The next morning.
Lin Zhao got up almost at the same time as everyone else, not daring to sleep in. After a hearty meal, Shen Xingchen, Luo Man, and Mo Chenxue went upstairs shoulder to shoulder. Ding Chi and Zhang Jun decided to play half an hour of table tennis before logging on. Lin Zhao, however, called Chen Xue over and requested an hour of morning training. Chen Xue readily agreed, and soon the sounds of light clattering could be heard from the underground training room. Two people clad in Xihe-class combat armor sparred back and forth. Lin Zhao's familiarity and mastery of the armor grew bit by bit, his learning speed so astonishing that even Chen Xue marveled at it.
...
Online.
The morning mist shrouded the entire forest. The S-rank gem mine was guarded by Lu Han and two guilds from Shen Lan Zhi Ren, allowing Shen Xingchen, Mo Chenxue, and Luo Man to free up time to go out and level up. This patch of jungle was known as the Night Whisper Forest, inhabited by monsters ranging from level 88 to 96, and had been chosen by Shen Xingchen as their primary hunting ground.
Luo Man held up her shield and began to pull monsters. With 33% of her attribute points invested in defense, coupled with her extremely powerful equipment, she possessed incredible resilience. Even a large pack of level 90+ monsters attacking her left her unfazed. As Luo Man returned with a large group of monsters, Shen Xingchen raised her staff and chuckled, "Xiao Xue, let's start with a Divine Shepherd!"
"Got it!"
As Mo Chenxue raised her staff and cast the Divine Shepherd skill upon the monster pack, Shen Xingchen's Meteor Shower and Flame Laser erupted. Combined with the output from remote players like Lu Li, the leveling speed of this six-person team was extraordinarily fast.
While they were leveling, a sudden "ding" sounded, and Mo Chenxue received a message from a stranger. It was from Xian Lin, the vice-leader of the Xun Xian Guild: "Hi, Mo Chenxue~~~"
"Hm?"
Mo Chenxue was taken aback. "We... don't know each other, do we?"
"Who says?"
Xian Lin smiled gently. "When we clashed in the Goblin Treasure last time, I took damage from your Divine Shepherd skill. I was one of the victims, how can you say we don't know each other?"
Mo Chenxue frowned. "Is there something you need, Vice-Leader Xian Lin?"
"Calling me Vice-Leader makes us strangers."
Xian Lin continued, "First, let me clarify. My主动 reaching out to you... is absolutely not guild diplomacy, purely in my personal capacity. That..."
He showed a hint of bashfulness. "Actually, the first time I saw you, I felt you were very special, different from other girls. In the following days... don't laugh at me, I dreamed of you almost every day. It felt like a dream that wasn't a dream, and me that wasn't me. This feeling is hard to explain, but it's incredibly subtle..."
Mo Chenxue was stunned. "What... are you trying to say? Just get to the point."
"Mm."
Xian Lin nodded. "I think... I might have fallen for you. No matter what I do, I always think of you. It's like when I'm drinking coffee in the office in the morning, I can't help but wish you were sitting next to me. But... I'm also so insecure. After all, our guilds have fought each other. I'm afraid I might have left a bad impression on you, so I've been anxious and hesitant to contact you..."
"I see..."
Mo Chenxue pursed her red lips. "I'm sorry, I don't like you."
"..."
Xian Lin almost choked. He forced an awkward laugh. "It's okay. Liking someone is one's own business. It's not like if I like someone, they have to like me back. That would be too overbearing. Mo Chenxue, it's alright if you don't like me. Just consider me a friend. How about... we add each other on WeChat?"
"I don't think so?"
Mo Chenxue frowned. "We don't seem that close. Besides, I'm from the Scarlet Moon Knights, and Xun Xian is currently considered a semi-hostile guild to us. What would it look like if I added you on WeChat? My brother would be angry if he found out."
"Your brother is?"
"Bai Yi."
"Oh..."
Xian Lin's expression turned slightly unpleasant. He chuckled awkwardly. "It's fine, it's fine. It's okay if we don't add on WeChat. I only reached out so rashly because I wanted to get to know you. It would be nice to have an acquaintance. Perhaps I was too abrupt. I apologize..."
"It's alright."
Mo Chenxue blinked her beautiful eyes. "Vice-Leader Xian Lin, if you truly like me, please don't contact me. I already have someone I like, so I don't want any entanglement with you. If you like me, you surely wouldn't want me to become someone fickle, would you?"
"..."
Xian Lin slumped as if struck a heavy blow. He nodded and murmured, "Okay... I'll try not to disturb you. I'm truly sorry, I'll try my best..."
"Mm!"
Mo Chenxue nodded, then closed the communication.
...
"Phew..."
In a hilly leveling map within Tianji City, Xian Lin let out a sigh of relief and ended the call. Beside him stood Xian Bai, clad in top-tier mage equipment.
"How did it go? Successful?"
Xian Bai smiled slightly. "Ghost King's pursuit of Mo Chenxue failed. That's because Ghost King's level is too low, he lacks culture, taste, and refinement. It's his own fault for being rejected. You're different, A'Lin. You're a master's student from one of the top prestigious universities in the China region. Even if you didn't succeed in one go, at least you've made some progress, right? Tell me, did you manage to ask her out for a meal or a movie?"
"Eat what, watch what..."
Xian Lin looked dejected, like a rooster that had lost a fight. "This Mo Chenxue, she's beautiful, indeed, but her guard is too high. She even directly told me she likes someone else and asked me not to contact her. She gave me no chance at all."
He then stroked his chin. "Brother, the emotional damage I suffered today is immense. I feel like this handsome face of mine is wasted..."
Xian Bai glanced at him. "What's the use of being handsome? Chasing girls requires strategy and tactics. You need to study things like 'advance by retreating,' 'curved path to victory,' and 'winning hearts and minds.' Understanding a girl's psychology and how to better manipulate them is the most crucial part."
"Amazing, amazing."
Xian Lin applauded dryly. "Why don't you go yourself? Win over this Mo Chenxue and make her your sister-in-law directly?"
"Forget it."
Xian Bai immediately wilted like a frost-bitten eggplant. "The person I like is Leng Yan. I don't want my pursuit of Mo Chenxue to reach Leng Yan's ears, turning me into a laughingstock for no reason."
"Brother."
Xian Lin said, "It doesn't seem necessary, does it? After all, Leng Yan doesn't even acknowledge you."
"Get lost..."
Xian Bai was furious and pointed into the distance. "Get as far away as possible! Don't come back before lunch today!"
Xian Lin chuckled sheepishly. "I'm going, I'm going! I wish my brother all the best and for all his wishes to come true!"
...
In the afternoon, north of Jiuzhangyuan.
The demon race's tents were lined up, and armored soldiers stood guard outside. After the devastating raid on the Snow Domain Heavenly Lake, the demon race's defenses had become even more stringent, as if they feared the human cavalry of over a thousand might attack again.
At this moment, amidst the falling snow, a hunched figure appeared. It was an old man in a black robe, his face appearing extremely sickly, his eyes glowing with a blood-red light. Everywhere he went, an aura of death permeated. He reached the camp gate and grinned, revealing his yellowed teeth. "Shi Jungang invited me here, why is no one leading the way?"
Immediately, a crow flapped its wings and descended from the sky, transforming into a demon of the Middle Five Realms kneeling on the ground. He said with a smile, "Lord Yinghuo, your arrival from afar is unexpected. Lord Shi Jungang has prepared a banquet in the command tent and awaits your presence!"
"That's more like it. Lead the way."
"Yes!"
The old man moved slowly, coughing violently after a few steps, as if he didn't have much time left to live. In reality, however, he was an Upper Five Realm ghost, an eleventh-realm ghost cultivator, Yinghuo, whose mastery of the path of death was profound.
Inside the command tent.
Shi Jungang and Bai Ye rose in unison and cupped their fists. "We welcome Lord Yinghuo!"
"You're too kind, too kind!"
Yinghuo smiled and took his seat. He picked up a jade cup of fine wine and drank it down in one gulp, saying with a smile, "Lord Shi Jungang is a man of his word among the demon race. What matter requires our ghost race's assistance?"
Shi Jungang smiled slightly. "Some matters... are simply easier for the Upper Five Realms of the ghost race to handle."
"Indeed."
Bai Ye chuckled. "We've recently unearthed some bones and would like to ask Lord Yinghuo to use these remains to erect a Jingguan for our demon race."
"Jingguan?"
Yinghuo, an Upper Five Realm ghost cultivator, frowned. "Erecting a Jingguan is not difficult, but these bones... whose are they?"
Shi Jungang's lips curved into a smile. "Just the decaying bones of over 7,000 soldiers from the Great Chen Dynasty's Tianchi Army, from a hundred years ago."
...
In the afternoon, at the former site of the Mountain Peak Villa, a gentle breeze rustled.
"Rustle..."
Amidst the falling apricot petals, a figure descended from the sky. It was a burly middle-aged man, clad in a dark green robe, his eyes radiating a rich golden light, and his entire being exuding a divine aura. He stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze filled with arrogance as he looked at an apricot grove ahead and chuckled, "What, do you still intend to be an apricot girl here for the rest of your life?"
"..."
Silence in the wind.
"Aren't you coming out?!"
The middle-aged man took a sudden step forward, causing the ground to tremble slightly, and the apricot grove shook for several seconds.
Among them, an apricot tree swayed slowly, and a graceful figure descended from the apricot blossoms. She was dressed in an apricot-colored long dress, holding a small box wrapped in white cloth in her hands. The box seemed to contain a powerful life force, from which branched out slender, tender root-like tendrils. These tendrils were all connected to the maiden in front of her, as if the box had long since become a part of her body.
"Hmph!"
The man sneered. "It's been a hundred years, and you still refuse to hand it over?"
"I won't."
The maiden gritted her teeth. "This belongs to my Young Master. I will wait until my Young Master..."
"You, a mere apricot girl!"
The man raised an eyebrow, his voice icy. "Do you really intend to resist me, an eleventh-realm Rain Master, to the very end? Do you believe... I'll abandon the treasure and turn you and this apricot grove to dust with a single palm strike!?"
Saying this, the man grinned. "Or, I'll build a courtyard here and wait for that noble scholar to pass by, and then let you taste what it's like to be a woman?"
The maiden trembled with rage, tears welling up in her eyes. "If my Young Master knew you dared to do this, he would never forgive you!"
"You still take your Young Master seriously?"
The green-robed man darted forward in a flash, raising his palm. Instantly, the apricot girl fell into the apricot grove, spitting blood incessantly.