my state of mind, but he failed in the end. Because Qingyan grew from the depths of my heart, modeled after you, she couldn't break my state of mind."
"And then?"
Leng Yan's clear, large eyes widened. She loved hearing Lin Zhao tell stories of the martial world, especially since Qingyan was related to her.
"Then..."
Lin Zhao frowned. "Qingyan and I made a pact for me to spend the whole day with her. Later, we walked along an official road in Baihua Tianxia, ate wontons, flew kites, helped the people of Dongping Town pray for rain, and helped the people of Taohua Town expel evil spirits. It wasn't until late at night that Qingyan suddenly became weak. She said she had no regrets and had been by my side her whole life, and then she left. It was then that I realized she was a creature of the world called a mayfly. As the saying goes, a mayfly knows not of dawn and dusk; a day is its entire life. She was a heart demon sent by the umbrella-wielding heart demon Wu Yuanzi to disrupt my state of mind, but she also left indelible memories in my heart."
"..."
Leng Yan's gaze was tender, her eyes turning red.
"That's enough."
Lin Zhao smiled and said, "Actually, back in Baihua Tianxia, I knew that Qingyan was you from the depths of my heart. It was as if you, Yan, accompanied me on my journey through Baihua Tianxia. Before Qingyan died, she told me to be wary of that Wu Yuanzi, and then she left me a Mayfly Flying Sword. This flying sword was only an inch long, a very petite flying sword. Later, when the orange gourd matured, I nurtured the Mayfly Flying Sword in it. Guess what? This Mayfly Flying Sword could self-replicate, one became two, two became four. Today, there are a total of sixteen Mayfly Flying Swords, just as you see them."
"Is that so..."
Leng Yan's dimples shallowly appeared as she smiled. "Speaking of which, it really is a stroke of good fortune..."
As she spoke, she pursed her red lips and said, "Although I wasn't involved, Qingyan came about because of me. It can be considered a chance encounter you gained through me. Since that's the case, you must repay me."
"Ah?"
Lin Zhao couldn't help but chuckle. "Tell me, what do you want? I'll buy you anything that isn't too expensive!"
Leng Yan laughed indignantly. "I'll buy what I want myself. How about this... after dinner, accompany me to watch a movie. There's a cinema on the 24th floor of Ningcheng Center."
"Okay, a small matter!"
And so, the two began to chat about the game's storyline again. Lin Zhao was a standard "addicted gamer" when it came to game storylines. Since the beta test, he had been deeply engrossed in the game. Leng Yan, on the other hand, was a player who preferred game storylines over data. Her performance during the beta test was evident, otherwise, she wouldn't be known as "Miss Leng." Therefore, when the two got together, they had endless topics to discuss. Lin Zhao told Leng Yan stories of the martial world, and Leng Yan told Lin Zhao about the hardships and struggles of Winter Spring Sword Sect's entrepreneurship.
After dinner, the two went downstairs together to watch a movie.
...
At the Cloud Shadow-class VTOL transport aircraft, Huodao glanced at his phone and frowned, "Boss went to watch a movie with Leng Yan and told us to fend for ourselves. Brothers, what should we do?"
"Ah?"
A young escort team member laughed, "You don't mean they'll have us return the same way after two hours, and boss will just stay at Ningcheng Center, right?"
"Impossible, highly unlikely."
Huodao raised his eyebrows and smiled, "We still have Chen Xue, Shen Xingchen, Luoman, and Mo Chenxue waiting at home. If boss really spent the night at Leng Yan's place, his personal image would be in tatters when he returned. Besides, with our Boss Lin Zhao's dullness in matters of the heart, it's basically out of the question. If he really let loose, Leng Yan's child would be two months old by now."
"That's true!"
Everyone sighed collectively, what a waste of talent!
"Let's go."
Huodao said, "Turn off the engines, let's go eat some hot pot. By the time we finish, boss will also be done with his date. No problem, just put the meal expenses on the company account."
"En!"
...
Ningcheng Center, Cinema.
Leng Yan got the tickets and queued with Lin Zhao to buy drinks and popcorn. Nearby were a group of students, all from nearby universities like Nandai, Nanhang, and Nanlin. The gazes of several male students were involuntarily drawn to Leng Yan, who was wearing a JK uniform. Leng Yan was already a super beauty, and now, dressed like this, her destructive power seemed even more terrifying.
"Damn..."
A male student frowned and whispered to his companion, "Where is this girl from? We don't have anyone this beautiful at Nandai... At least I, a senior in my fourth year, have never seen her."
"Don't know, maybe she's from Nanhang? I heard Nanhang has beautiful girls!"
"Beautiful my ass, how many good-looking girls can a science and engineering school have? Besides, my buddy is from Nanhang, and I know what the campus beauties and departmental beauties of Nanhang look like. She's far from them..."
"No, wait!"
A short-haired student frowned. "Don't you think this girl looks familiar? Such a beautiful face, such long legs, and her appearance... she looks like Leng Yan, the Alliance Master of Shengtian!"
"Ah?!"
Several male students were stunned. Just then, they noticed a few bodyguards nearby wearing single-soldier combat armor systems, watching them not too far away. Clearly, those men were the girl's bodyguards! This further confirmed the identity of the JK beauty. She could only be the pride of Ningcheng Xu Group.
"Wait."
Another male student frowned and said, "If she's Leng Yan, then the guy buying her drinks..."
"Lin Baiyi?!"
This time, everyone was truly shocked. And when Lin Zhao turned around with a brilliant smile, it further confirmed for these students that it was indeed him. Although he looked a bit different from his game avatar, his demeanor remained unchanged.
...
Shortly after, the movie began.
Lin Zhao and Leng Yan sat in the seventh row. The row in front was filled with students, and the row behind was also filled with students.
As for the movie plot, it was a story about mechs fighting monsters, full of sci-fi elements, titled "Around Taihu Lake"...
Lin Zhao rarely watched movies.
Movie tickets were so expensive; he couldn't afford them before, and now he didn't have time. So, he sat upright, watching with rapt attention, even forgetting to drink his soda. Leng Yan, beside him, watched the movie, then stole a glance at Lin Zhao. She suddenly thought of something, and a blush rose to her pretty face. She naturally took Lin Zhao's right hand.
"!!!"
Lin Zhao's heart pounded, and he became extremely nervous.
Leng Yan pursed her red lips and looked up at the movie, her hands holding Lin Zhao's. After a while, her right hand subconsciously moved to grab her cola. Lin Zhao's palm then landed on Leng Yan's slender, jade-like leg.
"..."
Lin Zhao felt as if struck by lightning, his face turning red.
Can I... can I touch this?!