ã€ŠThis MC Is Kickassã€‹


 Chapter 1

    <b>Chapter 1: Entering The Game</b>

    "Iris scanplete, identity verificationplete. Wee to <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, please register your username."

    After being momentarily immersed in darkness, Shen Jingbin found herself standing on a floating crystal stage. A pleasant sounding beep could be heard beside her ear that reminded her to proceed with the next step.

    "White Clothes Warm As Jade." After mulling over it for a little while, she decided to give herself a fresh and meaningful name. After all, this name was going to apany her for her entire gaming career.

    She had heard that <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> didn¡¯t permit yers to change their names. If they really wanted to, they¡¯d have to recreate their characters. However, the basic attributes of these characters would be greatly reduced, and the probability of encountering a fortuitous event in the future would also sharply decline. In other words, the penalty for doing so was severe. This was why most people weren¡¯t willing to recreate their characters unless some major event urred.

    "I¡¯m sorry, this name is already in use, please select a new username." The system¡¯s tender voice rang out in Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears once again.

    She lowered her head and thought for a moment before she said, "Tinged Blue and White Flower."

    "I¡¯m sorry, this name is already in use, please select a new username."

    "Brilliant Peach Blossom."

    "I¡¯m sorry, this name is already in use, please select a new username."

    "Green Jade Descends Like The Azure Moon."

    "I¡¯m sorry, this name is already in use, please select a new username."

    "..."

    Your mom! She¡¯d rattled off tens of names and every single one of them had been registered, what the hell was going on!

    "Notification: In view of you taking an extended period of time to choose a username, would you like the system to randomly generate a name for you? Yes/No." A translucent dialogue box suddenly appeared in front of her eyes. She¡¯d already been worn out by the process of choosing her own username, so she decisively made up her mind to just give up on resisting.

    "Yes."

    "The system is randomly generating a name for you. One moment please..."

    "The system has randomly generated a name for you. Greetings yer Nutjob, we officially wee you to this legendary world. Please select the race and appearance of the character you will use while you traverse the world."

    Nutjob...

    Shen Jingbin spat out a mouthful of old blood. She suddenly felt the urge to kill someone!

    Did you know why she was so careful when she chose her name? That¡¯s because her real name was too unpleasant!

    Shen Jingbin = Nutjob.1 After living with this name for more than twenty years, she herself had nearly turned into a nutjob! It wasn¡¯t easy for her to y a game with the intention of breaking away from this name. But! Who! Would! Have! Thought!

    Could this be the so-called: man proposes but god disposes?!

    "Notification: In view of you taking an extended period of time to choose, would you like your race and appearance to be randomly selected? Yes/No."

    She¡¯d already been cheated once by the system, so how could she allow it to continue doing so. Shen Jingbin facepalmed as she hurriedly selected "No", before she carefully scrutinized the various races that appeared in front of her, all of which used her appearance as the basis for their virtual form.

    <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> used ancient China as its backdrop. The races of the world were separated into three groups: Humans, Celestials, and Demons. Two sects belonged to each race for a total of 6. yers could choose to join either of a race¡¯s two respective sects after undergoing their advancement.

    Humans, who excelled at crowd control and defence, were made up of Daoists and Swordmasters. Daoists focused on control, while Swordmasters specialized in defence. Celestials were skilled at healing and magic. Nymphs handled healing, and Dragonkins wielded magic. Andst but not least, Demons boasted high HP and assassinations. Maras had high defensive capabilities, while Liches conducted assassinations.

    Shen Jingbin felt that the two sects belonging to the Celestials were too upright and didn¡¯t suit her, while the Demons, on the other hand, felt far too depressing as a race. So after giving it some thought, she decided to be a Human and nned to walk the path of a crowd control-based2 Daoist.

    "Race selectionplete, generating yer avatar... Generationplete, please modify your character¡¯s appearance by selecting whether you¡¯d like to enhance or diminish it¡¯s beauty."

    "Enhance." Everyone has a love for beauty, so Shen Jingbin would naturally choose to beautify herself.

    "The system has determined your Beautification limit to be 1. Note: for the sake of your enjoyment in-game, please do not select this option."

    "..." Big sis system, are you sure you aren¡¯t making fun of me?

    "Then uglier it is."

    "The system has determined the upper limit of your appearance¡¯s diminishment to be 99, please select the level you¡¯d like to set it at."

    "99." Shen Jingbin said without thinking, choosing to make herself as ugly as possible. It¡¯d be far too embarrassing if someone recognized her name, so this was something she wanted to avoid. Since the upper limit for her Beautification attribute was so low, making it very likely for someone to recognize her in-game, she decided to make herself look as ugly as possible instead.

    She might as well go all the way with it if she was going to make herself look ugly.

    "Character creationplete." The system¡¯s notification rang out once again. Following that, a woman who had a bitter expression on her face and wore a set of white novice¡¯s clothes suddenly appeared in front of Shen Jingbin.

    Pu!

    Shen Jingbin suddenly choked on her own saliva. She swore, this was definitely the ugliest face she¡¯d ever seen! The freckles that dotted her character¡¯s tanned face was the spitting image of scattered pieces of sesame on a biscuit. One of her eyes wasrger than the other, while her eyebrows were sparse and lopsided. It gave her a wretched appearance no matter how one looked at her.

    What is that thing? Can I give up on my current character and remake it?

    After much effort, Shen Jingbin¡¯s self-hypnosis was finally a sess. With tears streaming down her cheeks, she prepared to ept the changes and reincarnate into the game world as this ugly vige girl, when she suddenly heard an unexpected "Ding ding ding" continuously ring out in her ears.

    "In view of you being the first yer in the game to achieve a Beautification limit of 1, you¡¯ve been granted a special reward of an additional 10 points to your Charm attribute."

    "In view of you being the first yer in the game to achieve the maximum limit of 99 points for your Uglification attribute, you¡¯ve been granted a special reward of an additional 5 points to your Luck attribute."

    "In view of you being the yer with the highest Uglification attribute, you¡¯ve been granted a special reward of an additional 10 points to your Luck to allow you to enjoy the game. We wish you a pleasant gaming experience."

    "In view of you being the first yer worthy of receiving three special awards, you¡¯ve been granted the following special rewards: an additional 10 points to your Luck, miraculous stone (1), miraculous wooden board (1). Please be sure to safeguard these items, they may bring about a miracle for you as you traverse the world."

    Shen Jingbin was a little dumbfounded. Was her personality so good that she was being blessed by the heavens?

    Her real name ¨C Shen Jingbin ¨C is a homophone of her in-game name, Nutjob, that reads as Éñ¾­²¡ (shen jing bing) ¨C in Chinese ? May also appear as CC in the future ?

 Chapter 2

    <b>Chapter 2: The Novice Vige</b>

    Pleasant sounding music rang out in Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears and she suddenly felt faint. The next thing she knew, she found that she was now standing at the entrance of a small vige. Many people made their way about the vige. Practically every house had a stall set up in front of it with people buying and selling various items.

    Looks like this must be the legendary novice vige.

    To ease yer congestion, <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> established many novice viges and randomized each yer¡¯s starting vige.

    Based on what Shen Jingbin knew, this game had been on the market for more than two years. In general, the poption of most games would peak in two years unless a new version or arge scale event was held. After which, any growth the game experienced, if at all, would be minimal.

    But looking at the number of people who were milling about the novice vige, making it appear no less bustling than before, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help butment over the game¡¯s poprity. It really was worthy of its title as the number one VRMMORPG. 1 Its title wasn¡¯t just for show.

    "Where did this ugly persone from? Is she trying to show off her looks by blocking the road?"

    As she sized up the novice vige, Shen Jingbin suddenly heard a mocking voice from behind her. Looking back, she found that a female yer ¨C who had probably just created her character as well ¨C was currently ring at her.

    Due to the Beautification attribute within the game, handsome men and beautiful women who looked like celebrities were a dime a dozen. Who knows how many points the female yer behind her had had to spend on her Beautification attribute before she managed to make herself look like the celebrity, X Bingbing.

    "What¡¯re you looking at? Never seen a beautiful woman before?" The female yer said as she shot Shen Jingbin a supercilious look. She then swung her slender waist to the side and walked past Shen Jingbin.

    Beauties truly were beauties, they looked good even when they rolled their eyes. This was definitely an era emphasizing one¡¯s looks. Shen Jingbin wordlessly lit a candle for herself in her heart before she strode forward and followed the female yer into the novice vige.

    Based on how the houses looked, this novice vige was probably situated on the frontier. All of the houses were short and constructed with mud bricks. Due to weathering, the protectiveyer ofcquer covering them were now in bits and pieces, giving them a mottled appearance.

    The clothes that the NPCs 2 wore were different from the costumes she¡¯d seen in dramas. Instead, they bore simrities to the apparel of minority groups. With white as a base, it was embroidered with mysterious and pleasant looking totems. Additionally, each NPC had a piece of cloth that was as wide as an entire finger¡¯s length tied to their forehead. Just like their clothes, this piece of cloth was equally white and had totems embroidered on top of it.

    Shen Jingbin carefully examined the totem, noticing that it portrayed several green dragons stepping on magic clouds. These NPCs were likely believers of the Celestial race, and this novice vige was probably located near them.

    Crashing sounds could be heard when the beautiful female yer entered the vige. Following that, several male yers suddenly appeared by her side as they enquired about her health and invited her to join their party, causing the scene to be exceptionally lively. Several other yers who were a step too slow very resourcefully shifted their gazes to Shen Jingbin who was standing behind the female yer as they prepared to go on the offensive against her. However, they immediately broke into a run once they were able to clearly discern her face, while others who had greater mental fortitude leaned against the wall and vomited.

    Shen Jingbin rubbed her nose and paid it no mind. Not having any yboys around her was a good thing! This big brother can admire his own beauty!

    "Please proceed towards the Vige Chief¡¯s residence to report and to receive your reward as a new yer."

    During their stay at the novice vige, the actions of new yers would be closely monitored and the system would provide some prompts to teach them how they should normally act. Shen Jingbin consoled herself by fussing with her travel attire as she proudly strode around the group of men who only concerned themselves with looks. She followed the new yer¡¯s guide and walked towards the Vige Chief¡¯s abode.

    The Vige Chief resided at the back of the vige. Luckily, the novice vige wasn¡¯t all thatrge, so it only took a little while before she reached it. Different from the coarse looking mud brick houses that the vigers live in, the Vige Chief¡¯s residence was clearly a level higher. One could tell just by looking at the fence that surrounded it, and the two fierce looking dogs that guarded the entrance. Shen Jingbin sized herself up and nced at the two healthy and vigorous looking dogs. She had serious doubts whether she¡¯d be able to safely get past these two dogs and enter the Vige Chief¡¯s house.

    Holy shit, these two little brutes! Just wait till this Young Master bes an expert, I¡¯ll definitelye back and ughter the two of you! As she thought that, a male yer came barrelling out of the Vige Chief¡¯s residence while swearing. He rushed out so quickly that Shen Jingbin could even feel a gust of wind sweep past her ears.

    Eh? Was this a test that relied on speed?

    Shen Jingbin bowed her head and looked at herself as she thought "Forget it, I wouldn¡¯t be able to make it even if I ran till these stubby little legs of mine broke. It¡¯s better if I don¡¯t put myself at risk."

    Maybe she should jump over the fence instead? But, rumour had it that the NPCs within the game possessed human personalities, and people who bore the title of "Vige Chief" generally had a dislike for viins and people whomitted misdeeds. For all she knew, jumping over the fence might ruin the Vige Chief¡¯s impression of her. In that case, the gains she received would definitely outweigh her losses.

    Shen Jingbin was definitely a tyrant when it came to matters rting to knowledge, but she was helpless when it came to things such as these. She couldn¡¯te up with any good ideas even after she wracked her brain, so she decided to look around the perimeter of the Vige Chief¡¯s residence to check if there was any other way of getting in.

    Unexpectedly, just as Shen Jingbin was about to leave, the female yer who resembled X Bingbing appeared alongside a throng of male yers. Stopping in front of the Vige Chief¡¯s house, these tworge and ferocious looking dogs didn¡¯t even issue a single yelp when they saw the number of people crowding the area. Instead, they crouched down on the floor in an exceedingly obedient manner and, without a hint of hostility in them, followed the female yer with their eyes as she sashayed into the Vige Chief¡¯s residence.

    This was why the answer to some things, at times, was just that simple.

    Virtual Reality Massively Multiyer Online Role ying Game ? Non-yer character ?

 Chapter 3

    <b>Chapter 3: Vige Chief</b>

    One particrly notable selling point VRMMORPGs had, was that they boasted beautiful and lifelike vistas. Shen Jingbin admired the unique scenery here which no longer existed in real life as she aimlessly wandered about.

    Drifting along, she unknowingly reached the boundary of the novice vige.

    As she¡¯d expected, the novice vige that she was at was situated along the borders of the Celestial and Human races. Behind the novice vige was a mountain that towered over the clouds. The mountain itself had a verdant and lush forest, and a single nce at it was enough for others to determine that it was out of the ordinary.

    Shen Jingbin immediately made up her mind and set off for the mountain.

    Likely, no one else would be senseless enough to climb a mountain instead of leveling up. The winding trail up the mountain only persisted for a short distance before it was reced with weeds.

    Since the trail stopped there, there was no need for her to continue going forward. In the instant she turned around and started to make her way back, a white streak suddenly shed past the corner of her eye.

    What was that?

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly focused her attention in the direction the white streak went in.

    There, she saw a white creature that looked like a rabbit, but wasn¡¯t quite one. It had run into the thick and solid trunk of an ancient tree before wordlessly copsing onto the ground, its stocky hind legs continuing to unconsciously twitch.

    Was this the real life version of ¡°idly waiting for an opportunity¡±? 1

    She was left dumbstruck at the sight of this, only reacting after several seconds had passed. Walking over, she had a bbergasted look on her face. Then, bending down, she picked up this object that had knocked itself out.

    The system¡¯s voice rang out in her mind the second she touched it, "Congrattions, you have obtained a ¡¯dwarf-eared rabbit¡¯. Hint: the dwarf-eared rabbit is native to the Celestial domain, bring it to the Vige Chief for inspection."

    Shen Jingbin lowered her head and looked at the object in her hand. She realized it really was a ¡®dwarf-eared¡¯ rabbit. Its ears were so short it didn¡¯t look a single bit like a rabbit. Sure enough, it really was part of the Celestial domain, even its rabbits had such a unique appearance.

    Since she received a prompt from the system, Shen Jingbin chose not to wander around any longer and tossed the rabbit into her backpack. Following that, she moved so fast she almost flew as she sped towards the Vige Chief¡¯s residence.

    Strangely, the two dogs no longer put on a ferocious appearance when they saw her. Instead, they looked a little like they were trying to curry favor with her as they wagged their tails.

    Shen Jingbin always did like obedient creatures. Now in a good mood, she stroked their heads and swaggered into the Vige Chief¡¯s residence.

    Several yers who happened to witness this scene were left bewildered by the sight. That girl was so ugly, even the Vige Chief¡¯s two dogs were afraid of her!

    Inside, she was greeted by a man leisurely sipping his tea as he reclined on his chair.

    This man was exceedingly handsome. He had a slender build and wore a white robe. The man carried himself so well that he put all the other NPCs to shame.

    Seeing her enter, the man put down the cup of hot tea he was carrying in his hands. His eyes widened slightly and he inched his line of sight upwards. He emanated an indescribable aura of attraction.

    Before Shen Jingbin even got the chance toment over how handsome the Vige Chief was, her excellent vision captured the man¡¯s face losing all of its previous bearing afterying eyes on her.

    Even his cheeks had unnaturally trembled several times.

    The good impression that she¡¯d just formed of him was instantly wiped clean.

    Was this NPC concerned with how she looked as well?!

    The man took several deep breaths in what looked to be an attempt to rpose himself before he slowly spoke, "Since ancient times, there are many dangerous things out in the world. Youth, are you sure you¡¯ve made up your mind?"

    Shen Jingbin replied normally and said, "Mmmhm."

    "In that case, I won¡¯t stop you since you¡¯ve made your decision. Take this wooden rmendation que and keep it with you till you¡¯ve gained some aplishments. Once you have, you can pay your respects and enter any sect of your choosing. You could even go to the ones that belonged to the Celestial and Demon races.¡±

    Shen Jingbin stepped forward and received the wooden rmendation que before she said, "Thank you, Vige Chief."

    Likely due to her favorable attitude, the man let out a sigh and spoke once again with some concern, "A majority of the people in this world assess you based on superficial traits. With your appearance, you¡¯ll inevitably face some difficulties. I hope you don¡¯t act rashly, and instead give thorough consideration in whatever you do. I have some medicinal pellets. They¡¯re of no use to me now, so you take them. They¡¯ll be able to help you out once or twice when you get injured.¡±

    Shen Jingbin was caught off guard. She never expected him to have such a lifelike personality, and the previous good impression she¡¯d had of him was slightly restored.

    As she received the man¡¯s medicinal pellets, Shen Jingbin suddenly remembered the dwarf-eared rabbit in her backpack. She hurriedly pulled it out and brought it in front of the man, asking, "Vige Chief, I picked this up just now. Could you help me take a look at it?"

    The man¡¯s beautiful eyes instantly widened and he stared intently at the dwarf-eared rabbit in her hands. It took him quite a while before he managed to rpose himself before his gazended on her face, as if he was trying to find something from it.

    Shen Jingbin felt rather awkward when the man stared at her. But luckily, he only did so for several seconds before he retracted his gaze andughed, causing his handsome eyes and brows to look even more lively.

    The man gave a heartyugh as he took the dwarf eared rabbit from her and gently caressed it with one of his ownrge hands. Shen Jinbin didn¡¯t know why, but her precious little heart couldn¡¯t help but tremble in ordance with the man¡¯s swaying hand. Subconsciously, she felt that thisfortable sensation she was experiencing was extremely dangerous.

    While stroking the rabbit, he said, "You¡¯re a very blessed person. This dwarf-eared rabbit is a Celestial spirit pet. In all my years that I¡¯ve resided in Evening Sun Vige, let alone catch one, I haven¡¯t even been able toy eyes on them. Who would¡¯ve thought that someone like you, who doesn¡¯t even have the strength to truss a chicken, would be able to get your hands on one of them.¡±

    The corner of Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips tugged upwards into a smile. Without saying a word, she cursed him in her heart, "How do you n on catching one if you¡¯ve never even taken a step out of your house?"

    Refers to the Chinese idiom ÊØÖê´ýÍÃ(shou zhu dai tu). Every Chinese idiom has its own backstory, you can click the link if you¡¯re interested in the story?

 Chapter 4

    <b>Chapter 4: The Vige Chief¡¯s Worries</b>

    The dwarf-eared rabbit that Shen Jingbin had just caught clearly meant a lot to the man. A look of joy filled his face, to the point where even the corners of his eyes and brows seemed to have been infected by his mirth.

    It was said that everything had the tendency to look nicer when a person felt happy. Sure enough, when he looked at Shen Jingbin once again, he now felt that she looked somewhat kind-hearted and cute.

    "Do you know who I used to be?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head and said, "No, I don¡¯t."

    "I was originally a disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion. At that time, during the great war between the Celestials and the Demons, I sustained a severe injury that destroyed my foundation. The Swordmaster Pavilion had always been filled with talented people. Back then, I was proud and arrogant. I couldn¡¯t bear the destruction of my foundation and the embarrassment of being ridiculed by others, so I made up my mind to leave the sect. Fortunately, I chanced upon a pill recipe that allowed me to reconstruct my foundation. As such, I started touring the world in search of medicinal ingredients."

    "Over the next few years, I¡¯d almost managed to gather all of the required ingredients. All except the catalyst ¡ª the dwarf-eared rabbit. I¡¯d previously heard my junior disciples from Spirit Beast Garden say that the dwarf-eared rabbit fed on spiritual grass, which allowed them to umte an abundant amount of spiritual energy. However, their exceptionally timid nature caused them to dash away at the sight of anything. Not only was it a near impossible task to catch them, even seeing them was a challenge in itself. Most people would have only heard of it, but never seen one before."

    "However, when I was still in the sect, I discovered from an ancient bamboo strip 1 that the dwarf-eared rabbit could only be found in the vicinity of a small frontier settlement called Evening Sun Vige. As a result, I made my way over here to look for it."

    The man paused for a moment before continuing, "Putting aside the fact that Evening Sun Vige was situated in a remote location, it bordered the realms of both the Human and Celestial races. However, both of them had subconsciously neglected themoners living here. When I first came, these people were still living within an abyss of suffering as a result of their neglect."

    "The Swordmaster Pavilion has always paid great attention to fated encounters, righteousness, and benevolence. Using that as a pretext to stay here and heal, I naturally couldn¡¯t disregard the dire straits that the vige was in. As such, I took on the responsibilities of the Vige Chief once I found a ce to stay. I tried to provide some help while at the same time giving guidance to youths who wished to travel the world. This could also be considered as my bit of contribution to the Swordmaster Pavilion."

    "Only unexpectedly, after so many years of giving guidance to countless youths, I still hadn¡¯t seen hide nor hair of a dwarf-eared rabbit. I once asked the elderly within the vige about this matter, and they told me that only those with a profound amount of good fortune would be able to catch sight of one. You¡¯re the most fortunate person I¡¯ve seen in all these years, and as such, I¡¯d like to entrust you with a certain matter and hope that you¡¯d be able to aplish it for me."

    Just after he finished speaking, a "Ding" rang out and the system¡¯s voice surfaced within Shen Jingbin¡¯s consciousness.

    "Congrattions on triggering the hidden quest ¡¯Worries of the Evening Sun Vige¡¯s Chief¡¯. Are you willing to ept this quest? Yes/No. (Trigger condition: submit a dwarf-eared rabbit and have more than 5 points of Charm.)"

    Before entering the game, Shen Jingbin had looked through some guides on the forums, so she knew that the novice Vige¡¯s Chief served no other purpose than to give out a wooden rmendation que. The forums made no mention of him giving out a quest, so the quest box that floated in front of her eyes must be the aptly named hidden quest!

    There were many hidden quests with generous rewards in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. These hidden quests could more or less be split into two categories. The first of which was a one-off hidden quest, while the other was an epic grade hidden quest that could influence the structure of the game world.

    One-off hidden quests referred to quests that weren¡¯t affected by a yer¡¯s ability toplete it. This sort of quest could only be triggered once and couldn¡¯t be triggered a second time. Epic grade hidden quests, on the other hand, couldn¡¯t be triggered by other yers until the yer who first initiated it failed. When that happened, the next yer who came along would be able to start the quest. Of course, the conditions for triggering these quests could change at any time.

    However, regardless of the type of hidden quest they were, one could onlye across them by chance.

    So, what possible reason could she have to reject a hidden quest?

    Shen Jingbin immediately nodded her head and replied, "I¡¯ll help, of course I¡¯ll help."

    Upon hearing her answer, the man was filled with even more tion and said, ¡°That¡¯s great! In that case, could I trouble you to help me catch a few more of these dwarf-eared rabbits?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head in affirmation. Suddenly, a new quest appeared in the originally empty quest interface.

    "Quest: The Worries of the Evening Sun Vige¡¯s Chief ¡ª Submit dwarf-eared rabbits (0/9) Hint: Only yers that are lower than level 10 and have more than 18 points of Luck will be able to encounter a dwarf-eared rabbit."

    As her gaze fell onto thest few words of the hint, Shen Jingbin suddenly felt the urge to face the heavens andugh.

    After entering the game world, each yer¡¯s starting attributes would be based on the condition of their bodies and the race they chose. However, their total stats wouldn¡¯t differ by much. For example, when yers enter the game for the first time, they¡¯d only have 2 or 3 points in special attributes such as Luck. Or, if they had a little more, they might have 5 to 6 points instead.

    However, someone like her who had 25 points of Luck would definitely be a one of a kind prodigy.

    Although special attributes could be umted further down the road, hidden quests were practically the only ones that gave them out as a reward. On top of that, most yers would immediately rush towards the capital city to enter a sect once they reached level 15. Even if they came back at a higher level, no one would take the trouble to climb a mountain and catch rabbits like she did.

    Moreover, even if someone did manage to umte enough Luck, anyone who was senseless enough to return to the novice vige and climb the mountain would find themselves unable to catch one. After all, the level restriction preventing yers that were above level 9 from catching a dwarf-eared rabbit were in ce.

    Therefore, this quest was practically tailor-made for her.

    Bamboo strips were used in ce of paper during the period of ancient China ?

 Chapter 5

    <b>Chapter 5: Pie From The Heavens</b>

    With the good fortune granted to her by her Luck stat, it took Shen Jingbin but a moment toplete her quest. She threw all of the rabbits she caught into her backpack and hurried back to the novice vige.

    When she reached the Vige Chief¡¯s house, there just so happened to be a few new yers receiving their novice rewards. When they turned their heads to look at her, they were so startled by her appearance that their legs felt weak and they nearly sank to their knees in front of the Vige Chief.

    Someone quietly cursed, "F*ck, she¡¯s definitely a special kind of ugly. She¡¯s so ugly she¡¯s practically setting a new standard for it."

    Shen Jingbin nced at the yer who cursed her without saying a word. After which, she silently walked to the side and sat on a chair. The Vige Chief still had an unfathomable look on his face. When she came in, he cast a sidelong nce at her before returning his attention to the yers in front of him.

    After all, he was apetent NPC that carried out his tasks well.

    While sitting on the chair, Shen Jingbin heard the Vige Chief gloomily reciting his script to the yers. However, she had a feeling that his words were delivered a little faster than usual, breaking the unique aura of a mysterious expert that he previously exuded.

    Of course, this might all just be in her head.

    In the blink of an eye, the Vige Chief finished his speech and sent off the new yers. The yer who quietly cursed Shen Jingbin had his novice reward revoked, which led to him ruthlessly spitting in front of her as he walked past.

    Shen Jingbin wondered if there was something wrong with him.

    After the new yers departed, without waiting for him to speak, Shen Jingbin took out the rabbits and passed them over to the Vige Chief.

    The Vige Chief wore an expression that seemed to say "this child can be taught" as he looked at her and said, "Sure enough, heroes are born from youths. Consider this time as me owing you a favor. If the day I fully recover and return to the Swordmaster Paviliones, I¡¯ll prepare another meager gift to return the kindness that you¡¯ve shown me today."

    Shen Jingbin waved her hand and replied, "There¡¯s no need for you to do such a thing, you recovering is enough for me."

    Several rabbits turned into a streak of white light and disappeared into the Vige Chief¡¯s palm. He looked up at her and said, "Take out the wooden rmendation que that I gave you before ."

    "Eh?" Shen Jingbin eyed him suspiciously.

    "That que is far too ordinary, I¡¯ll give you a new one. With your level of Luck, it¡¯ll be the good fortune of any sect you enter. I¡¯ll have to inform the disciples of the reception hall first. At the same time, I know it¡¯s selfish of me to ask, but I¡¯d like you to join the Swordmaster Pavilion."

    Yeah right, I wanna be a Daoist nun!

    Shen Jingbin silently rebuked him while she obediently exchanged her wooden rmendation que for a brand new one.

    This new wooden que in her hands looked about the same as the previous one, but it included several additional white cloud patterns. There was also some traditional Chinese characters carved in the lower left hand corner of the que. On closer inspection, she could make out the words "Bai Hua" 1 inscribed on it.

    Almost as if he could read her mind, Bai Hua spoke up, "Bai Hua is my name."

    Shen Jingbin cautiously ced the wooden que into her storage pouch and said, "Thank you Vige Chief, I hope you get well soon. I¡¯ll be taking my leave first."

    Bai Hua nodded his head and replied, "The road ahead is filled with peril and countless hidden dangers. I can¡¯t give you much help now. At present, I can only give you some life saving items. You should take good care of yourself for the time being."

    After finishing what he wanted to say, without waiting for Shen Jingbin to reply, several white streaks of light shed out from his body. "Ding", the sound of the system¡¯s notification rang out once again.

    "Congrattions onpleting the quest ¡¯Worries of the Evening Sun Vige¡¯s Chief¡¯. Quest reward: Bai Hua¡¯s wooden rmendation que (1), Silver Moon Silk Robe (1), Silver Moon Silk Belt (1), Silver Moon Silk Shoes (1), 5,000,000 Experience, 50 taels of silver, and 2,000 Chivalric Prestige. Evening Sun Vige Chief¡¯s Goodwill towards you has increased by 80 points, the Goodwill of all NPCs in Evening Sun Vige has increased by 50 points."

    "Notification: As you have collected the full Silver Moon Silk set, all of its hidden attributes have been activated."

    "Notification: As you have passed level 15, please head towards River City to enter a sect."

    What the f*ck, there was equipment with hidden attributes?! After hearing the system¡¯s notification, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but raise her eyebrows ¡ª eyebrows that were so sparse they could be disregarded as eyebrows ¡ª and opened her storage pouch. She took out the equipment she received as a reward from the Vige Chief and started to inspect them.

    "Silver Moon Silk Robe, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: Purple. Able to grow, Durability 50/50, Physical Strength +5, Inner Strength +5, Speed +3, hidden attribute: Charm +4, chance to root enemies (passive)."

    "Silver Moon Silk Belt, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: Purple. Able to grow, Durability 50/50, Physical Strength +1, Inner Strength +1, Speed +1, hidden attribute: consumption of yer¡¯s Inner Strength decreased by 1% (passive)."

    "Silver Moon Silk Pants, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: Purple. Able to grow, Durability 25/25, Physical Strength +1, Inner Strength +1, Speed +1, hidden attribute: reduces yer¡¯s Casting Time by 2% (passive)."

    "Silver Moon Silk Shoes, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: Purple. Able to grow, Durability 30/30, Physical Strength +2, Inner Strength +2, Speed +5, hidden attribute: yer¡¯s Speed increased by 3% (passive)."

    What does "pie falling from the heavens" mean?

    It means this!

    Based on her many years of gaming experience, the rewards given by this quest were definitely top tier.

    Putting aside the fact that a set of growing equipment was extremely valuable, just the Experience she received that boosted her straight to level 18 was generous enough. On top of that, the increase in Goodwill she received meant that the chances of her receiving a better quest from the NPCs in Evening Sun Vige were greatly increased.

    Shen Jingbin was overjoyed as she swapped out her novice equipment.

    Shen Jingbin immediately lookedpletely different after she changed her equipment. Although she still looked ugly, the equipment helped her carry herself just a little bit better. After all, clothes make the man.

    Written as °Ù»ª in Chinese. It means a hundred blossoms in English ?

 Chapter 6

    <strong>Chapter 6: Dawn¡¯s Twilight</strong>

    Chapter 6: Dawn¡¯s Twilight

    After randomly grabbing a few novice quests and raising herself to level 20, Shen Jingbin spent 5 silvers at a coach station to hire a carriage bound for River City.

    River City was one of the capital cities within the game that boasted an endless stream of traffic. With its strategically advantageous position, it flourished at a level iparable to Evening Sun Vige, to the point where Shen Jingbin felt faint at the sight of it.

    Inwardly, she weighed her chances of sess in finding her way to someone she could apprentice herself to on her own, versus getting someone to lead her there. In the end, she decided not to waste her time.

    Opening her control panel, she added a yer into her friends list: Dawn¡¯s Twilight.

    Searching, yer found, sending friend request.

    There wasn¡¯t a single break in the entire process, how convenient.

    If one were to exin why Shen Jingbin decided to y <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, they definitely had to speak of Dawn¡¯s Twilight.

    The person behind Dawn¡¯s Twilight was called Shen Jingchen, Shen Jingbin¡¯s brother and her sibling.

    Shen Jingbin was the type of person with a repressed nature. She¡¯d regrly encounter situations that made her want to barf on the inside, but maintained the same stoic expression on the outside. Due to this, Shen Jingchen loved provoking her. What he enjoyed seeing the most was when the emotions in her heart distorted themselves as they appeared on her face. For the sake of teasing her this time around, he quietly took her secret stash of money and bought her a virtual gaming pod. In the end, not only did this fulfill his wish of making her angry, she even gave him a vicious punch.

    The pod wasn¡¯t cheap, and neither could it be returned, so she had no choice but to make do with it.

    Before entering the game, Shen Jingchen had very proudly proimed that he was a famous expert within it. He told her that she should set her heart at ease and boldly rely on him for any help.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t be bothered with him. She threw him a supercilious look before closing the lid of the virtual gaming pod, isting herself from his cocky expression.

    She originally had no intention of looking for Shen Jingchen, or at the very least not so soon. However, after thinking about it again, wouldn¡¯t she be an idiot if she didn¡¯t make use of the freebour avable?

    That guy was probably bored out of his mind anyway.

    Besides, no matter what type of resource it was, it still had to be properly utilized.

    Shortly after Shen Jingbin issued her friend request, a pigeon sent by Shen Jingchen arrived in front of her with a letter in its mouth.

    She took the letter from the pigeon¡¯s mouth and opened it. The second she did, Shen Jingchen¡¯s infuriating voice could be heard as it exploded out in her mind.

    To allow for more realistic forms ofmunication, mails between yers came in both audio and standard text based varieties. However, audio mails were more expensive, so most yers avoided using them.

    "Hahahahahahahaha!!! Nutjob! What kind of weird ass name is that! Little Jingjing, have you really given up on special treatment? Hahahahaha, let me get my fill ofughter first."

    Gnashing her teeth in anger she replied, "If you keepughing I¡¯ll hand over your secret stash of money to mom and dad."

    Sure enough, the other party immediately be a lot more sincere and said, "I¡¯m sorry, I was wrong. Please forgive me. Where are you, I¡¯lle over and find you?"

    "I¡¯m at the coach station in River City. Come over and lead me to someone I can apprentice myself to, I don¡¯t know the way." She revealed herck of knowledge without concealing even the slightest bit of truth. Shen Jingbin felt that she really was honest to the point of being cute.

    "Haha... Eh, I didn¡¯tugh! I really didn¡¯tugh! Wait for me, I¡¯ll be right over."

    "... I¡¯ll give you two minutes. If you¡¯re not here by then you can say goodbye to your secret stash."

    "F*ck, you¡¯re definitely not my little sister!"

    Not bothering to reply to him, she turned to look at her surroundings. In the end, she sat next to a coachman and waited for Shen Jingchen to pick her up.

    There were many yers in River City, especially with the number of coachmen around. She didn¡¯t know why, but people around here seemed to enjoy hurting their eyes. All of the passersby couldn¡¯t help but cast their gazes at Shen Jingbin who was sitting below the eaves and looking so ugly, she managed to open up a new frontier. These looks directed her way had caused her hair to stand on end. She only felt the number of eyes on her only slightly decrease after she lifted her sleeve to cover her face.

    Thankfully, Shen Jingbin¡¯s response had been quick enough. Before long, she heard a cry of rm from someone in the vicinity. Pulling aside the sleeve that covered her face, Shen Jingbin tilted her head in the direction of the sound. The first thing that entered her eyes was Shen Jingchen and his overly beautified face, and beneath his buttocks was an eye-catching...dragon?

    "Quickly, look! It¡¯s Dawn¡¯s Twilight from Jade Sea Pavilion!"

    "I¡¯d previously heard that he was very handsome, but I never expected him to be this handsome! If I knew it earlier, I¡¯d definitely find a way to get into Jade Sea Pavilion even if I had to force my way in!"

    "That¡¯s right, and the top fifty experts on the leaderboards are mostly from their guild! I¡¯d be satisfied with any one of them!"

    "It looks like Quiet And Steadfast, the number one Lich in the game, is their guild leader. Rumour has it that he looks pretty good and is rich in real life, which practically makes him a male god! Doesn¡¯t entering Jade Sea Pavilion mean we get to associate with an influential person?"

    "Forget it. Do you guys really think that any Tom, Dick or Harry can just get into Jade Sea Pavilion? Jade Sea Pavilion enforces a very strict criteria for anyone who wishes to enter. Do you see that dragon he¡¯s riding? That¡¯s a Celestial pet! Only an existence as awesome as he is can enter Jade Sea Pavilion."

    "Sigh, I¡¯d really like to be in the same faction as him. That way, we could be together everyday. Just think of how blissful that would be!"

    "Tch, doesn¡¯t he look like that because of his Beautification? What¡¯s the point."

    "Even if it was because of Beautification, he definitely had to be of a certain standard before that. You went through Beautification too, but I don¡¯t see you looking any better!"

    "...F*ck! Let¡¯s end our friendship!"

 Chapter 7

    <strong>Chapter 7: Gossip</strong>

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s appearance immediately caused a group of female yers in the vicinity to be restless. Shen Jingbin felt rather amazed upon overhearing their discussion. Was Shen Jingchen really that handsome? Then why did she find him so repulsive! Was there something wrong with her aesthetics?

    "Where are you? I¡¯ve reached the coach station, why don¡¯t I see you?" Shen Jingchen kept his Celestial pet out the moment hended on the ground. He tried looking around, but theck of a familiar face made him feel a little bewildered.

    What an idiot.

    Ruthlessly looking down on Shen Jingchen in her heart, Shen Jingbin stood up and brushed the hem of her clothes. She walked over to him and said, "Don¡¯t bother looking anymore, I¡¯m over here."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s eyes widened and he took arge step backwards as if he¡¯d just received a fright, "That can¡¯t be. Little Jingjing, are you making fun of me? How could someone this ugly be you!?"

    "Do I have to mention the red birthmark on your butt before you believe me?"

    Shen Jingchen hurriedly rushed up to her and covered her mouth, "What the f*ck! Can you not mention these things in public!?"

    After saying so, he didn¡¯t forget to survey his surroundings, only releasing Shen Jingbin after confirming the people further away from them couldn¡¯t hear anything.

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at him before she shrugged and said, "I¡¯m simply verifying my identity."

    Screw you! Shen Jingchen felt as if he¡¯d cursed out ten thousand times in his heart.

    "Eh? You¡¯re level 20 already? You¡¯re leveling pretty fast!" After tossing over a party invitation to Shen Jingbin, he was given a fright by her leveling speed when she entered the party,

    "Didn¡¯t you just start ying a while ago?"

    Shen Jingbin was unperturbed by his reaction and replied, "I encountered a hidden quest. Stop wasting time, hurry up and find someone who can wee me into a sect."

    "..." Does my mom know how fierce you are? 1

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s mount could seat two people. Being afflicted by herziness disease, Shen Jingbin forced him to give her a ride before they took flight.

    Shen Jingchen shed an imaginary tear as Shen Jingbin got onto his mount. He could already foresee this bing the next day¡¯s top story on the game¡¯s forum.

    "The male god, Dawn¡¯s Twilight, from the Jade Sea Pavilion was seen with an ugly woman as they sat intimately together on his mount!!"

    "The horror! Your male god was taken away by a woman looking like that!"

    "A certain well-known male yer gamed together with an ugly woman for the sake of wealth. Was it a loss of morality or a distortion of human nature?!"

    ...

    After stepping out of an instanced dungeon2, Quiet And Steadfast immediately received a mail from a friend within the guild.

    "F*ck, I just saw Dawn3 riding together with a woman! Any idea who she is?!"

    Quiet And Steadfast furrowed his brows. What¡¯s so surprising about Dawn being together with another woman? He¡¯d always garnered the affections of women all along anyway.

    "I don¡¯t. What¡¯s up?"

    The other party¡¯s reply came swiftly. It looks like it really was a major event.

    "Hahahaha! I happened to see how she looked like! My god. Truth be told, I¡¯ve never seen anyone who looked like that before! Even big sis Feng looks dozens of times better than her! Who would¡¯ve thought that after being so unrestrained and garnering the affection of many women, Dawn would actually have such "unique" tastes!"

    "...So you¡¯re reveling in the misfortune of others?"

    "No no, definitely not! It¡¯s just that that bitch keeps snatching all the girls I set my eyes on. Now with all this happening to him, I couldn¡¯t help but gossip a little. At the same time, I wanted to see if I could get some of the inside story on what happened so I could make fun of him! But you look like you don¡¯t know anything, so forget it! I¡¯ll ask other people instead."

    After putting away the carrier pigeon, Quiet And Steadfast called out his mount and made his way towards the warehouse in the capital. Along the way, he wondered how her appearance was enough to make his friend think he could use it tounch an attack on Dawn.

    However, these things had nothing to do with him.

    Opening his quest log, his gaze fell onto the gold coloured quest and his eyes twinkled.

    It¡¯d been a long time since he received the quest, but he wasn¡¯t able to make any headway even till now. Was giving up his only option?

    No. He¡¯d put in far too much effort in getting the quest to just give up here.

    Additionally, the people from Life At First Sight seemed to be plotting something in secret. They had been carrying out a lot of underground activities recently, so he needed to use this quest to raise the strength of Jade Sea Pavilion.

    No matter what, he had toplete this quest!

    Closing his quest log, Quiet And Steadfast rearranged the items in his backpack and ced them in the warehouse. After which, he said his farewells to his guild members before logging off.

    It¡¯s a meme in China, don¡¯t pay it too much mind lol ? For those who are unclear as to what an instance is, this link contains more information https://.giantbomb/instance/3015-1181/ ? Shen Jingchen¡¯s nickname in-game. Dawn¡¯s Twilight ¡ú Dawn ?

 Chapter 8

    <strong>Chapter 8: Entering A Sect</strong>

    People who had unique appearances were always the center of attention wherever they went.

    With the good fortune that Shen Jingbin¡¯s face ushered in, Shen Jingchen was faced with an unprecedented amount of attention as he led Shen Jingbin over to the reception hall.

    "Which sect are you nning to enter?" Standing at the entrance, Shen Jingchen surveyed the bustling reception hall before turning to ask her.

    Shen Jingbin replied without the slightest bit of hesitation, "White Cloud Temple."

    Having heard what she said, Shen Jingchen immediately wore an expression on his face that seemed to say "I knew it" as he looked at Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin red back at him before she walked past him and made her way towards White Cloud Temple¡¯s reception hall.

    Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t hold himself back any longer and a cold shiver ran through his body.

    That expression of hers truly gave him a feeling of ecstasy.

    As a Daoist temple, White Cloud Temple required its disciples to don its signature green Daoist robe. Although it looked a lot better than its real life counterpart, it was a littlecking whenpared to the attire of the other sects.

    This, coupled with the fact that their weapon was a horsetail whisk, meant that the average person had troubleing to terms with swishing around what was basically a chicken feather duster in battle.

    Because of this, the number of people who were willing to join White Cloud Temple was much less than the other sects.

    But the reason why she felt that White Cloud Temple wasn¡¯t as popr as the other sects, was because it walked the path of crowd control-based support.

    White Cloud Temple held a position of mediocrity in the game. In an era where everyone wanted to manifest their personality, being mediocre clearly wasn¡¯t weed by the younger generation.

    However, there are benefits to having less people as well.

    Shen Jingbin silently queued at the back of the line. Her turn came a short whileter.

    "Young hero, are you nning to join White Cloud Temple? Please take out your wooden rmendation que."

    In ordance with the NPC¡¯s instructions, Shen Jingbin took out the wooden que given by the Vige Chief. When she handed it over, she heard the Daoist wearing a green robe exim with astonishment, "Eh, is this is a rmendation que personally made by senior Bai Hua!? Senior Bai Hua was thest disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s founder, but he unfortunately disappeared during the great war between the Celestials and Demons. Swordmaster Pavilion and my White Cloud Temple have spent many years looking, but were unable to find any trace of him. However, today young hero hase with his wooden rmendation que in hand and likely bears news of him as well. Since this is a serious matter, can young hero wait here for a moment while I consult the temple for instructions before I give you an answer?"

    Shen Jingbin gave an expressionless nod of her head, but inwardly she was in a daze after hearing what this Daoist said: The Vige Chief had such an impressive background? If I¡¯d known earlier I would¡¯ve tried to curry favor with him!

    After leaving for a short while, the Daoist hurriedly returned with two elderly men in tow. The appearance of the two elderly men immediately caused the bustling reception hall to be even more lively.

    "Look at White Cloud Temple¡¯s side! The Sect Leaders from White Cloud Temple and Swordmaster Pavilion have both appeared!"

    "What the hell? Is that a hidden quest?"

    "What the f*ck, where did the attending disciple from my Demon race run off to! Why the hell did he run off after Sect Leaders from the other sects showed up! Does the Demon race even have any solidarity left!!"

    "The Sect Leader from the Swordmaster Pavilion looks more handsome than the one from White Cloud temple!"

    "These two are BOSS level existences amongst humans, is it alright for them to just run out like this?"

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t care for the chatter of the surrounding yers. All of her attention was focused on the two elders in front of her. The slightly younger of the two urgently asked, "Young hero, might I ask where my disciple is now? This is a matter of grave importance, I hope young hero will be able to provide all the details."

    This elder was probably the Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s Sect Leader. Shen Jingbin looked at him and didn¡¯t keep him in suspense, "This wooden rmendation que was given to me by the vige elder of Evening Sun Vige."

    "Evening Sun Vige..." Upon hearing this, the Sect Leader from the Swordmaster Pavilion repeated its name, appearing as if he were deep in thought.

    "Evening Sun Vige...I¡¯ve lived for so many years but never have I heard of this ce before. Does young hero know what¡¯s so special about this ce?" White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader asked.

    Shen Jingbin was speechless: You¡¯re an NPC but you haven¡¯t heard of a novice vige? Are you making fun of me?

    "All I know is that Evening Sun vige is a small vige, I don¡¯t know what¡¯s so special about it. I only heard the Vige Chief say that the dwarf-eared rabbit specific to that ce possesses an important medicinal ingredient for healing his injury." The NPCs still held the greatest position in the game. Even if Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart held iparable ridicule for them, she had no choice but to reply to them.

    After she said that, the Sect Leader from the Swordmaster Pavilion who was deep in thought suddenly pped his hands and eximed, "That¡¯s right! I once read in an ancient bamboo strip that the dwarf-eared rabbit was a spirit beast of the Celestial race. The flesh and blood of the dwarf-eared rabbit is extremely effective in restoring one¡¯s meridians. However, this rabbit isn¡¯tmonly seen in the Celestial realm, let alone the Human Realm. On top of that, finding one is a matter of destiny and one¡¯s good fortune. In that case, if I¡¯m not wrong, this Evening Sun Vige that young hero is talking about should be sitting on the border between the Human and the Celestial realm."

    White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader smiled as he patted the shoulder of his Swordmaster Pavilion counterpart and said, "Bai Hua isn¡¯t someone who¡¯s short on fortune. Older brother, you can rest easy knowing where he is now. That child has always been proud and arrogant, the reason why he hasn¡¯t contacted you after so long is probably because his injury still hasn¡¯t healed and he¡¯s not willing to show his face. Now, with young hero¡¯s help, his return should be just around the corner."

    The Sect Leader from the Swordmaster Pavilionughed as he stroked his beard and said, "Thanks for your auspicious words. Young hero, I, Lu Yinzhou, owe you a debt of gratitude as thanks for finding my disciple. In the future, as long as whatever you need doesn¡¯t go against the morality of the world, don¡¯t hesitate to speak to me about it. I, Lu Yinzhou, will use the full extent of my ability to assist you."

    After saying that, he took a blue coloured jade ornament out from his waist and handed it over to Shen Jingbin. Upon seeing this, the surrounding yers, especially the disciples from Swordmaster Pavilion, immediately felt as if a hundred ws were ripping at their hearts. Their tempers red and they couldn¡¯t help but curse out.

    What the f*ck, that¡¯s the crest of the Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s Sect Leader! How¡¯d that ugly monster manage to luck out?!

    "Does young hero n on entering my White Cloud Temple?" However, Shen Jingbin¡¯s good fortune clearly wasn¡¯t limited to just this. Once she kept Lu Yinzhou¡¯s jade ornament, White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader looked at her with a face full of smiles and said, "During the great war between the Celestials and Demons, Bai Hua saved countless disciples from my temple. My White Cloud Temple also owes him a debt of gratitude. Since young hero is nning on joining my temple, then this old man taking young hero in can be considered as returning his kindness back then. What does young hero think about this?"

    What does she think about it!? Do you even need to ask! Only an idiot wouldn¡¯t ept!

    The surrounding yers unceasingly roared in their hearts.

    Why didn¡¯t they have such good luck!

    Although Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know all that much about games, the reaction from the other yers should¡¯ve hinted at just how lucky she was this time around.

    She nodded her head and the smile on the Sect Leader¡¯s face grew even wider. He called over a disciple and instructed him to lead Shen Jingbin to the temple.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t ask any questions either. She bid her farewells to Shen Jingchen and, under the scorching looks of condemnation from the other yers, she left the reception hall with the Daoist disciple. However, what she didn¡¯t know was that her experiences today had sparked a flurry of discussion within the game¡¯s forums.

 Chapter 9

    <strong>Chapter 9: Entering A Guild</strong>

    The Sect Leader of White Cloud Temple was called Song Yuqin. ording to the game¡¯s administrators, he was introduced as one of the top ten experts amongst the NPCs within the game. Naturally, the Sect Leaders from the other five sects were also among the top ten.

    After being taken in as a disciple of someone of such stature, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but apud her own good fortune.

    She seemed to have be especially lucky after entering the game. Could this be the rumoured "the uglier you are, the better your treatment"?

    Once yers joined a sect, a senior brother or sister would exin the sect¡¯s history to them, while at the same time bringing them to receive some beginner items.

    However, in view of her extraordinary identity, the Daoist from White Cloud Temple didn¡¯t bring her to the temple¡¯s main hall. Instead, he brought her to a small house and left in a very respectful manner.

    Shen Jingbin tugged at her chin and sized up the in and ordinary looking house in front of her, secretly guessing that this must be where Song Yuqing lived.

    In general, most experts loved maintaining a low profile like this.

    Sure enough, after awhile Song Yuqing arrived and led her into the house.

    Once inside, Song Yuqing didn¡¯t say or give her anything special. On the contrary, he followed standard procedure and exined White Cloud Temple¡¯s history to her. He also gave her several martial arts skill books, a disciple¡¯s robe, a weapon and some armor.

    Following that, she was chased out of the house with a swish of Daoist Song¡¯s sleeve.

    He didn¡¯t forget to add another sentence on top of that either, "The master has led you to the door, now the rest is up to you. My disciple, you should go out and experience the world. Experience the world so that you can have a better appreciation of life."

    What about the benefits of being a Sect Leader¡¯s disciple?! What about the promised good treatment?! Why did it all disappear?!

    With a few books and a messy pile of items in hand, Shen Jingbin made her way towards the entrance of White Cloud Temple whileining. When she had her fill, she wore her new Daoist robes and armor and waited at the entrance for Shen Jingchen. While waiting, she thumbed through White Cloud Temple¡¯s basic skill books to pass the time.

    In the game, yers weren¡¯t allowed to enter the grounds of unaffiliated sects unless it was part of a quest. They¡¯d be swiftly taken care of the moment their unauthorized entry was discovered. This was why Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t follow her over to White Cloud Temple. Instead, he told her to wait for him at the entrance.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t have many skill books in hand, totaling up to only eight. Five were single target attacks while the other three were AOE1 attacks. These skill books disappeared after being flipped through once. At the same time, eight new icons appeared in her originally empty skill window.

    Although her level was rather low and her skills were weak, the additional negative status effects attached to all of her skills made her feel that the future growth of her character was pretty good.

    However, it used up a little more Inner Strength as well.

    Within the game, yers who just entered a sect were only able to learn a few basic skills. If they wanted to learn martial arts of a higher rank, they could do quests ¡ª which came in the form of killing monsters ¡ª for the sect and umte enough Prestige Points to exchange them for higher ranking skills.

    Otherwise, those with the ability to do so could also create their own skills.

    As a result, most yers that entered a sect would only have four to five basic skills. Someone like Shen Jingbin, who started off with eight skills was an outlier. This was all due to the benefits afforded to her by entering the temple through her connection with the Sect Leader.

    But, she clearly didn¡¯t know about this.

    The sect disciple¡¯s robe that Shen Jingbin received was a permanent fashion set. Sect disciples were required to wear their sect¡¯s attire at all times when they were within the sect¡¯spound. If they didn¡¯t, they might be mistaken as intruders by the patrolling NPCs and be taken out.

    Thankfully, the game had very kindly given yers another two permanent fashion slots for them to switch to, saving a fair bit of trouble for yers.

    After asking around, Shen Jingbin designated her disciple¡¯s robes as her main fashion set, making it more convenient for her to switch back to in the future.

    Shen Jingchen quietly stood to the side. He repeatedly shook his head and sighed as he watched her turn from an unbearably ugly vige girl to a world-shakingly ugly Daoist nun.

    Sigh, he¡¯d originally nned on showing off his little sister to hisrades in hopes of evoking feelings of jealousy and envy at the sight of her.

    But now that she looked like this...he didn¡¯t even feel like admitting he had a sister!

    "Oh right,e over to my guild. Although you haven¡¯t met our eptance requirements, you¡¯re the disciple of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader. Your identity is different from the others, so I don¡¯t think all that many people will be against you joining." Shen Jingchen brought Shen Jingbin along as they slowly walked towards the heart of River City. However, Shen Jingchen felt as if he was forgetting something. This feeling continued to nag at him until he saw one of his friends from the guild call out to him with a gossipy look on their face. It was then that he realized he forgot to add her into the guild.

    "There¡¯s too many people. It¡¯s too troublesome. I don¡¯t want to go." Shen Jingbin immediately rejected him without a second thought.

    Shen Jingchen clenched his teeth and said, "There¡¯s no point rejecting, I¡¯ll have to trouble you toe. You damn pervert, you¡¯ll definitely try to cause trouble for me once I take my eyes off you. Rather than letting you free and risk you turning into my enemy in the future, it¡¯d be better if I kept you close by so I can keep an eye on you."

    After saying that, a guild invitation was thrown over to her.

    "The world is filled with danger. It¡¯s best for you to charge towards the heavens with yourpanions. yer Dawn¡¯s Twilight invites you to join the guild: Jade Sea Pavilion. Do you agree to join? Yes/No."

    Looking at Shen Jingchen¡¯s furious expression, Shen Jingbin, who had originally nned on declining stopped her hand and selected "Yes".

    "You have joined ¡¯Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯. Till now, both parties have been separated by thend and sea. Now joined, may you work together to better yourselves and ovee your tribtions."

    Area Of Effect. Attacks that hit more than one enemy at once ?

 Chapter 10

    <strong>Chapter 10: Jade Sea Pavilion</strong>

    "You have joined ¡¯Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯. Till now, both parties have been separated by thend and sea. Now joined, may you work together to better yourselves and ovee your tribtions."

    After the system¡¯s notification, a translucent chat window popped up in front of Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes, the words on it flying by at incredible speeds.

    The guilds in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> used a chat window formunication to preventrge guilds from creating too much of amotion. When a yer entered a guild, the chat window that was closed by default would automatically open so the yer could interact with their new guildmates.

    [Guild] System announcement: There is strength in numbers. Congrattions to yer Nutjob for joining the guild.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Weirdo: What the f*ck, that name is so cool!

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Weirdo: It¡¯s even cooler than our names.

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Weirdo: I bet my ass on this person being a guy.

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Weirdo, Dare To Hit Me: I¡¯ll throw in my ass as well and bet that he¡¯s gay!

    [Guild] Gentle Flower: Can you four be a little more reserved!! You¡¯re gonna scare off the neer!

    [Guild] Long Life: Don¡¯t be afraid newbie, big brother will protect you.

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: The one on top is an idiot. Don¡¯t worry newbie, big sister will protect you.

    [Guild] Slight Chill: Only level 20? Who took this person in?

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: I did, that person¡¯s my friend. It¡¯s their first time ying the game, please look after them.

    [Guild] Slight Chill: Oh, personal connections. How interesting.

    Shen Jingbin had already typed out her greetings in the chat window, but upon seeing what Slight Chill wrote, she suddenly felt a little embarrassed. Shen Jingbin silently deleted what she wrote and turned to face Shen Jingchen.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s handsome face fell. He took a deep breath and gave her a look that seemed to say: Don¡¯t worry, your big brother will take care of everything!

    In truth, Shen Jingbin really felt like saying: You were the one that dragged me into the guild, so you¡¯re definitely gonna be the one to handle it if anythinges up!

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Personal connections are also a form of strength. At the very least, she isn¡¯t inferior to you.

    [Guild] Slight Chill: What a joke. Are you saying I can¡¯t evenpare to a level 20 noob? Are you blind or an idiot?

    [Guild] Yanmen Imperial Sister: Let¡¯s talk things out nicely, what¡¯s the point of quarreling everyday? Slight Chill, don¡¯t be so sarcastic towards others. Dawn¡¯s Twilight, you should know the guild¡¯s rules for epting new members. Give me a valid reason to keep her.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: She¡¯s the noob who was taken in as a disciple by White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader.

    Quite a few yers were immediately blown out of hiding when he said that.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: What the f*ck! The old guy from White Cloud Temple epted this lucky bastard as his disciple?

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: Hurry up and let us take a look at them! Come on, say something.

    Shen Jingbin very obediently typed the word "something" into the chat window.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Something.

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: Hahaha, let¡¯s keep her! Let¡¯s keep this guy! Who cares about level and equipment? All you need is a bit of time and money and you¡¯ll be able to square it off, but you can¡¯t just pay an illustrious NPC to take you in as their disciple. I¡¯ve decided, we¡¯ll keep the new guy and no one can say otherwise! Hey new guy, you can hang out with big brother next time!

    [Guild] Nutjob: Mhmm, thank you.

    The yer called "Slight Chill" no longer said anything once Next Week Is Unlikely made his deration. The group of lurkers, on the other hand, extended their greetings towards her in session, making her feel a little overwhelmed by the attention.

    She reached out her hand and viciously pinched Shen Jingchen¡¯s arm before asking, "Who¡¯s that? What¡¯s the big deal about me bing Song Yuqing¡¯s disciple?"

    Shen Jingbin had ced a fair bit of force into that pinch of hers, which left Shen Jingchen crying out in pain. Even his reply was tinged with ragged gasps, "What the f*ck... You¡¯re far too vicious! My flesh was practically torn off by you."

    Shen Jingchen gently massaged his now red arm and exined, "Next Week Is Unlikely is one of the founders of our guild. He¡¯s also good friends with the guild leader in reality. His good family background, willingness to put in the effort in the game and his upright personality makes him popr with others. Now that he¡¯s made his decision, the woman called "Slight Chill" has no choice but to ept you even if she¡¯s unwilling. As for the matter of you being Song Yuqing¡¯s disciple... Do you know what the game¡¯s setting is?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. How would she know something like this.

    Shen Jingchen wore a look that seemed to say: "I shouldn¡¯t have asked". He exined, "The gamepany originally focused on freedom as its unique selling point when it was first announced. To facilitate that, the NPCs within the game were designed to be extremely realistic. You apprenticing yourself to White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader means that you¡¯re now White Cloud temple¡¯s Lead Disciple. Putting aside the fact that you¡¯re a yer, all the NPC disciples of your sect are now your junior disciples. As the eldest sister disciple, you have the authority to mobilize them. Although this game has been in operation for two years, and the game¡¯s administrators have divulged some information on this subject, due to the information on hand being vague and the fact that no one has ever actually aplished this feat, people have gradually forgotten about it over time. While no one knows how you lucked out and managed to apprentice yourself to the Sect Leader, you being able to do so means that you have the entire White Cloud Temple as your backing. Anyone with even a bit of brains wouldn¡¯t think of provoking you. You get it now?"

    Shen Jingbin was left stunned for several seconds before she gave a heavy nod of her head.

    Doesn¡¯t this also mean that if anyone bullies her, she can round up the entirety of White Cloud Temple¡¯s disciples and majestically swoop down on them for revenge? No wonder Next Week Is Unlikely stood up for her, she was practically a cheat-like existence!

 Chapter 11

    <strong>Chapter 11: The Beginning Of A Contradiction</strong>

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s long exnation had left his mouth dry.

    Seeing Shen Jingbin nod her head, he felt that the trouble he¡¯d gone through to exin things had been worth it.

    Shen Jingchen cheerfullyughed and rubbed her head before sighing, "As expected, you wouldn¡¯t be stupid since your big brother is smart."

    Shen Jingbin threw him a supercilious look and immediately left.

    She¡¯d seen shameless people, but she¡¯d never seen someone <b>that</b> shameless.

    However, she couldn¡¯t leave just yet.

    The storm of gossip that she¡¯d inadvertently raised beforehand was now in zing in full force, preventing her from leaving!

    A gloomy smile tugged at her lips. It was a smile that made Shen Jingchen feel as if hell had frozen over in his heart.

    "What¡¯s going on? Does Slight Chill have a grudge against you? Is her hostility due to some unforgivable thing you did to her, like fooling around?"

    "Screw off! What kind of nonsense are you on about? Your brain is practically filled with shit! I¡¯d never think of getting into a rtionship with a woman like that!"

    "Then why is she so against you? Even if you said that you and her aren¡¯t at odds, based on the way she acted, I wouldn¡¯t believe you even if I were blind."

    "She had some feelings for the leader in the past butcked the courage to confess. I couldn¡¯t help but pity her, so I tried to help her out by letting the leader know. Who would¡¯ve thought that he¡¯d ruthlessly reject her, which ended up making her hate me. After that, I found out that she, intentionally or otherwise, made up various falsehoods to nder the female yers that were even a little close to the leader. She even worked together with other yers to pressure them. Slight Chill was pretty and had a fair bit of skill. This, coupled with the good rtions she held with others, led to many of our female members bitterly suffering in silence. It was a miserable existence. To save them from their predicament, I raised this matter to the leader out of the kindness of my heart, but little did I expect her to stare at me like a madwoman who wanted to tear me apart."

    Bullshit. You¡¯d definitely be hated by every woman if you smeared their name multiple times in front of their sweetheart.

    Shen Jingbin was dumbstruck by her brother¡¯s low EQ.1 It¡¯s no wonder he¡¯s still single.

    After a pausing for a few seconds, Shen Jingchen rubbed his nose, "Also, she previously tried to admit her female cousin into the guild, but I rejected her based on her low level, shoddy equipment, andck of control over her character."

    "...Shen Jingchen, in truth, you¡¯d long since anticipated this, so you prepared these stories for me, right?" Shen Jingbin¡¯s head was filled with ck lines2 as she stared at him. F*ck, you¡¯re obviously trying to screw me over!

    As a new yer, even if she received the best equipment avable from a hidden quest, with the amount of silver and medicine she had, Shen Jingbin was still a pauper. In view of this, Shen Jingchen brought her to a system owned shop and bought her arge pile of red and blue medicine, along with some equipment that she could use.

    Although Shen Jingchen¡¯s warehouse held many nice things, Shen Jingbin¡¯s level was still low, rendering them unusable.

    The two of them stood in front of the shop and perused its wares in hopes of finding anything else that might be useful. At this moment, a carrier pigeon flew over while pping its wings andnded on Shen Jingchen¡¯s shoulder.

    Shen Jingchen clutched the pigeon and retrieved the letter. After ncing through it, he said, "The guild is nning to enter an instance dungeon to farm some materials and I¡¯m needed to lead them. Do some quests on your own, I¡¯ll help you out again once you¡¯ve gained some levels."

    Shen Jingchen was one of the executives within Jade Sea Pavilion and was tasked with many duties on a daily basis. One shouldn¡¯t look at it as just a game. With a number of interpersonal rtionships and other matters to manage, it was definitely no less demanding than real life.

    Shen Jingbin waved her hand to indicate that he needn¡¯t worry about her, and that he should handle his own matters.

    Seeing Shen Jingbin turn her back on him, Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t help but nag her a little more before he summoned his mount and left.

    With the annoyance gone, Shen Jingbin could finally have some peace and quiet.

    Walking out of the shop, she thought about her current predicament as she strolled along.

    Although she¡¯d managed to easily get into Jade Sea Pavilion with her identity as the disciple of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader, regardless, Jade Sea Pavilion was still the number one guild in the game. The puny amount of strength she possessed was an issue that she couldn¡¯t neglect.

    And, based on her years of experience from reading novels, a guild that was able to develop to such an extent would definitely have some enemies. In that case, a small fry like her would be the first to kick the bucket if both sides were to sh one day. Who knows, she might even be aughingstock of Jade Sea Pavilion.

    Which is why her top priority was to train herself up and increase her strength so that she¡¯d be able to put up a fight a little sooner.

    There were three ways to level up quickly in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. The first was through quests, the second was hunting on the field, and the third was instance dungeons. The first method was a safe way of leveling, but only afforded an average rate of leveling. The second boasted the most efficient leveling, but required the help of a pro yer to work. As for the third method, her level wasn¡¯t high enough to start on instances just yet.

    Until now, the only pro yer Shen Jingbin knew was Shen Jingchen, but he had to participate in an instance dungeon with his guild. With all other avenues closed to her, Shen Jingbin could only do some quests on her own to raise her level.

    River City had a fair amount of quests. She managed to pick up some pretty good rewards from them after wandering around the city, bringing her level up to 25.

    Emotional Quotient ? It¡¯s the ck lines that appear in anime when a character sees or hears something depressing. http://hz-xin/t-1959801860105144540.html ?

 Chapter 12

    <strong>Chapter 12: He Qing</strong>

    yers were allowed to enter instance dungeons once they reached level 25, which meant that Shen Jingbin could now do the same.

    In the past when she used to y online games with a keyboard, what she loved doing the most was entering dungeons. This was why she immediately sent a carrier pigeon to Shen Jingchen the moment she hit level 25.

    Unfortunately, she didn¡¯t receive a reply even after waiting for a long while. She guessed that he was probably still in the dungeon and had his hands full.

    Shrugging her shoulders, she opened her control panel to begin her investigation on dungeons.

    Even though virtual reality MMORPGS had the words "virtual reality" in them, in the end, they were still online games. This meant that things such as control panels and other system interfaces were a necessity.

    To limit the impact on a yer¡¯s sense of realism to the minimum, the control panel, chat window, quest log, maps, and other windows were usually hidden. When yers needed them, they could pull up their desired interfaces by incanting their name.

    Inputting characters was done through yers thinking about what they wanted to write in the interface.

    All these windows took on a translucent appearance and showed up in the top left hand corner of a yer¡¯s field of vision.

    Level 25 yers were still considered newbies, so there were a few dungeons avable to them. On top of that, they were mostly for EXP1. They weren¡¯t all that difficult toplete and they didn¡¯t drop any good items. After looking at it for a while, she decided to slowly work her way up from the first dungeon.

    Shen Jingbin ran up to the entrance of the first dungeon and squatted in front of it, intent on seeing if there¡¯d be any kind souls who were willing to take her along.

    In reality, she¡¯d been far too optimistic.

    While waiting, someone who had the appearance of a sweet looking younger sister conceitedly walked in front of her. After casting a nce at Shen Jingbin, she looked as if she¡¯d received a huge shock and cried out, "Oh my god, when did another ugly monster appear! Brother Mao, quickly! Beat her to death! Just looking at her makes me feel disgusted!"

    The man who was referred to as "Brother Mao" stepped up, brandishing his broadsword at the person squatting in front of him. He abruptly let out a heartyugh and said, "Haha, Lil¡¯ Rose! This isn¡¯t a monster but a yer! However, this is definitely my first time seeing such an ugly woman on this earth."

    Lil¡¯ Rose looked down at Shen Jingbin, shooting her a supercilious look as she said, "Don¡¯t try and lie to me Brother Mao, how could a yer be this ugly? I¡¯d havemitted suicide long ago if I looked like that. I wouldn¡¯t terrorize others by showing my face!"

    The back and forth between the two was far too unpleasant. Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but face them with an expressionless look and retort with her own brand of sarcasm, "People whock knowledge should shut their mouths to avoid exposing their IQ 2. Aren¡¯t people like the two of you the ones who truly deserve tomit suicide as a form of apology?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯sment left Lil¡¯ Rose depressed. Raising her eyebrows in anger, she retorted "What did you say?!"

    "So not only are you ugly, you¡¯re brainless too, huh?" This sentence infuriated the girl to the point where her eyes turned bloodshot.

    Brother Mao was furious as well and swung his broadsword, pointing it at her, "You sure have a venomous mouth. Fuck, hurry up and apologise to I, your father. Otherwise, your father will finish you off. Just try me!"

    Shen Jingbin patted the hem of her clothes and stood up, absent-mindedly saying, "You¡¯re so old, and yet you¡¯re still so naive?"

    Brother Mao¡¯s fury instantly rose to its limit. In his rage, he lifted up his broadsword and chopped downwards. As Shen Jingbin was about to dodge, a "ng" sound was heard, and Brother Mao¡¯s sword was stopped dead in its tracks.

    The one who stopped him was someone dressed as a Swordmaster.

    "Is there really a need to bully low leveled yers?"

    "Brother He Qing!"

    When this person appeared, Lil¡¯ Rose immediately shouted out bashfully, her coquettish voice causing Shen Jingbin to break out in goose bumps.

    He Qing didn¡¯t pay any attention to Lil¡¯ Rose. Instead, he turned his head slightly towards Shen Jingbin, looking as if he hadn¡¯t even seen Lil¡¯ Rose and said in a gentle tone, "I¡¯m sorry, my friend was being too hot-headed. I¡¯ll apologize to you in his stead."

    Shen Jingbin shrugged her shoulders and said, "No matter, either way he hasn¡¯t done anything yet."

    He Qing¡¯s warm smile remained on his face but he no longer spoke. Suddenly, Shen Jingbin received a friend request from him, causing her to cast a look of doubt at him.

    He Qing said, "You look like you¡¯re nning on entering this dungeon. It just so happens we¡¯re entering one as well; we¡¯ll bring you along."

    Disinclined to enter a dungeon with Lil¡¯ Rose, Shen Jingbin hurriedly waved her hands and rejected, "Forget it, I¡¯m not interested."

    Shen Jingbin only epted He Qing¡¯s friend request after noticing his unrelenting gaze, logging off after casually tacking on a throwaway remark.

    After the white light she¡¯d transformed into had disappeared, Lil¡¯ Rose indignantly asked, "Brother He Qing, what were you doing just now?! That ugly wench actually insulted me. Forget about you not helping me, you even tried to bring her along into the dungeon. What¡¯s the meaning of this?"

    He Qing gave a smile that wasn¡¯t a smile and nced at the pair who were still fuming and said, "Idiot, that ugly woman is the disciple of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader. She¡¯s very useful!"

    After which, he whispered softly, "The two of you almost ruined this fortuitous event of mine."

    ...

    After crawling out from the gaming pod and still engaged in the act of ridiculing the two "geniuses", Lil¡¯ Rose and Brother Mao, Shen Jingbin heard the sound of her door being rapped on.

    "Please enter."

    With a phone in hand, the nanny, Aunt Zhang, poked half her body through the entrance and said, "Little Jingjing, your Granddad is calling."

    Rising to receive the telephone, Shen Jingbin quietly gave her thanks to Aunt Zhang and spoke into the phone, "Hello, Granddad."

    The voice returned over the phone was one that contained a hint of the vicissitudes of life while still sounding friendly, "Little Jing, Granddad just received an invitation to be part of a judging panel for apetition. Although you don¡¯tpete anymore, you can still apany me for a look. I¡¯ll send someone to pick you up when I¡¯m back tomorrow."

    "Ok, got it."

    "Oh, that¡¯s right. Remember to bring that little brat Shen Jingchen along as well. All he knows how to do is y online games everyday, I need to have a nice chat with him about life."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes lit up as she said, "Yes! Granddad!"

    It looked like there was going to be a nice show for her to see soon.

    After hanging up, Shen Jingbin walked out of her room with the phone in her hand and passed it back to Aunt Zhang who was waiting just outside. Behind her was a wall filled with martial arts trophies that were so dazzling, they could practically blind anyone who looked at them.

    Aunt Zhang took the phone and cast a nce at the wall behind her out of habit. She silentlymented to herself: Didn¡¯t you say that Little Jing from their family is very beautiful and looked like a delicate maiden? Then why does she possess such terrifying skill in martial arts? At this rate, can she still marry out in the future?

    Experience ? Intelligence Quotient ?

 Chapter 13

    <strong>Chapter 13: Shen Jingbin & Co</strong>

    Shen Jingbin truly had an outstanding pedigree.

    Her maternal Grandfather and Grandmother were old hands at politics. Now, they¡¯d settled in Beijing to retire.

    Although they no longer handled such matters, the power and connections they¡¯d umted over the years couldn¡¯t be underestimated. Her paternal Grandfather and Grandmother, on the other hand, weren¡¯tcking in talent either. One enjoyed the reputation of being an internationally recognized martial artist with three thousand people from the younger generation under him. The other was an eminent violinist both locally and internationally, frequently receiving invitations to perform for government dignitaries from various nations.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s Mother carried her maternal Grandfather¡¯s first-rate political genes, working up a storm in political circles. As her economic support, Shen Jingbin¡¯s Father was an outstanding individual in the business world.

    On top of that, her exceptional appearance and standout performance had led to her being repeatedly treated as an existence that was beyond godlike by her school during her schooling days.

    Honestly, let¡¯s not talk about feeling jealous towards people like these. Just looking at them would be enough to make others want to prostrate themselves. There¡¯d be no need to worry about them not epting such outstanding individuals!

    If one truly insisted on talking about her ws, then it¡¯d probably be the fact that she was a woman, yet she possessed such terrifying martial prowess that could make one¡¯s hair stand on end.

    In an era where qualities such as tenderness and virtuousness were seen as desirable traits in a woman, a maiden who possessed an excessive amount of martial prowess wouldn¡¯t be well-received.

    One of the benefits of being born into a rich family was not having to worry about daily essentials such as food and clothing. But at the same time, the child would have to endure what was basically a parentless childhood.

    Shen Jingbin rarely had her parents by her side since she¡¯d been born. She¡¯d been practically raised by her grandparents on both sides instead. In the past, Shen Jingchen had been spoiled rotten by their maternal grandparents during his adolescent years, which led to him conducting himself in a hedonistic manner. Seeing this resulted in Shen Jingbin¡¯s parents pondering over this painful experience. Consequently, both siblings were nicely packaged and delivered to their paternal Grandfather shortly after Shen Jingbin was born.

    Having practiced martial arts for many years, what their paternal Grandfather had in spades was methods of disciplining children. Under their Grandfather¡¯s guidance, Shen Jingchen transformed from an ignorant and ipetent hedonist, into a capable adolescent that exemplified the five virtues of youths. It was at this time that the Shen family found out that their baby girl, Shen Jingbin, had unwittingly turned from a cuddly and adorable little bundle, into a little loli 1 with a terrifying amount of destructive power.

    When they found out, her Father and Mother nearly passed out from crying on the toilet.

    QAQ, my adorable baby girl.

    But,pared to thements of her Father and Mother, Shen Jingbin¡¯s paternal Grandfather was overjoyed: he finally had a sessor! There was a saying that went: take your enemies by surprise. The small and weak impression his granddaughter gave off would definitely catch countless opponents off guard!

    One could say that Shen Jingbin had already won at the starting line.

    Shen Jingchen made his next appearance at dinner time. He leisurely descended the stairs and acknowledged Shen Jingbin with a nod of his head. He nced at Shen Jingbin who was seated at the dining table before looking around at the empty living room. He voiced his misgivings as he sat down at the table, "Why are you the only one around? Where¡¯s Aunt Zhang?"

    Shen Jingbin casually tossed the bitter gourd she disliked onto his bowl and said, "I let Aunt Zhang head home."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s face immediately turned pale upon hearing that and he said, "What the f*ck, why?! Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re nning on showing off your cooking skills ¡ª that have the destructiveness of a nuclear weapon ¡ª once again!"

    "Hehe, you¡¯re overthinking things. I¡¯m not interested in cooking for you."

    "Then what¡¯s going on? I keep having this feeling that something bad is going to happen!"

    "That¡¯s because Granddad told me to bring you over. He wants to have a chat with you about your dreams and life." Shen Jingbin shot Shen Jingchen a smug look as hisplexion immediately distorted once again. She added, "We¡¯ll likely be going back for a week or so this time, so I gave Aunt Zhang time off to have a good rest. Isn¡¯t her daughter currently doing her final year in high school? Children her age probably have great need of their parents for support. Moreover, serving a young master like you isn¡¯t all that worthwhile either."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s face fell, "You showing off your culinary skills is nothingpared to this. Hey, why do we need to go over? Aren¡¯t we perfectly fine with our warm and happy life down here?"

    Shen Jingbin added a coca-c chicken wing to her bowl and said, "Granddad wants me to observe apetition."

    With a whoosh, Shen Jingchen snatched away the coca-c chicken wing from Shen Jingbin¡¯s chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth. Following that, he mumbled to himself, "You¡¯re not entering anyway, what¡¯s the point of watching? Just sayin¡¯, but you spend your days watching others fight fight fight. You even go "pa pa pa" with other people when you have nothing better to do. Aren¡¯t you worried about not being able to get married in the future? I¡¯ll say this, your brother has quite a few excellent guys by his side. All you need to do is reign in your temper and your big brother will introduce you to your future husband in a sh."

    Shen Jingbin red at him and added another piece of chicken to her bowl before she refuted, "I¡¯m young, beautiful, rich, and powerful. I don¡¯t need you to introduce anyone to me."

    Shen Jingchen choked and said, "Where¡¯d you get that kind of confidence from?"

    "You."

    "Ahahahaha. Little Jinging, you don¡¯t know just how true that is. I know my genes are good, I don¡¯t need my siblings to tell me that."

    "Is your brain scrambled? I¡¯m saying thatpared to you, I¡¯m younger and prettier. I also have money and power, so what do I have to be afraid of?"

    "...F*ck, I didn¡¯t say anything. Just eat." Shen Jingchen speechlessly shoveled two mouthfuls of rice into his mouth.

    Looking as if he¡¯d suddenly thought of something, he opened his mouth and said once again, "Are you still nning to y after you finish eating? Our guild leader will be logging on tonight, I¡¯ll introduce you. Otherwise I¡¯m afraid he might boot you from the guild when I¡¯m not around since your level is so low."

    "In that case, you wash the dishes."

    Shen Jingchen:

    As expected, my lil¡¯ sis never lets go of an opportunity!

    Lolita ?

 Chapter 14

    <strong>Chapter 14: Wu Lang The Wanderer </strong>

    Having trolled himself, Shen Jingchen had to wash the dishes. After her dinner, Shen Jingbin leisurely made her way back to her room and continued gaming.

    Shen Jingbin immediately received a friend request the moment she logged into the game. She casually nced at it and found that the yer had a very nice sounding name. On top of that, he was an extremely high leveled Lich as well.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, unknown yers who sent friend requests to others had their ss and level clearly indicated by the system as a form of warning.

    "System Notification: yer ¡¯Quiet And Steadfast¡¯ has requested to be your friend. Will you ept their request? Yes/No."

    Shen Jingbin selected "Yes". The moment she did, a carrier pigeon came flying over from the other party.

    "Were you the one who was taken in as a disciple by Song Yuqing?"

    Shen Jingbin furrowed her brows and retorted, "You are?"

    The other party didn¡¯t reply. Shen Jingbin curled her lips but didn¡¯t give any more thought to the matter. She then summoned the old horse she received from her new yer gift box and slowly rode it through River City while looking for quests.

    She had no choice in the matter. Who asked her to have such a low level and know so little people. She didn¡¯t have any means to experience the joys of a jianghu1 grudge either. As a new yer, she could only obedientlyplete quests to raise her level.

    Since it was mealtime, there were a lot less yers online than there were during the day. Even so, there were still many people who cast strange looks at her. Shen Jingbin frequently experienced such things in reality as well, but the two werepletely different. The former were looks of fear and resentment, while thetter were looks of admiration. All this attention had left her feeling a little restless, so she made her way over to a more remote area.

    Bouncing up and down while riding her horse, she arrived at a narrow, deste alley that was especially dim. She swept her gaze about the empty alley, but couldn¡¯t find any shops that were open for business. It was if there weren¡¯t any NPCs around. Shen Jingbin decisively turned her horse around and prepared to leave for a different area. But, little did she expect to see a silhouette suddenly pounce in front of her, causing her to hurriedly reign in her horse in shock.

    What the f*ck, what the hell was that!?

    She threw herself off her horse and recalled it, lingering fear still clutching at her as she took a step forward in an effort to examine the person who¡¯dnded in front of her. At the same time, she inwardly prayed that this person had better be a yer and not an NPC!

    One had to know that harming an NPC in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> gave rise to grave consequences!

    Regardless of whether they were an important quest NPC or a meaningless NPC, as long as they were an NPC, they were the boss. Harming an innocent NPC would erase any goodwill they had towards a yer. If they were unlucky, they would even be thrown into the game¡¯s prison.

    She had no intention of experiencing life inside a prison.

    Seeing her stop in front him, the figure immediately embraced her leg. Without waiting for her to react, he began to speak while sniveling, "Young hero, a few days ago, my younger sister left to help me deliver a letter to Landlord Yang who¡¯s in the eastern part of the city. I had no intention of letting her go at first, but I fell sick before that. Due to the urgency of the letter, my sister was worried that Landlord Yang might condemn me if it was dyed, so she delivered the letter in my stead. Everyone says that Landlord Yang is insane and loves tormenting young maidens the most. Worry for my sister has resulted in me blocking your way. If it¡¯s not too much trouble, please young hero, find out what¡¯s happening in Landlord Yang¡¯s residence for me.

    After his bout ofmenting, the familiar sound of the system¡¯s notification rang out.

    "Quest: ¡¯The Down and Out Wanderer, Wu Lang¡¯s Request¡¯ ¡ª Find His Missing Sister (0/1). Will you ept this quest? Yes/No."

    After Shen Jingbin chose to ept the quest, Wu Lang immediately jumped to his feet and handed her a map. She gave it a cursory nce and found that it marked out the exact location to Landlord Yang¡¯s residence.

    Shen Jingbin spent a great deal of effort to cate Wu Lang who was standing at her side and miserably staring at her. Once done, she jumped onto her mount with lightning speed and made her way towards the point marked out on her map.

    Honestly though, she was no expert at ying the leading role for such a plight!

    Shen Jingbin was confronted with her brother¡¯s carrier pigeon the moment she emerged from the alley, "Where are you where are you where are you?"

    Not long after sending her coordinates over to him, Shen Jingchen appeared with another person in tow.

    This person had a slender build, with a head of white hair, and wore ck clothes. A veil covered his facial features, but a pair of beautiful eyes could still be made out from within them. Their arrival was apanied by an invitation to join a party.

    "Comee, your big brother will introduce you. This is our guild leader, Quiet And Steadfast." Shen Jingchen sent out the party invitation before he grabbed ahold of the other person¡¯s shoulder and smiled at her, "Leader, this is my younger sister, Nutjob. She¡¯s the disciple of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader. Don¡¯t judge her by her current ugly appearance, in truth, she¡¯s actually a great beauty! I would haveid my hands on her if she weren¡¯t my own sister."

    Quiet And Steadfast? So this was the person who messaged me just now. Shen Jingbin gazed at Quiet And Steadfast with a bbergasted look on her face.

    Feeling her gaze on him, Quiet And Steadfast looked over, his own gaze hovering on her face for a second before he nodded in her direction. Shen Jingbin could have sworn she saw the corners of his eyes twitch.

    After exchanging greetings, Quiet And Steadfast said to Shen Jingchen, "Should I take yourst sentence as you wanting tomit incest?"

    "F*ck, what the hell are you talking about!" Shen Jingchen fumed, "Why are the two of you working together to attack me on your very first meeting!"

    Shen Jingbin had never paid any attention to him when he got angry. She turned to Quiet And Steadfast and asked, "Were you the one who sent that mail to me just now?"

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded his head and said, "Mmhm."

    More info for those want to know more about the concept of jianghu https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuxia#Jianghu ?

 Chapter 15

    <strong>Chapter 15: The Hidden Quest</strong>

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded his head and said, "Mmhm."

    Shen Jingchen eximed in astonishment, "Eh, did the two of you pull one over me? Aiyoh, Leader, I didn¡¯t know you had such discerning tastes! It¡¯s no wonder you maintained such a purity! Of! Mind!"

    Shen Jingbin helplessly held her forehead and said, "Shut it. Is your head only filled with this kind nonsense?"

    "Yup."

    "Are you two siblings?" Quiet And Steadfast asked with considerable interest, "Is he usually like this?"

    Shen Jingbin wore an expressionless look and replied, "I¡¯m not close with him. Since you guys frequently y together, you should know better than me. Was there any reason behind you asking me that question in the mail just now?"

    Quiet And Steadfast cast a nce at Shen Jingchen who¡¯d calmed down and said, "I received a hidden quest. I need to unite the Lead Disciples from the six great sects."

    "And you¡¯re the Lead Disciple of the Lich Pce?"

    Quiet And Steadfast faced Shen Jingchen ¡ª who looked as if he¡¯d seen a ghost ¡ª and calmly nodded his head, "That¡¯s right, but no one else knew about it till now."

    The meaning behind his words were: how did you know?

    Shen Jingbin shrugged, "I guessed."

    Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t help but interject from the side, "Tch tch tch. Leader, you¡¯re not being sincere enough. How could you keep such a thing from me! What about our brotherly love?! Our brotherly love! Our. Brotherly. Love!"

    Quiet And Steadfast cast a sidelong nce at him and said, "What¡¯s that? Is there anything between us?"

    Shen Jingchen immediately clutched his heart and looked as if a thousand arrows had suddenly pierced it.

    "How many of them have you found so far?"

    "You¡¯re the only one. There hasn¡¯t been any news from the other sects till now."

    "Then what do you n to do?"

    "We wait, and raise your level while we¡¯re at it. Triggering this quest had very strict conditions and I doubt it¡¯ll get any easier down the road. As one of the main forces in this quest, your strength is paramount."

    "Mm, I¡¯ll continue doing quests."

    "I¡¯ll help you with hunting."

    "Do as you wish."

    The two of them chose to simultaneously disregard Shen Jingchen, who was pretending to be a curious little baby on the side. Shen Jingbin called out her old horse once again and steered it in the direction of her own quest. Quiet And Steadfast apanied her by the side as they discussed her quest together.

    "The two of you have no conscience! I¡¯ll curse you both with bad luck!" Upon seeing neither of them concerning themselves with him, Shen Jingchen dejectedly called out his own mount and followed behind them. The expression on his face was so vivid that the female NPCs and yers he passed by threw flirtatious nces at him.

    "What¡¯s that? Lil¡¯ sis, what kind of quest did you get your hands on?" Upon seeing the two of them chatting amongst themselves while ignoring him, Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t stop his talkative nature from stirring as he made his presence known.

    "The down and out wanderer, Wu Lang¡¯s request."

    "Ah, that¡¯s the one where Wu Lang¡¯s younger sister was kidnapped and killed by the local tyrant. He then turned her into a doll and hid her in a cer. The shock Wu Lang received from having his beloved sister killed gave rise to a beautiful transformation that turned him into a jianghu hero who vanquished the local tyrant. On top of that, he was the one who resolved one of the ten great mysteries in River City: The disappearance of young maidens."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips twitched, "People who spoil the plot should die."

    Quiet And Steadfast said, "No matter, your performance in the quest will affect how it turns out. It might not turn out the way he described."

    Shen Jingbin eyed him suspiciously. Noticing her gaze, Quiet And Steadfast instantly understood that the girl in front of him probably didn¡¯t know much about <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, so he gave her a brief exnation on the quest system of the game.

    The quest system in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> was actually one of the game¡¯s highlights. Its quests were designed to be different from other games. Apart from the main questline, any actions a yer took in branching quests would affect the future development of the plot. This meant that each person woulde across different endings. Those that were lucky might even trigger hidden quests, which vastly increased the yability of the game.

    As such, there were still many "quest parties" in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. A quest fanatic once said that the questspiled by yers would be enough for the gamepany to publish a novel.

    While speaking, the three of them arrived at the outer area of Landlord Yang¡¯s residence. Without waiting for them to step forward, the two fiendish looking bodyguards brandished their weapons and sternly dered, "Who goes there? Are you nning to trespass on thendlord¡¯s residence? I advise you to swiftly leave. Sabers have no eyes, we wouldn¡¯t want to inadvertently harm someone."

    No one knew whether the designers intentionally created these two bodyguards to look like this, but they appeared to be extremely sinister and made others feel as if they¡¯d stepped into a horror movie. This, coupled with the ferocious expression they tried to put on, resulted in a terrifying visage. Shen Jingbin stared nkly at them as if she had no reaction. Seeing his little sister in such a state, Shen Jingchen proudly stepped forward, patting her on the shoulder before saying, "Never fear lil¡¯ sister, your big bro is here! These two bodyguards are nothing to be afraid of. All you need to do is give them 10 taels of silver each and you can..."

    Before he had the chance to finish, Quiet And Steadfast threw out two concealed weapons, causing the originally fiendish looking bodyguards to instantlynd on the ground with a thump.

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    Shen Jingbin looked at him and said, "What were you trying to say just now?"

    Shen Jingchen solemnly replied, "I wanted to say that they were paper tigers1. Your big bro could take care of them with one hand tied behind his back. Mm, that¡¯s right, that¡¯s the way. The story is me being able to take care of them with one hand. Let¡¯s enter."

    After he finished speaking, he walked into the Landlord¡¯s residence without waiting for the other two, not forgetting to step on the corpses of the two bodyguards as he passed by them.

    This is for scamming me of my 10 taelsst time!

    Someone who appears to be terrifying, but doesn¡¯t have anything of substance to back themselves up with. ?

 Chapter 16

    <strong>Chapter 16: The Demonic Sect¡¯s Map </strong>

    The three of them ran into a fatty the moment they walked into the Landlord¡¯s residence.

    "Ah! Who are these people that have the gall to barge into my demesne! Guards, seize them!"

    The fatty was around 1.6 meters tall. He was pudgy and had ayer of oil covering his entire face. This person was likely Landlord Yang. The fatty¡¯splexion instantly paled when he saw them break in. He clutched his throat and howled for help while turning to make a break for it.

    Tch, how boring.

    Quiet And Steadfast probably found Landlord Yang¡¯s screeching too grating for his ears. Without waiting for the Shen siblings to act, he nimbly sent a concealed weapon flying over to Landlord Yang.

    At the moment, they heard a cackling sound akin to the cries a wild duck made when someone clutched its neck. Landlord Yang¡¯s previous howls now caught in his throat. His enormous body looked as if it had lost its support,nding on the ground with a loud "bang".

    Shen Jingchen stood dumbstruck at the side, only reacting after several seconds had passed. Ovee with grief, hemented, "Oh my god. I¡¯ll say this, this fellow has never done these kinds of quests before. He¡¯s basically screwing around! Screwing around I tell you! Bringing this guy along to go questing will be your biggest mistake! Did you know?! This fat bastard over there is the Landlord Yang that you¡¯re supposed to find. With him dead, how are you supposed to find out what happened to Wu Lang¡¯s sister!"

    Shen Jingbin shot him a disdainful look and interrupted him, "Haven¡¯t you done this quest before? In that case, wouldn¡¯t everything work out if you just brought me over to the cer¡¯s entrance to find his sister?"

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s voice immediately died down. Looking a little wronged, he said, "The cer was found by Wu Lang. I just followed the quest¡¯s progression and was teleported into the cer."

    Doesn¡¯t that mean he didn¡¯t know where the cer¡¯s entrance was either?!

    Shen Jingbin released a sigh and ignored him. She took several steps forward and crouched beside Landlord Yang¡¯s corpse. After sizing him up for a moment, she rolled up her sleeves and started look over his corpse.

    Shen Jingchen, who was still immersed in the grief of "Landlord Yang¡¯s death", immediately eximed when he saw what she was doing, "The guy¡¯s already dead and you¡¯re still trying to rummage his corpse. Isn¡¯t there a saying that we should respect the dead? Can¡¯t you just let him rest in peace... F*ck. Actually, I¡¯ve wanted to talk about your preferences! Look at you, you¡¯re not even willing to let the corpse of a fatty go!"

    Shen Jingbin replied without raising her head, "Have those hundreds of episodes of Sherlock Holmes you¡¯ve watched gone to waste? Corpses normally have some clues on them. Are you telling me you don¡¯t even have such a basic level of general knowledge?"

    Shen Jingchen immediately put on a proper look and said, "I was just kidding, I obviously know about such methods! I¡¯ll have a look around somewhere else to see if there¡¯s any other clues."

    After saying that, he dragged Quiet And Steadfast along with him and ran off.

    Landlord Yang¡¯s residence was a majestic sight to behold, but the two of them disappeared from Shen Jingbin¡¯s field of vision in the blink of an eye. However, she wasn¡¯t worried about them in the least since they were experts. In any case, it was more likely for her toe across a mishap than them.

    Thus, she once again focused all of her attention on Landlord Yang¡¯s corpse.

    She didn¡¯t know whether Landlord Yang was trying to embody the phrase "as rich as a country", but to her surprise, he wore three sets of inner and outer clothing even though the weather clearly wasn¡¯t all that cold. Each and every piece of apparel he wore was iparably smooth, costing extraordinary amounts of money in the form of silk and satin.

    Apart from his clothes, Shen Jingbin asionally found several pieces of gold and silver from the hem of his robes and other unknown areas.

    The system¡¯s notifications constantly rang out beside her ears.

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a banknote worth 20 taels."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a piece of <i>Hetian</i> jade."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained two gold leaves."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a jade pearl hairpin."

    There was even nonsense like a jade pearl hairpin, was this fatty nning to look for his lover?

    Tch tch tch, being rich really was the best.

    ...

    Shen Jingbin found an increasinglyrge number of items as her search continued. Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help butment as she looked at the things she had on hand now, "Capitalism is the root of all evil."

    When she got to Landlord Yang¡¯s undershirt, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but break out in a cold shiver as she made contact with his slightly greasy skin.

    Bleh, disgusting!

    However, her fingertips seemed to brush against something just as she was about to pull out her hand. Enduring the difort she felt from her hair that stood on end, Shen Jingbin clenched her teeth and groped about, pulling it out once she got ahold of the item in question.

    It turned out to be a piece of parchment that was folded into fouryers. This ancient and brown piece of parchment was still suffused with the warmth from Landlord Yang¡¯s body.

    It appeared to be a map?

    Shen Jingbin eyed it for a bit before opening it up.

    A "ding" from the system could be heard the moment shepletely unfurled the map.

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a map to the Demonic Sect."

    "Congrattions, you have triggered the hidden quest ¡¯The Mysterious Demonic Sect¡¯, Will you ept this quest? Yes/No. (Trigger condition: Find the Demonic Sect¡¯s map after killing Landlord Yang. Hint: Only yers with a Luck attribute of 20 or higher will be able to obtain the Demonic Sect¡¯s map.)"

    "Quest: ¡¯The Mysterious Demonic Sect¡¯ ¡ª Annihte the protector of the Demonic Sect, ¡¯Du the Unvanquished¡¯ (0/1)."

    Shen Jingbin looked at the parchment in her hands and silently faced the heavens. Another hidden quest? Could her personality be a little too good?

    That aside, did the development team really have such sick hobbies? She had to sift throughyers uponyers of clothing till she finally found the map on the veryst one.

    Such a setting was way too perverted!

 Chapter 17

    <strong>Chapter 17: Yet Another Hidden Quest</strong>

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart was still in turmoil over having received another hidden quest when she heard Shen Jingchen kicking up a fuss, "Little Jingjing,e quick! I¡¯ve found the entrance to the cer! Quick quick quick, Wu Lang¡¯s sister is definitely inside!"

    Shen Jingbin kept the map and ran towards Shen Jingchen by following the sound of his voice. At this moment, Quiet And Steadfast just happened to emerge from one of the rooms. It was only then that Shen Jingbin realized Quiet and Steadfast¡¯s name contained a "jing" in it as well.1 He probably thought that Shen Jingchen was referring to him when he called out for "little Jingjing".

    The cer in question was situated in a corner and hidden behind a Chinese Rose that was in full bloom. Shen Jingchen might have missed it if it wasn¡¯t for his hands itching to pluck a few flowers.

    "Beautifully done. Let¡¯s open the entrance and enter." Under Shen Jingchen¡¯s fervent gaze that screamed: "praise me praise me praise me praise me", Shen Jingbin very sincerely patted his head.

    A certain someone felt very satisfied after receiving his praise, but why did he feel as if something was off?

    Quiet And Steadfast wore a smile that wasn¡¯t a smile as he cast a nce at the two siblings. He took a step over to the stone b that was hidden beneath the flowers and lifted it up, exposing a pitch ck entrance.

    Shen Jingchen suggested, "Leader, you take point. Little Jingjing will stand in the middle and I¡¯ll be the rearguard!"

    Quiet And Steadfast raised a brow, "Little Jingjing?"

    Shen Jingbin turned to him to exin, "There¡¯s a "jing" in my name, this is how he normally refers to me."

    "Oh, so that¡¯s how it is." He didn¡¯t try to pry any deeper. With a grunt, he took the lead and entered the cer with Shen Jingbin following behind him. After taking a look around and jumping into the cer, Shen Jingchen shifted the stone b back into ce. He then broke into a jog to catch up with the other two.

    "Ah, that¡¯s right. I have something to tell you guys," as they were walking, Shen Jingbin suddenly thought of that quest and felt that it was necessary to let the others know, so she said, "I think I... received another hidden quest."

    "..."

    "F*ck!"

    The person in front of her seemed to stumble for a moment, while the one behind her cursed outright. She felt somewhat helpless, it wasn¡¯t her fault for having such a good personality.

    Quiet And Steadfast who was walking in front turned to ask, "What kind of quest is it?"

    "Annihte the protector of the Demonic Sect, ¡¯Du the Unvanquished¡¯."

    "Du the Unvanquished? What a pompous name. That aside, I¡¯ve never heard of any Demonic Sect even after ying this game for so long. I say, little Jingjing, you actually know the game¡¯s developers. Right? You¡¯ve only been ying for a day and you¡¯ve already received two hidden quests. I on the other hand, f*ck, I¡¯ve yed for almost two years and haven¡¯t seen hide nor hair of a hidden quest!" Shen Jingchen looked very aggrieved as he continued, "No matter what, the two of us are still siblings. Why¡¯s there such a huge difference between us?"

    Shen Jingbin retorted, "You¡¯re a gic mutation, of course the two of us are going to be different."

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    Quiet And Steadfast immersed himself in thought for a little while before saying, "The monsters you¡¯ll encounter in hidden quests are all special, you¡¯ll probably meet themter. Oh right, how much Luck do you have?"

    "Around 25, I think," she honestly replied.

    "..."

    "What the f*ck! You perverted little shit! How the hell did you manage to get your hands on 25 points of Luck?!"

    Shen Jingbin calmly recounted how she raised her Luck, "When I was creating my character, the system told me that my character was the ugliest in the game and rewarded me with 5 points of Luck. It also awarded me with another 10 points of Luck to facilitate my enjoyment of the game. Afterwards, as a reward for being the first yer to obtain three special awards, I was given another 10 points."

    "What kind of special awards did you obtain?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    "They were...uh, having the highest Uglification limit, being the ugliest, and having the lowest Beautification limit."

    Shen Jingchen raged, "That¡¯s unfair! Both of us clearly look the same! Why didn¡¯t I trigger anything!"

    Shen Jingbin silently ridiculed him, "You seem to have been suffering from an e outbreak when you created your character."

    "But just a few pimples wouldn¡¯t be enough cover up my good looks, right?!" Shen Jingchen objected with conviction.

    Quiet And Steadfast couldn¡¯t bear to listen on. He gave a cough and said, "Crying Fish, the leader from our opposing guild, Life At First Sight, had the highest Luck in the game before you came along, and based on what I know, she had around 17 points of Luck. But just these 17 points alone was enough to their guild no small amount of benefits. With you around, our guild will probably be able to gain the upper hand when ites to hidden quests in the future."

    Shen Jingbin gave a nod of her head that expressed both her understanding and confusion.

    In Chinese, he¡¯s called Äþ¾²ÖÂÔ¶, which is the same "¾²" in Shen Jingbin¡¯s name ?

 Chapter 18

    <strong>Chapter 18: Curiosity Killed The... </strong>

    The hidden passageway within the cer couldn¡¯t be considered long. While talking, the three of them reached the end and a wide stone room appeared before their eyes. The room wasn¡¯trge, but it was sparse. The only thing in it was a bed and a stone table. The bed itself had several sheets of messy red bedding and a jade pillow that was suffused in a faint green light.

    "This is the ce! This was thest ce I visited with Wu Lang when I did the questst time!" Shen Jingchen wandered about the room the moment they entered. After surveying the area several times, he faced the other two and said, "But, I feel as if something¡¯s different this time."

    Quiet And Steadfast took over and said, "The quest is following a different path now, so there¡¯s obviously going to be changes to the map." After pausing for two seconds, he called out to Shen Jingbin with some difficulty, "Nutjob... When you received your hidden quest, did you receive any quest items or hints?"

    Shen Jingbin pulled out the map and said, "There was a map."

    After taking the map from her, Quiet And Steadfast walked over to the stone table and unfurled it.

    The map was somewhat crude, but the stone room that they were in was clearly indicated on the map. It was even circled in red with an ink brush.

    "From the looks of it, other than the path we took, there should be another hidden passageway going in a different direction. However, we need to find it first," Quiet And Steadfast pointed to a ck line which connected the stone room to another area. This new area was also circled on the map.

    Having heard what Quiet And Steadfast said, Shen Jingchen strode over to the bed andmented, "So we have to find another hidden passageway? That¡¯s a simple matter. In general, hidden passageways and the like use beds, pillows, and other things as their activation mechanism. See, just like this one."

    As he said that, he picked up the jade pillow on the bed.

    "Rumble", the once smooth and seamless floor instantly opened up, and before the three of them had the chance to react, Shen Jingchen fell right in.

    "His...luck seems to be pretty good as well," Shen Jingbin said in a muffled voice after nking out for a few seconds.

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded his head in agreement. The two of them nced at the newly opened hidden passage, before Quiet And Steadfast took the lead and stepped forward. In response, Shen Jingbin quickly retrieved the map from the table before following behind.

    There was a difference in elevation between the passageway and stone room. Fortunately, it wasn¡¯t that great. Shen Jingchen¡¯s fall gave him a few scrapes, but it wasn¡¯t much of a problem.

    "Hey, are you still alive?" Shen Jingbin asked withoutpunction as she crouched by the hole¡¯s entrance.

    "Got lucky, I¡¯m fine. Hurry up ande down, there really is another path over here. Ahahahaha, your big brother truly is iparably quick-witted!"

    Quiet And Steadfast hinted for her to go first by looking at her. He even stretched out his arm to offer a helping hand, but she unexpectedly jumped down without a moment¡¯s hesitation. She then proceeded to roll forward afternding, perfectly offsetting the impact fromnding with her graceful movements. Quiet And Steadfast stood there in a daze as he looked at his outstretched arm before wordlessly jumping down.

    When hended, Shen Jingchen had a shit eating grin on his face as he leaned over and gripped Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s shoulder.

    "Boss, I saw how you were trying to save a damsel in distress. Or should I say, trying to save a hag in distress?"

    "That¡¯s called a gentleman¡¯s grace."

    "Then why didn¡¯t I see you acting so gentlemanly towards others in the past? Boss, don¡¯t tell me you actually like girls that look like this?"

    "She¡¯s our guild¡¯s mascot now."

    "So...alright, I put too much thought into it," Shen Jingchen¡¯s lips curled and he loosened his grip.

    Shen Jingbin lowered her head and started rummaging through her bag. It took a while before she managed to pull out the fire starter she happened toe across previously when He Qing¡¯s group was preparing to enter the dungeon. Following that, she blew at it under Shen Jingchen¡¯s astonished gaze.

    In the end, it was still an item from the game. Just one puff was enough to ignite it and give rise to a small mote of me. Although it was small, its dazzling ze instantly lit up the entire passageway. With the passage located underneath the stone room, the way ahead would be obscured without light from the firestarter, leaving them no way out if the path was trapped.

    Quiet And Steadfast looked at her and said, "You really have aplete inventory in that bag of yours."

    Without batting an eyelid, Shen Jingbin said, "Thank you."

    Shen Jingchen roared in his heart: Was this what having aplete inventory meant? This was obviously strange! Who would carry antiques like a firestarter around! Every map in the game had its own settings for lighting. No normal person would carry around a useless thing like this!

    However, it definitely had a reason for existing, a reason that Shen Jingchen clearly couldn¡¯t grasp.

    With their miraculous fire starter in hand, the three of them plucked up their courage and pushed forward. After all, two of them were well-known experts on the leaderboards. Something as insignificant as traps wouldn¡¯t even phase them.

    Based on the map, the passage wasn¡¯t that long and they reached the end of the passage after a short while.

    A bronze coloured stone door stood in their way. Shen Jingbin stretched out her hand to stroke it. The moment she touched it, the system¡¯s notification rang out in her head: "Notification: you have discovered the giant bronze door, would you like to open it?"

    Shen Jingbin selected "Yes" without the slightest bit of hesitation.

    At that moment, the three of them heard another notification: "Pleaseplete the password: Curiosity killed the..."

    "Doge!" Shen Jingchen replied, his mouth eternally running faster than his brain.

    "Notification: The password is correct, the giant bronze door has been opened."

    "..." The corner of Shen Jingbin¡¯s mouth twitched, "Shouldn¡¯t the answer be ¡¯cat¡¯?"

    Quiet And Steadfast was speechless as well, "It¡¯s probably another one of the development team¡¯s bad jokes."

 Chapter 19

    <strong>Chapter 19: The Inside Of The Bronze Door</strong>

    Feeling as if he¡¯d finally won out in the IQ department, Shen Jingchen shot a smug look at the other two.

    In response, Shen Jingbin disdainfully snubbed him and quickly strode through the door.

    After casting a nce at Shen Jingchen¡¯s smug expression, Quiet And Steadfast wordlessly shook his head before following Shen Jingbin in.

    Shen Jingchen paid them no mind. After all, there was a disparity between geniuses andmoners, this was something he understood!

    Shen Jingbin was the first one to walk through the bronze door. Without the chance to mentally prepare herself, even a person like her, who was normally calm and collected, couldn¡¯t help but be a little stunned when faced with the scene in front of her.

    The inside of the bronze door looked almost like a prison. Many densely packed cages dotted the area. The cages contained young women who were covered in blood from head to toe. Some of them were moaning in pain as they rolled about the ground, while others huddled themselves in a corner of their cage, remaining motionless. The pulsing mes within the braziers on the walls reflected their deathly pale faces, faces which had endured unspeakable suffering. The strong scent of blood assaulted Shen Jingbin¡¯s nostrils,ying siege to her mental state time and time again.

    This was the first time she¡¯d felt that the game might just be a bit too realistic.

    "What¡¯s wrong?" Quiet And Steadfast, who was behind her, called out to her after seeing her suddenly stop. Shortly after he spoke, he caught a whiff of the stench of blood, causing his good looking eyebrows to furrow.

    Shen Jingchen, who was thest to enter, immediately cried out upon seeing this scene, "What the f*ck! This is way too graphic! No wonder this game is limited to people aged twenty and above."

    Without saying a word, Shen Jingbin put out her firestarter and walked forward. Her quest log had undergone a change upon entering the bronze door. A set of coordinates now appeared behind her quest to ¡¯find the missing sister¡¯. When she tried selecting these coordinates, she immediately realized that one of the cages was now shining. When she walked up to the cage, she found that although this girl was caked in blood, her chest was fortunately still faintly moving, which meant that she was still alive.

    "Ding", the system¡¯s notification rang out, letting her know that she¡¯d found the right person.

    "Notification: Congrattions onpleting ¡¯The Down and Out Wanderer, Wu Lang¡¯s Request¡¯. Quest reward: 20,000 Experience, 10 taels of silver, 50 Chivalric Prestige, and Wu Lang¡¯s Goodwill has been increased by 40 points."

    "Quest: ¡¯The Down and Out Wanderer, Wu Lang¡¯s Request ¡ª Rescue His Trapped Sister (0/1), will you ept this quest? Yes/No."

    Shen Jingbin took a deep breath and silently said to herself, "This is a game, this is a game, this is a game." Before she epted the quest. She then started throwing skills at the cage in an attempt to break it. Unfortunately for her, she couldn¡¯t do anything about her low level. No matter how strong her skills were, the only thing she could do to the cage at her current level was produce some pretty looking special effects.

    Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen, who were following behind her the entire time, unhesitatingly joined the battle and threw their own skills into the mix when they saw her take action.

    Confining a young girl who didn¡¯t even have the strength to truss a chicken in the wooden cage was a simple affair, but it was far from enough when it came to resisting Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen¡¯s attacks, shattering after being exposed to their consecutive attacks.

    Shen Jingbin stepped forward to support the young girl whoy paralyzed on a stack of hay. While doing so, she turned to look at the other two and asked, "Did either of you bring a healing potion?"

    Shen Jingchen felt a little puzzled. After all, he was an old hand at this game. He¡¯d already gotten used to seeing the lives and deaths of many NPCs and wasn¡¯t the slightest bit moved by the scene in front of him, "What do you need it for, to save her?"

    Quiet And Steadfast took out a health potion and handed it to her, "These are meant for yers, I don¡¯t know if NPCs can use them. You can give it a shot."

    Shen Jingbin thanked him in return, and unscrewed the bottle before feeding its contents to the girl in her arms.

    "I can¡¯t believe you wasted a health potion for the sake of a side character. Little Jingjing, you¡¯re still too young and innocent. In the future when you take on epic grade quests, swathes of important NPCs are going to die and be reced for the sake of advancing the story. Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re going to spread your arms like the Virgin Mary and save each and every one of them?" Shen Jingchen quietly mumbled to the side.

    The girl¡¯s feeble breaths gradually started to grow stronger after drinking the health potion. Shen Jingbin gave a sigh of relief when the system notified her that this segment of the quest wasplete, and that she could now move on to the task of reuniting the siblings. She set the health potion down and shot Shen Jingchen a re.

    Quiet And Steadfast who was standing off to the side suddenly asked Shen Jingchen, "Which of the two is more valuable? A living crab or a dead crab?"

    "A living one is obviously more valuable... Ah! So that¡¯s why. Little Jingjing you¡¯re so shrewd!" Shen Jingchen eximed after his sudden realization.

    Shen Jingbin was even more inclined to ignore him now. She felt as if there was an insurmountable gulf between her own IQ and Shen Jingchen¡¯s!

 Chapter 20

    <strong>Chapter 20: Du The Unvanquished</strong>

    Wu Lang¡¯s sister was found, but the quest wasn¡¯t so simple.

    Shen Jingbin gentlyid the young girl in her arms down and stood up. Turning to face Quiet And Steadfast, she said, "I need to bring her back to Wu Lang toplete the quest, but we haven¡¯t found any traces of the Demonic Sect¡¯s protector."

    Quiet And Steadfast thought for a bit before he said, "Our current position should be within the bounds of the Demonic Sect. These girls were probably caught by them as well. They mighte out if we cause more of amotion."

    Shen Jingbin felt that this n was viable after giving it some thought. She immediately fired off a few skills at the cage beside her. Although she couldn¡¯t break these cages, she could still cause a bit of a disturbance.

    Shen Jingchen and Quiet And Steadfast also followed suit as theyunched their skills at the cages around them. Not long after, all of the cages were shattered into bits and pieces. The girls who could move stood up in session and pulled theirpanions who couldn¡¯t move, but were still alive, and ran towards the three of them. On the other hand, the ones who¡¯d already breathed theirst andy in their cages, instantly turned into a ray of white light before disappearing.

    "Notification: You¡¯ve been discovered by the protector of the Demonic Sect."

    Sure enough, a "ding" from the system was heard after they finished smashing the cages, notifying them that they¡¯d been discovered.

    A person wearing purple coloured clothes suddenly materialized from the bronze coloured door. On his head, three words written in scarlet red could be seen: "Du the Unvanquished".

    "The way to heaven was open to you, but instead you chose to barge into hell and offend the members of my Shinra Sect. Only death will absolve you of your sins!" With a "swish", "Du the Unvanquished" retrieved two scimitars from his back that were as tall as half a man. He then gave a roar before charging over.

    Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen both stepped forward, subconsciously protecting Shen Jingbin who was behind them.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. Her level was too low and she was their mascot.

    Shen Jingbin knew herself well and understood that she¡¯d only drag them down, so she retreated a few steps back where she¡¯d be out of the range of Du the Unvanquished¡¯s attacks. In any case, since they were in a party, she¡¯d still be credited for it even if she didn¡¯t take any action. There was no need for her to take part.

    Quiet And Steadfast took the lead to attack. He activated his concealment buff1 and indicated to Shen Jingchen with his eyes.

    The two of them truly were deserving of their title as long standing partners. Shen Jingchen immediately understood his meaning and began firing off all his skills. A disablended on Du the Unvanquished, sealing all of his skills that could cause negative status effects while also drawing his aggression.2. Quiet And Steadfast seized this opportunity and appeared beside Du the Unvanquished in a sh, silencing and inflicting mind lock on him as he continuouslyunched a barrage of skills.

    Liches were a close ranged ss with high physical damage. They were characterized by their skills which boasted high damage, quick execution, and low cooldowns.3. On top of that, Quiet And Steadfast was the number one lich in the game, which made the lethality of his skills even more terrifying. In the past, enemies who faced him would lose the initiative to attack the moment he got close, leaving them no choice but to await their deaths.

    But this time seemed different.

    The stunning special effects of Quiet and Steadfast¡¯s skills sped towards Du the Unvanquished. Yet instead of a lethal, or at the very least a considerable attack that tore through flesh, only a sliver of blood appeared.

    In addition, because of therge amount of damage that Quiet And Steadfast had dealt, Du the Unvanquished¡¯s aggression was nowpletely focused on him. He turned to Quiet And Steadfast and charged towards him with astounding agility. Quiet And Steadfast had a great deal of agility as well, avoiding most of the attack with an elegant flip of his body. Only a small part of it brushed past him, however just this bit of contact was enough to take off a portion of his health. Seeing this, Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s face turned several shades paler.

    yers would only be able to see their own health and mana pools. They¡¯d have to guess the conditions of others by looking at their faces. Noticing the change in his expression, Shen Jingchen hurriedly threw out a Swordmaster exclusive skill that drew enmity.

    In general, parties would normally use either Maras or Swordmasters for tanking in battle.4. Thetter being chosen for its high defence and evasiveness.

    Quiet And Steadfast retreated to the side and pulled out arge health potion to recover his HP. He then furrowed his brows, his expression shrouded in darkness as he looked towards Du the Unvanquished who was currently embroiled in battle with Shen Jingchen.

    A beneficial status effect ? A monster/enemy¡¯s level of aggression towards all yers attacking it. The yer with the highest enmity draws its attention and bes the focus of its attacks. May also appear as enmity/aggro in the future ? Or CD ? Usually the ss with the highest defence. Said ss normally has exclusive skills that draw aggro as well ?

 Chapter 21

    <strong>Chapter 21: Version Update (1) </strong>

    "Notification: The Demonic Sect¡¯s protector, Du the Unvanquished, is one of Shinra Sect¡¯s generals and possesses extraordinary strength. yers are rmended to form a raid group before attempting this quest."

    Shen Jingchen and Quiet And Steadfast were locked in battle with Du the Unvanquished. In fact, it looked as if they were falling into a disadvantageous position. Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but feel a little anxious upon seeing this.

    She turned to her surroundings in an attempt to find something that might help. After searching for a while, she finally found a slip of paper in Wu Lang¡¯s sister¡¯s pocket.

    A notification popped up when she opened it.

    F*ck! Form a raid group?! In that moment, Shen Jingbin¡¯s mental state crumbled a little.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, parties had a maximum limit of five yers, while raid groups had a limit of twenty. However, apart from dungeons which required the formation of one, the only other time raid groups were formed was when yers tried to tackle a world BOSS.

    In that case, didn¡¯t the system¡¯s rmendation to form a raid group mean that Du the Unvanquished was an existence on the level of a world BOSS?!

    What kind of sick joke was this!

    After pondering it over for a few seconds, Shen Jingbin shouted at the two of them, "Are you guys able to inspect this mob¡¯s level?"

    Upon hearing this, Quiet And Steadfast took the opportunity tounch an appraisal skill at Du the Unvanquished¡¯s back when he wasn¡¯t paying attention.

    However, when the pretty blue lights of the appraisal skill shed past him, Quiet And Steadfast noticed that what appeared on top of his head wasn¡¯t his level, but rather a string of scarlet red question marks.

    There was a slight change in Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression.

    The appraisal skill was amon spell used to distinguish a monster¡¯s level. In general, a monster¡¯s level would be disyed on top of their head when appraisal was cast on them. However, monsters that were of a higher level than the caster wouldn¡¯t disy their level. Instead, a string of scarlet red question marks would appear in its ce.

    Raising one¡¯s level in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> was a very challenging task. The level cap at present was currently level 130. However, in the game¡¯s two years of service, Quiet And Steadfast was the only one who had achieved a level that exceeded 125.

    Previously, when the leaderboards were refreshed, Quiet And Steadfast was sitting at level 127, 5 levels ahead of the number two yer on the leaderboards.

    If even Quiet And Steadfast couldn¡¯t appraise his level, then that meant he was definitely above level 127.

    An enemy that was above level 127... there were only a few world BOSSes of that level in the entire game!

    So did this mean that both he and Shen Jingchen could go toe to toe against a world BOSS?

    What kind of joke was that!

    "Dawn, drink arge health potion and kite him. Don¡¯t fight him head on. This mob¡¯s at least level 128, we don¡¯t have any way of dealing with him." Quiet And Steadfast truly was a guru at the game. He immediately barked out orders to Shen Jingchen after quickly analyzing the situation.

    "Level 128, what the f*ck! No wonder he hits so hard!" Shen Jingchen immediately eximed, "You better hurry up and think of a way to save me!"

    Quiet And Steadfast furrowed his brows, "I¡¯m thinking, hold on."

    There was no doubting Shen Jingchen¡¯s strength. Although he looked unreliable, he was still one of the rankers on the leaderboards. However, dragging this out wasn¡¯t a solution either.

    "Nut...ah, Nutjob... Look over that NPC once again and check if there¡¯s anything else on her that we can use. This mob¡¯s level is way too high. We can only put up a struggle and hold him back, we can¡¯t kill him."

    Quiet And Steadfast still had difficulties calling out Shen Jingbin¡¯s name without any hesitation.

    "Alright." Shen Jingbin disregarded his awkwardness, giving only a word of reply before she made her way back to pat down Wu Lang¡¯s sister once again.

    However this time, she very carefully searched her from head to toe, leaving nothing to chance.

    Suddenly, Shen Jingbin suddenly heard a "ding" when she touched her chest.

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a limited use summoning talisman. You may summon ten friends to your side. Number of uses: 0/1."

    To the development team: Can you guys be any more perverted?! Don¡¯t you know that such a setting would lead young children astray?!

 Chapter 22

    <strong>Chapter 22: Version Update (2)</strong>

    "I¡¯ve found a summoning talisman. I can use it to summon ten friends."

    "Your luck truly is..." Quiet And Steadfast was once again bowled over by her luck, "Take a good look at your friend requests, I¡¯m going to immediately ask some of the guild members to add you. Summon them over once they¡¯ve added you."

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Next Week, Imperial Sister, Gentle, National Treasure, the four Weirdos, hurry up and add Nutjob to your friend list. After that, ept her request to teleport you over to where I am. There¡¯s a hidden quest BOSS. Nutjob, type 1 in the guild chat.

    [Guild] Nutjob: 1.

    "Ding ding ding" The moment it appeared in chat, a series of friend requests immediately popped up. She epted all of them without looking.

    "Did you get them all?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    "Yup. How do I use the talisman?"

    "Just tear it."

    "Okay." It truly was a simple and crude manner of using it.

    Following what Quiet And Steadfast had said, she split the talisman in half.

    "Notification: Please confirm usage of limited use talisman. Yes/No."

    "Usage of summoning talisman has seeded, please select which friends you wish to summon."

    Shen Jingbin selected the option, "All", before removing Shen Jingchen, Quiet And Steadfast, and Pure Crane¡¯s names from the list.

    "Will you summon these ten friends? Yes/No."

    "Summoning in progress, please wait..."

    "Your friends have been sessfully summoned, you have lost your limited use summoning talisman."

    A sh of red light streaked past their eyes after the notifications appeared. Taking its ce, ten people with dazed looks on their faces abruptly materialized in front of the trio.

    Quiet And Steadfast immediately sent out raid group invites to all ten of them and said, "The situation is a littleplicated. Simply put, we received a hidden quest and need to fight this BOSS mob. He¡¯s a world BOSS mob, so be careful. We¡¯ll enter battle now. I¡¯ll exin things in detail once everything is over. Next Week, you and Dawn are in charge of tanking. National Treasure, Gentle, and Seaweed will monitor everyone¡¯s health and clear off any negative status effects as necessary. Be careful, this mob hits really hard."

    "The rest of you are with me. We¡¯ll be DPSing1 it with everything we¡¯ve got. Nutjob, just take care of yourself."

    The ten people Quiet And Steadfast chose were the ones who were ustomed to partying with him. Although they were still a little dazed, they immediately and methodically arranged themselves in ordance with Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s orders to begin their assault.

    Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, dragged Wu Lang¡¯s unconscious sister over to a corner to hide.

    As the number one guild in the game, Jade Sea Pavilion had countless elites under its banner. And, the ones that were currently present were the cream of the crop. On top of that, they¡¯d long since developed a profound tacit understanding amongst one another. Although they faced some difficulties at the start of the battle, they managed to put Du the Unvanquished on the back foot once they got into the rhythm, nearly bottoming out his health a short whileter.

    All they needed was one final push and they¡¯d be able to defeat him!

    When Du the Unvanquished was rooted, Quiet And Steadfast seized the opportunity to unleash all of his buffs before utilizing his qinggong2to close the distance in a sh. With his hand raised, he viciously sent his dagger plunging towards Du the Unvanquished¡¯s back.

    A white ray of light blinked into existence the moment Du the Unvanquished¡¯s health was about to be depleted. Shen Jingbin stared at it and found that Du the Unvanquished¡¯s body was covered in a protectiveyer, obstructing Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s dagger that remained less than an inch away from it.

    The duration of the root was very short. Once its effect wore off, Du the Unvanquished immediately issued a roar before turning around to brandish his scimitar. And with a "swish", he sent his weapon screaming towards Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s head.

    Seeing this, Shen Jingchen astutely stepped forward and swung his longsword in a horizontal arc, blocking Du the Unvanquished¡¯s scimitars that stopped less than a centimeter before his shoulder.

    Du the Unvanquished¡¯s overwhelming strength made Shen Jingchen feel as if his sword wielding hand had gone numb from the blow. Even his health had decreased by half, causing hisplexion to pale.

    Gentle was an extremely perceptive healer. Upon seeing his change in condition, she immediately cast a healing spell.

    While fending off Du the Unvanquished¡¯s attacks, Shen Jingchen shouted, "Next Week, you guys break through his defence! Boss, find the right time to strike!"

    The raid group took action once again. Under their concentrated assault, theyer of white light surrounding Du the Unvanquished flickered a few times before it shattered like broken pieces of ss.

    Quiet And Steadfast dashed up to Du the Unvanquished in a sh and once again sent his dagger hurtling towards him.

    The ck dagger found itself halfway into Du the Unvanquished¡¯s chest, prompting a stream of ck blood to fly out from his mouth as he knelt down on the floor.

    At this point, everyone stopped attacking and stared at him with weapons in hand. Du the Unvanquished raised his head. A smile was drawn across his face that was rife with tattoos. He looked towards everyone around him and viciously said, "Foolish vermin, my Shinra Sect is about to destroy the seal and deliver ourselves from oppression. Once that dayes, we¡¯ll ughter each and every one one of you self-righteous fools. Humans, Demons, and Celestials, all of you! The whole world will finally belong to the Shinra Sect!"

    He then spat out another mouthful of ck blood and stared at everyone before turning into a ray of white light and vanishing.

    Following his disappearance, Shen Jingbin finally heard the familiar tone of the system¡¯s notification.

    "Congrattions, you havepleted the quest ¡¯The Mysterious Demonic Sect¡¯, quest reward ¡¯Demonic Sect Entry Token¡¯ (1), 10,000 Experience, 100 taels of silver, 800 Chivalric Prestige."

    However, before she had the chance to figure out what the "Demonic Sect entry token" was, the space around them suddenly felt as if it was being distorted, closely followed by ayer of pitch ck that obscured their vision. When they recovered, they found that they were back at the cer¡¯s entrance.

    Suddenly, several eye catching system announcements written inrge red letters whooshed up to them.

    [System Announcement] Congrattions to yer Nutjob forpleting the Demonic Sect¡¯s prerequisite quest. After many years, the Shinra Sect is now on the verge of breaking free from the seal and will once again roam the world. The Demonic Sect system has been initiated. Young heroes, please return to your respective sects to learn about their origins and receive your quests so that you may start the Demonic Sect scenario.

    [System Announcement] Congrattions to the Jade Sea Pavilion for sessfully defeating the Demonic Sect¡¯s protector, Du the Unvanquished. The Demonic Sect¡¯s Hostility towards all guild members has increased by 20 points. Demonic Sect members will now have a 20% increased chance to drop rare items. The guild has obtained 1,000 Achievement points.

    [System Announcement] A hundred years ago, the Shinra Sect formed an evil organization through the use of a mysterious power, threatening the bnce and stability of the realm. Thus the Humans, Celestials, and Demons joined hands to seal them. What manner of carnage will they wreak now that they have risen once again? A huge battle is on the verge of breaking out. Young heroes, are you prepared for what¡¯s toe?

    [System Announcement] As the Demonic Sect system is about to be released, the game¡¯s servers will be shut down in two hours time for maintenance and upgrading. Please n your time ordingly to prevent unnecessary losses. After this upgrade, a new chapter, "The Demonic Sect¡¯s Invasion", will be released. More detailed information can be found on our website in a short while. yers are wee to look through the information we¡¯ve posted. Lastly, we wish all yers an enjoyable gaming experience.

    Everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion: ... What the hell?

    "Mmhm," Shen Jingbin nodded her head.

    "What the fuck! The two of you! Stop whispering sweet nothings to one another! Hurry up and think of something! Although this guy hasn¡¯t killed me just yet, there¡¯s still a chance of it happening! Who knows, he might even enrage3 soon and finish me off. What¡¯ll we do then?!"

    "Quiet. Reinforcements are about to arrive."

    Quiet And Steadfast opened up his guild interface and very decisively chose ten names from it.

    Damage per second. How much damage a person/party is dealing to an enemy every second ? A Chinese martial arts technique. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qinggong ? In general, it¡¯s referred to as a mechanic designed to increase a boss¡¯ damage or outright wipe a party if they¡¯re taking too long to bring down a boss ?

 Chapter 23

    <strong>Chapter 23: Coming Home (1)</strong>

    Shen Jingbin had already packed all of her stuff when the Shen family¡¯s chauffeur arrived at their residence. She told the chauffeur to give her ten minutes after handing her things to him.

    Shen Jingchen still hadn¡¯t woken up.

    After entering university, Shen Jingchen and Shen Jingbin had left their parents¡¯ house and moved into a vi that their father had given them. During their first two years, they lived on campus and only went back to the vi on weekends. Now, they practically lived in the vi 24/7.

    Shen Jingchen was in his fourth year, so there were virtually no sses that he needed to take. As for Shen Jingbin, although she was only in her third year, she¡¯d already obtained all her course credits ahead of time, exempting her from school as well. Aside from returning home during breaks and holidays, the two of them spent almost all their time in the vi.

    Even though the two siblings were capable of taking care of themselves, their Grandma who loved to pamper them was afraid that they¡¯d face hardships. In the end, she had forced their parents to hire a nanny, and would even secretly hand them money from time to time.

    Thus, the two siblings led carefree lives in the vi.

    Shen Jingbin climbed the stairs as she pulled out her phone to look at the time.

    It was 6:30 in the morning.

    As always, their Grandfather¡¯s chauffeur was on time, but she reckoned that Shen Jingchen was feeling rather frantic at this point in time.

    Last night, Shen Jingbin was surrounded by people after the announcement concluded. The ten people who¡¯d been teleported over were originally shocked by her terrifying appearance, but they subsequently buried her in a barrage of questions once they recovered. Aside from their expressions that asionally revealed their inner thoughts, they looked as if they weren¡¯t the least bit bothered by her appearance.

    Also, appearances weren¡¯t all that important in the game anyway. Luck was far more important than anything else! If they could, all of them would willing to give up their appearances for the sake of more luck!

    Shen Jingbin had never liked the feeling of being surrounded by a crowd. This was especially so when she was the focus of their peculiar gazes. Thus, after very briefly exining what had happened to the crowd of confused people, she hurriedly logged off in a manner that almost seemed as if she was trying to escape.

    Looks like this update was going to be a big deal. With that personality of his that loved to show off, Shen Jingbin knew that Shen Jingchen would definitely begin his haphazard "vivid retelling" of everything that had happened, topped with his own embellishments. It was already twelve AM by the time she had logged off, which meant that he¡¯d gone to bed atter than two. He clearly knew that he wasn¡¯t a morning person, yet he insisted on staying upte all the same. He was almost certainly trying to cause trouble.

    "Shen Jingchen, Uncle Wu is already here. You¡¯ve got ten minutes to get ready." After knocking on his door, she leaned on the door frame and listened for any activity.

    Silence pervaded the room. She couldn¡¯t hear a single thing.

    She knocked on the door once again and shouted, "Shen! Jing! Chen!"

    A crash was heard and the door opened. Once it did, a white silhouette immediately returned to the bed with a pounce, travelling at a speed that made her gasp in amazement. Shen Jingbin then walked into the room, rudely lifting the nkets on the bed.

    Although it was early autumn, A City was colder than most other ces. When the nket was lifted, the cold morning air immediately assaulted the person¡¯s exposed skin, causing his hair to stand on end. The person abruptly jumped out of bed and wore a look of resentment at being awoken from his sweet dreams. He lowered his voice and said unkindly, "Shen Jingbin, are you looking to die?"

    Shen Jingchen wasn¡¯t a morning person.

    Shen Jingbin crossed her arms and swept her gaze over him. Raising her eyebrows, she said, "Give it a try, let¡¯s see who dies."

    "..." Shen Jingchen felt despondent. He red at the calm andposed woman standing in front of him, as if he was trying to kill her with his gaze alone.

    "You have eight more minutes." She tapped at the watch on her wrist before calmly raising up eight fingers, "I¡¯ll ask Uncle Wu to leave in eight minutes. Find your own way there if you can¡¯t make it on time. Oh and, think of an excuse for grandfather about why you werete while you¡¯re at it."

    Once she finished, she turned around and went downstairs without waiting for him to reply.

    Watching her figure leisurely leave the room, Shen Jingchen felt as if he¡¯d received a critical hit, his HP hitting rock bottom.

    This fe definitely wasn¡¯t rted to him by blood! She was picked up off the streets, she was picked up off the streets, she was picked up off the streets!

 Chapter 24

    <strong>Chapter 24: Coming Home (2)</strong>

    Old Master Shen attached great importance to being on time, and what he hated the most was people who were tardy. As such, he spent a great deal of effort to inculcate the importance of punctuality when he raised the two siblings.

    Eight minutester, Shen Jingbin looked on with satisfaction as Shen Jingchen rushed out the door, jumping into the car.

    She waited till he was settled before she instructed the chauffeur to set off, "Sorry for the trouble Uncle Wu, we can leave now."

    Shen Jingchen looked as if he¡¯d justpleted an eight hundred meter dash and was beyond tired. In contrast, Shen Jingbin who was sitting next to him was the very picture of calm. Seeing this made him suddenly feel as if his resentment was balled up in his chest, causing him great difort.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s senses were exceptionally sharp and she noticed the change in Shen Jingchen¡¯s mood almost immediately. He red at her as he tried to catch his breath, but Shen Jingbin just smiled and handed him a box of milk. She then continued speaking to the chauffeur, "Stop for a moment when we go past Huang Ji¡¯s Custard Buns, thank you."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s expression softened a little after hearing what she said. He tore open the packaging and held a straw in his mouth before issuing a snort that betrayed how he currently felt, "Hmph, at least you know how to read my mood and cate me."

    "When did you sleepst night?"

    "Around two thirty. I was kicked out of the game. There¡¯s still so much that I¡¯ve yet to tell them... Eh, this milk is pretty good. Where¡¯d you buy it from?"

    "Aunt Zhang bought it. You can ask her when shees back." Shen Jingbin also opened a box of milk, drinking a few sips, "Were you bragging again?"

    "What do you mean ¡¯bragging¡¯? I was only speaking the truth." He indignantly retorted, "Do you dare say that I didn¡¯t y a huge part in the defeat of Du the Unvanquished?"

    "Yes yes yes, a big big big part. The person who put in the most effort was you."

    "Tch, how patronizing." Shen Jingchen¡¯s lips curled, "Oh right, after you logged off yesterday, those blockheads called the four Weirdos actually asked me if you really looked like that in real life. You should have seen their faces, I almost died fromughing."

    Shen Jingbin frowned as she looked at him and asked, "What did you say?"

    Shen Jingchen gave her a look that seemed to say, "don¡¯t worry about it", and replied, "Nothing. How could I tell them that you¡¯re the one I¡¯m preparing to give to our Leader as a present? Apart from our guild leader, the rest of them don¡¯t need to know anything... Right, tell me honestly, what do you think of our guild leader?"

    Shen Jingbin wore a look of confusion on her face, "What do you mean what do I think of him?"

    "Little thing, stop pretending. I¡¯m asking you what you think of our guild leader. Do you think there¡¯s a chance of anything happening between the two of you? I¡¯ll say this, I really do think our Leader treats you differently. Although it¡¯s allegedly because of how much luck you have, I still feel that it¡¯s a done deal as long as you aren¡¯t against it. Look at how ugly you are in-game, even I can¡¯t stand it! But, our guild leader doesn¡¯t seem to mind at all and even willingly bears the burden of looking at you."

    Shen Jingbin nearly spat her milk at his face, "Are you sick in the head? What kind of development are you talking about? We¡¯ve only just met and you¡¯re already itching to get us hitched? Shen Jingchen, why didn¡¯t I ever realize that you enjoyed ying matchmaker as a hobby?"

    "Isn¡¯t this just me being concerned about you? You¡¯re already twenty something years old, but you haven¡¯t even gotten yourself a boyfriend. Don¡¯t you know that people who haven¡¯t experienced love haven¡¯t lived a full life?"

    "First of all, I¡¯m still young. Secondly, I¡¯m not as thirsty as you who thinks of every girl he sees. Thirdly, worry about your own love life first before you worry about mine."

    "Your big bro¡¯s just trying to be concerned about you, but you can¡¯t even appreciate my kindness. What an ungrateful brat."

    "Buy your own breakfastter."

    "..."

    Half an hourter, the two siblings stood in front of the Shen family¡¯s gate.

    The Shen family was among one of the rich and powerful families within A city. As such, their residence would naturally have an extraordinary air about it.

    Theplicated European-style iron gates were nked by two solemn and imposing stone lion statues that looked incredibly life-like. One look, and a person would be able to tell that they were carved by a master sculptor. A gorgeous garden could be seen through the gaps in the iron gates. In it, many fresh flowers that weren¡¯t in season were in full bloom. No matter where one looked, this residence screamed "I¡¯m a rich person."

    The two siblings only felt disgust when faced with this show of opulence: this was actually their biggest reason for moving out!

    "You take the lead." Shen Jingchen gave Shen Jingbin a push, hinting that she should take point.

    He wasn¡¯t a wimp, but this ce held way too many bitter memories for him. It could be said that all the traumatic experiences during his childhood had urred in this ce!!

    Shen Jingbin knew that he was afraid ofing home, so she didn¡¯t say anything in return. She just threw her things to him and speedily punched in the code to unlock the doors before going in, Shen Jingchen slowly trailing behind her.

    They arrived at arge building after winding through the flower garden. As she looked at the door, Shen Jingbin took a deep breath before slowly reaching out her hand to open it.

    A grey figure flew out from within the moment the door opened,unching a barrage of attacks at her. However, Shen Jingbin had long since anticipated this and avoided the attack with a sidestep. Unfortunately, the grey figure wasn¡¯t willing to relent and continued raining blows on her.

    Shen Jingchen stood far away and looked on as the two people, one old and one young, exchanged blows. He stretched out a sigh; he knew this was going to happen! Thankfully, he was smart enough to avoid taking the lead. Otherwise, he probably would¡¯ve been turned into mincemeat. With Granddad¡¯s skills, the only person in the entire household who could stand up to him would be Shen Jingbin.

    "Shen Jiaming, there¡¯s still guests. Don¡¯t take too long." Just as Shen Jingbin was starting to falter and be pushed into a disadvantageous position, a woman¡¯s voice trailed out from inside the house. It was their Granny.

    Their Grandfather immediately relented upon hearing her voice. He smiled as he looked at his downtrodden granddaughter, "Not bad, not bad. You¡¯ve improved fromst time. Looks like you haven¡¯t neglected your foundation."

    These two violent madmen! Shen Jingchen silently cursed as he positioned himself in front of them and sincerely greeted his grandfather, "Granddad."

    "Mm, you¡¯ve returned as well, brat."

    What did he mean "you¡¯ve returned as well"!

    Granddad, weren¡¯t you the one who forced me to return home! Granddad, can you not be such a tsundere1?!

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s thoughts were in turmoil.

    "Don¡¯t stand at the door,e in. Granddad wants to introduce the two of you to someone."

    After saying that, with a shove of his hand, their grandfather pushed Shen Jingchen and the bundle of items he carried into the house. Shen Jingbin, who was standing by the side, couldn¡¯t help but shrink back a little when she saw what happened. Opening up her stride, she hastily followed behind her Grandfather and walked in.

    They arrived at the living room after passing through the entrance hall. At present, three people were cheerfully joking with one another as they sat on a sofa.

    Apart from their Grandmother who remained as graceful as ever, two other people were present; a youth and an elderly person.

    Taking cue from her Grandfather, Shen Jingbin obediently sat down before sizing up the people who sat on the opposite side. The older person had an amicable face and an outstanding personality. He looked like he was around her Grandfather¡¯s age and was probably one of his close friends.

    As for the younger person...

    Shen Jingbin shifted her gaze sideways, and almost immediately met a pair of pitch ck eyes.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork

    Before anyone asks, yes, it¡¯s literally tsundere in the raws. ?

 Chapter 25

    <strong>Chapter 25: The First Meeting (1)</strong>

    "This is Grandfather Zhao." Shen Jiaming smiled as he introduced his old friend to the two siblings, "The one beside him is his grandson, Zhao Chengning. Chengning is a little older than the two of you, so call him Brother Chengning."

    "Grandfather Zhao, Brother Chengning." The two siblings were exceedingly obedient in front of their Grandfather, and immediately greeted the Zhao family members.

    Grandfather Zhao smiled, "Ole Shen, you truly are fortunate. Both brother and sister have grown up well, and they even have a sweet mouth."

    Old Master Shen replied modestly, "You¡¯re too kind. Little Jing is alright, but this rascal is a handful. He¡¯s caused me a great deal of worry in the past."

    After saying that, he gave Shen Jingchen a p on the back.

    Shen Jingchen, who¡¯d been caught off guard by the blow, shot Old Master Shen an aggrieved look. Pretending not to notice, Old Master Shen turned his head and continued his long winded conversation with Grandfather Zhao.

    Grandfather Zhao pretended to inadvertently sweep his gaze over the members of the younger generation, before saying, "Hahaha, Ole Shen, there¡¯s no point in reminiscing on the past, these young fellows wouldn¡¯t understand our hardships. Let¡¯s not drag them into pointless banter."

    "That¡¯s true. Come over little Jing, you and little Chen should take a stroll with Chengning." Grandmother Shen piped in, "If I¡¯m not wrong, this should be Chengning¡¯s first time in A City. In that case, these two will be your guide for the next two days. Don¡¯t stand on ceremony, enjoy yourselves. Let them know if there¡¯s anywhere you want to visit. Just remember toe back at night for dinner."

    "Thank you, Grandmother Shen. Granddad, we¡¯ll be leaving now."

    "Go on, go on. Be careful when you¡¯re out on the streets and remember to be safe."

    "Granddad, we¡¯ll be going as well."

    Shen Jingbin only stood up after she saw the other two making ready to leave, giving the three elders a slight bow as she said her farewells.

    "Your granddaughter is pretty good." Old Master Zhao said as he watched her figure leave, his words containing a hidden undertone within them.

    Old Master Shen cast a sidelong nce at him as he said, "Your kid is pretty good too."

    Grandmother Shen leisurely took a sip of tea and said, "They seem quitepatible to me."

    The elderly trio couldn¡¯t help but smile at each other, expressing satisfaction in their unspoken agreement.

    The moment they stepped out, Shen Jingchen feigned grief and said, "We¡¯ve obviously just arrived, yet we didn¡¯t even stay long enough to warm our butts before we were chased out. How terrible."

    "You still have the option of going back to talk about life with Granddad." Shen Jingbin insipidly replied. At this moment, she suddenly remembered that there was another person beside her. She turned to Zhao Chengning and asked, "Brother Chengning, is there any ce you feel like visiting?"

    Zhao Chengning cast his eyes downwards and pondered, "I¡¯m not very familiar with A City, so I think it¡¯s better for you guys to decide. Also, just call me Chengning. "Brother Chengning" sounds awkward, and I¡¯m not that much older than you guys."

    "A straightforward person, I like people like you! In that case, Chengning, I¡¯m Shen Jingchen. It¡¯s the jing in an jing (°²¾²) and the chen (³¿) in chen guang (³¿¹â). You can call me whatever you want, I¡¯m a very casual person. This girl over here is my little sister, Shen Jingbin. You can call her little Jingjing. Don¡¯t worry, she doesn¡¯t mind."

    The corner of Zhao Chengning¡¯s eyes twitched, and seemingly doubting what he¡¯d heard, he asked, "Nutjob?"1

    "No, not Nutjob. It¡¯s Shen Jingbin. It¡¯s the jing in an jing (°²¾²) and bin isprised of wang and fen (Íõ+·Ö=çã)." Shen Jingbin exined in a deadpan manner.

    "Shen Jingbing (Nutjob), Shen Jingbin, aren¡¯t they all the same. What¡¯s the difference?" Shen Jingchen ruthlessly ridiculed her.

    "Hmph, uncultured barbarians are truly terrifying." Shen Jingbin disdainfully shot him a look, "Forget it. Speaking with you is an insult to my intelligence."

    After thinking for awhile, she spoke to the person beside her once again, "Tomorrow will be the start of a week long martial artspetition. How about I bring you over to take a look?"

    It had to be said that Shen Jingbin truly wasn¡¯t suited as a tour guide. Even after thinking about it, the only thing that she coulde up with was this one ce. Thankfully, Zhao Chengning seemed to be rather interested in saidpetition. He smiled and nodded in agreement.

    Thus, the trio got onto a bus and made their way towards thepetition venue ¡ª A City¡¯s stadium.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork

    It¡¯s been mentioned before, but her real name is very simr to how nutjob is spelt in Chinese. ?

 Chapter 26

    <strong>Chapter 26: The First Meeting (2)</strong>

    As one of Z Nation¡¯s four metropolises, A City had always been favored by manyrge scale event organizers. Since it was a nationalpetition, city hall attached great importance to the martial artspetition this time around. All aspects of thepetition, such as publicity and so on, were executed in a grand manner.

    Which is why when the three of them alighted, they caught sight of an LED screen at the main entrance that was broadcasting information onpetitions from the previous years. And, as luck would have it, it just so happened to be broadcasting Shen Jingbin¡¯s very firstpetition.

    The national youth martial artspetition was pretty respectable in Z Nation, and it was Old Master Shen¡¯s long standing desire for Shen Jingbin to participate in it.

    However, apart from martial arts exhibitions, there were duels as well.

    Although Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen¡¯s parents didn¡¯t have the time to look after their children, they still loved them dearly. They couldn¡¯t bear to see their adorable little girl fight in apetition. So, whenever Old Master Shen brought the matter up, the two of them used her young age that was easily susceptible to injuries as an excuse for her to not participate.

    It was an arduous wait for her to reach the age of eighteen. But when she did, her Grandfather wordlessly registered her in an extremely unyielding manner.

    In the past, the two of you used her age as an excuse. Now, she¡¯s all grown up. She isn¡¯t a child any longer.

    By the time her Mother received information from the organizer, the die was cast and there was no going back. She was so furious that she had stomped her foot in anger.

    At that time, the calm disy of skills she showed off in the exhibition matches allowed her to nab first ce without a hitch. However, she had the misfortune of going up against a changquan 1 practitioner who was pegged as the crowd favorite for that year.

    Although Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t weak and had obtained many trophies throughout her many years of practice, exhibition matches and duels were two different things. Duels consisted of actual battle, which she hadn¡¯t participated in up till this point. Her opponent, on the other hand, just so happened to be theplete opposite of her. They didn¡¯t amount to much in the exhibition matches, but were a formidable contender when it came to duels.

    Many peoplemented her unfortunate fate, and even more people felt sorry for her: This was their first time seeing such a beautiful maiden, and she was as beautiful as an angel! But who would¡¯ve thought that before they even had their fill of her, they would bear witness to the little angel being handily beaten to the point where she looked like a pig¡¯s head!

    However, when the time came, contrary to everyone¡¯s expectations, an astonishing power burst forth from within Shen Jingbin¡¯s tiny body, allowing her to lead the tempo of the fight within just ten minutes of the match¡¯smencement.

    In a contest between experts, one¡¯s level of skill was no longer held the most important. What mattered the most was grasping the tempo of the fight. Her winning was only natural after taking control of the battle¡¯s tempo, resulting in her bing the most popr candidate to win.

    In the end, her match ended up bing essential marketing material for the organizingmittees of every subsequent year.

    Under Shen Jingchen¡¯s exaggerated exnation, Zhao Chengning stopped in front of the screen out of interest and watched Shen Jingbin¡¯s match.

    Although she wasn¡¯t all that different from how she was now, both her personality and the aura she exuded were practically that of a different person¡¯s once she stepped onto the stage. After the match was over, apart from Old Master Shen and Shen Jingchen, no one else could speak to her without any difficulty. Even her parents had received a fright from watching her match.

    Shen Jingbin calmly looked at him and nodded her head.

    "You weren¡¯t able to tell, right? Let me tell you, this fe is a damn pervert. It¡¯ll be the misfortune of anyone who marries her. There¡¯ll definitely be domestic violence, or the person might be tortured to death instead!" Shen Jingchen would never relinquish the chance to besmirch her name, "Just look at me. I may be her big bro, but I¡¯m mistreated by her everyday when we¡¯re at home. I have no human rights at all. I¡¯m practically living in an abyss of suffering!"

    Zhao Chengning replied, "That¡¯s alright, her martial prowess is worthy of her beauty. A beautifuldy that¡¯s capable of protecting herself is a good thing."

    His words were clearly well received, causing Shen Jingbin¡¯s favorability towards him to slowly rise as she happily said, "I love speaking with people who are wise and have foresight. I bore of crushing a certain someone in both IQ and strength. Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll bring you in to take a look."

    After saying that, she led Zhao Chengning into the stadium, leaving Shen Jingchen to gnash his teeth in their wake.

    As the second day was the start of thepetition, there were many people within the stadium at present. There were participants who came to scope out the situation, and residents who came to have a peek at things in advance.

    Shen Jingbin was unexpectedly popr. She was faced with an unending stream of people who greeted her along the way. There were even a few who ran up to her to ask for group photos or autographs.

    Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingchen stood at the side and looked at the youngdy who seemed a little ufortable as she took group photos with others.

    Shen Jingbin was an absolute beauty. Regardless of how harsh a judge they were, anyone who saw her would willingly sing her praises. Her Father had once brought her to attend a banquet. When it ended, she received various invitations from many famous managementpanies. A famous singer¡¯s manager even told her bluntly that she¡¯d definitely be a nightmare for many celebrities if she ever decided to join the entertainment world,

    The warm sunlight prated through the clouds and spilled onto her delicate white skin, seeming to cast a halo over her features. Due to the angle being just right, he could even see the fine hair on her face.

    She was soft and warm.

    Truly a nice looking youngdy.

    Zhao Chengning suddenly thought of apletely different face, and his eyes couldn¡¯t help but light up in amusement.

    Almost as if she¡¯d sensed his gaze, Shen Jingbin suddenly turned to face him. Their eyes met, and the atmosphere around them changed slightly.

    He coughed and thought of saying something, but shifted his gaze away upon seeing her unperturbed expression.

    Shen Jingchen suddenly acted as if he¡¯d found the New World and eximed, "Eh, little Jingjing, why are your ears red?"

    In response to what he said, Zhao Chengning subconsciously shifted his gaze and looked at her ears.

    Sure enough, her small and exquisite ears had turned red from her earlobes. Even the tips of her ears were slightly red.

    "You must have made a mistake, moron." Shen Jingbin really felt like throttling this pig like party member beside her.

    Do you really have to be so upright and call out everything you see!? Didn¡¯t you notice the number of people looking at us!?

    Was there truly no cure for stupidity?!

    "Definitely not, they¡¯re clearly red! I have 20/20 vision! Zhao Chengning, take a look and see if her ears are really red!" After beingbeled a moron, Shen Jingchen became very indignant and immediately started looking for alliances.

    "Nope, you made a mistake." Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t know why he did it, but he blurted out that it was untrue.

    At this point, Shen Jingchen was a little stunned. He turned at looked at his little sister once again.

    Shen Jingbin covered her ears and red at him.

    With her ears hidden, Shen Jingchen could only drop the subject.

    However, he still felt that it was a little strange. He whispered to himself, "That shouldn¡¯t be the case, her ears were clearly red..."

    "..."

    Can anyone tell her why she was feeling even hotter now?

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Changquan ?

 Chapter 27

    <strong>Chapter 27: Another Dispute (1)</strong>

    Shen Jingchen honestly couldn¡¯t believe the miraculous ways in which his sister¡¯s brain worked. After exiting the stadium he took it upon himself to bring them around, as A City¡¯s downtown district had many interesting ces to visit.

    With food in hand, the three of them returned to the Shen family¡¯s residence. Once they were done eating, Old Master Zhao left with Zhao Chengning.

    After sending the Zhao family off, Shen Jingbin returned to the living room and was greeted with the sight of Shen Jingchen, who appeared to be bored out of his mind, sinking into the sofa as he incessantly clicked through the television¡¯s channels.

    Seeing her walk in, he asked, "Where¡¯s Gramps and Granny?"

    She grabbed a ck cushion and sat beside him, "They¡¯ve gone out for a walk to aid in their digestion."

    "I wonder whether the game¡¯s done with its update." Shen Jingchen tossed the remote to the side and started rolling about on the sofa, "Ah... I¡¯m so bored, I¡¯m so bored, I¡¯m so bored!"

    "So, what do you n on doing?" She¡¯d be letting his lousy acting down if she couldn¡¯t tell that he had an ulterior motive.

    "Let¡¯s have a look at an inte cafe." Shen Jingchen instantly leapt up from the sofa like a fish as both his eyes sparkled. His current appearance onlycking a wagging tail toplete it.

    Due to the poprity of <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, many high-end inte cafes had jumped onto the bandwagon and bought virtual reality helmets that were slightly cheaper than gaming pods.

    A yer¡¯s ount in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> wasn¡¯t bound to their gaming device, so all a person needed to y was either a gaming pod, or a virtual reality helmet.

    "I still need to attend thepetition tomorrow."

    Shen Jingchen blinked at her, his eyes filled with tears as he asked, "You¡¯re not participating anyway, right?"

    Shen Jingbin held her forehead in exasperation and said, "But I need to wake up early. Also, with Granddad around, it¡¯s not going to be something as simple and rxing as just watching thepetition. I need to have some strength in reserve to deal with him."

    "Is a martial arts expert still afraid of such things?"

    "..."

    "Which is why we should stop wasting time. Come on, let¡¯s go. Your big bro will bring you out to have some fun."

    "What¡¯ll we do when Granddades back in a bit? He¡¯s always hated it when we y games."

    "Are you an idiot? If the two of us don¡¯t say anything, how would he find out?"

    "It¡¯s only times like these that I feel like the gulf between our IQs isn¡¯t asrge."

    "..."

    A high-end clubhousey not far from the Shen family¡¯s neighbourhood. Knowing their surroundings well, the duo effortlessly found the inte cafe and requested a private room for two.

    After a quick check which revealed that the game had alreadypleted its update, the two of them wore their helmets and logged in.

    "Disciple Nutjob, make haste and return to White Cloud Temple. Your Master has an important task for you. Master: Song Yuqing."

    Shen Jingbin immediately received a letter from Song Yuqing upon logging in.

    This was Song Yuqing¡¯s first time contacting her since she¡¯d left White Cloud Temple. After taking a moment to get her items in order, Shen Jingbin hastily made her way over to White Cloud Temple. She felt bored along the way, so she felt that she might as well open up the guild¡¯s chat.

    Night time was usually when the number of yers online peaked. A dazzling number of messages filled with all sorts of information shed through the guild¡¯s chat channel, but most of them were talking about the game¡¯s new update.

    After the update, thetest scenario was to investigate the Demonic Sect.

    The system added three dungeons rted to the Demonic Sect, and also provided every yer with a Demonic Sect map that they had to explore.

    yers would be rewarded with a teleportation scroll if they managed toplete all of the Demonic Sect rted dungeons in session. The scroll would then transport them to the Demonic Sect¡¯s map, where they could begin to unlock it.

    Each scroll could only be used once, and would only be effective for an hour.

    Once someone fully unlocked the map, it would be avable to all other yers. yers who participated in the unlocking would be granted an additional 2% increase in their rare drop rate chance when they defeated the Demonic Sect¡¯s disciples.

    In addition, it was said that a hidden quest for the Demonic Sect was released, and yers whopleted this hidden quest would even have the chance to join the Demonic Sect.

    ording to the setting, yers who joined the Demonic Sect could receive mental discipline skill books specific to the sect. These skill books boasted High Attack and Defence, which almost made them a BUG-like existence.

    Of course, the game still had to take bnce1 into ount.

    A setting as cool as this definitely had to have a limitation on the number of people who could attempt it. Rumour had it that of the entire game¡¯s yer base, only a thousand people would be able to receive the Demonic Sect¡¯s hidden quest. Once that number was reached, it would mark the start of a great battle between good and evil.

    However, the details of said battle would be left for yers to discover.

    After skimming through the guild¡¯s chat, Shen Jingbin found that no one had been able toplete the newly added Demonic Sect dungeons. Countless yers criticized the dungeon for being too difficult. Just the first dungeon alone was impossible toplete, let alone all three of them in session.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly thought of the "Demonic Sect entry token" she had received when shepleted her quest.

    "Demonic Sect Entry Token: Possession of this item allows one to freely enter the Shinra Sect¡¯s domain. Description: Untradable, ount bound, 1 hour cooldown."

    What the f*ck!

    This one sentence was the only thing left in her head after reading the item¡¯s description.

    While everyone else was still worrying over how to clear the dungeons, she possessed an item that was even cooler than the teleportation scroll! This meant that while everyone else was still at the starting line, she was an entire ser field ahead of them. Apart from her, no one else could do it!

    Sure enough, she was better off justparing her Luck with others in the game.

    It was practically a walkover for her in a contest of Luck!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Making sure various elements of the game aren¡¯t too over/underpowered. ?

 Chapter 28

    <strong>Chapter 28: Another Dispute (2)</strong>

    [Guild] Guild Leader Quiet And Steadfast has logged on.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Everyone, take the opportunity to level up as much as you can during this period of time. We¡¯ll be forming a group to take on the new dungeons in three days time.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Is Nutjob around?

    While she was feeling immeasurably satisfied, Shen Jingbin suddenly noticed someone calling out to her in the guild chat.

    [Guild] Nutjob: I¡¯m here, what¡¯s up?

    [Guild} Quiet And Steadfast: Drop whatever it is you¡¯re doing ande leveling with everyone else. The four Monsters, squeeze out some time over the next two days and help her get to 80 before we take on the dungeon.

    Level 80 was the minimum level required to take on the Demonic Sect¡¯s dungeon.

    Level 80?

    Shen Jingbin looked at her own level that was just over 30. Wasn¡¯t this a little too difficult?

    [Guild] Nutjob: I have some things to take care of during the next two days. I won¡¯t be able to log on, so I won¡¯t need their help.

    After she said that, the entire guild chat instantly fell silent.

    She couldn¡¯t help but look back at what she¡¯d written. There wasn¡¯t anything wrong with it...

    It¡¯s about there?

    [Guild] Big Buddhist Nun: This is my first time seeing Leader get rejected by someone!

    [Guild] Faint Blue Seaweed: +1.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: This kind of sensation...

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: Feels kind of...

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Monster: Good!

    [Guild] Attacking Me Because I¡¯m A Monster: To the blockheads on top: don¡¯t be an idiot! You shouldn¡¯t say these kinds of things out loud!

    [Guild] Slight Chill: Big sister are you sure you haven¡¯t made a mistake? Everyone in the guild is doing their best to raise their levels so we can vie for the first clear, yet a lowbie like you who entered through the back door is still acting so leisurely. Not only have you made no contributions to the guild, you¡¯re even dragging us down, heh heh."

    The "heh heh" left at the end of Slight Chill¡¯s message made Shen Jingbin feel as if she was about to choke.

    This person called "Slight Chill" had been at odds with her from the very first day she joined. But Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t think that she¡¯d done anything to offend her? She recalled everything that had happened since she first started ying, and apart from that small conflict with Lil Rose and Brother Mao, she¡¯d more or less spent all of her time interacting with NPCs!

    Little sister, won¡¯t you exin yourself?! Shen Jingbin really felt like reasoning with this girl but thought better of it. After all, she was a member of the guild. It wouldn¡¯t be good if rtions between them soured, so she might as well drop the matter.

    Who asked her to be such a magnanimous person!

    In the end, a certain someone whose name started with Shen decided to sacrifice herself for the good of the world and agreed to the guild¡¯s arrangements. She nned to do so while pretending not to have seen Slight Chill¡¯s scathingment, letting the issue blow over on its own.

    However unexpectedly, someone jumped in to "shit stir" before she had the chance to respond.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: What a joke, are you saying that other people can¡¯t leave to take care of things in real life? Are you going to insist that everyone be like you and spend all their time eating and shitting in the game? And speaking of burdens, I seem to recall you holding us back many times in the past as well.

    Shen Jingbin was utterly shocked: What the f*ck! Big bro, are you sure you¡¯re not being too blunt?! You¡¯re gonna make her angry!

    [Guild] Slight Chill: Dawn¡¯s Twilight, are you a dog? Do you go around biting everyone you see? What does this lowbie have to do with you? Seeing as you¡¯re so protective of her, you must be having an affair with her, right? That¡¯s right, don¡¯t you love going around and flirting with women? Hmph, this is my first time seeing someone act so self-righteously after entering through the back door. Do you really think that after bing a member of the guild, you can do whatever you want?

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Take a good look for yourself and see just who¡¯s the one going around biting others. As for Nutjob¡¯s connection with me, is it something that you should concern yourself with? Who the hell are you?

    [Guild] Slight Chill: What goes on in your life is none of my business, and neither am I interested in it. I just can¡¯t stand that arrogant look of yours. What would the other guild members think when they see you protecting a lowbie who hasn¡¯t made a single bit of contribution to the guild? Eh, so it looks like people have to rely on their connections even when they y a game?

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: You¡¯re saying she hasn¡¯t made any contribution up till this point? Get your facts straight, bitch. Who was it that helped our guild get a 20% increase in rare drop rate? You were online the day it happened as well. You shouldn¡¯t be blind or senile, right? If you really can¡¯t remember, I wouldn¡¯t mind helping you jog your memory!

    Slight Chill suddenly went silent, but Shen Jingchen wasn¡¯t willing to let it go.

    Did she really think it¡¯d be that easy to escape after bullying his little sister?

    Dream on!

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Don¡¯t just take my word for it. While it¡¯s true that she¡¯s just joined, she¡¯s much better than someone like you who spends all day ridiculing others and trying to supnt them. And, after doing all that, you still have the cheek to criticize others. I¡¯m impressed.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: What¡¯s this, the atmosphere¡¯s a little too severe. Let¡¯s not quarrel and calmly discuss things.

    [Guild} Little Monk: Slight Chill, Dawn, let¡¯s talk things out nicely. Don¡¯t quarrel, don¡¯t quarrel.

    Everyone was part of the same guild, so they naturally wouldn¡¯t allow this endless dispute to continue on. When they noticed both sides starting to simmer down, a number of people jumped in to act as mediators.

    Based on what Shen Jingbin knew of him, although Shen Jingchen was an idiot, he still acted like a gentleman towards women. This was her first time seeing him re up like this.

    Big bro, you¡¯re way too cool!

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: ...

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Slight Chill, Dawn¡¯s Twilight, for openly quarrelling in the guild, each of you will contribute 100 taels to the guild¡¯s funds as a fine. After that, find a time to look for me in private.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Nutjob, when you manage to get online, look for the four Monsters and get them to help level you up. Try to hit 80 as soon as you can. We won¡¯t bring you along for our dungeon run this time. As for the rest of you, go do what you¡¯re supposed to do. Do you guys think you¡¯re very free?

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 29

    <strong>Chapter 29: The Origins Of The Demonic Sect (1) </strong>

    Although Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t interacted much with Quiet and Steadfast, she felt that he was a pretty good person.

    His ability to subdue Shen Jingchen was enough to prove that he wasn¡¯t a simple person.

    Although he¡¯d received Old Master Shen¡¯s guidance before it was toote, curbing much of his hedonistic tendencies, Shen Jingchen was still the Young Master of an influential family. When facing outsiders, he¡¯d unconsciously exude a sense of superiority that felt aloof and remote.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s capabilities were clear from the very fact that Shen Jingchen was willing to y second fiddle to him.

    It might have been due to his authority as the guild leader, but once Quiet And Steadfast spoke out, neither Slight Chill nor Shen Jingchen spoke a word after. When the tense atmosphere began to dissolve, all the bystanders within the chat started to joke around in an attempt to wash away the previous incident.

    Shin Jingbin thought for a bit, before she pulled up her friend window and sent Quiet And Steadfast a letter, "I¡¯ll do my best to level so that I don¡¯t embarrass you anymore."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s reply came quickly, "Don¡¯t put too much pressure on yourself. Your Luck is good, so you¡¯ll level quickly. Don¡¯t worry about what happened today."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly received another letter shortly after receiving Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s reply. She originally thought that he had something else to say, but upon opening it, she found that it was actually from Slight Chill.

    "Just you wait, I¡¯ll definitely return today¡¯s debt to you!"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips curled. She tore apart the letter and watched as bits and pieces of it fell to the ground, before then being wiped away by the system.

    Throughout her growing years, due to various external factors, other women had frequently treated Shen Jingbin as a punching bag for no reason at all. Compared to them, Slight Chill¡¯s threats towards her were a mere trifle. She wouldn¡¯t take it to heart.

    Of course, that didn¡¯t mean she was the Virgin Mary. It¡¯s just that the other party wasn¡¯t enough of a threat yet, so there was no need for her to worry.

    By this time, White Cloud Temple was in sight, so Shen Jingbin sent out a party invitation to Shen Jingchen.

    Shen Jingchen was soon flying over on his coquettish dragon shortly after the party was formed.

    yers who formed parties would know where their members are.

    The moment hended, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t act like how she usually did and harshly criticize him. Instead, she smiled and curried favor with him by saying, "Big bro, you were really cool just now."

    To Shen Jingbin, trying to curry favor like this was a tremendous challenge for her.

    But, for the sake of thanking him for what he did, she¡¯d force herself to do it even if it was extremely difficult.

    The two siblings may take pleasure in the other¡¯s misfortune, but in truth, they got along really well with one another.

    She knew perfectly well that her brother had gotten angry for her sake, so she naturally couldn¡¯t just sit there and do nothing.

    Even if they were siblings, they would just drift apart if they took each other for granted.

    Shen Jingchen clearly enjoyed what she did, but he put on a facade of arrogance instead, shooting her a supercilious look and saying, "Hmph."

    However, Shen Jingbin¡¯s currying favor neversted for long.

    Upon seeing his outrageously arrogant appearance, Shen Jingbin immediately withdrew her fawning smile before she walked up and pped him on the shoulder, "Don¡¯t be arrogant, child."

    "...Get lost." Shen Jingchen said through his clenched teeth, "How can you be so unconscionable, I had to give up 100 taels of silver because of you! And, in just a little bit, I¡¯m going to get scolded by the Leader. Are you telling me that all of that was worth only this little bit of fawning?! Your big brother is very unhappy!"

    Although those were the words that came out of his mouth, in truth, that wasn¡¯t the case. The smile that tugged at the corner of his lips had already revealed how he truly felt.

    "You really were angry just now, weren¡¯t you?" It wasn¡¯t a question, but a statement.

    "Eh, a little. That woman is really annoying and she¡¯s always causing trouble. As you¡¯ve said, she¡¯s always trying to pick a fight with me, but I endured it since I¡¯m a magnanimous person. After all, I was the one who did wrong by her first. However, bullying you is another matter altogether. Your big brother is still around. Did she really think I was a pushover? That I could be pped around so easily?"

    The two of them talked as they made their way towards the interior of White Cloud Temple.

    The world had undergone a substantial change ever since the system released the Demonic Sect expansion. In response, the system had also gone through a huge transformation. Previously, yers weren¡¯t allowed to set foot into other sects. However, they were now permitted toe and go freely.

    There was an enormous amount of yers in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. Even after much time had passed from the time the new version was released, many yers would stille back to their sects to pick up new quests. Unexpectedly, upon seeing the duo walk over, a majority of the yers there spontaneously opened up a path for them, allowing them to enter first.

    Shen Jingbin felt that it was likely due to her terrifying appearance, which was so horrid that they weren¡¯t even willing to squeeze together with her.

    "Is Slight Chill at odds with me because I entered the guild through the back door, and also because of the quest I did with Quiet And Steadfast yesterday?" Shen Jingbin suddenly asked as they were walking.

    Shen Jingchen replied after thinking for awhile, "That¡¯s about right, it should be all of those things."

    "...Why do I feel as if I¡¯ve unwittingly drawn all the aggro?"

    "Wasn¡¯t there an old saying that went: When heaven is about to ce a great responsibility on a great man, he will first be presented with trials and tribtions to hone his nature and spirit. In that case, all these people who have it out for you are helping you pave the way to sess."

    A smile tugged at the corner of Shen Jingchen¡¯s lips as he said, "I¡¯m sorry, but your current appearance has absolutely nothing inmon with the word ¡¯beautiful¡¯."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyebrows rose, "Are you looking for a spanking?"

    "Ahem, today¡¯s weather is pretty good."

    "..."

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 30

    <strong>Chapter 30: The Origins Of The Demonic Sect (2) </strong>

    The two of them arrived at the White Cloud Temple¡¯s Radiant Dawn Hall as they chatted.

    Most of the yers received their Demonic Sect quests from their sect elders. After looking around the hall that was packed with people, Shen Jingbin dragged her brother towards Song Yuqing¡¯s residence with iparable joy.

    As a Celestial cultivator sect, White Cloud Temple had an otherworldly feel about it. With his position as the Sect Leader, Song Yuqing had an even more sagely look about him.

    Sitting upright upon a reed cushion, he wore green daoist robes with his hair tied up into a high bun, preventing any strands from obstructing his face. His eyes were cast downwards, a serene look on his face.

    Shen Jingbin held a great of respect for people like him, so she very cleverly gave a bow towards him.

    "You¡¯vee, my disciple." Song Yuqing gave a very satisfied nod of his head after Shen Jingbin finished her bow and said, "Is this person a disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion?"

    Sensing Song Yuqing¡¯s gazend on him, Shen Jingchen hurriedly imitated Shen Jingbin and gave him a bow. It was said major NPCs were very intelligent, and from the looks of it, that really seemed to be the case.

    "I heard that you were the one who discovered the remnants of the Shinra Sect. Is this true?"

    News truly traveled quickly.

    Shen Jingbin silently cursed in her heart, but wore the same expression as she respectfully replied, "Yes."

    Song Yuqing gracefully stood up from the reed cushion, then straightened his robes. After which, he gave Shen Jingbin a meaningful look and said, "I noticed your peculiar attributes from the first time I met you. Since then, I¡¯ve felt that you¡¯d definitely be able to gain some achievements in the future."

    Shen Jingbin was amazed by Song Yuqing¡¯s eyes that were filled with emotion!

    How¡¯d he manage to pull off such aplicated expression?

    Song Yuqing continued without any concern for how she was feeling, "In the past, Humans, Celestials, and Demons used to live together harmoniously. Hostilities amongst our three races wouldn¡¯t have progressed to such a stage if it weren¡¯t for the Shinra Sect."

    The two of them nodded their heads.

    The great war between the Celestials and the Demons was the initial starting point for the game. However, when the game was released, the administrators only exined the structure of the world and the state of the battle, while its cause was only mentioned in passing. Previously, yers who yed for the story brought up this issue, but were provided with the same short and cruel reply as always: "Please investigate the cause of the great battle for yourselves." A short whileter, this answer caused a storm of criticism amongst the questing poption of the yer base.

    However, the number of serious explorers and questers within the game weren¡¯t many. Knowing the reason behind the great war wasn¡¯t essential to enjoy the meat of the game either, so even after two years of service, the number of yers who investigated it were few.

    But from the looks of things, it seemed as if the great war was going to be the highlight of the story once again. It¡¯s no wonder the administrators wanted yers to investigate it for themselves.

    Upon seeing the bewildered looks on their faces, Song Yuqing paused for a moment before saying, "There are numerous phenomena in this vast world. In the past, the Humans, Celestials, and Demons walked their own separate paths and coexisted in harmony. However, desire is a truly terrifying thing. At some point, delusions arose from the three races and gave rise to a vain attempt to unify heaven and earth. These individuals founded the Shinra Sect and named themselves the emissaries of the heavens. They imed that they were here to carry out heaven¡¯s will, and would eliminate any evil. They feasted on the flesh of young children, drank the blood of virgins, and piged and ughtered all who opposed them."

    When he heard that, Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Is the Shinra Sect really that terrifying? Didn¡¯t the six great sects ever think of banding together to fight against them?"

    "It¡¯s embarrassing to admit, but even though the six great sects coexist peacefully together, our rtions with one another are merely average. At the start, we weren¡¯t concerned when the Shinra Sect made its first appearance. We felt that they were just some small-time troublemakers. Afterwards, the situation slowly turned grave. However, no one wanted to be the first to speak under these circumstances, for fear of giving the impression that they were the ones asking for help. Doing so would forfeit their chance to obtain leadership of the coalition, and wouldnd them in a subordinate position amongst the other sects. As time went by, the six great sects were forced into an extremely sorry state. In the end, they had no choice but to join hands and seal the entire sect."

    Shen Jingbin gave a stab as she quietly added, "Your problems wille back to bite you if you don¡¯t nip them in the bud."

    Song Yuqing choked and said, "Don¡¯t you think we¡¯ve been trying to do that? But the Shinra Sect pulled out some strange martial arts from god knows where, preventing us from wiping them out."

    Bullshit. You¡¯re all NPCs, neither of you can get rid of one another.

    "But what does this have to do with the great war between Celestials and Demons?"

    "After the war with the Shinra Sect was over, the Sect Leaders from Dragonkin Tower and Nymph Abode found out that the Leader of the Shinra Sect was actually someone from Mara Hall. And, although everyone got a share of the spoils from Shinra Sect, Mara Hall obtained the most benefits. During the war, Dragonkin Tower and Nymph Abode lost no small amount of outstanding disciples. Ovee with rage and humiliation, the two sects started a dispute with Mara Hall and Lich Pce. Demons were always an irascible bunch, they can¡¯t stand being criticized for no reason. This ultimately led to both sidesshing out, giving rise to the great war between Celestials and Demons. Nowhere was safe from the ravages of the war. How could our White Cloud Temple and the Swordmaster Pavilion not be affected once war broke out? And thus, we entered the fray as well."

    "The great war between Celestials and Demons has been at a standstill for many years. Now, with the reappearance of the Shinra Sect, the six greats have joined hands once again. We can¡¯t let a repeat of the tragedy from a hundred years ago happen another time."

    "My disciple Nutjob, listen carefully. We sealed the Shinra Sect in the Extreme Abyss. It is a ce rich in negative qi and grudges. As evil practitioners, their violence grows in proportion with the concentration of negative emotions. Their eventual reappearance in this world will definitely lead to a huge cmity. As the Lead Disciple of our White Cloud Temple, you ought to represent our sect and carry out heaven¡¯s will."

    Once he said that, a notification from the system popped up.

    "Quest: ¡¯Investigate The Demonic Sect¡¯ ¡ª Clear The Demonic Sect¡¯s Dungeons (0/3). Will you ept this quest? Yes/No."

    Once Shen Jingbin epted the quest, Song Yuqing settled himself back onto the reed cushion and shut his eyes, then said, "Old fogeys like us have been living for far too long. Our era has passed, it¡¯s time for the younger generation to rece us. Be on your way."

    Shen Jingbin sped her hands towards him and left.

    The moment they stepped out of White Cloud Temple, Shen Jingchen asked, "What quest did you get? A quest given by the Sect Leader should be special, right?"

    "It¡¯s nothing special. It¡¯s the same unlocking quest that you guys received." Shen Jingbin waved her hand as she said, "Be mindful of the time, it¡¯s almost time for us to return."

    "Alright, alright. I¡¯ll store some stuff in the bank and log off." Shen Jingchen hopped onto his mount and shot her a coquettish nce before he said, "Don¡¯t forget to raise your levels after thepetition is over, your big bro will apany you on a dungeon run. Muack~"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s body trembled as she felt goosebumps appear due to his behaviour.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 31

    <strong>Chapter 31: The Shen Family (1)</strong>

    By the time they reached home, the two old folks from the Shen Family had already returned from their walk. The elders merely asked where they¡¯d been and didn¡¯t question them further. They just exhorted Shen Jingbin to sleep a little earlier.

    The next day, Shen Jingbin woke up first thing in the morning and tidied herself up, before following Old Master Shen to the stadium.

    The contestants participating in thepetition this year were all pretty good. Shen Jingbin sat at the judging panel with Old Master Shen, watching thepetition for the entire day till she felt dizzy. In the end, she managed to pull through to the end of thepetition with great difficulty.

    As they were nning to leave the stadium and head home, Old Master Shen was unexpectedly stopped in his tracks by one of the event¡¯s organizers.

    The organizer had a tall, skinny, and rather attractive youngdy apanying him. As he stood in front of Old Master Shen, his face expressed his intention to curry favour. The organizer wanted to say something, but he stopped short and held his tongue as he looked towards Shen Jingbin who was standing beside Old Master Shen.

    It took Shen Jingbin but a moment to figure out what was going on. She consciously took her things and stood to the side, pretending not to have seen the look of displeasure in her Grandfather¡¯s eyes.

    She had no rights inmenting on matters of this kind, so she couldn¡¯t do anything about it even if he was unhappy.

    Domesticpetitions were nevercking in schemes, but it wasn¡¯t so bad in the beginning. After all, people were still simple and honest back then. However, as time went by, manypetitions gradually became more reliant on the amount of influence one had, rather than one¡¯s own ability. However, she didn¡¯t expect that even thispetition would stoop to such lows.

    One had to know, that much of the reason behind why she chose to withdraw from thepetition that year was due to the many schemes that took ce behind the scenes, and theck of sincerity from the organizers.

    Regardless of how she performed, there would always be a few people who¡¯d appear out of nowhere, saying that she¡¯d relied on Old Master Shen to get to where she is today.

    She wasn¡¯t bothered about these rumors and nderous words, but Old Master Shen was different.

    Rumours that were repeated would gradually be fact. No one could guarantee whether the Old Master¡¯s reputation would take a hit due to the these baseless ims.

    That youngdy standing beside the organizer was rather attractive and left a bit of an impression because of that. It seems like she¡¯d participated in a match today as well. However, Shen Jingbin felt that the young girl¡¯s strength was only middling. The young girl also conformed with the norms of society, so there wasn¡¯t anything particrly outstanding about her. She¡¯d probably face some difficulties if she wanted to be ranked in the currentpetition.

    Shen Jingbin reckoned that the person in question knew it as well, so she decided to approach the issue by having an affair with a member of the judging panel.

    Old Master Shen didn¡¯t have a pleasant expression on his face.

    As it should be, because he couldn¡¯t stand seeing these things the most. He was already giving them a lot of face by not washing his hands of everything and just leaving.

    Shen Jingbin watched the three of them attentively from afar as she unconsciously kicked the small rocks on the ground. During this time, a ck car silently drove up behind her and stopped beside her.

    The driver pressed his car¡¯s horn so suddenly that it gave her a fright.

    Who was this uncivilized person who went around randomly honking their horn as they pleased?!

    She was standing in the pedestrian area, so she red a little resentfully at the car that appeared from god knows where.

    The person inside the car wound the window down bit by bit, revealing a handsome face.

    That face actually belonged to Zhao Chengning.

    Zhao Chengning held the steering wheel with one hand, while the other leaned against the window. He leaned his head out of the window and looked at her, a faint smile ying at his lips. He then asked, "Is it over? My old man booked a table at Fragrant Goose Restaurant and wants to invite your family over for a meal. Uncle Shen and my old man are inseparable once they start chatting, so he let mee over to pick you guys up."

    Shen Jingbin peered inside the car, finding it a little strange that he was there alone. He was a guest, so how could Granny and the rest let him pick them up? On top of that, he was a foreigner in this unfamiliar ce. Wasn¡¯t he afraid of getting lost?

    "You¡¯re here by yourself? What about Shen Jingchen?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Grandmother Shen originally wanted him toe along with me, but he said he was feelingzy after leaving the house, so I left him at the cafe next to Fragrant Goose Restaurant. Anyway, I have a navigation system, so I won¡¯t be a burden."

    "... How hasn¡¯t he died from being sozy..." She muttered to herself.

    Zhao Chengning chuckled and looked in Old Master Shen¡¯s direction. He then asked, "What¡¯s going on at Grandfather Shen¡¯s end?"

    Shen Jingbin shrugged, "Good and evil are crossing swords... Wait here for a bit." After saying that, she raised her voice and shouted at Old Master Shen, "Grandfather, Zhao Chengning hase to get us!"

    Old Master Shen heard this and leaned his head to the side. He nced at the both of them, then turned his head back. After saying something to the people in front of him with an unhappy face, he turned around and walked towards Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning.

    The organizer bid farewell to Old Master Shen with a wave of his hand and a forced smile on his face, and the youngdy who stood beside him suddenly had an extremely unpleasant look on her face. With her good eyesight, Shen Jingbin saw the youngdy¡¯s mouth twitching as if she were cursing under her breath over something.

    She really was like a spoiled princess who startedshing out at others when things didn¡¯t go her way.

    Walking to the side of the car, the Old Master immediately opened the door and sat inside without saying a word. Shen Jingbin looked in the direction of the organizer and the young girl, smiling at them out of courtesy. After that, she squeezed herself into the car.

    Once they sat snuggly in their seats, Zhao Chengning started the car and slowly set off.

    As they were in a pedestrian area, Zhao Chengning drove very slowly. When the car passed by the organizer and the youngdy, she caught a glimpse of the youngdy ring at her with a furious expression on her face.

    Shen Jingbin felt that this situation was kind of funny and shook her head. She then leaned back in her seat and wound up the window, the youngdy¡¯s charmingly indignant face slowly disappearing from her line of sight.

    Since Old Master Shen was in a bad mood, Sheng Jingbin and Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t say a single word. The three of them sat in silence throughout the entire ride.

    As they were about to reach Fragrant Goose Restaurant, Shen Jingbin caught sight of Shen Jingchen who was dispiritedly standing at the restaurant¡¯s entrance.

    When the car came to a halt, she immediately got down and jogged to his side. In the spirit of humanitarianism, she reminded him out of the kindness of her heart, "Grandfather isn¡¯t in all that good of a mood. You better watch your behavior, otherwise be prepared to have him lose his temper at you. Especially if he sees your sloppy appearance and that deadpan look of yours.¡±

    Shen Jingchen shuddered when he heard this. His eyes immediately widened and he straightened his back, giving off the appearance that he was very spirited. When Old Master Shen walked past him, he let out a loud snort and looked at him with an expression that said, "Don¡¯t pretend. I¡¯ve seen through your antics already."

    Shen Jingchen immediately looked as if he were a deted ball.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 32

    <strong>Chapter 32 ¨C The Shen Family (2) </strong>

    Zhao Chengning held his car keys and walked behind Grandfather Shen. Upon seeing this, he patted Shen Jingchen on the shoulder as though he wasforting him and said, "My condolences."

    "......" What the hell did he mean by ¡¯my condolences¡¯?!

    The matter with the organizer and that youngdy seemed to have had a tremendous effect on Old Master Shen. After he finished eating, Old Master Shen even went as far as to say that Shen Jingbin wouldn¡¯t need to attend the rest of thepetition.

    Hrmph! He¡¯d be better off letting his granddaughter bond with that youngster from the Zhao Family than bringing her along to watch thosepetitions that practiced fraud!

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s parents were both very busy with work and had to leave once they finished eating.

    Before he left, their Father patted his children on the shoulder. He had an extremely guilty look on his face as he said, "Xiao Jing, Xiao Chen, we¡¯ll take the two of you on holiday once we¡¯re done with this busy period! The two of you usually take good care of yourselves, so let me know if you don¡¯t have enough money. And if there¡¯s anything else you need, just give me a call."

    By now, the two siblings were already unfazed by their parents¡¯ busy schedule. Once they heard what their Father said, they immediately waved their hands and indicated that their Father shouldn¡¯t simply spread his fatherly love for no reason. They were passing their time rather happily amongst themselves.

    "Father, you¡¯re bing more talkative nowadays."

    "Old man, hurry up and get going! Aren¡¯t you a very important person? Who knows how much of our family¡¯s money you¡¯re losing again for every moment you spend hanging around here! Quickly, go!"

    The words from the siblings struck deep into their Father¡¯s heart. He immediately copsed on Mama Shen¡¯s shoulder and sobbed woefully. Mama Shen pulled him close, embracing him in a very protective manner as consoled her husband in a gentle tone of voice. While doing so, she didn¡¯t forget to shoot a piercing re at the two siblings, "You impudent brats! Watch how you speak to your Father! Are the two of you looking for a beating?"

    This couple really was a piece of work. They were already an old couple, but they didn¡¯t have any qualms about showing off their affections for one another, regardless of time or ce. What an eyesore!

    In truth, the two of them were wed through a political marriage at first, but their rtionship with one another was unusually good. In the ten or so years that they¡¯ve been married, they¡¯ve never argued even once. Even if they were busy, they¡¯d always be together the moment they had time to themselves.

    The siblings were taken aback by their parents¡¯ sudden and unexpected profession of love so often that they were mentally scarred.

    After sending off their parents who had their public affection skill maxed out, Shen Jingbin turned around and saw Zhao Chengning leaning against the car. He was looking at her with a face filled with curiosity. He seemed very interested in how the Shen Family interacted with one another. Although he¡¯d been caught stealing a nce at her, he didn¡¯t feel the least bit embarrassed. He confidently straightened his body and gave her a harmless smile.

    Maybe it was his overly amorous smile, or perhaps it was her parents¡¯ overly public disy of affection, but Shen Jingbin suddenly felt that her eyes were very sore.

    I should probably set aside some time to get my eyes checked at an ophthalmologist.

    Apart from visiting Old Master Shen, the grandfather and grandson duo mainly came to A City to have a look at the market. The Zhao Family¡¯s main connections were all based in the North. They¡¯ve practically never set foot in the markets on the South end.

    The two from the Zhao Family had set aside a total of four days to observe and study the market in A City. After all, they had many things on their te and didn¡¯t have much time to waste.

    As per Old Master Shen¡¯s orders, Shen Jingbin had been tasked with apanying the Zhao Family duo around these four days. She also had to help them build various interpersonal rtionships with people in A City. If it wasn¡¯t that, she¡¯d be helping them gather information about the state of A City¡¯s economic development in recent years. She was so busy every day that time passed in a flurry.

    Thankfully, it was just for four days. If she had to do this for a few days longer, she¡¯d probably fall asleep right on the streets.

    However, it was worth mentioning that in the few days that she¡¯d been with them, she felt that the gaze Grandfather Zhao was giving her was getting stranger and stranger with each passing day. She originally wanted to asked Zhao Chengning about this, but felt that it wouldn¡¯t be too polite of her to do so. In the end, she could only leave this matter be.

    Sure enough, people who were advanced in age were truly an enigma.

    She eventually finished running about with much difficulty. After she sent the grandfather and grandson duo from the Zhao Family off, Shen Jingbin felt like she¡¯d lost some weight.

    Old Master Shen noticed that she¡¯d had a rough time over these past few days. Thus, he waved hisrge hand in a benevolent manner and returned the siblings¡¯ freedom back to them.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart was very unsettled. She was clearly the only one busy, so why was Shen Jingchen included as well!

    Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t sense any of the unsettled feelings in his younger sister¡¯s heart. When he heard that he had been released, meaning he could return to his life in the small vi, he felt so liberated that he could almost float in the air.

    After they received the "Liberation Order", the two of them wordlessly gathered their belongings and headed home. This behaviour of theirs caused their Grandmother heartache.

    Once they returned to their own domain, the first thing that Shen Jingchen did was run back to his room to y games.

    Shen Jingbin had previously given their nanny, Aunt Zhang, a week off from work. Seeing as they¡¯d came back ahead of schedule, they had to do everything themselves.

    Shen Jingchen was nowhere to be seen which meant that everything naturally fell on her shoulders.

    What sin had shemitted for her to deserve this?

    Shen Jingbin resigned herself to her fate with a sigh. She tidied everything up as her figurative tears streamed down her face, cursing that fe who was upstairs ying games.

    Oh, that¡¯s right. She had mysophobia. She¡¯d feel restless if a day went by without the house being cleaned.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 33

    <strong>Chapter 33: </strong><strong>Title Hidden (1)

    </strong>

    <strong> </strong>

    Anyone who yed games would definitely experience something like this at some point in their gaming life. It had only been a few days since Shen Jingbinst logged into the game, but she now felt as if the entire game had left her behind and she was unable to catch up.

    After Shen Jingbin finished tidying up the house, she had logged into the game, her character still standing in front of the gates to White Cloud Temple. As she watched the yerse and go, she felt as if a lifetime had passed since she¡¯dste to this ce.

    However, the strange looks she received from yers naturally still felt very familiar.

    Shen Jingbin nced at her friends list and noticed that both Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast weren¡¯t online. Those from the guild who were online, were all in instance dungeons.

    ying games was only fun when one had many friends, and Shen Jingbin suddenly felt a tinge of sadness wash over her when the thought crossed her mind.

    However, she didn¡¯t let that feeling consume her, remembering that she still had the important task of leveling up riding on her shoulders. These feelings of sadness shed across her thoughts for a brief moment, before she then tossed them to the back of her mind.

    Shen Jingbin summoned her old horse, deciding to return to River City. Upon reaching River City, she headed straight for the system owned shop, buying a few health and mana potions. Once done prepping, she headed on her way to level up.

    River City was the main city in the game, therefore the system would naturally allocate many passerby NPCs around the area, giving off the impression of prosperity. To protect these normal NPCs from the attacks of wild beasts outside the city, a wide moat was erected around River City. Outside the cityy a deste in. Since it happened to be autumn, the sky was painted in the colours of dusk to represent the season.

    This in was one of the main leveling areas in the game. There were plenty of weak monsters here that didn¡¯t hit very hard, but still gave pretty good experience. The only drawback of this ce was that there were slightly more people training here.

    Once Shen Jingbin found a ce where there wereparably less yers, she recalled her mount and started fighting monsters.

    "Hey, ugly! Move aside. Can¡¯t you see that we¡¯re upying this ce?" As she was fighting monsters, a hot female yer wearing sexy clothes suddenly walked over, "Honestly, I¡¯m not even in the mood to fight monsters anymore after looking at you. Hurry up and get lost."

    "No one gave you permission to look at me." Shen Jingbin retorted without stopping her attacks.

    "Are you courting death!?" The female yer was immediately incensed and threw a spell at her.

    The female yer was a Dragonkin, but her skills weren¡¯t anything to write home about, so Shen Jingbin dodged her attack with ease. The female yer felt as though someone had pped her across the face when she saw a newbie dodge her attack so easily.

    The female yer had been put on a pedestal since entering the game. This was all thanks to the advantages that she¡¯d gained through her looks. But now, an ugly newbie dared to embarrass her. How was she supposed to show her face if news of this were to spread?

    As her train of thought flowed in that direction, sheunched her attacks as though she were tossing money around. On top of that, as if she herself wasn¡¯t enough, she even turned her head while attacking and shouted, "Gentle Hawk, White Ink, there¡¯s a newbie here stealing our territory!"

    Two high-leveled Swordmasters heard her call and rushed over.

    "Who¡¯s the blind motherf*cker here who dared to steal our younger sister, Qi Mu¡¯s territory?!"

    Qi Mu leaned cutely against these two Swordmasters as they approached her, saying, "It¡¯s this ugly monster over here. Gentle Hawk, quickly help me beat her to death."

    The slightly shorter Swordmaster who went by the name of "White Ink" seemed to be a tad bit more intelligent than his partner and said, "Newbie, we¡¯re upying this ce. Why don¡¯t you level up somewhere else? Otherwise, don¡¯t me us for hurting you when we clear this area."

    Shen Jingbin fell silent for a few seconds as she nced at the trio standing in front of her. She kept her weapon out and summoned her mount, disregarding the taunts from Qi Mu and Gentle Hawk who stood behind her. She then turned and left without saying another word.

    Defeating those two Swordmasters was impossible with her current strength. Besides, she had no intention of engaging in a meaningless 1v3 battle. She could level anywhere, it wasn¡¯t worth her while to get involved in a fight to the death with those three.

    Seeing as all of River City¡¯s surrounding areas were more or less upied, Shen Jingbin could only head towards the mountain.

    There was a mountain to the west of River City called Nameless Mountain. When Shen Jingbin first heard the name of this mountain, she wondered whether the game developers came up with this name after running out of ideas.

    Nameless Mountain wasn¡¯t a very good training ground. There were only a few small instance dungeons from the foot of the mountain, till halfway up it. The monsters that gave high experience points were all concentrated at the mountain¡¯s peak. However, those were all red-named monsters with high attack and hit points. Someone like Shen Jingbin who made their way up there would just be sending themselves to death¡¯s door.

    Unfortunately, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know about this since she was only a novice.

    Even though Nameless Mountain sounded a little unpleasant, it still offered a pretty good view. The four seasons in the game were in line with reality, so since it was the start of autumn, the game was currently set to represent autumn as well. Ancient trees that seemed to have been growing since the start of time lined both sides of the winding mountain trail. The color of the leaves were gradually starting to change, filling one¡¯s vision with brightly colored leaves for as far as the eye could see.

    In the game, River City was regarded as a central in, with only South River and Thunder Marsh experiencing rainfall. The sunlight from the start of autumn unable to remove the remnants of the harsh summer weather. However, the dense and unevenly spread leaves blocked out most of the heat, so when the sunlight came in contact with her skin, it no longer scalded her with its scorching heat. Instead, it made her feel veryfortable.

    As a child of a rich family, Shen Jingbin never had the opportunity to experience the joys of nature. City life was too fast paced, so trying to find a natural utopia such as this was akin to ascending to the heavens.

    Shen Jingbin unconsciously slowed her horse, admiring the unknown wild flowers that were hidden by the side of the road as she enjoyed the warmth from the sun shining down on her body. At the same time, she indulged in her vicious sense of humor by scaring the small animals that asionally popped out from the forest.

    As a Southerner who had a poor sense of direction, it was only natural that she would get lost in the game very easily. Knowing that, she still chose to walk the road to ruin by getting herself distracted. Sure enough, she found herself lost after a moment of negligence.

    Logically speaking, she should have run into the first instance dungeon if she had followed the trail for just a bit. But now...

    Leaving aside the fact that she couldn¡¯t see the dungeon, there weren¡¯t even any living beings in her surroundings apart from herself! All of the various wild animals that were haphazardly moring about had all disappeared!

    "Roar!" Suddenly, she heard the cry of a wild beast from out of her line of sight. It was a deep and low roar, filled with the wildness of an untamed beast. When she heard the roar, she immediately knew that it was definitely not your run-of-the-mill creature.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 34

    <strong>Chapter 34: The Divine Beast, White Tiger (2) </strong>

    Immediately reining in her horse, Shen Jingbin drew to a stop. She then opened her map and took a look at her current position.

    For the sake of increasing the game¡¯s yability, the map provided by the system wasn¡¯t very descriptive. yers had to explore the regions in order to obtain the specific details of the area, while those who werezy could also buy a detailed map from other yers. Other than a few main cities, ces like Nameless Mountain were all generalised in the system provided map. An area like Nameless Mountain was depicted on the map by a triangle with the words "Nameless Mountain" scrawled inrge letters over it.

    Even after scrutinizing the map for a very long time, other than ascertaining that she still hadn¡¯t wandered off the Nameless Mountain, Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t able to make anything else out.

    This wasn¡¯t good.

    Should I retrace my steps and head back? She didn¡¯t even know which road she took to get here!

    Should I continue onwards? She didn¡¯t even know what made that cry just now! She was still a newbie that didn¡¯t even have the strength to truss a chicken. For all she knew, the situation might take a turn for the worse before she even noticed!

    In the end, Shen Jingbin opted to send a letter to Shen Jingchen after pondering over her choices.

    "Are there any divine beasts, monsters, or any other creatures that are out of the ordinary in the Nameless Mountain?"

    She received a reply not long after that said, "I don¡¯t think so. What¡¯s up?"

    "That¡¯s good to hear. I¡¯m at the Nameless Mountain now and happened to hear a roar. I¡¯m feeling a little apprehensive."

    "... Are you kidding me!? You¡¯re telling me you panicked when you heard a roar? Do you think you¡¯re a weak little flower?! My gosh, your big bro actually took precious time out of his fighting in an instance dungeon to reply to your email!"

    "... Our friendship is over! Leave! -_-"

    She unhappily sent an unamused expression to Shen Jingchen. After that, she closed her mailbox and checked the contents of her backpack.

    There, she found that she had sufficient health recovery items and the like, so that in the face of danger, she¡¯d be able to escape even if she wasn¡¯t able to defeat her opponent. Shen Jingchen was right, she wasn¡¯t some weak little girl. She couldn¡¯t let herself be terrified by just the sound of a roar!

    Shen Jingbin recalled her mount and took out her horsetail whisk, before carefully advancing.

    The deeper she ventured, the quieter her surroundings became. After several more steps, she found herself enveloped by a deathly silence. It seemed as though there were no other living beings here apart from herself and an unknown creature.

    Based on the general knowledge that she¡¯d umted over the years, there was only two possibilities for theck of living creatures in an area. The first being that the area was naturally as such, while the other was that there was some kind of formidable character here that deterred any living creatures from approaching. Based on the roar she¡¯d heard earlier, she was more inclined to believe that this was due to thetter.

    Shen Jingbin trudged further down the path, every step she took harder than thest. The wild shrubs growing by the sides of the path were starting to creep upwards in a threatening manner, gradually preventing her from proceeding any further. Seeing this, she was forced to use one hand to open up the way ahead, allowing her to finally reach the end of the path after much difficulty. Shen Jingbin then lowered her body, doing her best to hide behind trees that were taller than a person.

    A sheer cliff stood at the end of the winding mountain path, while the expansive sky continued on as far as the eye could see, making it seem unusually grand. There was a cave beneath the cliff that was as high as two people were tall, a small portion of the entrance covered by the wild grass that was frantically growing atop the cliff. The portion that peeked out from the grass waspletely ck, making it impossible to see the situation within with any rity.

    Before straightening up, she looked around and confirmed that there was nothing out of the ordinary. Next, she slowly approached the cave with extreme caution. As soon as she got close though, a st of hot, thick, and foul smelling air assaulted her senses. The tip of Shen Jingbin¡¯s nose twitched and her heart immediately tightened. Having learned martial arts for so many years, she then reflexively rolled to the side!

    A white shadow suddenly leaped out from the cave,nding squarely on the spot where she was standing just a moment ago.

    That white shadownded heavily on the ground. If she hadn¡¯t dodged just now, she would¡¯ve already turned into a white light and died.

    On closer inspection, the shadow actually turned out to be a huge White Tiger!

    The White Tiger was extremely robust and elegant. Perfect curves lined its furry body that was as white as pure snow, causing it to emit a unique charm under the sunlight. A mere nce at the White Tiger was enough to mesmerize any onlookers. The White Tiger closely examined the prey in front of it with its golden beastly eyes, its gaze holding a peculiar attractive force.

    Shen Jingbin quietly swallowed her saliva, tightening her grip on the horsetail whisk in her hands.

    Having failed its first attack, the White Tiger bared it¡¯s fangs and lowered the bottom half of its body. It then proceeded to repeatedly swipe at her with its sharp ws, a low rumble ringing out when its pawnded on the ground. This method of attacking was a trait of feline monsters.

    Shen Jingbin felt the hairs on her neck stand on end.

    This tiger was way too different from tigers in the zoo! Compared to this fellow before her eyes, tigers in the zoo were like small wild cats!

    "Roar!" A long whistle came from the White Tiger. Suddenly, it projected itself off from its hind legs, initiating the first attack.

    Shen Jingbin knew that it was definitely impossible for her to tough it out and go against the White Tiger. Her mind in a frenzy as she tried toe up with a n on the spot. Shen Jingbin relied on her superior agility to dodge the White Tigers attacks, before using her horsetail whisk to whip its buttocks.

    The White Tiger that was sessfully whipped let out a roar. The force of it rattled Shen Jingbin¡¯s eardrums till they hurt, causing her to rub them as she cursed: What¡¯s the point of making these things so realistic in a game!? She really felt like this White Tiger was going to kill her soon!

    The White Tiger was clearly feeling a little irritated because it still couldn¡¯tnd a hit on Shen Jingbin, and issued a deep roar at her. Shen Jingbin reciprocated without giving it a second thought, mimicking its roar.

    The White Tiger was stunned.

    It was no longer in a hurry to attack her after realising that the prey standing before its eyes wasn¡¯t that easy to deal with. Rather, the White Tiger stood up and circled Shen Jingbin while baring its sharp fangs at her.

    Shen Jingbin broke down internally: What the f*ck! Is it nning to wage a mental battle with me!?

    With her eyes fixed on the White Tiger, Shen Jingbin followed the tiger with her body and slowly turned in a circle along with it.

    For a wild beast such as this, one had to overpower its imposing aura if they were to have any hope of being rescued. Otherwise, only death awaited them!

    Both human and tiger were suddenly locked in a stalemate. At the moment, the White Tiger had abruptly ripped its mouth wide open, making it appear to be very ferocious.

    Shen Jingbin immediately raised the horsetail whisk in her hand and aimed it at the White Tiger.

    Just as she thought that it was going to unleash its attack again, the White Tiger unexpectedly retracted the fiendish look on its face and dropped down in front of her. It then wagged its tail and softly cried out to her, "Meow~"

    Shen Jingbin was bbergasted and momentarily lost her footing!

    "Congrattions, the "Divine Beast: White Tiger" has acknowledged you and recognises you as its master. As such, it will follow you to the ends of the earth and stand alongside you in battle! Notification: the Divine Beast, White Tiger is one of the four Grand Divine Beasts, it¡¯s whereabouts are unknown. It can be tamed, but the means of doing so are unknown. Activating the White Tiger¡¯s attack skill allows the user to go Berserk."

    The system notification that Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t heard in a long time rang in her head. She looked at the White Tiger sitting down in front of her, who was currently wagging its tail and meowing in an attempt to act cute. In that moment, she wordlessly looked towards the heavens.

    System, tell me honestly. What kind of tiger meows?! Don¡¯t think you can lie to me just because I¡¯m not very knowledgeable!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 35

    <strong>Chapter 35: The Divine Beast Named Mascot (1)</strong>

    [System Notification] A hero this wayes. The skies and earth darken, sand and stone fly through the air. yer Nutjob has sessfully tamed the Divine Beast: White Tiger, after a series of difficult fights! Congrattions!

    Shen Jingbin sat cross legged on the ground while hugging the White Tiger she¡¯d just caught. It had shrunk down to the size of a cat and they shared an awkward gaze.

    A server wide announcement was made while the White Tiger shrunk down. At the same time, countless carrier pigeons flew up to her face, each of them holding a letter in their beaks. She didn¡¯t even need to look at the messages to know for sure that it was Shen Jingchen frantically bombarding her with messages.

    The White Tiger nestled in Shen Jingbin¡¯s arms looked at the birds with great interest. It proceeded to stretch its tiny ws, but was stopped short by Shen Jingbin who pped its ws away. Feeling wronged, the White Tiger looked at her with its round ck eyes and blinked. Its was so adorable, Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart was on the verge of trembling. Its current appearance was practically night and day from how it used to look. If it weren¡¯t for her previous experience leaving such a deep impression, she¡¯d definitely be tempted to doubt her eyesight.

    After capturing the White Tiger, there was now a chibi 1 version of it in Shen Jingbin¡¯s once empty pet window. She couldn¡¯t help but want to pet the White Tiger¡¯s furry head as she opened up its page.

    "White Tiger, One of the four Divine Beasts, the spiritual beast of the West. Attribute: Metal, Governs ughter, Color: White. Known as White Tiger, represents fall."

    "As the White Tiger is a deity of ughter, the stronger the opponent, the more ruthless its attacks and skills be. Using skills will cause it to be enraged, rendering it uncapturable."

    You can¡¯t use skills?

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind nked out. She¡¯d been so nervous while fighting the White Tiger that she¡¯d forgotten she could use skills in the game!

    It was a good thing that she did forget though, was this an idiot¡¯s luck?

    Shen Jingbin patted the little guy¡¯s head after closing the pet window, she then stood up and said, "White Tiger sounds way too high profile. I¡¯ll have to give you a different name, okay? Mm, I¡¯ll call you Mascot."

    The little tiger at first replied with a growl, but after giving it some thought, made a tiny "meow" instead. This little thing was simply too adorable.

    The corner of Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes twitched. Was this little fe trying to please her by learning how to meow like a cat?

    She attempted to suss out the little tiger, "You don¡¯t need to act like a cat, I know you¡¯re a tiger."

    The moment she finished speaking, she saw the tips of Mascot¡¯s ears tremble, before it excitedly cried out, "Gao gao gao!"

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    Mascot was trying really hard to please her.

    Could she still y this game properly when her pet was trying to tter her that much?!

    The quest wasn¡¯t marked aspleted, even though she¡¯d unexpectedly managed to tame a Divine Beast. Shen Jingbin ced Mascot on her shoulder and opened up the guild channel to ask for help.

    [Guild] Nutjob: What do I do if I end up getting lost?

    [Guild] Slight Chill: You must have gotten your IQ eaten by a dog, how did you manage to get lost?

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Nutty, I heard you managed to tame a Divine Beast!! Where are you, where are you, I¡¯lle get you! I want to see how the Divine Beast looks like!

    [Guild] Long Life: Little Nut, how¡¯d you tame the Divine Beast? How did you do it?

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: What kind of special skills does the Divine Beast have?

    [Guild] Shi Yi: Is the Divine Beast a guy or a girl? Can it give birth?! If it can, let me buy one off you!

    ...

    Thanks to the system¡¯s announcement, the guild channel was abuzz with activity. With her appearance, the chat was whipped into even more of a frenzy. Shen Jingbin only felt that the words shing past her on the chat window were a blur. She couldn¡¯t tell who was saying what.

    The army of carrier pigeons that had taken a great deal of time to settle down around her were once again causing a ruckus. She opened up a few of the letters. Aside from a small number of friends, many of the letters were sent by people she didn¡¯t know. It was only then that she realized she hadn¡¯t selected the option to reject letters from strangers yet.

    She hurriedly changed her settings to reject letters from strangers, breathing a sigh of relief after narrowly avoiding being annoyed to death by the army of carrier pigeons. Unfortunately for her, she didn¡¯t even have a moment¡¯s respite before a shiny carrier pigeonnded on her shoulder.

    "Send me an invite." It was from Shen Jingchen.

    Shen Jingbin very obediently sent out a party invitation, which was instantly epted.

    There were now two other people within the party, Quiet and Steadfast and Dawn¡¯s Twilight.

    For the convenience of the yers, in addition to the guild channel, yers were also provided a party and raid channel.

    [Party] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ...

    [Party] Nutjob: ...

    [Party] Quiet And Steadfast: ? ? ?

    [Party] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ...

    [Party] Nutjob: Are you retarded -.-?

    [Party] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: I¡¯m going to go f*****g nuts because of you!

    [Party] Nutjob: ...I¡¯m very magnanimous!

    [Party] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ...

    [Party] Quiet and Steadfast: ...

    [Party] Quiet and Steadfast: Stay where you are, Dawn¡¯s Twilight and I areing over to pick you up.

    [Party] Nutjob: Ok.

    [Party] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: How¡¯d you end up at Nameless Mountain? Even birds wouldn¡¯t shit there.

    [Party] Nutjob: I was trying to farm some mobs, but couldn¡¯t find any, and I ended up drifting here.

    [Party] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ...F*ck! You managed to get yourself a Divine Beast by just wandering around? There really is no justice in this world! Back when your big bro was trying to get himself a Celestial pet, he had to bring along an entire party to help him seed.

    [Party] Nutjob: Not my fault I was born beautiful, can¡¯t do anything about it ¡¥\_(¥Ä)_/¡¥.

    The party channel abruptly went silent when she said that. At this point, Shen Jingbin suddenly realized that her current appearance had nothing to do with the word beauty.

    [Party] Nutjob: Don¡¯t judge my appearance by your human standards, I am a goddess of the Divine Beast realm.

    [Party] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: You win.

    [Party] Quiet and Steadfast: ...You guys are pretty funny.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Smaller and cuter version of something, mostly used for drawnic or cartoon characters. ?

 Chapter 36

    <strong>Chapter 36: The Divine Beast Named Mascot (2) </strong>

    Quiet and Steadfast and Shen Jingchen were incredibly fast. Soon, Shen Jingbin caught sight of them sitting on Shen Jingchen¡¯s eye-catching dragon. After jumping off its back, the very first thing Shen Jingchen asked was where the White Tiger was.

    Shen Jingbin pointed at Mascot who was resting on her shoulders.

    Shen Jingchen had a constipated look on his face, "Doesn¡¯t it look more like a wild cat than a Divine Beast?"

    Mascot resentfully red at him and cried out.

    Quiet and Steadfast wasn¡¯t all that convinced that the tiny little thing on top of Shen Jingbin¡¯s shoulders was the legendary Divine Beast, White Tiger. He walked beside her and extended a hand towards Mascot and tried to pet it, eliciting a scratch and small cut from it.

    Alright, it really did seem like a Divine Beast.

    Retracting his injured hand, Quiet and Steadfast said, "Take a look at your White Tiger and check if it¡¯s a flying mount. If it can¡¯t, I¡¯ll bring you up to the mountaintop. Monsters at the top of the mountain are pretty good for raising your level."

    Shen Jingbin opened up Mascot¡¯s pet page and checked.

    Mascot¡¯s experience bar was maxed out, and from the looks of it, the Divine Beast¡¯s level was fixed at 130. At the top of the little white tiger¡¯s portrait, the small word "beginner" could be seen. An icon with wings at the bottom was greyed out. It was clear that she couldn¡¯t use him as a flying mount.

    "It can¡¯t, it¡¯s still too young." She replied.

    Quiet and Steadfast nodded, summoning his mount. And once a fox appeared, he sent out a mount sharing invitation.

    She recognized the fox. It was Cheng Huang, an auspicious creature with a lifespan of two thousand years as recorded in the ssics of the Mountains and Seas. Although it couldn¡¯tpare to the White Tiger that she¡¯d just caught, it was previously ranked as the game¡¯s third best Divine Beast amongst Celestial pets.

    On the other hand, Shen Jingchen¡¯s Divine Dragon had been ranked as the game¡¯s former number one Divine Beast amongst Celestial pets.

    <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> allowed for only two yers on a single mount. There were three people at present, so no matter how they split themselves, two people were going to have to share a mount.

    Shen Jingbin very naturally epted Quiet and Steadfast¡¯s mount sharing invitation. A hideous Daoist nun sitting stiffly behind a handsome Lich that was stock still; it was a hrious scene no matter how one looked at it.

    Shen Jingchen looked dumbfounded when he saw the two of them taking off. He suddenly felt a little bewildered: Why did his sister need Quiet and Steadfast to bring her up? His Divine Dragon could seat two people as well!

    The top of Nameless Mountain was practically deserted. Low leveled yers wouldn¡¯t send themselves to their deaths bying here, while the experience was too pitiful for high level yers. As a result, the three of them had the map to themselves.

    Quiet and Steadfast left Shen Jingbin by a rock to prevent her from being attacked by monsters.

    Thanks to the experience sharing option, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t even need to lift a finger.

    Quiet and Steadfast and Shen Jingchen were truly worthy of being called experts. They cut through monsters as if they were vegetables. However Shen Jingbin, as someone who exemplified the five virtues of youth, felt guilty for leeching off them without doing anything.

    She pulled Mascot off of her shoulders and threw him into the mass of monsters, while at the same time making preparations to recall him at any time.

    She didn¡¯t know how strong Mascot was, and this was the perfect chance to get a feel for how powerful a Divine Beast truly was.

    Mascot assumed its majestic and awe-inspiring form it previously had the moment itnded on the ground. It then proceeded to disregard the densely packed swarm of red named1 monsters,zily stretching itself and issuing a roar towards the heavens.

    "Gao!"

    It then swiped its ws at one of the monsters by its side, pummeling it into the ground in an instant.

    Shen Jingbin was dumbfounded.

    After killing a monster with a single blow, Mascot turned it head adorably towards its owner and shook its tail. It¡¯s eyes shined brightly as if it was saying, "Quickly, praise me, praise me!~"

    Shen Jingbin yed along and gave it a big thumbs up.

    Upon seeing this, Mascot suddenly leapt beside Quiet and Steadfast and Shen Jingchen as though it had gone mad, excitedly wing at the monsters as it tried to steal their kills. What the f*ck, what kind of "marvelous" pet was this? It even knew how to vie for attention?!

    With the addition of Mascot, the rate of elimination between the three of them was more than doubled. Soon, the entire mountaintop waspletely devoid of monsters.

    Checking her Experience bar, Shen Jingbin noticed that she had risen to level 45.

    She was pretty happy with her rate of leveling, but Shen Jingchen snubbed it and said, "You¡¯ve never tried to level by hunting monsters in the past, have you? Normally, defeating this many monster¡¯s should have gotten you to level 50, but you¡¯re only level 45. What a huge waste of our time."

    "It¡¯s not like you did more work than Mascot." She disdainfully snorted.

    "Sure enough, an abnormal freak like you would definitely have an abnormal pet as well!"

    While the two bickered, Quiet and Steadfast remembered several small instance dungeons within the Nameless Mountain that were good for level 45¡¯s. He interrupted the two of them and suggested that they enter the dungeons for equipment, Experience and so on.

    When the topic of equipment was brought up, Shen Jingbin suddenly remembered that she had growth type equipment.

    "I probably don¡¯t need any new equipment. The equipment I have on me are all growth type equipment."

    Shen Jingchen looked at her in shock as he said, "This game is literally unyable now!"

    Quiet and Steadfast was much calmer than Shen Jingchen, asking, "Do you know how to upgrade it?"

    Shen Jingbin was stunned for a moment, before she shook her head.

    Quiet and Steadfast ced his hand on his chin and thought for a moment before he said, "In general, upgrading equipment requires materials. You¡¯ll have to remember which quest you got the equipment from, as upgrading it would involve some kind of follow up quest from the original NPC. You should be mindful of that."

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    There was no longer any need to farm for equipment, but dungeons were still the number one ce to earn Experience. They still had to run through the dungeons for the sake of raising her level in the fastest possible manner. Thus, Shen Jingbin was repeatedly carried through the dungeons in Nameless Mountain by the two of them till they hit their daily entrance limit.

    By the time they went offline, she¡¯d managed to reach level 60.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Enemies that have red names are usually of a much higher level than the yer who¡¯s attacking them ?

 Chapter 37

    <strong>Chapter 37: The First Confrontation (1) </strong>

    With Shen Jingchen¡¯s constant snubbing and Mascot¡¯s impressive support to spur her on, Shen Jingbin managed to reach level 80.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, yers who were below level 50 belonged to the novice rank and leveled quickly. yers between levels 50 to 80 were in the transitional phase, where the difficulty in leveling would start to increase. yers in the 80 to 100 range were in the middle of the spectrum, where they¡¯d start to face a real challenge when they attempted to level up. And finally, levels 100 to 130 were the domain of experts. At this rank, gaining just a single level was the equivalent of asking someone for their life!

    This was also the reason why no one had managed to hit the level cap since the start of the game¡¯s service two years ago till now.

    During this period of time when Shen Jingbin was undergoing the challenging process of leveling up, the title of the first guild to conquer all three Demonic Sect dungeons was nabbed by an opposing guild, Life At First Sight. Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s raid team, on the other hand,gged behind by just half a minute.

    As a result, the entire guild fell into a state of depression for many days.

    The history of the dispute between Jade Sea Pavilion and Life At First Sight would probably be enough to publish X number of novels.

    The grievances between the two guilds had been umting for a long time.

    In the beginning, it was Life At First Sight thatmenced one-sided hostilities towards Jade Sea Pavilion. Reason being that their Guild Leader, Crying Fish, had been publicly rejected by Quiet And Steadfast.

    Crying Fish was a goddess-like existence within the game. She had a pretty and flirtatious appearance, an explosive body, and was rather skilled at the game. On top of that, her Luck stat was the highest in the entire server. Due to that, her name was featured in the system¡¯s announcement on a daily basis.

    These qualities caused countless men to chase after her, to the point of even doing so in their dreams.

    While she, on the other hand, was turned into a spoilt rotten diva1 from all the adoration she received. Thus, she viewed Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s rejection as a form of humiliation towards her, and was immediately infuriated by it. In her rage, she appealed to all the male yers and asked them to wage war on the guild that Quiet And Steadfast belonged to, Jade Sea Pavilion.

    Naturally, apart from this group of male yers attempting to chase after Crying Fish, there were many female yers who felt bitter about being rejected by Quiet And Steadfast. There was also another group of yers who had nothing better to do and just enjoyed seeing shit hit the fan. Either way, because of this unfathomable reason, Life At First Sight started to slowly expand, turning into arge guild that could sh head on with Jade Sea Pavilion.

    In the beginning, Jade Sea Pavilion had no intention of going against Life At First Sight. However, after their BOSSes were repeatedly stolen and their members cut down in PK zones2, they couldn¡¯t bear it any longer and their tempers red.

    This marked the start of the conflict between the tworge guilds.

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: We¡¯re going to Sea Moon Ind in the Thunder Marsh Region. Kill all enemies on sight. Anyone who¡¯s freee along.

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: We¡¯re going to Sea Moon Ind in the Thunder Marsh Region. Kill all enemies on sight. Anyone who¡¯s freee along.

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: We¡¯re going to Sea Moon Ind in the Thunder Marsh Region. Kill all enemies on sight. Anyone who¡¯s freee along.

    Today when Shen Jingbin logged on, the guild chat was buzzing with activity as they prepared to fight. Her level was still low, so she wouldn¡¯t be able to do something like fighting in a PK zone. However, she still received an invitation to the group due to her status as White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple, and Shen Jingchen¡¯s frequent bragging about how strong she was.

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: Nutty,e join our party~ We¡¯ve got plenty of healers, so you can experience the joy of PVPing3 without worry!

    [Guild] Nutjob: Okay.

    Thunder Marsh wasn¡¯t a territory that belonged to the Humans, making the journey inessible via a ry station. Instead, yers had to travel through several teleportation arrays to make the trip. Of course, yers also had the option of traveling by foot, but Thunder Marsh¡¯s vicinity was filled with high leveled, red named monsters. This made traveling via teleportation array much more convenient than going by foot.

    Thunder Marsh was situated at the Easternmost region of the continent, just by the Eastern Sea. Sea Moon Ind itself was located to the East of Thunder Marsh. It was a small ind that overlooked the sea.

    Sea Moon Ind was a beautiful little ind that was shaped like a lun.4 It stood three stories high and floated in the sky, sitting on the boundary betweennd and sea. Half of the ind was light green, while the other half was light blue. An expansive everde could be found below the crescent shaped main ind, where its greenish swamp waters stretched all the way out and intermingled with the light blue colour of the sea.

    As the terrain was expansive andcked any obstructions, this de was one of the main PKing grounds.

    The battle was already in full swing when Shen Jingbin reached Sea Moon Ind. Special effects of various cool skills filled the sky.

    "This obviously wasn¡¯t going to work if it kept up." Shen Jingbin thought as she overlooked the state of the battle atop Sea Moon Ind.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    D.va kek ? yer Killing zones. Maps that have been marked as areas where yers can freely fight one another ? yers Versus yer. Literally yers fighting each other ? The rounded white part at the base of a person¡¯s fingernail ?

 Chapter 38

    <strong>Chapter 38: The First Confrontation (2) </strong>

    As Shen Jingbin had spent all her time either hunting monsters, clearing dungeons with Shen Jingchen and Quiet And Steadfast, or doing quests on her own, all of the other guild members from Jade Sea Pavilion, save for the ones who had helped battle Du the Unvanquished, were unfamiliar to her.

    The four Weirdos were said to be good friends who lived in the same dormitory. Three of them had used the leader of their posse as the basis for their character creation, so Shen Jingbin immediately caught sight of four people who looked like they¡¯d been born from the same womb.

    All four of them were Liches and made up a bulk of the party¡¯s DPS. They charged at the head of the vanguard, disying exceptional bravery. After confirming that there were slightly more guild members on the side of drynd, Shen Jingbin slowly shifted her position and prepared to quietly slip into her guild¡¯s forces.

    Just then, she felt murderous intent wash over her from behind and a ng could be heard. The sound of an unsheathed sword sliced through all of her prudence. A ray of white light that was apanied by a sharp aura sped towards her back like lightning.

    Dodge!

    That one word was the only thought in her head. Shen Jingbin relied on her many years of experience to immediately crouch down and roll to the side, rolling out of her opponent¡¯s attack range. However, the murderous intent still remained, the sensation causing the hairs on Shen Jingbin¡¯s back to stand on end. She unconsciously took up a defensive posture and looked towards her opponent.

    It seemed as if her opponent hadn¡¯t anticipated that she¡¯d be able to react so quickly and dodge his attacks. Their hands paused for a moment before they raised their sword to once again strike. Their manner of attacking wasn¡¯t beautiful like the one that the system had intended, but rather, each attack was precise and targeted her vitals.

    It looks like she happened toe across an expert.

    It¡¯d been a long time since she felt threatened like this, and she could feel the long dormant violent traits within her body stirring once again.

    She herself was originally quite violent. This, coupled with the guidance of Old Master Shen, who stood at the peak of martial arts, meant that there were few who could stand on equal footing with her after she finished her apprenticeship with him. As time went on, she started to feel bored and she unwillingly set aside the restless feelings within her heart.

    But now...

    After revealing her horsetail whisk, Shen Jingbin flicked her wrist, causing her whisk to wrap itself around her opponent¡¯s long sword and arm as they pushed and pulled. A momentter, her opponent who¡¯d been caught off guard had their long sword tossed to the side. An ear piercing screeching could be heard as the sword slid across the ground.

    Her opponent¡¯s reaction wasn¡¯t slow either. The moment they lost their weapon, their left hand reached into their backpack and pulled out a dagger. As Shen Jingbin retracted her whisk, her opponent borrowed its momentum to pull themselves along and lunge straight at her face.

    The dagger arrived in front of her eyes in less than a second. Although she was fast enough to react, she had no means of avoiding the attack.

    However, she wasn¡¯t the type of person to sit and wait for their death!

    Shen Jingbin lowered her waist and leaned past the edge of Sea Moon Ind. Due to inertia, she fell off Sea Moon Ind after dodging the attack.

    As she was trying to assess the state of the battle, Shen Jingbin had positioned herself at the edge of Sea Moon Ind. So when her opponent attacked, both parties were dancing on a knife¡¯s edge as they moved about the ind¡¯s periphery. The main ind of Sea Moon Ind was a far distance away from the ground. In ordance with the game¡¯s lifelike setting, falling from such a height would definitely result in serious injuries, let alone falling into the midst of a battle.

    A look of astonishment appeared on the face of Shen Jingbin¡¯s assant. They never thought that she¡¯d use such a self-destructive approach to dodge their attack. But before they had the chance to reign in their astonishment, they suddenly felt something tighten around their hand. They didn¡¯t even have the chance to take a good look at their hand before they felt a tremendous force tug at their wrist, pulling them off the edge of the ind.

    All of these things happened in just mere moments. There was no time at all for the person to react.

    And just like that, both parties fell right into the midst of the battle.

    Shen Jingbin felt her vision go ck the instant shended on the ground. Her head was buzzing from the impact, the pit of her stomach was ovee with pain, and it felt like a few of her ribs were broken.

    "Life is precious, treasure your life. Notification: You have received a serious injury, please administer treatment without dy."

    A "ding" rang out, and the system¡¯s familiar notification could be heard once again.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t bother with the system¡¯s notification. She instead grit her teeth, struggling to stand up as she look towards the person she had dragged down with her.

    At some point, the yers closest to them had stopped their battle. They tightened their grips around their weapons and stared at the two people who fell from the sky.

    Evidently, from their ash-coloured face, the other person¡¯s injuries weren¡¯t light either. They were currently in a half kneeling position as they stared at her through clenched teeth and hate-filled eyes. Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t noticed it before, but now on closer inspection, she realized that the other person was actually a girl!

    The girl had a slender build and looked to be over 1.7m tall. She had a handsome face thatcked any of the tenderness and grace that a girl should have. Instead, she possessed a heroic aura. Shen Jingbin shot a nce at her chest and noticed that it was as t as a washboard. Unable to bear the itch in her throat, she issued several hoarse coughs. The four Weirdos noticed Shen Jingbin when she fell and immediately rushed up to her upon seeing her pale face. Two of them supported her arms, while the other two stood in front to protect her as they brought her to safety.

    I¡¯m Not A Weirdo and I¡¯m Really Not A Weirdo helped to support her back to their guild members. At first her party members, National Treasure and Lingering White Clouds, weren¡¯t able to recognize who the two Weirdos were holding on to. However, they immediately began raining recovery spells on her after noticing the dire condition she was in.

    "Thank you." The corners of Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips curled into a smile as she thanked them once she felt a little better.

    The two of them were stunned. But it wasn¡¯t just the two of them. Everyone who was around them, including the ones who happened to chance upon this sight, froze when they saw her smile. My god, that expression of hers was enough to drive them all into depression!

    "You¡¯re...Nutty?" National Treasure was the first to recover, so she gave voice to her question in an attempt to probe things out.

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head and saw National Treasure¡¯s expression distort in that instant.

    I¡¯m Not A Weirdo patted her shoulder and said, "Don¡¯t cry Little Treasure, you¡¯ll get used to it after a while."

    I¡¯m Really Not A Weirdo, "You won¡¯t find her ugly once you get used to looking at her, regardless of whether or not she¡¯s really that ugly."

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    This was their first time seeing Shen Jingbin in person for many of the guild members. Without being given the chance to brace themselves, these people were all given a ruthless shock.

    Although Shen Jingbin had done her best to erase her presence when she entered the guild, that brother of hers, Shen Jingchen, and her extraordinary luck, had prevented any of that from happening. Those things, coupled with the fact that she frequently partied with Quiet And Steadfast to run dungeons and clear quests with him, meant that she¡¯d be a thorn in the side of many of the female members within the guild.

    As the number one yer in the game, Quiet And Steadfast naturally had countless womening up with any number of excuses to strike up a conversation with him. Even though Slight Chill was eyeing him covetously, who knows how many women were willing to court death just to approach him.

    Shen Jingbin had only yed this game for a short period of time. If she wasn¡¯t in some deserted locale hunting monsters, then she was inside a dungeon. As such, her love rivals had no means to see her appearance, and they could only use their heads to fill in the nks. They had all imagined that the person Quiet And Steadfast gave special treatment to must be a top-tier beauty.

    But...

    This was like they¡¯d been forcefully pped across their faces!

    Pa pa pa!

    In what way were theycking whenpared to this ugly monster!

    At that time, the mental states of countless women copsed as they lost control of their emotions.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 39

    <strong>Chapter 39: The Start Of A Feud (1) </strong>

    [Guild] Guild Leader Quiet And Steadfast has logged in.

    [Guild] Vice-leader Dawn¡¯s Twilight has logged in.

    [Guild] Vice-leader Next Week Is Unlikely has logged in.

    The round of PK was organized by Next Week Is Unlikely. Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen weren¡¯t present for it. However, he hurriedly logged off to give his brethren, Quiet And Steadfast, a call upon seeing the increasing scale and intensity of the battle.

    Although Next Week Is Unlikely had good rtions with the others, his strength and reputation was stillcking whenpared with Quiet And Steadfast. In a scrimmage between guilds such as this, both the number and quality ofbatants yed a decisive role in determining the victor.

    Once the battle broke out, Jade Sea Pavilion still managed to gain the upper hand. However, things took a turn for the worse when Life At First Sight¡¯s Guild Leader caught wind of this and joined the fray.

    Quiet And Steadfast would need to make an appearance if they wanted to level the ying field.

    Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen immediately made a beeline for Sea Moon Ind upon logging in. Next Week Is Unlikely was right behind them as he sent out letters to enquire about the state of the battle, while passing on what he knew to the two of them.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s face immediately darkened upon hearing that his little sister was involved, bing gravely injured in the battle. The Divine Dragon he was riding on seemed to have felt its master¡¯s fury and unexpectedly increased its speed.

    Quiet And Steadfast also wore a chilling look on his face when he heard that Shen Jingbin had been injured.

    Next Week Is Unlikely, who was by their side, was unable to make any sense of the matter: I can understand why Shen Jingchen is angry. After all, she¡¯s his sister. But why would Quiet have such a demonic look on his face? Was he even rted to the daughter of the Shen family in any way?

    "Nine Bads! Are you alright?!" The executives of Jade Sea Pavilion were still on their way. The Guild Leader of Life At First Sight, Crying Fish, had already discovered the suddenmotion on the battlefield and made her way over, squeezing herself into the heart of the crowd in just a few steps. It was then that she noticed who her guild members were supporting and she let out a cry of astonishment.

    Nine Bads, the number two yer on the leaderboards and the only female yer ranked amongst the top ten yers. She was also the greatest source of trouble for Jade Sea Pavilion.

    This person¡¯s method of attacking was vicious and cruel. Her strength was nothing to scoff at either. Although she was a Swordmaster, she frequently used weapons from other sects. She also devised her own style of fighting instead of relying on the one that the system provided, making her attacks almost impossible to defend against. Many experts from Jade Sea Pavilion had fallen at her hands.

    "I¡¯m alright." Nine Bads pushed aside the people who were supporting her, quickly drinking arge health potion. Her chilling gaze was fixed on Shen Jingbin who was currently being protected by a few people opposite her, as she said, "Come out you ugly monster."

    It was then that Crying Fish noticed several people who made up the main force of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s strength carefully protecting a person. She looked over with rapt attention and immediatelyughed upon seeing what the person looked like.

    Crying Fish was a stunning beauty, and thisugh of hers made it look as if a hundred flowers were in full bloom. The male otakus who saw this were so stimted by the sight that their hearts were rapidly pounding against their chests.

    "Jade Sea Pavilion truly has no standards. You¡¯re even willing to take in a person as ¡¯exotic¡¯ as this. Don¡¯t tell me you guys were nning on letting this ugly monster loose while we battled to scare us? How hrious, what a brilliant n!"

    "How we go about selecting our members has nothing to do with you. What¡¯re you *bleep*ing on about?" A Nymph with a doll-like face suddenly stepped out from behind Shen Jingbin, shooting a re at Crying Fish. She wore a look of ridicule on her face as she said, "You¡¯re pretty shrewd for a talentless hack who only knows how to spend her days hiding behind other men. Tell me, are your guild members the same ones who share a bed with you? Eh, I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve shared a bed with all of them, right?"

    Lingering White Clouds quietly whispered into Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears, "This is how Slight Chill is like. Although you and her may normally be at odds, don¡¯t take it to heart. In truth, she¡¯s a pretty good person. It¡¯s just that she tends to have a sharp tongue at times."

    Shen Jingbin stared at Slight Chill¡¯s back with a look of astonishment on her face. For a moment, she had trouble reconciling the unkind Slight Chill from her memories, and this person standing in front of her.

    However, her feelings of astonishment were inconsequential. Slight Chill was far too busy hurling insults at Crying Fish to care about Shen Jingbin¡¯s tangled emotions.

    Slight Chill had immediately started hurling malice ridden insults the moment she opened her mouth. Crying Fish was so infuriated by her words that her pretty face flushed red as she said, "Nothing good everes out of a viin¡¯s mouth. No wonder Quiet And Steadfast doesn¡¯t want you, who¡¯d want someone with such a filthy mouth!"

    Slight Chill sneered, "Hmph, you make it sound as if my Leader fancies you. Who was it that sent my Leader a letter out of the blue and crowed about how much she loved him? Doesn¡¯t that sound disgusting?"

    "What did you say, you slut!?"

    "I¡¯m talking about you, bitch."

    "That¡¯s enough!" Nine Bads suddenly interrupted their bitching session and said, "Enough with the bullshitting. Jade Sea Pavilion, I¡¯ll let you guys off today if you hand over that ugly monster. She actually had the gall to use me as a stepping stone even though she doesn¡¯t have the capabilities to do so."

    "The fact that she¡¯s using a tomboy like you as a stepping stone means she thinks highly of you. What¡¯s there to be unhappy about?" Shen Jingchen¡¯s voice was suddenly heard from the sky.

    Everyone immediately looked in the direction of the voice.

    What they saw was the mighty and domineering tail of a dragon swaying about as it overlooked the crowd from the sky. To the left of the dragon was a snow white Divine Beast that looked like a goat. On its right, a long horned fox could be seen.

    It was Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s party.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 40

    <strong>Chapter 40: The Start Of A Feud (2) </strong>

    Once their mounts descended a little, the three of them leaped off and made their way towards Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s guild members in a few steps.

    "O Great Leader Quiet And Steadfast, your guild members have bullied the members of our guild¡¯s quest party. What do you intend to do about this?" Crying Fish looked like she¡¯d turned into apletely different person the moment she caught sight of him. Speaking in a pretend alluring voice, she contorted her body into the shape of an "S".

    "What¡¯s there to talk about, Aunt, we¡¯re enemies." Quiet And Steadfast interjected in a chilling tone.

    Shen Jingchen felt that Crying Fish had a screw loose too. Both sides were enemies and PKing one another in a PVP zone was only natural. This was his first time seeing someone speak in such a way. However, he took greater offence at Nine Bads and said, "Nine Bads, you¡¯ll have to get through me first if you want toy your hands on my little sister!"

    Nine Bads retorted, "So it turns out she¡¯s your sister. Your sister probably made her debut without knowing she could change her appearance. Dawn¡¯s Twilight, it looks like we need to investigate your title as a male god. After all, you might be just as unbearable to look at as her..."

    Before she even finished, a cold glint shed out of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s hand. In that instant Nine Bads, who¡¯d just recovered from her injuries, turned into a beam of white light and disappeared. Although Nine Bads was strong, she was far from being Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s match. His position as the number one yer in the game wasn¡¯t just for show.

    "When enemies meet, apart from killing one another, what else is there to talk about?" Everyone present was rendered speechless by his actions. After that, they were faced with his cold voice before they even had the chance to break out from their stupor.

    Crying Fish was so infuriated that her face flushed red as she shrieked, "Quiet And Steadfast, you¡¯re an intolerable bully! You..."

    "Bullying you isn¡¯t counted as bullying!" Slight Chill cut her off and immediately attacked her.

    As if everyone had received some sort of signal, the temporary ceasefire that both sides had tacitly agreed upon was tossed aside as they grappled with each other once again. However this time, Life At First Sight wasn¡¯t able to gain the upper hand at all. Their guild members sessively fell due to the ferocity of Jade Sea Pavilion. And after turning into beams of white light, they then disappeared.

    With support from the Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s healers; Imperial Treasure and White Cloud, Shen Jingbin¡¯s horsetail whisk swayed about, taking care of a number of enemies as well. As she moved about, her simple daoist robes from White Cloud Temple drew line after line of green arcs. This disy of hers gave others a feeling of overflowing elegance and freedom, which repeatedly drew raised eyebrows from everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that this ugly monster would turn out to be pretty skillful. It looks like Dawn wasn¡¯t bullshitting this time around!

    The number of yers from Life At First Sight on Sea Moon Ind steadily decreased. Upon realizing they had no chance of winning, the remaining yers made a break for it and never looked back. Seeing this, everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion stored their weapons and began to joyfully pick up the bloody garments of the yers they¡¯d killed.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, although yers who¡¯d been killed wouldn¡¯t drop any of their equipment, they¡¯d instead drop bloody garments with their name and time of death.

    Just as everyone was happily picking up all the drops and nning to broadcast their opponent¡¯s humiliating defeat on the forums at night, the clouds suddenly started to roll about. Next, a procession of golden words slowly made their way across them.

    [Realm] Nine Bads: You¡¯ve got balls, Quiet And Steadfast. I¡¯ll remember this debt. And as for that ugly monster from Jade Sea Pavilion, you better pray you don¡¯t meet me in the future, because I¡¯ll kill you each and every time I see you!

    Unexpectedly, it was an announcement from the game¡¯s realm chat.

    For online games megaphones were a must have, regardless of whether they were a casual online game, or a roleying one. Virtual reality online games were no different. Furthermore, to embody the uniqueness of using it, the special effects of megaphones in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> were especially cool. Naturally, their prices were sky high as well. Apart from whales1, few people would use this item whose only purpose is to show off.

    "F*ck, Nine Bads must have gone mad from anger.w" I¡¯m Not A Weirdo said with some difficulty.

    I¡¯m Really Not A Weirdo said, "She¡¯s definitely gone mad. Think about it, no matter what, she, the second best yer on the leaderboards, was unexpectedly killed just like that. If it were me, I¡¯d get seizures from being so pissed."

    Actually, I Am A Weirdo, "The point is, I remember her saying in the past that our Leader was only 5 levels higher than her. In that case, he shouldn¡¯t have been able to beat her so easily."

    I¡¯m A Weirdo, Dare To Hit Me shook his head, a mix of loathing and sorrow on his face as he said, "She lost face this time around. Pa pa pa pa, it must have hurt."

    Eternal Rest, "Did you guys notice? Nine Bads has been going on about Nutty since she fell. There¡¯s definitely more than meets the eye going on here."

    Shen Jingchen, "Eh, someone fell down? Who? Where¡¯d they fall from? Why¡¯d they fall?"

    Shen Jingbin received a fright when everyone turned towards her. She reached out her hand and pointed towards the main ind of Sea Moon Ind and said, "She ambushed me when I was up there. I happened to pull her down while dodging her attacks."

    Next Week Is Unlikely was bbergasted. He asked, "You avoided her ambush?"

    Nine Bads¡¯ ambush skill was very high leveled. Both he and Shen Jingchen had fallen prey to her ambushes a number of times.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know any of this, so she just nodded her head. At that moment, everyone had a look of iparable astonishment on their faces.

    "Hmph, at least you have some skill." Slight Chill tilted her chin upwards and walked up to Shen Jingbin. She was around half a foot shorter than Shen Jingbin, so she had to incline her head a little as she said, "However, don¡¯t think I¡¯ll recognize your abilities with just this little bit."

    "Shoo shoo shoo, does my little sister need you to recognize her abilities? Who do you think you are?" Shen Jingchen jumped in without waiting for Shen Jingbin to reply. Slight Chill¡¯s eyes went wide, before she suddenly lunged at Shen Jingchen. Her body was ready for battle as she chased him around and tried to hit him. On the other hand, Shen Jingchen was dodging her attacks while he whispered insults at her.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly had an epiphany as she looked at the two of them.

    Previously, when the two of them quarreled, Shen Jingbin found it strange that Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t deal with the matter in a stern manner. Normally, the penalty for causing internal strife in a big guild such as this should be very severe. But based on what she¡¯d seen now, she was probably the only one who took their quarrelling seriously.

    Or did the two of them think that they were seriously quarrelling?

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    People who spend a lot of money in games ?

 Chapter 41

    <b>Chapter 41: First Death (1) </b>

    "Hey, have you guys heard? Jade Sea Pavilion started fighting with Life At First Sight again yesterday. Rumour has it that Life At First Sight even sent Nine Bads out this time around. s, the great god Quiet And Steadfast dealt with her in a second."

    "What the f*ck! Quiet And Steadfast is really too OP!1 I chanced upon Nine Bads in Frosty Wind Forest thest time I was there doing a quest, she was hunting monsters and, due to my carelessness, she killed obliterated me with an AOE attack. I brought my brothers along with meter on to exact revenge, but she still killed us all. That woman is really a damn pervert!"

    "In that case, are you saying that Quiet And Steadfast is an even bigger pervert than her?"

    "I heard differentlypared to what you guys are talking about. From what I know, the reason why Quiet And Steadfast could finish off Nine Bads like that was because an ugly monster trolled Nine Bads beforehand... Well, that ugly monster is the very same yer whom Jade Sea Pavilion recently admitted into their guild. She¡¯s also the one who everyone deems to be the ugliest yer in the history of this game!"

    "I know about that ugly monster! Don¡¯t think she¡¯s a nobody just because she¡¯s ugly! She¡¯s pretty awesome. Tell me, are you willing to incur the wrath of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader, Song Yuqing¡¯s disciple? If so, then you better be careful when shees looking for revenge with all of White Cloud Temple¡¯s NPCs backing her!"

    "Jade Sea Pavilion really is getting more and more perverted! Do you think that Life At First Sight still stands a chance against them?"

    "Well, that¡¯s hard to say. I¡¯ve got a friend who¡¯s an executive in Life At First Sight, he said that Life At First Sight seems to be negotiating an alliance with Sovereign¡¯s Descent. Jade Sea Pavilion has held the title of being the number one guild for so long, it¡¯s not surprising for them to have long since incurred the displeasure of many guilds."

    "Oh yeah, looks like we¡¯re gonna have another good show to watch!"

    Shen Jingbin was leaning against the counter in a tavern as she waited for the shopkeeper to gather the medicines she needed.

    Thus far, she¡¯d been relying on her martial arts abilities from real life as a foundation for herbat abilities in the game. However, that battle with Nine Badsst night had made her realise that her own underlying strength, that she¡¯d been so proud of, didn¡¯t really count for much. It was all down to pure dumb luck that she managed to dodge Nine Bad¡¯s attack yesterday. If she were topare their martial prowess alone, Nine Bads would probably be on par with her. Shen Jingbin had merely used the surrounding terrain to her advantage to catch her opponent off guard.

    However, as the saying goes: there¡¯s always another mountain. There mighte a day when she encounters someone whose true martial prowess and level outssed hers. When that timees, wouldn¡¯t she only be able to wait for her death? Hence, she had to prepare life-saving items for herself.

    When talking about life-saving items in the game, if it wasn¡¯trge health potions, then it¡¯d be the legendary Grandmaster Apothecary who could refine Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine.

    Based on the rumours that she¡¯d heard, there was a Grandmaster Apothecary NPC in this tavern called "Number One Tavern", and that she¡¯d be able to buy Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine through the owner of the tavern.

    She hadn¡¯t expected to hear so many rumours through the grapevine before she even obtained the medicine.

    Sovereign¡¯s Descent was one of the otherrger guilds. Although they had the most members in the game, they didn¡¯t have all that many elite yers, yet their Guild Leader was a very ambitious person. He¡¯d long since been discontent with the fact that even though Jade Sea Pavilion had less than half the number of members they did, they¡¯d held the title of the number one guild in the game since the very start.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, a guild¡¯s strength was based on the average strength of its members. Although Jade Sea Pavilion didn¡¯t have that many guild members, every single one of them were elites. As a result, they were crowned as the "Number One Guild". Simrly, this was also the reason why they couldn¡¯tpletely annihte Life At First Sight despite being the number one guild in the game.

    Life At First Sight was significantly weaker than Jade Sea Pavilion, but Jade Sea Pavilion was still no match for them in terms of manpower. There was a saying that an army of ants could kill an elephant. If Sovereign¡¯s Descent really did form an alliance with Life At First Sight, then Jade Sea Pavilion would most likely suffer a little.

    After all, this army of ants was truly a little bigger than usual.

    "Goddess, here¡¯s your medicine." As she was mulling over things, the shopkeeper walked out from the back of the tavern with two small porcin bottles in hand, "The totales out to 100 taels of silver."

    "100 taels?!" Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t control her voice for a moment and cried out.

    The guests who were having their meals looked over in her direction, including those few yers who¡¯d mentioned her name just now. She was immensely thankful that she¡¯d worn a ck veil out in the streets today, otherwise the oue would be unimaginable.

    Since Nine Bads made an effort to remember who she was, Quiet And Steadfast had pulled out a ck veil, the same as the one he wore, and handed it to her. Whether it proved to be of use or not, the ck veil would still be able to serve some purpose.

    Noticing there wasn¡¯t anything gossip worthy, the yers turned back after they cast a sweeping nce at her.

    Since her figure was already socking, they reckoned that her face wouldn¡¯t be anything to write home about either.

    "Goddess, this is a divine medicine. 100 taels isn¡¯t expensive at all. Don¡¯t you know how many years it¡¯s been since this Grandmaster Apothecary stepped foot outside? Back then, I spent a lot of money just to invite him back here. Honestly speaking, I wouldn¡¯t sell this medicine to any Tom, Dick, or Harry whoes looking for me, so a price of 100 taels isn¡¯t a loss for you." The shopkeeper¡¯s smile bloomed like a chrysanthemum as he said, "Goddess, you have an exceptionally lovely aura around you. I can tell that you¡¯re not a normal person from just a nce. You definitely wouldn¡¯t take a mere 100 taels of silver to heart."

    What an unscrupulous businessman!

    Shen Jingbin cursed him in her heart as she handed over 100 taels of silver, suppressing her tears. After she put away the secret medicine, Shen Jingbin left the tavern with the shopkeeper seeing her off.

    All the effort she¡¯d spent saving up had gone to naught in but a moment.

    Shen Jingbin emotionally thought to herself: I want to learn how to refine medicine! These unscrupulous businessmen were really too vicious and greedy!

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    Overpowered ?

 Chapter 42

    <b>Chapter 42: First Death (2)</b>

    yers in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> had the option of learning Life Skills. The Life Skills Learning System would be avable to yers once they reached level 80. It hadn¡¯t even been a few days since Shen Jingbin reached level 80, but she¡¯d forgotten all about it since she¡¯d been so busy. However, after being riled up by the two bottles of Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine in front of her, the desire to refine medicine was ignited.

    The NPCs who taught Life Skills were all situated on the outskirts of towns or deep in the mountains and forests, somewhat giving off an impression that they were skillful hermits. Shen Jingbin summoned her mount and headed straight for the Apothecary instructor after obtaining his location.

    After she left, an ordinary looking male yer also walked out from the tavern. He looked at Shen Jingbin¡¯s silhouette as she left before lowering his head to write a few letters and sending them out.

    Nine Bads walked behind Crying Fish as they prepared to discuss the details of their alliance with the people from Sovereign¡¯s Descent. Suddenly, a carrier pigeonnded on her shoulder.

    "What¡¯s wrong?" Crying Fish couldn¡¯t help but ask after seeing the abrupt change in Nine Bad¡¯s expression once she finished reading the letter.

    Nine Bads destroyed the letter in her hands before replying, "Nothing... I need to leave for a moment. I¡¯ll trust you to make the decisions regarding the guild, I have no opinion about it."

    Once she finished speaking, she turned and left without giving the other party time to respond.

    "What a horrible temperament." Crying Fish couldn¡¯t suppress the resentment she had towards Nine Bads and cursed her inwardly as she watched her leave.

    It wasn¡¯t all that difficult to find an Apothecary instructor. Shen Jingbin caught sight of their small wooden hut shortly after leaving the city on her old horse.

    Her heart leaped in joy, but just as she was about to speed up, a huge suddenly fell from the sky and enveloped her. Four men leaped up from the corners of the and grabbed ahold of it. Then, with a pull of the, they tightened it around Shen Jingbin.

    The system range out the moment the wrapped around her, "You¡¯ve been attacked by a yer. Your mount has been automatically recalled."

    What the hell is going on?!

    With the disappearance of her mount, Shen Jingbin abruptlynded on the ground. She struggled in an attempt to break free, but it was to no avail due to the sturdy nature of the. Seeing this, she raised her head and looked at the men who surrounded her as she asked, "Who are you people?"

    Song And Laughterughed coldly at her and replied, "It¡¯s no use to you even if we told you who we are. Do you think that you¡¯ll be able to avenge yourself?"

    "At least let me know why I¡¯m going to die."

    Red Mustard said, "Stop spouting so much nonsense at her. The boss will settle the score with you when she arrives in a moment."

    "Anyway, she¡¯ll know once the boss arrives. It doesn¡¯t make a difference whether I tell her or not." Luxuriant Sky tugged at the edge of the, further tightening it around her, "Nine Bads is our boss. You actually dared to strut around by yourself even after offending her. You¡¯ve got guts."

    Glorious Independence Day mocked her as well, "Aren¡¯t you very close to Quiet And Steadfast and those other great gods? Why don¡¯t you ask them toe save you?"

    "Did Nine Bads ask you guys to capture me?"

    Song And Laughter was just about to answer her, when Nine Bads suddenly interjected, "I¡¯m the one who allowed them to watch you. What¡¯s wrong? Do you think other people won¡¯t be able to recognise you just by wearing a veil? I¡¯ve already told you that I was going to properly repay this debt."

    "So you¡¯re willing to resort to overwhelming me with numbers? Let¡¯s just fight it out one-on-one." Shen Jingbin raised her eyes and looked straight at Nine Bads.

    Nine Bads¡¯ thin lips twitched as she gave a contemptuous smile, "Did you think that I wouldn¡¯t be able to tell that you¡¯re also a martial artist? On top of that, you¡¯re the one who captured the Divine Beast, right? I¡¯m here to get my revenge, not to have a fair fight with you."

    Once she finished speaking, she unsheathed the long sword by her waist and stabbed Shen Jingbin in the chest.

    Shen Jingbin let out a stifled groan as a sharp wave of pain ran through her.

    "What? You can¡¯t even endure something like this? Let me tell you something, I¡¯m not done with you yet!"

    Nine Bads exerted more force on the long sword in her hand, pushing it deeper into Shen Jingbin¡¯s body. She then slowly twisted its handle, causing the de that was embedded in her chest to turn, bit by bit. Large amounts of bright red blood surged out of Shen Jingbin¡¯s chest, thoroughly staining her green Daoist robe.

    Shen Jingbin paled even further in ordance with Nine Bads¡¯ movements. Song And Laughter¡¯s bunch who were watching off to the side felt their scalps turn numb at the sight of this scene.

    F*ck, it really hurts!

    Shen Jingbin gritted her teeth as prepared to forcibly log off.

    "You are now in battle mode. 100 taels of silver and 100 Chivalry points will be deducted if you forcibly log off."

    "Sorry, you don¡¯t have 100 taels of silver in your backpack. You are unable to forcibly log off."

    What the f*ck! System, are you mental?!

    "Didn¡¯t I drag you down just once? Do you really need to go this far?" Since she couldn¡¯t forcibly log off, Shen Jingbin could only think of another way to divert Nine Bads¡¯ attention.

    "Of course. Why wouldn¡¯t I go this far?" Nine Bads¡¯ delicate face distorted a little as she said, "This can be regarded as the first stain in my gaming career. It¡¯s only natural for me to get my revenge. Besides, I¡¯ve always been the type of person who haggles over every penny."

    The sword in her chest sank deeper inside of her. Shen Jingbin was in so much pain that she was starting to ck out. Only then did she realize that she hadn¡¯t adjusted the pain receptors in the game since she started ying.

    The default setting for pain receptors in the game was 80%!

    "Oh dear, looking at you now, it seems like you didn¡¯t adjust the pain receptors, did you?" Nine Bads suddenly thought of this possibility when she saw that Shen Jingbin¡¯s reaction was even greater than she¡¯d imagined it to be. At that moment, the smile on her face immediately became even more smug, "I originally wanted to torment you a little longer and let you have a taste of how it feels like to be humiliated. But, since you didn¡¯t adjust your pain receptors, then I¡¯ll have mercy on you and spare you from such misery."

    Shen Jingbin had an ominous premonition of what was toe.

    "The game developers really did a good job in designing the sensation of dying in this game. You should experience it for yourself!"

    As those words fell on her ears, Nine Bads stuck the remaining half of the sword into Shen Jingbin¡¯s body.

    Shen Jingbin felt a searing pain tear through her chest and make its way up towards her forehead, before she immediately cked out. Her whole body suddenly felt iparably heavy, causing her to sink to the ground without the slightest bit of control over her own bodily functions. A strange sense of despair attacked her heart.

    Was this what dying felt like?

    "Cherish your life, for life is precious. As this is your first death, the pain receptors implemented have been forcibly adjusted to 85% to teach you a lesson on the fragility of life. Notification: For your own safety, please remember to lower your pain receptors after you revive =D"

    The f*ck. Nine Bads, this isn¡¯t over!

    The gloomy look in Nine Bads¡¯ eyes lightened a little when she saw Shen Jingbin turn into a ray of white light, disappearing before her eyes. She turned around and looked at her fourckeys, "You guys did very well this time. I¡¯ll help you guys get some benefits in the guild. In the future when youe across this woman, you must inform me at the first possible moment."

    "Yes, Boss."

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 Chapter 43

    <strong>Chapter 43: Hell (1)</strong>

    When Shen Jingbin opened her eyes once again, the scenery in front of her had bepletely different.

    Masses of ck clouds pressed atop her head. There was no sunlight, and visibility was low. Around her, a deste in stretched for as far as the eye could see. A few hundred meters away, she noticed an enormous metal door that was violet-ck in colour. In front of it, there appeared to be two tall and indistinct shadows.

    "Hey little sister, is this your first time dying? Do you feel helpless, lost, and wronged? Do you feel as if you¡¯ve lost your way in life?" As she was surveying the area, a wretched looking midget popped up out of nowhere. He ced a hand on her shoulder and squinted before speaking, "No need to be afraid, this big brother will show you the way...for a bit of money. How about it? Doesn¡¯t it sound like a worthwhile proposition?"

    Shen Jingbin quickly sized him up, "Are you an NPC?"

    The man spread his hands out, "Have you ever seen an NPC that looks as wretched as me? I¡¯m actually a yer, just like you. But I got bored of things, so I decided to make a trip down to Hell for some extra cash on the side."

    "... You¡¯re allowed to do that?" Shen Jingbin was piqued when she heard the man talk about his side ie.

    "Why not? Of course you can!" He shed a bright smile upon seeing she was interested. He began exining, "I¡¯ll have to let you know that you shouldn¡¯t underestimate this game. Just this Hell alone has many entrances leading into it. I waspletely dumbstruck when I first came here after dying. However, I¡¯ve managed to get a rough idea of the ce aftering here a few more times. Luckily for me, I was senseless enough to still be in the mood to explore this ce after dying. You see that violet-ck gate in front of you? That¡¯s the legendary Door Of Rebirth, but in actual fact, it¡¯s actually a respawn point. Look behind you."

    It was only then that Shen Jingbin realized there were another two identical metal doors behind her. She turned back and eyed the man suspiciously, "What¡¯s going on?"

    "Hehehe, you see little sister, this big brother over here died countless times before obtaining this information. It¡¯d be a bit too much if I gave it to you for free."

    "How much?"

    "Only 5 taels."

    Shen Jingbin felt around the inside of her bag and found only a few silver taels. Her eyes couldn¡¯t help but twitch. At this moment, she felt even more resolved to learn medicine refining once she revived.

    And then she¡¯d work hard to some earn money!!

    After receiving his money, the man cleared his throat and said, "But first, little sister, let me introduce myself. My name is Marco Polo Bun, but you can call me Polo. Those three Door Of Rebirths you saw just now each belongs to one of the three races. However, it¡¯s up to the yer to figure out which of the three doors they need to go through. It¡¯s important to note that if a yer chooses the wrong Door Of Rebirth, they¡¯ll be randomly transported to one of the eighteen levels of Hell for half a day, before they¡¯re returned here to make their choice anew. Of course, those with good luck may find a hidden quest in the eighteen levels of Hell."

    The man pointed towards one of the two tall figures standing beside the Door Of Rebirth and continued, "The Door Of Rebirths will change their positions every so often. And, standing at the sides of each Door Of Rebirth, are a pair of Door Gods. Namely, Shentu and Yul¨¹. If a yer manages to select the right Door Of Rebirth, then Shentu will investigate their cause of death and whether or not they¡¯ve sinned. In actual fact, it¡¯s just a check to see if a yer¡¯s name is red. If it is, then it means they¡¯ve sinned. In that case, they¡¯d have to pay a fixed cost before they¡¯re able to use the Door Of Rebirth. If they haven¡¯t sinned then things are simple. They¡¯ll be able to pass through just like that. Yul¨¹ has always been in charge of opening the door. Up till now I haven¡¯te across anything special, but I¡¯ve always had this feeling that there¡¯s more to them than meets the eye."

    "Then, do you know which one of these doors is the Human Door Of Rebirth?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Polo rested his chin on his hand before he sized her up with a nce, "I¡¯ll think about telling you for free if you take off your veil... Don¡¯t tell me you really thought that a mere 5 taels of silver would be enough for me to tell you everything? Shit, lil¡¯ sister, you can¡¯t be that innocent, right?!"

    "..."

    Can I hit him?

    "What¡¯re you staring at me like that for? You can either give me money, or take off your veil and show me your face."

    She originally wore the veil to prevent Nine Bads¡¯ckeys from recognizing her, but it clearly hadn¡¯t worked, so there wasn¡¯t a need to wear it any longer. Even though she didn¡¯t like her current ugly appearance, she hated wearing the ck veil even more.

    She took off her veil and looked at Marco Polo Bun expressionlessly, "There. Now you¡¯ve seen me. Keep talking."

    "Cough... What the f*ck!" Marco Polo Bun felt like gouging his eyes out.

    Why the f*ck did I screw myself over by saying that I wanted to look at such a disgusting sight!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

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 Chapter 44

    <strong>Chapter 44: Hell (2)</strong>

    After seeing Shen Jingbin¡¯s true appearance, Marco Polo Bun couldn¡¯t bear spending another second with her, so he rapidly spoke, "If you look carefully, each of the Door Of Rebirths has a peach tree next to them, there¡¯s some differences if you take a closer look. A small white spot at the bottom of the peach tree¡¯s trunk signifies that it is the Celestial Door Of Rebirth. The peach tree with yellowish tipped leaves represents the Demonic Door Of Rebirth, while the remaining one is the Human Door Of Rebirth. I¡¯ve said my piece, now goodbye female hero!"

    Marco Polo Bun broke into a run the moment he finished speaking, but Shen Jingbin quickly stretched her hand to catch him by the cor. Although Marco Polo Bun was a guy, in truth, he was a useless otaku that never stepped out of the house. Just taking two steps would be enough to render him breathless. While he was a bit stronger in game, he was still nothingpared to Shen Jingbin. All Shen Jingbin did was grab his cor, but he unexpectedly found himself unable to break free.

    "Why¡¯re you running?" Shen Jingbin brought her eyes into a half squint as she questioned him.

    "I¡¯m not running. I just remembered I still had something to do!" Marco Polo Bun looked at her with a face that screamed "I¡¯ve got things to do".

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit before asking, "Which sect are you from?"

    "I¡¯m part of White Cloud Temple."

    This answer made Shen Jingbin smile, "What a coincidence, so am I. Since you have such pressing matters, why don¡¯t we go together?"

    How could I let you off when only God knows whether you¡¯re telling the truth?

    Marco Polo Bun wasn¡¯t stupid. With a nce, he could tell that he wasn¡¯t in the same league as the ugly monster in front of him. He sighed in defeat and obediently led the way.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, even healers wouldn¡¯t be able to bring someone back from the dead. Once they died, they¡¯d have toe to Hell and pass through the Door Of Rebirth. However, going through the right gate wasn¡¯t an easy task. There was always the risk of falling into one of the Eighteen Levels of Hell and suffering for their mistake. After all, not everyone was like Marco Polo Bun, which is why every yer took great precautions to ensure their survival.

    Of course, death was something that simply couldn¡¯t be helped in a guild war.

    Thus, Shen Jingbin died and arrived here. Surprisingly, she didn¡¯t encounter any other yers who¡¯d died apart from Marco Polo Bun.

    As they each had their own respective worries, the two of them travelled quickly, arriving in front of the Door Of Rebirth in the blink of an eye. From this distance, the Door Of Rebirth was way too eye catching. Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t even notice that there really was a peach tree the size of a person beside the grandiose Door Of Rebirth.

    "You see that tree over there? It doesn¡¯t have a white mark on the bottom and its leaves are emerald green. This is definitely the Human Door Of Rebirth. You got it right on your first try, you must be really lucky today." Marco Polo Bun said after approaching the peach tree and examining it.

    "My luck has always been good." Shen Jingbin replied.

    Her line of sight wandered around the Door Of Rebirth, before it then shifted to the two shadows that stood in front of it.

    Two hulking giants stood in front of the violet-ck Door Of Rebirth. The one on the left wore brightly coloured armor. His eyes were shut and his face exuded a majestic, solemn atmosphere, making him look like a martial deity. He held a golden halberd 1. The giant on the right wore a ck battle gown. His eyes were also shut, but his expression was more rxed. He was empty handed and both his hands were ced at his chest, giving others the impression that he was sleeping.

    Shen Jingbin took a few steps forward.

    Suddenly, the earth shook, as if all of Hell was trembling.

    "Why hath thou been born, and why hast thou perished?" Shentu slowly opened his eyes and lifted his golden halberd. A deep, resounding voice filled the area as words flowed from his mouth.

    Shen Jingbin gave Marco Polo Bun a dumbfounded look and asked, "What¡¯s he saying?"

    Marco Polo Bun waved his hands, "It¡¯s just his script, don¡¯t worry about it. Just speak with him and let him examine you. You don¡¯t have a red name, so there¡¯s nothing to be afraid of."

    "What about you?"

    Marco Polo Bun looked at her as if she was an idiot before he said, "Dear hero, I¡¯m here to make some money. Once I cross the Door¡¯s threshold, I¡¯ll have to die again if I want to return here!"

    ¡°Methinks that the two of thee have a fortunate destiny. Thy bones are unique and thou shouldn¡¯t have died so early...forget it, mine brother and I will open the Door Of Rebirth for thee today. Thee would do well to cherish this.¡±

    He even knows fortune telling, what a conman!

    After he finished speaking, Yul¨¹, who stood on the right, also slowly opened his eyes. He unhurriedly brought his hands down to his sides and said, "Take a step back, Mortal."

    The two of them listened and stepped back. Yul¨¹ raised his head and took a deep breathe, before turning to face the Door Of Rebirth. He then mustered his strength, stretched out his hands, and pushed with all his might.

    "Creeaaakkk"

    The ear-piercing sound of screeching metal could be heard as the Door Of Rebirth slowly swung open, gradually revealing the world behind it to the two of them.

    It was a vast expanse of rolling white clouds and mist, making it hard to discern what was before them.

    "The Door Of Rebirth hath been opened. Whether this ends up bing a blessing or a curse for the two of thee rests in thine hands."

    Marco Polo Bun looked at the open door and rubbed his head, "You go first, I¡¯ve done my part by bringing you up to this point. That should be enough."

    Shen Jingbin stared at him, the look in her eyes enigmatic, "Enough? Of course it¡¯s not enough."

    After saying so, she used a hand to push him straight into the Door Of Rebirth without giving him any time to react.

    Marco Polo Bun gave a miserable shriek, "Ah! You ugly monster! You nasty little bitch! You..."

    She couldn¡¯t hear the rest of what he said clearly. It probably got swallowed up by the white fog.

    Shen Jingbin patted her hands and whispered, "Who knows whether you¡¯re lying to me or not, caution is the mother of safety."

    After waiting by the door for a bit, Shen Jingbin started to slowly approach the Door Of Rebirth after she noticed that Marco Polo Bun still hadn¡¯t returned.

    "Wait, Mortal. What is thy connection with the Divine Beast, White Tiger?" Shentu suddenly gave voice to his question just as she was about to step through the Door Of Rebirth.

    "The Divine Beast, White Tiger?" Shen Jingbin was stunned for a moment before she replied, "It¡¯s my pet."

    Cracks began to appear in Yul¨¹¡¯s tranquil expression. After a long while, Shen Jingbin finally heard him heave a sigh, "The birth of the White Tiger signifies that the remnants of the Shinra Sect hath appeared once more."

    Shen Jingbin was shocked, "Eh, you guys know about the Shinra Sect as well?"

    Shentu replied, "Yul¨¹ and I hath defended Hell for many years, wherefore wouldn¡¯t we know about these evil creatures? Back then, due to our negligence, we allowed an evil presence to escape from the Eighteen Levels of Hell, resulting in disaster befalling the human world. The evil presence was extremely overbearing and couldn¡¯t be destroyed. It possessed the ability to corrupt the world, so it was suppressed in the most vicious level of Hell ¡ª the Eighteenth Level of Hell. However, after its previous escape, the seal in Hell lost its effect. With things as they were, Yul¨¹ and I could only resort to telling heroes from the human world about this incident and seal the evil presence in the Extreme Abyss. The four Divine Beasts preserve the order of the world, only appearing when the bnce of the world is threatened."

    "Now that the White Tiger hath been born, it won¡¯t be long before the rest of them make an appearance as well. The White Tiger and I share somewhat of a rtionship. Since thee is the Master of the White Tiger, then I shall provide thee with some guidance." Yul¨¹ took over from Shentu and waved his right hand in the air as he spoke.

    Shen Jingbin shifted her gaze to Yul¨¹¡¯s hand, and saw a creature that looked like a White Tiger slowly appear beneath his palm as it swayed!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    I-IT¡¯S LU BU! ?

 Chapter 45

    <b>Chapter 45: Returning To The Mortal Realm (1)</b>

    Unlike Mascot¡¯s snow white body, this White Tiger had ink ck stripes on it. Its white fur glistened as if it were freshly washed. The pitch ck stripes followed their own rules as they drew line after line on the White Tiger¡¯s fur, forming a separate world of their own. All these features culminated into an appearance that was especially eye catching in the dusky environment of Hell.

    This White Tiger stood half a person tall on four powerful and sturdy limbs. Its golden beast eyes were half closed as its head asionally rubbed against Yul¨¹¡¯s palm, making it seem very cute.

    "This is mine Divine pet, Cenxia. It also holds the bloodline of the White Tiger, but its blood isn¡¯t pure. It¡¯s no match for thy White Tiger that ranks as one of the four Divine Beasts. However, thy White Tiger has just been reborn andcks spiritual wisdom. Although Cenxia is inferior to thy White Tiger, it still possesses a certain degree of spiritual wisdom. Now, I shall present Cenxia¡¯s life to thy White Tiger so that it may aid a little in its growth." Yul¨¹ said as he gave a look of sorrow to Cenxia who was rubbing itself against his palm.

    Shen Jingbin subconsciously looked towards Cenxia and saw that it had already stopped rubbing its head on Yul¨¹¡¯s palm. Turning its head towards her, its golden beastly eyes were twinkling like a reflection in the water.

    "Do you really have to do this? My White Tiger can slowly grow on its own." Shen Jingbin felt a little unwilling when she looked at Cenxia. She¡¯d developed a fondness forrge felines ever since she tamed Mascot.

    Upon seeing the look of unwillingness on her face, Shentu said, "Hark now, the four Divine Beasts are one of the keys topletely eradicating the Shinra Sect. Thy White Tiger may be the strongest out of the four Divine Beasts, however, it is also the most susceptible to the influence of the Shinra Sect. Moreover, it hasn¡¯t developed its spiritual wisdom. Just a moment¡¯s carelessness could result in thy White Tiger bing the Shinra Sect¡¯s strength. An that happens, the situation would verily be unsalvageable."

    Yul?¨¹ massaged Cenxia¡¯s head and said, "Thou need not worry. As a White Tiger, it would be considered an honor for it to be able to offer itself up to a true White Tiger. Moreover, the disasters wrought by the Shinra Sect came about as a result of us brothers¡¯ negligence, and since we¡¯re unable to leave Hell, we can only use this method to save whomever we can. I only hope for thee to use Cenxia¡¯s strength to shore up the power of the four Divine Beasts, annihting the Shinra Sect as soon as possible."

    After Yul¨¹ finished speaking, Shen Jingbin heard the pleasant tone of the system¡¯s notification ring out in her head.

    "Congrattions on triggering the hidden quest ¡¯Search For The Four Divine Beasts¡¯, will you ept? Yes/No. (Trigger condition: Die for the first time while possessing the Divine Beast, White Tiger.)

    This should be a hidden quest belonging to the epic grade category that Quiet And Steadfast talked about. Shen Jingbin silently epted the quest, before asking, "How do we sacrifice it it?"

    "Summon thy White Tiger." Yul¨¹ replied.

    Shen Jingbin summoned Mascot in ordance with Yul¨¹¡¯s instructions. When it appeared, Mascot didn¡¯t excitedly dash and bounce about like it usually did. Instead, it hid behind her and stuck out its head. Quite some time passed before it let out a soft roar in Cenxia¡¯s direction.

    Cenxia responded with a low roar of its own. Upon hearing it, Mascot immediately recovered from its slump and sped towards Cenxia like it¡¯d seen a b of meat.

    "MASCOT!" Shen Jingbin roared. She was worried that Mascot might not know his ce and end up getting injured. After all, Cenxia was Yul¨¹¡¯s Divine pet.

    Yul¨¹ ayed her fears, saying, "Leave it be. Cenxia bears the scent of a White Tiger, so thy White Tiger is feeling excited after sensing its own kind."

    Indeed, just as Yul¨¹ had said, Mascot was only overexcited. After dashing over to it, Mascot stuck to Cenxia¡¯s belly in an iparably cute manner, continuously crying out. Mascot was still in its miniature form, so it was a lot smaller than Cenxia. For the sake of giving in to it, Cenxia obediently sat down and asionally licked Mascot¡¯s fur.

    After licking Mascot a few times, Cenxia raised its head in Yul¨¹¡¯s direction and issued a muffled roar that was tinged with sorrow.

    "Cenxia¡¯s ready." Yul¨¹ lowered his voice and exined to Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin wordlessly nodded her head.

    Yul¨¹ stretched out both of his hands. One rested on Cenxia¡¯s head, while the other was ced on Mascot¡¯s back. Mascot twisted about in difort, but there was no further movement from it. Despite its difort, Mascot continued to remain firmly stuck to Cenxia¡¯s side.

    Yul¨¹ raised his hand slightly, and a round ball of light slowly emerged from Cenxia¡¯s head. This continued until itpletely broke free of Cenxia¡¯s body. Shen Jingbin watched as Cenxia¡¯s body gradually began to fade till it winked out of existence. After losing its support, Mascot revealed a look of unease and tried to jump up. However, the hand on its back prevented it from taking even a single step.

    "Roar!" Mascot furiously cried out in response.

    Yul¨¹, who held the glowing ball in his hand, seized the moment when Mascot was crying out in frustration to shove the glowing ball into Mascot¡¯s mouth. Mascot¡¯s entire body trembled for a moment before it crumpled onto the floor, bing motionless.

    Yul¨¹ bent down and gently stroked Mascot¡¯s head, "Take good care of it. It¡¯ll need some time to absorb Cenxia¡¯s cultivation."

    "Thank you." Said Shen Jingbin as she lifted the unconscious Mascot.

    "Nay, thanks are necessary. This is mine karma. Mortal, thee should quicken thy pace back. Once thee has returned to thy mortal realm, hie to the six great sects and enquire on the locations of the four Divine Beasts. They might be able to give thee a clue." Shentu stood at Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and gently patted her on the back. At that moment, Shen Jingbin felt as if a matchless force had mmed into her back, causing her to stumble towards the Door Of Life.

    A sh of white light engulfed her vision...

    A blue sky, white clouds, and the faint fragrance of flowers yed at the tip of her nose. She could also feel the gentle caress of the breeze as it brushed past her face.

    This was the feeling of being back in the secr world.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 46

    <b>Chapter 46: Returning To The Mortal Realm (2)</b>

    After she found herself back at the spot where Nine Bads had killed her with Mascot in her arms, Shen Jingbin was left in a bit of a trance. At that moment, two white carrier pigeons holding letters in their beaksnded on her shoulders.

    Shen Jingbin recalled Mascot and retrieved the letters from the carrier pigeons.

    They were from Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen.

    "Where hell did you run off to! Didn¡¯t you receive any of our mail?!"

    "Reply once you¡¯ve received my mail. There¡¯s something I need to talk to you about."

    After reading the letter, she summarized the incident where Nine Bads had killed her and recounted it to the two of them. Before a few minutes had even passed, Shen Jingbin saw their carrier pigeonse flying back.

    "Stay where you are and don¡¯t move!" Their replies were oddly in sync.

    Shen Jingbin obediently remained at her current location and waited for them. After a few minutes, both Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen could be seen riding over on their mounts. Shen Jingbin¡¯s sharp eyesight also spied what seemed to be a girl sitting on the back of Shen Jingchen¡¯s dragon.

    Shen Jingbin only managed to discern who she was after they got off their mounts. She turned out to be Slight Chill.

    "Slight Chill learned how to refine medicine. This Apothecary Master has a very entric personality, he refuses to teach anyone who isn¡¯t introduced by a fellow Apothecary." Shen Jingchen exined. "Honestly, each NPC you meet in this game is stranger than thest."

    Slight Chill gave him a look of disdain and said, "Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re expecting all of them to have upright morals? In that case, what¡¯s the point of ying the game?" She then shifted her gaze to Shen Jingbin and said, "Come with me, I¡¯ll take you to meet Unparalleled Medicine."

    Unparalleled Medicine was the Apothecary Master¡¯s name.

    Thus, Shen Jingbin followed behind Slight Chill as the four of them made their way towards Unparalleled Medicine¡¯s wooden house. While looking at Slight Chill¡¯s back, Shen Jingbin felt that the Slight Chill she knew of from before didn¡¯t seem to be the real Slight Chill.

    Shen Jingbin thought that maybe, just maybe, everything might have all been just one big misunderstanding between the two of them.

    A short whileter, the four of them arrived at Unparalleled Medicine¡¯s doorstep. Slight Chill signalled for the other three to wait before taking a step forward. She then raised her hand, and gently knocked on the door.

    "Who¡¯s there?" The slightly impatient voice of a man came from within the house.

    "Master, it¡¯s Slight Chill."

    Shen Jingbin softly asked Quiet And Steadfast who was beside her, "Does he really remember the names of all his disciples?"

    Quiet And Steadfast leaned a little closer to her ear and replied, "Giving her name is just a symbolic gesture. Only he knows whether or not he really remembers it."

    While they were whispering to one another, the door to the wooden house was opened and a man with an unkempt appearance stuck his head out. He sized up the four of them for a moment, before he settled his gaze on Slight Chill and said, "Why have youe looking for your Master?"

    Slight Chill revealed a fawning smile and replied, "Master has outstanding skills, and I have a friend who¡¯s admired you for a long time. She hopes to apprentice herself to you."

    It had to be said that NPCs in the game were truly designed to have human qualities. They even included traits like appreciating ttery. Upon hearing Slight Chill¡¯s praise, the look of impatience on Unparalleled Medicine¡¯s face eased up a little.

    "Let¡¯s talk more inside." Unparalleled Medicine harrumphed haughtily and opened the doorpletely, before he then turned around and walked back into the house.

    Unparalleled Medicine was found sitting on a bamboo chair when they stepped into the house. His hand went to his chin and he asked, "Which one among you wants to be my apprentice?"

    Shen Jingbin stepped forward and said, "I do."

    Unparalleled Medicine cast a sidelong nce at her before he spoke to Slight Chill once again, "You¡¯re my disciple, so I have faith in the people you introduce to me." He then stood up, walked over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side, and stretched open his hand before saying, "An apprenticeship costs 5 taels. On top of that, it¡¯ll be another 10 taels as a show of respect towards me."

    F*ck, what a troll! Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but criticize him in her heart.

    Over the past two days, Shen Jingbin had bought Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine, and some information from Marco Polo Bun. Some other random purchases took ce during that time as well, which meant that all the money she¡¯d saved up had almost beenpletely spent. Now, shecked the means to even pay 15 taels of silver.

    She turned to Shen Jingchen and said, "Hurry up and give me 15 taels, I don¡¯t have any money."

    Shen Jingchen looked as if he¡¯d seen a ghost, "What happened to all of your money?! Oi oi oi, you¡¯re someone who¡¯s triggered a number of hidden quests!"

    "I used it all! Enough with your nonsense, are you going to give it to me or not!"

    "Tut tut tut, everyone in the guild knows that this fe¡¯s stinginess is godlike. Asking him for 15 taels is like asking him for his life." Slight Chill swiftly dealt the finishing blow, "And here I thought that you guys were close, looks like your rtionship isn¡¯t even worth 15 taels of silver, hmph."

    Shen Jingbin immediately red at Shen Jingchen upon hearing that and said, "No wonder you only bought me a few items from the system¡¯s shop when we first met. Apart from that, you didn¡¯t even give me a single cent!"

    Unparalleled Medicine clearly wasn¡¯t interested in hearing their back and forth. He interrupted them and said, "Hey, it¡¯s only 15 taels. Don¡¯t tell me you can¡¯t even fork out that much! Refining medicine requires a lot of money. How do you expect to refine any medicine if you can¡¯t even pay up 15 taels of silver? You might as well go home and drink some milk instead."

    The four of them felt like vomiting blood.

    NPC, do the developers know how boorish you are?!

    Slight Chill had a look of unease on her face as she pulled out 15 taels of silver, and handed it to Shen Jingbin, "I¡¯ll lend this to you on ount of our Leader¡¯s face. Return to me 20 taels once you¡¯ve got the money!"

    Shen Jingbin turned to look at Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen, before she took Slight Chill¡¯s money and said, "Thank you."

    Slight Chill snorted and looked away without saying anything.

    What a tsundere. Shen Jingbin sighed and handed over the money to Unparalleled Medicine.

    After receiving payment, Unparalleled Medicine fished out a yellowed book and handed it over to her, "Read up on your own. Come look for me again when you¡¯ve attained the basic level of an Apothecary."

    The moment she opened the book, a notification appeared in her mind.

    "Congrattions, you have learned ¡¯Basic Apothecary¡¯."

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 47

    <strong>Chapter 47: Marriage Compulsion! An Edict From The Sect Leader! (1)</strong>

    After leaving Unparalleled Medicine¡¯s house, Slight Chill was called to help out in an instance dungeon. Shen Jingchen had some matters to attend to as well, so he¡¯d also taken off. In just a moment, Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingbin were the only ones left.

    "Slight Chill seems to be different from how I imagined her to be..." For reasons unbeknownst to either of them, the duo decided not to board their mount. Rather, they chose to walk slowly alongside one another as they made their way towards the main city. Shen Jingbin shot a nce at Quiet And Steadfast from the corner of her eye. After considering for a moment on how to word her question, she asked, "I had the impression that she was the type of girl who was very... headstrong. I never expected her to be so loyal to her friends."

    Quiet And Steadfast gave a chuckle, "Slight Chill actually has a very good personality, but she might be a bit harsh when she speaks. She might¡¯ve been mistaken about you when she targeted you previously."

    "A misunderstanding?" Shen Jingbin asked suspiciously.

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded, "Only I knew that you were Dawn¡¯s little sister when you entered the guild. The rest of them thought that you were another one of those girls that he¡¯d flirted with. Slight Chill has this inexplicable hatred towards people who cling to influential individuals for their own benefit. It didn¡¯t help that she was always at odds with Dawn. Since he brought you into the guild, she¡¯d naturally hate you as well." He paused for a moment before continuing, "Slight Chill is the type of person who makes a very clear distinction between people she loves and hates. Now that she knows she¡¯s made a mistake, she naturally won¡¯t go against you anymore. However, she¡¯s the prideful sort, so she probably couldn¡¯t bring herself to give you an apology. Instead, she could only resort to such roundabout methods as a means of making amends. Take today for instance, after finding out that you wanted to learn how to refine medicine, she volunteered to refer you on her own ord."

    When Shen Jingbin heard the familiar tone he used while mentioning Slight Chill, she couldn¡¯t help but ask, "You seem to know Slight Chill very well. Do you guys know each other in real life?" Immediately after speaking, Shen Jingbin felt that enquiring about the circumstances of others in real life might have been too impolite of her. She hurriedly corrected herself, "Uh, I don¡¯t have any ulterior motives. I just suddenly thought of it..."

    "It¡¯s nothing." Quiet And Steadfast interrupted her. There was a trace of a smile in his eyes as he spoke, "Slight Chill is a childhood friend of mine who grew up alongside me. We¡¯re pretty close in real life."

    "Oh, then... that rumour about her liking you... was fake?" Shen Jingbin was actually a person who loved to gossip, but she normally enjoyed ying the part of someone who was reserved. The person standing beside her looked in her direction with a pair of eyes that seemed to beughing at her, stirring her gossipy heart and giving voice to that question of hers.

    What the f*ck! Shen Jingbin, are you an idiot?! Why¡¯d you ask such a question!?

    Shen Jingbin immediately felt as if her intestines were dyed in the colours of regret.

    Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t miss the look of remorse that slipped past her facade. Shen Jingbin¡¯s face, coupled with her upset expression which revealed her inner grievance, made her appear more devilish than man-faced panda himself!1 For a moment, he couldn¡¯t control himself and burst outughing.

    "How can you believe it when you yourself said it¡¯s a rumour?" He reined in hisughter with great difficulty before exining, "Slight Chill did like me in the past, but that was during our senior year in high school. Now, she seems to be head over heels for a friend of mine and doesn¡¯t have the time to bother about me. She intentionally spread those rumors to cause a misunderstanding. Because I rejected her in the past, she wanted to troll me by causing others to misunderstand us."

    Shen Jingbin paused for a moment, "She¡¯s a rather difficult person too."

    "Oh right, where¡¯s your Mascot?"

    Shen Jingbin suddenly thought of Shentu and Yul¨¹ when he brought up Mascot, "I ran into Shentu and Yul¨¹ in Hell. Yul¨¹ gave me a gift that helped Mascot to level up, so it¡¯s currently still sleeping."

    A trace of dullness shed across Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s beautiful eyes for a second, "Shentu and Yul¨¹? You¡¯ve even managed to obtain a fortuitous meeting with the two of them? I... really don¡¯t know what to say about your Luck. In the past, someone told Crying Fish that Shentu and Yul¨¹ might have a hidden quest on them. For this reason, she adamantly insisted on having her guild members kill her tens of times over. However, in spite of that, she didn¡¯t manage to meet them even once..."

    "Pfft!" Shen Jingbinughed, causing the freckles on her face to tremble and stand out more than they did before. Due to this, Quiet And Steadfast suddenly felt like covering his eyes!

    Younger sister! You¡¯re a fine looking girl, so why¡¯d you make your avatar look like this?! Don¡¯t you know how painful it is to look at you?!

    "Other than leveling up, did you get anything else? Your Luck shouldn¡¯t amount to just this."

    "Mm... They requested that I bring together the Four Divine Beasts. Only then will it be possible to get rid of the Shinra Sect."

    Quiet And Steadfast rested his chin in his hand, pondering for a moment, "The Four Divine Beasts... when I became the sect¡¯s Lead Disciple, I remember my Sect Leader mentioning that a Divine Beast resides beneath the main mountain of the Lich pce. However, I don¡¯t know whether it has anything to do with the Four Divine Beasts."

    "Then let¡¯s go take a look. The hint that Shentu and Yul¨¹ gave me was to look towards the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects for answers." Came Shen Jingbin¡¯s straightforward reply.

    "Alright."

    The two no longer traveled at a leisurely pace once they¡¯d decided on their course of action. As Shen Jingbincked a flying mount, Quiet And Steadfast summoned his own mount and sent her an invitation to ride together.

    After epting his invitation, Shen Jingbin¡¯s avatar, a petite daoist nun, cutely wormed her way into Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s arms. Her actions gave others the impression that she was rather cute and helpless. However, that was only if he didn¡¯t look at her face.

    "What the f*ck!? What has the worlde to? The great god Quiet And Steadfast has actually fallen to the number one ugly girl in the game?!" This scene that Passerby A happened to chance upon caused their jaw to drop to the ground.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Another meme in China. Refers to a picture of a panda with a man¡¯s face. Think of Pepe the frog. Here¡¯s a link if you wanna know what the man panda looks like: ?

 Chapter 48

    <strong>Chapter 48: Marriage Compulsion! An Edict From The Sect Leader! (2)</strong>

    The Lich Pce was located at the boundary of Beiming, which was in the northernmost part of the continent. Further north of that, was the North Sea. The entirety of Beiming was Demon territory, so when Shen Jingbin arrived, she was under the illusion that she¡¯d stepped back into hell as they had a love of darkness.

    Lich Pce was situated on a small nameless ind in Beiming¡¯s ocean. The game¡¯s administrators said that this was the Lich Pce¡¯s way of fooling others, hiding themselves from the eyes of their enemies.

    The Lich Pce was designed in a simr way to other assassin sses in online wuxia games. However at the same time, due to game¡¯s xianxia setting, it also had a dark and mysterious sense about it.

    For example, there was a Life Skill called Divination. yers who learned Divination could utilize it to ascertain the location of a few umon medicinal herbs and equipment for gathering. But, only yers affiliated with the Lich Pce could learn this skill. Although unlike with the Apothecary Instructor and many others, the Divination Instructor¡¯s whereabouts was still a mystery till this day.

    As the Lich Pce was situated on an ind in the ocean, Quiet And Steadfast could¡¯ve returned by essing the sect¡¯s teleportation array. However, he¡¯d brought Shen Jingbin along with him, so the two of them could only make their way to the docks and travel by boat to the Lich Pce.

    After thetest update, this dock was specially opened to give yers from other sects a means of traveling to the Lich Pce.

    It had to be said that the game developers were very attentive to the smallest details when designing the ind.

    Quiet And Steadfast was the was the Lich Pce¡¯s Lead Disciple, so he took Shen Jingbin straight to the Sect Leader¡¯s residence after returning to the sect.

    The Lich Pce¡¯s Sect Leader was a handsome and tall man who was on the slightly feminine side. When Shen Jingbin saw him, she suddenly thought of a famous male celebrity who¡¯d acted as an effeminate character in a popr movie a while back.

    "Master, this is White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple, Nutjob. Little Jing, this is the Sect Leader of the Lich Pce, Silky Moon." Quiet And Steadfast briefly introduced both parties to one another.

    Shen Jingbin respectfully bowed towards Silky Moon. In response, he gave a slight motion of his hand as an acknowledgement.

    Silky Moon tucked his hands in his sleeves and voiced his question indifferently, "White Cloud Temple and my Lich Pce have no dealings with one another. Why have youe here?"

    "My Master wasn¡¯t the one who sent me here. Shentu and Yul¨¹ were the ones who suggested I ask the Sect Leaders about the Four Divine Beasts."

    "Shentu and Yul¨¹? Four Divine Beasts?" Silky Moon raised his voice and stared fixedly at her before saying, "Information on the Four Divine Beasts is ssified in my Lich Pce. Only the seeding Sect Leader has the right to know. Why should I tell it to a White Cloud Temple disciple like you? Don¡¯t think that I¡¯ll readily tell you everything just by mentioning their names. Even if they¡¯re gods, they¡¯re only the gods of the underworld and aren¡¯t able to interfere in the matters of my Lich Pce."

    Quiet And Steadfast spoke up, "Master, this matter is rted to the Shinra Sect. If you know anything about the Four Divine Beasts, please tell us about them."

    Silky Moon raised his eyebrows, "¡¯Us¡¯? How are the two of you rted? Disciple, when did you get so close to this bunch of old Daoist folks from the White Cloud Temple?"

    "She is a good friend of your disciple." Quiet And Steadfast honestly replied.

    "Friends? Hmph! Is there even anyone left in this world who can be deemed a friend? Back then, before the great battle between the Celestials and Demons, my senior sister and that Zero Fairy from the Dragonkin Tower were close friends who¡¯d risk their lives for one another. Yet, they still became enemies overnight because of the war. This matter is ssified information in my Lich Pce. Do you think the mere mention of the word ¡¯friends¡¯ can match up to the importance of our Lich Pce¡¯s ssified information?!" Silky Moon ruthlessly replied.

    Shen Jingbin could hear the underlying meaning behind Silky Moon¡¯s words, so she stopped Quiet And Steadfast who was about to dispute his Sect Leader¡¯s ims once again, and asked, "Then, may I ask Sect Leader, what can match up to this ssified information that you have, if the basis of friends is not sufficient enough?"

    The corner of Silky Moon¡¯s lips suddenly twitched, and he gave a malice filled smile, "Quiet And Steadfast is my disciple, there¡¯s no harm in me telling him, although you can¡¯t listen in on our conversation. But, the Humans value the rtionship between a married couple. It just so happens that my Lich Pce has a forbidden art that can be used on a married couple. Once the forbidden art has been activated, both husband and wife share the honors and disgraces of the other party. They will then share their lives till death do they part, and both parties will be prohibited from betraying one another. Otherwise, they¡¯ll be returned to Earth from whence they came from, no longer existing in this world. I will reveal the information on the Four Divine Beasts if you¡¯re willing to agree to this request of mine, and allow me to cast this forbidden art on the two of you."

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast were both stunned after hearing Silky Moon¡¯s proposition.

    The f*ck! What kind of insane development is this! Areyou forcing us to get married?! Yo, boss, you¡¯re a Sect Leader! Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re a matchmaker as well?!

    "What? Getting cold feet? Aren¡¯t you guys good friends? Are you telling me you aren¡¯t even willing to make this small a sacrifice? In any case, I¡¯m only asking that the both of you to be husband and wife in name. I¡¯m not going to force you two to share a room together. Anyway, I just wanted to see how far the two of you would be willing to go for this information. But, it seems like you aren¡¯t even even willing to ept the false title of being husband and wife!"

    Seeing the duo silently standing there in shock, Silky Moon removed his hands from his sleeves and swept his long hair aside. He then spoke in a cold tone, "Back then, my Lich Pce was one of the main forces that went against the Shinra Sect. Who would¡¯ve thought that once everything was over, not only did we not receive a single thing for our contribution, we were even falsely used because we were Demons. Now, you Humans are even nning to listen in on the secrets of us Demons. No matter what, I still have to think about the reputation of my sect. I can¡¯t possibly allowed us to be yed for a fool again!"

    Shen Jingbin looked at Quiet And Steadfast and swallowed her saliva. In truth, she really wanted to tell Silky Moon that it wasn¡¯t her who was unwilling to make the sacrifice. Instead, she was afraid that his disciple might be unwilling to do so!

    In any case, Quiet And Steadfast was the number one yer in the game. Countless beauties threw themselves at him on a daily basis. Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, was different from them. First of all, shecked the looks for it. Secondly, she didn¡¯t have the right figure. On top of that, she was much weaker than other yers. No matter how she looked at it, Quiet And Steadfast was the one losing out!

    Sect Leader Silky Moon, do you know that you¡¯re digging a hole for your disciple right now?!

    "That... Sect Leader, do you know what it means to be husband and wife?" Shen Jingbin cautiously asked. She felt that since Silky Moon was a Demon, his definition of being husband and wife might be different from that of Humans.

    However, it was clear that she was overthinking things.

    Silky Moon gave her a look of disdain and said, "By asking such a question, does that mean you¡¯re stupid, or do you think that I¡¯m an idiot?"

    Shen Jingbin, "... I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m stupid."

    "Master, will you tell us the secret of the Four Divine Beasts if Nutjob and I are wed?" Quiet And Steadfast suddenly asked.

    Silky Moon withdrew his hands into his sleeves once again and turned around. With his back facing them, he said, "In that case,e look for me when the two of you get married, then we¡¯ll talk."

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 49

    <strong>Chapter 49: Returning to School (1) </strong>

    The interior of the expansive Lich Sect Leader¡¯s Pavilion was absolutely silent. The three of them, each with a different expression on their face, formed a triangle as they stood in the room.

    After a long while had passed, Quiet And Steadfast sighed and quietly said, "Master, I hope you¡¯ll keep your word. Your disciple will go get married now."

    Then, he bowed towards Silky Moon before pulling Shen Jingbin, who had a face full of astonishment, out of the pavilion.

    "What the hell. That can¡¯t be true, right? Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re really nning to get married? What¡¯s your Sect Leader nning?" Even someone like Shen Jingbin, who usually maintained a cold facade, felt it copse in the face of this miraculous development. The moment they stepped out of the pavilion, she grabbed ahold of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s sleeve and called out to him.

    Quiet And Steadfast extended a hand and paused it above her head, before bringing it back down onto her shoulder. After he gave her aforting pat, he said, "The previous quest rting to Du the Unvanquished, the Four Divine Beasts quest we¡¯re on now, as well as the hidden quest I received, all likely revolve around the epic grade hidden quest. If that¡¯s the case, then we have to know where the Four Divine Beasts are. We definitely can¡¯t let the clues my Master has pass us by. It¡¯s just marriage. Rx, I won¡¯t treat you unfairly."

    At first, he¡¯d nned on stroking her head but found himself unable to do. So, he switched his target and patted her shoulder instead.

    Shen Jingbin shrugged her shoulders uneasily and replied, "This isn¡¯t a matter of treating me unfairly. No matter how you look at it, I¡¯m the one who¡¯ll profit from our marriage so I can¡¯t say too much. But are you really willing to ept this?! Take a good look at me. Take a good long look at me!"

    As instructed, Quiet And Steadfast closely evaluated her face. However after three seconds, he couldn¡¯t help but look away.

    Truth be told, he didn¡¯t care about the appearances of others. In this day and age, stic surgery and the like were prevalent. The girls he saw on the streets seemed to be carved from the same cookie-cutter temte, so he wasn¡¯t interested in the appearances of others at all. Moreover, this was a game. In-game avatars didn¡¯t necessarily reflect how one looked in real life. Nevertheless, Shen Jingbin¡¯s appearance was too demonic. It was simply impossible for him to look straight at her.

    Shen Jingbin was instantly riled up when she saw Quiet and Steadfast look away, "See! How do you n on marrying me if you can¡¯t even look me in the eye! Silky Moon definitely isn¡¯t the only one who knows about the four Divine Beasts! Let¡¯s ask someone else!"

    "However, if you closely examine the Lich Pce¡¯s background, you¡¯d notice that there¡¯s definitely a link between the Lich Pce and the ck Tortoise. The other sects might have information as well, but I think we need to rely on Silky Moon if we want to find out information rted to the ck Tortoise."

    Upon hearing this, Shen Jingbin instantly deted, "Then what should we do?"

    Quiet And Steadfast felt like his self-confidence had taken a bit of a blow. He felt that his behaviour towards her had been pretty good from the onset. He wasn¡¯t arrogant and treated her very amiably. In addition, with her identity as Dawn¡¯s younger sister and her high Luck stat, he¡¯d showered her with plenty of care and attention. Yet, why did she seem so reluctant when the idea of marriage was brought up?

    He was without a doubt, a god fully deserving of his rank! Younger sister, why are you hesitating?!

    "You...don¡¯t want to?"

    "This isn¡¯t about whether I¡¯m willing or not... Don¡¯t you feel you¡¯re selling yourself short?" Shen Jingbin gazed at him with a conflicted expression.

    Quiet And Steadfast was Shen Jingchen¡¯s dear friend. She could also see just how much Shen Jingchen respected him, so she didn¡¯t want to cause him harm.

    It might only be a marriage in-game, but for a god like him, his marriage would no doubt be hotly discussed amongst the entire yer base. If she were to be his bride, the value of his marriage would certainly be lowered, and it might even negatively affect his reputation. He might even be turned into aughing stock because of her if he were to run into Life At First Sight in the future. Once that happens, she would be an unavoidable nuisance, aplete disgrace to him.

    Initially, even before she had felt a sense of belonging to Jade Sea Pavilion, she had already recognised just how he¡¯d endlessly toiled to build up the guild¡¯s fame. Now, she was fully aware of how good a person he was, so how could she let herself turn into a weak point for others to attack him?

    This was just like back then when she¡¯d prevented Grandfather Shen¡¯s name being dragged through the mud by resolutely resigning frompetitions.

    It could be said that she took things too seriously, that she¡¯d put so much thought into a simple game, but she was just that obstinate.

    Of course, Quiet And Steadfast had no way of understanding theplex inner workings of her heart. He smiled, a soft light shining within the depths of his eyes. His gaze swept over her face and rested on the soft crown of her head. It had to be said that while she wasn¡¯t pretty, the game¡¯s realism thankfully allowed for her head of ck hair toe out looking very nice, almost the same as it did in real life.

    "I¡¯m not selling myself short. I¡¯m the one who stands to gain from your high Luck stat. And, even though your level isn¡¯t high, you¡¯re able to oppose Nine Bads. This means your potential definitely isn¡¯t ordinary. You¡¯ll definitely be an expert by the time you reach a higher level and aren¡¯t burdened by the difference in levels. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m losing out at all... As for your appearance, it¡¯ll be fine once I get used to you. Wasn¡¯t I just fine when I brought you along to raise your level?"

    By this point, Shen Jingbin was left speechless.

    Quiet And Steadfast persisted, "Since I¡¯m not selling myself short, I assume you don¡¯t have any further objections, right? In that case, let¡¯s return to Jiuli City and prepare for our wedding. No matter the reason for our marriage, our very first wedding needs to bememorated, so I don¡¯t want to rush things. Not to mention, Dawn¡¯s your brother. I need to let him know I¡¯m marrying you regardless of whether this is a good or bad thing."

    "..."

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 50-51

    <strong>Chapter 50: Returning to School (2) </strong>

    Shen Jingbin had no recollection of whatever Quiet And Steadfast said after that. Her entire being was frozen in a state of bewilderment up till the moment she logged out.

    In reality, Shen Jingbin was still an innocent child when it came to matters of the heart. Till this day, she¡¯d never gone on a date, nor had she ever done things like getting married in a game.

    Online virtual reality games were just games, but due to their uniqueness, it could also be seen as a way of life. Now, she was about to get married through some inexplicable twist of fate. If she wasn¡¯t dumbstruck by this, then who would be?

    Moreover, her fiance was one of the most outstanding gods in the entire game!

    This blessing came way too suddenly and she was caughtpletely off guard by it!

    However, her astoundment didn¡¯t persist for long. Her handphone rang and she was jolted back to reality.

    She nced at her phone; it was a call from her ss president.

    Her ss president was a very responsible and reliable girl. Whenever there was a school-wide announcement, she would call her ssmates one by one to inform them.

    Shen Jingbin really admired her sense of responsibility.

    "Hello? Is this Shen Jingbin?" The moment the call connected, ss President¡¯s simple and honest voice resounded in her ear.

    "Yes, it¡¯s me, ss President. What happened?"

    "Ah, it¡¯s like this. Coach just told me that all of us are required to individually verify the uracy of our information in the database. It has to be re-submitted by Friday. It¡¯s already Wednesday, so could you drop by the school some time tomorrow? I¡¯m free tomorrow, so I¡¯ll wait for you in the dorms."

    "Sure. Thanks, ss President. I¡¯lle by tomorrow morning then."

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t like to engage in useless banter during phone calls. The ss President knew what she was like, so she immediately hung up after aplishing her task.

    It just so happened that Shen Jingchen was slowly strolling down the stairs when he saw her hang up. He asked, "Who called?"

    "Our ss President. She wants me to go back to school to verify some information. Why aren¡¯t you gaming?"

    Shen Jingchen sat beside her and ced both hands behind his head, "It¡¯s because of my ss President¡¯s incessant calls. You should know that my gaming pod is better than yours, right? It¡¯s also connected to my handphone and it notifies me whenever I receive a call. After hearing it ring for over an hour, I couldn¡¯t take it anymore and picked up the call."

    "What does your ss President want with you?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "He told me I passed the preliminaries of thatpetition I signed up for before, so I need to head back to school and pick up the qualification papers for the semifinals."

    Shen Jingchen took up Finance, but he was also intelligent and loved programming calctors. Thus, he frequently conducted research on materials rted to it and tried his hand at writing up some programs forpetitions. However, there were many talented people in China. As an untrained individual, Shen Jingchen was frequently eliminated in the preliminary rounds. It¡¯s no wonder he was willing toy down his games since this was his first time making it to the semifinals.

    "Then when are you nning to go back to school?" With her head propped against her hand, Shen Jingbin leaned to the side with her legs tucked in as she watched Shen Jingchen. 1

    Shen Jingchen responded, "Let¡¯s return to school together since you¡¯re nning on going back as well."

    Shen Jingbin rubbed his head in satisfaction and said, "What a good boy."

    Shen Jingchen, "... Get lost!"

    Both siblings held driver¡¯s licenses, but Shen Jingbin was far toozy to drive, so the heavy burden of driving naturally fell onto Shen Jingchen¡¯s shoulders. Shen Jingbin¡¯s ss President was at the dormitory located in Zone A of the school, while Shen Jingchen needed to head over to the Finance Department in Zone C to pick up his qualification papers. So once they arrived at the school, he dropped her off at the entrance.

    Since it wasn¡¯t a weekend, most of the students still lingered about on campus. Shen Jingbin was amongst the most prominent individuals in the school¡¯s poprity charts, which led to her being swarmed by students after only taking a few steps.

    It took a great deal of effort before she managed to somehow pull herself out of the frenzied crowd that surrounded her. However, she was suddenly obstructed by a girl before she even had the chance to catch her breath.

    "Are you Shen Jingbin from the Management Department?" The girl was shorter than Shen Jingbin by half a head, so she had to crane her head when she spoke.

    She was a beautiful girl with exquisite facial features, and dressed in a refined manner. At the same time, the warm rays of sunlight that came in contact with her raised head gave off a feeling of indistinct beauty.

    However, she didn¡¯t look like anyone Shen Jingbin knew.

    "Eh...you are?" Shen Jingbin asked doubtfully.

    The girl¡¯s eyebrows immediately arched up upon hearing her reply in a somewhat disdainful manner, "I thought you¡¯d be a lot prettier based on the rumours. Tch, but it looks like you only amount to this much. What right do you have to take up the throne as the campus belle? How am Icking whenpared to you? Tell me!"

    <i>What the f*ck, what¡¯s up with this self-centered act of yours?</i>

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t make head nor tail out of what the girl was saying. She furrowed her brows and replied, "I have no idea what you¡¯re saying. If there¡¯s no issue, please get out of the way."

    After saying so, Shen Jingbin rounded the girl and headed straight for the girls¡¯ dormitory.

    But the girl wasn¡¯t willing to relent. She grasped firmly onto Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand and cried out in a voice so shrill it hurt her ears, "You can¡¯t leave! You haven¡¯t told me how I¡¯mcking whenpared to you! I don¡¯t think you¡¯re all that pretty anyway, so why is it that ever since I entered this school, the only thing I¡¯ve ever heard about no matter where I go has always, always, ALWAYS been about you?! Don¡¯t think of leaving today if I can¡¯t get it out of you!"

    The girl¡¯s shrieks once again drew countless onlookers to the scene.

    Following the trend of girls who enjoyed letting their fingernails grow out these days, this girl had kept her fingernails long as well. Due to her agitation she¡¯d unconsciously used more strength, causing her fingernails to dig into Shen Jingbin¡¯s petite arm, and giving rise to a bout of extreme pain.

    This was practically an unprovoked disaster!

    Shen Jingbin swept a nce at the girl who¡¯d obviously lost her sense of reason and gave up on the idea of talking things out with her. With a lift of her wrist, a downwards jerk, and a timely application of strength, she pinned the girl¡¯s hand behind her back.

    The girl let out a screech at the sudden turn of events, while the surrounding crowd cried out in surprise.

    Shen Jingbin paid no mind to the astonished gasps from the crowd. She leaned over to the girl¡¯s ear and enunciated every word as she said, "Listen up: you¡¯recking in every aspect."

    With that, Shen Jingbin gave the girl a light shove and patted her hands. She then continued on her way towards the girls¡¯ dormitory without looking back.

    This time around, owing to the terrifying scene that they¡¯d just witnessed, the crowd surrounding her spontaneously opened up a path for her.

    Shen Jingbin indifferently walked past the crowd, but her heart was filled with supreme irritation!

    This was why she disliked going to school! What the f*ck was that all about?!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Here¡¯s a pic of how it looks like: Click ?

    <strong>Chapter 51: A Disturbance Upon Returning To School (1)</strong>

    Shen Jingbin retreated back to her dorm after finishing up the matter with the ss President.

    Previously, she had shared a room with three other girls in the dorms, and before she moved out of the school, the four of them had had a rather good rtionship. Upon seeing her return, apart from weing her back, her roommates ced a great deal of emphasis on the admiration and jealousy that they felt at her not needing to attend school, as she¡¯d already acquired all her necessary course credits.

    While they idly chatted her roommate, Xiaohe, asionally bent her head down and browsed through the forums before she abruptly shouted, "Hey, Little Jing! Did something happen when you came back? Look at this post!"

    "What¡¯s up?" Shen Jingbin inched closer to Xiaohe and craned her head to look at her phone.

    A post was already opened on the phone¡¯s disy.

    "The great PK battle between the campus Goddesses across two generations ¨C Shen Jingbin from the Management Department vs Luo Xiaoqian from the Music Conservatory!"

    "OP1 didn¡¯t have any sses this morning, so he went over to the female dorms in Zone A to have some fun with his girlfriend. But who would¡¯ve thought that he¡¯d encounter Goddess Shen from the Management Department before he even met his girlfriend! Everyone knows who Goddess Shen is, right! Even though the original poster is in the same year as the Goddess, he¡¯d never been so close to the Goddess before! What the f*ck, the Goddess really is too f*cking beautiful! She¡¯s wless and looks perfect from every angle!"

    "Rumour has it that the Goddess has already obtained the necessary course credits she needs, and that she doesn¡¯t need to attend school anymore. It¡¯s a rare opportunity for OP to catch a glimpse of her, naturally he wouldn¡¯t let this chance slip by! So, OP decided to follow the Goddess! Well, who would¡¯ve thought that someone would decide to obstruct the Goddess just after OP started following her! The person seemed to be a rather famous junior amongst this new batch of first year students. I forgot her name. Honestly speaking, that girl ends up looking worse and worse for every moment she spends next to Goddess Shen. You really can¡¯tpare the two of them!"

    "To hell with it. Prove it with a picture or it doesn¡¯t count!"

    "[Picture] Here¡¯s a picture of the Goddess that I secretly took! Come on, say it out loud and let me hear whether you think she¡¯s beautiful!"

    "What the f*ck, OP, why didn¡¯t you call me over when you saw the Goddess?! Back then, I remember not skipping ss for an entire month just to see the Goddess!"

    "Hahahaha, I saw the Goddess as well! The Goddess is still as beautiful as ever! I never would¡¯ve thought that I¡¯d get another chance to see the Goddess before graduating! With this, I¡¯m happy!"

    "OP, who did you say your Goddess was? I¡¯m a new student and have no knowledge of any Goddess in the Management Department. I only know of a Goddess called Luo something from our batch in the Music Conservatory."

    "The one upstairs, are you kidding? How can that girl from the Music Conservatorypare to our Goddess Shen?! Goddess Shen can finish her off in an instant with just her pinkie, okay?!"

    ...

    The post had only been up for ten or so minutes, but there were already over eight hundredments in the thread. The speed of thesements was definitely regarded as something miraculous, seeing as their school forum was normally half-dead.

    "I saw continuation threads saying that you fought with a female junior from the Music Conservatory. What¡¯s up with that?" Came Xiaohe¡¯s question.

    Shen Jingbin returned Xiaohe¡¯s phone to her, realising that her three roommates were staring at her with expressions that screamed: "spill the beans, spill the beans". Seeing this, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but heave a sigh as she dragged out a chair and sat down on it, "Well, I was about to reach the dorm, when a girl suddenly ran out and grabbed ahold of me for no reason at all. She just wouldn¡¯t let go of me! Look!" She stretched her hand out and showed them the injury on her wrist.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s tender and fair wrist was nowpletely red. There were even a few shocking bloody marks on it, all in the shape of fingernails. Shen Jingbin had very delicate skin, so the lightest of scars would be exceptionally obvious for her. The mark that the woman had left on Shen Jingbin¡¯s arm appeared to be particrly hideous.

    When she saw that the other three had clearly seen the mark on her wrist, Shen Jingbin rolled down her sleeve and continued, "At first, I didn¡¯t want to pay any attention to her, but she refused to let me go. So, I took action to force her to release me. It was nothing as exaggerated as us ¡¯getting into a fight¡¯."

    Huajuan said, "Haven¡¯t I said it before? Whoever¡¯s ignorant enough to pick a fight with you is just asking for a beating!"

    The interest of the Dorm Head, Jiangmeng, was quite different from the other two. She sifted through her memories for information and said to Shen Jingbin, "I know a bit about Luo Xiaoqian. She¡¯s a first year student and caused a stir here when she first entered. Butter, I heard she was rejected by a senior she had a crush on because he was interested in you. She loves hanging around our dorms when she has nothing better to do. However, nothing much has happened since you haven¡¯t beening to school for awhile. I never expected you to run into her on the rare asion that you return."

    "Well, that¡¯s just my luck then. It¡¯s fine, let¡¯s not talk about her anymore. Let me treat you guys to a meal since since it¡¯s one of those rare times when I¡¯m back." Seemingly afraid of them rejecting her offer, she added, "Shen Jingchen will also being along."

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Original Poster in a forum ?

 Chapter 52

    <strong>Chapter 52: A Disturbance Upon Returning To School (2) ¨C Teaser</strong>

    Shen Jingbin was universally acknowledged as the campus Goddess, while Shen Jingchen, who¡¯d been born from the same womb as her, naturally wouldn¡¯t be that far off in terms of looks either. Back then when he was still in school, it could be said that countless girls were utterly smitten with him. Rumour has it that there were even some young female teachers who¡¯d just started working that held impure intentions towards him.

    And, back then, the trio in her dorm were also part of Shen Jingchen¡¯s fanatical fan club.

    Shen Jingchen was already waiting outside the girls¡¯ dormitory when the four of them stepped out. At the sight of Shen Jingchen¡¯s car, the three fangirls gave a cheer and opened up the car¡¯s back door on their own before worming their way into the back seat.

    Before Shen Jingbin moved out of the dorms, she¡¯d frequently bring the three of them over to see Shen Jingchen. Although the trio considered themselves to be Shen Jingchen¡¯s fans, they didn¡¯t act coyly towards him at all.

    The five of them found a high-end looking restaurant at the school¡¯s entrance and requested for a private room. Since Zone A was not far from the school gate, the siblings sent the three girls back to their dorm after they had finished their meal.

    Thankfully, it was lunchtime so there weren¡¯t many people wandering around school at this time. Most of them gathered in the canteen or various restaurants. If that weren¡¯t the case, there¡¯d be a terrifying blockade around the pair of siblings right now.

    As they approached the ground floor of the dormitory, Shen Jingbin caught sight of a few girls standing nearby who were dressed a little strangely, yet still seemed vaguely familiar.

    She motioned towards those girls with her head and asked, "What are they up to?"

    Huajuan swept a nce over at them and replied, "They¡¯re probably from the Anime Society. I heard my friends from the Anime Society say that they¡¯ received an invitation from a gamepany to publicise their game or something. They¡¯re amon sight around school these days. Oh, I¡¯ve also heard that the Anime Society in our school is rather famous within certain social circles."

    Their eye-catching appearance naturally garnered Shen Jingchen¡¯s attention as well. He asked, "What game is it?"

    Huajuan was a girl who only chased after Korean oppas. Knowing nothing about games, she could only give an ambiguous reply, "Something called demons something ghost something... Anyway, it¡¯s that game that¡¯s been very popr these past few years. It¡¯s a virtual reality or something kind of game."

    "That game¡¯s called <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>!" Jiangmeng really looked down on Huajuan¡¯s IQ.

    "Eh? <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>?" Shen Jingbin was a little shocked upon hearing this.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t have much interest in two-dimensional things. In the past, she¡¯d leave after ncing at this bunch of girls from the Anime Society when she saw them in the school. However this time around, she couldn¡¯t help but to take a few more nces in their direction.

    When they were assigning dorm rooms back then, it might have been predestined or some other twist of fate, but all of Shen Jingbin¡¯s roommates were highly ranked in terms of their looks. The five of them standing there immediately gave rise to a beautiful scene. Naturally, the attention of girls standing on the dormitory¡¯s ground floor were attracted towards them.

    With a shove from herrades, a girl dressed as a Nymph walked towards them with a stack of things in her hands and said, "I¡¯m...sorry for bothering you, but can I ask whether you guys y games?"

    Shen Jingchen was a busybody and couldn¡¯t keep his mouth shut. He couldn¡¯t think straight when he saw cute girls and he rushed to answer, "Yes, I do. It¡¯s only natural for me to y games! How may I help you, miss?"

    The girl¡¯s face immediately turned red. Shen Jingbin felt that what she had witnessed was very magical. He¡¯d clearly only asked you a question. Girl, what¡¯s your face getting red for?

    "Well, that¡¯s... Our society is recently helping to promote a game. Here¡¯s the promotional material for it. If you¡¯re interested, you can take it back and have a look at it, and help us fill up in the form while you¡¯re at it." As the girl spoke, she handed out the information on the game that she had in her hands to everyone in Shen Jingbin¡¯s party.

    The information Shen Jingbin received from the girl really was rted to <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>.

    The gamepany that developed <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> had always promoted their game with a plethora of fanciful tricks. On one hand, they¡¯d invite celebrities to endorse their game, while on the other, they¡¯d include testimonials from the public. This updated version was thergest scale update since the start of the game. At the same time, this update also posed another opportunity to reach new highs. To this end, the gamepany would naturally pursue various means of promotion.

    One of the game¡¯s main demographics was university students. Moreover, two-dimensional culture still held arge amount of influence amongst university students. So, the gamepany specially invited a few rtively popr university societies in the nation to promote the game for them.

    This proved that its effect on reality was quite far reaching.

    "Lil sis, do you y the game that you¡¯re promoting?" Shen Jingchen threw the information in his hands over to his younger sister, focusing all of his efforts on making conversation with this girl. The girl had a very bashful look on her face as she said, "Eh, I don¡¯t y the game. Only the Vice-President of our society ys this game."

    "Is your Vice-President a girl or a guy? Since you guys are promoting this game, shouldn¡¯t you experience it for yourselves first?"

    The girl replied, "The gaming pod is a little too expensive and I can¡¯t afford it. The gamepany didn¡¯t provide us with one either, so... In any case, no one will know if we don¡¯t bring it up! As for our thoughts on the game and so on, the gamepany already wrote a script on their end, and all we have to do is recite it. Our Vice-President is a girl. She¡¯s just gone back to her dorm to change her outfit. We¡¯ll be heading over to the auditorium in a bit... Oh, there! Our Vice-President¡¯se down!"

    The group looked in the direction of the girls¡¯ dormitory that she pointed at.

    Out came a girl dressed as a Daoist nun from the entrance of the stairway. She was tall and curvaceous. On top of that, while they couldn¡¯t see her face clearly, they could tell that she was definitely a beauty!

    But, Shen Jingbin felt that this beauty looked very familiar...

    F*CK! Wasn¡¯t that Luo Xiaoqian, the one who blocked her way before?!

    "Hey, Little Jing! That girls looks like Luo Xiaoqian from the Music Conservatory... Oh, I remember now! The Music Conservatory shares the dormitory building with us!" Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the only one who recognised Luo Xiaoqian. Jiangmeng had also recognised the other party. And when she did, she asked the girl from the Anime Society, "Is your Vice-President Luo Xiaoqian? How can a first year student be the Vice-President?"

    When this point was brought up, the girl clearly looked a little unhappy about it. Her loli face immediately puffed up as she said, "She¡¯s beautiful. Once she entered the school, she immediately got along with the President. When the time came for the former Vice-President to leave the society for their internship, the President immediately vouched for her to be the Vice-President."

    Shen Jingchen was still unaware of what took ce in the morning, so he had a look of bewilderment as he asked, "Who¡¯s Luo Xiaoqian? What¡¯s up with your faces? Hey, hey, hey! Tell me what¡¯s going on!"

    Xiaohe impatiently patted him on the shoulder and said, "Male God, that Vice-President bullied Little Jing in the morning."

    Shen Jingchen shot a look that said "you¡¯re pulling my leg" at Xiaohe as he said, "What the f*ck!? How¡¯s that possible?!"

    Huajuan spread her hands in front of her and replied, "You can see for yourself on the school¡¯s forum. Oh right, you better hurry on back lil sis. Don¡¯t let your Vice-President catch you talking to us, she almost fought with this beauty beside me this morning."

    The girl¡¯s face nked for a moment. She had some difficulty processing this sudden development, but she still obediently turned around and prepared to return to her group.

    As the girl was about to walk off, Shen Jingbin suddenly asked, "Lil sis, do you know what your Vice-President¡¯s in-game name is?"

    She didn¡¯t ask for Luo Xiaoqian¡¯s ID because she wanted to pay her back. But rather, the impression that Luo Xiaoqian gave off was far too terrifying. Shen Jingbin would definitely make it a point to avoid Luo Xiaoqian in advance if she encountered her in game.

    The girl thought for a minute before replying, "I think it¡¯s... Morning Glory Chime or something, I can¡¯t quite recall it. The only thing I remember is her saying that she¡¯s been called Xiao X Bingbing before in game."

    Xiao X Bingbing?

    Something clicked in Shen Jingbin¡¯s head as she suddenly thought of a person.

    What the f*ck? It can¡¯t be. Why did she feel as if so many enemies of the people were suddenly appearing in her gaming life?!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 53

    <strong>Chapter 53: Blossom Rain In The Sky (1) </strong>

    "The semi-finals will be held at the end of this month in B City. Let¡¯s go together, we can y around there for a few days while we¡¯re at it." Shen Jingchen suddenly said while driving back home.

    "B City¡¯s too far. I¡¯m not going."

    "Hey hey hey, don¡¯t you have any familial love?! How¡¯s about I pay for all the expenses to B City?" Shen Jingchen cried out.

    Shen Jingbin had a look of consideration upon her face, "I¡¯ll consider it."

    Shen Jingchen instantly wore a face full of smiles and said, "Then why don¡¯t you give Zhao Chengning a call. Isn¡¯t he in B City? Let him entertain us for a while."

    "So this was why you wanted me toe along." Shen Jingbin red at him.

    "Why¡¯d you say that? Can¡¯t you be moredy-like when you speak? Plus, it looks like Gramps and co intend to y matchmaker for the two of you. Aren¡¯t I giving you guys an opportunity to interact by doing this?"

    "..." Why are so many people obsessed with ying matchmaker these days? Even the NPCs in the game were the same.

    Could spring have finallye for her after twenty-odd years?

    Once they reached home, and no longer able bear Shen Jingchen¡¯s pestering as if he was begging for his life, Shen Jingbin mustered up her courage and gave Zhao Chengning a call.

    This would be their first time conversing since Zhao Chengning had returned home. Truth be told, she was a little nervous.

    She didn¡¯t know why though.

    What would she do if he¡¯d forgotten her?

    Calling someone out of the blue like this; what would she do if he was busy with something?

    Would she feel embarrassed if she were rejected?

    Countless doubts and conjectures swam about in Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind. Then, when she couldn¡¯t stand it any longer and was about to hang up, the call connected.

    "Hello, this is Zhao Chengning."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice on the phone sounded a little different from his normal voice. His tone sounded colder, seemingly possessing a kind of indescribable allure. He was a typical northerner, and his enunciation was especially distinct over the phone. When she heard his voice it felt as if something was scratching at her heart.

    "Hi, how are you. This is Shen Jingbin." Shen Jingbin introduced herself as was the custom.

    The other party let out a soft chuckle, which held a certain sex appeal about it. He replied, "I know, I saved your phone number. What¡¯s up, why¡¯d you call me?"

    After organizing the words in her head, she said, "Shen Jingchen wants to visit B City at the end of this month, and he was thinking of asking you to be his guide."

    "Will it just be Shen Jingchen by himself? You¡¯re noting?"

    "Er..." Despite being separated by the phone, Shen Jingbin felt awkward upon hearing the other party mention her, "I¡¯ll be going with him."

    When the other side paused for a bit, Shen Jingbin seemed to hear the sound of pages being flipped, "Have you guys decided on when you¡¯reing? Let me know once you¡¯ve decided, I¡¯ll book a room for you in advance. Autumn is the peak of B City¡¯s tourist season, so booking a roomter would be difficult."

    Shen Jingbin thought for a moment and said, "We¡¯lle on the 20th. Will we be troubling you?"

    "It¡¯s no trouble at all. Besides, didn¡¯t we inconvenience you guys for quite a while when Grandfather and I visited A Cityst time?"

    "I don¡¯t have much to do anyway, so there¡¯s no need to bring up something like whether or not you¡¯re being an inconvenience." His finger started to unconsciously tap against the wall.

    "Then we¡¯ll go with this arrangement. Forward your flight number to me once you guys have booked your flight. I¡¯ll meet you guys at the airport when the timees."

    "Okay, thank you."

    "Mm, you¡¯re wee."

    After disconnecting the call, Zhao Chengning continued to stare at his handphone in a slightly spellbound manner.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s call came a lotter than he¡¯d expected, causing some concern on his part.

    Before meeting Shen Jingbin, his Grandfather had often told him about his old friend¡¯s granddaughter.

    He naturally knew about his Grandfather¡¯s little tricks and ulterior motives, but his old habits made him subconsciously feign ignorance. He knew that his family was concerned about his love life, about his affairs, but he had no intention of involving himself in anything at present.

    To him, girls were synonymous with trouble. And, just like his experience in games, they were hard to ditch once they clung to him. Furthermore, they were over-sensitive, stubborn, provocative, andcked the ability to read the mood of others or their expressions. To top it off, they believed that the world should worship them. They were truly too bothersome.

    However after meeting Shen Jingbin, he found out that she bore absolutely no resemnce to any of the girls he knew.

    Curiosity had made him start to consider the thoughtful arrangements of his elders.

    Shen Jingbin was the most beautiful girl he knew. Moreover, her personality was also very good. He couldn¡¯t deny having a very favourable impression of her, and he probably wouldn¡¯t reject going further with her either.

    This was why he¡¯d constantly done his best to show off during those few days in A City.

    Love was like a business deal. Both sides needed to be satisfied for the rtionship to seed. Since he could be considered satisfied with her, all that was needed was for her to feel satisfied with him.

    But why did it seem like everything he¡¯d done was in vain? She didn¡¯t seem to care at all.

    Zhao Chengning suddenly recalled the little Daoist nun in the game who was so ugly that even he couldn¡¯t look her straight in the eye.

    Although their appearances were as different as heaven and earth, both of them were simrly dense and slow-witted.

    He wouldn¡¯t believe it if someone told him they weren¡¯t the same person.

    It looked like he needed to be a little more aggressive.

    He couldn¡¯t wait for things to slowly take their course.

    "Head over to the Imperial City, I¡¯ve got something for you." Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s carrier pigeon flew over the moment she logged in.

    Shen Jingbin ran to the Imperial City without rest. Just when she was about to ask where he was, she caught sight of many petals suddenly raining down from the sky. A striking red announcement also appeared before everyone¡¯s eyes following the rain of petals.

    [System]

    There is a beauty in the northernnds,

    Unequaled, high above the world she stands.

    At her first nce, soldiers would lose their town,

    At her second, a monarch would lose his crown.

    yer Quiet And Steadfast has scattered Blossom Rain over yer Nutjob. May the universe bear witness, these heartfelt emotions are true.

    What the f*ck!

    As Shen Jingbin stood amidst the rain of petals, there were only these three letters in her mind.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 54

    <strong>Chapter 54: Blossom Rain In The Sky (2)</strong>

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, if yers wished to be wed, intimacy on both sides needed to reach 999 before they could apply for marriage at Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine. Furthermore, if their races differed, their intimacy would then need to reach 9999 before they could apply for marriage.

    Not every yer who wished to marry would have the inclination to raise their intimacy levels, so the system store specially prepared a tool for increasing the intimacy levels of these young lovers who were toozy to raise it themselves.

    There were three kinds of items sold by the system store. The first was very cheap and limited to one purchase per day. It was a small bouquet of flowers that would only add 10 points of intimacy. The second was the single-use local Blossom Rain that could add a full 999 points of intimacy. After using it, the entire map that the yer was on would be filled with a rain of flower petals. However, it didn¡¯te cheaply. Lastly, there was the one that Quiet And Steadfast used¡ªthe server-wide Blossom Rain that could add a full 9999 points of intimacy in one go. In addition to the entire city map being filled with a rain of petals, it would also trigger a system announcement, so it naturally came at a frightening price.

    The server-wide Blossom Rain persisted for five minutes. During that time, Shen Jingbin stood dumbfoundedly in ce while staring at the sky. Remaining that way for a long time, she only managed to gather her wits about her when she heard several cries of surprise.

    Turning towards the source of the sound, she saw Quiet And Steadfast dressed in his usual ck attire that was paired with his ck veil as he slowly rode towards her atop a handsome white horse.

    The white horse¡¯s gait was very slow. Her heart thumped in her chest as its hooves stamped down on the ground one after another, making her feel as if her heart was pulsing along with the horse¡¯s hooves.

    This was too f*cking stimting! She really wanted to just forcefully disconnect!

    The contrast between ck and white was too striking, preventing her from ignoring the man on horseback.

    "Our intimacy level was too low, preventing us from getting married. So I could only use a server-wide Blossom Rain to increase it." Jumping off his horse, Quiet and Steadfast stood in front of her and exined.

    The implication was that he wasn¡¯t trying to be so extravagant.

    Shen Jingbin felt her little heart still throbbing intensely.

    Great deity, she¡¯s still a young girl. This move is too much even for her! What would she do if she was treated to this act as reality one day! Shen Jingbin cried out in her heart.

    Suddenly, a trade request appeared in front of her. She tilted her head in bewilderment and looked towards him.

    "The intimacy added by the Blossom Rain is one-sided, so you need to use one on me too." Quiet And Steadfast said.

    Shen Jingbin waved her hand in dismissal, "No need to give me one, I can buy it myself."

    "Since when does a guy make a girl pay for this kind of thing? This is my pride as a man. Moreover, I¡¯ve already bought it. It¡¯d be a waste if you bought another one."

    Shen Jingbin clenched her teeth and turned her attention back to the trade prompt. Gritting her teeth, she clicked ept and a server-wide Blossom Rain immediately appeared in the trade window.

    After the trade waspleted, Quiet And Steadfast stood in front of her and looked at her with joy in his eyes, "I¡¯ll stand here and you can use it on me. We¡¯ll go over to Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine once we¡¯re done."

    "Isn¡¯t this being too hasty?" She couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t reply and only looked at her.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s scalp grew numb from his stare. After a moment of silence, she took out the Blossom Rain and slowly removed the seal on it.

    "Hint: Do you wish to use the server-wide Blossom Rain? Yes/No."

    "Yes."

    "Please select the target you wish to use it on."

    "Quiet And Steadfast."

    "Processing server-wide Blossom Rain, please wait for a moment...sessfully applied. You have used up one server-wide Blossom Rain."

    [System]

    My exuberant husband, clutching a flute in his left, beckoning me with his right.

    Oh what a merry sight!

    My jubnt husband, clutching a feather banner in his left, inviting me with his right.

    Oh what a merry sight!

    yer Nutjob has scattered a shower of Blossom Rain over yer Quiet And Steadfast. May the universe bear witness, these heartfelt emotions are true.

    Pink rain began to fall once more as petals floated down between the two of them. Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips parted a little as she looked at Quiet And Steadfast who was standing in front of her.

    She wanted to say something, but found the words lodged in her throat.

    In the midst of this sea of flower petals, Quiet And Steadfast stretched out a hand towards her. His hand was fair and slender, while his fingers were well-sculpted. It was simply breathtaking.

    Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t say anything either. He merely extended his hand and calmly looked at her.

    Shen Jingbin felt like her entire body was burning up. The temperature of her surroundings also seemed to be heating up, as if it were trying to burn her.

    Why¡¯s your face so red!

    Closing her eyes, she faced death with equanimity and stuffed her hand into the hollow of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s palm. A momentter, her hand was wrapped up in his.

    As her eyes were shut, she missed the smile that shed across Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s face.

    Ah, a youngdy¡¯s heart is truly a terrifying thing!

    Quiet And Steadfast then helped Shen Jingbin onto the white horse. With a raise of its hoof, the two of them sped towards Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine, leaving behind numerous astonished yers!

    What the f*ck! The great god actually exchange Blossom Rain with the ugliest girl in the game!?

    And it was a mother f*cking server-wide Blossom Rain!

    What¡¯s wrong with this world!

    [Realm] Crying Fish: Quiet And Steadfast! I¡¯ve always been waiting for you! To get your attention, I spared no effort in going against you just to obtain a ce in your heart! Why were all my efforts in vain!

    [Realm] Crying Fish: Quiet And Steadfast, I love you! Don¡¯t you know that?! Do you know just how much I love you? Why would you willingly marry an ugly woman yet not spare a single nce for me!

    [Realm] Crying Fish: As long as you don¡¯t marry her, I swear to immediately have Life At First Sight subjugate itself to Jade Sea Pavilion! From now on, there will only be your Jade Sea Pavilion in this game!

    [Realm] Crying Fish: Quiet And Steadfast, why aren¡¯t you answering me! Why?!

    [Realm] Crying Fish: Nutjob, if you dare marry Quiet And Steadfast I¡¯ll hunt you down till the ends of the earth!

    [Realm] Quiet And Steadfast: Just try making a move against her if you dare.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 55

    <strong>Chapter 55: Marriage (1)</strong>

    The fact that Life At First Sight and Jade Sea Pavilion were always at loggerheads was something everyone in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> knew about. Furthermore, the rtionship between the two Guild Leaders was no secret.

    If Quiet And Steadfast were to get married, and Crying Fish did not appear to wreck the ceremony, everyone present would definitely say that it¡¯s illogical.

    Thankfully, the world still ran on logic. As expected, Crying Fish had indeed appeared!

    A few bright and dazzling Realm Announcements swept across the server, causing all yers to erupt with gossip.

    Two girls were fighting over a man! Furthermore, it was a cat fight between a beauty and an ugly girl!

    As expected, the realm of the gods and goddesses was truly interesting!

    The surrounding audience, as well as the people from Jade Sea Pavilion, were all bubbling in excitement.

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: What the f*ck, what¡¯s going on!? Quiet, why are you getting married without even giving us a heads up?

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Quiet And Steadfast, you motherf*cker! Why¡¯d you abduct my sister without even saying a word to me! I¡¯m your Brother-inw, your Brother-inw, your Brother-inw here! Ehh, I should be called the Brother-inw, right?

    [Guild] Little Monk: Dawn, aren¡¯t you focusing on the wrong thing here?!

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Ah, sorry, I got a little confused! Nutjob, get over here right now! Why didn¡¯t you discuss something as important as your marriage with me first! Just who am I to you? Do think you can act like a nutjob just because that¡¯s your name?!

    [Guild] Slight Chill: ...He¡¯s actually getting married?

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: What the f*ck!? Our Leader, whom I¡¯ve always believed would remain single for the rest of his life, is getting married! He¡¯s getting married! He¡¯s getting married!

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Weirdo: Even our Leader is getting married, will it be my lil sis¡¯ turn soon? (*/¡££Ü)

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Weirdo: Even Nutjob has a suitor, will my Mr. Right being soon? (*/¡££Ü)

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Weirdo: These two must be really crazy.

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Weirdo, Dare To Hit Me: The idiot upstairs has finally said something sensible for once.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: Quarrelsome Fish must be going crazy right now.

    [Guild] Faint Blue Seaweed: She¡¯s already batshit insane, just look at the Realm Announcements.

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Tsk tsk tsk, what a model jilted lover. Those who don¡¯t know might really think that she and our Leader were a couple in the past.

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Eh, Quarrelsome Fish is threatening people once again!

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: F*CK! Since this Quarrelsome Fish actually dared to threaten my little sister, this brother of hers will go off on that Quarrelsome Fish!

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight¡¯s words had just appeared when therades from Jade Sea Pavilion saw their Leader¡¯s tyrannical deration.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Stay your hands, she¡¯s mine.

    Everyone: Oh. My. God! Leader, why are you so charming!

    Shen Jingbin sat on the horse¡¯s back, and due to the system¡¯s decision that the girl should be in front of the guy when they shared a mount, it looked like she was nestled in Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s embrace.

    She had seen Crying Fish¡¯s Realm Announcements, but she didn¡¯t take any of them to heart. "Actually, you can just ignore her. I don¡¯t think she¡¯d be able to beat me even if we fought."

    Quiet And Steadfast looked into the distance while holding onto the reins and said, "No matter what, I still need to make an appearance."

    Shen Jingbin spoke no further.

    He was right, he did have to make an appearance in times like these.

    Anything belonging to Quiet And Steadfast was of the best quality. Even this white steed they rode on was an excellent mount, so it didn¡¯t take long for the duo to reach Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine. Due to the ruckus and the Realm Announcements, Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine had long since been filled with innumerable people who were there for the show.

    Shen Jingbin gave a sweeping nce and actually spotted a few familiar faces.

    Everyone who¡¯d been seen by her couldn¡¯t help but put a hand to their eyes and weep.

    God, was there something on your mind when you decided to marry her?! Don¡¯t you know that as long as you¡¯re willing, there¡¯d be thousands of girls for you to choose from?!

    After managing to squeeze themselves into Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine with great difficulty, they felt the numerous gazes that were on them cut off by the closing of the temple¡¯s doors. Only then did Shen Jingbin heave a sigh of relief. She casually opened up the guild channel and the amount of text that flew by gave rise to a dull ache in her head.

    Rubbing the centre of her brows, she enquired, "Are we not going to inform the guild about this?"

    "Hold on, I was just about to let them know."

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: To all members who are online: if you¡¯re free or interested, party up and attend my wedding. Party 1¡¯s leader is me, Party 2¡¯s is Next Week, Party 3¡¯s is Dawn, and Party 4¡¯s is Seaweed. Invitations will be handed out in the parties, go to the next one if the party is full.

    [Guild] Temperate Scarlet Moon: 1111111111 don¡¯t fight with me! I¡¯m going to Party 1!

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: I don¡¯t care which party I join, just give me a spot!

    [Guild] Long Life: I¡¯ll join whichever party my wife joins! ( ? 3?)?

    [Guild] Gentle Flower: F*ck, can the two of you not flirt right now?!

    Next Week Is Unlikely, Shen Jingchen, and Seaweed, soon arrived at the Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine. Quiet And Steadfast traded invitations to the trio before he joined them in front of the temple, and there they then waited for the arrival of their guild members.

    Since one required an invitation to enter Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine, the temple had already been densely surrounded with yers by the time guild members from Jade Sea Pavilion finally arrived. It took them a great deal of time and effort to make it through the human wall.

    After ensuring all guild members had received their invitation, Quiet And Steadfast waved his hand and led his grandiose procession inside to proceed with the ceremony.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 56

    <strong>Chapter 56: Marriage (2) </strong>

    I¡¯m Not A Weirdo was nominated as the representative by youngsters who were brimming with curiosity. He jogged over to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side and asked with an innocent expression on his face, "Boss, why are you suddenly thinking about marriage? We didn¡¯t heard a single thing about this beforehand!"

    Quiet And Steadfast had no intention of concealing the matter from everyone. He cleared his throat and raised his voice so that everyone could hear. "All of you should know about the Epic Grade hidden quest that I received before right? There¡¯s been some progress with the quest, but to carry on I need to marry Nutjob. This is why the marriage was so sudden."

    Descent Of Rain And Snow said, "Boss is sacrificing his body for the sake of our guild. Ah, my heart goes out to you! Nutty, our boss is a good man. You have to take good care of him alright!"

    Shen Jingbin, "...I¡¯ll do my best."

    I¡¯m A Weirdo, Dare To Hit Me also came over to join in on the fun. Holding a hand to his throat, he began to wail pitifully, "Wuuuuuu, boss, you¡¯re marrying someone else today. Regardless of why you¡¯re doing it, I feel so pained inside. Ah! My heart, it hurts so much. I can¡¯t breathe!"

    Shen Jingbin, "...Then I¡¯ll swap ces with you."

    I Am A Weirdo, Dare To Hit Me, "F*ck, I was just joking! I wish the two of you happiness! Farewell!"

    Everyone: "WHERE¡¯D YOUR PRIDE GO!?"

    Everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion had always gotten along. Once someone took the lead, the rest began to join in the fun with the intention of teasing the duo that shocked all yers in the game.

    It¡¯s a pity that the two¡¯s mental fortitudes were out of the ordinary, so everyone could only return in low spirits.

    Amidst their fun, everyone suddenly felt their vision distort for an instant. When they came back to their senses, a sagacious old man wearing a lunar white robe stood in front of everyone while stroking his beard.

    "The auspicious time has arrived, may the groom please follow this old man." The elder was all smiles as he spoke to Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast.

    As someone who¡¯d been through this before, Eternal Rest went over to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side and shared some knowledge on the marriage proceedings. "Leader, this old man is the Matchmaker. In a bit, the two of you will go in together before bowing once to Heaven and Earth. You will then finish the ceremony by drinking from the nuptial cup. It¡¯s really simple, you don¡¯t have to be nervous."

    Quiet And Steadfast: Does it look like I¡¯m nervous?

    In her heart, Shen Jingbin had a face full of tears: I¡¯m the one who¡¯s actually feeling very nervous here. Why didn¡¯t any of you notice?!

    Shen Jingchen: Who asked you to be so ugly, we can¡¯t read your expression at all!

    Under everyone¡¯s support, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast both followed behind the Matchmaker, entering the main hall of Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine.

    The entire temple was enveloped in bright red azaleas, which entuated the festive mood of the wedding ceremony. Satin and petals from somewhere asionally floated about in the wind, adding on to the atmosphere.

    "It takes ten years to stay in the same boat together, and a hundred years to share the same bed. Today, it is your destiny to be joined here as husband and wife. This elder will present you with a humble gift." The Matchmaker said with a smile as he stood at the front of the hall.

    With that, a "Ding" resounded in their ears.

    "Congrattions on obtaining the Matchmaker¡¯s Gift. I wish for the two of you a life filled with beautiful scenery and conjugal bliss. May the two of you have a happy marriage."

    They found a set of wedding clothes inside the Matchmaker¡¯s Gift. The Matchmaker proceeded with the wedding ceremony after the two swiftly changed into the wedding clothes. <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> didn¡¯t attach much importance to the marriage system, so the marriage proceedings were extremely simple. After three bows to Heaven and Earth, the system announced that the two were now husband and wife.

    [System] Paired Lovebirds, Branches Intertwined; Husband and Wife join each other in matrimony. Congrattions yers Quiet And Steadfast and Nutjob, you are now husband and wife.

    After the ceremony, the Matchmaker gave his heartfelt wishes. "Now that the two of you have joined together in matrimony, may you never doubt one another. I hope that the two of you will grow old together and have many descendants." With that, he disappeared.

    "Hahahaha, my dear Brother-inw, hurry up and call me Big Brother!" Shen Jingchen had long wanted to tease Quiet And Steadfast, but didn¡¯t have the guts to do so. Now that his Leader had be his Brother-inw, his sprout-like confidence encountered a growth spurt and instantly turned into a towering tree.

    Shen Jingbin shot a re at him before Quiet And Steadfast could respond and said, "Get lost!"

    Shen Jingchen was teary-eyed. "Wuwuwu, my sister has only just married out and she¡¯s already giving her family the cold shoulder."

    Next Week Is Unlikely consoled him. "Dawn, don¡¯t you know the saying; ¡¯you won¡¯t die if you don¡¯t say anything¡¯?"

    National Treasure was speechless. "Next Week, are you sure you¡¯re consoling him?"

    Quiet And Steadfast was a generous person. That being said, he was even more unrestrained in his generosity when it came to hisrades. There were at least seventy to eighty people who attended their wedding. For each and every one of these people, he traded away a bottle of Shen Nong¡¯s Secret Medicine and a red packet.

    Everyone was all smiles upon receiving these gifts.

    As a closerade of the groom, Next Week Is Unlikely felt a rush of emotions as he watched his friend get married. In the heat of the moment, a Realm Announcement popped up.

    [Realm] Next Week Is Unlikely: Now that you¡¯re finally married, no one can doubt my sexuality! Wishing Steady and Little Nutty a happy marriage!

    [Realm] Yanmen Imperial Sister: Wasn¡¯t Dawn the one who was shipped with you?

    Surrounding yers: ...

    There would never be ack of people ttering you once someone took the lead. Not only were the people of Jade Sea Pavilion the cream of the crop in skill, they didn¡¯t lose out in terms of their financial ability either. In an instant, an unceasing wave of golden words flew over the heads of everyone present.

    This was the first time yers in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> had ever seen so many Realm Announcements in one go!

    As expected, friends of Gods were all loaded!

    Due to these events, the atmosphere inside the Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine was brought to a high. However, people who stir up trouble never fail to show up in marriages. Someone suddenly shouted, "Kiss!"

    The boisterous crowd inside the Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine suddenly fell silent.

    "Which idiot was it?!" Slight Chill¡¯s impatient voice broke the awkward silence.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but burst outughing. "Just howrge is your grudge with your Leader?" Saying that, she turned to look at Quiet And Steadfast.

    Quiet And Steadfast stood by her side while wearing his red groom¡¯s clothing. This was her first time seeing him wear anything that wasn¡¯t ck. Unexpectedly, it suited him very well, although the image of his beautiful face was still obscured by that veil of his.

    Feeling her gaze, Quiet And Steadfast tilted his head and looked at her, their gazes meeting in that instant.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes narrowed, and the image of his charming eyes filled with delight was burned deep into Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 57

    <strong>Chapter 57: Evil Schemes (1)</strong>

    They got married, received their red packets, and had their fair share of fun. As proposed by the Four Weirdos, everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion decided to formed their own teams to beat the world BOSS together.

    The group that had walked towards the Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine, now advanced onwards towards the first World BOSS.

    Excitedly leading the charge was naturally the retarded four-man "are you guys really weirdos or not" team.

    Eternal Rest and Long Life followed behind the Four Weirdos. However, they were caughtpletely unaware when the group of four suddenly stopped in their tracks, causing them to crash into their backs.

    "F*ck, are the four of you courting death?! Why didn¡¯t you say anything before you stopped!?" Long Life held her small nose in her hand and cursed at them.

    Eternal Rest really wanted toin too, but stopped short when he realised the Four Weirdos were standing there stock still ever since they¡¯de to a halt. He couldn¡¯t help but swallow hisints and curiously asked, "What¡¯s up with you guys?"

    He strode between the four of them as he gave voice to his question.

    "F*ck me!" Came Eternal Rest¡¯s uncontroble wave of expletives.

    Since the ones leading the way had stopped, the rest behind them were forced toe grinding to a halt. Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s team was positioned at the very end of the group. He noticed the ones in front had stopped, but wasn¡¯t aware of what was going on.

    Next Week Is Unlikely motioned to Shen Jingchen with his eyes. The two immediately understood one another, and proceeded to shoulder through the parties of their guild members ahead of them till they reached the very front of the crowd.

    Slight Chill, who was originally in the middle of the crowd, saw the two of them and advanced along with them.

    Shen Jingchen walked up to the gate of the Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine. His good looking brows immediately knotted together after taking a good look at the situation.

    Countless yers were neatly lined up in rows just outside the gate. Closer inspection revealed that they were yers from Life At First Sight. At the forefront of these yers, Crying Fish and Nine Bads could be seen with chilling expressions on their faces.

    Other than the individuals from Life At First Sight, not a single person remained from the densely packed audience previously surrounding the gate. No one knew whether they¡¯d dispersed on their own ord, or whether Life At First Sight had broken them up.

    Slight Chill felt anger swelling up in her when she saw Crying Fish, and taking a step forward, she gave a coldugh. "Quarrelsome Fish, what¡¯re you nning to do by gathering such arge group? Are you going to kidnap the groom?"

    Crying Fish stared fixedly at the shrine¡¯s entrance and replied without even ncing at her. "Enough with the small talk, call Quiet And Steadfast out!"

    Slight Chill was so infuriated that she broke into a smile. "Who the f*ck do you think you are?"

    From a certain standpoint, Shen Jingchen had the same temperament as Slight Chill. Having heard what Crying Fish said, his face sank and his lips trembled. He too wanted to ridicule her.

    With his sharp eye and quick reflexes, Next Week Is Unlikely quickly held Shen Jingchen back and tugged at Slight Chill¡¯s sleeve, pulling them both behind him. He then spoke up and said, "Today is Steady¡¯s wedding day, one that calls for great celebration. Let us put our grudges aside for today and leave it for another day. Hurry up and leave with your people, otherwise we won¡¯t stand on ceremony with you guys any longer."

    Crying Fish continued to harp on and said, "Call Quiet And Steadfast out now!"

    "This slut really is..." Slight Chill red at her, looking as if she was about to charge towards her at any moment.

    Just then, the Four Weirdos who were standing behind them, hurriedly pulled the raging Slight Chill back.

    "Slight Chill, you bitch! Calm down! Quickly, follow the movements of my hand! Slowly now. Left hand, right hand..."

    "Then right hand again... and left hand... Now once more in slow motion!"

    "F*cking retard!"

    "What the f*ck are you two idiots going on about?! Slight Chill, let me tell you something, you can¡¯t go over there right now. We¡¯re currently in a safe zone! You¡¯ll be falling into their trap if you make a move!"

    Slight Chill, "..."

    Why did their guild have such retards amongst them?

    Because the Four Weirdos had interrupted Slight Chill, she had calmed down some, but that didn¡¯t stop her from viciously ring at Crying Fish and Nine Bads. Nine Bads hugged her chest as she stood there with droopy eyelids, not even bothering to cast a nce at them.

    "I¡¯ll give you guys one minute to call out Quiet And Steadfast. Otherwise, don¡¯t even think about leaving here today!" Crying Fish snarled.

    Shen Jingchen coldly snorted, "Hmph! We¡¯re a safe zone. I doubt you can do anything to us."

    There were only a few safe zones in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, and it just so happened that the Matchmaker¡¯s Shrine was one of them. Once a yer attacked another in the safe zone, the system would immediately rush in and send the former to prison.

    In the end, Crying Fish finally deigned to shift her gaze from the Shrine¡¯s door over to Shen Jingbin. The corner of her eyes were slightly red as she said, "While it¡¯s true that I can¡¯t harm you guys, I can still confine all of you here."

    Once she finished speaking, she shot a look at Nine Bads. The air in Shen Jingchen¡¯s chest suddenly stifling. He could neither spit it out nor swallow it down.

    He¡¯d definitely argue with this girl to no end if Nine Bads wasn¡¯t here.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 58

    <strong>Chapter 58: Evil Schemes (2)</strong>

    "Just what¡¯re you up to?" Quiet And Steadfast happened to hear her as he walked over with Shen Jingbin, likelying forward after noticing that the groups in front still hadn¡¯t moved.

    Shen Jingchen and Next Week Is Unlikely looked back at the approaching pair, while the other members of Jade Sea Pavilion who were clustered together parted. This spontaneously created a pathway for Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast to walk through abreast.

    The married duo stood firmly beside Shen Jingchen and Next Week Is Unlikely in their wedding attire. Their loud, fiery red clothes that symbolized the joyous asion pierced Crying Fish¡¯s eyes as she looked at them.

    "Tell me, in what way am I inferior to this ugly monster? Why would you choose her over me?!"

    Quiet And Steadfast nced at her, but the red veil that covered his face prevented her from making out his expression. She could only tell that his ink ck eyes werepletely filled with hatred.

    "I just don¡¯t want to marry you. This has nothing to do with anyone else," He paused for a moment before continuing. "I¡¯ve always been very curious about something. Who exactly is that look of betrayal on your face directed at? If I remember correctly, I¡¯ve never made any attempts to lead you on before."

    The rims of Crying Fish¡¯s eyes reddened even further. She sounded a little hysterical as she shriek, "Why won¡¯t you give me a chance?! I like you so much! Why aren¡¯t you willing to give me a reply?! Do you know how many guys chase after me every day?! But because of you, I don¡¯t even give them a second nce! Why do you still treat me this way even after all I¡¯ve done for you?!"

    Slight Chill couldn¡¯t help but scoff, "Did our Guild Leader ask you to do any of this? Your princess syndrome must be really serious."

    "Shut up! This has nothing to do with you!"

    "Your grandfather it doesn¡¯t! I dare you to f*cking say that again if you¡¯ve got the balls!"

    After being roared at by Crying Fish, the anger that Slight Chill took great pains to quell red up once again. She strode forward, intent on facing off with Crying Fish, but was stopped by Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s outstretched hand. He looked towards her and gently shook his head, before she indignantly let the matter slide.

    With a frown on his face, Quiet And Steadfast said, "I¡¯ve never been interested in you, nor do I have any emotional attachment towards you. Just say whatever it is you want to say today, don¡¯t bother asking me about the ¡¯hows¡¯ and the ¡¯whys¡¯. There¡¯s nothing for us to talk about."

    "Fine, I won¡¯t beat about the bush since you¡¯ve made your point clear. In that case, let¡¯s exchange some pointers andpete in a battle. If I lose, I¡¯ll immediately leave with my men. If I win, you¡¯ll immediately file for divorce and marry me instead."

    Hearing that was the final straw for Shen Jingchen. She was trying to undermine his little sister in a f*cking brazen manner! "Can you be any more shamless than this? Crying Fish, I¡¯ve never met anyone more shameless than you. Do you really think that you can block our path with so few people? Don¡¯t screw around with me!"

    Crying Fish gave a smile. "Then why don¡¯t you find out for yourself and see if it¡¯s enough to stop you guys?"

    She raised her fair hand. At hermand, four yers behind her formed a group and ripped open an enormous as they looked at everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion.

    There was a tool in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> that could be used to trap yers. It was the very same that Nine Bads had used to capture Shen Jingbin. However, such a was extremely expensive. It was several times more expensive than a server-wide Blossom Rain. Moreover, it was a single use consumable item, which meant that it was an item even your typical nouveau riche might abstain from using.

    It also had a very fitting name ¡ª Golden Binding Net.

    A Golden Binding Net could trap up to four yers at one time. What¡¯s more, yers trapped inside the Golden Binding Net would still remain in the even if they went offline and came back online again. The only exception was when the yer died, then they would no longer remain inside the.

    However, one Golden Binding Net could only be used for three hours. After three hours, the trapped yers would regain their freedom.

    But to the members of Jade Sea Pavilion, ying right into the palms of a woman like Crying Fish was practically like a vicious p across their faces. It was more serious than killing them, so don¡¯t even mention three hours of being captured, they couldn¡¯t even stand being in their opponent¡¯s grasp for three seconds.

    Everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion were originally indifferent about the situation, but seeing Crying Fish unveil so many Golden Binding Nets, their expressions immediately faltered.

    How much would it cost to buy so many Golden Binding Nets? It seems as though Crying Fish had really blown her top.

    The temperature around Quiet And Steadfast had also lowered quite a significant amount due to the presence of the Golden Binding Nets. Shen Jingbin, who was standing beside him, could clearly feel the anger being emitted from his body.

    "Alright, I¡¯ll fight you." Quiet And Steadfast said as he suppressed his anger.

    Crying Fish said, "Wait a moment. Who said I wanted to fight with you? You¡¯re the number one yer in the game, not even Nine Bads is a match for you. Isn¡¯t fighting with you the same as sending myself to my death? I want that ugly monster beside you to fight it out with Nine Bads!"

    Once those words left her mouth, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion couldn¡¯t help but curse at her shamelessness.

    Who was Nine Bads!? Compared to her, who was Nutjob!? How daring of her!

    Shen Jingchen was practically about to faint from anger. His handsome face was flushed with anger as he roared, "You¡¯re shameless!"

    Nine Bads, who¡¯d remained silent the entire time, raised her eyelids and looked towards Shen Jingbin who stood beside Quiet And Steadfast. With a smile that wasn¡¯t a smile, she said, "Weren¡¯t you very impressive that day? Why¡¯re you ying dead today? You can just say it if you¡¯re feeling scared..."

    Without giving her the chance to finish, Shen Jingbin cut her off and said, "Yeah, I¡¯m scared."

    The hostile aura of the crowds suddenly deted.

    Nine Bads: "..."

    Everyone: "What the f*ck!? Elder sister, how can you be so blunt?!"

    The rest of what Nine Bads had to say was now stuck in her throat. Her expression immediately contorted into an exceedingly ugly one as she uttered, "Are you making a fool out of me?"

    Shen Jingbin replied with a serious look on her face. "Are you suffering from paranoia? If you are, I suggest that you go and see a psychiatrist."

    The overly serious expression she had on her face was a stark contrast to the ashen look on Nine Bads¡¯ own, which abruptly dispelled the anger that the members of Jade Sea Pavilion felt.

    Crying Fish ground her teeth and red at Shen Jingbin. "What¡¯s the meaning of this, Nutjob?! Are you looking down on us?! What¡¯s there to be so smug about?! Mark my words, things won¡¯t turn out well for you!"

    Shen Jingbin let out a sigh, feeling even more helpless than she did before. She turned towards Quiet And Steadfast and asked, "Has she always been unable to understand what other people are saying?" She shifted her line of sight as she cast a sympathetic look towards her fellowrades from Jade Sea Pavilion. "Putting up with her for so long must¡¯ve been difficult. You guys have worked hard."

    Amused by her performance, Quiet And Steadfast mimicked her helplessness and said, "Our hands are tied. We feels helpless too since our IQ isn¡¯t up to snuff."

    "Stop acting like a smartass! Come at me if you¡¯ve got the stones for it, ugly monster. If not, get Quiet And Steadfast out here and f*ck off!" Nine Bads couldn¡¯t be bothered with any more small talk, so she immediately made her intentions known.

    Shen Jingbin shot her a look of disdain and said, "You¡¯re clearly afraid of me rejecting you, yet you still want to act as if you¡¯re being magnanimous by giving me a chance to choose. What¡¯s the point of all of this? Quiet And Steadfast and I are already married, so I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t let him go. As for me getting lost..." She raised her chin up and stared at them. "What right do you have to ask that of me?"

    "You...!" Shen Jingbin looked far too arrogant, which caused Nine Bads to immediately seethe with anger. She unsheathed her sword and charged straight at Shen Jingbin.

    "Nine Bads!" Crying Fish was shocked by Nine Bads, but immediately cried out after she came back to her senses in an attempt to stop her. Unfortunately for her, it was already far toote to stop Nine Bads.

    A devious smile formed on Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips, it was one that implied that her evil schemes had gone as nned1. She took an abrupt step forward, and walked straight into Nine Bads¡¯ sword.

    Watching Nutjob¡¯s movements, Nine Bads knew that she¡¯d fallen for the other party¡¯s trap. Even so, she couldn¡¯t retract her sword in time. She could only helplessly watch on as the tip of her de pierced Nutjob¡¯s chest.

    In the instant the tip of Nine Bads¡¯ sword pierced through Shen Jingbin¡¯s chest, an iron chain descended from the heavens and wound itself around Nine Bads, trapping her within it. And with a tug...

    Nine Bads was sent straight to prison under everyone¡¯s gaze.

    Shen Jingbin waved her hand and kindly said, "Safe travels! I¡¯ll visit you when I¡¯m free!"

    Everyone: "... So cool, much amaze. Wow."

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    All ording to keikaku ?

 Chapter 59

    <strong>Chapter 59: Till We Meet Again (1)</strong>

    "Nine Bads has been caught. Aren¡¯t you going to bail her out?" Shen Jingbin intentionally tousled her hair and crossed her arms in front of her chest. With a haughty look on her face, she looked at the woman standing before her who¡¯d been angered to the point where her eyes werepletely red. "However, if you want to stay here and block our path, that¡¯s fine by me. After all, my people aren¡¯t the ones who¡¯re suffering in prison."

    Crying Fish felt all of the blood in her body flow back towards her brain. "I can¡¯t believe Quiet And Steadfast actually fancies a girl like you!"

    Shen Jingbin mindlessly went along with what she said and replied, "Yeap, I¡¯m the kind of woman that Quiet And Steadfast fancies."

    "You¡¯re practically shameless!"

    "Yeap, I¡¯m practically shameless!"

    "You¡¯ve no sense of shame!"

    "Yeap, I¡¯ve no sense of shame!"

    "You¡¯re a slut!"

    "Yeap, I¡¯m a slut."

    [Dejected] Crying Fish: Everyone, please solve this question; I¡¯ve encountered a hoodlum. What am I to do?!

    Any insult Crying Fish hurled at Shen Jingbin failed to have any effect on her. On the contrary, she felt as if the anger she was feeling was being stifled in her stomach for some strange reason. In the end, she could only hatefully grind her teeth as she hastily left with the other members of her guild, likely with the intent of bailing Nine Bads out of prison.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, yers who were thrown into prison could be bailed out by their friends, provided they paid a certain amount of silver to the warden. The amount of silver needed to bail a yer out was based on the severity of the crime they¡¯dmitted, and the amount of time they¡¯d already spent in prison. The way Shen Jingbin resolved the situation that was on the verge of breaking into a full blown war left the members of Jade Sea Pavilion feeling a little dazed.

    I¡¯m Not A Weirdo carefully jabbed his three brothers. "Are we still going to fight the BOSS?"

    I¡¯m Really Not A Weirdo pped his thigh and said, "Yes! Why wouldn¡¯t we go?! It¡¯ll make us look like we¡¯re scared of them if we don¡¯t go!"

    Shen Jingchen followed up by saying, "Right! How can we not go?! Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go! This elder brother will be leading the troops this time around! Kill anyone who dares to bar our way!"

    "Team Too Lazy To Tackle A Pain-In-The-Ass Boss" set out to fight the world BOSS again.

    They blitzed through all of the world BOSSes they met along the way, before Quiet And Steadfast dered that the activities over the past few days had finallye to a close.

    After dismissing his fellowrades from the guild, Quiet And Steadfast summoned his white horse and sent out a mount sharing invitation to Shen Jingbin.

    Since shecked any speedy mounts, Shen Jingbin would often share a mount with Shen Jingchen or Quiet And Steadfast. She should¡¯ve gotten used to it by now, but for reasons unbeknownst to her, she suddenly felt a little hesitant when it came to epting his invitation.

    Of course, this was just a passing thought.

    "Where are we going?" She asked after mounting the horse.

    Quiet And Steadfast replied, "While we might¡¯ve gotten married because of the quest, no matter what, we¡¯re now married. We might as well foster our feelings for one another a little."

    Shen Jingbin fell silent. Why¡¯d it feel as if Quiet And Steadfast was acting a little strange?

    Was there really a need for them to do something nonsensical like fostering their feelings for one another?!

    Regardless of what she thought, Quiet And Steadfast was true to his word and really only took her out on a stroll, doing nothing more than improving their rtionship.

    Admiring the scenery with one another was truly different from enjoying it alone.

    Youzhou was a very special region that was situated beside Beiming. It was the only region in the game where the three races could coexist in peace and harmony. Other than that, yers called this ce the "Holy Land of Flirting" because it had the most diverse and unique scenery in the game. As a result, Quiet And Steadfast brought her there for their stroll as they slowly traversed through all of Youzhou.

    "Since we¡¯ve gotten married, shouldn¡¯t we be making our way over to Silky Moon¡¯s ce today?" Shen Jingbin felt that the atmosphere between them as they silently enjoyed the view was really too strange. As such, she incessantly scavenged her mind for topics to converse about along the way.

    Youzhou was a high-levelled map. Apart from possessing highly intelligent NPCs, these maps had plenty of aggressive wild monsters.

    Quiet And Steadfast, who was casually disposing monsters that approached them along the way, replied, "There¡¯s no need to rush. It¡¯ll be fine even if we go a few dayster."

    Shen Jingbin eyed the monster¡¯s corpse on the ground with sympathy as she resisted the urge to jump off the horse and loot it. This was a bad habit she¡¯d picked up after her run-in with Landlord Yang. "Oh right, in a few days, I might not be able toe online for a period of time."

    "Why?" Quiet And Steadfast asked, as he released his little auto-looting pet to search the monster¡¯s corpse.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes suddenly lit up when she caught sight of the small pet, and she asked, "Dawn has an errand to run outside of town so I¡¯m following him... What is this? Can it automatically loot corpses for you?"

    "It¡¯s a pet for looting corpses. I can give it to you if you like it."

    She quickly waved her hand and declined his offer. "There¡¯s no need for that! I¡¯ll just extort one out of Dawn."

    "You siblings have such a good rtionship with one another!" Quiet And Steadfastmented.

    "It¡¯s alright. He always says that his good looks are a hazard to himself, so he¡¯d often drag me along to act as his bodyguard. It¡¯s only natural for me to troll him a little after being his bodyguard for so many years."

    "I¡¯ve always been curious about something. Did you learn martial arts in the past?"

    Shen Jingbin looked up at him and said, "Yeah, I¡¯ve been practicing martial arts for quite a while now. What about you? I saw you finish Nine Bads off in a split second thest time we were at Sea Moon Ind. Even if you had the level advantage or some other in-game factors, realistically speaking, you¡¯d still need more than a single pass to finish her off, right?"

    Quiet And Steadfast chuckled. When he did, Shen Jingbin realized that he made a very sexy snort when doing so. "You have quite a good eye, I was in the special forces for two years. Most people wouldn¡¯t be a match for me."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly became very animated and eximed, "When can we have a match? Let¡¯s pit our skills against one another!"

    "Are all you people who practice martial arts so belligerent? I have a friend who also practices martial arts, and they seize every opportunity to have a match with me."

    Shen Jingbin grunted in reply, "It varies from person to person. I haven¡¯t met any worthy adversaries for so long that I was feeling a little bored. Nine Bads isn¡¯t a bad opponent, it¡¯s a shame she¡¯s too oversensitive. It feels like I¡¯m being stared at by a venomous snake when I¡¯m up against her. It¡¯s a rather blood curdling experience."

    Quiet And Steadfastughed once more, and even Shen Jingbin could feel the slight vibrationsing from his chest. "It looks like you really are a martial arts expert. However, your level¡¯s too low for now, there¡¯d be too much of a disadvantage for you. Why don¡¯t we have a match after you¡¯ve caught up to me. How does that sound?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s joyous expression copsed. "Then that day will nevere. I might as well PK you in real life instead."

    Quiet And Steadfast: Little sis, why¡¯re you so violent?!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 60

    <i><strong>Important Note: The names of the ¡°Four Weirdos¡± have been changed to the ¡°Four Monsters¡±. Flubbed their names cause it could be interpreted in a few ways, but this is the correct one considering the context. Sorry about that! </strong></i>

    <strong>Chapter 60: Till We Meet Again (2) </strong>

    Quiet And Steadfast traversed across the entirety of Youzhou with Shen Jingbin, before they parted ways and went offline.

    It¡¯s said that one would only feel motivated when they had a goal, and ever since Quiet And Steadfast had dered that he¡¯d swap pointers with her once she¡¯d made a name for herself in the game, Shen Jingbin had suddenly be very energetic and gave her all to leveling. Her frenzied rate of leveling was so astounding, that even Shen Jingchen received a huge shock.

    Did his younger sister turn stupid after getting married?

    The days slowly passed with Shen Jingbin dividing her time between frantically levelling up, and improving her rtionship with Quiet And Steadfast.

    The duo hadn¡¯t gone to Silky Moon¡¯s ce at all during this time. In light of Shen Jingbin¡¯s unexpected luck, along with the direction that their current quest was heading towards, the two of them felt that there ought to be a veryplicated quest on Silky Moon¡¯s end. She didn¡¯t have much time now, so she was speeding through her task of levelling up. She¡¯d look for Silky Moon once she was back from her trip to B City.

    After the siblingsnded at the airport on the twentieth, the moment Shen Jingbin switched her phone on, she received a call from Zhao Chengning.

    Shen Jingbin handed her luggage to Shen Jingchen and found a quieter ce to answer the call. The airport was packed with people, and she was worried she wouldn¡¯t be able to hear the other party clearly.

    "Have you arrived?" Once the call connected, Zhao Chengning¡¯s pleasant voice streamed in from the other end of the phone.

    Shen Jingbin had a hidden voice fetish. She¡¯d easily have a favorable impression about people with pleasant voices.

    She knew perfectly well that the caller couldn¡¯t see her, but she still nodded her head out of habit and said, "Yeah, we just arrived. Where are you?"

    "I¡¯m at gate number 5. You guys wait for me at the exit."

    "It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine! Just stay right where you are and we¡¯lle find you. There¡¯s too many people here, it¡¯ll make things even more difficult if we end up missing each other." Shen Jingbin hurriedly replied.

    "Don¡¯t you guys have a lot of luggage with you? If that¡¯s the case, then it¡¯s better for me to go over and help."

    "No no, not much at all. There¡¯s no need to trouble yourself. Besides, don¡¯t I still have Shen Jingchen with me? In any case, he¡¯s a guy. There¡¯s no reason why he can¡¯t carry a few things."

    After hearing her say this, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t push the matter any further. "Alright then, just be careful. I¡¯ll be waiting over here for you guys. There¡¯s no need to rush, just take your time if you¡¯ve got lots of things to carry."

    The other party grunted in reply and hung up. After which, Zhao Chengning kept his phone in his hand and leaned against the car window.

    He was naturally a very attractive person, but today, he¡¯d specially dressed up and was currently leaning against a luxurious car. People of all genders and ages who passed by him couldn¡¯t help but do double take in his direction.

    They wondered who was lucky enough to have a hunk picking them up from the airport.

    "Hey, Brother Ning, just who are you going to fetch from the airport today? You¡¯ve even gone and done something so grand like borrowing my car too!" The driver¡¯s window suddenly wound down, and a head with a cap on it popped out. The driver was a man who dressed a bit like a ruffian. "I remember you saying that you looked down on this kind of shy car the most, no?"

    The one wearing the cap was called Xuya, and he was one of Zhao Chengning¡¯s good friends. There was a significant age gap between the two of them, but their rtionship was still pretty good.

    Xuya had just turned twenty, and was at an age where guys loved to act in a mboyant and pretentious manner. The material goods he used and consumed were brands that had huge, striking logos printed on them, and Zhao Chengning had derided Xuya¡¯s love for showing off more than once or twice before. There even were times where Zhao Chengning¡¯s temper got the best of him, and he refused to look his friend in the eye. Yet, Xuya would¡¯ve never thought that Zhao Chengning would actually call him early in the morning and ask to borrow his car. It wasn¡¯t just any car either, it was the Maybach 62s that he¡¯d just bought.

    It¡¯d only been a few days since he¡¯d gotten his hands on his beloved car. He fawned all over it to the point where he even wished he could sleep inside of it. Even so, he was willing to lend his precious car to his good friend when the request came. However, it came with a condition; Xuya had to be the one driving it.

    At the same time, he could have a look at the person who managed to make a guy like Second Young Master Zhao want to borrow his car. This was especially so since Zhao Chengning was a person who was so low key, that he wished he could ride a bicycle instead.

    Zhao Chengning cast a sidelong nce at him and said, "You¡¯re gonna have to keep your mouth shut in a bit. Otherwise, I¡¯ll get your elder sister to turn you out when you get back home."

    Xuya had an older half-sister born from his father¡¯s previous marriage. No one knew how things had turned out like this, but he, a person who was unafraid of either the heavens nor the earth, and was practically the devil incarnate, was unexpectedly most afraid of this elder sister of his.

    When his sister was brought up, Xuya immediately adopted a much more sincere tone of voice and said, "Brother Ning, you really know how to bully honest people like me. Humph!" Giving a tsundere-like snort, he then hatefully walked up to the car window with a face that had "I¡¯m angry" written all over it. At the sight of his childish antics, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry.

    The Zhao family didn¡¯t like driving all that much, so there were only a few standard cars parked in their garage. And, as it just so happened, all of the cars they had were in use today. Zhao Chengning had no choice but to call Xuya, who had arge amount of cars at his house, to lend him one.

    Strangely, when Xuya asked which car he wanted to borrow, Zhao Chengning had actually asked for the car that he¡¯d just bought; the very one that he¡¯d been showing off on Moments. 1

    Thankfully, Xuya ced more importance on his bonds of brotherhood than his love of cars, hesitating for only two seconds before agreeing to lend Zhao Chengning his car. If that wasn¡¯t the reason, then it probably would¡¯ve been because of the inexplicable guilt he¡¯d feel at denying his good friend¡¯s request.

    Rousing himself from his thoughts, he once again looked towards the airport filled with peopleing and going.

    This time around, he immediately caught sight of Shen Jingbin walking towards them from within the sea of people. A slight breeze blew past and lifted the stray hair that lined her forehead, revealing a face so beautiful, it was as if it¡¯d reached perfection. In an instant, all of the passersby around her became indistinct.

    It was as if she was the only person in existence.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    WeChat¡¯s socialworking function between friends, simr to a timeline or newsfeed ?

 Chapter 61

    <b>Chapter 61: First Time In B City (1)</b>

    <b></b>"Hey, hey, hey! Can¡¯t you empathise with your elder brother? I¡¯m dragging two suitcases with me! Walk a little slower!" Shen Jingchen followed Shen Jingbin along with great difficulty, dragging a suitcase in one hand, whilst carrying a backpack on his back.

    Shen Jingbin stopped and tilted her head in his direction, giving him a disdainful look as she said, "Are you a man?"

    Shen Jingchen indignantly said, "Of course I am! I¡¯m a pure 24K gold man!"

    Shen Jingbin widened her stride and continued on. "Then what are you bawling on about? Keep up."

    B City was a metropolis on the level of other capital cities. Hence, the airport and other infrastructures would naturally be built in a very impressive manner. In spite of that, Shen Jingchen faced unprecedented levels of suffering.

    Why the hell was the airport so huge?!

    The siblings expended a great deal of effort before they finally found Zhao Chengning at Gate 5. As they approached, Shen Jingbin caught sight of Zhao Chengning leaning against the car door with his head bent down.

    It had to be said that Zhao Chengning¡¯s build, looks, and temperament, were extremely superb. He was about 185cm tall, with a pair of long legs and a slim waist. His perfect proportions were akin to that of a supermodel, making him look good in anything he wore.

    Today, he wore a light blue shirt with a grey V-necked knitted sweater draped over it. He had paired it with a pair of dark jeans, further entuating the contours of his legs. His appearance had a very leisurely feel about it, differing greatly from the look of an elite he¡¯d previously adopted in A City.

    At a nce, Zhao Chengning looked a little lean, but the aura he exuded gave off a feeling of power. Shen Jingbin guessed that he was definitely one of those that looked slim when clothed, but was brimming with muscles when stripped naked.

    As his back was against the light, his facial features were cast in shadows and nearly indistinguishable. She only felt that the outline of his face was like a perfect sculpture that had been meticulously carved.

    He¡¯s perfect. 100 points!

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but grade him in a vulgar manner.

    Zhao Chengning seemed to have felt her gaze on him, as he suddenly raised his head and looked in her direction.

    A small smile tugged at the corners of his lips when his gaze fell on her, and he waved at her to let her know where he was. He then walked towards her, takingrge strides as he did so.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart immediately tightened.

    What the f*ck?! What¡¯re you getting nervous for?! Look at you, your legs are going soft at the sight of a hot guy! Have some backbone!

    She couldn¡¯t help but to chide herself in her heart.

    Shen Jingchen looked as if he¡¯d seen his savior when he caught sight of Zhao Chengning. He tossed his luggage to the side and threw himself at Zhao Chengning. "Chengning! Quick,e help me! Look! I¡¯m being abused by this ungrateful family member! I¡¯m carrying so much luggage all by myself... This is simply too tragic!"

    Upon seeing the look of shock on Zhao Chengning¡¯s face, Shen Jingbin wordlessly tore Shen Jingchen away just as he was about totch himself onto Zhao Chengning and said, "Can you not behave like an uke1 who¡¯s never seen a man before?!"

    "F*ck! What kind of rubbishparison is that?!" Shen Jingchen was about to explode when he heard the word "uke".

    Zhao Chengning patted him on the shoulder and shifted his gaze to Shen Jingbin. "Alright, the car¡¯s outside. Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll bring you guys over to the hotel first so you can see if it¡¯s to your liking. I¡¯ll help you guys change hotels if it¡¯s not up to snuff," He flicked his wrist and looked at the time. "It¡¯s still early now, so there¡¯s still time for things like this."

    Shen Jingbin nodded in assent. Seeing this, Shen Jingchen brusquely turned around and handed Shen Jingbin¡¯s luggage to Zhao Chengning.

    Shen Jingbin felt embarrassed and wanted to snatch the bag from him, but Zhao Chengning turned towards her and shed a smile. Grabbing the handle of Shen Jingbin¡¯s luggage with a neutral expression, he left her no opportunity to snatch the bag away.

    Shen Jingchen obnoxiously nudged her with his elbow, to which Shen Jingbin responded by unhappily rolling her eyes at him.

    Tch, dummy. Shen Jingchen indignantly snorted .

    "You guys have just arrived, so originally Grandfather had wanted to let you wash up and hold a wee dinner for you, but an urgent matter suddenly cropped up, so the dinner with Grandfather has to be set aside. You guys are probably very tired after sitting in the ne for so long anyway. We¡¯ll be going to the hotel in a bit for you guys to wash up, and then I¡¯ll bring you both out for a nice mealter in the evening," Zhao Chengning said as he headed outside.

    Shen Jingchen had no opinion on the matter and indicated that he¡¯d follow Zhao Chengning¡¯s arrangements.

    Zhao Chengning shifted his gaze to Shen Jingbin and gently asked, "What do you think?"

    "Hmm? Sounds good, let¡¯s go with what you said."

    The group saw a car parked outside the gate when they exited the airport. Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t help but whistle. "Woah, your car¡¯s pretty good!"

    "Of course!" The car window suddenly wound down and a youthful looking face appeared before the trio. "I only managed to get this car after pestering my old man for a really long time."

    "Eh? This is...?" The Shen siblings looked at Zhao Chengning in surprise.

    Zhao Chengning gestured for Xuya to open the trunk whilst he exined, "This is ourplimentary chauffeur for the day, Xuya."

    "Brother Ah Ning, who introduces people like that?!" Xuya immediately blew his top when he heard himself being introduced as their chauffeur.

    "Hello, I¡¯m Brother Ah Ning¡¯s good friend, Xuya."

    "Hello Brother Xuya, I am Shen Jingchen. I¡¯m also your Brother Ah Ning¡¯s friend. This is my younger sister, Shen Jingbin." A friend of a friend was also his friend. Following this line of thought, Shen Jingchen introduced himself in a very familiar manner. At the same time, he¡¯d conveniently introduced his younger sister as well.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    The more passive person in a man/man rtionship ?

 Chapter 62

    <b>Chapter 62: First Time In B City (2) </b>

    Xuya thought he¡¯d misheard and asked again in a slightly puzzled tone, "Eh? Nutjob? Is it the same Nutjob that I¡¯m thinking of?"

    Without waiting for Shen Jingbin to exin, Zhao Chengning walked over after cing the luggage in the trunk and said, "It¡¯s the "Jing" for quiet, and "Bin" with the "wang" and "fen" pairing. 1 You should read up more. Don¡¯t only think of ying games all day, your inadequacy is showing."

    Xuya had a defiant look on his face. "You¡¯re also ying games from morning till night!"

    Zhao Chengning rapped his knuckles on Xuya¡¯s head and said, "But I¡¯m smarter than you."

    Opening the car door for the Shen siblings, he said, "Get on. Let¡¯s head over to the hotel."

    Shen Jingchen gave a curt word of thanks before he squeezed into the car. Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, shot a curious nce at him before entering the car.

    He ys games as well? What games does he y?

    Xuya slowly drove off after his passengers were snug in their seats, and headed towards the hotel that Zhao Chengning had booked.

    The hotel that Zhao Chengning had booked was in the heart of B City, which was about an hour away from the airport. Along the way, Zhao Chengning introduced a few buildings to the siblings while answering any questions they had, and with Xuya¡¯s chatter adding to the conversation, it gave rise to a very harmonious atmosphere.

    By the time they¡¯d arrived at the hotel, Shen Jingchen had seeded in bing "bros" with Xuya. Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help butment at hismunication skills.

    "This is your room card, wash up once you get back into your rooms and take a nap. I¡¯ll meet you guys here in the evening at six and bring you guys out to eat," Zhao Chengning took the room card from the receptionist and handed it, along with the siblings¡¯ identity cards, over to them. He then said, "Xuya and I still have something to do, so we won¡¯t be apanying you for now."

    Shen Jingbin took the room card and her luggage from Zhao Chengning and said, "Go ahead and do what you need to do."

    Shen Jingchen also chimed in. "Yeah. Ah Ning, just go about your business. You don¡¯t need to bother with us."

    Having been in the car for an hour, Xuya had sessfully convinced Shen Jingchen to call Zhao Chengning by "Ah Ning", instead of "Chengning".

    "Alright then, you guys head upstairs by yourselves. Little Jing, remember to lock the door. I¡¯ll be taking my leave first," Zhao Chengning said.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt that Xuya and Shen Jingchen were looking at her. She unconsciously rubbed her nose and said, "Mm, I know."

    After that, the siblings entered the elevator with their luggage behind them.

    Xuya and Zhao Chengning watched the Shen Siblings go till the elevator door closed in front of them. Once it did, Xuya immediately revealed a mischievous smile and said, "Brother Ah Ning, what¡¯s your rtionship with beautiful Little Jing? I can tell that you care a lot for her, that¡¯s really rare."

    Without averting his gaze, Zhao Chengning turned around and walked towards the hotel¡¯s exit and asked, "Does this have anything to do with you?"

    "I¡¯m curious! But really, I¡¯ve never seen a person as beautiful as Sister Jing. She¡¯s so pretty she doesn¡¯t even look like a person at all. She¡¯s too perfect!"

    Zhao Chengning shot him a fleeting nce. "She wouldn¡¯t be yours for the taking even if she were prettier. Wipe the drool off your face."

    A look of "I know, I know" was stered on Xuya¡¯s face as he said, "I know she¡¯s not mine to take. Sister Jing is yours after all! I¡¯ve never seen you behave so attentively towards anyone before... This won¡¯t do. I definitely have to tell Elder Brother Qi and the rest about this!"

    Upon seeing the look on Xuya¡¯s face that screamed "I know a huge secret and I need to tell the whole world about it", Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t help but to flick him on the forehead and ask, "Are you really that bored?!"

    As they spoke, the two arrived at the carpark. Once they buckled up, Zhao Chengning said, "To Blooming Flower Pavilion."

    Blooming Flower Pavilion was a very famous privately-owned restaurant in B City. They would only cater to 10 tables a night. Because of that, one wouldn¡¯t be guaranteed a table even if they were rich.

    Xuya couldn¡¯t help but run his mouth. "Tsk, tsk. Brother Ah Ning, this performance of yours has really opened my eyes. Why are you so serious about her?"

    "I¡¯ve always been a very serious person. Have you ever seen me not been serious towards anyone?"

    Xuya¡¯s lips curved downwards. "You¡¯ve never taken anyone seriously before. But that aside, if you¡¯re really serious about Sister Jing, then you better not let Li Moran see her before you¡¯ve gotten her for yourself. Otherwise, that beast will definitely fight with you over her. That fellow has to have every beauty he sees, let alone someone as beautiful as Sister Jing."

    "I¡¯m very curious, why do refer to her as Sister Jing? Are you guys that close?"

    "Don¡¯t I also call you Brother Ah Ning? Aren¡¯t I calling her Sister Jing to pair it with what I call you?! This is called creating intimacy between the both of you starting with little details! See, I¡¯m so considerate of you."

    "I think that you¡¯re so bored you¡¯re just turning into a pain in the ass now. Send me over to the office once we¡¯re done with Blooming Flower Pavilion, I still have some unfinished business over there."

    "Sure, I¡¯m yourplimentary chauffeur for today! All you need to do is bring me along for dinner tonight. I still want to see more of Sister Jing!"

    Zhao Chengning was speechless. Why did he feel as if this fe was asking for a beating?

    Shen Jingbin felt alive again after taking a shower.

    Flying by ne was truly a thing of evil!

    Shen Jingbin was leaning against the bed¡¯s headboard and drying her hair with a towel when the phone in the room suddenly rang.

    "Hurry up and open the door! Your elder brother wants toe over!" The moment she picked up the phone, the roar of Shen Jingchen¡¯s loud voice was transmitted over before she could say a word.

    "..."

    Without saying anything, she immediately hung up and opened her room door. She then turned around and walked back to the bed before continuing to dry her hair.

    Although her hair was long, Shen Jingbin had always been very insistent on not using hair dryers to dry her hair. This was probably the reason why her hair was of exceptional quality. She had a head of jet ck glossy hair that tempted others to touch it the moment theyid eyes on it.

    "Aiya, Little Jingjing, didn¡¯t Elder Brother Chengning remind you to lock the door properly? How can you be so disobedient?!" Shen Jingbin heard Shen Jingchen¡¯s voice before he appeared at the door.

    "Then get out. I¡¯ll lock the door once more," Shen Jingbin retorted in displeasure.

    Shen Jingchen immediately went silent.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    çã ¨C This is the Bin portion of Shen Jingbin¡¯s name. What Zhao Chengning was trying to exin is that when you take the character apart, you get Íõ and ·Ö. Looking at both words individually, the former means king and thetter means separation. ?

 Chapter 63

    <strong>Chapter 63: The Hunger Games (1) </strong>

    "Why¡¯d youe over?" Shen Jingbin had an intense urge to punch him as she watched him rummage through her room.

    Shen Jingchen replied without raising his head, "I say...is there a secret between you and Ah Ning that no one else knows about?"

    "No," Shen Jingbin bluntly replied. "Just what are you looking for?"

    He stopped after giving her room a once over and said, "It¡¯smon knowledge to inspect the room for pinhole surveince cameras when staying in a hotel. Don¡¯t you know that? Your awareness when ites to safety is really bad!"

    Shen Jingbin red at him. "You came over just for this?!"

    "This is very important! But, this obviously wasn¡¯t my only reason foring over. I want to ask you something," He plopped down beside her and said, "Tell me honestly, how do you feel about Ah Ning?"

    Shen Jingbin stopped drying her hair and asked, "What¡¯re you trying to get at?"

    Shen Jingchen supported himself on the bed with both his hands and looked towards the ceiling. His legs dangled over the side of the bed, swaying as he spoke, "You remember me not wanting to introduce you to our Guild Leader before, right? But now I think that Zhao Chengning is rather suitable for you. I¡¯m currently a little conflicted because I don¡¯t know who I should give you to, so I¡¯vee to ask for your opinion."

    "Are you f*cking mental?" Shen Jingbin almost flung the towel in her hands at his face. "Since you¡¯re so free, why don¡¯t you worry about yourself!"

    Shen Jingchen confidently held his temple with his hand and said, "I¡¯m so handsome, countless girls would pounce at me no matter where I go!"

    "...Get lost. I might lose control of myself and beat you up if you don¡¯t," Shen Jingbin said through her gritted teeth.

    "Fine, I won¡¯t joke around anymore," He suddenly revealed a serious expression and said, "Honestly speaking, what do you think of Zhao Chengning? I can tell that he¡¯s quite concerned about you. Based on my experience, I think he¡¯s fallen for you. Thinking about it, most guys would feel the same way about you since you¡¯re so pretty. However, you¡¯re my younger sister. We¡¯ll keep our distance from him if you don¡¯t have any feelings towards him. After all, Granddad is quite close to their family. It wouldn¡¯t look good if things got out of hand."

    Shen Jingbin stayed her hand and fell silent for a few seconds before she replied, "He¡¯s a pretty good person."

    Who was Shen Jingchen? He was her brother! He immediately understood the underlying meaning of her words. He patted his younger sister¡¯s shoulder with a smile on his face. "You don¡¯t need to be shy. Your big bro understands, big bro understands."

    "Scram!" Shen Jingbin reached the end of her patience and threw a pillow at him.

    Shen Jingchen dodged as he backed away towards the door.

    Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t help butugh when he walked out from Shen Jingbin¡¯s room.

    There¡¯s a kind of destiny in this world. There were two people who clearly weren¡¯t in an intimate rtionship whatsoever, yet those around them only needed to take one look at them before concluding that they would definitely end up together.

    This exactly described how Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning were like.

    It was a shame that their poor Guild Leader would end up being friendzoned though.

    Shen Jingchen shrugged and returned to his room to rest.

    The Shen siblings took a short nap in their respective rooms, barely making it in time for their six o¡¯clock meetup at the hotel lobby.

    Zhao Chengning was already waiting for them when they arrived.

    Shen Jingbin spoke first after they walked over to him. "Sorry for the long wait."

    Zhao Chengning smiled, indicating that he didn¡¯t mind and said, "No worries, I¡¯m the one that came early. Xuya is waiting for us outside, let¡¯s go. I¡¯ve already booked a table for us, so all we need to do is head straight for the restaurant."

    The duo walked closely behind Zhao Chengning as they exited the hotel, their assembly of good-looking people attracting the gazes¡¯ of countless onlookers in the process.

    "Was that the Second Young Master from the Zhao family?" The hotel receptionists only dared to secretly gossip when the trio disappeared from their line of sight. "He¡¯s really handsome! No wonder so many people dream about entering the Zhao family. Those who have him as their boss are truly blessed."

    "I wonder who the other two following him were. They looked like pretty important people too. That woman especially, she¡¯s more of a celebrity than a real one. But, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever heard of such a person in B City before."

    "Sigh, it¡¯s impossible for them to be nobodies since Second Young Master Zhao is personally entertaining them. However, this is not a matter that ordinary people like us can ask around about."

    "I heard that Second Young Master Zhao was supposed to get married to the mistress from the Jian family. Is that true? I¡¯ve seen the youngdy from the Jian family, and she¡¯s not the woman that he was with."

    "Tsk, tsk, tsk. You shouldn¡¯t make wild guesses and attract the displeasure of the rich and powerful."

    It took less than ten minutes by car for the four of them to reach Blooming Flower Pavilion from the hotel. Xuya went to park the car, while Shen Jingchen insisted on following him. As a result, Shen Jingbin had to go along with Zhao Chengning first.

    "Second Young Master, you¡¯vee. Your private room is here," Once they entered Blooming Flower Pavilion, a young and energetic girl greeted them. She shot a few curious nces in Shen Jingbin¡¯s direction when she saw her behind Zhao Chengning.

    Zhao Chengning let the young girl lead the way. He then turned his body slightly to the side and said to Shen Jingbin, "Be careful when you walk. They dim the lights here for ambience."

    Shen Jingbin grunted in response.

    After they arrived at the private room, a smile bloomed on the young girl¡¯s face and she asked, "Second Young Master, would you like the dishes to be served now?"

    Zhao Chengning nodded and the youngdy left. In only a moment, the two of them were left alone in the private room.

    After sipping a mouthful of tea, Shen Jingbin broke the silence and asked, "Why are you called Second Young Master? Do you have an older brother?"

    Zhao Chengning ced his hands on the table and turned towards her. "I have an elder brother. He¡¯s a volunteer in Africa and hasn¡¯t been home for a few years."

    Shen Jingbin was a little surprised, she knew how dire the circumstances were in Africa. Moreover, the safety of volunteers wasn¡¯t guaranteed either. She hadn¡¯t expected that the Zhao family would be willing to part with their son and let him suffer through this ordeal.

    Zhao Chengning saw her expression and smiled. "He insisted on going there no matter how we tried to advise him against it. In the end, we could only let him do as he pleased."

    "Your elder brother is truly a man amongst men."

    "That¡¯s right. This is why I¡¯ve always held great respect for him," Zhao Chengning said.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 64

    <strong>Chapter 64: The Hunger Games (2) </strong>

    Shen Jingbin wanted to say something, but was interrupted by someone suddenly pushing open the door to their private room. The one who entered wasn¡¯t Shen Jingchen and Xuya, but rather, it was a very beautiful and fashionable woman.

    The woman held a tray in her hands, and on it was an exquisitely ted dish. She twisted her slender waist and ced the dish on the table. Then, she pretended to nce at Shen Jingbin by ident. After that, sheughed in a flirtatious manner and said, "Oh, Second Young Master. It¡¯s been such a long time since you¡¯vee to my Blooming Flower Pavilion. Are you hinting that my restaurant¡¯s dishes arecking in taste?"

    Zhao Chengning removed his hands from the table and straightened his back. He replied in a vapid manner, "You must be joking, Boss Chen. Having a meal at your Blooming Flower Pavilion is no easy task."

    The woman cast a coquettish nce in his direction and said, "Who is the Second Young Master?! I¡¯d pull out another table for you even if all ten of our tables were full."

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t respond. Rather, he held the baro teacup in front of him between his hands and took a sip. Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t too clear about their rtionship, so she silently stared at her own teacup in front of her.

    In that time, an awkward silence pervaded the atmosphere.

    The woman¡¯s expression turned rather ugly. She shuffled uneasily on the spot before drawing attention to Shen Jingbin. "Who¡¯s this beauty? Why haven¡¯t I seen her before? Nice to meet you, gorgeous. I¡¯m Chenyi, the proprietor of Blooming Flower Pavilion."

    "Nice to meet you, Boss Chen," Shen Jingbin calmly replied.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t introduce herself, merely replying with a simple greeting. This caused the look on Chenyi¡¯s face to turn even uglier than before.

    "Second Young Master Chen has a very discerning eye. This is the first time I¡¯ve seen such a beautiful person... Let me go and check on the remaining dishes. I wish the two of you an enjoyable meal."

    Zhao Chengning gently smiled at her and said, "Thank you, Boss Chen."

    Chenyi could only leave since the conversation had drawn to a close.

    Feeling unresigned after leaving the private room, Chenyi immediately whipped out her phone, her fingers dancing on the keys as she dialed a number.

    The phone only rang twice before the other party picked up the call. "What¡¯s up, Boss Chen? You actually gave me a call."

    Chenyi went straight to the point and voiced her intentions. "Zhao Chengning brought a woman over to my ce for a meal. Help me ask around and find out where she¡¯s from."

    The other party immediately cried out, "What?! Zhao Chengning brought a woman?! F*ck! This is huge! Rx Boss Chen, you can leave this matter to me."

    Satisfied, Chenyi hung up and coldly snorted in the direction of the private room before leaving.

    Shen Jingbin looked a little suspiciously at the man sitting next to her in the private room and said, "You don¡¯t seem to like that boss much."

    Zhao Chengning nodded as he replied, "Yeah, she¡¯s a little annoying."

    "Then why¡¯d youe here to eat? We can always go to a different restaurant."

    "Even though the Blooming Flower Pavilion¡¯s boss is a little annoying, her dishes are one of the best in B City," He paused before continuing. "The main point is that the dishes here are more suitable for the tastebuds of the people from A City."

    People in A City were fond of spicy food, whereas most of the people in B City loved sweet things.

    Shen Jingbin was momentarily stunned before she broke into a heartfelt smile and said, "Thank you, Second Young Master Zhao. You¡¯re a very considerate tour guide."

    Zhao Chengning silently smiled along with her.

    From then on, the dishes were served by the waiters and Chenyi no longer made an appearance. Only, Shen Jingbin doubted that any girl would feel likeing back after being subjected to Zhao Chengning¡¯s previous attitude.

    Xuya and Shen Jingchen only popped up when almost all the dishes were served. Zhao Chengning asked them where they¡¯d been, but was only rewarded with a mysterious smile from the two of them.

    It was almost eight o¡¯clock when they finished their meal, and B City¡¯s nightlife had just drawn open its curtains. Shen Jingchen made a ruckus, saying that he wanted to experience B City¡¯s nightlife. Shen Jingbin was unable to dissuade him, so she could only agree to his demands.

    Zhao Chengning was the type of person who liked going to nightclubs, so he would asionally go there and have a drink or two with his friends. As such, he was familiar with a few bars in town. The four of them got into Xuya¡¯s beloved car and set out towards B City¡¯s nightlife.

    A petite silhouette appeared by the roadside and watched as the luxury car took off. A closer look revealed that it was actually that young girl who¡¯d brought Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin to the private room earlier on. She nced in the direction that the group had left in and hailed a cab.

    "Sorry to trouble you, sir. Bar Number Eight, please," The young girl informed the driver of her destination as she sat down.

    She had overheard Shen Jingchen loudly mentioning Bar Number Eight not too long ago.

    As the cab slowly took off, she turned her around and watched as Blooming Flower Pavilion slowly disappeared from her sight, a trace of contempt twinkling in her eyes.

    That slut Chenyi actually had delusions of chasing after Zhao Chengning. Can¡¯t she see herself for the trash that she is? Why would Zhao Chengning be interested in her?

    She removed a small mirror from her bag and examined her reflection.

    Although she wasn¡¯t an absolute beauty, she won out in terms of her youthfulness and she was filled to the brim with cogen. All those rich second generation youngsters had already gotten sick of seeing all sorts of beauties. Youthful and energetic girls like her were the in thing now.

    Just then, the image of the woman who apanied Zhao Chengning floated into her thoughts. She mmed the mirror shut with a bang.

    Nothing would stop her.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 65

    <strong>Chapter 65: A Farce (1) </strong>

    Bar Number 8 was a very famous bar in B City. All of its patrons were wealthy and respectable individuals.

    The bar¡¯s proprietor was one of Zhao Chengning¡¯s close childhood friends. Taking into consideration that it was Shen Jingbin¡¯s first time seeing B City¡¯s nightlife, he decided to give his friend a call in advance, getting him to set aside slightly better seats for them.

    When they exited the car at the pub, Zhao Chengning¡¯s shoulders were grabbed, and then embraced, by a man with mutton chop sideburns1. "Ah Ning, what¡¯ve you been so busy withtely? Ah Qi has beenining about you for quite a while, saying that it¡¯s almost impossible to meetup with youtely."

    Zhao Chengning hugged him in return and said, "I¡¯ve been a little busy at work these days, so I didn¡¯t have much time," He then released the man from his grip and took a step away from him. "Let me introduce you, this is a friend I got to know in A City, Shen Jingchen. Beside him is his younger sister, Shen Jingbin... Enough with the strange looks, it¡¯s not the nut job that you¡¯re thinking of."

    The man with the mutton chop sideburns scratched his head in embarrassment. "Sorry about that lil sis, I wasn¡¯t trying to make fun of your name."

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "It¡¯s alright, that was a very normal reaction."

    Zhao Chengning continued. "These two arrived in B City today and wanted to expand their horizons by seeing B City¡¯s nightlife, so I decided to bring them over to your ce."

    The man with the mutton chop sideburns gave a heartyugh and walked up to Shen Jingbin with the intention of patting her on the shoulder. After realizing that it was inappropriate, he switched targets and pped Shen Jingchen¡¯s shoulder instead.

    "You made the right decision in choosing to visit my ce! Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go! Ah Ning¡¯s friends are my friends. Tonight¡¯s my treat!"

    Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t stand on ceremony either as the two of them walked into the bar with their arms around each other¡¯s shoulders. Xuya, who¡¯d just returned from parking the car, shouted for them to wait up, and then the three of them walked in as a group.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but sigh. "The ¡¯bromance¡¯ between you men is truly mysterious."

    Standing beside her, Zhao Chengning revealed a gentle smile upon hearing what she said. "Friendships between you women are the ones that are truly mystifying."

    As the two of them walked shoulder to shoulder into the bar, Shen Jingbin asked, "Second Young Master, all of your friends seem to be the very upright sort."

    Zhao Chengning nodded. "Most of my friends are like that. I¡¯m probably just lucky."

    "I wish I had such upright friends too, instead of ones like Shen Jingchen who go around trolling others."

    Zhao Chengning paused for a moment before he said in a neutral tone, "My friends are your friends."

    Shen Jingbin was stunned, and she reflexively raised her head towards him.

    With Zhao Chengning¡¯s ink ck eyes trained on her, she could see that they were filled with delight.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt her face grow hot. "Cough, mm...thank you."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s lips moved a little, appearing as if he¡¯d said something.

    The duo were immediately assaulted by the heavy beat of music when they stepped into the bar. The music itself drowning out Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice. Shen Jingbin looked up and raised her voice, "What did you say just now? I couldn¡¯t quite catch it."

    The slight smile that tugged at the corners of Zhao Chengning¡¯s lips grew more pronounced. He lowered his head and brought it closer to her ear.

    His deep, manly voice resonated in her ear, whilst his warm, moist breath caressed her outer ear. "I said, don¡¯t mention it."

    What the f*ck!

    "Ding", a sound rang out. Suddenly, these were words were the only things left in her head.

    The two of them walked towards the seats that the man with mutton chop sideburns had reserved for them. Shen Jingchen¡¯s group were seated and had already started drinking. Shen Jingbin wordlessly grabbed a bottle of fruit juice on the table and sat on the sofa that was closest to the window.

    They were seated on the second floor, which consisted of ss and curtains that helped to eke out small personal spaces for patrons. To the left was the corridor, while to the right was a ss railing that was slightly higher than their table. Sitting on the sofa, they could see people gyrating on the dance floor below, as well as people by the bar hunting for dates.

    Noticing someone sit beside her, Shen Jingbin looked over and was greeted by Zhao Chengning¡¯s immacte face.

    He stretched out his hand and tore away her fruit juice, recing it with a bottle of beer. "Try this, it¡¯s much better than fruit juice."

    Shen Jingbin cast a nce at the trio sitting opposite her who were having a hell of a time ying their drinking games. Lifting the alcohol to her lips, she took a small sip.

    Mm, it really was pretty good.

    It might have been her imagination, but she felt as if a seal on Zhao Chengning had been removed when night fell, turning him into apletely different person.

    A person that was particrly alluring.

    He was also felt particrly...dangerous.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but shift to the side a little.

    Zhao Chengning, having taken notice of her minute movements, suddenly felt the urge to mess around, inching towards her as she tried to move away.

    Shen Jingbin wormed away once again...

    While Zhao Chengning continued to slide towards her.

    ...

    When Shen Jingbin was practically squished against the railing, Zhao Chengning shed a smile at her and asked, "Shall we continue?"

    Realizing her actions had been seen through, Shen Jingbin stretched out her hand and shoved him away in humiliation, before saying, "Move over a little, you¡¯re crushing me."

    Although she didn¡¯t use much strength, Zhao Chengning allowed himself to be carried along by the force of her push and shifted back a little. He then asked, "Are you trying to avoid me?"

    Shen Jingbin looked him in the eye and replied, "No."

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Looks like this: Link?

 Chapter 66

    <strong>Chapter 66: A Farce (2) </strong>

    Zhao Chengning knew he couldn¡¯t be too hasty, so he restrained himself a little.

    He decided to stop teasing Shen Jingbin and joined in on the other group¡¯s drinking games.

    Shen Jingbin looked at the ss beneath her and absentmindedly observed the people on the first floor. As she did, she suddenly noticed someone who looked familiar.

    She stood up and look over again, but the person was nowhere to be found.

    Shen Jingbin so shook up by this turn of events that she didn¡¯t even notice that the four other men were suddenly looking in her direction.

    "What¡¯s wrong?" Zhao Chengning asked.

    "What¡¯s gotten you so flustered, Little Jingjing?" Shen Jingchen asked as well.

    Shen Jingbin shook her head and said, "It¡¯s nothing. It must¡¯ve been my imagination... What game are you guys ying?"

    She very cleverly tried to divert their attention and change the subject.

    Sure enough, Shen Jingchen was the first to fall for her act. He immediately pulled her over and started exining the game that they were ying to her.

    Intelligent people learned everything quickly. After listening to a part of the exnation, Shen Jingbin indicated she¡¯d understood the rules and decisively entered the fray.

    Her participation caused the passions¡¯ of Xuya and the man with the mutton chop sideburns to burn especially hot.

    While the group was enjoying their game, their curtain was suddenly pulled apart and they heard a pleasantly surprised voice. "Excuse me everyone. Sorry to bother you, but if you¡¯re interested, please have a look at our... Second Young Master!"

    They looked in the direction of the voice and found that it belonged to a young girl wearing a miniskirt and a blouse that revealed her navel. She stood at the entrance of their cubby hole, astonishment colouring her face as she looked at them.

    So, it really wasn¡¯t her imagination running wild.

    Closer inspection of the girl¡¯s appearance confirmed that it wasn¡¯t Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes ying tricks on her.

    She was the young girl from Blooming Flower Pavilion who led them to their table.

    Zhao Chengning looked at the girl who suddenly appeared. The ambition in her eyes was something that he was all too familiar with. A wave of disgust rose from within him as he said, "Why are you here?"

    Zhang Beiyu coyly tugged at the back of her miniskirt and covered it before saying, "I...I...I work here part-time. I didn¡¯t expect to see Second Young Master here as well..."

    All of the men in their group had extensive experience with these things. Even if Shen Jingchen was dense, such events weremonce for him as well, so all of them instantly understood what was going on.

    The man with mutton chop sideburns set down his bottle of alcohol and leaned into the sofa. The atmosphere about him turning cold as he asked, "Little girl, are you old enough to work here?"

    Zhang Beiyu took a step forward and walked into the room. "I¡¯m old enough. I¡¯m already twenty years old!"

    Having her age called into question seemed to have caused her to panic as her charming face was flushed red, making her look especially cute.

    Xuya sneered. "Oh? So you¡¯re the same age as me. Would you like to have a drink with me, pretty miss?" As he said that, he lifted up a ss of alcohol and walked towards her.

    Zhang Beiyu wore a look of horror as she immediately reeled back towards Zhao Chengning.

    Shen Jingchen, who at some point had moved over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side, used his leg to nudge against her own, hinting at her to make some space and move over. He then plopped down beside her and wore an amused look on his face. He turned to Shen Jingbin and said, "Tut, tut, tut, she¡¯s throwing herself into his arms."

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him but didn¡¯t say anything. The only thing she cared about right now was seeing what this girl who appeared out of the blue would do next.

    She¡¯d always been curious about these things.

    Even though their parents¡¯ intimacy was the stuff of legends, there were still some self-assured women who, flying the g of true love, attempted to snatch away the queen of the household¡¯s man. Although the oue was always a given, Shen Jingbin had developed an intense interest in these women.

    What exactly made them think that their love was "one true love"?

    How did this bizarre train of thoughte about?

    Zhang Beiyu stopped in her tracks when she was just two steps away from Zhao Chengning. She found herself unable to move an inch from where she stood.

    Zhao Chengning eyed her coldly as he sat on the sofa. His chilling gaze sending an uncontroble shiver down her spine. That look of his made her feel as if all her thoughts wereid bare to him.

    "Second...Second Young Master..." Zhang Beiyu stammered. This waspletely different from what she¡¯d expected!

    After ring at her for a few more seconds, Zhao Chengning slowly said, "Get out."

    Unwilling to leave just like that, she clenched the sides of her skirt and sputtered out, "Second Young Master...I..."

    The man with the mutton chop sideburns didn¡¯t seem to have Zhao Chengning¡¯s level of patience. He stood, walked over to the curtains, and said to the waiter outside, "Call the Manager over."

    As it was an order from their Boss, the waiter who happened to pass by practically flew downstairs to retrieve the Manager.

    "What¡¯s wrong Brother Luo?" The Manager of the bar was aical fatty. Upon hearing that his Boss was looking for him, he immediately came running over, his broad forehead coated in sweat.

    The man with the mutton chop sideburns pointed at Zhang Beiyu, who was standing in the midst of them with a look of bewilderment on her face and said, "When did this girl start working here? Do you really have the gall to use someone as brainless as her?!"

    The Manager raised his head and nced at the girl, before he turned to look at Zhao Chengning who was sitting on the sofa with an icy look on his face. He immediately understood what was going on and his forehead was once again covered in sweat. "She¡¯s new, Brother Luo. She said that she wanted to moonlight here by selling alcohol. Since she looked quite pretty and we haven¡¯t been seeing much customerstely, I thought of asking her to try out for a bit... I never expected her to cause amotion for you and Second Young Master."

    "Haven¡¯t I told you before who we should and shouldn¡¯t be taking in here?"

    "You...you have."

    "Your wage for this month will be halved. Go back and think about where you¡¯ve gone wrong."

    "Al-alright, Brother Luo."

    "Don¡¯t just stand there, get her out of here!" The man with mutton chop sideburns roared.

    All of the fat on the Manager¡¯s body trembled as he hurriedly walked in, and grabbing Zhang Beiyu with his hand, her dragged her out of the room.

    Ever since the man with mutton chop sideburns told the waiter to look for the Manager, Zhang Beiyu had been standing there in a daze. She knew she¡¯d made a grave miscalction today.

    However, it was toote for regrets.

    In the end, she turned back and looked at the woman beside Zhao Chengning.

    She just continued to leisurely sit on the couch, her eyes tranquil as she indifferently looked back at Zhang Beiyu.

    It was as if she was watching a farce.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 67

    <strong>Chapter 67: What Kind Of Things Are You Into? (1)</strong>

    Due to Zhang Beiyu¡¯s disturbance, the rest of them no longer had any interest in continuing with their revelry, so they prepared to head home.

    Xuya sent Zhao Chengning back home after dropping the Shen siblings off at their hotel.

    Old Master Zhao was already sitting in the living room when Zhao Chengning reached home. What was surprising though was that even his parents were present.

    Just like xxx, Zhao Chengning¡¯s parents were rarely at home. This was possibly one of the woes of being rich.

    "You¡¯re back already? Why¡¯re you back so early? You didn¡¯t even mention when you¡¯d be back."

    Zhao Chengning paused in the midst of changing to his indoor footwear, feeling a little helpless. He always had to put up with his Grandfather¡¯s nagging whenever he missed out on dinner because he had to work overtime ande home a littleter.

    Was this the so called difference in treatment?

    "Granddad, the Shen siblings were feeling tired after sitting on the ne for the entire day."

    "True, true. In that case, pick them up a little earlier tomorrow. We¡¯ll have dinner together when you¡¯re back in the evening."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s Father was very curious about the Shen siblings his Grandfather spoke of. "Chengning, why¡¯d theye over to B City?"

    Zhao Chengning walked over to the sofa and sat down before replying. "Shen Jingchen got past the qualifiers for B University¡¯s calctor programmingpetition."

    B University was one of the nation¡¯s most prestigious universities. And, calctor programming was B University¡¯s strongest selling point.

    "Not bad."

    Old Master Zhao acted as if he were showing off a valuable piece of treasure and said, "It¡¯s better than ¡¯not bad¡¯. That brat from the Shen family studies finance. Everything that he¡¯s achieved thus far in programming has all been self-taught."

    "Then what about the girl from the Shen family?" Zhao Chengning¡¯s Father enquired.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother interjected without giving him the chance to reply. "That¡¯s enough. Things haven¡¯t even begun to take shape yet. How do all of you know whether the Shen family is willing to hand over their daughter to us? In my opinion, Cishu is more suitable for him."

    Cishu was the daughter of the Jian family, whom the Zhao family had been friends with for a long time and was also Zhao Chengning¡¯s junior. The Jian family had long since expressed their intention to tie the two families together by marriage, but Old Master Zhao and Zhao Chengning¡¯s Father weren¡¯t willing to ede to their request, so the matter was dropped.

    However, both families still had dealings with one another, and so even though Jian Cishu had a rather introverted personality, Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother had interacted with her a few times and felt that she was a pretty good person. On top of that, she took greater notice of Jian Cishu after seeing how devoted she was towards her son.

    Compared to Shen Jingbin who she¡¯d never met before, Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother would obviously be biased towards the girl she had a favorable impression of.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s face grew cold when he heard his Mother bring up Jian Cishu and said, "Granddad, Father, Mother, I¡¯m very tired today. I¡¯ll be going up to rest first, good night."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s Father red at his wife as he watched his son walk upstairs.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother indignantly hissed, "What? I really do think that Cishu is a pretty good catch."

    Shen Jingcheng¡¯spetition was on the 25th in B University. The next day, Zhao Chengning drove the siblings over to B University.

    In Shen Jingchen¡¯s words, this was called "walking the grounds".

    B University was a century old famous school. It had a nice, studious atmosphere about it. Once a person stepped past the school gates, their senses would be assaulted by the school¡¯s vast history and culture, which caused them to feel a deep veneration for it.

    Although A University¡¯s fame was on par with B University¡¯s these days, A University was an up anding school that modeled itself after Western teaching methods. However, it ced even more of an emphasis on the development of each individual student¡¯s personality and scientific learning. In addition, A University had a more modern construction style, giving it a totally different feel from B University.

    Thepetition was held at B University¡¯s Science and Technology Building. Shen Jingchen knew that his had sister had no interest in such things, so he allowed Zhao Chengning to bring her around for a stroll while he went to take a look at the Science and Technology Building.

    B University¡¯s campus was smaller than its counterpart, which made the number of students in the school seem more numerous. And just like that, Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin, both of whom could be considered top tier in terms of their looks, had immediately be the center of attention.

    Thankfully, B University¡¯s students were very introverted and were content with observing them from a distance instead of charging right at the duo.

    Thus, the two of them continued on with their stroll till they reached a basketball court.

    There was a saying that went: The most handsome guy in a university would either appear in the library, theboratory, or the basketball court.

    To women, guys who immersed themselves in whatever they were doing had a certain inexplicable allure.

    B City¡¯s weather was a little hotter than its counterpart, so even though it was only autumn, the basketball court bleachers had many girls that were lightly dressed.

    The two of them found a rtively empty spot on the bleachers and sat down.

    When Shen Jingbin still resided in the school dorms, she¡¯d always be dragged off by her roommates or ssmates to watch basketballpetitions. Reason being that the guys in their department would put all of their effort into winning if she was there.

    As time went on, she¡¯d developed no small amount of interest in basketball.

    After all, most things would always be interesting after you understood how they worked.

    Upon seeing her gaze fixedly at the people ying basketball on the court, Zhao Chengning asked, "Do you like watching basketball?"

    Time dragged on as they sat close to one another. Just the slightest movement and their hands would touch.

    She didn¡¯t know why she was afraid of looking over, but she could only continue staring at the basketball court. "Mm," she replied.

    Shen Jingbin heard him chuckle, and that sexy snort of his buried itself in her ear. "In that case, would you like to see me y?"

    In that instant, she turned to face him and was greeted by a faint smile. His eyes seemed to be filled with stars and twinkled with an unknown light. "You even know how to y basketball?" she asked.

    "I¡¯m not that good, but I can y a little."

    She turned back to the basketball court that was filled with raging testosterone and thick sweat. Feeling a little conflicted, she said, "We¡¯d better not. They¡¯re a little too... energetic."

    The meaning behind her words was: Uncle, you¡¯re a little too old to be joining in on the fun.

    Zhao Chengning was taken aback. At first he didn¡¯t really mind whether he yed or not, but now he definitely had to join in. "It¡¯s fine. Help me look after my clothes."

    She thought he was too old! He definitely wouldn¡¯t stand for this!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 68

    <strong>Chapter 68: What Kind Of Things Are You Into? (2) </strong>

    Zhao Chengning wore a short-sleeved shirt coupled with a jacket on top of it. He matched his attire with a pair of khaki coloured casual pants. Without his jacket on, Zhao Chengning suddenly looked several years younger.

    Shen Jingbin thought to herself, "Was it something I said?"

    The ones ying on the basketball court had long since noticed Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin¡¯s presence on the bleachers. Ahhhh no, they had long since noticed Shen Jingbin. After all, she was unbelievably beautiful, you¡¯d have to be blind not to notice her.

    They stopped what they were doing, watching as the man started walking over to them after saying something to the girl.

    He was obviously trying to show off in front of the girl! Brothers, we can¡¯t let him do as he pleases!

    Zhao Chengning spread his hands in front of them and said, "Let¡¯s have a match."

    The man holding the basketball eyed him up. "Sure."

    There were originally five men on the basketball court. They numbered six now with the inclusion of Zhao Chengning. Splitting themselves into groups of three, they decided to y a half-court match.

    Shen Jingbin only realised how modest Zhao Chengning was being when he said he know how to y "a little" after the match started. How was that "a little"?! She seriously suspected that he was on a basketball team in the past!

    Zhao Chengning was a fair bit taller than the other yers. This, coupled with his outstanding personality, meant that his shots and passes were exceptionally elegant. It didn¡¯t take long before a crowd of spectators had formed at the basketball court they were at.

    "Hello beau...beaut...beautiful girl, is the person ying basketball on the court your friend?" A round faced girl carefully approached Shen Jingbin and asked. She then sat down beside her and continued to enquire, "Which department are you guys from? Why haven¡¯t I seen you guys before?"

    Shen Jingbin nced at her, causing the girl¡¯s face to suddenly redden.

    What the f*ck! She¡¯s too beautiful!

    "We¡¯re not students from B University."

    The round faced girl stammered out another question, "The-then... could you tell me which school you guys are from?"

    Probably because she found the girl¡¯s flushed face cute, Shen Jingbin turned to her and smiled. "I¡¯m from A University."

    A roar broke out in her mind, and the girl¡¯s face instantly turned as red as a tomato. She abruptly stood up, her body swaying as she did, and issued a squeal before she covered her face and sprinted off towards her close friend.

    The beauty smiled! The beauty smiled! The beauty smiled! Ahhhh, how can such a gorgeous looking person exist!

    Even she as a girl was feeling embarrassed!

    Shen Jingbin found the round faced girl¡¯s swaying silhouette as she ran away particrly amusing. She¡¯d definitely ask her for her name if she ever ran into her again.

    Suddenly, a cry of surprise could be heard from the surrounding crowd.

    Shifting her gaze back to the basketball court, she found that the cause of it was Zhao Chengningnding a three pointer.

    Due to the physical exertion, a thinyer of sweat had formed on his face. Afternding his shot, Zhao Chengning stopped and wiped the sweat off his brows. The sight of him doing so was incredibly alluring, to the point where Shen Jingbin heard several girls beside her taking in deep breaths.

    He then nced in her direction and shed her a cheshire smile.

    Zhao Chengning had already been born with excellent looks. That, coupled with the expression that he now wore, was so stimting that she could almost hear the thumping of her own heart.

    This was why handsome guys picking up girls was such a terrifying thing.

    Shen Jingbin saw Zhao Chengning saying something to the group of guys, before he then jogged back to where she was.

    Grabbing his jacket and standing up, Shen Jingbin asked, "Not ying anymore?"

    Zhao Chengning took his jacket from her and wore a smile filled with profound meaning as he replied, "I¡¯m too old, I can¡¯tpare to the vigor of those young¡¯uns."

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    "The two of you please wait! Here¡¯s a drink for you!" The round faced girl that ran off from before managed to pull out two bottles of Pulse1 from somewhere and came running back with them before shoving them into their hands.

    Both of them were stunned into silence. Zhao Chengning was the first to react, he turned to the girl and nodded. "Thanks."

    After giving his thanks, he twisted open the bottle and drank a mouthful. The remaining sweat on his chin slid down his neck and made its way over his undting adam¡¯s apple, before it came into contact with his cor and extinguished itself.

    "Gulp", Shen Jingbin thought she heard the sound of saliva being swallowed. She swiftly turned her head to the side and looked at the girl. "Little sis, your name is..."

    Before she even had the chance to finish, the girl¡¯s entire body trembled and she spoke, "What¡¯s that? Mm... feel free toe back to B City more often! I¡¯ll take my leave first! We¡¯ll meet again one day if we¡¯re fated!" With that, the girl sprinted away once more.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry as she saw the round faced girl¡¯s silhouette disappear like a wisp of smoke. She felt iparably depressed as she thought in her heart, "Don¡¯t run away so quickly lil sis! I still haven¡¯t asked you for your name!"

    Zhao Chengning brought his drink down and cocked his head to the side in bewilderment as he asked, "Am I really that terrifying? Why¡¯d she run away so quickly?"

    Shen Jingbin fished out a packet of tissue from her bag. She opened it up and handed him a piece, before she pondered for a moment and replied, "It¡¯s probably because you¡¯re too handsome, and it just so happens that she has a thing for guys like you, so she was feeling embarrassed."

    Zhao Chengning took the tissue from her and wiped the sweat from his face and neck. He then looked at her, his expression unfathomable as he said, "Then what about you? Are you into guys like me?"

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    A brand of sports drink. Here¡¯s how it looks like: http://danonewaters/static/images/images/cpmd_1.png ?

 Chapter 69

    <strong>Chapter 69: A Knight In Shining Armor (1)</strong>

    Shen Jingchen noticed that his sister¡¯s face was exceptionally red when he bumped into her at the school gate. He eyed her suspiciously before he lightly pushed Zhao Chengning and asked, "What happened to my sister? Why¡¯s her face so red?"

    Zhao Chengning nced yfully at Shen Jingbin¡¯s flushed cheeks and said, "I don¡¯t know either."

    Shen Jingchen noticed that little nce of his and immediately understood what was going on. He broke out into a radiant smile and hooked his arm over Shen Jingbin¡¯s neck. "Hey, sis! Are you feeling embarrassed? What did Ah Ning do to make you feel so embarrassed? Come on, tell your big bro!"

    Shen Jingbin felt disgusted by how ecstatic he sounded at the end. She grabbed ahold of his arm that was draped over her neck, and threw him over her shoulder.

    "What the f*ck..." Shen Jingchen only had enough time to scream out in rm, before hended on the ground with a bang. "Shen Jingbin, are you trying to kill me?! What the f*ck, my waist..."

    Shen Jingbin crossed her arms over her chest and turned her head to the side. "Chatterboxes won¡¯t live beyond the first episode. You should be hanged for having lived till now."

    Shen Jingchen kneaded his waist as he stood up. Gritting his teeth, he nced at Zhao Chengning who was clearly enjoying the show and said, "Ah Ning, you better take a good look for yourself. This girl is a barbarian! You¡¯ll be the one on the receiving end of this if you marry her in the future!"

    "Shen Jingchen, are you really looking for a beating?!"

    "Hey, hey, hey. Calm down for a moment. You guys are still at the school gate," Zhao Chengning hurriedly interjected upon seeing the looks of astonishment the students who passed by were giving them. He had no intention of bing the top story in his school¡¯s forum.

    However, what he didn¡¯t know was that they¡¯d already made the headlines of the school¡¯s forum.

    Zhao Chengning hadn¡¯t parked his car in B University, instead, he¡¯d left it in the underground carpark of the office next door. Since they still had plenty of time left on their hands after they¡¯d left the school and they didn¡¯t know what to do, they decided that they might as well head on over to Starbucks for a cup of coffee while they mulled over what they should have for lunch.

    After ordering their coffee at the counter, Shen Jingchen stayed behind to collect their drinks while Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning looked for a ce to sit. It might have been through sheer luck or some other urrence, but they managed to get a seat by the window.

    As it was between peak hours, there currently wasn¡¯t many people in Starbucks, so Shen Jingchen soon arrived with their coffee.

    The trio drank their coffee and started to idly chat, which consisted mostly of Shen Jingchen asking questions and Zhao Chengning answering them, with Shen Jingbin silently listening at the side.

    Zhao Chengning sat opposite Shen Jingbin, while Shen Jingchen sat next to her. Out of respect, Zhao Chengning would look at Shen Jingchen when he spoke to him. However, she had this feeling that he wasn¡¯t looking at Shen Jingchen, but rather he was looking at her.

    Why did she suddenly feel sorry for Shen Jingchen?

    When they were just about done with their coffee, a group of youngsters suddenly walked through the door. Amongst them was a slightly older looking woman. Her eyes immediately lit up after she swept a nce in their direction.

    "Zhao Chengning!" After saying a few words to herpanions, the woman rushed over to them.

    The trio simultaneously raised their heads and looked over when they heard a woman¡¯s voice.

    The Shen siblings were sitting with their backs against the entrance. The woman only knew that there were two other people present, but she didn¡¯t know what they looked like. When she drew closer and was able to make out their appearances, her legs turned to jelly, causing her to nearly fall down in the process.

    Using his quick reflexes, Shen Jingchen stretched out his hand and caught her. After steadying herself, the woman thanked him for his help.

    "Why¡¯re you here?" The woman stood in front of their table and asked. "I heard from Xuya that you¡¯ve recently hooked up with a hot chick? Hey, hey, hey! Aren¡¯t you a little too selfish? You didn¡¯t even let us take a look at the beauty after getting your hands on her. Answer me this first, is this beauty Xuya mentioned as beautiful as that girl over there?"

    The three of them were stunned into silence when they heard what she said.

    The Shen siblings turned to face Zhao Chengning as one and stared at him.

    Is this girl your friend? She¡¯s an idiot!

    If I could, I¡¯d act as if I didn¡¯t know her.

    Zhao Chengning ced his hand on his forehead and looked helplessly at that woman. He then introduced the two siblings to her, "This is Jiang Weiwei."

    From the looks of it, Jiang Weiwei was a straightforward woman who spoke her mind. She immediately smiled and greeted the duo, "Hello. Eh, are you two siblings or a couple...? You ought to be siblings, right? You guys look rather simr... Hey, Zhao Chengning, you still haven¡¯t told me about that beauty!"

    "She¡¯s standing right in front of you," Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t harbour much hope when it came to Jiang Weiwei¡¯s IQ and EQ.

    Jiang Weiwei¡¯s face froze for a second, but she immediately recovered and said, "And that¡¯s why I noticed you as soon as I walked over. You¡¯re really beautiful!"

    This was the first time that someone had openly praised Shen Jingbin for being good-looking in her presence. She momentarily felt embarrassed and stuttered out, "T-thank you."

    Zhao Chengning looked like he couldn¡¯t be bothered with her, and waved his hand in an attempt to chase her off. "All your ssmates are waiting for you. Hurry on back to your group."

    Jiang Weiwei plopped herself down beside him, refusing to leave. "Why¡¯re you chasing me away? I haven¡¯t even gotten the chance to speak much with this beautiful girl yet. Hey, Zhao Chengning! Aren¡¯t you being a little too petty as well? This beauty doesn¡¯t belong to you, so why¡¯re you trying to chase me off!"

    Zhao Chengning, what sin have youmited for you to meet this harbinger of bad luck?

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 Chapter 70

    <strong>Chapter 70: A Knight In Shining Armor (2)</strong>

    Due to the inclusion of the chatterbox Jiang Weiwei, conversation within the group suddenly became very lively. During this time, Jiang Weiwei¡¯s ssmates came looking for her, but the woman turned out to have the same morals. She refused to move an inch afterying eyes on the beauty that was Shen Jingbin, and insisted ontching onto their group no matter what. Thus, she decisively abandoned her friends for the sake of staying with Shen Jingbin.

    In the end, the group of three turned into a group of four when they walked out of Starbucks.

    After they left, Zhao Chengning went by himself to get the car, leaving the three of them by the roadside as they waited for him.

    Shen Jingchen and Jiang Weiwei stood in front of Shen Jingbin almost unconsciously. Shen Jingbin did a double take when she saw this. Shen Jingchen being protective of his little sister was normal, but why would Jiang Weiwei do such a thing?

    Jiang Weiwei felt Shen Jingchen¡¯s gaze on her and smiled, but didn¡¯t say a word.

    Beauties should naturally be protected.

    Shen Jingbin nced at the both of them and looked down. She was about to say something when a scooter nearby caught her eye.

    Since this was within the university, there weren¡¯t many vehicles on the road. As a result, the scooter behind them was particrly conspicuous. The two leaning on the scooter appeared to be youths that weren¡¯t even over twenty. Their hair was dyed in multitudes of colors and they were totally dressed like a bunch of hooligans.

    The two youths immediately straddled their scooter when they saw that Shen Jingbin had taken notice of them.

    A sense of foreboding suddenly arose within Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart.

    "Weiwei, do you want to exchange ces and stand a little further in? There¡¯s..."

    Before she had the chance to finish, the trio heard a rumble and felt a gust of wind whoosh by their ears. A blurry shadow flit past them, and a secondter, they found that Jiang Weiwei, who was the closest to the road, had lost the bag on her shoulder.

    Jiang Weiwei was carrying a sling bag today. With it dangling loosely on her shoulder, the snatch thieves were able to easily pull it off her as they rode past.

    In general, the security within the campus was pretty good, so no one would¡¯ve expected there to be snatch thieves.

    By the time she came to her senses, a distance of several meters had opened up between them.

    Jiang Weiwei immediately shrieked, "Ah! Thieves!"

    Since she she¡¯d seen iting, Shen Jingbin was able to respond at the first possible moment. Without a second thought, she aimed the clutch bag in her hand at the young pillion rider, and threw it.

    Years of practicing martial arts had given Shen Jingbin much more strength than what she appeared to have, and the force of her attack immediately knocked the pillion rider off the scooter the moment it hit him.

    "F**K!" Upon seeing hisrade¡¯s plight, the rider immediately swerved the scooter, intent on rescuing him.

    However, Shen Jingbin had used this opportunity to dart over to their side. Without a second thought, she bent her knee and sent it flying towards the pillion rider who was struggling to get up.

    His chin had just so happened to knock into Shen Jingbin¡¯s knee when she let loose her attack, and he suddenly felt a wave of acute pain assault him. It felt as though his entire chin was shattered and everything before him turned ck. As he slipped out of consciousness, his body fell to the ground once more, no longer able to move.

    Meanwhile, his other aplice had drawn closer to her. Shen Jingbin reacted extremely quickly and retreating a step backwards, she raised her leg and kicked him off the scooter with a roundhouse kick.

    The scooter fell a few metres away due to inertia, and the youth fell heavily onto the ground. The force of Shen Jingbin¡¯s attack sent him rolling a little further away before hey there groaning in pain.

    "What¡¯re you standing around for? Call the cops!" Everything had happened so quickly that Shen Jingchen and Jiang Weiwei were left in a daze. They stood gaping at her as shepleted a series of movements that wereparable to those seen in an action movie.

    Shen Jingchen was the first to recover his senses. He hurriedly took out his phone and dialled the police. Jiang Weiwei also came to her senses shortly after. She ran to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and saw that the two snatch thievesy prone on the ground, groaning in pain. She blurted out, "What the f*ck, Gorgeous aren¡¯t you a little too brave?! It looked just like a movie!"

    Shen Jingbin bent down and retrieved Jiang Weiwei¡¯s stolen bag from the thief¡¯s hands. Returning it to the owner, she said, "I wanted to warn you just now, but I wasn¡¯t able to do so in time."

    Jiang Weiwei took her bag and caressed it with her hands, still feeling perturbed over what had happened. "Oh, my darling. Sniff sniff... Good thing I had you around today, Gorgeous, otherwise I¡¯d already have broken down in tears. This is the newest Louis Vuitton bag that I¡¯ve had to scrimp and save for for a week just so I could buy it."

    When Zhao Chengning drove over, the first thing that caught his eye was the devastation that was wrought. He immediately stopped by the road side and walked over to Shen Jingbin.

    After casting a nce at the two youths on the ground, he looked her up and down in a slightly worried manner and asked, "Are you alright?"

    He only managed to calm himself down after seeing Shen Jingbin nod her head in affirmation. He then turned to looked at Jiang Weiwei who was sping her bag in both hands. He furrowed his brows and asked, "What happened?"

    Jiang Weiwei immediately wailed and cried out, "F*ck, my beautiful self was almost scared to death! You didn¡¯t see it, but these two suddenly popped up out of nowhere and ran off with my bag! Luckily for me, I had Gorgeous around to help. She charged straight at them without a second thought and then... ¡¯pa! pa! pa!¡¯ she sent them flying in just a few hits," Jiang Weiwei threw herself at Shen Jingbin once again and said, "Gorgeous you¡¯re so awesome! Where¡¯d you learn those moves of yours from? Take me as your disciple!"

    Shen Jingbin looked at Zhao Chengning, feeling a little unsure of what to do.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s brows furrowed even more. He pushed Jiang Weiwei aside and said, "Go y somewhere else."

    At this moment, Shen Jingchen came running over and said, "I¡¯ve called the cops. They¡¯ll be here soon," He shifted his gaze downwards to the snatch thieves lying on the ground and continued, "We can¡¯t just leave them lying here like this. Do we have a rope or something? We need to tie them up."

    Zhao Chengning surveyed his surroundings and spotted a convenience store. He looked to Jiang Weiwei and said, "Go to that convenience store and ask if they have anything we can use to tie people up."

    Jiang Weiwei obeyed hismand and ran over to the convenience store.

    Jiang Weiwei¡¯s cry of rm had caused many of the passersby, including those who were drinking coffee in the vicinity, to look over. They had personally witnessed the scene of "a beauty punishing the bandits". A man dressed as a Starbucks employee raised his voice and said to them, "Our store has ropes!"

    Shen Jingchen looked at that man and said, "That¡¯ll do. I¡¯ll follow you and get it, thanks!"

    While walking to Starbucks, the man heard what Shen Jingchen said and scratched his head in embarrassment. "It¡¯s alright. That girl in your group is really amazing, she¡¯s a true talent!"

    "Hahaha, it¡¯s nothing, it¡¯s nothing. She only practices some martial arts."

    After Shen Jingchen left, Zhao Chengning shifted his gaze back to the person in front of him and said, "You were too hasty. Did you imagine what might have happened if you¡¯d gotten injured?"

    Shen Jingbin said, "I knew I wouldn¡¯t get injured, that¡¯s why I attacked."

    "Don¡¯t be so hasty in the future. There¡¯s only one of you in the world and this sort of thing is too dangerous."

    Shen Jingbin was about to retort, but swallowed her words when she nced at the cold expression on his face.

    "Okay."

    What the f*ck!? Why¡¯d she suddenly be so terrified of him?!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

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 Chapter 71

    <strong>Important Note: Silky Moon¡¯s name was a mistrantion on my part. Sorry! >< Click if you haven¡¯t read the release post yet. Details inside!</strong>

    <strong>Chapter 71: Life¡¯s Twists And Turns (1)</strong>

    B City¡¯s police were a lot more efficient than Shen Jingbin had thought.

    After the two snatch thieves were tied up, it took less than ten minutes before the police appeared in front of the crowd.

    As they were involved in the incident, Shen Jingbin¡¯s group of four were requested to provide their ount of what had happened at the police station.

    The officer assigned to Shen Jingbin was a beautiful policewoman. After inspecting the footage from the street cameras, the policewoman had this constant twinkle in her eyes whenever she looked at Shen Jingbin.

    Zhao Chengning and co were already waiting for her in the police station¡¯s lounge by the time she¡¯d finished giving her ount of the incident. The policewoman sent them to the door and patted Shen Jingbin on the shoulder while saying, "You¡¯ve got a bright future ahead of you, young girl! You can look for me if you ever feel like bing a police officer in the future!"

    Shen Jingbin silently thought to herself about how her Grandma and Grandpa would cry tears of sorrow if she ever decided to be a police officer.

    It was close to one in the afternoon when they stepped out of the police station and they were all famished.

    "Why not have a meal at one of the restaurants in my family¡¯s hotel? Think of it as my way of saying thanks for all the help the beautiful Miss Shen has given me!" Jiang Weiwei proposed.

    Jiang Weiwei¡¯s family was in the hotel industry, and a quite a number of B City¡¯s high-end hotels were owned by them.

    They had nothing in mind anyway, so the four of them came to a decision and made their way towards one of the hotels that Jiang Weiwei¡¯s family ran.

    After selecting the closest hotel to where they were staying, Zhao Chengning drove them over.

    As they approached the hotel¡¯s entrance, Shen Jingchen caught sight of several enormous notice boards beside it. He turned around to Jiang Weiwei, who was sitting in the back seat, and asked, "What kind of event is going on?"

    Jiang Weiwei had a look of bewilderment on her face. "Event? What event? Who¡¯s holding an event?"

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    The group of four finally managed to make out the contents of the notice boards when their car drew closer.

    It turned it to be a notice board for <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>.

    "Eh? Why would there be a notice board for <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> here? I haven¡¯t heard anything about a new event," Jiang Weiwei whispered to herself as she looked at the notice board.

    Shen Jingbing nced at her and asked, "You y this game?"

    "Yeah. It¡¯s been popr for the past few years, so of course I¡¯d y it. On top of that, I¡¯m a rising star in the game!"

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt that she looked very familiar upon noticing the way she tilted her chin upwards and made her promation, brimming with confidence. "Can you tell me what your in-game name is?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Sure, my in-game name is Slight Chill. You definitely have to look for me if you ever decide to y, Miss Shen! I¡¯ll power level you!"

    What the f*ck!?

    The two Shen siblings simultaneously choked on their saliva. Shen Jingchen in particr kept coughing, to the point where his face was flushed a deep red.

    Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t help but reach out a hand to help him settle down. "You alright?"

    Shen Jingchen gave a small wave of his hand to show that he was alright while he gazed fixedly at Jiang Weiwei¡¯s reflection in the rearview mirror.

    Holy shit! Slight Chill was actually Jiang Weiwei! He totally wasn¡¯t expecting this!

    Slight Chill wasn¡¯t all that tall in the game and had the face of a loli. On the other hand, a conservative estimate put Jiang Weiwei¡¯s height at around 170cm. Her figure was akin to that of a beautiful flower vase that could take anyone¡¯s breath away with just a nce. Actually, apart from the slight bit of resemnce that they shared when they tilted their chins upwards in arrogance, there were practically no simrities between the two of them!

    It wasn¡¯t just their appearances either, even their personalities were were worlds apart!

    Slight Chill had a rather stubborn personality and a sharp tongue. Jiang Weiwei, on the other hand, gave the siblings apletely different impression. If one were to say that Slight Chill was a spoilt youngdy, then Jiang Weiwei would definitely be a person who only had her looks going for her... in other words, she was a bimbo.

    There was far too much of a difference between the two of them. In fact, it was almost as if she was suffering from split personality disorder. They really couldn¡¯t be med for not being able to make the connection because they were just that different!

    Slight Chill found the Shen siblings¡¯ exaggerated reactions a little odd and asked, "Eh, what¡¯s with your reactions? Do you guys y <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> as well?"

    The siblings shared a moment of tacit understanding before they vehemently shook their heads together and dered, "No!"

    Crestfallen, Jiang Weiwei replied, "What a pity. But really, the game¡¯s pretty fun to y. You guys should give it a try."

    Feeling guilty, the two siblings gave a few hollowughs in return.

    By this time, the car had pulled up in front of the hotel¡¯s entrance. Zhao Chengning passed his keys over to one of the valets by the entrance and the four of them entered the hotel.

    The top floor of the hotel housed a garden restaurant. After leading the group to the lift lobby, Jiang Weiwei pulled out her phone and gave the hotel¡¯s manager a call while they waited for the lift. Shen Jingchen stood in the middle of the group, while Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin stood side by side, bringing up the rear.

    Shen Jingbin tugged at the corners of Zhao Chengning¡¯s clothes and squeaked out a question, "Do you y it too?"

    Ever since she¡¯d found out that Jiang Weiwei yed <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, Shen Jingbin suddenly realised that Zhao Chengning actually looked pretty familiar. In fact, he appeared to be increasingly familiar the more she looked at him. Those eyes of his in particr were exactly the same as the ones she remembered.

    A look of confusion floated up to Zhao Chengning¡¯s face as he asked, "What game?"

    "<<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>."

    Zhao Chengning lowered his head and nced at her. "Do I look like the type of person who ys games?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head and honestly replied, "No, you look like an elite who only knows how to work."

    "Thanks for thepliment."

    "Was that apliment?"

    "Any assessment of yours is apliment to me."

    "..."

    What should I do?! My ears are burning up!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

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 Chapter 72

    <strong>Important Note: Silky Moon¡¯s name was a mistrantion on my part. Sorry! >< Click if you haven¡¯t read the release post yet. Details inside!</strong>

    <strong>Chapter 72: Life¡¯s Twists And Turns (2)</strong>

    The four of them rode the elevator and quickly arrived at the garden restaurant on the rooftop. As a show of thanks, Jiang Weiwei went all out and ordered all sorts of dishes. There were clearly only four of them, but the entire table was crammed with various dishes.

    The restaurant¡¯s managermented to himself, "A waste! What a waste!"

    While eating, Jiang Weiwei kept trying to push for the two siblings to y <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. However, the two of them were unable to work up the courage to admit that they really did y the game. In fact, they even knew her!

    After their meal, both Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen decided to visit the restroom, leaving Jiang Weiwei and Zhao Chengning by themselves in the restaurant.

    Zhao Chengning suddenly spoke, "Don¡¯t tell them I y <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. If you run into Xia Qihui, give him a reminder that he¡¯d better not reveal anything either."

    "Howe?" Jiang Weiwei asked suspiciously.

    Zhao Chengning pondered for a bit and replied seriously, "Little Jing doesn¡¯t like people who y games."

    In that moment, Jiang Weiwei looked as if she¡¯d been struck by lightning and cried out, "Why didn¡¯t you mention this earlier?! I wouldn¡¯t have told her I y games earlier if I¡¯d known! Sniff sniff, what should I do if she doesn¡¯t like me because of it?!"

    Zhao Chengning cast a sidelong nce at her and replied, "Doesn¡¯t she dislike you regardless of whether you y games or not?"

    "She only likes me!" he muttered to himself.

    Jiang Weiwei was a postgraduate of B University¡¯s Chinese department. After their meal she received a call from her tutor, so she was forced to reluctantly part ways with Shen Jingbin and return to school after saying her goodbyes.

    In the afternoon, Zhao Chengning brought the Shen siblings over to several spots in B City¡¯s downtown area that were rather scenic.

    And that was how they passed their afternoon.

    When evening came, Zhao Chengning quietly drove the Shen siblings back to his ce.

    Upon noticing the car stopping outside a vi, Shen Jingbin, feeling it was a little strange, asked, "Where are we? This doesn¡¯t look like a restaurant."

    After Jiang Weiwei left, Shen Jingchen had set aside the passenger¡¯s seat for Shen Jingbin. Zhao Chengning reached out his hand and helped her to undo her seatbelt before saying, "This is my home. Granddad asked me to invite you guys over for dinner."

    Shen Jingchen, who was originally doing his best to maintain a low profile while silently singing "The Single Wretch¡¯s Song" to himself, suddenly cried out, "What the f*ck?! Your house? No way, that¡¯s too sudden! I still haven¡¯t prepared myself to meet your parents!"

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him and said, "Are you mental? You¡¯re meeting his parents, not a ghost," That being said though, Zhao Chengning bringing them back to his ce without saying anything in advance was a little strange. "Why didn¡¯t you give us any advance notice beforehand? It doesn¡¯t look good for us to visit empty handed."

    Social etiquette dictates that one has to bring a gift when paying a visit to an elder. Doing so without one is extremely disrespectful.

    Zhao Chengning reassured the two of them. "Don¡¯t worry, this is a wee dinner held in honor of you two. You guys don¡¯t need to bring any gifts."

    "But..." Shen Jingbin was still struggling over the matter.

    "It¡¯s toote to buy a present anyway since we¡¯re already here. Stop fussing over it, let¡¯s go," Zhao Chengning interrupted her and got out of the car first.

    Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen both looked at each other in dismay. In the end, Shen Jingchen was the first to make up his mind. "Let¡¯s go. There¡¯s no helping it since we¡¯re here."

    Shen Jingbin gave a sigh of resignation and exited the car.

    The duo were greeted by a fragrant aroma as they followed Zhao Chengning into the vi. Once inside, an auntie who was dressed as a nanny beamed a smile at them and greeted them, "Second Young Master has returned... and the two of you must be Mr and Ms Shen, right? Pleasee right in!"

    The two siblings gave small polite smiles in return and walked further in.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s living and dining room were conjoined, and currently, the dining table was crammed with delectable looking dishes. The three older generation members of the Zhao family, who were sitting on a sofa in the living room, turned their heads in unison when they heard a sound.

    Old Master Zhao was no stranger to the two Shen siblings. Seated on his right, there was an outstanding looking woman who appeared like she was just over thirty years old. On top of that, it seemed like she took great care of herself. An impressive and handsome looking uncle sat on Old Master Zhao¡¯s left, bearing about a fifty percent simrity to Zhao Chengning. The only major difference being an air of maturity and steadfastness that came about with age.

    These two people must be Zhao Chengning¡¯s parents.

    The pair of siblings obediently greeted the three elders. Zhao Chengning¡¯s Father and Old Master Zhao chuckled as they stood up to receive them before walking over to the dinner table. Due to her own Mother¡¯s position of importance within the family, Shen Jingbin paid greater attention to Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother.

    Noticing her gaze, Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother shot her an indifferent nce before she straightened her hair and looked away.

    Shen Jingbin stiffened a little.

    At this moment, Zhao Chengning who had walked up to her side, noticed that she was in a daze and looked in the direction she was staring at.

    She was looking at his Mother.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s gaze grew chilly. He really didn¡¯t know what to do about his Mother¡¯s unreasonable manner sometimes.

    "Don¡¯t let her bother you. My Mother bears an inexplicable hostility towards young girls who¡¯re beautiful," Zhao Chengning gently said.

    Shen Jingbin was silent for a few seconds, before she replied, "Looks like there¡¯s a story behind this."

    Zhao Chengning gave her an amused smile and said, "Mm, there¡¯s lots of stories. I¡¯ll tell you all about it in the future if you¡¯re interested."

    "..."

    Who said I was interested in listening to your stories?!

    Noticing the two of them falling behind, Old Master Zhao turned back to them and winked, his face the very picture of Ole Wantong 1 as he said, "It¡¯s time to eat. You guys can continue whispering your sweet nothings to one another after dinner."

    Noticing Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears turning bright red, Zhao Chengning helplessly yelled, "Granddad!"

    Old Master Zhao wore a look on his face that said ¡¯Alright alright, I won¡¯t speak any further. You guys continue on with what you were doing¡¯, which made Shen Jingbin even more embarrassed, causing her to shoot a look of reproach at Zhao Chengning.

    "Hmph."

    But who would¡¯ve thought that Zhao Chenging¡¯s Mother would pass by at that moment and nce at her, issuing a cold snort in the process.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    A character from Legends of the Condor Heroes. Click on the link and imagine this guy winking at you! Click ?

 Chapter 73

    <strong>Chapter 73: Logging Back Into The Game (1)</strong>

    Shen Jingchen had a wonderful dinner. He and the grandfather-grandson pair talked up a storm, to the point where they evenmented a little over the fact that they hadn¡¯t met earlier.

    Shen Jingbin on the other hand was a bundle of emotions. Not because of them, but rather it was due to Mama Zhao ring daggers at her every now and then.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression remained impassive as she continued on with her meal. She could even give very fitting answers to Papa Zhao¡¯s questions, but at the same time, she was crying sorrowfully in her heart.

    Auntie, this is our first time meeting, right?! I haven¡¯t done anything to offend you yet! Can you stop giving me that death re?!

    Shen Jingbin was itching to leave after making it through dinner with great difficulty!

    After returning to the hotel and washing up, Shen Jingbin tossed herself onto the bed andy there, a vacant look in her eyes as she stared nkly into the air.

    She felt that too many things had happened over the past two days, so she needed some time to sort out her thoughts.

    However, her handphone beside her started to buzz before she had the chance to think things through.

    She nced at her phone and found that Zhao Chengning had sent her a text message.

    "Have you gone to sleep yet?"

    Her gaze floated over to the clock at the top left hand corner of her phone¡¯s disy; It was only 8PM. What kind of person would sleep so early?

    "Nope."

    After sending her reply, it took less than a minute before her phone vibrated once again.

    "My Mother was a little rude today, but don¡¯t take it to heart."

    "You¡¯ve already mentioned it before, I won¡¯t take it to heart," Shen Jingbin¡¯s brows furrowed in dissatisfaction.

    Did he really think she was that petty a person?

    "That¡¯s good then. I was worried that she might have hurt your feelings."

    "I¡¯m not that weak minded," Suddenly thinking of something, her hands started to dance across the keypad and she sent out another text message. "You lied to me today!"

    "???"

    "When did I deceive you?"

    Shen Jingbin got up and started tapping out another text message.

    "I asked you whether or not you yed <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> today and you told me you didn¡¯t. But Xuya clearly said that you game from dawn till dusk!!!" To emphasize her point, she specially added exmation marks at the end of her message.

    As usual, the other party¡¯s reply came quickly. " I¡¯m normally pretty busy at work, so I really don¡¯t have any time to y games. Xuya probably got the wrong impression when he went over to my officest time and saw me ying a small game to rx."

    "What kind of small game?"

    "Minesweeper."

    Shen Jingbin issued a chuckle while she held her phone in her hand. She tried imagining how Zhao Chengning would look like while he yed minesweeper.

    Such poise. Much concentration. Many amuse. Wow.

    She received another message from him before she had the chance to get her fill ofughing. "You¡¯re definitelyughing at me, right?"

    She obviously knew he couldn¡¯t see her, but Shen Jingbin still tried to hold back her smile. She steeled her expression and replied, "No, I¡¯m notughing."

    "I¡¯ll believe you for now. You should rest early. I¡¯ll be very busy from tomorrow onwards, so I won¡¯t be able to apany you guys. Give Xuya or Jiang Weiwei a call if you guys need anything, they don¡¯t have much to do these days."

    He was going busy from tomorrow onwards?

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand paused for a moment before she asked, "Wouldn¡¯t that be troubling them?"

    "Nope, that¡¯s what they want."

    Shen Jingbin gave a sly smile when she thought of Xuya and Jiang Weiwei. "Alright then, don¡¯t worry about us and focus on your work."

    "Mm, goodnight."

    "Goodnight."

    Shen Jingbiny on her bed once again and rested her phone on her chest, before she heaved a long sigh of relief.

    Based on what Zhao Chengning said, they wouldn¡¯t be seeing him from the second day onwards. Xuya and Jiang Weiwei had taken turns to call them and ask if they needed any help, but the two siblings politely declined.

    Both of them were adults, they didn¡¯t need someone to look after them just because they were going out to have some fun.

    Time passed in a sh and Shen Jingchen¡¯spetition was over; it was about time for the siblings to return home.

    As a show of respect, they bought several everyday items for the older generation and paid a visit to the Zhao family before they left. Part of their reason for doing so was to say their farewells, while the other was to thank the family for looking after them.

    At present, Mama Zhao was the only one at home in their vi. She greeted them indifferently and took their gifts, before she handed them over to the nanny to receive them.

    The two siblings weren¡¯t idiots and they could clearly tell that Mama Zhao didn¡¯t like them from her attitude. They had no intention of making a nuisance of themselves, so they said a few polite words before leaving.

    The siblings booked an afternoon flight. Only Xuya and Jiang Weiwei were present when they left. And as usual, Zhao Chengning was nowhere to be seen.

    Xuya scratched his head and said embarrassedly to Shen Jingbin, "Little Jing, Brother Ah Ning set aside quite a bit of work just so he could apany you guys earlier on, and that¡¯s why only Jiang Weiwei and I are here to send you off today. Don¡¯t take it to heart."

    Jiang Weiwei added, "Gorgeous, muack muack! All you need is your Big Sis Weiwei to send you off. Don¡¯t bother with Zhao Chengning!"

    Shen Jingbin smiled at the two of them and said, "Just having the two of you around to send me off has already made me very happy."

    Noticing that Jiang Weiwei was still feeling a little ufortable, Shen Jingchen said, "Sigh, about that, we¡¯ve troubled you guys quite a bit over the past few days. If you¡¯re free,e over to A City in the future and let us take care of you!"

    Jiang Weiwei went straight up to him and gave him a pat on the back. "Definitely! Make sure you take care of everything for me when Ie over!"

    Shen Jingchen, who was caughtpletely off guard by the pat on his back, choked on his saliva.

    Once the boarding announcement was broadcast, the two siblings waved goodbye to Jiang Weiwei and Xuya who were reluctant to see them part, before they then set forth on their journey back home.

    Xuya waited till the Shen siblings disappeared into the departure gate before he fished out his phone and reported to Zhao Chengning. "Brother Ah Ning, Little Jing and her brother have boarded the ne."

    Zhao Chengning cradled his phone between his shoulder and face as he looked over a document and said, "Mm, you guys can return."

    Jiang Weiwei grabbed Xuya¡¯s neck and shouted at the top of her voice into the phone, "Zhao Chengning! I¡¯ve helped you to send Gorgeous off, so you have to treat me to a meal!"

    "Move aside Weiwei, you¡¯re too close!" Xuya said to her disdainfully, as he entertained the thought of pushing her away.

    Jiang Weiwei red at him. "Are you looking for a beating, brat?!"

    Zhao Chengning chuckled in amusement and hung up after hearing their bickering on the other end of the line.

    After hanging up, he got up and walked over to the french window 1 and gazed at the heavens.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    A pair of zed doors that also serve as windows. Here¡¯s a pic Click ?

 Chapter 74

    <strong>Chapter 74: Logging Back Into The Game (2) </strong>

    An airne streaked across the dark blue skies of B City, leaving a long contrail1 in its wake.

    "Ah! We¡¯re finally back!" When they reached home, Shen Jingchen immediately tossed his luggage to the side and threw himself at the sofa.

    Shen Jingbin brought their luggage over to the base of the stairwell before she walked over to Shen Jingchen¡¯s sofa and gave him a few kicks. "Get up, get up. Bring your stuff back to your room."

    Shen Jingchen grabbed a pillow and used it to cover his head before he started to howl in grief. "This is abuse, I say! Abuse! I¡¯m all worn out after our ne ride and yet you won¡¯t even let me rest for a little while!"

    "Fine then. Everything¡¯s there already, I¡¯ll head upstairs first."

    No longer bothering about him, Shen Jingbin turned around and made her way upstairs.

    She wanted to log back into the game.

    It hadn¡¯t really bothered her while she was in B City, but she was ovee with an intense bout of longing after they had boarded the ne.

    She left her bedroom door unlocked for Shen Jingchen to bring in her luggageter, andy down in her gaming pod.

    While faced with the game¡¯s loading screen, Shen Jingbin suddenly realised how conscientious she was. She¡¯d only just reached home, but instead of resting, the very first thing that came to her mind was to log in and y!

    After the game finished loading, Shen Jingbin found herself standing in the same ce she was at when she previously logged out.

    The guild¡¯s chat channel was just as boisterous as before, consisting of people who either had nothing to do, or people who had just finished a dungeon run.

    She opened her friends list and found that Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s name was greyed out.

    Since he wasn¡¯t online, she¡¯d find her own things to do then.

    Shen Jingbin cast a nce at her quest window and realized she still hadn¡¯tpleted the Demonic Sect¡¯s dungeon quest from before.

    She thought for a moment, before she then typed several words into the guild chat.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Looking for a carry in the Demonic Sect¡¯s dungeon (¨R¦Ø¨Q)

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: Ooh! Our mascot is back!

    [Guild] Faint Blue Seaweed: Where¡¯d you run off to Nutty? You¡¯ve been gone for so long!

    [Guild] Temperate Scarlet Moon: That¡¯s right, even our Leader and Dawn were gone during this time, so we couldn¡¯t enter many of the dungeons.

    [Guild] Nutjob: ._. Eh? Our Leader¡¯s been gone as well?

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: You wanna enter the Demonic Sect¡¯s dungeon, Nutty? Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go. Us brothers will carry you.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: This is the time for us brothers to shine as men! Now that our Leader and Dawn aren¡¯t around, there won¡¯t be anyone left to hinder our epic saga of love!

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Monster: Are you looking to die, you idiot? Don¡¯t openly plot against our Leader!

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: You dumb f*ck, you¡¯re finished now. I¡¯ll report your mutiny to our Leader!

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Bring me along if you¡¯re nning to enter the Demonic Sect¡¯s dungeon.

    [Guild] Long Life: I¡¯ll follow my wife wherever she goes \(¨R¦Ø\¨Q)

    All three of the Demonic Sect¡¯s dungeons wererge scale instances, with each instance allowing a total of ten people inside. In the end, Shen Jingbin was apanied by the Four Monsters, the husband-wife pair; Long Rest and Eternal Life, and the two healers; National Treasures and Lingering White Clouds.

    They still had one more open slot, but everyone else in the guild had already entered the dungeon before or had their own things to attend to. For the moment, they weren¡¯t able to find anyone else to fill up thest slot

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: Let¡¯s go to the first dungeon and see if we can pick someone up from there. With our current partyposition, we can just randomly grab any lowbie we see and bring them along.

    Lingering White Clouds¡¯ suggestion received unanimous approval and thus, their party majestically stood outside the first dungeon in the hopes of picking someone up.

    The difficulty of the three Demonic Sect dungeons rose in session. The first dungeon was called Sound Transmission Pavilion, the second was Soul Locking Tower, and the third was called Blood Soaked Hell.

    Although the three dungeons were in different maps, the system would prompt the party leader and ask whether they¡¯d like to continue after theypleted the first dungeon. If the party leader chose to continue, the system would automatically open the next dungeon for them and teleport them over, saving no small amount of trouble for the group.

    As the Demonic Sect expansion had only just been released, there were plenty of yers attempting the three dungeons everyday. This, coupled with the aura of an expert that their group exuded, led to I¡¯m Not A Monster receiving a party request in less than a minute, which he epted without a second thought.

    The nine people in the party saw the system¡¯s notification at the same time.

    "yer Morning Glory Chime has entered the party."

    "..."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s legs nearly buckled.

    [Party] I¡¯m Not A Monster: Morning Glory Chime, have you entered Sound Transmission Pavilion before?

    [Party] Morning Glory Chime: I have! (¨R¦Ø¨Q)

    [Party] I¡¯m not A Monster: Alright, just be careful then.

    [Party] Morning Glory Chime: Okay.

    I¡¯m Not A Monster entered the dungeon and, after a moment of being engulfed in darkness, Shen Jingbin found herself standing within the dungeon. A short whileter, the rest of the party appeared in the dungeon as well.

    Morning Glory Chime was thest to enter the dungeon. Actually, I Am A Monster wolf whistled when he saw her and said, "Oh, it¡¯s a beauty!"

    Morning Glory Chime gave Actually, I Am A Monster a light p of embarrassment and said, "No way. I¡¯m no beauty, the true beauties are the three elder sisters."

    The three elder sisters she spoke of were Eternal Rest, National Treasures, and Lingering White Clouds. Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, waspletely overlooked. Then again, it was a good thing that she was overlooked. After all, it was better for her to be ignored than to be made fun of.

    Shen Jingbin also took this opportunity to size up the other girl.

    Honestly speaking, Morning Glory Chime was quite pretty to begin with. The Beautification process had turned her from a "quite pretty girl" to a "knock out beauty". A single nce would allow onlookers toe to the conclusion that she bore a 70% ¨C 80% resemnce to the famous celebrity, X Bingbing.

    Shen Jingbin might have been too obvious with her scrutiny though, because Morning Glory Chime finally took notice of her.

    After spotting her, Morning Glory Chime immediately cried out, "Ah! You¡¯re that ugly monster from before!"

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Those white trails of smoke that nes sometimes leave behind ?

 Chapter 75

    <strong>Chapter 75: Sound Transmission Pavilion (1) </strong>

    Morning Glory Chime being able to remember her was pretty amazing.

    "Do you know our Nutty?" Morning Glory Chime¡¯s reaction surprised the members of Jade Sea Pavilion. I¡¯m Not A Monster eyed the two of them suspiciously. He never expected Nutty to know a beauty like Morning Glory Chime.

    "I met her when I first entered the game. I have a pretty deep impression of her," Morning Glory Chime exined.

    "I have a pretty deep impression of you too," Shen Jingbin quietly said to herself.

    Being the idiot that he was, the moment he heard they knew each other, I¡¯m Not A Monster immediately waved his hand and said, "That makes things easy since you guys know each other. Just ride your mount and follow us closely from behind, lil sis. Let us handle everything."

    Shen Jingbin eyed him disdainfully. You¡¯re an idiot!

    Morning Glory Chime had a look of confusion on her face. "Are you sure I can just ck off?"

    "No problem, no problem. Don¡¯t mind all these things since everyone knows one another," I¡¯m Really Not A Monster assured her.

    Shen Jingbin felt like she was about to blow her top: I only said I met her before! How the hell did it suddenly turn into me knowing her!? Can you not lose your minds whenever you see a prettydy?! And, I didn¡¯t say anything about knowing her!!!

    Luckily for her, Actually, I Am A Monster, and I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me, weren¡¯t befuddled by the beauty in front of them. Actually, I Am A Monster indifferently swept a nce at Morning Glory Chime and said, "Let¡¯s go, it¡¯s time to hunt."

    The levels of monsters within the three Demonic Sect dungeons were based on the average level of the party. Shen Jingbin and Morning Glory Chime were both just over level 80. With the two of them present, the difficulty of the dungeon was greatly reduced.

    Sound Transmission Pavilion had three floors in total. The BOSS of the first floor was a married couple. The husband was originally a disciple of Swordmaster Pavilion, while his wife was a disciple of Dragonkin Tower. However, the two of them became followers of the Demonic Sect after they were exposed to its influence.

    After joining the Demonic Sect, the attack and defence stats of the husband and wife pair were leagues apart from regr disciples of their former respective sects. This was especially so for the wife. When her husband¡¯s health dropped below 20%, she would go berserk and release her ultimate attack. A Dragonkins¡¯ ultimate attack already did a horrifying amount of damage before they were tainted by the Demonic Sect, so if yers weren¡¯t careful, they could be wiped out in an instant.

    And, death was a very troublesome affair in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>.

    Shen Jingbin and Morning Glory Chime had to be protected by the group, so the two of them did their best to stand at the edge of the BOSS¡¯ attack range. That way, they¡¯d still get the contribution for killing the BOSS, and they¡¯d be able to escape from the BOSS¡¯ attack range.

    National Treasures and Lingering White Clouds were both excellent healers, and their coordination was first-rate. Although fighting two BOSSes posed a challenge, the health levels of the main tank and DPSers within the party remained stable.

    As Dragonkins were casters, they possessed very little defence. Even this BOSS, with her rtively higher defence, was still just as brittle whenpared to a Swordmaster. However, due to their setting as husband and wife, the two of them held a "shared life" ability, where the Swordmaster could share his health with the Dragonkin, forcing yers to eliminate the Swordmaster first.

    When the Four Monsters lowered the Swordmaster¡¯s health to 21%, they allowed the husband and wife pair of Long Life and Eternal Rest to draw aggro, and turned to focus on the Dragonkin. National Treasures¡¯ healing abilities were slightly stronger than Lingering White Clouds¡¯, so she was in charge of taking care of the Four Monsters, while Lingering White Clouds took charge of healing Long Life and Eternal Rest.

    Under their skillful coordination, the Swordmaster and Dragonkin were both taken down.

    "Whoa, you guy¡¯s are awesome!" Once the BOSSes were defeated, Morning Glory Chime brought her hands together and walked towards the Four Monsters, her bright and intelligent eyes filled with adoration.

    The "Definitely Not A Monster" duo of the Four Monsters suddenly felt as if they were on cloud nine, causing the rest of the guild¡¯s members to eye them with disdain.

    "So who¡¯s gonna loot the body?" Eternal Rest asked.

    Looting required skill; those who were lucky would be able to get lots of good stuff. Take for instance the items Shen Jingbin managed to get from Landlord Yangst time. On the other hand, those who who were unlucky would end up with all sorts of weird things instead, like the belly band for a Dragonkin that I¡¯m Not A Monster lootedst time.

    Once she said this, everyone apart from Morning Glory Chime turned to face Shen Jingbin as one.

    Everyone¡¯s collective gaze caused Morning Glory Chime, who was standing beside Shen Jingbin, to blush. Before Shen Jingbin could react, Morning Glory Chime walked over to the BOSS¡¯ corpse and bashfully said, "Oh my, you guys want to let me loot the corpse? How could I possibly im such an honor? That being said though, everyone please don¡¯t me me if I get unlucky!"

    "What the f*ck! Let go! No one¡¯s letting you loot the corpse!" Everyone in Jade Sea pavilion cried out in their hearts. Unfortunately for them, they were far toote.

    "Oh, I got a fragment of Pangu¡¯s Stone!" Morning Glory Chime cried out happily the moment she touched the corpse.

    To lure yers into entering the three Demonic Sect dungeons, the game¡¯s developers gave the BOSSes a very attractive loot table. Apart from some equipment with very good stats and Life Skill materials, they also dropped fragments of Pangu¡¯s Stone.

    Pangu¡¯s Stone was an item used for refining equipment in <<Legend of Celestials and Demons>> that were only dropped by world BOSSes. To top it off, they had a very low drop rate. Aside fromplete Pangu¡¯s Stones, there was the fragmented version that was dropped by very few dungeon BOSSes within the game. Ten of these fragments could be exchanged for aplete Pangu¡¯s Stone. However, their drop rates were abysmally low.

    Looks like Morning Glory Chime was blessed with better luck as well.

    In addition to the fragment of Pangu¡¯s Stone, she managed to pull out a horsetail whisk with pretty good stats, and several materials for Life Skills. As Shen Jingbin was the only Daoist in the party, the whisk naturally went to her. However, she could see the glint of displeasure in Morning Glory Chime¡¯s eyes when she received it.

    Shen Jingbin is innocent. What¡¯re you staring at me for, lil sis? Besides, you don¡¯t even use whisks!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 76

    <strong>Chapter 76: Sound Transmission Pavilion (2) </strong>

    Shen Jingbin still wasn¡¯t able to use Pangu¡¯s Stone, so she passed on it. Thus, it fell into the hands of the person with the highest roll, and the group continued on towards the second floor.

    Along the way, Lingering White Clouds gave Morning Glory Chime a smallpliment. "Looks like you¡¯re pretty lucky lil sis."

    "Ah, I¡¯m not that lucky. This was my first time getting a fragment of Pangu¡¯s Stone from looting a corpse. This must be a sign that I¡¯m fated to be with you guys," Morning Glory Chime was clearly someone who knew how to butter others up. She¡¯d been praising all the notable figures within the party ever since she joined.

    However, Eternal Rest didn¡¯t fancy this sort of person. Hearing Morning Glory Chime incessantly going around and referring to everyone as "older brother and sister" irked her. "How old are you, lil sis? Haven¡¯t you ever thought about what might happen if you turned out to be older than one of us?"

    A look of embarrassment floated up onto Morning Glory Chime¡¯s face. She turned to the guys of the party, Long Life and the Four Monsters, before giving them a pair of puppy dog eyes.

    Long Life always went along with his wife¡¯s views. So when Morning Glory Chime cast her gaze at him, he immediately tilted his head to the side and pretended not to have seen her.

    Although the "Definitely Not A Monster" duo of the Four Monsters liked beautiful women, they wouldn¡¯t stupidly stick their heads out for a girl they¡¯d just met. The other two of the Four Monsters were clearly a cut above in IQ than their counterparts, so there was even less reason for them to stick up for her.

    And just like that, the guys in the party chose to ignore Morning Glory Chime¡¯s plight.

    "Ll, look the scenery here is pretty good!"

    "Yup yup, I wonder why I didn¡¯t notice it before."

    "Are the two of you blind? The f*ck is there to look at down here?"

    "...You¡¯re really an idiot."

    Seeing as no one was willing to stick up for her, Morning Glory Chime withdrew her sorrowful gaze and said, "Sigh, that¡¯s because I¡¯m only a first year university student... and I felt that you guys were lot more awesome than I am, so you should be more talented than me too. I won¡¯t call you guys "older brothers and sisters" any more if you dislike it..." She almost looked as if she was about to cry after saying that.

    Shen Jingbin was truly astonished by her disy. She really deserved the best actress award!

    Truth be told, she might have even felt sorry for her if she hadn¡¯t seen how rude and unreasonable Morning Glory Chime was in real life.

    Eternal Rest was actually a nice person. On top of that, she wasn¡¯t intentionally trying to make things difficult for Morning Glory Chime either. She just wasn¡¯t used to people who tried to curry favor with others. Seeing her cry, Eternal Rest abashedly said, "I wasn¡¯t trying to make things difficult for you. Don¡¯t cry, I was only asking."

    "Sniff. I know you weren¡¯t trying to make things difficult for me, big sis... I just felt that I being thoughtless... so I... so I..."

    Tsk tsk tsk, she was running out of things to say.

    "Alright, we¡¯re at the second floor. Let¡¯s get ready to hunt," I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me suddenly announced.

    Morning Glory Chime immediately retracted that wronged look of hers and pulled out a fan. She then added, "Big brothers and sisters, you guys can take care of the monsters. I¡¯ll look after Nutjob."

    Her face had "I¡¯m totally fine. You guys don¡¯t need to worry about me" written all over it, as if she was trying to put up a strong front. Eternal Rest suddenly felt that it¡¯d be a huge waste if this girl didn¡¯t take up acting.

    What the f*ck, she¡¯s amazingly talented!

    The BOSS of Sound Transmission Pavilion¡¯s second floor was a gigantic bat that used sound waves to attack them from a distance.

    This time around, Shen Jingbin and Morning Glory Chime would be affected no matter how far away they stood from the battle. To remain alive, the party would have to assign a healer to them. Luckily, Morning Glory Chime volunteered to shoulder this heavy burden.

    She wanted to support the Four Monsters, however, the small amount of healing that she could do clearly wasn¡¯t enough. But, it was enough to keep Shen Jingbin alive.

    The bat monster wasn¡¯t all that difficult to beat. What made the fight challenging was its long distance attacks. So, their party went all out against the BOSS and brought it down to the ground with a loud "bang" a short whileter.

    Morning Glory Chime waspletely blown away by Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s efficiency. While they were taking the time to heal, she quietly said to Shen Jingbin, "Hey, your friends are really amazing! Thest time I came here, it took my guild a long time before we were finally able to beat it down."

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, yers weren¡¯t able to tell which guild others were from, and aside from the asional system announcements that mentioned them, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion kept a rather low profile. In addition, they rarely revealed themselves in public, which led to not many people knowing what they looked like. Take for instance the person beside Shen Jingbin who only knew about "this and that" of Jade Sea Pavilion, but had no concrete information on who its members were.

    This was why Morning Glory Chime only knew that these people were experts, but didn¡¯t know that they were actually the cream of the crop.

    Of course, Shen Jingbin was no such expert.

    "Mm, they¡¯re pretty good," Shen Jingbin replied.

    "Do you know them in real life?"

    Shen Jingbin was about to reply when National Treasures called out to her. "Nutty,e over and loot the corpse!"

    "Okay," Shen Jingbin then turned to Morning Glory Chime and said, "I¡¯ll head out first to loot the corpse."

    "Tch, what the hell. They themselves know how lucky I am, so why did they let that ugly monster do the looting instead of me?" Morning Glory Chime indignantly muttered to herself.

    The proof was in the pudding, and Shen Jingbin¡¯s luck wasughably good.

    There was a very low chance for weapons to drop in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. In most cases, only one weapon would drop, while the rest of the drops either be defensive items or equipment.

    However, Shen Jingbin managed to pull out two weapons the moment she touched the corpse, pulling out a Reverse Sword for Maras, and a Spiritual Fan for Nymphs. Most amazing of all, was the fact that the Spiritual Fan had all of its stat slots filled!

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 77

    <strong>Chapter 77: A Matter Of Life Or Death (1)</strong>

    As the three Demonic Sect dungeons were newly released, the development team included top quality weapons into the dungeon¡¯s drop list to attract yers. The Spiritual Fan dropped by the BOSS was a top quality refined weapon. Although National Treasures and Lingering White Clouds coveted it, the weapons they had were still slightly better. So, the two of the didn¡¯t fight with Morning Glory Chime over possession of the Spiritual Fan and magnanimously gave it to her.

    As for the Reverse Sword, the henpecked husband, Long Life, would naturally hand it over to his wife without a second thought.

    Although the refined stats on Eternal Rest¡¯s former sword were good, it¡¯s original stats were a littlecking whenpared to the Reverse Sword. Eternal Rest was so happy with her new weapon that she embraced Shen Jingbin and wanted to kiss her.

    Of course, they didn¡¯t actually kiss.

    "Nutty really is our mascot!" I¡¯m Really Not A Monster gripped his chin and sighed.

    Everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion nodded their heads. "We¡¯ll stick around you in the future, Nutty!"

    "That¡¯s right, stick with me. I¡¯ll lead you guys to the summit of life!" Shen Jingbin said.

    However, Morning Glory Chime, who¡¯d received the guild¡¯s favor in the form of her new weapon, was feeling a little unhappy. Pouting, she mumbled to herself, "Isn¡¯t it just two weapons? What¡¯s there to be so arrogant about. I on the other hand managed to pull out a fragment of Pangu¡¯s Stone."

    After joining the game due to her looking like X Bingbing, being able to act coquettishly, as well as knowing how to get on the good side of others, Morning Glory Chime was always treated as if she was a precious treasure. She was used to having the world revolve around her. And now, she felt unhappy after her limelight was taken away by an ugly monster.

    No one knew about these schemes in her heart, but even if they did, no one would be willing to pay her any mind. After all, she was only someone they happened to pick up. At best, they¡¯d treat her a little better because of her good looks.

    Once they were done distributing the items, the ten man party set off once again and made their way towards the third floor.

    The third floor was the final checkpoint for Sound Transmission Pavilion, and the floor BOSS was a nine-tailed fox. Its attack and defence were average, but it possessed many crowd control skills. Practically every single one of the BOSS¡¯s skills came with some form of negative side effect, putting it on the same level as a Daoist.

    As the nine-tailed fox¡¯s attack wasn¡¯t high, there was no need for Shen Jingbin and Morning Glory Chime to hide. Alongside her party, Shen Jingbin maintained a DPS on the nine-tailed fox while she sized it up.

    In truth, this nine-tailed fox looked beautiful. Its pelt had a watery sheen and its nine thick tails swayed about recklessly in the air, giving it an especially imposing presence. A ck vein could be seen running across its forehead, adding a touch of evil to its divine appearance.

    One had to know that the nine-tailed fox was a divine creature in the eyes of the ancestors.

    The nine-tailed fox¡¯s vitality was represented by the number of tails it had left. As its health decreased, the number of tails it had would gradually decrease till it was left with only one tail.

    As the BOSS of the third floor, the nine-tailed fox would naturally be better in some aspects than the other two BOSSes. Those who had entered Sound Transmission Pavilion before, all knew that two small foxes would split off from the nine-tailed fox once it was left with a single tail. These two small foxes would self-destruct, and their self-destruct timers were randomised. They could either explode at different times, or at the same time.

    Regardless of how high a yer¡¯s levels and health were, or how good their equipment was, death was assured if they were caught in the st radius. When the dungeon was first released, countless experts were done in by the explosions caused by these two small foxes.

    When the two small foxes appeared, I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me shouted out, "Spread out! Nutty, make sure the foxes don¡¯t get close to you. They¡¯ll self-destruct!"

    Everyone heard what he said and leapt into action, scattering in all directions just a momentter.

    Once the small foxes appeared, the nine-tailed fox would randomly target yers. However, as it was nearing death, it wasn¡¯t all that quick. yers would be able to dodge its attacks as long as they were alert.

    However, no one would¡¯ve expected the nine-tailed fox¡¯s very first target to be the yer who stood a distance away from the BOSS, Morning Glory Chime. With a twist of its body, the nine-tailed fox turned around and pounced towards her.

    After I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me¡¯s warning, all of Morning Glory Chime¡¯s attention was focused on the small foxes. She was someone who¡¯d been to Sound Transmission Pavilion before, so she naturally knew about the destructive prowess of the small foxes. Seeing the nine-tailed fox unexpectedly leap towards her, she cried out and dragged Shen Jingbin who was nearby to use as a shield.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t expect her to have so much stronger, so she was caughtpletely off guard and dragged over.

    As the nine-tailed fox¡¯s ws were about to reach her chest, Shen Jingbin struggled with all her might and broke free of Morning Glory Chime¡¯s clutches. Shen Jingbin then fell to her knees and slid forward, appearing under the the nine-tailed fox¡¯s belly in the blink of an eye. Gripping the tip of her horsetail whisk she pointed its handle at the nine-tailed fox¡¯s belly, before she then viciously thrust upwards and stabbed at it.

    "AWOOO!"

    A blood-curdling scream could be heard as the nine-tailed foxnded on the ground with a bang.

    As it fell, it¡¯s front ws scratched against Morning Glory Chime¡¯s back, causing her face to pale.

    The moment the nine-tailed fox hit the ground, the two small foxes issued a shriek and exploded.

    Once the dust settled, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion hurried over to help Shen Jingbin, dragging her out from under the corpse of the nine-tailed fox that she was being crushed by.

    The nine-tailed fox looked beautiful, but in reality, it was extremely heavy; being crushed by its corpse had led to Shen Jingbin losing arge amount of health. The moment they pulled her out, Lingering White Clouds took the opportunity to toss some healing spells her way.

    "Nutty, are you alright?!" National Treasures and Eternal Rest anxiously asked.

    Shen Jingbin managed to stand up with the help of the others and wiped her face. Luckily for her, the game¡¯s developers had taken the tolerance levels of yers into consideration and there had been no spurting of blood when she stabbed the nine-tailed fox. Things would have been a lot different for her if that wasn¡¯t the case. "I¡¯m alright. I¡¯m just feeling a little breathless due to being crushed."

    Long Life sighed in admiration. "Nutty, you looked so cool just now! You reacted so quickly that you could even give Leader a run for his money!"

    "It¡¯s nothing much, I just did it without thinking," Shen Jingbin said as she patted her chest that was still feeling a little suffocated.

    I¡¯m Not A Monster was also stunned by her breathtaking performance. "Nutty! Nutty! Can you teach me that move of yours when we¡¯re done?!"

    National Treasures shot him a disdainful look. "With your IQ, you wouldn¡¯t be able to understand even if she did try to teach you."

    "Hmph, I¡¯m going to learn it!"

    At this moment, Morning Glory Chime shifted her pale, beautiful face and nced miserably at Shen Jingbin. Looking as if she was wronged and on the verge of crying, she said, "I¡¯m sorry big sis! I didn¡¯t mean to do it just now... I... I just panicked and pulled you over."

    Seeing as how she kept beating herself up, Shen Jingbin felt that it¡¯d be too inhuman for her to continue picking a fight with her over the incident. Feeling a little annoyed, Shen Jingbin waved her hand and said, "I don¡¯t mind. Just stand a little further from me next time."

    She wasn¡¯t the Virgin Mary. She wasn¡¯t going to shine the light of god down on Morning Glory Chime and console her after what she had done.

    "Big sis are you angry with me? I¡¯m sorry, it wasn¡¯t on purpose. Look, I¡¯m injured as well, so please forgive me!" Shen Jingbin¡¯s cold reply caused Morning Glory Chime¡¯s eyes to fog up.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t stand girls who cried the most, and was left feeling helpless the moment Morning Glory Chime started to cry.

    Girl, I¡¯m the one getting screwed here. Why the hell are you crying?!

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 Chapter 78

    <strong>Chapter 78: A Matter Of Life Or Death (2) </strong>

    "That¡¯s enough. Don¡¯t cry, I¡¯ve already said that I don¡¯t mind."

    However, Morning Glory Chime still looked like she¡¯d been wronged.

    National Treasures couldn¡¯t take it anymore and said, "Alright, don¡¯t cry lil sis, Nutty herself said she doesn¡¯t mind as well... Nutty, why don¡¯t you go loot the corpse?"

    It was only after someone else had chimed in, that Morning Glory Chime cheered up.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s luck was just as prevalent as ever, and her looting attempt resulted in quite a few top quality items.

    And with that, theypleted the first dungeon. A system notification popped up in front of I¡¯m Not A Monster, and he selected "yes". Everyone¡¯s vision blurred for a second and the next thing they knew, they were standing in front of the entrance to the second dungeon.

    The second dungeon, Soul Locking Tower, had two BOSSes in total. However, there were plenty of trash mobs within it. To top it off, these mobs were all casters and their spells hit really hard. Most of the yers didn¡¯t die by the hands of the dungeon¡¯s BOSS, rather, they were done in by the mobs instead.

    Before entering the dungeon, Eternal Rest tugged at Shen Jingbin and said, "I have this feeling that she holds some inexplicable hostility towards you. You should be a little more careful. We¡¯ve already gone through the first dungeon, so it wouldn¡¯t be nice if we kicked her."

    "No problem. I¡¯ll just keep my distance from her."

    Probably because she knew that she¡¯d gone a little overboard in the first dungeon, Morning Glory Chime was especially well behaved in the second one. Soul Locking Tower was a fair bit tougher than Sound Transmission Pavilion, but this increase in difficulty didn¡¯t mean much to their party.

    Just over forty minutester, and the ten man party hadpleted Soul Locking Tower.

    Shen Jingbin gave a sigh and said, "Am I lucky because I came here with you guys, or are these dungeons just that easy?"

    I¡¯m Not A Monster heard herment and immediately spoke out, "It¡¯s hard! These three dungeons are very difficult! We almost flipped our tables when we first entered them!"

    "That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. You don¡¯t know it, but many of the initial wave of experts were done in by these dungeons!" I¡¯m Really Not A Monster parroted.

    Eternal Rest suddenly jumped into the conversation. "You guys are just bullying Nutty because she hasn¡¯t been on for the past few days, right?"

    Lingering White Clouds eyed Shen Jingbin who had a doubtful look on her face and said, "Due to the numerous peopleining about the dungeon¡¯s difficulty, coupled with the fact that a party had already nabbed the first clear, the gamepany decided to lower the difficulty a little. Now, going through the dungeon isn¡¯t as strenuous as before."

    The "Definitely Not A Monster" pair of the Four Monsters teared up. "Hmph, can¡¯t you let us pretend to be heroes for a bit?"

    The third dungeon was now open to the group. And thus, they entered the dungeon, holding hope in their hearts that they could finish as soon as possible so that everyone could go their own ways.

    [Guild] Guild Leader Quiet And Steadfast has logged on.

    [Guild] Vice-leader Dawn¡¯s Twilight has logged on.

    The moment they stepped into the dungeon, Shen Jingbin saw two notifications pop up in the guild chat.

    [Guild] Big Buddhist Nun: Ooh, our Vice-leader logged on the moment Leader appeared. What kind of development is this?

    [Guild] Little Monk: Let¡¯s go fellow gays!

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Let me give you guys a piece of bad news: Nutty might be watching.

    [Guild] Big Buddhist Nun: F*ck! I wasn¡¯t the one who said it just now! Nutty, I definitely wasn¡¯t making fun of your husband or your big bro! I swear!

    [Guild] Little Monk: Neither was I!

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ??? What¡¯s going on?

    Shen Jingbin suddenly heard Morning Glory Chime call out to her while she was staring at the chat. "Big sis, we¡¯re starting!"

    When she came around, Shen Jingbin jogged over to the rest of the group and marched forwards with them.

    The third dungeon, Blood Soaked Hell, was leagues ahead of the other two in terms of difficulty. The bloodiness of this dungeon¡¯s surroundingspletely eclipsed the other two as well.

    A narrow wooden bridge was suspended over a bubbling pool ofva. The red hot bubblingva beneath them was reminiscent of a pool of blood, giving others the shivers the moment they looked at it. Shen Jingbin was overjoyed by the fact that she wasn¡¯t afraid of heights, otherwise, her legs might have already turned to jelly.

    After crossing the wooden bridge, the party was faced with a narrow and winding road. A ball of fire could be seen moving a few meters away from the meandering road. This was the legendary Karmic ze Lotus; anything it touched would be burned to a crisp in an instant.

    The BOSSes of Blood Soaked Hell were two enormous birds. The game¡¯s administrators introduced them as the legendary Vermilion Bird and Azure Luan.

    Vermilion Bird? She wasn¡¯t sure whether this creature had anything to do with the Divine Beast, Vermilion Bird, that she was supposed to look for.

    The hardest part about Blood Soaked Hell was that the Karmic ze Lotus could appear anywhere within the dungeon. yers not only had to give their all when fighting the Vermilion Bird and Azure Luan; both of which boasted high attacks, they also had to look out for the Karmic ze Lotus which could respawn at their feet at any time.

    Apart from the Karmic ze Lotus, there were no other monsters in Blood Soaked Hell. Due to the presence of the Karmic ze Lotus, there wasn¡¯t even a de of grass on the narrow winding road they walked on, giving it a feeling of destion.

    Shen Jingbin was rendered speechless when sheid eyes on the dungeon. While advancing with the group, she looked around and sized the dungeon up.

    Suddenly, something shed past her and she unconsciously shut her eyes.

    In that moment, she heard a cry of rm. "Look out Nutty!"

    The Karmic ze Lotus had suddenly spawned at her feet.

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 Chapter 79

    <b>Chapter 79: Lava Herb (1) </b>

    Shen Jingbin reacted instantly and stepped to the side when she heard the warning. The next moment, a beautiful Karmic ze Lotus appeared where she had stood just a moment ago.

    She heaved out a sigh of relief, before running back to the center of the party.

    "There¡¯s fire all over the ce. Be careful and don¡¯t get distracted, Nutty!" I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me said.

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head in embarrassment and said, "Sorry, I wasn¡¯t paying attention."

    Speaking of distractions, she suddenly thought of that beam of light that shed by her from before. So, she subconsciously turned around and started surveying the area.

    National Treasures noticed this and curiously asked, "Nutty, what¡¯re you looking for?"

    "Something flew by me just a moment ago."

    Suddenly, another sh of light swept past her again.

    Shen Jingbin trained her eyes on the beam of light. Around seven to eight steps away from where she was, she saw a Karmic ze Lotus that was even more beautiful than the previous ones she¡¯d seen. Something within its core seemed to be burning as mes pulsated from time to time and released crackling sounds.

    "I¡¯ll go over and take a look," Shen Jingbin squinted and pointed to the Karmic ze Lotus as she spoke to the others.

    "Be careful," Lingering White Clouds reminded her, her heart filled with worry.

    Shen Jingbin nodded at her and made her way towards the Karmic ze Lotus. Morning Glory Chime stood at the very edge of the party. Due to the distance, she wasn¡¯t able to hear what Shen Jingbin said clearly. She only saw Shen Jingbin say something before she left the party by herself.

    "Sister White Clouds, where is Sister Nutty going?" With the exception of a few of the guys within the party, only Lingering White Clouds treated her slightly better than the rest, so that was who she posed her question to.

    "It looks like Nutty found something and is going over to take a look."

    "That¡¯s dangerous! There¡¯s karmic fire everywhere, what¡¯ll we do if Nutty gets burned?!"

    I¡¯m Really Not A Monster reassured her when he heard her cry out. "Don¡¯t worry, Nutty¡¯s really lucky. She¡¯ll be alright. Didn¡¯t you see that the karmic fire ball didn¡¯t burn Nutty?"

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s performance in the Soul Locking Tower made the members of the Jade Sea Pavilion temporarily forget about her previous misdeeds. Of course, there were still some who felt that she was just another random yer and weren¡¯t willing to get too close to her. But in the end, after entering Blood Soaked Hell, everyone¡¯s attitude towards her had seemingly returned to what it had been like initially.

    When Shen Jingbin approached the unusual Karmic ze Lotus, it shed several times and drifted over to the side. In its wake, a strange, sparkling crystalline herb appeared before her eyes.

    Shen Jingbin crouched down and cautiously reached for the unusual herb.

    When she came into contact with the tip of the crystalline herb, she heard the sound of the system notification ring out. "Congrattions, you have obtained a Lava Herb."

    After receiving the system notification, Shen Jingbin made sure the herb wasn¡¯t dangerous before she grabbed it by its two roots and pulled it up.

    "Lava Herb: Grown within the Karmic ze Lotus, it¡¯s capable of resurrection and reshaping one¡¯s physique into the Great Golden Luo physique. Ten year old herbs take on the properties of copper, hundred year old herbs are silvery, and thousand year old herbs are crystalline." After checking the description of the crystalline herb, Shen Jingbin threw it into her backpack and returned to the party.

    Members of the party with sharper eyes had obviously noticed her pulling something out of the ground, and curiously approached her when she returned.

    "Nutty, what¡¯d you pick up?" National Treasures asked.

    "It looked like it was something that grew out of the Karmic ze Lotus. Quickly, show us what it is!" Eternal Rest chimed in.

    Shen Jingbin went along with their request and pulled out the Lava Herb. This caused everybody to became stupefied as they stared at the sight of the sparkling crystalline herb.

    "Nutty, I really wonder how you¡¯ll fare in PK. This is the first time I¡¯ve heard of someone digging up a herb in a dungeon," I¡¯m Not A Monster said.

    "Same here. We should probably bring Nutty along for a round of PKing once we¡¯re out of the dungeon," I¡¯m Really Not A Monster added on.

    It was rare to see the "Definitely Not A Monster" pair stand on the same side.

    Actually, I¡¯m A Monster: "Add me in for PKing."

    I¡¯m A Monster, Dare Hit Me: "Me too."

    Long Life: "I¡¯m sorry wifey, but I can¡¯t hold myself back any longer! Take me with you!"

    Eternal Rest: "... Don¡¯t say that. But truthfully... I wanna go too."

    Shen Jingbin: "What the f*ck? Calm down guys!"

    Lingering White Clouds: "Don¡¯t worry Nutty, I¡¯ll heal you!"

    At this moment, Morning Glory Chime suddenly spoke out, "Big Sister Nutty, can you give me this herb? I¡¯m thinking of bing an apothecary."

    Shen Jingbin nced over at her. When she saw how sincere Morning Glory Chime looked as she stared at her, Shen Jingbin¡¯s pockmarked face unexpectedly revealed a look of guilt. "Sorry, I can¡¯t give you this herb, because I¡¯m an apothecary too."

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s expression immediately drooped and revealed a look of disappointment. She then carefully shifted her gaze to the Four Monsters and cast her eyes downwards. "Oh, then forget about it."

    Shen Jingbin revealed a smile and unhurriedly returned the Lava Herb to her backpack under Morning Glory Chime¡¯s resentful gaze.

    Watching Shen Jingbin¡¯s leisurely attitude incited Morning Glory Chime¡¯s rage, causing her to grit her teeth and curse in her heart.

    Damn it! This ugly monster was definitely doing it on purpose!

    She refused to believe that Shen Jingbin also took up being an apothecary. She was certain that Shen Jingbin still bore a grudge over her being used as a shield and was merely using this as an excuse to prevent her from getting the herb!

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 Chapter 80

    <b>Chapter 80: Lava Herb (2)</b>

    Before this, there was no mention at all of being able to find Lava Herb in a dungeon. The appearance of one now was definitely due to Shen Jingbin! After all, her Luck was ridiculously high!

    However, regardless of what she truly thought, Morning Glory Chime still maintained an adorable expression on her face.

    The party continued advancing towards the depths of Blood Soaked Hell.

    As they continued walking, a messenger pigeon appeared out nowhere andnded on Shen Jingbin¡¯s shoulder, instantly drawing everyone¡¯s attention to it.

    Shen Jingbin reached out and retrieved the letter from the pigeon¡¯s beak. She opened the letter and found that it was from Quiet And Steadfast.

    "Are you in a dungeon? Let me know when you¡¯re out. I¡¯lle look for you and we can pay Poison Toad a visit."

    "Okay."

    After replying, Shen Jingbin raised her head to find that everyone was staring at her. "What¡¯s wrong?"

    "Was that a letter from Leader?" Long Life asked.

    Shen Jingbin nodded and all of a sudden Eternal Rest, along with the Four Monsters, started to celebrate.

    "I knew it was from Leader. Both Nutty and Leader haven¡¯t been online for several days. They definitely miss each other."

    "Bullshit! Isn¡¯t looking for his little sister the first thing that siscon, Dawn, does whenever he logs in?! Why didn¡¯t he follow his usual routine this time around?!" National Treasures retorted.

    Shen Jingbin was at a bit of a loss, so she could only summon up her courage and cast Morning Glory Chime a nce. "What¡¯re they talking about?"

    "Oh, they were trying to guess who the letter was from when you were reading it. Sister Eternal Rest and the Four Monsters all guessed that it was from your Guild Leader. Brother Long Life, Sister National Treasures, and Sister White Clouds, guessed that it from your brother instead... Big Sister Nutty, you have a brother? Are you guys twins? Do you look alike?"

    "I do have a brother. We aren¡¯t twins, but we do look alike," Shen Jingbin eyed the hint of mockery that was hidden under Morning Glory Chime¡¯s facade as she maliciously replied.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavillion who happened to overhear her broke out intoughter.

    Pft! Congrattions, Dawn! You¡¯ve just lost yourself a potential girlfriend!

    They took quite a few stops along the way, but they finally reached the nest of the Vermillion Bird and Azure Luan.

    At the end of the road peppered with Karmic ze Lotuses, there was an Ancient Heavenly Tree. The ancient tree had numerous branches filled with luxurious leaves. The enormous tree stood tall like a skyscraper and its branches extended so far along that, with its countless lush leaves, made the tree seem like a giant umbre.

    The Vermillion Bird and Azure Luan resided within the Ancient Heavenly Tree.

    No one in the party dared to lower their guard against the BOSS of the third dungeon, regardless of how weakened it might be. The Four Monsters threw on all of their buffs, while National Treasures and Lingering White Clouds buffed the entire party. Long Life and Eternal Rest switched their equipment to ones that were specialized for Maras to use in dungeons.

    "Morning Glory, Nutty, go all out. DPSing is very important for these two BOSSes. We might get wiped out if we don¡¯t put out enough DPS."

    Shen Jingbin and Morning Glory Chime nodded in acknowledgement.

    Although they were liches, each of the Four Monsters ran a different build. When it came to clearing dungeons, Actually, I¡¯m A Monster, and I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me were slightly more suitable. Thus, both of them activated their invisibility and slowly crept up to the two BOSSes, while the other two functioned as support.

    The Vermillion Bird and Azure Luan were both worthy of their titles as Divine Birds. Before Actually, I¡¯m A Monster and I¡¯m A Monster, Dare Hit Me managed to get close enough to strike, the birds simultaneously shrieked and took to the skies.

    Two beams of light, one red and one blue, shot out from the treetop. Everyone¡¯s expression remained stoic as they drew out their weapons and stood ready to fight.

    Realizing their ambush had failed, the Four Monsters beat a hasty retreat back to the rest of the party. With the group back together, they stood as one as their hands moved blindingly fast, releasing wave after wave of skills at the two BOSSes in the sky.

    The Vermillion Bird raised its head to the heavens and cried out after being hit by the barrage of skills. Seeing this, Actually, I¡¯m A Monster yelled out, "Careful! The Vermillion Bird is summoning Karmic ze Lotuses!"

    Upon hearing the words "Karmic ze Lotuses", everybody¡¯s faces grew even more serious and their skills flew out even faster.

    Sure enough, several more Karmic ze Lotuses suddenly appeared around the party of ten after the Vermillion Bird cried out.

    The mes of the dazzling Karmic ze Lotuses swayed about for a bit before they started to roam about, incinerating everything that they touched.

    Everybody began to split their attention between the Karmic ze Lotuses that could close in on them at any moment, while also increasing the strength of their attacks.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion were extremely skilled and dodged the Karmic ze Lotuses that came at them with ease. This was in stark contrast to Morning Glory Chime who cut a sorry figure.

    The Azure Luan was first to fall, crying out in defeat as it fell into one of the Karmic ze Lotuses and turned to ash in the blink of an eye. The Vermillion Bird saw this from high above and let out an ear-piercing shriek.

    "The Vermillion Bird is enraged, go all out!" Lingering White Clouds reminded everyone.

    The next moment, the amount of Karmic ze Lotuses on the ground multiplied, raising the temperature of the dungeon.

    When Shen Jingbin shot a nce at her party members, she realised that while they were covered in sweat, she didn¡¯t feel the least bit hot.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly had a sh of inspiration and pulled out theva herb from her backpack. She then started to walk towards the closest of the karmic mes.

    Sure enough, when she neared the karmic mes, theva herb began to sh and the temperature of the area around her dropped.

    Shen Jingbin ced theva herb on the ground and shouted at the others, "Everybody,e to me!"

    Even though they didn¡¯t know what was going on, everybody cooperated and went to her side.

    "It looks like thisva herb can protect us from the karmic mes."

    "What the f*ck?! Is this ything really that amazing?!" I¡¯m Not A Monster cursed out loud.

    Seemingly to prove Shen Jingbin¡¯s theory, a Karmic ze Lotus suddenly appeared in front of the group. And yet, even though the dazzling karmic mes drifted over them, none of them felt a single thing. So not only did none of them get incinerated by the mes, they didn¡¯t even receive a single point of damage!

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 Chapter 81

    <strong>Chapter 81: Godly Senior Sister! (1) </strong>

    With the help of the Lava Herb, Shen Jingbin and the others could go all out without worry against the Vermillion Bird.

    The Vermillion Bird¡¯s HP soon bottomed out. It craned its neck towards the sky and let out a long, shrill shriek, before falling to the ground with a bang.

    "This is my first time fighting this BOSS in such a rxed manner. It wasn¡¯t this rxing even when I came here with Leader and the rest of them," I¡¯m Not A Monster said.

    Shen Jingbin retrieved the Lava Herb and was about to ce it back into her backpack when she felt someone¡¯s heated gaze. She looked over and found that it was Morning Glory Chime who was trying to bore a hole through her with her re.

    It was either that, or Morning Glory Chime was staring at the Lava Herb in her hands.

    "This was all thanks to Nutty¡¯s herb!" Eternal Rest proimed.

    National Treasures pounced at Shen Jingbin and hugged her. "Nutty, bring me along next time! Dungeons, quests, hunting monsters, anything¡¯s fine! Just bring me along! Bring me along!"

    Shen Jingbin smiled and patted National Treasure¡¯s head. "Alright."

    Looting corpses was still Shen Jingbin¡¯s job. She walked up to the Vermillion Bird¡¯s corpse and knelt beside it. The corpse still held some residual warmth. When she came into contact with it, she found that its fur was extremely smooth and soft to the touch as she set about her task.

    Shen Jingbin stood up after looting a weapon, several pieces of equipment, and an assortment of materials. She was about to ask I¡¯m Not A Monster to exit the dungeon when a chime rang in her ear.

    "There seems to be something in the Vermilion Bird¡¯s chest. Try checking it again."

    What the f*ck? System, you¡¯re being really considerate!

    "Wait, don¡¯t leave the dungeon just yet. It looks like there¡¯s still something here," Shen Jingbin suddenly shouted over to I¡¯m Not A Monster.

    "Hmm? What?" Everyone eyed her curiously.

    Morning Glory Chime spoke up, "Elder Sister Nutty, have you found something again?" As she spoke, she jogged to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and squatted by her side. She then stretched out her hand and tried looting the Vermillion Bird¡¯s corpse.

    In general, the task of looting a corpse could be aplished by a single person. Anyone who used their heads could see that Morning Glory Chime was trying to steal the limelight from Shen Jingbin. Even if the looted items would be ultimately be distributed to the party, it still wasn¡¯t a pleasant sight.

    Items dropped from BOSSes would automatically be transferred to the party¡¯s inventory in dungeons. The party leader would then distribute the equipment to yers who needed them, as long as there wasn¡¯t any conflict of interest. If conflicts arose, members would roll for items they wanted.

    Shen Jingbin nced at Morning Glory Chime, but didn¡¯t obstruct her. After all, the corpse didn¡¯t belong to her alone. There was no reason for her to stop other people from looting it either.

    After retracting her hand, Shen Jingbin eyed Morning Glory Chime coldly. She had noticed how Morning Glory Chime had nced at her from the corner of her eye while sheid her hands on the Vermillion Bird¡¯s corpse.

    Morning Glory Chime wasn¡¯t able to loot anything after fumbling around for a bit. She raised her head and said with a slightly embarrassed look on her face, "There¡¯s nothing here. Elder Sister Nutty, it¡¯s best if you do it."

    She obediently took one step back as she spoke and silently looked at Shen Jingbin.

    Seeing her relent, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t stand on ceremony and stretched her hand straight towards the Vermillion Bird¡¯s chest.

    She heard the system¡¯s notification the moment she came in contact with the Vermillion bird¡¯s warm chest.

    "Congrattions, you obtained the Vermillion Bird¡¯s Blood." Strangely, the item she acquired this time around didn¡¯t enter the party¡¯s inventory. Instead, it fell straight into her hands.

    Vermillion Bird¡¯s Blood? What kind of item is that?

    An orange teardrop shaped crystal could be seen lying on her palm when Shen Jingbin withdrew her hand from the corpse.

    Everyone immediately surrounded her.

    "Eh, what¡¯s this thing?" I¡¯m Not A Monster asked.

    "It looks like a drop of water," I¡¯m Really Not A Monster said as he reached out his hand to take it away.

    Actually, I Am A Monster pped his hand away and chided, "Don¡¯t go around groping things!"

    "Nutty, take a look at the description and see what it says," I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me added.

    "Okay."

    "The Vermillion Bird¡¯s Blood. This blood contains the remains of a species of Vermilion Bird that the Shinra Sect subdued. yers are requested to find out this item¡¯s use on their own."

    What the f*ck!

    "The system didn¡¯t mention anything. It only asked yers to find out about it on their own."

    Lingering White Clouds: "In that case, keep it safe and pay Hundred Daybreaks a visit tonight to see if he knows anything."

    Eternal Rest: "But Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ whereabouts are unknown. And on top of that, he charges a fee for divulging information."

    Shen Jingbin: "He charges a fee? Then I¡¯m not going anymore!"

    Eternal Rest: "It¡¯s worth it!"

    National Treasures: "I recall Leader being pretty close to Hundred Daybreaks. You can ask him to help you contact Hundred Daybreakster on."

    Shen Jingbin: "Alright!"

    Morning Glory Chime interjected, "Are we just going to give this item to Elder Sister Nutty without rolling for it?"

    Everyone turned to face her and she blushed, stammering a little as she continued, "This is a drop from the BOSS. It¡¯s different from the Lava Herb because Elder Sister Nutty dug it up by herself. I think we should roll for this item."

    National Treasures: "We don¡¯t need this item. It¡¯s fine if we just give it to Nutty."

    "But... I want it too," Morning Glory Chime said a little embarrassedly.

    I Am A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: "What¡¯re you going to use it for?"

    Morning Glory Chime: "I think it¡¯s rather beautiful. I want to embroider it onto my clothes when I Weave."

    There was a Life Skill called Weave in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. yers who learned Weave could make fashionable clothes for themselves once their skill level was high enough. They could also embroider a few attractive, but ultimately useless, gems that they found onto their clothes for decoration.

    Everyone was speechless.

    Shen Jingbin suddenlyughed and said, "That probably won¡¯t happen. The item has already been added into my inventory on its own."

    I¡¯m Not A Monster quickly checked the party¡¯s inventory when he heard this.

    Sure enough, the Vermillion Bird¡¯s Blood wasn¡¯t present.

    "It¡¯s true, it really isn¡¯t there."

    Morning Glory Chime had a look on her face that said she didn¡¯t believe it. "How can that be? It¡¯s clearly a BOSS drop item. How can it not be in the team rucksack? This is definitely a bug. I want to report this to the Game Master!"

    Shen Jingbin eyed her indifferently and said, "Do you really want it that badly?"

    Morning Glory Chime paused for a moment before she replied, "No, I just think that this isn¡¯t fair."

    Everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion immediately dered, "No! We think it¡¯s very fair!"

    Morning Glory Chime: ...

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 82

    Chapter 82: Godly Senior Sister! (2)

    Shen Jingbin had no intention of arguing with Morning Glory Chime. After all, the item was already in her hands. No matter what, the oue wouldn¡¯t change even if Morning Glory Chime continued to kick up a fuss.

    ¡°Let¡¯s leave.¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    I¡¯m Not A Monster agreed and left the dungeon.

    Everyone¡¯s vision blurred, and the next thing they knew, they were once again standing at the entrance of Blood Soaked Hell.

    ¡°Let¡¯s add each other as friends. Can you bring me along when you guys run dungeons in the future?¡± Morning Glory Chime asked the moment they left the dungeon.

    After partying with her for three dungeons, everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion had lost all of their initial goodwill towards her and found all sorts of excuses to reject her.

    ¡°Ah, my friend list is full.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t run dungeons often. I prefer hunting.¡±

    ¡°Uh, my friends are all guys. My wife is the only female friend I have! I don¡¯t add other female yers apart from my wife!¡±

    ¡°Uhm, we¡¯ll meet again if we¡¯re fated. There¡¯s no need to add me as a friend.¡±

    ...

    After rejecting Morning Glory Chime¡¯s friend request, everyone took the opportunity to flee in session. While waiting for Quiet And Steadfast to arrive, Shen Jingbin loitered around the entrance of the dungeon as the two of them helplessly eyed each other.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly turned to her and asked, ¡°Do you want me to add you as a friend?¡±

    Once the Jade Sea Pavilion members had left, the pitiful expression on Morning Glory Chime¡¯s face disappeared. In its ce was disdain and arrogance. She red hatefully at Shen Jingbin and said, ¡°Are you making fun of me? Are youughing at me for losing to an ugly monster like you?¡±

    Shen Jingbin was speechless. ¡°How does it look like I¡¯m making fun of you?¡±

    Morning Glory Chime coldly snorted, ¡°Do you think you¡¯re really that good at pretending? That face of yours makes me feel disgusted.¡±

    You self-centered show off!

    Shen Jingbin really felt like hitting her.

    ¡°Then don¡¯t look at me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got some bad news for you,¡± Morning Glory Chime suddenly gave a sinisterugh. ¡°I¡¯ve already asked my guild members toe over. You¡¯ve got the next few minutes to reconsider handing the Lava Herb and Vermillion Bird¡¯s Tear over to me.¡±

    Shen Jingbin nced at her and felt that this should be how she was really like. ¡°You¡¯ve had your eye on me ever since we entered the dungeon, right?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re pretty clever.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not half bad at acting yourself. You didn¡¯t seem to be so... obedient when I first met you.¡±

    Morning Glory Chime brushed her beautiful jet-ck hair to the side and said, ¡°All guys like a girl who¡¯s a little obedient. How could I get them to be at my beck and call if I don¡¯t put up a bit of a front?¡±

    ¡°What a pity, it looks like you walked into a brick wall today. You didn¡¯t manage to get your ws on a single guy, did you?¡±

    Morning Glory Chime became infuriated when Shen Jingbin pointed this out. Not only had the male yers of Jade Sea Pavilion remained indifferent to her antics, they had paid a great deal of attention to an ugly monster the entire time!

    ¡°Shut up! What right does an ugly monster like you have to mock me?!¡±

    Shen Jingbin spread out her hands. ¡°Let me ask you a question: do you know who your other party members were?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care who they are. All I need to know is that they¡¯re high-level yers who can carry me.¡±

    ¡°That was your biggest mistake. You didn¡¯t do a background check on the other party before fooling around with them.¡±

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s charming face immediately flushed red in anger. Her lips slightly parted, intent on saying something, when she was suddenly interrupted by a voice behind her.

    ¡°Morning Glory, you said someone bullied you. Where are they?! Your elder brothers will help you take care of her!¡±

    The members of Morning Glory Chime¡¯s guild had arrived.

    Morning Glory Chime eyed Shen Jingbin smugly before she promptly revealed a pitiful look on her face. ¡°Elder Brother Wallet, she¡¯s the one bullying me.¡±

    The full name of the person Morning Glory Chime referred to as ¡®Elder Brother Wallet¡¯ was ¡®I Forgot My Wallet¡¯. He was a high leveled Daoist that looked rather handsome.

    I Forgot My Wallet swung his horsetail whisk as he stepped forward. When he saw Shen Jingbin, the expression on his face immediately turned into one of astonishment. ¡°What the f*ck?! It¡¯s Great Senior Sister!¡±

    Shen Jingbin suddenly stumbled. ¡°Who the f*ck are you? Why¡¯re you calling me Great Senior Sister?!¡±

    I Forgot My Wallet took severalrge strides towards Shen Jingbin and grabbed her by the sleeve. ¡°Great Senior Sister! You¡¯re my Great Senior Sister!¡±

    Morning Glory Chime was struck dumb by this god-like development. ¡°Elder Brother Wallet, what are you doing?! Why are you acting so chummy towards this ugly monster?! She¡¯s the one who bullied me!¡±

    I Forgot My Wallet whipped his head around and roared at Morning Glory Chime, ¡°What do you know! This is our Great Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple! Our Sect Leader just announced that Great Senior Sister has made an amazing achievement recently! He wants the full cooperation of everyone in the White Cloud Temple! If not, he¡¯ll personally deal with us! He¡¯s the f*cking Sect Leader of White Cloud Temple! He¡¯d be looking down on me even as he disposed of me!¡±

    She¡¯s my mother f*cking awesome Senior Sister!

    There were three Daoists, including I Forgot My Wallet, amongst the members of Morning Glory Chime¡¯s guild. The other two Daoists followed suit after I Forgot My Wallet threw himself at Shen Jingbin¡¯s feet. One was pulling her other sleeve, whilst the other tugged at the hem of her Daoist robe. They cried out pitifully at her while addressing her as ¡°Great Senior Sister¡±.

    Shen Jingbin was weak against passionate people. She attempted to pull one of them up with her hand and said, ¡°Get up first! I have no idea what¡¯s going on. Exin yourselves!¡±

    She only had two hands, but there were three people in front of her, leaving her no physical way out of this situation. Morning Glory Chime and several other passersby werepletely bbergasted by the scene in front of them as they stood there and stared nkly at them.

    At this moment, Shen Jingbin heard Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Oh wifey, so this is where you... are you having a foursome?¡±

    To hell with your foursome!!!

 Chapter 83

    <b>Chapter 83: The Lich¡¯s Secret Room (1) </b>

    Quiet And Steadfast rode through the sky on his mount, Sheng Huang1, and made his way towards them. Floating in the air, he overlooked the slightly chaotic scene beneath with a look of amusement on his face.

    Sheng Huang was the number one Celestial pet in the entire server. Just like Shen Jingchen¡¯s dragon, these two pets were status symbols. Many yers had only ever heard of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s title as the "number one" yer in the game, but had never seen him in person. However, the presence of Sheng Huang allowed even those yers to instantly recognise him.

    "Quiet And Steadfast? What the f*ck! Great Senior Sister, is Quiet And Steadfast your husband?" I Forgot My Wallet tugged at Shen Jingbin¡¯s sleeve and stared dumbly at Quiet And Steadfast as he silently gulped down a mouthful of saliva.

    Luckily for him, he hadn¡¯t taken any action just now. Otherwise, even if he disregarded this woman¡¯s identity as the disciple of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader, just Quiet And Steadfast alone would be enough to crush him like a bug.

    Although their marriage had caused a huge stir, not all yers were online when it took ce. This, coupled with the fact that the two of them hadn¡¯t logged in for quite a few days, meant that not everyone had heard of their marriage yet. After all, the game had an enormous yer base.

    Quiet And Steadfast leapt off his mount, shooting Morning Glory Chime a casual nce as he passed by her.

    Morning Glory Chime felt as if she was being looked down on, and that didn¡¯t sit right with her.

    "How long do the four of you n to stay in that position for?" Quiet And Steadfast stood in front of Shen Jingbin and asked. He was speaking to her, but his eyes were glued onto I Forgot My Wallet and hispanions.

    It was only then that I Forgot My Wallet realized the slightly unbing position he and his brothers were in. This was especially so when faced with someone else¡¯s husband. It was an unbearable sight.

    I Forgot My Wallet immediately leapt up and stood to the side. The two other Daoists could also tell what was going on and hurriedly hid themselves behind his back.

    "You guys were saying something about the Sect Leader ordering all of you to help me out? What¡¯s all that about?" It was said that absence makes the heart grow fonder, but Shen Jingbin was even more concerned about something else.

    I Forgot My Wallet carefully eyed Quiet And Steadfast before he said, "We just received a letter from our Sect Leader... Sigh, this is the first time we¡¯ve received a letter from an NPC. We even thought that we¡¯d stumbled onto a hidden quest. Who would¡¯ve thought that it¡¯d contain orders for us to cooperate with you during this period of time."

    I Forgot My Wallet rifled through his backpack and pulled out a wrinkled piece of paper. It was a good thing that he¡¯d kept it as a memento of the first time he¡¯d received a letter from an NPC. He handed the letter over to Shen Jingbin.

    "I¡¯ve asked the Daoists in my friends list and all of the Daoists in my guild. All of them received the same letter from the Sect Leader."

    Shen Jingbin quickly skimmed through Song Yuqing¡¯s letter, but her look of concentration shattered in an instant when she reached the end of it.

    Song Yuqing actually attached a picture of herself for all of White Cloud Temple¡¯s yers to see!!!

    "What¡¯s wrong?" Quiet And Steadfast saw the minute change in her expression and thought that something bad had happened. But just as he was about to grab the letter, Shen Jingbin rolled it into a ball and said, "It¡¯s nothing."

    He decided not to press the matter since she wasn¡¯t willing to show it to him. "Hundred Daybreaks told me that more than half of Shinra Sect¡¯s map has already been explored. The battle between good and evil will take ce soon. The NPCs have probably been informed as well."

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head. "Do you want to apany me to White Cloud Temple when we¡¯re done with Poison Toad?"

    "Mm."

    Shen Jingbin raised her head and swept a nce at Morning Glory Chime who was a few steps away from them. She then turned to I Forgot My Wallet and said, "I have something else to take care of, so I¡¯ll be leaving first. Are you guys still intent on taking revenge for her?"

    I Forgot My Wallet shook his head vigorously.

    "Revenge? What revenge? Great Senior Sister, you should take your leave first since you¡¯ve got things to do... Oh that¡¯s right. Great Senior Sister, add me as your friend! Don¡¯t hesitate to look for me if you need any help!"

    As he said that, he sent a friend request over to Shen Jingbin. After epting the friend request, she sat on Sheng Huang with Quiet And Steadfast and left.

    Morning Glory Chime gazed at their shrinking figures till they finally disappeared, before she indignantly stomped towards herpanions.

    "Elder Brother Wallet, why¡¯d you let her go?"

    I Forgot My Wallet retracted the smile on his face and said, "Morning Glory, didn¡¯t you see the person backing her?"

    "Who¡¯s that? Are you telling me they¡¯re stronger than our guild, Sovereign¡¯s Descent? Weren¡¯t we going to form an alliance with Life At First sight? And when that happens, apart from having Life At First Sight as an enemy, can anyone else pose a threat to us?"

    I Forgot My Wallet suddenly had the urge to smack her.

    Morning Glory Chime was your typical pretty gamer girl. Everything she knew about the game pertained to thetest fashion, mounts, ces with the nicest scenery, and how to flirt with guys. She didn¡¯t care about raising her levels or grinding her skills at all, let alone knowing anything about the bnce of power or the current situation within the game. Instead, her head was filled with delusions of fooling around with male gods. But even then, she wasn¡¯t even aware of which male gods existed.

    Even if Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight were to form an alliance, they wouldn¡¯t be able topletely crush Jade Sea Pavilion.

    "But the guy from just now seemed pretty familiar. I remember seeing him from somewhere before," Morning Glory Chime suddenly muttered to herself.

    I Forgot My Wallet was speechless. He held his hand to his head in exasperation.

    "Didn¡¯t you say in the past that your target was the number one male god in the game? That was him," A yer behind Morning Glory Chime spoke up and reminded her.

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s expression immediately turned unsightly.

    I Forgot My Wallet continued to dig at her. "Morning Glory, although this is a game, you should still grow a bit of a conscience. If I¡¯m not wrong, the people who carried you in the dungeon were from Jade Sea Pavilion. And that person from just now isn¡¯t only the number one male god in the game, he¡¯s also the Guild Leader of Jade Sea Pavilion. I shouldn¡¯t need to exin our rtions with Jade Sea Pavilion, right? Even though we might be enemies in the future, now isn¡¯t the time to reveal this information."

    "..."

    "In the past, we treated you as a newbie so we were willing to spoil you. The trouble you¡¯ve previously caused was insignificant and harmless, so cleaning up after you wasn¡¯t a problem. But, these are people you can¡¯t provoke. That woman is not only the wife of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Guild Leader, she¡¯s also the disciple of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Sect Leader. She has Jade Sea Pavilion and the entirety of White Cloud Temple behind her. We can¡¯t afford to provoke her."

    I Forgot My Wallet patted Morning Glory Chime¡¯s shoulder and gave a profound sigh, before he then brought the rest of the members of his guild away.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    I updated the older chapter with a pic of how it looks like. Here ya go! ?

 Chapter 84

    <strong>Seen TMK¡¯s new cover art yet? It¡¯s been done by Yuuko from our marketing team! Click to have a look.</strong>

    <b>Chapter 84: The Lich¡¯s Secret Room (2) </b>

    Morning Glory Chime remained rooted where she was. She was so angry that she was practically huffing out steam.

    During the character creation process, because she happened tond on the lucky number designated by the gamepany, she received more Luck than the average yer. This, coupled with her above average looks and her ability to act in a coquettish manner, meant that she seeded in receiving the full extent of care from the male yers in the Novice Vige. On top of that, she managed to enter the game¡¯s biggest neutral guild in one go.

    Whenever she logged on, she¡¯d receive countless party requests from either members of her guild, or yers from her friends list, to run dungeons or admire the scenery within the game.

    She rarely went around on her own, but today was one such exception when she suddenly felt like roaming about the field by herself. However, she hadn¡¯t expected to be treated in such a manner. And, when she wanted to get back at that ugly monster who stole the limelight from her, even her own guild members weren¡¯t willing to stand on her side!

    She thought back to the scene when she¡¯d first met Shen Jingbin and everyone was at her beck and call. She inwardly grieved. Today was a reversal of fortune, but how could someone as proud and arrogant as her bear to live with that?

    Morning Glory Chime viciously stomped her foot down onto the ground. She felt that this ugly monster was her second most hated person after Shen Jingbin from the Management Department!

    Going back to Shen Jingbin, she and Quiet And Steadfast found themselves at the main hall of the Lich pce once again. This time around, Poison Toad was waiting for them with a look of joy on his face.

    "The two of you are pretty quick...e with me. I¡¯ll tell you guys about the ck Tortoise1once the forbidden art seeds."

    Poison Toad didn¡¯t waste any time on pointless chatter and got straight to the point as he led them towards the depths of the main hall.

    As they walked further in, they found a partitioned room that looked like a rest area. This was likely where Poison Toad went to when he needed a break from handling the sect¡¯s affairs. At the corner of the room, a camphor bookshelf could be seen that was about the height of two people.

    Both ends of the bookshelf were engraved with ferocious looking animals. Upon closer inspection, Shen Jingbin found that there was a winged serpent on one side, while the other had a tortoise.

    Quiet And Steadfast, who was walking beside her, noticed her gaze and said, "The Lich Pce has many areas that contain such carvings. Thinking about it, all of them have something to do with the ck Tortoise."

    "I think you Liches are meant to be the protectors of the ck Tortoise in the game."

    "That¡¯s possible," Quiet And Steadfast nodded.

    Poison Toad, who walked in front of the duo, stopped at the bookshelf. He stretched out his hand and groped about the bookshelf for a bit before the center of the bookshelf suddenly started to gradually split open, creaking about as it did it.

    A short whileter, a ck passage revealed itself to the three of them. Poison Toad fished out a strange looking candle from his left sleeve. He then raised his forefinger, and a ck me suddenly appeared on his fingertip. The me gently pulsed as if it were a mischievous child ying about his fingertip.

    "Eh?" Seeing a scene that came straight out of a xianxia production caused Shen Jingbin to issue a small cry of astonishment.

    Poison Toad lit the candle with his ck me before he turned to face the two of them. "Keep up."

    He then strode forward and stepped into the dark passage.

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast nced at one another before Quiet And Steadfast gave her a gentle pat on the back. She¡¯d be in the middle of the group while he brought up the rear.

    The passageway wasn¡¯t long. It only took around two minutes to travel through, but the two of them felt as if they¡¯d walked through a wide open space.

    "Stand here and wait," Poison Toad instructed the two of them.

    Poison Toad raised the candle in his hand and lit the four oilmps sitting in the corners of the room they were in. A short whileter, the entire room appeared before the two of them.

    This room had an air of antiquity about it. It wasn¡¯t very big, but it still feltplete. A small desk, a soft couch, and everything else that was necessary in such a room was avable. There was also a painting hanging at the back of the room.

    Although the four corners of the room were only lit with oilmps, the entire room was especially bright. Even Shen Jingbin, who was standing by the entrance, could clearly make out what was on the painting.

    It was a painting of the Four Divine Beasts!

    The ck Tortoise was at located near the bottom of the picture, and the winged serpent stood high on the tortoise¡¯s back, coiling itself around the White Tiger that seemed to be snarling at it. The Vermillion Bird was facing the White Tiger with it¡¯s wings outstretched, while the Azure Dragon used its body to encircle the other three Divine Beasts.

    Poison Toad blew out the candle in his hand and strolled towards the desk, then swept his robe to the side before sitting down. He then raised his head to look at the two of them and casually said, "Strip off your clothes and get on the bed."

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    Quiet And Steadfast: ...

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    Here¡¯s a picture of it, pay close attention! It¡¯s different from the other tortoiseter on in that this one¡¯s a cross between a tortoise and a snake! https://img.imynest/uploads/D/E5/DE5257D274.jpeg ?

 Chapter 85

    <strong>Seen TMK¡¯s new cover art yet? Yuuko from our marketing team did it! Click to have a look.</strong>

    <b>Chapter 85: Illusory Spirit Realm (1)</b>

    Poison Toad observed the two¡¯s reaction.

    "Why are you acting so surprised? It¡¯s not like I¡¯m telling you guys to strip everything off, just remove your robes and sit back to back on the bed."

    Then you should¡¯ve been clearer from the start! You scared this baby girl!

    Shen Jingbin really wanted to rage, but regardless, Poison Toad was on par with Song Yuqing as the Sect Leader of Lich Pce, and she didn¡¯t have the guts to do something so audacious.

    However, reality proved that she¡¯d been overthinking things. To protect the morals of yers within the game, it was set to prevent yers from being able to strip naked. As a result, she couldn¡¯t strip herself bare even if she wanted to.

    Since it was merely de-robing, it wasn¡¯t much of a concern. The two simply followed Poison Toad¡¯s instructions by removing their robes, and then sat with their backs against one another on the bed.

    "Close your eyes, I¡¯m starting."

    The twoplied and shut their eyes.

    Because they couldn¡¯t see, their other senses were heightened. They could hear Poison Toad¡¯s clothes rustle when he stood up, the rhythm of his breath as he slowly approached, and sense his warm hand as it made its way towards their necks.

    "Technique activate," These two brief words resounded softly by their ears, before the two of them suddenly felt dizzy at the same time.

    "You have entered the Illusory Spirit Realm," After the wave of dizziness had passed, the pleasant sounding female voice of the system rang out in Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s ears.

    Slowly opening their eyes, they found that they were no longer in the small room they had been in before. Instead, they found themselves standing on the coast of a small isle that overlooked a vast, endless ocean.

    "A married couple is like a pair of birds sharing the same tree; when disaster strikes, they will each go their own way. Dear visitors, please follow me," Without any warning, a child¡¯s voice suddenly called out from behind them.

    The two were startled, and turned in unison to face the voice.

    What they saw, was a child with his hair tied into a bun who had appeared behind them unknowingly. His hands were tucked into his sleeves, and a pair of bright and intelligent eyes roamed about as if he were sizing the two of them up.

    "What should we do? Should we follow him?" Shen Jingbin enquired with her eyes.

    "We might as well follow him since we¡¯re already here. Let¡¯s go." Quiet And Steadfast eyed her in return.

    Quiet And Steadfast then turned to the child and said, "Sorry for the trouble. Lead the way.¡±

    The childughed, "The two of you are quite strange. The husband is as pretty as a flower, while the wife is as ugly as a toad. How fascinating."

    Shen Jingbin forced out a hollowugh.

    Why was this NPC so talkative?!

    Fortunately, the child only gave a chuckle, before he turned and led the way. As the two followed behind the him they first passed through a dense forest, before a wooden cabin appeared before their eyes.

    "Before us is my Grandpa¡¯s house, please enter by yourselves. I¡¯ll send you back after you¡¯ve returned from answering some questions."

    All manner of unexpected things had happened ever since Poison Toad had led them to the hidden room. As they hiked up the path to the small wooden cottage, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t hold back her curiosity any longer and asked, "Wasn¡¯t Poison Toad just supposed to perform the forbidden art on us? What¡¯s going on?"

    Quiet And Steadfast thought for a moment and replied, "This is probably just a simple spell to NPCs like Poison Toad. But for yers, it¡¯s a quest that requires them to teleport to another location toplete. The forbidden art will seed if the quest ispleted. If we fail the quest, then the forbidden art would fail as well."

    Exining it in this manner allowed Shen Jingbin to understand what was going on.

    "However, isn¡¯t this NPC¡¯s intelligence a little too high? Going by this, I feel like the day where artificial intelligence takes over humanity like what happens in the movies is just around the corner."

    "NPCs aren¡¯t all managed by the system. Some of them are actually controlled by personnel from the gamepany. I think that child just now might be one such case."

    Shen Jingbin was confused.

    ¡°But that child¡¯s so young. Is he even old enough to y this game? I¡¯ve never heard of a person being able to change their height or age this much."

    "They¡¯re the gamepany¡¯s employees. Is there anything they can¡¯t do?¡±

    Shen Jingbin suddenly had an epiphany. "That¡¯s true! But this guy must have a love for children to have created his character like that."

    "Mm, that¡¯s very likely."

    The child who was waiting for them outside suddenly let out a sneeze. "Atchoo! Who¡¯s gossiping about me?!"

    During their short conversation, the two arrived at the door of the wooden cabin. Quiet And Steadfast politely knocked on the door then waited patiently outside.

    Approximately four to five secondster, an elderly voice came from within.

    "Come in," The voice sounded aged, but its tone was filled with vigor.

    Quiet And Steadfast responded by pushing open the door and entering. Inside the cabin sat an elderly man close to sixty years old with white hair and a ruddyplexion, appearing both lively and full of energy.

    The old man stood up when he saw Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast,ughing as he walked towards the two.

    "Hahahahaha! I¡¯ve been waiting for so long! At longst, someone has finallye! My god, I was so lonely!"

    A huge question mark manifested above Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s heads.

    What the hell was this!?

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 86

    <strong>Seen TMK¡¯s new cover art yet? Yuuko from our marketing team did it! Click to have a look.</strong>

    <b>Chapter 86: Illusory Spirit Realm (2)</b>

    The old man arrived before the two of them, his eyes emitting a green light.

    "Let me introduce myself; my NPC¡¯s name is Mu Ge. In truth, I y the role of NPC 002. You can call me 002. 001 is the child you met outside."

    002¡¯s gaze fell on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face and lingered for a moment.

    "Eh? You must be the yer whom the system deemed the most beautiful when starting the game? I never thought you¡¯d Uglify yourself to the limit yet still end up looking presentable... Oh, that¡¯s right, let me exin. Our upper limit is 99%, there¡¯s no 100%."

    He then swept his gaze over Quiet And Steadfast.

    "I say, bro, you guys are married, right? That¡¯s a stupid question. Poison Toad wouldn¡¯t have sent you here if you weren¡¯t married... Heheheh, brother, let me tell you, you¡¯ve got a great deal of luck. You¡¯ve married a true beauty... Eh, even though she doesn¡¯t look like one right now, I guarantee that the system¡¯s insight is absolutely reliable!"

    "Anyhow, you sure are lucky, beauty. I heard that the legendary White Tiger that Development Team A secretly released for testing was idently tamed by you? Hahaha, you¡¯re killing me! That White Tiger was meant to be an existence that transcended the current World BOSSes, but it¡¯s currently still in its testing phase. It¡¯s taming method hasn¡¯t even been set yet. There¡¯s only a provisional condition of not using skills to attack it. Who would¡¯ve thought you¡¯d be able to pick it up so cheaply. To think that it was caught so easily by someone solo ying... I¡¯d be crying if I were the Leader of the Development Team! Hahahahaha."

    "Oh, right. Handsome, you received an epic quest, right? Sigh, I really sympathise with you. This epic quest was something that the PMS-ing women of Development Team B came up with. It¡¯s both long andplex, you¡¯re being yed!"

    Without giving Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast any chance to respond, 002 started prattling on and on the moment he approached.

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    Quiet And Steadfast: ...

    They wagered that this 002 must be a chatterbox!

    Quiet And Steadfast sighed, interrupting 002 before he could continue on. "Um, could you tell us what we should be doing now?"

    "Huh? Oh! Sure, sure!" Only now did 002 seem to remember that he still had a task toplete, fishing out two pieces of paper and pens from who-knows-where.

    "I was supposed to cause you guys more trouble, but I¡¯ll skip that part since I¡¯m such a nice and kind-hearted person. Look, there¡¯s two answer sheets here; one for each of you. Their contents are different, so make sure you get the right one. Since you guys listened to me ther on for so long, you can answer however you like and I¡¯ll still give you guys a pass."

    Taking the answer sheets and pens from 002¡¯s hand, the two roughly skimmed over the contents of their answer sheets, their faces turning dark in the blink of an eye.

    "Question: If someone were to offer you a top quality set of equipment in exchange for your husband, would you agree?¡±

    "Question: Would you agree to renounce your wife for ten beautiful women?"

    "Question: Your best friend and your wife have fallen into a BOSS¡¯s attack range, who will you save first?"

    "Question: Your best friend said she doesn¡¯t like your husband and wants you to divorce him. After which, she would find you an even better man. What will you do?"

    ...

    Shen Jingbin really felt like tossing her pen away and beating someone up! What kind of questions were these?!

    She nced at Quiet And Steadfast beside her and discovered that he had already taken up his pen and was writing something with poise.

    Hey, big bro, please tell me; how do you face all these questions with a straight face?

    It might have been because he saw that her pen had yet to move, but 002 moved closer and peeked at her answer sheet before he asked, "Why aren¡¯t you writing, pretty girl?"

    Shen Jingbin curled her hand into a fist. "I... can¡¯t write."

    "Huh? Is that so? Then I¡¯ll help you write, and you can give me your contact details at the same time! For example, your Weibo or your WeChat will do."

    "... Nevermind, I¡¯d better write it myself instead of troubling you. Thank you."

    With great difficulty, Shen Jingbin managed to pick up her pen and start answering, imitating Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s manner of writing. 002 rested his chin in his hands and leaned to the side, beaming while watching her and looking as if he was admiring a work of art.

    Did this dude go crazy from overworking?! Why the hell was he staring at her so attentively?! Doesn¡¯t he know he¡¯s being an eyesore?!

    Shen Jingbin felt a great deal of pressure from being the focus of his gaze.

    "Alright, I¡¯ve finished filling it out."

    Just when she could no longer withstand the pressure of 002¡¯s gaze, Quiet And Steadfast saved her in a timely manner.

    "Woah, so fast?" 002 was a little astonished at Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s speed.

    Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t speak, instead handing the answer sheet straight over to him. 002 took the questionnaire and nced through it before nodding. "Good, good. Handsome, you pass."

    He then propped up his chin on his hand and continued beaming at Shen Jingbin.

    "Pretty girl, you don¡¯t need to rush. Just take your time."

    "... You¡¯re not going to examine it carefully?" The corners of Shen Jingbin¡¯s mouth twitched as she asked.

    "Examine what? 001 is just mucking around. There¡¯s no point in examining it, you can answer it however you like."

    Outside the cabin, 001 sneezed yet again.

    Tsk tsk tsk, could I be catching a cold? After I send off those two yers and get off work, I¡¯ll go home and take some cold medicine.

    In the end, Shen Jingbin eventually finished answering all of the questionnaire¡¯s oundish questions under 002¡¯s strange and ardent gaze. She then handed it, and her pen, back to 002.

    002 didn¡¯t even bother to skim through her answers this time around. He held her questionnaire and sighed as he looked at her handwriting. "My, my. Pretty girl, your words are so beautiful. It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve seen someone write as beautifully as you!"

    "...So did I pass or not?!"

    "You pass, you pass! You definitely passed! Come,e. Put out your arms and I¡¯ll mark you guys with a seal. With this, once 001 sends you back, Poison Toad will know the forbidden art has seeded and he¡¯ll tell you guys all about the ck Tortoise."

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast obediently raised their sleeves to expose their arms. 002 retrieved a seal from within his robes and stamped down on their arms, causing an imprint of a snake biting its own tail to appear on their skin.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 87

    <strong>Seen TMK¡¯s new cover art yet? Yuuko from our marketing team did it! Click to have a look.</strong>

    <b>Chapter 87: The Return Of Mascot (1)

    </b>

    <b> </b>

    The imprint was a deep ck colour. Shen Jingbin tried rubbing it and found that she wasn¡¯t able to scrub it off.

    "Hahaha, there¡¯s no point in trying to rub it off, gorgeous. You can¡¯t get rid of it that way."

    "I was only trying."

    Shen Jingbin still needed to look for Song Yuqing at White Cloud Temple once their quest waspleted, so the two of them didn¡¯t waste any time hanging around and said their goodbyes to 002.

    002 looked reluctant to part with them. "Hey, I had to wait for a really long time before finally being able to meet the two of you. Can¡¯t you guys stay and chat for a little while longer?"

    As the two of them watched the generous and kind looking face of the elder morph into a pitiful expression, they felt a shiver run down their spines.

    Apologies! There¡¯s nothing for us to talk about!

    002 was left feeling helpless upon seeing the determined looks on their faces. He pretended to sniffle and said, "Alright. Since you guys aren¡¯t willing to stay, then there¡¯s nothing to it. Gorgeous, I¡¯ll frequently take control of other NPCs, so I¡¯ll look for you again when the timees! Of course, I haven¡¯t forgotten you either, handsome."

    Quiet And Steadfast: ...

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    After ditching 002 and his unrelenting attempts at getting them to stay, the two of them retraced their steps and found 001 waiting for them at the same ce they¡¯d left him.

    001 was a little astonished when he saw them. "How¡¯d the two of you manage to finish so quickly?"

    Shen Jingbin was taken aback by how embarrassing 001¡¯s ancient ent sounded. She wasn¡¯t affected when she thought that it was an NPC¡¯s setting, but now that she knew 002 was controlled by a real person, she felt that there was something a little odd with the way he spoke.

    "Just speak normally, your cover¡¯s been blown."

    001¡¯s expression instantly distorted. "F*ck. It must have been 002! He was the one who revealed it to you guys, right?! I¡¯m going to report him to the group Leader!"

    Quiet And Steadfast silently looked up to the heavens. "The world of NPCs sure isplicated."

    Shen Jingbin: "I agree."

    001 reverted back to his innocent childlike appearance from before. He was utterly difited as he brought the two of them out of the Illusory Spirit Realm. It looked as if he was in a huge rush to get back and settle the score with 002.

    Which was understandable. Having his embarrassing persona suddenly exposed like this was truly shameful!

    Their vision blurred and they felt dizzy once again. Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast found themselves back in Poison Toad¡¯s secret room when they reopened their eyes. Seeing this, Poison Toad stood up and walked over to them.

    "Stretch out your arms and let me take a look."

    The duo raised their arms and rolled up their sleeves, revealing the seal that 002 had ced on them. Poison Toad swept a nce over it, revealing a smile of satisfaction.

    "Everything contains a certain degree of danger, but it looks like the two of you have pretty good luck and have managed to seed."

    Quiet And Steadfast stood up. He was taller than Poison Toad by about half a head, so he had to look down when he spoke to Poison Toad. "Master, since we¡¯ve seeded, does that mean you can tell us about the ck Tortoise now?"

    Poison Toad lifted his head and eyed Quiet And Steadfast.

    As an NPC of the Demon race, Poison Toad¡¯s appearance was especially alluring. Till now, apart from Baihua, he was the most graceful NPC she¡¯d ever seen.

    It was only a brief nce, but his eyes overflowing with charm had caused the nearby Shen Jingbin to go weak in the knees. Who knew what Quiet And Steadfast, who was the focus of his attention, would feel.

    However, it¡¯d be quite a problem if Quiet And Steadfast did ¡¯feel¡¯ something from Poison Toad¡¯s gaze.

    "Tch. It was really difficult for me to get my hands on a disciple. But after getting one, it turns out he¡¯d rather favor an outsider than me," After helplessly eyeing Quiet And Steadfast for several seconds, Poison Toad suddenly looked away and casually said, "I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re in such a rush to know. Do you really think that I, as the glorious Sect Leader of the Lich Pce, would renege on my word? I¡¯ll definitely deliver what I promised."

    He turned around and returned to his previous position in front of the small desk, before pouring himself a cup of tea.

    "What the f*ck, you¡¯re even sipping tea?" Shen Jingbin thought to herself as she stared at the cup of tea in his hands

    "Strictly speaking, my Lich Pce isn¡¯t really a part of the Demon race," While holding the teacup in one hand, he used his other hand to remove the lid and gently shift the surface of the tea 1 before continuing, "In the beginning, we were also a part of the Human race. Unfortunately, our method of doing things didn¡¯t sit well with the Humans and Celestials, so we were chased to Beiming where we settled down in the Demon¡¯s territory."

    Liches were experts in concealing themselves and conducting assassinations. To attainplete mastery of these skills, children within the sect would be subjected to merciless training from a young age. This was far too cruel of a treatment in the eyes of the prestigious sects of the Humans and Celestials. In addition, to make ends meet, the Lich Pce frequently epted assassination requests regardless of who the target was or what the implications of said assassination might entail. When they acted, all of their attacks would be killing blows that were iparably merciless. In the eyes of the other upright sects, the actions of the Lich Pce were naturally seen as reprehensible.

    And all of this originated from the backstories of the sects within <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>.

    "Demons were violent and ruthless by nature, which led to a certain amount of friction with the other two races. In the end, the animosity generated from that was diverted to us; we who were formerly Human. Beforeing over to Beiming, our Lich Pce suffered a great deal at the hands of Mara Hall."

    "Fortunately, us Liches have believed in the ck Tortoise since ancient times and the ck Tortoise itself is the Divine Beast that guards the north. After it made an appearance, Mara Hall ceased causing trouble for us," Poison Toad took a sip of his tea. "Although us Demons may be bloody and cruel, we make a clear distinction between our friend and foes. After ridding us of Mara Hall¡¯s animosity, the ck Tortoise took it upon itself to bring us to the Beiming Sea, where the ck Tortoise was rumoured to have slumbered. Once there, it helped us to build up the ind and sect before leaving us with the task of protecting it."

    "So I guessed right," Shen Jingbin quietly side by Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side.

    Quiet And Steadfast cast a sidelong nce at her. "Mm, you¡¯re very clever."

    Poison Toad continued on, "In the past when the Shinra Sect still had it¡¯s eye on the mortal realm, an enormous tsunami suddenly appeared in Beiming Sea. I sent some people down into the sea to investigate, but they all came back empty handed. Thinking back, what kind of creature is a Divine Beast? I definitely wouldn¡¯t be able toe across one on a whim. I may have recounted this tale to you today, but ultimately, whether or not you guys are able to find it is up to your own fate."

    Quiet And Steadfast cupped his hands and bowed to Poison Toad. "Thank you, Master."

    "Don¡¯t mention it. I have my own request in exchange for telling you this."

    "I knew things wouldn¡¯t be so simple," Shen Jingbin said.

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

    The purpose of this is to cool the tea down and to move the tea leaves around so that it¡¯s easier for the tea¡¯s fragrance and vor toe out. Here¡¯s a pic of it in action ?

 Chapter 88

    <strong>Seen TMK¡¯s new cover art yet? Yuuko from our marketing team did it! Click to have a look.</strong>

    <b>Chapter 88: The Return Of Mascot (2) </b>

    Poison Toad red at her for a moment before he continued, "Even if you manage to find the ck Tortoise, it wouldn¡¯t be the primordial ck Turtle. I hope that when the timees, you¡¯ll leave some of the ck Tortoise¡¯s inheritance for us. I n to offer up this inheritance to the ck Tortoise¡¯s statue in the temple, so that it may protect and allow us Liches to prosper for generations toe."

    "Congrattions on triggering the hidden quest ¡¯The Lich¡¯s Inheritance¡¯. Will you ept this quest? Yes/No. (Trigger condition: Continue conversing with Poison Toad after obtaining Mu Ge¡¯s seal.)"

    The moment Poison Toad finished speaking, the system¡¯s voice rang out within Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind.

    Shen Jingbin was briefly stunned before she recovered and epted the quest.

    "Quest: ¡¯The Lich¡¯s Inheritance¡¯ ¡ª Deliver the ck Tortoise¡¯s inheritance to Poison Toad (0/1)."

    Following that, a golden coloured quest suddenly appeared in her quest log.

    After she¡¯d epted the quest, Poison Toad waved his hand to the two of them and said, "I¡¯ve said everything there is to say. The two of you should be on your way. The appearance of the Shinra Sect this time around has affected far too many things. It isn¡¯t something the two of you can resolve by relying on strength alone. Go look for several morepanions to embark on this task together."

    "Alright. Thank you, Master."

    "Thank you."

    The two of them respectfully gave their thanks and followed the secret passage back to the main hall of the Lich Pce.

    The moment they exited the room, Shen Jingbin scratched her head. Feeling a little depressed, she said, "Sigh, I¡¯m feeling a little confused now. This game is way tooplicated."

    "Which part of what happened don¡¯t you understand?"

    "Well, you¡¯re the one who has the epic quest, but I received a gold coloured epic quest too. Why is that? Logically speaking, I shouldn¡¯t be able to get the epic quest from this questline after you received it. But not only did I get it, I received another quest on top of it."

    Quiet And Steadfast pondered for a moment. "Poison Toad himself said it just now, this quest is tooplicated and a single person wouldn¡¯t be able toplete it on their own. So, the development team split the main questline into various segments to be handed out to others. Take yourself for instance, if you look closely at your quest window, the quest you have now should have something to do with the Four Divine Beasts, right?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head.

    "The main part of the quest probably revolves around dealing with the Shinra Sect, while the Four Divine Beasts make up one of a few important parts that¡¯s needed to defeat them. You were the one who first caught the White Tiger, so the task ofpleting the quests rted to the Four Divine Beasts naturally fell to you. The quest I received from the start was to search for the Six Lead Disciples, who are also the most important figures in the uing war. If I¡¯m not wrong, the matter of managing the yers will be handed to us."

    "Then, going by what you said, are you implying that there¡¯s other factors involved apart from the Four Divine Beasts and yers?"

    "That¡¯s right, Divine Tools. We can estimate Shinra Sect¡¯s strength based on Du the Unvanquished¡¯s own strength. At present, the entire yer bases¡¯bat ability is still incapable of matching up to the Shinra Sect¡¯s. In that case, something needs to be done to increase the strength of the yers. If I¡¯m not wrong, there should be one other quest that involves obtaining Divine Weapons. The only thing is that we don¡¯t know who received this quest. I¡¯ve asked Hundred Daybreaks, and he¡¯s said that no information rting to this has been known as of yet."

    By this point, Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes had be as wide as saucers.

    Why was this game soplicated?!

    Seeing the dumbstruck look on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face, Quiet And Steadfast said, "What 002 said isn¡¯t wrong, this is indeed veryplex. However, it was designed to be a server wide epic quest where several chosen representatives would drive the quest along. After which, the rest of the yers would be able to participate in it. This way, the developers would be able to deepen a yer¡¯s sense of belonging within the game and stimte their interest."

    Shen Jingbin sighed. "The gamepany¡¯s staff are all perverts."

    The two of them sat on Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s mount and made their way towards White Cloud Temple as they outlined the mainponents of the epic quest. Upon reaching White Cloud Temple, a carrier pigeon suddenly appeared andnded on Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s shoulder.

    They stopped walking and Quiet And Steadfast pulled the letter out of the pigeon¡¯s beak, revealing that it was sent by Next Week Is Unlikely.

    "Where are you? Hurry over to Sichuan Redwood Forest! Imperial Sister and Buddhist Nun are fighting with yers from Sovereign¡¯s Descent!"

    "Why would they be fighting with Sovereign¡¯s Descent?"

    "I don¡¯t know, and one of my friends that happened to pass by told me that they might have seen the executives from Imperial City and Memelord there as well. Either way, things are a mess over there right now."

    "Alright, you head on over with Dawn first, I¡¯m on my way."

    "Dawn and I are both rushing there now."

    Shen Jingbin saw Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression turn grave when he opened the letter. "What happened?" She asked.

    "Our guild members got into a battle with another group in Redwood Forest. I need to go over and take a look. Why don¡¯t you... enter by yourself?"

    "I¡¯ll go with you. I should be present if it¡¯s a matter rted to the guild."

    "You¡¯re only Level 89, you¡¯re too weak. Furthermore, Mascot still hasn¡¯t woken up. It¡¯s far too dangerous for you."

    Hearing him mention Mascot, Shen Jingbin thought of her own Divine Beast and hurriedly opened her pet window.

    "Congrattions, your pet has sessfully ranked up."

    A notification suddenly popped up after opening the window!

    Shen Jingbin was ecstatic, "Mascot, you woke up at <b>just</b> the right time!"

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

    PPS: If you¡¯re part of Vre¡¯s discord and want dat cool Nutjob Army tag, just sound off in the TMK channel ??

 Chapter 89

    <b>Chapter 89</b><b>: Mascot¡¯s Evolution (1) </b>

    "Congrattions, your pet has sessfully ranked up."

    Mascot, who¡¯d been dormant for a long time, finally awoke and Shen Jingbin happily summoned him out.

    Compared to before, Mascot¡¯s appearance wasn¡¯t all that different. His coat of white fur remained as spotless as it was before and shone a faint gold under the light of the sun¡¯s rays.

    Wait, gold?

    Shen Jingbin blinked at Mascot and looked him over once again. Indeed, Mascot¡¯s coat of fur wasn¡¯t as clear and sparkling like it was in the past. Instead, it had a faint golden glow about it, as if fragments of gold were floating about its entire body.

    Apart from theyer of gold on its body, Mascot had also grown in size, appearing far more awe-inspiring than it did before.

    "Look, Mascot¡¯s woken up!" Shen Jingbin pointed at Mascot as she spoke to Quiet And Steadfast.

    Quiet And Steadfast obviously hadn¡¯t expected Mascot to wake up now and was at a loss for words. His stunned silence continued for awhile more, before he finally said, "...Then let¡¯s go. I¡¯ll apany you back here once we¡¯re done."

    Summoning his Sheng Huang, Quiet And Steadfast was just about to issue a mount sharing invitation to Shen Jingbin when she realised that the words ¡¯beginner rank¡¯ beside Mascot¡¯s portrait in her pet window had turned into an ¡¯intermediate rank¡¯. Below it, an icon with wings was lit up.

    "Hold up, it looks like Mascot can fly."

    She tried issuing a mentalmand to Mascot. As the word "Fly" shed through her mind, Mascot raised its head to the heavens and issued a roar.

    "ROAR!" A long, guttural sound could be heard that shocked the gatekeeping disciples of White Cloud Temple and nearby yers into hurriedly running over with their weapons raised.

    "What the f*ck, isn¡¯t this part of the safe zone?! Why was there a tiger¡¯s roar? Is there a tiger monster around?!"

    "The hell, that roar came without any warning at all. This big bro was so terrified my hands were trembling and I almost dropped the ss hairpin I bought to cate my wife!"

    "I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a monster. It¡¯s probably another yer¡¯s pet running wild."

    "Pui, have you ever heard of a yer¡¯s pet causing such a rucks?!"

    "Eh, don¡¯t be so sure of yourself, it might be a possibility. Isn¡¯t this White Cloud Temple¡¯s territory? Have you guys forgotten that the ugly monster of White Cloud Temple tamed the Divine Beast, White Tiger? It might be because of her."

    "The f*ck? The Divine Beast, White Tiger? I¡¯ve been ying for so f*cking long and I haven¡¯t even seen what a Divine Beast looks like! Go, go, go! Let¡¯s have a look!"

    ...

    After issuing a roar, Mascot lowered the front of its and raised thetter half of its body up high. A burst of golden light shone out of its body, engulfing Mascot in the process. A short whileter, a crash was heard and the breeze blown up by an enormous creature caressed the cheeks of onlookers. However, in spite of its gentle nature, a very subtle aura of ferociousness could be felt within this light breeze.

    As the golden light started to subside, everyone looked on with rapt attention and found that Mascot had actually grown out a pair of enormous white wings! Mascot¡¯s wings were raised high into the air as they basked in the sunlight. Be it Mascot or its wings, everyone was utterly captivated by their beauty.

    In the midst of their awe, someone muttered "What the f*ck!", causing everyone everyone else to silently nod their heads in their hearts.

    It really was f*cking unbelievable! Those were the only three words they could think of!

    Since Shen Jingbin was also caught off guard by Mascot¡¯s evolution, it didn¡¯t manage to garner the praise of its Master. Feeling wronged, it turned its head to her and gave her a pitiful look, as if its poor little heart had been broken.

    Shen Jingbin inched closer to Mascot and slowly stretched out her hand, her slightly trembling fingertips feeling up its furry ears. Sensing its Master¡¯s touch, Mascot let out an adorable cry before nuzzling its head against the hollow of her palm.

    "Mascot is definitely more impressive than it wasst time," Shen Jingbin said to Quiet And Steadfast as she rubbed its head.

    Quiet And Steadfast had aplicated look in his eyes as he looked back and forth between Shen Jingbin and Mascot, before finally nodding his head.

    "Then let¡¯s go."

    "Mascot, it¡¯s time to set off!" Shen Jingbin shouted as she did a flip and sat on Mascot¡¯s back.

    Mascot excitedly roared out in return, "Gao!"

    And just like that, their group of four majestically rose into the sky before the wide-eyed gazes of everyone present.

    "Beauty and the Beast hase to life," Someone muttered from within the crowd of people with upturned heads.

    It truly was a tale of Beauty and the Beast.

    However, the beast was Shen Jingbin while the beauty was...Mascot.

    Mascot and Sheng Huang were both top quality mounts that were rarely seen. As such, their traveling speed would naturally be faster than the other mounts. Shortly after arriving, a shadow appeared over the heads of Next Week Is Unlikely and Dawn¡¯s Twilight.

    Looking up, they saw an awe-inspiring White Tiger with its enormous wings outstretched as it hovered in the sky.

    So cool!

    This was what Next Week Is Unlikely and Dawn¡¯s Twilight were thinking in their hearts.

    But why did that tiger look so familiar...?

    "It¡¯s Steady!" Tearing his eyes away from the White Tiger, Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s gaze shifted to the silhouette beside it and instantly recognised who it was.

    Pui, Shen Jingchen finally knew who the other person was! It was his own troll of a little sister!

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast leapt off their mounts andnded on the ground before they briskly walked over to the other two. The four of them stood at the edge of the battlefield, which was roughly ten meters in size.

    "So what happened?" Quiet and Steadfast asked.

    "It¡¯s a free for all between Sovereign¡¯s Descent, Imperial City, Memelord, and several unaffiliated yers," Next Week Is Unlikely stated.

    "What about the healers from our guild? Tell all of them to drop whatever they¡¯re doing ande over here to provide support," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    "All of our high leveled healers are here already. They let the remaining low leveled healers return to the safe zone so they wouldn¡¯t be involved in the crossfire," Shen Jingchen answered.

    "There¡¯s not much to talk about since it¡¯s a free for all. Wipe them out," Quiet And Steadfast ordered.

    "Alright," Next Week Is Unlikely and Shen Jingchen replied together.

    Quiet And Steadfast nced at Shen Jingbin and said, "Do you still have Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine with you?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head. She still hadn¡¯t used the two bottles of medicine that she¡¯d previously bought.

    "That¡¯s good. Just take care of yourself and run away if things take a turn for the worse. No one will be able to catch up to Mascot."

    Shen Jingbin continued nodding her head.

    After that, Quiet And Steadfast and Next Week Is Unlikely drew their weapons and activated all their buffs before they jumped into the fray.

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 Chapter 90

    <strong>Note: Brother Mao¡¯s name has been changed to Brother Reckless</strong>

    <b>Chapter 90</b><b>: Mascot¡¯s Evolution (2) </b>

    Sichuan Redwood Forest was an area that leaned more towards providing yers with a rxing scenery. It was a ce filled with maple trees that had entire branches covered in red leaves, the sight of which was truly a thing of beauty. Moreover, the ground itself was t and expansive. yers who didn¡¯t have anything to do enjoyeding here to chat and enjoy the scenery.

    However at present, the state of the area had devolved into an all-out free for all. The shes of dazzling skills flew out in session. Amongst the yers, shes of white light could asionally be seen, signifying the death of a yer.

    "Stay away from the heart of the battle, we¡¯ll incur far too many losses. Skirt around the edge of the battle and mount sneak attacks instead, focus on finishing off yers with low health instead," Shen Jingchen said.

    Seeing Shen Jingbin nod her head, Shen Jingchen spoke once again, "Then let¡¯s go!"

    With that, the two of them nced at one another and went their separate ways.

    Shen Jingchen was one of the pirs of strength in Jade Sea Pavilion, so he¡¯d naturally charge towards the heart of the battle to aid Quiet and Steadfast and Next Week Is Unlikely in the reaping of yers¡¯ lives. Shen Jingbinplied with Shen Jingchen¡¯s suggestion and carefully roamed around the edge of the battlefield with her White Tiger by her side. She was searching for either lone yers, or those from other guilds who hadn¡¯t taken notice of her presence so she could take them down with one fell swoop of her horsetail whisk.

    Relying on her agile movements to weave around the battlefield, Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the least bit injured as she moved about.

    While Shen Jingbin was carefully concealing herself and making preparations to select her next target, all of the fur on Mascot¡¯s body suddenly stood on end and it started snarling at the space behind her.

    Shen Jingbin whirled around to face the silhouette that gradually revealed itself in the face of Mascot¡¯s threatening snarls.

    It turned out to a Lich who was concealing themselves.

    "Brother Reckless, Susu¡¯s been found!" The slightly shrill voice of a woman rang out.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze drifted to the corner of her eyes, revealing the figure of Lil Rose whom she¡¯d met before.

    After she spoke, a Mara wielding a broadsword suddenly appeared from Shen Jingbin¡¯s left and attacked her, while the Lich that Mascot revealed took the opportunity to charge at her once again.

    "Mascot, you take care of the one in front of you," Shen Jingbin said as she took a deep breath.

    Mascot gave a howl in reply before it shot forward like a bullet, obstructing the Lich who was charging towards Shen Jingbin. At the same time, Shen Jingbin adroitly dodged Brother Reckless¡¯ broadsword.

    Seeing his attack dodged, Reckless East Emperor roared out, "Don¡¯t run!"

    Don¡¯t run? Bruh, you think you¡¯re filming a drama?

    Shen Jingbin silently ridiculed Reckless East Emperor. At the same time, she strode to his back and swung her horsetail whisk, gently wrapping it around his neck. She then gave a tug and Reckless East Emperor, who was caught off guard, stumbled from the sudden force.

    In the end, Reckless East Emperor was a robust and vigorous man. With the weight of his body anchoring him in ce, Shen Jingbin wouldn¡¯t have been able to drag him down in one fell swoop even if she were stronger.

    To his credit, Reckless East Emperor reacted very quickly. His many years of gaming experience allowed him to instantlye up with a countermeasure. He flipped his hand and brandished his broadsword, using his sharp de to chop her horsetail whisk in half in the blink of an eye.

    The f*ck? It was cut that easily?!

    Seeing her horsetail whisk destroyed, Reckless East Emperor gave a few smug chuckles and said, "Your weapon is gone. Let¡¯s see you¡¯ll do now!"

    "Nutty! Catch!" Suddenly, a fellow Jade Sea Pavilion Daoist noticed Shen Jingbin¡¯s plight from a few meters away and tossed their own horsetail whisk at her. The other Daoist was already at death¡¯s door and with this moment of inattentiveness, it resulted in them being cut down by their opponent. Turning into a beam of light, they returned from whence they came.

    Shen Jingbin and Reckless East Emperor threw themselves at the horsetail whisk as it made its way over.

    However, Shen Jingbin was just a little faster and managed to grab ahold of the whisk.

    "Regardless of whether you have a weapon or not, I refuse to believe that I can¡¯t beat a level 89 scrub like you!"

    "Brother Reckless! I¡¯m here to help!"

    Lil Rose probably thought of joining in the fray because Reckless East Emperor wasn¡¯t able to dispose of Shen Jingbin as easily as she had thought.

    Reckless East Emperor was distinctly aware of Lil Rose¡¯s strength. If she came over, not only was there a chance of her not being able to help, she might even turn out to be a burden instead! So he hurriedly shouted, "Lil Rose, find a ce to hide!"

    Was she an idiot? Wasn¡¯t she revealing herself by shouting out at a time like this?!

    Due to the difference in strength between men and women, Shen Jingbin wordlessly changed her target to Lil Rose instead. Bounding forward, Shen Jingbin immediately closed the distance between her and Lil Rose, arriving by her side in a sh. Shen Jingbin then raised her hand and struck her.

    "Ah!"

    The horsetail whisk in Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand struck Lil Rose right in the center of her chest. She let out a miserable shriek before Mascot, having taken care of the Lich and swiftly returning to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side, raised a w at Lil Rose who was about to breath herst and shed at her.

    Lil Rose immediately turned into a beam of white light and disappeared before Reckless East Emperor¡¯s eyes.

    "Lil Rose!" Reckless East Emperor cried out in fury.

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 Chapter 91

    <b>Chapter 91: Returning To Hell (1) </b>

    Just like Shen Jingbin and Nine Bads, several other yers within the game would instinctively employ the skills they had learned in real life when fighting in close quarters. Although these attacks weren¡¯t as damaging as actual skills, it would still cause a huge mental blow to other yers.

    However, to average yers like Reckless East Emperor and Lil Rose, skills were the greatest things they could rely on.

    Seeing his own younger sister taken down "bare handed" without the use of any skills, Reckless East Emperor dug deep into his reserves of strength and squeezed out every ounce of it, intent on tearing Shen Jingbin to shreds.

    He no longer used his broadsword to sh at her. Instead, he wanted to experience the thrill of ughtering an enemy with his own two hands. Letting go of his sword, he started throwing out skills in session. Maras were more inclined towards being "meat shields", so his attacks weren¡¯t all that high, but their difference in level meant that Shen Jingbin would still take a fair bit of damage from them.

    As a Daoist, Shen Jingbin excelled at dishing out status ailments. Shen Jingbin naturally wouldn¡¯t sit there and wait for her death when faced with Reckless East Emperor¡¯s vicious assault. She immediately tossed three single target skills at him. Reckless East Emperor was able to resist her disable and disorient debuffs, but her root skill managed tond a hit, nailing him to his current position and preventing further movement.

    The status ailments inflicted by skills were short lived, and although they improved with levels, they still onlysted for around ten seconds. But since Shen Jingbin frequently forgot about her skills, they weren¡¯t leveled and remained at the beginner rank.

    A beginner ranked skill being able to affect Reckless East Emperor was also also due to her good luck.

    Taking advantage of the precious few seconds that Reckless East Emperor was rooted for, Shen Jingbin focused all of her strength into her fist and attempted to end this in a single blow. After all, Maras boasted arge health pool, which made taking them down in one hit no easy task.

    "Big bird, defend me!" Rooted to the ground with neither a way to fight back nor run away, Reckless East Emperor could only helplessly cry out for assistance. Momentster a big white bird that looked like a red-crowned crane, but was one and a half timesrger than one, suddenly flew out from the mass of people behind Shen Jingbin and sent its sharp beak hurtling towards her upper body.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> a yer¡¯s pet could be used as both a mount, and apanion in battle. High leveled pets were the equivalent of having a decentpanion and would engage enemies on their own. Mascot was one such example of this, which was why the various pets of yers would naturally form their own battlefield.

    Reckless East Emperor and Lil Rose had taken Shen Jingbin lightly at first, which was why their pets hadn¡¯t participated in the sneak attack and they had instead chosen to leave them at the center of the battle. Now, with his life in danger, Reckless East Emperor suddenly thought of his top quality pet.

    However, he¡¯d obviously forgotten that Shen Jingbin was someone who possessed the Divine Beast, White Tiger. Furthermore, he¡¯d also forgotten that his other twopanions had just died at the ws of said tiger.

    The red-crowned crane look-alike let out an ear piercing shriek when it came within three meters of Shen Jingbin. Its body stiffened and it came crashing down to the ground before curling itself up into a ball, shivering the entire time. It looked as if it had received a huge shock of some kind.

    As a Divine Beast, Mascot carried within its body the suppressive aura of a Divine Beast. However in the past, it was only at the beginner rank, so it¡¯s aura was sealed off. Having stepped into the intermediate rank, the seal on Mascot¡¯s aura was now released. In battle, Mascot would naturally release the entirety of its suppressive aura. Unfortunately, as it was still only of the intermediate rank, the effective range of its suppressive aura wasn¡¯t all thatrge.

    Having thorough knowledge of the rule that "supporting characters are always the first to go", Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t waste any time gloating. She concentrated all of her strength into her attack against Reckless East Emperor, while continuously debuffing him till he finally turned into a beam of light and disappeared before her eyes.

    Reckless East Emperor himself was also a ranked yer. While he was one of the lower ranked yers, in a game with as many yers as this, just being able to enter the rankings was a form of honor for yers.

    Taking care of Reckless East Emperor required no small amount of effort on the part of Shen Jingbin. It also made her aware of the fact that the skills she¡¯d learnt in real life only provided an advantage. They weren¡¯t the be all and end all, so she definitely couldn¡¯t neglect her skills in game!

    "Thief, I should have mentioned that you¡¯d better not let me see you again, right?" Before she even had the time to right herself, Shen Jingbin suddenly heard a chilling voice from her back.

    Shocked, Shen Jingbin unconsciously crouched down and rolled several steps forward. The instant she crouched down, she could clearly feel a wave of sword qi brush by the top of her head. She¡¯d only barelye in contact with it, but just that alone caused her to lose half of her health!

    Nine Bads!

    Standing up, Shen Jingbin cried out, "Mascot!"

    Hearing Shen Jingbin¡¯s summons, Mascot leapt over to her side. Swinging its thick and sturdy tail to the sides, Mascot bared its fangs at Nine Bads and let out a low, threatening growl.

    "Is this the Divine Beast, White Tiger? Giving it to you is truly throwing pearls before swine," Nine Bads¡¯ eyes sparkled as sheid eyes on Mascot.

    Shen Jingbin pulled out a bottle of Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine and gulped it down before she replied, "That just means the heavens have a discerning eye."

    "Very defiant, let¡¯s see how long you can keep up that attitude of yours for!"

    Nine Bads began her assault the instant she finished speaking. Shen Jingbin drew her weapon and charged forward to confront her, while Mascot, who was following alongside Shen Jingbin, also pounced at Nine Bads.

    As the saying goes, "attack is the best form of defence". Shen Jingbin was still going to try her damndest even if she knew she couldn¡¯t beat Nine Bads.

    "Boss, let us handle this tiger!"

    Nine Bads¡¯ band ofckeys also jumped into the fray. With the four of them taking action, they were able to lock Mascot down. Although Mascot was a Divine Beast, it was still intermediate ranked at present, so taking down four high leveled yers in one shot was still a bit too much for it.

    As for Shen Jingbin¡¯s side, due to the difference in power being too great, Shen Jingbin was put at a disadvantage right from the start. After several exchanges, Shen Jingbin¡¯s body was riddled with countless wounds. Although Nine Bads had also sustained injuries, her wounds were far lighter than Shen Jingbin¡¯s.

    "I still have something to take care of today, so I don¡¯t have time to waste on you."

    A glint of viciousness shed past Nine Bads¡¯ eyes before she took a step backwards. Gathering a ball of white light at the tip of her de, she raised her sword and brandished it, causing the white light to instantly separate from the long sword and fly straight towards Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s legs tried to dodge the moment it happened, but the ball of white light was abnormally fast. Unexpectedly, the ball of light gradually grew in size after leaving the long sword, making it impossible to dodge the attack. Shen Jingbin could only helplessly look on as the ball of light struck her squarely in the chest.

    After her first death, Shen Jingbin had learnt her lesson and lowered her pain settings to the minimum, which was why her chest only felt slightly feverish before her vision turned ck.

    "You have died."

    Both of her deaths had been at the hands of Nine Bads. And, from the looks of it, this definitely wouldn¡¯t be thest time either.

    It looked like things wouldn¡¯t be over between her and Nine Bads unless they thoroughly destroyed the other party.

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 Chapter 92

    <b>Chapter 92: Returning To Hell (2) </b>

    When she reopened her eyes, Shen Jingbin found herself in Hell once again.

    Different from the scene of Hell she was presented withst time, Hell was much livelier this time around. She gave the area a cursory nce and found that most of the yers were the ones who¡¯d participated in the current battle. These yers shared a tacit understanding with one another and stuck to their own guilds as they observed the other parties, none of them bothering to look for the correct Door of Rebirth.

    "Nutty, over here!"

    Someone from Jade Sea Pavilion spotted her and waved her over. Following the sound of the voice, Shen Jingbin made her way to her guildmates.

    Jade Sea Pavilion had the least casualties amongst all of the guilds with roughly eighteen deaths. They weren¡¯t as panicked as the members from other guilds either, casually grouping up with the rest of the members from Jade Sea Pavilion.

    Seeing Shen Jingbin walk over, a female Mara spoke up, "Big sis Nutty, how much Sin do you have?"

    yers who activated their PK mode and attacked other yers would have their Sin increased, turning their names red in the process. Attacking other yers would add 5 points of Sin, while killing them would add 10. A higher Sin value meant that said yer hadmitted many instances of murder. Shen Jingbin had finished off no small amount of yers in the previous battle, causing her Sin to rise in increments of 10, leading her to have a rather impressive Sin value.

    "90 points."

    "What the f*ck, you have even more Sin than me! That¡¯s amazing!"

    "When I was level 89, all I did in free for alls was get beaten up. Don¡¯t even talk about PKing other people, not getting PKed by them was good enough for me."

    "I didn¡¯t do much. I just hid myself and finished off yers with low health," Shen Jingbin said as she rubbed her nose.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion were stunned into silence for a few seconds before they started to roar withughter.

    "Hahahaha! You¡¯re way too cool!"

    "Big sis Nutty, let mee along with you the next time you do it!"

    "Alright, all of you cane along. I¡¯ll lead you guys to the summit ofst hitting."

    Jade Sea Pavilion was filled withughter and cheerful banter while the atmosphere around the other three guilds: Sovereign¡¯s Descent, Imperial Court, and Memelord was clearly more downcast inparison.

    Reckless East Emperor, Lil Rose, and Susu had noticed Shen Jingbin the moment she stepped into hell. The scene of Shen Jingbin casually entering the ranks of Jade Sea Pavilion and joking around with its members pissed Lil Rose off so much; she nearly broke her teeth from gritting them so hard in frustration.

    "That thief! Brother Reckless, quickly! Help me take revenge!"

    Susu was far more rational and calmer than Lil Rose. She nced at the people from Jade Sea Pavilion before she said, "Don¡¯t be so rash Lil Rose. Although the pros from Jade Sea Pavilion aren¡¯t around, we shouldn¡¯t provoke the ones over there."

    She then gestured for them to look over at Imperial City and Memelord. "Although Imperial City and Memelord are currently at war with Jade Sea Pavilion, they¡¯d realise that we were the ones who dragged them into it this time. When that timees, we¡¯d end up bing the target of everyone¡¯s ire."

    Reckless East Emperor, Lil Rose, and Susu were all from Sovereign¡¯s Descent, and this time¡¯s free for all was a scheme orchestrated by their Guild Leader. It was done with the intent of giving others the false impression that ¡¯members of Jade Sea Pavilion were bullying Sovereign¡¯s Descent¡¯. Imperial City and Memelord were the other tworge scale guilds within the game, and to increase the number of enemies Jade Sea Pavilion had, the leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent had intentionally stirred up the members of the other two guilds.

    Susu was one of the veteran members in the guild, so she knew these little tidbits of information that weren¡¯t made public. This also gave her a moreplete picture of the situation aspared to Lil Rose and Reckless East Emperor.

    "Then are we going to let her go just like that? She¡¯s been getting on my nerves for a long time!" Lil Rose said in a huff, her tone unresigned.

    Susu¡¯s eyebrows furrowed at the sight of Lil Rose¡¯s stubborn outburst.

    She and Reckless East Emperor had been together and supported one another since they were newbies. Susu had even helped him farm half of the top quality equipment that he was currently wearing. On top of that, she was also the one who got him into Sovereign¡¯s Descent. She¡¯d originally thought that she was someone special to him, but Reckless East Emperor had ultimately ended up throwing himself at the feet of the delicate little princess, Lil Rose.

    Susu was a prideful person, so she couldn¡¯t bring herself to do something like fight over a man. Although she still held some lingering affection for Reckless East Emperor, she¡¯d done her best to shift her mindset towards that of just a friend. Originally, she was supposed to join the Guild Leader¡¯s party in this war against Jade Sea Pavilion, but she¡¯d suggested to join Reckless East Emperor¡¯s party instead. She knew Reckless East Emperor through and through. Not only was he brash, he didn¡¯t think things through either. Seeing as Lil Rose was someone who loved shit stirring, Susu feared that Lil Rose might coax him into doing something stupid, bringing harm not only to himself, but also to the guild. Knowing their Guild Leader¡¯s personality, their Leader would definitely mark him for his ipetence.

    "So, what grievances do you have with that woman?"

    PS: We¡¯re epting fanart! Ya¡¯ll can send in your artwork to

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 Chapter 93

    <b>Chapter 93: Entering The Shinra Sect (1) </b>

    "What grievances do you have with that woman?" Susu asked.

    Lil Rose was momentarily stunned before she angrily raised her head and snorted, "I don¡¯t have any past grievances with her, she just ticks me off."

    "Don¡¯t be so quick to take revenge. Imperial City and Memelord are observing the situation, so we can¡¯t be the first to make a move."

    "But I can¡¯t just let it go like this! Brother Reckless~ Help me out, please?~" Lil Rose coyly called out to Reckless East Emperor.

    Although he had a thing for Lil Rose, Reckless East Emperor trusted Susu and was very receptive to what she said. "Don¡¯t be in a rush Lil Rose, she can¡¯t run from us since we¡¯re already in Hell. Just wait till we find the Door of Rebirth, then we¡¯ll take care of her."

    "Brother Reckless!" Lil Rose cried out, unwilling to back down.

    "Lil Rose, listen," Reckless East Emperor raised his voice.

    "Hmph," Unable to change Reckless East Emperor¡¯s mind, Lil Rose let out a cold snort before she shot a re at Susu, and then turned the other cheek.

    Susu ignored Lil Rose¡¯s dissatisfaction and distracted herself by surveying the current situation in Hell.

    The unseen happenings between the rest of the guilds were of no concern to the members of Jade Sea Pavilion. Shen Jingbin nced at her surroundings and asked, "Are all of our people here?"

    "Mm, everyone¡¯s here. We didn¡¯t have many casualties on our side," said Sunset, the Mara who¡¯d spotted her earlier.

    "Then why aren¡¯t you guys looking for the Door of Rebirth?"

    "Have a look for yourself. None of the people over there have budged a muscle yet. We have no intention of doing all the dirty work by helping them find the Door of Rebirth."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly thought of Marco Polo Bun. "Did you happen to see a wretched looking man nearby when you guys spawned here?"

    "Nope. All of the various guilds were already grouping up when I appeared. I didn¡¯t see any innocent passersby," said Tanabata Evening, the first Dragonkin to enter Hell from Jade Sea Pavilion.

    It looks like that idiot didn¡¯te down to Hell to strike it rich today. What a shame, he would¡¯ve made a killing.

    Shen Jingbin really felt sorry for Marco Polo Bun, but it wouldn¡¯t matter much even if he wasn¡¯t around. In any case, she knew exactly where the Door of Rebirth was for this part of Hell.

    "Guys, check the guild chat. The walls have ears and some things can¡¯t be said out loud."

    "Oh? Big sis Nutty, do you know some kind of secret?"

    "Mm, just look at the guild chat and you¡¯ll know."

    [Guild] Nutjob: I happened to run into a certain person when I was previously sent to Hell. He gave me some information about the Door of Rebirth.

    [Guild] Sunset: What kind of information?

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Eh, big sis Nutty, is it that person called Marco something?

    [Guild] Nutjob: Mm, have you met him before too?

    [Guild] A Mouthful Of Little Steamed Buns: I ran into him when I died in the past too, but I ignored him. Could he really have any information of worth?

    [Guild] A Cockroach With Every Swipe: You¡¯re probably talking about Marco Polo Bun. I¡¯ve met him in the past when I was sent to Hell. He seemed to know which Door was for which race. He brought me to the Door of Rebirth for Humans after I gave him 5 taels, but he didn¡¯t say a single thing to me.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Oh that¡¯s probably because my appearance was too much for him to handle.

    The rest of the guild¡¯s main forces were probably still fighting bravely in the world of the living and didn¡¯t have time to concern themselves with the guild chat. The only ones talking within the channel were the guild¡¯s lowbies; whom Next Week Is Unlikely had ordered back to the safe zone.

    Jade Sea Pavilion had its own share of lowbies, but they weren¡¯t your run of the mill lowbies. They were all Grandmaster Life Skill yers who were ced on the Life Skill leaderboards.

    [Guild] Nutjob: I¡¯ll teach you guys how to tell the difference betweens the Doors of Rebirth first. Find the right time to search and figure out which door is which after that.

    [Guild] Sunset: What should I do? I¡¯m suddenly feeling very anxious! Why do I feel like I¡¯m uncovering a huge secret!

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: Go on big sis Nutty, I¡¯ve got my popcorn ready.

    [Guild] Nutjob: The peach tree with white spots beside the Door of Rebirth belongs to the Celestials. The one with yellowish tipped leaves is for Demons and the remaining one is for Humans.

    [Guild] A Mouthful Of Little Steamed Buns: What the f*ck, that¡¯s insane! How observant do you need to be just to spot all of that!

    [Guild] A Cockroach With Every Swipe: This is the experience of someone who¡¯s died countless times before.

    [Guild] Sunset: Thanks for telling us all of this, big sister Nutty, but I think we should wait till the battle up top is over before going back. We¡¯ll just be going back to Redwood Forest if we respawn now. If we aren¡¯t lucky, we might be killed the moment we spawn. Either way, Hell has a different kind of scenery for us to enjoy.

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: I agree.

    [Guild] Syrup Time: I agree too.

    Even if they knew how to tell the Doors of Rebirth apart, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion were in no hurry to revive. Instead, they remained where they were and chatted as they waited for the battle to conclude.

    The living members of Jade Sea Pavilion were clearly giving it their all. As time went on, the number of yers in Hell from the other three guilds continued to increase, but Jade Sea Pavilion had only seen another two people appear.

    Finally, the executives of the other three guilds were also sent down to Hell, marking the end of the battle and Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s victory.

    [Realm] Neverending Dreams: Executives of Jade Sea Pavilion, how about a truce? I apologise on behalf of my guild for identally injuring your members. As for you guys from Sovereign¡¯s Descent, well yed.

    [Realm] Morally Grey: Memelord wishes for a truce. Sovereign¡¯s Descent, please provide us with an exnation.

    Just after the executives from Imperial City and Memelord died, two strips of dazzling golden realm messages came rolling through the sky.

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 Chapter 94

    <b>Chapter 94: Entering The Shinra Sect (2) </b>

    yers who were in Hell couldn¡¯t receive mail, but they¡¯d still be able to see realm messages.

    Seeing the number of casualties steadily increase, the Guild Leaders of Imperial City and Memelord calmed themselves down and started pondering over why they¡¯d joined in on the war.

    Redwood Forest was a well-known leisure spot and also the most optimal ce for gathering medicine. Imperial City and Memelord both had a fair number of Life Skill yers amongst them, so there¡¯d always be a steady stream of yers gathering medicine here everyday.

    Life Skill yers didn¡¯t have much in the way of offensive powers. This, coupled with the fact that there was always a small chance of monsters popping up when they were gathering medicine, meant that they would always need some hired hands to apany them whenever they made their rounds.

    These hired hands had very irritable personalities. Knowing this, Sovereign¡¯s Descent took the lead to provoke the Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s members. When the fight between them started to break out, Sovereign¡¯s Descent deliberately led the battle towards the area where the yers from Imperial City and Memelord were hiding.

    Even godly yers had moments where they made mistakes. A split second of inattention had caused the skill from the side of Jade Sea Pavilion to go hurtling towards the yers of Imperial City and Memelord.

    Seeing the attack fly over, the hired hands immediately flew into a rage.

    Oh hoh, so you dare to attack my charges even when I¡¯m standing here as a bodyguard, eh? Looks like you¡¯re looking down on me. F*ck, looks like I need to teach you guys a lesson!

    And so, they brought out their weapons and jumped into the fray without asking a single question.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion had long since heard of Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight¡¯s trickery.

    Little guy, don¡¯t think you¡¯re the biggest fish in the ocean just because you¡¯ve got the most people. Quality over quantity! Let big brother over here teach you how to be a proper person.

    Eh, what¡¯s the meaning of this? Looks like Imperial City and Memelord are actually working together with Sovereign¡¯s Descent! My god, it turns out all of you were in cahoots! F*ck. Alright then, I¡¯ll cut all of you down!

    All men are hot blooded creatures. They¡¯d only be able to reflect upon the situation and calmly analyze things after regaining theirposure. After thinking through everything once again, the Guild Leaders from Imperial City and Memelord realised that this was all orchestrated by Sovereign¡¯s Descent.

    Jade Sea Pavilion had always had a very good reputation, and would never use its strength to oppress the weak.

    As such, after having a calm discussion amongst themselves, they decided to send out a realm message to announce their stand on the matter.

    None of the people in Hell know about Redwood Forest¡¯s current situation. However, after Imperial City and Memelord¡¯s Realm Announcements appeared, the yers from both guilds immediately let out a sigh of relief as they got up in session and started looking for the right Door of Rebirth to revive themselves.

    The yers from Sovereign¡¯s Descent got to their feet and eyed the yers from Imperial City and Memelord as they revived themselves, afraid of moving a muscle.

    Before carrying out the n, the members of Sovereign¡¯s Descent had been instructed by their Guild Leader to not blindly take action without the orders of their Leader.

    Seeing the rest of the yers in Hell starting to move about, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion slowly got to their feet. They wandered about, looking as if they had no objective in mind. But in reality, they were secretly looking for their own Door of Rebirth.

    Shen Jingbin noticed Reckless East Emperor and Lil Rose staring at her with an odd look in their eyes, so she subconsciously decided to pay more attention to the two of them.

    The number of yers in Hell gradually began to decrease, however no one knew whether these yers had found the right door, or whether they¡¯d been transported to the eighteenth level of Hell.

    The members of Sovereign¡¯s Descent finally received orders from their Guild Leader when almost all the other yers had left.

    [Guild] Neverending Journey: All of you; you can now revive and return to the guild.

    The members of Sovereign¡¯s Descent finally started to disperse, each yer looking for their own Door of Rebirth.

    To their surprise, Reckless East Emperor and Lil Rose found that Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t left Hell yet. They shared a nce between themselves and inwardly rejoiced before they broke away from the rest of Sovereign¡¯s Descent, carefully making their way to Shen Jingbin¡¯s back.

    Shen Jingbin still had some things she wanted to ask Shentu and Yul¨¹, but there were too many yers in Hell. She had no intention of attracting attention, so she decided to wait till the rest of the yers left Hell before she set out to look for them.

    As she¡¯d been wary of Reckless East Emperor and Lil Rose, she noticed them trying to sneak up on her. Shen Jingbin gave a coldugh before she unhurriedly walked towards the Door of Rebirth for Humans.

    Reckless East Emperor and Lil Rose; one was a Mara of the Demon race while the other was a Dragonkin of the Celestial race. Both of them making their way towards the Door of Rebirth for Humans was definitely wrong.

    Time passed by till Hell was virtually devoid of yers, except for one or two of them who had yet to find the right door. Reckless East Emperor felt that the time was about right to take action. Waiting any longer might allow Shen Jingbin to slip away, so he nced at Lil Rose to signal her before the two of them revealed themselves.

    Their objective was simple. Since they were already in Hell, they wouldn¡¯t have to worry about dying again. In that case, they should use this opportunity to teach this woman a lesson and let her endure a bit of suffering.

    "Excuse me, do the two of you have any business with me?"

    Shen Jingbin calmly eyed the two people blocking her way.

    "Ugly monster, you killed me just now, so I¡¯vee to repay my debt. But, I¡¯d be willing to forgive you if you kneeled down and begged for forgiveness," Lil Rose said.

    Shen Jingbin looked as if she was staring at an idiot. "Looks like you didn¡¯t raise your IQ at all. Why are you still so stupid?"

    Lil Rose¡¯s face flushed red in anger. "Ugly monster, you¡¯re just dying the inevitable! Brother Reckless!"

    Following her delicate cry, Brother Reckless immediately leapt forward and attacked Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin, who¡¯d long since prepared herself for this, casually dodged his attack.

    In Hell, yers would face a severe stat reduction and be in a "weakened" state. But to someone who was innately strong like Shen Jingbin, this "weakened" state meant nothing to her.

    After dodging Reckless East Emperor¡¯s attack, she drew her weapon and viciously whipped it at him.

    But something strange happened.

    The instant her horsetail whisk connected with him, Reckless East Emperor let out a blood-curdling screech and disappeared into thin air!

    Seeing what happened, Lil Rose turned tail and ran towards a random Door of Rebirth, paid a small fine for PKing, and fled for her life.

    Everything happened in a blur and Shen Jingbin was left standing there dumbstruck.

    Can someone who¡¯s already dead die again?

    But, this had nothing to do with her. At the very least, her enemies were all taken care of!

    And so, Shen Jingbin stowed away her weapon and made her way towards the Human Door of Rebirth to have a chat with Shentu and Yul¨¹.

    Meanwhile, after being hit by Shen Jingbin¡¯s attack, Reckless East Emperor¡¯s vision went ck and an enormous wave of pain assaulted his heart.

    Before he even had the chance topose himself, Reckless East Emperor suddenly heard the system¡¯s notification ring by his ear. However, the sound of the system¡¯s notification wasn¡¯t pleasant sounding like it usually was. Instead, it sounded rather sinister.

    "Congrattions on meeting the conditions for joining the Shinra Sect. Will you join the Shinra Sect? Yes/No. (Trigger Condition: Die at the hands of a yer from one of the Six Great Sects in spirit form. Hint: Only the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects are able to kill yers in their spirit forms.)"

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 Chapter 95

    <b>Chapter 95: Unresigned (1)</b>

    "Why hath thoue hither?" Shentu opened his eyes and asked Shen Jingbin as she walked towards the Door of Rebirth.

    Shen Jingbin surprise came from the fact that he didn¡¯t say his usual scripted lines. Instead, he jumped straight to the main topic at hand.

    "I¡¯ve obtained the whereabouts of the ck Tortoise, but I don¡¯t have the specifics, so I thought of asking you guys about it."

    Even though Poison Toad told Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast about the ck Tortoise¡¯s whereabouts, the Beiming Sea was iparablyrge. In addition to that, Beiming Sea¡¯s map wasn¡¯tpletely explored. Merely relying on the information that "the ck Tortoise is in the Beiming Sea" to look for it was undoubtedly trying to find a needle in a haystack.

    "The four divine beasts have their own respective reasons for existing in this world. They represent different things too. Everything in this world is preordained. Thou hast to be mindful of thy surroundings for things to go smoothly." Shentu rambled on, spouting a bunch of titudes that had no real meaning.

    As expected, trying to decipher the words of an NPC words wasn¡¯t easy.

    "Alright. Well, thanks... I want to pass through the Door of Rebirth. Can you open the door for me?"

    Yul¨¹ who was standing to the side also opened his eyes, "The malicious Qi around you is too strong. You definitely can¡¯t pass the Door of Rebirth like this."

    Shen Jingbin recalled the fine one had to pay when dying with a red name.

    "How much is my fine?"

    "90 taels," came Yul¨¹¡¯s reply.

    F*ck! Boss, I¡¯m broke! I barely have any money left for myself!

    Shen Jingbin felt like crying whenever the topic of money was brought up. Honestly speaking, she was this close to bing a bankrupt, alright? She was already scraping to make ends meet, so why did everything she do require money? She was really living a dog¡¯s life.

    No, this won¡¯t do. After she respawned, she definitely had to cheat that manservant Shen Jingchen of a few taels.

    She wore a pitiful expression on her face, but objectively speaking, it looked less "pitiful" and more "terrifying".

    "I don¡¯t have any money on me. Can you guys bend the rules a bit for me?"

    There was a moment of enigmatic silence between Shentu and Yul¨¹. After quite some time, Shentu heaved a long sigh and said, "Fine, fine. We made a mistake yet are still counting on thou to make up for our shorings. What¡¯s this small fine inparison to that? ... Yul¨¹, open the door."

    With downcast eyes, Yul¨¹ silently turned around and opened the Door of Rebirth for her. Shen Jingbin strode forwards with her small bandy legs and stepped through the Door of Rebirth without ncing back.

    A short whileter, she emerged from the door and was faced with Redwood Forest¡¯s beautiful scenery. The chaotic free for all was no longer present and was instead reced by the original tranquility that permeated the forest.

    "Little Jingjing!" All of a sudden, she heard Shen Jingchen¡¯s voice sound out from behind her.

    She turned around and she saw Shen Jingchen, Quiet And Steadfast, Next Week Is Unlikely and Slight Chill standing behind her.

    Quiet And Steadfast was the first to walk towards her.

    "Which guild did this?"

    "Nine Bads from Life At First Sight," Shen Jingbin sinctly replied.

    Once Slight Chill heard that it was Nine Bads¡¯ doing, she said, "Didn¡¯t I say I saw Nine Bads? But you guys weren¡¯t willing to believe me, were you? From my point of view, today¡¯s mess was jointly orchestrated by Quarrelsome Fish and Neverending Journey. That Nine Bads is really petty. This is the first time I¡¯ve seen someone hold a grudge like she does."

    "Neverending Journey and Crying Fish are really two peas in a pod. It¡¯s no wonder they banded together to form an alliance. Your elder brother is gonna settle things with that Nine Bads if she insists on bullying you over and over again!" Shen Jingchen said.

    "But they¡¯re pretty brainless. I bet Imperial City and Memelord are going to hate them after today¡¯s incident," Next Week Is Unlikely said.

    Slight Chill interjected, "Quarrelsome Fish is better than anyone else at putting up a front. I don¡¯t think Imperial City and Memelord are going to do anything to her. I can¡¯t be sure about Sovereign¡¯s Descent... Heck, one¡¯s a spiteful woman whilst the other is an idiot. They really are a perfect match for one another."

    Shen Jingbin silently nced at Slight Chill, feeling a little out of sorts.

    Honestly speaking, she still couldn¡¯t connect Jiang Weiwei and her online persona together! Just look at her, Jiang Weiwei was such an upright and honest girl, while Slight Chill...

    Ah, could it be that everyone was secretly had a split personality?

    It might have been due to her brazen gaze, but Slight Chill narrowed her eyes and said, "What¡¯re you staring at me for?"

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly shook her head, making her look like a rattle-drum as she replied, "No, it¡¯s nothing! Nothing at all!"

    Slight Chill threw her a look of disdain and said, "You still owe me twenty taels! I haven¡¯t forgotten!"

    When the matter was brought, a stern expression immediately formed on Shen Jingbin face, "I haven¡¯t forgotten. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll definitely give it back to you... Dawn,e over for a moment."

    Shen Jingchen had a bewildered look on his face when he heard his name being mentioned, "What¡¯s up?"

    "You¡¯ll know once youe over."

    "Oh." He grunted in assent and obediently walked over to her side.

    Quiet And Steadfast had a subtle look in his eyes as he looked at them from the back. Slight Chill caught a glimpse of that look as she stood beside him.

    "Hey, what¡¯s with that look in your eye? You look like you¡¯re looking at your wife who cheated on you."

    "What kind of bullshit analogy is that? Has your studies as a graduate student been for naught?"

    "Bah. Zhao Chengning do you think I won¡¯t tell Beauty Shen about you ying games? At the same time, I¡¯ll even tell her about you marrying an ugly girl here!"

    "...can¡¯t you be a little more creative? Do you think there¡¯s any meaning to it if you always use the same excuse to threaten me?"

    Next Week Is Unlikely interrupted, "Can the two of you stop arguing? Slight Chill, didn¡¯t we agree not to address other people by their real names?"

    "I forgot. Who asked him to take a dig at me?" Slight Chill said as she pursed her lips.

    Next Week Is Unlikely: "I really have to hand it to the both of you."

    Quiet And Steadfast felt that if he stayed by these two any longer, his identity would probably be exposed a century earlier. Hence, he decisively chased them away, "What¡¯re two still doing here? Hurry up and go. Do what you have to do."

    Slight Chill: "I¡¯m here to collect some herbs. Humph, I¡¯m not leaving."

    "... Next Week, what about you?"

    Next Week Is Unlikely rubbed his nose, "I¡¯m just here to take observe the situation. Nutty¡¯s thest to spawn, so I¡¯ll leave after she appears... Stop ring at me. I¡¯ll leave, alright? Oh right, do you want me to help you take Dawn away too? Honestly speaking, I think that Dawn is the biggest lightbulb between Nutty and you. He¡¯s more or less a siscon."

    "What lightbulb? Who knows what kind of mental illness this manservant contracted... getting married just like that," Slight Chill softly muttered under her breath.

    Quiet And Steadfast stroked his forehead, "Slight Chill, I really feel like giving you a beating."

    Slight Chill: ...

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 Chapter 96

    <b>Chapter 96: Unresigned (2) </b>

    "They¡¯reing over," Next Week Is Unlikely said.

    The trio didn¡¯t know what the siblings did over there, but when they returned, Dawn¡¯s Twilight had a mournful look on his face. In contrast, Nutjob had a brilliant smile on her face. It looked as if the word "happiness" was scrawled all over her.

    When they got closer, Next Week Is Unlikely said, "Nutty, we¡¯ll be taking our leave first since you¡¯ve gotten back safely."

    The reason why Quiet And Steadfast and co were standing guard in Redwood Forest was to protect their guild members who¡¯d respawned. Sovereign¡¯s Descent had suffered a huge loss today. Based on their Guild Leader, Neverending Journey¡¯s personality, he might just decide to bring some of his other guild members over to lie in wait and attack the members of Jade Sea Pavilion who¡¯d respawned to vent his anger. This was even more likely since Slight Chill had mentioned how she¡¯d seen Nine Bads heading over.

    Everyone knew of the grudge Nine Bads held against Shen Jingbin. To top it off, Nine Bads herself was had a very vindictive personality. Ever since Nine Bads had cornered Shen Jingbin and killed her in the PVP field, everyone could tell that Nine Bads was ever going to let her off.

    Among the four of them, one was Nutjob¡¯s husband, the other her elder brother. Of the remaining two, one was an executive within the guild while the other was a veteran member. As such, it was only natural for them to wait in Redwood Forest for Nutjob to respawn.

    "Mm, you guys go about your business. Everything¡¯s fine on my end," Shen Jingbin said as she thanked Slight Chill and Next Week Is Unlikely for their help.

    "I have something to take care off too, so I¡¯ll be heading off first," Shen Jingchen said.

    "Sure, big bro." Since she¡¯d just cheated him of his money, this was one of the rare asions where she¡¯d spoken to him in an amicable manner.

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    He really felt like going onto Tianya1 and gossip about this shameless younger sister of his!

    Shen Jingbin watched as Slight Chill and the rest left before she returned her gaze to Quiet And Steadfast.

    "Don¡¯t you need to discuss today¡¯s incident with the Guild Leaders of Imperial City and Memelord?"

    "I¡¯m not good atmunicating. Next Week is usually the one in charge of dealing with diplomatic affairs."

    "You seem to be pretty carefree for a Guild Leader."

    Quiet And Steadfast chuckled, "I don¡¯t know about me being carefree, but everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion are all pretty good people. much about being rxed or not. Everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion are all rtively good people. I¡¯m very happy being the guild leader and that¡¯s what¡¯s important... Now, I¡¯ll apany you to White Cloud Temple."

    "Sure."

    The duo summoned their mounts at the same time and flew towards White Cloud Temple.

    Going back to Reckless East Emperor, after hearing the system notification, he immediately got caught up in a bundle of excitement.

    After thetest update, the game¡¯s administrators revealed the means of joining the Demonic Sect. But based on how they did things, the information they revealed would bepletely useless, and instead tasking yers to find out on their own.

    Many yers were moved by the BUG like levels of offence and defence that the Shinra Sect had, and Reckless East Emperor amongst those yers.

    However, there was no news of any yer being epted into the Shinra Sect till now.

    Of course, there was always the chance of someone withholding it. After all, the Shinra Sect was at odds with the six great sects. At present, the Shinra Sect wasn¡¯t strong enough. If they were to reveal themselves, there¡¯d be a high chance of everyone gang up on them

    Reckless East Emperor¡¯s moral standing and luck in the game were both extremely average. Up till now, he hadn¡¯t received any hidden quests. When fighting against BOSSes and taking part in events, the chances of him obtaining an umon item them was very average too. This time around, however, one could say that him triggering the conditions to enter Shinra Sect highlight of his entire gaming career.

    "ept." He epted without the slightest bit of hesitation.

    "You have been admitted into the Shinra Sect."

    After the normal system notification went away, the sinister voice from before rang out once more.

    "Youngster, wee to my Shinra Sect. Come, open your eyes and take a look at the world that is my Shinra Sect."

    Reckless East Emperor heard these words and opened his eyes. When he did so, he was no longer in Hell.

    The sky above and the ground below was even darker than before. Not even a de of grass was able to grow on the endless desert ins. Everything before his eyes was iparably deste.

    "The Shinra Sect is supposed to enjoy the pleasures of changing the weather with our boundless magic power and live a glorious life where people of the world revere us. But that wasn¡¯t so because the six great, self-proimed righteous sects sealed us away in this deste ce. Young man, you understand this feeling of unfairness, right? Come, let us overrule this world and rebuild a world thatpletely belongs to us ¨C a world that belongs to the Shinra Sect!"

    A fire was suddenly ignited in Reckless East Emperor¡¯s heart.

    That¡¯s right, he knew of such discontentment.

    Even though Reckless East Emperor wasn¡¯t the most impressive member in Sovereign¡¯s Descent, he was still much better than his guild leader, Neverending Journey. Other than applying to establish Sovereign¡¯s Descent as a guild, Neverending Journey hadn¡¯t made a single contribution to the guild. The vice-Leader, Pure Crane, would usually be the one in charge of managing the guild. Furthermore, Neverending Journey never considered the consequences of his actions. Oftentimes, when a new idea sprang up in his mind, he would send his guild members off to their deaths in the spur of the moment, just like the chaotic warfare this time around.

    Reckless East Emperor would go as far as to say that Sovereign¡¯s Descent would have long since disbanded if it weren¡¯t for their Vice-Leader, Pure Crane.

    Why couldn¡¯t he rece a useless person like Neverending Journey? At the very least, he was smarter than Neverending Journey by a huge margin. He wouldn¡¯t send his guild members to their deaths, and he even had Susu helping him.

    Hepletely outstripped Neverending Journey in various aspects, so how could he be satisfied with his current status?

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    A Chinese forum ?

 Chapter 97

    <b>Chapter 97: Exploring The Demonic Sect (1) </b>

    "Greetings, Great Senior Sister!"

    The moment Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast stepped through the gates of White Cloud Temple, they were faced with two gatekeeping disciples, both bowed at ny degrees as they greeted them very respectfully.

    Shen Jingbin was given a huge fright.

    "Ah, greetings."

    These two gatekeeping disciples didn¡¯t have the high IQs of Song Yuqing or Poison Toad, so they didn¡¯t converse any further with her after she acknowledged their greetings, and returned to their task of wholeheartedly guarding the sect¡¯s entrance.

    Quiet And Steadfast sighed and said, "Disciples from your sect are so respectful."

    Thinking about it, Quiet And Steadfast was the Lead Disciple of the Lich Pce, but when they were there, the gatekeeping disciples hadn¡¯t greeted them in the same way.

    Eh, no. She hadn¡¯t even seen any gatekeeping disciples. In fact, she didn¡¯t even know whether it was because they didn¡¯t have any, or if it was due to them concealing themselves.

    Shen Jingbin led Quiet And Steadfast along the familiar path as they made a beeline for Song Yuqing¡¯s house.

    Thest two times she was here, yers within the sect stayed far away from her. However, strangely, this time around, not only did they not avoid her, they even formed a circled around her. The more courageous ones even ran up to her and tried to strike up a conversation.

    It was the same scene whenever she went to school.

    Feeling suspicious, she gave her face a little rub.

    That¡¯s not right, it¡¯s still the same horrifying face.

    Did they hit their heads or something?

    "Great Senior Sister! Do you need help with anything? I¡¯m ranked 13th amongst all the Daoists on the Leaderboards! Just let me know if you need any help!" Said another yer as he ran up to her and offered his services with a smile on his face.

    "No need. I don¡¯t need any help for now," Shen Jingbin replied as she waved him off.

    While saying so, she dragged Quiet And Steadfast off and opened up her stride.

    Unwilling to relent, the yer behind her continued to shout, "No need to stand on ceremony with me Great Senior Sister, just let me know if you need any help!"

    After he spoke, the rest of the yers surrounding them started cry out as well, "That¡¯s right! Don¡¯t stand on ceremony Great Senior Sister! Let me know if you need any help! My name is..."

    "Great Senior Sister, muack muack! Be sure to call me along if you¡¯re gonna be doing anything big! My name is XXX!"

    The endless waves of shouting caused Shen Jingbin¡¯s face to pale, as she worried that the crowd of yers might just pounce at her in their fervor.

    Seeing her reaction, a smile shed across Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s face. He flipped his hand so that it was on top of Shen Jingbin¡¯s and pulled her along.

    Shen Jingbin was startled by him. Bro! Where are you running of to? Do you even know the way?!

    However, reality proved that Quiet And Steadfast had pretty good luck too. They were able to arrive at Song Yuqing¡¯s residence even with Quiet And Steadfast randomly leading the way.

    Was it pure dumb luck?

    "Alright, alright. We don¡¯t need to run about any longer, we¡¯re here."

    Most yers wouldn¡¯t dare to barge into Song Yuqing¡¯s residence because they were worried about lowering his Goodwill towards them. When it came to NPCs within the game, having their Goodwill was extremely important, especially when it came to BOSS-like NPCs such as Song Yuqing.

    Quiet And Steadfast loosened his grip on her hand and said, "Sorry, you looked ufortable being surrounded like that, so I pulled you away."

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t concerned with these small details. "It¡¯s alright. Let¡¯s enter."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯spleteck of modesty was difficult for Quiet And Steadfast to bear!

    Girl, I¡¯ll start to doubt myself if you don¡¯t even blush a little from this!

    "You¡¯vee."

    After the two of them had entered his residence, Song Yuqing stepped out from behind a screen.

    He sized up Quiet And Steadfast before he said, "Are you a disciple of the Lich Pce?"

    Quiet And Steadfast gave a bow and replied, "Yes, I am."

    Song Yuqing stroked his beard as he sighed and said, "We of the White Cloud Temple have wronged your sect in the past. Send my apologies to your Sect Leader if you happen to see him in the future."

    "Will do."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly realised that rtionships between NPCs were reallyplicated.

    Song Yuqing¡¯s gaze fell on Shen Jingbin. "Have you aplished the task I¡¯ve given you?"

    "Mm!" Shen Jingbin grunted in assent as she nodded her head.

    Just after she finished speaking, the system notification rang out.

    "Congrattions onpleting the quest ¡¯Investigating The Demonic Sect¡¯. Quest reward: Shinra Sect teleportation scroll (1), 20,000 Experience, 10 taels of silver, 20 Chivalric Prestige Points."

    "I know you met Shentu and Yul¨¹ in Hell. They gave you quite a far bit of information on top of asking you to help them with something, right?"

    "Were NPCs telepathic as well?!" Shen Jingbin thought to herself in astonishment.

    "That¡¯s right, they asked me to search for the Four Divine Beasts."

    "The Four Divine Beasts..." Song Yuqin muttered to himself. "So it was like that... My disciple, the appearance of the Shinra Sect this time around was preordained. The road you walk is long and arduous, but fret not and fight to your fullest, for you have the backing of the entire White Cloud Temple and I. If you require further assistance,e to me and I shall make it so."

    Shen Jingbin was so moved by his speech that her eyes were brimming with tears. "How cool! I can¡¯t get over how cool he became all of a sudden!"

    "Alright! Thank you, Master!"

    At this moment, Quiet And Steadfast suddenly spoke out, "Sect Leader Song, I have something I want to ask you about."

    "Ask away," Song Yuqing said as he turned to Quiet And Steadfast.

    "Do you know about the matter regarding the Four Divine Beasts? If I remember correctly, White Cloud Temple has a spell called the zing me Arts. The fireball that this spell produces is the same kind as the Vermillion Bird. Does White Cloud Temple have any connection with the Vermillion Bird?"

    zing me Arts was a skill that could only be used by high leveled Daoists. The skill book itself required yers to exchangerge amounts of sect Prestige Points to exchange for it. zing me Arts boasted impressive destructive prowess. To top it off, it was also able to inflict fear and root enemies, making it a must-have skill for all Daoists.

    Big Buddhist Nun and Little Monk were both Daoists too. Back when the married couple was still umting Prestige Points for the skill book exchange, they dragged all of the members of Jade Sea Pavilion along in their quest for points. This was something Quiet And Steadfast remembered very vividly.

    Song Yuqing gave Quiet And Steadfast a look of admiration. "I didn¡¯t expect you to have such a profound understanding of White Cloud Temple. Look at you Nutjob, you can¡¯t even match up to another Lead Disciple¡¯s understanding of your own sect."

    Shen Jingbin felt wronged after having been singled out like that, "Master, I¡¯m still young. I don¡¯t know anything about the world of adults," In the next instant, she shot back when the realization that her Master had kept knowledge of the Four Divine Beasts from her hit home, "Master, you know about the Four Divine Beasts? Why didn¡¯t you say anything?!"

    Song Yuqing gave a tsundere-like snort. "This was your Master¡¯s test for you. Whatever the case may be, you¡¯re still the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple. You should have taken the initiative to learn about matters pertaining to our sect on your own."

    "... You forgot, didn¡¯t you," Shen Jingbin¡¯s courage suddenly swelled as she spoke out.

    Song Yuqing red at her. "Don¡¯t speak nonsense! How could I have forgotten!"

    After bing a Lead Disciple, Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the least bit afraid of Song Yuqing. "You clearly forgot, and yet you¡¯re still trying to lie through your teeth."

    "... Wicked disciple!"

 Chapter 98

    <b>Chapter 98: Exploring The Demonic Sect (2) </b>

    Quiet And Steadfast could only helplessly look on in confusion as Master and disciple started to bicker. He stretched out his hand and patted Shen Jingbin on the back. "That¡¯s enough, we¡¯ve got more pressing matters to attend to."

    "Mm," After hearing what he said, Shen Jingbin obediently gave a grunt of affirmation.

    "Sect Leader Song, please tell us about the Vermillion Bird."

    Steeling his expression, Song Yuqing said, "Alright. The two of you should have a seat."

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast found a ce to sit.

    "The Vermillion Bird is the Divine Beast of the South. As White Cloud Temple and Sword Master Pavilion are associated with the South, the Vermillion Bird acts as the guardian for both our sects. This was also why I didn¡¯t tell you about the Vermillion Bird at the start."

    "Its rted to Swordmaster Pavilion as well?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "What do you think?" Song Yuqing said as he shifted his gaze to her.

    He continued speaking, "Among the Four Divine Beasts, the Azure Dragon is the most sacred of them all, and is worshipped by the Celestials as their Divine Beast. The Vermillion Bird guards the South and protects us Humans. The ck Tortoise is proficient in the Dark Arts of the Underworld and protects both the North and the waters of Beiming. Naturally, this led to it being worshipped by the Demon race. As for the White Tiger, although it¡¯s a Divine Beast, its aura of ughter was too strong and its whereabouts were unknown, making it the most unique existence amongst the Four Divine Beasts."

    "Regarding the Vermillion Bird, do you know of the saying that only one of them may exist in the world at a time?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head.

    "The Vermillion Bird reproduces differently from the other Divine Beasts. A new Vermillion Bird may only be born after the previous generation dies. When a Vermillion Bird is born, its mes would burn like a scorching summer... That¡¯s all I can tell you."

    Shen Jingbin was stunned. "Eh? That¡¯s it? Most importantly, was anything you said even useful?"

    Song Yuqing wore an enigmatic look on his face, "Everything is known only to the heavens, you¡¯ll have to find it out on your own."

    Screw you!

    "Alright, you guys should leave, there¡¯s still plenty of things for you to attend to," With that, the Sect Leader proceeded to chase the two of them off.

    Shen Jingbin had a face like she¡¯d stepped in dog shit as she was chased out of White Cloud Temple by her own Master.

    "Talking to NPCs sure is tiring, they never tell you the entire story," Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but grumble.

    Quiet And Steadfast tried to console her, "It¡¯s the gamepany¡¯s fault."

    "I feel like bombing the gamepany!"

    "I¡¯ll buy the explosives for you."

    The two of them continued to ridicule the gamepany as they made their way towards White Cloud Temple¡¯s entrance.

    When they reached the gate, Quiet And Steadfast said, "I¡¯ll be logging off first, I have some matters to attend to."

    "Go on then, I just so happened to be going to the Demonic Sect¡¯s map to y around anyway."

    Although she had the Demonic Sect¡¯s entry token, she¡¯d been far too busy and hadn¡¯t had the chance to enter the Demonic Sect¡¯s map yet.

    "Alright then, stay safe and be careful, especially if you run into yers from Sovereign¡¯s Descent or Life At First Sight," Quiet Steadfast exhorted.

    Shen Jingbin nodded her and waved at him before he disappeared. She then fished out a teleportation scroll and slowly tore it apart.

    "Notification: Will you use the Demonic Sect¡¯s teleportation scroll? Yes/No."

    "Yes."

    "The teleportation scroll has been sessfully used."

    "Teleportation in progress, please wait..."

    After the familiar bout of dizziness from teleporting had subsided, Shen jingbin realised she was no longer at the entrance of White Cloud Temple. Her vision was filled with ayer of pitch ck, and only a small bit of light could be seen from beneath her feet.

    Feeling curious, Shen Jingbin took a step forward, causing the light beneath her feet to move a step forward as well. She turned to look at the spot where she¡¯d previously been standing.

    Good, there¡¯s still light there.

    Now she knew what was happening.

    The Demonic Sect¡¯s map was huge. Even now, some portions of the map remained unexplored by yers, and this portion of the map in particr was pitch ck. When yers arrived at an unexplored area, that portion of the map would slowly reveal itself as they explored it, just like how it did when she took a step forward.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s fantastic luck hadnded her in an unexplored region the moment she teleported into the map. The benefit of this was that she could explore the area without worrying about running into other enemies.

    Shen Jingbin tookrge steps forward, asionally reaching out to feel up her surroundings. As she moved, the system notification continuously rang out in her ears.

    "Congrattions on discovering a narrow and winding road."

    "Congrattions on discovering a river."

    "Congrattions on discovering an ancient firmament tree."

    ...

    "Congrattions on connecting to Undying City."

    After wandering about, the notifications she¡¯d been hearing suddenly changed. A bright light appeared before her eyes and the next thing she knew, the solemn and lofty walls of a city was in front of her.

    It looked like she¡¯d passed from an unexplored area to an explored one.

    Shen Jingbin turned back and was about to look for a different ce to explore when she heard someone called out to her.

    "Nutjob?"

    Eh?

    Shen Jingbin looked back suspiciously and found a somewhat familiar looking man standing atop the city walls looking at her with a smile on his face.

    Who is that?

    Shen Jingbin wracked her brain as she tried to recall who the man was.

 Chapter 99

    <b>Chapter 99: Undying City (1) </b>

    Seemingly having realised he¡¯d been forgotten, the man began walking towards her with a face full of smiles.

    "I¡¯m Pure Crane, the one you met at the dungeon¡¯s entrancest time. I stopped my friends when they were being rude to you, remember?"

    That snippet of information helped to jog Shen Jingbin¡¯s memory.

    His friends weren¡¯t just rude to her during that one time, they¡¯ve always been rude to her!

    But, she couldn¡¯t just say such things. People who went around revealing their inner thoughts to others were all fools.

    "Oh, it¡¯s you. What a coincidence."

    Pure Crane didn¡¯t seem to notice her cold indifference, retaining the same gentle and harmless look on his face. "It really is a coincidence, I didn¡¯t expect to run into you here," He nced behind her and continued, "Is it just you?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head.

    "Are you from Jade Sea Pavilion? I heard a Quiet And Steadfast married a Daoist nun a while back. That person should be you, right?" Pure Crane said, sounding very sure of himself.

    Shen Jingbin shot a nce at him. "Looks like you¡¯re pretty well informed."

    Pure Craneughed, "I¡¯m not the one who¡¯s well informed. This game has plenty of girls lusting after Quiet And Steadfast. Any news rted to him always kicks up a huge fuss, let alone something as big as him getting married. You¡¯d know about it even if you didn¡¯t want to. Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s marriage left quite a few girls from my guild in tears after they found out."

    "Should I feel proud or ashamed about this?"

    "Sigh... Did Quiet And Steadfaste along with you?"

    "He had something to attend to so he logged off."

    Pure Crane had a look of astonishment on his face. "He didn¡¯te along with you? This map is pretty dangerous. Aside from the fact that PKers wouldn¡¯t have their names dyed red even if they killed you, there¡¯s even a chance of triggering an encounter with the Demonic Sect. Most peoplee here with theirpanions."

    Shen Jingbin shrugged. "This is my first time here, so I didn¡¯t know about any of this. I¡¯ll leave first since it¡¯s so dangerous."

    "How much time do you have left?"

    Shen Jingbin checked her notification. "Around twenty plus minutes left."

    "What a coincidence, I just so happen to have around twenty minutes left too. Why don¡¯t youe along with us instead? There¡¯s a higher chance of triggering a hidden quest here, and there¡¯s plenty of umon equipment too. It¡¯d be a huge waste to just leave like this."

    "Us?"

    Pure Crane raised his hand and pointed at Undying City behind him. "My friends have just found the teleportation point and they¡¯re now in the city. I came out here to have a look at the situation."

    A yer¡¯s exploration of an area would be considered pleted" once they found a teleportation point. Those that didn¡¯t manage to find a teleportation point would have their exploration progress judged by the amount that they were able to uncover. Pure Crane¡¯s friends had above average luck, allowing them to find the teleportation point to Undying City after having taken just a few steps in the area. Once they were teleported over, they immediately began to explore the city in hopes of finding umon equipment.

    Pure Crane himself was more concerned about the situation outside of Undying City, so he separated from the group and left the city. After rounding the city walls once, he didn¡¯t find anything out of the ordinary, but instead, he found Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin considered his proposal for a moment before epting.

    Although she had this nagging feeling that Pure Crane wasn¡¯t a good person, he probably didn¡¯t harbour any ill intent towards her.

    Eh, at least for now anyway.

    Pure Crane walked in front as he led Shen Jingbin through the city gate and into Undying City. The entirety of the Demonic Sect¡¯s map was filled with destion, and the inside of Undying City was no different. No a single person could be seen on the streets, junk was strewn all over the ce, and messy stalls dotted the sides of it. It may be called a city, but it would¡¯ve been more urate to call it a ghost town instead.

    "Isn¡¯t there a single person around?" Shen Jingbin asked after turning a circle to nce around.

    "Yup. When I walked out of the city to take a look just now, let alone other people, there wasn¡¯t even a single living creature in sight. Who knows whether it¡¯s because the NPCs haven¡¯t been added in yet or whether this was intentionally done," Pure Crane replied.

    Pure Crane led Shen Jingbin over to a less dpidated looking tavern and said, "My friends are probably still exploring the city. I¡¯ll send news to them, so how about you wait over here for a bit?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded, feelingpletely indifferent to the matter. She stepped into the tavern and sat on a stool that was more or less intact. She nced at Pure Crane who was standing at the tavern¡¯s entrance and saw him contacting his friends before she shifted her gaze away and started to look over the tavern.

    It was a prettyrge tavern spanning two floors in total. There was even a stage in the center of the first floor, making it clear that this was once a bustling ce. The second floor was in a greater state of ruin. The ceiling beams were strewn all over the corridor, and the railings were filled with spiderwebs.

    "Brother Pure," While Shen Jingbin was looking the ce over, a woman¡¯s delighted voice suddenly swept past her ears, causing her to look towards the tavern¡¯s entrance.

    A pure and cute looking female yer was adorably tugging Pure Crane¡¯s arm as she chattered on about some unknown things. Behind her, a man and woman could be seen. The man wore a smile on his face, the corners of his eyes and mouth both curved upwards with mirth, giving those whoid eyes on him the urge to smile along with him. At the moment, his eyes were glued to the female yer who was tugging at Pure Crane¡¯s arm with a level of affection that couldn¡¯t be concealed.

    On the other hand, the woman beside him looked a lot more normal inparison. In a game overflowing with handsome men and beautiful women, she was someone with a forgettable face. She herself was also looking at Pure Crane and the female yer with a smile on her face, but unbeknownst to her, her gaze had been flitting towards the smiling man beside her the entire time.

    Tsk, it¡¯s a love rectangle.

 Chapter 100

    Chapter 100: Undying City (2)

    Shen Jingbin gently stroked her chin as she continued observing the four of them with interest. In her mind, she imagined a scene of an iparably bloody four-way battle for love.

    ¡°Brother Pure, there¡¯s nothing here. Delly and I have explored the entire city already, but there isn¡¯t a single NPC in sight,¡± ck Hawk frowned, looking a little disheartened. ¡°I thought we got lucky since finding the teleportation point is so difficult, but who would¡¯ve expected this ce to be a ghost town.¡±

    ¡°Brother Pure Crane, did you find anything outside the city?¡± Delicate Flower1 asked after walking up and patting ck Hawk on the shoulder to console her.

    Pure Crane shook his head, ¡°There¡¯s nothing. Everything one meter past the city walls is pitch ck, you can¡¯t see anything. I was afraid you guys wouldn¡¯t be able to find me if I went any further, so I refrained from further exploration.¡±

    Pure Crane discreetly extricated himself from ck Hawk¡¯s grasp and said, ¡°Oh right, I didn¡¯t find anything else, but I did run into one of my friends. Here, let me introduce her to you guys,¡± After saying so, he turned around and led the three of them into the tavern.

    Having the hand she was holding on to suddenly removed caused her spirits to drop a little, but she immediately adjusted her state of mind. She raised her head and beamed a smile as she walked into the tavern with Pure Crane.

    ¡°This is Nutjob, a Daoist. She¡¯s someone I¡¯ve met in the past and I happened to run into her when I was outside the city. It looked quite dangerous for her to be by herself, so I offered to let her join us.¡±

    ¡°Hello everyone,¡± Shen Jingbin very respectfully stood up and nodded towards the three of them.

    ¡°Greetings, my name is Delicate Flower, a Mara,¡± Delicate Flower took the initiative to introduce herself. Her voice was on the low side, making her different from all those other cutesy girls. However, Shen Jingbin found her voice to be particrly pleasant, causing a smile to bloom on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face.

    Delicate Flower suddenly choked on her own saliva.

    Shen Jingbin: ¡°...¡±

    The smiling man was next to introduce himself, ¡°I¡¯m Cheshire Cat, a Nymph.¡±

    A male Nymph... Shen Jingbin¡¯s line of sight gradually crept towards the man and sized him up. How rare, but it really does fit the personality he¡¯s portraying.

    Once Delicate Flower and Cheshire Cat were done introducing themselves, ck Hawk slowly opened her mouth and said, ¡°Hello Miss Daoist, my name is ck Hawk, also a Nymph. Miss Daoist, why are you by yourself? This area is very dangerous.¡±

    ¡°My friends were busy, so I decided toe on my own and take a look around.¡±

    ¡°So it¡¯s like thaaatttt...¡± Said ck Hawk as she dragged out her response. ¡°In that case, was Miss Daoist also transported to Undying City? Why haven¡¯t we seen you before this?¡±

    ¡°Nutjob came from outside of Undying City. She probably wandered over here while she was exploring,¡± said Pure Crane in Shen Jingbin¡¯s stead.

    All of a sudden, ck Hawk¡¯s voice rose an octave as if she¡¯d realized something, ¡°Eh, I¡¯ve been meaning to ask you since just now, but Miss Daoist, you¡¯re called Nutjob, right? Is that the same Nutjob that I¡¯m thinking of? Why¡¯d you give yourself such a name?¡±

    ¡°My name was randomly selected by the system. You guys can call me Little Jing or Nutty.¡±

    ¡°Nutty sounds a little awkward. I¡¯ll call you Little Jing,¡± ck Hawk said as she smiled sweetly at her.

    Shen Jingbin was just like any other normal person and had a fondness for good-looking people. ck Hawk may look like a lovely woman, but she was also very cute, giving Shen Jingbin a very good impression of her.

    ¡°Mm,¡± Shen Jingbin nodded her head in assent.

    Pure Crane seemed very satisfied by this and nodded his head. He turned to Cheshire Cat and Delicate flower and spoke, ¡°We still have over ten minutes. Let¡¯s scour the city once again. The development team doesn¡¯t have so much free time that they¡¯d create an entire city filled with nothing. That serves no purpose. There¡¯s definitely some sort of clue that we¡¯ve yet to discover.¡±

    Delicate Flower seconded his proposal, ¡°I agree. We only have around ten plus minutes left, so we wouldn¡¯t be able to go far even if we left the city. In fact, we might even run into that crazy PKer.¡±

    ck Hawk would unconditionally agree with whatever Pure Crane said. Cheshire Cat, on the other hand, had been smiling the entire time, looking as if he was fine with whatever.

    Since there was no objection, a decision was swiftly made. Pure Crane¡¯s group of four, plus Shen Jingbin who¡¯d they picked up along the way, started to search through Undying City once again.

    Undying City was farrger andplicated than Shen Jingbin had imagined. Street after street could be seen connecting in all directions. She¡¯d definitely have gotten lost if she was by herself.

    Undying City was just like what ck Hawk and co. had said. There wasn¡¯t anything else aside from streets that were filled with junk strewn all over the ce and a couple of spiderwebs. Their footsteps and asional conversations were the only things that could be heard in this deathly quiet city.

    Shen Jingbin walked right at the back of the group. Although she knew Pure Crane and hispanions held no hostility towards her for now, she still wasn¡¯tfortable with exposing her back to someone she¡¯d met for the very first time.

    Of course, this wasn¡¯t her first time meeting Pure Crane. But to her, it was as good as it being their first one.

    Shen Jingbin always had this feeling that Undying City was very strange, so she paid close attention to nooks, crannies, and various other small areas.

    The people who used to live here seemed to enjoy watching performances. As she walked by another one of the stages, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but nce at it once again.

    It felt simr. It wasn¡¯t just Shen Jingbin who felt it, Delicate Flower also discovered this oddity. ¡°There¡¯s an abundance of stages over here. We managed to find at least ten stages just by wandering around here.¡±

    Pure Crane paused his footsteps and thought for a bit. ¡°Let¡¯s go over and take a look.¡±

    Pure Crane did an about face and led them back towards one of the stages they¡¯d previously passed.

    This stage was far more crude than the one Shen Jingbin had seen in the tavern. The bright red cloth that wasid on top of the stage had been faded by the wind and rain, leaving ugly patches of light red in its wake.

    They gathered around the stage.

    ck Hawk had the lively personality of your typical young maiden. The moment she got close, she impatiently stretched out her hand and tried to touch the fabric.

    ¡°Beauties andmoners aren¡¯t fated to be, while romance taken lightly births regrets.¡±

    The voice of a woman¡¯s lingering resentment rang out in her ears when her fingertips touched the mottled cloth. In that moment, Undying City¡¯s tranquility was broken by a sudden noise and numerous hazy figures appeared on its streets.

    The horror movie like development caused ck Hawk¡¯s face to pale in fright as she screamed and flung herself into Pure Crane¡¯s arms.

    Pure Crane subconsciously stretched out his hands and caught ck Hawk. He furrowed his brows and was about to say something when the group suddenly heard the system notification in their ears.

    ¡°The exploration time has ended. Commencing teleportation.¡±

    ¡°Teleportation in progress, please wait...¡±

    Before they could even regain theirposure from the sudden notification, they felt the scenery in front of them distort.

    F*ck!

    Everyone couldn¡¯t help but curse in their hearts.

 Chapter 101

    Chapter 101: Negotiations (1)

    After a momentary bout of dizziness, Shen Jingbin appeared in front of White Cloud Temple¡¯s gates once again. Pure Crane and hispanions were nowhere to be seen, likely being transported back to where they were before they entered the Demonic Sect¡¯s map.

    Looking up at the sunny sky that was dotted with white clouds, Shen Jingbin felt that they gave off the feeling that everything was wonderful and couldn¡¯t help but feel depressed.

    The system really knows how to screw with people. It took a great deal of difficulty before they were able to discover this one clue, but immediately after, it booted them from the map. This was practically murder to someone like her who had an obsessivepulsive disorder!

    She opened her backpack and fished out the Demonic Sect¡¯s entry token.

    Should she go back in for another look?

    But, it looked like the entry point for the Demonic Sect¡¯s map was random, right? What would she do if she was sent to some other location?

    And, what would she do if she happened to appear in front of the people from Life At First Sight? After all, she was at the top of Nine Bads¡¯ list right now.

    After mulling over it for a time, Shen Jingbin quietly ced the entry token back into her backpack.

    At this moment, a carrier pigeon came flying over with a letter in its beak, stopping in front of Shen Jingbin to allow her to retrieve the letter.

    ¡°Are you back? I and the others are at the entrance of Blood Soaked Hell. Do you want toe over and discuss what happened in Undying City with us?¡±

    So it was a letter from Pure Crane.

    Shen Jingbin thought for a moment before she replied, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be there in a bit.¡±

    After sending her reply to Pure Crane, Shen Jingbin summoned Mascot and mounted it before she flew off towards the entrance of Blood Soaked Hell.

    Blood Soaked Hell was situated within Swallow Hill, while Swallow Hill itself was near Zhongyuan1 and Jiangnan. A boundless savanna nketed Swallow Hill. Riding atop Mascot, Shen Jingbin could see the verdant grasnds spotted with clusters of two to three white dots, making it seem particrly idyllic. It was only then that Shen Jingbin managed to get over some of her depression of being teleported out.

    Upon reaching Blood Soaked hell, Shen Jingbin allowed Mascot to gradually descend before she finally came to a stop before Pure Crane and co.

    ck Hawk had already spotted Shen Jingbin while she was in the air. After all, Mascot was far too eye-catching. After waiting for her tond, ck Hawk excitedly ran over to Shen Jingbin.

    ¡°Little Jing, is that your pet? It looks so cool!¡±

    Delicate Flower and Cheshire Cat were far more concerned about the implications of Mascot¡¯s presence than ck Hawk was. They more or less knew about the White Tiger incident, and they also had a rough idea of who Shen Jingbin was when they¡¯d previously met her in Undying City. After all, Shen Jingbin¡¯s appearance in the game was truly ¡°unique¡±. Now, with the appearance of Mascot, they were able to immediately confirm her identity as they shot looks of astonishment at Pure Crane.

    She¡¯s the wife of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Guild Leader and yet you¡¯re still acting so intimately with her?

    Pure Crane raised an eyebrow at them but didn¡¯t say a word. However, both Delicate Flower and Cheshire Cat understood the meaning behind this gesture. They shared a nce before they looked down, acting as if they knew nothing.

    Pure Crane was the Vice-Leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent. Compared to their actual Guild Leader, Neverending Journey, Pure Crane¡¯s presence held a little more importance in holding the guild together. However, that didn¡¯t mean he cared about the guild.

    Delicate Flower and Cheshire cat had always known that Pure Crane didn¡¯t remain within Sovereign¡¯s Descent out of his own will. To him, Sovereign¡¯s Descent was a stepping stone to reach towards even stronger guilds.

    It was more likely that he¡¯d found an even stronger guild by himself.

    As such, Pure Crane didn¡¯t care about the fact that Nutjob was the wife of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Guild Leader, and neither did he give a damn about the hostilities between the two guilds at present. All that mattered was that interacting with Nutjob would be beneficial to him.

    The four of them had been together ever since they were beginners in the game. They¡¯d always known that Pure Crane would never settle for mediocrity. He would then go on to easily find his way into Sovereign¡¯s Descent and subsequently rise through the ranks from a normal member to his current position as the guild¡¯s Vice-Leader.

    However, what warmed their hearts was that regardless of what Pure Crane thought or what schemes he came up with, he¡¯d always treated the three of them as true friends.

    To Delicate Flower and Cheshire Cat, this devotion to their friendship was all that mattered.

    ck Hawk ran over to Shen Jingbin, her eyes sparkling as she stared at Mascot. Seemingly having noticed her gaze, Mascot raised its head and twitched its ears in a tsundere-like fashion, looking as if it was trying to say, ¡°I look really cool, hurry up and praise me!¡±.

    Unable to restrain herself, Shen Jingbin reached out and stroked Mascot. It might have been her imagination, but she felt that Mascot was taking on increasingly human-like attributes, to the point where it seemed unscientific. In fact, she¡¯d already forgotten that Mascot was merely a set of data within the game.

    ¡°It¡¯s a bit of a tsundere. Don¡¯t bother about it.¡±

    However, Shen Jingbin had underestimated the attractive force that furry cats had on young girls. ck Hawk¡¯s pair of saucer-shaped eyes had alreadypletely transformed into a pair of hearts.

    ¡°Can I...rub it?¡± ck Hawk asked as she pitifully raised her head to look at Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin cast a nce at the tsundere named Mascot and said, ¡°Mascot, shrink yourself down a bit.¡±

    Shen Jingbin¡¯smand was like a bolt from the blue as it came crashing down on Mascot. Mascot turned behind to look at Shen Jingbin, its golden beastly eyes filled with hurt. Its ears drooped down, giving the impression that it had suffered some great injustice.

    Shen Jingbin knew it didn¡¯t want to shrink itself. After advancing in rank, Mascot no longer enjoyed being small.

    However, out of the corner of her eyes, she nced at the little girl, ck Hawk, whose eyes sparkled even brighter. In the end, she felt that ck Hawk was more important, so shemanded Mascot once again, ¡°Hurry up and shrink down.¡±

    ¡°Roar~¡± Mascot let out a soft cry towards Shen Jingbin, before it reluctantly shrunk down. She then picked Mascot up and deposited it straight into ck Hawk¡¯s waiting arms. ck Hawk had a look of satisfaction on her face as she hugged Mascot and excitedly rubbed her cheek against its furry noggin.

 Chapter 102

    Chapter 102: Negotiations (2)

    At this moment, Pure Crane and the others happened to bear witness to this scene while they were walking over.

    Delicate Flower had no idea what Shen Jingbin was like, so she was worried that ck Hawk, with her temper, might do something to make Shen Jingbin unhappy. So, she took a step towards ck Hawk and plucked it out of her embrace, returning it to Shen Jingbin. ¡°Sorry about that, ck Hawk¡¯s always had a fondness for furry animals. You don¡¯t need to indulge her.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I was the one who let her carry Mascot anyway,¡± Shen Jingbin said as she waved her hand and plopped Mascot back into ck Hawk¡¯s arms.

    Seeing this, Cheshire Cat walked over to ck Hawk¡¯s side and cautiously rubbed Mascot on the head. Mascot secretly nced at its owner. When it found that she had no objection, it could only lie down in despair as it allowed Cheshire Cat and ck Hawk to rub its body.

    ¡°Is this the Divine Beast, White Tiger?¡± Cheshire Cat asked.

    Mascot appeared far too docile, causing him to doubt whether he was really rubbing the head of a Divine Beast.

    ¡°What do you think about what happened in Undying City just now?¡± Pure Crane asked.

    He wasn¡¯t all that interested in Mascot. More urately, he had interest in anything that he couldn¡¯t obtain for himself. Since the Divine Beast, White Tiger had an owner, it had nothing to do with him even if it was stronger than it already was.

    Shen Jingbin pondered for a moment before she replied, ¡°The silhouettes we saw for a moment before we got kicked out looked like souls. I think they definitely have something to do with Undying City.¡±

    At this point, ck Hawk cut into the conversation and mentioned what she¡¯d heard when the silhouettes appeared.

    ¡°No matter how you look at it, Undying City should have something to do with acting. If we go in again, the first thing we should do is examine those stages,¡± Delicate Flower added.

    ¡°Beauties andmoners aren¡¯t fated to be, while romance taken lightly births regrets,¡± Cheshire Cat repeated the phrase ck Hawk heard, looking as if he was reciting a scripture. ¡°Based on the development team¡¯s quest design approach, this is probably going to be some melodramatic love story. We should pay more attention to likely dating spots the next time we enter Undying City.¡±

    ¡°And now the problem arises. When exactly is the ¡®next time¡¯?¡± Pure Crane asked.

    ¡°In that case, we should put more effort into running the three Demonic Sect dungeons. We can enter once we get our hands on another teleportation scroll... Little Jing, do you want to run through the dungeons with us?¡± ck Hawk asked.

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit before she rejected ck Hawk¡¯s offer, deciding that it¡¯d be better for her to clear the dungeons with her own guild mates. ¡°No thanks, I¡¯ll be clearing the dungeons with my guild members.¡±

    ¡°But that means our progress rate might be different,¡± Cheshire Cat said.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. Let¡¯s do it this way then: regardless of who gets their scroll first, let¡¯s all wait for everyone to get theirs as well. Then, we¡¯ll arrange a time and ce for us to enter together,¡± Pure Crane said.

    The three dungeons of the Demonic Sect could be entered twice a week, with the dungeons resetting every Wednesday and Sunday. Since today happened to be Wednesday, they¡¯d have to wait till Sunday for their next chance to enter the dungeons.

    Shen Jingbin was in favor of his suggestion, while the other three didn¡¯t have any opinion on the matter, so that was how they decided to proceed. After adding each other to their friends list and agreeing to enter the Demonic Sect¡¯s map together again, Shen Jingbin waved goodbye to them and recalled Mascot under ck Hawk¡¯s reluctant gaze before she logged off.

    The sun was setting by the she wormed her way out of the gaming pod. Shen Jingbin sniffed the air and caught a whiff of Aunt Zhang¡¯s fragrant cooking. As she did, she suddenly felt her own hunger boring through her stomach.

    After washing up and changing into a set of home clothes, Shen Jingbin descended down the stairs to the first floor. Aunt Zhang just so happened to be carrying out a dish from the kitchen when she spotted Shen Jingbin. ¡°Oh Little Jing, you¡¯vee down.¡±

    ¡°Mm. What did you make, Aunt Zhang? It smells so good.¡±

    After cing the dish on the table, Aunt Zhang wiped her hands against her apron, using it to pull out a chair for her to sit on. ¡°Beef briskets in tomato stew, along with red wine prawns. Little Chen¡¯s been bugging me about wanting to eat prawns for the longest time, so I decided to buy some when I came across some fresh ones at the wet market today. There was also some red wine in the liquor cab, so I threw that in as well.¡±

    Aunt Zhang was very close to the two siblings. Although she was only a nanny who looked after the everyday chores and prepared their meals, the siblings viewed her as an elder and gave her the respect that came with it.

    Shen Jingbin grabbed a piece of brisket with her chopsticks and sampled it.

    Aunt Zhang¡¯s temperature control was just right, giving the beef briskets a very fresh and tender texture. Once it entered your mouth, the chewiness of the meat carried with it the faint sourness of tomatoes, almost as if it was there to prevent the dish from being too tasty.

    ¡°Aunt Zhang, you¡¯re far too biased towards Shen Jingchen,¡± Shen Jingbin mumbled after swallowing her piece of meat.

    Although their preferences in food were about the same, Shen Jingchen was more partial towards beef, and tonight¡¯s dinner was obviously cooked with him in mind.

    Aunt Zhang smiled and said, ¡°Little Jing, why don¡¯t you tell me what you feel like eating, and I¡¯ll make it for you tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Spare ribs stewed with potatoes,¡± Compared to beef, Shen Jingbin liked spare ribs even more.

    ¡°Alright then, I¡¯ll cook that for you tomorrow,¡± Aunt Zhang replied as she turned around and started making her way back into the kitchen to bring the rest of the dishes out. However, she suddenly thought of something and stopped. ¡°Little Jing, Aunt Zhang has something she wants to discuss with you.¡±

    ¡°Mm? What is it?¡±

    ¡°My daughter ising to this city to participate in apetition. She said that staying in a hotel with her ssmates would be too noisy for her to practice, so she asked if she could stay here for a few days.¡±

    Shen Jingbin had seen Aunt Zhang¡¯s daughter in pictures before. She looked like an obedient and smart girl, so Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t think much about it and epted. ¡°Mm, I¡¯m fine with her staying over, but Shen Jingchen is here as well, so it might be a bit inconvenient for her. Just tell your daughter not to provoke him and everything should be fine.¡±

    A smile appeared on Aunt Zhang¡¯s face, a smile so wide that wrinkles could be seen. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ve got it. Thank you Little Jing.¡±

    Shen Jingbin picked up another piece of beef brisket and ced it into her mouth, squinting her eyes as she savored the taste. ¡°Don¡¯t mention it.¡±

 Chapter 103

    <strong>Chapter 103:</strong><b>A Disturbance On Weibo</b>1<strong>(1)</strong>

    Almost as if he¡¯d smelt the food, Shen Jingchen descended from the second floor shortly after Aunt Zhang set all the dishes on the table. Upon noticing that all the dishes on the table were his favorites, a brilliant smile instantly blossomed on his face.

    Shen Jingbin shot a look of disdain at him.

    After their dinner, the siblings helped Aunt Zhang to clear up the dining table before they left for a walk to help digest their food.

    Even if it was a virtual reality game and they spent all their time lying in a gaming pod, ying games from dawn till dusk would definitely affect one¡¯s body in some way. So, the siblings still had to go out for a bit of exercise once they were done with their meal.

    Their small vi was located close to A City University, making themute to school very convenient. It was also near a park. In the evenings, the surrounding temperature would drop, making it several degrees colder than it was during the day. Shen Jingbin draped a shawl around her as she slowly walked along the lush sidewalk with Shen Jingchen beside her.

    "Have you been to the Demonic Sect¡¯s map before?" A gust of wind blew past as Shen Jingbin asked and she pulled her shawl closer.

    "Of course I¡¯ve been there before. What about it?"

    Although they weren¡¯t in the game, their conversation still revolved around it.

    "Then how much do you know about the Undying City?"

    "Undying City? What¡¯s that?" Shen Jingchen asked in return.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt like an idiot after seeing the look of bewilderment on Shen Jingchen¡¯s face.

    Undying City was discovered by ck Hawk¡¯s group, so Shen Jingchen obviously wouldn¡¯t know anything about it.

    "It¡¯s nothing."

    "Tch. You obviously think I¡¯m an idiot. You¡¯ve already asked me about it, so how can it be nothing? Hey, did you run into something new again? What the f*ck, hurry up and tell your big bro about it! Knowing you, you definitely wouldn¡¯t ask about the game without good reason," It was rare to see Shen Jingchen¡¯s IQ making its presence known.

    "It¡¯s really nothing. I happened to run into a few friends when I went to the Demonic Sect¡¯s map, and we stepped onto the teleportation point for Undying City. The city seemed a bit strange, so I wanted to ask you about it."

    "Strange in what way?"

    Shen Jingbin thought for a moment before she briefly recounted what had happened in Undying City to Shen Jingchen.

    However, as reality soon showed, Shen Jingchen¡¯s IQ wasn¡¯t always present. After listening to Shen Jingbin¡¯s recount of what had happened, not only did he not provide any useful suggestions, he even tried to get something out of it for himself.

    "Eh, I say, bring me along the next time you guys go over to Undying City. I¡¯m confident that there¡¯s a huge treasure up for grabs... I¡¯ve been to the Demonic Sect¡¯s map quite a few times already, but I haven¡¯t even gotten a single thing. For better or for worse, you¡¯re my little sister, so let me bask a little in your good fortune."

    Shen Jingbin shoved him away from her face and said, "Get lost, that¡¯s not gonna happen. I wasn¡¯t the one who found the teleportation point, so I have no right to make decisions on these matters."

    Shen Jingchen wore a look of ttery on his face as he said, "Then why don¡¯t you have a chat with yourpanions about it. It¡¯s not like adding me into the team is gonna result in any huge loss for you guys. By the way, who¡¯re your teammates?"

    "A Swordmaster called Pure Crane..."

    The moment he heard Pure Crane¡¯s name, Shen Jingchen immediately cried out, "What the fuck, Crane?! Shen Jingbin, why the hell are you teaming up with Pure Crane?!"

    Shen Jingbin cast a dubious nce at him and asked, "What¡¯s wrong with Pure Crane? Although he looks like someone who¡¯s a bit of a schemer, general interaction with him shouldn¡¯t be a problem."

    "Pui, don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t know what kind of person he is?"

    "Should I know?"

    Shen Jingchen shot a look of resentment at her and said, "Baby girl, Pure Crane is the Vice-Leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent. You should know about Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight¡¯s recent deception, right? No matter what, you¡¯re now the wife of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Guild Leader, so you should keep your distance from the guild¡¯s potential enemies."

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at Shen Jingchen and walked up to him with each step increasing in speed. When she spoke, the wind brought her gentle voice to his ears, "I don¡¯t need you to worry about me, I¡¯ll keep my distance from him once I¡¯m done with Undying City. Moreover, I had no intentions of getting closer to them anyway."

    Shen Jingchen stared hatefully at his sister¡¯s back before he ran up to her and said, "Why¡¯re you rushing off so quickly, wait for me."

    There were many people who went out for a walk after having their meal, and the park¡¯s za was filled to the brim with old aunties who were dancing 2. Shen Jingbin found a random stone stool to sit on and leaned back on it as she fished out her handphone and started to browse the forums.

    This was a habit she¡¯d cultivated from ying games.

    Don¡¯t ask her why she was whipping out her phone when she was supposed to be out on a walk; she just needed to take a short break.

    Following closely behind her, Shen Jingchen sat beside Shen Jingbin with his hands in his pockets as he looked over her shoulder and ced at her screen.

    A forum post was open on her phone, but the words were too small and he couldn¡¯t see clearly. "What are you looking at?" He asked.

    "Guides for <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>," Shen Jingbin absent-mindedly replied.

    Shen Jingchen scoffed and said, "You¡¯re still looking at guides? Is there any point to it at this stage?"

    Shen Jingbin raised her head and nced at him. "I¡¯m looking at guides for investigating the Demonic Sect. Whether or not there¡¯s any point to it is none of your business," With that, she raised her hand and smacked him.

    "F*ck, you¡¯re really ruthless," Shen Jingchen said as he suddenly hugged his body in pain.

    "You¡¯re better off dating a man with such a weak body," Shen Jingbin said as she coldly dealt the final blow.

    Shen Jingchen immediately sat up straight and shot back, "Pui, your big bro is brimming with manliness! I don¡¯t need no man, I want a delicate and cute girl instead!"

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t be bothered to reply, snorting in response as she started browsing the forums with single-minded dedication.

    A Chinese microblogging tform ? It¡¯s a form of physical activity in China. Here¡¯s a video of how it looks like Click?

 Chapter 104

    <strong>Chapter 104:</strong><b>A Disturbance On Weibo</b><strong>(2)</strong>

    After looking through the stickied thread on popr strategies, Shen Jingbin was about to close up the forums and get some exercise when she suddenly received a call.

    She nced at the notification and found that it was from her roommate, Huajuan.

    "Hello, what¡¯s up Huajuan?"

    "Jing Jing Jing Jing Jing! Hurry up and take a look at Weibo Weibo Weibo Weibo!" Huajuan excitedly shouted over the phone.

    Shen Jingbin had always known that Huajuan was a happy-go-lucky kind of girl, but this was her first time seeing her so excited. "Weibo? What about it?" Shen Jingbin asked, feeling puzzled.

    "A celebrity microblogger on Weibo started an event to look for the most beautiful campus belle. We might have only been fooling around, but one day Xiaohe and I decided to post a picture of you and it went viral! Hahahahaha! So many people came to Xiaohe and I to ask about you, but rest assured, we didn¡¯t reveal anything about you to them!"

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t like taking selfies and neither did she enjoy going on Weibo, so up till now, she only paid attention to her roommates and a few other news rted ounts. There were only a few who knew of her Weibo ount.

    To her, Weibo was just a ce to browse for news.

    Huajuan¡¯s announcement caused a bit of a headache for Shen Jingbin. "Why would you sell me out like that? I¡¯m just a beauty who wants to keep a low profile."

    Huajuan¡¯s tone immediately turned guilty, "Actually, we didn¡¯t n to post your pic at first. After all, we both know what you¡¯re like. But did you know that Luo Xiaoqian actually entered as well? Most importantly, she turned out to be pretty popr as well and ended up garnering a lot of fans. After that, someone from our school ended up seeing it andmented beneath her picture that she wasn¡¯t a match for you ...cough cough..."

    When she reached the good part, Huajuan was talking so animatedly that she identally swallowed her saliva. "You know that I like going on Weibo, and I happened toe across this. After I clicked on it, I found out that her fans wereunching all sorts of malicious personal attacks against you. On top of that, someone mentioned what happened previously between you and her at school. Not only did they distort the truth, they even made you out to be some worthless scum. Do you think I¡¯d be able to stand it after seeing this? So, after discussing it with Xiaohe, we decided to post up your pic to let them shoot themselves in the foot."

    "... Just how bored are you?"

    "That¡¯s not the point, alright? What¡¯s important is that Luo Xiaoqian was utterly destroyed by you. Even her fans have changed sides over the course of just one night. Hahahaha, I can¡¯t take it.... We saw Luo Xiaoqian in school today and she was fuming mad."

    "So why do you want me to go on Weibo since you guys have managed to resolve everything?"

    With Shen Jingbin¡¯s words as a reminder, Huajuan immediately talked about the matter at hand, "Oh, it¡¯s like this: a few people from the gamepany happened to see your picture as well and wanted you to be their ambassador. But, they didn¡¯t know how to contact you, so they looked for Xiaohe and I instead. We didn¡¯t dare to give them your contact details, so we only told them your Weibo ount. Do you want to take a look?"

    "Forget it, don¡¯t bother about them. Just take it as me not knowing about it."

    "Tch, I knew things would turn out like this. Big sis, why don¡¯t you make good use of that pretty face of yours?!"

    "Nope," Shen Jingbin sinctly replied.

    Huajuan choked a little and said in exasperation, "Alright, you win!"

    Shen Jingbin hung up after saying a few more words to Huajuan. Shen Jingchen looked at her curiously and asked, "Who was that? Anything wrong?"

    Shen Jingbin put her phone away and said, "It¡¯s nothing. Let¡¯s go, we¡¯ll take our take walking home."

    Shen Jingchen only asked in passing and didn¡¯t pay it any more mind since she didn¡¯t answer. He shrugged and stood up as the two of them began to make their way back home.

    At this time, faraway in B City, Zhao Chengning was opening his WeChat while sipping on his coffee. In Moments1 , he happened to see a friend who was in senior high post up a picture of Shen Jingbin with the words: does anyone know this beauty? She was spotted on Weibo and the gamepany¡¯s executives are thinking of asking her to be the game¡¯s ambassadors, but they don¡¯t have her contact info. .¡¤¡ä¡¥`(>¨y<)¡ä¡¥`¡¤. Omnipotent Moments, please help me out!

    Zhao Chengning almost spat out his coffee when he saw that. If memory served him right, this student should be working for the development team of <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>.

    He slid his fingers across the screen and tapped on the student¡¯s WeChat ount.

    Zhao Chengning: Where¡¯d you get a picture of that beauty in your moments from?

    Xiangpeng: What the f*ck! It¡¯s god Zhao! Are you interested in this beauty or do you know her?

    Zhao Chengning: Answer my question first.

    Xiangpeng: I saw her on Weibo. God Zhao, you¡¯ve got a connection, right? Help me find out about more about this beauty. I¡¯ll treat you to a meal if you manage to get me her contact!!

    Zhao Chengning: Hand over that Weibo link to me first.

    Xiangpeng: Alright, alright. Just wait a moment!

    A minuteter, Xiangpeng messaged the link to Zhao Chengning and he tapped on it.

    "#Searching for the most beautiful campus belle ¡ª Show off your campus belle and see who¡¯s the most beautiful#"

    The eye-catching title was followed by a photo of Shen Jingbin that showcased her 360¡ã of wless beauty.

    Don¡¯t forget! It¡¯s WeChat¡¯s socialworking function ¦²£ä(???) ?

 Chapter 105

    <b>Chapter 105: A Young Girl¡¯s Vanity (1) ¨C Teaser</b>

    Shen Jingbin received a call from Zhao Chengning just after reaching home.

    Why would he think of calling her at such a time?

    It couldn¡¯t be because of the Weibo matter, could it?

    Answering the phone, she shifted to the side and allowed Shen Jingchen to go up first. She then picked up the phone and sat down over at the sofa.

    "Hello?"

    "Hello, it¡¯s me. Have you had your meal?" The other party really knew how to beat around the bush, immediately offering up a few pleasantries after she picked up the phone.

    "It¡¯s sote already, of course I¡¯ve eaten."

    "You can¡¯t say for sure. Take me for instance, I haven¡¯t eaten yet."

    Shen Jingbin sat crossed legged on the sofa and said, "Eh, are you that busy?"

    The other party chuckled and let out a deep breath before he said, "That¡¯s right, I¡¯ve been busy since this afternoon. I¡¯ve only had time to drink a cup of coffee to keep myself awake."

    "Then hurry up and eat! Why¡¯re you still calling me?" Shen Jingbin mumbled to herself.

    "I¡¯ll eat when I¡¯m back home. My nanny left something out for me back at home."

    Zhao Chengning was pondering how to broach the matter of the Weibo incident, while Shen Jingbin was waiting for him to state the purpose of his call. And just like that, their conversation turned silent.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly thought of something andughed out loud, breaking the silence that permeated the call.

    "What¡¯re youughing about?" Zhao Chengning curiously asked.

    After calming herself down, Shen Jingbin replied, "It¡¯s nothing. I just suddenly felt likeughing," She paused for a moment before continuing, "You definitely didn¡¯t call me just to ask about whether I¡¯d eaten my dinner yet, right?"

    Zhao Chengning was finally getting to the good part, "Why don¡¯t you take a guess?"

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t pleased by this. "Why do I have to guess? I¡¯m not guessing."

    "Cough. Alright, no guessing, no guessing. I¡¯ll juste out and say it: do you know that your picture is on Weibo?"

    So it really was about the Weibo incident. However, she hadn¡¯t expected even him to know about it. "I know. How did you find out about it?"

    "I have a friend who works for a gamepany, and he¡¯s looking all over the ce for your contact details. I saw your photo the moment I opened up Moments and it gave me a huge shock. I thought I was hallucinating."

    "Eh, so something like that actually happened? You didn¡¯t give out my details, did you?" Shen Jingbin asked, feeling nervous.

    She thought that things would just blow over if she didn¡¯t bother about it. After all, this was the age of information and people tended to forgetful. She thought that everyone would move on once things started to die down. However, things were different if there was someone stirring things up from behind the scenes.

    "Rest assured, I didn¡¯t say anything. How could I give your information out just like that? I was just feeling a little curious and wondering what happened."

    Shen Jingbin briefly summarized the whole story for him. After she finished, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry as he said, "The world of women really is tooplicated."

    "Is it?" Shen Jingbin asked in turn.

    "Mm," Zhao Chengning gently replied.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly heard a car¡¯s horn over on his side. "You¡¯re driving?"

    "Mm, I¡¯m on the way home."

    "Then pay attention while you¡¯re driving and don¡¯t talk on the phone."

    "Mm, I¡¯ll pay attention once I¡¯m done talking with you."

    "Then it¡¯s better if I hang up first. I don¡¯t want the police toe looking for me if you get into an ident."

    Zhao Chengning choked when he heard Shen Jingbin¡¯sment. "Jinx."

    "I¡¯m hanging up."

    "Mm, don¡¯t sleep sote."

    "You too."

    After hanging up, Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze remained fixed on the phone in her hand as unknown thoughts raced through her mind.

    Aunt Zhang stuck her head out from her room and saw Shen Jingbin sitting on the sofa. "Little Jing, are you done with your call?"

    The two siblings lived on the second floor of the vi, while Aunt Zhang lived on the first. The entirety of the second floor was the sibling¡¯s private space, and Aunt Zhang wouldn¡¯t intrude into their domain for the most part.

    Aunt Zhang knew the siblings had returned home, but she remained in her room and waited because Shen Jingbin was on the phone. She waited for a great deal of time before finally sticking her head out after Shen Jingbin had hung up.

    "Mm?" Breaking Shen Jingbin out of her thoughts, she turned to face Aunt Zhang and asked, "Do you need me for anything, Aunt Zhang?"

    Aunt Zhang stepped out from her room and sat beside Shen Jingbin. "It¡¯s like this: my daughter should arrive in the city at around midday tomorrow, but she doesn¡¯t know the way. Could you and Little Chen pick her up?"

    Aunt Zhang had already asked Shen Jingchen about it over dinner. Shen Jingchen was rather fond of Aunt Zhang, so he had readily agreed. Either way, Aunt Zhang¡¯s daughter would only be here for a day or two, and their vi had plenty of guest rooms, so it wasn¡¯t much of an issue.

    Aunt Zhang came from a small town at the edge of A city. Due to the change in welfare policies for farming viges over the past few years, Aunt Zhang and her husband had decided to move over to one of them so that their daughter could take advantage of some of the benefits offered. However, because of this, their daughter was forced to study in the vige till she was in senior high.

    "Mm... but I¡¯ll have to see if I¡¯m free in the morning... ah, I should be free. Where should we pick your daughter up from?" Shen Jingbin replied after ncing at her schedule.

    "She¡¯ll be heading to First High tomorrow to familiarize herself with thepetition venue. So if you¡¯re able to, please meet her at the entrance of First High."

    "Alright. When will she be finishing? Shen Jingchen and I will head over at that time."

    "Oh, I think she¡¯ll be done at around... 11:30. Sorry for troubling the two of you."

    Shen Jingbin waved her hand and shed a smile at Aunt Zhang. "Think nothing of it, Aunt Zhang."

    Having achieved her objective, Aunt Zhang didn¡¯t want to dy Shen Jingbin any longer. So she let Shen Jingbin go, and returned to her room to inform her daughter about what had happened.

 Chapter 106

    <b>Chapter 106: A Young Girl¡¯s Vanity (2) </b>

    The next day, Shen Jingchen and Shen Jingbin arrived at First High¡¯s entrance at the designated time.

    "Keep a look out for me, your big bro is gonna y a few games of Anipop1," After parking the car somewhere shady by the school¡¯s entrance, Shen Jingchen pulled out his handphone and started ying a game.

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "Useless!"

    After all, Shen Jingbin had only seen Aunt Zhang¡¯s daughter in the photos, so she was worried she might miss her. To make sure that wouldn¡¯t happen, she got out of the car and waited. She didn¡¯t know what had gotten into Shen Jingchen¡¯s head, but today he brought out his dark red Ferrari that had been collecting dust in the garage. As a prestigious school in A City, apart from schrs, there were plenty of rich kids attending First High, giving rise to no small amount of luxury cars parked at the school¡¯s entrance.

    Their car wasn¡¯t the most eye-catching one at first, but after Shen Jingbin got out, everyone¡¯s gaze was attracted to them in minutes.

    What was pairing beauties with morous cars?

    This was!

    When she walked out of First High¡¯s entrance, not only did Qu Yanxin catch sight Shen Jingbin and the luxury car beside her, her friends took notice of it as well.

    Seemingly not have seen anyone as beautiful as Shen Jingbin before, the excited students immediately started talking about her.

    "Quick, take a look over there! The big sister over there looks so beautiful!"

    "The car beside her looks so cool! She really is someone from the city, she looks so fashionable!"

    "It would be so amazing if I had a big sister as beautiful as her! I wonder who¡¯s the lucky one who has such a beautiful person as their older sister."

    Qu Yanxin thought of her mother¡¯s description of the people she was taking care of and immediately came to the conclusion that this beautiful big sis was definitely waiting for her. Looking at the praise and envy directed towards this beautiful girl waiting for her, Qu Yanxin¡¯s sense of vanity felt like it waspletely satisfied.

    "Stop guessing, she¡¯s here to pick me up," Qu Yanxin proudly raised her and dered to the students around her.

    "Tch, don¡¯t lie to us. When did you have a rtive like that? Why don¡¯t we know about it?" After hearing her announcement, someone immediately called what she said into question.

    "That¡¯s right. Qu Yanxin, don¡¯t tell us you¡¯re so nervous that you¡¯ve gone crazy. We all know that you¡¯re an only child," In small towns, families within the same neighbourhood more or less knew all their neighbours, so these students were very clear about what her family was like.

    "See that car over there? It¡¯s worth at least a million dors. Qu Yanxin, isn¡¯t your mother a nanny? How would you know someone as rich as them?"

    A boy who was knowledgeable about cars immediately discerned how much Shen Jingchen¡¯s car was worth. "Even if you want to shoot your mouth off, you should at least find something more believable to brag about," He ridiculed.

    "Hmph, just you wait and see then," Seeing as no one believed her words, Qu Yanxin let out a harrumph and walked like a tsundere over to the one woman and one car pair that everyone¡¯s eyes were glued on.

    Behind her were her schoolmates who were mocking her.

    "Hey hey hey, I think Qu Yanxin¡¯s gone mad, she¡¯s actually walking up to her!"

    "I¡¯m already making a recording of it. We definitely have to record the look on her face when she¡¯s rejected so we can show it to the rest of the school!"

    "Hahaha, send me a copy when the timees!"

    Shen Jingbin folded her hands across her chest, looking bored out of her mind as she leaned against the car and waited. She waited for a long time till the gates of First High opened up and a group of students wearing other uniforms emerged from within. Shen Jingbin was scanning the crowd for Aunt Zhang¡¯s daughter, when a girl with a ponytail and a canvas bag on her back started making her way over, looking verydylike.

    "Excuse me, are you Big Sister Shen? I¡¯m Qu Yanxin," The girl stopped in front of Shen Jingbin as she raised her cogen filled face up and asked.

    Qu Yanxin... I think that¡¯s the name of Aunt Zhang¡¯s daughter?

    Shen Jingbin scrutinized the girl in front of her. She bore around an eighty percent resemnce to the girl in the picture, but seemed more elegant in person. Either way, she should be the right one.

    "Mm, I am. I¡¯m here to pick you up, can we leave now?"

    A look of embarrassment surfaced on the girl¡¯s face. Noticing it, she asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    "About that... Big Sis Shen, since we¡¯re staying together as a group in a hotel, we need to report to our teacher in charge when we¡¯re leaving. Can youe with me to have a word with my teacher in charge?"

    Shen Jingbin nked out for a moment before she said, "Oh, okay. Let¡¯s go over then."

    Hearing her reply, Qu Yanxin¡¯s face immediately lit up light a lightbulb. "Thanks, Big Sis Shen."

    "Don¡¯t mention it. Hold on for a moment, there¡¯s a big brother in the car as well. Let me have a word with him."

    "Okay!"

    Shen Jingbin turned around and knocked on the car¡¯s window. Noticing the noise, Shen Jingchen wound down the window.

    "What¡¯s up?"

    Shen Jingbin pointed at Qu Yanxin who was behind her. Seeing this, Qu Yanxin took the initiative to sh an enchanting smile and greeted him.

    "I¡¯ll be going with her to speak with her teacher in charge. Wait here for a bit."

    "Go on, go on," Shen Jingchen was more concerned about his Anipop. After casting a nce at Qu Yanxin, he quickly shifted his gaze back to his phone and gave a half-hearted reply.

    "Let¡¯s go," Shen Jingbin said to Qu Yanxin after Shen Jingchen wound up the window.

    It was only then that Qu Yanxin retraced her gaze that was trained on Shen Jingchen, and she shot another sweet smile at Shen Jingbin before she led the way. The bus from Qu Yanxin¡¯s school was at another side of the school, and the teacher in charge was waiting for them in the bus.

    As Qu Yanxin was leading Shen Jingbin over to the bus, she pretended to casually introduce her to her group of schoolmates who were staring at her dumbfounded, "Big sister, these are the students from my school who are attending thepetition this time around."

    Shen Jingbin nced at the group of youths and lively children in front of her before she gave a kind nod towards them as a form of acknowledgement. She then continued along with Qu Yanxin to look for her teacher in charge.

    But what she didn¡¯t know was that behind her, the jaws of the students she¡¯d just passed had dropped to the ground.

    A Candy Crush like game. ?

 Chapter 107

    <b>Chapter 107: The Young Girl¡¯s Schemes (1) </b>

    Shen Jingbin was able to take Qu Yanxin away after exining the situation to her teacher in charge and giving Aunt Zhang a call in front of her.

    Shen Jingbin realized the students were still standing in a daze when they passed by them again. Puzzled, she asked, "Your ssmates... what¡¯s wrong with them?"

    At first, she wanted to ask whether her ssmates were a little mentally challenged, but felt that the question would be a little too disrespectful. Moreover, all of them were here in First High to attend apetition. If she were to ask that question, they¡¯d probably think that she was looking down on them.

    "Nothing, Big Sis Shen is just too beautiful. They¡¯ve never seen someone as good-looking as you before so their mind¡¯s turned to mush for a while," Qu Yanxin discretely shot her ssmates a smug grin before she tilted her head back and replied in a joking manner.

    Kids these days really did have a way with words.

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at her, but chose to remain silent.

    After the both of them got into the car, Shen Jingchen stopped ying with his phone and asked, "Did you get her?"

    Shen Jingbin pointed at the backseat, so Shen Jingchen turned back and saw Qu Yanxin sitting there very obediently.

    He gave a slight nod in Qu Yanxin¡¯s direction and said, "Hi, I¡¯m Shen Jingchen."

    "Hi, Big Brother Shen. I¡¯m Qu Yanxin."

    Shen Jingchen let out an indifferent grunt in response as he turned back and returned his attention to driving. Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the type of person who initiated conversation with others, so the journey back home was done in silence.

    Just as they were about to reach home, Shen Jingbin gave Aunt Zhang a call. Therefore once they arrived, Aunt Zhang could be seen standing by the front door looking out for them.

    Thinking that Aunt Zhang would want to exchange a few words in private with her daughter, Shen Jingbin asked Shen Jingchen to drop Qu Yanxin off at the front door before she apanied him to park the car in the garage.

    The moment Qu Yanxin got off the car, Aunt Zhang went straight up to her and held her daughter¡¯s hands in her own. "Xinxin! How was it like going to First High?" Aunt Zhang asked, her voice tinged with concern for her daughter.

    Preupied with sizing up the Shen siblings¡¯ vi, Qu Yanxin gave a half-hearted reply, "What do you mean how was it? I was only in First High for the examination. What does it matter to me how First High is like...? Mom, do you stay here with Big Brother Shen and the rest? Just the three of you are staying in such a huge house?"

    "That¡¯s right, just us three. But Little Chen and Little Jing will asionally stay over elsewhere as well."

    Qu Yanxin¡¯s lips curled. "What a waste! They should make full use of their resources."

    Although she¡¯d gone home not too long ago, Aunt Zhang still missed her daughter very much. She hurriedly ushered her daughter into the house and said, "Stop standing by the entrance, let¡¯s go inside. I specially cooked your favorite dishes for you today."

    Looking back, Qu Yanxin saw that Shen Jingbin had already gotten off the car and was waiting by the garage door for Shen Jingchen. The man in question had just gotten out of the car and his long, slender, pencil-thin legs were exceptionally eye-catching in contrast with the obscenely red sports car.

    "Is it alright for us to go in without waiting for Big Brother Shen and Big Sis Shen? No matter what, they¡¯re still the owners of the house," Qu Yanxin broke free from her Mother¡¯s grasp and rubbed her wrist, intent on waiting by the front door for the siblings.

    Aunt Zhang pped her head. She was so happy to see her daughter that she¡¯d forgotten about the Shen siblings. Thankfully, her daughter had reminded her in time. Thus, the two of them waited by the front door for the Shen siblings.

    Shen Jingchen saw Aunt Zhang and her daughter standing outside the front door when he got down from the car. He locked the car door as he walked towards Shen Jingbin and asked, "Why haven¡¯t they gone in yet?"

    Shen Jingbin waited till Shen Jinchen caught up with her before they made their way to the front door. "I don¡¯t know. They¡¯re probably waiting for us."

    "Tsk, I thought Auntie would¡¯ve definitely been so happy to see her daughter that she¡¯d forget about us."

    "It¡¯s possible for her to forget you since you don¡¯t really have a presence, but she definitely wouldn¡¯t forget about me," Shen Jingbin casually remarked.

    "..." Would it kill you to not argue with me?! Shen Jingchen grumbled angrily in his heart.

    Their long legs brought them in front of the mother-daughter pair in just a few steps.

    "Auntie, why didn¡¯t you go in first? I¡¯m starving! Let¡¯s quickly go in and eat!" Shen Jingchen said the moment he neared them.

    "Well, isn¡¯t it because I¡¯m waiting for you and Little Jing?" Aunt Zhang smiled and said.

    "Let¡¯s go, Auntie," Shen Jingbin said.

    Aunt Zhang gave a chuckle and pulled Qu Yanxin along with her as they followed behind the siblings.

    The piping hot dishes were already neatlyid out on the dining table. Once they stepped inside the house, they were greeted by a rich, fragrant aroma. The four of them sat down and shared an enjoyable meal.

    Of course, most of the conversation consisted of Qu Yanxin conversing with her Mother whilst the Shen siblings quietly listened to the side, only offering a few words in response when questions were directed at them.

    The siblings went upstairs after they finished eating. Qu Yanxin helped her Mother tidy up in the kitchen, stealing nces at the second floor in the process. While she was at it, she conveniently asked her Mother about the siblings.

    "Mom, do Big Brother Shen and Big Sis Shen stay on the second floor?"

    "That¡¯s right. You better be careful, the second level is their private space, so you shouldn¡¯t go up there without permission."

    Dissatisfied with her Mother¡¯s reply, she mumbled to herself, "Then where am I going to stay?"

    Aunt Zhang handed her a dinner te that waspletely covered in soap and motioned for her to clean it. "You¡¯ll be staying with me on the first floor," She announced.

    Qu Yanxin was even more put off by her response, "No way Mom. How can I stay with you at my age? I don¡¯t want to!"

    Aunt Zhang rapped her head. "Hey, are you snubbing me? I don¡¯t want to room with you either. You¡¯ve got lousy sleeping habits and you even kick people in your sleep. There¡¯s a spare guest room on the first floor. I¡¯ll tidy it up for you in a bit and you can sleep there."

    Qu Yanxin quietly muttered something under her breath, but Aunt Zhang couldn¡¯t hear her well. "What did you say?" She asked.

    "Nothing... Mom, what¡¯s your rtionship with the Shen siblings?"

    "Little Chen and Little Jing are good children. They treat me very well and don¡¯t think of me as a nanny at all," Aunt Zhang said, ovee with emotion.

    Hearing her Mother say this, an idea secretly started to sprout in Qu Yanxin¡¯s heart.

    She shot a sidelong nce at her Mother who was wiping the kitchen countertop clean and a lovable smile suddenly formed on her face as she said, "Mom, take me for a stroll around the area once you¡¯re done tidying up the room. Even though I¡¯ll only be here for one or two days, it¡¯s still better for me to familiarize myself with the area. Otherwise, I¡¯ll end up inconveniencing the Shen siblings if they have to look for me when I get lost."

    "Alright, alright. Whatever you say."

 Chapter 108

    <b>Chapter 108: The Young Girl¡¯s Schemes (2) </b>

    Qu Yanxin didn¡¯t see the Shen siblings for the entire afternoon. She was under the impression that they were gone for ss till it was dinner time and she saw the duo discussing something as they were walking down the staircase.

    Qu Yanxin was standing at the kitchen¡¯s entrance with dishes in hand when she saw the siblings. She looked back to her Mother in surprise and asked, "Eh? Aren¡¯t Big Brother Shen and Big Sis Shen students? Why don¡¯t they have to go to ss?"

    "It seems like they¡¯ve gotten enough course credits or something like that... Sigh, I don¡¯t know anything about what¡¯s going on in their university. Anyway, I know they¡¯re both outstanding individuals who don¡¯t need to go to school... Xinxin, I¡¯ll be able to wake up with a smile on my face if you can carve out a future that¡¯s as promising as those two."

    "How annoying! Why¡¯re you dragging me into this?" Qu Yanxin said as she wrinkled her nose in displeasure. Turning around, her line of sight fell on Shen Jingchen and her eyes automatically lit up.

    The two siblings were sitting at the dining table and talking about the game when Shen Jingchen suddenly felt an intense gaze on him and he unconsciously shivered.

    Seeing this, Shen Jingbin asked, "What¡¯s wrong with you? Are you having an epileptic fit?"

    "I don¡¯t know. I just suddenly felt a surge of malice that automatically activated the warning mechanism in my body!"

    "... Rumpus youth, you¡¯re way too old to be suffering from chuunibyou, alright1?"

    "Tsk, I can¡¯t even crack a joke. Why¡¯re you so boring?"

    "I¡¯m boring? Then you better go and find a more interesting person to sit with. Don¡¯t sit next to me," Shen Jingbin ruthlessly countered as she rolled her eyes at him.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s face fell. He was just about to exin the theory behind "the eldest taking the role of the father" so that she¡¯d learn to show her big bro some respect when he was suddenly interrupted by someone.

    "Big Brother Shen, what¡¯re you guys talking about? It looks very interesting."

    The duo heard a voice and turned around. The one who¡¯d asked the question with an innocent smile on her face was Qu Yanxin. She was holding a dish in her hands as she stood behind the siblings.

    "It¡¯s nothing, we were just talking about a game," Shen Jingchen said as he shifted to the side, making it easier for her to set the dish on the table.

    After cing the dish on the table, Qu Yanxin straightened herself and asked, "What game? Is it fun? Can I y with you guys?"

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s eyebrows knitted together a little, and he was no longer wearing the frivolous smile he had on his face just moments before. Yet, this just made Qu Yanxin¡¯s heart skip a beat.

    "You¡¯re in your final year of high school. Focus on your studies. Games don¡¯t suit you," Came Shen Jingchen¡¯s iparably stern reply. Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but do a double take upon hearing it.

    Tsk, tsk, tsk! Someone like you actually knows how to say something like that. How horrifying.

    Bah! Your elder brother is actually the pir of our mothend, alright?!

    You¡¯re more or less the termite that wrecks those pirs!

    The siblings startedmunicating telepathically. At this moment, Aunt Zhang walked out from the kitchen. When she saw that her daughter was still standing behind the Shen siblings, she couldn¡¯t help butment with a strange look on her face, "Xinxin, what¡¯re you doing just standing there? Quickly, get back to your seat."

    Qu Yanxin muttered under her breath and took another nce at the duo who were currentlymunicating telepathically. An enigmatic expression crossed her face as she ran back to her seat. Shen Jingchen was a carnivore and wouldn¡¯t be happy without meat. Qu Yanxin noticed this when they were eating lunch in the afternoon. Hence, it was unknown whether she did it on purpose or not, but she would always go after the same piece of meat as he did during their meal.

    Every time Shen Jingchen raised his head to look at her, she¡¯d wear an embarrassed look on her face and give up on the meat that she was after. After which, her gaze would swiftly move towards her bowl of rice and she¡¯d take a huge mouthful of it.

    "You guys have the same tastes in food," Shen Jingbinmented as she eyed them curiously.

    "That can¡¯t be. This child would always make a fuss about wanting to lose weight in the past and refused to eat even a slice of meat. I reckon she wanted to eat some meat because she¡¯s been worrying about thepetition for the past two days," Aunt Zhang hurriedly exined.

    Shen Jingchen felt embarrassed about having to fight with a little girl over food. He¡¯d be the first one to give up whenever he went for the same dish that she did. As a result, both would end up giving up on the very piece of meat that caused the fight.

    Shen Jingbin took the piece of meat and ced it in Qu Yanxin¡¯s bowl before she said, "Since that¡¯s the case, you better eat more."

    Qu Yanxin quietly raised her head and nced at Shen Jingbin who was in front of her. For some strange reason, Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart suddenly tightened when she saw the dull, lifeless look in the other party¡¯s eyes, causing feelings of guilt to arise from the bottom of her heart with a thud.

    "Alright, thank you Big Sis Shen."

    Following that, the meal continued on without incident.

    Aunt Zhang wanted to take her daughter and the siblings for a walk after dinner, so the siblings sat on the sofa and waited for her to finish tidying up.

    Shen Jingbin looked at Qu Yanxin¡¯s back as she helped her Mother around the kitchen and said to Shen Jingchen, "Why do I think that this little girl isn¡¯t as simple as she appears to be?"

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s eyes went wide as he looked at her and eximed, "I think so too!"

    For the rare few of you who don¡¯t know what chuunibyou means ?? http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Chuunibyou ?

 Chapter 109

    <b>Chapter 109: Meeting Xiangpeng (1) </b>

    "Knock knock knock." Came the sound of the door being rapped on.

    Zhao Chengning had his head buried in a pile of documents. "Enter," He said without raising his head.

    Special Assistant Keyuan opened the door and walked in. "Boss, Mr Xia is looking for you. He¡¯s waiting outside the office."

    The pen in Zhao Chengning¡¯s hand paused for a moment. Raising his head, he looked at his young aide and asked, "Xia Qihui?"

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s brows furrowed upon seeing Keyuan nod his head. "Just him alone?"

    Keyuan shook his head and replied, "There¡¯s also Mr Xu, but it looks like Mr Xu is still parking his car, so he hasn¡¯te up yet."

    Zhao Chengning set down the documents in his hand and leaned heavily against the chair¡¯s backrest. He rubbed his brows, feeling a bit of a headache starting and said, "Why did those two disasterse... It definitely can¡¯t be for anything good."

    Keyuan tried to help out his Boss by offering a suggestion, "If Boss doesn¡¯t want to meet them, I could help you..." Before he had the chance to finish speaking, Keyuan saw Zhao Chengning raise a hand to reject his suggestion.

    "Don¡¯t. It¡¯ll be even more troublesome if I don¡¯t meet with them today... Bring them in once Xuyaes up."

    "Alright," Keyuan nodded his head, before walking out and very considerately closing the door behind him.

    Zhao Chengning stood up from his seat and moved his stiff shoulders around for a bit. Shortly after he was done, knocking could be heard on his door once again.

    However, the encounter this time around wouldn¡¯t be as mild and gentle as the previous one.

    As the door opened, an excited voice reached Zhao Chengning¡¯s ears.

    "Hahahaha, Brother Ah Ning! Brother Xia and I havee to see you! You didn¡¯t expect it, right? You¡¯re feeling overjoyed, right? You¡¯re feeling moved, right?!" Xuya was just like Wang Xifei1, you¡¯d hear him before you see him.

    Overjoyed? Moved? My ass!

    Zhao Chengning really felt like tossing the documents on his table at Xuya¡¯s face.

    "Xuya, Brother Ah Ning will probably do something to you if you continue being like this," The towering man who was standing beside Xuya said. He had a smile on his face as he grasped Xuya¡¯s shoulder. After stepping into the room, he stretched his leg out and shut the door behind him.

    Outside the office, the secretaries who were craning their necks out to get a better look had expressions of disappointment on their faces as they watched the office door close on itself; their maiden hearts shattering into tiny pieces.

    "Hey hey hey, did you guys see that? The two people who just walked in were the Young Master Xia and the other is the Xu family¡¯s Young Master! They¡¯re both top quality single men! Getting either of them will set us up for the rest of our lives!" Avishly dressed woman said as she looked at her colleagues with sparkles in her eyes.

    Another more natural looking woman shot her a look of disdain and said, "Lisha, the Xu family¡¯s Young Master looks like he¡¯s only around twenty. You¡¯re even willing to sink your fangs into someone as young as him?"

    "Tch, so what if he¡¯s twenty? The Young Masters of these rich families have already been living lives of debauchery since they were fifteen or sixteen. They¡¯re already old hands by the age of twenty!" Lisha gave a snort of disdain. "Besides, what if he¡¯s the type to go for older women? Wasn¡¯t there a saying that young rich men enjoy conquering older women?"

    "Cough, do you think that someone of Young Master Xu¡¯s pedigree would want an old woman like you?"

    "Who¡¯re you calling an old woman?!"

    "Whoever answered me."

    "Why you..."

    "Special Assistant Ke is still over there, can¡¯t the two of you exercise some restraint? You¡¯re going to get into trouble he finds out you¡¯re gossiping about the Boss¡¯ friends," The most honest secretary of the group, Weiwei, hurriedly spoke up when she noticed their conversation getting increasingly heated.

    Hearing Special Assistant Keyuan¡¯s name being brought up, the two secretaries red hatefully at one another, before reluctantly settling back into their seats. They then perked up their ears and continued listening for any soundsing from within the office.

    Meanwhile, having clearly heard everything the women of the secretarial department had said from where he was, Keyuan shook his head as he gently drew cross marks on the two pieces of paper he held in his hands.

    Going back to the trio in the office, Zhao Chengning was currently seated back in his chair. Propping his arms up on the table, he had inteced his fingers so he could rest his chin atop them. "Why are the two of you here? Did something happen?" He asked the pair on the opposite side of his desk.

    "There¡¯s nothing wrong. We just felt like meeting you..." The moment he said that, he could feel the cold gaze of a certain someone named Zhao being directed at him, so he gave two forced chuckles and quickly corrected himself, "Ah no. Brother Ah Ning, Brother Xia and I were just worried about you... You haven¡¯t hung out with us ever since Big Sis Jing left. It¡¯s always been work work work. What would we do if you ran yourself ragged? So, I had a chat with Brother Xia about it, and we decided to personally pay you a visit and also bring you out to rx for a bit!"

    Xia Qihui also chimed in from the side, "Ah Ning, forget about you not letting me see the woman you¡¯ve fallen for, don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re not even willing to y with me anymore?"

    Zhao Chengning shifted his gaze to Xia Qihui and gave him a once over. "So you guys are thinking of bringing me out for some fun?"

    Xia Qihui shed a smile at him and asked, "Do you still remember Northern City¡¯s real estate developer?"

    Zhao Chengning pondered for a moment and had some slight recollection of them, so he nodded his head.

    "Today is the son¡¯s birthday and he¡¯s throwing a birthday party. Both Xuya and I have been invited, so we thought of bringing you along as well," Upon seeing the look of disdain on Zhao Chengning¡¯s face, he added, "Don¡¯t give us that kind of face, that kid is an honest person. It won¡¯t be more than that since he¡¯s already said that it¡¯s only going to be a birthday celebration. There won¡¯t be any other nonsense."

    "I can consider that," Zhao Chengning said in response.

    Xia Qihui raised his hand and looked at his wristwatch. "The birthday party is at 7pm. There¡¯s another two hours left. To prevent you from regretting your decisionter, Xuya and I will wait here till you get off work."

    Zhao Chengning: ...

    I¡¯m already regretting it!

    A character from one of the Chinese ssics. Click here to find out more about her!?

 Chapter 110

    <b>Chapter 110: Meeting Xiangpeng (2) </b>

    Under Xia Qihui and Xuya¡¯s ardent gaze, after getting off work, Zhao Chengning got into the car with them and they made their way towards the rumoured birthday party for the developer¡¯s son. Due to some dys along the way, the party was already in full swing by the time they arrived. Zhao Chengning swept a nce at the scene in front of him and found that only youths were present. There were even some who looked rather familiar further inside.

    "Brother Xia, you guys are here... Eh? Brother Xia brought the Second Young Master from the Zhao family over!" The moment they stepped onto the party grounds, a fair skinned boy made his way over to the three of them with a smile on his face. Upon seeing Zhao Chengning standing behind the two of them, he had happily cried out.

    Xia Qihui patted the boy on his shoulder and said, "Don¡¯t act so shamefully, Second Young Master will make fun of you."

    The boy¡¯s fairplexion flushed red as he fixed his gaze on Zhao Chengning and said, "Second... Second Young Master, my name is Li Nanjing... I-I¡¯m a fan of yours!"

    "Alright," Zhao Chengning looked towards the boy and nodded his head.

    Li Nanjing¡¯s face immediately lit up upon receiving his idol¡¯s acknowledgment. "Second Young Master, you must have just gotten off work, right? I... I¡¯ve prepared a lot of tidbits, would you like to sample some?"

    "Alright, thank you," After saying so, he suddenly remembered that the party was held for the boy in front of him and said, "Happy birthday."

    The boy was immediately ovee with joy as his entire face turned red. "Thank you... thank you Second Young Master!"

    Zhao Chengning gave a wave of his hand and walked further in, making his way towards the pastry section.

    Li Nanjing¡¯s words really did ring true. He¡¯d been working for the entire day and was dragged here immediately after getting off work. He was feeling ravenous, and although he didn¡¯t like pastries, it would suffice to fill him up.

    Birthday parties had to be lively, and intense music was being sted at the venue. Countless youths stood at the center of the party and swayed their bodies to the beat of the music.

    Zhao Chengning leaned against the side of a table with a small piece of cake in hand, considering whether he should take a bite.

    "Second Young Master?"

    Just as he was silently observing the group of youngsters filled with vigor, he suddenly heard the familiar sounding voice of a woman from behind his back. Zhao Chengning set down the small unfinished portion of his cake and turned around.

    It was thedy Boss of Blooming Flower Pavilion, Chenyi.

    Seeing him face her, a brilliant smile appeared on her face as she took small strides to run towards him.

    "It really is you! I thought I¡¯d gotten the wrong person at first," After reaching his side, Chenyi cast a suspicious nce about the area before she finally said, "Eh? Why are you by yourself today, Second Young Master? Where¡¯s that beautiful girl I saw you withst time?"

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s gaze gently brushed past her as he said, "She¡¯s gone home."

    "Speaking of which, I still don¡¯t know what her name is. Really, Second Young Master, you should have introduced her to mest time!"

    "It was unimportant, so I didn¡¯t make any introductions," Zhao Chengning held a cocktail up to his lips and gently sipped from it.

    Chenyi¡¯s mood was immediately uplifted.

    She¡¯d originally thought of Shen Jingbin as a formidable opponent, but little did she know that Shen Jingbin was actually just some mob character.

    She should have expected as much.

    Zhao Chengning shot a nce at Chenyi, whose mood suddenly seemed to have brightened up, and felt that she was being a little weird.

    Why did she look so happy when he had just called her unimportant?

    He really couldn¡¯t understand what went on in the minds of women.

    It looked like he needed to give Shen Jingbin a call to find out how the minds of women worked.

    "God Zhao!" While the two of them were absorbed in their own thoughts, someone suddenly appeared by Zhao Chengning¡¯s side and gave him a vicious p on the shoulder.

    Zhao Chengning almost choked on his cocktail as he hurriedly set the wine ss down, then turned around to see who the fool was who¡¯d smacked him on the shoulder while he was having a drink.

    "Xiangpeng?" A very familiar, squarish face was reflected in his eyes.

    Seeing that his old friend still remembered his name after all these years, Xiangpeng rubbed his head andughed out loud, "It¡¯s me, it¡¯s me. I can¡¯t believe God Zhao still remembers me!"

    "I see you popping up everyday in Moments. It¡¯d take some real skill for me to forget you."

    "Hahaha, don¡¯t be like that God Zhao... But I didn¡¯t expect to run into you here."

    "Me neither."

    "Hahaha, the birthday boy is my little sister¡¯s boyfriend. It¡¯s all thanks to my little sister that I¡¯m able to experience the world of high society that you guys live in," Xiangpeng said as his smile remained stered on his face.

    Zhao Chengning knew what the financial situation of Xiangpeng¡¯s family was like; his parents were both middle ss sry workers. If it weren¡¯t for his other connections, there¡¯d be no way for him to appear in a ce like this.

    "Ah, that¡¯s right. Great God, are you really acquainted with that beauty from Weibo that I asked you about? Help me pull some strings if you know her, because this involves whether or not I can be promoted! On ount of our three years spent together as fellow ssmates, please help me out," After seeing Zhao Chengning, Xiangpeng immediately thought of the previous incident where he had asked for help in identifying the beauty on Moments. And, ording to his intuition, Zhao Chengning definitely knew who this beauty was.

    Chenyi had been sizing Xiangpeng up ever since he appeared. Now, after hearing them bring up some other woman, she couldn¡¯t help but curiously ask, "What beauty are you guys talking about? Can I take a look?"

    It was only then that Xiangpeng realized that there was another beauty around. His eyes flickered over to her and he immediately pulled out his handphone, pulling up the picture of Shen Jingbin that he¡¯d saved.

    He felt that this beauty was probably dating Zhao Chengning, so she¡¯d probably know whoever he was associated with. In fact, he might even get something out of it.

    Xiangpeng was pretty good. Chenyi was able to instantly tell that the woman in the picture was the same person Zhao Chengning had brought to her restaurant!

    She looked up in astonishment and stared at Zhao Chengning.

 Chapter 111

    <b>Chapter 111: The Future Wife (1)</b>

    Although Xiangpeng was a nerd, he was still able to discern the meaning behind Chenyi¡¯s expression as he had been mingling about in the workce for all these years. As for him not managing to get a promotion, that could only be attributed to his own ipetence.

    He concluded that Zhao Chengning did indeed know who the beauty was! Not only that, the woman in front of him was acquainted with her as well.

    Xiangpeng was able to uncover the truth within these one to two seconds. So keeping his phone open while looking as if he was pondering over something, he then aimed an expression of ttery towards Zhao Chengning. "Great God, are you really unable to help me? Remember how I helped you during that gathering in senior high? How I helped you fend off the innumerable number of girls in love with you? Or what about the number of love letters I helped you to reject? Oh Great God, won¡¯t you please take pity on me and help me out? ~" At the end, Xiangpeng even took on a coquettish tone of voice.

    Unable to control himself, Zhao Chengning shuddered when he heard it.

    For better or for worse, Xiangpeng was a big man who stood at 180cm tall. He had a squarish face and looked to be an upright and outspoken person. His tone sounded absolutely nothing like how a lover would sound like!

    "I do know who she is, but I still can¡¯t give you her contact details..." Zhao Chengning said as he held back the urge to ssh his ss of cocktail all over Xiangpeng¡¯s grief ridden face. "To be honest, I already discretely asked her about yourpany¡¯s invitation, and she said she wasn¡¯t really willing to meet you with guys."

    "Why would she upload her picture if she wasn¡¯t willing to show herself? Second Young Master, it looks to me like she was just being modest with you. She wasn¡¯t really intending for you to take what she said seriously. What would you do if you ended up destroying her future?" Chenyi said as she cut into the conversation.

    Zhao Chengning really felt like rolling his eyes at Chenyi, but his upbringing didn¡¯t permit him to do so. He furrowed his brows in frustration and said, "She¡¯s not that kind of person..."

    Before he had the chance to finish, Chenyi gave a charmingugh as if she¡¯d heard a joke, "Oh Second Young Master, you¡¯re far too ignorant about women, so you should stop trying to figure that woman out. Wasn¡¯t there a saying: a woman¡¯s mind is asplex as the ocean is vast."

    Although he didn¡¯t know why the beauty in front of him was speaking up for him, Xiangpeng very tactfully added, "Great God, Great God. Are you sure she¡¯s unwilling to ept the invitation, or is she just shy? You have to be sure about this! Otherwise, if she misses this chance because of you, she may bear a grudge against you next time."

    Pui, the girl he fell for definitely wasn¡¯t the type of conniving bitch who enjoyed ying coy!

    Zhao Chengning really felt like giving the two of them the stink eye to express his dissatisfaction.

    However, before he had the chance to do that, Xia Qihui, Xuya, and birthday boy walked towards them.

    "Eh, what¡¯re all of you gathered around here for?" Xuya asked.

    "So this is where you were Brother Xiang. Linghua¡¯s been looking all over for you," Li Nanjing had a look of astonishment on his face as he looked at Xiangpeng. "Brother Xiang, you know Second Young Master as well?"

    "The Great God was my ssmate in senior high!" Xiangpeng proudly announced.

    Zhao Chengning facepalmed. Couldn¡¯t he at least act like he didn¡¯t know him?

    "Boss Chen is here too," Xia Qihui said.

    Chenyi looked to Xia Qihui and raised her ss, "Boss Xia."

    "Boss Chen, it looks like your Blooming Flower Pavilion¡¯s business is getting better and better. The entirety of the next month¡¯s booking was filled thest time I tried to make a reservation."

    "Haha, stop pulling my leg, Boss Xia. Just give me a call if you ever want to pay a visit to my restaurant."

    Xuya had absolutely no interest in exchanging pleasantries. Going straight to Zhao Chengning¡¯s side, he said in a whisper, "Brother Ah Ning, what were you guys talking about just now? Even from where I was, I could tell you weren¡¯t looking so good."

    Zhao Chengning nced at Chenyi who was currently engaged in conversation with Xia Qihui. His gaze then shifted to Xiangpeng who was animatedly regaling his little sister¡¯s boyfriend with tales of what his idol was like in senior high. Mimicking Xuya¡¯s drop in volume, he said, "It¡¯s that man," And he jerked his head towards Xiangpeng. "He wants to me to hand over Little Jing¡¯s contact details."

    Xuya¡¯s eyes went wide as he took another look at Xiangpeng and Chenyi, disbelief colouring his expression. "It can¡¯t be, even he¡¯s trying to steal Big Sister Jing from you? He¡¯s biting off way more than he can chew. Don¡¯t worry Brother Ah Ning, steamroll him with your bastar- I mean, overbearing aura of a CEO!"

    "No can do. He¡¯s an old ssmate, so it wouldn¡¯t be nice to take action against him," Zhao Chengning quietly pointed at Chenyi once again. "He¡¯s got an aplice too, so the two of them are cooperating against me. What do you think I should do?"

    Xuya¡¯s eyes rolled about in thought before he said, "Don¡¯t be afraid Brother Ah Ning, I¡¯ll take care of this."

    Zhao Chengning gave Xuya a satisfied pat on the back and said, "Mm, your big bro knows you¡¯ll definitely be able to think of something. These two are trampling all over my goodwill! I¡¯ll sneak off in a bit, so help me look after Brother Xia while I¡¯m gone~ When I¡¯m back, I¡¯ll bring you over to A City to meet Little Jing."

    Xuya¡¯s eyes lit up. "Really?!"

    "Mm!"

    "Alright, you promised! Don¡¯t worry and leave it to me!"

    Zhao Chengning gestured for Xuya to "do his best" with a smile on his face, before he quietly snuck to the back of the buffet table, slinking away from the party when the opportunity presented itself. The next thing Xia Qihui and the rest knew, he was gone.

    "Xuya, where¡¯d Brother Ah Ning run off to?"

    Xuya stuffed a piece of cake into his mouth and gave a vague reply, "He went back home to deepen the bond with his wife."

    Everyone was stunned into silence.

 Chapter 112

    <b>Chapter 112: The Future Wife (2) </b>

    "What wife? Does Second Young Master have a wife already?" Chenyi hurriedly asked.

    After swallowing the cake in his mouth with great difficulty, Xuya ignored Chenyi¡¯s question and instead turned to face Li Nanjing. "The pastries that you bought from this shop are all soft and dry. They¡¯re not nice, find a different shop next time."

    "These pastries were from Honeymoon Dessert," Li Nanjing said, looking a little dumbstruck.

    "Honeymoon Dessert¡¯s the number one pastry shop in B City."

    "Honeymoon Dessert¡¯s pastries don¡¯t give you much of a ¡¯honeymoon¡¯ feel though."

    Looking as if he¡¯d just received a lesson from Xuya, Li Nanjing dumbly nodded his head in response.

    Xia Qihui rapped Xuya¡¯s with his knuckles and said, "Stop kicking up a fuss. What wife are you talking about? Since when did Ah Ning get a wife?"

    "Oh, she¡¯s not his wife yet. More urately, she should be called his future wife... Eh, stop staring at me, Brother Xia. It¡¯s the same person I was telling you aboutst time."

    "Are you talking about the same girl who came to my restaurant for a mealst time?" Chenyi asked.

    "Ah, that¡¯s right. Boss Chen¡¯s seen her before too... That¡¯s right, she¡¯s the one. She¡¯s really beautiful, right?"

    Chenyi: ...

    Beautiful my ass! She definitely wasn¡¯t going to admit that!

    Xiangpeng had a look of bewilderment on his face. "Wait a minute, what¡¯re you guys going on about? I haven¡¯t the slightest clue what¡¯s going on."

    Xuya gave him a sympathetic look and said, "You¡¯re Brother Ah Ning¡¯s ssmate from senior high, right? I heard that you¡¯re trying to undermine Brother Ah Ning¡¯s efforts."

    Xiangpeng felt like he¡¯d been unjustly used. "No, I would never try to undermine the Great God! I only wanted his help in making some enquiries about a certain person... See, she¡¯s the one!" Xiangpeng pulled out the picture of Shen Jingbin once again and handed it to Xuya. "Mypany wants to work together with her, but I haven¡¯t been able to contact her."

    Xuya snatched over his handphone. After a few taps, he handed it back to Xiangpeng with Shen Jingbin¡¯s photo deleted and said, "Hey, are you an idiot or something? This girl is Brother Ah Ning¡¯s future wife, so how could he possibly be willing to reveal anything about her? Have a heart, bro. Stop asking him about it and tell your Bosses that she isn¡¯t interested. Don¡¯t bother her anymore."

    Xiangpeng gripped his handphone and stared at Xuya with a nk look on his face.

    Guessing that Xiangpeng had probably heard what he¡¯d said, Xuya felt that his mission was nowplete. Standing on his tiptoes to get a better look, he ced his hand around Xia Qihui¡¯s shoulders and suggested, "Brother Xia, Brother Xia, let¡¯s go over there and y instead."

    Xia Qihui¡¯s head waspletely filled with curiosity towards "Ah Ning¡¯s future wife", so of course he immediately nodded his head in agreement. He needed to find a quiet ce to sort his thoughts out!

    Wasn¡¯t Ah Ning just bringing out a pretty girl to yst time? Why did she suddenly be his future wife? Did his parents know how fast he was taking things?!

    After walking a few steps, Xuya suddenly turned behind and said with a stern expression on his face, "Oh, that¡¯s right. Bro, remember to delete that picture if you or thatpany of yours still has copies of it. Otherwise, Brother Ah Ning mighte after you guys if he ever loses it. If that time everes, don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you guys."

    Xia Qihui gave Xuya a good smack on the head, and Xuya¡¯s serious facade instantly fell apart.

    "Stop scaring other people with these childish antics of yours," Xia Qihui said.

    The remaining three people stood rooted to the spot as they stared at each other in shock.

    What should they do? It was far too much information for them to take in and they couldn¡¯t digest it.

    While the people in B City whiled their time away by partying, Shen Jingbin was bringing Aunt Zhang, her daughter, and Shen Jingchen around for a stroll along the tranquil streets of A City.

    Qu Yanxin looked like she was enthralled by everything she saw along the streets, pulling Shen Jingchen over and asking him about every single thing she came across. As Aunt Zhang was also present, Shen Jingchen could only quell his temper and patiently answer her questions.

    And during this whole time, Shen Jingbin gleefully reveled in his misfortune.

    Aunt Zhang was getting on in age so she wasn¡¯t able to keep up with someone as youthful as Qu Yanxin, which caused her to eventually fall behind. Shen Jingbin very considerately slowed down her pace and remained by Aunt Zhang¡¯s side.

    Seeing how happy her daughter was, Aunt Zhang sighed and said, "Xinxin looks like she¡¯s very attached to Little Chen."

    Shen Jingbin eyed the two people in front of her. "Shen Jingchen has always been rather weing of little girls."

    Aunt Zhangughed and said, "That¡¯s true. Little Chen has grown up to be a fine young man. He¡¯s probably the type of guy that¡¯s popr with girls these days, right? Speaking of which, both you siblings have grown up wonderfully. Finding suitable partners for the two of you is going to be a problem."

    "Finding one for me isn¡¯t much of an issue, I¡¯m fine with anyone as long as we can get along. Shen Jingchen, on the other hand, is a different story."

    "Haha, I think it¡¯s the other way around though. It¡¯ll be easy to find a suitable partner for Little Chen. Finding one for you is the real challenge."

    "Why¡¯s that?" Shen Jingbin asked with a look of bewilderment on her face.

    Aunt Zhang turned her head and examined Shen Jingbin closely, before she sighed and said, "Little Jing, you¡¯re far too beautiful, and today¡¯s society is filled with malicious intent towards women. Take for example the outside world; people believe that beautiful women will never remain faithful. But on top of being beautiful, you alsoe from a good background and you¡¯re capable. A woman who embodies these traits would be fatally attractive to most men."

    "I could always look for someone who¡¯sparable to me."

    "Over the years, I¡¯ve served as a nanny for many rich households. Children of families that wereparable to yours were either drunk on their own abilities, or those without any abilities just lived lives of debauchery; you definitely wouldn¡¯t look upon any of them favorably. Saying you want to look for aparable partner is easy, but actually doing so is a challenge. And, based on my experience, mostly Mothers aren¡¯t willing to take in a Daughter-inw like you who has a background that¡¯s as impressive as yours, for fear of not being able to throw about their weight as the Mother-inw."

    Upon hearing what Aunt Zhang said, Shen Jingbin suddenly thought of Zhao Chengning.

    In terms of family background, the Shen and Zhao families were about the same. Zhao Chengning himself had one of the best personalities amongst all of the men she knew. Theparable man she was talking about was referring to him, but...

    She thought back to Mama Zhao¡¯s attitude towards her.

    She always couldn¡¯t figure out why Mama Zhao had been so hostile towards her during their first meeting. But, after listening to what Aunt Zhao said, everything suddenly made sense.

    So, she ended up unintentionally threatening Mama Zhao?

 Chapter 113

    <b>Chapter 113: Returning To School (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin felt that Zhao Chengning had to be Cao Cao¡¯s reincarnation. She¡¯d only just thought of him when she received a call from the person in question.

    Looking at the words "Zhao Chengning" on the phone¡¯s screen, she suddenly felt a little reluctant to answer the call.

    "What¡¯s this? Is a friend of yours calling?" Aunt Zhang nced at her phone and smiled. "You best answer the phone then, lest the other person hangs up. I¡¯ll go check on the two kids over there," Saying that, she hurried over to catch up to the duo in front.

    Shen Jingbin helplessly looked at Aunt Zhang¡¯s departing figure before she nced down at her phone, and then taking a deep breath, she answered the called.

    "Hello."

    "Are you outside?" Zhao Chengning could pick up the sound of car horns on the other end.

    "Yeah, I¡¯m taking a walk."

    "Heh, you lead such a healthy lifestyle," Zhao Chengningmented with a chuckle.

    "Don¡¯t you go out for a walk after meals?" Shen Jingbin asked in return.

    "Work is tiring enough for me, I¡¯m too tired for walks after that."

    "You¡¯re going to grow a belly at this rate," Shen Jingbin cursed with evil intentions.

    Zhao Chengning softly chuckled, "I won¡¯t. Even though I don¡¯t go for walks, I make sure to work out every day. My eight-pack abdominals are all here."

    "Tch," Shen Jingbin clicked her tongue. You don¡¯t have the energy for walks, yet you¡¯re still energetic enough to work out. As expected, men only know how to deceive others with their words!

    "Oh, do you want to know the continuation of what happened on Weibo?"

    "What kind of continuation?" Shen Jingbin hurriedly asked.

    "I happened to meet that ssmate of mine today, and Chenyi was around when he asked me that question... Do you remember Chenyi, thedy Boss of Blooming Flower Pavilion?"

    "Yeah, I remember her."

    "I had originally intended on ying dumb and acting as if I didn¡¯t know you, but Chenyi¡¯s expression gave it away when she saw your photo."

    "And then?"

    "After that, I sent Xuya out as a distraction and slipped away," He responded, not a shred of remorse heard from his reply.

    Shen Jingbin could almost see the expression on Xuya¡¯s face as he was sent out. "He let you do that?"

    "Yeah, because I promised to help him with something."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s curiosity was piqued. "What kind of thing?"

    Zhao Chengning however, left her hanging. "I¡¯m not telling you for now. You¡¯ll know when the time is right."

    "Does it have something to do with me?"

    "Yeah, it does."

    Shen Jingbin fell into a stunned silence.

    It¡¯s rted to me? Why would it have something to do with me?

    Due to being lost in her own thoughts, she didn¡¯t notice that Shen Jingchen had sneakily returned.

    "Hey, who¡¯s calling you? Just look at that silly grin of yours!" Shen Jingchen jumped out from behind her and gave her a pat on the shoulder.

    A silly grin? You must be joking! Shen Jingbin¡¯s face turned solemn in a split second.

    Noticing that Shen Jingbin¡¯s expressionless face had turned colder, Shen Jingchen roared withughter, "I was just pulling your leg and you actually believed me! That paralyzed face of yourscks the ability to grin like that," Afterughing for a while, he continued, "Is that how you behave when you¡¯re feeling guilty? Who on earth is on the other side of the call? Hm?"

    Zhao Chengning could clearly hear Shen Jingchen¡¯s loud voice over the other side of the phone speaking to Shen Jingbin. "Pass the phone to your brother, I need to have a few words with him."

    "Alright."

    Shen Jingbin handed the phone to Shen Jingchen.

    "You look horrible when youugh, like your jaw¡¯s about to fall off."

    Shen Jingchen looked at the phone that she handed over and was stunned. His eyes darted back and forth between the phone and his sister. "Y-you¡¯re having a conversation with your lover and you even dare to let me speak with him? Oh baby, are you trying to intimidate me?"

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "I think you need to see a doctor so that they can take a look at your brain!"

    Shen Jingchen shrugged. "Your brother is a genius, normal people like you would never understand me!"

    She really felt like smashing her phone into that face of his!

    "God damn retard," Shen Jingbin stuffed the phone into his hands and stormed away.

    "Tsk tsk tsk, how hot-tempered," Shen Jingchen sighed as he looked at his sister depart, the phone in his hands.

    Once he was donementing, he lowered his gaze and eyed the phone. The words "Zhao Chengning" burning into his retinas.

    Oh my, it¡¯s my future Brother-inw.

    His eyes shing with light, Shen Jingchen ced the phone next to his ear and said, "Ah Ning..."

    Noticing that Aunt Zhang and her daughter were waiting for her in front, Shen Jingbin hurriedly walked towards the two.

    "Big Sister Shen, who is Big Brother Shen speaking to? He¡¯sughing so happily," Qu Yanxin immediately asked upon noticing her.

    Shen Jingbin turned to peek at Shen Jingchen, and like Qu Yanxin said, he was currentlyughing his head off. No semnce of the indifferent adonis remained, attracting the gazes of numerous girls and aunties.

    "A friend."

    "What kind of friend? A girlfriend? Big Brother Shen lookspletely different from before," Qu Yanxin asked once again.

    At this moment, Aunt Zhang rapped her daughter¡¯s head. "Is who calls him any of your business? Is this something you can ask?"

    Qu Yanxin held her head and grumbled, "I was just curious because Big Brother Shen looks like apletely different person now."

    "So are you trying to say that he has to report to you about whoever he talks to, and what friends he has?"

    "Mom!" Qu Yanxin suddenly raised her voice and interrupted her Mother before she turned to look at Shen Jingbin, an awkward expression on her face. "Big Sister Shen, don¡¯t listen to my Mother¡¯s nonsense. I was just curious, I don¡¯t have any other intentions."

    Even if I did have any, now wasn¡¯t the right time to show it!

    "It¡¯s alright," Shen Jingbin yed dumb and acted as though she hadn¡¯t heard anything.

    A few minutester, Shen Jingchen hung up and jogged over.

    "You¡¯ve been on the phone for a really long time, what were you talking about?" Shen Jingbin retrieved her phone and suspiciously eyed her brother who was all smiles.

    Noticing Qu Yanxin on the side, her eyes brimming with curiosity, Shen Jingchen reined in the expression on his face and reced it with a look of seriousness and replied, "It¡¯s nothing, this is between us, you don¡¯t need to know."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips curled and she shot him a look of disdain. "Why don¡¯t you just die already?"

    Shen Jingchen red at her.

    Qu Yanxin, who¡¯d been ignored, saw that the siblings had an ordinary but good rtionship with each other. Due to this, she couldn¡¯t help but feel jealous of Shen Jingbin when she recalled how distant Shen Jingchen seemed to be when she was with him.

    The group continued strolling around the park for a bit before they then returned home.

 Chapter 114

    <b>Chapter 114: Returning To School (2) </b>

    As there were guests in the house, both siblings felt that it would be inappropriate for them to be ying games. Therefore, after washing up, the siblings went to bed after chatting with their friends and watching TV.

    Qu Yanxin¡¯s firstpetition began at nine in the morning, thus the siblings had to wake up early. However, Shen Jingchen was in a foul mood from having to wake up so early; he grumbled the entire time they spent walking to the garage and getting the car started.

    "You could have just gone by yourself, why the hell do I have to tag along?"

    Shen Jingbin opened the car door, easing herself into the driver¡¯s seat while answering, "It doesn¡¯t sit right with me, you sleeping in bed while I have to wake up so early to drive someone to school."

    Shen Jingchen sat beside her and fastened his seatbelt. When he heard his sister¡¯s reply, he almost flipped. "You¡¯re petty! So petty! Oh my god! Why did I have a sister like you!"

    Shen Jingbin looked at him coldly. "Why don¡¯t you ask Mom?"

    Shen Jingchen recalled the regal atmosphere given off by their Mother and immediately gave up.

    However, even cowering takes skill!

    "Hmph, forget it. Your brother is magnanimous! I¡¯ll bear with you being such a petty person!"

    "Tch, yeah. Sure."

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t be bothered with him. She turned the steering wheel and beautifully slid the ck Porsche out of the garage, to where Qu Yanxin was already waiting for them by the entrance of the house. When the car stopped in front of her, she looked over the car several times before hopping into it.

    "Eh, Big Sister Shen knows how to drive?"

    Shen Jingbin gave an indifferent "Mm." in response to her question. Qu Yanxin looked over to nce at Shen Jingchen who was asleep beside his sister. "What¡¯s wrong with Big Brother Shen? Is he not feeling well?"

    "It¡¯s alright, he¡¯s just sleepy."

    Qu Yanxin returned to her seat with a remorseful look on her face. "Actually, Big Sister and Big Brother didn¡¯t have to send me, this is so embarrassing."

    Hearing that, Shen Jingbin nced towards the rearview mirror. Although the girl reflected in it had a remorseful look on her face, she couldn¡¯t hide the smug look in her eyes.

    Shen Jingbin retracted her gaze and didn¡¯t speak further.

    Girl, the reason why we¡¯re together is because I can¡¯t stand the idea of letting him sleep in by himself, don¡¯t overthink things.

    Probably because Shen Jingchen was asleep, Qu Yanxin didn¡¯t go out of her way to start a conversation with Shen Jingbin, which she was quite happy with.

    And so, the two traveled in silence till they reached First High.

    By the time Shen Jingchen awoke, Qu Yanxin had already left.

    "Where did she go?"

    Shen Jingbin was slouched over the steering wheel, engrossed in her mobile game. After hearing her brother¡¯s voice, she straightened her back and replied, "She left for the exam. It¡¯d be the end of her if she slept in like you."

    "Tch, when¡¯s she gonna finish?"

    "Normally an exam would take two hours, so I guess it¡¯d be around... 11am."

    "Then, what do we do while we wait?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "I don¡¯t know either. I was waiting for you to wake up and give suggestions."

    "...You win."

    "Hurry up and tell me what we¡¯re going to do to pass the time!"

    After thinking for a bit, Shen Jingchen said, "Do you want to go back to school and look around?"

    A University was only around 10 minutes away from First High, so after thinking about it, Shen Jingbin felt that it was a feasible idea. Once she had made sure that Shen Jingchen was sitting properly, she started the car and headed for A University with a magnificent drift.

    The moment the car stopped, Shen Jingchen threw open the car door and fled.

    "I¡¯m going to look for my guy friends! Call me when you¡¯re about to leave!"

    Tch, he sure was quick on his feet.

    Shen Jingbin nced at her brother¡¯s disappearing figure before she opened her contact list to search for Xiaohe¡¯s phone number. Dialing her number, Xiaohe took a while before she picked up the phone.

    "Hello, Jingjing?" Xiaohe said softly, as if she was suppressing it.

    "Xiaohe, why¡¯re you speaking so softly?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Give me a break sister, I¡¯m having lessons right now! It¡¯s Abbess Li¡¯s lessons!"

    Abbess Li¡¯s real name was Li Qing, she was the notorious Abbess Miejue of Management University A. The number of students who fell under her whip were immeasurable each semester, a nightmare for all students in the university.

    "You poor thing, you¡¯re having sses so early in the morning," Shen Jingbin could hear Xiaohe¡¯s teeth grind the moment the words left her mouth.

    "Pui, you¡¯re a nutjob! I¡¯m going to hang up now."

    "Don¡¯t, I¡¯m back at school. I¡¯ll keep you guyspany since I¡¯ve got nothing better to do. Which ssroom are you guys in?"

    Shen Jingbin heard a slightmotion on the other end of the phone, before Xiaohe finally replied, "Go to the First Lecture Building, B201. We¡¯re seated on the left side, close to the rear door."

    "Alright."

    After hanging up, Shen Jingbin stepped forth towards the First Lecture Building.

 Chapter 115

    <b>Chapter 115: The Goddess Attends ss (1) </b>

    After hanging up, Xiaohe discreetly prodded Huajuan¡¯s side.

    Huajuan was currently preupied with using a book to cover a Korean drama that she was watching on her handphone, "What¡¯re you doing?"

    Xiaohe pushed her phone towards Jiangmeng who was sitting further inside.

    "Hey, hey, hey, what do you think you¡¯re doing!"

    "Shush! Don¡¯t make so much noise, otherwise Abbess Li might find out... Jingjing just called me and said that she¡¯ll be attending lessons with us."

    Jiangmeng handed Huajuan¡¯s handphone back to her. "Why did Little Jinge back?" She asked as she shifted further inside by one seat. Hearing that Shen Jingbin would being, Huajuan also obediently shifted seats. Xiaohe remained where she was seated at the end of the table, leaving Huajuan¡¯s recently vacated seat for Shen Jingbin.

    "I don¡¯t know, she just said that she was back for a visit. She had nothing better to do, so she decided to attend ss with us."

    Abbess Li taught Marketing, and this module consisted of both second and third year university students. As Abbess Li was far too terrifying, Xiaohe and the rest always made sure to arrive early so that they could nab the seats at the back of the ss.

    Shen Jingbin immediately spotted her friends when she slipped into the ssroom through the backdoor. She got lucky, because at present, Abbess Li¡¯s back was towards her and she was currently writing on the ckboard. Shen Jingbin bent down and quietly jogged towards Xiaohe and the rest. Xiaohe shot a nce at Abbess Li. It looked like she wouldn¡¯t turn around for the time being, so Xiaohe quickly stood up and allowed Shen Jingbin to move past her to sit down.

    "Hey, Little Jingjing!~" The moment she sat down, Huajuan very excitedly pounced on her and gave her a bear hug. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder!"

    Shen Jingbin ignored her and pushed her away, "How much perfume did you spray on yourself?"

    "What perfume? She¡¯s using X Goddess Perfume and she dumped half a bottle on her body," Xiaohe said usingly.

    Huajuan red at her. "Pui! Xiaohe you little shit, how can you be so malicious?!"

    Realizing her friends were bing increasingly rowdy, Jiangmeng shot a worried nce at Abbess Li who was standing on the stage. "Hey, hey, hey, quiet down a bit!"

    As if to give credence to her words, Abbess Li, who was writing on the ckboard the whole time, suddenly turned around and swept her gaze towards them.

    Seeing this, the four of them immediately stilled their breathing on reflex.

    A wave of bewilderment washed over Shen Jingbin. Why was she feeling guilty?!

    Thankfully, the lecture hall wasrge enough and there were sufficient students across both grades to fill up the ssroom. Abbess Li only swept a nce across the room without lingering on their posse.

    The four of them collectively heaved a sigh of relief when Abbess Li turned back and continued to sketch out her graph. Jiangmeng red at her two roommates who¡¯d managed to cheat death, before she asked Shen Jingbin, "So, why¡¯d youe over today? I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything big going on in school."

    Feeling Xiaohe and Huajuan¡¯s curiosity filled gaze directed at her, Shen Jingbin said, "There¡¯s a girl who¡¯s staying over at my ce. I drove her to her exam and I¡¯ll be picking her upter as well. In the meantime, I decided to pay you guys a visit since I had nothing else to do."

    "Oooh~ So we¡¯re just being used to kill time," Xiaohe said.

    She really had an expression that made people feel like beating her up, so Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but give her a rap on the head before she said, "That¡¯s what you get for being so snarky."

    Xiaohe silently stuck her tongue out at Shen Jingbin.

    Although Shen Jingbin did her best to reduce her presence, she¡¯d already drawn the attention of numerous gazes the moment she entered the ssroom. Everyone within the ssroom was a second or third year university student, so each and every one of them knew about her. News of her arrival had spread like wildfire through the entire ssroom within minutes of her appearance as they spoke in hushed whispers. There were even people who asionally stuck their heads out to sneak a peek at where Shen Jingbin and co were sitting.

    Abbess Li had a thorough understanding of her subject, but her method of teaching was far too inflexible. The ssroom¡¯s atmosphere was stifling whenever she taught, and most of the students had their heads buried in their books as they took notes, only asionally speaking when their names were mentioned by her. As such, today¡¯s lively atmosphere was a rarely seen one.

    "Our great Goddess¡¯ charms hasn¡¯t waned a single bit, stirring the hearts of all wherever she goes," Huajuan said, her heart filled with emotion.

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes.

    A male student sitting beneath their row was stealing a nce at her when he saw it. In that moment, his heart started beating wildly.

    Oh my god! What should I do? The Goddess looks so cute when she¡¯s rolling her eyes!

    He wanted to be a fan of the Goddess!

    After sketching out the graph on the ckboard, Li Qing turned back and found that something seemed to be a little off with her ss today. ncing around, she saw that be it male or female, all of her students were filled with vigor. Their backs were ramrod straight and their eyes sparkled; they were the very picture of concentration. If their asional nces hadn¡¯t given them away, she would¡¯ve thought that they¡¯d finally noticed her charms.

    She followed their gazes and stared at the spot they were looking at with rapt attention.

    Even if the ss was filled with a dense mass of a hundred bobbing heads, she could still instantly tell who it was that had attracted everyone¡¯s attention.

    This had nothing to do with her being keen eyed; a crane would always stand out in a flock of chickens. Regardless of how many there were, you¡¯d still be able to pick out the crane with a single nce.

    And Shen Jingbin was that very crane.

    Li Qing had taught countless students over the years, but none of them had ever left an impression as deep as Shen Jingbin did. Although Shen Jingbin was the most beautiful girl she¡¯d ever seen, Shen Jingbin was more than just another pretty face.

    She obviously knew about Shen Jingbin¡¯s wealthy background. After all, her family had donated twelve experiment rooms to the school the year she¡¯d enrolled. Despite that, she bore no trace of the arrogance, willfulness, and irritability that the rich heirs of today possessed. Instead, she was a bright and witty young woman.

    Because of these traits, she rarely needed to attend lectures and tutorials. And, on ount of the twelve experiment rooms that her family had donated, the school decided to close one eye when she skipped sses. In spite of that, she was always the first toplete her assignments in ss. More importantly, they were also extremely well written. To top it off, she nabbed the top score in her finals as well. Out of curiosity, she had asked the other teachers about her performance in their sses, and found that she excelled in every assignment she was tasked with.

    From that day onwards, Li Qing decided to be more mindful of Shen Jingbin.

    However, she found out that Shen Jingbin had maxed out her course credits, so there was no need for her to attend school. This led to a bout of regret from Li Qing at first.

    But, little did she expect that she¡¯d actually see Shen Jingbin herself in her ssroom.

 Chapter 116

    <b>Chapter 116: The Goddess Attends ss (2) </b>

    "Today¡¯s ss seems to be very energetic," Li Qing said as her gaze swept over Shen Jingbin, pretending not to notice her.

    Hearing Abbess Li¡¯sment, Shen Jingbin hunched her back and grabbed Huajuan¡¯s textbook, flipping it open and using it to cover her face as she asked in a small voice, "Why do I feel like I¡¯ve been found by Abbess Li?"

    While pretending to be diligently taking down notes and staring fixedly at the ckboard, Xiaohe replied, "I think so too. I even saw her ncing at us a couple of times."

    "Goddess, your radiance is far too dazzling. Abbess Li definitely knows you¡¯re here," Huajuan said.

    "Then what should I do?"

    "Pretend. Pretend you¡¯re a good student who¡¯se for lessons. Either way, there¡¯s way too many people in the Abbess¡¯ ss. She can¡¯t possibly remember everyone that¡¯s supposed to be here," Jiangmeng said.

    Shen Jingbin felt that Jiangmeng¡¯s reasonable answer was very usible, so she straightened her back and pretended to pay attention.

    Seeing this, Huajuan hurriedly said, "Hey, big sis Goddess, why don¡¯t you just help me with my notes. I happen to have a few episodes left before I finish my Korean drama. You know I¡¯m a bit OCD as well, so it just won¡¯t feel right if I don¡¯t finish it."

    Seeing Huajuan¡¯s pitiful face, Shen Jingbin swallowed her rejection and ended up nodding her head.

    Sigh, I¡¯m way too soft.

    Regardless of how others felt, Shen Jingbin thought that Li Qing¡¯s lessons were rather meaningful. Although she was only helping Huajuan to take notes, she was wholeheartedly listening to the lesson.

    Just as she was listening to Li Qing talk about how marketing could be applied to real life scenarios, a small crumpled ball of paper flew over from somewhere andnded in front of her. Shen Jingbin had a slight look of bewilderment on her face as she held the little ball of paper in her hand and looked around. Unfortunately, the only thing she could see around her was a mass of heads that were studiously taking down notes. Not a person in sight was facing her.

    For things like this, Shen Jingbin was only afraid of not being able to dodge them in time. Guessing that no one would see her do it, she pinched the paper ball with her fingers, turned around, and tossed it straight into the rubbish bin behind her.

    Nice, right on target.

    Turning back, she acted as if nothing had happened and continued listening to the lecture.

    Unfortunately for her, another paper ball flew over in less than ten minutes. As before, Shen Jingbin tossed it away without looking at it.

    Her movements this time around were a lot more conspicuous, causing both Xiaohe and Huajuan who were sitting by her sides to take notice. "Jingjing, what did you throw?" Xiaohe asked.

    "Don¡¯t know. I didn¡¯t see," Shen Jingbin replied.

    "Tsk tsk tsk. The people here really are a piece of work, seizing the opportunity to..."

    Before she finished speaking, the three of them saw another ball of paper flying over from the left out of the corner of their eyes.

    The paper ball in question drew a magnificent arc in the air, before it made a perfect stop in front of Shen Jingbin.

    Xiaohe was burning with righteous indignation. "What the f*ck, this is being way too brazen."

    Huajuan wasn¡¯t willing to take this lying down either. "Truly a daredevil."

    "Did any of you see who threw it?" Shen Jingbin asked with an indifferent look on her face.

    Xiaohe and Huajuan were momentarily stunned, before they revealed looks of horror on their faces.

    "No."

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    At this moment the good student, Jiangmeng, eyed the three of them and asked, "What¡¯s wrong with you guys? You look like you¡¯re suffering from ADHD."

    "There¡¯s someone throwing balls of paper at our Goddess right before our very eyes!"

    Jiangmeng¡¯s eyes lit up. "Who? Point them out for me."

    "Eh, we didn¡¯t see," Huajuan said as she shook her head.

    "...Is this what you mean by ¡¯right before your very eyes¡¯?" She then turned to Shen Jingbin and asked, "What was in it?"

    "Don¡¯t know, I didn¡¯t open it."

    "Then open it up and take a look."

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    Oh miss ss president, why¡¯re you a gossip monger as well?

    Three pairs of fluttering eyes were brimming with curiosity as they looked at her, and not having seen who threw the paper, coupled with being afraid of receiving even more of them, Shen Jingbin helplessly opened up the third ball of paper slowly.

    Small and graceful handwriting could be seen on the white sheet of paper.

    "Senior sister, can I have lunch with you?!"

    Shen Jingbin held her head in her hand. Seriously, forget about you disrupting ss by passing balls paper around, you don¡¯t even know how to do it in person! Not only that, you didn¡¯t sign off and there¡¯s no time or ce mentioned, so who the hell am I supposed to throw it to when I reply?!

 Chapter 117

    <b>Chapter 117: Rumour Has It There¡¯s Gods About (1) </b>

    "Students, while I know you¡¯re excited about seeing the Goddess, please remember that we¡¯re still in ss. Just because I don¡¯t say anything doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re doing, so I hope all of you can exercise some restraint," Li Qing knew exactly what was going on in the minds of her students. Naturally, the male student who¡¯d been tossing papers at Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t escaped her gaze either. However, singling others out wasn¡¯t pleasant, so she decided to show some kindness and issued a warning to the ss instead.

    When the students heard this, all of them; be it those who were scheming or those who weren¡¯t, instantly felt a chill run down their spines and paid attention to the lesson.

    It might have been Abbess Li¡¯s warnings, but Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t receive any more unknown balls of paper for the second half of the lesson. Even the fervent gazes that were directed at her from all sides of the lecture hall had been greatly reduced.

    Xiaohe and co only had this one lesson in the morning, and it was almost ten by the time they were done with the lecture. After pondering over it for a bit, Shen Jingbin decided to have a stroll through one of the food streets at the school¡¯s back gate with her roommates, before returning to First High and picking up Qu Yanxin. With her mind made up, she gave Shen Jingchen a call to ask if he¡¯d be interested ining along.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s two roommates had already left for their internships, while his one remaining roommate was preparing for an entrance exam. After ying around for a bit with this remaining roommate that he had a rather good rtionship with, Shen Jingchen received a call from Shen Jingbin. They immediately agreed to meet her and excitedly rushed out the door after tidying themselves up.

    What¡¯s worth mentioning was that Shen Jingchen¡¯s roommates were also Shen Jingbin¡¯s fans.

    In the past, most of the students would immediately pack up and leave once the bell rang. However, for today, the lecture hall was still packed with people even though it had been awhile since the lesson had ended. A closer inspection revealed that the ones who left made up a very small portion of the ss.

    After she tidied up the lectern, Li Qing looked up to see the rest of the students still milling about the lecture hall. Sweeping her gaze about, she found that Shen Jingbin still sitting at the back of the ss and realized why everyone was still around.

    With slow, measured steps, Li Qing approached Shen Jingbin and co.

    "Shen Jingbin, why¡¯d you suddenly feel likeing to attend my ss?"

    Shen Jingbin was currently chatting with Huajuan and the rest when she heard someone call out her name from behind her. Her very first reaction after that was to immediately think of who the voice belonged to before she turned around.

    After realizing who the person standing in front of her was, Shen Jingbin immediately shot up from her seat and said, "Teacher Li."

    Li Qing nodded her head at Shen Jingbin and said, "I didn¡¯t really approve of you ditching sses originally, but after today, I think you not attending is a good thing. These brats already have enough trouble focusing on normal days, and now with you around, it¡¯s even worse."

    A rare look of embarrassment surfaced on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face when she was teased by Li Qing. "Teacher Li, please don¡¯t make fun of me."

    "I heard you¡¯ve maxed out your course credits?"

    "That¡¯s right."

    "Not bad. What do you n to do next time? Do you n to take the entrance exams or look for a job?"

    "I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be taking the entrance exams."

    Li Qing had long since expected this oue. To someone like Shen Jingbin, sitting for an entrance exam was a waste of time.

    She then shot another nce at the crowd sitting around Shen Jingbin and said, "You guys have something on after this, right? Then I won¡¯t hold you back. As for the rest of you, don¡¯t only think of enjoying yourselves all the time. I¡¯ll be taking a look at the homework I gave outst time, so make sure you do a good job. Ask Shen Jingbin if there¡¯s anything you¡¯re unsure of. You should make good use of your connections since you¡¯re acquainted with someone as intelligent as her."

    Huajuan, Xiaohe, and Jiangmeng very obediently nodded their heads.

    "We understand. Thank you, Teacher Li."

    Li Qing opened her mouth again and felt like exhorting them once more when she was interrupted by her handphone¡¯s ringtone. She picked up her phone and nced at Shen Jingbin¡¯s group, before she then stepped out of the lecture hall and received her call.

    "My god, baby girl was almost scared to death. My legs turned to jelly the moment Abbess Li looked at me!" Came Huajuan¡¯s disappointing exmation.

    The rest of them eyed her with disdain.

    "Jingjing, you need to leave before eleven, right? Where¡¯s Shen Jingchen right now?" Jiangmeng said.

    "He just left the dormitory so he shouldn¡¯t be too long."

    As she said that, Li Qing walked back into the lecture hall and swept a nce across the room. Seeing that many of the students were still lingering behind, she raised her voice and said, "It¡¯s a good thing so many of you are still around. In that case, I¡¯ll just let the ones here know, so that all of you can inform the rest."

    Everyone¡¯s attention was drawn to what she said.

    "I¡¯ve just been informed that if all goes well, a very aplished entrepreneur will be here to give a speech the same time next week. This speech will mainly be directed at the third year students. However, any second years interested are also free to drop by. The school has especially arranged it for you students of the Management Department, so everyone needs to be present. I¡¯ll be monitoring the attendance very strictly. ss monitors of the third year sses; please take note and inform your ssmatester on to ensure that everyone has been informed," On top of teaching the second and third year students Marketing, Li Qing was also the head of the third year cohort.

    The lecture hall immediately fell into an uproar once she finished speaking.

    Li Qing walked up to Shen Jingbin once again and said, "Did you catch what I said just now? Although you don¡¯t need to attend school, you should still drop by to listen if you have the time. Listening to someone else¡¯s experiences will definitely be beneficial to you in the future."

    Li Qing voiced her heartfelt wishes towards Shen Jingbin and her tone was filled with kindness. Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t want to brush aside her goodwill, so she said, "Alright, I¡¯ll be there."

    Li Qing gave her a satisfied look before she turned to the other three around her, and exhorted them once again before she took her leave.

 Chapter 118

    <b>Chapter 118: Rumour Has It There¡¯s Gods About (2) </b>

    Shen Jingchen and his roommates took their timeing over, so Huajuan and the rest naturally made fun of them.

    Shen Jingchen eyed the mass of people that were still lingering around the lecture hall even after the lesson was clearly over with puzzlement. "Do you guys have another ss after this? Why¡¯re there still so many people hanging around?"

    With the appearance of Shen Jingchen, the girls who hadn¡¯t left yet were so ovee with excitement that they nearly passed out. They whipped out their phones and started madly taking pictures of him.

    "You should know just how charming your little sister is," Huajuan replied.

    Xiaohe felt that the number of people that had been slowly decreasing began to swell once again, so she immediately said, "Tch, you siblings are walking disasters. We¡¯d better leave first, otherwise we won¡¯t be able to leave once your fans catch wind of you guys."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s roommate and Jiangmeng recalled how the Shen siblings¡¯ rabid fans acted, and unconsciously shivered.

    "Let¡¯s go! Hurry up and go!"

    Thus, their group ran for their lives under the watchful gazes of everyone present, leaving behind a lecture hall filled with bitter and resentful children.

    Hey, God and Goddess, where do you think you guys are running off to?

    Luo Xiaoqian had just finished ss when she heard that Shen Jingbin had not only returned to school; she had even attended ss. She immediately cast off her friends and anxiously ran over to the Management Department.

    She¡¯d long since known Shen Jingbin¡¯s and co¡¯s timetable by heart, and she clearly knew where their lectures were held. She broke into a sprint and dashed all the way to their lecture hall without stopping.

    "Where¡¯s Shen Jingbin?!" Luo Xiaoqian shouted the moment she mmed open the lecture hall doors.

    However, all she saw in response, was an entire lecture hall filled with stupefied expressions.

    "You¡¯re looking for Shen Jingbin?" Shen Jingbin¡¯s ss President was the first to speak out as she was sitting beside the door.

    The ss President carefully sized Luo Xiaoqian up several times.

    She looked a little familiar, but she didn¡¯t look like someone from the Management Department.

    Eh, in that case, she should be one of Shen Jingbin¡¯s admirers from one of the other departments.

    Tsk, their ss¡¯ Goddess was way too awesome!

    However, unfortunately for this little fan, Shen Jingbin and co had already left.

    The ss President had alreadye up with her own scenario of: ¡¯the scene where the poor fan missed the Goddess¡¯. She looked somewhat sympathetically at this beautiful girl and said, "You¡¯re toote junior sister, your Goddess has already left... Sigh, don¡¯t feel too bad about it, there¡¯ll be other chances in the future."

    ?? Excuse me?1 Since when did Shen Jingbin be my idol?! I was here to pick a fight with her, alright?!

    However, regardless of how unhappy Luo Xiaoqian felt, Shen Jingbin¡¯s group was happily strolling along one of the food streets by the school¡¯s back gate.

    Although this street mainly catered to students, the second and third year seniors didn¡¯t have the time toe out so early and forage for food. Of the second and third years, most of those who had lessons would immediately rush back to their dorms to catch up on some sleep, leaving this food street to be mostly upied by students from nearby residents and the nearby university city, or first years who¡¯d just enrolled.

    The new students that knew or had met the Shen siblings before were few in number, so they didn¡¯t need to worry about being osted by someone.

    Aside from the Shen siblings, the rest of their party hadn¡¯t eaten their breakfast. Since they had someone footing the bill, they went all out and sampled everything the street had to offer; from the start of the street, all the way down to the end. This caused Shen Jingbin to stare on with a look of utter stupefaction on her face.

    When it was almost eleven, the Shen siblings waved goodbye to theirpanions and started slowly making their way back to First High.

    "Make another trip back here with me next week at the same time," Shen Jingbin said when they stopped at a red light.

    "Why¡¯re you going back again?"

    "Abbess Li said that an entrepreneur will being next week to give a speech. She wants me to drop by and listen," Replied Shen Jingbin as she asionally tapped on the steering wheel with her fingers..

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s brows furrowed. "An entrepreneur?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head.

    "What entrepreneur? What¡¯s there to listen too? It¡¯s just someone ying around. If you really want to listen to something, you should just go home and ask Mom and Dad about their experiences instead. That would be much more reliable than listening to the ramblings of some unknown entrepreneur..." Before he finished speaking, Shen Jingchen suddenly thought of something, and a light bulb went off in his head as he was struck by a sudden realization. "Ah, that¡¯s not right. You¡¯ll need to deal with our family¡¯s property in the future, so it¡¯s good for you to broaden your experiences a little. Since this is someone the school invited, he should have some talent... Mm. Let me know when the timees, I¡¯ll keep youpany~" Shen Jingbin even raised his pitch a little at the end to make himself sound cute.

    Shen Jingbin eyed him suspiciously. She felt that Shen Jingchen¡¯s sudden change in attitude was extremely suspicious, so she couldn¡¯t help but squint her eyes and say, "Do you know about something behind the scenes?"

    "Nope, what kind of inside information would I know?! Don¡¯t forget, I¡¯m just someone from the Financial Department, so how am I supposed to know what¡¯s going on in your Management Department?"

    "..."

    Seeing how her brother was so adamant in insisting that he knew nothing, even though he clearly did, Shen Jingbin shot him a scathing re before shifting her gaze back to the road.

    Hmph, little thing. There¡¯s definitely something going on! Not willing to say anything? Well, no rush then. She had ways of making him talk!

    This was written in English in the raws. ?

 Chapter 119

    <b>Chapter 119: It¡¯s A Small World (1)</b>

    When the bell signalling the end of thepetition rang, Qu Yanxin immediately packed her belongings and made to leave.

    "Qu Yanxin, why the rush?" Just as she had a foot out the door, she heard someone call her name.

    "Nothing much, just going home."

    "Going home?" The person who¡¯d called out to her sounded like they¡¯d just heard a great joke. They brought a few other girls along with them and surrounded Qu Yanxin. "Which house are you going back to? Howe we¡¯ve never heard of you having a house over here?"

    Qu Yanxin furrowed her brows at looked at the person. "What do you want?"

    "Nothing, I was just curious," The girl inclined her head and cast a nce at the teacher who was still coting the exam papers at the lectern, and said, "Going back to the hotel is too boring. How about you bring us over to your ce for some fun?"

    Qu Yanxin looked over at the teacher who was standing at the lectern. She hoped that he¡¯d lend a hand and stop this group of women, but the teacher was far too preupied with his own work and waspletely oblivious to what was happening.

    In reality, the proctor had long since noticed the disturbance by the entrance. He wasn¡¯t blind nor deaf, but these weren¡¯t students from First High, so he had no obligation to bother with them. Furthermore, those who coulde for this exam were all good students; even if they quarreled, it wouldn¡¯t amount to anything big. One more incident wouldn¡¯t really matter anyway, so he decided that it¡¯d be best for him to pretend he hadn¡¯t seen anything.

    These girls who were obstructing Qu Yanxin were from her neighbouring ss. Although their grades were good, they had terrible personalities. Qu Yanxin didn¡¯t normally talk much with them, only knowing some of their names at best. She had no idea why they suddenly decided to look for her today.

    "It¡¯s inconvenient," With that, she no longer bothered with them as she turned around to leave. The Shen siblings were still waiting for her, and she had no intention of wasting her time with these people.

    "Tch, what¡¯s she acting so stuck up for," The girl leading the group eyed Qu Yanxin¡¯s back disdainfully as she let out a cold hmph.

    "Hey, what should we do now since she¡¯s gone?" Asked a girl.

    "What should we do? Follow her of course! The road doesn¡¯t belong to her. What can she do if we insist on following her?" The leader of the group motioned with her hand and followed after Qu Yanxin.

    After sharing a nce with each other, the girls behind her decided to follow along as well.

    The Shen siblings had impable timing, as they saw Qu Yanxin stepping out of the school the moment they stopped the car. Shen Jingbin gently honked the car¡¯s horn, letting Qu Yanxin know where they were.

    After hearing the horn, Qu Yanxin immediately jogged over. "Big Sis Shen."

    When Shen Jingbin saw a few other girls following behind Qu Yanxin, she asked, "Are they your schoolmates?"

    Qu Yanxin nced behind her and noticed that the same few girls from before in the ssroom were actually following her. When these girls saw the beautiful girl sitting in the driver¡¯s seat look over at them, they immediately ran up to the car.

    The girl leading the group immediately snatched the opportunity to speak first and said, "Hello Big Sister, we¡¯re Qu Yanxin¡¯s schoolmates."

    Shen Jingbin cast a nce at Qu Yanxin¡¯s nervous face before she turned to the group of girls with an indifferent expression on her face and said, "Nice to meet you."

    As Zeng Lingling gazed at the beautiful and alluring woman who seemed detached at the same time, she found that everything she¡¯d previously nned to say was mysteriously stuck in her throat. She was unable to utter a single word.

    Shen Jingchen who was sitting in the passenger¡¯s seat was wondering why Qu Yanxin didn¡¯t board the car. As for the group of girls, they were just standing dumbly on the spot without saying a word. "Is there anything else?"

    Failing to take notice of the person who¡¯d been sitting in the passenger¡¯s seat, Zeng Lingling and her posse were startled by the sudden voice as they bent their bodies a little to look over at him.

    A few of them immediately flushed red when they saw him.

    Oh my god, he¡¯s so handsome!

    "N...n...no."

    If there¡¯s nothing else then why are you guys standing around here like idiots?

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s eyebrows arched up a little as he took in the scene of these girls¡¯ bashful appearances. It was so easy to tug at the heartstrings of young girls. But s, he had no interest in lolis.

    No longer bothering about the girls who were standing tongue-tied by the side of the car, Shen Jingchen looked at Qu Yanxin and said, "Qu Yanxin, get in the car."

    "Ah, okay," Qu Yanxin looked as if she¡¯d just woken up from a dream as she gave a word of reply before she quickly moved to the back of the car and hopped into it. Of course, she didn¡¯t forget to say goodbye to the girls who¡¯d followed her.

    Shen Jingbin immediately drove off once Qu Yanxin was seated. In that moment, the luxury car¡¯s superior pick up was put on full disy.

    When the car disappeared from view, a girl standing behind Zeng Lingling roused herself from her stupor and half grumbled to herself, "Lingling, why didn¡¯t you say anything just now? We¡¯ve lost all traces of that person."

    Zeng Lingling red at the girl. "Then why didn¡¯t you say anything just now?"

    The girl curled her lips and didn¡¯t say another word.

    At this moment, another girl said with some uncertainty, "That Big Sister from just now looks very familiar," She furrowed her brows as she began sifting through her memories.

 Chapter 120

    <b>Chapter 120: It¡¯s A Small World (2) </b>

    They had been far away from Qu Yanxin when Shen Jingbin hade to pick her up the previous day. They only thought that this Big Sister was very beautiful. It wasn¡¯t until today, after getting a closer look at her, that were able to tell she looked familiar.

    "Ah, I¡¯ve thought of it!" She suddenly cried out several secondster.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was drawn to her.

    "What did you think of?"

    "Any gossip to share?"

    "I felt that she looked familiar when I saw her just now too."

    Zeng Lingling interrupted the girls who started chattering away by shooting several res at them. "Can you guys shut up? Let Xuanxuan finish!"

    Zeng Lingling was like a Big Sister to the girls of the group. Once she spoke, the girls who were previously talking away obediently kept their mouths shut and looked towards Xuanxuan.

    While fishing through her bag for her handphone, Xuanxuan said, "In the past, I used to follow a game developer¡¯s Weibo. Oh, it¡¯s that VRMMO that was really popr two years ago. I had originally thought of ying that game, but the game was age restricted so I couldn¡¯t join... A few days ago, I saw a post on their Weibo. They were willing to pay a huge sum of money for a beautiful girl¡¯s contact details. And, that Big Sister from just now looks like the one they were looking for..." As she said that, she managed to grab ahold of her handphone and pulled it out. With just a few taps, she found the Weibo post in question.

    She then handed her phone to her nearestpanion and said, "Here, take a look."

    Zeng Lingling snatched the phone out of that girls hands, and Shen Jingbin¡¯s picture was reflected in the disy.

    "Soaring Roc: Thepany¡¯s Executives have taken a liking to the girl and want her to be the game¡¯s Ambassador. However, we have no way of contacting her! ?_? Dear followers, do any of you know who this girl is? Please send a private message! Please send some information! There¡¯ll be a sizable reward to those who find this girl! ?_?"

    ncing at thements section beneath the post, she found that the post had only been sent out one or two days ago, but thements and shares had already gone past ten thousand. However, on closer inspection, all of thements were just begging for more information about the girl in the picture. Those who actually knew who she was were few and far between. Even then, those who knew her would only admit to knowing her and ¡¯lick the screen¡¯1 before they mmed up.

    Xuanxuan looked at Lingling who was staring at the phone¡¯s screen without a word, before she suddenly burst out and asked, "Lingling, is the Big Sister we saw just now the same as the one in the picture?"

    After taking another look at the name of the original poster, Zeng Lingling calmly handed Xuanxuan¡¯s handphone back to her and said, "Mm, she should be the one."

    "In that case, can¡¯t we expose her? Didn¡¯t the post say that there¡¯d be a huge reward? We can split the reward evenly amongst ourselves," Someone else said.

    She was suddenly red at by Zeng Lingling and Xuanxuan when she said that. It was so sudden that her heart skipped a beat. Lowering her voice, she meekly asked, "What¡¯s...what¡¯s wrong? Did I say something wrong?"

    Xuanxuan rolled her eyes at her and replied, "Do you know her name, her number, and where she lives? We¡¯ve only caught a glimpse of her, what¡¯s there to reveal?"

    "We can ask Qu Yanxin! She definitely knows!" The girl retorted, feeling indignant.

    "And why would she tell you anything?"

    "Be...be...because...." Rendered speechless by their retort, the girl tried to stammer out a reply before shepsed into silence.

    Xuanxuan cast a smug nce a the girl.

    Who the hell would split the reward with you guys. I¡¯ll question Qu Yanxin and take that reward for myself.

    Zeng Lingling had taken notice of Xuanxuan¡¯s expression. After giving her a meaningful look, she said, "I advise you guys not to try anything funny. Didn¡¯t any of you notice? No one on Weibo dared to say anything about her. Furthermore, think back to that car they picked Qu Yanxin up in and they car they drove just now... They¡¯re not people we can interact with. If you n to b about it, be careful of offending people you can¡¯t afford to offend, otherwise you might end up biting off more than you can chew."

    The ones present here were all regr senior high students. Although they were a little willful and barbaric, they were still very pure. They immediately looked at Zeng Lingling in astonishment when they heard her warning.

    Xuanxuan¡¯s face in particr had paled to a ghostly white as she unconsciously raised her head to look at Zeng Lingling.

    Zeng Lingling intentionally shot a faint smile at her before saying to the rest, "Don¡¯t worry, nothing at all will happen to you guys as long as you don¡¯t go around bbing about it. Alright, alright. Qu Yanxin herself has already left, so let¡¯s find something to eat before we return to the hotel."

    Some of the girls in their group still had lingering fears as they nodded their heads in agreement. They then followed Zeng Lingling in search of a ce to have lunch. When no one was looking, Zeng Lingling peeped at Xuanxuan¡¯s expression before a sneer crept across her lips.

    Don¡¯t think I¡¯m unaware of all your little schemes. Hmph, I won¡¯t let you get in the way of my ns.

    After fetching Qu Yanxin, Shen Jingbin had lunch with everyone before she went upstairs to game with Shen Jingchen.

    After all, both of them were homebodies. Apart from ying games, the two of them really had no other forms of entertainment.

    After logging in, Shen Jingbin decided to run some dungeons to raise her level, so she opened up her friend list and looked for someone who could carry her.

    She might have logged in at a bad time or something, but other than Shen Jingchen, not a soul was online in her friends list.

    So be it. She¡¯d just hunt some monsters in the field instead.

    Summoning Mascot, she made her way towards the entrance of the Underworld2 City dungeon, while she informed Shen Jingchen at the same time.

    "What¡¯re you doing? Come with me to Underworld City!"

    "Alright, alright. Your big bro had nothing better to do anyway! Do you have a party?"

    "No, I was nning to hunt some monsters in the field."

    "F*ck, why¡¯re you calling me along if you just n to hunt monsters?"

    "As insurance in case I run into a party and they think I¡¯m too much of a noob to join. With you around, I can act like I¡¯m a free gift~"

    "Pui, I wouldn¡¯t even want to buy the actual product if you were the free gift!"

    "... Are you looking for another beating?"

    "You hoodlum!"

    Shen Jingbin stared upwards at a loss for words. Just how am I the hoodlum here?

    It¡¯s a Chinese web ng to show that the person writing the message likes something to the point where they want to lick it. Hence, lick the screen. ? Refers to the underworld of Chinese mythology ?

 Chapter 121

    <b>Chapter 121: Running Into An Oddball In The Dungeon (1) </b>

    Underworld City was a level 80 six man dungeon. The main reason why Shen Jingbin chose toe here was because it gave a generous amount of Experience when it was cleared. Not only that, the mini BOSS gave a decent amount of XP, and there was a chance of the BOSS dropping several precious herbs once it was in.

    After all, since she was determined to be a Grandmaster Apothecary, it was about time for her to start gathering some herbs.

    Underworld City was located in Hundred Blossoms Town, which was situated within the central ins. Hundred Blossoms Town sounded beautiful, but the reality of it was far from the rosy image that it gave off.

    Actually, that wasn¡¯t so urate either. Hundred Blossoms Town remained beautiful in the day. Surrounded by flowers, an iparably beautiful picture would be painted for anyone whoid eyes upon it. Howevere nightfall, Hundred Blossoms Town would be transmogrified into a ghost town instead. All of the nts within the area would wither and die. All sorts of undead, such as wandering spirits and ferocious ghosts, would appear out of nowhere; emerging from dead vegetation to roam about. When paired with the deste sound effects apanying the altered nightscape, Hundred Blossoms Town could be called the least visited location in the game.

    Shen Jingbin thought she was pretty gutsy in the beginning, but after being tricked into entering Hundred Blossoms Town at night, she wasn¡¯t able to sleep properly for a full two nights.

    However, she actually quite liked Hundred Blossoms Town if it wasn¡¯t nightfall.

    In the deepest recesses of a park in Hundred Blossoms Town that had the most flowers, Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen hadpletely disregarded their dignity, and were squatting in front of the dungeon¡¯s entrance. There, they waited to see if there were any pick up groups thatcked party members.

    Compared to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s low-profile style of operating, Shen Jingchen was very flirty. In fact, everyone but the greenest of yers knew him! Ah no, there were even some newbies that rushed straight up to him!

    Although, this really wasn¡¯t intentionally caused by him. In truth, he maintained a cold facade in front of strangers most of the time, but that didn¡¯t stop his manly charms from oozing out of his Adonis like countenance. Girls these days probably have some masochistic tendencies; their affection for someone increases the more they¡¯re ignored, which meant that Shen Jingchen would never be able to maintain a low-profile.

    Due to Shen Jingchen¡¯s presence, the two of them only had to linger around the entrance for a few short minutes before they received countless invitations to join various parties.

    More urately speaking, Shen Jingchen received countless invitations. As for Shen Jingbin...

    Not a single person bothered about her.

    And that wasn¡¯t even the saddest thing. What¡¯s worse was that the moment the party leader heard that Shen Jingchen wanted to bring her along into the dungeon, even his status as a God wasn¡¯t sufficient.

    Shen Jingbin was in an extremely foul mood.

    "Why. Are. They. Snubbing. Me!"

    There was even one time where, after they were rejected, Shen Jingbin blew her top and throttled Shen Jingchen¡¯s neck.

    As Shen Jingchen struggled to break free from his torment, he said, "It¡¯d be weird if they didn¡¯t!"

    "I¡¯m the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple! I¡¯m going to go back to my Master and tell on them!"

    Shen Jingchen eyed her with disdain. "Haven¡¯t you realized that none of the previous parties had a Daoist in them? There¡¯s no point even if youin to your Sect Leader!"

    Shen Jingbin: Sob sob sob, why is this game so difficult? Screw this, I quit!

    Just when Shen Jingbin was about to lose all hope in the game, she received a party invite.

    "yer Mistress Of Lost Splendor has invited you to join a party. Do you agree? Yes/No."

    Shen Jingbin lifted her head and saw a delicate and pretty female Daoist smiling back at her.

    Practically on reflex, she turned her head to look at Shen Jingchen. When she noticed him staring nkly at the sky with his head tilted at a forty five degree angle, she immediately knew that this Daoist had sent the invite because of her, and not because of Shen Jingchen¡¯s presence!

    What the f*ck, so the heavens aren¡¯t blind after all!

    Shen Jingbin was so moved that her cheeks were streaming with tears as she hurriedly epted the invitation.

    With the inclusion of her, their party had a total of five people. There was one slot left, so she stood up and faced the female Daoist with a smile on her face. "Fellow Daoist, the person over there is my friend, can he join too?"

    The female Daoist looked like a good natured person. She smiled and nodded her head taking a look at the stupid expression on his face. Soon after, Shen Jingchen received an invitation to join the party.

    And with that, a full party was formed.

    The remaining three members of the party were instantly teleported over when the female Daoist entered the dungeon. Shen Jingbin nced at the three party members to find that they were; a female Nymph, a male Mara, and another male Lich.

    The female Nymph and the young Mara were given a fright when they firstid eyes on Shen Jingbin, but they immediately shed a somewhat apologetic smile at her after that. The male Lich was the only one whose eyeballs nearly popped out upon seeing Shen Jingbin.

    "Hey hey hey, why are we bringing this noob in? Forget the fact that she¡¯s ugly, she¡¯s wearing crappy equipment too. Is she really here to run a dungeon, or is she here to make a fool of herself?" An endless stream of ridicule spewed forth from the Lich¡¯s mouth the moment he spoke.

    "It¡¯s alright. Either way, it¡¯s only a level 80 dungeon, so it¡¯s not that hard. It won¡¯t make much of a difference even if we bring her along. Furthermore, her friend is really strong, so that makes up for it, right?" The good natured Daoist replied.

    Shen Jingbin nced at the party list and found that the Lich¡¯s name was Master Of Mourning.

    Tch, you say I¡¯m ugly, but you look rather miserable yourself.

    "Her friend? An ugly monster like her actually has a strong friend? I¡¯ll say this now: I¡¯m here to farm for medicinal ingredients, so if I¡¯ll never forgive you guys if you screw me over," Master Of Mourning said bluntly as Shen Jingbin caught the female Nymph and the male Mara secretly shooting looks of disdain at him.

    Mistress Of Lost Splendor was a little disgusted by Master Of Mourning¡¯s attitude. Her brows furrowed and she was about to say something in reply, when Shen Jingchen interjected.

    "Aren¡¯t I enough to make up for it?" Shen Jingchen said as he stood up from the ground. He was half a head taller than Master Of Mourning, and an exceptional aura of intimidation rolled out from him as he overlooked the Lich.

    Master Of Mourning obviously recognised Shen Jingchen and no longer dared to speak out. He silently nced at Shen Jingbin, before he took the lead and entered the dungeon.

    "Alright, let¡¯s go in," Said the female Daoist. After which, she stepped into the dungeon as well.

    The male Maraughed and patted Shen Jingchen¡¯s shoulder before walking in, with Shen Jingchen himself following close after.

 Chapter 122

    <b>Chapter 122: Running Into An Oddball In The Dungeon (2) </b>

    At this moment, the female Nymph moved to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and stuck out her tongue as she said, "Hello miss Daoist, are you Dawn¡¯s Twilight¡¯s friend? He looked so cool just now!"

    Shen Jingbin felt that this Nymph was very cute, so she wore a smile on her face and replied with, "Mm."

    The smile on the Nymph¡¯s face immediately froze. "Hey, miss Daoist, as a friend, you shouldn¡¯t smile in the future... Eh, I didn¡¯t mean anything bad by saying that!" Almost as if she felt that herment wasn¡¯t appropriate, the Nymph quickly supplemented what she said after that.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t mind what she said, so she waved her hand to show she didn¡¯t take it to heart.

    [Party] Master Of Mourning: What¡¯s the ugly monster doing with the Nymph? Stop dawdling around outside! Don¡¯t you know that the rest of the party is waiting for the two of you?! F*ck, women are such a pain in the ass.

    A message suddenly popped up in the party channel.

    "What an unlikable person," Said the Nymph as she looked at Master Of Mourning while wrinkling her nose before she stepped into the dungeon. Shen Jingbin stared at the party channel and curled her lips, then followed behind.

    The three who were first to enter the dungeon were standing at the entrance waiting for them. When they entered, Master Of Mourning immediately rolled his eyes at them. Shen Jingbin even wondered whether his eyes were fake, otherwise, how could he roll his eyes so many times without going blind?

    "Nymph, hurry up and buff me with Nature¡¯s Bounty."

    Nature¡¯s Bounty was a support skill that Nymphs had. With it, all of a yer¡¯s attributes would go up rtive to how high the caster¡¯s skill level was.

    The Nymph was called Adoorable1. Once she finished Buffing everyone and they were ready to start their dungeon run, Master of Mourning¡¯s chilling remark rang out, "What kind of shit Nymph are you? You don¡¯t even know how to use your ss properly."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt like throwing her horsetail whisk at his face. This person way too repulsive!

    The other three of them had roughly the same thoughts as well. Even the good-natured Daoist couldn¡¯t help but re at him.

    Underworld City wasn¡¯t a very difficult dungeon, but it was extremelyplicated. There were nine BOSSes in total. However, there was an additional hidden BOSS that not everyone could encounter. Apart from the numerous amount of BOSSes, every BOSS within this dungeon could summon trash mobs. On top of that, some of the BOSSes had the ability to resurrect themselves, making the fights very troublesome. Each sessive BOSS would be increasingly difficult to fight, with the final BOSS, the Underworld Judge, being the most difficult to handle.

    The BOSS of the first challenge was ck And White Impermanence.2 They breezed through battle and they proceeded to the second challenge

    The BOSSes of the second challenge were Ox Head and Horse Face3. The two BOSSes weren¡¯t difficult to beat, but if one of them were to be in, the other would go berserk, making it a little more dangerous.

    The method for clearing the second challenge would usually be for the party to split into two groups. Each group would take one of the BOSSes while keeping their Health pools at around the same level.

    Everyone in the party had done this dungeon before, so they naturally knew about this strategy. As Shen Jingchen had the highest DPS by far, the female Daoist assigned him and Shen Jingbin, who had the lowest DPS in the party, to attack Ox Head, while the remaining three party members attacked Horse Face.

    This arrangement was pretty logical, so there weren¡¯t any objections and everyone started attacking their assigned targets. However, just when they were about to bottom out the BOSS¡¯ Health, Master Of Mourning was stunned by Horse Face, causing their DPS to immediately drop by a bit. On Ox Head¡¯s side, one of Shen Jingbin¡¯s skills managed to score a critical hit on the BOSS, bringing its Health to critical levels. Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t notice this and he fired off a skill of his own out of habit, ending the BOSS.

    Horse Face was immediately enraged once Ox Head was downed. Master Of Mourning did the most damage in their group of three, so all of Horse Face¡¯s aggression was focused on him, After enraging, Horse Face immediately started to attack him, while Master Of Mourning still found himself stunned and was unable tounch any skills. When Horse Face¡¯s skillnded on him, he immediately lost one chunk of his Health.

    Adoorable was quick on her feet and jumped to Heal him. Shen Jingchen also reacted very quickly and threw a Power Skill at it, finishing it off.

    Horse face had just hit the ground when Master of Mourning¡¯s stunned state ended. He immediately turned to Adoorable and started shouting at her.

    "F*ck, do you have any brains, Nymph?! Didn¡¯t you f*cking see me getting beaten up by Horse Face? Why the f*ck are you still fighting over there? The f*ck were you hitting? You should just be a good girl and do your job by healing and don¡¯t f*cking pretend you¡¯re able to fight!"

    His anger wasn¡¯t sated even after he was done with Adoorable. He redirected his ire to Shen Jingbin and said, "And as for you, you ugly monster, f*ck you! Didn¡¯t you see me getting knocked out? Then why the f*ck did you score a critical hit against the BOSS? Do you know the meaning of ¡¯cooperation¡¯? If you don¡¯t then just f*ck off and leave the dungeon. My god, I have no idea what¡¯s going through your head. If I were you, I wouldn¡¯t dare to..."

    Before he had the chance to finish, Master Of Mourning suddenly felt Shen Jingchen¡¯s murderous gaze being directed at him, causing the rest of his insults to be caught in his throat.

    Although the female Daoist felt that this Lich¡¯s morales were far toocking, she still couldn¡¯t bring herself to kick him out when they were halfway through the dungeon. So, she could only try to smooth things over by saying, "Alright, let¡¯s all take a step back. Come on, let¡¯s keep going."

    Shen Jingchen shot a vicious re at Master Of Mourning before he stepped to the front of the party and lead them towards the third challenge. Following behind him was Adoorable with her puffy red eyes, the Mara boy, and then the female Daoist brought up their quartet.

    Master Of Mourning followed behind the female Daoist. When he walked past Shen Jingbin, the way he red at her made her feel as if he wanted to rend her flesh and slurp on her blood.

    "Slut."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes immediately narrowed when she heard his whispered insult.

    Her name in Chinese is a pun on the ¡¯cute¡¯ or ¡¯moe¡¯ and actually contains the Chinese character for ¡¯door¡¯ in it. So that¡¯s how her name came about since we wanted to preserve the pun in some way. It¡¯s definitely not a typo! =P ? A pair of deities that reward the good and punish the evil. Click here for more info! Click? Guardians of the underworld. Click here to find out more! Click?

 Chapter 123

    <b>Chapter 123: There¡¯s Always A Bigger Oddball (1) </b>

    The BOSS of the third challenge was Soul Snatching Envoy. Its gimmick was crude and simple ¨C it could blow itself up. This would happen when its Health dropped below 15%, and the resulting explosion wouldpletely ignore the defences of all yers within the range of the explosion, instantly killing them in the process.

    In short, the BOSS¡¯ ability to blow itself up aside, Soul Snatching Envoy was far easier to deal with than the previous two BOSSes.

    However, Shen Jingbin felt that to her, this BOSS was much harder than the other two instead.

    The reason had nothing to do with the BOSS itself, but rather it was because of Master Of Mourning.

    Although she hadn¡¯t actually done anything to him, Master Of Mourning¡¯s hatred for her had turned his distorted perception of the previous events into reality. While they¡¯d only been in contact with each other for ten or so minutes, everyone could tell just what kind of person Master of Mourning was.

    It¡¯d be downright strange if he didn¡¯t try to take revenge against her.

    That being said, Master Of Mourning¡¯s narrow-mindedness closely resembled Nine Bads.

    Shen Jingbin kept a close eye on Master Of Mourning¡¯s actions as she stayed at the back of the group and hurled skills at the BOSS.

    "Be careful, the BOSS is at 16% Health," Mistress Of Lost Splendor had been keeping track of Soul Snatching Envoy¡¯s Health throughout the fight, and she issued a reminder as soon as the BOSS¡¯ Health dropped to 16%.

    Everyone immediately prepared to escape from the BOSS¡¯ st radius when they heard this.

    As she¡¯d been keeping a close eye on Master of Mourning and maintaining her distance from him, she caught sight of him turning to dash towards her. Once he realised that she was too far away, he reluctantly shifted his attention and ran towards Adoorable who was nearer instead.

    Liches were a closebat ss. As such, Master Of Mourning was right at the forefront and constantly stered against the BOSS while he attacked. Before the BOSS detonated itself, it would target whoever was closest to it, which naturally led to Master Of Mourning bing the target of its ire.

    A fear of making another mistake and enraging Master Of Mourning once again had taken root in Adoorable¡¯s heart, prompting her to constantly shower him with Healing and status ailment recovery spells. It was far toote by the time she noticed his malicious intentions.

    By this time, the BOSS had already been lured towards Adoorable by Master Of Mourning.

    Nymphs in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> were well-known for their short stubby legs, making her the slowest in the party. This meant that she wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid the BOSS¡¯ random acts of aggression.

    In dungeons, it¡¯d be fine for any ss to kick the bucket. However, the one exception to that would be Nymphs. The death of a party¡¯s Nymph could possibly lead to aplete wipe.

    Although their party wouldn¡¯t fall apart without the presence of a Nymph, ¡¯giving priority to protecting Nymphs¡¯ had be second nature to them. Seeing the BOSS about to catch up to Adoorable, Shen Jingchen immediately called out his own pet without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    "Great Demon King, go pull the BOSS¡¯ aggro!"

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s eye-catching dragon, Great Demon King, immediately threw itself towards Soul Snatching Envoy with a flick of its tail, redirecting the BOSS¡¯ aggro towards itself.

    Shen Jingchenmanded Great Demon King to move in the opposite direction their party was escaping from, sessfully helping them to break away from the BOSS. At this moment, Soul Snatching Envoy¡¯s Health dropped to 15%.

    Soul Snatching Envoy exploded with a "bang". In the instant it exploded, Shen Jingchen¡¯s Great Demon King transformed into a beam of white light and tunneled into his backpack.

    Shen Jingchen took a look at Great Demon King¡¯s Stats. Due to its death, Great Demon King had fallen into a deep sleep. It would take twenty four hours for it to wake from its slumber. To top it off, its Stats were also lowered by 10 points. While 10 points wasn¡¯t much, it felt like a devastating blow to Shen Jingchen.

    F*ck! Back then, he had had to go through a great deal of effort before he was able to capture this celestial pet! Forget allowing it to die, even seeing a single one of its scalese to harm would cause his flesh to hurt for half a day!

    It was all that damn Lich¡¯s fault!

    As a Lich, Master Of Mourning had the fastest movement speed in the party. He could easily draw the BOSS away from the party, but he insisted on luring it over to Adoorable instead!

    Even newbies knew that Nymphs had short legs, so Shen Jingchen was willing to write his name backwards if Master Of Mourning hadn¡¯t done it on purpose!

    Unable to bottle his anger any longer, Shen Jingchen viciously red at Master Of Mourning.

    A certain prodigy waspletely oblivious to Shen Jingchen¡¯s death re. Realizing that the only casualty of the BOSS¡¯ explosion was just a celestial pet and not one of his party members, he couldn¡¯t help but curl his lips in dissatisfaction, almost as if he felt that this conclusion was a pity.

    "Hey Dawn¡¯s Twilight, are you trying to screw with me? You obviously have a celestial pet to pull aggro, so why didn¡¯t you summon it earlier? Are you telling me I¡¯m less important than your pet?" There were some people who clearly didn¡¯t understand the phrase ¡¯looking death in the eye¡¯. It was clearly Master Of Mourning¡¯s own fault, but he failed to understand that. Seeing as Shen Jingchen hadn¡¯t said anything from the start of the dungeon till now, he hade to his own conclusion that Shen Jingchen was someone he could easily bully. Now, with his confidence inted, he was even trying to provoke him.

    To be fair, Master Of Mourning really couldn¡¯t be med for this. Shen Jingchen¡¯s flirtatious reputation had spread further than rumours of his own prowess. For all everyone knew, he might be someone who was easily bullied. Wasn¡¯t this world filled with people who clearly had strength, yet allowed others to bully them all the same? Going by that logic, Shen Jingchen might be one such person.

    Or so Master Of Mourning secretly thought to himself.

    He¡¯d definitely teach Dawn¡¯s Twilight a good lesson if he really was the type of person who¡¯d just grin and bear with whatever came his way.

    Eh, of course, this lesson woulde in the form of a verbalshing. After all, he had no way of beating Dawn¡¯s Twilight in a duel.

    That being said, was Shen Jingchen the type of person who¡¯d just take things lying down?

    Master of Mourning was clearly overthinking things.

    Without saying a word, Shen Jingchen aimed the sword in his hand at Master of Mourning and tossed it. His sharp de broke through the air and viciously plunged into the ground before Master Of Mourning, only inches away from piercing through his foot.

    Master Of Mourning was utterly stupefied by Shen Jingchen¡¯s action. He stood there in a shocked silence, too afraid to speak another word.

    After Master Of Mourning froze up, Shen Jingchen coldly said, "Do you really think you¡¯re worth as much as my celestial pet?"

    Master Of Mourning¡¯s face instantly boiled over with rage when he heard that.

    Then again, so what if he was pissed off? He couldn¡¯t beat Shen Jingchen in a fight, and neither was Shen Jingchen the type of person who could be easily bullied. In the end, he could only viciously re at Shen Jingchen before he turned around with a flick of his hand and led the way towards the fourth challenge.

    Adoorable ran up to Shen Jingchen. With red puffy eyes, she whispered in a small voice, "Thanks... for just now."

    "Don¡¯t mention it. Just be more careful of him from now on."

    Adoorable nodded her head. As they walked past her, Mistress Of Lost Splendor and the Mara boy gave her a consoling pat on the shoulder. Seeing this, the Shen siblings shared a nce with one another.

 Chapter 124

    <b>Chapter 124: There¡¯s Always A Bigger Oddball (2)</b>

    Thus, the remaining five of them began slowly making their way towards the forth challenge.

    The BOSS of the fourth challenge was Zhong Kui1. Zhong Kui¡¯s special ability was being able to summon forth a never-ending wave of trash mobs. They weren¡¯t difficult to defeat, but they were extremely annoying. For this challenge, theypletely disregarded Master Of Mourning¡¯s existence and allowed him to fight as he pleased. Either way, he wouldn¡¯t be able to screw anyone over. As for Adoorable, she only bothered to heal him once the battle was over.

    The fifth challenge¡¯s encounter was the Lady Of Forgetfulness2. The Lady Of Forgetfulness was one of the BOSSes in Underworld Castle who could resurrect themselves. Parties would have to fight the Lady Of Forgetfulness twice if they couldn¡¯t dispel her resurrection buff in time.

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, there were only two sses that could dispel Buffs; Swordmasters and Maras.

    Once the entire party was present, Master Of Mourning faced them and said a little awkwardly, "I know my attitude just now was a littlecking. I¡¯m sorry, and I hope all of you won¡¯t take the previous incident to heart."

    Everyone was caughtpletely off guard by Master Of Mourning¡¯s sudden apology. No matter how they¡¯d looked at it, he definitely wasn¡¯t the type of person who¡¯d apologise for his actions.

    "It¡¯s alright, it¡¯s alright. To err is human. Not only did you acknowledge your faults, you even apologised to us," The female Daoist said.

    The moment the female Daoist said that, Master Of Mourning immediately recovered his previous arrogant bearing and said, "Since you guys have said you don¡¯t mind, then we should act as if the previous incident didn¡¯t happen... I¡¯ve run Underworld Castle many times in the past, so I know this ce like the back of my hand. Make sure you guys pay close attention to my instructionster."

    ck lines immediately appeared on everyone¡¯s heads. Where the hell did this odd persone from?!

    The Shen siblings couldn¡¯t be bothered to deal with him anymore. They only wanted to finish the dungeon as soon as possible to get away from him. Mistress Of Lost Splendor and the rest were probably thinking the same thing as well. Not one of them deigned to reply him. Seeing no one raise any objections, Master Of Mourning happily assumed that everyone agreed with him.

    Thus, he startedmanding the party in high spirits.

    Hey hey hey, being able to direct Dawn¡¯s Twilight from Jade Sea Pavilion in a dungeon was something he could boast about for a year!

    Once everyone¡¯s Buffs were applied and they were ready to tackle the next challenge, only Master Of Mourning¡¯s voice could be heard in the entire dungeon.

    "Daoist, use your root skills, your root skills! Root her... Sigh. Hey ugly monster, stop f*cking shuffling about! This has nothing to do with you, just focus on DPSing!"

    "Nymph, Nymph! Hurry up and heal! Why the hell aren¡¯t you healing me when my Health¡¯s so low? Are you blind or did you just not notice?"

    "Dawn is the main tank, his Health is dropping faster than yours," Adoorable indignantly retorted.

    "F*cking hell, are you daft woman? Dawn¡¯s Twilight has so much Health. On top of that, his Defence and Evasion are so high he¡¯s impossible to kill. I¡¯m the main DPS here, so just make sure you heal me, alright?!"

    Adoorable suffered so much verbal abuse that she became emotionally distraught. Gritting her teeth, she viciously tossed a healing spell at him.

    At this moment, Shen Jingchen spoke up, "Nymph, just focus on healing him, I can pot on my own."

    Master Of Mourning suddenly acted as if he¡¯d found apanion in Shen Jingchen and eximed, "See that?! He doesn¡¯t even need you to heal him. F*ck, girls these days are all like this. They throw themselves at any handsome guy they see, how shameless."

    "You..." Master Of Mourning¡¯sments were way too unpleasant, causing Adoorable¡¯s face to flush red in anger.

    "Can you just shut up?" Shen Jingbin coldly berated him. She was truly at the end of her patience.

    Forget being suppressed by Shen Jingchen, when did he fall to the point where even an ugly monster could scowl at him? Master Of Mourning¡¯s mood immediately soured. "Who the f*ck are you asking to shut up? Who? Look you ugly monster, you¡¯re dealing the lowest DPS in the party and you¡¯re still trying to act like a bitch, so the one who should shut up is you!"

    "..." F*ck, her surname wouldn¡¯t be Shen if she didn¡¯t take care of this idiot when they left the dungeon!

    "Hey hey hey, Mara, why haven¡¯t you dispelled the resurrection buff?!" Master Of Mourning muttered when he nced at the Lady Of Forgetfulness and noticed her resurrection buff still present.

    With great difficulty, the Mara took a deep breath and focused on dispelling the BOSS¡¯ Buff. The Lady of Forgetfulness¡¯ resurrection buff wasn¡¯t something that could be dispelled just like that. He¡¯d already made two or three attempts so far that ended in failure.

    "Pui, useless! You can¡¯t even dispel a resurrection Buff! Dawn¡¯s Twilight, you¡¯re up! Hurry up and dispel it!"

    Shen Jingchen had already prepared to intervene after noticing the Mara¡¯s fruitless attempts. However, upon hearing Master Of Mourning¡¯s mutterings, Shen Jingchen suddenly didn¡¯t feel like listening to him.

    Seeing his movementse to a halt, Master Of Mourning said, "What the hell are you doing, Dawn¡¯s Twilight?! Hurry up and dispel the resurrection Buff! Stop freezing up! Are you telling me that the great God only amounts to this much?"

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s teeth nearly shattered from gritting them too hard. In that moment, he tossed out a multitude of skills without regard for their cost. It was almost as if the one standing in front of him wasn¡¯t the Lady Of Forgetfulness, but rather, Master Of Mourning himself.

    Under Shen Jingchen¡¯s vicious barrage, the Lady Of Forgetfulness cried out before falling to the ground with a bang.

    Shen Jingchen shot a look at Shen Jingbin.

    Count me in. Let¡¯s take care of this idiot together once we¡¯re out of the dungeon!

    Alright!

    A figure in Chinese mythology that was said to be able to drive away evil spirits. Here¡¯s a link with more info if you¡¯re interested! Click? The Lady Of Forgetfulness, aka Meng Po, serves in the 10th court of hell and her job is to ensure that souls who are ready to be reincarnated have no memories of their previous lives. Click here if you¡¯d like to read more about it! Click?

 Chapter 125

    <b>Chapter 125: The City Lord¡¯s Command Medallion (1)</b>

    At longst, they reached the final challenge. By this point, everyone in the party had had enough of Master Of Mourning and couldn¡¯t put up with him for much longer.

    The BOSS of the final challenge was the Underworld Judge. Be it in Attack or Defence, the Underworld Judge was leagues apart from the previous BOSSes.

    Furthermore, something to note would be that the Underworld Judge had a skill that allowed it to randomly summon one of the previous BOSSes to assist it.

    "Make sure you guys listen to my instructions and attack when I say so. Dawn, you¡¯re the main tank. Make sure you draw Aggro and don¡¯t let it target the rest of us. It doesn¡¯t affect me if you don¡¯t, but it¡¯d be a big problem for these beansprouts if that happens. It¡¯d be especially dangerous for that ugly monster you brought along."

    "I don¡¯t need you to worry about me," Said Shen Jingbin as she casually nced at Master Of Mourning.

    "Tch, ugly wench," Came Master Of Mourning¡¯s entric mutterings.

    The Mara boy took the lead and started the fight. The rest of the party followed closely behind him and began DPSing.

    "Hey hey hey, hold back a bit, otherwise the King Of Hell won¡¯t appear!"

    "F*ck, can you understand what I¡¯m saying?! I¡¯m telling you guys to hold back!"

    "F*ck you all, you guys are gonna get it if the King Of Hell doesn¡¯t appear!"

    Underworld City had a hidden BOSS called the King Of Hell. There was a chance for the King Of Hell to appear after the Underworld Judge was defeated, and as a hidden BOSS, the King Of Hell naturally had much better drops. Even now, the reason why many prominent yers still insisted on running Underworld City, was because of the King Of Hell.

    Rumour has it that the Underworld Judge was a masochist, so parties that prolonged their fights with him would minutely increase the chances of the King of Hell appearing. As someone who frequently ran the Underworld City dungeon, Master Of Mourning had absolute confidence in this rumour.

    Master Of Mourning blew his top and started raging at the party when he realised Shen Jingchen and the rest werepletely ignoring him. Each of them was doing their own thing as they continuously fired off their skills at the BOSS.

    "Didn¡¯t you guys agree to listen to me? I told you guys that I¡¯ve run this dungeon many times in the past, so you should listen to me!"

    "Dawn¡¯s Twilight, you shouldn¡¯t be so arrogant just because your Level is high and you¡¯ve got good equipment!"

    However, not a single person bothered about him, no matter how hard he raged.

    With someone as powerful as Shen Jingchen by their side, the Underworld Judge¡¯s Health was quickly depleted. Master Of Mourning¡¯s anger was boiling over as he looked at the Underworld Judge¡¯s Health bar. The King Of Hell definitely wouldn¡¯t appear if they defeated the Underworld Judge so quickly.

    Underworld City could only be run once a day. Looks like today¡¯s run was going to be a flop.

    With a defeated sigh, Master Of Mourning pulled out his weapon and leapt to the Underworld Judge¡¯s side and started to DPS, joining the rest of the party in the fight.

    As things stood there was no way for him to remedy the situation, so he might as well just get the fight with the BOSS over with sooner. He really didn¡¯t want to see this bunch of idiots anymore.

    Under the party¡¯sbined assault, the Underworld Judge wasn¡¯t able to hold out and its enormous body came crashing down onto the ground after trembling a few times.

    The moment the Underworld Judge hit the ground, they heard a notification ring out from the system.

    "The Underworld Judge has died, the King Of Hell is spawning."

    The King Of Hell was actually going to spawn?

    After standing in shock for a few seconds, Master Of Mourning suddenly gave a heartyugh, "Hahaha! My luck really is good! The King Of Hell actually spawned even under such circumstances! Oi, shouldn¡¯t you guys be thanking me for dealing thest hit? If it weren¡¯t for me, the King Of Hell wouldn¡¯t have spawned..."

    Before he had the chance to finish, Master Of Mourning suddenly turned into a beam of white light and disappeared.

    There were only three reasons why someone would suddenly disappear from a dungeon: 1) The yer died. 2) The yer had chosen to temporarily leave the dungeon. 3) The yer was kicked from the party by the party Leader.

    The King Of Hell had just appeared. They hadn¡¯t engaged it yet and neither did the dungeon allow for PKing. So, Master Of Mourning dying wasn¡¯t possible. As for him choosing to leave the dungeon, based on his expression just now, even an idiot could tell that he wouldn¡¯t choose to leave at such a critical juncture.

    That left only one usible exnation.

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly opened her party window. Sure enough, there was one empty space in their party.

    Everyone turned as one to look at Mistress Of Lost Splendor.

    Seeing everyone staring at her, she gave a bashful smile and said, "I really couldn¡¯t stand him anymore, so I kicked him out... You guys don¡¯t mind, right?"

    Adoorable vigorously nodded her head. "Of! Course! I! Don¡¯t! Mind!"

    The Mara boy looked like he¡¯d heaved a sigh of relief as he said, "You should¡¯ve done that sooner, Leader."

    "I just felt that it wouldn¡¯t be nice to kick him halfway through the dungeon since that would be ruining his run for the day..." After saying that, Mistress Of Splendor changed her tone and said, "However, we¡¯ve cleared the dungeon after defeating those BOSSes, so kicking him now wouldn¡¯t be ruining his daily run, right?" She said as she winked at Shen Jingchen.

    "Mm, it wouldn¡¯t," Shen Jingbin said in reply.

    Because they had Shen Jingchen around, fighting the King Of Hell wasn¡¯t all that difficult even if they were short one member. Furthermore, without Master Of Mourning around, the atmosphere surrounding the party became extremely harmonious, causing even Shen Jingbin tond more critical hits.

    When the final skillnded on him, the King Of Hell gave a bellow before he came crashing down onto the ground. Following that, Mistress Of Lost Splendor leisurely walked towards the corpse to loot it.

    Suddenly, a scarlet red system notification streaked in front of their eyes.

    [System Notification] Congrattions yer Mistress Of Lost Splendor for leading your party to defeat the Lord of the Underworld City, the King Of Hell. Your party has obtained Underworld City¡¯smand medallion.

    When the announcement appeared, the remaining party members had slightly bbergasted looks on their faces. This was especially so for Mistress Of Lost Splendor who¡¯d looted the BOSS.

    Underworld City¡¯smand medallion was the item that had the lowest chance of dropping from the King Of Hell. You could even say that it had a ten thousand in one chance of dropping.

 Chapter 126

    <b>Chapter 126: The City Lord¡¯s Command Medallion (2) </b>

    The first yer who obtained themand medallion could be the new City Lord of Underworld City. Subsequent yers who got their hands on amand medallion would be able to ¡¯swap pointers¡¯ with the current City Lord. And, the yer that came out on top would be the next City Lord.

    The current City Lord of Beiming¡¯s Underworld City was a yer from Life At First Sight. Themand medallion that they had managed to acquire was rumoured to have been looted by Crying Fish.

    It was said that back then, Crying Fish intended to give themand medallion to Quiet And Steadfast; thereby winning his favor. After all, she didn¡¯t have much interest in bing a City Lord, so she might as well give it to him instead. At the same time, she could seize the opportunity to get closer to him.

    Unfortunately for her, Quiet And Steadfast hadn¡¯t appreciated her gesture. Crying Fish was so enraged by this that she gave themand medallion to one of her admirers within the guild. It was strange, since the person she gave the medallion to didn¡¯t possess any exceptional talents. However, what made others feel helpless was that no matter how many times they ran Underworld City afterwards, no one was able to obtain anothermand medallion. As such, that yer continued to remain as the City Lord.

    After receiving the City Lord¡¯smand medallion, Mistress Of Lost Splendor was at a bit of a loss as she looked to her party members. "This... How do you guys think we should split themand medallion?"

    The Mara shrugged his shoulders and said, "I¡¯m not interested in the City Lord¡¯smand medallion, I don¡¯t need it."

    "I¡¯m not interested in it either, you don¡¯t need to worry about me," Adoorable spoke up as well.

    Looking at the City Lord¡¯smand medallion in her hand, Mistress Of Lost Splendor turned her attention to the Shen siblings and said, "Since the two of you don¡¯t want it, I¡¯ll give themand medallion to Dawn¡¯s Twilight."

    "Mm."

    "Sure!"

    "You¡¯re giving it to me just like that? It¡¯s a City Lord¡¯s medallion you know," Shen Jingchen asked in astonishment.

    Although Underworld City couldn¡¯t match up to a capital like Jiang City, it was still a city. Once a yer became the City Lord, not only would they be able tomand the NPCs within the city, shops would have to pay taxes to the City Lord every month too. Being a City Lord was more or less pure profit.

    "I¡¯m just a regr member of a small guild. Even if I had themand medallion, I wouldn¡¯t dare to challenge the reigning City Lord," Mistress Of Lost Splendor replied. After a short pause she continued, "Furthermore, one man¡¯s riches will attract the envy of others. I don¡¯t have the necessary strength required to possess this item... Case in point, Master Of Mourning will definitely be waiting outside for us when we leave, but I¡¯m not even strong enough to beat him."

    What Mistress Of Lost Splendor said was very true. The current City Lord was a member of Life At First Sight. She on the other hand was some unknown member of a small guild. Forget even thinking about whether she could win the challenge, she didn¡¯t even dare to issue one.

    Although her guild was small, it was filled withpanions that she yed with. If themand medallion fell into her hands, the people from Life At First Sight would definitely exert greater pressure on her guild. In fact, they might even engage in hostilities.

    With all that said, themand medallion was like a hot potato in her hands. She couldn¡¯t afford to hold on to themand medallion if she wanted to prevent her guild from being implicated in this matter.

    Shen Jingchen could understand the reason why she wanted to give up themand medallion after pondering over it for a little, so he didn¡¯t try to reject it anymore and epted it.

    As Shen Jingchen had received the medallion, the Shen siblings were reluctant to share in the rest of the spoils from the dungeons. However, it just so happened that Shen Jingbin was the only one in the party who was an Apothecary. After asking Adoorable and the Mara for their opinions, Mistress Of Lost Splendor handed all of the umon medicinal ingredients over to Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin was really feeling bad about taking so much loot now.

    Once they were done splitting the equipment, Mistress Of Lost Splendor chose to exit the dungeon and the party was transported out of it.

    The moment they stepped out of the dungeon, Mistress Of Lost Splendor immediately felt a vicious gaze trained on her.

    After ncing around, she noticed Master Of Mourning who was standing near the dungeon¡¯s entrance.

    He really was waiting for them outside the dungeon!

    When they appeared, Master Of Mourning immediately rushed up to them and eximed with a sinister expression on his face, "You bitch, how dare you kick me out of the party! You f*cking slu*, thatmand medallion belongs to me! Return it to me!"

    Heaven knows that his lungs were bursting with rage when he saw the system¡¯s notification about themand medallion!

    Mistress Of Lost Splendor nced at him and said, "I gave the City Lord¡¯smand medallion to Dawn."

    Adoorable chimed in, "That¡¯s right, none of us wanted themand medallion, so we gave it to Dawn. Go look for him if you want it, there¡¯s no point in shouting at us!"

    "Silence you worthless woman!" Master Of Mourning roared back at her.

    He then redirected his gaze back to Shen Jingchen, looking as if he wanted to swallow him whole.

    Shen Jingchen himself just casually stood there, only casting an indifferent nce at Master Of Mourning when he noticed his seething gaze. "What¡¯s wrong? Do you want the City Lord¡¯smand medallion?"

    "That was mine in the first ce! I was the one who got the King Of Hell to appear too, so everything he dropped naturally belongs to me!"

    "Heh," Came Shen Jingbin¡¯s unexpected chuckle.

    "What¡¯re youughing at, ugly monster?" Master Of Mourning glowered at her and asked.

    "I¡¯mughing at the fact that people like you still exist. Truth be told, whether or not the City Lord¡¯smand medallion should belong to you or not doesn¡¯t matter. What is important is that it¡¯s now in our hands. So, are you thinking of snatching it from us?"

    "F*ck, you better watch out you ugly monster! Who would¡¯ve thought that the great Dawn¡¯s Twilight has such ¡¯unique¡¯ tastes and ys around with this kind of women. Hmph, from the looks of it everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion is all like this!"

    Once he finished, Master Of Mourning probably realised that what he¡¯d said would anger the two people in front of him, so he immediately thought of running away.

    But, how could the Shen siblings let him go just like that?

    The two of them were already nning to take care of him when they were in the dungeon. When he appeared before them, they immediately sprung into action and chased after him.

    Mistress Of Lost Splendor and the other two who were left standing there shared a nce with one another, before they started chasing him as well.

    Sign us up for the oddball hunt!

 Chapter 127

    <b>Chapter 127: Assassinating Master Of Mourning (1) </b>

    Master Of Mourning ran as fast as he could away from Hundred Blossom Town towards the nearest teleportation point. When he nced back to Underworld City¡¯s entrance, he realised not a single person was there!

    Where¡¯d everyone go?

    He himself knew that he had a sharp tongue that easily offended others, but he couldn¡¯t help it. This was the kind of person he was.

    His ex-party members must definitely hate him now. They definitely wouldn¡¯t let him off so easily, but he currently couldn¡¯t see a single person. Where could they all have gone?

    Master Of Mourning stopped in his tracks and pulled out his dagger. All the muscles in his body were stretched taut as he carefully surveyed his surroundings.

    Underworld City was located in the depths of a park in Hundred Blossom Town. To emphasise the fact that it was in the deepest depths of the park, the developers had lined the path leading to the dungeon with sprigs that were nearly as tall as a person. The blossoms on their branches were so dense, it gave others the impression that they were in a forest of flowers.

    As he observed his surroundings, Master Of Mourning was greeted by the pungent aroma of various fresh flowers. The only area that wasn¡¯t covered with flowers was the path itself that was devoid of a single soul.

    Standing on his tiptoes, Master Of Mourning strained his ears for any sounds, and faced his body towards the dungeon as he slowly backpedalled away.

    Suddenly he heard a slight rustling from his left. The next moment, an ashen silhouette flew out from within the forest of flowers and charged straight towards him.

    Master Of Mourning responded quickly, raising his hand to ward off the silhouette.

    "ng!" The gray hilt of a dagger ttered onto the ground.

    The surroundings regained its former calmness. Aside from the faint rustling of flowers that were caused by the sprigs swaying in the breeze, not a single sound could be heard.

    "F*ck,e out and fight me if you¡¯ve got the skills! Stop hiding like a little bitch!" Master Of Mourning suddenly roared out while clutching his dagger.

    However, his provocation was only greeted with silence.

    "I know you¡¯re there, Dawn¡¯s Twilight. Are you really a man? Huh?! If you¡¯re a real man then you¡¯d show yourself and fight me!" A drop of sweat rolled down Master Of Mourning¡¯s forehead. He was acutely aware of someone spying on him from within the forest of flowers, but he had no way of locating them.

    This was just like a scene in a horror movie where the main character would be eyed by a monster while they were trapped somewhere within a forest. It was a hair raising experience.

    "F*ck!" Master Of Mourning quietly cursed to himself. He wouldn¡¯t worry about where they were hiding any longer. Instead, he¡¯d just run as fast as he could.

    He turned around and stored strength within his muscles. Yet just as he was about to rush out of this forest of flowers in a mad sprint, an enormous figure jumped out from his left andnded right in front of him.

    Afterposing himself, he realised it was a White Tiger that was more than half a person tall!

    This White Tiger had an exceptionally imposing aura around it, while a thick and solid tail could be seen swaying behind it. Master Of Mourning couldn¡¯t kill off the energy he¡¯d built up and ended up stumbling forward, prompting the White Tiger to bare its fangs at him.

    Master Of Mourning finally understood what was going on. Dawn¡¯s Twilight and that ugly monster were trying to screw with him.

    "So it turns out that Jade Sea Pavilion has petty people like Dawn¡¯s Twilight! Now I know the truth. You¡¯re just a f*cking loser!" Having neither the means to escape nor a target to fight, Master Of Mourning began hurling insults instead, showing off an unprecedented level of crassness.

    Shen Jingbin hiding within the forest of flowers looked on speechlessly at Master Of Mourning who was obstructed by Mascot. She turned to Shen Jingchen who was beside her and asked, "Doesn¡¯t he know how to log off? I¡¯m really worried about his IQ."

    "Tch, he¡¯s so mad he¡¯s lost all reason... But seriously, this n of yours is really vicious."

    When the two of them began chasing after Master Of Mourning, Shen Jingbin suddenly suggested for them to hide in the forest of flowers. No matter what, these two siblings had developed a mutual understanding of one another after spending many years together. Shen Jingchen figured out what she was thinking in an instant and nodded his head, disappearing into the forest of flowers with her.

    Although Mistress Of Lost Splendor and the others who were a step behind couldn¡¯t understand the reason behind the Shen sibling¡¯s actions, they were very quick-witted, so they jumped into the forest of flowers toy in wait on the other side.

    The Shen siblings still hadn¡¯t left the party and exchanged a knowing smile when they saw the rest of them diving into the forest of flowers.

    [Party] Nutjob: Who has a dagger on them?

    [Party] Adoorable: I do!

    The Mara eyed Adoorable who was beside him suspiciously and asked, "Why would a Nymph like you have a dagger?"

    Seriously though, a little Nymph keeping a dagger on their person was a very disturbing thing, alright?!

    Adoorable scratched her head and pulled out a dagger that had a small and exquisite gray hilt. "I happened to see it when I was at the system¡¯s shop. It looked quite beautiful and it wasn¡¯t expensive, so I bought it."

    The Mara boy held his forehand in his hand. Women and their shopping.

 Chapter 128

    <b>Chapter 128: Assassinating Master Of Mourning (2)</b>

    [Party] Nutjob: Find a good time to throw the dagger at him.

    [Party] Unchanging Mountains: Alright.

    Unchanging Mountains was the Mara¡¯s name.

    After replying Shen Jingbin, Unchanging Mountains turned to Adoorable and asked, "Do you know how to y darts?"

    Seeing Adoorable shake her head, he continued, "Then hand the dagger to me, I¡¯ll throw it."

    In real life, Unchanging Mountains would frequently y darts with his friends. He¡¯d yed so much that his skill at throwing darts was practically an art form. The dagger would havended smack dab in the middle of his head if Master Of Mourning¡¯s reaction wasn¡¯t fast enough.

    Shen Jingbin looked to Shen Jingchen and raised her eyebrow, revealing an unrestrained and devilishly attractive expression on her face. "He¡¯s too weak. Killing him off just like that wouldn¡¯t put out the mes of hatred in my heart."

    Shen Jingchen felt a cold shiver run down his spine. "You women are truly terrifying."

    Shen Jingbin red at him.

    Master Of Mourning continued swearing for ages but nothing happened. He shouted till his mouth turned dry before he stopped. By this time, the White Tiger in front of him was already lying on its stomach with its eyes closed.

    Rubbing his parched throat, Master Of Mourning tried taking a step forward. The White Tiger¡¯s eyes immediately shot open; it¡¯s golden beast eyes ring at him dangerously.

    "F*ck you, you f*cking brute!" Master Of Mourning quietly pulled back the leg he stuck out and vicious spat a mouthful of saliva at the White Tiger.

    ¡¯The hell, this broken game is way too oppressive!¡¯ Master Of Mourning gloomily thought to himself.

    Eh, wait a minute! He could log off! He refused to believe that these people would camp him for this long!

    Master Of Mourning had a sudden epiphany and realised that he could logout. After ncing around his surroundings, a vulgar smile appeared on his face. He raised his voice and shouted, "F*ck you all and your childish games, I¡¯m not going to y with you guys any longer! Go to hell!" And with that, he opened his control panel and prepared to logout.

    However, just after opening his control panel, a silver longsword suddenly came flying out of the forest of flowers and lodged itself in his throat. Master Of Mourning couldn¡¯t even cry out in pain before he transformed into a beam of white light and disappeared from the sea of flowers.

    Shen Jingchen stared dumbly at Shen Jingbin who had suddenly grabbed his longsword andunched a killing blow at Master Of Mourning. "What the f*ck, I didn¡¯t know you were such a skilled marksman."

    Shen Jingbin massaged her wrist and calmly replied, "I got lucky."

    Shen Jingchen: ... Do you really think I¡¯d believe that?

    With Master Of Mourning¡¯s death, there was no longer a need for them to conceal themselves and they stepped out of the forest of flowers.

    Shen Jingchen stepped forward and reimed his weapon. Only a short time had passed since Master Of Mourning¡¯s death, so there were still traces of blood on his sword. He had no other choice but to use his sleeve to wipe off the bloodstains.

    Shen Jingbin shot a look of disdain at him and said, "You¡¯re still nning on using that thing?"

    "F*ck! What do you think this sword is?! Bro, this is a top tier weapon, alright?! If you hadn¡¯t done it so quickly just now, I definitely wouldn¡¯t have allowed you to toss it at scum like that!"

    Mistress Of Lost Splendor was slower than the other two by a bit, and she only managed to catch thest bit of what Shen Jingchen said when she caught up to them.

    "Eh, what did you say just now, great God?" Adoorable couldn¡¯t make out what Shen Jingchen said. She could only tell that they were having a spirited back and forth and felt a little curious.

    She couldn¡¯t help it. Something that could rile up the great God to such an extent was definitely a big deal!

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s expression immediately turned stern after Adoorable spoke. "It¡¯s nothing."

    The Mara stepped forward and asked, "Why¡¯d you guys kill him all of a sudden? Weren¡¯t we going to stalk him?"

    "He was nning to logout," Shen Jingbin exined.

    Eh?! Since when could others tell when a yer was thinking of logging out?

    "How did you know?" Mistress Of Lost Splendor asked.

    Shen Jingbin shrugged and said, "I guessed."

    Everyone: !!!

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    Now that Master Of Mourning had logged out, they obviously wouldn¡¯t just stand there and wait for him. It¡¯s not like they had any irreconcble grievances, so there was no need for that. Since the rest of them seemed to be pretty decent people, the two siblings decided to add them as friends before they left to handle their own matters.

    Master Of Mourning had reminded her... Alright, it was less of a reminder and more of singling her out. Either way, Shen Jingbin realised she was still wearing her Silver Moon Silk set this whole time. Although it was purple rarity growing equipment, it was still a low levelled set. It wasn¡¯t able to keep up with her needs any longer, so she needed to find out how to upgrade her equipment.

    However, she didn¡¯t have the slightest idea of how to upgrade it, and Shen Jingchen was clueless about it as well.

    Left without a choice, Shen Jingbin could only returned to the Novice Vige and look for Bai Hua to ask about it.

    High levelled yers could return to the Novice Vige, but it held nothing of interest to these yers. Not only could they not receive any quests, the monsters outside the vige only gave 1 experience point.

    After teleporting to Jiang City, she stepped onto the coached that she hired and began making her way back towards the Novice Vige.

    The Novice Vige looked the same as it did from before. Everyone that came and went here was a yer.

    Although she hadn¡¯t even reached level 100, Shen Jingbin¡¯s level was more than enough to make her an expert here, and there would never be a shortage of sycophants in this world. So even with her hideous face, as soon as she alighted from the coach she was instantly surrounded by a fair number of newbies. All of them wearing sinister smiles upon their faces.

    Sweeping a nce at these yers, she realised that all of them were actually boys with pretty and delicate features. There were even some who were shooting coquettish nces at her that were filled with tenderness and love.

    Shen Jingbin felt a shiver run down her spine as she suddenly thought of something.

    Rumour had it that there were many unmarried single men who led wretched lives and many ck-hearted beauties. They would beautify themselves a little and raise their levels before returning to the Novice Vige. There, they would string along however many newbies they could; satisfying the twisted desires that dwelled in their hearts that had been ckened over the long years of remaining single.

    These naive newbies were the epitome of purity. When they saw the veterans; the handsome and elegant men; or the beautiful and alluring females, walk up to them and personally offer their help, fuzzy feelings of love would stir within the hearts of their impoverished selves and they¡¯d foolishly follow them.

    Of course, regardless of how these veterans were like in real life, at the very least, they acted very kindly towards these newbies that they strung along. As time went on, some of the newbies who harboured corrupted thoughts in their hearts also began copying what the veterans did.

    To Shen Jingbin, they were like house flies and rotten eggs.

    But, she was neither a housefly, nor was she a rotten egg. She wasn¡¯t someone who enjoyed leading people on or making them lust after her. She coldly eyed the newbies surrounding her before she began making her ways towards the Vige Chief¡¯s residence.

    In all seriousness, she was incredibly grateful about her looks this time around. If she didn¡¯t look so ugly, the ones surrounding her wouldn¡¯t just be this small group of newbies. There would be at least an entire flock of them around her!

 Chapter 129

    <b>Chapter 129: Herb Gathering At Cloud Dream Swamp (1)</b>

    The Vige Chief¡¯s residence was just as eye-catching as it was in the past. And, as always, there were tworge dogs with awe-inspiring presences standing by its entrance.

    However, faced with Shen Jingbin who was now a ¡¯veteran¡¯, the two intimidating dogs instantly cowered in fear.

    Seeing this put Shen Jingbin in a good mood. She stopped to rub their heads before she walked into the Vige Chief¡¯s residence with her head held high. At the moment, there just so happened to be two yers inside who were receiving their novice rewards.

    Shen Jingbin stretched her neck out and looked over their shoulders.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. Who asked her to be so short in the game?

    However, what greeted her wasn¡¯t the peerless and elegant Vige Chief from her memories. Instead, she saw an elderly man with a head of white hair and a hunched back that issued several coughs from time to time.

    "What happened to my peerless, elegant, beautiful, and alluring Vige Chief?!" Shen Jingbin cried out in her heart.

    The two yers were nearly scared to death when they turned around after receiving their reward. They immediately scrambled out of the Vige Chief¡¯s residence without looking back. Once they were gone, Shen Jingbin stepped forward and respectfully asked, "Grandpa, do you know where the Vige Chief¡¯s gone?"

    The elderly man raised his head and looked her in the eye as he stroked his snow white beard in the process. "I¡¯m the Vige Chief."

    "What the f*ck! Bai Hua, how¡¯d you be so old in just a short period of time?!" Shen Jingbin thought to herself in astonishment.

    "Then... haven¡¯t you aged a little too quickly, Vige Chief?"

    The elderly man stared at her. "What kind of nonsense are you going on about? This old man has always been like this."

    "But you didn¡¯t look like this thest time I saw you!" Shen Jingbin cried out.

    The elderly man¡¯s expression froze. "Last time? This old man doesn¡¯t recall meeting you before."

    "You see dozens of people everyday, are you telling me you can remember everyone you¡¯ve met?" Shen Jingbin muttered to herself.

    The elderly man might have been getting on in age, but his ears were still perfectly fine, allowing him to catch every single word she said. "Child, this old man definitely wouldn¡¯t forget you if he¡¯d met you before."

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    As if he¡¯d suddenly thought of something, the elderly man asked, "Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re looking for Bai Hua?"

    "Eh? You aren¡¯t Bai Hua?"

    The elderly manughed, "Why would you think that this old man is Bai Hua?"

    "Who asked you to be here!" Shen Jingbin said inwardly.

    "That child, Bai Hua, has left for where he needs to be. This vige is temporarily under my care."

    He¡¯s gone to where he needs to be?

    "Are you saying that Bai Hua has returned to Swordmaster Pavilion?"

    The elderly man continued to wear a profound smile on his face and said, "This old man doesn¡¯t know... That child, Bai Hua, is different from your average person. After living for so many years, this old man knows that the world is facing a period of turmoil, and Bai Hua probably wants to do something for you young¡¯uns. The two of you will meet again if you¡¯re fated."

    "..." Can all of you NPCs not be so enigmatic when you speak?!

    Staying in Evening Sun vige held no meaning if Bai Hua was no longer around, so Shen Jingbin left the vige after saying her goodbyes to the elderly man.

    Thinking that Bai Hua would most likely return to Swordmaster Pavilion once he left Evening Sun vige, Shen Jingbin informed her brother about the development and asked if he knew anything about it.

    "Did any important NPCs appear in your guild recently?"

    "Nope."

    "Really? Think carefully!" Shen Jingbin felt that he definitely didn¡¯t put any thought into his answer.

    "There really wasn¡¯t any. Why¡¯re you asking me about this anyway?"

    "I¡¯m looking for one of the high ranking disciples in your sect to ask about upgrading my equipment."

    "Eh... Oh that¡¯s right, I almost forgot. Your equipment hasn¡¯t been been upgraded and is still low ranked, right?"

    "Mm, I n on upgrading it, but I can¡¯t find the NPC."

    "Then just forget about it for a little while. We¡¯ll have you look for the NPC once Leaderes online... Weren¡¯t you learning how to be an Apothecary? Why don¡¯t you go increase your proficiency in that? There¡¯s lots of other things that you need to take care of, so can you stop horsing around with unrted people? Have some sense of urgency!"

    "You¡¯re a nag, be quiet."

    "..."

    In reality, what Shen Jingchen said was true. She did in fact have many things she needed to take care of.

    Since she couldn¡¯t upgrade her equipment for the time being, she should train her Life Skill instead. Looking at the time, there probably wouldn¡¯t be much time left to y for today.

 Chapter 130

    <b>Chapter 130: Herb Gathering At Cloud Dream Swamp (2) </b>

    All Life Skills required specific tools to perform them. For example, concocting medicine required a medicinal cauldron. However till now, she had yet to possess even the lowest grade medicinal cauldron. As such, her top priority was to get a medicinal cauldron, some medicinal elixir recipes, and herbs for concocting.

    Medicinal Cauldrons could be found in Life Skill shops. After arriving at Jiang City¡¯s Life Skill shop, Shen Jingbin asked the shop owner about it and also purchased recipes for some low grade medicinal elixirs. She then went to the teleportation point and transported herself to Thunder Marsh.

    Within Thunder Marsh was a swamp forest called Cloud Dream Swamp, which was covered by a thickyer of mist all year round. On top of that, there were numerous venomous mosquitoes and snakes. In spite of that, this map had more medicinal herbspared to other maps. For low grade medicinal herbs; there was dream grass and fuchsias, while high grade medicinal herbs consisted of rebirth fruits and reincarnation grass.

    However, finding high grade medicinal herbs would be slightly more difficult.

    Truth be told, Shen Jingbin really hated damp ces. In spite of that, for the sake of gathering medicinal herbs, she had no choice but to put up with her feelings of disgust.

    Cloud Dream Swamp was like a primordial forest where opportunity and danger came hand in hand. To prevent poisonous snakes and wild beasts from jumping out of hiding and attacking her, Shen Jingbin summoned Mascot to her side for protection.

    Apart from revealing a monster¡¯s Level, the Appraisal skill that yers normally used could also identify different kinds of medicinal herbs. Shen Jingbin led Mascot and wandered about the mist filled swamp forest as she appraised the various fauna by her feet, immediately squatting down and harvesting any herbs that were identified.

    After casting Appraisal, multiple dings rang out from the system notification by her ears.

    "Congrattions on discovering Starry Grass."

    "Congrattions on obtaining Starry Grass."

    "Congrattions on discovering Heart Decaying Mushroom."

    "Congrattions on obtaining Heart Decaying Mushroom."

    "Congrattions on discovering Thousand Illusory Indigo nt."

    "Congrattions on obtaining Thousand Illusory Indigo nt."

    ...

    A short whileter, Shen Jingbin¡¯s backpack was practically bursting at the seams and she¡¯d unknowingly walked into the depths of Cloud Dream Swamp.

    There was a high chance of obtaining precious medicinal herbs in the depth of Cloud Dream Swamp, but it was proportionately dangerous as well. After sorting out her backpack, Shen Jingbin realized that there wasn¡¯t a single slot of space left in it, so she decided to return by retracing her steps.

    However, she was utterly dumbstruck when she turned around.

    What kind of ce was a primordial forest? It was the kind of ce that looked the same no matter where you turned!

    Shen Jingbin felt faint. My god, which way did Ie in from?

    She nced at Mascot who was by her side. Cats were supposed to have a very sharp sense of smell, so why not try letting Mascot lead the way?

    But...were cats the ones with a sharp sense of smell, or was it dogs? Or, were both of them pretty good at it?

    Forget it, she wasn¡¯t going to bother about it anymore. Either way, either one was a better alternative to herself.

    Shen Jingbin crouched down and rubbed Mascot¡¯s head. "Quickly, can you figure out which way we came from?"

    Mascot blinked at her cutely.

    Maybe it doesn¡¯t understand? Alright, she¡¯ll try a different method of speaking.

    "Look around and bring me to the ce with the most people."

    There were probably lots of people near Cloud Dream Swamp¡¯s teleportation point. Going by that logic, going towards the ce with the most people should allow her to leave this sunless area.

    Almost as if it¡¯d understand what she said this time around, Mascot gave a soft cry before it swished its tail and started moving towards a certain direction. Shen Jingbin followed behind it, splitting her attention between assessing the area and being on the lookout for anything of note.

    After walking along with Mascot for a bit, Shen Jingbin realised something felt a little off.

    Why did she feel that the light was bing increasingly dimmer the further she walked? She wasn¡¯t going deeper in, was she?

    Shen Jingbin stopped in her tracks. After taking a few more steps, Mascot looked back at her when it realised its Master wasn¡¯t following it.

    "Mascot, are you sure you know where you¡¯re going?"

    "Roar~"

    "... Forget it, I wouldn¡¯t understand you even if you did reply."

    Suddenly, Shen Jingbin thought of her rtively useless map and hurriedly pulled it out of her backpack.

    Sure enough, she was going further in!

    Dream Cloud Swamp was vast. Looking at the map, she found herself at the furthest edge of the map.

    "Help!"

    Shen Jingbin suddenly heard someone crying out for help when she was busy examining the map, so storing her map away, she listened intently for the voice. It wasing from the direction she was facing, and she could even hear the sound of des shing against one another if she strained her ears.

    "Mascot, go over and take a look."

    She figured she might as well go over and take a look since she couldn¡¯t find a way out. Who knows, this person might even be able to lead her out.

    "Roar!" With a mighty roar from Mascot, both Master and pet sped towards the source of the sound.

    A short distance away, Shen Jingbin spotted numerous figures leaping about from the gap between the trees.

    It turned out there was actually arge group of yers here!

    "Mascot, shrink yourself down a bit," As she was unclear of the situation, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t want to just rush in. After Mascot shrunk down, she grabbed it and carefully inched forward, before she then hid behind a tree trunk that was wide enough to fit two people and stretched to the heavens.

    In front of her were nearly thirty people and a towering dark red figure that was trembling.

    On closer inspection, the towering figure turned out to be a monster with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a fish. This monster had basically the same structure as a mermaid, but it¡¯s actual appearance waspletely different.

    Although this monster had the upper body of a human, it looked extremely ferocious and had blue veins protruding out of its body. Its lower body didn¡¯t have the beautiful fish tail of a mermaid either. Instead, it had a burly tail akin to that of an alligator.

    At this moment, it was using its tail to prop itself up and brandishing the spiked mace in its hand, throwing yers that got close to it to the ground. It wasn¡¯t satisfied with just flooring them either. It evenshed out with its burly tail and viciously pounded the yers, causing its victims to let out blood-curdling shrieks.

    The number of yers who could still stand continuously shrunk.

    "Help! Help!" Suddenly, a yer wearing dark coloured clothes; dark enough to almost blend in with the surrounding trees, started running towards Shen Jingbin whilst shouting for help at the top of their lungs.

    This was the same voice she¡¯d heard just moments before.

    "Marco Polo Bun?" The distance, coupled with the fact that this yer practically blended in with the surrounding trees, meant that Shen Jingbin could only hear his voice but found herself unable to spot him. Now that she¡¯d caught sight of him, she immediately recognized that this was the very same Marco Polo Bun that she¡¯d met in Hell.

    Hearing someone call out his name, Marco Polo Bun skidded to a halt and looked towards Shen Jingbin. "Who called me?!"

    After taking a closer look at her, Marco Polo Bun immediately cried out in astonishment, "What the f*ck, why¡¯re you here?!"

 Chapter 131

    <b>Chapter 131: The Universal Envoy (1) </b>

    "What happened?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Marco Polo Bun looked back at the monster that was busy torturing his guildmates to death. "I¡¯m a Master Apothecary, and I¡¯ve recently been trying to be a Grandmaster Apothecary. I came here to look for medicinal herbs, but little did I expect to run into this guy," He replied with a tinge of anxiety in his voice.

    Shen Jingbin looked at the monster before she realized that all of the yers it¡¯d thrown to the ground were still present. None of them had turned into beams of light and disappeared. "Why are there so many of you? Aren¡¯t you the one who¡¯s looking for medicinal herbs? Also, why hasn¡¯t the monster killed any of them yet?"

    "The valuable high ranked medicinal herbs are guarded by this thing, so I¡¯d obviously need to look for help. I¡¯d originally found five people, but who would¡¯ve thought I¡¯d run into a Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit. So, I asked my guild for help and my Leader sent all these people out to help me."

    The Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit was a high grade medicinal herb that was superior to its regr high grade counterparts in every aspect. Medicinal herbs like these would have monsters that were only slightly weaker than world BOSSes guarding them.

    This was why Marco Polo Bun¡¯s Leader sending out thirty people to help wasn¡¯t going overboard.

    Marco Polo Bun continued to exin, "This monster is called the Universal Envoy, and is one of the monsters that guards the Three Great Medicinal herbs. What makes this monster unique is that it doesn¡¯t finish yers off. Instead, it restricts a yer¡¯s mobility and transports them back to its nest to use as an offering," Marco Polo Bun paused, his expression turning somewhat unsightly before he continued, "In this game, be it intentionally or identally, yers wouldn¡¯t lose Experience from being PKed. The sole exception to this are yers who¡¯ve been captured by this guy and used as an offering. Whatever Experience yers lost would be transformed into strength for this monster."

    The Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit was an absolutely necessary medicinal herb in refining a vajra possession elixir. The thirty seconds of invincibility that the elixir granted was enough to cause all the yers to scramble for it. When Marco Polo Bun¡¯s Leader learned of his discovery, he immediately dispatched thirty people to assist him and ensure that their guild was the one who got their hands on it.

    When the game was first released, there was a yer who came across the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit. However, they were suppressed so much by the monster that they ended up back at the Novice Vige once again, causing them to delete their characters and quit in a fit of rage. Following that, there were no other reports of yers encountering the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit. As a result, the Universal Envoy that protects the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit was something that yers heard about from the game¡¯s management. In reality though, no one had actuallye across it.

    Due to only having heard about it, not a single person had experienced its strength in person before. This resulted in them facing the monster head-on instead of running away when they came across it.

    So what if it could steal their Experience? With this many veteran yers present, they refused to believe that they couldn¡¯t y it! Moreover, this was something that could only ur by chance. Everything would go their way if they managed to take it down.

    However, reality proved that they¡¯d grossly overestimated themselves.

    Although the thirty yers that assisted Marco Polo Bun were all experts, not all of them were elites, and the Universal Envoy was much more powerful than they¡¯d imagined. Just a moment of inattention had resulted in over half of the people present being thrown to the ground.

    Marco Polo Bun would definitely end up bing targeted and hated by these yers if their Experience was stolen and they lost Levels. This was why he was so anxious. Seeing as Cloud Dream Swamp had countless experts gathering medicinal herbs here, he had started to unconsciously cry out for help to attract some people. But, little did he expect to end up attracting a female bandit instead!

    While he admitted that she also possessed some strength, he doubted that she¡¯d be able to defeat the Universal Envoy by herself when their group of thirty had failed.

    Dear god, either give him hope or none at all! This kind of false hope was way too much of a mental blow for him to bear.

    "It can even steal Experience?" Shen Jingbin stared at the Universal Envoy in astonishment when Marco Polo Bun finished speaking. She was just in time to see its sharp ck ws grab ahold of a yer that was trying to escape to the skies and m him down onto the ground. It then used its burly tail to viciously whip the yer. Their body trembled for a moment before they passed out.

    "Stop looking, let¡¯s go! We need to call in reinforcements while it still hasn¡¯t dragged anyone off yet and save as many people as we can!" Marco Polo Bun shouted.

    Shen Jingbin woke from her stupor and turned to him. "I¡¯m lost, so you lead the way."

    "..." F*ck, did her stumbling all the way here count as her having good or bad luck?

 Chapter 132

    <b>Chapter 132: The Universal Envoy (2)</b>

    Marco Polo Bun didn¡¯t dare to tarry any longer when he saw another one of hispanions getting struck out of the corner of his eye. He began running away while he requested for help in the guild chat.

    It was so dangerous just now that he didn¡¯t even have the time to request for help.

    [Guild] Marco Polo Bun: We need help! Location: the depths of Cloud Dream Swamp. West 4598 North 1996. The Universal Envoy is too much for us, we¡¯re about to be wiped out!

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Groper: The Universal Envoy? What¡¯s so impressive about it?

    [Guild] Attack That Nymph: F*ck, didn¡¯t you bring thirty people along to subdue it? You guys couldn¡¯t do it even with that many people?

    [Guild] Marco Polo Bun: It¡¯s too strong, we can¡¯t take it!

    [Guild] Morally Grey: Polo, what about the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit? Is there anyone from other guilds around? How much longer can you guys hold out for?

    [Guild] Marco Polo Bun: The reincarnation fruit is still at the same spot with the Universal Envoy and there¡¯s no way for me to get close. There¡¯s a member of Jade Sea Pavilion by my side, but she¡¯s by herself. Based on the situation, we can¡¯t hold on for longer than five minutes.

    [Guild] Morally Grey: Got it. Find somewhere to hide that¡¯s not too far from the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit, I¡¯ll send some more people over immediately.

    [Guild] Morally Grey: Raid party 1, 2, and 3, drop whatever it is you¡¯re doing and make your way towards Dream Cloud Swamp.

    Marco Polo Bun¡¯s flustered heart calmed down when he saw his Guild Leader methodically arrange for the raid parties to provide assistance. He stopped in his tracks and began hurrying back to the rest of his guildmates.

    Seeing this change in Marco Polo Bun, Shen Jingbin asked, "We¡¯re not going to look for help anymore?"

    "My Guild Leader ising over right now. I need to keep a lookout, so why don¡¯t you go back first?"

    "I don¡¯t know the way."

    "..." What the f*ck, are you sure you¡¯re not trying to screw with me?

    "Keep walking northeast and you¡¯ll eventually reach the teleportation array."

    "Which way is northeast?"

    "..." F*ck, aren¡¯t you a bandit Big Sis?! Can you not act like such a ditz? No, you¡¯re definitely not a ditz, you¡¯re an idiot!

    Marco Polo Bun rubbed the sides of his throbbing head and said, "Forget it, juste with me then. I¡¯ll lead you out once we¡¯ve defeated the Universal Envoy. But I must warn you, don¡¯t try to steal my Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit!"

    "Rx, I don¡¯t want it," She was telling the truth. She was still a low ranked Apothecary, so a precious high grade medicinal herb like the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit was worthless to her.

    After giving her word, Marco Polo Bun led her back the way they came, before stopping about twenty meters away from the Universal Envoy and carefully hiding themselves. Shen Jingbin also recalled Mascot to prevent it from suddenly crying out and rming the Universal Envoy.

    All thirty yers were thrown to the ground in just these few short minutes that they were gone. At present, the Universal Envoy was standing in the midst of a field of fake corpses with its head raised for some unknown reason.

    "What¡¯s it doing?" Shen Jingbin asked in a whisper.

    "How the hell would I know, this is my first time encountering this monster!"

    "Tsk, and here I thought you knew everything."

    "... Thanks for thinking so highly of me!"

    "Mm, don¡¯t mention it."

    "..."

    While the two of them bickered, the Universal Envoy who was standing with its head raised suddenly released an ear-piercing screech, causing Shen Jingbin and Marco Polo Bun to cover their ears.

    The Universal Envoy finally stopped screeching several secondster, before bending down and grabbing the yer closest to them, hoisting them up. It then turned around and with the swaying of its alligator tail, it made its way even deeper into the dense forest, disappearing from view a short whileter.

    The two of them uncovered their ears after the Universal Envoy left. Everything had happened in a blur, and they didn¡¯t have the chance to brace themselves for its screeching. The aftermath of it left their ears buzzing in pain.

    "F*ck, it hurts like crazy," Marco Polo Bun said as he rubbed his ears and quietly cursed out loud.

    Shen Jingbin was also wordlessly rubbing her ears, and she wore a look of tranquility on her face as if she were mostly unaffected. After he was done tending to his ears, Marco Polo Bun suddenly stood up and walked forward. Shen Jingbin stretch out her hand and grabbed him. "What¡¯re you doing?"

    "I¡¯m obviously going to save mypanions. I¡¯m going to drag them out of there and save as many of them as I can. This way, Leader and the rest of them will have an easier time as well when they arrive."

    "Do you know when the Universal Envoy will be back here?" Shen Jingbin asked with a nk look on her face.

    Marco Polo Bun¡¯s expression froze. "I don¡¯t know."

    "You should sit here obediently and wait if you don¡¯t. Going over now would likely end up with you running into it. When that happens, not only would you fail to save anyone, even you would end up being captured."

    "Then am I supposed to just sit here and watch?"

    "You should observe it for the time being. There still time for you to save them after you¡¯ve figured out how long it takes to make a trip. Besides, how many people do you think you can save? You¡¯d be helping your Leader out a lot just by not causing more trouble for him."

    "..." F*ck, this woman is so hateful!

    Dispirited, Marco Polo Bun crouched down once again. He knew she spoke the truth.

    Just after he crouched back down, the Universal Envoy emerged from the dense forest and appeared before them once again. Marco Polo took sucked in a deep breath of air. That was close, he almost ran into it!

    Just like before, the Universal Envoy looked around at the mass of yers that were fainted on the ground before it picked one up and carried them off.

    After it left, Shen Jingbin heard the faint sounds of footsteps from behind her.

    Someone¡¯sing!

    She immediately leapt to her feet and tightly gripped the handle of her horsetail whisk that was in her hand.

    The neers and Marco Polo Bun were both caught off guard by her sudden actions.

    "What the hell are you doing? Are you trying to scare me to death?!" Marco Polo Bun resentfully rebuked her.

    Shen Jingbin brushed what he said aside and roughly estimated the number of people who¡¯d appeared behind them. They numbered fifteen.

    Seeing her ignore him, Marco Polo Bun curiously nced in the direction she was looking at. When his gazended on the group of people, he eyes immediately lit up and he eximed, "Leader, you¡¯re here!"

    Leader?

    Shen Jingbin rxed her taut nerves a little and cast several discrete nces at the person leading the group.

    A tall and slender person stood at the helm of the group. He wasn¡¯t all that handsome, but his appearance made others feel at ease. Amongst the rest of the people present in the group, he was also the one who bore the presence of a leader.

    Shen Jingbin squinted her eyes. This person looked awfully familiar; she felt like she¡¯d seen him somewhere before.

 Chapter 133

    <b>Chapter 133: Support From Jade Sea Pavilion (1) </b>

    "You¡¯re Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s wife?" Morally Grey said as the two of them sized each other up.

    He knew that Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Guild Leader had married an ugly girl. He¡¯d unintentionally seen her together with Quiet And Steadfast during the previous free for all involving a few guilds. As a result, he still vaguely remembered her.

    "You are?" Shen Jingbin wrinkled her brows and asked. The other party knew who she was, but she didn¡¯t recognize him; that didn¡¯t sit right with her.

    "I¡¯m Memelord¡¯s Guild Leader. I saw you in Redwood Forestst time."

    Morally Grey¡¯s words jogged her memory, prompting a vague image of him to surface within her mind. She even remembered that he and another Guild Leader had sent out realm messages at the time.

    "You¡¯re by yourself?" Morally Grey cast several more nces around and asked. "Isn¡¯t Quiet And Steadfast here with you?"

    "He¡¯s offline."

    "This map is quite dangerous. Why are you here alone?"

    Shen Jingbin could sense that he was trying to feel her out. "I came here to gather medicinal herbs. I¡¯m learning how to refine medicine, so I wanted to gather a few medicinal herbs to train my Life Skills," She replied.

    Morally Grey nodded, but whether he believed her or not was another matter.

    He looked towards Marco Polo Bun once again and asked, "Where are the rest of the guild members? Where¡¯s the Universal Envoy?"

    Marco Polo Bun pointed behind him and said, "They¡¯re over there! The Universal Envoy is carrying people back to its nest."

    Morally Grey brows knitted, "How long have they been gone for and when will it be back?"

    "It just left and it should be back soon," replied Shen Jingbin.

    Once he heard that, Morally Grey immediately started issuing orders to the yers he¡¯d brought along. "Group one, move to the left and lie low. Group two, to the right. Group 3 will wait here. Move out. We have to hide before the Universal Envoy returns. Be on the lookout for my signal once you¡¯ve hidden yourselves. We¡¯ll move once I give the signal."

    "Yes!" The tens of people gathered in front of him replied as one.

    Following that, countless silhouettes shed past her, and in the blink of an eye, they disappeared right before her very eyes.

    After making the necessary arrangements, Morally Grey shifted his attention back to Shen Jingbin and Marco Polo Bun. "The two of you will hide here. Escape immediately if the situation takes a turn for the worse."

    "Alright," The two of them replied.

    After everyone had hidden, the Universal Envoy came swaying over with its robust body and swaggered before everyone. It then chose a yer and carried it back to its nest.

    At this moment, a snap resounded from where Morally Grey was hiding behind a tree. No sooner after that, tens of silhouettes leaped out from all directions, unleashing multitudes of colourful skills at the Universal Envoy as they mmed against its body.

    Morally Grey had guessed that the Universal Envoy was likely a closebat monster, so he¡¯d warned his guild members to keep their distance from the monster in advance.

    Reality proved that his guess was right on the money.

    The Universal Envoy noticed the uninvited guests that surrounded it the instant he heard the snapping of fingers. Not missing a beat, it flung the yer on its shoulder away and grabbed its mace. With a loud screech, the monster proceeded to pounce on one of the yers.

    Following the n that was made earlier, they immediately halted their attacks on the Universal Envoy and turned tail to run. While those beside it also dispersed in all directions at the same time.

    They didn¡¯t know whether the Universal Envoy would pursue a yer till they died, or whether it would change targets halfway through. As a precautionary measure, they decided that once the Universal Envoy targeted a yer, the rest of the yers around them would immediately flee.

    The Universal Envoy seemed oblivious to the numerous yers fleeing in all directions, wholly focused on pursuing its initial target.

    "Circles, Kite the monster. The rest of you, go all out on it!"

    "Yes!" The yers replied as one once again.

    The monster had its eye on a yer called Circles. Circles buffed himself with an agility boost and was running all about the dense forest. The rest of the yers ensured they kept their distance from Circles and went all out.

    "Roar!" As its HP gradually decreased, the Universal Envoy suddenly raised its head and let loose a roar.

    Apart from Shen Jingbin and Marco Polo Bun who¡¯d experienced this before and covered their ears the moment they saw its throat ripple, the rest of them felt a sharp stab of pain in their ears.

    The soundwave caused Circles to slow down as well. It was only for a split second, but it was more than enough for the Universal Envoy to catch up to him!

    The Universal Envoy raised its mace high in the air and ruthlessly smashed it down on his head. Circles immediately copsed on the ground.

    This monster could actually unleash a soundwave attack!

    Fear arose in everyone¡¯s hearts.

 Chapter 134

    <b>Chapter 134: Support From Jade Sea Pavilion (2)</b>

    The moment Circles hit the ground, the Universal Envoy turned around and, like a sh of lighting, suddenly pounced towards the yer closest to Circles.

    Another blood-curdling screech could be heard, followed by the sound of another yer falling to the ground.

    "Retreat! Everyone, retreat!" Morally Grey howled.

    Everyone immediately dispersed.

    Upon seeing this, the Universal Envoy let out yet another blood-curdling screech.

    Someone amongst the fleeing crowd of yers was affected by this, causing his steps to slow for a fraction of a second. The monster immediately caught up to him and struck him down with its mace. Morally Grey saw this scene from the corner of his eye and broke out in a cold sweat.

    This is bad. This monster¡¯s IQ is way too high.

    Shen Jingbin and Marco Polo Bun quickly withdrew at Morally Grey¡¯s behest. Suddenly, Shen Jingbin saw a string of words appear in her guild channel.

    [Guild] Guild Leader Quiet And Steadfast has logged in.

    Shortly after, a white carrier pigeon flew straight towards her.

    The Universal Envoy swivelled about as it searched for its next target. The appearance of carrier pigeon seemed to have caught its eye, attracting its gaze towards Shen Jingbin andpany.

    It let out a furious roar and pounced in their direction.

    F*ck!

    Shen Jingbin nearly jumped out of her skin when she turned to look at themotion behind her and immediately quickened her pace. On the other side, Marco Polo Bun and Morally Grey noticed Shen Jingbin¡¯s plight.

    "I¡¯m here, dumbass!" Marco Polo Bun must have gone mad, because he began running in the direction opposite of Shen Jingbin while flinging clumps of mud at the Universal Envoy¡¯s head.

    The Universal Envoy was still undecided on who of the three it should grab when it suddenly felt something connect with its head. Its anger immediately red up and it threw itself at Marco Polo Bun.

    With the disturbance that Marco Polo Bun caused, Shen Jingbin managed to eke out a little bit of time to check her messages.

    As expected, it was a message from Quiet And Steadfast.

    "What¡¯re you doing?"

    My god! Honestly speaking, she¡¯d previously thought that it was quite nice of him to look her up whenever he came online. However, she felt that this habit of his was extremely detrimental to her today! She almost lost her life because of him!

    "A monster in Cloud Dream Swamp is chasing after me!"

    "Chasing you? What monster?"

    "The Universal Envoy."

    This time around, Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s reply came a little slower than before. "Do you need help?"

    "The members from Memelord are here. I¡¯ll ask for their opinion."

    Quiet And Steadfast understood the reason behind Shen Jingbin¡¯s actions. Since Memelord was there with her, it probably meant that there was something valuable in the area. Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s actions might be mistaken as them trying to kill steal and snatch Memelord¡¯s loot if they just suddenly rushed over like that.

    Shen Jingbin looked at Marco Polo Bun who was running around like a madman before she turned to the yers from Memelord who hadn¡¯t stopped attacking the Universal Envoy. She raised her voice and said to Morally Grey, "Do you need Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s help?"

    Morally Grey looked at her and nced at his few remaining teammates, hesitating a little.

    Shen Jingbin obviously knew the reason for his hesitation, so she added, "They¡¯re only here to help, they won¡¯t steal your kill and neither will they snatch your loot."

    Morally Grey nodded. "Thanks. We¡¯ll be in Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s care then."

    Having received Morally Grey¡¯s assent, Shen Jingbin immediately sent Quiet And Steadfast a reply.

    "Come over. It¡¯s best if you bring more people along with you, we¡¯re in a bit of a pickle."

    Quiet And Steadfast immediately started selecting people from the guild once he received her reply.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Those from ranged team 1 and 2 who are free, join my team. We¡¯re going to Cloud Dream Swamp.

    He recalled Nutjob¡¯s poor sense of direction and figured that she wouldn¡¯t be able to tell him where she was, so he sent her a party invitation instead which she quickly epted.

    Quiet And Steadfast had a very detailed map of the area. Once he entered the party, he immediately opened the map and determined where she was.

    After ascertaining her location, Quiet And Steadfast immediately zed a trail to Cloud Dream Swamp at top speed with his party.

    He knew quite a bit about the Universal Envoy. For example, he knew that only Ranged Attackers could deal with it, while Healers were useless because anyone approaching it would be done for.

    He was included in the mix. The only reason why he was going over was to rescue Shen Jingbin and give the others somemands while he was at it.

    Asbatants of the number one guild in the game, every yer¡¯s mount was extremely fast. In just a bit, Quiet And Steadfast arrived in the depths of Cloud Dream Swamp where Shen Jingbin was at with two parties in tow.

    Other than a few Dragonkins from Memelord, the Universal Envoy had thrown all the other yers of various professions on the ground, and was now in the midst of chasing another yer.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s sharp eyes immediately caught sight of Shen Jingbin who was hiding behind a tree.

    "Let¡¯s surround it and attack. Make sure you don¡¯t get close to it," said Quiet And Steadfast to his guild members.

    The members from both teams nodded and dispersed.

    yers from Jade Sea Pavilion were significantly stronger than yers from Memelord. With them around, the surviving members from Memelord immediately felt like a weight had been lifted from their shoulders.

    Morally Grey immediately noticed Quiet And Steadfast and approached him when Jade Sea Pavilion joined in on the fight.

    "Thank you, Guild Leader Quiet."

    "You¡¯re wee, I¡¯m just here to fetch my wife."

    Morally Grey felt relieved when he heard Quiet And Steadfast say that.

    Though Shen Jingbin had given him her assurances before, she wasn¡¯t the Leader of Jade Sea Pavilion. Whether her words could be trusted or not was one thing, but no one would be able to stop him if Quiet And Steadfast saw the situation and wanted to kill steal.

    Although Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t explicitly state it, hisment from before implied that he wasn¡¯t nning to steal their prey from them. Based on Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s personality, Morally Grey felt at ease knowing that he wouldn¡¯t go back on his word.

    On the other hand, Shen Jingbin felt a wave of relief wash over her with the appearance of her fellow members from Jade Sea Pavilion. Feeling more at ease now, she shifted her attention to Marco Polo Bun.

    Honestly speaking, she was extremely shocked at the god-like speed that he¡¯d fled with. To her, Marco Polo Bun was a spineless coward with no talents to speak of. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have been sessfully intimidated by her when they were in Hell. After all, he was at a far higher Level than she was then!

    However, Marco Polo had actually managed to hold on for a long time while the Universal Envoy pursued him. Moreover, he was even managing to perfectly avoid its soundwave attacks.

    It looked like he was yet another talented individual.

 Chapter 135

    <b>Chapter 135: Capitalism Is The Root Of All Evil (1)</b>

    Quiet And Steadfast estimated the distance between Shen Jingbin and the Universal Envoy before walking to her side. "Do you know that guy?" He enquired.

    He was referring to Marco Polo Bun.

    The reason for his enquiry was because he noticed her eyes sparkling whenever she looked at that person. It was an expression that he¡¯d never seen before.

    "Yeah," Shen Jingbin nodded in affirmation.

    At the sight, Quiet And Steadfast evaluated Marco Polo Bun once more.

    Marco Polo Bun, who was in the midst of ying a game of tag with the Universal Envoy, felt a sudden chill run down his spine.

    No matter how formidable the Universal Envoy might be, it was still unable to handle the onught of numerous top-tier yers. Not much time had passed since it started pursuing Marco Polo Bun before its Health bar was almost empty. However, Marco Polo Bun was running out of steam as well.

    Even if the Universal Envoy knocked him out now, it wouldn¡¯t be able to carry him back to its nest. Since that¡¯s the case, screw it! He might as well fight!

    With this thought in mind, Marco Polo Bun steeled himself against running and turned around, preparing to use every skill he had against the Universal Envoy.

    At the same time, the number one Dragonkin in Jade Sea Pavilion, Asuka, happened to unleashed a powerful skill.

    Not only was Asuka Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s number one Dragonkin, she was also the top Dragonkin in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> and her DPS was off the charts. The Universal Envoy¡¯s Health was instantly reduced to just a few points after Asuka unleashed her skill, followed by Marco Polo Bun¡¯s own skill immediately after.

    With a resounding roar, the Universal Envoy copsed, never to rise again. At the same time, a scarlet red announcement appeared.

    [System Announcement] Congrattions to yer Marco Polo Bun for sessfully defeating the Universal Envoy and ridding the world of an evil! He¡¯s the honour of the hour!

    Marco Polo Bun almost choked on his own spit. Never in his wildest dreams did he think that he would actually be the one to deal the final blow!

    Wasn¡¯t he just too lucky?!

    There was no longer any threat now that the Universal Envoy was dead. "Sunhill, Lotus, and Luoluo, search for ourrades and bring back those who have been taken away. Nymphs, see if you can rouse those around us. Polo Bun, harvest the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit before looting the corpse," Morally Grey ordered.

    The yers who were chosen began carrying out the tasks that they were assigned to do.

    Marco Polo Bun jogged over to where he¡¯d first discovered the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit and began harvesting it.

    Gathering it was slow due to its rarity, so it took him a whole five minutes before he was able to dig it out.

    "Congrattions on obtaining the Seven Cycle Reincarnation Fruit."

    The pleasing sound of the system announcement rang out. With a face full of smiles, Marco Polo Bun gingerly ced the gathered fruit into his backpack before running over to the Universal Envoy and reaching out to loot the corpse.

    "Congrattions, you have obtained 50 silver."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a Graceful Jade Whisk x1. "

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a Lustrous Clear Cloud Robe x1. "

    "Congrattions, you have obtained Floating Light Silk x5"

    ...

    The items dropped from the Universal Envoy were numerous. A casual nce from Marco Polo Bun informed him that these items weren¡¯t bad at all.

    "What¡¯s the matter, what dropped?" Morally Grey walked up to him and enquired.

    Marco Polo Bun reported the items that he¡¯d received. With slightly furrowed brows, Morally Grey pondered for a while before saying, "Pass me the whisk."

    Marco Polo Bun gave the Graceful Jade Whisk to him without hesitation.

    Morally Grey took the whisk that the Universal Envoy dropped in hand and walked up to Shen Jingbin. "I noticed that your equipment seemed to becking, so please take this as a token of our appreciation."

    "There¡¯s no need," Shen Jingbin declined. As the saying goes: He who does not work shall not eat. She wasn¡¯t shameless enough to ept something she didn¡¯t deserve.

    "Please ept this, this wouldn¡¯t have been so easy if it weren¡¯t for you calling the yers of Jade Sea Pavilion over to help," Morally Grey said before pushing the whisk into her hands.

    Shen Jingbin was about to return the whisk to him when Quiet And Steadfast said to her, "You should just ept it since he¡¯s given it to you."

    Shen Jingbin looked at him and the silent Morally Grey before quietly epting the Graceful Jade Whisk.

    Even though Shen Jingbin felt that she hadn¡¯t contributed in any way, it was anything but that in Morally Grey¡¯s eyes. He wasn¡¯t someone who liked owing others a favor and immediately sought to repay his debts as soon as possible.

    The Daoists in his guild were few and the elite yers mostly had weapons that they¡¯d painstakingly crafted, while an ordinary whisk would suffice for the remaining few. As such, the whisk wasn¡¯t very important in the eyes of his guild despite its good attributes. Instead, it would serve better as repayment for the debt that he owed.

    Quiet And Steadfast had clearly noticed this, which was why he persuaded Shen Jingbin to ept it.

    Morally Grey chuckled as he saw Shen Jingbin ept the whisk. He turned to Quiet And Steadfast and said, "Thanks for today¡¯s help."

    Quiet And Steadfast gave him a polite smile in return. However, due to the mask he was wearing, only his ink ck eyes conveyed his intent.

    "You¡¯re wee."

 Chapter 136

    <b>Chapter 136: Capitalism Is The Root Of All Evil (2) </b>

    After Memelord¡¯s Nymphs woke their guild members, and the ones who went out in search for the abducted guild members returned, Morally Grey bid the members of Jade Sea Pavilion farewell and left.

    Marco Polo Bun trailed at the very end of Memelord¡¯s group. Walking right up to Shen Jingbin, he shot a tentative nce at Quiet And Steadfast before he looked helplessly at her.

    Quiet and Steadfast touched his mask and spoke, "You two have a chat, I¡¯ll go and take a look at the guild."

    With that, he turned back and retreated several metres, leading the members of Jade Sea Pavilion to a location slightly further out.

    After ascertaining that Quiet and Steadfast had distanced himself to the point where he was out of earshot, Marco Polo Bun asked, "Are you really the wife of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Guild Leader? And, was the person from just now your husband, the Leader of Jade Sea Pavilion?"

    Marco Polo Bun couldn¡¯t be med for being so nervous. He couldn¡¯t help but feel on edge when facing the legendary top yer in the game. Furthermore, he really couldn¡¯t imagine how a girl like her that was not only ugly, but was also cold, thieving, and violent, was able to conquer the God who was at the very pinnacle of all yers. Furthermore, it seemed like the God in question cared a great deal about her well being. If he didn¡¯t, how would Marco Polo Bun exin the constant, scathing re that the God was constantly sending his way.

    Seriously, was a god-level yer¡¯s sense of aesthetics that different from an ordinary yer¡¯s?

    Or was there a change in the world¡¯s sense of aesthetics and it was just him being slow on the uptake?

    Shen Jingbin shot an inscrutable look at Marco Polo Bun who had a look of constipation on his face. "What kind of weird scenario is ying in your head?" She asked in disgust.

    "Nothing!" He hastily shook his head to banish those thoughts from his mind. "Are you an apothecary?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded in affirmation.

    "Here, I¡¯ve quite a lot of low grade herbs that I don¡¯t need, let me give them to you." Marco Polo Bun said as he flipped through his backpack in search of said herbs.

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly stopped him.

    "Don¡¯t. My backpack¡¯s already full, they won¡¯t fit inside."

    At this moment, Quiet And Steadfast appeared from behind and passed a wooden box to her. "This is a High-ss Expansion Box, it¡¯s able to open up 20 more slots in your backpack."

    Shen Jingbin: "..."

    Marco Polo Bun: "..."

    F*ck! God, didn¡¯t you say that you¡¯ll give us space and not eavesdrop on us?! God, believe me, I have no interest in your wife! God, you¡¯re going to lose a fan here, I¡¯m serious!

    Marco Polo Bun had a group of Universal Envoys rampaging around in his mind right now.

    "Go further away and don¡¯t eavesdrop on us," Shen Jingbin said expressionlessly as she took the Expansion Box from his hands.

    Quiet And Steadfast shrugged his shoulders and obediently retreated.

    Shen Jingbin equipped the Backpack Expansion Box and twenty empty slots appeared in her once-full backpack.

    "Are you done, are you done?" Marco Polo Bun asked.

    "I¡¯m done," Shen Jingbin replied.

    Hearing her response, Marco Polo Bun immediately resumed rummaging through his backpack.

    "Here¡¯s some Gold-Silver Grass, it¡¯ll help in hemostasis, take them."

    "Oh, Violets, you can make Qi Regting Pills with them, I¡¯ll give these to you."

    "Ahh, I found them. Loopback Flowers, Divine Illusion Pills, take them, take them all."

    Marco Polo Bun had essentially pored through every single low grade herb in his inventory before picking out herbs that weremonly used in low grade medicine. He then dumped them off in Shen Jingbin¡¯s hands, instantly filling all twenty of her slots.

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly stopped Marco Polo Bun when she noticed that he was still flipping through his backpack. "That¡¯s enough, don¡¯t look anymore, my backpack¡¯s full!"

    "Eh, it¡¯s full again? I didn¡¯t even give you that many."

    "..." Bro, you didn¡¯t even check how much you gave me, did you!?

    After transferring the items, Marco Polo Bun said goodbye to Shen Jingbin and left Cloud Dream Swamp, his footsteps unconsciously quickening as he passed by Quiet And Steadfast.

    Numerous question marks floated above Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s head: Why was he leaving in such a rush?

    There was nothing left to do in Cloud Dream Swamp. Feeling toozy to summon Mascot, Shen Jingbin decided to sit with Quiet And Steadfast and return to River City instead.

    Everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion went about with their own business after the party was disbanded. "Do you have any ns?" Quiet And Steadfast asked Shen Jingbin.

    "I¡¯ll be making some medicine. I picked up a lot of herbs just now, so I need to clear out my inventory by using them up."

    "That works, I¡¯lle with you then."

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t reject his offer. Although yers could craft potions wherever they were, the sess rate would increase if it was done in a specialized medicinal room. When doing so, the chance of crafting better quality potions would also increase.

    These specialized medicinal rooms could be found in a few major cities for yers to practice their potion crafting. However, yers would be charged a set fee based on their Level.

    Quiet And Steadfast escorted Shen Jingbin to the location where she could rent a medicinal room, but was informed that the low and normal ss rooms had all been rented out, leaving only two high ss medicinal rooms avable. Furthermore, one of the rooms had already been booked beforehand and the person was about to arrive.

    Which meant that there was only one high ss medicinal room left.

    A fee of fifty taels was required to rent a high ss medicinal room for two hours. Thinking that it was a little too pricey, Shen Jingbin was hesitating when Quiet And Steadfast, who was by her side, paid the rental fee without batting an eyelid.

    Of course, this great God wasn¡¯t like her. He was a tycoon! Fifty taels was peanuts to him!

    Using this as an excuse, Shen Jingbin was just barely able to power through her apprehension and use the high ss medicinal room. However, she had to express her gratitude.

    "Thank you," She replied extremely politely.

    "It¡¯s nothing... Since you¡¯re ying the game at this time, you don¡¯t have to work or study?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    "Ah, no. I¡¯m quite free."

    "I¡¯m really envious of you," A look of envy appeared on Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s face. Seeing the confusion on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face, he added, "I¡¯ve been swamped with work recently and had to do lots of overtime. I¡¯ve basically had no time at all to y."

    "Then what about now?"

    "I secretly installed a gaming pod inside my office¡¯s lounge so that I can y every once in a while when I¡¯m free."

    No wonder Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s login timings felt so irregr to her. "Isn¡¯t there anyone in the office to control you?"

    "Nope, I¡¯m the highest authority there."

    "Tch, capitalism is the root of all evil."

 Chapter 137

    <b>Chapter 137: The Zhao¡¯s Family¡¯s Big Brother (1)</b>

    It was five in the afternoon at B City¡¯s International Airport Terminal exit.

    A tall, young, and beautiful female with an air of charisma about her stood by the roadside. Thetest luggage bag from Adele Fendi sat at her feet while she was in the midst of a phone call.

    "Mom, I¡¯ve gotten off the ne but I still don¡¯t see the driver," With the phone in her hand, the woman nced about for a moment to ensure that it wasn¡¯t an oversight on her part, and that she really couldn¡¯t find the driver.

    "You can¡¯t find the driver? That shouldn¡¯t be the case. Don¡¯t tell me they haven¡¯t arrived yet?" Said the voice of a mature woman on the other end of the phone. "In that case, which exit are you at right now?"

    The young woman turned back to look at the exit number behind her. "Exit eight."

    "Alright then, just stay right there and don¡¯t move. I¡¯ll give the driver a call and check whether he¡¯s missing or if he¡¯s just in the wrong ce."

    "Okay," Came the girl¡¯s reply before she hung up. She pulled out a pair of sunsses from her handbag and wore them, theirrge lenses shielding almost half of her pretty countenance. Yet, it only made her stand out even more.

    While she waited by the exit for her Mother¡¯s call, the girl ¡¯s ears picked up someone¡¯s voice calling her name from behind.

    "Jian Cishu?"

    Jian Cishu turned to face the source of the voice that had a tinge of uncertainty mixed with it.

    Behind her was a tall, muscr male about 1.9m in height. His skin was tanned, yet it was a shade lighter than copper. Although he wore casual clothes, that bit of fabric wasn¡¯t enough to conceal his impressive physique. The man hadrge eyes and bushy eyebrows that were paired with a stern countenance and an air of valor. This was a marked differencepared to the numerous cute and immature boys that weremonce these days. Looking over at the man, the girl couldn¡¯t help but think of the words: "A real man."

    Jian Cishu felt that this man was familiar, but was unable to recall who he was on such short notice.

    The man had already walked in front of her and shouted her name once more, "Jian Cishu."

    This time, it wasn¡¯t a tone of apprehension but one of affirmation that she was, indeed, Jian Cishu.

    Jian Cishu took off her sunsses and eyed the man suspiciously before she asked, "Hello, you are...?"

    The man¡¯s valorous face didn¡¯t betray any emotion as he answered, "I¡¯m Zhao Chengan."

    Zhao Chengan!

    Jian Cishu instantly remembered who this man was.

    Wasn¡¯t Zhao Chengan the brother of Zhao Chengning who, despite repeated exhortations from his family, went off to Africa? Rumor has it that it¡¯s been two years since he left and he¡¯s hardly returned home, even abstaining from festivities such as the Moon Lantern Festival or New Year¡¯s. So, why would he be in B City¡¯s airport now?

    Jian Cishu had only seen Zhao Chengan a couple of times back when she was studying. The only reason why she¡¯d been able to recall who he was upon hearing his name was simply because he¡¯d left far too strong of an impression on her.

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s personality waspletely different from Zhao Chengning¡¯s. Although both of them normally appeared aloof, Zhao Chengning differed from Zhao Chengan¡¯s serious demeanor; seeming more gentle and warm towards others.

    Jian Cishu had been raised like a princess from birth and was the apple of her family¡¯s eyes. Although she was already in her third year of junior high, when she first met Zhao Chengan she was still frightened by his serious and unapproachable demeanor.

    Jian Cishu was only two years younger than Zhao Chengning. Having a childhood crush on Zhao Chengning, she had enrolled in his school and following in his footsteps had always been her goal.

    Zhao Chengning had exemry grades since young, yet he hardly went to school. This fact was reinforced during high school, where he loved ying truant. However, due to his ster academic performance, the school chose to close an eye towards the matter, instead opting to call his home to inform him if there was any important information to be passed down.

    The school was aware of Jian Cishu¡¯s rtions with the Zhao Family when she enrolled, which was why they would ask her to help ry information when they were unable to contact Zhao Chengning.

    Jian Cishu loveding up with all sorts of reasons to look for Zhao Chengning. With such an excellent opportunity to visit she had absolutely no reason to reject them, readily agreeing without hesitation.

    One day after high school, she happily arrived at the Zhao Family¡¯s residence with stuff that the teaching head of the third years had passed to her.

    Coincidentally, Zhao Chengning had just left to buy something when she paid a visit to the Zhao residence. It would have been over if she had just passed the items over to the housekeeper, but her purpose ining was to see Zhao Chengning. So, how could she leave without even meeting him? Thus, she thickened her skin and sat in the living room to wait for his return.

    She didn¡¯t know what Zhao Chengning had left the house to buy, but after being left waiting for over half a day with no sign of him returning, and seeing the housekeeper busy with her own tasks, a bold n formed within Jian Cishu¡¯s mind.

    She wanted to look inside his room.

    Certain thoughts, upon thinking of them, were akin to opening Pandora¡¯s box and couldn¡¯t be stopped.

    Peeking about, she lightly ced the items in her hand down on the table before quietly tiptoeing towards the bedrooms on the second floor.

 Chapter 138

    <b>Chapter 138: The Zhao¡¯s Family¡¯s Big Brother (2) </b>

    She had never been to Zhao Chengning¡¯s bedroom before. All of her previous visits were with her parents, so she had had no chance of entering his bedroom. In other words, this was closest she¡¯d ever been to Zhao Chengning¡¯s private life.

    There were 4 bedrooms on the second floor. At a nce, she could tell that two of them belonged to Old Master Zhao and Zhao Chengning¡¯s parents. As for the other two, she had difficulty deciding on which one belonged to Zhao Chengning.

    In the end, she chose the door that had a poster of someone she didn¡¯t recognize.

    In her mind, there was no way the serious Zhao Chengan would stick a poster on his bedroom door.

    Mustering up her courage to reach out and open the door, what surprised her was that the door wasn¡¯t even locked.

    With just a bit of strength, the door slowly opened and the nervousness in Jian Cishu¡¯s heart intensified.

    Behind the door was the typicalyout of a boy¡¯s bedroom. Neat and tidy, the room had no excessive decorations. Jian Cishu suppressed the excitement in her heart and took a deep breath.

    It was Zhao Chengning¡¯s fragrance! She guessed correctly! This was his room!

    Her heart suddenly raced!

    Carefully stepping towards therge bed in the middle of the room, Jian Cishu heard a small voice speak to her: Just once, I¡¯ll touch his bed just once.

    Her slender white fingers trembled uncontrobly as they came in contact with the bed¡¯s soft nket made of swan feathers. Shortly after, her body gravitated towards the bed as well.

    Just for a bit, I¡¯ll lie down for just a bit! Then I¡¯ll leave!

    Jian Cishu mentally convinced herself as her body made contact with the bed.

    However, she suddenly heard a flurry of light footsteps.

    When one felt guilty about something, their senses would be exceptionally sharp and they¡¯d be able to hear sounds they normally wouldn¡¯t be able to pick up.

    Despite her enhanced senses, her reflexes were unable to keep up. A man¡¯s chilly voice could be heard before she could even rise from the bed.

    "What are you doing?" It was a low and maic voice, yet it soundedpletely different from Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice.

    Jian Cishu finally stood up. Her guilt-ridden gaze fell upon the intruder and all of the blood in her body froze up, almost as if it had coagted.

    Zhao Chengan was staring at her with a cold expression on his face. His gaze was frigid, not a single iota of warmth could be seen. It was as though he was looking at a criminal.

    Jian Cishu felt her legs tremble uncontrobly under his intense gaze.

    "I said, what are you doing?" Zhao Chengan asked once more.

    "I... I..." Her lips visibly trembled and her voice subconsciously shook. She found herself unable to squeak out even oneplete sentence. "I¡¯m sorry!"

    Unable to bear the pressure, she sprinted out of the room with reddened eyes and a sobbing voice. From there, she didn¡¯t even look back as she fled the Zhao family residence.

    After that incident, she didn¡¯t dare to visit the Zhao residence for a very long time. She didn¡¯t dare to look for Zhao Chengning either because she was afraid of running into Zhao Chengan.

    This incident also led to Zhao Chengan bing a form of mental trauma for her. Jian Cishu only heaved a sigh of relief when she heard of his departure.

    But now...

    Quietly holding down her hand that began to tremble, Jian Cishu squeezed out a smile and said, "So, it¡¯s Big Brother Zhao."

    Zhao Chengan nodded in affirmation. ncing at the luggage by her feet, he asked, "Did you just return? Were you on holiday?"

    "No, I left for Ennd for a month of further studies... Did Big Brother Zhao just return from overseas?"

    "Yeah, Grandfather called regarding some family matters and bade me to return."

    "Is that so?"

    Zhao Chengan looked at the surroundings. "You¡¯re by yourself? Where¡¯s your driver?"

    "Mm, I¡¯ve made a call and they said he¡¯s on his way," Jian Cishu mumbled in reply.

    "Is that so," Zhao Chengan said. "Then, I¡¯ll make a move first. Doe over for a visit if you have the time."

    "Alright, thanks Big Brother Zhao," Jian Cishu smiled as she bade him farewell.

    Jian Cishu let out a sigh of relief when Zhao Chengan stepped into a taxi and vanished from sight. Suddenly, the sound of a car horn could be heard. Turning around, she noticed that it was her family¡¯s car.

    The driver apologized as he stepped out of the car and opened the door for her.

    "I¡¯m sorry Miss, I went the wrong way and ended up at Terminal 2."

    "It¡¯s alright, let¡¯s hurry on home," After the surprise of running into Zhao Chengan, she no longer had any energy left to waste on the driver. Jian Cishu went straight into the car and instructed her driver to set off.

    "Alright, Miss," The driver bowed in reply and got into the car as well.

    The car slowly started up and gradually disappeared from the airport.

    Zhao Chengning had just stepped out of the gaming pod when a knock rang out from his office door.

    After tidying up his crumpled clothing, a consequence of ying games, Zhao Chengning grunted in reply and heard Keyuan speak, "Boss, your Older Brother is here."

    Zhao Chengning paused, "Who did you say was here?"

    Keyuan repeated himself, "Your Older Brother."

    Zhao Chengan?

    Why was this Lord back?!

    "Quickly, invite him in."

    "Understood, Boss."

    Only a minute had passed since Keyuan left the room before a towering man entered.

    "What made you decide toe back?" Zhao Chengning stood up from his seat and asked.

    Zhao Chengan walked next to his brother and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "I heard from our Grandfather that you¡¯ve taken a liking to a girl, so I¡¯m here to check her out."

    Zhao Chengning ced a hand on his forehead in exasperation. "That Grandfather of ours, he¡¯ll say anything to coax you to return."

    Zhao Chengan didn¡¯t stand on ceremony as he sat on Zhao Chengning¡¯s seat. He tilted his chin and asked, "Let¡¯s talk, which family is she from? It couldn¡¯t be the one from the Jian family, right? Speaking of which, I just ran into her at the airport. It¡¯s been awhile since Ist saw her, she definitely became a lot prettier."

    "Are you talking about Jian Cishu? No way, you¡¯re overthinking it."

    Zhao Chengan raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Then which family is this girl from?"

    The corners of Zhao Chengning¡¯s mouth curved upwards as he gave a provocativeugh, "You want to find out? Beg me then."

    Zhao Chengan narrowed his eyes threateningly. "Brat, do you have a death wish? Hm?"

 Chapter 139

    <b>Chapter 139: The Jian And Zhao Families Meet (1) </b>

    Truth be told, Zhao Chengning still really admired his Older Brother and was unable to best him so he hastily replied, "Things between me and the girl aren¡¯t set in stone yet. If I were to tell you now, what would I do if you happened to fancy her as well and decided to blindside me?"

    Zhao Chengan burst outughing, "You don¡¯t have to worry about that, our definition of beauty is entirely different."

    Zhao Chengning shrugged. "I¡¯m still not convinced even if you say that. I¡¯ll let you two meet when I feel the time¡¯s right. That being said, did you really came back just for this?"

    Zhao Chengan ced a hand on his cheek and mused to himself, "That¡¯s what I thought at first as well, but from the looks of things, I think the old man still has something else nned."

    "Big Brother, how old are you this year?" Zhao Chengning suddenly asked.

    "Twenty eight, why?"

    "Then, I think I know why."

    "About what?"

    A smug smile instantly appeared on Zhao Chengning¡¯s face, one that seemed to beughing at his brother¡¯s misfortune. "Look at me, even I¡¯ve found someone I fancy; of course Grandfather is going to start to worrying about your own marriage."

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s bushy eyebrows instantly furrowed. "I¡¯ve just remembered that I have some stuff I need to settle, so I¡¯ll be leaving first."

    Zhao Chengning extended an arm to stop him. "Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s a little toote to be running away?" Seeing his brother¡¯s tightly knit brows, Zhao Chengning continued, "Don¡¯t be so nervous, ease up a little. I¡¯m not working overtime today, so let¡¯s go back together in a bit."

    Honestly speaking, Zhao Chengan knew full well that since he returned, going back just like that wasn¡¯t not an option. Thus, he nodded at his brother¡¯s suggestion.

    Zhao Chengning got off work on time after settling what he had on hand and proceeded to drive his brother back home.

    "Grandfather, Dad, Mom, Older Brother¡¯s back," Stepping inside, Zhao Chengning raised his voice and called out.

    However, what he was met with was a female¡¯s surprised voice.

    "Big Brother Chengning!"

    Zhao Chengning, who was in the midst of changing into his home slippers, paused. Looking up, he saw a girl dressed in a light yellow one piece in front of him with a face full of smiles.

    A pair of curved eyes that seemed to contain twinkling stars was paired with her chiffon yellow dress that entuated her fair, white skin. Two locks of her chestnut hair sat framed the sides of her face, adding anotheryer of amiability to her already stunning features.

    It was Jian Cishu.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s back gradually straightened. Furrowing his brows, he looked at her and asked, "What are you doing here?"

    "I¡¯ve just returned today. Auntie found out, so she invited me over to have dinner together. My parents are here as well."

    At that moment, Zhao Chengan entered. Seeing Jian Cishu, he turned to her and asked, "You¡¯re here as well?"

    Jian Cishu¡¯s body subconsciously stiffened up at the sight of Zhao Chengan. "B...Brother Chengan."

    Grunting in reply, Zhao Chengan patted Zhao Chengning who had a dark expression on his face and said, "Don¡¯t block the entrance."

    Zhao Chengning silently nced at him before he walked past Jian Cishu and into the house.

    Jian Cishu¡¯s face paled.

    Seeing this, Zhao Chengan said, "You should go in as well."

    "Oh, okay," Jian Cishu replied in a small, unwilling voice, and followed Zhao Chengan into the living room.

    The parents of both the Jian and Zhao families were currently sitting on the sofa as they talked about interesting things that had happened in their lives.

    The head of the Jian family was the first to see Zhao Chengning. He immediately stood up and weed him with a smile, "Chengning, you¡¯re back."

    "Uncle Jian," Came Zhao Chengning¡¯s polite reply.

    Just then, Jian Cishu¡¯s Mother broke into a smile and spoke to Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother who was beside her, "Bifen, your family¡¯s Chengning is really making a name for himself. Such a remarkable boy, I bet he¡¯s caused quite a number of girls to fall for him."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mother was obviously overjoyed when she heard her son being praised. Yet, her face betrayed no sign of her tion as she gave a smug smile like it was a matter of course, and calmly raising a hand, she stroked her piled hair. "He¡¯s alright, it¡¯s nothing really."

    Jian Cishu¡¯s Mother knew that it was all just an act, but she still maintained her look of envy and said, "I¡¯m really envious of your good fortune. You have such a good son."

    As she spoke, Zhao Chengan walked in with Jian Cishu.

    "Oh, isn¡¯t that Chengan?" Jian Cishu¡¯s Mother eximed. She turned back to Mama Zhao and asked with a look of astonishment on her face, "Chengan¡¯s back too? Oh my, Chengan, do you still remember your Aunt Jian? You¡¯ve be even more suave since I¡¯vest seen you."

    The hostile atmosphere around Zhao Chengan seemed to have been worn off over the years he spent in Africa. Although he still seemed stern, it wasn¡¯t to the point where others would feel on edge.

    One should never forget their basic manners when facing their elders. "Auntie Jian, Uncle Jian," Came Zhao Chengan¡¯s greetings.

    "Chengan still remembers us, that¡¯s good, that¡¯s good," Jian Cishu¡¯s Father happily eximed.

    Zhao Chengning silently retorted: He doesn¡¯t have Alzheimer¡¯s, of course he remembers.

    "Your family is truly lucky to have such exceptional children. In the future, whoever bes your Daughter-inw would be smiling even in their dreams," Jian Cishu¡¯s Mother added.

    Mama Zhao saw the look in Mama Jian¡¯s eyes and replied, "They may be excellent, but no girls have caught their eye just yet. Despite their ages they still haven¡¯t gotten themselves a girlfriends, let alone fianc¨¦es... That¡¯s right, what about your Cishu? I seem to recall that she¡¯s already twenty four, right? Does she have a boyfriend?"

    Startled by her name suddenly being called out like this, Jian Cishu¡¯s face instantly turned beet red. "N...N...Not yet."

    Mama Zhao smiled in response, "Oh my, she¡¯s feeling shy now. What¡¯s there to feel embarrassed about? You should go out and date if you¡¯re of age... How about this: since you¡¯re still single, what do you think about my sons?"

    Zhao Chengning immediately cut in, "Mother!"

    Mama Zhao red back at him. "Do you have to shout? I can hear you."

    Ovee with indignation, Zhao Chengning was about to retort when his brother tugged at him.

    Jian Cishu stole a timid nce at Zhao Chengning and said, "I think... Big Brothers Chengning and Chengan are both pretty good."

    "Both of them are pretty good?" Zhao Bifen looked at her in amusement. "So, does that mean you want both of them?"

    "No no no! Auntie, that¡¯s not what I meant... I just..." Jian Cishu instantly panicked.

    Seeing that his wife was getting increasingly out of hand and that his son was boring a hole into him with his sharp gaze, Papa Zhao cleared his throat and chided his wife, "As an elder, is this really something you should be saying to the younger generation?"

    His wife pouted in reply, "I was just joking, or are you telling me I can¡¯t even crack a joke?"

    "You can joke, but you also need to know where to draw the line."

 Chapter 140

    <b>Chapter 140: The Jian And Zhao Families Meet (2) </b>

    Noticing that the atmosphere had taken a turn for the worse, Jian Cishu¡¯s Mother changed the topic, "Oh my, don¡¯t get angry Brother Zhao. It¡¯s just a joke after all. The kids have their own destinies, so we all know it¡¯s pointless to worry over these things."

    Old Master Zhao, who¡¯d been silent the entire time, nodded in reply, "Well said, these children have their own destinies to follow. We shouldn¡¯t interfere with their lives and leave it to fate."

    Changing the topic, Old Master Zhao turned to Zhao Chengning and asked, "Chengning, how are things with you and Ole Shen¡¯s granddaughter?"

    Noticing his Grandfather¡¯s subtle hint, Zhao Chengning replied in understanding, "Pretty good. We call each other every now and then."

    A look of satisfaction appeared on Old Master Zhao¡¯s face. "I feel that Ole Shen¡¯s granddaughter is pretty good. You should cherish her if there¡¯s chemistry between the two of you."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s reply was swift this time around. "Yes Grandfather, I understand."

    Old Master Zhao¡¯s words were like a bolt from the blue to Jian Cishu¡¯s and Zhao Chengning¡¯s Mothers. Zhao Bifen¡¯s expression darkened and she eximed in dissatisfaction, "Dad, why are you bringing that girl up?"

    Old Master Zhao cast a sidelong nce at her and said, "Are you telling me I need your permission just to mention someone?"

    "Dad, you know that¡¯s not what I meant..."

    "In that case, what¡¯s wrong with me mentioning it if that¡¯s not what you meant?" Old Master Zhao said as he interrupted her. He had a look on his face that seemed to say, "Don¡¯t to talk to me about logic, I don¡¯t want to hear it."

    Not daring to offend Old Master Zhao, Mama Zhao¡¯s lips twitched before she folded her arms in indignation and turned the other cheek.

    At that moment, Jian Cishu¡¯s Mother inquired, "Old Master Zhao, just who is the granddaughter of the Shen family that you¡¯ve been mentioning...?"

    Old Master Zhao¡¯s mood was lifted at the mention of his friend¡¯s granddaughter. "Oh, she¡¯s the granddaughter of a friend I haven¡¯t seen for many years. That girl¡¯s a beauty, and I¡¯ve yet to see any other girl match up to her looks."

    "Old Master Zhao, beautiful girls these days are all spoiled. They¡¯re very difficult to to put up with," Jian Cishu¡¯s Father said.

    "That¡¯s right," His wife added

    The Zhao¡¯s patriarch snorted, "You shouldn¡¯t make such sweeping statements. Ole Shen¡¯s granddaughter is not only as humble as she is pretty, she¡¯s also a Wushu champion."

    "So instead of learning how to be a good wife, she goes around fighting instead. I wonder what others think of her," Mama Zhao said ambiguously.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s Father red at her. "Can¡¯t you just shut up?"

    Mama Zhao issued a vicious snort in response.

    The Shen family¡¯s granddaughter was starting to grate on the nerves of Jian Cishu¡¯s parents. However, this old man was clearly trying to stir up trouble. Yet because he wasn¡¯t willing to fall for their bait, coupled with the fact that putting down someone younger than them was beneath them, they were suddenly at a loss as to how to respond.

    Fortunately for them, the housekeeper entered at this moment and informed them that dinner was ready. Everyone ced the topic on hold as they left their seats and proceeded towards the dining room.

    Jian Cishu intentionally slowed her pace and walked beside Zhao Chengning. She reached out to tug at his sleeve and whispered, "Brother Chengning... Who were you talking about?"

    Zhao Chengning withdrew his arm from her embrace without hesitation. Without even casting a nce at her, he said, "It¡¯s none of your business."

    "Brother Chengning!"

    Zhao Chengning refused to pay any attention to her and went straight towards his seat, seating himself between Papa Zhao and Old Master Zhao.

    Zhao Chengan had overheard their conversation. Stopping to wait for Jian Cishu, he bent his waist slightly and whispered to her, "Let¡¯s have dinner first, we can talk about other thingster."

    Due to their proximity, Zhao Chengan¡¯s breath fell on her ear. Jian Cishu recoiled in an instant, her face beet red as she nced at him.

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s eyes narrowed ever so slightly. He then proceeded to wordlessly turn around and make his way towards his seat.

    Jian Cishu rubbed her ear. She looked at Zhao Chengning who hadpletely ignored her, before she turned to Zhao Chengan who was taking a seat and her expression turned a little strange.

    "Cishu, what are you standing there in a daze for? Come over and sit down," Realizing her daughter was the only one left standing there in a daze, Jian Cishu¡¯s Mother called for her toe over.

    "Ah, okay," Jian Cishu hurriedly jogged over and seated herself opposite Zhao Chengning.

 Chapter 141

    <b>Chapter 141: The Girl¡¯s Actions (1) </b>

    Shen Jingbin was obediently crafting potions in the medicine room that Quiet And Steadfast had rented for her.

    Reaching into her backpack, she withdrew her medicinal cauldron that she¡¯d casually bought from the shop. The cauldron was pitch ck; just like how it¡¯d look like in a television drama. Once retrieved, she appraised the cauldron.

    "Sandalwood Cauldron, crafted from sandalwood found in the Central ins. A faint scent of sandalwood can be detected. Amon medicinal cauldron suitable for Beginner Apothecaries. Pill refining sess rate is increased by 0.15%."

    After appraising it, she took out a recipe from her backpack. Upon opening the recipe, its contents automatically appeared in her mind.

    "Soul Returning Pill."

    "Required ingredients: Breath Suppressing Grass x2, Cloud Mist Flower x3, Thousand Petals Orchid x1."

    Shen Jingbin ced the Sandalwood Cauldron onto the medicinal room¡¯s brazier and opened her backpack once more. After pulling out the necessary amount of Breath Suppressing Grass, Storm Cloud Flower, and Thousand Petals Orchid, she threw them into her cauldron. Setting the heat to low, she sat in a corner as she waited for her pills to finish.

    In most cases, the higher the pills¡¯ grade, the longer it took to craft. A low grade pill like a Soul Returning Pill should take about a minute toplete.

    An entire minute was about to pse when an electronic bell rang out. Shen Jingbin immediately sprung up and opened the cover of the Sandalwood Cauldron.

    Ten dark blue glistening and plump pills sat quietly at the bottom of the cauldron, looking extremely attractive.

    Shen Jingbin carefully took out the pills from the cauldron.

    "Congrattions, you have obtained Soul Returning Pills (High Quality)."

    "Soul Returning Pill (High Grade). Consumption grants 580MP. One minute cooldown after usage. Usable only when out ofbat."

    The ingredients indicated on the recipe that it may produce between three to ten pills depending on the crafter¡¯s Luck. Furthermore, the quality of the pills ranged from Low, Medium, High, and Superior quality.

    Shen Jingbin was able to craft 10 pills on her first try, and they were all High Grade ones at that. One could only wordlessly look on and sigh enviously at her Luck.

    Initially, Shen Jingbin had just been trying her hand at pill crafting when she discovered that her excellent Luck was just as effective in the field of pill crafting. Relieved at the result, she proceeded to sort out the necessary ratio of ingredients required to craft Soul Returning Pills and dumped them all into her cauldron.

    A minuteter, she heard the sound of the system announcement once more and opened the lid. The vessel was stuffed full of pills that came in three different degrees of blue. There were a total of 110 pills inside when she poured the pills out and counted them. She tossed in 13 batches of ingredients into her cauldron. Although it wasn¡¯t as good as her first attempt, she still produced more than 8 pills per batch.

    She was very satisfied with the overall result.

    Leveling life skills was extremely difficult. After making so many pills, her proficiency had only increased a mere 5 points, a far cry from the 150 points required.

    Seeing as it was still early, Shen Jingbin dumped all the ingredients and recipes she had onto the ground and began crafting pills in earnest to raise her proficiency.

    Almost two hours had passed by the time Shen Jingbin managed to almost finish using up all the ingredients she had to craft various pills. As she cleaned the ce up, she realized there were still several ingredients she hadn¡¯t fully expended.

    As she¡¯d gathered the herbs haphazardly, she was now left with bits of herbs from various species. Not wanting her backpack to be filled with these leftovers, she decided to dump all of them into her cauldron and casually logged out after setting the fire to medium.

    She didn¡¯t need to worry about it since the system would help her collect the pills once the time was up.

    After climbing out of the gaming pod, she made a beeline for the bathroom and took a shower, taking the opportunity to wash her hair as well. Just as she was in the midst of drying her hair with a towel, her sharp ears picked up the sound of faint footsteps originating from the hallway just outside her door.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s excellent hearing was undoubtable, which was why she could clearly tell that these footsteps came from the staircase. They were careful and deliberate, not the kind that Aunt Zhang usually made when she came up to call the two siblings.

    Who was it?

    Setting down the towel in her hands, she lightly stepped towards the door of her room and opened it a crack. With her excellent control of strength, not a sound was made and the person outside was none the wiser.

    Outside the door was a crouched figure that was inching forward. Although the person wasn¡¯t facing Shen Jingbin, she was still able to identify the figure all the same.

    In the vi, apart from Shen Jingchen and her, there was only Aunt Zhang and Qu Yanxin. Since the back of this person didn¡¯t look anything like Aunt Zhang, it had to be Qu Yanxin.

    What was she doing up here?

    Shen Jingbin opened her door just a fraction wider, making no noise just like before.

    Judging from the direction Qu Yanxin was moving in, she seemed to be going towards Shen Jingchen¡¯s room. Was she looking for Shen Jingchen?

    But why¡¯d she have to be so sneaky about it? Did she have something to say that couldn¡¯t wait till dinner? She had already been explicitly warned not toe upstairs without a valid reason on her very first day.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes narrowed as she quietly observed her quarry.

    She eyed Qu Yanxin curiously and wondered what she was going to do next.

 Chapter 142

    <b>Chapter 142: The Girl¡¯s Actions (2) </b>

    Qu Yanxin felt like her heart was threatening to burst out of her chest. Every sessive beat of her heart became abnormally quick. She did her best to tread lightly and not make a sound as she neared the door in front of her.

    Her instincts told her that that was Shen Jingchen¡¯s room!

    She knew full well that she shouldn¡¯t be up here, but she still wanted to take a look. Either way, her Mother was far too busy preparing dinner to keep an eye on her. Furthermore, she had heard from her Mother that the siblings should be upstairs ying games at this time.

    Although she had never yed <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> before, she had heard of it. While ying it, they wouldn¡¯t be able to hear anything from their surroundings unless someone touched their gaming pod.

    Which was why this was the best opportunity for her!

    After tomorrow¡¯s test, she¡¯d have to return with her school, so today was herst night here. Although she wasn¡¯t able to do anything, she still wanted to have a look at his room.

    She might even be able to get a better idea of how he was like from looking at his room. She might be able to find out things such as his favorite colour, whether he preferred ser or basketball, his favorite movie star etc. As the saying goes: If you know yourself and know your enemy, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. This tactic was applicable when it came to love as well. Her chances of getting together with him would be increased if she just got to know him better.

    She couldn¡¯t be med for resorting to such a tactic. Shen Jingchen wouldn¡¯t even talk to her and refused to let her even get to know him better. This was why she had to resort to desperate measures.

    With the door right in front of her, Qu Yanxin couldn¡¯t help but inhale a deep breath in an attempt to suppress her wildly beating heart. Raising a hand, she gently ced it onto the door handle and turned it.

    The door was locked!

    Qu Yanxin¡¯s shoulders instantly slumped in defeat.

    How could she have been so silly and overlooked the fact that he might have locked the door!

    Rapping herself on her head in frustration, Qu Yanxin dejectedly turned around.

    Little did she know that the moment she turned around, her gaze would be met with a pair of chilling eyes.

    These eyes were extremely pretty. In fact, they could have been the prettiest eyes she¡¯d ever seen in her entire life. Long, brush-like eyshes covered pupils that were full of emotion. They were truly a pair of expressive, soul-snaring eyes.

    Yet, this pair of expressive eyes were currently staring at her coldly. Not a single ripple could be seen within them.

    "Bang!" Qu Yanxin felt as if someone had dumped a pail of cold water over her. A rush of cold air spread from her toes and went straight towards her heart.

    It was as if her once rapidly beating heart had suddenly stopped, causing her to feel a wave of dizziness that even extended to her vision and distorted it.

    "Bi-Big Sister Shen," Under Shen Jingbin¡¯s chilling gaze, Qu Yanxin barely managed to open her mouth to greet her.

    "What are you doing here?" Shen Jingbin threw open her door and leaned against the doorframe with her arms folded. Her slightly messy, half-dried hair even imparted an aura of cold arrogance.

    "I...I...I came up to look for the two of you..." Qu Yanxin¡¯s mind went into overdrive, desperately trying to think of a way to extricate herself from her predicament. "It¡¯s almost dinner time, so I came up to see if the two of you were busy."

    They usually had dinnerte, having their meal at around 7pm. But now...

    Shen Jingbin raised her wrist to look at the time, but found that it only just past 5pm.

    Shen Jingbin looked back at Qu Yanxin with a smile that wasn¡¯t quite one and said, "Did you check the time?"

    "I...I..." Qu Yanxin was at a loss for words and didn¡¯t know what to say.

    Just then, the sound of a door unlocking rang out from behind her.

    Oh no!

    Qu Yanxin¡¯s heart chilled by another few degrees.

    Noticing that someone was standing in front of his door, Shen Jingchen shifted his gaze and saw his sister leaning against her own door with a chilling expression on her face.

    "What¡¯s going on?" Shen Jingchen asked, subconsciously frowning. "Qu Yanxin, why are you here? Didn¡¯t we tell you not toe up to the second floor?"

    Qu Yanxin slowly turned her body to face him with reddened eyes and wore an expression that looked as if she¡¯d suffered an unspeakable grievance, "B-B-Big Brother Shen..."

    Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t like it when girls cried, especially when it was a girl he wasn¡¯t close to.

    If you¡¯ve been bullied, then go and look for the person who caused it. Why are you crying in front of me? Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re hoping that I¡¯ll go and take care of the person who did it to you? Don¡¯t joke with me!

    "Why are you crying?"

    "Big Brother Shen, I¡¯m-I¡¯m sorry. I was just curious and wanted toe up to take... a look," Qu Yanxin said as she stuttered through her sobs. "I¡¯ve never seen... such, a-a wonderful house, so I couldn¡¯t help myself and came up. I¡¯m sorry, I really didn¡¯t mean to do it."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s brows knitted even closer together. "Speak properly, what are you crying for? We haven¡¯t even said anything yet."

    Qu Yanxin nced at Shen Jingbin out of the corner of her eyes before she retracted her gaze and continued sobbing. It was as though she was saying: She bullied me.

    Shen Jingchen raised his head to look at Shen Jingbin and asked with his eyes: What¡¯s going on here?!

    Shen Jingbin shrugged. Beats me.

    Shen Jingchen: F**K, she¡¯s crying and you¡¯re telling me you don¡¯t know?

    Shen Jingbin was at a loss. She started crying the moment you came out, she was perfectly fine when I was here.

    Shen Jingchen red at her: You¡¯re saying I was the one who scared her to tears?

    Shen Jingbin: I didn¡¯t say that, you said it yourself.

    The siblingsmunicated with their eyes and ignored Qu Yanxin altogether. In a moment of guilt, Qu Yanxin sobbed even harder.

    Aunt Zhang, who had been busy the entire time, was rmed by the sobs and hastily made her way up.

    "What¡¯s the matter? What¡¯s going on? Why are you crying?"

    "Mom!" Upon seeing her Mother, Qu Yanxin felt as though she¡¯d been given salvation and leapt straight into her arms.

    "Little Jing, Little Chen, what¡¯s going on?" Aunt Zhang looked to the siblings and asked as she patted her daughter¡¯s back to console her.

    "I found her sneaking up here, so I casually asked her why and she started crying," Shen Jingbin said as she honestly recounted the series of events.

    Aunt Zhang was stunned. She turned to look at Shen Jingchen once again.

    Shen Jingchen felt extremely wronged. "Don¡¯t look at me Auntie, she just started crying when I appeared at the door."

    Aunt Zhang looked down at her own daughter.

    Aunt Zhang, who¡¯d always been able to tell what her daughter was thinking, instantly saw through the guilt on her tear-stricken face and her heart dropped.

    She knew exactly what had happened.

 Chapter 143

    <b>Chapter 143: An Argument Between Mother And Daughter (1)</b>

    Although Aunt Zhang was normally busy at work andcked the time to look after her daughter, was there any mother who didn¡¯t know the inner thoughts of their own daughter?

    As she was rarely by her daughter¡¯s side, her precocious daughter had unknowingly cultivated a haughty temperament. She thought that she always had to be better than others, and preferred making connections with wealthy people.

    Making connections was a good thing, but choosing to interact with others based on their status wasn¡¯t a good thing. When she was young, a few words were enough to put her in her ce. However, as she got older, she became more adept at putting on a facade.

    If it wasn¡¯t for today¡¯s incident, Aunt Zhang would have almost forgotten about this fact.

    "Um, Little Chen, Little Jing, I¡¯m sorry, Xinxin was at fault here. Allow me to apologize on her behalf. She¡¯s still young and ignorant, so don¡¯t hold it against her," Aunt Zhang took Qu Yanxin into her arms and apologized to the Shen siblings.

    Even though she knew full well that it was her daughter¡¯s fault, she couldn¡¯t bear to lecture and embarrass her in front of everyone, so she could only step forward and apologize.

    "It¡¯s alright, Aunt Zhang, you don¡¯t have to apologize like this. It¡¯s not a big deal anyway," Aunt Zhang¡¯s serious demeanor made the siblings feel embarrassed as they hastily gave their assurances.

    Upon hearing this, Qu Yanxin immediately raised her head from within her Mother¡¯s embrace, tears still glistening from her watery eyes. "Big Brother Shen, does that mean that you¡¯re not angry at me anymore? And does that mean that I can take a look at your room?" After saying that, she looked as if she suddenly remembered Shen Jingbin as well and turned to look at her. "Big Sister Shen as well, you wouldn¡¯t mind if I took a look at your room as well, right?"

    "Qu Yanxin, what are you doing?!" Aunt Zhang couldn¡¯t stop herself from reprimanding her.

    Qu Yanxin tightened her grip around Aunt Zhang¡¯s waist. Her voice, affected by her recent outburst of tears, sounded nasally as she began whining, "Mom, why are you shouting at me? Didn¡¯t Big Brother Shen say that this wasn¡¯t a big deal?"

    What was called being shameless? Shen Jingbin had finally witnessed it first hand. She¡¯d originally decided not to hold this incident against Qu Yanxin since she was just a little kid, but not when she was being this audacious!

    Children mustn¡¯t be spoilt!

    "Aunt Zhang, is Xinxin returning home tomorrow?" Shen Jingbin suddenly asked Aunt Zhang.

    Aunt Zhang looked at Shen Jingbin in confusion. She didn¡¯t know why Shen Jingbin was suddenly bringing it up. Qu Yanxin, who was in her arms, also nced over. "That¡¯s right," Aunt Zhang replied.

    "Are her belongings packed? I just remembered that you¡¯d bought a lot of things and said that they were for your daughter. If she doesn¡¯t pack now, she might not have enough time to do so tomorrow," Shen Jingbin¡¯s beautiful face betrayed no emotion. It was impossible to tell whether she there was happiness or displeasure on it as she spoke to Aunt Zhang.

    Aunt Zhang was a very sharp person. She naturally understood the meaning behind Shen Jingbin¡¯s words and immediately pulled at Qu Yanxin¡¯s arm, eximing as though she had remembered something too, "Oh that¡¯s right, I remember now! Xinxin, I bought a lot of things for you, so we should pack them in your luggage now. Otherwise, it¡¯ll be difficult for you to bring them back tomorrow."

    Qu Yanxin was reluctantly led downstairs. She couldn¡¯t help but grumble, "Mom, what are you rushing for? We can pack after dinner...walk slower!"

    Shen Jingbin retracted her gaze after she saw that the Mother-daughter duo had disappeared from sight. Shen Jingchen nced at her. "Sis, you pissed?"

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "Not at the level of being pissed, just upset, that¡¯s all."

    Shen Jingchen tutted, "Girls these days are bing more and more devious. But while their intentions are getting more and more devious, less can be said about their intelligence. Though, I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s a good or bad thing," While he spoke, he realized that his sister was giving him an ufortable stare with a strange expression on her face.

    "Hey, what¡¯s with that look?"

    "I was just looking to see which part of you managed to attract those girls."

    "Tsk, this is called being suave and unrestrained."

    "I think you really need to see an optometrist."

    "..."

    During dinner, Qu Yanxin never once brought up the topic of looking at the siblings¡¯ rooms again, and they chalked it up to Aunt Zhang saying something to her. However, leaving aside Aunt Zhang¡¯s parenting skills, all was well as long as Qu Yanxin didn¡¯t bother them.

    After dinner, the Shen siblings came up with a reason to excuse themselves from Aunt Zhang and her daughter¡¯spany, and left the house for a walk. From the window, Qu Yanxin watched the siblings¡¯ gradually receding figures with a look of displeasure written all over her face.

    Loudly running back into the kitchen, Qu Yanxin asked her Mother, "Mom, what do you think of meing over to y for a few days after my high school exams?"

    Aunt Zhang, who was in the middle of washing the dishes, paused for a moment. Without looking back, she said, "No, you¡¯re noting back here ever again, not even to see me."

 Chapter 144

    <b>Chapter 144: An Argument Between Mother And Daughter (2) </b>

    "Why?! You¡¯re hardly at home every year. I can¡¯t be by your side even if I miss you and want to see you. Aren¡¯t you on good terms with the Shen siblings? Since I can stay this time, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to let me stay again next time! Moreover, this house is so big, it¡¯s a waste to just use it to house three people. I think I should bring Dad along next time as well. I¡¯m sure they wouldn¡¯t mind."

    "Qu Yanxin!" Aunt Zhang wasn¡¯t able to listen any longer. She set down the tableware in her hands and harshly rebuked her daughter.

    Startled by her Mother¡¯s stern tone, several seconds of stunned silence passed before Qu Yanxin unhappily asked, "What was that for?! Why are you suddenly yelling?"

    Aunt Zhang felt suffocated; it was as if there was something ufortable stuck in her chest. "Think back to what you said just now, was that really something you should be saying? Huh!?"

    "Did I say anything inappropriate? Wasn¡¯t what I said the truth...? Oh, I see now. You¡¯re unhappy about Dad and Iing to the city to look for you, right? So now you¡¯re neglecting Dad and I after enjoying the delicacies of the rich and wealthy? Be honest with me Mom, do you ever think about Dad and I, who spend everyday in that rundown house, huh?"

    "You unfilial girl! Do you realise what you¡¯re saying?!" Never in her wildest dreams did Aunt Zhang ever expect her own daughter to use her so maliciously. She felt faint. "Have you ever understood your own position? Your Mother is just a nanny. Have you ever seen a nanny bring her family into her employer¡¯s house? This time, the siblings allowed you to stay here for a few days out of the goodness of their hearts. However, just because they¡¯re being nice doesn¡¯t mean you can overstep your boundaries!"

    "Since they did it out of their own goodwill, then they should continue being good Samaritans! Otherwise, their failure to follow through means their goodwill was nothing more than hypocrisy!" Qu Yanxin yelled."You neglect your own family and only care about their wellbeing, so what¡¯s wrong with them paying back what they owe Dad and I? I didn¡¯t ask for their money, nor did I ask for anything else; I just want to say here for a few days. Their house is sorge, so can¡¯t they just make some room for me?!"

    "Did your Father teach you all this?" Aunt Zhang felt that her worldview was being twisted beyond recognition.

    "Dad? That old stick in the mud only knows how to protect that rickety old house that you left behind, what could he teach me?" Qu Yanxin said with a look of disdain on her face.

    Aunt Zhang suddenly fell into silence for a long while before she finally replied, "Qu Yanxin, your Dad and I painstakingly earned money for you to study all these years. I¡¯ve never hoped that you¡¯de out as an exemry individual, I just wished for you to earn enough to support yourself. However, I never imagined that you¡¯d turn out like this... This is my failure as a Mother. You used me of living in a vi and neglecting your Father and yourself while I enjoyed various delicacies? Alright, don¡¯t you worry. I¡¯ll go back with you tomorrow, so don¡¯t bother thinking about returning."

    Not expecting her Mother toe to such a decision, Qu Yanxin instantly became flustered and she regretted what she¡¯d said in the heat of the moment.

    "Mom, don¡¯t! Sorry, I was in the wrong! E-everything I said just now was in the heat of the moment, don¡¯t be angry! This job here wasn¡¯t easy to find, how are we going to live on if you resign?"

    "You won¡¯t stop thinking about this ce as long as I remain as a nanny for a wealthy family in the city... Qu Yanxin, I know what you¡¯re plotting. You¡¯re still young, so you can still be corrected if your character is wed. However, no one will be able to help you if you grow older and these habits be ingrained into you. I don¡¯t want my daughter to be like those stereotypical, improper, money-grubbing girls who go about seducing wealthy people that others talk about."

    Qu Yanxin¡¯s face instantly fell as it was a rather unpleasant thing for her to hear. "Mom, what nonsense are you talking about? What am I plotting?"

    "Did you actually think I couldn¡¯t tell that you¡¯ve set your sights on Shen Jingchen in the hopes of jumping onto the Shen family¡¯s boat? Qu Yanxin, you¡¯re still a high school student, you should concentrate on studying instead of these things. Do you understand?"

    Qu Yanxin found it a little hard to ept having the dark, ulterior motives that she¡¯d kept hidden in the deep recesses of her heart being pointed out by her Mother so suddenly. She stood dumbfounded as she saw the look of heartache in her Mother¡¯s eyes and subconsciously took two steps back. She then turned around and ran out the entrance without looking back, throwing her Mother¡¯s cries to the back of her mind.

    If even her own Mother had found out, did that mean the Shen siblings had seen through her as well?

    In that case, weren¡¯t they treating her like a performing monkey as they watched her wrack her brains to butter them up?

    Qu Yanxin thought to herself as she ran.

    No, Big Brother Shen wouldn¡¯t do something like that. It¡¯s got to be that woman, Shen Jingbin!

    That¡¯s right, it has to be her!

    Even today¡¯s incident was caused by her meddling!

    If it wasn¡¯t for her, she wouldn¡¯t have been found out by Big Brother Shen, nor would she have argued with her Mother!

    Everything was Shen Jingbin¡¯s fault! She showed off how close she was to Big Brother Shen just because she was his sister to make her jealous, and she looked down on her just because she was the heiress of a wealthy family!

    Shen Jingbin you bitch!

    Qu Yanxin ground her teeth in hatred.

    At this moment, the phone in her pocket started ringing.

    Slowing her footsteps, she pulled out her handphone and nced at it.

    It was Zeng Lingling.

    Why would she call her?

    "Hello?"

    "Qu Yanxin, who¡¯s that beautiful Big Sister who was with you this morning?" Zeng Lingling immediately asked when she answered the phone.

    "Why are you asking?" Qu Yanxin asked suspiciously.

    "Nothing really, I just felt that that Big Sister was really pretty and wanted to know more about her."

    Qu Yanxin coldly snorted, "What¡¯s her beauty got to do with you?"

    "Why do you have to be so unfriendly? All I¡¯m asking for is a bit of information, will you tell me or not?"

    "Her name¡¯s Shen Jingbin, she¡¯s the arrogant heir of a wealthy family. Even though she¡¯s really beautiful, the same can¡¯t be said about her character. Not only is she petty and hypocritical, she¡¯s also extremely haughty," Came Qu Yanxin¡¯s reply as she did her utmost to paint Shen Jingbin ck.

    "Tsk, I don¡¯t need you to tell me what kind of person she is, I¡¯ll determine that with my own eyes. I do know how rumors can spread falsehoods. Alright, that¡¯s all. I¡¯m hanging up," Zeng Lingling was utterly unconvinced by Qu Yanxin¡¯s bad-mouthing, decisively ending the call after obtaining the information she wanted. After the call, Zeng Lingling opened her Weibo app and pulled out a conversation window from her list of contacts before she began typing.

    "I¡¯ve enquired about her, the beauty¡¯s name is Shen Jingbin. She¡¯s the heiress of a wealthy family and it seems like she doesn¡¯t have a good temper."

    The other party¡¯s reply came swiftly, "Understood, thank you. I¡¯ll contact you again when the reward¡¯s been delivered."

 Chapter 145

    <b>Chapter 145: Aunt Zhang Returns Home (1) </b>

    Xiang Peng¡¯s eyes remained inscrutable as he looked at his handphone¡¯s disy.

    Xu Ya¡¯s words still resounded clearly in his ears. In that case, should he still continue with his investigation?

    The Great God clearly wasn¡¯t someone that he could afford to offend, but the person himself didn¡¯t say anything about carrying out an investigation. So, should he take the risk?

    While immersed in his thoughts, his once dark phone screen suddenly lit up again.

    It was his superior calling.

    "Hello, Boss."

    "Little Xiang, have you found the person I¡¯ve asked you to look for?"

    Bringing the phone to his ear, Xiang Peng stood up and walked over to the window where he was greeted by the glowing nightscape of B City. "I¡¯vepleted my investigation and I¡¯ll be able to give you the necessary information tomorrow."

    "Good job Little Xiang, I knew you¡¯d be able to get it done. I definitely picked the right person! Alright, make sure you do a good job, I won¡¯t disturb you any longer. Print out the details once you¡¯re donepiling them and pass it to me tomorrow at work."

    "Yes Boss."

    "Carry on then. And rest early, you have to remember to take care of yourself."

    "Understood. Thanks Boss."

    Xiang Peng hung up and took a deep breath. He then squeezed his phone several times before he made his way back to hisputer.

    His bony fingers danced across the keyboard. In just a few short seconds, dizzying lines of code popped up on his screen.

    Rows upon rows of data zipped past Xiang Peng¡¯s eyes. At the same time, bits of information he needed gradually appeared as well, punctuated by the press of a backspace key.

    A window that looked like a personal particrs file appeared on the screen. In the top left corner, there was a passport-sized photo with a red background. The person in the photograph had features that were a work of God himself.

    As he looked at the photo, the corners of Xiang Peng¡¯s mouth curled into a smile.

    It¡¯s done.

    After returning home from their evening stroll, the Shen siblings couldn¡¯t find hide nor hair of Aunt Zhang and Qu Yanxin. They might have gone to sleep, or they could have left the house.

    The next day, the siblings had just returned from sending Qu Yanxin to school when they happened to witness Aunt Zhang in the midst of packing her belongings.

    Seeing them back home, Aunt Zhang came forth to wee them with an apologetic look on her face, "Little Chen, Little Jing, I there¡¯s something I need to discuss something with the two you."

    The siblings nced at one another.

    "Go ahead Aunt Zhang, we¡¯re listening," Shen Jingchen answered.

    A look of hesitation crept onto Aunt Zhang¡¯s face. She remained silent for a long while before she finally worked up the determination to continue speaking, "It¡¯s like this, I wish to resign so that I can go back home and look after Xinxin. She¡¯s in her third year of high school and her studies are putting quite a lot of pressure on her. Her Father¡¯s a pretty careless person as well, so I think it¡¯d be best for me to return home to look after her," Aunt Zhang chose to not reveal the real reason behind her resignation. "Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve already spoken to Ole Yuan about this."

    She was referring to the siblings¡¯ maternal Grandfather.

    The siblings were taken aback by Aunt Zhang¡¯s sudden revtion.

    Shen Jingbin was the first to speak up, "Aunt Zhang, how about this instead? We¡¯ll give you some time to go on a vacation, and you cane back once your daughter¡¯s done with her high school exams. What do you think?"

    Aunt Zhang shook her head. "No no no, how could I do something like that..."

    Shen Jingchen cut in and interrupted her, "Aunt Zhang, don¡¯t be so quick to refuse. After taking care of us for so long, you¡¯re the only one who knows our tastes. Adapting to someone new will be way too troublesome for us."

    Aunt Zhang started hesitating once again. However, she still felt ufortable about it. "Then... I¡¯ll be put in a tight spot if the two of you do this. How would you cope when I¡¯m not around?"

    "We can take care of our meals. As for cleaning, we¡¯ll just employ a part-timer to do it." Shen Jingbin replied.

    "That¡¯s right, we can take care of our own meals, they¡¯re just not as delicious as the ones you make. We can always eat out if there¡¯s no time, and if that doesn¡¯t work, we could always go back to Grandfather¡¯s for dinner. Either way, Granny can¡¯t wait for us to go back... Alright Aunt Zhang, you don¡¯t have to hesitate any longer, we¡¯ll let you go on vacation," Shen Jingchen added.

    Aunt Zhang had wanted to say something else when Shen Jingbin spoke, "Aunt Zhang, are you going to go back with Qu Yanxin? How do you n to go back?"

    Aunt Zhang nodded. "Mm, I¡¯ll be going back with Xinxin. Her school¡¯s transportation doesn¡¯t have any extra seats, so I¡¯ll go to the bus stop and head back on my own."

    "Have you booked your ticket yet?" Shen Jingchen asked.

    Aunt Zhang shook her head.

    "In that case, why don¡¯t Shen Jingbin and I send you back home since we¡¯re free? That way, you won¡¯t have to crowd around at the bus stop," He then nced at Aunt Zhang¡¯s pile of luggage and said, "With the amount of things you have, it¡¯s going to be difficult for one person to manage on their own, so we can help you with that as well."

    Aunt Zhang followed his gaze and looked back on her own half-packed luggage; it really wasn¡¯t something she could manage on her own. Realizing this, she nodded her head and epted their offer.

    What a good boy, her daughter truly wasn¡¯t worthy of him.

    After Aunt Zhang finished packing her belongings, the siblings drove her back home.

 Chapter 146

    <b>Chapter 146: Aunt Zhang Returns Home (2) </b>

    Aunt Zhang¡¯s home was located in a rather wealthy town due to its rtively close distance from the city. As they were bringing Aunt Zhang¡¯s luggage along, Shen Jingchen opted to use a more low-profile and practical vehicle to avoid attracting the attention of others.

    Later in the day, their car stopped in front of a cottage at the very end of the vige¡¯s market. Shen Jingchen stepped out of the car to help Aunt Zhang with her luggage, while Shen Jingbin remained in the car.

    Aunt Zhang¡¯s husband, Qu Fugui, was alerted by the activity outside his home and he came running out, a hint of surprise colouring his face when he saw his wife.

    "Why¡¯re you back again? Didn¡¯t Xinxin say she was going to live with you in the city? What¡¯s all this now?"

    Aunt Zhang bade Shen Jingchen to be careful while she replied to her husband, "Xinxin¡¯s in herst year of high school, so I¡¯ve asked my employers for a vacation since I¡¯m worried that you won¡¯t be able to handle it."

    At this time, Shen Jingchen just happened to pop out from the back. He straightened himself and greeted Qu Fugui, "Hello Uncle Qu."

    Despite his wife being the siblings¡¯ nanny all these years, Qu Fugui himself had never once seen who her charges were. With the sudden appearance of a young man who was outstanding in both looks and temperament, Qu Fugui responded slowly, "H-hello, you are?"

    "Us siblings are the ones whom Aunt Zhang has been taking care of all this while."

    "Siblings?" Qu Fugui looked around. But there¡¯s only one of you.

    Shen Jingbin rolled down the car window and greeted him, "Hello, Uncle Qu."

    Are all people from the city so good-looking?

    Qu Fugui looked at Shen Jingbin and his mind nked out for a few moments. When he came to, he blushed at the realization that he¡¯d actually fallen into a daze because of this youngss. Awkwardly coughing, he said, "Eh, hello-hello there... Um, do you the two of you want toe in for a bit? I¡¯ll prepare some tea for you."

    Shen Jingchen moved Aunt Zhang¡¯s luggage into the house and replied, "No need, we¡¯re just here to send Aunt Zhang back and will be leaving soon after. No need to trouble yourself, Uncle Qu."

    Qu Fugui obediently nodded in response and dumbly stood to the side. He watched on as Shen Jingchen carried Aunt Zhang¡¯s luggage into their home before he politely bade farewell to the couple and left.

    "Hey, what are you still looking at?" Aunt Zhang noticed her husband staring in a daze at the direction the siblings had driven off in and patted his shoulder.

    Dragged back to reality by his wife, Qu Fugui turned back and stared at his wife for a few seconds, before he asked, "Are all city people so good-looking?"

    Aunt Zhang looked at him from the corner of her eyes and said replied with a look of amusement on her face, "Look at you, it¡¯s not as if you¡¯ve never been to the city before."

    "I used to think our Xinxin had be prettier, but afterparing her to those two, she seems..." Qu Fugui chose not to continue. After all, Qu Yanxin was his daughter.

    At the mention of their daughter, Aunt Zhang¡¯s smile faded slightly. "She good-looking by our town¡¯s standards. However, there are plenty of girls that are prettier than her in the city. You shouldn¡¯t praise her so much from now on, otherwise, she won¡¯t be able to change once she grows a big head."

    After she said her piece, Aunt Zhang turned and walked into her home. Qu Fugui looked at his wife¡¯s back and scratched his head, unable toprehend what she meant.

    However, the siblings that had arrived just now were really good-looking, more so than any celebrity he¡¯d ever seen on television. The younger sister, in particr, was the pinnacle of refinement!

    Xinxin will definitely be just as refined in the future when she enters a university in the city.

    Qu Yanxin¡¯s eyes widened at the sight of her Mother busying herself in the kitchen when she returned home.

    "Mom! Why are you here?!"

    Qu Yanxin thought her Mother was just threatening her; she didn¡¯t think that she was actually being serious!

    Hearing her daughter¡¯s voice, Aunt Zhang turned to look at her and replied, "This is my house, why wouldn¡¯t I be here?"

    "No, what I mean to say is: you¡¯re over here, so what¡¯ll happen to Big Brother Shen? What about your job?"

    "Xinxin, you¡¯re back," Just then, Qu Fugui walked through the entrance with vegetables in hand. At the sight of his daughter, he happily said, "Your Mother took a vacation just so she could look after you, aren¡¯t you d?"

    "What¡¯s there to be happy about? What¡¯s she going to do about her job if shees back? She says it¡¯s a vacation, but how can she be so sure they¡¯d be willing to take her back in again when she goes back!" Near the end of her speech, Qu Yanxin¡¯s tone of voice sounded a little shrill.

    She¡¯d never be able to get close to Shen Jingchen again if her Mother wasn¡¯t under their employ!

    Qu Fugui looked at his emotional daughter in confusion and replied, "That¡¯s not right, the siblings your Mother takes care of drove her back today. They seemed like reasonable people to me. Oh, that¡¯s right, that younger sister sure was pretty and refined. Xinxin, you should know who I¡¯m talking about, right? You should learn a thing or two from her..."

    "Ah!" Her Father¡¯s words stabbed into her heart like barbed thorns. Unable to take it anymore, Qu Yanxin screamed as she ran into her room and mmed the door shut.

    Qu Fugui looked at the door to his daughter¡¯s room in confusion and asked his wife, "What¡¯s the matter with her?"

    Aunt Zhang gave a profound nce at Qu Yanxin¡¯s door before she replied, "It¡¯s nothing. She might¡¯ve been too happy about meing back. Hurry up and help me wash the vegetables!"

    "Oh," Came Qu Fugui¡¯s obedient reply as he squeezed into the kitchen with vegetables in hand.

    Is that what my daughter¡¯s like she¡¯s happy?

    Since Aunt Zhang had gone home, the Shen siblings decided to hang around outside and y before returning to the Shen residence for dinner.

    Granny Shen was overjoyed about the siblings¡¯ unannounced return. Old Master Shen, however, was anything but happy.

    How could anyone be happy when there were two brats vying for his partner¡¯s attention?!

    Granny Shen saw through her husband¡¯s dissatisfaction. Pulling him aside, she asked, "Can you stop acting like this? It¡¯s rare for the kids toe home on their own... You should ask Little Jing about her rtionship with the boy from Ole Zhao¡¯s familyter."

    Old Master Shen¡¯s eyes shone brightly upon hearing that.

    Oh? Looks like he¡¯s found something interesting to entertain himself with!

 Chapter 147

    <b>Chapter 147: The Entertainer Lianshui (1) </b>

    At the dinner table, Shen Jingbin sensed the strange look that her elders were giving her. Their expressions made it seem like they had something to say, and it made her feel very anxious.

    "Gramps, Granny, you can just say it if there¡¯s anything on your minds," Unable to bear it any longer, Shen Jingbin set her utensils down and looked solemnly at her Grandparents.

    "Ahem," Old Master Shen coughed once in an attempt to gloss over it. "Um, how are things recently?"

    "What are you referring to?"

    "Hm, your lifestyle, studies, mental state... as well as your rtionships."

    Shen Jingchen interrupted, "Thest part was probably the most important one."

    Old Master Shen used his chopsticks to whack him on the head. "Who asked you! Shut up and eat your meal."

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    Shen Jingbin looked her Grandparents in the eye and said, "My life¡¯s good, studies are good, and I¡¯m doing fine mentally. As for my rtionships..."

    The elders focused all of their attention on her.

    "It¡¯s pretty good too."

    "That¡¯s it?" Granny Shen asked.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "That¡¯s it."

    Old Master Shen nearly threw his chopsticks onto the table. "Don¡¯t patronize me!"

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    Grandfather, just what are you trying to achieve with that aggrieved look on your face?

    Regardless of the Shen elders¡¯ attempts to squeeze out more information from her through roundabout questions, threats, and incentives, Shen Jingbin chose to grit her teeth and keep a tight lip on the details of her rtionship and life. In the end, her Grandparents came out of it empty-handed when the siblings finished dinner and left for home.

    After they returned home, the siblings resumed their life of bliss.

    The days passed quickly and Sunday soon arrived. The entry count on the three Demonic Sect dungeons was also refreshed. Today, Shen Jingbin logged on early in the morning and even coerced Shen Jingchen into going out and buying breakfast for her.

    Even though it was still early, Pure Crane and the others were online.

    Shen Jingbin received a letter from Pure Crane the moment she logged in.

    "We¡¯re just about to take on the three Demonic Sect dungeons, do you want to join in?"

    "Alright," She had just sent a reply when the party invitation was sent back.

    A brief look at the invite revealed that she was thest person. Apart from Pure Crane, ck Hawk, Delicate Flower, and Cheshire Cat, there were 5 other yer IDs that she didn¡¯t recognize. Pure Crane exined that the other group was also on their way to explore the Demonic Sect¡¯s map, so the two groups decided to team up and run the dungeons together.

    By using a teleportation scroll, yers in the same party would be able to instantaneously move to the same area together, preventing them from being separated.

    The group consisted of highly experienced yers, so with excellent teamwork, they cleared the three dungeons without much trouble. After exiting Blood Soaked Hell and properly distributing the dropped equipment via dice rolls, Pure Crane took the initiative to bid the other five yers farewell.

    Afterwards, the five people tore the transfer scrolls in their hands.

    Five white streaks of light shed and they vanished from sight.

    They were pretty lucky. Surprisingly, upon opening their eyes, they found themselves just outside the gates of Undying City.

    This time, there wasn¡¯t even the slightest bit of hesitation as they made a beeline towards the theatre located at the heart of Undying City.

    Once they surrounded the theatre, the party looked at one other. After signalling the rest with his eyes, Pure Crane stepped forward and reached out with his hand to touch the stage cloth.

    Yet, for some strange reason, nothing happened despite him cing his entire hand on the stage.

    "What¡¯s going on? Why isn¡¯t anything happening?" ck Hawk turned about in a circle to survey her surroundings before she asked in confusion.

    Delicate Flower fell silent for a moment before she said, "ckie, touch it and see what happens."

    The previous event was triggered by ck Hawk. Since nothing happened when Pure Crane touched the cloth, there was a very high probability that the event would only begin after ck Hawk did something.

    At Delicate Flower¡¯s suggestion, ck Hawk gingerly reached out her hand and ced her palm onto the theatre¡¯s stage cloth.

    Delicate Flower¡¯s hypothesis was right on the money.

    The moment ck Hawk¡¯s hand made contact with the stage, a sorrowful, female voice could be heard.

    "Beauties andmoners aren¡¯t fated to be, while romance taken lightly births regrets."

    Soon after, the once silent Undying City came alive once more; the translucent silhouettes that they¡¯d previously seen appearing before their eyes again. The group of five huddled up, alert and fully aware of their surroundings.

    Mere momentster, a scarlet figure appeared just outside the crowd of translucent silhouettes in the direction of the city gates.

    Despite the distance, the group could clearly tell that it was someone with a slender and delicate figure. She walked with a seductive grace and radiated boundless charm.

    Shen Jingbin was willing to bet that this person was definitely a real beauty!

    Pure Crane issued a warning to everyone as the beauty in red walked closer, "Be on your guard, there¡¯s probably something wrong with this person."

    The group of five only managed to get a clear look at the beauty when she was a few paces away from them.

    This was a woman who wore the garments of a huadan in a y. Complicated essories adorned her hair, while the exquisite makeup of a huadan wasyered on her face. While the makeup concealed her original appearance, herrge, watery eyes were enough to win the hearts of anyone whoid eyes on her.

    "May I ask, what are your intentions ining to our Undying City?" The woman softly inquired while using a sleeve to cover up half her face.

    Her voice was akin to a cup of fragrant white wine and caused anyone who heard her to fall into a stupor; as though they¡¯d been intoxicated.

    When the waves of dizziness hit her, Shen Jingbin felt every single cell in her body switch to full alert. She immediately patted the arms of ck Hawk and Delicate Flower, whose eyes had already started to be dull and nk.

    At the same time, Pure Crane patted Cheshire Cat on the arm and met Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes.

    The trio who¡¯d been bewitched by the woman broke out of their stupor. Coming to their senses, they gave an apologetic look to Pure Crane and Shen Jingbin, before turning to re at the woman.

    Apparently, their party¡¯s reaction wasn¡¯t what the woman had expected. There was a momentary pause before she continued to softly speak, "This girl is truly impressed by your abilities."

    The woman¡¯s roundabout manner of speaking frustrated ck Hawk to no end. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?" She asked.

    "This girl¡¯s name is Lianshui, the huadan of Undying City¡¯s Pear Garden."

 Chapter 148

    <b>Chapter 148: The Entertainer Lianshui (2) </b>

    "What¡¯s with all of these translucent silhouettes? What happened to Undying City in the past?" Delicate Flower inquired.

    Lianshui revealed a troubled expression on her face. "This girl is but a mere huadan, I don¡¯t quite understand what you¡¯re asking."

    ck Hawk was about to press her for more answers when Shen Jingbin grabbed her arm and signalled her to look behind Lianshui.

    At present, the sky was clear and a bright yellow sun hung in mid-air. However, there was nothing behind Lianshui, nothing at all.

    ck Hawk instantly felt a chill run down her spine.

    Cheshire Cat discreetly supported her.

    "Is something wrong with this madam?"

    ck Hawk was a person who wore her heart on her sleeve, and Lianshui immediately noticed the irregrity in her expression.

    Cheshire Cat jumped in to answer, "She¡¯s fine."

    Pure Crane took the opportunity to continue asking, "Miss Lianshui, what¡¯s your connection to the Shinra Sect?"

    He wanted to divert her attention away from the matter.

    It turned out to be a very effective tactic and she was distracted in an instant.

    "The Shinra Sect?" Lianshui mumbled to herself. "It sounds very familiar. Shinra Sect, Shinra Sect..."

    Lianshui immediately sunk deep into her thoughts. At that moment, the system rang out in the ears of the party of five.

    "You have triggered Entertainer Lianshui¡¯s memories. Now entering her recollection."

    The announcement had just ended when the scenery instantly changed.

    The once translucent silhouettes now became increasingly opaque, turning into flesh and blood people. What was once an empty, deste street, now had numerous street vendors hawking their wares from their stalls. Undying City, which was previously filled with white noise, was now truly bustling with activity.

    "A myriad of beautiful flowers enters the eyes at the light of spring, a sight unseen since three springs past. Jade swallows flit about branches of jadestone, while butterflies flutter about in ignorant bliss," Behind them, a soft, feminine voice could be heard.

    Shen Jingbin and the rest turned around and saw a pair of performers; one male and one female, currently performing on stage. Upon closer inspection, they realized that <<The Peony Pavilion>> was currently being yed out.

    That female performer was, without a doubt, Lianshui.

    Shen Jingbin began to observe her surroundings.

    Apart from their party, there were numerous others surrounding the theatre¡¯s stage. The audience looked on at the performers with rapt attention and didn¡¯t even notice the existence of the five yers.

    "We should be in Lianshui¡¯s memories. Apart from each other, we shouldn¡¯t be visible to anyone else right now," Shen Jingbin said to the other four beside her.

    To prove her point, Shen Jingbin walked up to a man who was currently giving his apuse. She then stuck her hand into his eyes and waved. The man didn¡¯t react in the slightest. Not even a blink was elicited from him as he continued to stare at the stage.

    "Ehh?" Came ck Hawk¡¯s curious voice. She imitated Shen Jingbin by running in front of a spectator and sticking her hand into them.

    They really didn¡¯t react at all!

    "So, what should we do now?" Delicate Flower asked.

    Pure Crane looked at the stage and surveyed the surroundings before he spoke, "We¡¯ve entered a recollection after the system announcement, so let¡¯s adopt a wait and see approach. There has to be a connection between the Undying City and the Shinra Sect. Lianshui probably knows something, or she might have been affected by some event that was rted to the Shinra Sect."

    Cheshire Cat gave a nod of approval. "I agree with Brother Pure Crane, let¡¯s wait and see for now."

    Since there were no objections, everyone proceeded with the n. They each found a suitable position and sat down to wait.

    As expected, not long after the five sat down, a group of queerly-dressed people pushed their way through the audience and rushed to the front of the theatre¡¯s stage. Both male and female performers stopped performing and looked at the group that had suddenly appeared.

    A slender, scantily-dressed woman sashayed her way down the path that had been made for her. Her long ck hair flowed down her back, starkly contrasting against her body that was as white as freshly fallen snow. The slightly raised corners of her eyes exuded a seductive charm. She had a small, delicate nose, and her scarlet lips were parted ever so slightly, which came together to form an irresistible temptation.

    Several sounds of saliva being swallowed could be heard from the crowd.

    "Elder Yang, you should wake up from your beautiful, idealistic dream already. The Sect Leader has called for you," Said thedy to the man on the stage.

    The man was no longer as expressive and emotive as he was before. Instead, his face was now cold and expressionless. He red at thedy and said, "What has the Sect Leader summoned me for?"

    "How should I know? The Sect Leader only bade me to look for you, he didn¡¯t tell me the reason for doing so," Came the woman¡¯s reply.

    Lianshui heard the two¡¯s conversation. Feeling exceptionally uneasy at the sight of the man¡¯s abnormal change in expression, she tentatively stepped forward and tugged at the man¡¯s sleeve, weakly calling out, "Yang Dearest."

    Although her voice was soft, it was overheard by thedy beneath the stage. She sneered at Lianshui and said, "Yang Dearest? Well, this is interesting. Girl, do you know who stands before you?"

    The man¡¯s thick eyebrows rose up at the realization that she was about to reveal his identity. "Wuyang!" He called out sternly.

    Thedy who¡¯d been called Wuyang spoke, "Elder Yang, what do you mean by that? Is your identity something that should be kept hidden from others?" Seeing as the man was still ring angrily at her, thedy smirked mischievously and continued, "Miss, the man standing before you is not your darling, but the reputed Elder Yang of my Shinra Sect. Known for being both cold-blooded and ruthless, this man here is in charge of matters rting to disciple and punishment in the Shinra Sect."

    When she heard that, Lianshui immediately looked at the man that she¡¯d been holding on to in astonishment.

 Chapter 149

    <b>Chapter 149: Undying City¡¯s Past (1) </b>

    Speaking of which, Undying City hadn¡¯t always gone by that name; it used to be called Shuyang City. But, after the arrival of a group of strange people, their leader decided to change its name and it became Undying City.

    Undying City, Undying City. What an inauspicious name. Unable to withstand the current state of affairs any longer, a fair number of older men, coupled with several elders who held status within the city, decided to seek an audience with the City Lord.

    When they entered the City Lord¡¯s mansion, the elders worked together to draft a jointly signed letter on behalf of more than half the city¡¯s poption. Lianshui was also one of the signatories. She¡¯d originally hoped that the elders would be able to revert the city¡¯s name, but who would have thought that the corpses of the elders and the City Lord would be found hanging from the city gates on the second day.

    The row of corpses hung from the city gates; their tattered clothes hanging from their blood-soaked bodies. One look was all it took to tell that they¡¯d been subjected to utterly inhumane torture before their death.

    Lianshui had gone to see it with the rest of the members from Pear Garden. When she returned home, she fell ill for seven full days. While waiting for her body to recover, she tried to get the full story from one of her good friends in Pear Garden. But, she found that everyone¡¯s lips were sealed. The only person who was willing to talk about it said a mere two words, "Shinra Sect" before they too mmed up.

    This was how Shuyang Citypletely turned into the Shinra Sect¡¯s Undying City.

    Lianshui looked at the man in front of her with astonishment. "Yang dearest... you belong to the Shinra Sect?"

    Seeing the man calmly nod his head at her, Lianshui released her grip on his sleeve in surprise and retreated two steps backwards.

    Her actions caused thest flicker of light to extinguish within the man¡¯s eyes. He gave her a profound look before he asked, "So you¡¯re afraid of me as well?"

    Lianshui¡¯s mind was filled with images of corpses who¡¯d died gruesome deaths and she wasn¡¯t able to make out what he¡¯d said.

    The man advanced a step, gripped her shoulders, and shouted, "You¡¯re afraid of me as well, aren¡¯t you?!"

    The man¡¯s sudden action scared her out of her wits, causing her to unconsciously nod her head.

    This wasn¡¯t her Yang dearest! Her darling was charming and suave, handsome and easygoing. He definitely wasn¡¯t one of those fiends from the Shinra Sect!

    Lianshui¡¯s nod had clearly hurt the man. He loosened his grip on her shoulders and slowly retreated backwards, eventually stopping when he was ten paces away from her.

    "I thought... that you¡¯d be different," said the man in a low voice as he cast his eyes downwards.

    Lianshui suddenly felt as if she¡¯d been struck by something, a dull pain rising up from within her.

    The man¡¯s name was Yang Wuyu, and he was recruited by the owner of Pear Garden in its early days. His facial features were extremely handsome; just one look was all it took for others to know that he¡¯d grow up looking even more handsome in the future. Reality soon proved that this was true. Yang Wuyu¡¯s first time on stage hadnded him in the good books of many of Undying City¡¯s maidens, Lianshui being one of them.

    As one of Pear Garden¡¯s popr Hua dans,1 Lianshui frequently acted on the same stage as Yang Wuyu. Privately, the two of them would often meet up and discuss matters rting to Chinese opera, allowing their feelings for one another to slowly blossom.

    Lianshui¡¯s personality was somewhat simr to that of a Jiangnan girl. She was deeply devoted, gentle, and kind, all traits that Yang Wuyu admired. Which was why if nothing unexpected happened, they¡¯d nned to secretly get married.

    They¡¯d decided to save up enough money on the side and leave Pear Garden to set up a small shop together.

    But s, the heavens decreed that her "Mr Right" was actually the fiend from legend. All that nonsense about helping one another was all a lie! "Elder Yang, the Sect Leader is still waiting for you, you can¡¯t tarry here any longer," Wuyang had clearly noticed the emotional undercurrents between Yang Wuyu and Lianshui, so she¡¯d raised her voice to catch the attention of the pair.

    Yang Wuyu stared at Lianshui¡¯s face for a good long while, but he was disappointed to find only fear and disbelief written all over it. Not a trace remained of her previously kind, gentle, and warm expression.

    In the end, he gave up and resolutely turned around to leap off the stage. He then walked over to Wuyang and said, "Let¡¯s go."

    He then made his way towards the City Lord¡¯s mansion, with the men that Wuyang brought along breaking into two lines and following behind.

    Looking at Yang Wuyu¡¯s figure that was getting further and further away, an unexpected urrence took ce. "Yang dearest," Lianshui cried out.

    Her pitiful and innocent voice fell upon his ears, causing Yang Wuyu to pause in his tracks for a moment before he continued takingrge strides forward.

    Once Yang Wuyu disappeared from sight, Wuyang turned to look at Lianshui with a malicious smile on her face.

    "The Sect Leader has decreed that Undying City¡¯s new name shouldn¡¯t just on paper. The only people who should exist here are those who¡¯ve died once and now live forever... All of you have twelve hours to massacre everyone in the city, move out!"

    After herst two words descended, countless ck shadows immediately dispersed from Wuyang¡¯s side; like arrows fired from a bow. At the same time, countless blood-curdling shrieks rang out in the ears of those present.

    The musicians that apanied them on stage had long since fled the scene, leaving behind Lianshui who stood dumbly at the center of the stage as she looked on at the scene of hell on earth.

    Refers to a role in Chinese opera yed by young to middle-aged women. A Hua dan usually has an energetic or ill-natured and free-willed personality. ?

 Chapter 150

    <b>Chapter 150: Undying City¡¯s Past (2) </b>

    Wuyang broadened her stride and stepped onto the stage. As she approached Lianshui, her steps slowed, taking each step forward in time with the blood-curdling shrieks that arose from the city. It was almost as if she were taking slow, deliberate steps on Lianshui¡¯s innermost feelings.

    "What are you nning?!" Lianshui couldn¡¯t help but cry out as Wuyang drew nearer to her.

    "What do I n to do? What an utterly stupid question. What do you think I¡¯m going to do?" Wuyang felt as if she and Lianshui were ying a game of cat and mouse; she was the cat and Lianshui was the poor, pitiful mouse. The thought of this gave rise to a feeling of indescribable pleasure within her.

    Lianshui spun around and ran off. She was like a headless chicken, running wildly in an attempt to escape Wuyang¡¯s pursuit. However, what awaited her beneath the stage was an even more grisly scene of hell. She had nowhere to run!

    Lianshui couldn¡¯t endure the mounting fear within her any longer and cried out at the top of her voice, "Help! Someone help! Yang dearest, where are you?!"

    However, all she heard in return were even more frightening blood-curdling screams.

    Lianshui¡¯s face paled.

    Almost as if she was just toying with her, Wuyangzily pursued Lianshui whilst she pulled out tiny daggers and casually tossing them at her. However, all of the daggers that she let fly only scraped past her arms or thighs, leaving streaks of blood on them.

    This game of cat and mouse continued as time went on. None of the shadows bothered with her when Lianshui jumped off the stage and ran towards the City Lord¡¯s mansion, probably because Wuyang was chasing just behind her.

    When she neared the City Lord¡¯s mansion, Lianshui grit her teeth and endured the pain from the wounds riddling her body, mustering all her remaining strength to sprint forward. At the same time, she issued a final, loud cry.

    "Yang dearest!"

    Moments after, a dagger came flying from behind and prated her throat, cutting off the rest of her voice. All of Lianshui¡¯s strength left her body in an instant and she slumped down in front of the City Lord¡¯s mansion door.

    However, she wasn¡¯t quite dead just yet. She still had a final spark of life left in her.

    Wuyang slowly walked over to her and crouched beside Lianshui. As Wuyang looked down at Lianshui with her alluring almond-shaped eyes, she said, "Did you really think you¡¯d be safe if you managed to reach the City Lord¡¯s mansion? The truth is, your Yang dearest was no longer yours once he stepped into the City Lord¡¯s mansion."

    Gurgling sounds could be heard from Lianshui¡¯s throat, almost as if she was trying to say something.

    Wuyang smiled. "Don¡¯t believe me? That¡¯s fine, just wait and see."

    Lianshui¡¯s eyes widened, she had trouble understanding what Wuyang meant. Just then, she heard the sound of footsteps.

    She didn¡¯t need to see the person to know who it was, it was definitely her Yang dearest!

    With great difficulty, she managed to turn her head. The dagger lodged in her throat bit into more of her flesh, causing her vision to go ck in an instant, leaving her with herst breath.

    "How did it go?" The new arrival asked Wuyang who was crouching on the floor.

    Lianshui¡¯s eyes lit up, it really was her Yang dearest!

    She did her best to push herself up so that her Yang dearest would notice her, which he did. Unfortunately, his next sentence left her feeling chilled to the bone.

    "Don¡¯t let this woman die just yet. We¡¯ll use her to attract and control the rest of this city¡¯s spirits once we¡¯re done massacring everyone here."

    Yang Wuyu¡¯s voice no longer sounded gentle, kind, and pleasant like it did before. Instead, it was cold and unfeeling.

    Having made her point, Wuyang cast a sidelong nce at Lianshui before she said, "Yes, Elder Yang."

    Yang Wuyu¡¯s beautiful eyescked any of its former brilliance. In its ce, dull lifeless eyes could be seen. "I¡¯ll handover everything here to you. The Sect Leader and I will make a move first."

    "Yes," Wuyang respectfully replied.

    "Elder Yang, have youpleted the handover?" Lianshui heard yet another pleasant sounding voice from a different man. "Eh? What happened here?"

    "Sect Leader, this is the woman we¡¯ll be using to attract and control the spirits this time around," Wuyang replied.

    The man¡¯s voice immediately rose an octave, "Oh, the same woman who caused Elder Yang to be so flustered? Elder Yang, how could you bear to do such a thing?"

    "Nothing canpare to the order of the Sect Leader," Came Yang Wuyu¡¯s reply thatcked a single shred of emotion.

    ¡¯Bang¡¯, Lianshui felt as if she¡¯d heard the sound of her heart shattering into pieces.

    "Yang dearest, why are you doing this to me?!" Lianshui cried out in her heart.

    Following that, the world before her descended into pitch ck darkness...

    Shen Jingbin suddenly stood up and chased after a figure that she couldn¡¯t quite make out.

    They¡¯d been following behind Lianshui the entire time, quietly observing everything that had previously happened in Undying City.

    Truth be told, this was an unprecedented shock for them; it was as if they¡¯d seen a 3D film with spectacr special effects. The scene of the entire city being massacred still remained vividly within their minds. Although the development team had thought about the yers¡¯ tolerance levels, blood wasn¡¯t flying all over the ce, nor were there any bloodsoaked scenes. However, the blood-curdling cries they¡¯d heard and the sight of people falling before them had left a bitter taste in their mouths.

    After Lianshui crumpled onto the ground, Shen Jingbin and co found their vision controlled by the system. Regardless of what they did, they were only able to look at Wuyang and Yang Wuyu. As for the appearance of the man who seemed to be the Sect Leader of the Shinra Sect, his face was shrouded in a dense fog the entire time.

    The Sect Leader of the Shinra Sect! The final BOSS!

    Shen Jingbin resolved to find out what this man looked like! Who knows, she might even run into him in the future!

    However, her hand was grabbed after taking a single step forward. Looking back, she saw that it was Pure Crane.

    Pure Crane shook his head at her and said, "Don¡¯t go after them. You wouldn¡¯t be able to make out his face even if you did catch up. His appearance has been obfuscated by the system, so we definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to see it. It wouldn¡¯t be good if you ended up getting lost."

    Shen Jingbin reluctantly looked back at the figures of Yang Wuyu and the man he was apanying as they got further and further away.

    At this moment, the group heard a notification from the system.

    "In three seconds you will be teleported out of the recollection."

    "Three, two, one, initiating teleportation..."

    "You have returned to Undying City."

    "Please take note: the Entertainer, Lianshui, is enraged!"

 Chapter 151

    <b>Chapter 151: The Strange Changes In Undying City (1) </b>

    As soon as the notification popped up, the group felt the scene in front of them start to distort, and they then found themselves within Undying City once again.

    "Ahh!" An exceptionally mournful shriek suddenly assaulted their ears.

    The shriek was closely followed by wave after wave of blood-curdling screams that grew increasingly louder as they erupted from all corners of the city. At present, the city looked almost the same as it did in the Recollection.

    The party of five subconsciously pulled out their weapons and braced themselves for battle as they faced the direction that the very first shriek hade from.

    Lianshui now stood before them with her makeup ruined. Splotches of colour the size of a palm could be seen on the left and right sides of her face that entuated her sunken eyes. Her pupils themselves emitted a red glow as reddish-ck blood continuously leaked out of them and rolled down her cheeks. No matter how one looked at her, what was once a picture of beauty was now the face of terror.

    Suddenly, her body began to wither like a deted ball at a speed that could be discerned by the naked eye. Momentster, all that was left was ayer of skin and bones, as well as her thick garments that hung loosely from her body.

    Lianshui wasn¡¯t the only one who¡¯d changed. The street that had been filled with translucent silhouettes gradually became more fleshed out. However, this new form of theirs was truly horrifying. Just like zombies in a horror film, they unconsciously let out low growls the entire time.

    ck Kite was the type of girl that couldn¡¯t even stand hearing the words ¡¯horror film¡¯ in her daily life. Faced with a scene that far exceeded her emotional threshold, she immediately paled and cried out in rm. She ran behind Pure Crane and hid, staunchly refusing to pop her head out even if she was beaten to death.

    However, no one could fault her for her cowardice, because apart from Shen Jingbin, everyone else didn¡¯t look that good either.

    With great difficulty, Delicate Flower gulped down a mouthful of saliva and asked, "Now what? Are we really gonna fight? It¡¯s getting a bit hard for me to bear with."

    Cheshire Cat nced at Lianshui who was still a few steps away from them and replied, "We spent quite a bit of time in the Recollection, so there¡¯s probably not much time left here. Why don¡¯t we hide out for a bit and wait for the system to teleport us out?"

    Both Pure Crane and Shen Jingbin approved of his idea. Thus, they immediately turned around and began running in the other direction. Although ck Hawk¡¯s legs were weak from fright, her steps didn¡¯t slow at all as she followed closely behind Pure Crane.

    The moment they made a break for it, they heard a terrifying wail erupt from behind them. Shen Jingbin nced back at them and snuck a look.

    With Lianshui leading the charge, the legion of undead began chasing after them. As she ran, Lianshui¡¯s garments continuously pped in the wind,plimenting her current appearance. Shen Jingbin felt that this year¡¯s award for the "Best Female Ghost" definitely belonged to her!

    Members of the development team, show yourselves! I want to have a good long chat with you guys about Marxism!

    Shen Jingbin turned her head back. She had no intention of looking back at that scene ever again!

    Undying City had quite a sizable poption. After running for a short while, their party realised that not only were there pursuers behind them, the path before them was also filled with monsters from every direction!

    F*ck! Does the development team even want yers to continue ying this game?!

    Everyone present couldn¡¯t help but curse in their hearts.

    At this moment, a light bulb lit up in Cheshire Cat¡¯s head when he nced at the houses on both ends of the road. "Run to the roof!"

    ck Hawk¡¯s voice trembled as she said, "Ghosts can probably fly too! Wouldn¡¯t it be even worse if we end up getting trapped up there?!"

    "I think that¡¯s a feasible idea! Have you ever seen zombies fly?! At the very least, we¡¯ll be able to throw off the rest of them and Lianshui will be the only one who can follow us up!" Delicate flower replied.

    Compared to Lianshui, those zombie-likemoners were thest thing they wanted to face.

    Pure Crane slowed his steps and grabbed ck Hawk¡¯s waist. He then issued a very simple order, "Get to the roof, now!"

    As soon as he said that, everyone in the party utilized their qigong to swiftly leap up to the rooftop.

    Qigong belonged to the same category as appraisal; they were bothmon skills that everyone could use.

    Delicate Flower¡¯s deduction was right on point. These low levelled monsters couldn¡¯t fly and weren¡¯t able toe up to the roof. They could only gather around the spot the party disappeared from and repeatedly stretch their hands towards the group. It was almost as if doing so would allow them to grab onto the group.

    The entirety of the city¡¯s changed poption slowly assembled at the party¡¯s location. Said party stood on the roof and gasped for breath as they felt their scalps go numb.

    That many monsters alone would pose quite a bit of a problem for just the five of them. Even worse, their appearance caused the party to feel a huge mental burden.

    At this moment, Pure Crane and the rest felt thatpared to the countless number of mutants that dotted thendscape before them, Shen Jingbin was a true beauty!

    Female Daoist, we won¡¯t snub you for your looks in the future! You look as beautiful as a fairy!

    "There¡¯s still ten minutes left, all we need to do is hold on for a while more and we¡¯ll be able to leave," Pure Crane reminded his party members after looking at the time.

    Delicate Flower suddenly asked, "Then, are we going to give up on the reward?"

    With things as they stood now, Undying City having a hidden quest was basically a sure thing. And, based on the analysis of the situation, the reward forpleting this hidden quest would definitely be huge.

    Wasn¡¯t the purpose of their visit this time to rush for the hidden quest? Would they really be satisfied with just waiting for time to run out and leaving empty-handed?

    Either way, Shen Jingbin herself wouldn¡¯t be satisfied with this oue.

 Chapter 152

    <b>Chapter 152: The Strange Changes In Undying City (2)</b>

    With a face full of tears, ck Hawk shot a wretched look at Delicate Flower and said, "Delly, aren¡¯t you afraid? If we need to get rid of these monsters first before we canplete the hidden quest, then I¡¯ll willingly give up on it!"

    Cheshire Cat looked at ck Hawk, who was trembling with fear and said, "Although hidden quests are umon, they aren¡¯t all that rare. I think the hidden quest for Undying City is more than what the five of us can handle. Let¡¯s try again some other time when we manage to get lucky and have more people on our side."

    Cheshire Cat was referring to a situation where they ran into another party. The destination of the teleportation scroll was random, so there were many instances where two, three, or even more parties ended up on the same map.

    Delicate Flower gave him a look of disapproval and said, "The conditions to trigger the quest might change the next time we try it. There¡¯s also the chance that the quest might have been changed. What would we do if the quest became even harder? With all this in mind, are we still going to leave? Pure Crane, say something."

    Cheshire Cat, Delicate Flower, and ck Hawk turned their attention to Pure Crane.

    At this moment, Shen Jingbin realized something wasn¡¯t right.

    At first, Lianshui and the rest of the monsters gathered below them, growling and baring their fangs at them the whole time. However, all that was left now was the group of mindless monsters that continued to crane their necks at them and reach for them. Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t find a single trace of Lianshui!

    Shen Jingbin suddenly stood up. "Lianshui¡¯s gone missing, be careful," Warned Shen Jingbin.

    "What?!" The rest of the party eximed in rm as they got to their feet and looked below.

    Sure enough, the street was a dense mass of ck, but Lianshui¡¯s eye-catching red pupils were nowhere to be seen.

    "She¡¯s really gone! What do we do?! With things as they are, she might just appear behind us in the next moment!" ck Hawk anxiously said.

    "Don¡¯t be afraid, there¡¯s not much time left, we can hold out!" Cheshire Cat consoled her.

    Pure Crane chose this moment to finally speak out. "There¡¯s not much time left, let¡¯s get ready to retreat. Don¡¯t be discouraged Gentle Flower, what Cheshire said was right, hidden quests aren¡¯t all that rare. There¡¯s always another even if we aren¡¯t able toplete this one. For now, let¡¯s focus on Lianshui. She really might just appear at any time."

    Almost as if it was trying to prove the authenticity of his words, Shen Jingbin caught sight of a red silhouette speeding over from the corner of her eyes, followed closely by a warning from Delicate Flower.

    "Little Jing, behind you!"

    A violent gale that wasden with murderous intent blew past her ears.

    Shen Jingbin had been on her guard ever since she¡¯d realised Lianshui was missing, so she was able to easily dodge Lianshui¡¯s strike.

    Having missed her prey, Lianshui released an angry howl and pounced on them once again. However, everyone in the party managed to dodge it by jumping nimbly to the sides. It might have been because they were in a game, but the roof tiles weren¡¯t as brittle as they were in real life. They remained no worse off than they were from before, even with the party jumping all over the ce.

    ck Hawk was the least agile amongst them. Although none of the attacks thatnded on her were critical, Lianshui¡¯s sharp finger bones drew out five bloody scars on her back, causing her health to instantly decrease by half.

    What the f*ck, isn¡¯t that a bit too much?!

    ck Hawk¡¯s agility may have beencking, but her overall stats were pretty good. Her defence, in particr, stood out. She probably knew that her poor agility would cause her to lose out in fights, so she paid a lot of attention to her defensive stats. At the same time, due to her being a Nymph, she didn¡¯t need to DPS. All she needed to do was take care of herself and she¡¯d be doing her part.

    In spite of that, one sh from Lianshui was enough to take off half her health. It looked like she had a terrifying amount of attack power.

    But that wasn¡¯t the most horrifying thing.

    The time they had was steadily decreasing as they exchanged blows. With things as they were, the party would be able to leave at any moment. However, the demonic-looking system notification rang by their ears in the moment Lianshui¡¯s ws came flying over.

    "Lianshui¡¯s attack has afflicted you with ¡¯Lianshui¡¯s Curse¡¯. The teleportation scroll has lost its effect and is unable to teleport you out."

    "One of your party members has been attacked by Lianshui. The party is now afflicted by ¡¯Lianshui¡¯s Curse¡¯. The teleportation scroll has lost its effect and is unable to teleport your party out."

    "Hint: Try defeating Lianshui and the nearby trash mobs if you¡¯d like to return to your original time."

    It was as if the system¡¯s hint had given everyone a blow to the head. The timer that was just about to hit zero shed a few times before disappearing before their very eyes, leaving them feeling all hot and bothered.

    F*ck! Stop toying with us!

    However, they didn¡¯t have time to vent their frustrations towards the development team. Lianshui¡¯s attack wasn¡¯t over just yet.

    The house they were on was amon one that could be seen everywhere along the streets. The rooftop was only sorge, and there wasn¡¯t enough space for the five of them- ah no, the five of them and one ghost to move about. In fact, there wasn¡¯t anywhere for them to hide at all! To top it off, the reason why they chose this house was due to it being the shortest one around. Beside it were high-end three-story houses. The other houses were so tall, the only way they could escape from the rooftop was to jump into the mass of trash mobs on the streets.

    Shen Jingbin was ovee with misery. She felt as if they were trapped in a bugged area and forced to fight monsters.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression turned sombre as she rubbed her face. She turned to the rest of her party and dered, "Don¡¯t be afraid! Fight!"

    As soon as Shen Jingbin finished making her deration, she pulled out her horsetail whisk and sent her skills flying towards Lianshui. While they were on cooldown, she rushed forward and pounded Lianshui with her horsetail whisk.

    She¡¯d used her horsetail whisk as a dagger on countless other asions, so her movements were especially practised.

    However, she suddenly heard a crack when she viciously mmed the handle of her horsetail whisk towards Lianshui.

    What the f*ck? The horsetail whisk was caught between her bones!

    In response, Lianshui gave up on chasing after ck Hawk and turned around. Her horrifying face, that was now devoid of any makeup, stopped less than a centimetre away from her small nose.

 Chapter 153

    <b>Chapter 153: Horrors At Every Turn In Life (1) </b>

    F*ck me!

    Those two words instantly appeared in Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind. She decisively released the whisk that was trapped in Lianshui¡¯s bones and jumped back a step.

    Pure Crane and Delicate Flower took this moment to attack Lianshui at the same time which caused her attention to be drawn towards the duo.

    As a Daoist, many of her skills required the use of her whisk. Right now, that very whisk was embedded in Lianshui¡¯s chest, swaying about with every movement she made. Shen Jingbin¡¯s skills, however, were now greyed out.

    Isn¡¯t this what people call ¡¯Trying to steal chickens, only to end up losing the rice¡¯? She¡¯d tried to gain an advantage but came out worse off in the end.

    The light in Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes dimmed.

    Don¡¯t think that I can¡¯t kill you off just because I can¡¯t use my skills!

    Shen Jingbin opened her backpack and searched for her backup weapon. In most cases, aside from her essential horsetail whisk, she would stash some backups in her backpack. It could be a dagger or a longsword, anything would do as long as it wasn¡¯t a weapon for Nymphs.

    Her search yielded a longsword. In the past, when she participated in a training camp, she met a girl who was skilled in swordy. The duo hit it off, with the girl teaching her a few sets. Shen Jingbin was extremely intelligent, so picking up the techniques had been a simple task for her. As such, her swordy wasn¡¯t bad either.

    Taking out her longsword, Shen Jingbin chased after Lianshui. With the slight twitch of her de, its tip left a bloody gash on Lianshui¡¯s arm. Roaring to the heavens with rage, Lianshui turned and attempted to pounce on Shen Jingbin. However, Shen Jingbin immediately jumped away from Lianshui after her initial attack, leaving not even her shadow behind by the time Lianshui had turned back.

    Pure Crane and the others used this as an opportunity to unleash all their skills at Lianshui. Upon receiving damage, copious amounts of blood began to flow out of Lianshui¡¯s eye sockets.

    Shen Jingbin was able topletely lock Lianshui down with her hit and run tactics. She would sh Lianshui once before immediately dodging after that. She didn¡¯t hold back on her strikes either, putting her all into every strike and targeting Lianshui¡¯s vitals. Lianshui would always be provoked by Shen Jingbin before being subjected to a lynching by the other party members.

    A short whileter, the wounds on Lianshui¡¯s body increased. In turn, the blood gushing from her sockets had increased proportionately as well. In the end, Lianshui finally fell to the ground after she was subjected to a powerful strike from Pure Crane.

    "Congrattions, you have defeated the Entertainer, Lianshui. Please keep up the effort and eradicate the mutants of Undying City."

    The party heard the system announcement the moment Lianshui hit the ground. Shen Jingbin kept her longsword, walked over to Lianshui¡¯s corpse, and pulled out the whisk that was lodged in her chest.

    Lianshui¡¯s body immediately turned to ashes when the horsetail whisk was removed.

    Seeing this, ck Hawkmented, "Ehh, isn¡¯t this monster going to drop something?"

    Delicate Flower sat down. Through her ragged breaths, she asked, "What about the hidden quest? Did any of you receive a quest notification?"

    The rest of them shook their heads.

    "Let¡¯s talk after getting rid of the trash mobs. Otherwise, we might not be able to leave this ce if we don¡¯t," Cheshire Cat said.

    ck Hawk let out a wail, "I feel cheated! I mean, look at this! Not only did we get the living daylights scared out of us, this BOSS didn¡¯t even drop anything despite the tiring battle we went through. On top of that, there wasn¡¯t even a single trace of the hidden quest. How frustrating!"

    Delicate Flower nodded in agreement.

    Pure Crane chuckled at the two of them, "No need to be so impatient. For all we know, the quest might appear once we take care of these mobs."

    ck Hawk¡¯s eyes immediately lit up. "Really?" However, her expression crumbled just as fast when she turned to face the ugly mobs beneath her. "Brother Pure Crane, can I refrain from clearing these mobs? I really can¡¯t conquer this psychological obstacle of mine."

    Delicate Flower patted her on the shoulder. "You have to. If you don¡¯t, the one crying would be you when you¡¯re the only one who didn¡¯t get the hidden quest."

    ck Hawk mumbled to herself, looking as if she¡¯d been deted.

    At that moment, Cheshire Cat shifted his gaze to Shen Jingbin and gave her a once-over before he said, "Does Little Jing know some moves in real life?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded. This wasn¡¯t something that could be hidden; anyone with a discerning eye would be able to notice.

    "You practice swordy?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "I spent two days learning it from someone else for fun."

    A figure appeared in Cheshire Cat¡¯s mind. "The person who taught you swordy must be really good."

    Shen Jingbin recalled that that girl seemed to be the defending champion of somepetition and nodded, "She¡¯s pretty good."

    Their conversation took ce in front of everyone else, allowing them to overhear everything. ck Hawk was pleasantly surprised by this revtion. Turning to Shen Jingbin, she said, "Wow, I didn¡¯t know that Little Jing was so strong! When there¡¯s time in the future, could you teach me?!"

    Cheshire Cat looked at her helplessly. "You just want to learn everything. Last time, you even wanted to learn the piano after seeing Delly y. Are you sure you¡¯re able to learn it?"

    ck Hawk gave a light snort and ignored him.

    At that moment, Pure Crane spoke, "Let¡¯s go clear up these mobs. Regardless of whether there¡¯s a hidden quest or not, we can only return after killing them."

    ck Hawk mumbled as she got to her feet, "This doesn¡¯t make any sense. Why are there so many trash mobs here and yet there¡¯s no hidden quest to be found? I don¡¯t want to work for free... Ugh, this is just so frustrating!"

    Compared to Lianshui, the slow and weak mobs were much easier to deal with. The only troublesome thing was that their numbers were a bit too much.

    Roughly an hourter, the party finally managed to cleanse the entire city of the trash mobs.

    Pure Crane¡¯s hypothesis was right on the mark. The party finally received their hidden quest the moment they dispatched the final mob.

 Chapter 154

    <b>Chapter 154: Horrors At Every Turn In Life (2) ¨C Teaser</b>

    "Congrattions! You have activated the hidden quest ¡¯Redemption Of Souls¡¯. Will you ept this quest? Y/N." (Activation Requirements: Defeat Entertainer Lianshui and the surrounding mobs.)

    "Quest ¡¯Redemption of Souls¡¯¡ª¡ª Proceed to the City Lord¡¯s Manor and help the citizens of Undying City find peace. (0/1)"

    Upon receiving the quest, the party immediately made a beeline towards the City Lord¡¯s residence.

    Undying City¡¯s gate was located in the east, while the City Lord¡¯s manor was located in the westernmost part of the city. With a structure as grand and massive as the City Lord¡¯s manor, the party was able to spot the City Lord¡¯s banners that were proudly flying in the air from a mile away.

    A censer materialized before the party when they arrived at the entrance of the manor. A row of incensey beside the censer. On closer inspection, three joss sticks were ced together as a set, for a total of five sets.

    "Please offer incense and pray for Undying City."

    At the behest of the system¡¯s notification, the party stood in a line as they went up one by one to light the incense and pray for Undying City.

    Shen Jingbin stood at the very end of the line. The moment she ced her incense inside the censer, everybody received a ¡¯Quest Complete¡¯ notification.

    "Congrattions onpleting the quest ¡¯Redemption of Souls¡¯. Quest Rewards: A clue about the Shinra Sect. 20,000 Experience points. 58 taels of silver. 300 Chivalric Prestige points. Note: This is an investigation quest, therefore no equipment will be rewarded."

    "As you havepleted the hidden quest ¡¯Redemption of Souls¡¯, you will be transported back to your original world in five seconds. Please be prepared."

    "Teleportationmencing in 5, 4, 3...1."

    "Teleportation in progress, please wait."

    "You have returned to your original world. We wish you a pleasant gaming experience."

    Everything happened in a blur. Before anyone could realize what the countdown timer was for, the party found themselves transported back to the entrance of Blood Soaked Hell while they were still in a stupor.

    They nced at one another before snapping back to reality.

    Everyone was bbergasted. After all the work they had to go through, the reward they received at the end of it didn¡¯t look like it was worth it at all!

    "It didn¡¯t drop any equipment or materials for us! Even the Experience points given were so little!" ck Hawk was the first one to voice her dissatisfaction as she ruefully stomped on the grass.

    The others remained silent. Their attention was drawn to the item called ¡¯a clue about the Shinra Sect¡¯.

    A small note appeared in the hands of each party member. They exchanged nces with each other before opening the note in their hands. Realizing that no one had bothered to answer her, ck Hawk wrinkled her nose and opened the note in her hands as well.

    "People who have died twice will be members of the Shinra sect without exception. Hint: Falling at the hands of the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects will result in death for the second time."

    The hint on the note was in and simple, causing Shen Jingbin to instantly think of Reckless East Emperor.

    "What does dying twice mean? Does it mean dying a second time? Countless people have died N number of times in the game by now. Are you telling me that all of them are part of the Shinra Sect?" ck Hawk, who had no idea what ¡¯dying twice¡¯ meant, asked. "Brother Pure Crane, you¡¯re the Lead Disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion, do you know what ¡¯dying twice¡¯ means?...Mmf!"

    Before ck Hawk could finish, Delicate Flower and Cheshire Cat covered her mouth whilst looking at Shen Jingbin in a panic.

    F**K! ck Hawk you dumbass! How can you say out everything you think!

    However, the duo was a step toote, and Shen Jingbin ended up hearing everything.

    The Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s Lead Disciple?

    She looked at Pure Crane in astonishment.

    Pure Crane red at ck Hawk helplessly. Feeling his gaze, ck Hawk realized she¡¯d said something unnecessary and met his gaze with a pitiful look on her face.

    Pure Crane sighed, he wasn¡¯t afraid of god-level enemies; he was instead terrified of bungling teammates. Never did he expect that despite his best efforts to keep his identity as the Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s Lead Disciple hidden, it was blown almost immediately by ck Hawk.

    "Who would¡¯ve thought that you¡¯re actually the Lead Disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion," Shen Jingbin said.

    "Mm, but I hope that you¡¯ll be able to keep this a secret for me."

    Shen Jingbin recalled Quiet And Steadfast looking for the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects and replied, "It might be difficult for me to keep this matter under wraps. I have a friend who needs to find the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects."

    Pure Crane raised his eyebrow and asked, "Quiet And Steadfast?"

    Shen Jingbin remained silent. Pure Crane continued, "If your friend is Quiet And Steadfast, then I¡¯d advise you to not tell him just yet. He¡¯ll be in a difficult position if he finds out since my identity would make things awkward."

    "What identity of yours?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Pure Crane paused, looking a little perplexed. "You don¡¯t know who I am?"

    "Must I know?" She countered.

    "Oh no... not really," Pure Crane replied, finding it difficult to answer her.

    At that moment, the entrance behind the party glowed as another party was sent out from the dungeon. The leader of the party recognized Shen Jingbin at a nce.

    "Nutjob, what are you doing here? And the person behind you is... F*ck, Pure Crane!?"

    Shen Jingbin turned towards the sound of the voice to find Slight Chill standing outside the entrance to Blood Soaked Hell with some members of the guild, along with a girl that she didn¡¯t recognize.

    Noticing that Shen Jingbin was with Pure Crane, Slight Chill cut between the two of them with her weapon drawn. Shortly after, the other members of Jade Sea Pavilion ran up and distanced the two of them from one another.

    "Why¡¯re you together with him?! Did they do something to you?! Well done, Pure Crane. Who would¡¯ve expected you to resort to such despicable means! Fight it out with us right now if you¡¯ve got the guts!" Slight Chill tilted her head up slightly and continued ring daggers at Pure Crane while she gave Shen Jingbin a once over out of the corner of her eyes.

    After listening to Slight Chill¡¯s deration and seeing the tense atmosphere between her and Pure Crane, Shen Jingbin felt that Slight Chill might have misunderstood something.

    "Slight Chill, is there some sort of a misunderstanding?"

    "Misunderstanding? What kind of misunderstanding? Don¡¯t you know that the person before you is the Vice-leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent?! He¡¯s the think tank behind the entire guild! He must have some kind of ulterior motive in approaching you."

    Shen Jingbin looked at Pure Crane and suddenly remembered Shen Jingchen saying something about this in the past. But, she clearly hadn¡¯t been paying attention to it, so this nugget of information was forgotten in a heartbeat.

    Pure Crane, on the other hand, looked at her with an unchanging expression. His eyes seemed to say: See, I told you my identity would make things awkward.

 Chapter 155

    <b>Chapter 155: Negotiations (1) </b>

    Slight Chill glowered at Pure Crane. The few other Jade Sea Pavilion members who¡¯d followed her surrounded Shen Jingbin, separating her from Pure Crane. She then turned to look at ck Hawk and co and realised they weren¡¯t members of Sovereign¡¯s Descent. She sneered and said, "Ha, why¡¯re you pretending to be a good person and lying to these newbies instead of hanging out with your guild today?"

    ck Hawk interjected before Pure Crane could reply, "What¡¯s it to you? And why do you have to be so harsh when you speak?!"

    Slight Chill was good-tempered towards those who were innocent, and would never take her anger out on them. "I have a bit of a personal grudge to settle with the person in front of you. You guys should quickly be on your way. Otherwise, don¡¯t me me if I end up identally hurting you guys."

    ck Hawk stretched her neck out and said, "We¡¯re not leaving! What¡¯s so good about you guys? There¡¯s nothing skilful in using numbers to overwhelm us!"

    "What kind of skills do we need in a game? He only has his own bad luck is to me for us catching him alone. Besides, I don¡¯t see them going easy on us when they caught our guildmates by themselves."

    Delicate Flower and Cheshire Cat stepped forward and stood beside Pure Crane. Cheshire Cat then said, "We know we can¡¯t beat you guys, but neither can we just leave. Let¡¯s begin."

    Slight Chill felt that they were ridiculous for overestimating their own abilities. Even though she admired their sense of camaraderie, she wouldn¡¯t go easy on them just because of that. This was how the game was like; if you didn¡¯t corner me today, I¡¯d be the one killing you tomorrow. There wasn¡¯t anything to be soft-hearted about.

    It looked as if a fight was about to break out at any moment now. As the person at the heart of the conflict, Pure Crane unhurriedly spoke to hispanions behind him, "ck Hawk, Delly, Cat, don¡¯t make a scene. You guys leave first."

    He didn¡¯t want to involve them in this grudge battle of his.

    "Brother Pure Crane, we¡¯re not leaving. We want to stand by your side!"

    Pure Crane suddenly raised his voice, "Don¡¯t make me repeat myself, <b>leave</b>!"

    His sudden roar stunned ck Hawk and co. Cheshire Cat, who was the first toe around, tugged ck Hawk and signalled Delicate Flower with his eyes. The two of them then proceeded to drag ck Hawk away from the scene.

    After the three of them disappeared, Slight Chill said, "Looks like you still have a bit of a conscience."

    Pure Crane shot her a brilliant smile. To be honest, this smile felt a little odd to Slight Chill and she was immediately on her guard.

    "It¡¯s only natural I want them to leave because..."

    He paused and looked up at Shen Jingbin who¡¯d been surrounded by the members of Jade Sea Pavilion. They were eyes that looked as if he was mulling something over.

    "I don¡¯t intend to fight you guys at all," Once he said that, he disappeared from where he was standing.

    He actually logged out!

    "Fuck! How can this kid be so spineless?!" Someone cursed out.

    No one expected Pure Crane to just log out. No matter what, he was the Vice-leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent. Wasn¡¯t he afraid of them using this incident to make fun of him?

    Fleeing from a fight was the most embarrassing thing that one could do!

    Since Pure Crane logged off, everyone decided to disperse.

    However, even after the rest of them had left, Slight Chill remained by Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and incessantly questioned her about why she was with Pure Crane. In the end, Shen Jingbin sent her away after saying a few words, choosing to not reveal a single bit of information.

    That night, she immediately sent Quiet And Steadfast a message the moment he logged in.

    After ascertaining where she was, he summoned his mount and rushed over.

    Quiet And Steadfast spotted Shen Jingbin as he neared where she was located. Uponnding, he went up to her and asked, "What¡¯s happened? Why are you in such a rush to find me?"

    "I found the Lead Disciple of Swordmaster Pavilion," Shen Jingbin replied.

    Although Pure Crane¡¯s identity made things a little awkward, she still felt it best to report this piece of news to Quiet And Steadfast. What he did with the information afterwards was his business.

    "Eh? Who is it?"

    "Pure Crane from Sovereign¡¯s Descent."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s silence came as no surprise. "What¡¯s wrong? Does this pose a problem?" She asked.

    She had no idea what Quiet And Steadfast was thinking of. A few secondster, Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s reply came, "It¡¯s not really a problem, it¡¯s just a little troublesome."

    Noticing Shen Jingbin¡¯s intense gaze, he said, "Pure Crane and Neverending Journey; the Guild Leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent, are very different individuals. Pure Crane can be described as a person who¡¯s talented in diplomacy; a man who schemes and has tricks up his sleeves. Even if we¡¯re on bad terms with Sovereign¡¯s Descent now, I believe many of our members are on rather cordial terms with him."

    "But I met Slight Chill and a few others from the guild this afternoon when I was outside a dungeon with him. Her attitude wasn¡¯t very good at that time."

    "This was the troublesome part I was talking about. Not everyone respects the way Pure Crane does things, regardless of how brilliant he is. All his schemes are useless in the face of Slight Chill, who¡¯s a noob in the field of diplomacy. It shouldn¡¯t be too big of a problem on his end if we were to cooperate. The difficult bit, however, is how to appease our own guild members."

    Shen Jingbin nodded in understanding.

 Chapter 156

    <b>Chapter 156: Negotiations (2) </b>

    Ever since the news of Sovereign¡¯s Descent wanting to form an alliance with Life At First Sight was announced, the rtionship between Jade Sea Pavilion and Sovereign¡¯s Descent immediately turned from that of strangers to a delicate one. After the previous battle in Redwood Forest, their rtionship further soured to be like that of water and fire. At this point, both parties had tacitly acknowledged each other as enemies.

    There would definitely be a huge misunderstanding if someone found out that Quiet And Steadfast was cooperating with Pure Crane. When that happened it would rattle his guild members¡¯ hearts and their trust in him might be shaken.

    Just think about it; one moment you¡¯d be fighting the enemy with all your might, and the next moment you realize your guild¡¯s executives were having unscrupulous rtions with the enemy. Who¡¯d be happy with such a p in the face?

    Due to that, appeasing his guild members was a big problem.

    "Then what should we do?"

    "Did you add him as a friend?"

    "Yeah."

    "Invite him over for a chat."

    Shen Jingbin nodded and opened her friends¡¯ list. Pure Crane¡¯s name was still lit up, so she immediately sent him a message.

    "Come to Green Chestnut Lake at the peak of Almond Bear Mountain. Quiet And Steadfast wants to speak to you."

    Pure Crane¡¯s reply was swift and prompt. "Alright."

    Soon, the both of them saw a white speck flying in the sky.

    Almond Bear Mountain was a region less frequented by mid-tier yers. In particr Green Chestnut Lake, that sat at the peak of the mountain, saw very little traffic. In fact, it was practically deserted. There was nothing special about the scenery, nor were there any quests. A few fishes swimming in theke were the only wild monsters here. Even amongst the yers who had nothing better to do, few were willing toe here.

    Which was why Quiet And Steadfast choosing a ce like this was something worth pondering about.

    Since few yers visited this area, the two of them could immediately confirm that the white speck was Pure Crane.

    As expected, Pure Crane¡¯s face slowly appeared as the white speck gradually inched closer.

    There was a small empty piece ofnd in the middle of Green Chestnut Lake. At present, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast were standing right on that very spot.

    "Hello," Pure Crane greeted Quiet And Steadfast first after getting off his mount. "Guild Leader Quiet is looking for me since I¡¯m the Lead Disciple of Swordmaster Pavilion, right?"

    Quiet And Steadfast was evidently very happy about Pure Crane getting straight to the point. Not making any small talk either, he said, "That¡¯s right. I have a quest that I need your help with."

    Pure Crane raised his eyebrows, "Guild Leader Quiet, our guilds are not on good terms these days. Are you sure you can cooperate with me without feeling any apprehension?"

    "I naturally wouldn¡¯t be suspicious of you if I decide to work with you."

    "Aren¡¯t you afraid of what your guild members might think?"

    Quiet And Steadfastughed. "You don¡¯t have to worry about that. What I want to know now is: if we cooperate, can you convince your guild members to not cause trouble for us?"

    Pure Crane spread his hands. "I can¡¯t guarantee I¡¯ll be able to convince all of them, but I should be able to convince about two-thirds of them. However, I have a question for you. You¡¯ve probably guessed that I have a quest as well. When the timees, if there¡¯s a need for it, can Guild Leader Quiet and the members of Jade Sea Pavilion promise to not cause any trouble for my guild? Especially that Nymph of yours called Slight Chill."

    "No problem... Then, have wee to an initial agreement?"

    "I¡¯d be honoured to work alongside Guild Leader Quiet."

    Quiet And Steadfast suddenly reined in his expressed and said, "But, I need to make it clear that our cooperation is a personal matter between the two of us, and has nothing to do with our guilds. If Sovereign¡¯s Descent really forms an alliance with Life At First Sight, I won¡¯t hold back when we meet on the battlefield."

    Pure Crane nodded. "Rx, of course I¡¯m aware of this. And, I roughly know why you¡¯ve called me out here today. I heard that you¡¯re on good terms with Hundred Daybreaks."

    Pure Crane spoke in a rather ambiguous way, but Quiet And Steadfast understood what he meant.

    He¡¯d unintentionally learned from Hundred Daybreaks a long time ago that there was a huge conflict between Pure Crane and Neverending Journey. One could even say that as long as a chance presented itself, Pure Crane would strike Neverending Journey from behind.

    "I¡¯m... acquainted with them."

    Pure Crane smiled and said, "Guild Leader Quiet, would Sovereign¡¯s Descent be able to work together with Jade Sea Pavilion if we don¡¯t form an alliance with Life At First Sight?"

    "Jade Sea Pavilion has only one enemy, and that¡¯s Life At First Sight. We¡¯re very friendly towards the other guilds," Said Quiet And Steadfast.

    Pure Crane gave a satisfied nod of his head. "Then, I¡¯ll be in Guild Leader Quiet¡¯s care from now on."

    "Well said."

    The both of them seemed to have reached a hidden agreement. Shen Jingbin, who¡¯d been observing the whole process by their side, only had one thought in mind: What the f*ck! It turns out people really do fight and scheme against one another in games! She always used to think that everything written in novels was all overly fantasized!

    Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane must definitely be crooks in real life!

    Since the two of them no longer had a conflict of interest, they could now move on to the next step.

    Quiet And Steadfast cleared his throat and summarized his current situation.

    "I need to gather the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects. At present, there¡¯s me, Nutjob, and you. I¡¯ve got nothing on the Maras, Nymphs, and Dragonkins."

    Pure Crane nced at Shen Jingbin and spoke after pondering for a moment, "I recall hearing about the Nymphs¡¯ Lead Disciple before, but I¡¯m not too certain. How about this, I¡¯ll go back and confirm it before bringing them over to see you."

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded in agreement. "Sure, I¡¯ll be troubling you with the Nymphs."

    "Don¡¯t mention it, Guild Leader Quiet. I¡¯ll head off now. Contact me if there¡¯s anything else."

    "Alright."

    After they added each other as friends, Pure Crane left on his mount.

    Shen Jingbin secretly looked at Quiet And Steadfast from the corner of her eyes as they watched Pure Crane¡¯s departing figure. Feeling her gaze on him, Quiet And Steadfast looked at her and asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "It¡¯s nothing, it¡¯s just that I felt there were too many hidden meaningsced within your conversation."

    Quiet And Steadfast smiled and said, "I told you Pure Crane isn¡¯t a simple person. He¡¯s capable, so he obviously wouldn¡¯t be willing to hold the position of Vice-leader for long. I¡¯m guessing that there¡¯ll be a nice show to watch in Sovereign¡¯s Descent soon."

    Shen Jingbin was speechless.

    Who said three women were needed to start a drama? Two men could do that too, alright?!

 Chapter 157

    <b>Chapter 157: Hundred Daybreaks (1) </b>

    Shen Jingbin suddenly recalled the slip of paper she¡¯d received in Undying City, so quickly fishing it out, she then handed it to Quiet And Steadfast.

    "I got it this morning in Undying City when I was with Pure Crane and his friends. Have a look."

    Quiet And Steadfast took the slip of paper from her hand. After ncing at it, the expression on his face changed. Seeing this, Shen Jingbin asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    "This clue of yours really came at the right time," Seeing the look of confusion on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face, he continued, "It¡¯s been quite some time since the release of the Demonic Sect expansion, and someone in our guild heard that yers from the Demonic Sect have already killed other yers. However, we didn¡¯t have any information on who the members of the Demonic Sect were because the system is protecting them while they¡¯re still weak."

    Shen Jingbin frowned. "Not even from the yers that were killed? Didn¡¯t they see what their assants looked like?"

    Quiet And Steadfast shook his head. "No. They were wearing mantles when they appeared, so none of them managed to get a good look at their attackers. There wasn¡¯t any notification when the yers were attacked either."

    Quiet And Steadfast paused for a moment. "We¡¯ve suffered many losses because we didn¡¯t know who our enemies were. Now, with this hint of yours, we have a few clues about who the past attackers could have been."

    "I know someone who¡¯s definitely from the Demonic Sect."

    "Who?"

    "Reckless East Emperor of Sovereign¡¯s Descent. He mounted a sneak attack on me when I was in Hell during the Redwood Forest incident. I killed him a second time without much trouble."

    "Alright. I¡¯ll get the guild members to take note of him."

    Shen Jingbin felt that this wasn¡¯t enough. "You¡¯re very close to Hundred Daybreaks. You can reveal it to them so that more people will know about the clue."

    Quiet And Steadfast was a little bbergasted. "This was a reward that you fought for, are you sure you want to just give it out like that?"

    "This likely concerns both factions. There¡¯s no point in me keeping it to myself; it¡¯d be much better to make it public."

    "Alright. I¡¯ll look for Hundred Daybreaks in a bit then."

    "Mm."

    "Do you want to meet Hundred Daybreaks with me?" Quiet And Steadfast suddenly asked.

    Shen Jingbin had been curious about Hundred Daybreaks for a very long time. Hence, she agreed to meet this person who seemed to know about all the happenings within the game in a heartbeat.

    The two of them immediately summoned their mounts and set off to look for Hundred Daybreaks.

    Hundred Daybreaks could normally be found in Peach Plum Academy, which was located in Jiangnan. Apparently, that was to emphasize the fact that he or she was a cultured person.

    There were many yers in Peach Plum Academy, so when the duo touched down, they attracted the gazes of many people. Putting Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s identity aside, Shen Jingbin felt that seeing an attractive person together with an ugly person would probably be even more conspicuous.

    Peach Plum Academy was made up of two parts; an inner courtyard and an outer courtyard. The outer courtyard was used to distribute quests, while the inner courtyard was for yers to participate in the Imperial Examinations and for them to attend sses while in-game.

    Hundred Daybreaks was rumoured to be a top scorer in several Imperial Examinations, which undoubtedly marked them as a true talent.

    Since Quiet And Steadfast regrly met up with Hundred Daybreaks, he led Shen Jingbin along the familiar twists and turns of the academy, before stopping in front of a room that had its door tightly shut.

    Knock, knock, knock.

    Quiet And Steadfast knocked on the door.

    "Can yers get their own private room in Peach Plum Academy too?" Asked Shen Jingbin.

    "Yes, but only those who¡¯ve obtained the top scores in the Imperial Examinations eight times in a row have the right to their own private room."

    This meant that Hundred Daybreaks had obtained the top score in the Imperial Examinations for at least eight times in a row!

    Tsk, this person is definitely a top student in real life!

    "Who is it?" A slightly husky voice could be heard from within, but Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t tell whether it belonged to a male or a female.

    "It¡¯s me," Came Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s maddeningly simple reply.

    Even so, the person behind the door recognised him. "Come in. The door¡¯s not locked."

    Shen Jingbin raised her eyebrows. Tsk, it looks like these two are really close.

    Quiet And Steadfast pushed the door open and strode right in with Shen Jingbin following behind him; the dimly lit room eliciting a squint from Shen Jingbin as she tried to make out its contents.

    The room was very simple and clean. A thin, feeble silhouette sat behind a tea table in seiza1, reading a book that was currently in their hands. Hearing their footsteps, Hundred Daybreaks looked up from their book to face the visitors.

    Hundred Daybreaks was actually a girl!

    Shen Jingbin was a little taken aback when she managed to make out the face of the person sitting behind the tea table. She¡¯d always thought Hundred Daybreaks was a man! Never had she expected that this person would actually turn out to be a girl!

    But, this made sense as well since only girls had the propensity to be so gossipy.

    Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ gaze lingered on Quiet And Steadfast for a few seconds before shifting to Shen Jingbin. Yet as her gaze shifted, Shen Jingbin noticed that her eyes seemed to slightly sh.

    "Is that person behind you Nutjob, the ugliest girl in the game? She¡¯s even more ¡¯impressive¡¯ in person," The very first thing that came out of Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ mouth wasn¡¯t all that polite.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know whether it was Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ personality, or if she was mocking her. Shen Jingbin definitely wouldn¡¯t tolerate her if that was the case. But, since Hundred Daybreaks was Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s friend, Shen Jingbin wouldn¡¯t pick a fight with her with for the time being.

    Shen Jingbin reached out and quietly pinched Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s back to express her discontent.

    What¡¯s up with your friend?!

    Quiet And Steadfast nced in the direction that he¡¯d been pinched. He then reached behind him to rub this sore spot before turning to look at Shen Jingbin.

    That hurts!

    Oh, my bad.

    ...

    An upright kneeling position which is traditionally used in Japan in meditation and as part of the preparation in martial arts. Picture!

    Click

    ?

 Chapter 158

    Chapter 158: Hundred Daybreaks (2) ¨C Teaser

    When Hundred Daybreaks saw them exchanging ¡°flirtatious nces¡± as she set her book aside, a momentary surge of anger welled up in her chest and she said rather unkindly, ¡°Can you not make googly eyes in front of me? So, why the visit?¡±

    Quiet And Steadfast sat opposite Hundred Daybreaks and motioned for Shen Jingbin to sit beside him.

    Shen Jingbin eyed Hundred Daybreaks. Hundred Daybreaks had thought that she was being extremely secretive, but the reality now proved otherwise. All of her furtive nces had been caught by Shen Jingbin, who was confidently seated next to Quiet And Steadfast.

    Shen Jingbin felt that Hundred Daybreaks ought to have some sentimental feelings for Quiet And Steadfast.

    Don¡¯t ask her why she was so sure about it. It was a woman¡¯s intuition!¡°

    ¡°You seem a little angry today,¡± Quiet And Steadfast pointed out as soon as he sat down. He could also sense that Hundred Daybreaks was acting a little strangely today.

    Hundred Daybreaks expression faltered. ¡°Really? It¡¯s all in your head.¡±

    Shen Jingbin pursed her lips. You¡¯re lying through your teeth.

    ¡°So why¡¯d youe looking for me?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯te to ask you about anything this time. Instead, I¡¯vee to share some information with you and I need you to find a way to spread it.¡±

    Hundred Daybreaks looked very interested. ¡°Oh, what kind of information do you have for me? Tell me a bit about it, I won¡¯t help you if it¡¯s nothing of value. After all, I¡¯m not going to risk ruining my reputation just to spread some pointless information.¡±

    The corners of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes crinkled downwards to meet his smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s definitely important.¡±

    ¡°Then tell me what it is first.¡±

    ¡°Those who have died twice at the hands of others will be converted into members of the Demonic Sect without fail. We can now confirm that Reckless East Emperor from Sovereign¡¯s Descent is part of the Demonic Sect.¡±

    Hundred Daybreaks raised her delicate eyebrows. ¡°Are you sure? Do you have anything to back up what you¡¯ve said?¡±

    Quiet And Steadfast looked at Shen Jingbin who was sitting beside him and said, ¡°She can prove it.¡±

    Hundred Daybreaks no longer tried to cover the nces that she was sending Shen Jingbin¡¯s way, and instead now gazed openly at her as she asked, ¡°What proof do you have?¡±

    Shen Jingbin took out the clue that she¡¯d gotten. Most people in the game knew that she was the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple as unlike Quiet And Steadfast, there wasn¡¯t much of a need for her to conceal her identity.

    ¡°I got this clue when I was exploring the Demonic Sect map. I killed Reckless East Emperor when I met him in Hell, causing him to disappear. Now that I think about it, he was probably transported to the Demonic Sect,¡± Shen Jingbin exined.

    However, Hundred Daybreaks didn¡¯t seem to pay attention to her exnation. Instead, she said, ¡°Hell? You don¡¯t even let the dead slip through your fingers. A person¡¯s heart is reflected in their appearance. Sure enough, this saying was right.¡±

    Fuck! This time she knew for sure that Hundred Daybreaks was deliberately taunting her.

    Since that was the case, she wouldn¡¯t tolerate Hundred Daybreaks any longer even if she was Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s friend!

    ¡°Ugly. It looks like this phrase applies to you too.¡±

    ¡°Quiet And Steadfast, your wife has quite the sharp tongue,¡± Hundred Daybreaks immediately brought Quiet And Steadfast into the conversation when Shen Jingbin refuted her.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face sank. It seemed as though Hundred Daybreaks was an expert at driving a wedge between people.

    If Quiet And Steadfast dared to give her any attitude, she¡¯d immediately throw the medicinal pills she had in her bag at his face. ²»¹ý»¹ºÃÄþ¾²ÖÂÔ¶Ã»ÓÐ±íÏÖ³ö¶ÔËýµÄÈÎºÎÒ»µã²»Âú£¬·´¶øÓïÆøÑÏËàµØº°ÁË°ÙÏþÉúÒ»Éù¡£

    Thankfully, Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t show any signs of discontent towards her and instead spoke sternly to Hundred Daybreaks.

    ¡°Hundred Daybreaks, don¡¯t talk to me about these pointless things.¡±

    When Quiet And Steadfast told her off, Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ gave an unhappy click of her tongue and said, ¡°Tsk, a married couple really is of one mind.¡±

    ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll ept this information and publicize it when the time¡¯s right. You should be satisfied now, right?¡±

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression lightened when he heard this. ¡°Then I¡¯ll be troubling you.¡±

    ¡°If you know you¡¯re troubling me, then treat me to a meal in real life,¡± At this point, Hundred Daybreaks nced at Shen Jingbin, seemingly pleased with herself. She seemed to be saying, Look, I know your husband in real life.

    Shen Jingbin felt like rolling her eyes. Why are you bragging to me about this? Do you think that this would make me jealous? Tsk, you¡¯re too innocent, little girl. I¡¯m not foolish enough to have genuine feelings for someone in a game!

    Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t know why he felt a little guilty when he heard what Hundred Daybreaks said. He looked at Shen Jingbin standing beside him and felt a little upset when he saw how unaffected she seemed.

    ¡°I¡¯ll talk to you again some other day. I¡¯ve already given you the information, so we¡¯ll be heading off first.¡±

    He stood up and made to leave. Yet when Shen Jingbin got up and was about to leave Hundred Daybreaks abruptly called out to her.

    ¡°Nutjob, wait a moment. I have something I want to say to you.¡±

    Quiet And Steadfast was already at the door when he turned around and furrowed his brows. ¡°What are you up to?¡±

    Hundred Daybreaks gazed at him. ¡°Why are you so nervous? Do you think I¡¯ll eat her up? Rx, it¡¯ll only take two minutes. Just wait for a while.¡±

    ¡°Wait for me outside,¡± Shen Jingbin was very curious about what she had to say.

    Since Shen Jingbin put it that way, Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t object any further and just said, ¡°Call me if there¡¯s anything,¡± before he left the room.

    When the door closed behind him, Shen Jingbin looked down at Hundred Daybreaks from where she was standing. ¡°So, what did you want to talk about?¡±

    Hundred Daybreak¡¯s lips curled upwards. ¡°Do you know how many people are on the leaderboard for ugly women?¡±

    ¡°Does this have anything to do with me?¡±

    ¡°Sigh. This obviously has something to do with you since you¡¯re at the top of the leaderboard. You don¡¯t know about it, do you? In that case, I¡¯ll tell you about it. There are only 10 female yers in the entire game who managed to get onto the ugly leaderboard. After all, someone who¡¯s ugly in this game is as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. You¡¯re rather impressive for managing to nab first ce.¡±

    ¡°You asked me to stay back just to say this? Just how bored are you?¡± Shen Jingbin said as she shot a look of disdain at Hundred Daybreaks.

    ¡°Of course, that¡¯s not all. I just wanted to remind you that Quiet And Steadfast is no ordinary person. A poor person like you isn¡¯t fit for him. So, allow me to offer you a word of advice: don¡¯t think you¡¯re some big-shot just because you¡¯re married to him in-game. You have no right to be by his side.¡±

    Shen Jingbin coldlyughed. ¡°Ha, so what? No matter what you say, I¡¯m still the one who¡¯s married to him in-game. And, even if I¡¯m not fit to be by his side, I¡¯m still more worthy than you.¡±

    ¡°You!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re just saying all this because you don¡¯t have any confidence in yourself and are using me to boost your confidence. You¡¯re barking up the wrong tree. If we¡¯re talking about qualifications, you should know better than me who¡¯s the one who doesn¡¯t have any.¡±

    After saying this, without giving Hundred Daybreaks a chance to retort, Shen Jingbin turned around, opened the door, and left; leaving Hundred Daybreaks fuming behind her.

 Chapter 159

    <b>Chapter 159: Love Rivals (1) </b>

    After stepping out from Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ room, Shen Jingbin found Quiet And Steadfast standing outside waiting for her.

    "What did you guys talk about?" Quiet And Steadfast looked like a curious child as he posed his question.

    Shen Jingbin cast a nce at him. "Nothing much."

    Bullshit!

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s lips curled, but he couldn¡¯t do anything about it if Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t willing to talk.

    "In the future, don¡¯t bring me along when you meet up with Hundred Daybreaks. It¡¯s annoying."

    "Mm, alright."

    Things transpired differently from how he¡¯d imagined it, and Quiet And Steadfast was feeling a little wronged by what she¡¯d said.

    He¡¯d originally nned on allowing the two of them to get acquainted so that Shen Jingbin would have someone to turn to if she faced any difficulties. After all, even if Hundred Daybreaks didn¡¯t excel at anything else, she was a savant when it came to information brokering.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that he¡¯d end up shooting himself in the foot? Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ment about treating her to a meal in real life had caused a misunderstanding between Shen Jingbin and himself.

    In his mind, Quiet And Steadfast imagined a melodramatic misunderstanding. He definitely had to nip this problem in the bud!

    "Actually, Hundred Daybreaks and I don¡¯t have any special rtionship in real life. She¡¯s just one of my seniors in school."

    Was this an exnation?

    Shen Jingbin eyed him dubiously. "I don¡¯t mind, you don¡¯t need to rush to exin yourself."

    "How can you not mind?! You have to mind!!" Quiet And Steadfast roared in his heart. However, his face remained stoic. "You don¡¯t mind? Then that¡¯s good. I was afraid you might have misunderstood something."

    "Is what I think that important?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    It¡¯s important! Of course, it¡¯s important!!

    "We¡¯re husband and wife now, so I don¡¯t want our long-standing rtionship to be affected by some random reason."

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head in approval. "That¡¯s true," After opening her character page, she continued, "It feels like things are bing increasinglyplex. Is my current level a little too low? It¡¯ll pose some difficulties in oveing the challenges ahead. Come help me with my leveling if you¡¯ve got the time."

    "Mm, sure," This was exactly what Quiet And Steadfast wanted, so he epted without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    "Alright then, I¡¯ll log off for today. You should rest earlier as well."

    "Mm, good night."

    Shen Jingbin logged off after waving him goodbye.

    Once Shen Jingbin hadpletely disappeared before his eyes, Quiet And Steadfast retracted his gaze and returned to Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ residence.

    Sure enough, it looked like he couldn¡¯t interact too much with some people, otherwise, they¡¯d starting up with ideas of their own.

    Over the next few days, Shen Jingbin forgot about everything else and gave her all to raising her level with the help of Quiet And Steadfast. When he wasn¡¯t online, she¡¯d pair up with either Shen Jingchen, Next Week Is Unlikely, the Four Monsters, or any of the other elites within the guild.

    However, as her level was quite high now, she still leveled very slowly even with the help of all the Gods within the guild. At the end of it, she only managed to w her way to level 99.

    The Four Monsters were very considerate and tried to console her.

    "You don¡¯t need to rush, you¡¯re already leveling very fast," Said I¡¯m Not A Monster.

    "That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. You¡¯re almost leveling at the same rate we did back then," Chimed in I¡¯m Really Not A Monster.

    "Pui, how can you of all people say that! Back then, you were the slowest amongst us all when we were rushing to level! Nutty¡¯s way faster than you," Actually, I Am A Monster retorted.

    "That¡¯s right, all you know how to do is brag. F*cking shameless!" I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me added.

    "Alright, the two of you, stop fighting!"

    "You looking for a fight? You got it! You think I¡¯m afraid of you?!"

    "Hey, you guys want to pick a fight? A two on one isn¡¯t fair. Second Brother, I¡¯ll help you!"

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    The four of them looked hrious as they bickered amongst themselves.

    Shen Jingbin thought back to the lecture that Teacher Li Qing had exhorted her to attend. Knowing that she¡¯d have to wake up earlier to return to school, Shen Jingbin interrupted the Four Monsters¡¯ scuffle and told them that they wouldn¡¯t need to wait for her tomorrow before she logged off.

    Having logged off a lot earlier than she usually did, Shen Jingbin mulled it over for a bit before deciding to whip something up for dinner. While eating out every day was convenient, there were always some days when she¡¯d feel like cooking up something on her own.

    Although her culinary skills weren¡¯t spectacr, they were, at the very least, still edible. This was why Shen Jingchen snubbing her cooking made her...

    Hahaha, who cares about him? He can just starve if he doesn¡¯t want to eat!

    As the siblings hadn¡¯t eaten at home for the past few days, the fridge was practically empty. Seeing as she still had time, Shen Jingbin decided to go grocery shopping.

    When Shen Jingbin returned home with her bags of groceries, she was surprised to find Shen Jingchen sitting in the living room.

    This guy only appeared whenever it was time to eat, so seeing him now was truly a rare urrence.

    When he heard her open the door, Shen Jingchen got to his feet and sniffed. "Where¡¯d you go... F*ck, why are you carrying so many things? What are you up to?"

    Shen Jingbin used her leg to close the door and replied, "It¡¯s for eating. There¡¯s nothing left in the fridge."

    "Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re nning to cook tonight?" Shen Jingchen ran over to her and grabbed a bag. When he opened it, he was greeted by a bag full of fresh produce.

    Shen Jingbin gave him a rare look of approval and said, "How rare, looks like your IQ¡¯s working today."

    Suddenly, a look of horror dawned on Shen Jingchen¡¯s face. "F*ck, don¡¯t scare me like that!"

    A forced smile appeared on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face as she cast a sidelong nce at him. "Haha, you only have two choices: either eat or starve."

    A smug grin suddenly appeared on Shen Jingchen¡¯s face. "Nonono, my dear little sister, you have to listen to my ns for tonight."

    Shen Jingbin red daggers at him.

    Pretending he hadn¡¯t seen anything, Shen Jingchen said, "Ah Ning¡¯sing to A City today. We can¡¯t possibly ask him to eat something that <b>you¡¯ve </b>cooked, right? Please, that¡¯s practically asking him for his life!"

    Shen Jingbin froze as she was setting down the groceries. "He¡¯sing over? Why haven¡¯t I heard anything about this?"

    "Tch, he wanted to give you a surprise. He even asked me not to tell you anything... To be honest, I wouldn¡¯t even be telling you about it now, but how am I supposed to trick you into going to a restaurant? Who would¡¯ve thought you¡¯d give us a surprise before we sprung one on you. How terrifying."

    Shen Jingbin eyed him doubtfully. "Are you telling the truth?"

    "Why would I lie to you? If that weren¡¯t the case do you think I¡¯d still be out here?"

    "Oh, so even you know that you¡¯re normally azy bum huh?"

    "..."

    F*ck, that¡¯s not the point alright?!

    "So, do you believe me or not?"

    "I¡¯ll reluctantly believe you just this once."

    "Hurry up and change your clothes, we¡¯ll be going to the airport. Ah Ning¡¯s about to touchdown."

    Upon hearing that, Shen Jingbin shoved everything she was holding into his arms. "I¡¯ll leave these to you. Go forth, youth."

    "..."

 Chapter 160

    <b>Chapter 160: Love Rivals (2) </b>

    By the time Shen Jingbin had finished changing her clothes ande down downstairs, Shen Jingchen was also done and had neatly packed away all the groceries, so the pair of siblings then left for the airport.

    Coincidentally, Zhao Chengning called just after the siblings parked their car. However, the number that he dialed was Shen Jingchen¡¯s.

    Shen Jingchen gave her a smug wink before he picked up the phone while Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, wordlessly rolled her eyes.

    Shen Jingchen hung up after issuing a few grunts. The smug look on his face was now gone, reced by a look of uneasiness instead.

    "What¡¯s with that look on your face?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Shen Jingchen pondered over how he should break the news he¡¯d heard to her.

    "Uh... Ah Ning didn¡¯te alone. He¡¯s brought several friends along with him..."

    "Friends? Do we know them?"

    "From his tone, it doesn¡¯t sound like we know them."

    "We can get to know them now then. What¡¯s wrong with your face?"

    "I was just feeling sorry for you. I thought you guys were going to have some time alone, but who would¡¯ve thought that Ah Ning himself would bring along some light bulbs."

    "... You¡¯re full of it. Shut up."

    "Hmph!"

    As they talked and walked along, the pair found themselves in front of the arrival gate.

    There were a lot of people waiting around at this time, so all that could be seen was a wave of people gushing out of the arrival gates. Some pulled along luggage bags, a few slung on their backpacks as they made calls, others exited in a rush, and the rest leisurely strolled out.

    At this moment, an eye-catching silhouette appeared within the thronging crowd. He had a slender build and air of excellence about him. He captured the attention of everyone present the moment he appeared, preventing onlooking from looking away.

    "Ah Ning!" Shen Jingchen raised his voice and shouted. He even waved his hand in tandem to indicate where he was.

    When he heard Shen Jingchen¡¯s voice, Zhao Chenging looked towards them and spotted Shen Jingbin standing beside her brother. At that moment, his eyes seemed to glow a little brighter.

    Shen Jingbin felt like her heart was beating a little faster.

    Once Zhao Chengning neared them, Shen Jingchen look around for a bit but wasn¡¯t able to find anyone else.

    "Eh? Weren¡¯t you with your friends? Where are they?"

    "They¡¯re off getting our luggage. I came out first to look for you guys."

    "Will you be staying here for a few days this time around?" Shen Jingbin curiously asked.

    When Zhao Chengning heard her voice, he subconsciously shifted his gaze to Shen Jingbin and his eyes curved upwards in joy. Shen Jingbin felt as if his eyes were filled with twinkling stars, making them look especially beautiful.

    "Mm. If nothing out of the ordinary happens, I should be here for a few days."

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head and was just about to reply when she heard a woman¡¯s delicate voice.

    "Brother Chengning."

    The two siblings looked towards the source of the voice.

    A sweet looking girl walked up to them with a mixture of curiosity, anxiousness, and happiness on her face... In short, her face was riddled with emotions as she looked on at them.

    Behind her was a tall, well-built, and handsome man with dashing eyebrows and sparkling eyes. Based on his appearance, he seemed to resemble Zhao Chengning closely. In his hand, he held three luggage bags. Exuding a gentlemanly aura, he looked towards the Shen siblings and nodded at them.

    This man was probably Zhao Chenging¡¯s rtive.

    At this moment, Shen Jingbin suddenly thought of what Zhao Chengning had told herst time about his older brother who was in Africa.

    The siblings shared a tacit understanding and retracted their gazes at the same time. They then waited for Zhao Chengning¡¯s introduction.

    After calling out to Zhao Chengning, the girl jogged up to the three of them. She gazed bashfully at the two siblings before she looked down at the ground in embarrassment.

    She looked just like a young married woman.

    At this moment, the well-built man walked over and used his hand that had been dragging along the luggage bags to shake hands with Shen Jingchen.

    "Hi, I¡¯m Zhao Chengan, Chengning¡¯s older brother."

    "I¡¯m Shen Jingchen, and this is my younger sister Shen Jingbin," Shen Jingchen courteously replied.

    Noticing Zhao Chengan¡¯s gaze had fallen on her, Shen Jingbin gave a slight smile in acknowledgement.

    "This girl over here is the daughter of a family friend, Jian Cishu. She came along with us to see what A City¡¯s like," Seeing as Jian Cishu had no intention of introducing herself, Zhao Chengning took the initiative to introduce her instead.

    However, Jian Cishu was evidently very dissatisfied with her identity as ¡¯the daughter of a family friend¡¯. Like a child throwing a tantrum, she immediately cried out softly, "Brother Chengning", but Zhao Chengning acted as if he hadn¡¯t heard anything.

    "Let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll send you guys to your hotel first since you¡¯ve got a lot of luggage," Shen Jingbin said.

    Zhao Chengning nodded his head and retrieved his luggage from his brother. He then followed behind Shen Jingbin and left.

    In ordance with gentlemanly etiquette, Shen Jingchen offered to help Jian Cishu carry her luggage. At the same time, he also took a box from Zhao Chengan.

    Jian Cishu shot a winning smile at Shen Jingchen and thanked him before she jogged after Zhao Chengning who¡¯d gone ahead.

 Chapter 161

    <b>Chapter 161: A Sly Boy (1) </b>

    The siblings helped the three of them settle down in the hotel before bringing them out to eat.

    Thinking that they would be exhausted after rushing about all day, they decided not to bother them any further and returned home after the meal.

    Before they returned home though, Zhao Chengning told Shen Jingbin that they already had ns for the next morning and that she didn¡¯t need to worry about them.

    This just so happened to be in line with her thoughts. After all, she had something to do.

    Early the next morning, Shen Jingbin shook Shen Jingchen awake and had him send her to school.

    Rumor had it that the sessful entrepreneur¡¯s lecture was to be held in the school auditorium. Jiang Meng and Xiao He had already gone ahead to save them seats, leaving Huajuan at the school entrance to wait for her.

    After meeting up with Huajuan, Shen Jingbin dismissed Shen Jingchen with a wave of her hand and left with Huajuan.

    Arriving at the auditorium, Shen Jingbin was a little startled when she saw the dense crowd of people that filled the room.

    When did their Management Department have so many people?

    "Someone posted a 1011 about this entrepreneur on the school forums along with his photo. This resulted in him bing a hot topic and people from other departments ran over to join in on the action," Huajuan exined.

    "Photo? Is he hot?" Only a hot guy could stir up such a hugemotion in A University. As she nced over at the auditorium, apart from the students in the Management Department, arge majority of the upants were beautifully dressed female students from other departments.

    Huajuan¡¯s eyes lit up, "He¡¯s not just hot, he¡¯s practically divine! How else do you think he could¡¯ve attracted so many she-wolves?" After saying so, she started digging through her phone. "I don¡¯t remember whether I saved his photo, let me find it for you."

    After searching for a while, it seemed as if she hadn¡¯t actually saved it. Huajuan thought that this was very irrational. "Strange, it looks like I didn¡¯t save it! No matter, I¡¯ll look for that 101 thread; it shouldn¡¯t have been deleted yet," She then began surfing the forums in an attempt to find the post.

    However, it might have been due to the confined space in the auditorium, or it might have been because there were too many people, but her phone¡¯s inte was just too poor and she couldn¡¯t open the page at all.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t bothered much by this. Either way, she¡¯d be able to see this person¡¯s face once the lecture began, so the photo wasn¡¯t that important. "Forget it, don¡¯t bother searching anymore. We¡¯ll see him in person once the lecture starts."

    Huajuan thought for a moment. "That¡¯s true."

    Jiang Meng and Xiao He had gone quite early, so they managed to nab seats that were right at the very front, earning themselves a very good view.

    Shen Jingbin attracted a lot of attention the moment she stepped into the auditorium. After all, she was someone who had her own built-in special effects.

    The Management Department¡¯s Goddess didn¡¯t show her face often. Upon seeing her, many people swiftly fished out their phones and started taking pictures of her.

    This was the Goddess! Even if today¡¯s lecture was really boring, the Goddess alone madeing here worth the while!

    Luo Xiaoqian had been dragged over by her roommate to attend the lecture. She had said that the lecturer was handsome enough to arouse the indignation of both men and gods, and yet he was still a bachelor!

    She hadn¡¯t seen the 101 thread on the forums, nor did she have much faith in her roommate¡¯s tastes, but she still wasn¡¯t able to avoid being dragged along.

    Whatever, it¡¯s not like she had sses in the morning anyway, she¡¯ll just act as a spectator.

    However, she hadn¡¯t expected to run into Shen Jingbin!

    It was truly a case of something knocking at your door after searching everywhere for it. She¡¯d spent so much effort looking for Shen Jingbin, but she ended up showing up when she least expected it.

    Luo Xiaoqing and her roommate arrived a littlete, so they only managed to nab themselves some seats near the back door. Seeing Shen Jingbin about to pass her, Luo Xiaoqing got to her feet with a stomp.

    "Xiaoqing, what are you doing?" Her roommate was startled by her action and looked at her in confusion.

    Seeing Luo Xiaoqing ring towards the center aisle, her roommate shifted her gaze over as she spoke.

    Nearly everyone in A University knew about Luo Xiaoqing from the Music Conservatory and the Management Department¡¯s Goddess, Shen Jingbin. The main reason for this was the Goddess¡¯ overwhelming poprity amongst the seniors. People would take note of even the most minute of things rted to her, let alone something as huge as this. Naturally, Luo Xiaoqing¡¯s roommate knew of it as well.

    However, she thought that Luo Xiaoqing was aplete imbecile. She had absolutely no chance of winning against Senior Shen.

    Afraid of her doing something irrational in such a public ce, her roommate hurriedly grabbed her and said, "Xiaoqing, don¡¯t be so impulsive. You have to be aware of the consequences of doing something in a ce like this!"

    Her roommate¡¯s words helped cool off some of Luo Xiaoqing¡¯s hot-headedness. She snorted as she angrily watched Shen Jingbin walk further away before returning to her seat.

    Her roommate quietly heaved a sigh of relief.

    "Are you the Music Conservatory¡¯s Luo something-something?" At this moment, a fashionably-dressed girl sat beside the two of them and suddenly spoke.

    101 means ¡°introductory something¡±. The allusion is to a college course with the course code 101, which in the American system and probably others indicates an introductory course, often with no prerequisites. ?

 Chapter 162

    <b>Chapter 162: A Sly Boy (2) </b>

    Luo Xiaoqing and her roommate both turned to face the girl at the same time. "Who are you?"

    "Who I am isn¡¯t important. I heard you were trying to provoke Shen Jingbin?"

    Luo Xiaoqing frowned. "What does it have to do with you?"

    "Ah, little junior, this Senior advises you not to be so conceited. Shen Jingbin isn¡¯t someone you can provoke. With her temperament, she probably won¡¯t bother arguing with you, but those fans of hers aren¡¯t as well-behaved. Don¡¯t im ignorance when someone screws you over one day," The girl sized her up from head to toe. "What¡¯s more, I don¡¯t know how you even have the nerve to face her when you look like this. You¡¯re simply asking to be humiliated."

    "You!" The girl¡¯s words infuriated Luo Xiaoqing. Flushed with anger, she immediately tried to refute her.

    Unfortunately, their exchange had caused too big amotion, attracting the attention of the student in charge of maintaining order at the entrance.

    "Hello fellow student, can you please keep quiet."

    Because the lecture this time was organised by the Management Department, the one responsible for maintaining order was naturally a student council member from the Management Department.

    Shen Jingbin had countless fans in other departments, let alone the Management Department. And, this student in front of them just so happened to be one of those very fans.

    Once she saw Luo Xiaoqing¡¯s face, she sneered in her heart. "Ah, so you¡¯re the one who dares challenge our Goddess Shen. I¡¯ll definitely treat you well!

    "This lecture is only for us students of the Management Department. I don¡¯t believe you¡¯re one of our students? Since you snuck inside, could I trouble you to maintain a low-profile? Otherwise, don¡¯t me me for chasing you out." She said reasonably.

    "Senior, I¡¯m so sorry. It wasn¡¯t intentional, we apologise," Her roommate hurriedly apologised to prevent Luo Xiaoqian from quarrelling with her.

    "Please keep an eye on your ssmate, thank you!" The student council member red a warning at Luo Xiaoqing before she left.

    Luo Xiaoqing felt like her lungs would burst every time she came over to the Management Department.

    Shaking off her roommate¡¯s hand, Luo Xiaoqing sat down indignantly. "Next time, don¡¯t ask me toe for this kind of thing!"

    "If it weren¡¯t for you being the only one left in the dorm, do you really think I¡¯d call you along?" Her roommate grumbled inwardly. However, she wore an apologetic expression and said, "I¡¯m sorry, she¡¯s our Senior. Let¡¯s just endure it."

    "Haah, you overestimate yourselves," The girl beside them sneered.

    Luo Xiaoqing red at her, silently suppressing her fury.

    "Jing Jing, over here!"

    When Shen Jingbin and Huajuan reached the third row, Xiao He stood up and waved them over.

    The two of them immediately walked over to the empty seats beside Xiao He.

    Right when they were seated, they saw the department¡¯s Director walk on stage with a microphone in hand. He cleared his throat and said, "Students, please settle down! Allow me to say something first: this lecture was originally organised for the students of our Management Department, yet I see a lot of unfamiliar faces... But, I will disregard the intentions of the students from the other faculties. Since you¡¯re here, I ask all of you to give the lecturer your full attention. Who knows, it might bring about a heaven-defying change in your lives..."

    "Tch, the Director¡¯s serving chicken soup again,"1 Huajuan quietlymented by Shen Jingbin¡¯s side.

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at her. "You should pay attention, it¡¯ll change your life."

    Huajuan stuck out her tongue. "You trying to pull a fast one on me?"

    The Director spent a total of ten minutes serving up chicken soup for the soul. Just when Shen Jingbin felt like she almost couldn¡¯t take it anymore, he halted his supply of chicken soup and began to introduce their lecturer for the day.

    "I¡¯m sure you students have all heard of the Conn Corporation, right? Conn is a miraculous existence in our industry. In just three years, it went from a small firm with merely tens of personnel to the current biggest taxpayer in B City. Today, the person we¡¯ve invited here for you today is none other than Conn Corporation¡¯s CEO, Zhao Chengning! Let¡¯s give a warm round of apuse to wee Mr Zhao!"

    Once the name "Zhao Chengning" came up, Shen Jingbin stared wide-eyed at the podium until a slender silhouette sauntered up from the side of the stage, the light slowly revealing his form as he came into contact with it. It was then that she was able to confirm that she hadn¡¯t been mistaken.

    It really was Zhao Chengning!

    This guy had actually managed to cover all of this up!

    ÐÄ»úboy£¡

    What a sly boy!

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt cheated.

    Lecturer = rumoured deity = Zhao Chengning. This was obviously far too unexpected, and she spent the entire lecture lost in her thoughts.

    She only managed to snap out of her reverie when a burst of ardent apuse rung out in the auditorium.

    "Alright, now let¡¯s move on to the question and answer segment. Students who have questions will now have the time to organize their thoughts. Later, when your name is called, you may direct your questions to Mr Zhao over here. Allow me to remind all of you to ask meaningful questions. Don¡¯t ask about anything too personal."

    Shen Jingbin heard the girls behind her start whispering excitedly when the Director stopped speaking.

    "Ahhhhhh! We can ask questions now! I wanna ask him what kind of girls he likes!"

    "I want his contact details!"

    "Hey, do you think I can request an internship at Conn? With a Boss as handsome as him, I feel like going to work would be a happy affair."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face darkened. Ladies, are you nning to ignore the Director¡¯s reminder? Don¡¯t screw around, the Director of our Management Department is very scary, okay?! Students who dare to disregard our Director¡¯s words so brazenly definitely aren¡¯t students from the Management Department!

    The time they were given to prepare their questions was actually very short. In but a moment, the Director announced that they could field their questions.

    No one knows whether the Director did it intentionally, but the students chosen to ask questions were all from their Management Department. The questions they asked were all normal questions, so the atmosphere in the auditorium seemed quite harmonious.

    However, the Director still made a faux pas and allowed Huajuan to ask a question.

    Strictly speaking, Huajuan was normally very well-behaved in front of her teachers, but in actual fact, she was a very mischievous person.

    In front of such arge audience, she naturally reverted to her true self.

    "Mr Zhao, what kind of girl do you like?! What do you think of this beauty beside me? Is she your type?"

    Everyone: ...

    Director: ...

    Shen Jingbin: ...

    Chicken soup for the soul, aka inspirational stories about people¡¯s lives ?

 Chapter 163

    <b>Chapter 163: The Director¡¯s Rampage (1) </b>

    The auditorium was suddenly filled with an awkward silence, yet several secondster, hushed whispers broke out. Everyone present was unable to control themselves and started gossiping.

    In an instant, Shen Jingbin felt countless gazesnd on her. Some were just interested in watching a good show, while others were mocking or unresigned.

    "You! Didn¡¯t I remind all of you to ask <b>MEA-NING-FUL QUESTIONS?!</b>" Said the Director as he snatched back the microphone.

    "It¡¯s alright, I can answer this question," Unexpectedly, Zhao Chengning abruptly spoke, causing everyone to look towards him.

    A dazzling smile suddenly appeared on Zhao Chengning¡¯s handsome face. "I like strong and independent women. As for this woman¡¯s attractiveness, I can¡¯t think of a single reason to dislike her."

    Immediately after hearing him say that, astonished gasps could be heard from within the auditorium.

    After giving his answer, Zhao Chengning even discreetly winked at Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin caught her breath. F*ck, what the hell is this guy doing?!

    "Hahaha. Alright, let¡¯s move on to the next student. Remember, please ask meaningful questions! <b>Mea-ning-ful Ques-tions!</b>" The Director was bbergasted by Zhao Chengning¡¯s easy eptance of it all. However, that just meant that he had a gentlemanly demeanour. It didn¡¯t mean that he could just ignore his students¡¯ shenanigans. Otherwise, if this got out, the reputation of his Management Department in A City would be ruined!

    With that in mind, the Director shot a vicious re at Huajuan. She looked like she was a third year from ss 1. She should be named Huajuan or something. Her name wasn¡¯t important though since he¡¯d now marked her! He¡¯d slowly take his time and deal with her in the future.

    The controlled question and answer segment then continued on. After Huajuan sat back into her seat, she had a wide smile on her face as she popped up in front of Shen Jingbin. "Oh my, Jingjing did you hear what he said just now?! Zhao Chengning said he likes girls like you!"

    Shen Jingbin pushed her face aside and said, "Get lost. Huajuan, you must really be suffering from something bad."

    At this moment, Jiangmeng looked over with a look of worry on her face. "Huajuan, you were way too impulsive just now. Take a look at the Director¡¯s face, he¡¯s definitely going to mark you for this."

    Xiaohended the finishing blow. "It¡¯s nothing as simple as just marking you. Take a look at his eyes, he¡¯s practically out for blood!"

    It was only then that the folly of her earlier actions dawned upon Huajuan. She let out a howl of grief and cried, "Oh my god! What was I thinking just now?! Why did I ask a question like that??? Why didn¡¯t any of you stop me?!"

    "We wanted to stop you, but you didn¡¯t give us the chance!"

    "That¡¯s right. You stood up without saying a word to any of us, so we were all caught off guard!"

    Shen Jingbin held her head in her palm. These three weren¡¯t exactly being subtle. She could faintly feel the Director continuously ring daggers in their direction.

    "Could you guys stop talking?"

    The three of them finally detected the all-epassing resentment that was being exuded from the Director on the stage and silently closed their mouths.

    What should they do? They¡¯ve offended the Director! Things are definitely going to be dire in the future. Waiting online, please reply ASAP!

    To avoid being red at by the Director, the four of them pretended to be invisible for the second half of the lecture.

    The four of them managed to make it to the end of the lecture with great difficulty. After giving his closing speech, the Director turned off the microphone and shouted at Shen Jingbin and co with a booming voice, "Huajuan, Shen Jingbin, meet me in the office. I have some things I wish to discuss with the two of you."

    "Director, I was wrong! Gajimayo (Don¡¯t go)!!!" Huajuan cried out.

    "Director, I¡¯m innocent!" Shen Jingbin blubbered.

    With the Director¡¯s tant abuse of power, the two of them had absolutely no chance of escaping. Huajuan wailed as she dragged Shen Jingbin by the arm to the Director¡¯s office.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t have any superfluous emotions on her face. However, that didn¡¯t mean she was calm on the inside. Rather, she was in aplete panic...

    Because she¡¯d received an SMS from Zhao Chengning.

    "Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll pull you out.£¨£Þ£­£Þ£©"

    F*ck! Don¡¯t do that!

    Unfortunately, nothing was going to change no matter how much she roared in her heart. In fact, she didn¡¯t even have the time to reply to Zhao Chengning¡¯s message!

    "Senior Shen, do your best."

    "Senior, I¡¯ll go with you. Just shout for me if the Director tries to hit you and I¡¯lle rushing in to save you!"

    As they made their way towards the auditorium¡¯s exit, countless students from the Management Department couldn¡¯t hold themselves back and tried to console her.

    Ah, their Goddess was far too pitiful. She¡¯s being dragged down by her pig of a teammate.

    Don¡¯t cry Goddess, we love you! Muack muack!

    "Hey, does that mean you guys can save me if the Director tries to hit me?" Huajuan said to the underssman that spoke to Shen Jingbin.

    She remembered this junior. He should be in the school¡¯s Taekwondo club and was rumoured to be pretty strong too. Stopping the Director shouldn¡¯t be a problem at all!

    "Ah... no. I refuse. I¡¯m Senior Shen¡¯s exclusive bodyguard!" Came the junior¡¯s unhesitating reply.

    Huajuan: ...

    Get lost! Get as far away from me as possible!

 Chapter 164

    <b>Chapter 164: The Director¡¯s Rampage (2) </b>

    After walking past the Management students, Shen Jingbin was immediately assaulted by a number of dissatisfied stares.

    Shen Jingbin looked towards the face that held the most dissatisfaction in it.

    Luo Xiaoqian.

    Tch, she¡¯s everywhere.

    Shen Jingbin cursed Luo Xiaoqian in her heart. Without even sparing a nce for her, Shen Jingbin acted as if she hadn¡¯t noticed her and continued walking towards the auditorium¡¯s exit.

    "Eh? You mean even our Goddess has times when she¡¯s down on her luck?" Luo Xiaoqian sarcastically remarked as they walked past her.

    Huajuan swept a nce at her. She couldn¡¯t recognise Luo Xiaoqian, but Huajuan felt that Luo Xiaoqian was definitely looking for a beating. "Who are you?" Huajuan shot back unkindly.

    "Senior is very impressive. You don¡¯t even know what should and shouldn¡¯t be asked."

    "What the f*ck are you trying to get at?" Huajuan said as she rolled up her sleeves and walked towards Luo Xiaoqian.

    At this moment, Shen Jingbin grabbed Huajuan and said, "Don¡¯t bother arguing with a passerby. Let¡¯s go, the Director is more important."

    That¡¯s true, why would she bother picking a fight with a small fry like Luo Xiaoqian. To her, Luo Xiaoqian was nothing more than an uninvolved passerby. At the most, she was just some small-time viin.

    She certainly wouldn¡¯t waste her time on someone like that.

    "Shen Jingbin, you..."

    Shen Jingbin immediately interrupted her and said coldly, "Fellow student, a word of warning: don¡¯t take my kindness when I tolerate you as weakness. Don¡¯t me me for getting nasty if you keep this up."

    Shen Jingbin always had the air of a beauty. When she lowered her voice, it felt as if she¡¯d be xxxxxxxx.

    Once Shen Jingbin was far off in the distance, Luo Xiaoqian¡¯s roommate walked up to her fearfully and asked, "Xiaoqian, what kind of stunt were you trying to pull just now? Why do you insist on provoking that Senior?!" That Senior¡¯s murderous gaze was so strong that even she, who was standing at the back, was frozen to the spot in fear.

    "What? Are you afraid of being implicated? Then stay away from me!"

    Luo Xiaoqian, who¡¯d been cowed by Shen Jingbin with just one look, felt like she¡¯d thoroughly humiliated herself. Upon hearing what her roommate said, she immediately flew into a rage and vented her anger at her. With a roar, she flung her roommate¡¯s hand away and stomped away, leaving her dumbstruck roommate behind.

    Was she nning to provoke everyone shees across?

    At this moment, the girl who sat beside the two of them from before patted her shoulder "Junior, you should be a little more careful of who you befriend in the future," She said, a deeper meaning hidden beneath her words.

    The Director slowly arrived after around ten minutes had passed.

    The moment he walked in, the Director mmed a stack of A4 paper onto his desk. "Huajuan, right? Were you trying to intentionally disrupt the lecture? I repeatedly reminded all of you not to ask nonsensical questions, yet you still did it!"

    "I¡¯m... I¡¯m sorry Director. I didn¡¯t do it on purpose," Huajuan shamefully replied.

    "Do you really think that a word of apology is enough to cut it? I¡¯ll have you know that it took a great deal of effort to invite Mr Zhao over. If he has a bad impression of our Management Department because of you... Well, just wait and see what I¡¯ll do to you! Write me a ten thousand self-reflection essay to reflect on your actions!" Once he was done with Huajuan, the Director turned his attention to Shen Jingbin once again. "Shen Jingbin, you¡¯re the top student in the Management Department, I didn¡¯t expect you to join in on this nonsense as well!"

    When Huajuan noticed the Director setting his sights on Shen Jingbin, Huajuan very loyally jumped in to speak up for her. "Director, Shen Jingbin had nothing to do with this. I was just caught up in the moment when I asked that question and dragged her into it. She didn¡¯t know anything about it."

    "Quiet! Was I talking to you?" Huajuan¡¯s sudden interruption caused the Director¡¯s anger to re up even more.

    Huajuan shrunk back.

    Shen Jingbin patted Huajuan¡¯s back, indicating for her not to speak any further.

    "I¡¯m sorry, Director. Today¡¯s incident was our fault. If possible, we¡¯d like to apologize to Mr Zhao."

    The Director calmed down and thought about her suggestion before looking back at her. It was a pretty good idea. "Alright, Mr Zhao will be in A City for a few days. I¡¯ll give the two of you the contact details of Mr Zhao¡¯s assistant. Make an appointment with him."

    As he said that, a knock was heard on the half-opened door to the office.

    "Enter!"

    "Greetings, Director," After receiving permission to enter, a slender silhouette appeared before the three of them.

    "Mr... Mr Zhao? Is something the matter? Rest... rest assured about these two students, I¡¯ll definitely teach them a good lesson!"

    Zhao Chengning shed a kind and gentle smile at the Director. "You don¡¯t need to be so harsh on them, Director. Actually, one of them is my friend, and the reason why I agreed to give a lecture here was because of her. So, you don¡¯t have to worry about what happened just now," Zhao Chengning said as he used his chin to point towards Shen Jingbin.

    Huajuan and the Director¡¯s jaws dropped to the floor.

    What the f*ck? What¡¯s going on?!

    Wait, he did remember something about Shen Jingbin having an impressive background. Did that mean...

    The Director turned to look at Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin remained indifferent through it all as she quietly looked at him.

    A cold drop of sweat suddenly rolled down his back.

    "Oh, so it was like that? That makes things easy then since that¡¯s the case. Hahaha..." The Director said with a forced smile. "It¡¯s alright, it¡¯s alright. Mr Zhao, I¡¯m sure you have lots of other important matters to attend to, right? Come,e, the two of you should head back as well. Student Shen, it was my fault just now for not rifying things and ming you. Please, ept my apology."

    How could Shen Jingbin dare to ept the Director¡¯s apology? "It¡¯s alright, Director. This was partly my fault as well, you don¡¯t need to apologise," Shen Jingbin hastily replied.

    Huajuan waspletely dumbfounded by this development and by the time she had regained her senses, it was to hear the Director¡¯s apology. "Then... do I still need to write my self-reflection, Director?" Huajuan said in an attempt to weasel her way out.

    The Director waved his hand. "You don¡¯t need to. You guys should go... Are you leaving as well, Mr Zhao? Please take care then."

    Zhao Chengning gave his thanks and led Shen Jingbin and Huajuan out of the office.

    "Jingjing, I still have some matters to attend to, so I¡¯ll be going on ahead. Bye-bye," Huajuan said.

    After exiting the office, Huajuan looked back and forth between Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin, before she wisely decided to leave.

    A momentter, only Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin were left.

 Chapter 165

    <b>Chapter 165: Meeting A Love Rival Once Again (1)</b>

    After a brief pause, Shen Jingbin broke the silence by speaking.

    "Don¡¯t you have anything you want to tell me?"

    "I wanted to see if it would surprise you."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips twitched. "It wasn¡¯t much of a surprise, but I definitely received quite a scare."

    Zhao Chengning smiled harmlessly. "Your ssmate gave me quite a scare too. She¡¯s a pretty upright girl."

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at him. "You can just say she¡¯s foolish, I won¡¯t mind."

    "Cough..." Can we not be so blunt.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly remembered that the person in front of her didn¡¯te here on his own. "Since you¡¯re here to give the lecture, where¡¯s your older brother and that girl?"

    "My brother said he¡¯ll bring Jian Cishu around, so I don¡¯t need to worry about her."

    "He¡¯s such a nice brother."

    The two of them continued speaking as they walked out.

    "Do you have anything on afterwards? If not, I¡¯ll treat you to lunch."

    Since someone was willing to treat her lunch, she naturally didn¡¯t have any reason to reject. "Sure," Came Shen Jingbin¡¯s straightforward reply.

    Since she was having lunch with Zhao Chengning, she was a little embarrassed to call her dorm mates over to join them. The two of them randomly picked out a decent looking restaurant near the school and decided to eat there.

    It was nothing much to Shen Jingbin since it was her school to begin with. However, she felt that it was quite rare to see someone of Zhao Chengning¡¯s status actually willing to dine at a small restaurant like this.

    It was lunchtime, so both the school canteen and nearby eateries were packed with people.

    When they entered the restaurant, the once bustling dining hall magically became silent for a few seconds.

    "Are there no waiters?" The two of them looked around. There weren¡¯t any avable seats in the dining hall, so they were thinking of looking for a waiter to check if there were any private rooms left.

    To turn a bigger profit, eateries near the school charged an additional fee for use of their private rooms. As such, the private rooms would often still be empty when the dining hall was full.

    The two of them looked around for a bit but weren¡¯t able to find any waiters.

    Shen Jingbin carefully surveyed the ce again before she finally spotted a lifeless looking waiter in a corner of the restaurant.

    "There¡¯s one over there, gimme a minute," Shen Jingbin said as she walked towards the waiter.

    Said waiter was still standing there in a daze after witnessing Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning¡¯s breathtaking appearance. Now that the beautiful girl was walking towards him, his heart began thumping crazily.

    At this moment, he finally remembered that he was a still waiter. He hastily tidied up his appearance before he stuttered out, "How... how may I help you?"

    "Do you still have any empty private rooms avable?"

    Ahh! Her voice sounded so nice! The waiter¡¯s emotions suddenly started stirring.

    "There is, there is!" The waiter vigorously nodded his head like a little chick pecking at rice. Was she joking? He¡¯d clear one out for her even if there weren¡¯t any! "May I ask how many are dining?"

    "Two."

    The waiter looked behind her and noticed a man who looked just as eye-catching as she did. "Alright, please call your friend along and follow me."

    Sheng Jingbin turned and gently waved at Zhao Chengning. Upon seeing her, Zhao Chengning strode over to her in the blink of an eye.

    "Found one?"

    Shen Jingbin pointed at the waiter leading the way. "Just follow him."

    Zhao Chengning nodded. As the two of them followed the waiter further in, the redwood door of the private room blocked out the red-hot gazes that were trained on them from the dining hall.

    "Oi oi oi, weren¡¯t those two people from just now looking a little too beautiful? They aren¡¯t celebrities, are they?"

    "Are you an idiot? That girl just now is the famous Goddess Shen from the Management Department. I don¡¯t recognise that guy though, haven¡¯t seen him around in school before. But by right, there¡¯s no reason for a handsome-looking guy like him to remain unknown till now."

    "Bah, don¡¯t you guys go on to the forums? Still, remember that sessful entrepreneur our school¡¯s said to have invited to give a lecture? That¡¯s the guy. He¡¯s got looks and has a good background. I¡¯ve even heard that he¡¯s the most eligible bachelor in B City..."

    "I remember! I remember! I¡¯ve seen that post before, he¡¯s called Zhao something-something," One of them said as they hastily cut in.

    "Eh, so he¡¯s a rich second generation huh? No wonder even a Goddess level figure¡¯s having lunch with him. Society sure is pragmatic."

    After saying so, the person who spoke realised there were several gazes filled with disdain staring at him. "What? What are you guys all looking at me for? Did I say something wrong?"

    One of the people sitting at the same table as he looked down on him, saying, "Which mountain did this angry youth crawl out from? You¡¯re filled with so much righteous indignation, but do you know what Goddess Shen¡¯s background is?"

    The guy whose words were previously filled with jealousy was a little dumbfounded. "What kind of background?"

    "Hoh, she¡¯s from the wealthiest and most influential family in A City. She¡¯d be able to do as she pleases even if she went to the capital, so the things you¡¯ve just said are seriouslyughable. Or perhaps, it¡¯s just you who¡¯s viewing all women through a tinted lens?"

    The man was told off so thoroughly that he had nothing to say. He just silently buried his head in his food and didn¡¯t utter a single word more.

    Apart from discussions like these, students who recognised the pair had long since fished out their phones and started secretly taking pictures.

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t allow for photography during his lecture, so no matter how mouth-wateringly enticing countless people found his face to be, they were unable to snap a picture of him tofort themselves. Bumping into him again at the restaurant this time around was practically a blessing from the heavens!

    He¡¯d even brought along aplementary Goddess, you¡¯d have to be an idiot to not take pictures!

 Chapter 166

    <b>Chapter 166: Meeting A Love Rival Once Again (2)</b>

    Before long, the school forums had a new trending post that wasbeled with "hot". The post was only published a few minutes ago, but it had already gotten almost a million views.

    "¡¾The longer you live longer, the more you experience¡¿I¡¯ve found a new God to match with my Goddess!"

    "The one above me, give me a second to catch my breath first! OP 1 is still very excited!!"

    "How many people went for the lecture at the Management Department today? I¡¯m talking about students from the other departments. I¡¯m from the Foreign Language Department and I had nothing better to do, so I decided to attend. And then... freaking hell! I was KO-ed by the lecturer¡¯s appearance! He¡¯s so freaking hot!"

    "Inb4 thread goes viral."

    "OP, please don¡¯t beat around the bush."

    "Alright. Moving on to the main point, once the lecture ended, this poster went to Little Fragrance Pavilion to eat with my dorm mates. But who would¡¯ve thought that we¡¯d actually bump into the God from the lecture and Goddess Shen from the Management Department who were there to eat together! F*ck, seeing that picture made me feel like my eyes, that had been polluted for the past twenty years of my life, had now been purified!"

    "Look at these pictures I secretly took! Shh, let¡¯s keep this to ourselves kay! Don¡¯t disclose it!"

    "Picture."

    "Picture."

    "OP! I saw them too! I was at Little Fragrance Pavilion today too! F*ck, the two of them looked sopatible I had a nosebleed! I used to worry about what kind of guy it¡¯d take to be worthy of our beautiful Goddess Shen, but today I¡¯ve finally understood the true meaning of the words ¡¯a match made in heaven¡¯!"

    "+1."

    "+2."

    ...

    The carnage taking ce outside, however, waspletely different from the lovey-dovey atmosphere within the room. The two of them enjoyed an extremely pleasant lunch and left together.

    When they came out, the dining hall was still full of people.

    Zhao Chengning swept a look around and said, "Business here looks pretty good."

    "Mhm, it¡¯s decent."

    But, why were all these people still hanging around even though they¡¯d already finished their food?

    Not minding the scorching gazes that stemmed from the ¡¯children¡¯ in the dining hall, the two of them walked straight out of the restaurant.

    When Zhao Chengning offered to send her back home, Shen Jingbin simply nodded her head and epted.

    However, Zhao Chengning¡¯s phone started ringing shortly after they drove off.

    Zhao Chengning picked it up and "Mhm"ed a few times before hanging up.

    "Do you have something on?"

    "My brother said that he and Jian Cishu are at the mall and told me to pick them up. They haven¡¯t had lunch yet."

    The mall was in theplete opposite direction of Shen Jingbin¡¯s house, so Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t quite decide on where to go first.

    "Go pick them up since they called. I can get off here and go back on my own."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s brows knitted. He wasn¡¯t just willing to drop her off like this; that would be far too ungentlemanly of him. And...

    He couldn¡¯t bear to do so.

    "Hold on, how about we go together instead? I¡¯m not very familiar with what¡¯s good in A City. You can help me if youe along."

    After thinking about it for a bit, Shen Jingbin retracted her hand that was reaching towards the car door. "That¡¯s fine too."

    The faintest of smiles stretched across Zhao Chengning¡¯s lips.

    The car slowly started once again and u-turned, before it drove off in the other direction.

    Both Jian Cishu and Zhao Chengan were seated at a cafe in A City¡¯s mall, drinking coffee as they waited for Zhao Chengning to pick them up.

    To give them a better view of things, they¡¯d chosen to sit near the window.

    Jian Cishu would always feel unconsciously anxious and wouldn¡¯t know what to do whenever she was around Zhao Chengan.

    Zhao Chengan had clearly noticed her anxiety, causing his ck eyes to further darken in response. Despite that, he continued acting as if he hadn¡¯t seen anything.

    Only the sounds of their spoons clinking against their coffee cups could be heard as they stirred their drinks.

    Jian Cishu¡¯s eyes, that had been staring out the window the whole time, suddenly lit up. "Ah! It¡¯s Brother Chengning!" She excitedly eximed before she immediately stood and rushed out the door towards the Jaguar parked outside.

    The car was provided as a means of transport for Zhao Chengning by the hotel they were staying in, and Jian Cishu had gone with him to collect it so she could clearly remember what it looked like.

    Zhan Chengan nced at the shopping bags on the floor that Jian Cishu had forgotten to take and picked them up before following her out.

    The Jaguar¡¯s window slowly lowered, revealing Zhao Chengning¡¯s iparably handsome face that she¡¯d expected.

    "Brother Chengning, you¡¯re here!"

    Zhao Chengning nodded his head indifferently and asked, "Where¡¯s my brother?"

    It was only then that she thought of Zhao Chengan. She gave a soft "ah" at her realization and said, "Brother Chengan is behind..."

    However, she was cut off by someone before she could finish. "I¡¯m here."

    Zhao Chengan walked out after Jian Cishu with shopping bags in hand. Upon seeing what he held, Jian Cishu said a little embarrassedly, "Brother Chengan, why don¡¯t I carry my own things?"

    However, Zhao Chengan refused to let her take them from him. "We¡¯ll put it in the carter, so it¡¯s the same regardless of who carries it. Let¡¯s get in the car."

    "Oh," Jian Cishu replied obediently and rounded the car as she made her way towards the passenger seat.

    "Jian Cishu..." Both brothers said in unison, but Jian Cishu had already opened the door to ride shotgun.

    A wlessly perfect girl was currently sitting impressively inside.

    After noticing Shen Jingbin, Jian Cishu paused for a moment before she said, "It¡¯s you... Why are you here?"

    Jian Cishu, whose head was only filled with thoughts of Zhao Chengning, hadpletely failed to notice that there was another person in the car. Now that she¡¯d seen Shen Jingbin, she was a little unsure of how to react.

    Zhao Chengan had already noticed someone sitting in the passenger seat when Zhao Chengning lowered the car window. He tried to warn Jian Cishu when he saw her walking towards the passenger seat, but ended up being just a moment too slow.

    Don¡¯t forget, OP = Original Poster. Netspeak ftw \(^¨Œ^)/ ?

 Chapter 167

    <b>Chapter 167: I Don¡¯t Need Your Feelings (1) </b>

    Jian Cishu¡¯s hand froze on the car¡¯s door handle. Raising her head, she first looked at Zhao Chengan standing on the other side, then looked back at Shen Jingbin who was riding shotgun and was ovee by a momentary loss of words.

    Sitting in the driver¡¯s seat Zhao Chengning was unable to see Jian Cishu¡¯s look of shock, so he turned to Zhao Chengan standing outside and said, "Don¡¯t just stand there gawking, get in and let¡¯s go get something to eat."

    Zhao Chengan nodded and beckoned Jian Cishu over. After he called out to her, Jian Cishu had a pale face as she closed the car door and slowly shifted over to the rear of the car before slipping into the backseat.

    As the car started moving, the scenery outside began to slowly shift behind them and the interior of the car fell silent as no one spoke a word. After a moment¡¯s hesitation, Jian Cishu did her best to make her voice sound as innocent as possible and said, "Brother Chengning, where are we going for lunch?"

    "What do you guys want to eat? I¡¯ll bring the two of you to lunch. Little Jing and I have already eaten."

    At that, the smile that Jian Cishu had worn on her lips immediately disappeared and the glint in her eyes darkened as she slowly repeated, "You¡¯ve already eaten..."

    Zhao Chengan shot a nce at Jian Cishu by his side and noticed that she was feeling down, so he said, "We¡¯re not very familiar with City A, do you have any rmendations?"

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit. People from A City preferred spicy food, so the specialties around here were either very mouth-numbing or spicy. Hence she asked, "Do you guys take spicy food?"

    Zhao Chengan nodded. "I¡¯m okay with it."

    Shen Jingbin straightened her back and turned to look at Jian Cishu. "What about you?"

    "Ah?" Upon noticing that Zhao Chengning was looking at her through the rearview mirror, she immediately hid her disappointment and said, "I...I...I don¡¯t really want something spicy."

    Shen Jingbin thought for a moment before she came up with something. "There¡¯s a hotpot ce in Fushun Square that¡¯s pretty authentic. Their mandarin duck1 soup base is made from boiling ribs. We can try that."

    Zhao Chengning nced at her and revealed a serene smile. "Don¡¯t pick something too tasty, it¡¯ll be bad if I can¡¯t control myself and overeat."

    "What¡¯s so bad about that?"

    "I¡¯ll get fat."

    Shen Jingbin gave him a once over. Despite being seated and driving, he was still as good looking as ever. "Given your current appearance, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad thing if you got a little fatter."

    Did this count as her teasing him?

    Zhao Chengning thought to himself as he nced at her from the corner of his eyes.

    Good, there wasn¡¯t wasn¡¯t any change in her expression. It looked like she¡¯d just blurted out whatever was on her mind and he¡¯d been overthinking it.

    Watching the two of them casually chatting away with a very pleasant atmosphere about them, Jian Cishu, who was sitting behind them, felt as if her heart was being suffocated.

    Was her Brother Chengning... going to belong to someone else?

    No! She wouldn¡¯t allow that!

    She had to take some measures to prevent that!

    Under Shen Jingbin¡¯s directions, Zhao Chengning found the "pretty good" hotpot restaurant she had mentioned. After asking for a small private dining room and ordering some food, the two of them sat to the side and engaged in idle banter with Zhao Chengan and Jian Cishu.

    Jian Cishu remained silent the whole time, looking as if she had something on her mind. However, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t take it to heart. After lunch, he sent the two of them, along with Shen Jingbin, back to their respective residences.

    When darkness fell, Zhao Chengning was sorting out the documents that Keyuan had sent him in his room. He¡¯d originally nned to stay in A City for only two days. However, his Mother, who intended to matchmake him and Jian Cishu, adamantly request for him for him to spend a few days bringing her around A City. She even went out of her way to drag Zhao Chengan into the equation.

    He had no feelings for Jian Cishu and strictly speaking, he didn¡¯t even think of her as a friend. At most, she was just a junior he knew from school.

    Even so, his muddle-headed Mother still insisted on tying the red string of fate between them.

    ¡¯Knock knock knock.¡¯ The door to his room was suddenly rapped on. Zhao Chengning stopped typing and raised his head. "Who is it?"

    "It¡¯s me, Brother Chengning."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s handsome brows slightly scrunched up. He swept a nce at the time in the bottom-right hand corner of hisputer; it was nine thirty.

    "Do you need me for something?"

    "Brother Chengning, I¡¯d like to talk to you about something," The female voice outside the door sounded a little hesitant.

    "It¡¯s a littlete today, let¡¯s talk tomorrow instead."

    "But..." Jian Cishu¡¯s voice suddenly became nervous. "Brother Chengning, I won¡¯t take up too much of your time. Can I have a quick talk with you?"

    Zhao Chengning wasn¡¯t the slightest bit moved despite the sobs tingeing Jian Cishu¡¯s voice.

    He¡¯d truly be hurting her if he were to be soft-hearted now. Since he had no feelings for her, all the more reason for him to be decisive about it and not string her along. This was best for everyone.

    Zhao Chengning acted as if he hadn¡¯t heard anything and remained silent.

    Jian Cishu began to feel flustered when she noticed the suddenck of activity within the room.

    "Brother Chengning? Brother Chengning? ...Brother Chengning!" She shouted several times, even going so far as to start vigorously pounding on the door.

    Zhao Chengning acted as though he didn¡¯t hear anything. At that moment, his phone suddenly started to ring.

    He nced at the phone¡¯s screen and found that it was Zhao Chengan.

    Refers to hotpot with a divider, containing spicy soup on one side and mild soup in the other. ?

 Chapter 168

    <b>Chapter 168: I Don¡¯t Need Your Feelings (2) </b>

    "Hello."

    "Open the door and talk to Jian Cishu."

    "I don¡¯t have anything to talk to her about," Came Zhao Chengning¡¯s straightforward reply.

    "Then are you just going to let her continue knocking on your door from the outside?"

    "This hotel¡¯s soundproofing is pretty good, she won¡¯t disturb the other guests."

    "Zhao Chengning, you should set things straight between the two of you to avoid any future trouble."

    "I don¡¯t want to give her any false hope."

    "Then say it to her face and reject her directly without beating about the bush," Zhao Chengan said as he carefully intoned each word.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s gaze hardened. "Bro, I¡¯ve got a question."

    "Shoot."

    "Do you have feelings for Jian Cishu? It feels like you treat her differently," The other party suddenly fell silent, so Zhao Chengning continued, "The Jian family only wants a political marriage with our Zhao family. It doesn¡¯t matter whether the one getting married is you or me."

    "Don¡¯t talk about such nonsense. What you need to do right now is to open that door and talk to her," Zhao Chengan said as he brought their conversation back on topic.

    "Okay, I¡¯ll have a good talk with her for your sake."

    After hanging up, he set hisptop down and walked over to open the door.

    When the door opened, he found Jian Cishu standing outside in her pink pyjamas.

    Jian Cishu looked different from how she was in the day. She¡¯d let her long hair down, allowing it to gently drape over her shoulder, while the pink pyjamas she wore made her skin look especially fair and delicate. Bathed beneath the warm wall lights, she exuded an air of enticement.

    "What is it?" Zhao Chengning asked with an unperturbed look on his face.

    "Can we talk inside?"

    To Jian Cishu, the most familiar expression that Zhao Chengning would wear was his expressionless, yet handsome one. All this while he¡¯d never looked at her kindly... No, that¡¯s not right. He¡¯d treated her very kindly in the very beginning when he knew her as only his junior in school. However, ever since he¡¯d learnt about the marriage between their two families, his gentleness had dissolved into solemness, drawing them apart. She¡¯d initially felt sad about this for a very long time, but she¡¯d gotten used to it as time went by so she wasn¡¯t cowed by his current expression.

    Despite that, she was ovee with bitterness when she recalled how he looked at Shen Jingbin with tenderness in his eyes.

    Zhao Chengning looked at her with some annoyance. "Why can¡¯t we talk outside?"

    "Other people mighte to a misunderstanding if we talk outside. Brother Chengning, I¡¯m sure you wouldn¡¯t want other people jumping to conclusions about our rtionship, would you?"

    Jian Cishu¡¯s words hit home. Indeed, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t want other people drawing the wrong conclusions about his rtionship with her, especially at a time like this.

    Coincidentally, the door to the room next to them was suddenly opened and a young man walked out. Upon seeing the two of them, he gasped before he hurriedly covered his eyes and retreated back into his room as he apologised.

    Goodness gracious, all he wanted to do was to go out to get some fresh air. Instead, he¡¯d walked into such an exciting hallway y. People these days sure were open-minded!

    But, it looked like they hadn¡¯t begun yet, so he probably wasn¡¯t interrupting them, right?

    After the man returned to his room, Zhao Chengning¡¯s face fell even more. He stepped back and pushed the door open. "Come in."

    Jian Cishu obediently entered after him, even attentive enough to help him close the door. Once done, she locked it.

    The instant the door was locked, the door of the room diagonally opposite theirs slowly opened. Zhao Changan stood by the doorway, his gazeplicated as he looked towards their room.

    Once they were inside, Zhao Chengning lounged on the sofa while Jian Cishu sat on the edge of the bed across from him.

    Scrunching up the edges of her shirt, Jian Cishu asked, "Brother Chengning, you... like Ms Shen right?"

    The moment she spoke, it was immediately obvious to Zhao Chengning that Jian Cishu was trying to sound him out. Zhao Chengning crossed his legs, making them appear especially slender and straight.

    "Yes," He replied very straightforwardly.

    Jian Cishu, who hadn¡¯t expected such a blunt reply from him, felt her breathing turn sluggish. Quite some time passed before she finally found her voice again and said, "But the two of you haven¡¯t known each other for long. Neither of you really understands how the other person is like."

    Zhao Chengning snorted, "Feelings have nothing to do with how long we¡¯ve known each other for. If you like someone, you¡¯ll like that person regardless of how long you¡¯ve known each other; time isn¡¯t an obstruction. If you don¡¯t like someone, you won¡¯t like them no matter how long you¡¯ve known each other for; just like you and me."

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t beat around the bush. As Zhao Chengan had said, he gave her a straightforward rejection before she had a chance to confess her feelings.

    He¡¯d long known, however, that it wouldn¡¯t have made a difference whether he said it or not.

    "But, Brother Chengning... I really, really like you. Why aren¡¯t you willing to look at me?" Jian Cishu¡¯s bright, intelligent, rabbit-like eyes that made her look adorable were now dyed red.

    Unfortunately, Zhao Chengning paid no attention to how cute she looked. "Because I don¡¯t like you."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s t-out rejectioncked the slightest bit of sensitivity behind it. The walls in Jian Cishu¡¯s heart, which she¡¯d formed by hypnotising herself time and time again, came crashing down with a bang and caused tears to instantly roll from her eyes. "Brother Chengning, I¡¯ve followed you around ever since I was young. I¡¯ve walked the path you¡¯ve walked, seen the same scenery you have and have experienced the same things as you. There is no one in this world who understands you more than I do; I know all the things you like and dislike, and I know all your subconscious gestures and habits. I thought that by doing this, you¡¯d be able to feel my sincerity. I thought..."

    "That¡¯s just what you thought. I¡¯ve never asked for you to walk in my steps, nor do I need you to understand me. You trying to understand me is meaningless. In fact, it¡¯s a burden. Moreover, even I don¡¯t fully understand myself, and you yet you have the gall to say you do? What I need isn¡¯t for someone to understand me. What I need is for me to understand the person I like and for me to slowly open myself up to that person on my own."

    "Then what about my feelings?" Tears streamed down Jian Cishu¡¯s face as she cried.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s eyes glinted. "I don¡¯t need your feelings either."

 Chapter 169

    <b>Chapter 169: I Want To See You (1) </b>

    B City, Entrepreneur Park. Yiju Science and Technology Building.

    It was already after office hours, but Xiangpeng was still seated at his desk with no intention of leaving anytime soon. A web page with an eye-catching picture in the centre was loaded on hisputer screen.

    He¡¯d sent Shen Jingbin¡¯s information to the higher-ups. Once they were done discussing, they would decide on whether she should be invited to be the game¡¯s ambassador.

    Some of the higher-ups believed that Shen Jingbin¡¯s background was way too powerful and weren¡¯t willing to proceed so hastily. The rest of them, on the other hand, believed her beauty and background would give them the best marketing edge and were adamant in inviting her.

    Xiangpeng¡¯s direct superior supported thetter group. Even though thepany had yet toe to an agreement, his superior personally felt that it¡¯d be far too much of a waste if they allowed this chance to invite Shen Jingbin slip by just like that. Hence, he contacted Xiangpeng on the sly and had him get in touch with her. And, if possible, for him to dig out more about her in the process.

    Xiangpeng sprang into action the very night he received his orders and began by scouring the inte for information rted to Shen Jingbin.

    Don¡¯t ask him why he didn¡¯t just call Shen Jinbin1. Know yourself, know your enemy, and you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. He had no intention of taking any action before he had sufficient information on her.

    Shen Jingbin maintained a low profile. The people from the Management Department knew her personality well, so they rarely talked about her in public, opting instead to discuss her amongst themselves in private. After all, there were all sorts of mers online nowadays that were looking for something to rant about even if there wasn¡¯t any gossip. Once there was though, they¡¯d go all out to me whatever it is they¡¯d set their sights on; their Goddess being ndered was not something her fans wanted to see. Students from other departments, on the other hand, didn¡¯t even get the chance to see her.

    Hence, the only information about her online were the ones that had been carefully filtered and released by her juniors that were also her fans.

    This was also why others had been unable to dig up any information on Shen Jingbin when she was trending on Weibost time.

    However, this time around, when Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning appeared in the restaurant without notice, many other people that weren¡¯t from the Management Department caught sight of her, allowing Xiangpeng to find quite a few posts about her on the forum after just entering a few keywords.

    Ovee with joy, he immediately clicked on the post with the highest amount of views.

    After the OP had finished excitedly describing what took ce at the restaurant in their post, two photos followed it which were clearly taken in secret.

    Even though the picture was taken in secret, it wasn¡¯t able to cover up their good looks and disposition. Xiangpeng had been constantly looking at Shen Jingbin¡¯s face for the past few days, so he recognised her the instant he saw her in the picture. The guy beside her, however, was the one that truly shocked him.

    He was quite familiar with Zhao Chengning after being ssmates with him for three years. Even though Zhao Chengning seemed to be courteous towards everyone, in truth he was actually very cold. Whether it was done intentionally or otherwise, it always felt like he was distancing himself from others.

    But in the picture, a handsome man was sitting beside a woman with a slightly bowed head, which made it look as if he was talking to her. His eyes were also continuously trained on the woman by his side. Despite being a step apart from one another, the two of them seemed to exude a sense of harmony that transcended the bounds of hisputer screen and seemed toe right at him.

    Scrolling his mouse, the screen shifted to the next picture.

    It was another picture that was taken in secret. Apart from Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning, a customer that was eating and a graceful looking waiter were captured in the frame. However, the graceful looking waiter was relegated to being a background ornament whenpared to Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning.

    As they were about to head towards the private dining rooms a customer had hurriedly passed by them, so Zhao Chengning, who¡¯d been following behind Shen Jingbin, stretched out his hand to shield her. This one casual motion of his had separated her from the customer that was hurrying along, while also oozing protectiveness.

    He¡¯d never seen Zhao Chengning being so mindful of someone else before.

    Scrolling further yielded nothing other than a few pictures of their backs, so he exited the thread and entered another one. The pictures that were taken in secret were pretty much all the same, just with differing angles.

    However, these pictures were enough to give him a rough idea.

    Fishing out his phone from the bunch of graph papers on his table, Xiangpeng¡¯s fingers swiped across the screen and found Zhao Chengning¡¯s number.

    He¡¯d gotten Zhao Chengning¡¯s number previously at Li Nanjing¡¯s party.

    The phone rang for a while before the call went through.

    "Hello?"

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice didn¡¯t sound very happy and Xiangpeng could also hear the faint sounds of a woman sobbing in the background. He looked at the time suspiciously. Making sure he wasn¡¯t mistaken, Xiangpeng asked carefully, "Great God Zhao, it¡¯s me, Xiangpeng. Are you free to talk now?"

    Holding his phone, Zhao Chengning¡¯s temples throbbed. He looked at Jian Cishu sobbing on his bed and stood up, making his way towards to the balcony. "What is it, speak."

    "It¡¯s like this, remember the girl I was asking you about the other time? I found her online..."

    Upon hearing that, Zhao Chengning¡¯s brows knitted together. "How¡¯d you find her?"

    Xiangpeng could tell he wasn¡¯t happy about it. "That¡¯s not important. Mm, the reason I¡¯m calling you today is that ourpany would genuinely like to work with her. I saw a picture of the two of you together and you guys looked pretty close. On ount of us being ssmates, help me put in a good word with her," Xiangpeng tried to say things in a roundabout manner, but Zhao Chengning clearly wasn¡¯t on the same wavelength as him.

    "What pictures?"

    Bro! Isn¡¯t your focus a little off!? ck lines appeared on Xiangpeng¡¯s head.

    "I saw it on A University¡¯s forums. Don¡¯t you know about it?"

    Zhao Chengning made a mental note and thought for a bit. "Since you¡¯re able to find out information about her, then you should be able to get her contact details on your own... Call her yourself, I can¡¯t help you with this."

    "It¡¯s not like I¡¯m in a rtionship with her anyway," He thought to himself.

    "Then... you don¡¯t mind me asking?" Xiangpeng cautiously asked.

    "Why would I mind?" At present, he wasn¡¯t in a position to mind it!

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry when he heard Xiangpeng repeat what Xuya told himst time. So that was how Xuya resolved it.

    It¡¯s a deliberate typo. The author probably did this to show how little Xiangpeng really knew about her ?

 Chapter 170

    <i>Psst! Have you heard about the cob event that TMK¡¯s doing with KOH for CNY? If you haven¡¯t, </i>there¡¯s<i> bonus chapters up for grabs! Click to post your CNY decorations/doggo pics to unlock more chapters!</i>

    <b>Chapter 170: I Want To See You (2) </b>

    "I have nothing to say as long as yourpany is able toply with her personal wishes. However, I won¡¯t stand idly by if yourpany uses underhanded means to do so," Zhao Chengning knew the other party wasn¡¯t able to see his face, but he still wore a resolute expression in spite of it.

    He knew there were some gamingpanies that promised one thing when they offered a deal but did something else once the actual contract was signed. This led to many young ambassadors, whocked experience, to be tricked.

    Even though Conn was arge corporation and Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t seem like those simple-minded ambassadors, he still wouldn¡¯t allow a single thing to go wrong.

    Yes, Conn was argepany, but it was also apany from B City. And, as long as it was in B City, he¡¯d have some influence.

    "Rest assured, I can definitely promise that! Also, ourpany wouldn¡¯t dare to provoke someone with Miss Shen¡¯s background."

    Zhao Chengning hung up after exchanging a few more words with Xiangpeng over the phone. He turned back and found that Jian Cishu was still sitting on the bed with red eyes and staring bitterly at him through the French window.

    With his face falling, Zhao Chengning walked over and asked, "Why are you still here?"

    Jian Cishu locked her gaze on him without speaking, and that had him narrowing his eyes as he said, "It¡¯ste and I need to rest. You should head back."

    Jian Cishu refused to budge. Several secondster, she stood. Just as he thought she was going to leave, she suddenly pounced on him.

    "Jian Cishu! What are you doing?!"

    Although they were near one another, Zhao Chengning hadn¡¯t expected her to be so daring and jump right at him.

    Her pyjamas were made out of a thin and silky material, so when she pressed against him, Zhao Chengning could tell that she wasn¡¯t wearing anything underneath them.

    That realisation left him in the foulest of moods. Stretching out both his hands, he roughly jerked her out of her tight embrace without the slightest of care for her being a woman.

    "Uncle and Auntie Jian sure taught their daughter well, huh? Jian Cishu, you better immediately get out of my room, or else don¡¯t me me for what I do next!" Zhao Chengning dered as anger brewed in his eyes.

    Tears had once again started streaming down Jian Cishu¡¯s face when she was pushed away by Zhao Chengning; she¡¯d never expected Zhao Chengning to ignore her feelings for him even after she went to this extent. Looking at his handsome, ashen face, she indignantly wiped her tears and got up, before dashing out of his room without looking back.

    After hearing his door m shut, Zhao Chengning loosened his tie and raked a hand through his hair in frustration.

    He hadn¡¯t expected Jian Cishu to suddenly pull off a stunt like that. Just thinking about her chest pressing up against him when she embraced him made his hair stand on end.

    Feeling strangely impatient, Zhao Chengning looked about his room before he eventually grabbed a jacked and left the hotel without looking back.

    In the Shen siblings¡¯ vi, Shen Jingbin realised Quiet And Steadfast hadn¡¯t logged in these past few days and, for some strange reason, the thought of this made her feel a little empty inside. She clearly hadn¡¯t felt this way before.

    It¡¯s probably because he¡¯d brought her levelling and she¡¯d developed a sense of reliance on him, right?

    Eh, that definitely wasn¡¯t a good sign.

    Sitting on the sofa, Shen Jingbin suddenly shook her head as though she was trying to shake something out of her head. Unfortunately for her, Shen Jingchen happened to see her doing that.

    "What¡¯re you doing? Going crazy?" Shen Jingchen said as he handed her a cup of milk.

    Shen Jingbin epted the cup of milk and rolled her eyes at him. "You¡¯re the one who¡¯s going crazy."

    Shen Jingchen shrugged and sat beside her. "Not logging on to y?"

    Shen Jingbin sipped a mouthful of milk. The pure, fragrant milk was unsweetened, leaving a rich aftertaste in her mouth. "You¡¯re not ying either."

    "Tch, your brother here is trying to strike a bnce between work and y; I need to rest."

    "I¡¯m resting too."

    "Bah, like I¡¯d believe you," Shen Jingchen supported the back of his head with his hand as he looked at her and said, "Say, are you not ying because our Guild Leader¡¯s offline? I saw you levelling with him a lot these past few days; looks like you¡¯ve been enjoying life. What, did things heat up between the two of you?"

    "You really have a ck hole in your head."

    "Sigh, this brat really is a handful. Can¡¯t we have a proper chat?"

    "With you?" Shen Jingbin turned to look at him. "Impossible."

    Shen Jingchen immediately grabbed a bolster and raised it as if he was about to hit her. However, he wilted in terror when Shen Jingbin shot a re at him.

    "Tigress," He hissed out, feeling unresigned.

    Shen Jingbin shot a disdainful smile at him before she tipped her head and downed the rest of the milk. Standing up, she said, "Wash the cup, I¡¯m going to bed after I take a shower. Remember to get up earlier and wake me up in the morning."

    "F*ck! I¡¯ll tell Mom and Dad you¡¯re bullying their son!"

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to retort.

    At that moment, her phone started ringing.

    Shen Jingbin motioned at him in an intimidating manner before she picked up her phone.

    "I¡¯m outside your house, can youe out for a minute?" Zhao Chengning¡¯s low voice was heard when she picked up the phone.

    Shen Jingbin immediately turned to look out the wooden door but it was tightly closed, so she couldn¡¯t see anything.

    "What¡¯s up?" Shen Jingchen followed suit and turned to look at the door.

    Shen Jingbin ignored him. "You mean now?"

    "Mhm."

    "Hold on," Shen Jingbin hung up, threw the phone at Shen Jingchen, and then ran out.

    "What¡¯s with her?" Shen Jingchen caught the phone, a look of confusion crossing his face as he stared at her back. "Didn¡¯t she say that she¡¯s going to sleep after washing up? Where¡¯s she going? Why does it seem like she¡¯s going to meet her lover?"

 Chapter 171

    <b>Chapter 171: You¡¯re Different (1) </b>

    The moment Shen Jingbin stepped out, she spotted Zhao Chengning standing beneath a streetmp.

    No longer in the suit that he wore during the day, the khaki pants he had on now revealed his slender legs for all to see, while the shirt he wore still looked the same as the one he was wearing earlier, but without a trace of his ssy tie. Instead, it was reced by a beige windbreaker, making him look far more easy-going than he did before.

    The warm light spilling from the lights above dyed his shoulders a hazy hue of yellow, causing Shen Jingbin to suddenly feel like eximing: he looks amazing.

    Recalling his low voice over the phone, she worriedly thought that he might have something important to tell her. She quickened her footsteps and walked briskly over to him.

    "What..."

    Before she finished, Zhao Chengning suddenly leaned towards her. Many years of martial arts training made her want to instinctively dodge, but almost as if he¡¯d seen through her movements, Zhao Chengning grabbed her by the wrist. By the time she stopped, she was already wrapped in his embrace.

    The f*ck! What the hell just happened?!

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s head imploded.

    She could feel the thudding of his heart and his hand tightening around his back. She could even feel even the faint rising and falling of his chest as he breathed.

    Freaking hell, this is too stimting! Her nose felt so itchy!

    Meanwhile, Shen Jingchen had run out to see what had happened and immediately felt his knees turn to jelly when he saw the scene in front of him. Fortunately, he gripped the doorframe in time to stop himself from copsing.

    Goodness gracious, what did he just see?!

    Was his family¡¯s demon queen actually being held in the hands of another man like a rabbit? And what¡¯s more was that Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t actually resisting him. She was acting like an obedient rabbit!

    This is too f*cking unreal!

    Zhao Chengning, I respect you, bro!

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s restless heart only managed to slowly calm down after he caught a faint whiff of Shen Jingbin¡¯s fragrant hair and felt her delicate yet strong body in his arms. The feeling of disgust lingering from being hugged by Jian Cishu was now reced by an indescribable sense of joy from within.

    Having calmed down, Zhao Chengning released her when he felt a sudden force push against his chest.

    Using the force of the push to take a small step back, Zhao Chengning spoke first. "Sorry."

    Since he¡¯d apologised, pursuing the matter any further would make her seem a bit too aggressive. After calming herself down, she asked, "What happened to you?"

    "It¡¯s nothing," He couldn¡¯t possibly say that he felt disgusted after being hugged by another woman so he came looking for her for constion. That¡¯d make him out to be too much of a weakling!

    And he could vouch that Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t like guys that were too weak.

    Is it nothing?

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s brows knitted.

    Was he reluctant to tell her?

    After giving him a once over, although she wasn¡¯t satisfied with his answer, her good upbringing prevented her from pressing him any further. Instead, she changed the topic and said, "The public transport back to your hotel ends pretty early. Getting a cab at night isn¡¯t easy either. How do you n to go backter?"

    Zhao Chengning was acting purely on impulse when he came looking for her, so he hadn¡¯t thought so far ahead. The reality of his situation only dawned on him when he¡¯d heard what she said.

    No wonder the taxi driver had looked so suspicious of him on the way here.

    Seeing him remain silent, Shen Jingbin continued asking, "Where¡¯s your brother and Miss Jian?"

    "They¡¯re at the hotel."

    "You came on your own?"

    "Mhm. It would¡¯ve been inconvenient if they came along."

    Hey, bro, what¡¯re you nning to do?

    At that moment, Shen Jingchen came running over. He had waited till they parted before he came over, so this wasn¡¯t him being inconsiderate!

    As he neared, he asked. "Ah Ning, why are you here?"

    "Uh," Tongue-tied, Zhao Chengning was at a loss for words.

    Shen Jingchen looked at him, then at his sister, before he revealed a "hehehe, I get it I get it" look on his face. "Oh, don¡¯t mind that, I was just asking. Now that you¡¯re here, you probably can¡¯t get back at this time. Why don¡¯t you stay the night here then? We have empty guest rooms anyway."

    "Won¡¯t I be intruding?"

    "No no, why would you be intruding? But, does your brother know you¡¯re here?"

    "Mhm," Whether he knew or not wasn¡¯t important.

    "Then let¡¯s go in, it¡¯s quite cold outside," Shen Jingbin had no qualms about Shen Jingchen¡¯s suggestion. Since Zhao Chengning agreed, then she¡¯d follow along as well.

    Immediately after she spoke, a gust of chilling wind swept past them. Zhao Chengning was fine, but the two Shen siblings that had previously rushed out of the house in a hurry shivered from the cold.

    It was only then that Zhao Chengning realized Shen Jingbin only had a knitted shirt on her when she came outside. Her thin waist was so delicate that it looked like it¡¯d shatter from the slightest touch. Suddenly, Zhao Chengning felt his heart going out to her.

    Had he been too rash?

    Having thought of that, he no longer dared to dy them any further and hurriedly gave a grunt of affirmation to Shen Jingbin before he followed them into the house.

 Chapter 172

    <i>Psst! Have you heard about the cob event that TMK¡¯s doing with KOH for CNY? If you haven¡¯t, </i>there¡¯s<i> bonus chapters up for grabs! Click to post your CNY decorations/doggo pics to unlock more chapters!</i>

    <b>Chapter 172: You¡¯re Different (2) </b>

    It was noticeably warmer inside the house and when her mind thought back to Zhao Chengning outside just now, she wondered how long he¡¯d been standing there for. She then sent Shen Jingchen off to dig out a set of clothes for Zhao Chengning to change into once he¡¯d had a nice warm bath and warmed up a bit. Afterwards, she led him to the guest room.

    There were two guest rooms on the first floor. Qu Yanxin had stayed in one of the rooms before, so Shen Jingbin brought him to the other room.

    "Gimme a minute," Although the room was quiterge, it was still reasonably clean in spite of itsck of use so Shen Jingbin had Zhao Chengning wait on a small sofa before she began pulling off the bed sheets.

    While the room was clean, it¡¯d still be better to change the bed sheets and the rest of the covers. Aunt Zhang wasn¡¯t around and she couldn¡¯t possibly have the guest do it himself, so she took up the task herself. On the other hand, Zhao Chengning remained seated on the sofa and watched her bustle about, his mind brimming with emotion.

    Speaking of which, emotions were truly an enigma. Although Jian Cishu had followed in his footsteps for years, he had absolutely no feelings for her; he couldn¡¯t even bear the thought of being near her.

    Many of the friends from wealthy families that he¡¯d hung out with in his younger days relied on their wealth and status to mess around. Their love lives especially were in aplete mess. He used to envy these people when he was younger and less experienced, he felt that their spirited way of living was how people their age should really be like.

    However, his Grandfather¡¯s strict military background prevented him from mixing with that group of friends. His Grandfather cared a great deal about him so in the words of Benjamin Franklin: love well, whip well. His Grandfather would always heavily punish him for the slightest of mistakes.

    In the beginning, he felt resentful towards his Grandfather. However, as the years went by, he began to understand his Grandfather¡¯s intentions, setting his heart at ease. In the process, he was gradually shaped into a calm and collected individual.

    Now, he was beyond thankful for having a Grandfather that reigned him in during his younger days when he was inexperienced. It had also saved him the guilt he¡¯d have otherwise felt when he stood before a girl he liked.

    After tidying up the ce, Shen Jingbin turned to see Zhao Chengning gently smiling at her.

    He was already handsome, to begin with, which caused the smile that now graced his lips to appear even more attractive.

    He usually wore a smile when he interacted with others, but that smile of his never felt genuine. In fact, he was an exact replica of his Father ¨C an unscrupulous businessman.

    How he acted today was a rare urrence ¨C she¡¯d only see this side of him when the two of them were alone.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but pause so folding her arms across her chest, she leaned against the desk beside the bed. Her eyes were full of mirth as she admired the picture-perfect guy in front of her.

    Feeling her gaze on him, Zhao Chengning roused himself from his reverie. He looked at her and asked, "Why¡¯re you looking at me like that?"

    As their gazes met, a peculiar atmosphere pervaded the air.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt like teasing him. "You¡¯re pretty good-looking."

    "You just noticed?"

    "... I¡¯ve only just realised that you¡¯re so narcissistic," Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips curled. "When are you going back?"

    "I don¡¯t know. The main reason why I came here this time was for that talk at your school. The n was to originally go back tomorrow, but it looks like it¡¯ll have to depend on when Jian Cishu wants to go back now," Zhao Chengning¡¯s dashing brows furrowed when he spoke of Jian Cishu.

    "Jian Cishu?" She recalled that sweet-looking girl. "You¡¯re pretty nice to her."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s brows lifted. "She¡¯s a family friend, so no matter what, I still have to show some patience on ount of the elders, no?"

    Shen Jingbin felt like he was insinuating something. "Is that also the case for me?" She asked.

    Did that mean that he was only nice to her because their Grandfathers were good friends?

    Upon hearing her words, Zhao Chengning immediately retracted the mirth in his eyes. "No," He gave her a profound look and said resolutely, "You¡¯re different."

    "How am I different?" Shen Jingbin asked on reflex.

    She froze once she asked that. She suddenly thought of what happened in B University the previous time.

    He¡¯d had the same earnest expression on his face when he¡¯d asked whether she liked guys like him.

    Honestly, she was quite dense when it came to things like romance... Well, not exactly dense, but more of her being reluctant to pay attention to things like that. Even so, she could still vaguely tell that Zhao Chengning had feelings for her.

    Sometimes, Shen Jingchen would also discuss these kinds of things with her and ask her what type of guys she liked.

    She thought back to how she¡¯d replied to him before ¨C she liked guys that were cool, gentle, and charming.

    When Shen Jingchen heard her answer, he immediately howled, "Our Guildmaster¡¯s exactly like that!" He then immediately decided to tie the red string of fate between the two of them.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s personality did indeed match the type of guys she liked. However, she didn¡¯t want to invest her feelings in someone she¡¯d only ever met in a game.

    To her, no matter how realistic the game got, it was still just a game. She wasn¡¯t like Shen Jingchen, who genuinely regarded the people he met online as true bros. In a world made up of numbers and data, it was hard to distinguish between reality and fantasy. Take for instance how she was known as the ugliest yer in the game, or how much of a disconnect there was between Slight Chill and Jiang Weiwei.

    Who knew what kind of person Quiet and Steadfast was like in real life?

    Zhao Chengning, on the other hand, was different.

    He fit what she had in mind as her ideal partner. On top of that, his looks and background far exceeded her expectations. If for whatever reason, she had to choose a partner to fall in love with, she would definitely pick Zhao Chengning.

    This was also why she was always more patient towards him.

    "Jian Cishu¡¯s just the daughter of a family friend."

    But you¡¯re the apple of my eye.

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t voice the other half of what he thought. However, given Shen Jingbin¡¯s intelligence, how could she not understand what he was hinting at?

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt like she was floating on clouds and smiled as she straightened her back. However, just as she was about to say something, Shen Jingchen dashed in with a set of clothes in hand.

    "Ah Ning, I found you some clothes. They¡¯re still new so don¡¯t worry, I haven¡¯t worn them."

    "This room has an adjoining bathroom so you can bathe here," Shen Jingchen said as he stuffed the clothes into Zhao Chengning¡¯s hands. "We won¡¯t disturb you then. Rest well and goodnight!"

    With that, he dragged Shen Jingbin out with him.

    "Leader, your love rival¡¯s too strong, this is all I can do to help. I¡¯ll have to turn renegade if you don¡¯t make a move soon," Shen Jingchen thought sorrowfully.

 Chapter 173

    <i>Psst! Have you heard about the cob event that TMK¡¯s doing with KOH for CNY? If you haven¡¯t, </i>there¡¯s<i> bonus chapters up for grabs! Click to post your CNY decorations/doggo pics to unlock more chapters!</i>

    <b>Chapter 173: Stay Away from Chengning (1) </b>

    Zhao Chengning looked at the clothes in his hands. After giving a shake of his head and a chuckle, he turned around and headed towards the bathroom.

    Meanwhile, Shen Jingbin shook herself free from Shen Jingchen¡¯s grip the moment they stepped out of the room. "Why the rush? You¡¯re acting like someone¡¯s chasing after you."

    Bah, he wouldn¡¯t have needed to leave so quickly if it wasn¡¯t for the lovey-dovey atmosphere between her and Zhao Chengning! He¡¯d been hiding just outside the room for a long time, and only rushed in when he couldn¡¯t bear the sight of them being so intimate any longer!

    Honestly, it wasn¡¯t easy to choose between the two of them since both Leader and Ah Ning were his brothers. He¡¯d feel like he¡¯d be letting them down if he chose either of them over the other.

    Ahh, why did he have to shoulder a burden that was beyond his years?

    Seeing Shen Jingchen¡¯s continuously shifting expression, Shen Jingbin revealed a look of disdain and patted his shoulder. "Wake up elder brother, you¡¯re drooling."

    Shen Jingchen hurriedly reached up to wipe his chin before he realized he was tricked.

    How could someone as handsome as him drool!

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s disdain grew even more pronounced. Shaking her head, she sighed before she walked around him and made for her room.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s expression faintly contorted as he alternated his gaze between her retreating silhouette and the closed door.

    The next day, Shen Jingbin found that Zhao Chengning was already up when she descended the stairs. At the moment, he was standing at the entrance and speaking with a man in a suit.

    Hearing a noise behind him, he turned and shed a smile when he saw her, before turning back to continue conversing with the man. However, Shen Jingbin¡¯s appearance had likely cut their conversation short as Zhao Chengning sent the man off after exchanging a few more words with him.

    Before leaving, the man even bowed towards her in a very gentlemanly fashion.

    "You¡¯re up."

    "Mm, who was that?" Shen Jingbin asked, her hands tracing the rails as she slowly descended the stairs.

    "He¡¯s a chauffeur from the hotel that my brother sent to pick me up."

    The hotel Zhao Chengning and co stayed at provided chauffeur services. If they wished for it, the hotel could alternatively rent a car out for the guests themselves to drive. However, doing so would require a deposit.

    Miss Shen, who rarely stayed in hotels, had forgotten about that.

    "Are you going?"

    "Mm, I¡¯ve already troubled you by staying the night."

    "It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s not much trouble."

    When he heard her reply, Zhao Chengning heaved a sigh of relief and smiled at her. "Hearing that takes a load off my chest. I was afraid you¡¯d dislike me for the trouble I caused."

    "Shen Jingchen causes a lot more trouble than you," Walking over to him, her gaze swept past him and found that the man in a suit was quietly waiting outside beside a ck Audi. "Is he waiting for you? You should leave."

    The two of them stood so close together that he was able to take a whiff of her fragrance. "I¡¯ll be going then."

    "Call me if you need anything."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s eyes curved upwards in happiness. "There are too many people this time around. I¡¯lle looking for you on my own next time."

    "Sure."

    After sending Zhao Chengning off, Shen Jingbin turned back and was about to go wake Shen Jingchen up when her phone suddenly rang.

    Answering the call, she heard an unfamiliar male voice on the other end.

    "Hello, is this Miss Shen?"

    "I am. You are?"

    "Hello Miss Shen, I¡¯m from Yiju Game Corporation. We¡¯re calling you today as we¡¯d like to invite you to be our game¡¯s ambassador..."

    Shen Jingbin bluntly rejected the man before he could even finish. "I¡¯m sorry, I have no interest in bing an ambassador."

    At her rejection, the man on the other end of the call became flustered. "Ms Shen, please consider our request before rejecting. You can find out more about ourpany before making your decision."

    "My apologies, I don¡¯t think I¡¯m very suitable for this role."

    "How about this Miss Shen: why don¡¯t I briefly introduce ourpany to you... Have you heard of the game <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>? It¡¯s ourpany¡¯s hottest game right now and a new expansion has just been released. To build interest, ourpany has decided to shoot a promotional video. We chanced upon a picture of you online recently and we feel that your image matches one of the new NPCs in our expansion. Hence, we¡¯d like to invite you to join us for our promotional shoot."

    Initially, Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t wanted to listen to his nonsense and had nned on hanging up, but the words <<Legends of Celestial and Demons>> captured her attention.

    "<<Legends of Celestial and Demons>>?" She mumbled to herself.

    The man immediately saw a ray of hope and hastily continued, "Yes, the very same VRMMO that¡¯s all the rage these days. Do you usually y games? If you¡¯re interested, we can provide you with a top quality ount as part of the remuneration."

    Shen Jingbin hesitated for a moment before she replied, "Let me think about it."

    "Alright. In that case, I won¡¯t take up your time any longer. My name is Xiangpeng, you can contact me at any time once you¡¯ve made your decision."

    Shen Jingbin grunted in acknowledgement and hung up.

    Tsk tsk tsk, the gamepany behind <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> wanted her to be its ambassador. She definitely had to show this off to Shen Jingchen.

 Chapter 174

    <i>Psst! Have you heard about the cob event that TMK¡¯s doing with KOH for CNY? If you haven¡¯t, </i>there¡¯s<i> bonus chapters up for grabs! Click to post your CNY decorations/doggo pics to unlock more chapters!</i>

    <b>Chapter 174: Stay Away from Chengning (2</b><b>) </b>

    Zhao Chengning andpany stayed in A City for a short while before deciding to return home. On the day of their departure, the Shen siblings sent them off.

    It might have been her imagination, but Shen Jingbin felt that Jian Cishu¡¯s gaze looked a little too bitter when she stared at her, to the point where it made her feel panicked. It was as if Shen Jingbin had robbed her of her husband. Her bitter gaze grew especially pronounced when she neared Zhao Chengning.

    Feeling annoyed, Shen Jingbin decided to hide behind Shen Jingchen to avoid her line of sight.

    When the time for them to board the ne neared, Shen Jingchen went with Zhao Chengning to check-in their luggage while Jian Cishu went to the toilet, leaving only Zhao Chengan and Shen Jingbin behind in the hall.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the kind of person who would initiate conversation with someone she wasn¡¯t familiar with. As they stared at each other in silence, Zhao Chengan suddenly said, "Miss Shen, can I have a word with you?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze fell on him and she raised an eyebrow for him to continue.

    "What do you think of my little brother?"

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at his expressionless face, a little unsure of what he was trying to get at.

    "He¡¯s pretty good," She answered, giving a very ordinary reply.

    Zhao Chengan gave her a profound look and continued, "Miss Shen, given your intelligence, I believe that you¡¯re able to see Jian Cishu¡¯s feelings for Zhao Chengning."

    "Cishu is like a little sister to Chengning and I. We¡¯ve known each other for a long time and our families are quite close to one another..."

    Shen Jingbin cut him off. "Can you get to the point?"

    Zhao Chengan gaze be inscrutable. "I hope you¡¯ll stay away from Chengning. To my Mother, Jian Cishu is the most suitable partner for him, but it looks like Chengning thinks otherwise and treats you differently. As his brother, I don¡¯t wish to see Chengning falling out with our Mother over a woman, so I¡¯m imploring you to maintain your distance from him."

    Shen Jingbin quietly looked at him for a long while before her lips tugged into a smile that didn¡¯t reach her eyes.

    Upon seeing that, Zhao Chengan frowned in dissatisfaction. "Miss Shen, what¡¯s the meaning of this?"

    Instead of replying, she asked, "Does Zhao Chengning know about this?"

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s eyebrows knitted. "I believe that this is a private conversation between the two of us. There¡¯s no need for Chengning to know."

    "Sigh. Mr Zhao, I think you¡¯re talking to the wrong person. If you really do want to ease the tension between Auntie and Zhao Chengning, you should direct your words to your little brother instead," Seeing the look of displeasure on Zhao Chengan¡¯s face, an exceedingly charming smile suddenly graced Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips, attracting many nces from passersby. "Forgive my asking, but when have you ever seen me approaching your little brother on my own?"

    The moment she said that another profound smile surfaced on Zhao Chengan¡¯s face. "In that case, does Miss Shen think that Chengning is pestering you?"

    Sensing something off about his smile, Shen Jingbin suddenly became alert. Just as she was about to answer, she heard Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice behind her, "Bro, we¡¯re done checking the luggage in."

    Shen Jingbin turned to see Zhao Chengning looking at her coldly. Shen Jingchen, who was standing beside him, eyed her with indifference as well.

    She finally understood why Zhao Chengan had looked at her that way just now.

    Heh, does he think this is some f*cking melodramatic soap opera? What a cliched trick to pull!

    Shen Jingbin felt as if all of her pent-up rage was about to burst out!

    Zhao Chengning strode towards the two of them. As he did, Shen Jingbin caught a small smirk on Zhao Chengan¡¯s lips out of the corner of her eye.

    Zhao Chengning stood by Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and looked at his brother with a dark expression on his face. "Jian Cishu¡¯s not back yet. You better look for her, we¡¯re boarding the ne soon."

    Zhao Chengan stared at him for a little while before he stepped past the two of them and walked off without saying a word.

    Shen Jingchen rubbed his nose and said, "I¡¯ll go look for her too." Before leaving, he abruptly turned to Shen Jingbin and winked.

    Your big brother¡¯s going now. Lil¡¯ sister, fighting! We heard what you guys said just now so you better exin things to him!

    Shen Jingbin was speechless. What was there to exin? Everything she¡¯d said just now was the truth! Humph!

    Zhao Chengning suddenly spoke once Shen Jingchen¡¯s figure disappeared into the crowd. "Didn¡¯t you say you don¡¯t find me annoying?"

    Did some bitterness magically appear in his voice?

    She turned her to look at him. "I don¡¯t find you annoying."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s ebony ck eyes locked firmly on her. "I heard everything you and my brother said just now."

    She suddenly felt like patting his head.

    With that thought in mind, her hand unconsciously stretched out. However, due to their difference in height, her hand ended up on his shoulders instead. "Don¡¯t overthink what I said."

    Zhao Chengning held the hand that she¡¯d ced on his shoulder, kneading it discreetly before acting as if he were just pulling it off. "Don¡¯t listen to a word my brother says. He¡¯s fried his brains after spending all these years in Africa."

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help butugh. "How can you say that about your brother?"

    "He¡¯s the one who¡¯s stirring up trouble for me."

    "Don¡¯t worry, I didn¡¯t take a single word he said to heart."

    His eyes immediately brimmed with mirth, making it appear as if he were an entirely different person from before. Shen Jingbin shed a smile in return.

    Between the two of them, there was something quietly budding, growing.

    When it was time to board the ne, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t even spare a single nce for Jian Cishu who¡¯d reappeared or Zhao Chengan. Instead, she devoted all her attention to bidding Zhao Chengning farewell.

    As they watched the three of them leave, Shen Jingchen elbowed her and said, "Aye, Jingjing, why do I feel like your road to romance will be filled with twists and turns?"

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at him. "Question: what do I like the most?"

    Zhao Jingchen scratched his head. "You like to... beat people up?"

    Seeing the daggers she was ring at him, he immediately corrected himself and said, "You like challenges!"

    "Do you think taking Zhao Chengning down is going to be challenging?"

    "Tch, it¡¯s obvious he treats you differently, why don¡¯t you try me instead? Even I¡¯m more of a challenge than him. Although, his treatment of you aside and taking the attitudes of the people around him towards you into consideration, it¡¯s still going to be pretty difficult... Hold on, what are you nning?"

    Shen Jingbin revealed a devilish smile. "After being cooped up in the game for so long, I think it¡¯s time I get some exercise."

    Shen Jingchen: Oh no, the demon queen has awakened.

 Chapter 175

    <i>Psst! Have you heard about the cob event that TMK¡¯s doing with KOH for CNY? If you haven¡¯t, </i>there¡¯s<i> bonus chapters up for grabs! Click to post your CNY decorations/doggo pics to unlock more chapters!</i>

    <b>Chapter 175: An Unavoidable Encounter With An Enemy (1) </b>

    It took nearly three hours to travel from A City to B City by ne.

    Ever since the day that she¡¯d been ruthlessly rejected by Zhao Chengning, Jian Cishu had been doing her best to avoid him.

    First of all, she hadn¡¯t thought of how to face him, and second of all, she didn¡¯t want to give him the impression that she was shameless.

    As they¡¯d bought the return ticket on the spot, the only type left was economy ss. The three of them sat adjacent to one another, but Jian Cishu didn¡¯t fight to sit by Zhao Chengning¡¯s side like she did in the past. Instead, she took the initiative to sit on the innermost seat, ceding the seat in the middle to Zhao Chengan.

    By the time the ne took off, Jian Cishu was feeling drowsy and she nodded off shortly after.

    The silence within the ne¡¯s cabin, coupled with the close distance between them, meant that Zhao Chengning could hear the soft sounds of Jian Cishu breathing even with Zhao Chegnan sitting between them.

    After casting a nce at Jian Cishu, Zhao Chengning shifted his attention to Zhao Chengan and said, "Bro, why¡¯d you say such things at the airport lounge?"

    Zhao Chengan didn¡¯t even look up as he casually flipped through an old magazine and said, "I just wanted to see what she thought of you."

    Tearing the magazine away from his brother¡¯s hand, he said, "You¡¯ll chase your sister-inw away if you keep this up."

    Now relieved of his magazine, Zhao Chengan turned his attention to his younger brother and said, "Miss Shen probably leads a pampered life at home, right?"

    Zhao Chengning nodded. "But she¡¯s not as fragile as..." Zhao Chengning cut himself off halfway and gestured towards Jian Cishu.

    "You know what our Mother¡¯s temper is like. Although her opinion isn¡¯t important, she¡¯s skilled at riling others up," Zhao Chengan said in a slow and deliberate manner.

    Seeing his brother nod in agreement, he continued, "No matter what, Miss Shen also hails from a wealthy and prestigious household. Just because she¡¯s good-tempered doesn¡¯t mean she has no temper. If she isn¡¯t serious about you, she¡¯ll leave you once Mother makes things difficult for her and when you end up feeling all depressed, Grandfather will probably take his anger out on me. To avoid that, I decided to help you test her first."

    "You don¡¯t even understand her... Have you ever thought of what would happen if she really overheard what you said and decided to keep her distance from me?" Zhao Chengning retorted.

    Zhao Chengan rolled his eyes resentfully at his brother and suddenly changed his tone. "I don¡¯t want a sister-inw who¡¯s so easily put off."

    "..." Bro, have you forgotten what I told you about me not having even taken the first step with this girl yet?! No wonder you don¡¯t have a girlfriend even when you¡¯re almost thirty. If you desire it, you definitely deserve it! ÕÔ³ÊÄþÉî

    Zhao Chengning deeply felt that aside from his Grandfather, who could kind of be considered as on his side, everyone else was against him! Realising this, he resolved to never to bring Shen Jingbin back home again till she became his girlfriend... No, he wouldn¡¯t even bring her back till they were married!

    Shen Jingbin resumed her blissful days of enjoying life in the game.

    <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> had invited her to be their ambassador. Before, when she had briefly shown off to Shen Jingchen, thetter had indignantly used his phone to take a photo of himself. He¡¯d then grabbed Shen Jingbin¡¯s phone and asked for Xiangpeng¡¯s WeChat ount. A few tapster, his photo was sent over with a caption attached to it: if you¡¯re nning to make her an ambassador then hire me too!

    After sending his message, Shen Jingchen felt that his actions weren¡¯t in line with the cold and aloof persona that he portrayed. He attempted to delete his message but found that there was no such function, causing him to fall into depression for a while.

    Thankfully for him, his exceptional appearance earned him an immediate reply from Xiangpeng, who said that he¡¯d check in with his superiors for further instructions. To top it off, he even assured Shen Jingchen that there wouldn¡¯t be a problem. Looking at the reply, Shen Jingchen wondered whether he¡¯d been a little too shameless.

    Quiet And Steadfast also seemed to have fallen back into his usual login timings. However, something significant had happened in the game during the few days that they were gone for.

    While they were away, the game had suddenly made a system announcement. It said that more than half of the yers had entered the Shinra Sect through various means. It also mentioned that members of the Shinra Sect could now earn contribution points if they killed disciples from any of the other sects, earning themselves between 1 to 5 contribution points. The exact amount they earned per kill would be determined by the differences between them. Also, any Lead Disciple they took out would earn them 50 contribution points; while taking out a Sect Leader would earn them 500 points and the opportunity to meet their Sect Leader once.

    The system announcement had caused waves of shock to run through countless yers.

    yers who joined the Shinra Sect would still retain their identities as disciples of the Six Great Sects and would act like undercover agents.

    Furthermore, if theyunched a sneak attack on other yers, the victim would only receive a notification that ¡¯a disciple of the Shinra Sect hasunched a sneak attack¡¯ on them instead of revealing their names. The coup de grace was that the Shinra Sect hadpletely broken away right from the get-go. Normal yers who were targeted by them had no chance of escaping and could only quietly sink to the depths of Hell as they were ughtered.

    In short, it was now an uphill battle to fight an enemy in the dark.

    When Shen Jingbin logged in, the entire game was filled with talks of who the Shinra Sect disciples were; everyone felt danger all around them.

 Chapter 176

    <i>Psst! Have you heard about the cob event that TMK¡¯s doing with KOH for CNY? If you haven¡¯t, </i>there¡¯s<i> bonus chapters up for grabs! Click to post your CNY decorations/doggo pics to unlock more chapters!</i>

    <b>Chapter 176: An Unavoidable Encounter With An Enemy (2) </b>

    [Guild] Temperate Scarlet Moon: Attention everyone, Shinra Sect disciples have been spotted at Central Luo River. A number of female yers from Fluttering Flower Pce have been PKed. Life Skill yers, make sure you avoid the Luo River region.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: They¡¯re at Luo River? Hahaha, let me at them! I¡¯ll go teach them how to act like proper people!

    Shinra Sect Disciples could earn contribution points when they PKed disciples from the Six Great Sect. However, the same was true for disciples of the Six Great Sects and they could themselves contribution points for PKing Shinra Sect disciples. So, while everyone else was living in fear of the Shinra Sect that appeared and disappeared at random, the beasts from Jade Sea Pavilion were all hyped up.

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: Are you an idiot? Do you really think they¡¯d still be there even if you rushed over now? You¡¯re better off just staying here like a good boy!

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Sigh. My friends are all retarded, what should I do? Anxiously waiting online for a reply!

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: ...F*ck, get lost!

    [Guild] Nutjob: Quiet And Steadfast said that he would warn you guys to be wary of a yer from Sovereign¡¯s Descent named Reckless East Emperor. Has he mentioned anything yet?

    [Guild] National Treasure: !!! Nutty! Long time no see, I miss you!

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Our Mascot¡¯s back! Happy days are here!

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Ma¡¯am, are you doubting my ability to get things done?

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes widened when she saw a row of words suddenly pop up in the guild channel.

    Crap, she forgot to check if he was online!

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: Hahahaha! Why does it seem like we¡¯re gonna have a nice show to watch?!

    [Guild] Faint Blue Seaweed: I think the one on top of me is going to get it

    [Guild] Big Buddhist Nun: +1.

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Monster: I won¡¯t admit to knowing an idiot like him.

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: Same here.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: ...

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: Ah Ning told us about it. It might have been a coincidence, but we frequently saw him in the past. However, we haven¡¯t seen hide nor hair of him these days.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: Be careful Nutty, you¡¯re the only publicly known Lead Disciple. There are probably lots of people from the Shinra Sect who¡¯re eyeing you.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Mm, I know. I¡¯ll be careful, thanks.

    [Guild]: Long Life: Don¡¯t forget about us if you need any help.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Alright.£¨£Þ£­£Þ£©

    At that moment, she suddenly received a letter from Pure Crane.

    "Head to Beiwang Mountain, I¡¯ve found the Nymph¡¯s Lead Disciple. Quiet And Steadfast are both here right now."

    She received a letter from Quiet And Steadfast just after she was done reading Pure Crane¡¯s one. "Come to Beiwang Mountain."

    After reading both letters, Shen Jingbin immediately summoned Mascot and flew towards Beiwang Mountain.

    Three people could be seen sitting in a pavilion when shended on the peak of Beiwang Summit.

    In addition to Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast, there was one other female yer who wore fashionable light yellow clothes and had her back turned towards Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin felt that this person¡¯s silhouette looked kind of familiar.

    "You¡¯re here," Quiet And Steadfast said as he went to wee her. After following him into the pavilion, Shen Jingbin managed to get a good look at the female yer¡¯s face.

    And stumbled.

    How did that saying go again? That¡¯s right, it was: an unavoidable encounter with an enemy. The Nymph¡¯s Lead Disciple that Pure Crane spoke of was actually Morning Glory Chime!

    "Allow me to introduce her. This girl over here is a member of my guild and her name is Morning Glory Chime. She¡¯s also the Nymph¡¯s Lead Disciple."

    "Brother Pure Crane, you don¡¯t need to introduce me. We know each other. Isn¡¯t that right, Sister Nutty?" The moment she saw Shen Jingbin, Morning Glory Chime discreetly shot a re at her before she reverted to her previous warm and gentle facade.

    "You two know each other?" Pure Crane said as he eyed the two of them suspiciously.

    Seeing as his words were directed at Shen Jingbin, she expressionlessly nodded her head in reply.

    Morning Glory Chime smiled once again. "Sister Nutty and I went dungeoning in the past with her pro guildmates... Oh, I haven¡¯t seen Brother Quiet since that time! I don¡¯t know whether he still remembers me," She then broke into a bashful smile after she said that.

    Shen Jingbin felt a chill run down her spine.

    Without even looking at her, Quiet And Steadfast bluntly replied, "I don¡¯t remember."

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s bashful look immediately turned into one of embarrassment.

    At this time Pure Crane, who was experienced in dealing with conflicts, stepped in and smoothed things over, "I asked Morning Glory beforehand. Apart from the fact that she¡¯s the Nymph¡¯s Lead Disciple, she hasn¡¯t received any epic grade hidden quests. This time around, I brought her over to get you guys acquainted."

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded and said, "If I¡¯m not wrong, the rest of the Lead Disciples probably haven¡¯t received any hidden quests either since we¡¯ve already covered the three categories of yers, spirit beasts, and divine tools."

    Pure Crane grunted in agreement. "That¡¯s what I was thinking too, I just wasn¡¯t sure of it."

    "How much headway have you guys made with the divine tools?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "The system¡¯s hint was for me to gather certain materials. I¡¯ve gotten most of them, but I still haven¡¯t found any clues for thest two."

    "What materials are they?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    "Floating Light Silk and Shadow Snaring Water."

    Shen Jingbin thought back to the drops that Marco Polo Bun had found from the Universal Envoy in Cloud Dream Swampst time. One of them should have been a Floating Light Silk. At that time, no one knew what that item was for, so Morally Grey allowed Marco Polo Bun to keep it for future research.

    "I think I know where the Floating Light Silk is."

    Quiet And Steadfast recalled it as well after she spoke. "Are you referring to the Universal Envoy?"

    Pure Crane¡¯s eyes lit up upon hearing what the two of them said.

    At that moment, unhappy that she¡¯d been relegated to the background, Morning Glory Chime forcefully interjected herself into the conversation. "Did you guys mention Shadow Snaring Water just now? I know about that."

    Her statement sessfully drew the attention of the other three people. Of course, to her, Shen Jingbin¡¯s attention wasn¡¯t important.

    Seeing the gazes of these two outstanding men finally on her instead of that ugly woman, Morning Glory Chime intentionally straightened her back to entuate her ample bosom and said, "Last time when I was admiring the scenery at Ice Extermination Cavern in Youzhou, I came across an NPC that I¡¯d never seen before. He told me that there was a small pool at the bottom of Ice Extermination Cavern and that the name of the water contained within the pool was called Shadow Snaring Water."

 Chapter 177

    <b>Chapter 177: Delving Into Ice Extermination Cavern (1) </b>

    Ice Extermination Cavern was situated between two snowy mountains, creating a world of frost where few dared tread. And outside the entrance of Ice Extermination Cavern, there was a vast stretch of tndpletely covered in ice.

    Since they didn¡¯t have any Floating Light Silk on them and they didn¡¯t know if they¡¯d be able to get their hands on it, they decided to go after the Shadow Snaring Water first.

    With Morning Glory Chime in the lead, their group soon arrived at Ice Extermination Cavern.

    Likely due to the pure white snow nketing the one-person-tall entrance, the party of four was almost unable to spot it when they flew by on their mounts.

    As most of the monsters in this region gathered in the nds outside the entrance, Shen Jingbin and Morning Glory Chime remained seated on their mounts, while Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast drifted down to dispatch the monsters that were loitering about the entrance.

    The monsters in this area were all pretty cute. The Snow Mountain Bears were as furry as pr bear cubs, while the Snow Demons were as pretty as fairies.

    Once they had cleared out most of the monsters, Shen Jingbin and Morning Glory Chime descended.

    The moment she hit the ground, Morning Glory Chime jogged over to where Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast were and said, "Brother Pure Crane, Brother Quiet And Steadfast, can you guys help me catch a Snow Mountain Bear? I really like them; they look so cute!"

    She¡¯d seen these absolutely adorable Snow Mountain Bears the previous time she was here, but the male yers apanying her were all too noob. Let alone helping her catch a Snow Mountain Bear, they couldn¡¯t even get her into the cavern without having to sneak into it. It was a far cry from how they now cleared out the monsters and just swaggered in.

    Quiet And Steadfast wordlessly nced at her before he sheathed his dagger and walked over to Shen Jingbin. Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s tant ignoring caused Morning Glory Chime to reveal a look of embarrassment immediately, so Pure Crane stepped in once again to smooth things over. "A Snow Mountain Bears¡¯ level is too high; they¡¯re not suitable for you. Later I¡¯ll help you catch some Floofy Bears instead."

    Youzhou was a high-level region, so the monsters around here naturally wouldn¡¯t be weak either. Though a Snow Mountain Bear wasn¡¯t anything to write home about for both Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast, it had shaved off a considerable chunk of Morning Glory Chime¡¯s health when it wed at her. The Floofy Bear that Pure Crane had mentioned, on the other hand, was another bear-shaped monster found in Central Almond Bear Ridge. It looked a little fatter than a racoon, didn¡¯t deal much damage, and was easy to capture. Many male yers liked catching them to gain favour with female yers.

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s expression eased up a little once she heard Pure Crane say that.

    After Quiet And Steadfast neared Shen Jingbin, he coughed and lowered his voice, "Do you like that bear? Want me to catch one for you?"

    Shen Jingbin turned to look at the Snow Mountain Bears that were frolicking around in the distance and shook her head. "It¡¯s too troublesome. Mascot¡¯s enough for me."

    She didn¡¯t like those dumb looking bears.

    Snow Mountain Bear: Screw you! How can you call me dumb when I look so cute! You¡¯re just blind!

    "Let¡¯s enter the cavern," Pure Crane gave Morning Glory Chime a pacifying nudge on the back and led her in. "I¡¯ll scout ahead. As an added measure, Morning Glory will follow behind me to point you guys in the right direction. Little Jing, you walk in the middle and Guildmaster Steady will bring up the rear. Any objections?"

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast shook their heads at the same time. "No problem."

    Morning Glory Chime replied cutely in turn, "I¡¯ll listen to whatever Brother Pure Cranes says."

    After that, the four of them entered the cavern in session based on the order Pure Crane had decided.

    Around ten minutester, another group of people appeared at the entrance of the Ice Extermination Cavern. The monsters outside the cavern entrance would respawn once every three minutes, and by the time these people showed up, the Snow Mountain Bears that were cleared by Quiet And Steadfast had all respawned. So, they¡¯d had to repeat what Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s group had done and slowly cleared the entrance of monsters.

    Shortly after entering the cave, a very narrow path presented itself to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s group, with many ice spikes protruding from all over the walls of the cavern. After tripping twice, Morning Glory Chime started to throw a tantrum.

    "Brother Pure Crane, it hurts, I can¡¯t move anymore."

    Pure Crane, who was at the front of the group, turned and said, "Just hold on for a little bit more. It¡¯s too narrow here so I can¡¯t carry you on my back."

    Morning Glory Chime rubbed her knees and revealed a miserable look on her face. "Brother Pure Crane, can you hold me as we walk then?" While she spoke, she reached out for Pure Crane.

    "Girl didn¡¯t you manage on your previous trips?! Dare I ask how you managed in herest time?!" Shen Jingbin thought to herself as ck lines covered her forehead.

    Pure Crane eyed Morning Glory Chime¡¯s small, outstretched hand that reached towards him, and then nced at the two expressionless people behind her. His eyes twitched a little before he turned back and held her fingertips. "Let¡¯s go."

    Morning Glory Chime smiled sweetly and stubbornly pressed her hand into Pure Crane¡¯s palm. "Alright."

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but share a nce with Quiet And Steadfast.

    Did you see that!? Girls these days are so scary!

    Good thing you¡¯re not the least bit scary!

    That¡¯s because I¡¯m reserved!

    Indeed, you¡¯ve always been very reserved... when can you show me your unreserved side?

    Eh, I feel like I¡¯ll turn into a terrifying person when I let loose.

    Quiet And Steadfast gave her a profound look.

    ...Alright then. In that case, you better remain reserved.

    Shen Jingbin: ...

 Chapter 178

    <b>Chapter 178: Delving Into Ice Extermination Cavern (2) </b>

    After walking for around seven to eight minutes, their field of vision suddenly expanded. It turns out that they¡¯d already reached the depths of the Ice Extermination Cavern. A tiny pond sat around ten steps from where they were. Not a single ripple could be seen on the deep green surface of the pond, making it look like a piece of fine jade. Sitting beside the pond there was a person with his back towards them; he wore a tattered straw raincoat and a conical bamboo hat, while the person himself was gaunt and had bowed shoulders.

    "That¡¯s him. He was the one I saw thest time I came," Morning Glory Chime said as she pointed to the figure.

    Pure Crane released her hand and walked over to the figure. After bending down, he was able to make out all of the person¡¯s features.

    It was an old man nearing his seventies. His weather-beaten face replete with lines that signified the passage of time and his eyebrows werepletely white, while his mouth and chin were nketed by an ashen beard. The man sat cross-legged on the bare ice, his hands tucked into his sleeves and pressed against his chest. His eyes were lowered, making it difficult for them to tell whether he was asleep or awake.

    "Mister?" Pure Crane said as he gently patted the man¡¯s shoulder.

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast gathered around the man as well.

    "Hmm?" Feeling someone touch his shoulder, the man slowly opened his eyes and looked up at the group. "Who calls upon this old man?"

    "Mister, may I know the name of this small pond?"

    "You¡¯re referring to this?" The old man pointed at the tiny pond with his sleeved hand.

    Pure Crane nodded.

    "This here pond is known as the Shadow Snaring pond. No shadows are cast by the people who near it as they¡¯ve all been stolen."

    "So the water in this pond is the Shadow Snaring Water?" Pure Crane asked once again.

    The old man shook his head. "That¡¯s not the case. The water within this pond is and isn¡¯t Shadow Snaring Water. How curious."

    When she heard his vague reply, Morning Glory Chime cut in and said, "He said the same thing thest time I came. I couldn¡¯t understand what he said, and I didn¡¯t see what made this ce so special, so I left afterwards."

    Pure Crane¡¯s brows knitted. He asked, "Mister, what do you mean by that?"

    The old man raised his head and slowly swept his gaze across them. "Why are you little ones so dim-witted despite being giants amongst men?"

    Pure Crane choked a little when he heard that and silently rubbed his nose. Shen Jingbin, who¡¯d been staring at the old man the whole time, suddenly realised there was something hidden within his sleeves.

    "Mister, what¡¯s inside your sleeves?"

    The old man paused before he raised his gaze to look at her. "Lass, you have keen eyes."

    He then produced an item from within his sleeves.

    It was a mustard coloured gourd.

    The old man¡¯s navy blue robes starkly contrasted against the gourd hidden amidst his loose sleeves. However, Pure Crane andpany had failed to notice it.

    "This is an Earth Warding Gourd. The Shadow Snaring Water causes all shadows to disappear without a trace. However, earth suppresses water, and this Earth Warding Gourd is the only thing that can contain it. How about this: I¡¯ll let you have this Earth Warding Gourd if you help me with something. What do you guys think?" The old man said through half-lidded eyes as he swung the gourd about.

    Pure Crane, Shen Jingbin, and Quiet And Steadfast looked at each other. As for Morning Glory Chime... Yup, she wasn¡¯t important.

    Unwilling to be ignored, Morning Glory Chime walked right up to the old and said, "Mister, why do you want us to help you?"

    Unexpectedly, the old man¡¯s gaze went past her, and he looked straight at Shen Jingbin, "I speak not to fools. You over theress,e closer."

    At this point, Morning Glory Chime was fuming with rage. Meanwhile, Shen Jingbin shot her a look of innocence and walked over to the old man. "Mister, please speak."

    The old man spoke while stroking his beard, "Do you know the names of the two snow mountains that surround Ice Extermination Cavern?"

    "Yes, they are Mochan Mountain and Liangcang Peak."

    "Good, I won¡¯t bother hiding things anymore since you know their names. All of you should know that there¡¯s a flower called Ice Crystal on Mochan Mountain; while Liancang Peak has a type of grass named Angelica Ginger. Combining the two of them calls forth a Dragon Mouth Catfish from within the Shadow Snaring pond. The Dragon Mouth Catfish is the embodiment of cleanliness and resides at the source of the Shadow Snaring pond. You¡¯ll have to make your way towards the source of the pond if you want true Shadow Snaring Water. If you¡¯re able to help me pick some Angelica Ginger and Ice Crystals, I¡¯ll use the Earth Warding Gourd to help you collect some Shadow Snaring Water from the source of the pond. How does that sound?"

    "Okay," Shen Jingbin immediately replied and heard a "ding" right after.

    "Quest: ¡¯Snaring Shadow, Temping Dragon¡¯ ¡ª¡ª Ice Crystal submitted (0/1) Angelica Ginger submitted (0/1). Will you ept this quest? Yes/No."

    After epting the quest, the four of them prepared to make their way towards the two mountains in search of the Ice Crystal and Angelica Ginger the old man spoke of. However, they were met with a whole swarm of people when they turned around.

    The person leading them turned out to be Crying Fish, whom they hadn¡¯t seen in a long time.

    Before they entered, Crying Fish had heard some faint noises from within. To protect themselves, she had ordered her people to draw their weapons. Upon seeing Quiet And Steadfast, her eyes lit up, and she immediately lowered her weapon and cried out to him in joy. "Ah Ning?"

    Tsk.

    Shen Jingbin shot a look at Quiet And Steadfast.

    Following their previous arrangement, Quiet And Steadfast who was formerly in the rear guard would now take point on the way back. Due to this, he couldn¡¯t avoid her even if he wanted to.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s dashing eyebrows knitted together the moment he saw Crying Fish. He silently stared at her and refused to answer.

    Crying Fish gestured for her people to lower their weapons before a smile bloomed like spring on her face. She neared him and said, "Ah Ning, why are you here? Are you guys doing a quest? Heh, I don¡¯t see your wife... did you guys have a divorce? Didn¡¯t I tell you not to marry someone just because you¡¯re angry with me? Not only that, you even married someone so ugly. It looks like even you can¡¯t stand her anymore huh?"

    Crying Fish¡¯s slightly shrill voice, coupled with the echo from them being in a sealed cavern, meant that everything she said pierced straight into Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears, causing her temples to throb uncontrobly. Once they heard this, Morning Glory Chime and Pure Crane turned to look at her strangely.

 Chapter 179

    <b>Chapter 179: Ice Crystal (1) </b>

    When she¡¯d created her character, Shen Jingbin had made herself as ugly as possible; turning herself from a 173cm beauty into a little loli who was just over 150cm.

    In fact, she could pass off as a lolita with her height. She¡¯d even seen many petite and cute lolis ever since she¡¯d entered the game. Unfortunately, that very same height was what led to her body¡¯s tragic proportions. When she thought of that, she truly respected Quiet And Steadfast. How much mental fortitude had he needed to have the courage to marry her and even flirt with her from time to time?

    Of the three other people in their party, the two men could be excluded ¨C they were well over 185cm tall. On the other hand, Morning Glory Chime was almost the same height as she was in real life. Regardless, she was now much taller than Shen Jingbin who was standing at the very back of the party; so Shen Jingbin was utterly hidden from view.

    This was why Crying Fish wasn¡¯t entirely at fault for not having spotted Shen Jingbin.

    Quiet And Steadfast coughed and said, "Could I trouble you to move aside? You¡¯re blocking our way."

    Just because Crying Fish was smitten with Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t mean that everyone else in her guild was. A Mara vigntly sized up their party as he inched closer to his Guild Leader, his eyes twinkling when he noticed Shen Jingbin hidden behind the party.

    The Mara tugged at Crying Fish and said, "Leader, look over there."

    The Mara motioned with his eyes for her to look over at Shen Jingbin.

    Only then did Crying Fish stop her torrent of verbal diarrhea. She followed the Mara¡¯s gaze and a detail she¡¯d previously neglected suddenly appeared before her very eyes.

    "You..." She suddenly red at Quiet And Steadfast. Whatever she¡¯d originally thought of saying was stuck in her throat, and it took her a good long while toe back to her senses. Her beautiful face flushing red. "S-so you guys are together? Good job, Quiet And Steadfast. Are you trying to make me look like a fool? Is my one-sided love that amusing to look at?"

    Why were some girls wired so strangely in this world? Shen Jingbin felt that Crying Fish had probably read too many romantic novels. Either that, or she¡¯d watched too many brainless dramas that led her to continually believe that she was the female lead and that everyone¡¯s life should revolve around hers.

    "You¡¯re blocking our way. Move over," Quiet And Steadfast said,pletely ignoring her one-man diatribe.

    "Leader, take another look over there!" Shen Jingbin was never the focus of the Mara¡¯s attention from the very beginning. He was more concerned about the fact that the Vice-Leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent was hanging around with Quiet And Steadfast from Jade Sea Pavilion. He helplessly tugged at his Guild Leader¡¯s sleeve when he saw her paying attention to the wrong thing once again.

    "Pure Crane? Why are you with Quiet And Steadfast?" Crying Fish finally noticed the presence of others on the scene, and a closer inspection revealed one of them to be Pure Crane. She red at him, her beautiful eyes hiding the bitterness behind them before she immediately interrogated him. "Vice-leader Pure Crane, is Sovereign¡¯s Descent trying to absorb two guilds?"

    Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent had mostly concluded their alliance talks and were only missing the formality of actually allying. However, she now saw Pure Crane standing together with Jade Sea Pavilion. He was someone who held more prestige in Life At First Sight; more than its official Guild Leader. Crying Fish, being the narrow-minded person that she was, immediately imagined a plot that spanned more than ten thousand words.

    Pure Crane cleared his throat and took a step forward, bringing him to the very front of the party and said, "O Great Leader, since you can pursue Guild Leader Quiet so brazenly, I don¡¯t think me partnering up with him to do a quest will cause any problems, right?"

    After thinking about it for a moment, Crying Fish decided that that ought to be the case and followed up with another question, "A quest? What quest are you guys doing?"

    "What¡¯s it got to do with you?" Morning Glory Chime retorted.

    Crying Fish swept a nce at her. "Where did youe from? What¡¯s it to you?"

    Pure Crane reached out his hand to hold Morning Glory Chime back and replied, "This is a personal matter, there¡¯s no need for me to tell you. You brought a team here, so you should have something that you need to do too, right? That¡¯s good. You go ahead and do what you must, and we¡¯ll do the same. Let¡¯s not disturb one another, alright?" He continued, not waiting for Crying Fish to reply, "O Great Leader, we must take our leave now. Please allow us to pass."

    Crying Fish looked over to Quiet And Steadfast who had his face partially concealed by a veil. She then turned her attention to Shen Jingbin, whose body was obstructed by Morning Glory Chime. An unpredictable look shed across her eyes as she pondered something. However, in the end, she still decided to take several small steps and moved to the side.

    Her actions served as a signal, and the rest of the people behind her immediately made a path for Shen Jingbin¡¯s group. Without stopping, Quiet And Steadfast walked right through the path that they¡¯d opened.

    Crying Fish¡¯s group only looked away from the other party when their silhouettes werepletely drowned out by the vast ice passage that reflected light.

    "Leader, are you going to let them go just like that?" A Dragonkin girl moved over to her ear and quietly asked her.

    Crying Fish shot her a nce. "What do you want to do then? Do you think we can stop them with our numbers?"

    The Dragonkin girl had a puzzled look on her face as she stared back at Crying Fish. "Even if Quiet And Steadfast is the number one yer in the game, those two girls are newbies, right? We might not be able to defeat him even with those two dead weights dragging him down, but we might be able to keep her from leaving."

    At this moment, the Mara spoke up from the side, "Idiot. Do you think Pure Crane from Sovereign¡¯s Descent is a pushover? Even though he¡¯s not as good as Quiet And Steadfast, he¡¯s also one of the top twenty experts on the strength leaderboard. Also, what you said about that ugly Daoist noob isn¡¯t wrong, but she has the Divine Beast, White Tiger. It can take you out with just a single swipe of its ws when she summons it out. Other than that gorgeous looking Nymph, the rest of them aren¡¯t people you want to provoke."

    The Dragonkin girl had a look of surprise on her face. She¡¯d recently been focusing on levelling, so she wasn¡¯t aware of the many things that had taken ce.

    Crying Fish squinted and said, "There¡¯ll be ample time for thatter, let¡¯s not worry about this first. I feel annoyed looking at Quiet And Steadfast and that ugly girl together, but it¡¯s fine as long as I don¡¯t see them. Let them go; we have more important things to attend to."

 Chapter 180

    <b>Chapter 180: Ice Crystal (2) </b>

    After she spoke, she turned around and looked towards the Soul Snaring pond located in the depths of the Ice Extermination Cavern.

    To be precise, her gaze fell on the silhouette by the bank of the Soul Snaring pond.

    She then walked over to where the silhouette was.

    She¡¯d previously gotten a recipe for a high ranked medicinal elixir, and amongst the ingredients, there one was called Shadow Snaring Water which she¡¯d never heard of before. She only knew that said ingredient could be found here when she¡¯d sent someone to ask around about it.

    However, the person who¡¯d sold her this information had told her that this was only a possibility but didn¡¯t bring up the specifics of the item. Hence, she¡¯d had toe over to verify the authenticity of the information personally.

    "Old man, I have something to ask you," Crying Fish arrogantly said once she got close enough to the silhouette by the bank of the pond and determined that it belonged to an old man.

    She¡¯d been spoiled silly and didn¡¯t know what respect was at all, let alone respect towards an NPC.

    But, it didn¡¯t matter how high and mighty she acted, because the old man assumed a sleeping pose on the bank of the pond with his head bowed low and his hands folded against his body; he didn¡¯t respond in the slightest.

    Moving back to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s group, the four members of the party parted ways after leaving the Ice Extermination Cavern. Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingbin headed towards Mochan Mountain in search of the Ice Crystal, while Pure Crane and Morning Glory Chime went to Liangcang Peak to look for Angelica Ginger.

    Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingbin wasted no time in flying to the peak of Mochan Mountain. The old man had given them a hint ¨C the Ice Crystal was named as such because it grew at the highest point on Mochan Mountain. The temperature there was the lowest, causing all living things to turn into crystal.

    Locating the peak of Mochan Mountain was a simple matter; a moment¡¯s search was all it took for the two of them to find it.

    A small sparkling and translucent flower was swaying about in the frigid winds of Mochan Mountain¡¯s peak.

    This was a nt Shen Jingbin had never seen before. Its entire body was translucent, reflecting the colours of the rainbow under the sunlight. It was a breathtaking sight.

    "This should be it," Said Quiet And Steadfast.

    Shen Jingbin nodded, and the two of them dove downwards at the same time, breaking their descent when they were about half a meter away from the Ice Crystal.

    Shen Jingbin jumped off Mascot andnded on a boulder. She then slowly approached the Ice Crystal with its beauty on full disy for all to see.

    Shen Jingbin stretched out her hand and drew nearer to the Ice Crystal¡¯s roots. When the flesh on her fingers came into contact with the Ice Crystal, a slight chill coursed through her hand.

    "The cold air from the Ice Crystal has frozen you. You have lost 100 HP." The system notification rang out in Shen Jingbin¡¯s ear, catching her by surprise and causing her to withdraw her hand on reflex.

    She¡¯d adjusted her pain level ever since her first death, which was why she¡¯d only felt a slight chill even though the system had informed her that her hand was severely frozen.

    Noticing her suddenly withdrawing her hand, Quiet And Steadfast immediately jumped off his mount and walked to her side. "What¡¯s wrong?" He asked.

    "It¡¯s nothing. The cold air just froze my hand."

    Quiet And Steadfast frowned. "You¡¯re too careless. Since it grows in the coldest region of the mountain, the nt itself is obviously going to be just as cold. How can you just pick it with your bare hands?"

    As he spoke, he fished around inside his backpack and pulled out a shabby looking piece of sackcloth.

    "What¡¯s this?" Shen Jingbin curiously asked.

    "It¡¯s a shabby piece of sackcloth. This can be used as a substitute for silver when you purchase special equipment from the prestige point shop. However, you can only use this to lower the price of silver to a maximum of ten taels, which is also equivalent to five shabby sackcloths."

    Quiet And Steadfast ripped the shabby sackcloth by its seams as he spoke. He then pulled her hand towards him and helped her to wrap it up slowly.

    Thanks to the game¡¯s character modifications, her once clear knuckles and her white, slender fingers, were now short and stubby, enabling Quiet And Steadfast to wrap the palm of hisrge hand around hers in an instant.

    Don¡¯t ask why Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t just help her pick the Ice Crystal at the very start. Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t so frail and delicate that she¡¯d start sobbing and asking for help just because she was frozen.

    Quiet And Steadfast understood what kind of personality she had, and didn¡¯t bring up helping her. His movements were swift, taking only a moment to wrap up her hand nicely. His did an excellent job of it, and her hand was wrapped up beautifully.

    "I¡¯m done," Quiet And Steadfast said as he patted her bandaged hand after finishing up thest bit of wrapping.

    She raised her hand and ced it under the sun to get a better look at it.

    Tsk, why¡¯s it so short? My hand was thick, to begin with, but it looks even thicker now after he bandaged it. It seems like it¡¯s swollen!

    "Thank you," She disliked it with a passion, but not even the slightest bit of her displeasure leaked onto her face. After thanking him, she turned around and approached the Ice Crystal once again. This time around, the flesh on her fingers didn¡¯t feel cold when she touched the Ice Crystal¡¯s roots.

    She tightened her grip around the Ice Crystal and gradually exerted force with her wrist, lifting it upwards.

    "Congrattions, you have obtained an Ice Crystal."

    The system notification rang out the instant the root of the Ice Crystal broke free from the rock. She held the sparkling and translucent Ice Crystal in her hands as it gently swayed about in the sunlight.

    "Quickly, put it in your backpack. It¡¯s too cold, don¡¯t hold it in your hands," Quiet And Steadfast was afraid of her getting frozen and quickly urged her to do as he said.

    Shen Jingbin opened up her backpack and obediently ced the Ice Crystal inside it.

    Then, they summoned their mounts and quickly returned the way they came.

 Chapter 181

    <b>Chapter 181: A Vtile Situation (1) </b>

    The two of themnded at the entrance of the Ice Extermination Cavern to wait for Pure Crane and Morning Glory Chime. Before they¡¯d split up, both groups had agreed to gather at the cavern entrance once they finished. However, other than the gentle Snow Mountain Bears, they weren¡¯t able to spot Pure Crane and Morning Glory Chime. The two of them probably hadn¡¯t gotten their hands on the Angelica Ginger yet.

    "Don¡¯t kill all the bears, leave some for me to practice on," After seeing Quiet And Steadfast finish off a bear in one hit, Shen Jingbin felt a little restless and also wanted to try her hand at taking out the bears.

    Quiet And Steadfast gave grunted in affirmation. As the Snow Mountain Bears were aggressive red-named mobs, they immediately pounced towards Shen Jingbin the moment he halted his attack and took a step back.

    "... Why aren¡¯t theying at me one by one?!" She cried out in astonishment as she dodged the bears that were throwing themselves at her while attacking the one that was closest to her.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t strong enough to one shot a bear just yet, so when her horsetail whisk struck down on it, the bear roared out in anger and became enraged.

    "Every monster has its weak point. Take a moment to observe where the Snow Mountain Bear¡¯s weak point is," Quiet And Steadfast said as he folded his arms and guided her from the side.

    Upon hearing what he said, Shen Jingbin turned back to the enraged Snow Mountain Bear and gazed intently at it.

    Thoroughly enraged, the Snow Mountain Bear shifted its stance and reared up on its hind legs, revealing its snow-white belly for all to see. When it did so, Shen Jingbin¡¯s sharp eyes spotted a faint ck line on the bear¡¯s belly.

    Was that its weak point? But it was on the bear¡¯s belly; how did Quiet And Steadfast know where it was?

    Shen Jingbin took a moment to cast a sidelong nce at Quiet And Steadfast before she mustered her strength and attacked the ck line.

    Critical hit!

    It really was its weak point!

    A look of joy surfaced on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face, and she began focusing her attacks on the Snow Mountain Bear¡¯s belly.

    "You can summon Mascot to train it," Quiet and Steadfast suggested.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t used to relying on the help of others; which was why even though she had a killing machine like Mascot, it was rarely used unless she was overwhelmed by numbers and could barely hold on. However, given the circumstances now...

    She summoned Mascot without hesitation and switched him tobat mode.

    She patted Mascot¡¯s head andmanded, "Go Mascot! Finish each of them with a single swipe!"

    "Roar!" Mascot raised its head and gave an oppressive howl to the heavens before it leapt towards the mass of Snow Mountain Bears and began its massacre. The Snow Mountain Bears¡¯ levels were nothing to write home about, so Mascot did as Shen Jingbin hadmanded and took down each bear with a single swipe.

    After Mascot began its attack, Shen Jingbin retreated to where Quiet And Steadfast was standing. As the two of them watched Mascot¡¯s...solo performance, Quiet And Steadfast said, "I realise you don¡¯t like summoning Mascot when you¡¯re hunting monsters or PKing, but to be honest, Mascot is a great help. You can even challenge the top tier yers on the leaderboards with its help."

    Shen Jingbin scratched her head. "I¡¯m still not very used to it. I keep forgetting that Mascot can be used in battles too."

    "You don¡¯t seem to have any trouble remembering it when ites to using it as a flying mount," Quiet And Steadfast said with a smile that failed to reach his eyes.

    "... That¡¯s because I can¡¯t fly on my own."

    Quiet And Steadfast gave her a profound look and said, "Its strength is dependent on your level. Once it¡¯s developed in the future, it can easily match up against an expert in the game. You have to work hard, so you don¡¯t let Mascot down."

    At this moment, Mascot issued a very timely howl, causing ck lines to appear on Shen Jingbin¡¯s forehead.

    You brat! Just whose pet are you?!

    "I¡¯ll help power level you as much as I can. As for your gear... I recall you saying your equipment can grow?"

    "Mm, but I haven¡¯t been able to level it yet," She said helplessly. "I¡¯ve tried going back to look for Bai Hua to ask him about it, but I wasn¡¯t able to find him. I couldn¡¯t find any information elsewhere either."

    After a moment¡¯s contemtion, Quiet And Steadfast said, "There are very few pieces of equipment in <<Legend of Celestials and Demons>> that can level up, so it¡¯s quite normal for people to not know about it. After all, a person¡¯s treasure arouses the envy of others, and there are times when a person¡¯s envy can be truly terrifying. Even if someone did manage to obtain a piece of growing equipment, they probably wouldn¡¯t say anything about it... How about this? Let¡¯s go ask Hundred Daybreaks once we¡¯re done here."

    Heh heh. Hundred. Day. Breaks!

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s temper suddenly red. "You can go on your own if you want, I never want to see her again."

    Quiet And Steadfast choked. "I¡¯ll have Next Week Is Unlikely ask instead."

    Shen Jingbin gave him a look that said, "at least you¡¯ve got tact".

    She definitely would¡¯ve given him the cold shoulder if he dared to go on his own!

 Chapter 182

    <b>Chapter 182: A Vtile Situation (2) </b>

    Mascot gave its all and finished off the Snow Mountain Bears around them as the two of them talked. However, Shen Jingbin called it back just as it was about to prance further out to continue its hunt.

    "How strange, why aren¡¯t Pure Crane and Morning Glory Chime back yet?" Shen Jingbin asked quizzically after she recalled Mascot.

    They two of them continued waiting there for a while longer. Even if Pure Crane was lugging Morning Glory Chime around, they shouldn¡¯t be taking so long just to pick some herbs.

    "They can¡¯t have gone in already, right?"

    Quiet And Steadfast shook his head. "They couldn¡¯t have. We agreed to meet at the entrance."

    "Could they have met with trouble then?"

    "Maybe."

    At that moment, a row of words suddenly popped up in the party channel.

    [Party] Morning Glory Chime: SOS SOS SOS!

    [Party] Nutjob: What¡¯s wrong?

    [Party] Morning Glory Chime: We¡¯re surrounded! SOS!

    [Party] Quiet And Steadfast: Surrounded? By who?

    [Party] Pure Crane: We¡¯re not sure. They¡¯re yers from the Shinra Sect. There¡¯s three following me, and they¡¯re probablying after me for contribution points.

    Few people knew of Pure Crane¡¯s identity as the Lead Disciple of Swordmaster Pavilion. He was, however, one of the top yers on the leaderboards. In general, PKing an expert of his level should yield a pretty good amount of contribution points.

    [Party] Quiet And Steadfast: Where are they?

    [Party] Pure Crane: They¡¯re halfway up the mountain. Somewhere around 440 East, 1256 North. I¡¯m hiding from them with Morning Glory Chime.

    Pure Crane might have been able to take them head on if he were alone. However, with the baggage he was dragging around, he had no choice but to hide.

    [Party] Quiet And Steadfast: You guys be careful, we¡¯re on our way.

    [Party] Pure Crane: Okay.

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast exchanged a nce before they immediately climbed onto their mounts and rushed off in the direction that had Pure Crane mentioned.

    Upon arriving at the bush that Pure Crane was hiding in, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast hopped off their mounts and took shelter with them.

    "Did you guys see anything on the way here?" Pure Crane asked.

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "I took a rough survey of the area, but I didn¡¯t spot any tracks."

    Morning Glory Chime gripped Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s sleeve, happy with how close they were to one another. She then looked towards Pure Crane and said, "Brother Pure Crane, maybe we managed to throw them off!"

    Quiet And Steadfast immediately extricated his sleeve from her grasp, causing Morning Glory Chime¡¯s nose to quietly wrinkle in dissatisfaction.

    Pure Crane frowned. "I¡¯m not sure. They¡¯ve been biting at our heels the whole time, so I doubt we managed to throw them off so easily. My guess is that they¡¯ve hidden and are waiting for us walk right into their trap..."

    "Quiet And Steadfast and I didn¡¯t hide ourselves when we arrived; we pretty much sauntered right in. Maybe they felt they couldn¡¯t win against Quiet And Steadfast after seeing him and decided to leave?" Shen Jingbin said.

    "Regardless, we can¡¯t keep on hiding here forever. Did you guys manage to find the Angelica Ginger?" Quiet And Steadfast said.

    Pure Crane shook his head, revealing a look of embarrassment. "This was why we didn¡¯t immediately go down the mountain to look for you guys. They stole the Angelica Ginger from us... They popped up out of nowhere when we were about to pick the Angelica Ginger just now. Two of them fought against Morning Glory Chime and me, while the remaining one took the Angelica Ginger and ced it in their inventory."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes narrowed when he heard that. Following that, chilling words came forth from his ck veil, "In that case, let¡¯s lure them out; but I¡¯m not so sure about who¡¯s going to be the hunter, and the hunted this time around," He paused for a moment, before he turned to Shen Jingbin to continue, "Remember to summon Mascot. Since its a Divine Beast, it¡¯ll probably do more damage against yers from the Shinra Sect."

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    "Okay, now listen up. Shortly after this, we¡¯ll split into two groups when we scatter from the bush. Pure Crane, you and the Nymph take note: getting the two of you is definitely their top priority, so you have to be especially cautious of any activity within your surroundings. Travel a little slower when you move about. Little Jing and I will make a roundabout, so you guys have to hold on till we return."

    "Brother Quiet, my name isn¡¯t Nymph! I¡¯m Morning Glory Chime! And why can¡¯t you let Sister Nutty and I be the bait instead? They¡¯ll definitely attack the two of us since we¡¯re so weak, so wouldn¡¯t things work out even better that way?"

    Quiet And Steadfast eyed her indifferently. "If the two of you went out, anyone with a brain would be able to tell that it¡¯s a trap. In fact, they might even attack us instead. When the timees, Pure Crane and I wouldn¡¯t be able to help you guys even if we wanted to."

    Morning Glory Chime shrunk back without another word of dissent and yed the part of a mute.

    "I agree. How about Morning Glory Chime and I run eastward, while you and Little Jingter go westward?"

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. "I¡¯ll start counting down, and we¡¯ll move out on the count of one... Morning Glory Chime, try your best to keep pace with Pure Crane. Even if you can¡¯t, find a way to keep up with him and don¡¯t drag him down. Otherwise, you¡¯ll be hard-pressed to stay alive."

    Morning Glory Chime shot a distressed look at him. "Brother Quiet, can I go with you instead? You¡¯re stronger than Brother Pure Crane, and Sister Nutty is stronger than me. Won¡¯t our strengths even out if I follow you, and Sister Nutty follows Brother Pure Crane?"

    "No."

    "No."

    Came Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s simultaneous rejection.

    "Little Jing and Quiet And Steadfast are husband and wife. It¡¯d be odd if the two of them were separated. Also, if they don¡¯te out of their hiding and instead decide to ambush us, we won¡¯t be able to guard against them," Pure Crane said.

    Morning Glory Chime pouted.

    "Okay, so Pure Crane with Morning Glory Chime will form one group, and Nutjob will go with me... Get ready; I¡¯ll start counting down."

    "Three."

    "Two."

    "One!"

    The minute he said "one", four figures zipped out from behind the bushes. Splitting into two people per team, they dashed out in different directions.

    At a distance of around twenty metres away from them, a person stood behind three ancient trees that towered in the sky. They wore a full set of ck shirt, pants, and had a cape draped behind them, obscuring their appearance.

    "Boss, what are we gonna do now? Which group should we go after?"

    The person referred to as "Boss" looked in the direction that Shen Jingbin¡¯s pair had run off, and then in Pure Crane¡¯s direction, his face revealing a look of consternation.

    "Go after Pure Crane!"

    "But Boss, Nutjob is White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple. Finishing her off would yield us a lot more points than getting rid of Pure Crane and his partner," One of the figures in ck said.

    The leader red at the man and said, "Do you think you can take down Nutjob? That woman¡¯s insane. Even if she isn¡¯t that strong, don¡¯t forget that she¡¯s the owner of the Divine Beast, White Tiger. To top it off, she has Quiet And Steadfast by her side. You¡¯ll be digging your own grave if you try to attack her! Now, listen to my orders and go after Pure Crane!"

    "Yes!"

    In the blink of an eye, the three figures garbed in ck disappeared from sight and began pursuing Pure Crane.

 Chapter 183

    <b>Chapter 183: The Second Clue (1) </b>

    Around three minutes after the three ck figures disappeared, another two more silhouettes appeared from where they¡¯dst been.

    "They really did chase after Pure Crane."

    "Mm, let¡¯s quickly give chase."

    A momentter, the two of them were speeding after the three ck clothed individuals.

    As he had Morning Glory Chime by his side and had to consider her, Pure Crane¡¯s speed was significantly reduced. They heard something behind them before they managed to get far.

    When Morning Glory Chime snuck a look behind her, she was so horrified that her face turned pale with fright.

    "Bro- Brother Pure Crane!"

    "What?"

    "They¡¯ve... they¡¯ve caught up!"

    When Pure Crane turned behind them to look, there were indeed threenky figures chasing after them.

    "What should we do? How¡¯d they manage to find us so quickly? Will Brother Quiet and Sister Nutty be able to get to us in time?!" Morning Glory Chime said in a panic.

    Pure Crane calmly replied, "Stop worrying and calm down first... We can¡¯t slow down; we have to keep running so that Quiet And Steadfast and Nutjob can catch up to us!" In spite of what he said, Pure Crane¡¯s voice was slightly raised at the end of his speech.

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s body trembled, and she quietly voiced a word of assent before she continued sprinting forward with everyst ounce of strength she had.

    However, no matter how fast they ran, they still weren¡¯t fast enough to outrun the three Shinra Sect yers¡¯ hack-like speed.

    A gust of wind swept over their heads, pulling them back from their thoughts. The three Shinra Sect yers now stood before them, causing Pure Crane and Morning Glory Chime to halt in their tracks.

    "Come on, keep running," When the two of them stopped, the Shinra Sect yer in the middle of the group who was the tallest amongst the three of them obnoxiously spoke up.

    All three pursuers were covered by ck cloaks and caps, making it impossible to discern anything about their appearances.

    Pure Crane hid Morning Glory Chime behind himself and wore a smile of indifference. He acted as if he wasn¡¯t bothered at all by what had happened and said, "What¡¯s the point of running? You guys clearly have a skill that increases your speed, so we definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to outrun your group."

    The tall yer was a little dissatisfied since he wasn¡¯t able to see the look of panic on the other party¡¯s face. He gave a light snort and said, "It looks like you¡¯re very calm about all this. But I wonder who was it that shat their pants because of us three brothers? Hahaha!"

    He then let out a heartyugh.

    A slightly fatter yer behind him tugged at the man¡¯s cloak and issued a reminder in a small voice, "Boss, it¡¯s better if you cut the small talk. In general, those who mouth off too much never make it past the second episode!"

    "That¡¯s right, Boss, let¡¯s just get it over with! Things¡¯ll be troublesome if other peoplee byter," Said a short figure clothed in ck. From the voice, it was apparent that this was the one who¡¯d suggested going after Shen Jingbin just now.

    "Kuh," The tall man choked on his saliva and coughed several times. He then shot a nce at the fatty, but none of hispanions caught the roll of his eyes. "I know, I don¡¯t need you lot to butt in!"

    The tall man cleared his throat and made a show of taking out his weapon before he roared, "Attack!"

    In the blink of an eye, three silhouettes sped forth like a bolt of lightning.

    Pure Crane had initially nned on stalling for time by screwing around with them, but he hadn¡¯t expected that the three of them wouldn¡¯t fall for his n. They hadn¡¯t even exchanged three sentences before the fighting broke out.

    He could detect the murderous aura being given off by their weapons, so Pure Crane forced Morning Glory Chime back with a shove of his hand and said, "Look after yourself, don¡¯t bother about me."

    "Brother Pure Crane!" Morning Glory Chime was immediately moved to tears by his actions.

    Look at how well Brother Pure Crane treated her! He¡¯d even ced himself in harm¡¯s way because he couldn¡¯t bear to see her hurt! What should she do? Her heart was starting to lean towards Brother Pure Crane... But, Quiet And Steadfast was so handsome and suave too! To top it off, he was the top yer in the game. She couldn¡¯t bear to give him up either!

    Ah, she had to make such a painful choice!

    As she looked for a spot to hide in, her mind was ying out a world-shaking y of misery. If Pure Crane knew of the y that spanned ten thousand words being carried out in her mind, his lips would definitely be violently twitching in response.

    Girl, you¡¯re overthinking things! Way! Too! Much! I was only afraid of you getting in my way! You¡¯re a burden!

    However, to the three people from the Shinra Sect,pared to the fatmb in front of them called Pure Crane, Morning Glory Chime was nothing more than a piece of average tasting ribs. Although they wouldn¡¯t get many contributions points from PKing her, she was an easy kill.

    The tall man motioned at the short one with his eyes and indicated for him to get rid of Morning Glory Chime who was trying to sneak away, while he and the fatty would deal with Pure Crane.

    They were originally of middling strength, but after giving in and joining the Shinra Sect, every aspect of their stats saw a meteoric rise as if they¡¯d been hacked. Now, the two of them working together was more than enough to stand toe to toe with the famous Pure Crane on the leaderboards. Because of this, sending out one of their numbers wouldn¡¯t put any strain on their fighting strength.

    When the shorty received the signal, he immediately stepped away from the fight. With his weapon raised, he walked towards Morning Glory Chime who had her back towards him and was looking all over for a ce to hide.

    "Morning Glory Chime, behind you!" Pure Crane noticed where the shorty was going and split his attention to cry out a warning. However, this moment of inattention resulted in his arm receiving a sh.

    "Notification: You have been afflicted with Abyss Poison. You will lose 100 Health every minute over a period of five minutes. This poison cannot be cleansed."

    A burning pain immediately erupted from his arm. However, Pure Crane hurriedly calmed himself down and faced his two opponents, no longer concerning himself with Morning Glory Chime.

 Chapter 184

    <b>Chapter 184: The Second Clue (2) </b>

    Looking at how much time had psed, Pure Crane figured that Quiet And Steadfast and Nutjob should be catching up soon, and the light in his eyes dimmed a little.

    Going back to Morning Glory Chime.

    She¡¯d immediately turned back when she heard Pure Crane¡¯s warning and caught sight of the shorty¡¯s swording down towards her head.

    "Ah!" Morning Glory Chime gave a blood-curdling cry as she dodged to the side.

    A woman¡¯s shriek could, at times, be more terrifying than one imagined. The shorty was only one weapon¡¯s length away from Morning Glory Chime, and her world-shaking shriek instantly pierced his eardrums and made its way towards his brain.

    With a buzz, the shorty¡¯s ears started ringing, followed by a stab of pain which caused him to draw back his hands and cup his ears unconsciously.

    The f*ck! Women are truly terrifying!

    At this moment, a silver light shed, and a dagger punctured the air as it flew by and buried itself in the shorty¡¯s chest.

    Bullseye! A critical hit to a weak spot!

    The shorty didn¡¯t even have time to cry out for help before he hit the ground.

    The sudden change in circumstances caused Morning Glory Chime to unconsciously stop shrieking and stare nkly in the direction the dagger hade from.

    The man¡¯s sneaking suit was tightly wrapped around his tall and slender body, allowing the outline of his figure to stand out and give rise to feelings of arousal. His long ck hair was simply tied together with a ck hairband, which gave off an exceptionally casual and carefree feel. His face was hidden behind a ck veil, revealing only a pair of eyes that could draw in a person¡¯s soul. They were a deep ck and seemed both expressive and indifferent at the same time. It was as if fire and ice were joined, causing others to be enraptured the moment theyid eyes on him.

    "Brother Quiet!" Morning Glory Chime happily called out.

    Pure Crane, who was embroiled in a battle with the two other yers from the Shinra Sect, immediately beamed with joy when he heard Morning Glory Chime cry out Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s name.

    They¡¯vee!

    In contrast to his joy, the Shinra Sect yers paused what they were doing, and all of the hairs on their backs instantly stood on end.

    There were others behind them!

    The two of them promptly gave up on Pure Crane and spun around with their weapons pointed forward and at the ready.

    When they¡¯d turned around, they were greeted with the sight of a gigantic, awe-inspiring White Tiger pouncing towards them. When it saw them facing it, it even opened its maw to unleash a roar.

    "Roar!" A wave of heat coupled with the stench of blood swept towards them. The force of which was so intense that the two of them unintentionally shut their eyes. Although they couldn¡¯t see, due to the enormous beast¡¯s proximity, they managed to roll to the sides and dodge its ws.

    "The Divine Beast, White Tiger?!" After recovering from his roll, the tall man eximed in bewilderment as he looked at the enormous white beast in front of Pure Crane.

    Shit, we¡¯ve fallen into their trap!

    "Ole third, let¡¯s leave!" The tall man shouted to hispanion. Then, with a swish of hisrge cloak, he disappeared from their very eyes.

    The remaining fatty, upon seeing that his Boss had run away, also chose not to hang around any longer. In a simr manner, he gave a swish of his cloak and disappeared.

    Shen Jingbin, who was trailing behind Mascot, hurriedly ran over to stare nkly at the spot where they¡¯d disappeared from. Feeling a little depressed, she sighed. She then turned to face Morning Glory Chime who wastching onto Quiet And Steadfast beside her and asked, "... Was that a skill?"

    Quiet And Steadfast thought for a bit and said, "Mm, that should be a skill that¡¯s exclusive to the Shinra Sect."

    "... Can we still keep ying at this rate?"

    "They have lesser people, so they¡¯re disadvantaged no matter how you look at it. If there¡¯s going to be an entertaining showdown between good and evil, they¡¯ll need all sorts of cheats to even the ying field for themselves." Pure Crane chimed in.

    Shen Jingbin curled her hands into fists and said, "We have to kill the members of the Shinra Sect on sight the next time we meet them! We definitely can¡¯t let them get away."

    "As you are now, the only thing that you¡¯ll be doing is <b>being</b> killed on sight."

    "... Screw you!"

    Morning Glory Chime stood by Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side once again; her eyes filled with adoration for him and said, "Brother Quiet, thanks for helping me out just now!"

    Quiet And Steadfast just indifferently nodded his head and replied, "Don¡¯t mention it."

    "You were so cool just now!"

    "I know."

    Shen Jingbin: ... Tsk.

    Where¡¯s your sense of modesty!

    Realizing that they hadn¡¯t aplished their goal yet, Pure Crane said, "They¡¯re gone now, but what should we do about the Angelica Ginger that¡¯s in their hands?"

    Noticing that the corpse of the shorty Quiet And Steadfast had disposed of hadn¡¯t disappeared just yet, Shen Jingbin walked up and started looting him.

    "Congrattions on obtaining a clue rted to the Shinra Sect."

    She didn¡¯t find the Angelica Ginger, but she did manage to dig out a clue. After pulling out the clue from the shorty, his corpse turned into a beam of white light and disappeared.

    Shen Jingbin stood up and waved the piece of paper in her hand. "It looks like the Angelica Ginger wasn¡¯t on him, but I did find this instead."

    The rest of them proceeded to surround her. "What¡¯s that? Let me see!" Morning Glory Chime asked as she stretched out her hand to snatch the paper away.

    Shen Jingbin feinted, causing Morning Glory Chime to grab at air and nce unhappily at her.

    "It¡¯s a clue rting to the Shinra Sect," Shen Jingbin said as she slowly unfolded the slip of paper in front of everyone else.

    "yers who¡¯ve joined the Shinra Sect can also invite other yers into the sect. However, each yer is only allowed to issue one invitation. Moreover, only elite yers are given the option to invite others into the sect."

    The four of them looked at one another before Quiet And Steadfast took the slip of paper from Shen Jingbin. "I¡¯ll take this and pass it to Next Week Is Unlikely. I¡¯ll get him to bring it to Hundred Daybreaks so that she can release an announcement about it."

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    "Let¡¯s go back and have another look to see if the Angelica Ginger has respawned. I doubt the yers from the Shinra Sect will make another appearance," Pure Crane said.

    The rest of them nodded in agreement.

    In reality, disagreeing wasn¡¯t an option since this was the only way forward.

    They doubled back to the Angelica Ginger¡¯s gathering point. Luckily for them, the Angelica Ginger had respawned pretty quickly and was there by the time they reached it.

    The four of them then began making their way back after picking the Angelica Ginger.

 Chapter 185

    <b>Chapter 185: Entering The Pond (1) </b>

    Crying Fish¡¯s group was waiting by the entrance of the Ice Extermination Cavern when they returned. It looked as if they were waiting for someone.

    Upon seeing them, Crying Fish immediately walked up to greet them with a flirtatious smile on her face and said, "You¡¯re here to look for the Shadow Snaring Water as well, right? What a coincidence, we¡¯re also looking for it. Let us have a bit of it once you¡¯ve gotten your hands on some."

    Both of her eyes were firmly locked on Quiet And Steadfast when she said this; it was as if she couldn¡¯t see anyone else aside from him. Shen Jingbin found this extremely unsettling as it felt like someone was eyeing her belongings in front of her.

    Big sis, the main wife is still here. Are you sure it¡¯s alright for you to act so brazenly? Your eyes are practically glued to him!

    However, it looked like Crying Fish had never paid her any attention at all. To Crying Fish, Shen Jingbin was no threat to her whatsoever.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the only one feeling ufortable about this ¨C Morning Glory Chime felt the same as well.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s previous act of saving the damsel in distress had made Morning Glory Chime¡¯s heart throb as she threw herself at him. So what if he was married? With a wife that ugly, she would dethrone her sooner orter and take her ce. Morning Glory Chime refused to believe that she couldn¡¯t match up to an ugly monster like Nutjob. The only way that could happen was if Quiet And Steadfast was mentally unsound.

    However, she seemed to have forgotten about Crying Fish.

    Although Morning Glory Chime was just a small fry, she¡¯d still been present at the guild¡¯s recent alliance talks with Life At First Sight to help boost the numbers. Due to that, she naturally knew who Crying Fish was.

    Morning Glory Chime knew that she could easily crush someone like Nutjob, but that she stood no chance against Crying Fish.

    Feeling threatened, Morning Glory Chime stepped forward and said harshly, "Why do we have to give it to you? It belongs to us."

    Crying Fish casually nced at her before she raised an eyebrow at Pure Crane and said, "Is she from your guild? Why is she so unruly?"

    Crying Fish usually paid more attention to people who looked good, and Morning Glory Chime was quite the looker. So, even though Morning Glory Chime was just a small fry from Sovereign¡¯s Descent, Crying Fish still had some recollection of her.

    Without waiting for Pure Crane to reply, Quiet And Steadfast interjected and said, "What she said was right. This belongs to us, why do we have to hand it over to you?"

    Crying Fish¡¯s expression stiffened. Upon hearing that, the Mara behind her immediately kicked up a fuss and said, "Leader, why are you wasting time with them? Let¡¯s just grab it from them!"

    After saying that, the Mara was immediately confronted with the resentful gazes of his party members.

    Bro, you crazy?! That¡¯s Quiet And Steadfast! Don¡¯t drag us down if you¡¯re nning on getting yourself killed!

    The Mara also realised his faux pas and shrunk back without another word just as Crying Fish red at him.

    "Are we fighting? That¡¯s just what I was thinking," Quiet And Steadfast replied.

    Crying Fish hurriedly waved her hands and said, "No no, we¡¯re not fighting. We just wanted a bit of the Shadow Snaring Water. Can you give us some on ount of me liking you for so long?"

    Pfft. She couldn¡¯t bear listening to any more of this.

    "So we have to give it to you just because you like him? What kind of screwed up logic is that?" Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t want to waste any more time on her, so she continued and said, "Please make way for us, we still have a quest to do."

    After she said that, Shen Jingbin summoned out Mascot and used it to clear the way. There were two people behind Crying Fish who were nning to jump out and block their way at first but quailed and quietly let them pass when they saw Mascot appear.

    In the end, Shen Jingbin stood at the front of the group and cleared the way while Quiet And Steadfast, Pure Crane, and Morning Glory Chime followed behind her. They didn¡¯t spare a single nce for Crying Fish¡¯s group, except for when Morning Glory Chime shot a smug look at Crying Fish when she passed her.

    "Leader?" Seeing their Leader¡¯s expression darken, a yer cautiously called out to her.

    "I¡¯m alright. Ask around and find out where Nine Bads is, then let her know that Nutjob¡¯s here."

    "Alright."

    "Send another message to Neverending Journey from Sovereign¡¯s Descent. Tell them that their Vice-Leader is doing something in secret with Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Leader."

    "Yes."

    "Then what are we going to do about the Shadow Snaring Water, Leader?"

    "What should we do... Hmph, do you really think they¡¯d still refuse to hand it over with Nine Bads and Neverending Journey around?" A smug look of her own appeared on Crying Fish¡¯s face.

    "Leader is so clever! Quiet And Steadfast must be blind, he doesn¡¯t even realise how magnificent our Leader is! Instead, he chose to marry that ugly woman," Someone else parroted.

    "That¡¯s right. The way I see it, he probably felt that he couldn¡¯t match up to our Leader."

    Crying Fish red at the yer who said it and rebuked him. "What do you know!" Although she said that, her expression betrayed how she really felt.

    "Leader, we¡¯ve sent out the news," Reported the two yers who were charged with sending out the news.

    Crying Fish nodded and said, "The two of you will hide here and keep an eye on the Shadow Snaring Water; make sure you watch this ce and stay on full alert. The rest of you will follow me."

    The other yers gave a grunt of acknowledgement and proceeded to carry out her n.

    Now armed with the Ice Crystal and Angelica Ginger, Shen Jingbin¡¯s group ventured into the depths of the Ice Extermination Cavern once again. The old man was still seated beside the Shadow Snaring pond with his head drooped down, making it look as if he was sleeping.

    Shen Jingbin held the items in her hands and took a step forward, towards the old man. She then reached out and gently patted him on the shoulder. Lowering her voice, she softly said to the old man, "Old mister, we¡¯ve brought the things you¡¯ve asked for."

    The old man¡¯s head drooped a little lower before he woke up. He cast a nce at the items she held and gave a sigh of admiration. "You¡¯ve brought them? You¡¯re more capable than you look."

    Shen Jingbin wordlessly returned hispliment with a modest smile. The old man stood up and patted down his clothes. He then took the Ice Crystal and Angelica Ginger from Shen Jingbin and said, "The lot of you should stand a bit further back. I¡¯m about to begin."

 Chapter 186

    <b>Chapter 186: Entering The Pond (2) </b>

    The group grunted in acknowledgement and retreated several paces.

    The old man grasped the Ice Crystal in his left hand and held the Angelica Ginger in his right, then he slowly brought his two palms closer together and twisted, causing a faint golden light to spill out from within.

    The old man shut his eyes and started mumbling to himself. Over time, the golden light within his hands gradually became brighter. When the light was about to be so bright that everyone present wouldn¡¯t be able to keep their eyes open, the old man¡¯s eyes abruptly opened, and he shouted, "Come!" He then threw the Ice Crystal and Angelica Ginger that was still glowing gold into the pond.

    A "bang" was heard from within the tranquil waters of Shadow Snaring Pond. Then, the water at the centre of the pond split apart and rolled, almost as if something was causing it to slosh about. The air within the cavern was bing damper as well, while the ice above their heads appeared to be melting.

    When the water looked like it was about to spill out of the pond, the old man said, "It¡¯s here."

    The group turned their attention to the centre of the Shadow Snaring pond where the water was the most turbulent. Suddenly, a beam of golden light shot out of it, followed by a mass of golden light that slowly surfaced from within the pond...

    A golden fish gradually appeared before the eyes of everyone present. Its body was half the size of the pond and entirely wreathed in a dazzling light. Two long whiskers that sprouted forth from its mouth could be seen wantonly swaying about in the water.

    The old man pointed to the enormous golden fish and said, "This is the Dragon Mouth Catfish. Hurry up and get on its back, it¡¯ll take you to the heart of the Shadow Snaring pond."

    The group heeded the old man¡¯s advice and quickly jumped onto its back. Once they were all aboard, the old man jumped on as well and grabbed onto its fin. He then pulled out several deep blue pearls from within his sleeve and presented them to the group.

    "This is a Water Avoiding Pearl. Suck on it."

    The group obediently took the Water Avoiding Pearl¡¯s from the old man and sucked on them. When everyone was sucking on a pearl, the old man reached out his hand and patted the fish on its fin.

    The fish¡¯s tail immediately began to sway back and forth before it suddenly submerged in the water. However, the group only felt a formless pressure press down upon them from all directions. The scenery in front of them blurred, and they felt the incredibly realistic sensation of entering the water. When that happened, Morning Glory Chime clung tightly to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s clothes.

    Feeling something tugging at his clothes, Quiet And Steadfast nced downwards and took a step forward in an attempt to separate himself from Morning Glory Chime.

    Shen Jingbin stood just in front of him. Quiet And Steadfast stepping forward brought him very close to her, causing her to eye him suspiciously. In response, he used his eyes to draw her attention towards Morning Glory Chime.

    Seeing Shen Jingbin look towards her, Morning Glory Chime covered her mouth and said shyly, "I don¡¯t know how to swim, so I¡¯m a little afraid of water. I did it on reflex... please don¡¯t me me Brother Quiet."

    Pure Crane, who was standing right at the front, heard themotion and turned to ask, "What¡¯s going on?"

    "Nothing!" Morning Glory Chime rushed to reply him.

    Shen Jingbin shrugged her shoulders and said, "Mm, nothing happened."

    When Pure Crane turned back, Shen Jingbin ribbed Quiet And Steadfast with her elbow.

    Know your ce! Stop going around cavorting with other women!

    Quiet And Steadfast rubbed the spot where he¡¯d been hit.

    He felt wronged.

    Going back to Crying Fish who was outside the cavern.

    Two ck spots could be seen in the sky shortly after the messages were sent out. When the ck spots drew nearer, they revealed themselves to be Neverending Journey and Nine Bads.

    When shended, Nine Bads asked, "Where is she?"

    "Inside the cavern," Crying Fish replied.

    Neverending Journey also raised his own question, "Guild Leader Fish, you said you saw my Vice-Leader and Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Quiet And Steadfast together. May I know where they are?"

    Crying Fish looked at him and used her chin to motion at the Ice Extermination Cavern. "They¡¯re inside there as well."

    "Let¡¯s go in then," Said Nine Bads as she narrowed her eyes dangerously and led the way into the cavern.

    "Guild Leader Journey, please," To demonstrate her sincerity, Crying Fish ushered him forward and allowed Neverending Journey to take the lead.

    Neverending Journey didn¡¯t stand on ceremony either. He gave a swish of his sleeves and followed Nine Bads into the cavern.

    "Let¡¯s go too," Crying Fish said a word to her own party and stepped in as well.

    When they reached the depths of the cavern, all that appeared before everyone was a deserted scene. Not only could Shen Jingbin andpany not be seen, but there wasn¡¯t even a single trace of the old man from before.

    Upon realising that there wasn¡¯t a single soul within the cavern, Nine Bads immediately spun on her heels and walked up to Crying Fish, her expression stormy as she demanded, "You said she was here, where is she?!"

    "She¡¯s not here?" Crying Fish was a little stunned by this. She looked towards the two people she¡¯d assigned to guard the entrance of the cavern. "I told the two of you to guard the entrance! Why are they missing?!"

    The two yers were perplexed as well. They hadn¡¯t seen anyone leaving the cavern.

    "Leader, the two of us have been guarding the entrance the whole time. We honestly haven¡¯t seen them leave."

    "Are you sure there¡¯s only one exit?" Neverending Journey asked.

    Crying Fish surveyed the area before she said, "All exits to this ce have been sealed. You have my word that this is the only way out."

    Neverending Journey immersed himself in his thoughts and walked over to the Shadow Snaring pond. His eyes lit up when he saw the faintly rippling water of the pond and said, "Hmph, I¡¯m afraid they¡¯ve descended to the bottom of the pond."

    Crying Fish was ovee with astonishment. She ran up to it and cried, "The bottom of the pond?!"

 Chapter 187

    <b>Chapter 187: Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake (1) </b>

    Shen Jingbin andpany rode on the fish¡¯s back for a short while before they arrived at a strange ce.

    Although the Shadow Snaring Pond looked small, there was actually a vast expanse beneath it. As they went deeper, the amount of light around them decreased. When they almost weren¡¯t able to make out their surroundings any longer, the golden fish finally stopped moving and remained floating in ce.

    "What happened?" Pure Crane asked.

    "We¡¯re nearly there. The Dragon Mouth Catfish is breaking the seal," Replied the old man.

    "There¡¯s even a seal? Is it that important?" Shen Jingbin asked in shock.

    The old man stroked his beard. "Of course. The heart is the source of all life in any vast body ofke, so there obviously needs to be a seal to protect it. In fact, this Dragon Mouth Catfish that resides in the heart of the pond actually serves as one of its Guardian Beasts."

    Quiet And Steadfast was able to discern the main point of what the old man said. "One of?"

    "Yes, it¡¯s one of the Guardian Beasts. Something as important as the heart of the pond naturally wouldn¡¯t only have just one Guardian Beast. The Dragon Mouth Catfish has a gentle disposition, yet it possesses the most powerful protective seal; so it naturally became one of the guardians. However, there are hundreds of thousands of humans who wield supernatural powers. There are also plenty of people who are capable of breaking the seal. Therefore, apart from the Dragon Mouth Catfish, a Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake also guards the heart of the pond..."

    F*ck. The four of them cursed inwardly at the same time.

    There exists a World BOSS called the Scarlet Marsh Snake in Thunder Marsh that possesses overwhelming attack power. But, why did this Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake... sound even more powerful than it?

    The old man continued, "Do you know about the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake? Back then, it hadpleted its cultivation but wasn¡¯t able toplete itsst lightning tribtion and transcend. It then fell into this Shadow Snaring Pond..."

    Morning Glory Chime cut him off. "Hold on, the Shadow Snaring pond is inside the Ice Extermination Cavern, so how did it fall in?"

    The old man red at her. "Back then, neither Mochan Mountain nor Liangcang Peak existed, let alone the Ice Extermination Cavern. At the time, Shadow Snaring pond was just a tiny pond on this exposed piece ofnd."

    Morning Glory Chime nodded her head in understanding.

    "The Shadow Snaring pond isn¡¯t all that impressive, but its heart is exceptionally powerful. If it weren¡¯t, it wouldn¡¯t have been able to remain unfrozen in this world of ice and snow. Even though the Dragon Mouth Catfish¡¯s seal was strong, it can¡¯t match up to the lightning tribtion¡¯s strength. The Scarlet Marsh Snake sunk to the heart of the Shadow Snaring Pond when it fell in, and it was the true Shadow Snaring Water produced by the heart that saved its life. It even took the remnants of the lightning tribtion and made it a part of itself. From then on, the Scarlet Marsh Snake became the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, and it remained in the heart of the pond to protect the heart."

    While he spoke, the Dragon Mouth Catfish finished breaking the seal it had ced. To Shen Jingbin andpany, it felt as if they¡¯d passed through an invisibleyer of protection and the pressure around them had now lifted. Though there still wasn¡¯t much light, the scene before them was exceptionally clear.

    What did having your ¡¯mind blown¡¯ mean?

    What they saw before them was probably what it meant.

    A vast and ancient city that stretched into the distance appeared beneath their feet. Dark green aquatic ntspletely covered the mottled and derelict city walls, giving it a deste and somber appearance of a timeworn relic. The residential district and lofts behind the city walls had long since been eroded by the pond¡¯s water, making it impossible to discern what they¡¯d looked like in the past. However, it was these indistinct shapes that genuinely underscored Mother Nature¡¯s incredible artistry.

    "How, how beautiful..." Morning Glory Chime muttered.

    Despite not replying, Shen Jingbin andpany nodded in agreement.

    It was truly stunning; a wless marriage of man and nature. The shock of being exposed to something as remarkable as this wasn¡¯t something that could be described with mere words.

    After a short pause within the water, the Dragon Mouth Catfish blew arge bubble. Then, with a swish of its tail, it swam towards the nearby city, causing the scenery beneath them to gradually change. Even though the majority of the city had eroded, Shen Jingbin andpany had no difficulty imagining the underwater city¡¯s previous magnificence.

    After traveling several hundred metres, the Dragon Mouth Catfish finally stopped and started swimming downwards.

    "Get ready, we¡¯re about to reach the heart of the pond," The old man suddenly said. He then pulled out the Earth Warding Gourd he¡¯d shown them previously and threw it at Shen Jingbin. "Listen to my instructions once when we reach the heart of the pond."

    "Old mister, I have a question... do we need to fight the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake?" Pure Crane asked.

    The old man shook his head and gave them a confident smile. "With me here, you don¡¯t need to be afraid of some Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake."

    "It might be presumptuous of me to ask, but who are you, old mister?" Shen Jingbin queried.

    The old man shook his head and said, "The secrets of heaven must not be revealed."

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s lips curled. "Tch, what a blue-baller."

    The old man didn¡¯t pick a fight with Morning Glory Chime over what she¡¯d said. Instead, he pointed beneath him and said, "Look, we¡¯ve arrived."

 Chapter 188

    <b>Chapter 188: Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake (2) </b>

    Everyone turned to look in the direction he pointed in.

    They could see the borders of the city beneath them. A stone carving of a dragon¡¯s head could be seen near the city¡¯s entrance. Different from the rest of the city¡¯s eroded walls, the lifelike dragon head was preserved very well; there wasn¡¯t even the slightest bit of damage on it.

    The dragon carving held its mouth wide open, revealing four sharp fangs. Two sparkling drops of water very slowly seeped out from the two fangs along its top jaw before it fell...

    Hold on, weren¡¯t they underwater? Why were they still able to make out the droplets of water falling from the dragon¡¯s teeth?

    "Do you see the droplets of water on the dragon¡¯s teeth? That¡¯s the real Shadow Snaring Water," The old man suddenly exined. "The true Shadow Snaring Water is Holy Water. It¡¯s different from the rest of the water within the pool before it hits the ground."

    They looked over once again and realized that it was indeed different as the old man had said. The water droplets dripping from the dragon¡¯s teeth were still visible before they hit the tiled ground. However, the moment they hit the tiles, a ripple would spread on the ground, and the droplets would disappear.

    Quiet And Steadfast spoke up, "If I may ask, where is the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake?"

    The old man puckered his lips at the dragon statue and said, "Look at the dragon¡¯s horn."

    The dragon¡¯s horn? Everyone immediately focused their attention on it.

    As they hadn¡¯t paid close attention to it before this, no one had noticed a red string that was as thick as a person¡¯s thumb tied to the base of the dragon¡¯s left horn. The developers were far too treacherous if that piece of string was the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake!

    Just think about it: if someone were to hastily dash forward to collect the Shadow Snaring Water without preparing themselves first, and the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake suddenly attacked, even an expert like Quiet And Steadfast might have difficulty escaping unscathed.

    As the Dragon Mouth Catfish slowly neared the ground, the old man seized the opportunity and instructed them to alight.

    The rest of them grunted in acknowledgment and jumped off,nding on the street paved with green tiles. If it weren¡¯t for the faint ripples that continued to undte about them, they would have doubted whether or not they were still underwater.

    "I¡¯ll distract the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake; you standby and look for an opportunity to collect the Shadow Snaring Water. Remember to collect more than what you need; this old man needs some Shadow Snaring Water too."

    Shen Jingbin nodded and said, "Understood, old mister."

    The old man didn¡¯t waste any more time on pointless chatter so, with a tap of his foot, he flew into the air. To the rest of them, they only saw the old man¡¯s figure sh before he flew forward towards the dragon¡¯s head like an arrow shot from a bow.

    "Roar!" A maddened howl akin to that of a dragon¡¯s exploded by their ears, and a burst of piercing red light spilled out from the stone carving. When the light subsided, arge scarlet snake that was as thick as a bucket now upied the ground covered with green tiles; its ck tongue was snaking out as it coldly eyed everyone.

    The scarlet snake was enormous. Despite the fact that half of its body was coiled on the ground, the other half of its body covered a significant portion of the city walls when it stood upright.

    Most girls didn¡¯t take very well to creatures like snakes, and Morning Glory Chime was no exception. She screamed the moment the snake made its appearance before she covered her eyes and hid behind Pure Crane.

    As for why she didn¡¯t hide behind Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s back... Hehe, that¡¯s because Quiet And Steadfast was the one standing closest to the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake.

    A look of disdain crept into Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression when she shot a nce at Morning Glory Chime. She then turned towards the old man who was currently locked inbat with the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake and said to Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast, "Pure Crane, look after her. I¡¯ll go collect the Shadow Snaring Water with Quiet And Steadfast."

    "Mhm."

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast exchanged a nce with one another, reaching a tacit understanding as they sped towards the stone statue at the same time.

    After revealing its true form, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake immediately attacked the old man. Though the old man appeared to be a weak, doddering, and unreliable geriatric, his ability was not to be underestimated. Even the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, an enemy that possessed a level higher than a World BOSS, was unable to deal with him. As they fought, they inched closer and closer towards the entrance of the city, away from the stone statue.

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast moved quickly, reaching the statue in the blink of an eye. Shen Jingbin unstoppered the Earth Warding Gourd and ced it beneath the dragon¡¯s tooth. A drop of water immediately fell into the gourd.

    The moment it entered the gourd, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake howled ferociously at the sky. Ignoring the old man¡¯s attacks, it pped the ground with its tail and charged towards them.

    "Get the water; I¡¯ll hold it off!" Quiet And Steadfast turned to look at the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake barrelling towards them and immediately drew his weapon. "Start running if it looks like I can¡¯t hold it off!"

    "Okay," Shen Jingbin said as she raised the gourd a little higher.

    Quiet And Steadfast summoned his pets as he turned to face the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake.

    He had quite a few top tier pets, but he didn¡¯t like using his pets to fight. He would typically only use his pets as mounts, but he didn¡¯t want to risk it this time. Quiet And Steadfast summoned all of hisbat pets, not for the sake of victory, but to earn just a little bit more time for Shen Jingbin.

    One of the pets he owned was named Fuzhu. It was stunning and had the appearance of a white deer. However, its speed and damage were lower whenpared to Chenghuang and Baima, so he rarely used it. However, Fuzhu had a unique ability; all of its stats would increase by leaps and bounds when it came into contact with water.

    Fuzhu was a beast that ruled water to begin with, so this battle was the perfect opportunity to use it.

    Fuzhu usually looked like a lovable and harmless little white deer that was slightly plump. It was a ssic example of the type of pet that captured the hearts of girls. However, the moment it came into contact with water, it suddenly grew in height and turned into an elegant and alluring white deer with impressively long antlers, making it look extraordinarily formidable from afar.

    The Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake was charging over in a frenzy and mmed straight into Fuzhu¡¯s antlers a short whileter. The sh jarred both sides, causing them to shift back a little from the recoil.

    "Fuzhu, call upon the water!" Quiet And Steadfast shouted.

    Fuzhu reared back, and two vortexes of water appeared beneath its forehooves. The vortexes of water spun at high speed, expanding in size the more they spun and shifted in shape till they became tworge water bullets. When Fuzhu tapped the water bullets with its antlers, they immediately shot out and exploded on the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s body.

    "Tss." A faint buzzing of electricity could be heard when the water bullets exploded. Everyone underwater suddenly felt their bodies go numb as if they¡¯d been electrocuted.

    At this moment, the old man shouted in a panic, "This is bad, it¡¯s about to use the power of the lightning tribtion within its body!"

 Chapter 189

    <b>Chapter 189: A Sessful Hunt (1) </b>

    The moment the old man finished speaking, small strands of current started to umte beside the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake. The currents rounded its thick body, growing in size as it flowed till they became as thick as a thumb.

    The old man¡¯s expression loosened a little as he swiftly stripped off his cloak and wound it around his hand. A white light immediately began to shine from within the ash coloured cloak as it unfurled itself and flew towards the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake.

    When the cloak covered the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s head, the electricity running through its body was immediately doused.

    The old man turned to Shen Jingbin and shouted, "Have you gotten enough Shadow Snaring Water yet?!"

    The sudden change in circumstances left Shen Jingbin feeling anxious. However, the water was dripping out of the dragon¡¯s tooth a lot more slowly than she¡¯d expected. Thus far she¡¯d only managed to collect two drops of water, and Pure Crane needed five portions, which meant they required five drops of Shadow Snaring Water. To top it off, she needed to gather some for the old man as well; she was far from done.

    Seeing the rest of the party falling into a stalemate, Pure Crane turned back to Morning Glory Chime and said, "Stay here and don¡¯t run off. Find somewhere to hide if things take a turn for the worse; I¡¯m going to help them," And with that, he left.

    Morning Glory Chime tugged at him. "Brother Pure Crane, I¡¯m scared! Aren¡¯t they doing fine on their own? Stay here with me! I might not be able to escape if the snake lunges at me."

    The look of kindness that Pure Crane always had on his face fell away, and he red at Morning Glory Chime. "Morning Glory Chime, keep your petty tricks to yourself. Just because I haven¡¯t exposed you doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m not sick of it. Now¡¯s not the time for you to scheme and act like a spoiled brat. Did you think I¡¯d let you have your way just because you¡¯re the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs? Honestly, my forbearance only extends to me not exposing you. It¡¯s not at the point to where we have to endure your diva tantrums."

    Pure Crane¡¯s cutting words left Morning Glory Chime in shock, and she wasn¡¯t able to respond.

    Was this still the same warm and cultured Pure Crane that she knew?!

    Pure Crane slowed his speech when he saw her bbergasted expression. "I¡¯m not expecting you to help or anything, just don¡¯t drag us down, okay?"

    Morning Glory Chime nodded her head dumbly.

    Pure Crane gave a nod of satisfaction in return before he reverted to his previous gentle and cultured self. He then drew his weapon and dashed towards the battlefield.

    Going back to the battle with the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake.

    Its vision was obscured when its head was covered by the old man¡¯s cloak, making the already irritable snake fly into a frenzy. Thunder and lightning exploded all around, further amplified by the water surrounding it, and turning the cloak that covered its head to dust in the blink of an eye.

    At the same time, Pure Crane leapt up with sword in hand and pointed it straight at the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s head... no, its eyes to be precise.

    Pure Crane mustered all the strength in his body and plunged his sword into the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s eyes.

    Unlike how Shen Jingbin had obtained many destructive skills when she joined White Cloud Temple and became its Lead Disciple, Quiet And Steadfast, Pure Crane, and Morning Glory Chime only managed to be the Lead Disciples after joining their respective sects andpleting hidden quests. As such, their main skills weren¡¯t very different from normal yers. The advantage they held as Lead Disciples was the fact that they could change two of their sect¡¯s skills into that of a Lead Disciple¡¯s.

    At first nce, having only two special skills seemed rather pathetic, but in truth, just these two skills were enough.

    One of the weaknesses of a Swordmaster was that theycked strength, and it just so happened that one of the skills Pure Crane received after bing a Lead Disciple was a skill that increased his strength.

    The moment his sword pierced the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, Pure Crane activated his strength-enhancing skill, causing a surge of energy to well up in his core. Using his wrist to exert all of his might with his newfound strength, his sword immediately prated theyer of protection around the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s eyes that was akin to an imprable defence and dug deeply into it.

    The Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake gave an anguished snarl, and its entire body began to thrash wildly. The crazed snake swung its tail about in all directions, smashing the houses around it to smithereens.

    Although its eye was hurt and it was continuously attacked by the old man, Quiet And Steadfast, and Pure Crane, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s gaze was still locked on Shen Jingbin who was collecting the Shadow Snaring Water.

 Chapter 190

    <b>Chapter 190: A Sessful Hunt (2) </b>

    Dark red blood dripped from one of its eye¡¯s, immediately corroding the tiles beneath it as it fell to the ground. Its entire body began to contract, causing the muscles beneath its densely packed scales to stretch taut.

    "Careful, its nning to lunge at thatss!" The old man shouted.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression shifted. "Fuzhu, use a water screen to protect Nutjob!"

    Fuzhu threw up its hooves and began galloping towards Shen Jingbin as a dark blue droplet of water began gathering between its tworge antlers. A strange sound escaped from Fuzhu¡¯s mouth before it leapt up and headbutted the droplet. The dark blue droplet immediately shot out from between its antlers and zipped towards Shen Jingbin faster than the eye could see.

    Shen Jingbin had her back against the ongoing battle, so she only felt a chill before she was shrouded in ayer of dark blue. Before she could figure out what had happened, the coating surrounding her started to tremble vigorously, emitting a sound simr to that of ss cracking.

    A sense of danger engulfed her in that moment, and she immediately looked behind her to see a blood red eye the size of a light bulb glistening with murderous light as it shed against the dark blueyer.

    The Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake that had initially been far away from her had arrived at her side in the blink of an eye. She¡¯d have died if it wasn¡¯t for this protectiveyer that covered her.

    Shen Jingbin felt a lingering sense of fear.

    Before she could ease her fearful heart, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake that had one eye remaining, fiercely mmed into theyer of dark blue once again. The sound of cracking ss was even more apparent this time, and she could also see obvious cracks forming along the screen.

    Her intuition told her that thisyer wouldn¡¯t be able to hold out for much longer!

    Shen Jingbin turned back to the droplet of Shadow Snaring Water that was about to fall and grit her teeth, remaining motionless.

    Quiet And Steadfast rushed over with all his might and saw the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake viciously mming against Fuzhu¡¯s water screen once again. The fractured water screen was about to shatter at any moment. However, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t seem to have any intention of escaping at all. Instead, she looked away and continued collecting the Shadow Snaring Water. Gripped by anxiety, Quiet And Steadfast cried out, "Nutjob, dodge!"

    At the same time, Fuzhu¡¯s water screen fell apart, no longer able to withstand the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s attacks.

    Finally!

    The droplet of water fell into the Earth Warding Gourd just as the water screen shattered.

    Shen Jingbin quickly stoppered the Earth Warding Gourd when she felt a gust of horrid smelling wind buffet her. Using the dragon head to support her hand, she slightly bent both of her legs and leapt, pushing herself into the air and sessfully evading the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s attack.

    After losing sight of Shen Jingbin, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake was about to crash into the dragon head statue when the snake unexpectedly stiffened its body, stopping just centimeters away from it.

    By this time, Quiet And Steadfast, Pure Crane, and the old man had already rushed over. The old man gently patted Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane¡¯s backs, and the two of them felt an indescribable feeling of warmth rising from the soles of their feet. Their nearly depleted mana was immediately filled, and it remained full no matter how many skills they used.

    Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast exchanged a nce with one another before they started madly piling on skills at the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake without batting an eyelid. Not wanting to be outdone by them, Fuzhuunched its attacks from the side. Seeing this, the old man gave a satisfied nod of his head and produced a silver bangle from his sleeve while muttering to himself. As he continued, the bangle gradually grew in size till it eventually overshadowed the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s head. Only then did the old man stop his chanting. He then brought his index and middle finger together, pointing them at the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake. Almost as if it had eyes of its own, the silver bangle zipped towards the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake andnded on its head where its weak point was located.

    "Close!" The old manmanded. The silver bangle became smaller in reply, tightening around the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s weak spot. At that moment, the silver bangle was engulfed in electricity. However, no matter how much electricity it discharged, the silver bangle remained tightlytched onto the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s weak spot.

    After its weak spot waspromised, Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane¡¯s skills saw a definite increase in damage.

    No matter how strong they were, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake was still an existence that was even stronger than a World Boss; taking it down with just the two of them was an impossible task. Even if they were fully buffed and they threw all their skills at it, they would only be able to deal superficial damage at best. However, things were different now. Every skill theyunched would either be a critical hit, or it would strike a vulnerable point.

    The two of them immediately perked up and beganunching their skills even more freely.

    Due to it being rendered immobile by the silver bangle, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake could only writhe about in an attempt to knock off the silver bangle with its tail. Strangely, no matter how much it flung its tail around, it would always instinctively avoid the stone statue.

    Shen Jingbin, who was hiding behind the stone statue, noticed this peculiarity and immediately shouted, "You guys,e hide over here. It looks like it¡¯s afraid of hitting the stone statue!"

    Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane headed in the direction of her voice with the old man in tow. When it saw them moving towards the statue, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake howled in anguish, before it mmed its tail heavily on its head and..mitted suicide.

    With a bang, the thick and sturdy snake tail fell heavily to the ground. The Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake looked at them with its one remaining eye, its gaze unyielding before it breathed itsst.

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief when the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake died. "Alrightss, go quickly and collect the Shadow Snaring Water. We¡¯ll leave when you¡¯re done," The old man instructed.

    Shen Jingbin grunted in reply and rounded the stone statue, stretching out the Earth Warding Gourd to once again collect the Shadow Snaring Water.

    "Every part of the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake is valuable. Anyone who¡¯s learnt the cooking skill try gathering from its body; you¡¯ll be in for a bountiful harvest," Said the old man.

    "I¡¯ll go, I¡¯ve learnt the butchering skill," Pure Crane said. There was a time when ck Hawk and Delicate Flower fell in love with eating the food in-game. However, the system shops only sold expensive food with a limited variety, so to satisfy them, he¡¯d given up his previous Life Skill and picked up cooking instead. Later on, he found that it wasn¡¯t too bad either, so he continued practicing it. Never did he expect it to prove useful now.

    After the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake fell, Morning Glory Chime, who¡¯d been hiding, ran out. When she saw Pure Crane, a look of uneasiness shed across her face before it reverted to normal. "My Luck¡¯s good, let me loot the body for drops! We might even get something good," She said in an attempt to curry favor.

    Quiet And Steadfast had no interest in things like looting. He would always use his pets to loot the items for him instead, so it didn¡¯t matter to him. Without saying a word, he moved behind Shen Jingbin as she collected the Shadow Snaring Water. Pure Crane felt that what he¡¯d said before to Morning Glory Chime was the truth, but, he¡¯d probably gone overboard when he took into ount the fact that she was a girl. Since the few of them still had to work together in the future, he shouldn¡¯t sour their rtionship, so he didn¡¯t raise any objection either and just nodded his agreement.

    Morning Glory Chime happily ran up to the body, knelt down, and began looting the body without a trace of her previous fear of snakes.

 Chapter 191

    <b>Chapter 191: The Weapon Master¡¯s Favor (1) </b>

    "On this dark and windy night, Morning Glory Chime has showcased her excellence by braving the Lost City. After an arduous struggle, she finally managed to take the head of the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, earning herself the Divine Weapon; Heavenly Jade Staff! Glory be to the victor!"

    The moment Morning Glory Chime¡¯s hand came into contact with the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s carcass, a scarlet system notification popped up with a "ding".

    As long as it was a system announcement, it¡¯d be a good thing no matter what it was. Morning Glory Chime immediately cried out in happiness, "Brother Quiet, Brother Pure Crane, hurry over and take a look! I¡¯ve found a Divine Weapon!"

    Shen Jingbin, who was devoting all of her attention to collecting the Shadow Snaring Water, merely tilted her head and nced at Morning Glory Chime. On the other hand, Quiet And Steadfast, who was standing beside her, was utterly indifferent and didn¡¯t even bat an eyelid at her. Unexpectedly, Pure Crane and the old man were the ones who quickly walked over to her.

    The old man stroked his bead with a look of gratification on his face. "Lass, you mayck manners, but your Luck¡¯s pretty good."

    Morning Glory Chime harrumphed before she turned and acted as if she was handing over a precious treasure when she handed the Heavenly Jade Staff to Pure Crane. "Brother Pure Crane, look!"

    Pure Crane took the Heavenly Jade Staff and briefly nced through its stats; they were perfect.

    Dragonkins used magic staves and possessed high magic damage as DPSers. It was possible for a high-level Dragonkin to even wipe out a Mara with a single ultimate attack. Their weakness, however, was that they had low Mana, Health and Defence, making them easy pickings once they were targeted. With this Heavenly Jade Staff he held in hand, not only would it increase a Dragonkin¡¯s attack by a substantial amount, it would help to shore up their weaknesses, increasing their Health by a bit. While it wasn¡¯t much, it was still better than nothing.

    If news broke out about this magic staff, Dragonkins all around would definitely kill to have it.

    By this time, Shen Jingbin had finished collecting the Shadow Snaring Water and had walked over with Quiet And Steadfast. Pure Crane casually threw the Heavenly Jade Staff at him and said, "Take it. Give it to the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins when you find them."

    Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t stand on ceremony and kept the Heavenly Jade Staff in his backpack. Meanwhile, Pure Crane knelt down beside the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake and started taking apart its carcass.

    Morning Glory Chime was a little unhappy when she witnessed what transpired between them. That was something she¡¯d looted, and they didn¡¯t even bother to get her opinion on it before deciding amongst themselves!

    "I... I was the one who looted that staff. Why... why aren¡¯t you guys asking me for my opinion before deciding?" Morning Glory Chime asked, feeling a little wronged.

    Quiet And Steadfast cast a sidelong nce at her and said, "Can you use it if we give it to you?"

    She shook her head.

    "Then no."

    "But you guys should at least ask me for my opinion; I was the one who looted it after all. Didn¡¯t you guys see my name appear on the system announcement?"

    Shen Jingbin snorted. "You¡¯re not only the fastest at running away from monsters, but you¡¯re also the fastest at looting them."

    Morning Glory Chime¡¯s face flushed. "You didn¡¯t kill the monster just now either!"

    Shen Jingbin folded her arms. "Do you really want topare our contributions?"

    Pure, unfiltered disdain oozed from Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze. Morning Glory Chime paused when she thought back to how she¡¯d performed in the previous fight and quietly stood to the side without another word.

    Tch, you ugly monster. What¡¯re you bitching about? Why don¡¯t you take a look in the mirror before you say anything else. If it weren¡¯t for Quiet And Steadfast backing you up, do you really think you¡¯d be able to amount to anything? Hmph, just wait till I win Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s heart, you¡¯ll be the first one I get rid of!

    "Congrattions, you have obtained Scales of the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a Lightning Wreathed Snake¡¯s Heart."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained a Young Flood Dragon¡¯s Horn."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s Skin."

    "Congrattions, you have obtained Sharp Poisonous Fangs."

    ...

    Numerous notifications sounded as Pure Crane took apart the body. This continued till the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s corpse slowly began to turn transparent and disappear before he stood up.

    "I¡¯m done gathering," He said. "But there¡¯s no description for a lot of these things, so I don¡¯t know what they do."

    She Jingbin frowned. "There¡¯s no description... Do you have a lot of space in your inventory? Hand me some if you don¡¯t much space left. I think these things will definitely have some use in the future, so we shouldn¡¯t throw them away."

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded in agreement.

    Pure Crane looked at his backpack andughed. "It¡¯s fine; my bag still has lots of space, it can fit everything."

    While they were still examining the parts that they¡¯d collected, the old man suddenly sighed and said, "An innocent man¡¯s wealth attracts the envy of others; all of you are still far too naive."

    Quiet And Steadfast raised his brows. "What do you mean, old man?"

    "The Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s cultivation makes it equivalent to a Holy Beast of the heaven and the earth. Every single scale or piece of its carapace is enough to drive the world into a frenzy. If you guys just waltz out with it like this, even if you put aside the upright and just races of the Humans and Celestials, for now, the Demons and other forces hiding in the dark might still make a move. I fear that your days of peace might being to an end."

    "Then what should we do? Old man, since you¡¯ve already helped us, please see it to the end and give us some guidance," Pure Crane asked.

    "Thatss over there, the Silver Moon Silk Robe you have on you was a gift from Bai Hua of Swordmaster Pavilion, right?"

    "Yes."

    "Heh, everything is fated... Back then, Bai Hua of Swordmaster Pavilion was wounded in the battle between Celestials and Demons. After which, he drifted about in search of a way to heal his wounds. During his travels, he just so happened to wander into the Ice Extermination Cavern. He carried himself differently from others, and I figured he wasn¡¯t any normal person. Hence, I handed him some things, one of which was the Silver Moon Silk Robe you have on you."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes lit up. "In that case, Old Mister should know how to upgrade the Silver Moon Silk Robe!"

    Who would have thought that after searching in vain for so long, the person she was looking for would appear right in front of her!

    "Of course. The Silver Moon Silk Robe is something I crafted during my free time, so its quality isn¡¯t the best. However,pared to those crappy pieces of rags the rest of you are wearing it¡¯s more than good enough," The old man said as a cast a nce ¨C intentionally or otherwise ¨C at Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane.

    Crappy pieces of rags?

    Shen Jingbin followed his gaze to Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane who were both wearing top quality gear, especially Quiet And Steadfast. You¡¯re definitely going to piss off a massive number of yers if you call what they¡¯re wearing crappy pieces of rags.

    If what the Great God was wearing were just crappy pieces of rags, then weren¡¯t they running around naked inparison?!

    "How about this; you guys hand over what you¡¯ve gotten from the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake and the Silver Moon Silk Robe to me, and I¡¯ll help to upgrade it for you."

    Quiet And Steadfast looked at the old man with a trace of doubt in his eyes. He felt that anyone who offered help without rpense definitely hid evil intentions.

    "Old man, what do you want in exchange for helping her upgrade the Silver Moon Silk Robe?"

 Chapter 192

    <b>Chapter 192: The Weapon Master¡¯s Favor (2) </b>

    The old man¡¯s smile froze. He red at Quiet And Steadfast and said somewhat unhappily, "I... I¡¯m just helping you guys out of a sense of obligation."

    Shen Jingbin hade to the same realization. No matter what, the old man was still an NPC; him helping them for free would never happen. "Old man, stop making us guess. Please tell us your conditions."

    Seeing as his ruse had failed, the old man sighed and said, "In all my years of guarding the Ice Extermination Cavern, apart from wanting to gather some Shadow Snaring Water, the only other thing I¡¯ve wanted was to obtain parts from the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s body. However, as you guys have seen, the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake isn¡¯t something I can handle on my own..."

    "Oh, so you tricked us intoing down here with you!" Morning Glory Chime cut in.

    The old man¡¯s face flushed. "How have I tricked you guys? I¡¯ve been here in seclusion for all these years and only revealed myself to point you in the right direction when I noticed you were the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs. I more or less know what¡¯s going on outside, and I know that taking on the Shinra Sect is impossible for you guys unless you have one or two Divine Weapons. It just so happens that Shadow Snaring Water is one of the mainponents in forging a Divine Weapon. That was why I appeared before you and shared what I knew. Isn¡¯t this a win-win situation for everyone? As for the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, that was me testing your skills in advance. You can forget about defeating the Shinra Sect if you can¡¯t even handle the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake."

    "You sure know how to tell stories," Morning Glory Chime didn¡¯t buy his story at all.

    The old man couldn¡¯t be bothered to deal with her. Instead, he turned to rest of them and said, "I wasn¡¯t able to gather the materials on the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake¡¯s body, so I could only rely on you guys. Speaking of the Silver Moon Silk Robe, you don¡¯t need those materials to upgrade it. How about this, you give me the parts you¡¯ve collected from the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake, and I¡¯ll help refine all of your weapons," After saying that, the four of them heard the system¡¯s notification.

    "Congrattions, you have triggered the hidden quest ¡¯The Weapon Master¡¯s Favor¡¯. Will you ept this quest? Yes/No. (Trigger condition: Battle alongside Weapon Master Zhang Wudi and sessfully y the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake. Hint: Only the Lead Disciples from the six great sects can trigger the appearance of Weapon Master Wudi. Once Weapon Master Wudi has made an appearance, all yers will be able to see him. Dear yers, please treasure this opportunity.)"

    The four of them were overjoyed and epted the quest as they exchanged nces with one another.

    "Hidden Quest: ¡¯Favour of the Weapon Master¡¯ ¡ª Hand over the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake (0/1). Description: Submit the materials collected from the Scarlet Marsh Thunder Snake to Zhang Wudi. The materials may be shared amongst party members."

    Pure Crane took them out from his backpack and stuffed everything into Zhang Wudi¡¯s hands. Zhang Wudi¡¯s face lit up with happiness as he epted them. "Good good. Here, hand me your weapons. Lass, hand me your Silver Moon Silk Robe as well."

    "Why aren¡¯t you helping us refine our clothes as well!" Morning Glory Chime asked.

    "It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to help you, it¡¯s that your clothes can¡¯t be refined."

    Quiet And Steadfast took out his dagger and handed it to Zhang Wudi. As he did so, a glint shed across eyes, and he said, "Old man, we won¡¯t have anything to use if we hand you our weapons. The world has been thrown into chaos now, making it very dangerous for us if weck weapons."

    Zhang Wudi fell into contemtion for a few moments before he nodded his head and said, "That does seem to be the case... How about this, I still have some weapons I made as practice; you guys can use them for now."

    "What about my shirt..." Shen Jingbin said.

    "I¡¯ll rece it, I¡¯ll rece it!"

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast looked at each other and smiled.

    You¡¯re so treacherous.

    You¡¯re not so bad yourself.

    In the end, all four of them received a weapon from Zhang Wudi. Shen Jingbin even received a piece of equipment with pretty good stats. Also, though Zhang Wudi said he¡¯d made them for practice, the stats of these weapons weren¡¯t any worse than their original weapons. In other words, they¡¯d snagged a bargain.

    After taking their things, Zhang Wudi called forth the Dragon Mouth Catfish to send them back out. He told them he wouldn¡¯t be apanying them out because he was hiding in the Shadow Snaring Pool. He¡¯d let them know once he was done with their items.

    The four of them waved goodbye before they climbed onto the fish¡¯s back and it swam towards the surface.

    Shen Jingbin felt a wave of murderous intent just as the Dragon Mouth Catfish was about to break the water¡¯s surface. Quiet And Steadfast had felt it as well, so almost at the same time, the two of them dug their feet into the fish¡¯s back. Shen Jingbin dragged Morning Glory Chime backwards, while Quiet And Steadfast dragged Pure Crane backwards before the two of them then leapt out of the water and up into the air.

    The instant they leapt out of the water, they spotted a wave of menacing sword qi flying straight towards the Dragon Mouth Catfish from the shore!

    When the Dragon Mouth Catfish was hit, it immediately kicked up a huge spray of water before it sunk back into the water, leaving behind a pool of water that was dyed red with blood. The four of themnded on the ground as lingering fear tugged at their hearts.

    They would¡¯ve been hit by that wave of sword qi if they¡¯d just been a beat slower!

    "You¡¯ve finally surfaced," A malevolent voice suddenly spoke out.

    Shen Jingbin lifted her gaze and looked over...

    It was Nine Bads.

 Chapter 193

    <b>Chapter 193: If You Can¡¯t Beat Em, Harass Em (1)</b>

    What does it feel like to be eyed by a poisonous snake?

    Shen Jingbin felt that her current predicament was akin to that of a little white rabbit being eyed by a poisonous snake.

    Was this bitch Nine Bads some kind of GPS? Why the hell are you all over the ce?!

    While Shen Jingbin was doing her best to ignore Nine Bads¡¯ murderous gaze, Neverending Journey, who was standing beside Nine Bads, took the opportunity to speak first and asked, "Pure Crane, exin yourself. Why are you together with Quiet And Steadfast?"

    Having been called out, Pure Crane shrugged and said, "We¡¯re just doing a quest together."

    Neverending Journey was apparently dissatisfied with his answer, causing his handsome, beautified face to be unsightly. "Pure Crane, based on the rtionship we share, do you really think that I¡¯d believe what you just said?"

    "I don¡¯t know whether you believe me or not, but what I said was the truth."

    Neverending Journey shifted his gaze to Morning Glory Chime. He had some recollection of her; after all, she was one of the top ranking beauties in the guild.

    "Morning Glory Chime, you tell us then."

    "Ah?" Morning Glory Chime looked at Neverending Journey with some surprise on her face. She then turned to Pure Crane, unsure of why the conversation had suddenly shifted to her.

    "Look at me. Speak up, what happened?"

    "Ah, we were just doing a quest together..." Under Neverending Journey¡¯s watchful gaze, Morning Glory Chime¡¯s voice became increasingly soft, as if she were guilty of something.

    Wait, why was she feeling guilty? They really were just doing a quest together!

    "Leader, we truly did just happen to be doing a quest together. We weren¡¯t thinking of doing anything else."

    "You weren¡¯t thinking at all. Don¡¯t you know what the situation is like between our guilds? You still decided to take on a quest together with them. Tell me, do you even give a damn about our guild?!"

    Although his words were directed at Morning Glory Chime, everyone knew that he was actually referring to Pure Crane.

    "Neverending, I think you¡¯re being a little too hasty. This is just a game; we cooperate when there¡¯s a mutual benefit, and disperse when there isn¡¯t. There¡¯s no need to act like we¡¯re sworn enemies and will always be at each other¡¯s throats."

    "Alright, then tell me what ¡¯mutual benefit¡¯ you, the Vice-Leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent, stand to gain by cooperating with Jade Sea Pavilion!"

    "..." Pure Crane really felt like facepalming. Bro, why are you so insistent on getting to the bottom of things! "This is a personal matter and doesn¡¯t fall under the purview of the guild¡¯s affairs. I don¡¯t need to report it to you."

    Crying Fish, who¡¯d remained silent this whole time, suddenly added fuel to the fire. "Oh, what¡¯s this? Guild Leader Journey, is there some internal strife within your guild? If that¡¯s the case, can our alliance still be realized?"

    Neverending Journey shot Pure Crane a vicious re, before he grit his teeth and said, "It can! There¡¯s no problem! Pure Crane, I¡¯ll give you one chance; I¡¯ll forget about what happened today if you take care of Quiet And Steadfast and that ugly monster beside him."

    "Why the hell was Quiet And Steadfast referred to by name, but I¡¯m called an ugly monster!" Shen Jingbin thought furiously to herself.

    However, neither ¡¯ugly monster¡¯ nor ¡¯Nutjob¡¯ were any good as names.

    Quiet And Steadfast calmly interrupted them and said, "Neverending Journey, don¡¯t you think that you¡¯d be facing even more problems in the future if Pure Crane cut my wife and me down now?"

    The moment he said that everyone present froze.

    That¡¯s true, it would mean that they really did have something to hide! Although Pure Crane was an expert, he was far from being Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s match! Even Nine Bads, the second best yer on the leaderboards, would be obliterated by Quiet And Steadfast the moment they fought.

    Everyone turned their gazes to Nine Bads and looked at her with pity in their eyes.

    Even as the second best yer in the game, you¡¯re still quite pitiful.

    Nine Bads was in the midst of her futile attempt to wear down Shen Jingbin¡¯s spirit by ring daggers at her when she noticed everyone¡¯s gaze, causing her to immediately reel back like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

    Quiet And Steadfast instantly cutting her down at Sea Moon Ind was the darkest part of her gaming history that she never wanted to talk about!

    "Stop wasting time talking about nonsense. There¡¯s only four of them and so many of us; let¡¯s just get rid of the two of them from Jade Sea Pavilion first!" Nine Bads said.

    Nine Bads happened to share the same objective as Neverending Journey. She didn¡¯t care why Pure Crane was together with Quiet And Steadfast; she just felt even more of an urge to kill Quiet And Steadfast now. But, Crying Fish had some reservations. She walked up to Nine Bads¡¯ back and whispered into her ear, "Nine, wasn¡¯t that ugly monster the one you hated? Forget about killing Quiet And Steadfast and focus on her instead."

    Nine Bads shot a look of disdain at Crying Fish. A woman who was head over heels for a man was indeed a pitiful sight to behold. Quiet And Steadfast had never once spared a nce for her, yet she still insisted on doggedly pursuing his affections in spite of everything.

    Crying Fish couldn¡¯t bear her withering gaze and shrunk back.

    "Do you really think we¡¯d be able to take out that ugly monster without getting rid of Quiet And Steadfast first?" Nine Bads shot back.

    "Why can¡¯t we? Ah Ning doesn¡¯t really like that woman anyway. Once we kill her, she¡¯ll..." Whatever else she was nning to say was interrupted by Nine Bads¡¯ piercing gaze. It was as if she was looking at someone who was mentally challenged. At that point, Crying Fish realized she might really have been a bit too naive.

    Regardless of how much she wanted to deny the fact that Quiet And Steadfast and that ugly monster honestly had feelings for one another, just based on the fact that she was his wife, Crying Fish knew that there was no way he would stand by and watch as Nutjob was killed. If he were to ignore their actions, it would be a p to his face. After all, what kind of man would the top yer in the game be if he couldn¡¯t even protect his wife?

    Nine Bads stopped ring at her after Crying Fish realized her stupidity. Instead, she proceeded to issue orders, "Everyone in Life At First Sight, heed mymand; advance!"

    "Yes!"

 Chapter 194

    <b>Chapter 194: If You Can¡¯t Beat Em, Harass Em (2) </b>

    At Nine Bads¡¯mand, she and everyone else Crying Fish had brought along immediately activated their buffs and rushed forward. Their target was clear: Quiet And Steadfast!

    The other three weren¡¯t important; there was no worry of them running away once Quiet And Steadfast was done for.

    Crying Fish and Neverending Journey looked on for a little while before they too jumped into the fray.

    As the leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent, Neverending Journey felt that listening to Nine Bads¡¯ order was unnecessary. He shouldn¡¯t be attacking just because Nine Bads said so! But, as he surveyed the situation before him, the desire to do away with Quiet And Steadfast overcame him, and he charged forward as well.

    Crying Fish originally nned on taking down Shen Jingbin on her own. After all, she was her most hated enemy. However, as Nine Bads had said, she could forget about getting rid of that ugly monster without first taking down Quiet And Steadfast. Crying Fish could only grit her teeth as she made Quiet And Steadfast the target of her attacks.

    The remaining three of them who¡¯d been intentionally ignored were then blown away from the battle by one of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s attacks.

    His intention was clear: they shouldn¡¯t involve themselves since the other party had no intention of going after them.

    Bro, how much confidence do you have in being able to take on 1vN number of people?

    "Brother Pure Crane, what should we do? Which side should we be helping now?" Morning Glory Chime had no idea what to do as she looked on at Quiet And Steadfast who was holding his own.

    Although Morning Glory Chime¡¯s personality wasn¡¯t all that great and she suffered from a divaplex, she still had a conscience. Quiet And Steadfast and that ugly monster had not only done quests together with her; they¡¯d even saved her. Wouldn¡¯t betraying them just like that be a little too heartless?

    "You guys should log off," Shen Jingbin spoke first while Pure Crane held his silence.

    Pure Crane looked at her in astonishment. "Then what are you going to do? Crying Fish has definitely called for reinforcements. Will the two of you be enough?"

    Shen Jingbin looked him in the eye and shed a smile that failed to reach her eyes. "Do you think she¡¯s the only one who knows how to call for reinforcements?"

    She¡¯d long since secretly asked for the guild¡¯s help, alright?! She wasn¡¯t an idiot; she knew she was going to butt heads with Crying Fish andpany in spite of their disadvantageous position.

    "Neither retreating nor fighting puts you in a good position, so you guys should just log off."

    "Alright then," Pure Crane said. "We¡¯ll log off. May fortune be with you."

    Shen Jingbin nodded back at him. Following that, he and Morning Glory Chime disappeared from the spot they were standing. Shen Jingbin then activated her buffs, drew her weapons, summoned Mascot, and jumped into the fray.

    She would retreat when there wasn¡¯t a fight, but she would never surrender without putting up a fight! Moreover, she wasn¡¯t ignorant like she was in the past. Even if she couldn¡¯t take down Nine Bads, she¡¯d at least be able to distract her!

    Many years of experience had taught her that in battle, disrupting an enemy¡¯s morale was extremely important. Most of the time, an enemy¡¯s defeat wouldn¡¯t be far off once their morale broke.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t match up to everyone else who was present, but she did trump them when it came to her agility and IQ. To top it off, she also had Mascot as her bodyguard.

    Nine Bads was the most significant threat, so she immediately made Nine Bads her target.

    Taking advantage of the opportunity when they were focusing their attention on attacking Quiet And Steadfast, Shen Jingbin nimbly weaved through the crowd of people. By the time they¡¯d noticed her presence and tried to attack her, she¡¯d already slipped past them and was behind Nine Bads.

    "Smack!" The sound of a horsetail whisk mming down on Nine Bads¡¯ back rang out. Although Shen Jingbin had only managed to shave off a sliver of Health, the shock of being attacked caused Nine Bads to spin her head around immediately.

    "Hey there, Spiteful. Look, I¡¯m over here," Shen Jingbin perfectly executed a hit and run tactic, immediately dashing away the moment shended a hit, and leaving behind nothing but dust by the time Nine Bads turned around.

    Nine Bads red at her and gnashed her teeth in anger. "You bitch!"

    Shen Jingbin shed a winning smile at her in return and said, "You¡¯re the same."

    Knowing that Shen Jingbin was trying to provoke her, Nine Bads shot back with one final retort before she ignored Shen Jingbin. "Focus all fire on Quiet And Steadfast!" Shemanded.

    Heh, little girl, I refuse to believe that you can keep ignoring me!

    Shen Jingbin then employed the same trick once again. However, this time around, Nine Bads suffered a swipe from Mascot¡¯s ws even though she was ready for Shen Jingbin¡¯s attack. Mascot¡¯s offensive strength was leagues apart from Shen Jingbin¡¯s, causing Nine Bads¡¯ face to turn pale the moment its ws swept past her.

    "Beautifully done, Mascot!" Stealing away into the crowd, Shen Jingbin gave Mascot a very satisfied pat on the head. Although Mascot could have helped Quiet And Steadfast dispatch a few of their assants, Shen Jingbin loved the feeling of pulling one up on her enemies; especially when it came to Nine Bads. She definitely had to take the time to repay Nine Bads for what she¡¯d done with her posse.

    "Nine, I¡¯ll take care of that ugly monster!" Crying Fish cried out as she threw a heal over to Nine Bads, helping her to recover all her Health.

    "No, take care of Quiet And Steadfast!" Nine Bads¡¯ eyes zed with rage as she looked over to Quiet And Steadfast.

    There were so many of them, and Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t even have a Nymph with him, yet they¡¯d only managed to shave off a sliver of his Health while their side would have lost several people if they hadn¡¯t brought along Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine.

    "F*ck! Those jokers are over here!"

    At that moment, they suddenly heard voices in the direction that Nine Bads¡¯ group hade from.

    A smile broke out on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face. That voice belonged to Shen Jingchen!

    As expected Shen Jingchen, Slight Chill, the Four Monsters, and the rest of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s members appeared before them several secondster.

    "Pui! Leader, you¡¯re being way too selfish! Why didn¡¯t you call us along if you were nning to teach these brats a lesson! Get over here Nine Bads!" Shen Jingchen¡¯s face immediately lit up the moment he stepped in and surveyed the area. He then issued a battle cry and leapt into battle. The ones behind him also gave a sinister smile as they charged forward.

    The state of the battle immediately changed in the blink of an eye.

    Nine Bads felt unresigned as she saw Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s HP get topped up by his Healers and knew that she wouldn¡¯t be able to take him out today. Her face darkened, and she unexpectedly spun her sword around, pointing it straight in Shen Jingbin¡¯s direction.

    No matter what, I¡¯m dragging one of you down with me!

 Chapter 195

    <b>Chapter 195: If She Wants It, I¡¯ll Give It To Her (1) </b>

    Even after ying the game for so long, Shen Jingbin¡¯s deaths could be counted on her fingers. However, those pitiful few deaths that she¡¯d had were all at the hands of Nine Bads. As the saying goes: no pain, no gain. She¡¯d long since ced Nine Bads at the top of her watch list. As long as she was present, Shen Jingbin definitely wouldn¡¯t let Nine Bads out of her sight!

    There would be no third time. She¡¯d stop ying if she died at Nine Bads hands for the third time!

    What she¡¯d promised herself wasn¡¯t just for show either, and her sharp mind spotted Nine Bads turning her gaze back to her.

    In fact, Shen Jingbin really felt like asking Nine Bads, "Did I kill your dog or something? Why do you keeping after me?! If I didn¡¯t know Morning Glory Chime was Luo Xiaoqian, I¡¯d think that you were her!"

    Shen Jingbin had always kept Nine Bads in her field of vision, so when Nine Bads turned to target her, she was able to react immediately.

    There was one other person who reacted at the same time ¨C Quiet And Steadfast. When he saw Nine Bads lunging towards Shen Jingbin, he immediately tossed the dagger in his hand towards her.

    As the longsword in Nine Bads¡¯ hand whistled towards Shen Jingbin¡¯s neck, Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s tossed dagger embedded itself into Nine Bads¡¯ back.

    After Quiet And Steadfast had destroyed her back at Sea Moon Ind, Nine Bads had gone into a frenzy and started madly upgrading her equipment. Although she wasn¡¯t able to increase their level by much, her personal strength had risen by a fair bit, allowing her to survive Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s full powered attack. However, her luck wasn¡¯t all that good; the dagger that Quiet And Steadfast had thrown was one of Wudi¡¯s top quality weapons. This meant that while she didn¡¯t die, she was left with only a sliver of Health.

    For Nine Bads, this sliver of Health meant that she still had a chance of escaping. Unfortunately, she hadn¡¯t yet given up on the idea of taking Shen Jingbin down.

    Against anyone else, Nine Bads would still be able to use that bit of Health to perish with her target. However, against Shen Jingbin¡¯s better than average reflexes and a Divine Beast as her bodyguard, there would only be one conclusion.

    Nine Bads¡¯ sword was less than a centimeter away from Shen Jingbin¡¯s neck when it was deflected by the handle of her horsetail whisk. At the same time, Mascot roared, and the wave issued from the enormous beast immediately shaved off thest remaining bit of Health that Nine Bads had left.

    "ng" Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s dagger ttered onto the ground as it was engulfed in a beam of white light.

    The moment Nine Bads died the members of Life At First Sight, including Crying Fish, felt like they¡¯d lost their pir of support. Neverending Journey¡¯s reaction to this was even more drastic; he immediately logged off.

    "Tsk tsk tsk. Little Jing, you¡¯re so boorish!" Shen Jingchen said as he cut down the other members of Life At First Sight who were in the Ice Extermination Cavern. Everyone shared a tacit understanding and left only Crying Fish alive.

    Crying Fish gripped her weapon and stood with her back against the wall. She vigntly looked towards the members of Jade Sea Pavilion and asked, "What... what¡¯s the meaning of this?" After killing everyone else and leaving only her alive, it was difficult for her thoughts not to run astray.

    Shen Jingchen waited till everyone else put away their weapons before he moved over to stand by Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side. Slight Chill nced at Crying Fish¡¯s guarded expression and scoffed at her, "Can you put away that wretched look of yours? What do you think we¡¯re going to do to you? Sigh, who¡¯d be interested in someone like you?"

    Crying Fish red at her but didn¡¯t say a word.

    "Did you really think we wanted to do... that to you?" I¡¯m Not A Monster asked.

    "That? What¡¯s that?" I¡¯m Really Not A Monster asked quizzically.

    Actually, I Am A Monster covered his nose and eximed, "You guys are way too perverted!"

    I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me covered his eyes and chimed in, "I don¡¯t know any of you!"

    Slight Chill rolled her eyes. "All of you are sick in the head!"

    Everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion: We Agree!

    With idiots like these as members of their guild, they felt embarrassed too!

    The Four Monsters clenched their fists. "Screw all of you!"

    Quiet And Steadfast looked on helplessly as he watched their disy before he shook his head and said sternly, "Crying Fish, I¡¯ll let you go, but I¡¯m going to have to trouble you to pass a message on to Nine Bads for me. Tell her to stop causing trouble for Nutjob and to have some dignity."

    Shen Jingbin, who was standing at his side, quietly retorted to herself, "Boss, you¡¯ve got it wrong. Nine Bads doesn¡¯t have a shred of dignity in her; she¡¯s just a petty bitch! There won¡¯t be any resolution unless one of us dies!"

    Crying Fish suddenly appeared to be a little disillusioned, and she wore a look disbelief as she stared at Quiet And Steadfast and asked, "You... you left me alive just for this?"

    Quiet And Steadfast raised a brow and asked in return, "Why else would I leave you alive? Is there anything for us to talk about?"

    Shen Jingchen began tutting once again.

    "Hey, Guild Leader Fish, don¡¯t tell me you were under the illusion that we¡¯d actually left you alive because our Leader couldn¡¯t bear to hurt you? Please, our Leader has a wife, and she¡¯s a knockout beauty..." When he said that, he suddenly felt many strange looks being sent his way by his guild members. He then cast a guilt-ridden nce at Shen Jingbin and swallowed his thoughtless praise with great difficulty. "Uh, what I meant was that our Leader is devoted. You might as well forget about these little schemes of yours; you don¡¯t stand a chance."

    Shen Jingchen, are you f*cking blind?! Why¡¯d you have to say something you¡¯d feel embarrassed about the moment you said it!

    The above was what everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion was thinking in their hearts.

 Chapter 196

    <b>Chapter 196: If She Wants It, I¡¯ll Give It To Her (2) </b>

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s words made Crying Fish feel as if all of her hidden schemes had immediately fallen apart. She flew into a humiliation fuelled rage and said, "Quiet And Steadfast, isn¡¯t your guild being a bit too much of a bully? All I wanted was an item from you guys. Forget not giving it to me and you killing all of my people, now you¡¯re even trying to humiliate me. Is this the dignity of the top-ranked guild in the game?"

    Slight Chill was so angry a smile spread across her face. "Are you sure you¡¯re in a position to be talking about dignity?"

    "Your Leader was the one who brought up dignity first!"

    "My Guild Leader said all that because he thought highly of you! Are you the one who¡¯s been throwing herself at him?! Now you¡¯re trying to twist his words. I really feel like the words ¡¯true love¡¯ has been sullied by you."

    "I¡¯m now speaking to your Leader in my capacity as the Guild Leader of Life At First Sight, so stop butting in, you vixen! Speaking to you is beneath me."

    "F*ck you, you arrogant bitch. What did you say Quarrelsome Fish? Say it to my face one more time!"

    "I said that talking to you is beneath me, vixen!"

    "F*ck this. None of you stop me; I¡¯m going to chop her up!"

    "..."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly interrupted the two of them and said, "Crying Fish, I have a question for you."

    The two women who looked like they were about to fight turned their attention to Shen Jingbin. The Four Monsters and everyone else from Jade Sea Pavilion tugged at Slight Chill. They then turned to look at the indiscernible expression on their Guild Leader¡¯s face before shooting a look of gratitude towards Shen Jingbin.

    Holy shit, women are indeed terrifying!

    "What¡¯s your question?"

    Ignoring the strange looks of gratitude that were directed at her, Shen Jingbin asked, "Do you always try to take things by force when you ask someone for a favor? If that¡¯s the case, then I¡¯ve really learned from this experience."

    Shen Jingbin maintained a look of seriousness as she said this, making it difficult for everyone to tell whether she genuinely intended for it to be a question, or whether she was actually making fun of Crying Fish.

    Crying Fish was at a loss for words, and quite a while passed before she was finally able to react. "I... We tried asking nicely at first, but you were the ones who rejected us for no reason!"

    "Oh, so that¡¯s why you called over Nine Bads and Neverending Journey. Since the soft approach didn¡¯t work, you decided to go with brute force? So you¡¯re implying that we can¡¯t reject any request of yours, right? We¡¯ll be beaten up if we reject?"

    Crying Fish still insisted on arguing. "That was only because of the grudge between Nine Bads and you!"

    Shen Jingbin gave a smile before her expression suddenly darkened. "The entire yer base knows that Nine Bads has a grudge against me, so wasn¡¯t your intention clear when you called Nine Bads over? Don¡¯t tell me you actually expected us to just obediently to stand there and get beaten?"

    "Tsk, what a diva!" Someone shouted.

    "Oh, that¡¯s right. I almost forgot we¡¯re enemies. Weren¡¯t you the one who said you¡¯d kill me every time you saw me?" Shen Jingbin suddenly acted as if she¡¯d gotten an epiphany as she looked at Crying Fish.

    Sweat rolled down everyone¡¯s backs. "Did you only just realize that?"

    "No, you¡¯re all being tricked. She¡¯s just ying dumb and she¡¯s about to troll Crying Fish!" Shen Jingchen thought smugly to himself.

    "So, everything you¡¯ve done before that was all a farce. In truth, you just wanted to see if you could use this as an opportunity to kill us, right? You even called over Neverending Journey from Sovereign¡¯s Descent. Was that a gift to show your sincerity to the alliance?"

    "Stop bringing all these things up, ugly monster. Either way, I¡¯m at your mercy now. Just decide whether you want to kill me or free me!" Crying Fish wasn¡¯t an idiot, and her intuition told her that the more Shen Jingbin spoke, the more holes she¡¯d be digging for herself. So, she decided to put her neck on the line instead.

    "Actually, you can still log off you know," Shen Jingbin reminded her.

    Pui, did Shen Jingbin think she really didn¡¯t know that? Life At First Sight would be the talk of the entire game if she logged off now!

    #When enemies came face to face, Life At First Sight chose to flee without a fight and logged off#

    #Upon encountering the enemy and realizing that neither winning nor fleeing was an option, the Leader of Life At First Sight made the ingenious decision of logging off!#

    #The majestic Guild Leader of Life At First Sight ordered her members to charge the enemy while she fled. Does Life At First Sight still have a future?#

    See, she could even think of all the thread titles on the forums!

    "Stop pretending to be kind! Quiet And Steadfast, look at the type of woman you¡¯ve chosen! You¡¯re even willing to marry a scheming prostitute like her; aren¡¯t you worried about her one day taking over the guild?" Crying Fish said, shifting the subject of their conversation back to Quiet And Steadfast.

    That¡¯s right, no matter how many times Shen Jingbin pointed out Crying Fish¡¯s mistakes, she would always find a way to make Quiet And Steadfast the centerpiece of their discussion. It was as if doing so would somehow increase his affection for her.

    Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t even spare her a nce. Instead, he casually said, "If she wants it, I¡¯ll give it to her."

    A roar exploded in Crying Fish¡¯s mind, and she felt as if she was about to die from her internal injuries!

    Shen Jingchen took the lead and began pping. "Great! Leader, you really are a wonderful hubby!"

    Quiet And Steadfast shot a re at him, and Shen Jingchen immediately fell silent.

    Noticing that Crying Fish was so infuriated that her eyes were turning red, Quiet And Steadfast suddenly spoke up, "Alright, finish her off and let¡¯s leave."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s reason for leaving Crying Fish alive had always been to let Shen Jingbin vent her anger. He could tell that Crying Fish was openly going against her while Nine Bads did the same in secret. Since Nine Bads had died, then he might as well let Shen Jingbin vent her anger on Crying Fish instead. He was confident that she¡¯d be able to piss off Crying Fish to the point where she felt like killing herself.

    As for his gentlemanly act... Haha, that was for strangers. For people like Crying Fish who bullied his wife, he had no elegance whatsoever to speak of, none at all!

    "Yessir!" Came the immediate and excited reply from the members of Jade Sea Pavilion. Special effects from several skills shed by, and Crying Fish turned into a beam of white light and descended to Hell.

    Just as everyone was getting ready to go back, the group heard the sound of footsteps along the path, and it sounded like there were quite a number of people.

    "Leader, we¡¯vee to save you!" A well-built man with mutton chop sideburns and a sword in hand roared as he came charging towards them, a group of people following closely behind him.

    The final word of the man¡¯s deration caught in his throat when he saw the situation inside of the cavern.

    Uh... would it be toote for him to retract what he¡¯d said?

 Chapter 197

    <b>Chapter 197: I¡¯m just that confident (1)</b>

    Everyone¡¯s attention was gathered on the Mara holding a sword in the Ice Extermination Cavern. He gulped down his saliva with great difficulty; it felt as though his throat was a little dry.

    "Lonely Moon, why are you blocking the way? Charge! Our beautiful Leader is waiting for us to save her! Don¡¯t be scared, darling~."

    The Mara was so tall that he practically blocked the entire the path just by standing there. The yers behind him could neither see the situation in front nor could they proceed onwards. Momentster, the voices of irritated yers cursing at him could be heard from behind him.

    What the fuck? This is the perfect opportunity for me to show off! Leader might just notice how heroic I am if I save her like a knight in shining armour! I might even win her affection, and she¡¯ll give her heart to me! Motherf*cker! You big oaf, don¡¯t block your big bro from marrying a fair-skinned, wealthy, and beautifuldy! I¡¯ll be a CEO and walk a path so glorious; it¡¯ll overturn your entire worldview!

    Yet, their blockheaded brother-in-arms, Lonely Moon, now had a death wish and was standing as an obstacle in their path.

    You stupid c**ts! You won¡¯t be marrying some Miss Perfect! It¡¯s filled with Great Demon Kings inside, alright?! They¡¯ve long since ripped your beautiful Leader¡¯s corpse to shreds! You guys are just sending yourselves to death¡¯s door! Your old man is disying his brotherly love by protecting you guys! Don¡¯t you understand?!

    Ah, the sky is vast, and the winds are boundless. Brothers, you don¡¯t understand how my heart weeps for you!

    "You¡¯vee to save your Leader? You guys are rather quick," Shen Jingchen greeted the Mara who was standing at the vanguard.

    The band of brothers standing behind the Mara immediately fell silent upon hearing his voice.

    Aside from being good-looking, another characteristic that Dawn¡¯s Twilight had was that it was effortless to discern who he was from his voice alone. In the words of a bunch of fangirls, it was a voice that could be remembered after hearing it just once. It was a voice so pleasant to the ears that one could get pregnant from listening to him speak.

    After harbouring hostilities with Jade Sea Pavilion for so long, they¡¯d immediately start cursing and swearing at one another even if it happened to be a chance encounter while hunting monsters. As such, the yers from Life At First Sight were naturally familiar with Dawn¡¯s Twilight¡¯s voice and immediately recognised him when he spoke.

    Why does he sound so rxed? What about our boss, Nine Bads? What happened to our beautiful Leader? Why hasn¡¯t she said a single word after so long?

    It can¡¯t be...

    The yers from Life At First Sight felt their guts clench; things were taking a turn for the worse. Where there¡¯s life, there¡¯s hope. Shouldn¡¯t they retreat while there¡¯s still a chance?

    Everyone remained silent as they discreetly inched towards the cave¡¯s entrance.

    They weren¡¯t cowards, but their deaths had to mean something if they were to die. It was just in stupid for them to serve their heads up on a silver tter!

    Lonely Moon¡¯s expression froze when he heard the faint sound of movement behind him. He forced a wry smile on his face and said, "Well, it seems like our Leader isn¡¯t here. In that case, we won¡¯t bother you guys. We¡¯ll head off first!"

    With that, he tried to turn tail and run.

    s, when he turned back, he saw the look of horror on hisrades¡¯ faces as they stared at him.

    A cold, ghastly voice rang out in Lonely Moon¡¯s ear, "Since you¡¯re here, let¡¯s have a match. Your Leader wouldn¡¯t be too happy if she knew that you guys ran off like that."

    I don¡¯t want to! Lonely Moon cried out in his heart, his cheeks streaming with tears.

    He¡¯d seen everything when he took a nce just now! Everyone present were all members of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s elite team! Usually, they¡¯d only dare to ambush Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Life Skill yers or normal members when they attacked it. When it came to the members of their elite team, it was apetition of who could escape faster, alright?

    Unfortunately, no one behind him seemed to have any intention of listening to his inner cries.

    At this moment, a row of words appeared in their guild channel. It was as if it were there for the sole purpose of validating what that person had said.

    [Guild] Nine Bads: Those of you who are in the Ice Extermination Cavern, don¡¯t you dare flee! All of you, attack! Even if you die, drag a member of Jade Sea Pavilion down with you! I¡¯m not asking for much, just kill the ugliest looking person there!

    Lonely Moon was about to cry. Leaving without checking his fortune was the gravest mistake he made today.

    [Guild] Silence Is Golden: But the ones I saw just now were people from the elite team. I¡¯m afraid we won¡¯t even be able to get rid of a single member.

    [Guild] Nine Bads: What are you afraid of? That ugly monster may be the wife of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Leader, but she¡¯s only a noob. Don¡¯t tell me you guys can¡¯t kill her with so many people on your side?

    A Daoist spoke up.

    [Guild] Fallen Wind Clear Mist: You¡¯re talking about Nutjob, right? It¡¯s true that she¡¯s a noob, but she¡¯s the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple. She even has the Divine Beast, White Tiger. Getting rid of her isn¡¯t going to be easy.

    [Guild] Crying Fish: Forget it. Those in the Ice Extermination Cavern who can flee should do so. Don¡¯t fight them head-on. Quiet And Steadfast, Dawn¡¯s Twilight, and those four Liches are there. We can¡¯t get the drop on them, so we¡¯re better off not sacrificing our men.

    [Guild] Nine Bads: ...

    [Guild] Nine Bads: Do as you please.

    With the sensation of cold steel being pressed against his neck, Lonely Moon didn¡¯t have any energy left in him to ridicule them.

    We can¡¯t leave even if we want to now!

 Chapter 198

    <b>Chapter 198: I¡¯m just that confident (2) </b>

    Unbeknownst to them, the Liches from Jade Sea Pavilion had moved behind them and sealed their way out.

    I¡¯m Not A Monster pressed his dagger against Lonely Moon¡¯s throat. "All of you,e inside."

    The three remaining Monsters, along with the rest of the Liches, closed in on them and ushered everyone into the depths of the cave.

    Once all of them were standing in the belly of the cave, Shen Jingchen suddenly pointed at Lonely Moon and shouted, "Huh? Aren¡¯t you Underworld City¡¯s Lord?"

    Everyone immediately shifted their attention to Lonely Moon when they heard this.

    "And here I was, worrying about how I¡¯d find you, yet you delivered yourself right up to my doorstep!" Shen Jingchen said.

    Shen Jingbin sized up Lonely Moon and noticed that he had the look of a typical foolhardy person ¨C all brawn and no brain. "Even someone like this can also be the City Lord? Does Life At First Sight have no one else worthy of the role?" She asked suspiciously.

    Even though she knew that the current City Lord could be given to anyone, she really couldn¡¯t envision the brainless-looking person before her eyes as being a good City Lord.

    Lonely Moon¡¯s ego was severely wounded by Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze that was brimming with skepticism.

    F*ck you! What are you insinuating, you ugly monster?! What do you mean, someone like me?! I look like a real man, alright?!

    Lonely Moon red hatefully at Nutjob.

    It¡¯s no wonder why Nine Bads is so insistent on not letting you get away! You¡¯ve got such a sharp tongue!

    "One doesn¡¯t need a high IQ to be a City Lord. There¡¯s an NPC operating everything anyway. The yer only needs to have the City Lord¡¯s medallion and a certain level of martial prowess," Quiet And Steadfast exined.

    Lonely Moon nodded. That¡¯s right. That¡¯s an excellent exnation. I only need to have a certain level of martial prowess and don¡¯t need- the f*ck? Who are you sayingcks IQ?!

    "Dawn, didn¡¯t you get the City Lord¡¯s medallion? You should take advantage of the situation and use the City Lord¡¯s medallion to challenge this guy. Just think of how stifled Quarrelsome Fish will feel when we take out their Leader, champion, and even Underworld City, all in the span of a single day," Slight Chill said.

    Everyone present couldn¡¯t help but sigh. A woman¡¯s heart is the most vicious of them all.

    A yer from Life At First Sight couldn¡¯t bear to watch on any longer and loudly cursed, "Jade Sea Pavilion is really despicable! You guys even hit a person when they¡¯re down. Didn¡¯t your teachers teach you to forgive and forget?!"

    This person was indignantly crying out about the injustice that they were facing, but the other members couldn¡¯t help but blush when they recalled how¡¯d they used to abduct and kill Life Skill yers from Jade Sea Pavilion. Some members even shot a meaningful nce at him.

    Hey, brother. Stop talking.

    However, he acted as if they were invisible and continued his lengthy lecture. "It¡¯s true that there¡¯s animosity between our guilds, but in any case, you guys are the number one guild. Could you guys please behave as a respectable guild should? You say that we use tricks, but that¡¯s because we¡¯re forced to do so. It¡¯s clearly impossible for us to fight you head on, but you guys shouldn¡¯t strike us while we¡¯re down. You guys should openly-"

    The corner of Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips twitched. She couldn¡¯t bear to listen to him rattle on. "What they say about how a Leader¡¯s behaviour is projected onto their members really is true. Do you think your actions are justified just because you¡¯re weak?"

    Slight Chill also chimed in and ridiculed the yer. "Birds of a feather flock together; an idiotic Leader will naturally only be capable of attracting idiotic members."

    The person wanted to say something more but stopped short when Lonely Moon viciously red at him.

    This was utterly shameful on their part.

    Lonely Moon took a deep breath and heroically eximed, "Enough talking, let¡¯s fight!"

    The other party didn¡¯t respond as he thought they would. Instead, they nced at one another.

    "I don¡¯t think I can fight. It feels like I¡¯m bullying a primary school student," Said I¡¯m Not A Monster.

    Everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion heard this and eximed, "You finally said something sensible!"

    Shen Jingchen sighed and said, "I feel like we¡¯re pretty miserable. We¡¯ve actually fought with people like this for so long."

    "Don¡¯t mess around. The ones here aren¡¯t Life At First Sight¡¯s elite team," Said Quiet And Steadfast.

    Just like Jade Sea Pavilion, Life At First Sight had their own elite team too. However, the quantity and quality of the members of their elite team were slightly worse than Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s.

    "Release him; we¡¯re leaving. We¡¯ve wasted too much time here already."

    Lonely Moon couldn¡¯t believe his ears as he looked at Quiet And Steadfast. "A-are you really letting us off like this?" My god, they¡¯d always die whenever they encountered Jade Sea Pavilion in the past.

    Quiet And Steadfast nced down at him from his position of dominance. "Will you be online tomorrow?"

    What¡¯s going on?

    "Y-yes!"

    "Then you better prepare. Dawn, you¡¯ll be challenging the City Lord to a fight tomorrow."

    Hearing his name suddenly being called, Shen Jingchen nked out for a moment before he replied, "Ah? Alright."

    Quiet And Steadfast waved his hand, turning the yers from Life At First Sight loose. After leaving the Ice Extermination Cavern and returning to their guild encampment, Slight Chill, feeling dissatisfied with the oue, questioned Quiet And Steadfast, "Why¡¯d you let them go so easily just now?"

    "Don¡¯t you think we¡¯re devaluing our elite team if we use them to kill their ordinary members? When we kill them, I want to make sure they won¡¯t be able to voice even a single excuse," Quiet And Steadfast calmly replied.

    A surge of adoration rose in Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart when she heard him say this.

    She liked his domineering attitude!

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes shifted downwards and met her smile when he felt her gaze on him; his eyes were holding an unspoken smile of their own within them.

    Slight Chill felt that this scene was too dazzling for her eyes!

    "Hehe, could I trouble the two of you not to act like there¡¯s no one else around you and put on such a public disy of affection? Can you be more considerate of everyone else¡¯s feelings?"

    "Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t even know how to look away. Learn from me; I can¡¯t see anything at all," Shen Jingchen interjected.

    "Hehe, that¡¯s because you¡¯re blind."

    "... This elder brother doesn¡¯t pick a fight with women."

    "You make it sound as if you can beat me even if you pick a fight with me."

    ... F*ck! Can¡¯t we have a proper conversation?!

    "Stop arguing you two. Dawn is going to tackle Underworld City tomorrow; you better get ready."

    "Hmm? Is it really that big a deal? I don¡¯t think it is. You saw him this morning too, right? Lonely Moon looks like a blockhead. I don¡¯t think he poses a threat."

    "Taking him lightly will definitely get you killed," Ridiculed Shen Jingbin.

    "Are you really my younger sister?! Can you not attack me?!"

    Shen Jingbin shrugged in response. Nope.

    "Challenging Underworld City might look like it¡¯s just a fight between you and Lonely Moon, but Life At First Sight will definitely send people over to guard the city since we¡¯ve made our deration. Sovereign¡¯s Descent will definitely be there too," Quiet And Steadfast paused before continuing, "So, you¡¯re not the only person who¡¯s going to fight tomorrow."

    "Then wouldn¡¯t it have been better if you hadn¡¯t said anything? Why¡¯d you tell them in advance?"

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes shone with a light that made it impossible for others to look him in the eye.

    "I want to make it known to Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent that even with an alliance, they¡¯re still no match for Jade Sea Pavilion."

 Chapter 199

    <b>Chapter 199: The Battle For The Role Of Ambassador (1)</b>

    As usual, the weather in Hell was downcast, but it couldn¡¯t hold a candle to the gloom that Nine Bads felt in her heart.

    Heh, on top of not being able to drag that woman down, she was the one who got killed in the end instead.

    Nine Bads grit her teeth and her eyes seethed with unconcealed rage.

    Collecting herself, Nine Bads started examining her surroundings. Aside from herself, there were several other people she didn¡¯t recognize who were wandering about trying to find the Door of Rebirth.

    A Daoist happened to stumbled upon her while he was wandering around. While acting as if he was just passing by, he snuck nces at her. After peeking at her for a good long while, he finally mustered up the courage to walk up to her and say, "Hey, aren¡¯t you the Goddess, Nine Bads?"

    Nine Bads shot an indifferent nce at the Daoist and remained silent.

    Surprisingly, the Daoist who was ignored was overjoyed by her dismissal.

    That arrogance! That look of coldness! It really was Nine Bads!

    "You really are the Goddess, Nine Bads! What a coincidence, who would¡¯ve thought that I¡¯d be able to bump into you even in Hell! But, why¡¯re you in here..."

    Before he had a chance to finish, Nine Bads cowed him with a single re.

    He¡¯d touched on a sore spot, and Nine Bads was now staring the Daoist down. Upon noticing that he wore the same robes as Nutjob ¨C that of White Cloud Temple¡¯s disciples ¨C the rage that burned in her eyes increased in intensity. It was as if she wanted to swallow him whole.

    The Daoist silently gulped down a mouthful of saliva before he quietly took a step backwards.

    Did he say something wrong? That must have been what happened. In general, all of the Gods in the game have an exceptional amount of self-esteem. If he met her in Hell, that meant...

    "Goddess Nine Bads, I... I¡¯m your fan. I saw the video of you entering the Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s martial artspetition previously on the forums and thought you looked really cool. So I..." The Daoist¡¯s voice grew increasingly softer, till his voice eventually squeaked out of existence.

    Nine Bads narrowed her eyes and asked, "You¡¯re from White Cloud Temple, why would you be watching apetition from Swordmaster Pavilion?"

    The Daoist gulped down another mouthful of saliva and said, "About that... the forums didn¡¯t have any martial artspetitions for White Cloud Temple. It only had videos from Swordmaster Pavilion."

    Tsk.

    Nine Bads scoffed at him in her heart. She then retracted her gaze and, without even sparing the Daoist another nce, walked past him and straight towards the nearest Door of Rebirth.

    The more she looked at this Daoist, the more bitter she felt.

    The Daoist wore a look of adoration on his face as he watched Nine Bads¡¯ disappearing silhouette. Hispanions had seen what he was trying to do from the start, but their fear of Nine Bads¡¯ reputation and the aura she gave off had caused them to stubbornly insist on staying far away from her and hiding.

    "Hey, Cool Colour Tones, say it isn¡¯t so. Are you actually interested in a bad omen like Nine Bads?" Said a woman who stared at him with an expression that looked like she¡¯d just eaten crap.

    The Daoist known as Cool Colour Tones red at the woman before he was once again captivated by Nine Bads¡¯ gradually disappearing figure. "What do you know? This is called having a domineering attitude!"

    Someone else spoke up, "Then again, while Nine Bads might be a little vicious, her strength is nothing to scoff at. A woman who has the ability to crush so many men underfoot and im the spot of the second best yer in the game is no mere woman."

    "Tch, someone like her definitely isn¡¯t loved by her parents or grandparents in real life. Nobody would want a dinosaur woman like her even if you threw her onto the streets. She¡¯s the worst of the worst. No normal woman would be as vicious and twisted as her! Besides, I think that the top five yers on leaderboards are all sickos. And, as the only woman amongst the top five yers, she¡¯s the most perverse of them all!"

    "Pui, you¡¯re just jealous! Besides, I don¡¯t think she¡¯s a dinosaur. Just think of how beautiful she is in-game..." The youth who said this paused for a moment and thought of how different he looked in real life. He quietly shut his mouth and didn¡¯t continue speaking.

    "But, I remember a yer who practices martial arts in real life say that Nine Bads should be from a martial arts household... Women who practice martial arts can¡¯t be all that fat, right?"

    "Hehe, that¡¯s because they¡¯re not called fat; they¡¯re called robust! How many women have you met that practice martial arts and also look beautiful?"

    The woman who spoke at the start chimed in once again. "Which is why Quiet And Steadfast, the top yer in the game, is still the best. He has strength, elegance, and looks."

    The men around her eyed her with disdain. "You haven¡¯t even seen his entire face before, and you¡¯re already calling him hot. Show a little more dignity!"

    The woman gave a tsundere-like huff and said, "He¡¯s not just hot. Stop being so jealous!"

    Hearing hispanions bickering over nonsense, Cool Colour Tones impatiently cut in and said, "She¡¯s the one I like, and that¡¯s that; I¡¯ll ept her even if she¡¯s ugly. Can you stop spouting nonsense? It¡¯s annoying! Besides, I refuse to believe that she can look any worse than the Lead Disciple of our sect!"

    Everyone fell silent when they thought of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple.

    Suddenly, one of them spoke up and suggested, "Hey, should we follow Nine Bads? Either way, we can¡¯t find the Door of Rebirth, so we might as well follow her instead."

    This suggestion was in line with what Cool Colour Tones was thinking, and a smile immediately crested his face. "Good good good. I feel the same way too! Come on, let¡¯s catch up with her."

    The only woman in their group mumbled to herself unhappily, "You guys even go after sickos and ugly women. Are you guys really alright up there?"

    Unfortunately, no one bothered about her.

    Nine Bads stood in front of a Door of Rebirth. However, just as she was about to take a step forward and try her luck, someone called out to her from behind the peach tree that was beside the Door of Rebirth.

    "Nine Bads."

    Nine Bads turned to look in the direction of the voice and found a man draped in a ck cloak standing within the peach tree¡¯s shadow. The cloak¡¯s hoodpletely concealed his face.

    "Who are you?" Nine Bads asked with furrowed brows. She¡¯d never liked people who pretended to be all mysterious.

    "Come closer; I have something important to tell you."

    "Hmph. Just say what you have to say; otherwise, you can forget about it. I¡¯m not interested," Nine Bads gave the man a cold smile and didn¡¯t bother with him after that.

    Seeing this, the man stomped his foot and said, "I have a way for you to easily defeat Quiet And Steadfast. When the timees, taking care of that ugly monster from Jade Sea Pavilion will be but a mere trifle."

    Nine Bads raised an eyebrow. "Why should I believe you?"

    When the man saw a group of people drawing nearer, a tinge of anxiety crept into his voice. "Because I¡¯m a disciple of the Shinra Sect! You should know the benefits of joining the Shinra Sect, right? So, what¡¯ll it be? Will you join us or not?"

 Chapter 200

    <b>Chapter 200: The Battle For The Role Of Ambassador (2) </b>

    The Shinra Sect?

    Nine Bads¡¯ heart raced.

    "Aren¡¯t you worried about me killing you because of this?"

    "Why should I be afraid? Either way, we¡¯re already in Hell. It¡¯s not like I can die again-" The man seemed to have thought of something and paused for a moment before he continued speaking, "Don¡¯t tell me that you don¡¯t know who I am?"

    Realising that he¡¯d been looking behind her this whole time, Nine Bads¡¯ curiosity was piqued, and she turned to look behind herself as well. The Daoist from before and hispanions had a look of apprehension on their faces as they slowly made their way towards her.

    "Can you guarantee my admittance into the Shinra Sect?" Nine Bads asked.

    Nine Bads was very clear on the benefits she¡¯d reap by joining the Shinra Sect, so she knew the man wasn¡¯t lying when he¡¯d said that joining the sect would give her the power to defeat Quiet And Steadfast. This was a huge draw for her.

    "I guarantee it," The man said cheerfully.

    "Alright, I¡¯ll join. However, I won¡¯t let you off if I¡¯m unable to join the Shinra Sect. You should know what kind of person I am; I¡¯ll do what I say."

    The man felt a drop of cold sweat run down his back. "Don¡¯t worry, I know. Come over, and I¡¯ll take you to the sect."

    Seeing as the Daoist¡¯s group was just about to reach them, Nine Bads didn¡¯t waste any time as she turned and walked straight towards the man. Then, with a swish of his cloak, the two of them disappeared from sight.

    "The hell? What the f*ck happened?!"

    Cool Colour Tone¡¯s group was staring right at the spot that Nine Bads had been standing on when she¡¯d suddenly disappeared.

    Cool Colour Tone quickened his pace and ran forward. Yet even after he¡¯d rounded the peach tree, he still couldn¡¯t find a single trace of Nine Bads. "Eh? How¡¯d she disappear just like that?" He asked suspiciously.

    One of hispanions suddenly came to a realisation. "Don¡¯t tell me she ran into a hidden quest! F*ck, Gods like them really have it better than us!"

    Another person spoke up, "If we¡¯d known we would havee sooner! Who knows, we might have been able to benefit a little from it."

    At this moment, the woman in their group spoke up, "I think I saw someone wearing a ck cloak standing behind the tree just now. He was talking with Nine Bads."

    Everyone fell silent when she said that.

    A ck cloak... that¡¯s what disciples of the Shinra Sect wear.

    Doesn¡¯t that mean that Nine Bads has joined the Shinra Sect?

    Everyone couldn¡¯t help but look towards Cool Colour Tone.

    Cool Colour Tone didn¡¯t say a word.

    After pulling herself out of the gaming pod, Xue Sijia didn¡¯t even have the time to tidy up her ruffled appearance from lying in the pod when her Manager opened the door and stepped in.

    "You¡¯re finally out," Said her Manager as she eyed her. Her face had, ¡¯thank heavens!¡¯ written all over it.

    While she smoothed out her hair with her hand, she asked, "What happened?" Xue Sijia had very manageable hair, and just a gentle tug through of her fingers was enough to straighten it out.

    "Yiju has replied to your enquiry on who¡¯s going to be the ambassador that appears in the promotional video for <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> that you asked me to look into."

    Xue Sijia, who was walking towards the washroom, paused. "Oh? What did they say?"

    Her Manager looked at her cold and elegant face and felt that it was a waste. She clearly has an outstanding appearance, yet Yiju refused to ept her.

    "The person in charge of Yiju¡¯s marketing department said that they¡¯d found someone suitable and they¡¯ve decided to use her."

    "Someone new?" Xue Sijia raised her brows and asked. She had a pair of dashing eyebrows with a heroic air about them that was rarely seen in female actors. With an arch of her brows, the aura she exuded instantly turned severe.

    "She¡¯s not new. I heard that she¡¯s from outside the industry and happened to catch the eye of Yiju¡¯s upper management. They kept pestering her till she finally agreed to take up the position."

    Xue Sijia wordlessly turned back and continued walking towards the washroom. Opening the faucet, she gathered a palmful of water and sshed her face. Unable to figure out what she was thinking, her Manager followed her up to the washroom¡¯s door frame and leaned against it. "What are you thinking?" She asked.

    Xue Sijia grabbed a towel that was by the side and used it to dry her face. When she was done, she tossed it at the countertop and turned to face her Manager with her arms crossed over her chest. "Help me tell Mr Long that I¡¯m very interested in bing Yiju¡¯s ambassador. Ask him to think of a way to get me that position."

    Her Manager stared at her wide-eyed. "Are you really <b>that</b> interested in bing Yiju¡¯s ambassador? Not only do you want Longzong to show his face, you even want him to help you get the position?"

    Xue Sijia looked straight at her Manager and nodded her head. "I really want it."

    Her Manager shrugged and said, "Alright then, I¡¯ll make my way back to the office."

    Among the artists that he managed, Xue Sijia was the one with the brightest future ahead of her. She was initially just a martial arts assistant in a wuxia film, but she¡¯d caught the eye of their Boss who hade to survey the set. Due to this, theirpany subsequently spent all efforts on grooming her once she¡¯d signed on.

    Xue Sijia honestly did have what it took to be famous. She had a cold and elegant appearance, which allowed others tomit her to memory with a single nce. On top of that, she had a cold and haughty personality, which entirely set her apart from those huadans that were currently in vogue.

    Everyone had a hidden masochistic streak within them; the more they were pushed away, the more enamored they¡¯d be with a person. Xue Sijia quickly rose to fame amongst the youths once she made her debut. This, coupled with herpany¡¯s lionizing, led to her bing a gold mine for thepany. As such, thepany eded to her every request. Now that she¡¯d mentioned she¡¯s interested in the position of ambassador at Yiju, thepany likely wouldn¡¯t reject her request for help.

    But...

    A trace of worry shed across her eyes when she thought of the warning that Yiju had given her.

 Chapter 201

    <b>Chapter 201: Battle For The Title Of City Lord (1)</b>

    "Big news! Jade Sea Pavilion Vs Life At First Sight for control over Underworld City. Who will be the victor?"

    "I heard that Dawn¡¯s Twilight from Jade Sea Pavilion is going to be challenging Lonely Moon from Life At First Sight, who¡¯s also the current City Lord of Underworld City. I think it¡¯s going to be a very entertaining showdown!"

    "OP, are you an idiot? What¡¯s so interesting about that? The oue of a battle between Lonely Moon and Dawn¡¯s Twilight is a done deal. One skill from Dawn would be all it takes for him to deal with Lonely Moon. He won¡¯t even have time to react!"

    "I agree with the above poster, the two of them are inpletely different leagues; there¡¯s noparing them. Either way, after ruling over Underworld City for so long, Life At First Sight should give up ownership and let someone else have it."

    "I wouldn¡¯t be so sure about what the above poster has said. Quiet And Steadfast has already informed Life At First Sight about the challenge, so tomorrow¡¯s battle definitely won¡¯t just be a 1v1 duel. Instead, it¡¯ll probably be an all-out skirmish between the two sides. Furthermore, Sovereign¡¯s Descent also has the intention of joining in the battle. Don¡¯t forget; even an ant can bite an elephant to death. Which side ends up bing the loser and the winner still isn¡¯t set in stone."

    "The above poster is a shill from either Life At First Sight, or Sovereign¡¯s Descent, right? Regardless of what you say, I still think that Jade Sea Pavilion is going to win. Their title as the number one guild in the game isn¡¯t just for show!"

    "I think that Lonely Moon is sure to lose. So what if Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent have formed an alliance? The battle for the title of City Lord is between the reigning City Lord and the challenger; victory isn¡¯t dependant on which side has more people."

    "Speaking of which, the one above me, I recall that if the previous City Lord loses, they have half an hour tounch a counterattack. During this half an hour, external help is permitted. Doesn¡¯t that mean that it¡¯s going to turn into a group battle?"

    "Eh? Is that so? Up till now, only onemand medallion has ever been spawned, so I¡¯m not too clear on the specifics hahahaha. If that¡¯s the case, then the winner of this battle is going to be difficult to predict."

    "..."

    Nothing travelled faster than gossip. After Shen Jingbin logged off, news of Shen Jingchen challenging Lonely Moon had already spread amongst yers the next day. There were even eight threads that were buzzing with activity, and they were all about the uing challenge.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but sigh. People these days really had nothing better to do.

    The Shen siblings woke up early and logged into the game. In spite of that, a vast majority of the guild was already online, including Quiet And Steadfast, who never logged on during the day. The guild chat was abuzz with discussions on how to deal with the counterattack from Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Hahaha, your big bro¡¯s on!

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Liches, activate your invisibility buffs and hide within the crowd. When the fighting breaks out, reveal yourselves and ughter all of them while they¡¯re unaware.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Eh, Guild Leader¡¯s on as well; don¡¯t you have work?

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: Tsk. Dawn, the model worker Steady especially took leave today for your sake.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ¦²(©b¥í©b;) My god, I suddenly feel like I¡¯m under a lot of pressure.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: You don¡¯t need to feel pressured. If you used your brain, you¡¯d know that I wasn¡¯t here for you.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ...

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: Haha.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: Hahaha.

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Monster: Hahahaha.

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: Hahahahahahahaha!

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: ... Idiots.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Agreed +1.

    [Guild] National Treasure: Agreed +2.

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Agreed +infinity.

    [Guild] Long Life: Agreed +infinity and beyond.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Later on, every party will have at least one Nymph within it who¡¯ll take care of Healing. Aside from the elite party, all other parties will also have one Daoist within them. Remember to keep Heaven¡¯s Eye third person view on so that you don¡¯t get ambushed by their invisible Liches.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Dawn,ter on, you better not show your face during the enemy¡¯s counterattack; just hide. Their counterattack will end in failure as long as you remain alive.

    {Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Don¡¯t say that, I wanted to kill the enemy! Felling enemies with every swing would have been so fun.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Stop thinking about it, all of the counterattacking firepower will definitely be focused on you. Although people like Nine Bads and Neverending Journey pose no threat to me, it¡¯s a different story when ites to you. You need to make sure to protect yourself and not be careless.

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Why does it feel like our Leader¡¯s just praising himself instead?

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: You¡¯re not the only one who feels that way, I think so too.

    [Guild] Faint Blue Seaweed: We would¡¯ve realised it even if you guys didn¡¯t mention it.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ... You guys are despicable.

    Shen Jingchen and Lonely Moon¡¯s duel was set at noon. After the initial deployments were finished on both sides, the guilds went about taking care of their own matters. The members of Jade Sea Pavilion were all experts and had great coordination. They only need to be told what to do briefly, and they¡¯d be able to see their task topletion.

    Although Shen Jingbin was the Guild Leader¡¯s wife, she wasn¡¯t strong enough to enter the ranks of the elite party. Instead, she was sent to Tanabata Evening¡¯s party.

    To prolong her life, she extorted a sum of money from Shen Jingchen and ran off to buy some HP and MP potions.

    While she was haggling with the Shop Owner, she suddenly received a message from Marco Polo Bun.

    "Are you guys nning to take on Underworld City?"

    "Mm."

    "You¡¯ll be participating as well?"

    "Mm."

    "... What can you do? Just PK yourself instead."

    He¡¯s looking down on me!

    Feeling indignant, Shen Jingbin was just about to remind him of which ¡¯noob¡¯ it was that had backed him into a corner when Marco Polo Bun sent another message.

    "Ah, my apologies. I forgot that you were a bandit!"

    "... Fite me!¡¯

 Chapter 202

    <b>Chapter 202: Battle For The Title Of City Lord (2) </b>

    "I¡¯m just joking. Seriously speaking, my guild¡¯s adopting a neutral position and won¡¯t be able to help you. However, my Leader dislikes both Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight, so he¡¯s told me to hand the Vajra Possession Elixir over to you."

    "The one that gives you invulnerability for thirty seconds after consuming it?"

    "Mm."

    "That¡¯s great! Give it to me!¡¯

    "F*ck! Why can¡¯t you be more modest and reject it first?!"

    "I¡¯m not an idiot, why would I reject it out of modesty? If you guys weren¡¯t sincere about giving it to me, wouldn¡¯t saying this be giving you guys an opportunity to renege on what you said? I definitely won¡¯t give you guys the chance to do that."

    "... You really are a bandit!"

    "You¡¯re too kind."

    Marco Polo Bun was feeling depressed now. No one wasplimenting you!

    Marco Polo Bun had withdrawn three Vajra Possession Elixirs from the guild¡¯s warehouse. The act of doing so made him feel like his heart was bleeding out. He¡¯d expended so much energy just to concoct these elixirs, and yet he was giving it to this female bandit just like that.

    Ah, the pain was unbearable.

    Morally Grey, who was beside Marco Polo Bun, felt simrly pained by this. But, as the saying goes, no pain; no gain! He still hadn¡¯t paid Sovereign¡¯s Descent back for their previous trickery, and Jade Sea Pavilion was the perfect tool to take care of them. When he thought of it that way, it made the loss of those elixirs more bearable.

    When Shen Jingbin joined back up with the rest of the members from Jade Sea Pavilion and made their way towards Underworld City, she received a package from Marco Polo Bun. To make things more convenient for yers, the postal service in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> offered long-distance trading services. However, said service didn¡¯te cheap.

    "What¡¯s that?" Everyone saw a carrier pigeon flying over with a small wooden box in its beak. Tanabata Evening was the first of the curious onlookers to crowd around Shen Jingbin.

    "It¡¯s a life-saving elixir that someone else gave me," Shen Jingbin replied.

    After saying so, she opened the wooden box, and three rays of golden light shot out from within.

    "F*ck, what kind of elixir is that? It looks so cool!" Said her party member, Descent Of Rain And Snow, who sighed in admiration.

    Shen Jingbin, whose eyes were dazzled by the golden light, hurriedly shut the lid and said, "It¡¯s the Vajra Possession Elixir."

    Everyone within the party stared at her in astonishment.

    "Give me a moment; I¡¯m going to go give this to Quiet And Steadfast."

    She then jogged off towards Quiet And Steadfast.

    Everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion who wasn¡¯t a Life Skill yer was now gathered in front of Underworld City. Although there were only several dozens of them, the imposing aura they gave off was astonishing. And, as the Leader of the guild, Quiet And Steadfast was standing tall at the forefront of the guild.

    Shen Jingchen was the first to spot Shen Jingbin running over. When she got a little nearer, he knitted his brows and said, "Eh? Why are you here Little Jing? Hurry on back to your party."

    Hearing what Shen Jingchen had said, everyone in Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s team of elites turned around to face her. The ones who didn¡¯t usually y together with her visibly frowned and looked a little unhappy.

    Because they didn¡¯t know her that well, they all thought that she was one of those self-entitled women who enjoyed abusing their undeserving status to order people around.

    Shen Jingbin acted as if she hadn¡¯t seen them, while also ignoring her brother, and walked straight up to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side.

    She cast a nce a Quiet And Steadfast; at least he wasn¡¯t put off by her presence.

    Shen Jingbin presented the small wooden box in her hands to him and said, "This is for you. Marco Polo Bun just sent a package to me containing some Vajra Possession Elixirs. There¡¯s not much point in me holding onto them, so I¡¯ll let you have them instead."

    When she said that, a look of surprise shed across the faces of the yers who were previously dissatisfied with her.

    Of course they knew what a Vajra Possession Elixir was!

    A small look of surprise coloured Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s face for a moment too before he took the box from her. He opened the box and observed its contents for a moment before he asked, "Vajra Possession Elixir? Was this a gift from Memelord?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s gaze went downwards, and his eyes glittered. "Thank you... and take care of yourselfter."

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head again before she made her way back to her party.

    Looking at the retreating figure that had to break into a jog because of her stubby legs, Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t help but tsk and say, "Sigh, she really is a piece of work. She gave such a valuable item to you without any hesitation, yet she didn¡¯t even stop to spare a thought for her older brother. She really needs to be married out ASAP."

    Quiet And Steadfast cast a sidelong nce at him and said, "If it were me, I wouldn¡¯t spare a thought for a brother like you either."

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    At this moment, Underworld City¡¯s tightly shut gates suddenly began to creak open. It looked as if the solemn and stately gates were slowly being pulled open by a mysterious force.

    "It¡¯s begun," Quiet And Steadfast turned his attention to the slowly opening city gates.

    "Mm," Replied everyone else as they reigned in the frivolous expressions on their faces.

    Shen Jingbin, who was standing in the crowd and watching the city gates slowly open, felt an indescribable wave of excitement wash over her. It was as if she were attending her very firstpetition all over again. She looked around and found that everyone¡¯s gaze was locked to the front, a shared purpose binding all of them together.

    [System Announcement] Every era has its talents; yer Dawn¡¯s Twilight has challenged the current City Lord of Underworld City, Lonely Moon, to a duel. The battle for the title of City Lord will begin in ten minutes.

 Chapter 203

    <b>Chapter 203: Strategy (1) </b>

    Underworld City was the size of a regr city; it was iparable to capital cities like Jiang City and Jiuli City. However, it was still rtively prosperous. Due to today¡¯s challenge, the NPCs within the city had shut their doors and refused toe out, leaving the broad streets deste and deathly silent.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion began making their way towards the City Lord¡¯s grandiose mansion.

    Standing outside the City Lord¡¯s mansion, Quiet And Steadfast stretched out his hand and patted Dawn¡¯s Twilight encouragingly on the shoulder and said, "Go on, we¡¯ll wait here for you."

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight had a confident grin on his face. Rays of sunlight shone on his clear eyes, causing them to sparkle brilliantly.

    "Just wait for the good news!"

    After he said that, he strode forward by himself towards the open gates of the City Lord¡¯s mansion.

    [System Announcement] The battle for the title of Underworld City¡¯s City Lord has begun.

    Less than a minute after Shen Jingchen started walking; a scarlet red system announcement could be seen appearing in the sky.

    At that moment, yers from the Six Great Sects saw a translucent dialogue box appear before their eyes.

    "System Notification: The time for reckoning hase, and a marvelous showdown awaits. Will you view the duel for the title of City Lord? Yes/No."

    yers who were worrying about how they could view the battle felt a sense of tion and selected ¡¯Yes¡¯ without hesitation.

    What a wonderful system!

    Everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion naturally chose to spectate the battle as well. After making their choice, everyone was teleported to an area filled with spectator stands.

    It was built in a style simr to that of a Roman Colosseum1 with a circr arena at its base. The spectators were situated above the edges of the arena on spectator stands. Aside from the members of Jade Sea Pavilion, there were also many other guilds and curious yers present.

    Unlike the countless number of people that dotted the spectator stands, only two people stood on the arena beneath it. One was slender and held a sword in hand, while the other was robust and held a sabre. In the vast expanse of the arena, tension so thick that it could be sliced with a knife filled the air.

    After Quiet And Steadfast instructed his guild members to seat themselves, everyone focused their gaze on the arena beneath them. Although there were many spectators on the stands, everyone seemed toe to a consensus and kept their distance from the members of Jade Sea Pavilion; opting to squeeze amongst themselves instead.

    The arena itself was out in the open, allowing the dazzling rays of sunlight to fall onto their heads. Although they couldn¡¯t feel the heat, their vision would definitely be affected.

    Lonely Moon squinted his eyes and heard Dawn¡¯s Twilight say "Thanks for letting me win" before he was buffeted by a wave of cold air.

    "Shiiing" A masterwork sword was removed from its sheath; its glittering edge that reflected sunlight dazzling any who stared directly at it. Both the spectators on the stands and Lonely Moon who was in the arena, couldn¡¯t help but cover their eyes to protect themselves from the re.

    The f*ck? You¡¯re going to fight just like that?! Shouldn¡¯t we be exchanging a few heated words before we sh with one another first? Dawn¡¯s Twilight, your vicious actions are going entirely against the script, alright?!

    Although Lonely Moon wasn¡¯t all that strong, his skill at evading was maxed out. The moment he detected a hint of murderous intent, he dodged to the side on reflex. He managed to avoid a critical blow, but he wasn¡¯t able topletely evade Dawn¡¯s Twilight¡¯s attack as the sword¡¯s edge scraped past his face.

    Lonely Moon had only just managed to adapt to the piercing rays of sunlight that reflected off of his opponent¡¯s de when a burst of pain erupted from his wound. Quickly lowering his hands, he forced his eyes open into a squint.

    A warm liquid ran down the sides of his cheek.

    Cries of excitement and cheering suddenly broke out from the spectator stands.

    C¡¯est magnifique!

    In that previous attack, Dawn¡¯s Twilight had looked as if he¡¯d be one with his de, exuding a chilling aura that threatened everyone around him. The spectators only saw a sh of white light, and the next thing they knew, he¡¯d already travelled from one side of the arena to the other. The snow-white edge of his de was now covered with ayer of bright red. When they turned back to Lonely Moon, they saw a streak of blood winding down the cheeks of his rough face.

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight brought his forefinger and middle finger together and wiped theyer of blood off his de¡¯s edge. When this contrasted against his handsome face, it made him look exceedingly elegant and aloof

    A number of maidens on the spectator stands instinctively clutched their hearts.

    Ho-ly shit! That¡¯s so! F*cking! COOL!

    Blood that got onto yers would be removed by the system, so even if he used his fingers to wipe away the blood, Dawn¡¯s Twilight still maintained his image as an elegant, handsome, and youthful Swordmaster.

    "That¡¯s an appetizer for you," Dawn¡¯s Twilight said as he widened his eyes a little more, while a smile that didn¡¯t reach his eyes yed on his lips.

    Lonely Moon, who was on the receiving end of his gaze, felt himself go weak in the knees.

    Here¡¯s what a Roman Colosseum looks like ?

 Chapter 204

    <b>Chapter 204: Strategy (2) </b>

    There was too much of a gap between them.

    This wasn¡¯t something that could be won with perseverance or confidence any longer. Hecked even the right to stand before Dawn¡¯s Twilight.

    Lonely Moon never knew that such a vast disparity existed between them; Dawn¡¯s Twilight didn¡¯t even need to use a single skill to overpower him. In fact, that one skill alone might be enough to destroy him!

    "Hey, what do you think Dawn¡¯s doing? He obviously could¡¯ve finished Lonely Moon off just now, so why¡¯d he act like Lonely Moon dodged his attack?" Next Week Is Unlikely, who was sitting beside Quiet And Steadfast, quizzically asked.

    Before Quiet And Steadfast had a chance to reply, Faint Blue Seaweed said, "He¡¯s probably trying to pressure his opponent."

    Quiet And Steadfast shook his head. "No, he¡¯s putting pressure on Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent."

    Everyone around Quiet And Steadfast looked at him in confusion and waited for him to borate.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s gaze remained locked on the twobatants within the arena. However, that had no bearing on his very detailed exnation.

    "Take a look at the people on the spectator stands."

    Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s elite party surveyed the area around them.

    "Eh, there¡¯s no one from Life At First Sight around," I¡¯m Not A Monster cried out in surprise.

    "Not only that, even Sovereign¡¯s Descent is nowhere to be seen," I¡¯m Really Not A Monster added.

    "Even if they knew they wouldn¡¯t win, no matter what, they still should have sent a few people over to spectate the match," Next Week Is Unlikely said with a slight frown.

    "They¡¯re present. They¡¯re just not on the spectator stands. My guess is that they¡¯ve long since decided to hide at some corner of the Colosseum or some other ce we don¡¯t know about, and wait for Lonely Moon to lose before they immediatelyunch their counterattack at Dawn¡¯s Twilight when he¡¯s caught unprepared," Quiet And Steadfast replied, his gaze never straying from the duel before him.

    After ruling over Underworld City as its City Lord for so long, Lonely Moon and the rest of the members of Life At First Sight have definitely spent a fair amount of time here. The Colosseum was also a part of Underworld City, which meant that they¡¯d likely long since grasped a thorough understanding of the area. Finding a suitable hiding ce was a simple task for them.

    Realization dawned on everyone¡¯s faces.

    "How despicable!" Temperate Scarlet Moon cursed.

    "The counterattack will take ce after Dawn has won. In other words, whatever hiding spot they chose has to be beneficial to them in some way. Once the counterattack begins, regardless of how fast Dawn reacts, there¡¯s no way he can take on so many people in that instant."

    "But they won¡¯t be able to finish Dawn off so quickly either, right?" Yanmen Imperial Sister said.

    "Which is why they¡¯re taking a risk. If they manage to grab ahold of the right opportunity, with the number of people they have in Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight, there¡¯s a good chance of them being able to take down Dawn before we reach him by concentrating all their attacks on him."

    After Quiet And Steadfast finished his exnation, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion couldn¡¯t help but try to estimate the distance between their current position and where Dawn¡¯s Twilight was standing.

    It would take at least over a minute to go from where they were, to the middle of the arena. No matter how good Dawn¡¯s Twilight defence was, or how adroit he was at dodging, there was still a chance of him being done in, in that one minute plus it took to get to him. After all, he was facing thebined attacks of yers who were level 90 or even 100.

    Next Week Is Unlikely couldn¡¯t help but shift his gaze to Lonely Moon who was running at full tilt away from Dawn¡¯s Twilight, while said person was in pursuit and acting as if he was toying with a fool. "So that¡¯s why Dawn¡¯s intentionally allowing Lonely Moon to escape now; so that he can test their patience?"

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded his head. Finally tearing his gaze away from the battle, he said, "Everyone knows that there¡¯s a huge disparity in power between thebatants, so the duel should end very quickly. However, that isn¡¯t the case now. Although Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent are in an alliance, that doesn¡¯t mean they truly treat each other as allies. Otherwise, Neverending Journey wouldn¡¯t have quietly abandoned Crying Fish and logged off when we were at the Ice Extermination Cavernst time. This is why I¡¯m quite confident that if things don¡¯t work out the way they¡¯ve nned, Sovereign¡¯s Descent is definitely going to be suspicious and their morale will be swayed."

    Quiet And Steadfast paused for a moment to sweep his gaze across the faces of the yers who were excitedly watching the duel.

    "No small number of yers came to spectate at today¡¯s duel, and most of them are here with the express purpose to either watch Lonely Moon make a fool of himself or to watch Life At First Sight get suppressed. Dawn¡¯s intentionally chasing Lonely Moon around like he¡¯s walking a dog; it¡¯s an extraordinary amount of humiliation for them..."

    Quiet And Steadfast was interrupted by I¡¯m Not A Monster¡¯s cry of enlightenment. "Ah~ I¡¯ve got it now! There¡¯s no doubt that what Dawn¡¯s doing now is a p to that spoilt princess, Quarrelsome Fish¡¯s, face. She definitely won¡¯t be able to take it, and she¡¯ll fly into a fit of rage. When that happens, whatever ns they came up with from before will fall apart," After he finished speaking, I¡¯m Not A Monster felt as if his IQ had increased by leaps and bounds.

    Quiet And Steadfast gave I¡¯m Not A Monster a rare look of approval before he nodded in agreement.

    At that moment, a shadowy silhouette suddenly burst out beneath the spectator stands opposite from where the members of Jade Sea Pavilion sat.

    "Dawn¡¯s Twilight, are you done yet?! Death before dishonor; if you¡¯re that good then end Lonely Moon with one strike. Is toying around with him that fun?!"

    As they weren¡¯t able to enter the arena, the person who charged out could only stand around its edge and scream at the top of their lungs.

    When Dawn¡¯s Twilight, who was slowly torturing Lonely Moon with every sh of his de, heard the person¡¯s challenge, he stopped and turned towards them with a look of interest in his eyes. By this point, Lonely Moon, who¡¯d be a little desensitized to Dawn¡¯s Twilight¡¯s ministrations, didn¡¯t have the slightest intention of using this opportunity to strike back when Dawn¡¯s Twilight ceased his assault.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze fell on the figure that had rushed towards the arena.

    It was a stunning beauty with limpid eyes and striking features.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion shared a nce with one another and smiled.

    She really was a simpleton.

 Chapter 205

    <b>Chapter 205: A Sessful Coup (1)</b>

    "Leader! Leader! Come back!" One of the founding members of the guild, Lolis Are Life, wore a look of anxiety on his face as he beckoned for his Leader to return to the guild¡¯s hiding spot.

    Crying Fish red at him and said, "What are you saying?! Am I supposed to put up with Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s humiliation? Take a look at the stands and see how they¡¯re looking at this match!"

    Crying Fish was filled with righteous indignation as she delivered her speech, but all that Lolis Are Life could feel was a massive headache.

    Ack of forbearance leads to the destruction of grand ns. Of course, he knew what the spectators thought of this match; especially when Dawn¡¯s Twilight was teasing Lonely Moon by acting as if he was walking his dog. But, so what if they have to suffer a moment of humiliation? All they had to do was abide by their original n, and they could have done away with Dawn¡¯s Twilight. They may have lost the battle, but they would¡¯ve won the war!

    They knew that whatever that was happening now was less important than the end result. They wouldn¡¯t have to fear what others thought of them as long as they won in the end.

    However, their Leader apparently couldn¡¯t understand that logic.

    Due to the distance, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion couldn¡¯t make out what Crying Fish was saying. But they all shared a knowing smile when they saw her look back.

    "Looks like they¡¯re hiding at the back," Said Next Week Is Unlikely as he rubbed his chin.

    "Going by that logic, they¡¯re probably hiding within the few pockets of shadows beneath the spectator stands?" Yanmen Imperial Sister asked.

    "It¡¯s probably not just limited to the spectator stands. They¡¯re definitely hiding out in other spots as well. Look out for Dawn¡¯s signal in a bit. He¡¯ll give us a sign when he¡¯s about to deliver the finishing blow; we¡¯ll charge them before they have the chance to react."

    "Got it!"

    Although the members of Jade Sea Pavilion had finished their discussion on countermeasures, things didn¡¯t look so good for their enemies.

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight crossed his arms over his chest and arched his dashing eyebrows at Crying Fish who wasn¡¯t able to enter the arena. "Eh? Guild Leader Fish, why are you here? Shouldn¡¯t you be watching the battle up there on the spectator stands?"

    "Where I am isn¡¯t any of your concern! Dawn¡¯s Twilight, if you¡¯re a man then finish him off. Is teasing someone like this fun for you?"

    "It¡¯s alright. More importantly, I feel that I have to give you guys a proper disy of my power. Did Guild Leader Fish and the rest of your little friends see the show that I put so much effort into?"

    Crying Fish¡¯s expression stiffened. She didn¡¯t know how to respond.

    Neverending Journey, who was hiding in another spot with experts from his guild, couldn¡¯t help but quietly curse Crying Fish as a ¡¯brainless idiot¡¯ when she¡¯d rushed out and revealed herself.

    One of his guild members quietly whispered into his ear, "Leader, what should we do now?"

    Neverending Journey¡¯s eyes darkened as he continued to stare at the events that were unfolding. "Call Pure Crane over."

    Ever since the incident at the Ice Extermination Cavern, Pure Crane hadn¡¯t shown himself in front of Neverending Journey. Today, he¡¯d taken the initiative to lead one of their groups. Neverending Journey was still frustrated with Pure Crane, so he hadn¡¯t said anything to him either, and time went on.

    However, now he had no choice but to reconcile with him.

    Pure Crane was quickly brought over.

    "Leader, you¡¯re looking for me?" Pure Crane still wore the same warm and gentle expression he always had. It was as if what had happened in the Ice Extermination Cavern had never taken ce.

    "Since you¡¯ve done a quest with Quiet And Steadfast, I guess your rtionship with him is pretty good, right?"

    Pure Crane silently looked at him.

    "You¡¯re a conscientious person; so as someone who¡¯s an expert at reading other people, how do you think Jade Sea Pavilion will react?"

    If you guess correctly and we strike Jade Sea Pavilion in advance, taking them down, regardless of how good your rtionship with Quiet And Steadfast is, this should cause a rift between the two of you, right? If your guess is wrong...

    Sovereign¡¯s Descent might not be able to keep you around.

    Pure Crane gazed deeply at Neverending Journey¡¯s expressionless face. He then shifted his gaze to the spectator stands on the opposite end. With his excellent sight, the distance between them didn¡¯t impede his vision, and he could clearly make out Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s form; he was sitting at the forefront of Jade Sea Pavilion as he calmly observed the fight that was taking ce in the arena.

    Pure Crane unhurriedly answered, "They..."

    However, before they managed to finished their conversation, Dawn¡¯s Twilight suddenly turned around and, amidst the shocked cries of the spectators, hurled his sword at Lonely Moon¡¯s chest.

    Only a second ago Dawn¡¯s Twilight had his back towards Lonely Moon and was shing a half smile at Crying Fish. The next moment, he suddenly turned into an Asura and mercilessly lodged his weapon into Lonely Moon¡¯s heart.

    A look of astonishment appeared on Lonely Moon¡¯s face. He looked down at the silver weapon that was sticking out of his chest as he slowly fell to the ground in the middle of the enormous arena.

    The moment his sturdy body hit the ground, the protective barrier that surrounded the arena dissolved. In that instant, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion shot forward like an arrow leaving a bow, leaping towards the middle of the arena where Dawn¡¯s Twilight was standing.

    As his attention had been focused on Pure Crane and everything had happened in a split second, by the time Neverending Journey reacted, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion had drawn their weapons and formed a very imposing defence line around Dawn¡¯s Twilight. Their formation was so tight, not even a drop of water could slip past them.

    All hope was lost.

    Those four words suddenly resounded in Neverending Journey¡¯s mind.

    [System Announcement] Congrattions yer Dawn¡¯s Twilight for defeating yer Lonely Moon inbat, and obtaining the position of Underworld City¡¯s City Lord!

    [System Announcement] Victory and defeat aremonce in battle. Raise your weapons and fight for your heroes! The battle to protect the previous City Lord Lonely Moon¡¯s honor has now begun.

    Two massive announcements appeared in session before all of the spectators were teleported out of Underworld City.

 Chapter 206

    <b>Chapter 206: A Sessful Coup (2) </b>

    One after another, the yers from Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent came out of hiding. Using their numerical advantage, they formed arge encirclement around the members of Jade Sea Pavilion.

    However, all they formed was an encirclement, and they took no further action.

    "Leader, what should we do now?" A yer cautiously approached Neverending Journey and asked in a small voice.

    This waspletely different from their initial n, causing members like this yer to be at a loss.

    Neverending Journey eyed Crying Fish and said, "Look to Life At First Sight and follow what they do."

    He certainly wasn¡¯t about to let his guild members sacrifice themselves in vain.

    Unfortunately, it seemed as if Life At First Sight had the same idea and they were biding their time.

    When I¡¯m Not A Monster saw the looks of terror on the faces of his enemies, he gave augh and shouted, "It¡¯s such a shame that we don¡¯t have an audience, they should see how terrified all of you are!"

    The faces of everyone from Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent turned pale.

    "Are you guys really that scared of them even when there¡¯s so many of us? Charge!"

    Provocation was an effective tool for most people. The moment I¡¯m Not A Monster finished speaking, someone from Life At First Sight couldn¡¯t take it any longer and charged at them with a roar.

    In most cases, all it took was one person for everyone else to follow suit. With that single roar as the catalyst, everyone from Life At First Sight felt their blood begin to boil.

    That¡¯s right, why should they be scared when there¡¯s so many of them? At worst, they¡¯d get killed. As men, they shouldn¡¯t be acting all coy!

    Aren¡¯t games a pursuit of happiness? Why the hell are they being all wishy-washy about it? They shouldn¡¯t be scared; all they need to do is attack!"

    "That¡¯s right; there¡¯s nothing to be scared of! Charge!"

    Wave after wave of battle cries resounded, and the yers from Life At First Sight led the charge against Jade Sea Pavilion.

    But s, while they might have built up a fantastic scenario in their minds, the reality wasn¡¯t so kind to them. The first wave of yers broke against the members of Jade Sea Pavilion, and the ones closest to them turned into a beam of white light almost instantly.

    Lolis Are Life stood at the rear with the rest of the elite party from Life At First Sight as they exchanged nces with one another.

    "Make sure you don¡¯t break the encirclement! Remember, our only target is Dawn¡¯s Twilight. All we need to do is kill him, and we¡¯ll win!" Lolis Are Life said.

    "Yes!"

    "Remember, don¡¯t meet them head-on. Launch attacks from the side to break through their defence."

    "Yes!"

    "Do you see that exit over there? Nine Bads is waiting for Dawn¡¯s Twilight there. Find a way to force him over there!"

    At the same time, Neverending Journey was issuing orders to his own guild.

    "Follow what Life At First Sight¡¯s elite party does and do your best to assist them."

    "All Liches listen up: activate all your buffs, stealth over to them, and blow yourselves up. Take down whoever you can. Taking down their frontlines will make getting rid of Dawn¡¯s Twilight that much easier."

    "Go!"

    "Yes!¡¯

    As one, the members of Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent issued a battle cry that shook the very air and charged towards Jade Sea Pavilion.

    A 1vN wasn¡¯t something that just anyone could do! Summoning Mascot to save her from an abyss of suffering, she watched as it cut down an enemy with every swipe and felt a little better.

    The opposing Liches acted just as Quiet And Steadfast had predicted. The majority of them had stealthed themselves and charged forward in an attempt to blow themselves up. However, even if they were prepared for it, the enemy just had too many people. Furthermore, while the damage one kamikaze Lich could inflict wouldn¡¯t be much, they wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand a continuous stream of explosions.

    With the use of this double-edged tactic where Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent lost more of their own forces than they did their enemy, even if Jade Sea Pavilion held the advantage, they had no choice but to retreat towards the colosseum¡¯s exit.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s heartbeat sped up, and he fished out a Vajra Possession Elixir and handed it to Dawn¡¯s Twilight.

    "Hold on to one of these. Swallow it immediately if you spot anything suspicious."

    Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t stand on ceremony and epted the item.

    As Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s defence line got pressed closer, someone suddenly leapt down from one of the beams above the exit. Steeped in an aura of evil, they mercilessly sent their longsword hurtling straight towards Shen Jingchen¡¯s chest without the slightest trace of hesitation.

    Right from the start, Shen Jingchen had found it strange that he hadn¡¯t seen Nine Bads. When he saw this scene unfolding before him, he realised she¡¯d been waiting here for him all along. Although Nine Bads couldn¡¯t withstand a single blow from Quiet And Steadfast, she was still a Goddess who¡¯d imed second ce on the leaderboards for herself. A strike that she¡¯d invested all her strength into wasn¡¯t something he could endure for sure.

    Now was the time!

    When the longsword was just about to plunge into his chest, Shen Jingchen ate the Vajra Possession Elixir that Quiet And Steadfast had given him without a second thought. Immediately after, his entire body was shrouded in ayer of gold.

    Nine Bads¡¯ de slipped off the golden shroud with an ear-piercing screech. In spite of that, the golden shroud remained utterly unharmed!

    The yers from Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s descent rejoiced when Nine Bads revealed herself. Wave after wave of them charged forward, their numerical superiority making itself known as they opened up a hole in Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s tightly knit defence line.

    "Do it now!" Neverending Journey roared.

    The surviving elite yers from both guilds rushed towards the breach, summoning forth all their strength and focusing their attacks on Shen Jingchen alone.

    However, all of their skills were merely absorbed by the golden radiance that surrounded Shen Jingchen.

    "F*ck!" Frustrated cursing could immediately be heard.

    At this moment, the golden light suddenly became dimmer!

    Nine Bads¡¯ eyes narrowed, and she renewed her assault.

    [System Announcement] The counterattack has ended. Congrattions yer Dawn¡¯s Twilight for bing Underworld City¡¯s new City Lord!

    [System Announcement] To celebrate the appointment of a new City Lord, all goods sold within Underworld City will be half price off and mysterious items will be avable for purchase~

    "Shick"

    Nine Bads¡¯ weapon found its way into Shen Jingchen¡¯s chest the moment the system announcement appeared. Her eyes were filled with ferocity as she red at him.

    When Shen Jingchen saw that he still had 3 Health left, he shed a brilliant smile at Nine Bads.

    "We¡¯ve won."

    Nine Bads¡¯ expression darkened, and she exerted more strength, causing her weapon to slide further in.

    However, it was too little, toote.

 Chapter 207

    <b>Chapter 207: My Sense Of Aesthetics Is Very Normal (1) </b>

    After climbing out of the gaming pod, Shen Jingbin realised she had a lot of missed calls on her phone, and all of them were from Xiangpeng. Since he¡¯d called so many times, he definitely had something urgent he needed to contact her about. With that thought in mind, Shen Jingbin immediately returned his call.

    The phone rang only once before it was picked up, and Xiangpeng sounded very happy on the other end of the call.

    "Thank goodness Miss Shen, you finally called me back."

    "I received a lot of missed calls from you; is something wrong?"

    "Oh. Here¡¯s the thing, since you¡¯ve already agreed to be our ambassador and we¡¯vepleted the preparations on our side, I called to tell you that you cane down to B City the day after tomorrow for the photoshoot."

    Shen Jingbin thought for a moment. It didn¡¯t sh with anything on her schedule, so she agreed. "Sure, no problem."

    "Ourpany will reimburse you for your ne ticket."

    "Oh, and, just a quick question: you saw my brother¡¯s picture the other time, didn¡¯t you? Will he be joining me?" She suddenly thought of Shen Jingchen, so she decided she might as well ask about him too.

    The other party was a little hesitant, only speaking after a long while had passed, "First, I need to apologise to you about this, Miss Shen. Mr Shen¡¯s well above the prerequisites for bing an ambassador, however, we¡¯ve just received news that Xue Sijia is also interested in this role... Mm, you should know who Xue Sijia is, right?"

    Of course she¡¯d heard of Huajuan¡¯s ex-Goddess. "Yeah."

    "Ourpany decided to work with her instead as she¡¯s got quite a decent fan base. Compared to Mr Shen, selecting her would be a safer choice. So, as for Mr Shen..."

    He didn¡¯t finish, but she understood what he meant.

    "If that¡¯s the case, then it can¡¯t be helped."

    "We¡¯re very grateful for your kind understanding. Ourpany will reimburse all of your expenses foring to B City."

    "Can I bring another person with me?"

    "May I know if that person is your secretary?"

    Shen Jingbin thought for a moment before she replied, "Sort of." Since Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t join her for the photoshoot, she might as well use him as her gopher instead.

    "No problem. Ourpany will reimburse all of you and your team¡¯s expenses."

    "Mm."

    "Give me a call when you reach B City, I¡¯ll pick you up at the airport."

    Shen Jingbin quickly turned him down. "Oh, there¡¯s no need. I have a friend in B City, and I can get him toe pick me up. We¡¯ll be heading straight to your office after."

    Tch, she wasn¡¯t going to let go of such a prime opportunity to deepen her rtionship with Zhao Chengning so easily!

    Faced with rejection, Xiangpeng suddenly realized that she was God Zhao¡¯s wife. Why would an unimportant character like him barge into the equation! pping himself on the head, he replied, "Alright, we¡¯ll do as you say then, Miss Shen. I¡¯ll pick you up once you¡¯ve reached our office."

    "Mm."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly couldn¡¯t help butugh after she¡¯d hung up. Did her rejecting someone else¡¯s offer so that Zhao Chengning could do it instead make her a devious woman?

    Deviousness aside, the main point was that she had to take Zhao Chengning down.

    Shen Jingchen was very unhappy for a long while when he found out that he¡¯d been rejected, but eventually sumbed to Shen Jingbin¡¯s carrot and stick ploy and agreed to apany her on her trip to B City.

    It was still early when they reached B City. However, the moment they walked out of the airport, they saw the elegant and poised Zhao Chengning standing next to a tired-looking Xuya against the backdrop of the rays of the morning sun.

    "Morning Little Jing, Brother Shen," Xuya yawned as he lifelessly greeted the two of them when they neared. "Little Jing, why¡¯d you guys pick a flight at this time? I¡¯m dead tired; I only slept at 3 amst night."

    Zhao Chengning gave him an exasperated knock on the head. "Don¡¯t me others when you¡¯re the one who stayed up sote to y."

    Xuya cupped his head and cried out in pain, "Tch, what happened to ¡¯bros before hoes¡¯?" When he saw Zhao Chengning going for his head again, Xuya pulled his head back into the car and wound up the car¡¯s window at the same time.

    In truth, Shen Jingchen felt the same as Xuya! He shot an aggrieved look at Shen Jingbin with his light green eyes before he turned to Zhao Chengning and said, "How the hell am I supposed to know why this girl wanted to take such an early flight? I¡¯m dead tired too. Ah Ning, can you help with the luggage? I¡¯m going to catch some Z¡¯s in the car first."

    Shen Jingbin gently kicked him and said, "Shen Jingchen, can¡¯t you be more a little more mature?!"

    "It¡¯s alright, hand me your luggage and get some rest in the car. I¡¯ll wake you guys up when we reach the hotel."

    Shen Jingbin raised her head and looked at him. When she noticed that his eyes were twinkling with amusement, she rubbed her nose in embarrassment before she followed after Shen Jingchen and sat in the car.

    The two of them lodged in the same hotel they¡¯d stayed at previously. After they set down their luggage, Xuya drove them towards Yiju¡¯s HQ.

 Chapter 208

    <b>Chapter 208: My Sense Of Aesthetics Is Very Normal (2)</b>

    Along the way, Xuya got all worked up when he found out that Shen Jingbin¡¯s trip to B City this time was to shoot a promotional video for Yiju. He was so excited that he nearly tossed the steering wheel away and got Shen Jingbin to sign across his chest.

    In his words, he needed to get an autograph first because, with Shen Jingbin¡¯s looks, she¡¯d be a celebrity the moment she appeared in the promo video.

    Zhao Chengning shot a look of disdain at Xuya. "Weren¡¯t things between you and Heaven¡¯s Joy¡¯s little huadan going well?"

    Xuya choked on his saliva. "F*ck, Brother Ah Ning, don¡¯t sell me out!" He then looked guiltily at Shen Jingbin through the rearview mirror.

    When he saw the profound look on her face as she eyed him, his face immediately flushed, and he hurriedly retracted his gaze, turning his full attention back to driving. He was definitely going to break up with the little huadan when he got back!

    It just so happened to be peak hour when they were travelling, and they ended up getting caught in traffic for a long while before they finally reached Yiju¡¯s HQ. Shen Jingbin pulled out her phone and was about to give Xiangpeng a call when Zhao Chengning called out to her and asked, "Calling Xiangpeng?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    "There¡¯s no need; I gave him a call when we left. He should already be waiting for us at the entrance," He said. After saying so, he scanned the area outside the window and found that Xiangpeng was indeed standing by Yiju¡¯s entrance and looking towards them.

    "Look over there, that¡¯s Xiangpeng."

    Shen Jingbin put away her phone and looked over in the direction he was pointing at. At first nce, Xiangpeng appeared to be a very honest-looking man.

    "C¡¯mon, I¡¯ll go with you guys," Zhao Chengning opened the car door and alighted.

    Shen Jingbin pped her brother awake as he¡¯d fallen asleep during the drive, and followed after Zhao Chengning.

    Xiangpeng had spotted Xuya¡¯s eye-catching luxury car long ago and had already jogged over when Zhao Chengning alighted.

    "God Zhao, you came too? Don¡¯t you have work today?"

    Xuya, who¡¯d followed Zhao Chengning out, replied, "Tsk, how can work be more important than apanying..."

    He¡¯d left out thest few words, but Xiangpeng understood what he¡¯d meant. He immediatelyughed and said, "I didn¡¯t know our God Zhao was so caring."

    As he said that, Shen Jingbin emerged from the car.

    Xiangpeng¡¯s jaw dropped.

    Even though he¡¯d seen her in the pictures and knew that Shen Jingbin was a beauty, he didn¡¯t think that the person herself would be on an entirely different level.

    Shen Jingbin possessed a breathtaking beauty in pictures. However, she wasn¡¯t just stunning in person, she was more vivacious, and her persona was even more pronounced. Her presence was so striking; not a single person could bear to look away from her.

    Yiju was argepany, so the number of celebrities they worked with was nothing to scoff at. Among them were ones who were on the level of superstars and pop idols. Thanks to that, Xiangpeng had seen his fair share of handsome men and beautiful women. However, he felt that none of the celebrities he¡¯d previously seen were as striking as the two before him. It was as if her face was God¡¯s most brilliant masterpiece, possessing a level of perfection that couldn¡¯t even be described. He was enraptured by her the moment heid eyes on her.

    "Oi, wake up," Xiangpeng¡¯s tant staring left Zhao Chengning feeling a little dissatisfied. Xuya, who was good at gauging the emotions of other people, immediately frowned and stepped forward, snapping his fingers to return Xiangpeng to his senses.

    Having returned to reality, Xiangpeng felt very embarrassed about his momentarypse, and quickly shifted his gaze away from Shen Jingbin as he stammered out an apology, "So... so sorry, I was a little dazed... I-I¡¯ll bring you guys up," With that, he turned and made his escape.

    At first, Xiangpeng didn¡¯t dare to tell Shen Jingbin that her role as the female lead in the promo video wasn¡¯t guaranteed. Xue Sijia¡¯spany had tried to lower their fees in exchange for the role of female lead to go to her, which resulted in Yiju¡¯s higher-ups arguing over who should be given the role. In the end, Yiju¡¯s CEO simply decided to have both of theme down and see how things were like before they made a decision.

    Xiangpeng had been worrying over how he¡¯d break the news to Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning if Xue Sijia won in the end. After all, who¡¯d be happying all this way just to end up getting a supporting role? However, after what he¡¯d seen, he knew that the role of female lead definitely wouldn¡¯t go to Xue Sijia; that is unless the higher-ups were blind.

    Seeing the steadily increasing distance between Xiangpeng and them, Xuya unhappily said, "Brother Ah Ning, your ssmate doesn¡¯t seem the least bit reliable. Putting aside the fact that he was staring at Little Jing, which is understandable because she¡¯s so beautiful, why¡¯s he walking so fast even though he¡¯s supposed to be our guide?"

    Zhao Chengning shot a nce at him. "It¡¯s alright. Unlike you, we have long legs, so we don¡¯t mind."

    "..."

    After being woken up, Shen Jingchen, who¡¯d taken his own sweet time getting out of the car, rubbed his eyes blearily and asked, "What¡¯re you guys standing around for? Where¡¯s our guide? Let¡¯s go."

    Xuya immediately pulled Shen Jingchen over by his hand and started bawling about his dissatisfaction with Xiangpeng. Once he was done, the two of them walked off with darkened expressions, looking as if they were going to enact vengeance.

    The other two who were left behind didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry as they watched them leave.

    "Shen Jingchen and Xuya get along pretty well," Zhao Chengning said with a sigh.

    "Birds of a feather flock together; both of them are pretty stupid."

    Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t help butugh, "Going by that logic, don¡¯t I need to be as pretty as you to be with you? Even someone as experienced as Xiangpeng was dazed by you."

    "You don¡¯t need to be as pretty as me; that¡¯ll be a little too difficult. As for him being dazed... that just means he has a normal sense of aesthetics," Shen Jingbin replied earnestly. Once she was finished, she even shot a nce at him.

    Zhao Chengning immediately understood what she was trying to imply ¨C there was something wrong with his sense of aesthetics.

    "My sense of aesthetics is perfectly normal."

    "Really? I wouldn¡¯t have known if you hadn¡¯t told me."

    Zhao Chengning suddenly lowered his voice and said, "To be honest, you swept me off my feet the moment Iid eyes on you, but it didn¡¯t show because I hid it so well. Happy now?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears immediately flushed red. In an attempt to conceal her embarrassment she dashed forward, not forgetting to throw in an excuse while she was at it. "Huh? What¡¯s that? Oh, they¡¯re so far ahead of us, we better catch up!"

    In the end, she was still a girl whocked dating experience, so no matter how valiant she thought she was on the inside, she still had a shyness born of innocence. To top it off she had feelings for him, so her mind fell into the gutter the moment he neared her.

    "I¡¯m too green!" Shen Jingbin mentally ridiculed herself.

    As Zhao Chengning watched her retreating figure, he felt that his brother¡¯s worries were unfounded.

    This realization caused his mood to soar, and he followed after Shen Jingbin with renewed vigor.

 Chapter 209

    <b>Chapter 209: The Two Sides Meet (1) </b>

    As they made their way through the building, their group swept countless people off their feet. Within five minutes, the entire building knew that a super beautiful woman was in their midst.

    In the end, Xiangpeng brought them to a high-end meeting room that exuded refinement. Apart from them, the room was devoid of other people. Xiangpeng brewed a cup of tea for each of them before taking his leave.

    "I still have something to do, so I¡¯ll be taking my leave first. I¡¯ll have to trouble you guys to wait here for a bit as our Director¡¯s still in a meeting. He¡¯ll be over immediately once he¡¯s done," With that, he opened the door and was about to leave, when he suddenly thought of something and turned back to them. "Oh, that¡¯s right. Miss Xue will be over in a bit as well."

    After a nod of acknowledgement from the group, he left to take care of his own matters.

    The moment the meeting room¡¯s door shut, Xuya stood up and started looking around.

    Zhao Chengning nced at him, and asked, "What¡¯re you doing?"

    Xuya continued searching and replied without lifting his head, "Aren¡¯t ITpanies known for their perverse 360-degree surveince tools? I need to have a good look around to see if there¡¯s any here."

    "Bro, I think you¡¯ve watched too many shows," Shen Jingchen said.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "I think so too."

    Xuya immediately wore a pained look on his face and pressed his hand against his chest. "Oh, Little Jing, how can you say that about me? Your words wound me so!"

    ck lines appeared on Shen Jingbin¡¯s head. "Lil bro, your acting sucks."

    Xue Sijia sat in an MPV and listened to her Manager run through her schedule for the day. Though she was very famous, she didn¡¯t have that many appearances on screen. To be precise, she had just the right amount of exposure to ensure that the masses wouldn¡¯t forget her, while at the same time ensuring that her fickle audience wouldn¡¯t grow bored of her.

    This was all thanks to her Manager¡¯s careful ministrations. Her Manager was undoubtedly skilled.

    Once her Manager had finished reading out her schedule for the day, she propped up the spectacles on her nose and said, "I just got a call from Yiju. They said yourpetitor¡¯s already arrived; we need to hurry up. Touch up your makeup while we¡¯re on the way, we¡¯ll be going straight up once we reach there."

    Xue Sijia was gorgeous, but she had a paleplexion. Without makeup, she looked a lot less energetic. She was exceptional at applying makeup though, and apart from a veteran makeup artist, no one else would be able to tell that she had ayer of makeup on.

    Which is why celebs and their so-called no makeup faces were all a bunch of lies.

    After hearing that, Xue Sijia took out her foundation and touched up her makeup. While doing so, she asked, "She¡¯s already there? Heh, how enthusiastic."

    Her Manager shrugged, her words full of hidden meanings as she said, "Even though she was reluctant to be their ambassador, which girl these days wouldn¡¯t want to be famous and appear in the limelight? Just look at how enthusiastic she is; she¡¯s probably just ying hard to get. Then again, there are plenty of people whoe from good backgrounds in this industry... Remember to show your stuffter on if you want this role."

    Xue Sijia mmed the lid shut of a certain brand¡¯s CC cushion box, and raised her chin. "I know, just watch."

    Her Manager immediately felt a surge of confidence when she heard Xue Sijia¡¯s reply.

    Yiju was argepany, and they were shooting a promotional video for the online game that was ahead of its time, <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. Although her Manager had never dealt with contracts for game ambassadors before, she clearly knew that if Xue Sijia seeded, her poprity might increase to a new level, and she¡¯d be able to break through her current status as a popr new star.

    When they reached Yiju, Xue Sijia¡¯s Manager brought her straight inside. Once inside, a stereotypical IT girl appeared by the lift and showed them in.

    The girl was very sorry for beingte and apologised profusely from the time she saw them till they entered the lift.

    "Miss Xue, I¡¯m so sorry for taking up your time. I¡¯m very sorry for making you wait."

    Xue Sijia didn¡¯t reply and just stared silently at the lift¡¯s changing numbers with her shades on.

    Seeing the girl repeatedly apologise, Xue Sijia¡¯s Manager turned to her and said kindly, "Don¡¯t worry, we understand that all of you are very busy as well, so you don¡¯t need to be so courteous."

    Upon hearing that, the girl stopped apologising and smiled shyly at the Manager before she secretly peeped at Xue Sijia out of the corner of her eyes.

    She¡¯s just as arrogant and as cold as the rumours said! Speaking of which, she looks prettier in person than she does on TV!

    If it hadn¡¯t been for the fact that there was another striking beauty who¡¯de to their office today, she might¡¯ve be Xue Sijia¡¯s fan!

    This world that was obsessed with outward appearances was just that straightforward.

 Chapter 210

    <b>Chapter 210: The Two Sides Meet (2)</b>

    "I heard that there¡¯s another person here for the audition?"

    Xue Sijia¡¯s Manager grasped every second she could to squeeze out what she wanted to know from the girl.

    The girl was a ssic IT worker. She was smarter than anyone when it came to coding, but shecked experience when it came to interpersonalmunication. Hence, she divulged everything she knew without hiding a single thing.

    "Yeah, anotherdy came; she¡¯s someone the higher-ups scouted online. She¡¯s already here, and she¡¯s in the office. She¡¯s so pretty!" Once she said that a stupid smile crept onto her face.

    What the girl said attracted Xue Sijia¡¯s attention. Shifting her focus away from the floor numbers, she gently lowered her shades, and her dazzling, spirited eyes gazed straight at the girl.

    A fan online had once said that Xue Sijia¡¯s eyes were like a spotlight that amassed all of the world¡¯s light within them. She herself, however, was as cold as ice. Thebination of these two opposing characteristics was enough to cause others to fall into a daze if they weren¡¯t careful.

    In the past, this beauty-lover would have long since given in once Xue Sijia eyed her. However, she was very calm now and shifted her gaze away two secondster without batting an eyelid.

    After all, once she¡¯d seen that unearthly beauty, no one else could capture her attention!

    The Manager nced at her charge. Xue Sijia had pushed up her shades, and her lips were now curled into a clear frown. Her Managerughed and said, "Haha, the number of beautiful people is steadily increasing,petition in our industry¡¯s getting stiffer every day too."

    When she heard that, the girl suddenly wondered whether singing the praises of someone else in front of a celebrity was the right thing to do.

    Coming to that realization, the girl apologised and stuck out her tongue. "Miss... Miss Xue¡¯s very pretty too."

    The Manager smiled silently at the girl.

    With her back against the girl and her eyes covered by her shades, Xue Sijia silently rolled her eyes.

    She¡¯s ¡¯very pretty too¡¯? Heh heh, she¡¯s very pretty ¡¯too¡¯? She wanted to see just how beautiful this person who dared topete against her was.

    The beauty-lover suddenly felt the lift¡¯s temperature drop by a bit. In her heart, she couldn¡¯t help but remark, "She really is an arrogant ice queen; she can even control the temperature! Luckily for me, we¡¯re about to reach our destination. Otherwise, I might have caught a cold."

    The girl brought Xue Sijia and her Manager to the office Shen Jingbin andpany were seated in. She knocked on the door after telling Xue Sijia¡¯s group to wait for a bit.

    "Come in."

    Xue Sijia and her Manager exchanged nces when they heard the pleasant sounding voice from inside the room.

    The beauty-lover did her best to keep her hands from shaking before she slowly twisted the doorknob.

    "Miss Xue, please wait a little while inside the room. Our Manager is currently in a meeting and will be with you shortly," The girl was almost blinded by the people inside when she opened the door and quickly turned to look at Xue Sijia and her Manager. However, her gaze kept drifting back to the people inside the meeting room.

    Sigh, how sinful!

    Xue Sijia gave the girl a token nod of her head before she walked into the meeting room. Her Manager very kindly thanked the girl for her help before she followed Xue Sijia inside. The girl reciprocated the Manager¡¯s thanks while taking the opportunity to steal several nces at the room¡¯s interior.

    Raising her head as she walked into the room, Xue Sijia immediately froze when she saw the people inside.

    There were four people seated on the sofa. Two of them, a man and a woman, were people she didn¡¯t recognise. However, she was intimately familiar with the other two men. She¡¯d heard their names from countless female celebrities, especially when it came to the one seated in the middle. Whenever his name was mentioned, the words "golden bachelor" would be paired with it. It wouldn¡¯t be a stretch to say that he was the dream partner of every female celebrity in the entertainment business.

    But why was he here? And, from the looks of things, it looked like he was pretty close to thepetition.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s head was buried in a magazine as she whiled away the time, not even looking up when the door opened. Her obsessivepulsive disorder prevented her from being distracted before she finished an article, so Xue Sijia could only see the top of her head and a portion of her face.

    "Mr Zhao, you¡¯re here too? What a coincidence," The Manager noticed Zhao Chengning seated on the sofa the moment she closed the door and turned around. As a qualified Manager, she recognised all the influential people in B City, and all the more so for Zhao Chengning who was ranked amongst the top of them.

    The Manager¡¯s eyes lit up as she stepped forward and shed a smile at Zhao Chengning, then introduced herself, "Hello Mr Zhao, I¡¯m Yangshu. I¡¯m not sure if you remember me, but I¡¯ve met you before. This is the artist I¡¯m in charge of, Xue Sijia."

    Zhao Chengning had a good memory, so he still had some recollection of this Manager. His businessman¡¯s instincts kicked in, and he returned the greeting with a polite smile of his own. "I remember you, Miss Yang. Miss Xue."

    When she felt a light pat on her back from her Manager, Xue Sijia looked at Zhao Chengning and said levelly, "Hello, Mr Zhao."

    "Hello. Miss Yang, Miss Xue, please, have a seat," Zhao Chengning replied.

    You¡¯re blocking Little Jing¡¯s light!

    The Manager¡¯s smile brightened as she brought Xue Sijia over to the sofa beside the four of them.

    "Mr Zhao, is that Young Master Xu beside you?" After taking a seat, Xue Sijia continued putting up an icy front while her Manager took charge of maintaining the conversation.

    At the mention of his name, Xuya looked up at the Manager. Puzzled, he asked, "Who¡¯re you? You know me?"

    "Young master Xu sure knows how to joke. Is there anyone in B City who doesn¡¯t know who you are?"

    Her words clearly had an effect on Xuya. He immediately broke into a smile and said, "Haha, I always knew I had boundless charm."

    The Manager continued, "May I know how to address the two of you? You look a little unfamiliar; I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve met before."

    At this time, Shen Jingbin just happened to finish reading the magazine article. She looked up and smiled politely at both the Manager and Xue Sijia, who¡¯d secretly shifted turned her attention to her. "Hello, my surname¡¯s Shen. I¡¯m Mr Zhao¡¯s friend, and I¡¯m not from B City."

    Xue Sijia and her Manager were so shocked by her appearance that they were rendered speechless.

    Just then, the meeting room¡¯s door was suddenly pushed open. nked by Xiangpeng, a man in a suit walked in. They heard his voice before they saw him. "Hahaha, my apologies for making everyone wait. I¡¯m Yiju¡¯s Director of Publicity. My surname is Fang..."

    His speech, however, was abruptly cut off when he saw the situation in the meeting room.

 Chapter 211

    <b>Chapter 211: So You Think I¡¯m A Pushover Just Because I Don¡¯t Fight Back (1) </b>

    Following that, the talks that took ce proceeded exceptionally smoothly. During this time, the Director found himself unable to tear his gaze away from Shen Jingbin. If it weren¡¯t for Xiangpeng noticing Zhao Chengning¡¯s dissatisfaction and quietly pointing it out to the Director on the side, he probably would have continued staring at her.

    From the Director¡¯s tone, Shen Jingbin getting the role of female lead was a done deal. On the other hand, Xue Sijia¡¯s expression remained overcast throughout their discussions. She¡¯d initially thought that the role was guaranteed to be hers, only to have it stolen by someone else. Anyone would be unhappy if such a thing happened to them.

    After asking both sides for their opinions, a contract was drawn up and signed on the spot. They then said their goodbyes and left. Xue Sijia remained silent the entire time till their MPV arrived, while her Manager had a face full of smiles as she bid the others farewell. Shen Jingbin¡¯s group gave them a polite smile in return. Throughout the entire exchange, Xue Sijia remained unmoved till her Manager prompted her, causing her to break into a false smile before she entered the car.

    Once Xue Sijia got into the car, Xuya angrily said, "Why¡¯s she acting so high and mighty? She¡¯s just a minor celebrity. Sooner orter I¡¯ll take care of her."

    Zhao Chengning patted him on the shoulder and said, "Forget about it, she¡¯s got the backing of Long Dinghai from Dawn Emperor Entertainment. She¡¯s not one of those minor celebs that you can afford to provoke."

    "Long Dinghai? Is that the same Long Dinghai that I¡¯m thinking of?" Shen Jingbin asked in astonishment.

    Zhao Chengning looked towards her and nodded his head.

    Xuya looked a little worried. "No wonder she¡¯s so haughty; she has Long Dinghai as her backer. Tsk, she really is a prime example of ¡¯using one¡¯s connections to exploit others¡¯. Sigh, public morals are degenerating with each passing day."

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t find Xuya suddenly shrinking back the least bit strange as she¡¯d heard many stories about Long Dinghai.

    Different from Zhao Chengning who came from a wealthy and respectable background, but kept a low profile, news of Long Dinghai spread far and wide. Even someone like her who never paid attention to the happenings around her had heard her elders mention him. However, none of it was good. Rumour had it that his family had its roots in the criminal underworld, but had washed its hands of its illegal ways in recent years and moved into the entertainment industry instead. Be that as it may, his family was still as influential as it was before, and it was nothing to scoff at.

    Speaking of which, amongst this generation of youths, Long Dinghai and Zhao Chengning represented two different ways of life.

    "Stop talking about pointless things and drive," Said Zhao Chengning as he looked helplessly at Xuya who was going on about his life¡¯s enlightenment.

    Xuya rubbed his nose, fished out his keys, and jumped into the car.

    Xue Sijia¡¯s expression darkened the moment she got into the MPV.

    Seeing this, her Manager tried to console her. "Don¡¯t feel bad about it, that girl really is very beautiful... Don¡¯t re at me like that. Even after being in the entertainment industry for so long, I¡¯ve never seen someone who looks as good as her. You losing out to her is nothing to be ashamed about. And, even if it¡¯s just a supporting role, your part in the video is indispensable."

    Xue Sijia sneered. "Hah, since when have I ever taken up a supporting role for someone else?"

    "Sijia, at times it¡¯s easier for the supporting role to gain fans than the lead. If you show some weakness by asionally taking a supporting role, you can arouse your fans¡¯ affection for you. Furthermore, since you, an experienced actor is taking up a supporting role, wouldn¡¯t that put more pressure on her? If she screws up, she might end up incurring everyone¡¯s displeasure."

    "Do you really think there¡¯s a chance of that happening?" Xue Sijia asked in return.

    Yangshu fell silent and thought back to that woman from before, but didn¡¯t reply.

    The displeasure in Xue Sijia¡¯s eyes deepened. She whipped out her handphone, and after a few taps of her fingers, a number appeared on her screen.

    "Who¡¯re you calling?" Yangshu hurriedly asked.

    Xue Sijia ignored her.

    After listening to the phone to ring many times, the call finally connected.

    Xue Sijia knew full well which part of her the other party liked, so she got straight to the point and said, "Mr Long, it¡¯s Xue Sijia."

    "I know, what¡¯s happened?"

    "I didn¡¯t manage to get the lead role for Yiju¡¯s promotional video; I only managed to get a supporting role."

    The voice on the other end sounded indifferent. "Oh, you failed? So what do you n to do now?"

    "I recalled a simr thing happeningst time, but the screenwriter changed the script to include two female leads."

    The other partyughed. A short while passed before the person replied, "You¡¯re getting more and more ambitious. The phrase ¡¯a man who is never content is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant¡¯ fits people like you perfectly."

    Without any change in her tone, Xue Sijia replied, "That¡¯s because I have what it takes to swallow an elephant."

    "Alright, I understand," Once the other party had heard her reply, theyughed again before reverting to their previous indifference. After exchanging another sentence, they finally hung up.

 Chapter 212

    <b>Chapter 212: So You Think I¡¯m A Pushover Just Because I Don¡¯t Fight Back (2) </b>

    Xue Sijia¡¯s mood finally took a turn for the better.

    She wasn¡¯t going to y second fiddle to anyone. No matter what it was she had to be the best, and she¡¯d clear away all obstacles in her path to be so.

    Since Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t have anything on, and the shoot didn¡¯t conflict with anything in Xue Sijia¡¯s schedule, Shen Jingbin had received the script for <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>¡¯s promotional video. Filming was scheduled to take ce the next day.

    The script for this promotional video was a lot moreplex than those of other games. Instead of a promotional video, it¡¯d be more appropriate to call it a short film.

    As the game¡¯s newest update was focused on the sh between good and evil, the story told revolved around the good and evil sects within the game. It may have been a coincidence, but Shen Jingbin was cast as the representative disciple of the good sects, and it just so happened to be White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple! If nothing out of the ordinary urred, then Xue Sijia would most likely be cast as the representative disciple of the evil sects.

    Shen Jingbin felt that Xue Sijia was a very appropriate choice when she thought of the feeling she gave off.

    Early the next morning, she found Xuya waiting on the ground floor for her, but Zhao Chengning was nowhere in sight. Xuya told her that Zhao Chengning had a meeting in the morning, and would only drop by sometime in the afternoon. After quickly tidying herself up, she pulled Shen Jingchen out of bed, and the three of them set out for Yiju¡¯s building.

    As it was a promotional video for an online game, the video¡¯s setting mirrored that of the game¡¯s, and all filming took ce indoors in a green room. When Shen Jingbin arrived she noticed that Xue Sijia still hadn¡¯t appeared, so she handed all her things to Shen Jingchen and went to the stylist to change her clothes and apply her makeup.

    The clothes she received were the green Daoist robes of a White Cloud Temple disciple. Shen Jingbin was blown away when she felt the fabric. Yiju¡¯s wealth was truly overbearing! They were very generous with their choice of material, and the robes themselves were recreated with a frightening degree of uracy. After silently going to the changing room to switch her clothes, she decided to view herself in the mirror and was suddenly struck by a twinge of embarrassment.

    Clothes like the Daoist robe were all cylindrical shaped, making it difficult to tell the front from its back when it was worn. However... Shen Jingbin exuded an air of seduction once she¡¯d put it on. Shen Jingbin, who¡¯d always thought of herself as a in and simple girl, was suddenly left feeling an explicable sense of embarrassment.

    Shen Jingbin dawdled around for a little while before she stepped out of the changing room and made her way over to the makeup room, attracting countless shocked gazes along the way.

    Mommy! I saw an angel!

    A makeup artist who was rumoured to be very famous in the entertainment industry was specially called in by Yiju. The moment she saw Shen Jingbin, her eyes were practically shooting outsers.

    "Oh my goodness! You¡¯re perfect! Hey, how¡¯d you look after yourself? This is too much for me; isn¡¯t yourplexion a little too good as well?" The makeup artist grabbed Shen Jingbin over to her and pushed her into a chair. Once she was seated, the makeup artist began groping her face while he sighed in admiration.

    Shen Jingbin almost felt as if the makeup artist was trying to tear her face off.

    It was truly terrifying.

    "Eh, I just applied some cream."

    "What kind of cream? What brand is it? I¡¯ll go buy it too!"

    "...Dabao1"

    "..." The makeup artist red ruefully at her.

    Can beautiful people really do whatever they want just because they look fabulous?!

    As a disciple of a good sect, Shen Jingbin had to achieve a simple and elegant look. This, coupled with her naturally greatplexion meant that all the makeup artist needed to do was apply some basic foundation toplete her look.

    In his words: putting anything on her face would be tainting it!

    Just after she was finished with her makeup, a girl with a stage pass hanging from her clothes jogged over to Shen Jingbin and looked at her with a mixture of emotions. A long whileter, she said, "Miss Shen, I need to have a word with you."

    After eyeing her for a moment, she replied, "Mm, please go ahead."

    "About the script... there¡¯s been a small change to it... Both you and Miss Xue are now the female leads."

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t really care about who was the lead. Seeing the mixture of emotions on the girls face, she smiled and said, "Are there any major changes to my part?"

    "No, the only change was an increase in Miss Xue¡¯s appearances. Before that, the marketing department said that we needed to inform you about this first. This was done for the plot to make more sense; we hope you don¡¯t mind," The girl said cautiously. She was a long-time member of many gossip forums, so she knew a bit about the struggles between actors. She herself had seen her fair share of catfights, so she was terrified of this beautiful woman directing her ire towards her.

    "Alright, I got it. Thank you."

    "Then... then I¡¯ll be off now," With that, the girl ran off.

    The makeup artist who¡¯d heard their entire conversation sighed and said, "Tsk, actors these days are resorting to more and more of these little tricks behind other people¡¯s backs."

    Shen Jingbin silently looked up at the makeup artist.

    Xue Sijia only came strolling in after Shen Jingbin had finished all her preparations. However, in spite of beingte, she didn¡¯t even bother to utter a single word of apology. Instead, she gazed coldly at everyone present before she walked off to do her makeup.

    Xue Sijia¡¯s role as a disciple of the Demonic Sect disciple naturally meant that her appearance was a lot moreplicated. By the time she was done, nearly an hour had passed. Shen Jingchen, who¡¯d apanied Shen Jingbin and was forced to wait as well, was so ovee with resentment for Xue Sijia that he couldn¡¯t express his feelings and muttered to himself the whole time.

    Although Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t openlyin, she silently crossed Xue Sijia out in her heart.

    When Xue Sijia finally finished changing and putting on her makeup, the filming started.

    ording to the script, the first scene would depict the two of them fighting against one another. In her hand, Shen Jingbin held the symbol of White Cloud Temple ¨C a horsetail whisk, while Xue Sijia wielded a dark red longsword. The longsword¡¯s appearance, coupled with her bearing, gave off a very imposing air about her.

    The information Xiangpeng had given to the management made mention of Shen Jingbin practicing martial arts from a young age. Xue Sijia herself had risen from her position as a martial arts advisor, so the two of them only needed a little bit of direction to go off on.

    Before they started filming, Shen Jingbin saw Xue Sijia quietly send a puzzling smile her way, causing her to instantly be on alert.

    "Snap!" The sound of a pperboard being shut rang out. Almost at the same time, Xue Sijia stabbed her longsword towards Shen Jingbin. What¡¯s worse, it was even angled at her throat.

    With Xue Sijia¡¯s custom-made longsword being as sharp as it was, getting stabbed in the throat by it would definitely lead to injuries.

    A chill crept into Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes, and she swept Xue Sijia¡¯s longsword aside with a swing of her horsetail whisk. Xue Sijia looked as if she¡¯d already predicted this, and she raised her leg in an attempt to kick Shen Jingbin¡¯s stomach the moment it happened.

    This woman...

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face turned as cold as ice.

    So you think I¡¯m a pushover just because I don¡¯t fight back?

    An establishedpany in China that covers a range of daily essentials, including makeup. However, it¡¯s products have beenbelled as cheap by some people. ?

 Chapter 213

    <b>Chapter 213: Long Dinghai (1) </b>

    Shen Jingbin grabbed Xue Sijia¡¯s leg with her free hand and pushed hard! Due to the significant amount of pressure, Xue Sijia was thrown off bnce, and she was forced to take a step back to steady herself. During that time, Shen Jingbin freed her white horsetail whisk with a flick of her wrist and swept it to the sides. With a ¡¯whoosh¡¯, her horsetail whisk moved like a lithe snake and curled around Xue Sijia¡¯s neck.

    Shen Jingbin gripped the handle of her horsetail whisk and pulled backwards, dragging Xue Sijia over to her. Then, without a hint of reservation, Shen Jingbin proceeded to knee Xue Sijia in the stomach with just the right amount of force.

    "Oh no, Sijia!"

    Everything happened so suddenly that everyone was stunned by their exchange, and they could only dumbly watch. The first toe to their senses was Xue Sijia¡¯s Manager.

    After being in charge of Xue Sijia for so long, Yangshu understood her personality quite well. She knew that Xue Sijia definitely held a grudge against Shen Jingbin, so she¡¯d definitely try to pull some dirty tricks during the shoot. To prevent the other party from getting ahold of anything that could be used against them, and to ensure that Xue Sijia could absolve herself of me, Yangshu was carefully monitoring their activity.

    What she hadn¡¯t expected was for Xue Sijia to be at a disadvantage.

    The Director and the rest of the staff only came to their senses after Yangshu cried out.

    "Cut! Take a break!" The Director hurriedly called after he saw Xue Sijia¡¯s cold and arrogant facade start to crack from behind the camera. Following that, the assistants and the other staff present on scene immediately rushed forward.

    Yangshu hurried over to Xue Sijia¡¯s side before she turned to Shen Jingbin with a frown on her face, and said, "Miss Shen, aren¡¯t you taking things a little too seriously? We¡¯re only shooting a promotional video."

    Shen Jingbin swung the horsetail whisk and said, without any change in her expression, "Sorry, I did it out of habit."

    Yangshu was furious. "What kind of habit is this? Miss Shen, you¡¯re someone from a wealthy background too, so why is your up-" Yangshu suddenly stopped herself halfway through her speech when she thought of what she¡¯d heard about Shen Jingbin¡¯s background when she was asking around. She then recalled that person¡¯s warning that Shen Jingbin shouldn¡¯t be provoked even if she wasn¡¯t from B City. Furthermore, it looked like she was very close to the Second Young Master of the Zhao family.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t someone she could take liberties with.

    Shen Jingbin looked at Yangshu with interest when she broke off halfway. "Miss Yang, what were you trying to say just now?" If Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t mistaken, Yangshu was about to say ¡¯upbringing¡¯, wasn¡¯t she?

    "No... It¡¯s nothing."

    Shen Jingbin was all smiles as she turned to look at Xue Sijia. "Is that so? I mistook Miss Xue as my opponent, so I might have struck a little too hard. Since Miss Xue has a martial arts background, I¡¯m sure she understands too, no??"

    "I can... can understand," Said Xue Sijia through her clenched teeth.

    "That¡¯s great then." With that, Shen Jingbin shrugged her shoulders and walked past the two of them towards Shen Jingchen.

    She found Shen Jingchen sitting on a chair and idly ying with his phone. When he felt a shadow over his head, he cast a nce upwards at her and asked, "Done already? Was it that quick?"

    Did he miss out on her fantastic performance just now?

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but roll her eyes at him. She then dragged over a chair and plopped down beside him. "Get me a bottle of water... Where¡¯s Xuya?"

    Shen Jingchen stretched down, pulled out a bottle of water from the bag beside his leg, and handed it to her before he went back to fiddling with his phone.

    "I think Ah Ning¡¯s meeting ended, so Xuya went to pick him up... Say, why doesn¡¯t Ah Ning drive on his own?" He asked.

    "Are you an idiot? Driving means that he has to spend time looking for a lot to park in; wouldn¡¯t that decrease the amount of time he has with me? That¡¯s so not worth it."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s reply was filled with confidence and righteousness, causing Shen Jingchen to look as if he¡¯d eaten a fly when he heard it.

    "I can¡¯t believe you actually had the nerve to say that. Aren¡¯t you a little too narcissistic?"

    "This is called confidence ¨C something you¡¯ll never be able to experience in your entire life."

    "..."

    "Have you been using your phone this whole time?"

    "Yeah. You¡¯re not much to look at, and I¡¯m tired of looking at you."

    "Tch, what a waste. I knocked Xue Sijia down a peg just now!" Shen Jingbin said with a look of regret on her face as she rubbed her chin.

    Shen Jingchen immediately perked up and said, "F*ck, what did I miss? How¡¯d you take care of her?!"

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at him and remained silent. Feeling anxious, Shen Jingchen hurriedly urged her on. However, the Director called for shooting to continue before Shen Jingbin could go on.

    This time, the martial arts instructor carefully stood between the two of them and issued a reminder, "Miss Xue, Miss Shen; we¡¯re shooting a promotional video, so don¡¯t get too serious about it. Actually, all you guys need to do is just fake a few moves..."

    "My apologies, Miss Xue was just too good, so I couldn¡¯t help but see her as an opponent the moment she made her move. After all, that murderous aura..." Shen Jingbin said sincerely to the martial arts instructor.

    The martial arts instructor fell silent. She was hinting that Xue Sijia was the one who started it first, right? In truth, he¡¯de to the realisation that Xue Sijia had made the first move as well, but... he didn¡¯t dare to provoke her!

    "Miss Xue, uhm, we¡¯re not shooting an action blockbuster, so you don¡¯t need to be so serious... How about this, the two of you will take cues from meter on. What we want is for it to feel like the two of you are evenly matched, so you guys will have to rein in the air around yourselves."

    Shen Jingbin cast a nce at Xue Sijia, and replied with a smile, "That¡¯s not a problem for me."

    Xue Sijia shot a re at Shen Jingbin. "I¡¯m... fine with that as well."

 Chapter 214

    <b>Chapter 214: Long Dinghai (2)</b>

    The martial arts instructor heaved a sigh of relief and began telling the two of them the n he¡¯de up with. As they both came from a martial arts background, all it took was a little bit of exining before they caught on. Shortly after, the second take began.

    Due to what Shen Jingbin had said, Shen Jingchen had set aside his phone and sat to watch with his arms crossed over his chest. All of his attention was now focused on Shen Jingbin and Xue Sijia, so he didn¡¯t notice Zhao Chengning and Xuya when they quietly came in.

    "Heh, Brother Chen, you look so engrossed," Xuya¡¯s sudden appearance behind him frightened Shen Jingchen.

    Zhao Chengning walked over and sat on the chair that Shen Jingbin had previously upied, and asked, "Has it been long since they started?"

    "They just started filming."

    Zhao Chengning frowned. "I remember you guys waking up pretty early toe here; why¡¯re you guys only starting now?"

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s lips curled, and he gestured at Xue Sijia.

    "Miss Xue over there is very self-important. She waste and took her time with her makeup, so we¡¯ve been waiting for her till now."

    Xuya suddenly cut in, "I heard some people talking about how Xue Sijia became the female lead even though she was originally just a supporting character. What¡¯s Little Jing¡¯s role now?"

    Shen Jingchen snorted. "There are two female leads now."

    Xuya immediately became anxious. "What the f*ck, is she really that shameless? Brother Ah Ning, aren¡¯t you going to do something about this?!"

    After he said that, both Shen Jingchen and he turned to look at Zhao Chengning at the same time.

    Zhao Chengning casually crossed his legs, leaned back into his seat, and said indifferently, "Don¡¯t mind them, people aren¡¯t able to realise the true beauty of a person without a point of reference. Don¡¯t you think that cing Miss Xue alongside Little Jing as the female lead is the cruelest thing that can be done?"

    Both Xuya and Shen Jingchen¡¯s gazes turned to look at Xue Sijia at the same time, and then shifted to Shen Jingbin, before turning back to nce at one another.

    How two-faced.

    It might have been due to Zhao Chengning¡¯s presence, but Xue Sijia behaved herself and didn¡¯t pull any more tricks for the rest of the shoot till they took a break at almost one o¡¯clock. Following that, Yiju sent someone over to invite Xue Sijia, Shen Jingbin, the Director, and others over for a meal.

    "There¡¯s no need; she¡¯s eating with me," Filming had just ended when the person-in-charge came in. As she¡¯d walked straight towards to the Director, she didn¡¯t notice Zhao Chengning andpany seated to the side. It wasn¡¯t until Zhao Chengning stood behind her that she¡¯d realised there was a deity in their midst.

    "A-alright, Mr... Mr Zhao," The person-in-charge stammered out in reply.

    Zhao Chengning nodded at her in response and brought Shen Jingbin away with him.

    The person-in-charge patted her chest as she watched the departing figures of these four people who were splendid in both appearances and temperaments. She then turned to the Director and shot him a questioning gaze, "What happened?!"

    The Director shrugged, "Don¡¯t look at me; I¡¯m just as clueless as you are."

    After lunch, Zhao Chengning returned to work. Meanwhile, Shen Jingbin, escorted by her brother and Xuya, returned to Yiju to resume filming.

    They¡¯d made a very satisfactory amount of progress so far. After managing toplete the most challenging action scenes in the morning, if nothing went wrong, they¡¯d be able to finish filming the promotional video in around two days.

    However, when the day¡¯s filming was almost done, an important figure suddenly appeared in the studio.

    "M-Mr Long?" A tall figure silently entered the green room. The stage supervisor who was standing by the entrance was the first to notice him. Due to her shock, she fumbled over her words.

    Long Dinghai turned to the flushed stage supervisor and put his finger to his lips before he strode in.

    Xuya and Shen Jingchen were sitting in the corner closest to the exit. When they heard themotion that the stage supervisor was making, they both turned to look towards the entrance.

    Noticing their gazes, Long Dinghai halted his footsteps and turned to walk towards them instead.

    "Very pleased to meet you, Young Master Xu. This person is...?" Long Dinghai greeted them as he got closer.

    Even though he was a hedonist, Xuya still had basic manners when he met new people. He stood up and shook Long Dinghai¡¯s outstretched hand.

    "Mr Long, I¡¯ve heard a lot about you. This is my friend, Shen Jingchen."

    Shen Jingchen stood up as well and said, "Mr Long, it¡¯s nice to meet you."

    "The son of A City¡¯s Shen family?" Long Dinghai asked as he arched his thick brows, a smile appeared on his lips as he looked at Shen Jingchen.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression remained the same. "Mr Long is truly experienced and knowledgeable; I never expected you to even know about someone as unimportant as me."

    "Master Shen¡¯s far too humble. If you¡¯re unimportant, then wouldn¡¯t people like us be Jane and John Does?"

    Shen Jingchenughed in return.

    Long Dinghai¡¯s gaze shifted to the two people who were currently in the midst of shooting, and asked, "Is that your sister? I¡¯d heard that in terms of both appearance and demeanor, the level of excellence that the Shen family¡¯s Young Master and Miss in A City exhibit is something that onlyes by once every hundred years. Now that I¡¯ve seen the two of you myself, I find that your reputation is truly well-deserved."

    "Mr Long¡¯s too kind."

    "Hehe, Young Master Shen, you¡¯re the one who¡¯s being too humble."

    Xuya, who¡¯d been sidelined, suddenly cut in, "What¡¯s Mr Long here for?"

    "Oh, I¡¯m here for a visit. I never expected to run into Master Shen and Master Xu here... How about this; let me y the part of host and treat Master Shen and Miss Shen to dinner. Allow me to extend my hospitality to you as a resident of B City."

    "No need to trouble you, Mr Long. Ah Ning and I can receive the two of them. You¡¯re a very busy man, so we¡¯d feel bad if we took up your time," Xuya said.

    "So they¡¯re Mr Zhao¡¯s guests. In that case, I won¡¯t disturb you anymore," Long Dinghai said in surprise. He then gave them an apologetic smile before he turned and walked towards Xue Sijia.

    When he passed by Shen Jingbin, he gave her a very gentlemanly greeting.

    Shen Jingbin nced at him. Though she politely reciprocated his greeting, caution still bred in her heart.

    That person was a ssic example of a smiling tiger ¨C the type of person who hid their evil intentions behind a wide smile. She had to be careful when she dealt with him in the future.

 Chapter 215

    <b>Chapter 215: Numerous Hidden Love Rivals (1) </b>

    Xue Sijia allowed Yangshu to leave in the MPV first, while she herself sat in Long Dinghai¡¯s car and traveled to the restaurant together with him.

    The sight of Xue Sijia entering Long Dinghai¡¯s car was caught by several young women from Yiju, who immediately began to chatter and gossip amongst themselves.

    Xue Sijia silently looked back at them; her beautiful eyes hidden behind sunsses not disying any change in emotion.

    She then turned to Long Donghai who was sitting in the car and fell into contemtion.

    She¡¯d always known that rumours were circting in both herpany and outside of her being unofficially imed by Long Dinghai. But, what they didn¡¯t know, was that Long Dinghai hadn¡¯t evenid a single finger on her from the time he¡¯d first seen her and signed her on, till now.

    And, as for Long Dinghai taking care of her, she felt like his care was more akin to him raising a pet than anything else.

    Long Dinghai himself might not have noticed it, but his gaze always contained a sense of aloof pity whenever he looked at her. Xue Sijia had seen this look before on her cousin¡¯s face, back when she was still working as a martial arts assistant. It was the same look her cousin had when she saw an abandoned dog that she¡¯dter brought home.

    Noticing her gaze on him, Long Dinghai suddenly turned to her and asked, "What¡¯re you looking at?"

    Xue Sijia came back to her senses and reverted to her usual cold and haughty appearance. To people like Long Dinghai, women who only knew how to rely on others weren¡¯t the least bit attractive.

    "It¡¯s nothing. Mr Long, why¡¯d you think of eating with me today?"

    "I was just curious about the new person you snatched the lead role from.¡±

    "Are you satisfied now?"

    Long Dinghai suddenly chuckled and said, "It was far beyond my expectations."

    "In that case, am I going to have another colleague soon?"

    "No, she¡¯s in apletely different league whenpared to you... Xue Sijia, from today onwards, you are to put aside all of your little schemes and cease your plotting against her," Long Dinghai spoke while looking straight ahead, his expression unchanged from before.

    Xue Sijia¡¯s heart sank.

    "Alright."

    The next day¡¯s shoot went off without a hitch. Although Xue Sijia still maintained the same cold and haughty expression she always had, she was a lot more cooperative when it came to filming. Due to this, filming for the promotional video quickly came to an end.

    Everyone in the green room let out a deep sigh of relief when they were done with the final scene. It was finally over.

    The end of the shoot also signified the Shen siblings return to A City. Shen Jingchen suggested treating Zhao Chengning and Xuya to a meal before they left. After all, during this time Xuya had acted as their driver, shuttling them to and fro every day. He was so busy that he even had to cut into his own life of debauchery.

    Unexpectedly, they received a call from Old Master Shen when they left the hotel.

    The two of them had reported to Old Master Shen before they left for B City.

    This time around, Old Master Shen called to ask when they¡¯d be returning. When he heard Shen Jingbin¡¯s offhanded reply that they were leaving immediately, he began hounding her to bring back some of B City¡¯s speciality products.

    Shen Jingbin epted before she helplessly hung up.

    Shen Jingbin clearly understood what Old Master Shen was thinking. Although he may have just been asking her to bring back some specialty products, he was actually criticising them for going off to enjoy themselves and forgetting about the elderly at home.

    Thus, with just one phone call, buying souvenirs was added to the siblings¡¯ itinerary. The silver lining to all this was that Zhao Chengning just so happened to be free today, so the job of picking out a suitable specialty product fell on his shoulders.

    B City was a very modern city, and it was very different from A City which possessed several hundred years of history. A City was the product of modern-day economic development, which made itself known in all the various luxury goods that were on offer as specialty products.

    They couldn¡¯t possibly bring back luxury goods for the old man, could they?

    The old man would probably beat them to death.

    Shaking the thought out of her head, Shen Jingbin found herself at aplete loss. She had no idea what to buy for Old Master Shen.

    After hearing about her frustrations, Zhao Chengning thought for a bit and suggested, "How about this, I know of a ce that sells precious stones. Within this country, B City is the only ce that sells them. To top it off, it¡¯s well received by the elderly as well. Why don¡¯t I bring you over there to take a look?"

    Shen Jingbin felt that he¡¯d given an excellent suggestion and hurriedly agreed.

    Xuya and Shen Jingchen exchanged nces. Third wheels like them shouldn¡¯t follow along, so they came up with some excuse and ran off, leaving the couple to go off on their own.

    The jade shop that Zhao Chengning was referring to was hidden in a small alley. It was impossible for one to locate it unless they were familiar with B City.

    Afraid that she wouldn¡¯t understand this, Zhao Chengning broke into an exnation as he guided her along, "This shop has been here for many years, but the owner is a sentimental man and refuses to shift his shop even though he¡¯s got the money to do so. Luckily for him, his shop has garnered a fair bit of reputation over the years; otherwise, he probably would¡¯ve shut down by now."

    "Quality goods need no advertising," Shen Jingbin replied.

    Zhao Chengning smiled in return.

    The alley was quite deep, and it was filled with twists and turns. Zhao Chengning was worried she might have trouble traversing the route, so he tried holding her hand to help her out. Shen Jingbin froze, and her palm twitched in reflex, but she didn¡¯t try to break free from him. When he felt Shen Jingbin¡¯s delicate hand in his own, an irrepressible smile crept onto Zhao Chengning¡¯s face.

    "It¡¯s a difficult path; I¡¯ll lead you along."

    "Mm," Shen Jingbin replied uncertainly.

    After walking for a while, a rustic looking shop appeared before them. Zhao Chengning stopped and let go of her hand. He then turned back to her and said, "We¡¯re here."

    Shen Jingbin looked over to the shop and saw a solid wooden signboard on the upper part of the shop. Three words were written on it with ornate calligraphy.

    Jade Treasure Pavilion.

    The moment she walked into Jade Treasure Pavilion, Shen Jingbin was filled with thoughts of archaic rhymes. If it weren¡¯t for the lingering fragrance on her hand back from when she held hands with Zhao Chengning in the alley, she would¡¯ve thought that she¡¯d transmigrated to another world.

    The storefront looked simple yet still exuded a sense a majesty, and beautiful flowing calligraphy could be seen adorning its walls.

    Zhao Chengning pointed at one of them in particr and said, "This one was written by the owner."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s respect for the jade shop¡¯s owner instantly shot up. Anyone who could write such beautiful calligraphy was no ordinary person.

 Chapter 216

    <b>Chapter 216: Numerous Hidden Love Rivals (2)</b>

    Likely alerted by the noise outside, a figure emerged from behind a pearl curtain. A tinkling sound could be heard as the figure brushed against the curtains before a roughly fifty-year-old man appeared before the two of them.

    "So, it¡¯s Ah Ning," The old man¡¯s eyes twinkled as he looked at Zhao Chengning.

    "Grandpa Xie."

    The old man walked over. "Why¡¯re you here today?"

    "I brought a friend over to take a look at your shop. Grandpa Xie, this is my friend, Shen Jingbin. LIttle Jing, this is Grandpa Xie, who¡¯s also the owner of Jade Treasure Pavilion."

    Shen Jingbin respectfully greeted him, "Grandpa Xie."

    The elderly man looked at her curiously and asked, "Are you Ole Shen¡¯s granddaughter?"

    "Yes, does Grandpa Xie know my Grandfather?"

    "That old coot," The old man said with a smile. "Of course I know him. Back then the three of us were inseparable."

    "Grandpa Xie, Grandpa Shen, and my own Grandfather were all very good friends back in the day," Zhao Chengning added.

    "So, what¡¯re you here to buy today?" Grandpa Xie looked like he was in an excellent mood, and wore a smile on his face the entire time he was looking at Shen Jingbin. "My shop doesn¡¯t offer anything else apart from a few rocks. If you¡¯re okay with that, then you can just pick out a few of them, and I¡¯ll give them to you. Think of it as a gift for bing acquaintances."

    "Grandpa Xie, there¡¯s no need for you to be so courteous," Shen Jingbin hurriedly replied.

    "I¡¯m not being courteous. As someone of the older generation, I¡¯m just giving you, someone from the younger generation, a small present to express my feelings towards the many years I haven¡¯t seen Ole Shen for."

    "Grandpa Xie is wee to visit us any time."

    "Hahaha, alright, then I won¡¯t have any reservations abouting."

    "Please don¡¯t."

    "You two pick out something first, I¡¯ll be further inside for a little bit," Grandpa Xie said with a wave of his hand before he disappeared into another room.

    Shen Jingbin gave Zhao Chengning a nudge and asked, "Why¡¯d Grandpa Xie go inside? Doesn¡¯t he need to watch the shop?"

    "No one would be foolish enough toe in here and cause trouble, so he doesn¡¯t need to watch the shop."

    "That sounds really cool."

    Zhao Chengning smiled and patted her on the shoulder. "Have a look and see if there¡¯s anything you like."

    Compared to things like gold, silver, and other precious stones, Shen Jingbin liked jade items even more. To her, while gold and silver were breathtakingly beautiful, they were dead and lifeless; possessing no spirit of their own. Jade, on the other hand, was different. Its colour could refresh one¡¯s mind, and the various designs on them allowed others to experience a sense of vigor and vitality.

    She¡¯d seen a fair number of jade pieces in the past, but the ones from Jade Treasure Pavilion were top quality. Shen Jingbin was dazzled by what she saw when she walked around the shop. In the end, she was struggling to decide between a jade Buddha statue and a jade gourd.

    These two jade pieces were of excellent quality and were at least A grade and above.

    When she was about to consult Zhao Chengning on which piece would make a better present for her Grandfather, she heard a voicesing from the entrance.

    Zhao Chengning had said that there were usually very few people around here, so this was definitely a customer.

    Sure enough, the voices continued to draw nearer. As Shen Jingbin listened on, she realised that one of the voices sounded familiar.

    "Mr Xie, I heard you¡¯ve got a new batch of products in, I¡¯vee to... Second Young Master?! What a coincidence!"

    The neer really was someone she knew. It was the Lady Boss of Blooming Flower Pavilion, Chenyi.

    "It looks like Miss Shen¡¯s here as well. It truly is a coincidence," Chenyi had spotted Zhao Chengning the moment she¡¯d stepped into the shop. But, before she had the chance to celebrate, she¡¯d noticed Shen Jingbin standing on the other side of the shop out of the corner of her eye. Whatever happiness she¡¯d felt at seeing Zhao Chengning was immediately dispelled.

    Shen Jingbin looked towards her and nodded. "Greetings, Miss Chen."

    Zhao Chengning returned her greeting with a simple nce before he strode over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and whispered a question into her ear, "Are you trying to decide on which one to get?"

    Shen Jingbin raised her head and looked him in the eye. "Mm, I think they¡¯re both pretty good."

    Chenyi felt her heart clench when she saw the level of intimacy between them. Just as she was about to go up and separate them, one of herpanions called out from behind her.

    "Boss, I¡¯ve parked the car," The delicate and pretty Zhang Beiyu came jogging in with the car keys. She froze when she saw Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin. "Mr Zhao?" After saying this, her face then proceeded to flush a deep red.

    Shen Jingbin looked at the two of them standing by the door and let out a chuckle in her heart.

    Were these two her hidden love rivals?

    What a coincidence.

    Zhao Chengning clearly still had some recollection of Zhang Beiyu. If he was disinterested in Chenyi, then Zhang Beiyu was someone he despised.

    Although I¡¯ve mercilessly rejected you, the sin of trying to seduce me in front of my wife isn¡¯t one that can be absolved so easily!

    Zhao Chengning gave haughty snort. However, he didn¡¯t even spare Zhang Beiyu so much as a nce and acted as if she was invisible.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s reaction towards her caused Zhang Beiyu¡¯s flushed face to instantly pale and her eyes filled with tears, making her look as if someone had bullied her. Chenyi was an incredibly astute woman, and she immediately realised that something was off between the two of them. She looked back and shot a vicious re at Zhang Beiyu before she turned to face Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin with a dazzling smile. "Miss Shen, are you here to look at some jade pieces? I oftene here, so I know more about these things. Would you like me to help you with your selection? That way you can avoid choosing something unsuitable."

    Shen Jingbin shot a nce at her.

    Was this woman making fun of her by saying she wasn¡¯t knowledgeable?

 Chapter 217

    <b>Chapter 217: Journey To Find The ck Tortoise (1)</b>

    Something Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t understand was: why did so many people think that she was a pushover? Did she, at some point, gain the face of a sucker that could be pushed around?

    That shouldn¡¯t be the case...

    The reason why she¡¯d often opted not to take issue with others wasn¡¯t because she was afraid, but because she couldn¡¯t be bothered to deal with these insignificant squabbles. However, trying to ruin my reputation in front of my sweetheart is taking things too far!

    Shen Jingbin wore a smile on her face and she unhurriedly replied, "I don¡¯t want to trouble Miss Chen. Chengning alone is enough for me; I have faith in his judgement."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s expression unconsciously softened when he heard this.

    Chenyi¡¯s smile faltered and her hate reached a fever pitch in her heart. But, on the surface, she still maintained the same warm and magnanimous expression she previously had.

    "That¡¯s wonderful! Our Second Young Master does indeed have very good judgement. Miss Shen has definitely found the right person to consult."

    ¡¯Your¡¯ Second Young Master?

    Shen Jingbin arched her brows.

    "Let¡¯s select our jade piece. Xuya and your brother are still waiting for us," Zhao Chengning said.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. She then turned to face Chenyi and shed an apologetic smile at her. "Please take your time, Miss Chen."

    Not sparing another nce at her, the two of them walked off and browsed the jade pieces on disy while they discussed in hushed voices which was the best one to pick. Chenyi wasn¡¯t that far from them, but she had no way of listening in on what they were saying. All she could discern was that the two of them were standing very close to one another. Zhao Chengning, who was slightly taller than Shen Jingbin, would asionally lower his head to her ear and whisper something into it before both of their faces blossomed into smiles.

    The sight of this pained Chenyi¡¯s heart to no end.

    On the other hand, Zhang Beiyu was feeling even more resentful.

    From the time she¡¯d spotted Zhao Chengning, Zhang Beiyu had been staring at him with the distant eyes of a heroine in a tragedy, using him of his cold indifference. If she didn¡¯t know any better, she¡¯d think that there was something going on between the two of them.

    It was at this moment that Grandpa Xie made his appearance and saw this thought-provoking scene before him.

    "Good day, Miss Chen," Although Chenyi was the Lady Boss of Blooming Flower Pavilion, she still couldn¡¯t hold a candle to Zhao Chengning¡¯s group, so she was relegated to getting a simple word of acknowledgement from Grandpa Xie.

    "It¡¯s been a long time, Mr Xie. I heard that you¡¯ve received a batch of new stock and I¡¯vee to take a look at them. You should know that my Grandfather¡¯s birthday ising up soon, and he¡¯s always loved the curios that your shop offers; so, I¡¯ve speciallye to take a look at them," While her words were directed at Grandpa Xie, her gaze remained fixed on Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin.

    When Grandpa Xie saw the look of indignation on Chenyi¡¯s face, and the resentful gaze of the girl who looked like an attendant beside her, he penned a saga of romance and hate that spanned ten thousand words in his head.

    After coughing once, he said, "Come with me, Miss Chen. Our new products are further in; I haven¡¯t shifted them out yet."

    Only now did Chenyi look back. "Ah?"

    "You need to make sure you pick out something good since it¡¯s a gift for Master Chen. Let¡¯s go inside and take a look," Grandpa Xie said with a serious expression.

    "Oh, okay," Going into one of the inner rooms meant that she wouldn¡¯t be able to see Zhao Chengning. Chenyi was a little reluctant, but she couldn¡¯t reject Grandpa Xie either, so she had no choice but to agree with him.

    When Grandpa Xie was leading both Chenyi and Zhang Beiyu towards the inner room, he suddenly stopped by the beaded curtain hanging over the door frame and looked back. "Once you¡¯re done picking something out with Little Jing, just head over there and write it down," After he said that, Grandpa Xie even winked at him, as if he were trying to say, "I¡¯ve lent you a hand, so you¡¯ve got to do your best!"

    Zhao Chengning returned his wink with a smile, and said, "Alright. Thank you Grandpa Xie."

    Rest assured, I¡¯ll do my best.

    In the end, at Zhao Chengning¡¯s rmendation, Shen Jingbin picked out the jade Buddha. But she still felt a little wistful about the jade gourd.

    Once they were done choosing a present, they rushed back to the hotel to meet with Xuya and Shen Jingchen at the promised time. After their meal, Zhao Chengning and Xuya ferried the Shen siblings to the airport.

    When it was almost time to board the ne and Shen Jingchen and Xuya left to check-in the luggage, Zhao Chengning suddenly pulled out a small box and handed it to Shen Jingbin.

    When she saw the words "Jade Treasure Pavilion" engraved on the box in bold calligraphy, she felt a twinge of suspicion. She clearly remembered putting the jade buddha into her luggage.

    "This is?" She asked as she opened the box.

    Resting inside the box was surprisingly the very same jade gourd that she¡¯d been reluctant to part with!

    "You... when did you buy it?"

    "I did it when you were putting the jade Buddha into the records."

    "Doesn¡¯t that mean I¡¯ve taken two jade pieces? I can¡¯t do that..." Shen Jingbin suddenly felt that this wasn¡¯t a very honest thing for her to do.

    Zhao Chengning interrupted her. "There¡¯s nothing to feel bad about. The jade Buddha was a gift from Grandpa Xie, while the jade gourd is a gift from me. My family is working together with Jade Treasure Pavilion, so you don¡¯t have to worry about it."

    "You¡¯re giving this to me?" Shen Jingbin asked as she raised her head to look at him.

    For some reason, Zhao Chengning¡¯s gaze was filled with a mixture of care and warmth as he looked straight into her eyes and said, "Mm. This, is a present, from me."

    A brilliant smile bloomed on her face. "Then... I¡¯ll ept it since you insist."

    Zhao Chengning silently observed her smile. At this moment, Shen Jingchen started shouting for her.

    "I¡¯ll be going."

    "Mm, send me an SMS or call me when you¡¯vended."

    "Okay."

    Unable to restrain himself, Zhao Chengning rubbed her head and said, "Be safe."

    "Mm."

    Gripping the jade gourd in her hands, Shen Jingbin turned around and went through the security check with Shen Jingchen.

    Xuya stood by Zhao Chengning¡¯s side and watched how he stared at Shen Jingbin¡¯s departing figure like a loyal husband before he said softly, "Sigh, it feels so empty and meaningless now that the wife¡¯s gone."

    Zhao Chengning came back to his senses and red at Xuya. "Stop mouthing off."

    Xuya¡¯s lips curled. "Alright, alright. Just take it as me spouting nonsense then. Anyway, Brother Ah Ning, aren¡¯t you going a little too slowly? It¡¯s been so long already but you still haven¡¯t captured Little Jing. Tsk tsk tsk, I can¡¯t bear to look on any longer."

    "Haste makes waste," Zhao Chengning said mysteriously.

    Xuya nked out for a moment before changing his way of thinking. He immediately covered his mouth and looked at Zhao Chengning in astonishment. "Who would¡¯ve thought that you were such a beast! My god, that¡¯s terrifying."

    Zhao Chengning pat him on the shoulder. "You¡¯re the one who¡¯s thinking too dirty. It¡¯s about time for me to turn over a new leaf; otherwise, I¡¯ll never be able to find a wife next time."

    "..."

 Chapter 218

    <b>Chapter 218: Journey To Find The ck Tortoise (2)</b>

    Once they¡¯d alighted from the ne and made their way out of the airport, the Shen siblings spotted the driver Old Master Shen had sent to pick them up. Shen Jingbin was the first to get into the car. Once inside, she sent an SMS to Zhao Chengning, leaving Shen Jingchen to handle all of their luggage.

    Shen Jingchen had a face full of tears as he eyed the two luggage bags.

    Why is my little sister so uncute!

    "I¡¯ve gotten off the ne; it was a smooth ride."

    "Mm, that¡¯s good to hear. Remember not to give the jade gourd to Grandpa Shen as a gift. Otherwise, I¡¯ll be jealous."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face flushed.

    "You silly girl, I¡¯m not going to go out with you in the future... Eh, why¡¯s your face all red?"

    Shen Jingbin reverted to her previous indifferent expression and said, "It must be your eyes acting up again. You should go visit an optometrist when you¡¯ve got the time."

    "..."

    When they returned to the Shen residence, the first thing Shen Jingbin did was reverently present the jade Buddha to Old Master Shen. On Shen Jingchen¡¯s end, he¡¯d grabbed his own present and run off to curry favor with Grandma Shen.

    "Grandfather, why don¡¯t you take a look at this jade Buddha that I¡¯ve picked out for you?"

    Old Master Shen received the jade Buddha from his granddaughter and said, "The rity¡¯s pretty good."

    "Grandpa Xie from B City gave it to me."

    "Xie? That old coot?!"

    Seeing the way her Grandfather was kicking up a ruckus, Shen Jingbin repeated what Grandpa Xie had said. When her Grandfather ¨C who was still acting like a tsundere ¨C heard this, he immediately broke into a smile.

    Sitting off to the side, Grandma Shen was also all smiles till she noticed a very nice looking jade gourd that had suddenly appeared on Shen Jingbin¡¯s neck, and asked, "Is that jade gourd on your neck also a gift from Ole Xie?"

    Mm? Shen Jingbin lowered her head. "This was... a gift from someone else."

    Grandpa Shen and Granny Shen immediately looked straight at her. This ¡¯someone¡¯ sounds like a person worth investigating.

    Looks like now¡¯s the time to give Ole Zhao a call and ask about the situation.

    The Shen siblings went back to their vi after dinner. After the past few days of rushing about they didn¡¯t even have the energy to y games, so they just washed up and went straight to bed.

    When they logged in the next day, they each received a mail containing their equipment from Zhang Wudi. Shen Jingbin happily swapped out her equipment and opened up her stat window to have a look.

    "River Essence Robe, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: purple. Able to grow, Durability 100/100, Physical Strength +20, Inner Strength +20, Speed +18, hidden attribute: Charisma +5, chance to root enemies and render them helpless (passive)."

    "River Essence Belt, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: Purple. Able to grow, Durability 100/100, Physical Strength +5, Inner Strength +5, Speed +5, hidden attribute: consumption of a yer¡¯s Inner Strength decreased by 5%, critical strike chance increased by 40 (passive)."

    "River Essence Pants, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: Purple. Able to grow, Durability 35/35, Physical Strength +5, Inner Strength +8, Speed +8, hidden attribute: reduces yer¡¯s Casting Time by 5%, 20 increased damage towards other yers (passive)."

    "River Essence Shoes, made by a Grandmaster Tailor, Rarity: Purple. Able to grow, Durability 45/45, Physical Strength +5, Agility +10, Speed +5, hidden attribute: yer¡¯s Speed increased by 8%, increased magical and critical strike defence by 18 (passive)."

    Aside from the equipment, there was also a letter from Zhang Wudi. In short, it said that what Shen Jingbin now had was a mid grade set of equipment, which she could upgrade one final time when she reached Level 120.

    A set of equipment like this was right up Shen Jingbin¡¯s alley. Just this alone was enough for her to decide to work together with Yiju once again. In fact, she¡¯d even be willing to lower her prices a little!

    "Are you on?" Not long after, Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s mail came in as well.

    Shen Jingbin was struck by a wave of curiosity as she typed out her reply. It was still daytime, yet he was online.

    "Mm."

    "Did you receive your equipment?"

    "Mm, they¡¯ve all been upgraded. I¡¯ve just taken a look at their stats; they¡¯re awesome!"

    "You¡¯re really lucky."

    "That¡¯s probably one of the perks of being ugly."

    The other side went silent for a little while before they replied once again.

    "Since your equipment has been upgraded, let¡¯s make a trip to Beiming Sea to look for the ck Tortoise."

    If Quiet And Steadfast hadn¡¯t brought it up, she probably would have forgotten all about her quest to look for the Divine Beasts.

    "Alright. Give me a moment and I¡¯ll be right over."

    "Mm, I¡¯ll be waiting at Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal for you."

    Shen Jingbin closed her mailbox and summoned Mascot. After giving its head a rub, she mounted it and made a beeline for Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal.

    After Shen Jingbin left, several ordinary looking yers appeared. They eyed the spot that she¡¯d been standing on just before, their eyes shing with golden light.

    [Shinra Sect] Inseparable Love: We¡¯ve found Nutjob!

    [Shinra Sect] Northwest By North: Heh, a Lead Disciple? Where is she?! I¡¯ll be taking her head.

    [Shinra Sect] Return Of The Jedi: She was at the royal district of Jiuli City, but she¡¯s flown off.

    [Shinra Sect] Tiny Little Loli: Then why the f*ck are you even bringing her up?

    [Shinra Sect] Inseparable Love: I heard her tell her tiger that they¡¯re headed for Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal.

    [Shinra Sect] Nine Bads: All of you stand down, she¡¯s mine.

    The moment she said that, the entire channel instantly went silent. Nine Bads gave a mocking smile and summoned out her mount, then made her way towards Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal. At the same time, she opened up her friends list and sent Reckless East Emperor a mail.

    "Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal, Nutjob, kill."

 Chapter 219

    <b>Chapter 219: The Hut In The Forest (1)</b>

    The Shinra Sect really was a bug-like existence. To ensure that the Shinra Sect with its inferior numbers possessed the ability to stand toe to toe with the Six Great Sects, the developers thought of every means to give them an edge. In fact, they¡¯d even specially created a sect channel to facilitate an ¡¯ease ofmunication¡¯.

    Even though Nine Bads had told them not to interfere, the allure of a weak Lead Disciple just ripe for the picking was still present. There were definitely some people who¡¯d be lured into taking action.

    There was no small number of people who tailed her in secret to the ferry terminal at Beiming Sea. In any case, they hadn¡¯t spoken in the sect channel, so Nine Bads didn¡¯t know who they were either. The best case scenario was them swooping in and reaping the benefits when the two of them foughtter on.

    This was what was meant by pursuing a meagre gain whilst neglecting the surrounding dangers.

    Shen Jingbin saw Quiet And Steadfast standing by the ferry terminal while she was still in the air.

    There were many inds of various sizes in the Beiming Sea other than the ind where the Lich Pce was situated. These inds either held precious beasts, mystical herbs, or unknown shops. yers could even encounter mysterious NPCs and receive hidden quests. With all these things on offer, the ferry terminal was still rather lively.

    Since the entire game was hosted on a single server, yers were aplenty and the maps were massive too, resulting in many people having heard of the Great God¡¯s name countless times but never actually seeing him before.

    While waiting for Shen Jingbin, countless fervent gazes were sent Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s way as they ¡¯nced¡¯ at him. In the beginning, there weren¡¯t that many people crowding around him, but some starry-eyed female yer who was infatuated with him cried out his name, leading to the current situation.

    Shen Jingbin easily spotted Quiet And Steadfast, who was surrounded by a mass of yers, from her position up high. Interestingly, these yers carefully maintained a distance from him, resulting in a no man¡¯snd around him. Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, boldlynded by his side without a hint of embarrassment.

    "I¡¯m here," She announced after jumping off Mascot¡¯s back.

    Mascot looked as if it wanted to curry favour with Quiet And Steadfast and it rubbed its head against his hand.

    "Mm," He said as he casually rubbed Mascot¡¯s head. "Let¡¯s go."

    The two of them left to look for the Sea Elder, in preparation to board the ferry that would take them to the small ind surrounding the Lich Pce so that they could scout out the situation. The Sea Elder was the NPC guarding the ferries at the terminal. Each ferry could seat twenty-five yers, and they¡¯d only set off when they were full. These ferries would travel alongside the inds and stop at every one of them, giving yers the chance to alight.

    A ferry would typically be full in one or two minutes, but for some reason, no one boarded the ferry Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast were on for a long time. Including the helmsman, there were only three people on the ferry.

    "What¡¯s wrong?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Maybe we look too imposing?" Offered Quiet And Steadfast.

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him and stood up. She leaned the upper half of her body out past the ferry¡¯s railing and shouted, "There are lots of empty seats over here. Does anyone want to hitch a ride?"

    Silence suddenly descended upon the ferry terminal. A long while passed before a young girl weakly asked, "Can I ride with you?"

    Shen Jingbin worked her facial muscles and did her best to force out a kind-hearted smile. "Sure."

    However, the response she received was the exaggerated sound of the girl taking in a deep breath and covering her face in defeat before she dejectedly made her way towards the ferry.

    It¡¯s alright. With the young girl taking the lead, many more people ought to follow suit in a bit.

    Sure enough, a wave of people began fighting to board the ferry less than ten seconds after the girl got on. In the blink of an eye, the ferry¡¯s spacious deck was packed full of people like sardines in a can.

    Now with a sufficient number of people on board, the ferry set off.

    The ferry rocked back and forth as it began its outward passage.

    From the map, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s destination looked to be the fourth ind. Coincidentally, not a single person got off at the first three inds. Beneath the awning, all of the passengers were glued to the two of them, giving rise to an iparably stifling atmosphere...

    Ah, no. More urately speaking, they were all glued to Quiet And Steadfast.

    It took them a great deal of effort before they managed to get off the boat.

    This ind was called Sunshine Cleansing Ind. It was a small ind shrouded by forest yet had few spiritual herbs to offer. Instead, many spiritual beasts with extraordinary ornamental value could be found. The ones who were the most active here were spiritual beast merchants who made a living off peddling spiritual beasts.

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast gradually walked into the depths of the forest. The spiritual beast merchants were mostly mid-range yers. Hence, it was rare for them to delve deep into the forest. To avoid exposing themselves, the duo chose to start searching in the deepest region of the forest.

    A person¡¯s hearing would be exceptionally keen when they were surrounded by silence. The two of them already had sharper senses than your average person, so it didn¡¯t take long for them long to notice something peculiar behind them.

    The duo stopped and nced at each other.

    Did you sense that?

    Yeah, someone¡¯s following us.

    Spiritual beast merchants?

    No, they¡¯re not that brave. It¡¯s most likely members of the Shinra Sect.

    What¡¯re we going to do?

    We¡¯ll pretend that we don¡¯t know they¡¯re following us. Let¡¯s head further in first and see what happens. I won¡¯t make a move unless they take action first.

    Shen Jingbin winked at Quiet And Steadfast when she received his message. She then raised her voice and said, "I¡¯m so tired, let¡¯s take a rest up ahead."

    Quiet And Steadfast knew she was misleading the enemy. Based on what they could hear, it sounded like there were two different groups of people stalking them that stopped whenever they did.

    "Alright, we¡¯ll take a look up ahead and rest when we find a suitable spot."

    Shen Jingbin nodded, and they slowly ventured deeper into the forest.

    Nine Bads and Reckless East Emperor saw them move once again, but the two of them remained rooted where they were. The ones hiding to the left behind them, however, immediately jumped out and chased after the duo.

    "What a bunch of idiots," Nine Bads disdainfully snorted.

    "Is it really alright for us to let them trail our targets?" Asked Reckless East Emperor.

    "What¡¯s wrong with it? I¡¯ve already warned them not toe. This is my prey, yet they insist on throwing their lives away, so you can¡¯t me me for this... We¡¯ll have a look at what that ugly monster and Quiet And Steadfast came here for a littleter."

    "Alright."

 Chapter 220

    <b>Chapter 220: The Hut In The Forest (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast noticed that the two groups following them had turned into one, with the group following them from the very beginning disappearing. Although this group had more members than the one from before, the threat they posed was far from that of the first group. Hence, the duo quickened their footsteps and rushed forth.

    A few stepster, a small wooden hut appeared before them. This hut was worn down by years of disrepair, giving it a very aged look about it and causing the two of them to stop in their tracks.

    "Are we going inside, or are we going to deal with the ones following us first?" Shen Jingbin asked Quiet And Steadfast through her gaze alone.

    "The ones behind us pose no threat. We won¡¯t bother with them as long as they don¡¯te out."

    Choosing to ignore the group behind them, they walked straight up to the wooden hut and entered.

    Since they were in the forest¡¯s depths, the surrounding area was naturally very high in humidity. Upon entering the hut, they were greeted by the scent of mould. With one of them starting on the left, and the other on the right, the two of them began to separately rummage through the hut to see whether there were any clues.

    The hut wasn¡¯t veryrge, but things were strewn all over the ce. It could have been due to the owner running into some kind of trouble, or wild beasts from the forest entering and making a mess as time went by.

    Shen Jingbin stood in front of wreckage that, from the outline within it that she could make out, seemed to contain a bookshelf. The wooden boards that served as shelves were more or less destroyed and were left in a mess, while the few books that were still pressed together with the bookshelf¡¯s remains had lost their original appearance.

    She stooped down and stripped away the wooden boards that had been ruined by moisture, and picked up a book lying at the very top of the pile.

    "Ding" The system¡¯s notification rung out in her ears.

    "Congrattions, you¡¯ve found a tattered notebook."

    ck lines covered Shen Jingbin¡¯s forehead. I¡¯d know that this was a tattered book even without you telling me!

    With the conviction that ¡¯something was always better than nothing¡¯, Shen Jingbin picked up all the books she could find from the pile of wooden boards. When she looked up, she saw Quiet And Steadfast standing behind her.

    "What¡¯s wrong?" Asked Shen Jingbin.

    Quiet And Steadfast looked as if he was trying to stifle hisughter. "It¡¯s just that, I suddenly thought that you looked like an old woman collecting scraps."

    You¡¯re the one collecting scraps, alright!? Your neighbourhood is filled with old people collecting scraps!

    Shen Jingbin red at him before she walked up and handed the books over to him.

    "I found these books."

    Quiet And Steadfast took the books from her and nced at them. "A notebook?"

    "Yeah, but it¡¯s tattered."

    Quiet And Steadfast thought for a moment before he replied, "There definitely has to be something recorded in its pages for it to be identified as a notebook. If we continue searching, we might find something that can restore its pages." After he spoke, he returned the book to her.

    The two of them searched the hut once more. This time, they were even more attentive in their search and left no stone unturned.

    The others who were cautiously following behind them slowly approached the hut¡¯s window and stuck half their heads out to spy on them.

    Return Of The Jedi lowered his voice and asked, "What are they looking for?"

    Inseparable Love: "I don¡¯t know, but it¡¯s definitely something good. One¡¯s the Lead Disciple of the White Cloud Temple, and the other is the number one Great God. Whatever can make them expend that much effort to look for definitely can¡¯t be anything bad."

    Tiny Little Loli: "Do you think it¡¯s something they can use against us?"

    North By Northwest: "Yes! It¡¯s very possible! Isn¡¯t going against us the most important objective for the Six Great Sects right now?"

    Inseparable Love felt that what hisrades had said made a lot of sense. "Yeah, I think it¡¯s very possible. How about this: let¡¯s hide first and wait until they¡¯ve found whatever it is they¡¯re looking for, then we¡¯ll rush up and steal it from them. We might not be able to beat them, but stealing things from them is a different story, right?"

    Return Of The Jedi: "I have a question though: didn¡¯t Nine Bads say that she wasing here? Why didn¡¯t we see her along the way?"

    Tiny Little Loli was the first female yer to join the Shinra Sect. Before Nine Bads came along, she¡¯d had the highest standing in the Shinra Sect, and was also the most popr member around. With the appearance of Nine Bads, her position in the sect had taken a nosedive and filled her with resentment towards Nine Bads.

    Tiny Little Loli coldly snorted. "She must have lost track of them. Either that, or her horrible temper has reared its ugly head once again and she¡¯s fighting with someone."

    Inseparable Love tugged on Tiny Little Loli and said, "Quiet down a little; the walls have ears. Nine Bads is very petty, and will bear a grudge against you for life if you unintentionally provoke her."

    Tiny Little Loli immediately drew back and tried to put on a strong front. "Pui. Me? Afraid of that vicious woman?"

    At this moment, Nine Bads, who was crouched down not far away from them, stared at them with death in her eyes.

    Even though she couldn¡¯t make out what they were saying, based on their expressions and the words they mouthed, it was clear that they were talking about her; and it wasn¡¯t anything good either.

    "We¡¯ll get rid of them in a bit," Nine Bads suddenly said.

    Reckless East Emperor froze for a moment before he replied, "Alright... But why? We¡¯re all Shinra-" He swallowed whatever he wanted to say when Nine Bads viciously red at him.

    "You¡¯ll do as I tell you. Enough with your nonsense."

    "Alright."

    At this moment, a dazzling beam of light suddenly shot out of the small wooden hut, startling countless birds in the forest.

    Those hiding outside the window heard Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s voice that had a hint of happiness within it. "Found it."

    Did they find it?

    Now!

    They exchanged nces, stood up at the same time, and switched their PK status on before they broke in through the window.

    "Hand over that item; or else!" Inseparable Love shouted.

    One of them was holding a stack of tattered yellow paper, while the other was holding a broken bottle that was so dirty its colour couldn¡¯t even be discerned. None of them had any idea what the duo was trying to do.

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast looked back at Inseparable Love when they heard his voice.

    He suddenly felt really nervous!

 Chapter 221

    <b>Chapter 221: Divine Beast Chronicles (1)</b>

    Forcing down his sudden anxiety, Inseparable Love shouted once again, "The two of you, listen up! Hurry up and hand us your things; otherwise, don¡¯t me us for getting rough!"

    Shen Jingbin looked at the people clothed in ck and pointed at the small broken bottle in Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s hands, before she waved the ruined book in her hand, asking earnestly, "Which one do you want?"

    Inseparable Love paused. Huh? Why¡¯re they so cooperative? That doesn¡¯t make sense... unless they¡¯re afraid of us? Hahaha, if that¡¯s how it is, then we won¡¯t hold back!

    "Give, give us everything!"

    "You¡¯re too greedy. I¡¯m not handing either of them over to you."

    Inseparable Love watched as the ugly monster lifted her chin at them like a tsundere, and he was struck by a feeling of exasperation.

    "Stop spouting nonsense and just steal it!" Tiny Little Loli shouted.

    "Let¡¯s not be so rough. Wouldn¡¯t it be better if they willingly handed the items over? That way, we won¡¯t need to take any action," Return Of The Jedi advised.

    North By Northwest: "But, the question is whether they¡¯re willing to the items over."

    Tiny Little Loli blew her top. "Didn¡¯t you hear their rejection just now? Please, can the lot of you not be so cowardly! Are you guys even men?!"

    Seeing this group of people clothed in ck falling out, Shen Jingbin felt that IQ, as expected, wasn¡¯t something everyone had. Things would be so much easier for them if all the yers from the Demonic Sect were like that.

    When they¡¯d jumped in, Quiet And Steadfast had only spared a single nce at Inseparable Love¡¯s group before he¡¯d turned all his attention to twisting open the old broken bottle in his hands.

    The bottle cap was made of metal, which made opening it after it hadpletely rusted through over the course of many years no easy task. Quiet And Steadfast had to keep at it for a good long while before he finally felt the bottle cap loosen slightly.

    Meanwhile, the clowns from the Demonic Sect were still quarreling off to the side.

    Quiet And Steadfast nced at them from the corner of his eye and managed topletely open the bottle, sending the remainder of the unknown viscous liquid inside of it onto the ruined pages in Shen Jingbin¡¯s hands.

    ¡¯Bang!¡¯

    The moment the unknown liquid dripped onto the ruined pages, both Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast were epassed by a faint blue light. The light shed once, and then they were gone.

    "Congrattions, you have opened the Megalith Gate."

    The dazzling blue light nearly blinded Inseparable Love andpany. When it gradually faded, they came back to their senses and blinked a couple of times. "Where are they?" Inseparable Love scratched his head and asked.

    Tiny Little Loli was utterly exasperated. "See what happened? I told you guys to attack them, yet you insisted on trying to intimidate them instead. Now they¡¯ve escaped!"

    Return Of The Jedi still wore the same dumb look on his face and said, "No, the main point is: how did they escape? Don¡¯t tell me they actually have a teleportation array?!"

    Before any of them could reply, a woman¡¯s sinister voice sounded from the entrance. "Where are they?"

    Inseparable Love andpany shook their heads.

    Nine Bads appeared at the entrance with Reckless East Emperor in tow, a thunderous expression on her face.

    "Eh, Nine Bads, why are you here?" Asked North By Northwest.

    Nine Bads ignored him. She surveyed the wooden hut, but couldn¡¯t find a single trace of Quiet And Steadfast and that ugly monster. She¡¯d felt a wave of uneasiness when she saw that second beam of light shoot out of the hut just now. That ugly monster was a sly fox; something was definitely off as there wasn¡¯t any activity after this bunch of idiots had been inside for so long.

    So, she hurried over with Reckless East Emperor.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that she¡¯d been right on the mark? As expected, they¡¯d disappeared.

    "What happened to them?" Nine Bads asked unhappily.

    Tiny Little Loli gave a cold snort and said, "Why should we tell you? What does this have to do with you anyway?"

    "Didn¡¯t I tell all of you before? Their heads are mine."

    "Then why didn¡¯te over earlier instead of bitching about it now? Are you all talk? Heh, so is that all you¡¯re good for?"

    Women truly were naturally gifted at mocking others. The moment Tiny Little Loli opened her mouth, Nine Bads lost control of her murderous intent. However, Tiny Little Loli failed to notice the change in atmosphere and continued mocking Nine Bads.

    Noticing that the atmosphere about them was clearly off, Inseparable Love hurriedly tried every way and means to send a signal to Tiny Little Loli, but she failed to notice any of her friend¡¯s well-intentioned warnings.

    "Say, have you been tailing us all this while? Were you nning on seizing the opportunity after our battle with the two of them to finish them off? So, even pros like you use these kinds of tricks too? I wonder who it was that said ¡¯everyone retreat, their heads are mine¡¯ in the guild channel. You sure are shameless. If I were you, I¡¯d have..."

    Tiny Little Loli didn¡¯t get the chance to finish, because one skill from Nine Bads was all it took to dispose of her.

    "I¡¯ve warned you guys about interfering, but since you did anyway, on ount of us being from the same sect I was thinking of leaving some leftovers for you guys," Said Nine Bads as she tilted her head upwards and stared down at the rest of them who were struck dumb by what had just happened. "However, seeing as the lot of you aren¡¯t even capable of watching over two people..."

    Nine Bads¡¯ pretty eyes widened and the longsword in her hand swept out, resulting in a wave of sword light being reflected from it and sending the rest of them off to respawn.

    "Leaving you around wouldn¡¯t serve any purpose," Nine Bads indifferently said as the white light that signified a yer¡¯s death shed past her.

    Watching from the sidelines, Reckless East Emperor was scared out of his wits.

    A woman¡¯s temper really did change as quickly as one flipped a book.

    "What do we do now that they¡¯re gone?" Reckless East Emperor asked.

    Nine Bads sheathed her sword and said, "We go back."

    "We¡¯re not going to look for them?"

    Nine Bads walked to the spot where Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast had disappeared from before she used the tip of her foot to brush against the ground. "They¡¯ve been transported to a secret realm."

 Chapter 222

    <b>Chapter 222: Divine Beast Chronicles (2)</b>

    To prevent their identities from being exposed, yers from the Shinra Sect didn¡¯t get transported into Hell when they died. Instead, they had their own respawn point, and their respawn process was a lot simpler than that of disciples from the Six Great Sects.

    After being killed by Nine Bads and resurrecting at the Shinra Sect base, Tiny Little Loli started spewing curses at her in the sect channel.

    [Shinra Sect] Tiny Little Loli: Nine Bads, you shameless woman, is killing off your sect members fun for you? You¡¯re actually an undercover agent from the Six Great Sects, right?

    [Shinra Sect] Tiny Little Loli: You hypocritical, scheming bitch, don¡¯t you feel embarrassed with yourself for doing something like this? The Shinra Sect has some seriously bad luck to have scum like you in it.

    [Shinra Sect] Oblivious Melon Eating-kun: ??? What happened?

    [Shinra Sect] Boeing 747: Are you guys fighting? Don¡¯t be like that, we don¡¯t have that many people to begin with.

    [Shinra Sect] Tiny Little Loli: Nine Bads, are you a mute? Acting as if you can¡¯t see what¡¯s happening! Speak up if you¡¯ve got what it takes! Heh, I didn¡¯t think that you were such a coward.

    Reckless East Emperor tipped Nine Bads off when he saw Tiny Little Loli continuously cursing her in the sect channel. "Take a look at the guild channel."

    Nine Bads nced at the guild channel before she coldly snorted and said, "Ignore her, she¡¯s an idiot."

    Reckless East Emperor felt helpless as he watched Tiny Little Loli¡¯s curses be increasingly more explicit over time. When he couldn¡¯t take it any longer and wanted to speak up for Nine Bads, she cast a nce at him.

    "You don¡¯t need to say anything; just kill her on sight from now on."

    "... Alright."

    Going back to Shen Jingbin¡¯s group.

    The two of them were transported to a space that waspletely closed off within the tattered notebook. This space was filled with towering bookshelves of every size that were filled to the brim with stitched bound books1.

    "This is?" Shen Jingbin asked as she looked at Quiet And Steadfast.

    Quiet And Steadfast walked towards a bookshelf, pulled out a random book, and starting flipping through it.

    "Divine Beast Chronicles," Quiet And Steadfast concentrated on the three words written in fanciful script for a moment before he managed to discern them.

    "Divine Beast Chronicles?" Shen Jingbin jogged over to his side and popped her head over to look. "It¡¯s a book about Divine Beasts?"

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. "Then let¡¯s check it to see if there¡¯s anything about the ck Tortoise," Shen Jingbin said hurriedly.

    Quiet And Steadfast started flipping through the book as she¡¯d said. Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t just idle around while she waited either. She walked over to another bookshelf and pulled out a book, but it was yet another <<Divine Beast Chronicles>> book. Could there only be this one book avable in the entire room? Just how much chronicling was there in this book?

    Turns out she¡¯d guessed correctly; all the books here were indeed titled <<Divine Beast Chronicles>>.

    This room had a total of four sides to it, with each side corresponding to a different Divine Beast. Everything about the Divine Beasts ¨C from the moment they were born to everything that happened after that ¨C was recorded in them. After discovering this clue, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast promptly gave up on the other three bookshelves and headed straight for the bookshelf situated in the North that represented the ck Tortoise.

    After searching for a while, the two of them finally found out that ck Tortoise¡¯sst appearance was at the Southern River Ind in Beiming Sea.

    Though they¡¯d managed to figure out roughly where the ck Tortoise was, they were now faced with a new problem.

    How were they going to get out of this ce?

    Quiet And Steadfast said, "Where¡¯s the notebook?"

    Shen Jingbin pulled the notebook out of her backpack.

    The ¡¯tattered notebook¡¯ was now identified as a ¡¯mysterious notebook¡¯. When Quiet And Steadfast reached out to take it from her, a notification sounded in both of their heads at the same time.

    "Would you like to be teleported out of this area?"

    So this was the key that connected the outside world to the hidden library?

    "Yes."

    "Yes."

    The two of them replied at the same time.

    When they opened their eyes once again, they found themselves back in the ruined hut. However, the only difference now was that the hut was empty.

    "Are they gone? Or are they..." Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Let¡¯s go. They probably knew that pointlessly waiting here wasn¡¯t a good idea since they didn¡¯t know where we went."

    "What a pity, I wanted to see if I could earn some contribution points," Shen Jingbin said regretfully.

    "There¡¯s more than enough opportunities for that in the future. Let¡¯s go take a look at Southern River Ind," Quiet And Steadfast replied.

    "Okay."

    After that, the two of them hurried towards Sunshine Cleansing Ind¡¯s ferry point.

    However, a messenger pigeon came pping over to them just as they exited the forest.

    "I¡¯ve found the Lead Disciple of the Maras."

    It was a letter from Pure Crane.

    The two of them nced at one another.

    "What now, where should we go first?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Quiet And Steadfast thought for a moment before he said, "Let¡¯s look for Pure Crane first; we can head over to the South Wei Inds at any time."

    "Alright."

    Forgoing the ferry that was heading towards Southern River Ind, the two of them instead boarded the ferry bound for Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal. They then found a teleportation point and jumped over to where Pure Crane was ¨C the depths of Eight Trigrams Field.

    "You¡¯re here," The moment they stepped out of the portal, Pure Crane walked forward to greet them.

    Shen Jingbin looked around. When she found that he was the only one present, she asked, "Where¡¯s the Lead Disciple of the Maras?"

    Pure Crane pointed behind him. "In the dungeon."

    There was a daily dungeon in the depths of Eight Trigrams Field. It wasn¡¯t very difficult, and it could be cleared in around twenty minutes with a normal party formation.

    "How long have they been in there for?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    "They just went in."

    "How¡¯d you found out about the Lead Disciple of the Maras?"

    "That person identally revealed the information himself when Delicate Flower¡¯s group went in with him."

    Quiet And Steadfast asked, "Which guild is he in?"

    "He¡¯s not part of any guild; he¡¯s a wanderer."

    Quiet And Steadfast smiled. "Alright, let¡¯s wait here then."

    A type of bookbinding used in the olden days that Chinese, Koreans, Vietnamese, and Japanese used. Here¡¯s a picture of what it looks like <b>INSERT PICTURE</b>?

 Chapter 223

    <b>Chapter 223: The Winds Of Ximen (1)</b>

    Delicate Flower andpany moved pretty quickly. Before long, those by the dungeon¡¯s entrance saw a beam of light and the appearance of several people.

    Apanying Delicate Flower into the dungeon was the Lead Disciple from Mara Hall, ck Kite, Cheshire Cat, and one other random. Once they exited the dungeon, the random bid them farewell and left. When ck Kite spotted Pure Crane, her eyes lit up, and she ran over to him with a smile on her face.

    The Lead Disciple of Mara Hall was about to say his goodbyes as well but was stopped by Cheshire Cat.

    "Brother Pure Crane!" ck Kite called out when she reached Pure Crane. "Eh, Jingjing, you¡¯re here too? And this person is...?"

    "Quiet And Steadfast," Shen Jingbin said simply.

    ck Kite¡¯s eyes widened in astonishment. "G-G-G-Great God?!"

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded in return. "Hello."

    "Oh my goodness, the Great God is standing in front of me! He even said hi to me!" ck Kite was so happy she almost died from happiness!

    Pure Crane promptly put a stop to her starstruck infatuation. "Stop kicking up a fuss."

    ck Kite returned to normal and obediently gave a grunt of acknowledgement.

    The four of them then made their way over to the Lead Disciple who was talking to Cheshire Cat by the dungeon¡¯s entrance.

    When she drew nearer, Shen Jingbin realised that this Mara was actually quite handsome too. He looked like a healthy person with a sunny disposition and was currently calmly discussing some matters rting to equipment with Cheshire Cat. He turned to face them when he felt them get closer.

    "Eh, you all are?" The Mara eyed them suspiciously. When his gazended on Shen Jingbin, a look of sudden realization dawned on his face. "Ah, you¡¯re the White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple, aren¡¯t you?!"

    "Mm? Mm."

    "Then the one wearing a veil beside you must be the Leader of Jade Sea Pavilion, the number one yer in the game, Quiet And Steadfast, right?"

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded his head.

    "You¡¯re rather knowledgeable," Cheshire Cat said.

    The Mara looked a little embarrassed as he rubbed his head. "Hehe, I like browsing the forums when I¡¯m bored, so I know a little about people who are at the center of discussions... Do you think this makes me a bit of a gossip?"

    Cheshire Cat was at a loss on how to reply when he was gazed at so earnestly by the Mara. Shen Jingbin, who was standing by the side, felt that he was somewhat adorkable. She was deathly afraid of the other Lead Disciples turning out like Morning Glory Chime.

    Pure Crane cleared his throat and said, "What should we call you?"

    "Ah, my name¡¯s The Winds Of Ximen."

    ck Kite chuckled, "Pfft, that¡¯s a nice name."

    "Really? I think so too. I personally feel that apart from my face and stature, I¡¯m most satisfied with this name."

    "Bro, I like your moxie," Shen Jingbin said.

    "Hahaha, is that so? Thank you. To be honest, I quite like your appearance as well. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s as ugly as the rumours made it out to be. It just looks a little... a little... Mm, delicate."

    "..." Delicate? Ah no, I¡¯m sorry. I suddenly feel like our sense of aesthetics are a little different?

    "Ximen, you¡¯re the Lead Disciple of Mara Hall, right?" Pure Crane asked.

    The Winds Of Ximen had a dumbfounded look on his face as he stared at Pure Crane. "How did you know? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve told anyone about it."

    Delicate Flower raised her hand and said, "Windy, you¡¯re the one who let it slip when we were in the dungeon just now. I told Pure Crane about it after that. They¡¯re Lead Disciples of their own sects as well and are looking for the respective Lead Disciples of every sect. So, I didn¡¯t think you would mind me telling them about your identity, right?"

    In truth, Delicate Flower had known The Winds Of Ximen for a while now. Although they¡¯d typically only speak to one another when they were clearing their daily quests or dungeons, it was clear that he was a very upright person. Delicate Flower quite liked him too, so she worried a little over whether he might get angry when she revealed his status as a Lead Disciple to Pure Crane.

    However, it looked as if she¡¯d been worried for nothing.

    The Winds Of Ximen wasn¡¯t even concerned about his identity being revealed. Rather, he was worried about some other nonsensical thing instead.

    "I was the one who said it? In the dungeon? Really? Why don¡¯t I remember it? Sigh, what did I say?" After saying that, he wore the expression of a curious baby and looked to Delicate Flower.

    Without giving Delicate Flower a chance to reply, Pure Crane said, "That¡¯s not important. We currently have a quest, and we need your help. We hope you¡¯ll ept and join our group."

    Pure Crane spoke with sincerity, and The Winds Of Ximen earnestly listened to his request. He turned to Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast, before finally settling his gaze on Pure Crane. In a rare show of seriousness, he asked, "May I ask how many people are currently in your group?"

    "Me, Nutjob, Quiet And Steadfast, and a Nymph from my guild; Morning Glory Chime. I¡¯ve already told her to hurry over."

    "Do I need to kill anyone if I join you guys? Killing people isn¡¯t really my thing."

    "Apart from any members of the Shinra Sect that we happen toe across, you don¡¯t need toy a hand on anyone else."

    "Then would you guys be using me to do all the dirty work? Take for instance bringing me into a dungeon and leeching off me. My old guild used to do that, forcing me to quit when I couldn¡¯t take it anymore."

    "Do you think we actually need you for that?"

    "Hm, since even the Great God is around, I don¡¯t think you guys would do that..." The Winds Of Ximen ced a hand on his chin and thought for a little while before he raised his head and shed a brilliant smile. "Alright then, I¡¯ll join you guys."

    Quiet And Steadfast took a step forward and stretched out a hand towards him. "Then allow me to wee you first."

    The Winds Of Ximen¡¯s eyes lit up as he stared at Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s outstretched hand. He then emotionally shoved his own hand into the palm of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s and said, "Great God, you don¡¯t have to be so polite; I adore you!"

    Shen Jingbin coughed twice. "The... two of you have such a unique way of holding hands."

    The two men shifted their gazes down...

    Then, The Winds Of Ximen jumped back a step, opening up the distance between him and Quiet And Steadfast. "Don¡¯t get me wrong, Great God, I don¡¯t have any improper thoughts towards you! I¡¯m straight."

    "... I wasn¡¯t overthinking things. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m straight too," Quiet And Steadfast said.

 Chapter 224

    <b>Chapter 224: The Winds Of Ximen (2)</b>

    After that, Quiet And Steadfast, Shen Jingbin, and Pure Crane, took turns to tell The Winds Of Ximen about the quests they¡¯d each received and what they¡¯d already done. They didn¡¯t attempt to hide anything from ck Kite and the rest, treating them as their own.

    Pure Crane doing this was something ck Kite andpany could understand; after all, Pure Crane had a special rtionship with them. However, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast doing the same made it infinitely clear how much trust they were cing in the three of them.

    Being trusted like this feels great!

    After they¡¯d more or less outlined everything that had happened, Morning Glory Chime came trotting over on her mount.

    "Apologies for the wait, Brother Quiet and Brother Pure Crane."

    After she dismounted, Morning Glory Chime wore an embarrassed look on her face as she apologised. She thenpletely neglected Shen Jingbin and swept her gaze past Delicate Flower andpany, only revealing a look of bewilderment on her face when her gazended on The Winds Of Ximen.

    "Brother Pure Crane, why¡¯d you call me over in such a rush for? And this person is...?"

    Pure Crane gave a simple round of introductions. When she found out who The Winds Of Ximen was, Morning Glory Chime cried out sweetly, "Brother Ximen!"

    Unfortunately, The Winds Of Ximen appeared to be the insensitive type. After visibly trembling, his face resolved into a mask of seriousness and he said, "Girl, don¡¯t call me ¡¯brother¡¯, it sends a chill down my spine and it¡¯s a little unbearable. Just call me Ximen or Windy."

    The Winds Of Ximen felt a little perplexed. Wasn¡¯t her not having to call him ¡¯brother¡¯ a good thing? Why do all the girls these days like running up to other people and calling them ¡¯brother¡¯?

    ck Kite walked up and patted him on the shoulder. "Don¡¯t cry Ximen; you weren¡¯t wrong. The world is the one that¡¯s in the wrong."

    "..."

    Different from the harmonious atmosphere that existed on Shen Jingbin¡¯s side, the air was heavy at the Shinra Sect¡¯s headquarters.

    Amongst the members of the Shinra Sect, Tiny Little Loli andpany belonged to one of the higher ranks. The waves that Nine Bads had set off by killing all of them off was enough to startle even the Shinra Sect¡¯s Leader.

    Everyone was off talking on their own in the Shinra Sect¡¯s chat channel that was beginning to devolve into anarchy when a dark red announcement swept across the channel. Every channel had its own fixed colour and font that yers couldn¡¯t change. Therefore, when this announcement appeared, countless eyes were immediately drawn to it. Upon reading the contents of the announcement, their emotions turned to ones of astonishment.

    [Shinra Sect Leader] Jue Di: Nine Bads, Tiny Little Loli, North By Northwest, and Return Of The Jedi, make a trip to the Divine Altar.

    What the f*******ck! The enigmatic Sect Leader is going to make an appearance?! Is he nning tounch an attack on the Six Great Sects now?!

    All of the Shinra Sect yers felt their blood burn hotter. On the other hand, the yers who¡¯d been named, apart from Nine Bads, were ovee with surprise, which promptly gave way to a mad dash towards the Shinra Sect¡¯s Divine Altar.

    ess to the Shinra Sect¡¯s Divine Altar was limited to yers of Sect Protector rank and above. Till now, none of the yers that had joined the Shinra Sect had been able to reach Sect Protector rank.

    The entirety of the altar was shrouded in gloom, with only two torches pulsing at the sides of the room. When all five of them were present, they began walking further in while Tiny Little Loli red daggers at Nine Bads.

    What looked like a throne could be seen at the highest point of the Divine Altar, and on it sat a figure. The five of them tried their best to make out their appearance, but their efforts were met with failure.

    It looked like the system was using the same method to obscure Jue Tian¡¯s appearance as it did for the sect¡¯s disciples.

    When they got nearer, the person sitting on the throne spoke softly, "Nine Bads." It was a pleasant voice, yet it was also the kind that caused goosebumps when one heard it, creating a feeling of unwellness.

    "Have you harmed our sect disciples?"

    Nine Bads even didn¡¯t bat an eyelid as she admitted her guilt. "Yes."

    The person sank into contemtion for a little while before he suddenly smiled and said, "Good! You¡¯ve got the right amount of viciousness! My Shinra Sect needs people like you!"

    Tiny Little Loli, who was eagerly awaiting the Sect Leader¡¯s reprisal for harming her own sect members, waspletely taken aback by this turn of events. "Sect, Sect Leader, aren¡¯t you going to do anything about this woman who¡¯s harmed her own sect members?"

    The person raised their voice and said, "We¡¯re a Demonic Sect; the crueler we are, the better. If one of our own actually has it in them to strike down their own sect members, then isn¡¯t that a wonderful disy of cruelty? Why should I punish her for that?"

    Nine Bads shot a mocking smile at Tiny Little Loli. Feeling depressed, Tiny Little Loli said, "Does that mean we¡¯ll be rewarded if we kill our fellow sect members in the future?!"

    "Imbecile!" Jue Tian roared. "Of the six Lead Disciples from the Six Great Sects, five of them have already been gathered. Now there¡¯s only one of them left, and you¡¯re telling me you¡¯re <b>still</b> thinking of going after your sect members?!"

    Tiny Little Loli: I¡¯m better off not trying to figure out what¡¯s going through the Sect Leader¡¯s head.

    "Listen up; I know all of you have it in you to cut down your fellow sect members. Now that five of the six Lead Disciples have been gathered, I want you lot to lead our disciples and take care of them," After saying that, Jue Tian tossed a medicine bottle at each of them. "This bottle contains a secret medicine belonging to our sect. All you need to do is spread it on them and they¡¯ll lose all of the cultivation that they¡¯ve built up, preventing them from threatening us ever again."

    When they heard that, the gazes of the five of them as they looked at the bottles in their hands grew zing hot.

    "Once you¡¯vepleted this task, I shall bestow a generous reward upon all of you."

    "Yes, Sect Leader!"

 Chapter 225

    <b>Chapter 225: Battle Of Eight Trigrams Field (1)</b>

    At some point, the thousands of miles of clear skies had been reced with gloom. From far, it looked as if the horizon was nketed byyer uponyer of roiling ck clouds; so abundant were they that they seemed to fill up the entire sky.

    Terrified by this disturbance, the spirit birds in White Cloud Temple¡¯s Stargazing Forest took to the air, sending the disciples that were charged with taking care of the spirit birds into a flurry as they rushed to look for Song Yuqing.

    "Sect Leader, things aren¡¯t looking good over at Stargazing Forest..." The disciple had just stepped into the courtyard when he spotted Song Yuqing standing there with an otherworldly air of an immortal about him. With his hands crossed behind his back, he was looking up at the turbulent clouds looming over the horizon.

    Song Yuqing turned back and nced at the disciple before he unhurriedly said, "These strange changes in the Heaven and Earth would naturally cause spirit birds, who can sense these changes, to feel uneasy. You need not fret over this," With a swish of his sleeve, a pure white porcin bottle appeared by the disciple¡¯s bosom. "This is a bottle of Spiritual Tranquility Incense. All you need to do is ce its contents in a censer and light it in Stargazing Forest. Now go."

    "Yes- yes, Sect Leader," The disciple stood there dumbfounded, clutching the porcin bottle for a few moments before he spun around and dashed off.

    Song Yuqing then returned his gaze to the sky. He stretched his hand out and swept it across the empty space in front of him. A graceful red-crowned crane cried out and materialised in that empty space before it slowly descended in front of him.

    He reached out to rub the red-crowned crane on the head, acting as if he¡¯d seen an old friend and said, "I¡¯ll be troubling you once more."

    Almost as if it was replying to what he¡¯d said, the red-crowned crane raised its slender neck and cried out.

    Several minutester, all of White Cloud Temple¡¯s disciples received an important letter from their Sect Leader.

    The weather system within <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> was one of its highlights. It boasted such an extreme level of realism that it was nearly indistinguishable from the real thing. Shen Jingbin¡¯s group was currently standing within the depths of Eight Trigrams Field, and was observing the clouds that had suddenly began to churn with a trace of appreciation in their hearts.

    Eight Trigrams Field was part of the Celestial¡¯s domain, and it was shrouded by one of their arrays, which meant that the weather patterns within this region were separated from the rest of the outside world. As a result of this, the sky here took on a dark purple hue, simr to that of the array.

    This was why, upon their arrival, their group was a little startled when they spotted the gloomy purple sky.

    "Could the system be doing this to celebrate our meeting?" The Winds Of Ximen asked in jest.

    "Is this the meeting of the century? Even the heavens and the earth are changing colours to mark this asion," ck Kite softly joked.

    At this moment, several white pigeons came flying towards them, with each of themnding on a person¡¯s shoulder. Shen Jingbin retrieved a letter from the pigeon that was perched on her shoulder.

    "My disciple Nutjob, I assume that you¡¯ve probably met with some of the Lead Disciples when you read this letter. The Shinra Sect has already discovered what you¡¯ve been doing. I¡¯ve just studied the sun, and found that a strange change is uring in the world, which likely has something to do with all of you. After all, your group is closely tied to the fate of this world. My purpose in writing this letter to you is to remind you to take the utmost of care going forward. I¡¯ve instructed all of the sect¡¯s disciples to join up with you and face theing crisis alongside you."

    Everyone finished reading their letters at the same time. The contents of the letters belonging to Shen Jingbin and the rest of the Lead Disciples were virtually the same. On the other hand, regr disciples, like Delicate Flower, receivedmands from their Sect Leaders to rush to the sides of their respective Lead Disciples with all haste. The end of the letter even including coordinates detailing where their Lead Disciples were currently located.

    "Doesn¡¯t this mean that our identities as Lead Disciples are going to be exposed?" Shen Jingbin came to a sudden realisation and said, "Doesn¡¯t that also mean that the identity of the Dragonkin¡¯s Lead Disciple is also going to be revealed?"

    Pure Crane took Delicate Flower and ck Kite¡¯s letters from the two of them and studied their contents for a little while before he said, "We can¡¯t say for sure. There¡¯s too many ways for events to y out in this game. Since the identity of the Dragonkin¡¯s Lead Disciple hasn¡¯t been revealed yet, their disciples might not have received any letters."

    "And here I thought we¡¯d be able to find the Dragonkin¡¯s Lead Disciple," Shen Jingbin muttered to herself.

    Quiet And Steadfast patted her on the head. "You¡¯re putting the gamepany in too kind of a light. Their shrewdness runs deep."

    Shen Jingbin sighed. That¡¯s true.

    Sure enough, Pure Crane was right on the mark. A short whileter, all colours of the rainbow began to slowly shine across the sky as flying mounts of all shapes and sizes came rushing over. Thankfully, Eight Trigrams Field was huge. Otherwise, the vast number of yers present would have squished themselves to death. Once theynded, all of the neers stood slightly away from them, not daring toe any closer.

    Shen Jingbin nced around, and found that there really weren¡¯t any yers from the Dragonkin Tower.

    Several secondster, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion came hurrying over as well andnded right beside Shen Jinbin and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side.

    When Next Week Is Unlikely saw the number of yers gathered at Eight Trigrams Field, he asked, "Ah Ning, what¡¯s going on?"

    Quiet And Steadfast shrugged, indicating that he didn¡¯t really know what was going on either. "I¡¯ve only just received a letter from the Sect Leader as well, so I¡¯m too sure of what¡¯s going on."

    The Four Monsters had long since started causing a ruckus.

    "Oh my god, doesn¡¯t this mean that all of you are the Lead Disciples of your sects? What should we do? They¡¯re so dazzling!"

    "Ah, each and every one of them is someone important! My pleb eyes can¡¯t take it anymore, I¡¯m about to go blind!"

    "Tsk tsk tsk, so even you know that you¡¯re a pleb."

    "I¡¯ve always had this feeling that I was going to aplish something big in the future."

    Shen Jingchen was thest person to rush over. He walked to Shen Jingbin, then grabbed her shoulders and asked, "What the hell happened this time?!"

    "... I don¡¯t know either."

    "Are you a pig? What do you mean you don¡¯t know?!"

    "Hehe, you¡¯re my brother. If I¡¯m a pig, what does that make you?"

    "..."

 Chapter 226

    <b>Chapter 226: Battle Of Eight Trigrams Field (2)</b>

    Due to the arrival of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s members, what was once hushed whispers suddenly turned into a ruckus. Next Week Is Unlikely nced at the yers who were there before he moved over to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s ear and said, "There are a fair number of yers from Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent here as well, but none of their core members are present."

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. At this moment, the roiling ck clouds became even more turbulent, and faint traces of thunder could be heard, drawing everyone¡¯s attention to it. Suddenly, someone shouted, "Look, it looks like someone¡¯s in the clouds!"

    Everyone looked over with rapt attention. Sure enough, a person¡¯s silhouette was faintly discernible in the churning clouds. It was just like that scene back in <<Journey to the West>> when ten thousand celestial troops and generals set out to capture Sun Wukong.

    The Winds Of Ximen suddenly said, "I sense murderous intent, things don¡¯t look good."

    He wasn¡¯t the only one who felt it; all of the pros present also felt an oppressive sensation emanating from within the clouds.

    Quiet And Steadfast narrowed his eyes and suddenly raised his voice. "Everyone, be on your guard!"

    Almost unconsciously, everyone responded by assuming abat stance. When the thickest ck cloud drew nearer, everyone was finally able to make out what was happening inside of it.

    There really were people standing within the clouds! They were fully outfitted in ck and also sported ck cloaks, which were used to conceal their appearance.

    They were all yers from the Shinra Sect!

    The Shinra Sect bing increasingly active was something that everyone could see. However, this was their first time seeing such a grand and imposing entrance, causing many yers¡¯ jaws to drop to the ground.

    The person standing at the head of the ck clothed people suddenly raised their hand and pointed towards Eight Trigrams field. A momentter, the rest of the Shinra Sect members leapt out of their clouds.

    "Kill the roaches!" Someone shouted from amongst the gathered yers. Excitement began to build as they raised their weapons against the Shinra Sect yers near them and began hacking away with reckless abandon.

    "Quick quick quick, heal me! I¡¯m about to die, I¡¯m about to die!"

    "Finish them off, finish them off! One of them¡¯s about to keel over here, someonee over and take them out; I¡¯m out of MP!"

    "F*ck, who poked my butt?! Enough with the friendly fire!"

    "Another one bites the dust! Hahaha, this is great, I need to earn lots of points today!"

    "F*ck f*ck f*ck! Someone, heal me- ugh."

    "Daoist, hurry up and CC that girl!"

    Parties worked together and beganunching their assault, while lone individuals drifted about the battlefield. On the other hand, the Shinra Sect yers all split up and battled on their own, employing dirty hit and run tactics.

    All of their des were tipped with poison, causing many of the weaker yers to transform into beams of white light once they¡¯d been struck.

    Nine Bads and Inseparable Love¡¯s group stood unmoving on their cloud from up high, unconcerned by what was taking ce beneath them.

    "Do you see the ugly monster?" Nine Bads asked.

    Overlooking the entirety of Eight Trigrams Field from their position, Inseparable Love could only make out a muddled mass of bodies shing against one another. Aside from being able to make out their own sect members with great difficulty, he wasn¡¯t able to spot anyone else.

    However, almost as if she¡¯d installed a GPS on Shen Jingbin, Nine Bads managed to spot her within the melee with a single nce, while the members of Jade Sea Pavilion were clustered around her. Surrounding areas asionally saw Shinra Sect disciples sending yers to Hell, but the area Shen Jingbin¡¯s group was in saw Shinra Sect disciples being sent back to their own respawn point instead.

    Different from the raging battle that was unfolding before them, the Lead Disciples of the five sects didn¡¯t seem to be the least bit perturbed. In fact, they even raised their heads and seemed to be looking at Nine Bads¡¯ party.

    "Over there by the dungeon¡¯s entrance," Nine Bads said. "Remember, our main objective is to spread this secret medicine on them and think of a way to kill them; got that?!"

    Tiny Little Loli, looking like she couldn¡¯t be bothered with the way Nine Bads was ordering them around, retorted, "The one who should bear that in mind the most is you!"

    Ignoring her, Nine Bads issued her next order, "Move out!"

    Nine Bads was the first to jump out after issuing her order, disappearing into the mass of people momentster, leaving Tiny Little Loli ring at her with impotent rage. Inseparable Love patted her consolingly and said, "The quest¡¯s more important; be careful out there!" With that, he jumped off the cloud as well.

    Following in Inseparable Love¡¯s footsteps, the remaining two people also gave her a pat before they jumped into the fray.

    Tiny Little Loli ground her teeth in frustration. Just you wait Nine Bads, I¡¯m definitely going to take care of you!

    "Take note; the five people on the cloud have jumped off, and they¡¯re likely headed our way," Shen Jingbin immediately sent out a warning to everyone the moment she spotted them jumping off.

    The Winds Of Ximen looked like he was in high spirits. "Let theme! Although I don¡¯t like killing people, I still like cutting down yers from the Demonic Sect! Have no fear, let¡¯s meet them head on!¡¯

    "..."

    "Today¡¯s battle came about way too abruptly; there¡¯s definitely some deeper meaning to this. Everyone should stay on their toes," Pure Crane said.

    Quiet And Steadfast voiced his agreement, " Remember not to get separated."

    "Brother Quiet, Brother Pure Crane, I¡¯m the weakest in the group, so you have to remember to protect me," Morning Glory Chime said.

    "We can protect you, but you yourself have to have to be quick on the uptake too. After all, we aren¡¯t afraid of strong enemies, but we are afraid of blundering teammates," The Winds Of Ximen said.

    "..." Get lost, I¡¯ve got nothing to say to you.

    As the members of Jade Sea Pavilion hadn¡¯t specificallye to protect Shen Jingbin this time around, these bunch of criminals just gave her a greeting in passing before they too leaped into battle.

    Shen Jingbin took notice of several ck clothed yers drifting about the battlefield, but never actually taking action. In fact, they were getting increasingly closer towards her.

    "Be advised, suspicious people have been sighted. There¡¯s two of them at 3 o¡¯clock, one at 8 o¡¯clock, and another two at 11 o¡¯clock."

    "Eh, what¡¯s your vision?" The Winds Of Ximen looks around in the directions Shen Jingbin had pointed out and did indeed find some suspicious activity.

    "Ximen, activate your shield," Came Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s suddenmand.

    Heeding Quiet And Steadfast¡¯smand, The Winds Of Ximen activated his Mara skill and shielded the party. Upon realising that they¡¯d been discovered, the five suspicious looking people who were clothed in ck and gradually drawing closer to them disappeared back into the mass of bodies in an instant.

 Chapter 227

    <b>Chapter 227: Loss Of The Nymph Abode¡¯s Lead Disciple (1)</b>

    The worst kind of enemy was the type you couldn¡¯t see, while you yourself were out in the open. Even if one had superior forces, there was no guarantee that losses could be avoided.

    "They¡¯ve hidden themselves; what do we do now?" Pure Crane asked.

    Quiet And Steadfast narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "Attack is the best defence."

    "What if it¡¯s a trap? Wouldn¡¯t we be shooting ourselves in the foot?" The Winds Of Ximen countered.

    "All schemes will fall apart in the face of absolute strength."

    How domineering!

    Stars almost started sparkling in Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes when she¡¯d heard what he said.

    Feeling a little timid, Morning Glory Chime weakly asked, "My defence is too low, all it probably takes is a single attack to do away with me. I think it¡¯ll be better if I hide somewhere instead." After she spoke, everyone turned to gaze at her. Being stared at like that made her feel uneasy, so she innocently added, "Did I say something wrong?"

    "No," Pure Crane said as he looked at her with the same look of kindness that he always had. "Just take care of yourself then; we won¡¯t bother about you. You can even log off if you want."

    Morning Glory Chime nodded her head and was just about to reply when a female Nymph nearby happened to overhear them and started cursing Morning Glory Chime.

    "F*ck, I didn¡¯t know the Nymph Abode had trash like you as our Lead Disciple! You¡¯re thinking of escaping even when things are going well? This is the first time I¡¯ve seen someone so afraid of death. If I¡¯d known earlier I wouldn¡¯t even have bothered withing over."

    This girl was probably your stereotypical tomboy. She spoke in a very aggressive manner and she was pretty loud to boot. Almost all of the yers nearby heard what she¡¯d said, causing countless looks of disdain to fall on Morning Glory Chime. This dashed away all her thoughts of logging off to avoid the conflict.

    "Stop spouting nonsense! Who says I¡¯m thinking of running away?! I was just... just talking about it, that¡¯s all!"

    The girl gave a snort of disdain. Morning Glory Chime was clearly affected by this, which caused her pretty face to flush red. "Just wait and see! You can do whatever you want with me if I run away today!" She said indignantly.

    "Alright, I¡¯ll be watching you!" The girl replied without a hint of politeness.

    Morning Glory Chime suddenly felt like she¡¯d put herself on the spot.

    Up to this point, disciples of both the Demonic Sect and the Great Sects incurred no small amount of losses. The Great Sects, in particr, had lost scores of regr yers. The ones that remained now were almost all higher leveled yers. However, due to the number of yers involved in this battle, there were still many people left alive in Eight Trigrams Field. At present, Nine Bads¡¯ group was roaming about, which made it effortless to avoid the gaze of Shen Jingbin¡¯s group.

    Nine Bads¡¯ group slowly inched forward through the gaps in their surveince. When they were within throwing distance of the medicine, Nine Bads stopped. The other four of them, who were keeping an eye on her, stopped as well.

    She stretched out her hand which was previously hidden under her cloak and slowly gestured...

    Three, two, one!

    They pulled out the stopper on their bottle of medicine, rushed forward, and tossed the pitch ck liquid within it at their respective targets. The liquid drew an arc as it flew towards Shen Jingbin¡¯s group, and was just about to hit them when...

    Unexpectedly, one of the four figures suddenly moved!

    They possessed a lithe figure and acted as if they had eyes in the back of their head, perfectly dodging the ongoing liquid, and preventing even a single drop of liquid from staining their body!

    "Ah!"

    "F*ck!"

    Low curses and cries of pain rang out at almost the same time.

    "Withdraw!" Having heard their cries, the scattered members of Jade Sea Pavilion were now converging back towards them. Several lone individuals and elite yers from other guilds were also headed towards them. When she saw this, Nine Bads decisively issued the order to retreat.

    Heeding hermand, Inseparable Love pulled out something that looked like a whistle and blew on it.

    The ear-piercing screech of the whistle rang out, and the rest of the Shinra Sect forces immediately pulled back.

    They¡¯d already agreed that their primary objective this time around was to destroy the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects. Then, if the situation allowed for it, they would proceed to mop up the disciples of the good sects to umte some contribution points. However, if things were to go south, they¡¯d immediately retreat with the sound of a whistle acting as the signal.

    Using an escape skill that was unique to the Shinra Sect, it¡¯s members beat a swift and orderly retreat. The remaining yers from the Six Great Sects exchanged nces at one another before they sheathed their weapons and hurried over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s group.

    The yers formed a circle around Shen Jingbin¡¯s group as they themselves surrounded a woman who was continuously twitching on the ground.

    The woman¡¯s formerly beautiful face was twisted into a vicious snarl. That, coupled with the way she was incessantly twitching, made it seem like she was suffering from a fit of epilepsy no matter how you looked at it.

    "What¡¯s going on? Did she forget to adjust her pain levels?"

    "That can¡¯t be; how stupid would you have to be to not know how to adjust your pain levels? Furthermore, she¡¯s wearing Level 90 equipment. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anyone who can get to Level 90 and not know how to adjust their pain levels."

    "That¡¯s very much possible. Women these days are all idiots, to the point where they even turn games into fashion shows; so how would they find the time to figure out things like this?"

    Morning Glory Chime had the sudden urge to kill herself when she heard these whispered mutterings around her!

    She¡¯d clearly adjusted her pain levels the moment she¡¯d entered the game, so why was she in so much pain now?!

    All of the bones in her body were creaking, as if they were about to break at any moment, while her blood pumped furiously within her veins, threatening to explode out of her body at the drop of a hat.

    Never in her life had she experienced pain like this, and in response, her body began to uncontrobly twitch and spasm.

 Chapter 228

    <b>Chapter 228: Loss Of The Nymph Abode¡¯s Lead Disciple (2)</b>

    Seeing Morning Glory Chime¡¯s face turn increasingly pale, ck Kite asked worriedly, "What¡¯s going on?" She and Cheshire Cat had been continuously buffing and healing her, but none of it seemed to have any effect.

    Delicate Flower was equally worried about her. Even though she didn¡¯t like Morning Glory Chime all that much, Pure Crane andpany still needed her, so nothing could be allowed to happen to her. "Weren¡¯t those people from the Shinra Sect trying to throw something at you from before? I saw Morning Glory Chime be like this after that thing they were throwingnded on her."

    Startled by the snarl on Morning Glory Chime¡¯s face, The Winds Of Ximen said, "Even so, that sounds way too malicious. Pure Crane, she hasn¡¯t adjusted her pain levels, right?"

    "No, she¡¯s set her pain levels to the lowest possible setting," Pure Crane said with a solemn look on his face.

    Shen Jingbin pinched her brows. She had yet to adjust her pain levels when she suffered her first death, and that sensation was one she never wanted to experience again for the rest of her life. However, Morning Glory Chime looked like she was suffering even more than she was back then. "Is it possible for her to be in this much pain even after she adjusted her pain levels?"

    While indicating for The Winds Of Ximen to cover her with a shield, Quiet And Steadfast said, "This is likely the work of that thing the Shinra Sect disciples threw at us; it seems to forcibly adjust our pain levels."

    "What the f*ck? Such a setting actually exists?" The Winds Of Ximen cried out in surprise.

    "There is. Intentionallymitting suicide is one such way of having your pain levels forcefully changed," Pure Crane chimed in.

    Quiet And Steadfast thought back to the battle for the title of Underworld City¡¯s City Lord and recalled that he still hadn¡¯t used the Vajra Possession Elixir that Nutjob had given him, so he shouted out, "Dawn!"

    Shen Jingchen hurriedly replied, "I¡¯m here, what¡¯s wrong?"

    "We still have one Vajra Possession Elixir left, right? Hand it over."

    Shen Jingchen shot a nce at Morning Glory Chime and then Quiet And Steadfast before he pulled out thest remaining Vajra Possession Elixir and handed it Quiet And Steadfast. "Something this good... Sigh, what a waste."

    When the Vajra Possession Elixir appeared, all of the yers surrounding them gasped in unison.

    Just how rich was Jade Sea Pavilion? To think that they could pull out an elixir as miraculous as this at the drop of a hat, and they¡¯re even giving it to an outsider? Wait a minute, doesn¡¯t that woman on the ground look like one of the members of Sovereign¡¯s Descent who they¡¯re currently hostile towards? What the f*ck! This was repaying maliciousness with kindness!

    Quiet And Steadfast handed the Vajra Possession Elixir over to Shen Jingbin when he received it and said, "You feed it to her, it¡¯s not convenient for me."

    Shen Jingbin shot a nce at him and noticed he was trying to curry favor a little with her, so she silently epted the elixir and fed it to Morning Glory Chime.

    "Sorry, the yer has refused to consume any restorative items."

    Although Morning Glory Chime¡¯s body was wracked with pain, her mind was fully aware of everything that was happening. She was deeply moved by Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s willingness to part with a godly elixir, and while she felt a little let down at his unwillingness to personally feed it to her, she could live the rest of her life without any regrets if she had the chance to consume a godly elixir!

    As Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand slowly drew closer to her mouth, Morning Glory Chime mustered all the strength in her body to open her chattering teeth, but a chime from the system¡¯s notification suddenly rang out by her ear. "Your current status has prevented this action. You are unable to consume any restorative items."

    Your mum! Dev team, I need to have a chat with you guys about life!

    "It won¡¯t work, I received a system notification saying that she can¡¯t consume the Vajra Possession Elixir," Shen Jingbin said as she shook her head and handed the Vajra Possession Elixir back to Quiet And Steadfast. However, Shen Jingchen snatched it part way through and deposited it into his own backpack.

    "I¡¯ll take care of it."

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "You good-for-nothing!"

    "Hmph."

    It looked like things were at an impasse as everyone stared helplessly at Morning Glory Chime who was writhing on the ground.

    When it looked like she was at her limit, Morning Glory Chime twitched once before her body went still and gradually started turning transparent.

    Pure Crane, who was in the same party as Morning Glory Chime, suddenly nched and shouted, "Look at her Level!"

    Shen Jingbin and the rest immediately turned their attention to the party window.

    To their surprise, Morning Glory Chime¡¯s Level was steadily dropping at a rate of roughly 1 Level every three seconds.

    "What¡¯s, what¡¯s going on?" The Winds Of Ximen asked. The surrounding yers stared fixedly at them, unaware of the changes to Morning Glory Chime¡¯s Levels, and practically driven mad by curiosity.

    "Those five people clothed in ck have been making their way towards us from the very beginning. Could this be the reason why? That thing they used probably reduces a yer¡¯s Levels," Shen Jingbin said.

    Panic broke out the moment she finished speaking.

    Why the f*ck were they still out here duking it out with the Shinra Sect when they had items that could strip away their Levels? All they needed to do was sprinkle some of it around and they¡¯d be screwed in minutes.

    Someone ventured further and asked, "Th-then, does it affect only the Lead Disciples, or does it affect all yers?"

    "My guess is that it can only be used on Lead Disciples, but I can¡¯t be certain," Shen Jingbin replied.

    As they spoke, the speed of Morning Glory Chime¡¯s decrease in Levels suddenly increased, and her Level took a nosedive from 90 to 20 in an instant!

    [System Announcement] The Heavens are as unpredictable as the weather, each day brings with it either fortune or cmity. yer Morning Glory Chime has suffered a grievous loss by having her cultivation base destroyed, and losing her position as the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs.

    [System Announcement] The position of Lead Disciple of the Nymphs is now open, and brave heroes from all walks of life are eager to im it for their own. Who will be the next Lead Disciple of the Nymphs? Let¡¯s wait and see!

    Two scarlet read announcements suddenly popped up, causing all the Nymph yers to bubble up in excitement.

    On the other hand, this announcement was like a bolt from the blue to Shen Jingbin¡¯s group.

    They¡¯d finally managed to gather five of the six Lead Disciples, only to have Morning Glory Chime lose her position. Didn¡¯t that mean they¡¯d have to start their search all over again?!

    This was definitely trolling!

    Morning Glory Chime had now be so transparent you almost couldn¡¯t see her, and as Quiet And Steadfast bowed his head and looked at her, his eyes sparkled.

    The atmosphere in Eight Trigrams Field suddenly became heavy.

 Chapter 229

    <b>Chapter 229: Severing Ties (1)</b>

    The yers gathered at Eight Trigrams Field dispersed several hourster, leaving only Shen Jingbin¡¯s group and the rest of the members of Jade Sea Pavilion.

    Morning Glory Chime had died, so they nned to wait where they were till she respawned to find out how she was doing.

    However, they didn¡¯t see hide nor hair of her even after waiting there for a good long while.

    "Hey, didn¡¯t she die in a really unique way just now? Maybe her method of respawning might be different as well," The Winds Of Ximen said as he thought back to how Morning Glory Chime had died by slowly fading away into nothingness.

    ck Kite pped her hands in agreement. "Ah, that¡¯s likely the case! Otherwise, she shouldn¡¯t be taking so long to respawn."

    Delicate Flower shot a long and profound look at ck Kite before she said, "She¡¯s taking a long time? I seem to remember you being stuck in Hell for quite a while toost time."

    "The f*ck, you¡¯re not supposed to mention my dark past!" You¡¯re even saying it in front of all the pros from Jade Sea Pavilion! Leave a bit of my dignity intact will you?! ck Kite leapt over to Delicate Flower in an instant and covered her mouth before she shot a timid nce at the members of Jade Sea Pavilion.

    However, to her dismay, not a single person from Jade Sea Pavilion was paying attention to her.

    Instead, they were huddled around Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast.

    "Are the two of you going to keep waiting for her?" Next Week Is Unlikely asked.

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. "We¡¯ve got something we need to ask, so we can¡¯t leave."

    Slight Chill rolled her eyes. "Then I won¡¯t apany you guys. I¡¯ll be leaving first; I¡¯ve got something to take care of."

    "You guys should also go if you¡¯ve got anything you need to do, you don¡¯t need to wait here with us. Just remember to look out for Shinra Sect members," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    "Leader, I¡¯m bored, so I think I¡¯ll hang around with you and wait," I¡¯m Not A Monster said.

    "Same here," I¡¯m Really Not A Monster added.

    "I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve got anything on either. Might as well keep you guyspany," Actually, I Am A Monster chimed in as well.

    I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me shot a nce at hispanions who were buzzing around the Nymph beside Pure Crane before he ruthlessly exposed them. "Pui, you guys just want to hang around to look at girls. Stoping up with excuses."

    "Shut up!"

    "..."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly perked up. "Look at girls? Who? Is it Delicate Flower or ck Kite?"

    "These beasts over here only like girls who are kind-hearted and cute!" I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me dered.

    Shen Jingbin rest her chin on her hand and wore a thoughtful look on her face. "Then, it has to be ck Kite."

    "...Ah, I think I¡¯ve still got some dailies that I haven¡¯t cleared."

    "Eh, I think I¡¯ve got some dailies I haven¡¯t cleared as well. Does anyone want toe along with me?"

    "Mememe! I haven¡¯t done it as well. Take me along."

    I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: ... Are you guys pigs?! You don¡¯t even know the right way to change the subject!

    In the end, everyone else from Jade Sea Pavilion left, leaving behind Shen Jingbin, Quiet And Steadfast, and Shen Jingchen. Shen Jingchen, who¡¯d insisted on staying behind, rounded Pure Crane several times before he said regretfully, "Why didn¡¯t you get hit? That way I could¡¯ve had a chance to be the Lead Disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion."

    Pure Crane smiled at him and said, "Probably because I¡¯m smarter than that."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s face fell, and he let out a disgruntled snort.

    After the Four Monsters¡¯ tomfoolery, Shen Jingbin andpany continued waiting for a little while more, but still had yet to see any sign of Morning Glory Chime. At this point, Shen Jingbin started to share the same suspicions as The Winds Of Ximen. Just then, a new wave of people suddenly poured in from the entrance of Eight Trigrams Field.

    "Eh, why¡¯re there more peopleing over again? Aren¡¯t they a little toote?" ck Kite muttered.

    Quiet And Steadfast, and Shen Jingbin with her sharp eyes had long since spotted Neverending Journey, who was walking at the forefront of this new group of yers; his face covered with a murderous expression.

    "Pure Crane, your Leader¡¯s here," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    "Mm?" Pure Crane stepped forward and squinted. It really was Neverending Journey.

    Neverending Journey set a brisk pace, reaching them a short whileter. He shot an unkind nce at the trio from Jade Sea Pavilion before he turned his gaze to ck Kite¡¯s group, who posed no threat at all. Hepletely ignored the random person he didn¡¯t know, The Winds Of Ximen. Then, finally, his gazended on Pure Crane.

    "Pure Crane, I thought I made myself clearst time back at the Ice Extermination Cavern."

    "What did you say?"

    "You¡¯re the Vice-leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent! I forbade you from having dealings with yers from Jade Sea Pavilion! I overlooked what happenedst time, but don¡¯t you think you should be giving me an exnation this time around?"

    Pure Crane suddenly asked a question of his own in return, "I don¡¯t recall promising you anything back at the Ice Extermination Cavern though?" When Neverending Journey heard his reply, his face instantly turned even more unsightly.

    One of the yers behind Neverending Journey shouted, "Vice-leader, are you abandoning us to join Jade Sea Pavilion?!"

    Although Pure Crane was popr, that didn¡¯t mean everyone liked him. There were some people who¡¯d be envious of anyone who was stronger than them and had long since taken issue with him. One such person immediately continued, "Our Vice-leader has found a nice big backer to support him! Which makes sense since no matter how you look at it Jade Sea Pavilion is the number one guild in the game. It¡¯s got tons of pros within it and just oozes fame. A middling guild like ours definitely can¡¯t match up to it."

    "Silence!" Neverending Journey chided. He then turned his attention to Pure Crane and said, "Pure Crane, I¡¯ve never treated you coldly during all of the time we¡¯ve spent together aspanions. Can you really live with yourself after what you¡¯ve done to me?"

    A trace of ridicule suddenly appeared on Pure Crane¡¯s face after Neverending Journey spoke.

    Live with myself?

    What kind of person was Neverending Journey?

    The son of an affluent family in real life, who is of the belief that he¡¯s infallible and considers everyone beneath him; all of these words fit him to a T. Companions? Haha, so it turns out that Neverending Journey¡¯spanions were for picking up after him.

    Neverending Journey would often verbally abuse him in front of the entire guild. There were also times when he¡¯d push the me for his own strategic failures onto Pure Crane.

    Pure Crane was truly pitiful for having apanion like him.

 Chapter 230

    <b>Chapter 230: Severing Ties (2)</b>

    Neverending Journey clearly hadn¡¯t noticed the look of ridicule in Pure Crane¡¯s eyes and continued prattling on.

    "Pure Crane, as long as you swear in front of everyone that you¡¯ll never have dealings with Jade Sea Pavilion again, followed by an apology to me, I¡¯m willing to forgive you one more time... Are those guys over there your friends? If you do as I say, I¡¯d be willing to consider taking them into the guild even if they don¡¯t meet the entry requirements for joining."

    Pure Crane coldly rejected Neverending Journey after he finished talking. "Don¡¯t bother."

    "What did you say?" Neverending Journey couldn¡¯t believe what he was hearing.

    "I said don¡¯t bother."

    "So, you¡¯re truly nning to fall out with your own guild?" Neverending Journey red at him and asked.

    "Vice-leader, don¡¯t be so impulsive, just apologise," Someone from the crowd urged.

    There were others who took issue with his response. "What kind of attitude is that? Forget attacking our enemies; he¡¯s not even falling to take us up on the offer when we¡¯re giving him a way out. What¡¯s the point of taking someone so shameless back into the guild? Do we leave them in the guild just to decorate our roster? Leader, let¡¯s kick him out! We¡¯ve got so many people in the guild, and I refuse to believe that we won¡¯t be able to function."

    This person immediately incited the ire of several old guards in the guild when he spoke.

    "What did you just say? Do you know just how important Pure Crane is to our guild? What does a noob like you who joined the guild not long ago know? What does this have to do with you? Shut up."

    "That¡¯s right, do you think you¡¯re cool just because you¡¯re wearing a World Boss set? Since when were you qualified to talk about our Vice-leader?"

    "Wearing a World Boss set makes me look cool; what about it? Pure Crane¡¯s important? Haha, I don¡¯t care how important he is! All I know is that your Vice-leader has betrayed us for another guild! What, he can change sides, but I can¡¯t point it out?!"

    Even when the two yers behind Neverending Journey began quarreling, Pure Crane still looked like the picture of indifference. In that instant, Neverending Journey felt as if he was losing all face and flew into a shame-fuelled rage. "Shut up! Stop f*cking squabbling like a bunch of children!"

    Everyone went silent.

    Shen Jingbin, who was watching the event unfold from the side, dragged Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingchen over to where ck Kite¡¯s group was and said, "Who knew that even men loved mouthing off."

    "Don¡¯t use the people of Sovereign¡¯s Descent to represent us men; I feel like I¡¯m being devalued!" Shen Jingchen replied.

    "How do you think things are going to turn out in the end?" Shen Jingbin asked Quiet And Steadfast.

    The moment she said that Quiet And Steadfast felt several gazesnd on him. "I think that Pure Crane probably wants to leave Sovereign¡¯s Descent."

    "Why?!" ck Kite asked in astonishment.

    "Since things have progressed to this extent, staying in the guild will only make it more vexing for him."

    "Actually, leaving now¡¯s good too. Neverending Journey isn¡¯t suited to be Pure Crane¡¯s friend," Cheshire Cat added.

    Shen Jingbin turned to look at Delicate Flower and Cheshire Cat, and said, "The two of you sound like you really know what¡¯s going on."

    Cheshire Cat and Delicate Flower each expressed a silent smile.

    Neverending Journey¡¯s expression darkened to the point where the words ¡¯overcast¡¯ would be an understatement. Inparison, Pure Crane looked much more rxed, causing a new wave of difort to run through Neverending Journey.

    "Alright, Pure Crane, there¡¯s nothing else for me to say since you¡¯ve made up your mind! From this day forth, you¡¯re no longer the Vice-leader of Sovereign¡¯s Descent; you¡¯re not even a regr member! You¡¯ve been expelled from Sovereign¡¯s Descent! You¡¯ll see just who¡¯s your friend and who¡¯s your enemy in the future! Mark my words, you won¡¯t get a shred of mercy from me!"

    With that, Neverending Journey opened the guild management window and was just about to expel Pure Crane when he saw two notifications appear on the guild channel.

    [Guild] Vice-leader Pure Crane has resigned from his position and be a regr member.

    [Guild] Following the ebb and flow of the tide, and a fate preordained by the heavens, yer Pure Crane has left the guild.

    Everything happened in almost an instant with Pure Crane¡¯s actions flowing as smoothly as water and without a hint of hesitation about them. He then looked Neverending Journey straight in the eye and said, "No need to trouble yourself; I¡¯ll leave on my own."

    Neverending Journey was so furious that he couldn¡¯t even say a single word.

    He¡¯d been beside himself with rage when he¡¯d heard from Nine Bads that Pure Crane was Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s Lead Disciple. The fact that Pure Crane had hidden something so vital from him had infuriated him to no end. And now, he¡¯d caught wind of Pure Crane hanging around with Quiet And Steadfast once again. Not just that, Pure Crane was together with Quiet And Steadfast at Eight Trigrams Field fending off yers from the Shinra Sect, bringing Neverending Journey¡¯s anger to its boiling point.

    He¡¯d clearly made his displeasure known when he¡¯d previously spotted Pure Crane together with Quiet And Steadfast at the Ice Extermination Cavern. After that incident, they¡¯d been at odds with one another and hadn¡¯t spoken. He¡¯d been waiting for Pure Crane to take the initiative and apologise. But, who would¡¯ve known that he wasn¡¯t even the least bit concerned about had happened! In fact, he¡¯d continued to cavort with the enemy!

    So, Neverending Journey had decided to seek him out. He¡¯d figured that there¡¯d be no way Pure Crane would choose Quiet And Steadfast over him in front of the guild.

    But...

    "Pure Crane, I hope you don¡¯t regret this."

    "There¡¯s nothing to regret."

    "Good, then our friendship is over! You¡¯re dead to me!"

    "As you will."

    "... Let¡¯s go!" Neverending Journey flicked his sleeve in frustration and walked off.

    Sovereign¡¯s Descent¡¯s members followed behind Neverending Journey in rows of twos or threes without looking back. However, there were some who turned to look at Pure Crane after taking several steps. Their eyes were with filled with anticipation; as if they thought that Pure Crane would suddenly regret what he¡¯d done and apologise before returning to the guild.

    On the contrary, knowing that they couldn¡¯t see him, Pure Crane remained standing in his original spot and sent them off with a smile.

    When everyone from Sovereign¡¯s Descent had finally left, Pure Crane turned and walked to where everyone was watching before he said, "I¡¯ve let you seen something embarrassing."

    Shen Jingchen had a strange look on his face as he eyed Pure Crane and said, "Did you leave Sovereign¡¯s Descent so that you could join Jade Sea Pavilion?"

    Pure Crane nked out for a moment before he unconsciously shifted his gaze to Quiet And Steadfast. He gave augh and said, "Rest easy, I¡¯m not nning to join Jade Sea Pavilion."

    "Are you nning to form your own guild then?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    Pure Crane gave him a meaningful look but didn¡¯t say anything.

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit before she said, "You can call me if you need help."

    "Alright then. Don¡¯t worry; I won¡¯t hold back on asking for help."

 Chapter 231

    <b>Chapter 231: Internship (1)</b>

    As the days began to get colder, Shen Jingbin also prepared to face her final exams.

    To improve her grades a little, Shen Jingbin went back to school during her revision week. However, she didn¡¯t forget to give her friends in-game a heads up, while also apologizing for pushing back some of the quests they were supposed to do together.

    Quiet And Steadfast actually said that she¡¯d picked a good time to take a break from the game. Pure Crane had just broken off rtions with Neverending Journey and left Sovereign¡¯s Descent, so he had to deal with the aftermath.

    If Nine Bads represented the pettiness of women, then Neverending Journey was your example of a stereotypical male who took issue at every little thing. Pure Crane¡¯s move of cutting ties with him in front of so many people, and even taking the initiative to leave the guild before Neverending Journey could kick him, was without a doubt a p to his face. He definitely wouldn¡¯t let Pure Crane off so easily.

    After all, men treated their reputation even more dearly than they did their lives.

    He might not do anything publically, but anything that happened in private was another story altogether. So, they¡¯d still be putting a stop to all of their quest activities even if she could y. Shen Jingbin¡¯s guilt lessened greatly after she¡¯d heard what Quiet And Steadfast said.

    Shen Jingchen turned up his nose when he saw this. Hmph, you¡¯re just putting on a show. You clearly want someone to console you!

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s return moved Huanjuan andpany so much that tears welled in their eyes.

    F*ck, it¡¯s more or less the return of an angel! With Little Jing, they didn¡¯t have to worry about failing anymore. Shen Jingbin had always been able to grasp the key points of a subject as soon as she saw it.

    Why would they, who¡¯ve been going to ss, rely on someone like her who hasn¡¯t, you ask?

    Well, that¡¯s the difference between geniuses and dunces.

    The exams in their school had always been gruelingly tricky. This was especially so when it came to the finals every year, where its difficulty would be dialed up to 11. Countless students would mock the school, saying that this was intentionally done so that they wouldn¡¯t be able to pass their year peacefully.

    However, none of this posed an issue to Shen Jingbin.

    When the ss President had heard that Shen Jingbin had returned to school, she¡¯d immediately given Shen Jingbin a call, asking her to make a trip to their ss and give everyone a run through the key points of their subjects.

    This was a scene that had happened without fail whenever there was a final exam.

    And with that, both revision and exam week passed by in a frenzy of activity.

    When she was finally done with herst exam and had arrived home, Shen Jingbin was surprised to find her Father, Mother, and Shen Jingchen waiting for her in the living room.

    Shen Jingchen had taken fewer subjects than her, so he¡¯d managed to finish his exams and get home earlier than her.

    "Mom, Dad; why are you guys here?"

    Papa Shen innocently said, "Look at what you¡¯re saying. We¡¯re obviously here to see the two of you!"

    A cold shiver ran down Shen Jingbin¡¯s spine before she went over to sit where Shen Jingchen was and said, "Dad, you sound a little strange today."

    "Daddy¡¯s hurt."

    "Little Jing, you and Little Chen aren¡¯t young anymore. This goes double for Little Chen since you¡¯re about to graduate. I think it¡¯s about time that the two of you help us share some of the work," Mama Shen said.

    Shen Jingchen stared goggle-eyed at Mama Shen and said, "Empress, don¡¯t! Don¡¯t speak any further; I¡¯ve got a bad feeling about this."

    Mama Shen ignored him and continued, a picture of indifference. "You¡¯ve got nothing better to do over the holidays anyway, so why don¡¯t the two of you go over to our office in B City for some experience."

    "What about the New Year?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "The New Year? We¡¯ll just go over to B City when the timees. Your Grandfather said that he¡¯s thinking of going over to B City to visit an old friend anyway, so the timing is just right."

    "But..." Shen Jingchen still wanted to try and worm his way out, but a re from Mama Shen was enough to silence him.

    With that, the Shen sibling¡¯s previous n of living out their holiday in thep of luxury was shattered just like that.

    Mama Shen was your typical example of a sessful career woman who followed through on whatever she¡¯d said. Early the next morning, they received a call from her telling them to pack their belongings and get ready to leave for B City in the afternoon.

    The siblings arrived back in B City with a heavy heart. Their previous trips to B City had all been for enjoyment, but this time around they were here to work.

    Life was truly a dark, cold, and lonely path.

    As for their amodation issues, Papa Shen solved it with a wave of his hand by buying them a unit in the apartment beside their office.

    After alighting from the ne, the two of them grabbed a taxi and headed straight towards their apartment without letting Zhao Chengning know that they¡¯d arrived. They then took a moment to freshen themselves up before heading over to the office.

    The higher ups had long since known of theiring, so the siblings were greeted by someone waiting at the entrance for them.

    Mama Shen had arranged for them to act as Assistants to the General Manager, but each of them would be in charge of different areas.

    The General Manager of B City¡¯s office was some highly paid talent from out of the country that Papa Shen had scouted. He wasn¡¯t all that old, but he knew how to get things done. In his hands, the branch office¡¯s performance had nearly doubled.

    However, he¡¯d seemed to have run into some rtionship problems as ofte, so he¡¯d asked Papa Shen for some time off. Thinking that this was an excellent chance to train up his children, Papa Shen had tasked him with showing them the ropes for a period. Once they¡¯d gotten the hang of things, Papa Shen would then give the General Manager a nice long holiday, allowing him to set his affairs in order.

    Waiting for them was the General Manager¡¯s Special Assistant, a beautiful and highly capable young woman. After exchanging polite greetings with them, she didn¡¯t waste any time spouting unnecessary nonsense and lead them straight towards the General Manager¡¯s office.

    "Hey hey hey, did you see Special Assistant Liang bringing those two people in? F*ck, both of them look amazing!"

    "I saw them, I saw them! But, just who exactly are they? Why would Special Assistant Liang personally receive them?"

    "Wasn¡¯t the General Manager thinking of taking leave, and didn¡¯t the head office say they¡¯d be sending someone over? Could they be the ones?"

    "No way! They look way too young. Have they even graduated? The head office wouldn¡¯t send some undergraduates over to fill the position, right?"

    As truth would have it, these gossipy women were right on the money. Not only had the head office sent an undergraduate over, they even sent two of them. Special Assistant Liang led the siblings over to the General Manager¡¯s office and knocked on the door. After receiving permission to enter from the person inside, she twisted open the door handle and retreated a step, making way for the two siblings. Brother and sister then stepped into the room.

    They were greeted by the sight of a cold-looking young man wearing casual clothes. He wasn¡¯t all that handsome, but his appearance was eye-catching all the same.

    He was a man with a verymanding presence.

 Chapter 232

    <b>Chapter 232: Internship (2)</b>

    Ye Linfan stood up and slowly spoke when he spotted the Shen siblings, "Wee, my name is Ye Linfan."

    "Nice to meet you Mr Ye, my name¡¯s Shen Jingbin."

    "Shen Jingchen."

    Ye Linfan nodded as they introduced themselves and said, "I know, Mr Shen has informed me beforehand."

    He then continued, "You¡¯vee at just the right time; we¡¯ll be having a board meeting in a little while, so the two of you can apany me and sit in on it."

    The two siblings exchanged nces with one another before they nodded.

    "Alright."

    Ye Linfan¡¯s ¡¯little while¡¯ really was just a little while. In less than five minutes, Special Assistant Liang informed them that the meeting was about to begin.

    Ye Linfan indicated for the two of them to follow before he stepped out of his office with the siblings in tow.

    When they arrived at the conference room, the long conference desk was already filled, leaving only a single seat open at the head of the table.

    Ye Linfan took his ce there, with the two siblings naturally falling in at his sides.

    The board members present were extremely curious about the outstanding-looking couple beside the General Manager, and they began exchanging hushed whispers with one another.

    "Mr Ye, who might these two individuals beside you be?"

    "You¡¯re referring to them?" Ye Linfan said as henguidly widened his eyes. "They¡¯re my Assistants."

    Everyone who was seated in this meeting was a majority shareholder, so there would obviously be someone who¡¯d be trying to put on airs in front of them when it came to an outsider like Ye Linfan.

    "Mr Ye sure is a busy man. He¡¯s not content with a beauty like Special Assistant Liang, so he even went and found himself another two. I¡¯m truly envious of him."

    The sarcasm in these words was evident for all to see, but Ye Linfan didn¡¯t even bat an eyelid. Instead, he replied, "Mm, I really am busy. Unlike Director Yang, who leads such a leisurely life."

    Director Yang choked. At this moment, someone else spoke up, "I wonder where Mr Ye found these Assistants from? I might want to find another two of them myself when I¡¯ve got the time, hahaha." After that, he turned his attention to Shen Jingbin and ran his eyes over her body.

    Ye Linfan shot a meaningful look at him and said, "Do you really want to know?"

    "Mr Ye, you shouldn¡¯t be so secretive. Good things should be shared among everyone; otherwise, it just wouldn¡¯t be right."

    Ye Linfan paid no heed to that person and said to the siblings, "Why don¡¯t you introduce yourselves to the board members."

    Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen had their poker faces on as soon as they entered the conference room, not batting an eyelid regardless of whether the board members openly or discreetly disparaged them. Now that Ye Linfan had spoken, the two of them finally disyed traces of emotion on their faces, looking like two perfectly sculpted pieces of art suddenlying to life.

    "My name¡¯s Shen Jingbin."

    "My name¡¯s Shen Jingchen."

    The two of them gave a very simple self-introduction.

    Upon hearing their names, several board members who¡¯d worked with Papa Shen in the past instantly switched from looks of amusement to that of horror, while those who weren¡¯t in the know looked at them in confusion.

    The conference room fell silent for several seconds before one of them realised they might¡¯ve screwed the pooch and asked, "Mr Ye, may I know what their rtionship is... to Mr Shen?"

    Ye Linfan shot a nce at the board member who looked utterly disquieted as he leaned forward slightly, and a smile bloomed on his face. "It¡¯s the very same rtionship that you¡¯re thinking of."

    The board member¡¯s face turned deathly pale.

    Ye Linfan straightened his back and raised his voice, adopting a more serious tone as he spoke, "These two have been sent over by Mr Shen. If anyone has further inquiries, you¡¯re free to direct them to Mr Shen. That is all I¡¯m aware of."

    Once he¡¯d said that, all of the board members¡¯ faces took a turn for the worse, especially those who¡¯d tried to use the two siblings to make things difficult for Ye Linfan.

    To get to where they were today, every one of them had to have an extensive amount of experience. That short introduction from before was enough for them to understand the situation they were currently in immediately.

    They¡¯d always heard that Mr Shen had children with exceptional appearances, but they hadn¡¯t made the connection beforehand. Looking at them now though, wasn¡¯t it clear that these two were those very same children?

    And to think that they¡¯d actually had the gall to use his children as an excuse to mock Ye Linfan!

    Mr Shen may look gentle and harmless most of the time, but he could tangle with the best of them when it came to dealing with others.

    The rest of the meeting was pervaded by a strange atmosphere. During this time, the siblings could feel meaningful gazes from everyone present directed at them.

    When the meeting ended, the board members slipped away with incredible speed, leaving only Ye Linfan and the siblings behind. Ye Linfan stood up, leaned forward against the conference table, and crossed his hands against his chest before he said, "It¡¯s gettingte; tidy up here a little, and then the two of you can go home. Report for work at the usual time tomorrow..." He paused for a moment before he continued, "You¡¯ve seen it for yourselves at today¡¯s meeting; this is thepany¡¯s current situation. Although it¡¯s garnered a lot of profit, there¡¯s an equal amount of vermin consuming it from within. I hope that the two of you go back and think about today¡¯s meeting; see if you¡¯re able to discern anything from it."

    "Yes, Mr Ye," The siblings replied in unison.

    Ye Linfan waved his hand. "No need for that, call me Brother Ye. I owe Mr Shen a debt of gratitude for acknowledging my worth and employing me. If possible, I hope to pass on my knowledge to the two of you."

 Chapter 233

    <b>Chapter 233: The Last Dinner (1)</b>

    It was evening by the time they reached B City. That, coupled with their stopover at the office, meant that it was already eight o¡¯clock when they reached home. By then, both siblings were starving.

    The apartment they¡¯d been given was finely decorated, with all the necessary furnishings and kitchen appliances provided. However, the fridge itself was empty. Seeing as their food supply at home was nonexistent, the pair of starving siblings could only go out to fill their empty stomachs.

    Having been to B City several times in the past, everything else notwithstanding, they knew exactly where to go to find good food. This was all thanks to Zhao Chengning bringing them all around B City to sample the food it had on offer, giving off the feeling that they were going on a foodie tour in the city.

    The siblings were extremely fond of spicy food, so they drove over to a century-old restaurant that they¡¯d previously been to.

    The restaurant owner was a slightly plump and beer-bellied uncle in his fifties, that looked a little like a Pokonyan when heughed; causing Shen Jingbin to take quite a liking to him. 1 Owing to their outstanding appearances, the owner still remembered them even though Zhao Chengning had only brought them over once.

    Eight o¡¯clock was still peak hour for dinner. When they arrived, they spotted quite a few customers waiting by the counter to be seated. The owner, who¡¯d been weing customers alongside the waitresses, spotted two eye-catching figures out of the corner of his eye and unconsciously looked over.

    A smile immediately broke out on his face when he took a good look at them. He tossed the customers that he¡¯d been weing over to one of the waitresses and went over to greet them.

    The restaurant fell silent for several moments when the siblings entered before the restaurant owner went up to greet them and led them straight into a private dining room.

    For more well-known restaurants like these, there¡¯d usually be a private dining room or two that was specially prepared for certain customers. The restaurant owner had a very good impression of the siblings. Feeling like it¡¯d be a waste to have the two of them wait outside and be gawked at by onlookers, but at the same time not having any private rooms left avable, the owner acted on his own initiative and boldly brought them in into the private dining room reserved for the Zhao family.

    He figured that the two of them must have something to do with the Zhao family. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have seen the Second Young Master of the Zhao family personally bringing them over, and even help with serving the food.

    Owing to their ravenous hunger, the siblings ordered seven to eight dishes in one go as soon as they sat down. Following that, the restaurant owner chatted with them for a little while with a smile on his face before leaving.

    Shen Jingchen raised his head and surveyed the private room. "Isn¡¯t this the same private room we sat in the previous time we came?"

    Shen Jingbin nced around too and said, "The furnishing in private rooms across all restaurants look pretty much the same; you¡¯re probably overthinking it."

    "Am I? But weren¡¯t there lots of people still waiting outside? Why did we get a seat the moment we arrived? Did you reserve a seat beforehand?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "I didn¡¯t, but I think it¡¯s probably because I¡¯m too pretty."

    "... I refuse to speak with you."

    In the meantime, the restaurant owner was instructing the chefs to prepare the dishes ordered by the siblings. He¡¯d just finished his task when his personal phone rang. He looked to his phone¡¯s screen and, as luck would have it, it turned out to be a call from the Second Young Master of the Zhao family.

    "Hello, Second Young Master."

    "Boss Liu, my Grandfather suddenly felt like eating food from your restaurant, so I¡¯ll have to trouble you today. The private room¡¯s still reserved for us, right? We¡¯ll being down in a while. Just the usual for the food will do, and add an additional serving of longan, red dates, and lotus seed soup."

    Boss Liu froze. "Second Young Master, did you just say that you¡¯ll being over in a little bit?"

    F*ck, what¡¯s with the crappy timing?!

    Sensing that something was off, Zhao Chengning asked, "What wrong? Is there a problem?"

    Boss Liu thought for a bit before he replied, "It¡¯s like this Second Young Master: I let someone else use your private room just now."

    A tinge of discontent crept into Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice, "Boss Liu, when did you start conducting business in such a manner?"

    Offending Zhao Chengning was clearly a foolish move, so Boss Liu quickly exined himself, "It¡¯s not that, Second Young Master, please listen; the siblings you brought over previously arrived at my restaurant. I knew you were busy, and there weren¡¯t any seats left apart from those in the private rooms. It looked like they¡¯d had a hectic day, and seeing as they were your friends and your private room wasn¡¯t being used, I figured I might as well let them upy it..."

    "The siblings I brought overst time are there?"

    "Yes; Ms Shen and Mr Shen."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s hand that was clutching the phone froze. They¡¯de to B City? Then why hadn¡¯t he heard anything about it?

    Not having heard his reply, Boss Liu raised his voice and called out a little apprehensively, "Mr Zhao?"

    "It¡¯s fine if it¡¯s them. Have our dishes served regardless; I¡¯ming down now."

    "Yes, Mr Zhao. I¡¯m very sorry for my mistake, I hope you won¡¯t mind."

    Zhao Chengning stood from his seat. He grabbed the suit jacket that he¡¯d taken off, picked up his car keys in one hand, and held his phone in the other hand as he said, "It¡¯s fine. Boss Liu, have the dishes served slower, I¡¯lle down as quickly as I can." With that, Zhao Chengning hung up and quickly strode out of his office.

    Boss Liu shed invisible tears as he listened to the disconnect tone on the phone. He sighed before he retraced his steps back towards the kitchen. Then, powering through the looks of disdain the chefs were sending his way, he instructed them to prepare the siblings¡¯ orderst.

    Sigh, being a restaurant owner¡¯s so difficult these days!

    ¥Ý¥³¥Ë¥ã¥ó£¡Pokonyan! a 1993-1996 anime series produced by NHK. There are 170 episodes, each 10 minutes long. It is licensed by Enoki Films as Rocky Rackat!. Pokonyan! was very popr in the 1990s, when there was a tanuki trend. Here¡¯s a pic of how Pokonyan looks like:

    ?

 Chapter 234

    <b>Chapter 234: The Last Dinner (2)</b>

    Time dragged on as the siblings waited for their food, but they couldn¡¯t help but feel a little puzzled. Didn¡¯t the foode pretty quicklyst time? The reason why they picked this ce was that apart from its good food, the dishes were served in a timely manner as well. They were about to die from starvation, and that this rate, they¡¯ll probably end up in the newspapers tomorrow.

    Shen Jingchen slumped on the table weakly and said, "When¡¯s the fooding? How about you tell them to serve the food quicker?"

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "Why don¡¯t you go then?"

    "I¡¯m so hungry I can¡¯t even move. I would¡¯ve chosen another restaurant if I¡¯d known they were going to be so slow."

    "Toote for ¡¯if¡¯s."

    The siblings suddenly heard a knock on the door while they were talking and paused for a moment. Had the food arrived?

    The door was pushed open with a creak, and the two of them looked towards it with stars in their eyes...

    The moment he pushed open the door, Zhao Chengning got a fright from the intensity of their stares that were brimming with desire. It was his first time seeing them like this.

    "You guys... what happened?" Zhao Chengning paused and asked with his hand still on the doorknob.

    Realising that it wasn¡¯t their food being served, the two of them immediately deted like balloons, with Shen Jingchen slumping limply onto the table.

    "We thought the food was being served... Why¡¯re you here?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Zhao Chengning entered, closed the door, and took a seat beside her. "We were nning to have dinner here at first, but Boss Liu told me that he¡¯d let you guys use our private room, so I¡¯m here to have a look."

    "Your private room?" Shen Jingbin asked as she looked at him.

    Zhao Chengning nodded. "This private room was specially prepared for my family. My Grandfather loves spicy food, so he frequents this ce often."

    "Hey hey hey, didn¡¯t I say this room looked a lot like the one we went tost time? Who was the one who said that furnishings across all restaurants were more or less the same? Hmph," Shen Jingchen cried out.

    Shen Jingbin ignored him. "Eh, then what should we do now? We¡¯re taking up your spot."

    Zhao Chengning smiled and looked at her. "It¡¯s fine, we¡¯ll eat together."

    "Okay, okay. Either way, our food¡¯s not here yet so let¡¯s eat together then," Shen Jingchen moured.

    Shen Jingbin noticed his use of "we" just now; that meant he wasn¡¯t by himself. "Who else with you?"

    "Just my family members."

    Zhao Chengning said it nonchntly, but the two siblings had chills running down their spines when they heard what he¡¯d said. Didn¡¯t that mean his Mother wasing as well?ÏñÊÇ¿´Í¸ÁËËûÃÇµÄÏë·¨Ò»Ñù£¬ÕÔ³ÊÄþµãÁËµãÍ·£¬"àÅ£¬ÎÒÂèÂèÒ²ÒªÀ´¡£"

    Almost as if he¡¯d read their minds, Zhao Chengning nodded and said, "Mhm, my Mother¡¯sing as well."

    Oh nooo! Was there still time for them to switch to a different restaurant?

    Unfortunately, the situation proved otherwise. Those with sharper hearing could already hear the sound of footsteps and the chatter of people from outside the door.

    Sure enough, a few secondster the door opened once again.

    "Ah Ning, is the food here yet? Did you tell them to get my logan..." Papa Zhao was the first to walk in, but his words were stopped short by the shock of seeing the two others present. "Little Chen and Little Jing¡¯s here too?"

    "What, Little Chen and Little Jing?" Old Master Zhao, who was trailing behind him, pushed the obstruction that was Papa Zhao away when he hard what was said. "Goodness, it really is Little Chen and Little Jing! Ah Ning, why didn¡¯t you tell us Little Chen and Little Jing wereing as well?" Old Master Zhao red at Zhao Chengning in reproach.

    Zhao Chengning waspletely innocent. I just found out as well!

    "Grandpa Zhao, Uncle Zhao, this isn¡¯t Ah Ning¡¯s fault, we didn¡¯t tell him beforehand, so he was only aware of using now as well," Feeling that Zhao Chengning was being wrongfully used, Shen Jingbin took the initiative to exin things.

    However, her exnation seemed to insinuate something else in the eyes of Old Master Zhao and Papa Zhao.

    My word, wasn¡¯t she the picture of a loving wife, rushing in to help clear the air because she was afraid of him being wronged?

    Old Master Zhao smiled and said, "We¡¯re not ming him, we¡¯re not ming him, you don¡¯t have to be so anxious about it."

    Shen Jingbin was thrown for a loop. I wasn¡¯t anxious about anything; I was just exining things.

    Zhao Chengning suddenly felt like facepalming.

    There was no one else apart from Old Master Zhao and Papa Zhao. Zhao Chengning looked around and asked, "Where¡¯s Mother and brother?" As he¡¯de straight from the office, Zhao Chengan was the one who drove everyone else over.

    Papa Zhao sat down and said, "Your Mother got a call from Aunt Jian, saying she and Cishu were nearby. She thought that it¡¯d be a good opportunity for us to have dinner together, so she sent your brother to pick them up."

    Papa Zhao suddenly felt a little awkward after he¡¯d said that. He shot a nce at Shen Jingbin and said, "Little Jing, you¡¯ve met Jian Cishu before, right? She¡¯s Ah Ning¡¯s little sister."

    "I know, Uncle Zhao," Though Shen Jingbin¡¯s reply was calm, she was on the verge of a mental breakdown inside.

    F*ck, why are the number of people increasing! All she wanted to do was to eat! Why were there so many obstacles in her path!!!

    Old Master Zhao was dissatisfied with the entire Jian family. "We¡¯re having a family dinner; why are they joining in? Call Zhao Chengan and have hime back."

    Old Master¡¯s Zhao was being rash, and Papa Zhao didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry when he heard what Old Master Zhao said.

    Dad, did you forget that the children from the Shen family are still around?

    Humph, they¡¯re not outsiders; they¡¯ll be a part of our family sooner orter.

    But they don¡¯t know that; what if they misunderstand?

    Humph! Old Master Zhao snorted like a tsundere.

    Papa Zhao sighed and said, "Your Grandpa¡¯s being difficult."

    Shen Jingbin looked at Old Master Zhao, then at Papa Zhao, and then at Zhao Chengning before smiling without saying anything. Shen Jingchen, on the other hand, was already way too starved to manage a reply.

    Mama Zhao, who was ¡¯nearby¡¯, turned out to be really close to them. Before long, Zhao Chengan arrived with them in tow.

    When Mama Zhao, who was stillughing and chatting with Jian Cishu as she pulled her in, saw the two siblings from the Shen family; her smile froze, along with the smiles of Jian Cishu and Mama Jian.

    As someone of the younger generation, Shen Jingbin felt that she should take the initiative to greet them. Standing up, she said, "Hello, Aunt Zhao, Aunt Jian."

 Chapter 235

    <b>Chapter 235: Mama Zhao¡¯s Endless Meddling (1)</b>

    What would you do if an elder you greeted ignored you?

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s answer to that was: not to care about it. Greeting elders was a result of my upbringing, while ignoring me reflects on your qualities. It¡¯s not strange for such a difference to exist.

    Mama Zhao¡¯s expression immediately fell the moment she saw the Shen siblings. "Why are the two of them here?" She asked sarcastically.

    Zhao Chengning said, "Coincidence."

    Mama Zhao gave an insincere smile. "Heh, coincidence indeed. Aren¡¯t the two of them from A City? What kind of coincidence results in them appearing all the way here in B City?"

    Mama Zhao¡¯s attitude caused the two siblings to feel very ufortable. Old Master Zhao was very displeased with Mama Zhao¡¯s conduct. He¡¯d always looked down a little on this Daughter-inw of his. Not only was she short-sighted, she was also harsh and petty. If it wasn¡¯t the fact that she¡¯d greatly helped Papa Zhao in the past, he¡¯d never have agreed to her marrying into the family.

    Old Master Zhao wasn¡¯t being old-fashioned, neither was he being prejudiced, but it made sense to pick a spouse that matched one¡¯s own social status. Their social status, level of education, and even values greatly differed, and this wasn¡¯t something that could simply be waved away with the word ¡¯love¡¯. Furthermore, there wasn¡¯t even any earth-shattering nor heart-wrenching ¡¯love¡¯ between the two of them.

    Mama Zhao hailed from a moderately affluent family, and had once saved Papa Zhao from a political rival who¡¯d framed him when they were younger. To top it off, she¡¯d even gave him two sons, leading to her current status. However, long years of living life in thep of luxury with an amodating husband and obedient sons had led to an unconscious erosion of her values, slowly giving rise to all these hidden ws in her personality.

    "Are you eating or not? Go home if you¡¯re not," Old Master Zhao said impatiently as he shot an icy re at Mama Zhao.

    In the Zhao family, Mama Zhao was unafraid of all save for her Father-inw. After being red at by Old Master Zhao, she¡¯d swallow her displeasure no matter how unhappy she was. And so, she lightly snorted at Shen Jingbin who¡¯d sat back down, before proceeding to ignore her.

    She might¡¯ve done it to intentionally spite Shen Jinbin, but Mama Zhao, who was still holding Jian Cishu¡¯s hand as she stood behind her, affectionately pulled Jian Cishu over to where Zhao Chengning was and seated her beside him.

    "Comee, Cishu,e sit beside Ah Ning... Ah Ning, I¡¯ll hand Cishu to you, so look after her well."

    When Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t reply, Mama Jian jumped in and said, "Goodness, how could Cishu bother Ah Ning? What¡¯s with this talk of taking care of her? If anything, I think it¡¯ll be better if Ah Ning looks after Miss... Miss Shen. After all, they¡¯re guests from far away, and we shouldn¡¯t neglect our guests."

    Mama Jian¡¯s words were phrased in a most eloquent manner, delighting Mama Zhao in the process. She finally spared the Shen siblings a nce and said, "Since Miss Shen and your brother havee far aware, I¡¯ll let Ah Ning and Cishu y the part of host."

    If it wasn¡¯t for Old Master Zhao, the Shen siblings would¡¯ve left long ago. All they wanted was to have their dinner, so they really didn¡¯t have the mood nor the energy to y word games with Mama Zhao.

    Zhao Chengan knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to have a peaceful dinner the moment he stepped into the room. A dull ache began to form by his temples when he saw that, aside from his own Mother and Mama Jian who were happily chatting away, everyone else in the room had differing degrees of dour expressions on their faces¡¯.

    "Mother, stop standing around and have a seat," He walked to his Mother¡¯s side and pushed her down into her seat by her shoulders. "Aunt Jian, you sit too." After seating the two elders, he pulled out a chair that was a seat away from Zhao Chengning and said to Jian Cishu, "Cishu,e sit over here."

    Jian Cishu was at a loss. She looked at the seat beside Zhao Chengning before turning to look at him. Seeing this, Mama Zhao said unhappily, "Cishu¡¯s sitting beside Ah Ning; why¡¯d you leave an empty seat there instead?"

    "Mother, I¡¯m saving that seat for myself. I haven¡¯t been back in a long while, so there¡¯s nothing wrong with me wanting to sit beside my little brother, is there?" Zhao Chengan replied.

    Mama Zhao¡¯s lips moved slightly, still wanting to continue. Zhao Chengning, not wanting to listen to his Mother any longer, took the opportunity to raise his voice and said, "Let¡¯s leave it at that then... Waiter, you can serve the dishes now."

    And thus, the matter of seating arrangements was settled.

    After the dishes were served, Zhao Chengning quietly moved the ones Shen Jingbin liked over to her. His actions, however, were seen by Mama Zhao. Feeling all sorts of negative emotions well up in her heart, Mama Zhao, who clearly had no love for spicy food, began squabbling over the cement of dishes.

    "Ah Ning, ce that sliced beef and ox tongue in chilli sauce1 over here; I quite like that dish."

    "Cishu, I remember you saying that you liked the spicy chicken2, right?"

    "Don¡¯t put the diced pepper fish 3 head over there; move it closer here."

    Mama Zhao¡¯s constant rambling the entire time the dishes were served was without a doubt extremely rude, and a detestable one regardless of asion; much less one where everyone was of equal status. Papa Zhao and Old Master Zhao expressions were so dark, they practically dripped blood, while Zhao Chengning¡¯s eyes concealed a hidden rage.

    Shen Jingbin looked at the sweet dishes ced before her and immediately felt her stomach spasm. At that moment, she felt her phone gently vibrate.

    It was a message from Shen Jingchen.

    Shen Jingchen: I can¡¯t freaking stand it! Let¡¯s go! I¡¯d rather eat kebabs sold by roadside stalls than stay here!

    Shen Jingbin: I feel the same!

    Shen Jingchen: Then let¡¯s go!

    Shen Jingbin: Yeah!

    Finally some food porn in the novel! Btw, I¡¯m not really a fan of spicy food XD ? Mm, chicken

    ?

    Triple food porn!

    ?

 Chapter 236

    <b>Chapter 236</b><b>: Mama Zhao¡¯s Endless Meddling (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin put away her phone and stered a warm and respectful smile on her face, causing Mama Jian and Jian Cishu, who were secretly evaluating her, to be shocked.

    "Grandpa Zhao, Uncle, Aunt. Sorry about this, but something cropped up so we need to leave. We won¡¯t be able to stay with you for the rest of the meal."

    Mama Zhao couldn¡¯t wait for these two to disappear from her sight, but at the same time, she felt that allowing them to leave just like that would be letting them go too easily.

    "Why are the two of you leaving without eating a single thing? Have a bite before you go. Otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t be good if word got out that we couldn¡¯t even treat the two of you to a single meal."

    Sensing Old Master Zhao suppressing his rage even further, Papa Zhao finally couldn¡¯t take it anymore and roared in anger, "Shut your mouth!"

    Mama Zhao flinched in response before she promptly shut up.

    Old Master Zhao tiredly shut his eyes before he turned to look at Shen Jingbin and said, "The two of you should leave if you¡¯ve got something on."

    Seeing the state Old Master Zhao was in, Shen Jingbin thought for a bit before she said, "Grandpa Zhao, you don¡¯t need to worry. Shen Jingchen and I are in B City because we have an internship here. We¡¯ll be staying for a while, so we¡¯ll definitely visit again some other time. Also, my Grandpa will probably being to B City a littleter as well. Don¡¯t me us for being annoying when wee to visit you."

    "Ole Shen¡¯sing?" As expected, that got Old Master Zhao¡¯s attention. "Really?"

    "Mhm. I¡¯m not too sure about my Grandpa, but my Grandma and parents will being."

    "Good, good! Come then, but let me know beforehand so I can prepare!" Old Master Zhao replied delightedly.

    "Alright, we¡¯ll leave first then. Sorry about this."

    "No worries, I know you youngsters are busy. I know, what about this? Ah Ning, send Little Jing and Little Chen off."

    "Okay, Grandpa."

    Zhao Chengning agreed and stood up at almost the same time Old Master Zhao spoke. He then stepped back to make way for Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen before following after them.

    Old Master Zhao¡¯s smile immediately disappeared after the three of them left. He swept his gaze to Mama Jian and Jian Cishu before saying ndly, "An Ning¡¯s sending them off, so there¡¯s no need to wait for him. Let¡¯s eat first."

    Mama Jian and Jian Cishu felt their faces flush and silently ate their food.

    Mama Zhao, on the other hand, poked at the food in her bowl in anger, feeling stifled because she couldn¡¯t find an outlet for it.

    When they exited the restaurant, the siblings heaved a long sigh of relief in unison.

    Shen Jingchen said half jokingly to Zhao Chengning, "Ah Ning, your Mom¡¯s a real piece of work; even our Empress Dowager at home doesn¡¯t make me feel so pressured."

    Zhao Chengning gave them an apologetic look and said, "I¡¯m really sorry about today, my Mother is..."

    Shen Jingbin cut him off. "Don¡¯t worry about it, go back to eat. You don¡¯t need to send us off; we can get back on our own."

    Zhao Chengning shook his head. "We¡¯ve interrupted your dinner, so allow me to make it up to you guys. Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll take you guys somece else to eat." When it looked like Shen Jingbin was going to reject him, he added, "At this time, it won¡¯t be easy finding another decent restaurant on your own. It¡¯ll be better if I bring you guys to one."

    The siblings were quite picky when it came to food, so they epted his proposal after a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    In the end, Shen Jingbin got into Zhao Chengning¡¯s car and made their way towards the new restaurant, while Shen Jingchen followed behind them in their own car.

    After passing by a traffic light, Shen Jingchen looked at Zhao Chengning¡¯s car in front of him and suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity. Why did his little sister choose to sit in some other guy¡¯s car when he was driving?

    Furthermore, why was did this situation feel familiar? It was as though something simr had happened in the past. How strange.

    In the end, Zhao Chengning brought the two to a private Sze Chuan restaurant 1. The food there was pretty good, and the two siblings were very happy. On their way back, Shen Jingbin chose to sit in Zhao Chengning¡¯s car once again.

    When they reached their apartment, Shen Jingchen drove straight towards the underground parking lot. Zhao Chengning, on the other hand, stopped below their unit. Shen Jingbin thanked him and was about to alight when she grabbed the handle and found that it was still locked. She turned to look at him in confusion.

    "Are you angry?" Zhao Chengning looked into her eyes and asked.

    It was gettingte, and the sky had already turned as dark as ink. The street lights shone dimly beneath their unit, with barely any light filtering through the car¡¯s tinted windows. The lights in the car were off as well, so Shen Jingbin was unable to see Zhao Chengning¡¯s expression. She could only vaguely feel his scorching gaze on her.

    Not bothering about whether he could see her, she gently shook her head and said, "I¡¯m not."

    "Why aren¡¯t you angry? My Mother really did go a little overboard today."

    Shen Jingbinughed. "Your Mother¡¯s your Mother; she isn¡¯t you. Her actions only represent her own thoughts. I¡¯m not the kind of person who¡¯ll take my anger out on someone undeserving of it." She paused for a few moments before continued in a low voice, "Thankfully, you didn¡¯t y along with her. Otherwise, I might really have gotten angry with you... Do you think that¡¯s bad of me?"

    Zhao Chengning felt like touching her face, but couldn¡¯t find the courage to do so. "No, I¡¯m fine with anything as long as you¡¯re not angry with me."

    "You really know how to butter a person up."

    "Is that so? I was worried I didn¡¯t have it in me. Oh right, why didn¡¯t you tell me you were here in B City with Shen Jingchen for an internship?"

    "Mm. It was ast minute decision, and I bumped into you before I had the chance to tell you."

    "How long are you interning for?"

    "Mm, I¡¯m going to be here for the entire holiday."

    "Then what about the New Year?"

    "My Mom said they¡¯lle over to celebrate."

    Zhao Chengning gave a gentleugh. "Sounds good."

    "Hm? What¡¯s so good about that?"

    "Everything about it is good."

    Just then, they heard a knock on the window and saw Shen Jingchen¡¯s face stered on it, with him opening and closing his mouth saying something they couldn¡¯t make sense of.

    Shen Jingbin shot a nce at her stupid looking brother before she turned to Zhao Chengning and said, "I¡¯ll be going."

    "Mm, rest early. Good night."

    "You too, drive safely. Good night."

    It¡¯s a kind of restaurant that doesn¡¯t appear in any directory and doesn¡¯t have a signboard either. Usually looks like any regr apartment ?

 Chapter 237

    <b>Chapter 237: I¡¯m Always Very Careful (1)</b>

    The next day, the Shen siblings clocked in their arrival at work at the usual time. However, the siblings soon noticed the strange way the people in thepany were looking at them.

    It was a look containing a mixture of both curiosity and fear.

    They¡¯d probably found out about the siblings¡¯ identity. Thinking about it, that should be the case. Only gossip like this would travel so quickly.

    After toiling away till it was time to get off work, the siblings felt like they were about to copse from exhaustion.

    The matters a General Manager had to deal with was far more diverse than they¡¯d imagined. The life of said job depicted in movies performing activities such as drinking tea in the office and signing off documents were all drivel.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt a little admiration for her Dad. They were currently only working in a branch office now, but they were so busy, their feet never touched the ground. Going by that logic, the workload Papa Shen faced everyday at the head office was unthinkable. The main thing was how he still managed to squeeze out so much time to be lovey-dovey with his wife everyday. That too was a talent in and of itself.

    The siblings¡¯ cooking skills were hopeless, but they didn¡¯t have time to hire a nanny in B City either. As such, their three meals consisted of nothing but eating out.

    "What¡¯s for dinner?"

    Shen Jingbin heard Shen Jingchen ask weakly once they were buckled up in the car. She turned to the side and nced at his half-dead appearance, taking a moment to rx before she replied, "Let¡¯s have congee."

    The weather was getting colder, so she felt like eating something that was a little warmer.

    "Where are we going?"

    Shen Jingbin shrugged. "I don¡¯t know either."

    Shen Jingchen immediately had a lovelorn look on his face. "I¡¯m about to die of hunger. Can you look it up on Baidu? I want to go back and sleep after we finish eating."

    She nodded and pulled out her handphone, getting ready to search for some of the better congee restaurants in the area when her screen lit up. It was Zhao Chengning.

    Shen Jingbin looked up to Shen Jingchen on reflex. Said person was wearing a look of excitement on his face as he stared at her phone. A gossipy light shone in his eyes, as if it were trying to say ¡¯Hurry and pick up, pick up!¡¯

    She pressed the key to ept his call and Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice flowed out of the phone.

    "Have you gotten off work yet?"

    "Yeah, I just got off."

    "Are you worrying about what to have for dinner?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyebrows rose in shock. "How¡¯d you know?"

    Zhao Chengning chuckled. "I guessed it. Have you thought of what to have?"

    "I want to eat congee."

    "Congee? If we¡¯re talking about congee, there¡¯s a pretty good ce along Nanhai Road. Do you want to try it out?"

    "Sure."

    "Then I¡¯ll send you the address. Plug it into the navigation system and head there. Give me a few minutes once you¡¯ve reached there; it¡¯s kind of far from my office."

    Shen Jingbin was under the impression that he was going out of his way to n things for her. After thinking about it, she, as a grown woman, had no reason to make others worry about her meals and hastily declined his offer. "Send me the address, we can head there by ourselves. You shouldn¡¯t make the trip if it¡¯s far from your office since it¡¯ll be too troublesome. You go home early and get some rest."

    Zhao Chengning fell silent for a moment before Shen Jingbin heard him call out to her. "Little Jing."

    "Hmm?"

    "I just got off work so I haven¡¯t eaten dinner. It just so happens that I want to eat congee too."

    "Mm."

    "And, I want to be with you too."

    "..." Her ears suddenly turned a little red.

    "So, it¡¯s no trouble for me at all."

    "... Thene over."

    "Remember to wait for me."

    "Sure."

    A message from Zhao Chengning followed shortly after they hung up. Shen Jingchen leaned half his body on the steering wheel as he looked at her and said, "So what were you guys talking about? And why does it look like you¡¯re burning up?"

    Shen Jingbin ignored him and opened up the message. She then shoved her phone in his face and said, "This is the ce; hurry up and drive there."

    "Tsk, you damn tsundere. Are you feeling embarrassed?"

    "Does that make you a sissy since you¡¯re spouting so much rubbish?"

    "... Get lost. You¡¯re the sissy. Your whole primary school is full of sissies."

    "We graduated from the same primary school."

    "F*ck."

    The congee restaurant that Zhao Chengning suggested wasn¡¯t far from their office. Following their navigation system¡¯s route, they reached their destination in about ten minutes, but Zhao Chengning had yet to arrive. After finding out that there were still seats avable inside, Shen Jingchen¡¯s impatient streak prompted him to head in first, leaving Shen Jingbin waiting by herself at the entrance for Zhao Chengning.

    It was already winter in B City, and the weather got colder with every passing day. Shen Jingbin was required to wear formal clothes at work, so her beautiful bare legs were rather cold.

    This was the scene Zhao Chengning saw when he arrived.

    Shen Jingbin stood by the entrance of the restaurant, a bright-faced beauty in formal clothes that adhered strictly to the dress code of proper work attire. However, she still gave off a subdued feeling of enticement when she donned them. With a delicate body that had curves in all the right ces, she had a pair of beautiful long white legs that peeked out from her skirt and drew the attention of everyone passing by. Likely due to her feeling a little chilly, Shen Jingbin had her arms wrapped around her chest as she asionally stomped her feet; this small action of hers causing her icy demeanor to take on a more lively quality.

    Zhao Chengning noticed that there was an increasing number of people who were turning their attention to her, so he quickly walked towards her.

    All he wanted now was to iste her from all those gazes directed at her.

 Chapter 238

    <b>Chapter 238: I¡¯m Always Very Careful (2)</b>

    "Did you wait long?" He walked up to her and whispered in her ear.

    "Hmm? You¡¯re here. I didn¡¯t wait long, I just arrived too."

    Refusing to believe her, Zhao Chengning reached out and grabbed her hand.

    Her hands were freezing. It was obvious that she hadn¡¯t just arrived.

    "It¡¯s so cold; why didn¡¯t you wait inside?" He said as he frowned and wrapped his hands around hers in an attempt to warm them up.

    Shen Jingbin was a little shocked by his actions. "What would you do if you couldn¡¯t see me because I was waiting for you inside? Actually, I really just-" She wanted to exin herself, but didn¡¯t want to raise her head and meet Zhao Chengning¡¯s intense gaze. For a moment, her words were stuck in her throat.

    "Let¡¯s go in, it¡¯s cold outside. Where¡¯s Shen Jingchen?"

    "He went in first."

    Zhao Chengning shifted to holding Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand instead of sping it before leading her in.

    The waiter by the entrance was extremely attentive and hurriedly opened the door from the inside for them, eliciting a polite word of thanks from Shen Jingbin as they walked past.

    In that instant, the waiter was so moved by her word of thanks that his face turned red.

    He¡¯d long since seen this beauty standing outside her stomping her feet due to the cold. The heavens knew how much he wanted to strip his clothes off and hand it to her...

    But he was working! It really was exhausting to fall in love.

    Thankfully, the person the beauty was waiting for was about to arrive. He felt rather gratified about that.

    However, he felt weak at the knees when he saw the beauty¡¯spanion.

    The beauty turned out to be waiting for B City¡¯s golden bachelor, Zhao Chengning! His face was frequently featured in finance magazines and on B City¡¯s television stations, so the waiter definitely wouldn¡¯t be mistaken!

    His younger sister would always kneel and lick the magazines that had Zhao Chengning¡¯s picture printed on them!

    His heart suddenly felt heavy. Inparison, didn¡¯t that mean he had no chance whatsoever?

    Sure enough, the beauty belonged to someone else. He¡¯d be better off putting his all into his job.

    The first floor of the restaurant was the reception, while the dining area was on the second floor. A waitress with exquisite makeup on greeted them when they entered. Her eyes lit up when her gaze fell on Zhao Chengning, but immediately dimmed when she saw them holding hands.

    After asking if any of theirpanions had arrived beforehand, the waitress took them to where Shen Jingchen was seated.

    There were no private rooms left when Shen Jingchen had gone upstairs, so he¡¯d found a seat in the hall instead. After taking a look around, he found himself a seat near the window. It was a rather good seat so he had noints about it. However, he realised just how wrong he was when Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning came up.

    A seat near the window meant that they¡¯d have to pass through the whole restaurant before the two of them could reach their table. By the time they¡¯d arrived, they¡¯d be the center of attention.

    Zhao Chengning let go of Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand and allowed her to walk in front of him.

    The waitress leading the way paused for a moment before speeding up for some strange reason.

    The moment they sat down, Shen Jingchen, who was dripping with jealousy, began to ridicule them, "What the f*ck. You guys are like superstars making a public appearance! Even the entirety of this floor¡¯s lights put together isn¡¯t as bright as you two!"

    Why didn¡¯t he get this kind of treatment when he came up just now?!

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce and said, "Ah, thanks for thepliment."

    "Do I like I¡¯mplimenting you?! You must be confused."

    After knowing them for so long, Zhao Chengning was no longer fazed by their digs at one another. He took the menu from the waitress and asked Shen Jingchen, "Have you ordered?"

    "I didn¡¯t know what you guys wanted to eat, so I just ordered a few specialty dishes and a portion of chicken strips and abalone congee."

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t stop herself from making fun of him. "Chicken strips and abalone congee? Do you have the pte of a wealthyndlord?"

    Shen Jingchen indignantly snorted. "Got a problem with it? Then you better not eat any of itter."

    "Did you actually think I was going to drink any of it? I¡¯ll leave it for you to supplement your kidney."

    Zhao Chengning wore a smile on his face as he nced at the duo. "They make good eight divinity congee here. It¡¯s also one of their specialties, so you guys should give it a try."

    "That¡¯s what I¡¯ll have then," Shen Jingbin said, shooting a defiant re at Shen Jingchen sitting across from her in the process.

    Her look seemed to have aggravated Shen Jingchen, who tugged on Zhao Chengning and whined, "Ah Ning, don¡¯t be fooled by her! See how devious she looks?! As a fellow bro and out of the kindness of my heart, I feel that it¡¯s my duty to remind you to be cautious of her."

    Zhao Chengningughed as he shut the menu before handing it over to the waitress. He said a few words and turned his gaze to hispanions seated at the table.

    "Rx, I¡¯m always very cautious."

    Shen Jingchen suddenly felt that the two before him were too dazzling to look at, so he quietly covered his eyes and fell silent.

    When Shen Jingbin nced at Zhao Chengning, she realised that he¡¯d just so happened to be looking at her, causing her to shy away in embarrassment.

    For some reason, she kept feeling like there were some hidden meaning beneath his words.

    After their meal, the trio walked out and found that it was raining. Shen Jingchen and Zhao Chengning borrowed two umbres from the doorman to fetch their cars, while Shen Jingbin stayed behind and waited for them at the reception.

    While waiting, she suddenly heard someone call out to her from behind.

    "Miss Shen?"

    Shen Jingbin turned around and saw a girl who had this slightly pure and adorable look about her. She was currently holding a guy¡¯s hand and looking at Shen Jingbin with eyes that were wide with shock.

    "You are?" Shen Jingbin thought this girl looked a little familiar, but couldn¡¯t put her finger on it.

    "I¡¯m Zhang Beiyu. Do you remember me?"

    Shen Jingbin had no recollection of this name, so she didn¡¯t respond and just looked at the girl with slightly furrowed brows.

    Zhang Beiyuughed bitterly in her heart upon seeing Shen Jingbin¡¯s reaction. However, on the surface, she wore a pitiful expression and said, "Miss Shen, you don¡¯t remember me, right? That¡¯s no surprise. After all, I¡¯m but a lowly waitress in Blooming Flower Pavilion. It¡¯s very normal for Miss Shen to not remember me."

    Shen Jingbin finally recalled who she was when she spoke in such a manner. Wasn¡¯t this girl the one who¡¯d tried to act out a scene from "The Tyrannical Chairman Pampers Cindere" in front of Zhao Chengning?

    She wasn¡¯t interested in Zhao Chengning back then, so she hadn¡¯t borne any ill will towards the girl standing before her. But now...

    She had to get rid of everyone who coveted Zhao Chengning!

    Shen Jingbin suddenly put on a cold and arrogant facade. The attitude reminiscent of a queen gracing the world with her presence took Zhang Beiyu and her malepanion¡¯s breaths¡¯ away.

    "Since it¡¯s normal for me to not recognise you, why are you acting like you¡¯ve been wronged?"

    The blunt manner in which she spokepletely caught Zhang Beiyu off guard.

 Chapter 239

    <b>Chapter 239: The Greatest Threat (1)</b>

    "Mi-Miss Shen..." Zhang Beiyu stammered out. In spite of that, she reacted quickly and came to her senses after a brief moment of shock. There were tears in her eyes as she shot a distressed look at Shen Jingbin, easily making herself look as pitiful as she wanted to be.

    Those who didn¡¯t know any better would most likely think that Shen Jingbin was using her status to bully Zhang Beiyu. And, it just so happened that the man standing next to Zhang Beiyu was of the same opinion.

    "You¡¯re Miss Shen, right? I don¡¯t know what misunderstanding exists between you and Xiao Yu, but no one can choose which family they¡¯re born into. Just because you were lucky enough to be born into a good family, it doesn¡¯t mean you have the right to look down on others. Everyone has the right to be respected! I feel that you should apologise for your behaviour earlier, as you¡¯ve harmed the self-esteem of a woman who had good intentions."

    The man then proceeded to go on and on about feel-good stuff, simr to the types of things you¡¯d see in Chicken Soup for the Soul. When he finished, the man seemed to think that he¡¯d performed an act of great goodness, having saved the wounded self-esteem of a princess and condemned an arrogant and conceited woman from a wealthy family. A look of immense self-satisfaction appeared on his face as he gazed at Shen Jingbin with swollen eyes. It was as though he was seeing this beautiful woman who¡¯d gone overboard apologise to them the next moment with a guilt-ridden face.

    But, he didn¡¯t notice how vulgar his gaze was perceived as he viewed Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin took in everything she saw and felt an overwhelming sense of disgust.

    She hated men who thought they were the only ones who could truly see the world for what it was. But in reality, people like these were duller than anyone else. Without knowing it, they¡¯d foolishly end up bing a tool for others at the drop of a hat. Even then, they¡¯d still think that they were the savior of humanity. The individual standing in front of her who was wearing an extremely dignified look on his face was the best example of such people.

    The etiquette that was instilled in Shen Jingbin by her upbringing was never meant for hypocrites and bitches. So, she rudely mocked them by saying, "Sir, I rmend you to see a psychologist since you¡¯re still suffering from chuunibyou.

    even at this age. Please be a little more aware of the situation and get your facts in order before trying to stick up for other people. This youngdy beside you was the one who came looking for trouble, yet you want me to apologise? Did a dog eat up your brain andmon sense?"

    Shen Jingbin slightly narrowed her beautiful eyes and turned her attention to Zhang Beiyu. "Miss Zhang Beiyu, please consider your tone and choice of words the next time you speak. You should do your utmost to avoid revealing your serious IQ deficiency."

    If Shen Jingchen were here, he¡¯d definitely remind this couple beforehand that while Shen Jingbin might appear to be very reserved, no one in the Shen family was more capable than her when it came to ridiculing others.

    In terms of fighting strength, her mouth and punches were both equally as strong.

    "M-miss Shen, you¡¯re going overboard," Zhang Beiyu looked at Shen Jingbin with reddened eyes. Likely due to her embarrassment her exposed skin also took on a slightly reddish hue, adding a hint of beauty to her appearance.

    Herpanion was also ovee with embarrassment as a result of Shen Jingbin¡¯s mocking. He felt the petite hand holding onto his wrist tremble and looked at Zhang Beiyu. As he did so, a glint shed across her small, wretched eyes.

    "Miss Shen, it seems like your upbringing is a littlecking. Forgive me for being blunt, but don¡¯t you know that you¡¯re bringing shame to your parents by doing this?" The man discreetly patted Zhang Beiyu¡¯s small hand in aforting gesture before he looked sternly at Shen Jingbin once again.

    Talking to these brainless people was practically an insult to Shen Jingbin, and she couldn¡¯t be bothered to reason with them. Zhao Chengning was probably going to arrive soon, so she turned around and wanted to wait for him outside.

    The man felt disgruntled when he saw her getting ready to leave after ignoring him. He reached out with his free hand towards Shen Jingbin¡¯s cor. Zhang Beiyu remainedpletely silent as she watched herpanion react. Rather, she gently released her grip on his hand to make it easier for him to grab ahold of her.

    "Miss Shen, how can you just walk away when I haven¡¯t even finished talking to you?! You-"

    There was an unfathomable anger in the man¡¯s voice. At the same time, his hand was mere inches away from Shen Jingbin¡¯s neck.

    However, in the next moment, a blood-curdling screech resembling that of a pig being ughtered rang out. It was so abrupt that it gave the waiters standing by the door at the head of the stairs a fright.

    The man¡¯s hand was now bent in the opposite direction. The man howled in pain and was trembling from head to toe. Shen Jingbin looked at the man who was forced into a half-kneeling position and fixed an icy cold stare on him.

    "You don¡¯t have the right to talk about my upbringing. You¡¯d better watch your mouth; just because I¡¯ve tolerated you once doesn¡¯t mean that I¡¯ll do so a second time," Shen Jingbin stared ominously at the man with her ck eyes that were as dark as ink. Her anger further entuated her charm, making it difficult for others to look straight at her.

    Men looked strong, but in reality, they were weak on the inside. Once she¡¯d forced him into submission, he was filled with terror and quickly begged for forgiveness. "I-I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry, Miss Shen! I was wrong; I shouldn¡¯t have said something like that! I¡¯m really sorry! Please forgive me!"

    Shen Jingbin silently looked at him, and the man grew even more flustered.

    "What¡¯s wrong?" Came an anxious voice came from the doorway. When she looked over, Shen Jingbin saw Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingchen walking towards her with calm and collected expressions on their faces¡¯.

    Zhao Chengning reached out and took her in his arms when he got close to her. He red at the man on the ground and asked once again, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    Shen Jingbin released the man¡¯s hand, and hended on his butt after losing his bnce.

    "It¡¯s nothing. Someone just doesn¡¯t know how to watch their step."

    Shen Jingchen eyed Zhang Beiyu and herpanion for a few moments before he turned and asked Zhao Chengning, "Why does this girl look familiar?"

    Zhang Beiyu had quietly taken a step back the moment Zhao Chengning had walked through the door. She¡¯d created a rtively safe distance between herself and the man so that there wouldn¡¯t be any suspicion over her rtionship with him. Zhao Chengning had devoted all of his attention to shielding Shen Jingbin and hadn¡¯t taken notice of Zhang Beiyu¡¯s existence until he heard Shen Jingchen say something.

    Zhao Chengning furrowed his brows, clearly displeased by Zhang Beiyu¡¯s presence. "Miss Zhang," He said.

    Zhang Beiyu¡¯s face froze when she heard Zhao Chengning address her in such an unfamiliar manner. Looking as if she was about to cry, she said, "Second Young Master, I-I was only here to have a meal. I saw Miss Shen and wanted to greet her..."

    Shen Jingchen suddenly recalled where he¡¯d seen Zhang Beiyu and a look of understanding shed in his eyes. He shot her a meaningful look and said, "Oh, it¡¯s you. You¡¯re really like a lingering spirit."

    Zhang Beiyu¡¯s face paled, and whatever else she wanted to say was lost under his gaze.

    Feeling disgusted by both Zhang Beiyu and her malepanion, Shen Jingbin said, "Let¡¯s go."

    "Mm," Came Zhao Chengning response. He then began leading her away from the premises without even looking back, while Shen Jingchen shot a re at the man before leaving to chase after Zhao Chengning.

 Chapter 240

    <b>Chapter 240: The Greatest Threat (2)</b>

    Zhang Beiyu felt that it was incredibly unfair as she watched two men of outstanding qualities defend Shen Jingbin. Wasn¡¯t she just born into a fortunate family and only a little prettier than everyone else?! What right does she have to have such a good life?!

    Once they¡¯d left the restaurant, the trio heard faint signs of activity behind them. They turned back and found that the restaurant¡¯s security guards had run out.

    "The restaurant¡¯s owner is rather attentive," Shen Jingchen noted.

    "Yeah. I wouldn¡¯te here to eat if that wasn¡¯t the case," Zhao Chengning replied.

    "Tsk, what a terrifying capitalist."

    In the end, Zhao Chengning sent the two siblings back home in his car.

    The rain was slightly heavier when they left the restaurant. In the car, Shen Jingbin was staring at the rain that continuously pattered against the window when she suddenly realised that Zhao Chengning¡¯s blurred reflection in the window did nothing to destroy his handsome profile.

    For some reason, her chest ached when she saw his indistinct visage.

    Zhao Chengning found the time to nce at her while he was driving and noticed her somber mood. "Are you upset?" He asked.

    In response, she lighted snorted which made Zhao Chengningugh. He then asked, "Is it because of those two?"

    "Why do I feel like my rtions with others has been getting worse ever since I arrived in B City?"

    Zhao Chengning thought for a moment before he replied, "Your rtionship with women is the only thing that¡¯s getting worse. Don¡¯t worry about it."

    "But a lot of girls liked me when I was in school."

    "That¡¯s probably because I didn¡¯t attend your school."

    "Huh?"

    "I wasn¡¯t in your school, so there wasn¡¯t any conflict of interest between you and the girls at school. Whereas, in B City, the girls here feel that you¡¯re a threat to them."

    Shen Jingbin wore a puzzled look. "How am I a threat to them?"

    "Me," Zhao Chengning borated with a straight face.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face went nk for a moment before she smiled and said, "Oh, so I¡¯m a threat."

    "You¡¯re absolutely a threat to them. You¡¯re officially approved as the biggest threat."

    All of a sudden, the pain in her chest seemed to have disappeared without a trace. It was as if his words had smashed the boulder that was weighing on her chest to pieces.

    "Oh right, have you gotten used to working during these past two days?" Zhao Chengning enquired.

    "Mm, it¡¯s alright; I¡¯m just a little busy. But, why does it seem like you¡¯re exceedingly free every day?"

    "Do I look exceedingly free?"

    Shen Jingbin gave him a once over. "Take a good look at yourself; do you really dare to say that you don¡¯t look free?"

    Zhao Chengningughed. How could he tell her he was cutting down on his lunch break and meal times just to be with her. Because of her, he didn¡¯t even have the time to enjoy his only recreational activity.

    "There¡¯s not much going on in the officetely, so I¡¯m rather free. But I won¡¯t have much time after this."

    "It¡¯ll be good if we can find a nanny before that. Otherwise, we¡¯ll really have trouble getting our meals in the future."

    When Zhao Chengning thought back to how Shen Jingbin and her brother had just arrived in B City and hadn¡¯t had the chance to get many things, he said, "How about this: are you free over the weekend? If you are, I¡¯ll bring you out to buy some stuff. As for getting a nanny, I can help you look for one if you trust me."

    "Sure," Shen Jingbin replied eagerly. "I suddenly realised my life is much morefortable here than in A City with you around."

    "You could always just stay in B City."

    Shen Jingbin stared at him for a few seconds before responding, "You¡¯re the only person I know in B City."

    "Did you forget about Xu Ya and Jiang Weiwei?" In his heart, Zhao Chengning was delighted, but on the surface, his expression didn¡¯t change. With his eyes fixed on the road in front of him, he said, "My friends are your friends; I¡¯ll introduce you to them this weekend."

    Shen Jingbin gave a soft grunt in response. In her heart, she wondered whether she was being too aloof, but she set aside her thoughts since Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t appear to be any different from usual.

    Being aloof or whatever wasn¡¯t important!

    Zhao Chengning intimately knew the way back to the siblings¡¯ apartment and dropped them off at the ground floor. Thinking back to how the two of them had had a long day of work and needed the rest, he decided not to head up and hang around. Instead, he wished them good night and drove home.

    It wasn¡¯t thatte when Zhao Chengning reached home. His nocturnal friends probably weren¡¯t sleeping at this time, so he took out his phone and sent them an extremely frightening message.

    "Clear your schedules over the weekend; I want to introduce someone to you guys. I don¡¯t want to see any random girlfriends or femalepanions you picked off the streets. Also, make sure you reign in all those messed up thoughts of yours. I¡¯ll announce the exact timeter on. Anyters need not bother attending my wedding in the future."

 Chapter 241

    <b>Chapter 241: Temporary Friends (1)</b>

    The siblings were so busy with their internship that their feet didn¡¯t even touch the ground as they sped about. Naturally, they didn¡¯t have the time to y either. Since she rarely used tforms like Wechat and QQ, and hadn¡¯t joined in on any of the guild¡¯s groups, she got Shen Jingchen to leave a message on her behalf instead.

    "Need me to have a word with Leader as well?" Shen Jingchen asked annoyingly.

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him.

    However, his question did remind her of something else ¨C the issue of her rtionship with Quiet And Steadfast.

    Although they were married in-game, they weren¡¯t romantically involved in real life. Also, since she¡¯d decided to go after Zhao Chengning, she should get rid of whatever lingering feelings she had for Quiet And Steadfast so that she could stand tall in front of Zhao Chengning.

    Honestly speaking, she had a pretty good impression of Quiet And Steadfast. Her interactions with him in-game had also proven that he had quite a good character as well.

    Someone who didn¡¯t judge a book by its cover in this age where looks meant everything was indeed a rare find!

    If it hadn¡¯t been for Zhao Chengning, she might have considered Shen Jingchen¡¯s suggestion of the two of them getting together. But now...

    Some might say that she was being too sensitive and that Quiet And Steadfast was probably being a little kinder to her because he saw her as a friend. However, Shen Jingbin was no fool; just because her EQ wasn¡¯t the highest, it didn¡¯t mean she was dense. The looks Quiet And Steadfast sent her way revealed so much, it was impossible for her to ignore them. Wasn¡¯t there a saying that went: prevention is better than a cure? With Zhao Chengning¡¯s status, there were way too many girls who threw themselves at him. Shen Jingbin wanted to have the ability to crush all her love rivals in any aspect, leaving no room for them to criticise her.

    Besides, she¡¯d seen many instances in MMOs where melodramatic gossipparable to that of pce intrigue had taken ce during her school going days. Now that she was ying a VRMMO, which was even more immersive than your run of the mill MMO, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to be a little more cautious.

    Not only that, for some reason, she was constantly beset by the feeling that she was chasing after two men. But the thing is, she hadn¡¯t done anything... right?

    Shen Jingbin took advantage of the time she had offline and used it to cool herself off when it came to Quiet And Steadfast.

    Time flew by as they dealt with the rigors of work life, and in the blink of an eye, it was already the weekend. The remuneration the siblings received from thepany for their work was a break over the weekend. After taking Saturday off to rest up, the siblings woke up in high spirits early on Sunday morning. Zhao Chengning met them at their apartment and brought them over to the most popr Hong Kong-style cafe in B City to have breakfast, which consisted of dessert treats which were only sold in the morning.

    If word got out, all the girls in B City would probably die of envy.

    The three of them set out after breakfast. Within the day, Zhao Chengning, who could be called B City¡¯s most famous guide, brought them around B City to purchase all sorts of necessities. In the process, Shen Jingbin realised that he was the walking definition of a contemporary ¡¯good man¡¯. He came from a good background, looked great, and knew how to housekeep. Even Shen Jingchen, who was A City¡¯s self-proimed wealthiest and best-looking bachelor couldn¡¯tpare and was utterly blown away by Zhao Chengning.

    It¡¯s no wonder that so many girls were bending over backwards to get their hands on him. In fact, she was also finding it hard to restrain herself.

    They continued shopping till around six in the evening when Zhao Chengning decided to "knock off" for the day and brought the two of them to their destination for the night ¨C a high-end clubhouse.

    "Mr Zhao, Mr Fu has already arrived and is waiting for you on the second floor," The moment they alighted from their car, a smartly dressed young man came forward to open the door for Zhao Chengning. He bowed slightly and his lowered his gaze, adopting an extremely respectful attitude. He continued to remain in that position without batting an eyelid even after Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen got off, keeping his position without even a change in his gaze; a true professional.

    Zhao Chengning grunted in acknowledgement before handing him the car keys. "We¡¯ll head up on our own."

    The young man took the car keys, sat in the driver¡¯s seat, and drove off to park the car.

    "Let¡¯s go," Zhao Chengning said. He then began leading the way.

    This clubhouse belonged to one of his childhood friends. Other than bars, this was the ce that he and his bros frequented the most. As such, they had an exclusive room that was specially prepared for them. Without needing any of the staff to guide him, Zhao Chengning confidently led them up to the second floor, towards one of the rooms. When they arrived, they could hear the faint sounds of voices on the other end of the door.

    Zhao Chengning thought to himself: ¡¯these guys sure are pretty punctual today.¡¯

    Zhao Chengning paused and said a few words to reassure the siblings when he suddenly thought of some of those fellows that could even give him a headache. "The ones inside are my friends and childhood friends. Some of them might be a little straightforward, but they don¡¯t mean any harm. You guys can ignore them if they start making a ruckuster; I¡¯ll take care of everything."

    Shen Jingchen cheekily replied, "Don¡¯t worry, there¡¯s nothing to be afraid of after having lived with her for so long."

    Zhao Chengning looked at the Shen Jingbin who winked at him. "Let¡¯s go then."

    Zhao Chengning took a deep breath before raised his hand to knock on the door and slowly twisted open the doorknob.

    "Brother Ah Ning! You¡¯re here! Where¡¯s Little Jing?!" The moment Zhao Chengning opened the door, a figure leapt out at them before he could make out what was going on inside the room. When the person saw her standing behind Zhao Chengning, they pounced right at her and pulled her into a bear hug. "Little Jing, I¡¯ve missed you so much! Did you know that Brother Ah Ning promised to bring me along when he went to A City to see you, but ended up running off on his own? How insincere."

    "Xuya!" Zhao Chengning¡¯s expression darkened in an instant.

    You brat, I haven¡¯t even gotten a chance to hug her yet, and you¡¯re stealing a march on me??

    A chill ran down Xuya¡¯s spine, and he immediately let go of her. He then turned to Shen Jingchen and said, "Hoh, Brother Chen, you¡¯re here too?! Muack! I¡¯ve missed you lots too!"

    Shen Jingchen: "Let go, you skirt chaser!"

    Xuya: "Brother Chen, gajima1~"

    Shen Jingchen: ...

    It¡¯s a Korean saying that means ¡¯don¡¯t go¡¯. Think of all those K dramas (if you watch them) when a couple quarrels and one of them runs off, the other one then goes ¡¯gajima¡¯! ?

 Chapter 242

    Chapter 242: Temporary Friends (2)

    ¡°Where¡¯s my Little Beauty!?¡± Before Shen Jingbin had the chance to recover from Xuya¡¯s assault, Jiang Weiwei popped out. She pushed Zhao Chengning, who was standing right at the front, aside with a shove, and lunged at Shen Jingbin with sparkles in her eyes, refusing to let go aftertching onto her. ¡°Sob sob sob. Little Beauty, you¡¯re finally here! I heard you came to B City a while ago, so why didn¡¯t you call me? And to think I¡¯ve spent days and nights yearning for you.¡±

    Shen Jingbin was quite stunned by the enthusiastic greetings thatpletely exceeded her expectations. Zhao Chengning helplessly rubbed his brows and said, ¡°Jiang Weiwei, let her go. You¡¯re not nning on letting them stand outside the whole time, are you?¡±

    Sudden realization dawned on Jiang Weiwei, and she leapt out of the way, ring at Zhao Chengning before tugging Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand and pulling her into the room.

    ¡°Come on Little Jingjing, let me introduce you to this bunch of beasts.¡±

    Zhao Chengning felt his temples throb when he saw Shen Jingbin being dragged away. He was definitely going to distance her from Jiang Weiwei next time!

    When the door first opened, everyone¡¯s gaze had instantly been directed at her. However, Zhao Chengning was in the way so they couldn¡¯t get a good look at her. They only managed to make out the exact appearance of the girl that was reputed to have set God Zhao¡¯s heart aflutter when Jiang Weiwei pushed aside the ¡®obstruction¡¯.

    How should they describe her?

    Even though they¡¯d received the highest form of education and resources, they still found their brains drawing a nk. They couldn¡¯t think of a single adjective to describe this girl¡¯s appearance.

    A strange silence permeated the room.

    ¡°Hoh, Young Masters, are you lot dumbfounded? Can¡¯t you guys buck up a little?¡± Jiang Weiwei remarked disdainfully when she saw the dazed looks on her friends¡¯ faces after she pulled Shen Jingbin over to where everyone was.

    The first of them toe back to their senses couldn¡¯t help but curse, ¡°F*ck! Did I just see a f*cking fairy?!¡±

    As the rest of them gradually broke free from their stupor, they shot looks of both envy and admiration at a certain someone who was slowly walking over.

    You beast! She¡¯s a beautiful babe; no wonder you¡¯ve been hiding her all this while!

    F*ck, they wanted one as well!

    ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Shen Jingbin,¡± Shen Jingbin greeted everyone confidently, not appearing the least bit embarrassed.

    However, the moment she said that everyone immediately looked as if they¡¯d been struck by lightning.

    If they hadn¡¯t misheard, this beautiful woman called herself...

    Nutjob...?

    What? Prettydy, how could you call yourself a nutjob?! If someone like you is a nutjob, then what did that make them?! Are all nutjobs these days so pretty?!

    ¡°You guys can call her Little Jing,¡± Zhao Chengning said as he stepped forward. ¡°This is Little Jing¡¯s older brother, Shen Jingchen.¡±

    Shen Jingchen nodded at everyone.

    Everyone was once again shocked.

    As they¡¯d all received the best education there was, they carried themselves much better than your average person. To top it off, their knack for fashion and makeup really helped to pretty themselves up. Even if they were a solid five in appearance, they could turn themselves into a perfect ten. It was bad enough that they had someone like Zhao Chengning, who was a ten right from the get-go as a friend, but now, they were faced with yet another looker. Goodness, how were they going to get girls in the future!

    ¡°Twins?¡± Someone asked.

    Shen Jingchen shook his head. ¡°No, but wee from the same parents; I¡¯m a year older than her.¡±

    The person gave a dim-witted reply, ¡°So you¡¯re not twins! No wonder the two of you look so different.¡±

    Shen Jingchen: Hey bro, I¡¯m not happy with the way you put it! I¡¯m very handsome too, alright?!Éò¾²³¿±¯·ßµØµÉÁËÒ»ÅÔµÄÉò¾²çãÒ»ÑÛ£¬ºóÕßÎÞÄÎÌ¯ÊÖ£º³¤µÃÃÀ¹ÖÎÒ¿©¡£

    Shen Jingchen red at Shen Jingbin, who was standing beside him, in both grief and indignation.

    In reply, thetter just helplessly spread her hands: So it¡¯s my fault for being beautiful?

    Zhao Chengning led Shen Jingbin to a seat. He then swept a nce around the room and asked when he didn¡¯t see his closest bro, ¡°Where¡¯s Xia Qihui? Why haven¡¯t I seen him?¡±

    Xuya and Shen Jingchen sat on another sofa. Upon hearing Zhao Chengning¡¯s question, he replied, ¡°Brother Xia said he had something on, so he¡¯ll bete.¡±

    ¡°Make him down three cups for beingte! He¡¯s not a man if he doesn¡¯t take his punishment!¡± Jiang Weiwei immediately said in a reproachful manner.

    The rest of them began kicking up a fuss when they heard what she¡¯d said, and the atmosphere livened up once again.

    As long as youngsters were able to click, they¡¯d be able to get along famously. Shen Jingchen evidently mixed very well with this group of people. All he needed was the time it took Shen Jingbin to get a cup of juice, and Shen Jingchen was already rolling up his sleeves to join in on the fun when she looked up again.

    What a terrifying social butterfly.

    Shen Jingbin shook her head as she sighed to herself.

    ¡°Littler Jing... Mm, you don¡¯t mind if I call you that, right? Hello, I¡¯m Ah Mei,¡± Shortly after they sat down, Zhao Chengning left the room to receive a call. A fashionably dressed young girl holding a bright-coloured cocktail drew close and said, ¡°I saw you drinking juice this whole time. This is a specially blended cocktail that we came up with ourselves. Why don¡¯t you take a sip? It¡¯s no fun if you¡¯re always drinking juice.¡±

    Shen Jingbin was more than willing to sample food that looked good, so she took the cocktail from Ah Mei and had a sip.

    ¡°May I know what your rtionship is with Second Young Master?¡±

    ¡°Mm?¡± Shen Jingbin paused and looked at Ah Mei. ¡°We¡¯re friends.¡±

    Ah Mei revealed a look of disbelief and said, ¡°C¡¯mon, Second Young Master has never brought a girl with him to a gathering with his childhood friends before.¡±

    Every corner of Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart was filled with warmth, and she felt delighted. However, in the end, the two of them had yet to take their rtionship to the next level, so she could only reiterate their current status, ¡°Really, we¡¯re just friends.¡±

    Friends for the time being that is.

 Chapter 243

    <b>Chapter 243: A Woman¡¯s Charm Brings About Disaster (1)</b>

    "Would it kill you to tell us the truth? What¡¯s the point of trying to hide it?" Ah Mei suddenly asked bluntly.

    At first, Shen Jingbin only thought of Ah Mei as one of thosemonly seen gossipy girls, but now it was clear that Ah Mei was trying to feel her out.

    Shen Jingbin was the type of person who responded in kind. If the other party were a pleasant and agreeable girl, then she too would be as warm as the morning sun. However, if the other party spoke in an unpleasant manner, expecting any politeness on her part would be a bit of a stretch.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face turned cold as she rebuffed Ah Mei, "What does my rtionship with him have to do with you?"

    "I-I was just curious. That¡¯s all."

    "Just because you¡¯re curious doesn¡¯t mean that I have to give you an answer."

    "..." Ah Mei¡¯s face screwed up in displeasure, and she continued to wordlessly re at Shen Jingbin.

    "Hey, what¡¯re you doing?" Jiang Weiwei asked as she walked over with a small tter of fruits in her hand and proceeded to seat herself beside Shen Jingbin. She then turned to Ah Mei and said haughtily, "Who¡¯re you again? I seem to have forgotten you."

    Ah Mei¡¯s chest heaved for several moments before she replied. "I¡¯m Ah Mei."

    Jiang Weiwei wore a look of disdain on her face. "Ah Mei? Never heard of you. Whose girlfriend are you?"

    Ah Mei silently averted her gaze.

    "Hey hey hey, Jiang Weiwei, why are you holed up here? ... Hm? Prettydy, where¡¯d Chengning run off to? Why isn¡¯t he with you?" A young man wearing a white shirt walked over. He swept a nce at Ah Mei before he turned his attention to Jiang Weiwei and Shen Jingbin.

    Jiang Weiwei gestured at Ah Mei with her chin and asked, "Is she your girlfriend?"

    The man shot another nce at Ah Mei. "She looks really familiar, let me think about it... I think she¡¯s Ah Hao¡¯s girlfriend. Hey girl, you¡¯re with Ah Hao, right?"

    Ah Mei nodded.

    Jiang Weiwei tsked and curled her lips.

    Ah Mei really couldn¡¯t stand being sneered at by Jiang Weiwei, but at the same time, she didn¡¯t dare rebuke her either. Jiang Weiwei was an infamous shrew amongst this circle of friends, but she still got along pretty well with the guys.

    The only reason she could even be here was that she¡¯d tagged along with her boyfriend of over a year. Everyone in this room was all wealthy and respectable Young Masters whom she couldn¡¯t afford to provoke. It¡¯s not every day that she would manage toe across a new face at an event. At first, she¡¯d just wanted to get to know Shen Jingbin, but she never expected her to act so coldly. During this year with her boyfriend, although she was the lowest on the socialdder in their group, she¡¯d still managed to make quite a reputation for herself to outsiders because of her association with them. That being said, she was now faced with some nobody who was acting cold towards her, so she obviously wouldn¡¯t be happy. Little did she know that this woman actually had Jiang Weiwei as her backer!

    After he wrapped up his call, Zhao Chengning spotted someone sitting in his former seat. Not only that, but there were also a few other people surrounding Shen Jingbin too!

    He furrowed his brows. These bastards, they¡¯d all rushed up to surround her in the time it took him to take a call!

    "What¡¯re you talking about?" He asked as he walked up to Jiang Weiwei. Zhao Chengning signalled for her to give up her seat with his eyes. Jiang Weiwei unwillingly moved to the side to make space for him, and Zhao Chengning plopped right down on her former spot. He then casually leaned into the chair¡¯s backrest in a very sensual manner.

    Jiang Weiwei was very unhappy about being given the shaft, so she gave a tsundere-like snort and turned the other cheek. Zhao Chengning was left feeling helpless, and he could only turn to look at Shen Jingbin. That was when he spotted the unfamiliar face of a woman sitting beside her.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s brows knitted together once again as he swept a nce at Ah Mei. Keeping his gaze locked on her, he said, "Let¡¯s change seats."

    Without giving Shen Jingbin a chance to react, he stood up and walked over to her other side. Shen Jingbin had no choice but to shift her seat and make space for him.

    Once he sat down, Zhao Chengning narrowed his eyes at Ah Mei and asked, "You¡¯re Ah Hao¡¯s girlfriend?"

    Ah Mei looked as if she was overwhelmed by the attention she was getting. "Second Young Master, you-you remember me?!"

    "A little," Zhao Chengning only had the slightest bit of recollection when it came to her. The purpose of asking her that question had been to figure out her identity. And, from her reaction, he¡¯d been right on the money. He looked over to where Shen Jingchen and Xuya were facing a red-faced Ah Hao who was downing alcohol and said, "Ah Hao¡¯s over there, so aren¡¯t you going to keep himpany?"

    A strange blush surfaced on her cheeks. She looked up at Zhao Chengning with a mixture of joy and anger in her eyes and said, "He¡¯s busy drinking with other people; he doesn¡¯t have the time to bother about me."

    She was suddenly interrupted by Jiang Weiwei, "How quaint. So instead of caring for your boyfriend, you¡¯re over here acting like you¡¯re in heat. Haven¡¯t you ever thought about your status?"

    The moment she said that Shen Jingbin¡¯s opinion of Jiang Weiwei went up by a few notches.

    Weiwei, you¡¯re a true man.

    The youth wearing a white shirt had been sitting on the sofa diagonally across from them. His personality was simr to Xuya, and he was often the one who helped mediate when things got out of hand. He looked at Jiang Weiwei, then he turned to Zhao Chengning before turning his attention to Shen Jingbin and finally stopping at Ah Mei. He and Ah Hao were pretty close, and so, on ount of her being his boyfriend, he couldn¡¯t just sit by and watch her get bullied. In an attempt to smooth things over, he said, "Jiang Weiwei, your tongue¡¯s just as sharp as ever. She¡¯s just a girl, can¡¯t you be a little kinder to her?... Ah Mei, right? Why don¡¯t you go look after Ah Hao and make sure he doesn¡¯t drink so much; he¡¯ll end up drinking himself stupid if he keeps this up."

    In truth, Ah Mei had a horrible temper. She must have blown a fuse in her head after being ridiculed by Jiang Weiwei, because she continued to sit there like a brick, causing the atmosphere to grow heavy with tension.

 Chapter 244

    <b>Chapter 244: A Woman¡¯s Charm Brings About Disaster (2)</b>

    Ah Mei, who already had a bad impression of Shen Jingbin, turned her attention to the side and caught sight of her slowly inching towards Zhao Chengning.

    As she¡¯d been very subtle about it, everyone else, including Zhao Chengning, hadn¡¯t noticed what she was doing.

    "It¡¯s a little cramped, can you move over a bit?" Shen Jingbin suddenly asked.

    Zhao Chengning nced at her for a moment before he whispered in her ear, "Mm? Was I squishing you?"

    The two were practically glued to one another. In fact, half of Shen Jingbin¡¯s back was already against his chest. They were so close; she could even feel the faint rising and falling of his chest when he spoke.

    <b>Maximum attraction</b>.

    "Sorry about this, but can you find somewhere else to sit?" Zhao Chengning suddenly said to Ah Mei, startling her as she¡¯d also started to inch towards him gradually.

    "Mm? What did Second Young Master say?"

    "I said: can you find somewhere else to sit?"

    "Oh, okay," Agreed Ah Mei without any hesitation. She then moved to sit beside the youth with a white shirt.

    "Second Young Master, why aren¡¯t you over there having fun?" Ah Mei asked Zhao Chengning with a face full of smiles.

    Zhao Chengning shot a casual nce at her but didn¡¯t reply. Instead, he lowered his head to Shen Jingbin¡¯s ear once again and asked, "Do you feel like doing anything?"

    A spark of mischievousness rose up in Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart when she gently looked up and eyed Ah Mei who was ring daggers at her. Shen Jingbin turned to the man beside her and shed a brilliant smile at him. "I feel like ying cards, will you apany me?"

    Zhao Chengning had the impulse to reach out and cover Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes. Her eyes were shining far too brightly, and it felt as if the all the stars in the night¡¯s sky were gathered within them.

    "I¡¯ll keep youpany."

    "Me me me! Little Jingjing, add me in too! I want toe with you!" Jiang Weiwei felt that the two of them were being too lovey-dovey, and every fiber of her being was screaming at her to ruin the moment.

    Not willing to be ignored, the youth in the white shirt added, "What about me, what about me?! I know how to y cards too, add me in."

    Ah Mei only meant for it to be a casual question. Little did she know that this one innocuous question would result in everyone around her leaving, and she was now at a bit of a loss. "What card game are you guys going to be ying?"

    At this point, Zhao Chengning had already monopolised Shen Jingbin and was standing up, eyeing Ah Mei from his position above her. "The game we¡¯re ying probably isn¡¯t suitable for you, so I think you¡¯re better off noting along. Ah Hao doesn¡¯t need you either. You can make your way back after resting here for a bit. Someone outside will send you off."

    Ah Mei¡¯s face turned pale, and she deted like a balloon the moment she heard what he said.

    Only, no one bothered about her. Shen Jingbin nced back at her with indifferent eyes before facing forward once more.

    Zhao Chengning suddenly leaned towards her ears and whispered, "She was trying to make a move on me."

    Shen Jingbin stopped in her tracks and looked at him in astonishment.

    What the f*ck!? Who sounded like they were being wronged when they were whispering in her ear just now?

    Zhao Chengning wore a look that screamed ¡¯I¡¯ve been wronged¡¯ as he stared at her. Seeing this, Shen Jingbin felt her heart melt and sped one of his wrists. "You¡¯ve been wronged," She said softly.

    Zhao Chengning looked very pleased by this and reached out to grab her with his other hand. "That¡¯s why I told her to leave. Don¡¯t feel sorry for her; I was helping you to chase away a love rival."

    "Does that mean I need to thank you then?"

    "Mmhm, it¡¯d be impolite of me to refuse."

    "How should I show my appreciation?"

    "How about something practical..."

    "..." Shen Jingbin immediately turned to stare at him.

    Zhao Chengning dropped his gaze and cast a sidelong nce at her before correcting himself, "What I meant was that you should thank me by doing something practical; like going easy on me when we¡¯re ying cards. Don¡¯t have any impure thoughts."

    "...I wasn¡¯t thinking anything dirty!"

    "Oh, then I must have been the one who was thinking dirty thoughts instead."

    "That¡¯s right!" Shen Jingbin forcefully nodded her head. "Oh right. No matter what, that girl¡¯s still one of your childhood friends, right? Is it really alright for her to leave like that?"

    Zhao Chengning looked over to where Ah Hao was and said, "Ah Hao¡¯s a yboy. She may be his girlfriend in name, but she¡¯s actually his femalepanion. And, she¡¯s just one of the many femalepanions he has. In fact, letting him know that she¡¯s leaving might make it even more embarrassing for her."

    Shen Jingbin followed his gaze and looked over. Almost as if he¡¯d sensed it, Ah Hao looked up and saw the two of them staring at him. When Shen Jingbin entered his line of sight, he even gave them a foolish grin before he mouthed the words ¡¯Sister-in-Law¡¯.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face froze. "Mm, I think you¡¯re right."

    Zhao Chengning, who¡¯d noticed the change in her expression, chuckled and signaled to Ah Hao with his eyes.

    Masterfully done, bro.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s quartet walked over to the group of people who were ying up a storm at the table when Shen Jingchen ¨C who¡¯d drunk himself into a bit of a stupor ¨C gave a loud beer burp and said, "Oh, you¡¯re finally here?"

    Shen Jingbin immediately pinched her nose and looked at him with disdain, "Away with you, you drunkard. Don¡¯t speak to me."

    "Hey, this littledy actually has to gall to look down on her big brother!" Shen Jingchen was suddenly filled with vigor as he pounced at Shen Jingbin while exhaling his potent breath all over her.

    Everyone burst intoughter, while a few of his bros tried to hold him back.

    "Hey hey hey! Shen Jingchen, we can¡¯t allow you to bully our beauty."

    "That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right, she¡¯d be the apple of my eye if I had a sister like her. I wouldn¡¯t try to bully her like you."

    Shen Jingchen was ovee with grief and indignation. "You¡¯re being swindled by this girl! She¡¯s no helpless rabbit; she¡¯s a violent and merciless monster. She¡¯s a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing!"

    Everyone cast suspicious gazes at the woman in question who was a ¡¯wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing¡¯.

    Only to see her smiling sweetly back at them.

    "Mm, why don¡¯t you find out for yourselves whether or not I¡¯m a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing. Let¡¯s y a game of cards."

    "My god, the fairy smiled at me!"

    The foolish men dumbly nodded their heads and made a decision that they¡¯de to regret a thousand times over in the future.

    The phrase ¡¯the charm of a woman is fatal¡¯ was right on point!

 Chapter 245

    <b>Chapter 245: The Promation (1)</b>

    After she threw out a pair of cards that formed a King Bomb1, her expression remained the same, but her eyes revealed a smile as she looked at the two peasants sitting at the table. "Next group."

    The peasants who were utterly trashed byndlord Shen howled in anguish.

    "My god, what kind of luck does she have! How can she have a Bomb2every round? That doesn¡¯t make sense!"

    "How terrifying! She¡¯s a true terror!"

    They¡¯de out to rx, so they decided to y a simple card game ¨C Fight The Landlord. It required three people to y, and the losers would be swapped out. Everyone else who was interested could ce bets on who they thought was going to win.

    As Shen Jingbin was the star of tonight¡¯s gathering, she was naturally part of the first batch of people to y. Wanting to show some consideration towards her, the spectators ced bets on her. At the same time, they¡¯d also gotten themselves ready to console her for when she lost.

    Little did they expect her to nab the spot of thendlord for herself, and when she got her cards, the people standing behind her received a shock.

    Following that, the position ofndlord never left her hand.

    "I already told you guys; she¡¯s a pervert!" Shen Jingchen stood behind her and gave a sympathetic look at his fellowpanions who were shocked out of their minds.

    Someone suddenly pointed to Zhao Chengning and eximed, "Hey, Ah Ning, why don¡¯t you go y a round! Go go go, hurry up and y!"

    Zhao Chengning had been sitting beside Shen Jingbin the whole time and leaning against the chair¡¯s backrest, looking as if he was just casually lounging about while he admired her as she yed. Having been suddenly pointed out, he just repeated what they said, "Me?"

    He then looked towards Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin looked right back at him, her eyes shining with anticipation.

    "Alright then, I¡¯ll y. We¡¯re still missing one person, who¡¯s going to y?" He said helplessly.

    "Me!" Xuya and Jiang Weiwei both jumped at the opportunity. Realising someone else was vying for the spot, they turned to re at the other party. However, Xuya couldn¡¯t stare Jiang Weiwei down and was forced to silently forfeit.

    With that, the participating people in this round were: Shen Jingbin, Zhao Chengning, and Jiang Weiwei.

    "Beautiful! Go easy on me~" Jiang Weiwei said as she shot a coquettish nce at Shen Jingbin.

    Zhao Chengning chimed in shortly after. "Beautiful, please go easy on me too."

    For some reason, the word ¡¯beautiful¡¯ sounded so alluring when it came from Zhao Chengning¡¯s mouth.

    Shen Jingbin coughed to cover her embarrassment. "Ahem, I¡¯ll try my best to do so."

    The spectators behind them couldn¡¯t stand it any longer and started kicking up a fuss.

    "Little Jing, you can¡¯t do this! You didn¡¯t show us any mercy when you yed against us, but now you¡¯re going easy against Ah Ning!"

    "That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right! This is unfair! I demand equal treatment!"

    "Don¡¯t be like this Beautiful; I¡¯ve got money riding on you winning. You almost robbed me blind just now, so the least you could do is let me win this time."

    Shen Jingbin felt a drop of sweat roll down her forehead. She turned to look at Zhao Chengning before she spread her hands and said, "What should I do? They¡¯re not letting me throw the game."

    Jiang Weiwei mmed the table. "Then juste at me! I ain¡¯t afraid of you!"

    "Jiang Weiwei, shut up!" Zhao Chengning thought to himself.

    Xuya, who¡¯d been muscled out of the way by Jiang Weiwei, was now forced to act as the dealer. As usual, the position of thendlord hadnded in Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand once again. Shen Jingbin quietly shot a nce at Zhao Chengning and noticed him dedicating his full attention to his cards.

    Thendlord was the first to y their hand. Shen Jingbin looked at her cards which were almost all pairs. She had very few single cards, and her smallest card was a ten spade.

    Shen Jingbin silently nced at her opponents. It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to go easy on you guys, but these cards are making it impossible for me to do so!

    No miracle happened this time around, and Shen Jingbin came out victorious once again. It was only then that the men who¡¯d previously been beaten by her could feel the knots in their hearts unravel.

    Look! Even a God like Zhao Chengning lost, so what shame was there in them losing?

    Shen Jingbin gave up her seat after her game with Zhao Chengning and Jiang Weiwei and stood over to the side. Shen Jingchen, who had his sleeves rolled up his arms jumped at the opportunity to rece her, looking as if he was afraid she¡¯d suddenly change her mind.

    However, although the two of them were siblings, it looked like all of the good luck between them went to Shen Jingbin. After Shen Jingchen stepped up to the te, it seemed as if he was being pressured the whole time, and hecked the means to fight back.

    Shen Jingbin was happily spectating on the sidelines when she suddenly noticed a gust of warm air from behind her. Turning back slightly, she noticed that Zhao chengning had suddenly appeared there at some point.

    "Come with me," He gently said by her ear.

    After that, he began walking towards the balcony. Shen Jingbin looked back at everyone else who was watching the game with rapt attention. No one was paying any attention to her, so she followed after him.

    Every lounge on the clubhouse¡¯s second floor had an average size balcony, and each wasrge enough to amodate two people. Zhao Chengning drew the curtains to the lounge and balcony closed while also shutting the ss door.

    Shen Jingbin leaned against the railing as she watched him go about his business.

    "It¡¯s too noisy inside," He said. Once done, a smile bloomed on Zhao Chengning¡¯s face, and he continued, "What do you think of them?"

    She knew he was asking how she felt about his friends.

    "They¡¯re not bad. Everyone was pretty outspoken and easygoing," She replied.

    Zhao Chengning walked over to her said and said, "Everyone here today is a childhood friend of mine who have backgrounds simr to mine. Some of them went overseas during junior high school and hade back these past few years. We had an agreementst time that we had to bring over whoever we were interested in for the rest of us to see."

    Zhao Chengning gazed steadily at her when he said that.

    They¡¯re ying a game called Fight The Landlord. It¡¯s a three yer card game where there¡¯s andlord and two peasants. Thendlord is decided by a bidding system that takes ce at the start of each game, with the other two yers who didn¡¯t manage to be thendlord turning into peasants. A King Bomb pair is the strongest hand that you can y in the game. Here¡¯s the wiki entry if you¡¯re interested in learning more about the game! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dou_dizhu ? 4 of a kind. Able to beat every other hand in the game other than King Bomb or a stronger bomb ?

 Chapter 246

    <b>Chapter 246: The Promation (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt her cheeks heat up. "How many of them have brought their girlfriends over in the past?"

    "Not a single one of them."

    "Not a single one of them?!" Shen Jingbin asked in astonishment.

    "Mm. Jiang Weiwei brought her ex over in the past, but due to his rural upbringing and the difference in values between them, she dumped him not long after."

    Jiang Weiwei and someone from a rural background? Shen Jingbin thought that it was a strange pairing.

    Zhao Chengning continued, "Those guys are either workaholics and have never even thought of getting a girlfriend before, or they just love ying around. You see a different woman by their side every day when ites to them."

    Shen Jingbin giggled. "Do your friends know what you¡¯re saying about them?"

    "They wouldn¡¯t do anything to me even if they knew."

    "Mm, I think so too. Then what about you? Birds of a feather flock together. They love fooling around, but what about you?"

    "Me?" Zhao Chengning asked with a raised brow. "I belong to the former group ¨C I¡¯m a workaholic."

    Shen Jingbin eyed him skeptically before she said, "You don¡¯t look like a workaholic, you look more like one of those pampered young masters who have too much time on their hands."

    "Mm? I look like a pampered young master? That shouldn¡¯t be the case. I remember a lot of people telling me I look like a working elite."

    "You¡¯ve been lied to."

    Zhao Chengningughed.

    It might have been her imagination, but Shen Jingbin felt that that doting smile of his held a deeper meaning.

    This was bad; it felt like they were building up to a night-time rendezvous.

    "Mm, I¡¯ve been had," Zhao Chengning said as he leaned the upper half of his body over the railing that was as tall as his waist. He then looked over at her and said, "Maybe I need someone by my side to remind me of that fact."

    "..." Shen Jingbin met his gaze, unsure of how to react. At this point, her brain was starting to feel a little dizzy from this turn of events.

    The weather was actually pretty cold, and the temperature dropped even lower at night, giving rise to a small stab of pain when it swept past one¡¯s cheeks. She should be feeling more clear-headed in this weather, but she was actually feeling hotter. In fact, her cheeks felt like they were burning up. She didn¡¯t even need a mirror to know just how red her cheeks were now.

    "Little Jing, the New Year¡¯sing soon, right?"

    "Mm? Mm," She wasn¡¯t expecting him to suddenly change the topic, so she gave a vague reply.

    "I hope that you cane visit my house during the New Year as my girlfriend," His ink-ck eyes remained fixed on her as he said that, containing so much warmth in them that they could drown a man. It was as if there was a massive whirlpool in his eyes that threatened to swallow her soul.

    "I..." Shen Jingbin slowly opened her mouth. Probably due to nervousness, her voice sounded a little hoarse.

    However, the moment she said ¡¯I¡¯, the curtains were suddenly pulled open, and many faces could be seen stered against the tightly shut ss door.

    The two of them looked over at the same time.

    The couple was met with a number of faces that were slightly deformed from being pressed against the door, all of them overflowing with curiosity.

    They also heard someone excitedly calling out at the same time, "As expected, they¡¯re here! Come quick,e quick! They¡¯re here!" It sounded like Ah Hao.

    "Ah Ning, what are the two of you being all secretive for?~" A man beside Ah Hao asked as he undted his voice. As there was ayer of ss between them, the man¡¯s voice was rather muffled.

    Without waiting for the couple to reply, someone else said, "Are you an idiot? Do you think that they¡¯re going to be doing anything now that we¡¯re here?!"

    Shen Jingchen was never one to shy away from interesting events. ying along with the rest of them, he said, "s, my dear sister¡¯s about to be wed to someone else."

    "They..." Shen Jingbin pointed at the peanut gallery before turning to look at Zhao Chengning, not knowing how to react.

    If this were a typical asion, she¡¯d have long since red them down and used her imposing presence to shut them up. However, these were Zhao Chengning¡¯s friends, so she couldn¡¯t do something like that.

    Zhao Chengning looked at his childhood friends who were wreaking havoc, then at Shen Jingbin who was staring at him with a bit of panic in her eyes. He suddenly felt the urge to beat someone up.

    This bunch of pig-headed friends! The pleasant atmosphere he¡¯d painstakingly built up was now destroyed! F*ck, why the hell are they rocking the boat when they know I¡¯m proiming my love!?

    After taking a deep breath, Zhao Chengning took a step forward and shielded Shen Jingbin with his body. He then red at the group that was gathered in front of the door and mouthed the words, "Get lost!"

    The ones on the other side of the door look at him with amusement in their eyes. At the same time, Ah Hao wore a cocky look on his face and mouthed back, "I¡¯m not leaving; bite me~"

    Zhao Chengning rubbed his brows and turned to look at Shen Jingbin. "Let¡¯s go first."

    "Mm," Shen Jingbin nodded.

    The peanut gallery scattered when they noticed Zhao Chengning walking back into the room.

    Tsk tsk tsk, now that Ah Hao¡¯s put on such a cocky attitude after ruining the God¡¯s promation of love, hanging around would be courting death!

    The ss door was pulled open, and Shen Jingbin stepped in with Zhao Chengning supporting her back. Zhao Chengning himself stepped in after that, making sure to close the ss door as he did so.

    Jiang Weiwei, who hadn¡¯t been amongst the spectators, only now walked towards them. When she saw how everyone was running all around the room, she asked suspiciously, "What¡¯s wrong with them? Have they gone mad?"

    "Keep Little Jingpany for a little while; I need to have a chat with these people about life," Zhao Chengning replied. With that, he cracked his knuckles and began walking towards the one who was kicking up the biggest fuss ¨C Ah Hao.

    Jiang Weiwei gave them a strange look before she turned her attention to Shen Jingbin.

    An unknown sensation filled her heart as she did so.

    Jiang Weiwei had always known that Shen Jingbin was beautiful from the very first moment that she¡¯did eyes on her. But the way she looked now, with her cheeks dyed a faint shade of pink, eyes that shimmered like ripples in autumn, and the way her jet-ck hair was slightly tousled by the wind; she seemed demure, alluring, and delicate all at the same time.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s current appearance led her to believe that something had definitely happened.

    Jiang Weiwei heaved a sigh and took a step forward while shing a smile at Shen Jingbin. "Don¡¯t bother about them; they¡¯re always this crazy."

    She then turned her gaze to Zhao Chengning and wore an expression as if she were entranced.

    She¡¯d been rejected by him in the past, but had her heart finally given up on him now?

    He¡¯d found himself someone who was truly worthy of him; a girl who was perfect in every way.

 Chapter 247

    <b>Chapter 247: Leaving Jade Sea Pavilion (1)</b>

    Seeing as tomorrow was Monday, they didn¡¯t stay out toote and slowly began dispersing when it was about time to leave. Ever since he¡¯d tried to proim his love for Shen Jingbin just now, all the way till the time he sent the siblings home, Zhao Chengning hadn¡¯t found the chance to be alone with her. And so, his question went unanswered.

    Over the next few days, both the Shen siblings and Zhao Chengning were particrly busy. With the New Year just around the corner, their respectivepanies were preparing for their annual meetings. In addition, each department also had to work on their year-end summaries. They were so busy they started wishing they had the ability to turn a single day into two. At the same time, their hectic work life naturally meant that Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning¡¯s romance had to be relegated to the backburner.

    A week had passed by before work died down.

    Seeing how hard the siblings had worked, and the fact that they¡¯d more or less learned everything they needed to learn, Ye Linfan gave them several days off with a wave of his hand. The siblings didn¡¯t dare go out to have fun though as it was about time for the Shen elders to pay them. Instead, they used their break as an opportunity to log in to the game that had been left to the side for a long while.

    [Guild] Vice Leader Dawn¡¯s Twilight hase online.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: Oh, Dawn you¡¯re here?

    [Guild] Little Monk: Yoooooooo Dawn, long time no see, I¡¯ve missed you so much!

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: Nutty¡¯s online too.

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Nutty, Dawn, have you guys been busy? Haven¡¯t seen you guys for a long time.

    [Guild] Long Life: Even the number of fortuitous events have decreased without Mascot around.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: We¡¯ve been interningtely and were a little busy, so we couldn¡¯te online. Sorry about that.

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: Dawn, you¡¯re interning already? To be honest, since New Year¡¯s around the corner, we haven¡¯t been able to get our hands on all of the attractive in-game events since we have to do overtime at our jobs. What a shame.

    [Guild] Faint Blue Seaweed: Yeah, I¡¯ve been worked to the bone recently, but I¡¯m still logging into the game. This is what true love is like.

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Nutty, aren¡¯t you still in schooling? You¡¯re interning on top of that?

    [Guild] Nutjob: Mm. I¡¯ll be graduating soon, so it¡¯s not a bad idea for me to gain some experience beforehand.

    [Guild] Descent Of Rain And Snow: I¡¯m so jealous of you guys! I¡¯m graduating soon too, but I still haven¡¯t found a job! My family¡¯s also hurrying me to find a job, get a boyfriend, get married, and then have some kids. They¡¯re kicking up so much of a fuss that I can¡¯t even think straight.

    Shen Jingbin remembered that Descent Of Rain And Snow was around the same age as she was, but she was being forced to get married?

    [Guild] Nutjob: Already? You¡¯re still young though.

    [Guild] Descent Of Rain And Snow: I think I¡¯m still young too, but my parents were spurred on after the girl next door, who was a year younger than me, gave birth to a kid. They feel that I¡¯m already old enough, so they want me to settle down. But the thing is, all the guys around me are even more useless than me, so who am I supposed to marry?! Oh, speaking of which, Nutty, your Hubby used to be my Godst time!

    [Guild] Nutjob: Uh...

    [Guild] Descent Of Rain And Snow: But don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t have the guts to go after him even if I do like him. I¡¯ll just admire him from afar.

    [Guild] Yanmen Imperial Sister: Speaking of which, Leader hasn¡¯t logged on during this time either.

    [Guild] Temperate Scarlet Moon: Doesn¡¯t Leader run his ownpany? He¡¯s probably busy as well since he usually doesn¡¯t log on much during the New Year period.

    [Guild] Big Buddhist Monk: Leader¡¯s on noticeably less this time around though; even Next Week¡¯s gone missing.

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Thank goodness there¡¯s still us old guards and regr members around to help out when our guild¡¯s backbone isn¡¯t around. Otherwise, the enemy probably would¡¯ve taken advantage of this opportunity to strike.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Mhm? Did something big happen when we weren¡¯t around? Did anything happen with the Shinra Sect, Sovereigns Descent, Life At First Sight, or the like?

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Now that you mention it, Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight have been crazy arroganttely. I bumped into them several times when I apanied a group of people to collect herbs and they provoked us the moment they ran into us. Aren¡¯t they a being stupid though? They obviously couldn¡¯t win but they were still trying to court death. Guess not everyone has a brain.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: Nutty, you should be a little more careful. Our enemies have been trying to cause trouble for us these days, so you need to watch yourself when you go to PK zones.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Okay.

    After fooling around a little more with her guildmates, Shen Jingbin decided to pay her sect a visit. But just as she teleported to the entrance of White Cloud Temple, she received mail from Pure Crane.

    "You¡¯re finally on."

    Shen Jingbin sent out her reply as she made her way towards the Sect Leader¡¯s residence, "Did something happen?"

    The NPCs who were going to and fro around White Cloud Temple all paused when they saw her and gave a very respectful bow. "Greetings, Great Senior Sister." Shen Jingbin nodded back in reply before continuing on her way.

    "Mm, something did happen. Where are you? I want to have a face-to-face chat with you."

    "I¡¯m at White Cloud Temple," After replying, Shen Jingbin turned and walked towards White Cloud Temple¡¯s main hall.

    Pure Crane moved quickly and was already there waiting for her when she reached the main hall. Many of the yers and NPCs gathered in the area broke off into groups of twos and threes to start whispering amongst themselves.

    Shen Jingbin got straight to the point and asked, "What happened?"

    Pure Crane nced around before he replied, "Let¡¯s find somewhere with fewer people around."

    Shen Jingbin had also felt no small amount of gazes directed at her. She¡¯d onlye here to make it easier for Pure Crane to find her and hadn¡¯t expected to be gawked at by so many people. After all, she was of the opinion that all yers should mind their own business.

    However, she¡¯d evidently underestimated the gossipy nature of yers.

 Chapter 248

    Chapter 248: Leaving Jade Sea Pavilion (2)

    News of Pure Crane falling out with Neverending Journey and leaving Sovereign¡¯s Descent with a number of yers had spread like wildfire in the forums.

    Some yers who weren¡¯t aware of the full story thought that this was a futile attempt by Pure Crane to climb the socialdder and enter Jade Sea Pavilion, angering Neverending Journey and leading to them falling out. There were others who thought that Neverending Journey had been pushing Pure Crane around for a long time and that he finally couldn¡¯t take it, so he epted Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s olive branch before having it out with Neverending Journey.

    After the battle at Eight Trigrams Field, the identity of the Lead Disciples was revealed. Other than the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs, who¡¯d been removed from her position, the remaining four Lead Disciples came from Jade Sea Pavilion. As the Lead Disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion, joining Jade Sea Pavilion was the best choice for him. And, no matter how you looked at it, Jade Sea Pavilion was vastly superior to Sovereign¡¯s Descent in every aspect. Due to this, many yers understood his reasoning and were supportive of his actions.

    However, Neverending Journey wouldn¡¯t let public opinion turn against him just like that. Using arge sum of money, he hired a legion ofmenters and used them to viciously nder Pure Crane on the forums,belling him as a spy that Jade Sea Pavilion had nted in Sovereign¡¯s Descent and calling him a traitor.

    This catfight gave rise to an unprecedented level of activity on the forums and turned Pure Crane into the second most famous person in-game after Shen Jingbin. Currently, with these two famous figures gathered together, all eyes would obviously be on them.

    In the end, Shen Jingbin brought Pure Crane into White Cloud Temple¡¯s Stargazing Forest, which was located at the rear of White Cloud Temple. Other than the NPC youths who came to raise their spirit birds, there were only a few low-leveled yers that were here to do some odd jobs. Most people normally wouldn¡¯te here, making it a suitable ce for holding a discussion.

    When the two of them walked into Stargazing Forest, Shen Jingbin swished her robes, and a spirit beast capable of understanding the intentions of yers known as ¡®Fei Fei¡¯ rushed out and encircled the two of them, forming a barrier that separated them from the outside world.

    ¡°You can speak now,¡± Shen Jingbin said afterpleting her preparations.

    ¡°I want to invite you into my guild.¡±

    ¡°Your guild?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I need to join a guild after leaving Sovereign¡¯s Descent, don¡¯t I? Even though being guildless isn¡¯t so bad, I¡¯m clearly not suited for it. Unfortunately, Neverending Journey¡¯s side has already said that they¡¯ll go against any guild that takes me in. The smaller guilds can¡¯t afford to stand against them, so they won¡¯t take me in. While Imperial City and Memelord are both clearly reluctant to involve themselves in something as messy as this. So, I created my own guild.¡±

    Shen Jingbin said, ¡°You can always join Jade Sea Pavilion.¡±

    Pure Crane shook his head. ¡°Haven¡¯t you seen thements on the forum?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t look at anything other than guides on the forum,¡± Shen Jingbin replied.

    ¡°That¡¯s strange... Neverending Journey hired an army ofmenters to nder me and Jade Sea Pavilion. Even though their views make up the minority at present, me joining Jade Sea Pavilion would definitely help to advance their argument, and that¡¯s not something I want to see happening.¡±

    ¡°Jade Sea Pavilion won¡¯t mind the false repute.¡±

    ¡°But I mind.¡± Pure Crane looked at her and continued, ¡°I don¡¯t want to bebelled a traitor.¡±

    ¡°Alright then,¡± Shen Jingbin saw the light of determination in his eyes, and chose not to speak any further as she knew she wouldn¡¯t be able to dissuade him. ¡°But why look for me then? What you need now are strongrades instead.¡±

    ¡°Three reasons. Firstly, yourbat strength isn¡¯t bad. At present, you have the Divine Beast, White Tiger by your side, but if all goes well, the other three Divine Beasts should be yours before long too, so I have faith in yourbat strength. Secondly, The Winds Of Ximen is also in my guild. If you join us, we¡¯ll have three of the six Lead Disciples in our guild. With this, we¡¯ll be in a better position toplete epic quests and gain resources from NPCs... Of course, with Quiet And Steadfast as Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Guild Leader, I won¡¯t be able to pull you over just because I want to. Thirdly, ck Hawk and Delicate Flower have left the guild and followed me. It was their hope that I try to persuade you to join too.¡±

    Shen Jingbin fell into contemtion after Pure Crane finished speaking.

    In the past, she would have rejected him without a moment¡¯s hesitation. However, things were different now, and she was presented the solution to distancing herself as far as possible from Quiet And Steadfast on a silver tter!

    However, now that she¡¯d thought of it, if she did agree, would her intentions be too obvious?

    Pure Crane noticed her dejection and spoke up once again, ¡°You needn¡¯t worry, my guild and Jade Sea Pavilion are allies; we just haven¡¯t announced our alliance yet. We¡¯re waiting for Neverending Journey to do something more extreme before we make the announcement.¡±

    ¡°Alright then, I agree,¡± His words instantly swept away thest of her hesitation.

    If Pure Crane¡¯s guild and Jade Sea Pavilion were allies, she could justify her actions by saying she was ¡®fostering rtions¡¯ between the two guilds. It wouldn¡¯t be toote for her to think about her next step after she sorted things out with Quiet And Steadfast and clearly divorced him.

    Shen Jingbin had always been a woman of action. Since she¡¯d agreed to join Pure Crane¡¯s guild, she immediately opened the guild page and sent out a message she¡¯d typed beforehand and promptly left the guild.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Everyone, due to quest requirements and personal reasons, I will be leaving the guild for a period of time. My apologies.

    [Guild] yer Nutjob has left the guild.

    The two notifications stirred up a hugemotion in Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s guild channel, but Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know that. After leaving the guild, she said, ¡°I¡¯ve left Jade Sea Pavilion.¡±

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll send an invite.¡±

    ¡°The world is a dangerous ce and should be braved alongside yourpanions. yer Pure Crane has invited you to join the guild ¡®Bronze Tree¡¯. Will you ept to join? Yes/No.¡±

    ¡°You have joined ¡®Bronze Tree¡¯. May you grow together and support one another from now till the end of time.¡±

    [Guild] The Winds Of Ximen: WTF, what did I just see?! ((?¡õ?;))

 Chapter 249

    <b>Chapter 249: My Wife Eloped With Someone Else (1)</b>

    [Guild] Guild Leader Quiet And Steadfast has logged on.

    After finally logging into the game after finishing his work, Quiet And Steadfast found his guildmates talking about a very strange topic.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: I feel like the world we live in is very bizarre.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: Yeah. Honestly, are all girls so unpredictable?

    [Guild] Descent Of Rain And Snow: I am very pure and innocent, thank you.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: I¡¯m pure and innocent too.

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: Pure and innocent +1.

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Monster: All I did was leave for a trip, and I find that the world has abandoned me now that I¡¯m back. I¡¯ve been left behind on gossip and everything else. I feel so sad.

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: Speaking of which, does our Leader know about this? How did he react?

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: ?

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: F*ck. Leader, when did you appear?

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Didn¡¯t you see the big notification on your screen?

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Uh... I don¡¯t think I did.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: What¡¯s the thing that I don¡¯t know about?

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: Eh, Guild Leader, did you know that Nutjob left the guild?

    Quiet And Steadfast paused. Nutjob left the guild?

    He quickly opened the guild member list. As expected, she wasn¡¯t there. He then opened his friend list and noticed that Nutjob was still online. Hence, he immediately sent her a message.

    "Why¡¯d you leave the guild?"

    Nutjob¡¯s reply came rtively quickly.

    "Pure Crane¡¯s creating a new guild, so I went over to help prop up the numbers."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s brows knitted together when he saw her reply.

    Putting aside the fact that he still hadn¡¯t received a reply to his real-life confession, what¡¯s with her now running off even while in-game? Was he out of luck?

    "Are you nning toe back in the future?"

    "Mm, but not for now. I¡¯ll see after I¡¯ve finished my quest."

    "Okay then. Be careful while you¡¯re over there, some might have misgivings towards you since you¡¯re from Jade Sea Pavilion, but I can¡¯t say for sure."

    Shen Jingbin felt likeughing when she saw Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s message. "Okay, I¡¯ll be careful," She replied.

    "What are you doing now?" In truth, what he wanted to say was that if she was free, the two of them could visit Beiming Southern River Ind together.

    "I¡¯m going with Pure Crane to look for Marco Polo Bun so that we can get some Floating Light Silk."

    Quiet And Steadfast felt very hurt. She was even going around with her new guildmates now that she was part of their guild!

    In the end, the wounded God only "Mmed" in reply before he quietly joined his guild members to clear out dungeons.

    His wife had run away, but he still had to take care of hispanions in the guild.

    Back to Pure Crane and Shen Jingbin. Due to a variety of reasons, Pure Crane, after getting the Shadow Snaring Water, didn¡¯t get the chance to contact Marco Polo Bun for the Floating Light Silk so that he could forge the Divine Tool. After messaging Marco Polo Bun to ask where he was at, the two of them boarded their mounts and made a beeline towards him.

    Marco Polo Bun was a casual yer. His interestsy in story quests and leveling his Life Skills. Sometimes, when he was bored, he¡¯d wander about the game in search of adventure or anything new and interesting. When Shen Jingbin messaged him, he was loitering around Fairy Tavern in Youzhou.

    Fairy Tavern was erected on the back of a turtle, which roamed within the boundaries of Shadow Mist Wend in Youzhou. The shopkeeper and waitresses were either pretty Dryads or Fairies, so many yers who loved 2D girls frequented here just to enjoy the tavern¡¯s dreamy atmosphere. To top it off, the tavern sold some specialty dishes that weren¡¯t avable in real life, drawing in waves of female foodies. While waiting for their food, yers could even watch performances put on by enchanting Fairies on stage or whatever entertainment was on offer. So all in all, it made for a pretty good atmosphere.

    Shen Jingbin and Pure Crane sighted Marco Polo Bun surrounded by a herd of girls the moment they entered the tavern, causing him to stand out and look like he was surrounded by a field of flowers.

    "Hey, I¡¯m over here," Marco Polo said as he waved after spotting them.

    As he was sitting at the centermost table in the tavern, he drew the attention of all the surrounding yers when he stood to wave at them. Following that, their gazes¡¯ fell on Shen Jingbin and Pure Crane.

    "Oi oi. Look, isn¡¯t that the ugly monster from White Cloud Temple?"

    "That¡¯s definitely her, who else would look like that... But that¡¯s strange, why is she with Pure Crane? Wasn¡¯t she Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s wife?"

    "Didn¡¯t Pure Crane fall out with Sovereign¡¯s Descent? He¡¯s with the ugly monster now? F*ck, I feel like I¡¯ve found out something I shouldn¡¯t have."

    "Say, do you guys think that the ugly monster¡¯s not satisfied with just having Quiet And Steadfast and now she¡¯s hooking up with Pure Crane too? After that, Pure Crane probably couldn¡¯t stand Neverending Journey bullying his little lover, so he fell out with Neverending Journey."

    "Your story would be a little more believable if she were beautiful, but... given her appearance, you shouldn¡¯t joke around."

    "No matter what the truth is though, doesn¡¯t the way that ugly monster act piss you off? On one hand, she¡¯s married to the Great God that¡¯s ranked number one in the game. Yet on the other hand, she¡¯s hooking up with different guys as well... Honestly, this isn¡¯t the first time I¡¯ve seen the two of them together. My friend from Sovereign¡¯s Descent previously told me that their Vice-Leader was especially mindful of this ugly monster. Ugly people sure stir up lots of trouble. How can she be so unaware of how ugly she looks? All she does everyday is run around seducing people."

    "Eh, it feels like you¡¯re overthinking things. Maybe they¡¯re just friends and they grouped up to clear a quest. It¡¯s probably not asplicated as you think it is," Someone weakly rebuked theirpanion whose ims were bing increasingly outrageous.

    The girl who spoke up was immediately red at by her friend. "Friends? Heh, is she an idiot? With a Great God like Quiet And Steadfast around, why would she go around looking for someone else to help clear her quests? Even though Pure Crane is capable, he¡¯s not in the same league as Quiet And Steadfast. I think there¡¯s definitely something going on between Pure Crane and that ugly monster."

    "But, Quiet And Steadfast might be the one who¡¯s unwilling to apany her. Think about it: their marriage back then was so sudden, I think there¡¯s an eighty percent chance that Quiet And Steadfast just picked someone to marry at random because he was tired of being harrassed by Crying Fish. Since there¡¯s no romance between them, the Great God obviously isn¡¯t going to waste his time on her."

    "That makes sense too. But there¡¯s quite a lot of females in Jade Sea Pavilion; why choose her instead of anyone else?"

    "Isn¡¯t she the one? Dawn¡¯s Twilight¡¯s little sister? Dawn¡¯s Twilight and Quiet And Steadfast are good friends, so of course he¡¯d marry her for the sake giving Dawn¡¯s Twilight face."

    "That does make sense huh. Looks like she¡¯s quite pitiful too then. Sigh, it sure isn¡¯t easy being the Great God¡¯s wife."

    There¡¯d be lots of gossip wherever there wererge numbers of women. Before long, the females in the tavern had already broken off into groups of twos and threes and started whispering amongst themselves.

 Chapter 250

    <b>Chapter 250: My Wife Eloped With Someone Else (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin and Pure Crane felt the attention of everyone in the tavern shift to them when they sat down at Marco Polo Bun¡¯s table.

    "I wasn¡¯t looked at by a single girl before you guys came. Now that you¡¯re here, the entire tavern is looking my way. This is truly terrifying," Marco Polo Bun said as he poured a cup of tea for each of them.

    Shen Jingbin red at him. "Don¡¯t spout nonsense."

    Marco Polo Bun shrunk back. "What did I do this time?"

    "Do you still have the Floating Light Silk that we gotst time when we defeated the Universal Envoy?"

    "The Floating Light Silk? Oh that, it¡¯s in my warehouse. Why? You guys need it? I¡¯ve looked into it previously, but couldn¡¯t figure out what it¡¯s used for. No one in the guild knows either, so I threw it into my warehouse."

    "Sell it to us then; we need it."

    Marco Polo Bun stopped drinking for a moment when he heard what she said. "Mm? You guys need it for a quest?"

    "Mhmm. More specifically, we have a quest that requires the Floating Light Silk," Pure Crane replied.

    "Ah, then I¡¯ll get it from my warehouse and give it to you guys in a bit; free of charge. I don¡¯t have any use for it anyway."

    Pure Crane thought that just taking it for free like that was a little inappropriate. Just as he was about to reject the offer, Shen Jingbin unexpectedly replied, "That¡¯s great, we didn¡¯t bring much money with us either."

    "... No wait, don¡¯t you feel embarrassed just taking it from me like that?!"

    "Not one bit."

    "Bandit!"

    "Thanks!"

    "Why did Jade Sea Pavilion even take in a bandit like you? Don¡¯t you know that you¡¯re smearing the reputation of the number one guild in the game?"

    Shen Jingbin gave him a look of shock. "Eh, don¡¯t you know? I¡¯ve already left Jade Sea Pavilion."

    "The f*ck? You left Jade Sea Pavilion?! Then where are you going to join now?!" Unable to control himself, Marco Polo Bun yelled in astonishment. Silence engulfed the entire tavern for the next few seconds.

    After the few seconds of mysterious silence, a headache-inducing wave of whisperedmotion exploded. Listening in on them, Shen Jingbin realised that the word uttered the most often was ¡¯what the f*c¡¯.

    Unustomed to such a noisy environment, Pure Crane said, "Let¡¯s find somewhere else. There¡¯s too many people here and it¡¯s noisy."

    Marco Polo Bun looked around and agreed. "Then let¡¯s go to my manor, I can pass you guys the Floating Light Silk at the same time."

    After a yer¡¯s prestige points reached a certain level, they could pay a sum of money to obtain their own manor. The functions manors provided were dependent on the sum of money and prestige paid, but all manors could function as warehouses. They were set up so that only the owner and friends that they¡¯d given permission to could enter the manor.

    Shen Jingbin had thought of getting a manor for herself in the past, but she¡¯d dismissed the idea when she¡¯d realised how expensive it was. Quiet And Steadfast had mentioned wanting to give her a mansion too, but she¡¯d rejected it.

    As for that fe Shen Jingchen, heh, he¡¯d probably rather die than pay for a manor.

    The three of them left Fairy Tavern and made their way towards Marco Polo Bun¡¯s manor. Once there, Marco Polo Bun didn¡¯t waste time spouting nonsense and handed them the Floating Light Silk. He then said, "It¡¯s all here. See whether there¡¯s enough. Otherwise, you¡¯ll have to farm more of it yourselves."

    "Thank you," Pure Crane said.

    "No problem. Eh, but are you really no longer part of Jade Sea Pavilion? If you don¡¯t have anywhere to go, then join our guild. We won¡¯t mind even if you¡¯re a little ugly."

    Shen Jingbin nced at him in disdain. "Heh, you¡¯re overthinking things; I¡¯ve already joined a guild. I¡¯m in Pure Crane¡¯s guild now, so worry not."

    Marco Polo Bun immediately looked as if he¡¯d just discovered a huge secret and asked in disbelief, "F*ck, don¡¯t tell me there¡¯s really something going on between the two of you?!"

    Shen Jingbin really felt like punching him.

    Not knowing whether tough or cry, Pure Crane exined, "No, you¡¯re definitely overthinking things. The reason she joined my guild was to make it easier for her toplete quests."

    Marco Polo Bun rxed when he heard Pure Crane¡¯s reply. "So it¡¯s like that. Good lord, I was afraid I¡¯d be silenced after finding out something I shouldn¡¯t have."

    "... You¡¯ve watched too many shows," Shen Jingbin remarked.

    Marco Polo Bun harrumphed like a tsundere and said, "That¡¯s none of your business."

 Chapter 251

    <b>Chapter 251: Silhouette Haloed By Light (1)</b>

    After Shen Jingbin and Pure Crane received the Floating Light Silk, they bid their farewell to Marco Polo Bun and left his manor.

    A manor was simr to an instance; when a yer exited someone else¡¯s manor, they could appear either in Jiuli City or beside the NPC in Xiling City where the entrance to the manor district was. That being said, which of the two locations visitors ended up at waspletely random. On the other hand, the owner of a manor had the option to select where they wanted to go.

    The two of them were randomly teleported to the NPC outside the manor district in Xiling City. There were more high-leveled yers in Xiling City aspared to Jiuli City. Hence, the moment they walked out, the two of them ran into Quiet And Steadfast leading his guildmates back into the city to sort out their inventory after running a dungeon.

    Both parties stopped in their tracks by the teleportation array and stared at one another as the atmosphere turned awkward.

    Shen Jingbin was faced with the misconception that Quiet And Steadfast had brought his guildmates here to catch her cheating on him.

    In the end, it was Little Monk, who was standing behind Quiet And Steadfast, that broke the ufortable silence. "Hey, Mrs Guild Leader, you¡¯re here too? What a coincidence. Say, which guild are you in now?"

    Shen Jingbin nced at Quiet And Steadfast. Unable to discern any emotion from his eyes, her gaze fell on Little Monk and she said, "Bronze Tree."

    Little Monk scratched his head. "Bronze Tree? Never heard of it. Whose guild is that?"

    Pure Crane stepped forward and interjected, "It¡¯s mine."

    "Uh..." Little Monk swallowed, unsure of how to continue the conversation. Why did it feel like his attempt at lightening the atmosphere was having the opposite effect?

    "You managed to obtain the Floating Light Silk?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    Shen Jingbin nodded her head. "Mm."

    "What do you n to do next? If you¡¯re free..."

    Quiet And Steadfast was cut off before he had the chance to finish. "I¡¯m a little busy these days, so I won¡¯t be logging in much. I only logged in today because I had some spare time. I¡¯ll be going now."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s veil made his eyes look especially mesmerizing. She couldn¡¯t bring herself to gaze into those eyes of his that caused an overwhelming sense of guilt to well up within her.

    After a long period of silence, Quiet And Steadfast said, "Oh, then have a good rest. Let¡¯s continue our quests when you¡¯re not so busy."

    "Mm," She hummed in reply before bidding her farewell to the rest of the people she knew and logging off in a hurry. After ncing at Quiet And Steadfast, who remained silently rooted where he was, Pure Crane also said his goodbyes and left.

    Everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion stood where they were. Their Guild Leader hadn¡¯t moved, so they didn¡¯t dare to leave either.

    After a few moments of internal struggling, Eternal Rest plucked up her courage and stepped forward to give voice to the question was in everyone¡¯s hearts. "Uh, Guild Leader, did something happen between you and Nutty?"

    First, Nutjob had abruptly left the guild. Second, she didn¡¯t even join them when they were running dungeons and instead followed that guy around doing who-knows-what. Now after bumping into her, she exchanged a few pleasantries with them before rushing to log off. They refused to believe there weren¡¯t problems with the couple even if you beat them to death.

    "No..." Quiet And Steadfast insipidly replied. "You guys carry on; I still have something to take care of so I¡¯ll log off first. Wechat meter if there¡¯s anything you need."

    After saying his piece, he logged off before they could say anything else, leaving them to exchange looks with one another.

    "Where do we go now?" Little Monk dumbly asked.

    Big Buddhist Nun gave him a p and said, "Let¡¯s go our separate ways."

    Everyone nced at one another once again before leaving to do their own thing. However, that question remained within their hearts.

    There were many yers going back and forth Xiling City, with even more of them traveling via teleportation array. A number of these people had borne witness to the previous scene. Less than an hourter, the game¡¯s forums was filled with threads discussing the day¡¯s incident.

    "Today¡¯s hot news: Love Fading Between Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Leader And His wife!"

    "An Ugly Duckling Is But An Ugly Duckling; Fairy Tales Are Lies ¨C Number One Ugliest Girl Miserably Dumped!"

    "Husband Treated Unfairly, Ugly Girl Having An Affair With Swordmaster Pavilion¡¯s Lead Disciple; The Number One God Leaves Dejectedly!"

    A myriad of titles that were fuelled by a modern day person¡¯s rich imagination flooded the forums. The simple exchange of words that Shen Jingbin and the rest had said were turned into an epic romance of love, hate, and betrayal that spanned tens of thousands of words.

    After logging out of the game, Zhao Chengning went onto the forums hoping to find clues about the epic quest, but lost the mood to do so when he instead found an overwhelming number of nonsensical threads on the front page. In fact, he was even a little annoyed. He¡¯d finally managed to squeeze out some time to y after a week of overtime, so even if he wasn¡¯t able to see Shen Jingbin in real life, gazing at her in-game would work for him too. Little did he expect something like that to happen when he met her! He then thought back to his promation of love which he¡¯d yet to receive a reply to and was ovee with irritation.

    He switched off hisputer, took out his phone, then looked up Shen Jingbin¡¯s number. His slender fingers hovered above the screen, and he found himself unable to punch in her number.

    What would he say after the call got through? Should he be direct and ask her for an immediate reply, or should he catch up with her first? What if she didn¡¯t pick up his call? Even though there was a pretty good vibe between them, the fact that their rtionship hadn¡¯t been rified meant that it was still subject to countless variables. What if... what if... he asked her for her reply...and she rejected him? After all, it¡¯d been so long already, and her not looking him up could mean that something had changed between them...

    The thought of being rejected soured Zhao Chengning¡¯s mood.

    Strictly speaking, Shen Jingbin was the first girl he¡¯d liked this much. Even though he¡¯d had favourable impressions of other girls in the past, all he¡¯d felt for them was merely admiration.

    Therefore, yearning for something he couldn¡¯t obtain was deeply depressing.

    After stressing over it for a good long while, the Second Young Master of the Zhao family realised he was being unmanly and came to a decision. He gritted his teeth and vowed to call her and set the record. But before he had the chance to do so, a knock on his door interrupted him. He looked up and saw his brother enter the room.

 Chapter 252

    <b>Chapter 252: Silhouette Haloed By Light (2)</b>

    Zhao Chengan almost thought he¡¯d walked into the wrong room when he saw a solemn and mncholic Zhao Chengning lying on the bed. This definitely wasn¡¯t the type of expression his two-faced, smiling tiger of a brother would have on!

    "What... are you doing?" Big Brother Zhao asked, his expression twisting a little as he did so.

    Zhao Chengning sat up and reigned in his emotions. His usual visage of warmth returned to his face and he calmly responded, "Nothing much. Why¡¯d youe looking for me, brother?"

    Zhao Chengan looked him over a few more times before he said, "Grandfather just called; he said some of his old friends or whatever from A City will be arriving at B City in the afternoon. He has something on at the time and won¡¯t be able to pick his friends up, so he wants us to do it in his stead. We¡¯ll be having dinner together after that."

    "An old friend? From A City?!" Zhao Chengning asked as his voice went up in volume.

    "Mm, what¡¯s with your reaction?"

    "Nothing, my reaction is normal... Did Grandfather mention when their flight is in the afternoon?"

    "I think it¡¯s at 2 pm."

    He flicked his wrist and checked the time; it was 11 am, there were still three hours left.

    "Give me a moment to get ready; we¡¯ll leave after lunch."

    Zhao Chengan leaned against the door frame as he gazed meaningfully at his little brother and unhurriedly said, "I rarely see you so enthusiastic."

    Zhao Chengning got up from his bed and walked over to his closet. He took off his casual home clothes, revealing his muscr upper body. The muscles that ran along his back, arms, and stomach looked exquisite, giving off a feeling of power, yet not appearing out of ce at the same time ¨C a feast for one¡¯s eyes.

    Zhao Chengning silently lowered looked down and eyed his own body. Were his muscles a bit too much?

    "How can I not be excited about matters pertaining to my marriage."

    "You mean..."

    After pulling on a deep blue sweater, Zhao Chengning tidied his slightly messy hair and beamed a radiant smile at his older brother. "It¡¯s exactly what you¡¯re thinking."

    Zhao Chengan paused for a moment before he sighed helplessly and said, "I¡¯ll have Aunt prepare lunch a little earlier so you won¡¯t bete and leave a poor impression on your future inws."

    "Thanks," Zhao Chengning voiced his gratitude to his brother¡¯s departing figure and his gloomy mood from before was now swept clean. He didn¡¯t dare to meet up with Shen Jingbin without a good reason. But now, he had the perfect opportunity. Him being so happy was perfectly excusable, wasn¡¯t it?

    Having nothing better to do and overwhelmed with boredom after logging out, Shen Jingbin buried herself in the sofa and watched tv while waiting for Shen Jingchen to finish ying so they could go out for lunch. Little did she know that he¡¯d end up ying all the way till two before crawling out. Shen Jingbin¡¯s hunger put her in an irritable mood, and she sent a few harsh words his way before they got ready to leave for lunch.

    However, Shen Jingchen¡¯s phone rang the moment they left their apartment building. Shen Jingbin red at him as he picked up the phone with a look of irritation on his face and fiercely asked, "Who is it? What¡¯s it about?"

    Shortly after, Shen Jingchen¡¯s handsome face broke into tears. "We¡¯re dead, we¡¯re so dead. Little Jing Jing, we seem to have forgotten something very important!"

    "What is it?"

    "Empress Shen¡¯s flight to B City is today!"

    "F*ck f*ck f*ck!" Shen Jingbin¡¯s face paled upon hearing what he said. "I¡¯dpletely forgotten about that! Did Mother call?"

    "Yeah, our happy days areing to an end. Empress Shen has brought along the evil Shen forces with her. They¡¯re at the airport now and she told us to go over."

    "..." At that moment, Shen Jingbin felt as though her heart was falling apart!

    The siblings exchanged looks of resignation before they, heedless of their own hunger, sprinted towards the garage and drove straight towards the airport.

    Fortunately, it was off-peak hours and the two of them were able to reach the airport in a short amount of time where they found Papa Shen, Mama Shen, and the two elders waiting for them. As they expected, the siblings were given a harsh scolding by Mama Shen.

    "Erm, Mom, scolding aside, where¡¯s your luggage? Why don¡¯t I see it?" Taking advantage of the time when the Empress was gasping for breath, Shen Jingchen tried to suck up to her by asking about her luggage, while also trying to divert Mama Shen¡¯s attention in the process.

    "Heh, you still have the nerve to bring up our luggage? I remember telling the two of you long ago that we¡¯d being today, no? And now look at this; the two of you were nowhere to be seen when wended! Were the two of you expecting us to go over to your apartment and pay our respects if the two people from the Zhao family hadn¡¯te?"

    "The two people from the Zhao family?" Shen Jingbin repeated,tching onto the most important part of what Mama Shen had just said.

    Papa Shen winked at them and jumped into the conversation. "They¡¯re the grandsons of your Grandfather¡¯s old friend. I just saw them, and they look rather handsome, warm, and polite; much like your brother..."

    However, before he had the chance to finish, Mama Zhao unceremoniously cut him off, "Comparable? In what way does this guy match up to them?"

    Feeling wronged by the injustice of it all, Shen Jingchen cried out, "Mom, I¡¯m your biological son!"

    Mama Shen harrumphed and ignored him. Papa Shen continued, "Jing Jing, Grandfather said you have a pretty good rtionship with the two of them; is that true?"

    The gossipy expression on Papa Shen¡¯s face truly made Shen Jingbin think that her parents¡¯ genders should have been reversed!

    "Dad, can you not be so..."

    Shen Jingbin interrupted by Papa Shen again before she could finish. "Look over there, they¡¯re back."

    Shen Jingbin turned around just in time to see Zhao Chengning strolling towards her with his back against the light, the sun bathing his silhouette in a warm yellow glow.

    This was the best day since the start of winter.

    Shen Jingbin stared dazedly at Zhao Chengning who neared her with every step. He suddenly appeared even more attractive after not seeing him for several days.

 Chapter 253

    <b>Chapter 253: Octopus Balls (1)</b>

    Zhao Chengning stood before the Shen family. His eyes ¡¯inadvertently¡¯ darted over to where Shen Jingbin was before he said, "Aunt, we¡¯ve taken care of the luggage. Where are you guys going now?"

    Mama Shen wrapped her arms around her chest and casually shot a sidelong nce at the two siblings who were doing their best to mask their presence. "We¡¯ll be going to their apartment."

    The siblings were ovee by shock for a moment before Shen Jingchen hurriedly said, "Mom, why would you want to visit our ce?! Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re thinking of staying with us?!"

    "What¡¯s with your reaction, you brat. Are you saying that living with us would make things that difficult for you?!" Unexpectedly, Old Master Shen angrily rebuked them before Mama Shen had the chance to re up.

    Shen Jingchen shrunk back and said, "No, what I meant was... Grandpa, you should know that our apartment¡¯s a little messy, so it¡¯d probably be a little... unlivable if you guys went over now."

    Papa Shen wore a knowing look when he saw the look of guilt on his son¡¯s face. "Hehehe, how can we not know how the two of you are like! Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll be living in the unit opposite of your one," He said disdainfully.

    Each level of the apartment that the siblings lived in could house two families. But, as they¡¯d always been out from dawn to dusk, they¡¯d never noticed whether anyone else was staying on their level.

    "Dad, don¡¯t you think you¡¯re being a little too spendthrift?" Shen Jingbin asked after silently mulling over what he¡¯d said for several seconds.

    Papa Shen gave an unconcerned wave of his hand and said, "Your Grandpa¡¯s said it before: either way you¡¯re going to marry someone from B City, so buying two properties here wouldn¡¯t be too..."

    A re from Mama Shen cut him off before he had the chance to finish.

    "What did you say?!"

    "Eh... Did I let something slip?"

    ck lines appeared on everyone¡¯s foreheads.

    You¡¯ve leaked way too much info!

    Papa Shen fell silent and hid behind his wife. Shen Jingbin was feeling a little embarrassed at the moment and didn¡¯t know where to look.

    Thankfully, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t appear to have heard anything. "Where are we going now?" He asked in a polite and friendly manner.

    Grandma Shen loosened her grip around her spouse¡¯s hand and beamed a smile at him. "We¡¯ll be troubling you, Chengning."

    "No trouble at all. The car¡¯s over here," Zhao Chengning said as he stood sideways to allow them to pass. Together, the Shen elders followed him over to where the car was parked.

    Zhao Chengninggged behind a little and walked by the siblings¡¯ side. Shen Jingchen nced at the couple before he very tactfully slipped away.

    "Ah, Mom and Dad definitely don¡¯t know much about B City, so I¡¯ll go over and bring them up to speed. You guys take your time chatting!"

    He then winked at Shen Jingbin before dashing off.

    She really felt like sending a punch his way!

    How low did your IQ have to be to not even be able toe up with a good excuse?!

    After Shen Jingchen ran off, a moment of silencested between them before Zhao Chengning asked, "Have you been busytely?"

    He was much taller than Shen Jingbin, and when he walked beside her, he could smell the faint aroma of flowers wafting from her hair. It was as if a kitten was asionally pawing at his heart, causing it to tickle.

    "Mm? I was kind of busy before this, but it¡¯s a lot better now. What about you?"

    "I¡¯m not as lucky as you; I was busy then, and I¡¯m still busy now."

    "Then why¡¯d youe over to pick them up? Won¡¯t that dy your work?" Shen Jingbin aimed a slight frown towards him and noticed for the first time that his eyes had a slight tinge of green to them. However, this didn¡¯t take away from his handsome looks in the least. Rather, it added an air of decadent beauty about him. "You haven¡¯t been able to rest well recently?"

    Feeling her gaze on him, he reached out and brushed his fingers over his eyes before he smiled at her and said, "Kind of. There¡¯s too much work and I haven¡¯t found the time to properly rest."

    She nced at the group of people who were in front of them and asked, "Who drove you here? You or your brother?"

    "Both of us drove here because we were afraid there wouldn¡¯t be enough seats."

    "You¡¯re too tired to be driving!" Shen Jingbin sternly said. As I she looked back at Zhao Chengning, she happened to catch him yawning just at that moment and continued, "See?"

    Zhao Chengning nced helplessly at her out of the corners of his eyes and said, "But I¡¯ve already driven here, so I can¡¯t just leave the car here, right?"

    Shen Jingbin furrowed her brows as she contemted the matter. She then said, "How about this: I¡¯ll do the driving and you can rest in the car?"

    This was exactly what Zhao Chengning had been hoping for, so his reply was straight to the point, "Alright then, I¡¯ll be troubling you." After saying this, he then sent a wink her way.

    Shen Jingbin stopped in her tracks for a moment before she continued walking as if nothing had happened.

    After walking out of the airport, Mama Shen was about toe up with a seating arrangement when she heard her daughter run over to her and say, "Mum, you and Dad can ride in Big Brother Zhao¡¯s car. While Grandpa and Grandma can go with Shen Jingchen."

    "Then what about you?" Shen Jingchen asked.

    "I¡¯ll be driving Zhao Chengning¡¯s car."

    "Why? It¡¯s not like there isn¡¯t enough space, what are you...?"

    "My back¡¯s killing me after sitting in that ne for so long. Little Chen, where¡¯s your car? Hurry up and bring Grandma over to it," Grandma Shen was very dissatisfied with the way her grandson was trying to dig deeper, and interrupted him before he had the chance to finish. She then grabbed his arm and began pulling him along.

    The remaining elders shot meaningful looks at Shen Jingbin before they silently went along with her arrangement.

 Chapter 254

    <b>Chapter 254: Octopus Balls (2)</b>

    "Miss Shen," Once everyone had boarded the cars, Shen Jingbin turned around and was about to make her way to Zhao Chengning¡¯s car when she heard Zhao Chengan call out to her.

    "Mm?" She looked back at him with a grunt to express her misgivings.

    "I hope Miss Shen didn¡¯t take offence at what I said back in A City. As the older brother, I was just trying to ensure my brother¡¯s happiness."

    Zhao Chengan looked straight into her eyes when he said that. From that, Shen Jingbin could tell that he spoke both sincerely and truthfully.

    "I seem to have forgotten what you said back then at the airport."

    Zhao Chengan smiled, his serious and threatening demeanour suddenly bing a lot more amiable. "I¡¯m relieved then. Chengning looks rather unsettled as ofte; probably due to some emotional hardships. If Miss Shen is free, maybe you could having a chat with him. My identity as his older brother makes it difficult for him to open up to me on matters of the heart."

    "Ah," Shen Jingbin nked out for a moment. "Alright."

    "Then, I¡¯ll be taking my leave first."

    Zhao Chengan waved at her before he opened the driver door and got into his car. Once inside, the car¡¯s tinted windows obscured her view of him.

    Shen Jingbin remained standing there as her mind thought back to what Zhao Chengan had just said.

    Emotional hardships?

    A chuckled slipped out from her lips and she began making her way towards Zhao Chengning¡¯s car.

    At her request, Zhao Chengning had gone ahead to rest in the car. He looked as if he¡¯d already fallen asleep when Shen Jingbin sat in the driver¡¯s seat. His chest heaved slightly and faint sounds of breathing could be heard.

    It looked like he really was dead tired; he¡¯d fallen asleep in such a short period of time.

    Shen Jingbin helplessly shook her head and turned on the ignition. The car slowly inched out of its parking lot and they were off.

    Mama Zhao wasn¡¯t present for dinner. She¡¯d excused herself by saying she had a prior arrangement. However, it had to be said that dinner without Mama Zhao was a very harmonious affair. During their meal, Old Master Zhao extended a passionate invitation to Shen Jingbin¡¯s family to visit their home during the New Year. Having no way to reject his offer, Old Master Shen could only ept.

    After dinner, the Grandfathers from both families began reminiscing over old times, while the Fathers talked about business and working together, leaving Shen Jingbin andpany to their own devices. Although Zhao Chengan had a good rtionship with Zhao Chengning, the two of them had vastly different circles of friends, making it difficult for them to mix together. As such, Zhao Chengan bid farewell to his brother and left first.

    Zhao Chengning thought that the nightscape of B City¡¯s University City was pretty good, so he suggested taking a walk over there to aid in their digestion. Since the siblings didn¡¯t have anything else in mind, the three of them got into the car and made their way over to University City.

    Coincidentally, Shen Jingchen ran into one of B City University¡¯sputer science professors after alighting from the car. The professor admired Shen Jingchen greatly and thought that he was a very gifted individual, so he¡¯d been trying to persuade Shen Jingchen toe over and attend graduate school under his tutge.

    And with that, the lightbulb named Shen Jingchen was sessfully drawn away by the professor. The couple exchanged a look of helplessness for a moment before they broke outughing.

    After calming himself down, Zhao Chengning said, "Let¡¯s go."

    "Mm."

    University City was bustling with activity at night. Even the cold weather wasn¡¯t enough to ward off the passion of foodies who¡¯de out in search of good eats, and the peddlers who¡¯d set up shop along the streets.

    While leading the way, Zhao Chengning said, "The high school that I used to be in was beside University City. When I was a senior, the school made itpulsory for us to live on campus so that it¡¯d be easy for us to do self-study at night. I would be able to smell the food being sold over here after my self-study sessions at night, and it was practically a form of torture."

    Shen Jingbin ¡¯Mmed¡¯ and said, "You had self-study sessions at night during your senior year?"

    "Yeah, what did you think I¡¯d be doing instead?"

    "I had thought that you were the type of godlike student who got all sorts of schrships and privileges after skipping grades."

    Zhao Chengning smiled. "That didn¡¯t happen; my heart wasn¡¯t in my studies during my senior year. At that time, I¡¯d already started my ownpany, and although it didn¡¯t interfere with my studies, it ruled out the possibility of skipping grades. To top it off, my school was the old-fashioned kind that didn¡¯t stand for any sort of special treatment. When I first started boarding, my Mother tried to sponsor the school so that I wouldn¡¯t have to board there, but unexpectedly, the Principal staunchly rejected her offer. Because of this, my Mother had a very bad impression of my high school."

    Shen Jingbin thought of what Mama Zhao¡¯s expression would be like if she was rejected, and she was more or less able to imagine how horrifying the scene of the crime would be.

    "At times, after our self-study sessions, the guys in the dormitory would go out to the surrounding walls. Some of them would act as lookouts, while others were responsible for scaling the wall and buying things to bring back for us to eat. Once they¡¯d returned to the dormitory, they even had to find ces on their person to hide the food for fear of the Dorm Mother finding out and dragging them over to the Discipline Master. If that happened, the Discipline Master would then present them before the entire school the next day to receive their punishment. During that period of time, the snacks sold here were like a delicacy."

    "Then, have you ever been punished in front of the entire school before?" Shen Jingbin curiously asked.

    Zhao Chengning shook his head. "Never, because I was the one paying for all the food. And even when they¡¯d been caught, my roommates would never rat me out. I¡¯d also promised to help them write their self-reflection essays as long as they didn¡¯t tell on me."

    Shen Jingbin looked at him and sighed, "It¡¯s hard to imagine you doing something like that."

    Her family had sponsored the high school she¡¯d attended, so when she¡¯d brought up special privileges, she¡¯d actually been referring to herself. At school, she¡¯d been exempted from both running and self-study sessions, and didn¡¯t even have to attend makeup lessons in her senior year. Thankfully, her grades were always outstanding, so the school didn¡¯t have much to say about her. As such, the high school life that Zhao Chengning was talking about was something that she¡¯d never experienced for herself.

    Zhao Chengning heaved a sigh and said, "It¡¯s hard to imagine, right? To be honest, I myself find it inconceivable now."

    Zhao Chengning suddenly spotted someone selling octopus balls. He pointed to them and said, "Those octopus balls were our favorite in the past."

    He then told her to wait where she was for a bit and jogged over to where the stall was. He bought some octopus balls beforeing back and handing them over to her. Shen Jingbin was still stuffed from dinner, but she suddenly felt like she wasn¡¯t all that full after gazing into his brilliant eyes. She stretched out her hand, jabbed an octopus ball, and ced it into her mouth.

    The taste was out of this world, and her lips curved into a smile as she looked at him and said, "It¡¯s delicious!"

    Zhao Chengning gazed back at her. Her smile was a little blurry behind the steam of the freshly cooked octopus balls, but that just made her look even more attractive.

    His heart stirred, and he couldn¡¯t help but lean towards her.

    Like a dragonfly gently skimming over water, his lips touched a corner of her mouth.

    With a ¡¯bang!¡¯, it abruptly felt like dozens of fireworks were lit within her heart.

 Chapter 255

    <b>Chapter 255: I Do (1)</b>

    Have you ever run into a situation like this?

    In that instant, it was as if all the sound in the world had disappeared, leaving only her heartbeat thumping by her ear. All light converged in front of her, and everything else blurred all into dim and indistinct figures.

    The faint scent of the person in front of her tickled the tip of her nose, feeling both gentle and impossible to ignore at the same time. She felt his warmth as he gently pressed against her body, calling into question the nature of their rtionship. His lips felt soft, and the minute friction generated by the two of theming into contact sent invisible currents of electricity streaking through her body, leaving her numb and powerless.

    Shen Jingbin felt a little ufortable. It was as if someone had seized her heart, but it wasn¡¯t exactly that kind of difort either.

    She suddenly felt something warm and moist at the corner of her lips, rousing her in an instant and causing her to take a step backwards, breaking the two of them out of their trance.

    "There was some sd sauce at the corner of your lips..." Unexpectedly, there was a faint blush on Zhao Chengning¡¯s usual kind and caring face. He then raised a hand and pointed discreetly at his lips.

    Shen Jingbin instinctually used the back of her hand to wipe the spot he pointed out, but suddenly stopped when it neared the corner of her lips. She quietly looked up and nced at him. It might have been due to the atmosphere or her embarrassment, but her voice was small when she said, "Is this how you... help?"

    With the Heavens acting as a witness, this was the closest she¡¯d ever gotten to behaving like a girl in her twenty years of living!

    Zhao Chengning gave an unnatural cough and didn¡¯t say anything. He only gazed fixedly at her, his eyes concealing a deep-seated love for her.

    On the other hand, Shen Jingbin pretended to y dumb, but her ears betrayed her by slowly turning red.

    She was utterly disappointed with herself!

    How could she be such a letdown! Why the hell¡¯s her face turning red! What happened to her aura of an empress!

    The outstanding looks, exceptionally personalities, and the clothes they were wearing made it easy for others to tell that they weren¡¯t your average individuals. They were especially eye-catching in a crowd of students, and at the moment, they were drawing no small amount of attention in this street. However, as the aura they gave off was far too strong, the onlookers could only peek at them from the sidelines; no one dared to interrupt them.

    Beautiful people were always pleasing to the eye no matter what they did.

    Countless single students wore dim-witted smiles on their faces and were using their handphones to secretly snap pictures of the beautiful lovebirds when they suddenly saw them kiss!

    Oh, they were suddenly presented with a feast for the eyes!

    The singles suddenly heard a sound that was simr to both their hearts and handphone screens shattering into pieces.

    Song Yubao, who¡¯d been dragged out by her roommates for a midnight snack, spotted Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning the very first instant they arrived. The fleeting glimpse that she¡¯d caught of Shen Jingbin when she was previously in B City had caused her to dream of the beautiful girl for an entire week! She¡¯d scoured the inte for clues about this girl, but only found several pictures of her on Weibo. Apart from that, the only other information she¡¯d uncovered was that this girl came from A City.

    Because of this, her appearance had been haggard for a prolonged period. It was so bad, that her roommates had thought she¡¯d broken up with a secret lover.

    But! She¡¯d unexpectedly! Run into her again!

    Ever since Song Yubao had spotted Shen Jingbin, her eyes were practically glowing as she fished out her handphone and went into a wild snapping frenzy before sending them to Moments on Wechat.

    National Treasures: Wtf wtf! Listen, I saw a <b>super </b>beautiful girl! She¡¯s unbelievably beautiful!

    I¡¯m Not A Monster: Tch, NPNT! 1

    National Treasures: Don¡¯t rush me, I¡¯m sending over a picture now!

    National Treasures: [PIC] She looks amazing right?!! PS: The one beside her is probably her boyfriend. He looks pretty hot too, but I¡¯m not so superficial; I only like pretty girls who¡¯re in their prime. ©d(¡ã?¡ã*)

    That one picture alone was enough to lure all the lurkers on Moments out of hiding, causing Song Yubao¡¯s handphone to start incessantly chime. The noise resulted in the people around her to continuously nce at her.

    Xia Qihui, annoyed by his handphone¡¯s constant buzzing, grabbed it with slightly jerky fingers, and opened up his Wechat app while cursing them in the process, "You bunch of chatterboxes, can¡¯t you be a little quieter!"

    However, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when Moments finally loaded.

    Wow, she really did look quite pretty... Wait a minute, why does this guy look so familiar?

    The f*ck? Isn¡¯t that Zhao Chengning?!

    With a swipe of his finger, Xia Qihui nced through all 99+ of his messages and could more or less confirm that that was indeed Zhao Chengning. He hurriedly looked through his contacts for Zhao Chengning¡¯s number and called it.

    On the other end of things, Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning had finally realised that they were surrounded by onlookers and were about to quietly slip away. They¡¯d just reached the car when Zhao Chengning¡¯s handphone rang.

    Zhao Chengning nced over at Shen Jingbin and signalled for her to get into the car before he picked up the call.

    "Hey, what¡¯s up?"

    "Bro, where are you now?" Xia Qihui asked cautiously.

    Not knowing the reason for his tone, Zhao Chengning replied immediately, "I¡¯m at University City. What¡¯s wrong?"

    "What the f*ck; it really is you! You really are the man in the pics! I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re bringing a girl around to tour University City at this time. Why didn¡¯t I know that you were feeling so bored?"

    Zhao Chengning furrowed his brows and asked, "How¡¯d you know that I was together with someone?"

    "You know who National Treasures is, right? She¡¯s in B City too, and she just uploaded a picture on Wechat. She said that she saw a beautiful girl and wanted to let us have a look. When I opened it, to my surprise, the guy beside her turned out to be you! You don¡¯t know how shocked I felt when I saw you in the picture. I even thought that I was imagining things..."

    Xia Qihui continued rambling on, but Zhao Chengning wasn¡¯t in the mood to listen to the rest of it. He looked up from his phone and gazed in the direction that he and Shen Jingbin hade from. From here, he could spot several girls who were still stubbornly sticking their heads out from their hiding spots and peeking at them.

    He¡¯d been far toocent and forgotten that secrets were easily divulged in public.

    Although he wasn¡¯t a celebrity, as a famous individual in the finance industry he was still prominently featured in Caijing Magazine2.

    Zhao Chengning nced back at Shen Jingbin who was sitting in the car. She appeared to be giving Shen Jingchen a call. Even with her brows knitted in disdain, she still looked just as beautiful as she always did.

    You¡¯re done, Zhao Chengning. Why¡¯d you have to do something so stupid?!

    Acronym for No Picture, No Talk. No one¡¯s gonna believe you if you don¡¯t have a pic yo~ ? A famous Chinese business and finance magazine ?

 Chapter 256

    <b>Chapter 256: I Do (2)</b>

    Zhao Chengning quickly came back to himself and said to Xia Qihui, "She¡¯s the one I wanted to introduce to you at the get together the other day, but unfortunately, you didn¡¯te. Let¡¯s talk again next when we get the chance. Help me look out for news about this on the inte; I¡¯m hanging up."

    With that, he hung up without waiting for the other party¡¯s reply. He then opened the car door and got into the driver¡¯s seat. He¡¯d already rested for a bit in the afternoon, so he obviously wouldn¡¯t get her to drive again.

    Shen Jingbin spoke up the moment he got into the car, "Shen Jingchen said he¡¯d being over now; let¡¯s wait for him."

    Zhao Chengning gave a grunt of acknowledgment as he nodded.

    They fell silent at the same time.

    Zhao Chengning was the first to speak after a few moments of silence. "Do you have an answer to the question that I asked you during the get-together?" He asked as he turned to gaze fixedly at her. His ardent gaze was so hot that it felt like it was scalding her. "I don¡¯t have any experience with women, and oftentimes, I don¡¯t know how to express my feelings towards you. I worry about you rejecting me if I¡¯m too blunt, but at the same time, I worry that my feelings won¡¯t be able to get across if I¡¯m too indirect... Truth be told, my heart¡¯s been in turmoil all this time because I didn¡¯t know how you felt about me. Agonizing over things like this is far too much for me to take, so, I hope that you can give me a straight answer regardless of what your reply is."

    Shen Jingbin stared at him in stunned silence for several seconds before her entire body started to glow like a lit candle. She just quietly stared at the man in front of her with a smile on her face and took his hand into hers.

    "I¡¯ll be your girlfriend."

    Immediately after, Shen Jingbin felt a powerful force grab her hand and draw her into a warm embrace. A familiar fragrance caressed the tip of her nose once again.

    Feeling the arms that were wrapping her in an embrace gradually close around her, she stretched out her hands to entwine her arms around his slender body.

    Their bodies met in the space between the driver and passenger seat as they embraced one another.

    "I¡¯m so happy," Zhao Chengning said in a whisper as he buried his face in her neck, his maic voice turning especially seductive. Shen Jingbin could feel her heart beating wildly in her chest as she felt the warmth of his breath caress her corbone.

    "Mm," Shen Jingbin replied in a small voice.

    "Sorry about that, but can you guys open the door? It¡¯s a little chilly out here."

    The tender feelings between the two lovebirdssted for less than a minute before the one who specialised in killing the mood appeared. Shen Jingbin suddenly saw Shen Jingchen¡¯s face stered on the window as he began knocking at it.

    Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning immediately separated themselves from one another. Zhao Chengning nced at her and lightly coughed before he released the car¡¯s door locks. The moment that happened, Shen Jingchen shot into the car with a ¡¯whoosh¡¯.

    "It¡¯s freezing outside; I almost turned into a popsicle! Professor Feng kept tugging at me to chat me up. If it weren¡¯t for you, Little Jing Jing, I probably would¡¯ve been a corpse on the street by tomorrow... Eh, why are the two of you acting so strangely?" Shen Jingchen began incessantly chattering the instant he entered the car. He kept going on and on till he finally realised the two of them weren¡¯t paying any attention to him.

    "It¡¯s nothing; you¡¯re overthinking things," Shen Jingbin replied.

    "Is that so?" Shen Jingchen asked as he leaned forward and looked between them, his face a mask of suspicion.

    Zhao Chengning spoke up at just the right time, "Sit down. We¡¯re going back now."

    Shen Jingchen grunted in acknowledgement and returned to his seat. After that, Zhao Chengning started up the car and sent them home.

    When they reached the apartment, Zhao Chengning¡¯s hand quickly shot out and grabbed Shen Jingbin¡¯s own hand that was just about to open the car door. "Tomorrow, let¡¯s have dinner together," he said. He then nced at Shen Jingchen and continued, "Just the two of us; without him."

    He then winked at her.

    Shen Jingbin smiled, causing her eyes to arch upwards in happiness. "Alright, be careful on the way back."

    After that, almost as if she¡¯d thought of something else, she leaned forward andnded a gentle kiss on his face. "Good night."

    Zhao Chengning was momentarily stunned before he let go of her hand and smiled back at her. "Good night."

    "What the f*ck?! What the hell were the two of you doing inside just now?!! I saw everything!"

    Shen Jingbin watched Zhao Chengning¡¯s car gradually disappear from sight before she turned around and got ready to go up to the apartment.

    Shen Jingchen finally broke out of his stupor after having caught a glimpse of something he shouldn¡¯t have seen and pointed at his sister in horror.

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him and said, "Why are you asking me about it when you saw it for yourself? We don¡¯t know whether Mom or Dad¡¯s back yet, so let¡¯s go up first to find out."

    With that, she took the lead and began making her way upstairs.

    "Hey hey hey, don¡¯t you have anything to say to me after something so major happened? Shen Jingbin, I¡¯m your brother... Oi, wait for me, you little bitch! Hey, are you listening to me?!"

    "Are you that much of a chatterbox? Why are you so talkative?"

    "No, I¡¯m just concerned about you. Weren¡¯t things between the two of you still very normal before this? Why are things so... uhm... so... you know what I mean!"

    "What¡¯s so strange about it? Things progressed between the two of us and we just took our rtionship to the next stage. Are youing in or not? You can climb the stairs yourself if you¡¯re noting in."

    "F*ck, so the two of you were making a move on one another in secret! I¡¯m telling Mom and Dad about you!"

    Her gaze drifted over to him and she looked like she didn¡¯t have a care in the world. "Whatever floats your boat. Either way, it doesn¡¯t bother me."

    "..."

    F*ck, why did he feel so stifled?!

 Chapter 257

    <b>Chapter 257: A Dispute (1)</b>

    The older generation had already arrived back by the time Zhao Chengning got home, and he gave them a brief greeting before returning to his room. After taking a shower, he opened up his Wechat as he dried his hair.

    The Wechat group was indeed a lot livelier today than it usually was and news flooded his screen. Upon taking a closer look, he realised that they were still talking about the picture that National Treasure had previously posted.

    Zhao Chengning had previously known that arge number of guild members from Jade Sea Pavilion happened to live in B City and its surrounding. And, apart from those who were students like National Treasure and the Four Monsters, most of them were working adults. This was why after being stunned by the beautiful girl in the picture, more of them hade in and turned their attention to Zhao Chengning who¡¯d identally ended up being relegated to the background.

    Long Life: That girl¡¯s not so simple. See the guy beside her? He¡¯s a young entrepreneur with an immeasurable worth, and sets the standard for being industrious. Not only that, he¡¯s also born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

    Temperate Scarlet Moon: I know, he¡¯s the Second Young Master from the Zhao family. Ourpany worked with them on a project before, and all the girls in our office were fantasizing about him every single day. He¡¯s really handsome in person. Sure enough, princes in this day and age always have a beauty on hand to apany them. Cinderes and the like are something that¡¯s never going to happen.

    I¡¯m Not A Monster: What a waste, the beauty¡¯s been taken by that beast.

    I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: I¡¯m not born when the beauty¡¯s born, but the beauty¡¯s already wedded when I¡¯m born.

    Actually, I Am A Monster: Are the two of you sure you aren¡¯t overthinking things? Who¡¯d be blind enough to fall for the two of you?

    I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: How terrifying, my roommates are idiots. What do I do? Urgently waiting for answers online!

    After silently reading through the entire chat log and finding that nothing substantial had been leaked out, Zhao Chengning closed his Wechat. After a moment¡¯s consideration, he gave Special Assistant Ke a call and told him to look out for news about himself over these two days, and that he was to immediately remove anything that involved Shen Jingbin in it.

    Zhao Chengning wasn¡¯t the kind of person who liked exposing his private life to the public. People these days weren¡¯t the kindest, and he wouldn¡¯t allow anyone to call his rtionship with Shen Jingbin into question; even if the one who suspected them was a nobody.

    Even though the elder generation of the Shen family had juste to B City, they had their own means of enjoying themselves and didn¡¯t need the two siblings to bring them around, leaving them to their own devices.

    After waking upte the next morning, once they¡¯d finished eating lunch, the siblingszily logged into the game.

    They were still in Xiling City when they logged in, and the onesing and going from the city were all yers.

    "Hey hey hey, that¡¯s Nutjob from White Cloud Temple, right?"

    "F*ck, she still has the gall to login even after doing something like that? Isn¡¯t she afraid of being hunted down by Jade Sea Pavilion?"

    "Heh, who knows, maybe she thinks herself an unparalleled beauty that can make everyone fall for her."

    "Hah, are you joking? Her, an unparalleled beauty? Sigh, you win."

    She was beset by the whisperings of passing yers and countless looks of disdain before she even left the teleportation array. Though she¡¯d been on the receiving end of no small amount of disdainful nces in the past, this was the first time they disyed their scorn so tantly.

    So, it¡¯s just as Quiet And Steadfast had said: they weren¡¯t holding back now that she was no longer a part of Jade Sea Pavilion, huh?

    Heh, he was right on the money.

    Resolving to ignore those people, Shen Jingbin began to make her way towards the outskirts of Xiling City with her head held high...

    When she was suddenly obstructed by a group of women after having taken only several steps.

    Shen Jingbin paused and sized them up. They looked unfamiliar; she¡¯d never seen any of them before. Why were they they in her way?

    The female standing at the head of the group gave her a once-over while eyeing her with contempt before she slowly asked, "You¡¯re Nutjob?"

    Shen Jingbin looked at her and asked, "You are?"

    "Humph, you don¡¯t need to know who I am," The woman tilted her head upwards and snorted. "I¡¯m here today to demand that you quit this game! People like you are the shame of all women. <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> doesn¡¯t wee sluts like you, so hurry up and get lost!"

    Once she¡¯d said her piece, the women behind her jeered at her in unison.

    "Get your ass out of this game!"

    "You slut, hurry up and get lost!"

    "Yeah, get lost! Or else, we¡¯ll beat you up whenever we see you! We¡¯ll keep killing you till you¡¯ve got no choice but to quit!"

    Shen Jingbin eyed the agitated women around her and thought back to whether she¡¯d done anything wrong to them recently. But, even after spending all day thinking about it, she still couldn¡¯t figure out what she¡¯d done to offend them.

    "You only have one option right now, and that¡¯s to quit this game. Otherwise, we¡¯ll keeping after you," Feeling ignored from the way Shen Jingbin was neither looking at nor replying her, All Smiles raised her hand and signalled for the women behind her to quieten down.

    "Why should I listen to you?"

    "Because this is what everyone wants, so you have to follow what we say!"

    All Smilespletely destroyed Shen Jingbin¡¯s good mood. Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes. She couldn¡¯t be bothered to deal with All Smiles, and decided to just round past her and leave. However, themotion they kicked up attracted quite a few yers, causing the teleportation array to be surrounded by people.

    She didn¡¯t know whether the peanut gallery was intentionally blocking her way or not, but they moved in whatever direction she did and she found herself unable to leave the encirclement.

 Chapter 258

    <b>Chapter 258: A Dispute (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin felt furious when she swept a nce at the crowd and noticed the looks of schadenfreude on their faces. She walked straight towards All Smiles, her expression dark, and said, "I don¡¯t know who you are, and I don¡¯t care who you are either. It¡¯s my business whether I y my game or not; you¡¯re in no position to dictate what I do."

    All Smiles red at her. "Listen, all of us are dissatisfied with you. Since this game belongs to everyone, you have to leave since we aren¡¯t happy with you around!"

    Shen Jingbin shot her a look of disdain. "Which influential family are you from? Did you forget to bring your brains with you when you left the house? I¡¯ll say this now: I¡¯m not quitting the game. What are you going to do about it?"

    "We¡¯ll kill you if you refuse to quit!"

    "Fine then, you can try."

    "Leave the safe zone if you¡¯ve got the guts!"

    "That¡¯s right, leave the safe zone and fight! Whoever loses quits the game!" A spectator in the crowd who tried to shit stir suddenly shouted. Everyone else immediately jumped on the bandwagon and started calling for them to fight as well.

    Shen Jingbin swept a nce at the crowd and anger bubbled in her heart when noticed that the ones who were making the most noise were the ones from Life At First Sight.

    "I¡¯m on the way to the outskirts of Xiling City. You can follow me there if you really want to fight it out," Shen Jingbin summoned Mascot, hopped onto it, and left these as her parting words before taking her leave.

    All Smiles red at Shen Jingbin¡¯s figure as she zipped away and stomped her foot in frustration. One of the women behind her stepped forward and said, "Smiles, are you really going? Didn¡¯t you say that she¡¯d definitely give in if we gathered everyone?"

    "I¡¯m going; why wouldn¡¯t I go?!"

    "But, you know that our equipment isn¡¯t the best, and no matter what, she was from Jade Sea Pavilion. Do you think we can beat her?"

    "Do you really think we can¡¯t beat her with so many of us around?!" All Smiles asked fiercely.

    The female yer silently gulped down a mouthful of saliva and retreated without a word.

    When news of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple, Nutjob, two-timing Quiet And Steadfast and sullying his reputation was revealed on the forums, the emotions of "Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s Support Group" immediately soured. They were already upset about Quiet And Steadfast previously marrying this woman, and now, she even dared to cheat on him. Utterly unforgivable!

    And so, they discussed amongst themselves and cooked up a n to confront her! Though their levels weren¡¯t that high, their equipment wasn¡¯t the best, and their abilities weren¡¯t the strongest; what they did have was strength in numbers, and every single one of them was cute. In this day and age, there wasn¡¯t a single pretty female yer who wasn¡¯t treated like a princess by everyone. They¡¯d hunt her down and pressure her into quitting the game. There was absolutely no fear that she¡¯d do otherwise.

    Little did they expect that not only did the woman refuse to give in, she even wanted to fight it out with them.

    Seeing how the plot was diverging from their script, it¡¯s no wonder that some of them were beginning to get cold feet.

    Fortunately, a number of people hade with All Smiles, so even if some of them were entertaining thoughts of retreating, there were even more of them who were itching to teach this woman a lesson.

    And so, the outskirts of Xiling City saw an unprecedented level of activity that day.

    Shen Jingbin selected a spacious area and leisurely waited for the group of women. All Smiles¡¯ group was pretty quick, and they arrived shortly after.

    Shen Jingbin leaned against Mascot andzily eyed the women in front of her. "How do you want to fight it out? One on one or all at once?"

    All Smiles¡¯ face flushed and she grit her teeth. "Fine, you said that yourself! Sisters, let¡¯s all attack at once!"

    Immediately after she spoke, the women raised their various weapons and issued an adorable sounding warcry as they charged towards Shen Jingbin.

    To be honest, it was quite a beautiful scene.

    The crude men who were watching began shamelessly recording the battle while broadcasting it within their guilds at the same time. Someone over at Jade Sea Pavilion had gotten wind of the news as well, and were frantically gathering the rest of the guild.

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Let¡¯s hurry over to the outskirts of Xiling City! All Smiles has brought over a group of people to beat up Nutty!

    The people in Jade Sea Pavilion were all very familiar with All Smiles. This woman was simr to Crying Fish in that they were rabid fans of their Guild Leader. However, the way she went about expressing her love waspletely different from that of Crying Fish. She formed the organization known as "Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s Support Group" and recruited lots of female fans that worshipped the number one God in the game, and proceeded to harass yers who lusted after him but weren¡¯t members of their group. That being said, their harassment was done discreetly, and they only attacked yers who didn¡¯t have any influential background. Crying Fish was one such person that they didn¡¯t dare to provoke.

    [Guild] Yanmen Imperial Sister: I knew she was going to harass Nutty the moment she left the guild.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Go go go, everyone who¡¯s free now follow me. Send someone to let Quiet And Steadfast know about this as well.

    Though many of them didn¡¯t understand why Shen Jingbin had left the guild, they respected her decision and didn¡¯t dig into it. Although she wasn¡¯t a part of Jade Sea Pavilion anymore, they were still friends and was still their Leader¡¯s wife.

    By the time everyone from Jade Sea Pavilion had arrived at the outskirts of Xiling City, they realised the situation was somewhat different from what they¡¯d imagined.

    Although Shen Jingbin had the ability topletely crush All Smiles and her flunkies, an army of ants would still be able to kill an elephant, so it¡¯d be difficult for her to escape unscathed.

    However...

    "Hey, Buddhist Nun, can you tell if the people behind Nutty are NPCs from White Cloud Temple?"

    They¡¯d imagined that Nutjob would be in a pinch since she had to take on all of them on her own, but what they saw in reality was a group of extraordinary people standing behind her that looked like NPCs!

    "F*ck! That¡¯s the Discipline Hall¡¯s Hallmaster!" Big Buddhist Nun and Little Monk got a huge scare after taking a good look at them.

    "F*ck, what¡¯s going on here?!"

    The people from Jade Sea Pavilion who¡¯d just arrived weren¡¯t the only ones asking this question; All Smiles and the rest of the onlookers were thinking the same thing as well!

    When the battle had looked like it was just about to break out, a wave of NPCs wearing the snow white daoist robes of White Cloud Temple came surging out of Xiling City and formed up behind Nutjob in an impressive fashion.

    The women who¡¯d already rushed forward came to a screeching halt, resulting in both sidesing to a deadlock in an instant.

 Chapter 259

    <b>Chapter 259: I Am Zhao Chengning (1)</b>

    None of them had ever seen so many NPCs gathered together anywhere outside of their own sects. All Smiles¡¯ expression immediately turned unsightly upon witnessing this sight.

    Though Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know why this group of NPCs had suddenly appeared, judging from the situation, she guessed that they were on her side and felt her spirits rise.

    "Are we still going to fight it out?" She leisurely asked as she narrowed her eyes and cast a sidelong nce at All Smiles. What should have been a seductive flutter of her eyes was instead turned into something that was unbearable to look at.

    Faint sounds of retching could be heard amongst the onlookers.

    All Smiles was so furious that she began to visibly tremble. This fight should¡¯ve been in the bag, but she¡¯d lost her chance at an easy win; it was truly depressing.

    "What are you doing, All Smiles? And you lot, what kind of stunt are you trying to pull?!" Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t give a damn about the situation at hand and strode past the members of Jade Sea Pavilion to stand at Shen Jingbin¡¯s side. He heaved a sigh of relief after giving her a once over and noticing that she was hale and hearty. Satisfied that no harm hade to his sister, he shifted his attention to the group of people in front of Shen Jingbin and red at them.

    All Smiles knew nothing could be done the moment she saw Dawn¡¯s Twilight.

    "As for all of you, what¡¯s there to look at? Have you guys cleared your dungeons? Done your dailies? Go mind your own business and scram!" Shen Jingchen said reproachfully. The crowd of people who were blindly cheering them on rubbed their noses and reluctantly dispersed.

    "Dawn¡¯s Twilight, this is a private issue between us and doesn¡¯t involve you. Can you leave us be?" All Smiles asked sweetly.

    Everyone knew that Dawn¡¯s Twilight and Quiet And Steadfast were close, so those in "Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s Support Group" naturally acted very politely towards him After all, getting closer to Quiet And Steadfast via his friends was a shortcut for them.

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight found All Smiles¡¯ soft, delicate voice grating on his nerves. He frowned and said, "I don¡¯t know you well, so stop acting so coquettishly with me. And, I¡¯ll have you know, that her business is my business."

    All Smiles¡¯ smile froze. She looked at the gradually thinning crowd and then at the people from Jade Sea Pavilion who were nearing Shen Jingbin. This time around, her expression was slightly distorted when she spoke once again, "She¡¯s embarrassing Quiet And Steadfast with all of her two-timing. As his friend, how could you not side with him, much less protect her? Don¡¯t tell me this woman¡¯s seduced you too?!"

    The moment she said that, the female yers behind her started to kick up a fuss too.

    "That¡¯s right, how can she cheat on the Great God after marrying him?! Forget not helping us, you¡¯re even defending her now! What kind of friend are you?!"

    "Heh, what a joke. You¡¯re the Great God¡¯s friend, but you¡¯re choosing to side with this woman instead. Pui!"

    "Are you siding with her because you¡¯ve hooked up with her too? How disgusting, don¡¯t you guys have any standards?!"

    "Why¡¯re you siding with that slut? Are all the people from Jade Sea Pavilion blind?!"

    The saying that a woman¡¯s mouring wasparable to that of several hundred ducks was indeed true. The people from Jade Sea Pavilion immediately felt a pounding headachee on the moment the women from All Smiles¡¯ side began to speak.

    Eternal Rest was the first to angrily refute them. "Shut up! The person himself hasn¡¯t said a single word, so why are you guys kicking up a fuss?!"

    "Quiet And Steadfast hasn¡¯t logged in sincest night. If he was online, he¡¯d definitely condemn her!"

    "Then let¡¯s wait for him to make a personal appearance. He doesn¡¯t need you guys to meddle in his affairs."

    It might have been due to Eternal Rest¡¯s overbearing delivery, but All Smiles andpany calmed down a little.

    Shen Jingbin felt that she¡¯d heard something disastrous. She couldn¡¯t help but step forward and ask with a frown, "Hold on a minute. Let me ask a question first: the reason you¡¯re taking issue with me is because I¡¯m two-timing?"

    "What¡¯re you acting dumb for? The forums are flooded with news of you two-timing, and there¡¯s even pictures to support it. Furthermore, this was verified by Hundred Daybreaks. Are you trying to make fun of me by acting like you¡¯re confused?"

    Shen Jingbin was so furious that sheughed out loud. "I¡¯m two-timing? Who am I two-timing with?"

    "Pure Crane! So many people have seen the two of you together all the time; you even left Jade Sea Pavilion because of him. Who¡¯d believe you if you said there wasn¡¯t something going on between the two of you?!"

    Shen Jingbin was about to blow a fuse.

    Although she was indeed trying to draw the line between herself and Quiet And Steadfast, she wasn¡¯t trying to do that by ¡¯two-timing¡¯, alright?! Also, what the hell did it being ¡¯verified by Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ have to do with anything?

    When she thought back to that woman whom she¡¯d met only once before, but who¡¯d disyed such open hostility towards her, Shen Jingbin wondered whether this group of women were asking as if this were a pce intrigue instead of an online game.

    "There¡¯s nothing going on between Pure Crane and I," She said, her expression turning serious as she enunciated every word to All Smiles.

    "Don¡¯t you think your exnation sounds really weak?"

    Shen Jingbin gave a coldugh, and she stretched out her hand to stop Shen Jingchen who was beginning to get restless. "Let me make myself clear, there¡¯s nothing going on between Pure Crane and I. Whether or not you believe me is up to you, but my question to you now is: are we still going to fight it out or not?"

    All Smiles nced at the mass of people from Jade Sea Pavilion and the imposing looking NPCs behind Shen Jingbin, and grit her teeth. "I¡¯ll let you off for today. Stay away from Quiet And Steadfast if you know what¡¯s good for you. We won¡¯t let you off next time if we find out that you¡¯re still mixing with Quiet And Steadfast! Let¡¯s go," All Smiles then red at her before leaving with the rest of her group.

 Chapter 260

    <b>Chapter 260: I Am Zhao Chengning (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin felt extremely unhappy after All Smiles left. She turned around to look at Shen Jingchen and the people from Jade Sea Pavilion, and asked, "Do you guys think that I left the guild because of Pure Crane as well?"

    Never in her wildest imagination had she thought that people would be able toe up with such a fanciful story. All she¡¯d said was a single sentence, but it somehow turned into a rumour about her two-timing.

    No one spoke; almost as if their silence was their tacit agreement. Shen Jingbin felt her anger reach its boiling point.

    Seeing the atmosphere turning a little awkward, Lingering White Clouds attempted to change the topic to lessen the tension. "Uh, Nutty, what¡¯s up with these NPCs?"

    Shen Jingbin took a few deep breaths to calm herself; her anger wasn¡¯t directed at the people in front of her. "I don¡¯t know either, they just appeared all of a sudden."

    "I gathered them," Said a person who walked out from within the crowd of NPCs. Shen Jingbin took a good look at them and found that the person turned out to be the person whom she¡¯d gone to Underworld City with in the past ¨C Mistress Of Lost Splendor.

    "Some of the women from the group just now were from my guild, and they were gathering other people within the guild to go after you. I just happened to be turning in a quest to the Sect Leader, so I let him know about it in passing. That¡¯s when he told me to lead these NPCs over to you."

    Everyone: F*ck, your sect¡¯s this cool?

    This revtion had also given Shen Jingbin a fright. She took several steps forward and stood before the NPCs. She wasn¡¯t sure of herself, but she tried saying it anyway, "Thank you for your assistance fellow sect brothers and sisters."

    An elegant youth stepped out from the crowd of NPC and spoke in a gentle and polite tone, "You¡¯re too kind, sect Senior. Putting aside the fact that the Six Great Sects haven¡¯t been able toe together as one for the battle of good against evil, it¡¯d be far too much of a shame if we even suffered from internal strife. As such, the Sect Leader instructed us toe out and right this wrong."

    Realisation then dawned on everyone. No wonder there were so many of them here.

    Seeing as there was nothing left for them to do, the NPCs bid Shen Jingbin farewell and left. The members of Jade Sea Pavilion were nning to leave as well when they suddenly heard a ding. Quiet And Steadfast had logged in.

    [Guild] Guild Leader Quiet And Steadfast has logged on.

    "Nutty Nutty, our Leader¡¯s online!" Syrup Time excitedly announced as she looked at Shen Jingbin.

    "Mm?" Shen Jingbin immediately opened her friend list and saw that Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s name was lit up.

    Before she could do anything else, she received mail from him.

    "Where are you?"

    "I¡¯m at the outskirts of Xiling City. There¡¯s something I need to tell you," Shen Jingbin replied.

    Shen Jingchen noticed what she was doing and said, "We¡¯ll leave first so that we don¡¯t bother you guys. Sort out your misunderstanding and talk things out between the two of you."

    It was rare to see him act so seriously and Shen Jingbin nodded back at him. Following that, Shen Jingchen half coaxed and half tricked the rest of them away. A short while after everyone had left, Quiet And Steadfast appeared.

    The first thing Quiet And Steadfast did was apologize. "I heard what happened, I¡¯m sorry."

    Shen Jingbin gazed at him meaningfully. "It¡¯s not your fault."

    Both of them fell silent.

    Quiet And Steadfast was deliberating over how he¡¯d reveal his identity, while Shen Jingbin mulled over how she was going to broach the subject of drawing the line between them.

    A long whileter, Shen Jingbin finally spoke up, "I¡¯m just friends with Pure Crane, and I only went over to help with their quests."

    She didn¡¯t know why she chose to exin herself first, but it was probably because she wanted to set the record straight.

    "I know, you¡¯ve mentioned it before. They¡¯re just rumours. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll take care of them for you."

    Shen Jingbin waved her hands. "There¡¯s no need... and, I have something I need to tell you."

    "Mm?"

    "I want a divorce."

    Her words were like a bolt from the blue. Quiet And Steadfast stood there in stunned silence. What¡¯s happening?

    "Why?"

    "I have a boyfriend in real life, so..." She wanted to finish her sentence, but she felt that he should know what she was trying to say.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression suddenly turned a little strange. "I think... that you having a boyfriend doesn¡¯t conflict with our current arrangement..."

    "There isn¡¯t any conflict, but I can¡¯t ept it. You might think that I¡¯m doing this for attention, but I don¡¯t want to get involved with anyone since I have a boyfriend now... And, you¡¯re very popr, so being with you is a little troubling too."

    "So thest part was the main reason why, huh?" Quiet And Steadfast silently remarked.

    "Will you break up with your real life boyfriend if he¡¯s so troublesome as well?" Asked Quiet And Steadfast who suddenly went off topic.

    Shen Jingbin silently frowned at him.

    Quiet And Steadfast coughed ufortably.

    Shen Jingbin said, "Quiet And Steadfast, you should be able to tell that I¡¯m trying to distance myself from you, right? There¡¯s no other reason why I¡¯m doing it. Our marriage wasn¡¯t built on love, so let¡¯s part ways amicably. There¡¯s no reason to hesitate, and we can still be friends even after our divorce..."

    A long while passed with Quiet And Steadfast remaining silent. Shen Jingbin thought that he wasn¡¯t willing to get a divorce, so she resolved to persuade him. In truth, she felt that apart from her high Luck stat, nothing else about her was anything to write home about. She saw no need for him to be so reluctant.

    Little did she expect Quiet And Steadfast to suddenly cut her off halfway.

    "Jingjing, I¡¯m Zhao Chengning."

    "I think the two of us... What did you just say?" Shen Jingbin thought that she¡¯d misheard him and froze for a moment before she turned to look at him with widened eyes.

    Quiet And Steadfast pulled off his veil ¨C the very first time he¡¯d ever done so in game. "I said: I¡¯m Zhao Chengning."

    What stared back at her was the most familiar of faces that hadn¡¯t seen even a single modification. Her brain instantly crashed.

    She¡¯d imagined countless ways this conversation might have yed out, such as Quiet And Steadfast getting mad and rejecting their divorce, or him nonchntly agreeing, or him dropping a huge confession on her and urging her to stay.

    But, the thought of him turning out to be Zhao Chengning had never crossed her mind, much less him using that as a way to reject her request for a divorce!

    "You... you knew who I was from the very beginning?"

    Quiet And Steadfast... no, Zhao Chengning, nodded.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s temper red.

    It¡¯s no wonder that a Great God like him chose to ignore tens of thousands of beauties and instead chose to marry her. Her being ¡¯lucky¡¯ or whatever other nonsense was all bullshit. This was the real reason!

    She suddenly felt like she¡¯d been deceived.

    Shen Jingbin red daggers at him before logging off right there and then.

    F*ck, she needed some time to calm down! She¡¯d spouted all sorts of nonsense to him, only to have him turn out to be the very reason why she was doing all this; how embarrassing!

 Chapter 261

    <strong>Chapter 261: Coming Face To Face With The Enemy (1)</strong>

    There was a sh of light and Shen Jingbin was nowhere to be seen; she¡¯d clearly logged off.

    Zhao Chengning just stood there not knowing whether tough or cry, while those gossip-mongers from Jade Sea Pavilion who weren¡¯t present, were mouring for him in the guild channel.

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: Leader!!! LEA-DER! Tell us what¡¯s happening now!

    [Guild] Descent Of Rain And Snow: Nutty¡¯s gone but we still haven¡¯tpleted the hidden quest. *sweat* Leader, hurry up and convince her toe back!

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: I¡¯m confident that there¡¯s nothing going on between Nutty and Pure Crane. Don¡¯t misunderstand things, Leader. All Smiles and her girls are all nuts.

    [Guild] Slight Chill: What are you guys talking about? What happened to Nutjob?

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: Long time no see, Slight Chill. Nutty had to deal with some stuff, so she left the guild and joined Pure Crane¡¯s guild instead. Now, there¡¯s rumours going around that she two-timed Leader and left the guild after hooking up with Pure Crane. She was then confronted by All Smiles¡¯ group.

    [Guild] Slight Chill: Pure Crane? Doesn¡¯t that mean that Nutjob¡¯s gone over to Sovereign¡¯s Descent? What the f*ck? Has she gone mad?!

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Shut your mouth, Slight Chill, don¡¯t go jumping to conclusions when you don¡¯t even know what¡¯s going on! Pure Crane left Sovereign¡¯s Descent and formed his own guild.

    [Guild] Slight Chill: What¡¯re you bitching about? It¡¯s not like I knew that. But, Nutjob does have a pretty good rtionship with Pure Crane.

    [Guild] Temperate Scarlet Moon: This feels way tooplicated. First, Nutty leaves the guild without a word, and secondly, she then distances herself from Leader (and don¡¯t tell me you guys didn¡¯t notice it!). On top of all that, it was revealed that she and Pure Crane were having an affair, leading to all that face pping. Now, we have Slight Chill saying that Nutty and Pure Crane were on pretty good terms¡­ Ah, I feel a little dizzy.

    [Guild] Yanmen Imperial Sister: Did you guys notice All Smiles saying that Nutty¡¯s two-timing was confirmed by Hundred Daybreaks¡­? I smell something fishy.

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: I do think Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ appearance is rather suspicious. Wasn¡¯t she the type of person who never meddled in rumours rting to matters of the heart? I think her getting involved means that there¡¯s definitely something going on.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Hundred Daybreaks is an arrogant bitch; she doesn¡¯t look anyone in the eye other than Quiet And Steadfast. In my opinion, she¡¯s doing this on purpose to muddy the waters.

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: It makes sense when you put it that way.

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Oi! You guys are going off topic! Shouldn¡¯t the most important thing be about how things are currently ying out between Leader and Nutty?! Leader, hurry up and convince her toe back!

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: I¡¯ll say it now: In spite of what all of you think, things are going great between Nutjob and I. There aren¡¯t any problems, and she¡¯s not in a rtionship with Pure Crane. She went over to Pure Crane¡¯s guild for the sake of a quest, and she¡¯ll being back once we¡¯re done with our own Epic Quest.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: I hope that you guys can put aside the rumours floating about and ce your trust in her. After being together with her for so long, you should know what kind of person she is.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Just ignore the rumours for now. The more nonsense they spread, the more foolish they¡¯ll look once the truthes to light!

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Alright, I snuck online so I don¡¯t have much time. Contact Dawn if there¡¯s anything. I¡¯ll be going off now, Dawn.

    After typing out a whole block of text, Quiet And Steadfast logged off.

    Back in real life, Zhao Chengning crawled out of the gaming pod and used his handphone to give Shen Jingbin a call, only to have it be declined after ringing once.

    Refusing to give up, he dialled her number once again. This time around, the other party didn¡¯t hang up, but her tone was far from kind.

    ¡°What?¡±

    Zhao Chengning chuckled and asked, ¡°Why¡¯d you suddenly log off?¡±

    Shen Jingbin felt anger bubble up inside her when she heard his question and said, ¡°You still have the gall to bring it up?!¡±

    ¡°Are you angry?¡±

    ¡°Hmph.¡±

    Zhao Chengning could practically see her acting like a tsundere in front of him.

    Truth be told, he was actually enjoying having her throw a tantrum.

    ¡°I just couldn¡¯t think of how to break the news to you, and I wanted to wait for the right time to surprise you. I never would¡¯ve expected you to be the one giving me a ¡®surprise¡¯ instead.¡±

    Shen Jingbin was still feeling put off because of him. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I was the one who received a fright.¡±

    ¡°You suddenly divorced me and made it look like I was a nuisance; who do you think was giving who a fright?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I knew that you were Quiet And Steadfast. Since I was in a rtionship with you, I obviously had to clear up all the other loose ends.¡±

    ¡°Jingjing,¡± Zhao Chengning suddenly turned taciturn for a moment before he said, ¡°I¡¯m overjoyed that you¡¯re so devoted to me.¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    ¡°Do you still want to divorce me?¡±

    ¡°... No.¡±

    ¡°Then are you still going to distance yourself from me? Don¡¯t think that I didn¡¯t notice what you were doing.¡±

    ¡°... Eh, I don¡¯t think I will anymore.¡±

    ¡°Then, are you going to act like I¡¯m a nuisance? After all, I am a little more charming in real life than I am in-game.¡±

    ¡°Why do you have so many questions? You¡¯re so petty,¡± Shen Jingbin said weakly.

    Zhao Chengning chuckled and said, ¡°I¡¯m just worried about my future.¡±

    ¡°...¡± She would¡¯ve rolled her eyes if Zhao Chengning were in front of her.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll stop teasing you. I¡¯ll see you tonight.¡±

    ¡°Mm, see you.¡±

 Chapter 262

    <b>Chapter 262: Coming Face To Face With The Enemy (2) </b>

    Shen Jingbin heaved a sigh after she hung up. She looked up to the ceiling, and Zhao Chengning and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s faces suddenly materialised before her eyes. Now that she thought about it, the two of them really did resemble one another. Take for instance their personalities, and also the feelings that had stirred in her heart whenever she¡¯d looked into Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes.

    It¡¯s no wonder she¡¯d felt that Quiet And Steadfast looked so familiar whenever she saw him; how could he not look familiar!?

    That liar! Humph!

    Shen Jingbin let out a cute little grunt and plopped herself onto her soft bed, burying her face in her pillow. As shey there, her tumultuous heart gradually calmed down.

    Everything felt rather surreal ¨C Quiet And Steadfast had suddenly turned into Zhao Chengning.

    If the women lusting after Zhao Chengning found out about this, there¡¯s no telling whether they¡¯d all start rushing into the game. Or maybe, if things were the other way around and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s identity in real life was revealed instead, would there be even more girls trying to throw themselves at him?

    However, someone like Zhao Chengning, be it in real life or in-game, was an existence that towered far above your average person. He wasn¡¯t someone you could just randomly walk up to and interact with.

    Shen Jingbin flipped over and quietly thought to herself, "Life sure is difficult for the girls who adore him."

    Shen Jingbin made her way down at the designated time and found Zhao Chengning¡¯s car parked and waiting for her. She walked straight towards it and hopped in.

    "Drive," She intentionally wore a look of displeasure on her face and kept her gaze locked straight ahead.

    Zhao Chengning stared at her for several seconds before he smiled helplessly and slowly drove off.

    Zhao Chengning brought her to a Western restaurant. It had a nice ambiance, and a piano that was ced on a stage could be seen the moment you entered the restaurant. A young man could be seen currently performing on the stage.

    A waiter directed the two of them to a seat at the corner of the restaurant. It provided a nice view of the surroundings and it was quite a private spot as well, leaving Shen Jingbin feeling very satisfied. This, in turn, improved her mood, which made her less irritable.

    She sent the waiter off after flipping through the menu and casually picking out a few dishes. Zhao Chengning leaned back on the sofa and gracefully crossed one leg over the other. He just sat there and smiled at her without a word.

    Shen Jingbin, who¡¯d pretended not to notice him at first and had refused to talk to him, gradually began to feel uneasy. In the end, she couldn¡¯t take it anymore and red at him. "What¡¯s with you staring at me?"

    One look at her was enough to tell that she was still hung up over the revtion that Quiet And Steadfast was, in fact, actually Zhao Chengning.

    "I was just wondering when you would finally forgive me," Zhao Chengning said with furrowed brows, looking as if he was troubled by the thought.

    "I don¡¯t feel like dealing with you now, you liar," Shen Jingbin replied.

    Zhao Chengning was torn betweenughing and crying. "Alright, just let me know when you feel like talking to me, and I¡¯ll offer my humble apologies."

    "..." Why did Shen Jingbin suddenly feel as if she were the one being put on the spot instead?!

    Zhao Chegning took a sip of water and cast a nce at her. He had a feeling that teasing her like this might really end up making her hate him, so he changed the topic and asked, "What made you decide to make your character look like that?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face fell when she heard his question, and an expression of helplessness appeared on her face. "It¡¯s all because of my username."

    Zhao Chengning chuckled. "Both your username and your character are very unique."

    "All the names I¡¯d thought of during the registration process were taken, so I abandoned myself to despair and allowed the system to randomly generate a name for me. Later on, I found that I couldn¡¯t beautify my character, so I chose to make her as ugly as I could instead."

    "Your resoluteness isn¡¯t something most people have either."

    "I was just afraid of other people recognising me... but you still noticed anyway."

    "Don¡¯t worry, no one will find out as long as you don¡¯t reveal your identity; I was an exemption." Because I¡¯ve always been watching you.

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t say the rest of what he thought, opting to gaze meaningfully at her instead.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt her face grow hot.

    Did he max out his charm stat?

    Shen Jingbin silently cursed him as she discreetly drank a mouthful of water. Her eyes darted all over the ce, looking at everything but Zhao Chengning.

    At this moment, they could hear footsteps closing in on them, and Shen Jingbin¡¯s attention was drawn to it. She thought it was a waiter bringing over their food, but when she turned to look, she found that it was a waiter leading two people to a table beside them.

    Their two tables were separated by several enormous ornaments, preventing her from making out their appearances. All she could see was a partial outline of their figures.

    For some reason, Shen Jingbin felt that the woman sitting opposite her at the other table looked a little familiar.

    Noticing her gaze, Zhao Chengning tilted his head to the side a little and asked, "What¡¯re you looking at?"

    Several ornaments also separated Zhao Chengning and the man. Looking through a gap between the ornaments, he could clearly make out the side of the man¡¯s face.

    He had long, thick eyebrows,rge eyes, a raised nose, and lips which looked a little thin.

    He was a very familiar looking man.

    Almost as if he¡¯d felt Zhao Chengning¡¯s gaze, the man who was about to sit down suddenly looked over at them, revealing the entirety of his face.

    It turned out to be Long Dinghai.

    Long Dinghai had obviously noticed them too. After a few seconds of surprise, Long Dinghai stood up and walked over to the couple.

    "Mr Zhao, Miss Shen, what a coincidence," Long Dinghai said as he walked over to their table and greeted them in an easygoing manner.

    The woman who¡¯d apanied Long Dinghai also got up and ran over. When she saw Shen Jingbin, she froze for a moment before her eyes began burning with hostility. But when she caught sight of Zhao Chengning, all of the hostility was instantly reced by amazement as she alternated her attention between Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin remained silent, while Zhao Chengning stood up and grasped Long Dinghai¡¯s hand.

    "Mr Long."

 Chapter 263

    <b>Chapter 263: Battle of the Supporting Female Characters (1)</b>

    "Are the two of you here to eat?" Long Dinghai looked between the couple before resting his gaze on Zhao Chengning.

    Zhao Chengning nodded. "Mr Long¡¯s here for the same reason?"

    "Mm, I came here to apany a friend."

    Everyone turned their attention to the woman by Long Dinghai¡¯s side. A wave of realization hit Shen Jingbin when she caught sight of the woman.

    This woman was that celebrity who was gaining poprity these days, and she worked for Long Dinghai.

    Noticing everyone¡¯s attention on her, the woman proudly stuck out her chest and nced at Shen Jingbin in passing. She¡¯d already prepared herself, and she was waiting for Zhao Chengning to inquire about her.

    But, all he did was nce at her before promptly ignoring her.

    "Miss Shen, the promotional video you filmed with Xue Sijia from mypany for Yiju has been released," Long Dinghai said.

    Shen Jingbin froze for a moment. "Is that so? I wasn¡¯t informed about it."

    Long Dinghai smiled. "They¡¯ll probably let you know in the next day or two. If possible, I look forward to working with you again in the future."

    A glint of all-consuming desire shed across his eyes, unsettling Shen Jingbin. "Things such as our future cooperation together depends on whether he agrees," She replied as she used her chin to point at Zhao Chengning.

    Long Dinghai¡¯s expression flickered for a moment before he smiled. "Has Mr Zhao switched over to being a manager instead?"

    "I¡¯m not her manager; I¡¯m just her boyfriend," He calmly replied.

    The expressions of Long Dinghai and the woman beside him froze. Shen Jingbin shot a sly wink at Zhao Chengning.

    Good job!

    Bon travail! 1

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s lips curled up as he smiled back at her.

    At that moment, a waiter walked over with the food that Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning had ordered. Long Dinghai exchanged a few more pleasantries with them before returning to his seat.

    After Long Dinghai and his partner walked off, Shen Jingbin grumbled a little, "What rotten luck."

    Zhao Chengning took a sip of his red wine and said, "To be honest, this ce isn¡¯t all that good anyway. Let¡¯s note here in the future."

    The two of them exchanged a knowing smile.

    After dinner, Zhao Chengning sent Shen Jingbin home. The next day, she sent him a text message saying that she was going to keep her parents¡¯pany, so he was in no rush to go online.

    He slept his fill and washed up before slowly taking his time to log into the game.

    He¡¯d more or less taken care of most of his work during his previous work frenzy, and he¡¯d handed the rest of it over to Zhao Chengan, so he didn¡¯t need to worry about it.

    After logging into the game, he took a quick peek at the guild page before exchanging his money and materials for the New Year event. He then went to clear his dailies with his fixed party.

    While doing their dailies, the party talked about the new outfits and mounts that were released for the New Year event.

    Whenever there was a significant event, the gamepany would throw in some valuable tools along with event only outfits and mounts. If you missed one of these events, your only chance of getting your hands on these items again would be to pay an exorbitant amount to buy them off another yer. Due to the limited number of these items in existence, being able to buy them wasn¡¯t a sure-fire thing even if yers were willing to pay for them.

    Thanks to Hundred Daybreaks, he had a pretty good understanding of the outfits and mounts on offer this time. She¡¯d spent an entire hour on Wechat the night before going on and on about them.

    The outfit avable this time was an eye-catching red dress that had a v-neck, giving it a seductive quality.

    When heid eyes on the dress, he got the feeling it¡¯d fit Shen Jingbin to a T in real life. When he tried thinking about how she¡¯d look in it...

    He¡¯d probably be better off not thinking about it. It was a little too stimting for him.

    In that case, how would Nutjob look in it...

    He¡¯d be better off not thinking about that either.

    In that case, he¡¯d give her a mount instead.

    With the year of the monkey approaching, the gamepany released a mount with that theme in mind. Earlier on, Yiju had invested in producing an animated film featuring the Great Sage, Equal of Heaven2, enjoying a pretty good reception and garnering many fans. The gamepany had taken this opportunity to jump on the bandwagon and release its own chibi mount of the Great Sage, Equal of Heaven.

    She¡¯d probably like it.

    Once done with his dailies, Quiet And Steadfast bid farewell to the rest of the members of his party and made his way to the location of the NPC event.

    Event tokens were earned bypleting rted event quests. Completion of an event quest would earn yers an event box, and these boxes would have a chance of containing the needed tokens to exchange for mounts or outfits.

    However, the chance of getting these event tokens was abysmally low.

    Furthermore, the outfits and mounts offered by the NPCs were limited. To ensure that he got a mount, Zhao Chengning sent out a mass of mails offering to buy event tokens while clearing his quests. He also made sure to ask about it in the guild chat too.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Buying ¡¯General¡¯s Directive¡¯. Message me if you have it.

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: I just got my hands on one. Leader, are you interested in outfits and mounts too? I don¡¯t think the male outfit looks all that good though; it¡¯s bright red and looks like boiled shrimp.

    [Guild] Next Week Is Unlikely: I have a few here too. Where are you? I¡¯ll head over and pass it to you.

    [Guild] Little Monk: Leader, are you interested in the mount? You need 88 General¡¯s Directives to exchange for it though. They¡¯re obviously trying to screw with us by making the General¡¯s Directive¡¯s drop chance so low. Not a single person¡¯s gotten enough for it yet, and all the unscrupulous merchants are trying to capitalize on this by setting sky-high prices.

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: (*£þ£Ï£þ)¥Î I¡¯ve been running these quests for an entire week now and I¡¯ve only managed to get 49 boxes. Till now, I haven¡¯t been able to get a single General¡¯s Directive. I¡¯m getting the feeling these things don¡¯t even exist in the game!

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: Ahahahaha. Don¡¯t cry National Treasure, you¡¯re not the unluckiest one out there. There¡¯s someone with even worse luck than you! I¡¯m Not A Monster opened around 100 boxes, but didn¡¯t get anything either.

    [Guild] Descent Of Rain And Snow: Hahahaha, how pitiful.

    [Guild] Faint Blue Seaweed: My heart goes out to all of you. Although I didn¡¯t get any either, I haven¡¯t been running these quests day in and day out hahahaha.

    [Guild] National Treasure: Get lost! ?????(>§Õ<)?????

    A quick nce through the guild chat revealed that only five people in the entire guild had gotten their hands on a General¡¯s Directive. Even the one with the most items only had three of them.

    Zhao Chengning sent his location to them before settling in to wait for their arrival.

    The raws wrote ¡¯Good job!¡¯ in English, so I tranted this part into French instead to maintain the vour ?? ? The self-proimed title of Sun Wukong, one of the main characters in the 16th-century ssical novel: Journey to the West ?

 Chapter 264

    <b>Chapter 264: Battle of the Supporting Female Characters (2)</b>

    While waiting, the replies to the mails he¡¯d sent out before came in.

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t have many friends on his friend list, but be it high ranking yers on the leaderboards or guild leaders ofrge guilds, every single one of his friends was someone of status.

    These people were far more interested in equipment than they were in outfits and mounts, so when they heard that he was buying General¡¯s Directives, they happily sold their items for a reasonable price to forge a better rtionship with him. Despite all this, he still needed another 41 directives.

    When Hundred Daybreaks received one of the many mails he¡¯d sent out, her heart skipped a beat.

    She¡¯d only mentioned the mount she likedst night on Wechat and griped about how difficult the tokens were to get. Yet today, here he was buying up all the General¡¯s Directives he could find; wasn¡¯t this too much of a coincidence?

    After all, he¡¯d never showed any interest in outfits and mounts in the past.

    She forced her wildly beating heart to calm down and asked, "Why do you need them? Did you take an interest in outfits?"

    Zhao Chengning knew Hundred Daybreaks was well-connected and securing her help would allow him to save on a lot of effort. "I want to exchange it for a mount; it¡¯s a gift for someone."

    It was true!

    Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ lips curled upwards the instant she read his reply.

    "I know a merchant who has quite a number of General¡¯s Directives. I¡¯ll help you contact him."

    "All right, thanks."

    "No thanks are needed." After all, you¡¯re doing it for my sake.

    After sending out her reply, a sweet smile lingered on Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ face as she contacted the merchant while she hopped onto her mount and made her way to the NPC event.

    She was pretty sure that he¡¯d be waiting there, and she suddenly felt like seeing him.

    Zhao Chengning had been by the NPC event at first, but Next Week Is Unlikely kicked up a fuss about how he wouldn¡¯t be able to send the General¡¯s Directive over to Zhao Chengning because he was in a dungeon. Since he had nothing better to do, he went over to the dungeon¡¯s entrance to wait for Next Week Is Unlikely toe out instead.

    Hundred Daybreaks looked all over for Zhao Chengning when she arrived at the event NPC, but she couldn¡¯t find hide nor hair of him. Realising that he wasn¡¯t there, she couldn¡¯t help but feel a little discouraged. But, just as she was about to leave, she heard a peculiar voice behind her.

    "Oh, isn¡¯t this the renowned Hundred Daybreaks? I see you looking all over the ce for something. Care to tell me what you¡¯re looking for? Could it something even the mighty Hundred Daybreaks isn¡¯t able to find?"

    Hundred Daybreaks was intimately familiar with Crying Fish¡¯s voice, so she could easily tell who it was without even having to turn around.

    Before that ugly monster, Nutjob, made her appearance, Crying Fish was her most hated enemy. Apart from the women in Jade Sea Pavilion, she¡¯d had the most amicable rtionship with Quiet And Steadfast.

    However, Crying Fish¡¯s elusiveness made causing trouble for her a difficult matter.

    Hundred Daybreaks gave a scornfulugh and felt that Crying Fish was rather pitiful. Forget Crying Fish being able to match up to herself; she couldn¡¯t evenpare to that ugly monster.

    Women shouldn¡¯t make things difficult for one another. She¡¯d just be the bigger woman and not stoop to her level.

    "Long time no see, Guild Leader Fish."

    Crying Fish sneered and walked up to Hundred Daybreaks, giving her a once over. "It¡¯s been a long time. Finding you is harder than climbing to the heavens."

    Not wanting to put up with her entricities, Hundred Daybreaks said, "I¡¯ll be leaving if you have nothing else to say. I have matters to attend to."

    As Hundred Daybreaks brushed past her, Crying Fish grabbed onto her hand and said, "Don¡¯t be in such a rush to go, I still have something to tell you," She turned her head and looked straight into Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ eyes. "You went through a lot of trouble to spread thetest rumour, didn¡¯t you?"

    Hundred Daybreaks acted as if she couldn¡¯t understand what Crying was saying. "I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about."

    "Cut the act. Even if other people aren¡¯t aware of how you¡¯re like, did you think I wouldn¡¯t know? I know you had a hand in spreading the rumour involving that ugly monster and Pure Crane. I¡¯ll say this now: don¡¯t think you¡¯ll be able to rise in rank just because you¡¯ve gotten rid of that ugly monster. If Quiet And Steadfast was really interested in you, the two of you would¡¯ve gotten together long ago, and he wouldn¡¯t even have needed that ugly monster! Take my advice; he¡¯s not yours, so don¡¯t delude yourself into thinking he is. All these little schemes and tricks of yours are useless!"

    If Crying Fish had said this to her in the past, she might have flown into a humiliation fuelled rage. But now...

    Hundred Daybreaks pulled herself free from Crying Fish¡¯s grasp. "You don¡¯t need to meddle in the affairs between Ah Ning and I. Regardless, no matter how little of a chance I have, I¡¯m still better off than you. At least I¡¯m still friends with him, and he¡¯lle looking for me if he needs anything. But you on the other hand, humph," Hundred Daybreaks gave a mockingugh before she raised her head and looked at Crying Fish in protest. "I¡¯m going to look for Ah Ning now. You go looking for him too if you¡¯ve got the stones for it."

    After saying this, she sent mail to Quiet And Steadfast right in front of Crying Fish¡¯s face. Shortly after, Hundred Daybreaks received a reply, and she intentionally opened it in front of Crying Fish¡¯s dejected face.

    "Ah Ning¡¯s at the entrance of Nightmare Devil Realm."

    With that, Hundred Daybreaks gave Crying Fish a brilliant smile before turning around and setting off, leaving behind Crying Fish who was trembling in anger.

    A long whileter, Crying Fish grit her teeth and followed after Hundred Daybreaks.

 Chapter 265

    <b>Chapter 265: Onwards to Southern River Ind (1)</b>

    Next Week Is Unlikely spotted Quiet And Steadfast standing by the dungeon¡¯s entrance the moment he stepped out. Dressed in ck from top to bottom, he looked free-spirited and dashing; drawing the attention of numerous female yers around him.

    Next Week Is Unlikely had been called over by a friend to help them clear a dungeon. That friend was partied with a cute girl with whom they had an ambiguous rtionship with, and they were running the dungeon to farm equipment.

    Mob Levels within Devil Nightmare Realm were based on the party member with the lowest Level. At first, that friend had nned on grabbing a lower leveled yer and carrying them. Unfortunately, he¡¯d given leadership of the party to the cute girl, and she¡¯d done the boneheaded move of immediately starting the dungeon. The girl¡¯s level was rather high too, so him carrying the party when the mobs were scaled to her level was a bit of a long shot. Furthermore, Devil Nightmare Realm could only be run once a day, so they couldn¡¯t abandon the run. In the end, the only recourse left to them was to call in a pro to help them out.

    Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s friend was a dungeoneer. Be it skills or equipment, everything about him was geared towards conquering dungeons. Because of this, his strength could only be considered above average. He¡¯d gotten to know Next Week Is Unlikely when they¡¯d first started the game. They got along well enough, so they kept in contact with one another. The moment Next Week Is Unlikely had hopped into the dungeon to save them, the girl¡¯s eyes had lit up and she¡¯d followed him around the entire time while referring to him as ¡¯Brother¡¯. Eventually, it had gotten to the point where his hair would stand on end whenever he heard her call out to him.

    By the time they exited the dungeon, Next Week Is Unlikely was ready to make a break for it and run as far as he could from her. If he could, he¡¯d even tell his friend of his to just treat it as a casual rtionship and not invest too much effort into her.

    Little did he expect that she would screw herself over before he had the chance to warn his friend.

    "Ah, you¡¯re the Great God Quiet And Steadfast!" Screamed the girl as she ran over to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side, fluttering her eyelids at him and feigning innocence.

    Next Week Is Unlikely looked back at his friend. Sure enough, his friend¡¯s expression had turned into a scowl. Next Week Is Unlikely gave his friend aforting pat on the shoulder before he walked over to Quiet And Steadfast and said, "Oh, you¡¯re here. Let¡¯s go back to my manor; what you want is in my warehouse. I¡¯ll hand it over to you once we get there."

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded at Next Week Is Unlikely and did a magnificent job of ignoring the girl. "Mm."

    Realising that they were about to leave, the girl hurriedly called out to them, "Brother Next Week, add me to your friend list! Let¡¯s go dungeoning again the next time you¡¯re free."

    "Sorry, my friend list is full."

    "Then all you need to do is delete one of them," The girl rudely replied.

    Girl, where¡¯d you get all that confidence from?

    "Sorry, I don¡¯t dungeons much; I¡¯m more interested in battlegrounds."

    "We can do battlegrounds together too once I¡¯ve leveled up."

    The various battlegrounds in <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> were separated by levels. Due to their difference in levels, they weren¡¯t able to join the same battlegrounds.

    Next Week Is Unlikely was speechless. Just how shameless was this girl?

    He coughed and was about to reject her when his friend couldn¡¯t take it anymore and grabbed her hand. "What do you think you¡¯re doing?"

    "Nothing, I just wanted to add him to my friend list... Ah, Great God Quiet And Steadfast, add me to your friend list too. You¡¯re really strong, so carry me in the future."

    At this moment, Hundred Daybreaks and Crying Fish showed up.

    "Ah Ning," Hundred Daybreaks cried out sweetly from far. She noticed Next Week Is Unlikely when she drew nearer, and nodded at him in acknowledgement.

    Speaking of Hundred Daybreaks, the reason why she knew who Quiet And Steadfast was in real life was because of Next Week Is Unlikely. Hundred Daybreaks was Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s friend in real life, and she happened to find out that he yed <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> one day, so she¡¯d arranged to meet up with him and y together. From there, she got to know Quiet And Steadfast.

    Quiet And Steadfast being Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s closest friend was something everyone in B City knew about. From there,ing to the conclusion that Quiet And Steadfast was Zhao Chengning was simple. After getting closer to him, Hundred Daybreaks found, to her surprise, that Zhao Chengning was actually a graduate. The only difference was that she was a few years his senior.

    Hundred Daybreaks was quite the influential figure in her younger days too. She¡¯d studied journalism when she was in university, and many of her articles were featured in famous publications. Quiet And Steadfast had heard of her in his school too and had a pretty good impression of her, leading to his amicable attitude towards her. Their interactions with one another resulted in a decent friendship between them.

    Crying Fish didn¡¯t dare go any nearer. Instead, she chose to continue standing where she was and observe them from a distance. On the other hand, the girl felt threatened the moment Hundred Daybreaks appeared. Hundred Daybreaks rarely showed her face in public, so not many people knew how she looked like. To the girl, the appearance of an unknown woman who looked very familiar with Quiet And Steadfast and Next Week Is Unlikely made her a formidable foe.

    "Who are you?" The girl asked a little bluntly.

    Hundred Daybreaks seemed to only take notice of the girl after she spoke. Hundred Daybreaks shot a nce at the girl before she turned her attention back to Quiet And Steadfast and said, "Who is she?"

    "I don¡¯t know."

    Feeling utterly humiliated, Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s friend grabbed onto the girl and said, "Let¡¯s go, I¡¯ll help you clear your dailies."

    The girl looked like she had more to say, but Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s friend dragged her off. When the pair disappeared from everyone¡¯s sight, Next Week Is Unlikely received a letter of apology from his friend. He smiled, but didn¡¯t send a reply. Turning to Hundred Daybreaks, he asked, "Are you looking for Ah Ning? Is it urgent? If it isn¡¯t, then you cane with us to my manor; I¡¯ll be giving him the General¡¯s Directive once we get there."

    Hundred Daybreaks gave the sweetest smile when he said that, leaving the other two feeling utterly perplexed.

    "I¡¯ll apany you guys."

    The three of them began making their way towards Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s manor, passing by Crying Fish in the process. As they passed her, Hundred Daybreaks smugly raised her head and shot a sidelong nce at Crying Fish, while Quiet And Steadfast and Next Week Is Unlikely didn¡¯t even bat an eyelid at her.

 Chapter 266

    <b>Chapter 266: Onwards to Southern River Ind (2)</b>

    When they reached the manor, Next Week Is Unlikely pulled out the General¡¯s Directive and handed it over to Quiet And Steadfast. He then asked, "You still haven¡¯t told me why you need this thing."

    After receiving the General¡¯s Directive, Quiet And Steadfast carelessly replied, "I want to give the mount to Nutjob as a present."

    "Huh?"

    "What?!" Hundred Daybreaks and Next Week Is Unlikely cried out in unison. Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ face, in particr, was a mask of disbelief and her voice sounded a little shrill.

    Quiet And Steadfast stared curiously at the two of them and asked, "What are the two of you so surprised about?"

    Hundred Daybreaks listlessly replied, "You mean to say that you wanted to give that mount to the ugly... your wife?"

    "Of course; who would I give it to if it wasn¡¯t my wife? I myself have absolutely no interest in these things," Replied Quiet And Steadfast in a matter of fact tone.

    Hundred Daybreaks felt like her heart was about to fall apart!

    "I just remembered I still have something to do; I¡¯ll be taking my leave first," Feeling as if she¡¯d taken over a thousand critical hits, Hundred Daybreaks exchanged a few brief words with them before she retreated.

    "What¡¯s up with her?" Next Week Is Unlikely curiously asked as he observed her departing figure.

    She¡¯d clearly been beaming with happiness like she¡¯d found some money on the floor just a second ago, but her mood had changed in the blink of an eye. Were all women so fickle?

    Quiet And Steadfast shrugged, his gaze profound. "Who knows."

    Next Week Is Unlikely pped him on the shoulder. "Anyway, you can¡¯t be serious about what you said just now, right? You yourself have no interest in mounts, yet you¡¯re going through so much trouble for your wife? Weren¡¯t you chasing after some pretty girl recently?"

    "I¡¯m not chasing after her; I¡¯ve already caught her."

    Next Week Is Unlikely was taken aback. "What the f*ck?! Even the bachelor for life has gotten a girlfriend for himself; how terrifying! You¡¯re moreplicated than I thought. Then, why are you doing all this when you¡¯ve got a girlfriend? Trying to have your cake and eat it too? I¡¯m not judging you, but there¡¯s nothing wrong with your sense of aesthetics, right? Nutjob¡¯s a little... stop staring at me, I¡¯m speaking the truth! She¡¯s been voted as the ugliest yer in the game."

    "I¡¯ll tell you something, but you have to remain calm after you hear it," Quiet And Steadfast mysteriously said.

    Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s interest was piqued. "What is it?"

    "The beauty that National Treasure posted a picture of is actually Nutjob."

    Next Week Is Unlikely wore a look on his face that seemed to say ¡¯bro, don¡¯t screw with me¡¯. "Don¡¯t be like that. Even saying that won¡¯t absolve you of the suspicion that you¡¯re two-timing."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression turned serious. "I¡¯m telling the truth."

    Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s face looked like it had just been pped. "The f*ck?! You sure you aren¡¯t pulling my leg? No, wait. If what you¡¯re saying really is true, then may I ask; what exactly was your wife thinking when she made her character? Why the hell would she do that to herself?!"

    "She did it precisely because she was too beautiful and was worried about you hoodlums. Only I had the insight to recognise her true beauty."

    "..." Next Week Is Unlikely felt like he¡¯d just sucked on a lemon.

    After getting what he wanted, Quiet And Steadfast didn¡¯t tarry and bid farewell to Next Week Is Unlikely.

    That night, Shen Jingbin returned home and took a quick shower before jumping online. When she logged in, the first thing she did was to check whether Quiet And Steadfast was online before asking about what he was doing.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s reply came swiftly in the form of a party invite.

    "You just got home?"

    Shen Jingbin opened up a map and determined Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s approximate location. "Mm, I washed up beforeing online," She replied as she made her way over to him.

    "Are you tired? If you¡¯re tired we can put off going to Southern River Ind for today."

    "I¡¯m still ok. We¡¯ve been dragging it out for long enough and the Shinra Sect¡¯s been far too quiet. Something doesn¡¯t feel right."

    "That true; they really have been too quiet."

    While chatting with one another, Shen Jingbin arrived at Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal where Quiet And Steadfast was waiting. The moment shended, she was greeted with his gaze that was brimming with emotion, and was suddenly hit with the notion that this man was very terrifying when he got emotional.

    After boarding the ferry, Shen Jingbin tugged on his sleeve and motioned for him to lower his head. She then leaned towards his ear and said, "I¡¯ve been meaning to ask; how do you feel now whenever you see my face in game?"

    Everyone on the same ferry as them was immediately unsettled by what they saw.

    Wasn¡¯t the Leader of Jade Sea Pavilion and his wife supposed to have fallen out?! Is this what ¡¯falling out¡¯ is supposed to be like?!

    All the single losers felt cheated.

    Seriously speaking though, the sight of Quiet And Steadfast together with his wife was too beautiful for words. They¡¯d fight it out with whoever imed that this wasn¡¯t called true love on the part of Quiet And Steadfast.

    After hearing her question, Quiet And Steadfast looked into her eyes and gave his sincere answer. "Mm, I don¡¯t think you¡¯re especially ugly. You look fine to me now."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart was all aflutter when she heard his reply. However, she didn¡¯t let her emotions leak into her expression. "Your sense of aesthetics is definitely broken."

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. "Mm, and you¡¯re the one who did it."

    "..."

    Southern River Ind wasn¡¯t far from Beiming Sea and they arrived shortly after. The moment she stepped on Southern River Ind¡¯s soil, Shen Jingbin abruptly heard an ancient voice that was weathered by the great passage of time.

    The voice sounded like it came from far away; almost as if it originated from the ends of the earth. But, when she listened closer, it appeared as if it came from right beside her ear instead.

    "You¡¯ve finally arrived, God¡¯s Emissary."

 Chapter 267

    <b>Chapter 267: The Tomb (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin looked at Quiet And Steadfast and asked, "Did you hear that?"

    Quiet And Steadfast appeared puzzled. "No, what¡¯s wrong?"

    "I think I heard a quest notification."

    The voice sounded out once again, immediately after she¡¯d finished speaking.

    "Only you can hear me, God¡¯s Emissary."

    Shen Jingbin gave a start. F*ck, does the system even know what I¡¯m thinking about?!

    Is it capable of mind reading?

    "Listen closely if it¡¯s a quest then. Let¡¯s see what it wants us to do," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    Shen Jingbin nodded in reply.

    The voice continued, "I¡¯m the remnant spiritual awareness of the ck Tortoise, and I¡¯ve been waiting for your arrival. As a Divine Beast, my attunement to the four seasons and knowledge of the heavenly mandate have long since told me of youring. Your ability to subdue the Divine Beast of ughter, White Tiger, and your possession of the Vermillion Bird¡¯s blood means that you are indeed the fated person. Since that¡¯s the case, I won¡¯t make things difficult for you. Twenty-five kilometers north of you and yourpanion¡¯s location there¡¯s a cave with a teleportation array in it. That teleportation array will take you to my tomb."

    And with that, the voice was no more. Try as she might, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t receive a reply no matter how much she called out for it in her mind.

    Noticing her reaction, Quiet And Steadfast asked, "What happened?"

    Shen Jingbin gave up on her fruitless endeavour. "It¡¯s nothing. The quest told us to travel twenty-five kilometers north and use the teleportation array located there to travel to the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb."

    "Let¡¯s go then."

    They heeded the voice¡¯s instructions and began heading north. Before long, a cave appeared in front of them. The couple exchanged a look with one another before entering the cave.

    The cave had a very low ceiling, forcing Quiet And Steadfast to bend over just to avoid hitting his head. Shen Jingbin, who was walking in front of him, nced back at him and found the whole situation rather hrious. In spite of that, she very kindly stifled herughter and prevented any of it from leaking out.

    The cave was damp and its walls were filled with moss; the excessive moisture within it making the two of them feel ufortable. Neither of them liked damp ces, so they hastened their footsteps and hurried forward.

    Before long, a teleportation array that emitted blue rays of light appeared before them. After ncing at one another, Quiet And Steadfast took the first step towards the teleportation array.

    "I¡¯ll go first; wait here."

    Quiet And Steadfast had found theck of obstacles along their way exceptionally odd. Based on how the gamepany did things, there was no way they¡¯d be able to just stroll through the cave and obtain the ck Tortoise¡¯s inheritance. Since nothing strange had happened till now, then there¡¯d definitely be something waiting for them in the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb. This was why he couldn¡¯t let Shen Jingbin be the first to brave the danger ahead of them.

    Quiet And Steadfast drew his weapon and prepared himself for battle as he stepped onto the teleportation array. The blue light surrounding the array shed once, and he was no longer there. After he disappeared, Shen Jingbin showed no hesitation at all and stepped onto the teleportation array.

    The scenery in front of her began to distort, and in the blink of an eye, she found herself standing on a patch of emptynd with Quiet And Steadfast in front of her.

    She carefully stepped out of the teleportation array and gave the area she was in a once-over.

    She¡¯d originally thought that she was going to be teleported to some other ce on Southern River Ind, but after looking around, she realised that she¡¯d probably been transported to the ocean floor instead.

    It was as if this area had been covered up, making the ce they were standing on no different from drynd. However, the scenery above them was the azure blue ocean with all sorts of fishes swimming all over the ce.

    "It looks like we¡¯re on Beiming Sea¡¯s ocean floor," Quiet And Steadfast said after she¡¯d walked over to his side.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "Where¡¯s the tomb with the ck Tortoise¡¯s corpse?"

    Beneath the sky and below the sea, this t piece ofnd stretched as far as the eye could see. However, there was no grave mound of any kind in sight.

    "Let¡¯s take a look around? Or maybe you can try checking to see if you¡¯ve received any more quest prompts."

    Shen Jingbin felt that it was a pretty good suggestion, so she tried calling out to the voice.

    This time around, it actually replied.

    "May I ask, where¡¯s the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb?" Shen Jingbin enquired.

    "I was given form when the ck Tortoise passed away. I¡¯ve searched the entirety of Southern River Ind, but I haven¡¯t been able to find it¡¯s tomb. I don¡¯t have any concrete details on where it¡¯s tomb is, so it¡¯s up to the two of you to find out for yourselves. What I will point out is that the ck Tortoise is the Divine Beast of the north. That being said, there will definitely be unusual creatures guarding it."

    With that, the voice fell silent once again.

    Shen Jingbin ryed all that she¡¯d heard to Quiet And Steadfast. After a brief discussion, they decided to split up and investigate the area on their own.

    As the voice had cautioned that there¡¯d be ¡¯unusual creatures¡¯ guarding the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb, the two of them had tacitly agreed to be on their guard as they searched.

    Coming up empty after rounding the entire area, Shen Jingbin found a random spot to sit on. Although the area wasprised of nds, there were some minor variances in its height. The spot that Shen Jingbin had chosen to sit on was one of the higher ones.

    Quiet And Steadfast looked like he¡¯de up empty too, and was making his way back to Shen Jingbin.

    Feeling unresigned, Shen Jingbin continued to look about when she suddenly felt the area around her grow dim. It was as if something was casting a shadow over her, and she looked upwards to investigate.

    There was an enormous shadow that drifted along right above her head!!

 Chapter 268

    <b>Chapter 268: The Tomb (2)</b>

    The underwater world of an ocean¡¯s seabed was something a human knew very little about, and there were many mysterious stories of unknown creatures that inhabited it. The shadow above her was one such creature that she¡¯d never seen before.

    It looked a lot like a whale, but there was a horn on its head that glowed with a chilling light. Its body was dyed a strange colour of violet. In addition, its body was covered with vine-like decorative designs that were a deep ck.

    Quiet And Steadfast rushed over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and looked up at the mysterious creature that had suddenly appeared.

    "Is that the unusual creative that guards the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb?" Quiet And Steadfast murmured unsurely.

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "I can¡¯t say for sure, but if the ¡¯unusual creature¡¯ really was referring to it, then how would ite in? It¡¯s clearly outside the area we¡¯re in. Don¡¯t tell me it¡¯s going to break into here? If that¡¯s the case, wouldn¡¯t it destroy the tomb?"

    "Regardless, we should exercise extreme caution," Quiet And Steadfast replied.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. The next moment, an acute pain shot through her ankle.

    She immediately looked down and saw a head sticking out of the ground.

    Even someone as calm and collected as Shen Jinbin sucked in a deep breath when sheid eyes on it.

    It was a monster¡¯s head for crying out loud!

    The head was about the size of an apple and was covered in white fur. Its forehead protruded outwards, while the area where it¡¯s eyes were supposed to be were sunken inwards. A pulsing red light resided in its eye sockets. At present, said eyes were staring straight at Shen Jingbin. The monster had no nose, and just beneath its eyes was a blood red mouth that stretched all the way to its ears. Its opened mouth that made it look like it was smiling revealed a row of jagged teeth that were stained with traces of blood.

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly looked over to her ankle. The sight of a small puncture wound with blood seeping out of it was reflected in her eyes.

    Looks like this was the thing that had attacked her just now.

    She nced at her health bar and noticed half of it was gone.

    What kind of monster was this? How the hell did it take off half her health in one bite?!

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly pulled out a health potion and restored her health to full, feeling slightly more at ease after doing so.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes narrowed as he looked down and spotted the terrifying head. A cold light shed across his dagger, and he stabbed at the ferocious monster.

    Sensing his killing intent and noticing the light that glinted off his dagger, the monster burrowed back into the ground with a ¡¯whoosh¡¯. Above them, the weird fish thing had now slowly begun to move, leisurely making its way somewhere else.

    After it had left, Quiet And Steadfast helped to support Shen Jingbin. "How are you feeling? Any better now? Was that monster poisonous? Do you have any antidotes on you?" Quiet And Steadfast asked, anxiety written all over his face.

    Shen Jingbin motioned for him to calm down and said, "It wasn¡¯t poisonous, but its attack was pretty strong. It took out half of my health in a single bite, and I think they increased the pain settings for it too. That attack really hurt. Don¡¯t worry though, I¡¯m alright now."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression went back to normal. "It looks like the unusual guardian that was mentioned is that monster." He then looked around and continued, "It looks like this monster travels by moving through the ground, making it difficult to defend against."

    As he spoke, a notification rang in her head.

    "Warning, your pet¡¯s condition is suffering from an abnormal status!"

    An abnormal status?

    She opened up her pet window and found a new status called ¡¯agitated¡¯ next to Mascot¡¯s name. Upon seeing a brand new status that she¡¯d never seen before, she hurriedly summoned Mascot and asked Quiet And Steadfast about it. He had tons of top tier pets, so he would definitely be more knowledgeable than her when it came to these things.

    Quiet And Steadfast listened to her as he watched Mascot¡¯s forme into existence. Mascot appeared different this time; it continuously wed at the ground and appeared a lot more agitated than usual.

    "I¡¯ve onlye across this status once before. Fuzhu 1 had a simr reaction in the past when Next Week Is Unlikely tried to subdue Bifang2, but I wasn¡¯t paying attention. Now that I think about it, Bifang¡¯s element is fire, while Fuzhu¡¯s is water. This sort of reaction seems to ur when both elements oppose one another. Mascot¡¯s current state is probably due to its opposing element being nearby."

    The two of them immediately thought of that monster and Shen Jingbin had a sudden sh of inspiration. "Mascot, look for the thing that¡¯s making you feel ufortable!"

    Mascot released a roar and leapt towards a location that was shrouded in shadows.

    The moment Mascot leapt over, a small figure within the ground popped out. Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast stared on with rapt attention.

    The monster which had previously only revealed it¡¯s head was now on full disy for them to see.

    It was only several tens of centimeters tall and wasn¡¯t even half of Mascot¡¯s height. The entirety of its snow-white body was covered in fine hairs, its forelegs were short and stumpy, and its hind legs were incredibly long. As a whole, its strange proportions made it look both intimidating and bizarre.

    When the monster appeared, Mascot became even more agitated and sprang towards it with its mouth wide open. The monster was quick on its feet, and with a burst of power from its hind legs, the monster catapulted itself away from Mascot. It then turned back and grinned at the couple, revealing a row of sharp teeth that made one¡¯s hair stand on end.

    A gust of wind blew from behind it and it burrowed into the ground.

    Having struck air a second time, Mascot roared in frustration and tried jumping at it from another direction. Then, the monster popped out once again, but burrowed away once more in the blink of an eye.

    Although Mascot could urately detect the monster¡¯s location, Mascotcked the means to catch it.

    As the game of cat and mouse continued, Shen Jingbin noticed the monster only moved within the shadow of the fish above, and the fish in question slowly moved about in the general area they were in.

    It looked like both the monster and the fish were really energetic.

    And, if this monster really was the guardian, that meant that the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb was beneath them.

    With this thought in mind, she immediately recalled Mascot.

    "Mascot, return!"

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s pet, in case anyone has forgotten! XD ? A one legged red-crowned crane. Said to be the harbinger of ruinous me, it¡¯s the god of both fire and wood and resides in trees. It doesn¡¯t eat grains like other birds, but instead consumes mes. Here¡¯s a pic of how it looks like:

    ?

 Chapter 269

    <b>Chapter 269: The ck Tortoise¡¯s Inheritance (1)</b>

    A spiritual connection exists between owners and their pets. In other words, Shen Jingbin was able to receive the information from Mascot, and Mascot in turn had the ability to detect the changes in her emotions. By extension, this allowed Shen Jingbin to locate where the monster was as long as she concentrated.

    After recalling Mascot, she leaned over to Quiet And Steadfast and whispered something in his ear. Realising that the thing threatening it was no longer chasing after it, the monster appeared in front of the couple. It stared at them with its empty eyes and a provocative grin broke across its face.

    Shen Jingbin nced at it, ignoring its provocation. Instead, she looked down and gave Mascot a pat on the head. Mascot immediately understood her intent and spun around to pounce at the monster. However, the result was still the same and Mascot failed to catch it.

    Quiet And Steadfast suddenly summoned all of his pets. As the Divine Beast, White Tiger, Mascot was able to suppress normal pets. As long as their owners didn¡¯t violently object to it, Mascot would be able to dictate the actions of these pets and they¡¯d obey on instinct. Following Shen Jingbin¡¯smand, Mascot released its full-blown suppression on Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s pets, forcing them to move as it wished. Mascot, alongside Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s multitudes of pets, worked together to form an encirclement around the monster.

    The monster could only move about in the shadow of the giant fish above it. However, the area the fish¡¯s shadow covered was limited and it moved at a cial pace. Under these circumstances, the monster was gradually forced towards Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast.

    As the encirclement decreased in size, Quiet And Steadfast went invisible and stood in front of Shen Jingbin.

    She was gambling on the monster not being able to see through a high leveled Lich¡¯s invisibility.

    She was right on the money.

    Just as she braced herself, the monster leapt out from the ground and sprang at her, almost as if it knew who the mastermind was.

    Having predicted this, Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the least bit anxious. No matter how fast the monster¡¯s movements were, it wouldn¡¯t be able to take an attack from Quiet And Steadfast. When the monster was in striking range, Quiet And Steadfast drew his dagger downwards in a vertical slice, aiming directly at the monster¡¯s exposed belly. The monster reacted quickly by using its legs to push off Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s chest andunching itself backwards. However, regardless of how quick it was, it still took a blow to its abdomen and blood spilled out.

    The moment it jumped away, Mascot charged from the rear with a wave of elite pets in tow and chomped down on the monster¡¯s ear.

    The monster howled miserably. After a brief moment of iling in the air, it wrapped the lower half of its body around Mascot¡¯s neck and twisted it at an unnatural angle. The monster then bared its sharp teeth and bit down on one of Mascot¡¯s ears in retaliation.

    Mascot growled in agony and released the monster¡¯s ear. Fuzhu leapt forward, itsrge antlers knocking the monster free from Mascot¡¯s head and spearing it on the ground.

    The monster gave a mournful cry. Almost as if it¡¯d heard the monster¡¯s wailing, the giant fish towering above them gave a low and deep call of its own.

    That was a very strange thing. It sounded melodious at first, but as they continued listening to it, one¡¯s mind would start to draw a nk and their head would experience a faint throb of pain.

    Shen Jingbin realised that her health was gradually decreasing, and immediately understood that this giant fish was attacking them with sound waves.

    Mascot and its army of pets were frozen by the sound, with their statuses on their pet windows gradually bing worse as the seconds ticked by.

    After struggling free from Fuzhu¡¯s attack, the monster immediately dug back into the ground and the giant fish above them halted its attack.

    Shen Jingbin ran forward to give each of the pets a health potion. As she did so, the monster suddenly jumped out from the shadows behind her.

    Shen Jingbin reacted quickly and she used a skill to root the monster, binding it to where it was. She then began hurling all of her debuffs at it while Quiet And Steadfast rushed over and activated all of his buffs before plunging his dagger into the monster¡¯s chest.

    The monster had nned onunching a sneak attack from behind, but was instead rooted in ce by a Daoist; the ss with the most number of debuffs in the game, allowing Quiet And Steadfast to close in andunch his attack. In the end, they finished off the monster before it even managed to recover from its debuff.

    The monster released a miserable howl when it was at death¡¯s door, apanied by the giant fish¡¯s deep wail ofment. However, this time around, apart from some difort, they weren¡¯t affected by anything else.

    The giant fish then began to slowly move forward, lighting up the area that was previously shrouded by its shadow. It was as if it¡¯d been delivered from oppression.

    "You have defeated the Yin Yang Lunar Beasts."

 Chapter 270

    <b>Chapter 270: The ck Tortoise¡¯s Inheritance (2)</b>

    "Congrattions on defeating the Guardian Beast, God¡¯s Envoy. The ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb has been brought back to the light. Please use the ck Tortoise¡¯s inheritance to save thend from an abyss of suffering."

    Two notifications appeared after the monster died. They took a nce at the monster that was rapidly disappearing and concluded that they probably weren¡¯t going to get any drops from the kill.

    Not matter though, uncovering the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb was good enough.

    She¡¯d previously guessed that the ck Tortoise¡¯s tomb was beneath where they stood, and true enough, the ground began to tremble after the notification appeared. The ground around five meters to their right started to churn, looking as though something was about to appear from within it at any moment.

    Mascot bellowed. Not knowing why it was suddenly acting like this, she hurriedly unsummoned it.

    Quiet And Steadfast stood beside Shen Jingbin, holding her up to keep her from falling over.

    After a series of tumultuous shaking, a huge stone tablet appeared where the once t ground was. Quiet And Steadfast motioned for her to investigate with his eyes, and Shen Jingbin responded by slowly making her way over to it and cing her hands on the tablet.

    "You¡¯vee, God¡¯s Envoy," A voice extremely simr, except thicker and deeper, to that of the ck Tortoise¡¯s spiritual awareness that she¡¯d heard before sounded in her head.

    The next moment, the scenery before Shen Jingbin changed. Quiet And Steadfast and his army of pets disappeared from sight, and it appeared as though she¡¯d stepped into a different realm; one that was a mass of pitch ck.

    Just that, a spot of light began to slowly amass before her, eventually coalescing into the form of an enormous ck Tortoise. A strong and robust Winged Serpent could be seen mounted on its back.

    "You¡¯re the ck Tortoise?" Shen Jingbin looked over and asked.

    "Yes, I am," The ck Tortoise paused as though it was reminiscing about its past. "The White Tiger is with you, right? Can I have a look at it?"

    "Alright," Shen Jingbin replied before summoning Mascot.

    Mascot spun around in circles and continuously howled when it appeared. Fondness shed across the ck Tortoise¡¯s eyes as it gazed at Mascot who was by its leg. The Winged Serpent slowly stretched its body out towards Mascot and gently touched against Mascot¡¯s forehead, almost as if it was giving Mascot a kiss. Mascot froze for several seconds before realization dawned upon it and it turned its head towards the ck Tortoise, bounding towards it with a roar.

    Upon nearing the ck Tortoise, Mascot reverted to its original form. The ck Tortoise slowly lowered its head and intimately rubbed against Mascot.

    "The White Tiger emits a murderous aura, so it was seen as the God of ughter amongst the Four Divine Beasts. The Vermillion Bird and Azure Dragon both represent divinity, so they weren¡¯t all that close to the White Tiger; I¡¯m the only one who was close to it. It was the only one who remained by my side when my death neared. Oh, how I¡¯ve missed it."

    After a few moments of intimacy, the ck Tortoise returned Mascot to Shen Jingbin.

    "The fact that you¡¯re able to meet me means you¡¯ve defeated the Lunar Beasts. In that case, handing my inheritance over to you wouldn¡¯t be a waste," The Winged Serpent suddenly pulled out a white egg from the Tortoise¡¯s belly and handed it over to her. "I have fallen and I¡¯m no longer able to reincarnate. All I can do is hand you my child. The Liches will know how to hatch the egg. Bring it back to the Sect Leader of the Lich Pce and pass down my heritance to it once it¡¯s grown up."

    Shen Jingbin took the egg. "I understand."

    The ck Tortoise continued, "The fate of the world is in disarray. Whether it can be saved will depend on all of you. Go forth, youth, the future is in your hands."

    After saying its piece, a beam of light shone from the ck Tortoise¡¯s forehead before tunneling into Shen Jingbin¡¯s own.

    Shen Jingbin felt warmth suffuse her entire body as countless images flowed into her mind.

    A notification followed immediately after. "Congrattions on receiving the ck Tortoise¡¯s inheritance."

    Shen Jingbin found herself back to where she previously was when she¡¯d opened her eyes.

    The moment he spotted her, Quiet And Steadfast walked straight up to her and asked, "How¡¯d it go?"

    Shen Jingbin pulled out the tortoise egg (Eh, it should be a tortoise egg, not a snake egg, right?) for him to see. "I received the ck Tortoise¡¯s egg and its inheritance."

    Quiet And Steadfast took the egg and weighed it in his hands. "How do you n on hatching this thing?"

    "The ck Tortoise said to look for your Sect Leader."

    Quiet And Steadfast returned the egg to her. "Alright, let¡¯s look for Poison Toad tomorrow. Rest up after you log out; you must be tired after working the whole day."

    Shen Jingbin nodded, and the pair returned to the teleportation array and teleported back. They then took the ferry back home after returning to shore and logged off.

    The next day, Shen Jingbin was awoken by the sound of her phone ringing. Her first thought was that it must¡¯ve been a call from her elders, but found that it was actually Xiangpeng who was calling after she stared at the screen.

    "Hello, Ms Shen, I¡¯m Xiangpeng from Yiju. Do you still remember me?"

    Shen Jingbin had just woken up. Her head was still a little fuzzy so she just hummed a reply. Xiangpeng then said, "We¡¯ve finished producing the promotional trailer you previously shot for <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. Please drop by our office and have a look at it when you have the time. If you¡¯re satisfied with it, we¡¯ll release the trailer."

    Shen Jingbin grabbed the calendar beside her bed. It didn¡¯t look like she had anything on today. "I¡¯ll drop by today then."

    "Alright, give me a call again when you reach our office. We¡¯ll send someone down to show you in."

    "Okay."

    "We¡¯ll do that then; bye."

    "Mhmm, bye."

    Her lethargy now gone, Shen Jingbin got out of bed and went to wash up. The doorbell rang just as she¡¯d finished. She jogged over to the door and opened it, only to see her Mother standing by the entrance.

    "You¡¯re up early today."

    Realising that it was her Mother, Shen Jingbin went back into the house. Mama Shen walked in with her hands behind her backPapa Shen trailed behind her.

    Mama Shen look around. When she noticed Shen Jingbin was the only one around, she asked, "Where¡¯s Shen Jingchen?"

    Shen Jingbin went over to the fridge and poured herself a cup of milk. After taking a sip, she said, "He¡¯s not up yet, what¡¯s wrong?"

    "Go wake him up, we¡¯ll be heading out to buy something before going over to uncle Zhao¡¯s ce for lunch."

    Shen Jingbin gave an "oh" of acknowledgement before she ced her cup down and obediently run off to wake Shen Jingchen up.

 Chapter 271

    <b>Chapter 271: The Battle Between Women (1)</b>

    Shen Jingchen was always in a bad mood whenever he was woken up in the morning, but no matter how unhappy he was, his hands were tied when he was up against Shen Jingbin. His very first instinct was to punch whoever was dragging him out of bed, but he instantly shirked back the moment that he realised it was Shen Jingbin.

    "My dearest sister, just what are you doing? Can¡¯t you see what time it is?! Even if you¡¯re all raring to go for the day, can¡¯t you be little more considerate towards me?!"

    "Mom and Dad are here. They said to hurry and wake you because we¡¯ll be heading out in a bit," Shen Jingbin replied.

    Shen Jingchen wailed and buried himself under his nkets. "Inhumane! I¡¯m going to sleep naked in the future! I dare you to barge into my boudoir while I¡¯m sleeping nude!"

    "You call this room a boudoir? Are you kidding me? Also, it¡¯s not like there¡¯s anything to see even if you do sleep naked," Shen Jingbin replied, her voice dripping with disdain.

    "..."

    Papa Shen and Mama Shen left with the siblings roughly half an hourter.

    This time around, they were out to buy some items for the New Year. After some discussion, Mama Shen and Papa Shen decided that they had to bring something fitting as a present since this was their very first visit to the Zhao household.

    While apanying them as they shopped around, Shen Jingbin was suddenly struck with the idea of getting something for Zhao Chengning as well. She tugged at Shen Jingchen and asked in a whisper, "What kind of gifts do guys like?"

    Shen Jingchen thought for a moment. "nning to give something to Zhao Chengning?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    "As a girlfriend?" Shen Jingchen asked once again.

    Shen Jingbin continued nodding her head.

    Shen Jingchen shrugged. "Just give him whatever; he¡¯ll like it as long as it¡¯s from you."

    "I shouldn¡¯t have had any expectations for help from you," Shen Jingbinmented as she facepalmed.

    "Don¡¯t look down on me!" Shen Jingchen unhappily retorted.

    Shen Jingbin gave him a withering look in reply before turning to Papa and Mama Shen, telling them that she was going to go shopping on her own. The mall they were currently in was thergest in B City. The first and second floor sold brand name clothes, while the third and fourth floors sold jewelry. The fifth floors were food and beverages, and the sixth housed the cinemas. Papa Shen, Mama Shen, and Shen Jingchen were on the third floor, while she went down to the first floor on her own.

    Not knowing what to get for Zhao Chengning, she eventually settled on getting him an item of clothing.

    Shen Jingbin randomly picked one of the stores to enter. Inside, a mannequin wearing a navy blue windbreaker immediately caught her eye. She¡¯d always thought that Zhao Chengning looked dashing whenever he paired a shirt with a windbreaker.

    After a brief discussion with one of the store assistants, she requested them to help her pick out a windbreaker that fit Zhao Chengning¡¯s build. She then swiped her card and bought it without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    "Miss, would you like to take a look at our new winter pieces? They match very nicely with the windbreaker you just bought. I¡¯m sure your boyfriend would be thrilled to have one of them," After the store assistant had wrapped up Shen Jingbin¡¯s purchase, she began promoting the other items in the store.

    Shen Jingbin liked the sound of that idea, so she nodded her head in agreement. The shop assistant was so happy that her eyes were practically shing with dor signs.

    We¡¯ve got ourselves a Miss Moneybags!

    Just this windbreaker alone would¡¯ve cost several months of her sry, yet the beautifuldy in front of her had bought it without even batting an eyelid!

    The sales assistants had noticed this beautifuldy the moment she¡¯d walked into the shop. After all, it was hard not to when a person looked as amazing as she did. Many people were silently specting whether she was a newly signed artist from an entertainmentpany or the mistress of a tycoon. She had this aura of excellence about her, and for all they knew, she could even be the daughter of a wealthy family.

    Few put any stock in thetter theory though. Even if they couldn¡¯t recognise every single young master or miss in the upper echelons of society, they still roughly knew who¡¯s who. In spite of that, the beauty before them was someone they¡¯d never seen before.

    Regardless of anything else, the fact remained that she was rich.

    After being brought over to the new arrivals by the sales assistant, Shen Jingbin suddenly heard amotion by the entrance. Distracted by the noise, she reflexively turned around and peered over.

    A cold beauty wearing sunsses and nked by a crowd of people walked into the store. Behind her, two tall and burly bodyguards blocked everyone from approaching her. Surprisingly, the crowd didn¡¯tin, nor did they kick up a fuss. Instead, they just quietly stood outside the store and snapped pictures of the store¡¯s interior with their phones.

    Meanwhile, several sales assistants went forward and surrounded the gorgeous woman.

    "The superstar¡¯s here again," The sales assistant serving Shen Jingbin said as she gave a long-suffering sigh.

    Shen Jingbin turned and looked at her curiously. "Who¡¯s she?"

    The sales assistant shot Shen Jingbin a look of disbelief and said, "Goodness! Miss, don¡¯t you recognize her? She¡¯s the current trending artist, Xue Sijia."

    Shen Jingbin paused for a moment. "I¡¯ve heard of her. Does shee here often?"

    The sales assistant was suddenly filled with enthusiasm. "She¡¯s a regr at our store! Whenever shees, a hugemotion ensues ¨C onerge enough to disrupt everyone in the entire mall ¨C whenever shees. Our store doesn¡¯t actually allow any photos to be taken, but since our Manager said that it was a form of publicity, we closed an eye to it. See the bunch of people outside? They¡¯re all her fans. Every time she leaves the shop, a few fans wille in to ask what she bought so that they can purchase the same thing."

    Shen Jingbin nodded before retracting her gaze, no longer bothering about themotion. Instead, she turned her attention to the clothes in front of her and focused on them. Seeing that Shen Jingbin looked rather indifferent about the whole thing, the sales assistant didn¡¯t speak any further and switched back to promoting the shop¡¯s items.

 Chapter 272

    <b>Chapter 272: The Battle Between Women (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin found the white turtleneck woolen sweater the sales assistant rmended pretty good. The material felt nice too. Just as she was about to get it wrapped up, a slender hand stretched over from the side and picked up the sweater in her hands.

    "This doesn¡¯t look too bad. Wrap it up for me," The person beside her said, heedless of Shen Jingbin¡¯s presence.

    Shen Jingbin nced over and saw that Xue Sijia was staring back at her with disdain written all over her face, her chin tipped back in arrogance.

    The sales assistant following Xue Sijia around looked uneasily at Shen Jingbin who was standing stock still. The sales assistant beside Shen Jingbin awkwardly spoke up, "Miss Xue, I¡¯m sorry, but Ms Shen has already selected this piece..."

    Shen Jingbin cut her off. "It¡¯s fine, just get me another one with the same dimensions I¡¯ve mentioned before; Miss Xue can have this piece."

    It was only clothing. If Xue Sijia wanted it, she could have it; this wasn¡¯t an idol drama.

    Xue Sijia¡¯s face visibly stiffened after Shen Jingbin spoke. Shen Jingbin shot a sidelong nce at her before she smiled and said to her own sales assistant, "Can you help me find a pair of casual pants?"

    The sales assistant eagerly nodded her head. "Yes, Ms Shen. This way please."

    Shen Jingbin turned and left without even sparing a nce at Xue Sijia. After looking through a selection of pants, she eventually settled on a pair of ck casual pants. When was about to have her item wrapped up, Xue Sijia appeared by her side once more and asked for the same pair of pants.

    The sales assistant felt a little put off. In the past, she¡¯d never quite liked Xue Sijia because she always felt that Xue Sijia was pretentious. Now that she was making such demands, the sales assistant couldn¡¯t let it go any longer and said, "Miss Xue, sorry to bother you, but are you buying this for your friend? It¡¯s rmended for you to check the measurements first before you make your purchase. This pair is in Miss Shen¡¯s size, so it might not be suitable for you."

    "This is the pair I want, and it fits me just right. There¡¯s no need to change anything," Xue Sijia replied, her expression remaining unchanged.

    Xue Sijia¡¯s rebuke left the sales assistant at a loss for words. The customer is King; no matter how dissatisfied she was with Xue Sijia, she couldn¡¯t publicly contradict her. If she did, she¡¯d be the first on her Manager¡¯s chopping board.

    Knowing the sales assistant was being put on the spot, Shen Jingbin gave her a pat on the shoulder, indicating for her to leave it be. Just as everyone thought she was going to give in once again, Shen Jingbin suddenly asked, "Miss Xue, I have a question."

    "Speak," Xue Sijia¡¯s lofty tone was far from friendly.

    "Do you always take an interest in items that other people pick out?"

    "Miss Shen, are you sure you aren¡¯t misunderstanding something? I really do think that this pair of pants looks nice. Furthermore, the measurements perfectly fit my friend. Why would you imply that I¡¯m purposely going after the clothes that you want?"

    Shen Jingbin shed a smile at her. "Alright then. I¡¯m looking to buy lots of things today, so make sure you buy whatever I pick out."

    Before Xue Sijia had the chance to rebut and argue that she wasn¡¯t intentionally going after the clothes that Shen Jingbin wanted, Shen Jingbin suddenly added, "Whoever bows out first is a coward."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s final statement stopped whatever rebuttal Xue Sijia had dead in its tracks.

    This was a high-end store that sold clothes for both sexes. Since she¡¯d already gotten clothes for Zhao Chengning, she started shopping in the female section just to screw with Xue Sijia.

    Not only did Shen Jingbin look gorgeous, but her figure was also perfect ¨C sporting curves in all the right ces, long shapely legs, and a slender waist. Her figure was the pr opposite of Xue Sijia¡¯s, who¡¯d achieved her frail figure by losing weight so that she would look good on screen.

    With that in mind, the clothes she had the sales assistant pick out were all deep V-neck pieces or garments that required the wearer to have an exceptional figure to pull off. There was no doubt that Shen Jingbin would look great in these clothes, but the same might not apply to Xue Sijia. To top it off, their prices were sky high.

    Xue Sijia couldn¡¯t bring herself to leave because of what Shen Jingbin had said before, so she could only grit her teeth and buy everything that Shen Jingbin purchased. As long as she didn¡¯t try them on, no one would be able topare how the clothes looked between Shen Jingbin and herself. As for the little bit of money being spent... it didn¡¯t bother her one bit!

    But there was no way Shen Jingbin would let her off with just that.

    When Shen Jingbin brushed past Xue Sijia to try on her clothes, she whispered in her ear, "Is Miss Xue socking in confidence that she doesn¡¯t even dare to try out the clothes in front of me?"

    Xue Sijia was someone who had to excel in everything she did, and would never allow herself to appear weak; even if she was on her period! In the face of such provocation, she gritted her teeth and went straight into the fitting room.

    Feelings can¡¯t be hurt if noparison is made. When the two of them walked out of the fitting room wearing the same clothes, everyone¡¯s attention was unconsciously drawn towards Shen Jingbin. None of them even noticed Xue Sijia. Even her fans by the entrance couldn¡¯t help but turn their attention to Shen Jingbin.

    Although all it took was a single nce to know that Shen Jingbin was prettier than Xue Sijia, they had different builds, so there was nomon ground for anyparisons to be drawn. That all changed now that they were wearing the same clothes. Because of that, Xue Sijia was relegated to the role of an ugly duckling or a Cindere; the radiance of her beauty entirely overshadowed by Shen Jingbin.

    The sales assistant trailing behind Xue Sijia couldn¡¯t help but call out to her when she saw her face darken, "Miss Xue..."

    Xue Sijia shifted her attention and locked eyes with Shen Jingbin¡¯s provocative gaze. Her anger immediately red up, and she wordlessly made her way over to the fitting room.

    When she emerged from the fitting room, Xue Sijia was back in her original clothes.

    "Miss Xue, about the clothes you tried on just now..." Someone asked softly.

    "Wrap it all up and send it to my apartment!" Xue Sijia harshly replied. She then shot a re at Shen Jingbin before turning to leave.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips curled. Where¡¯d you find the courage to go against me?

 Chapter 273

    <b>Chapter 273: Letting The Cat Out Of The Bag (1)</b>

    After Xue Sijia stormed off, Shen Jingbin got the sales assistant who¡¯d been following her around for the entire day to wrap up all of the clothes she¡¯d tried on too.

    She¡¯d really done all of this just to piss Xue Sijia off, but the clothes did fit her. And, now that she thought about it, she hadn¡¯t bought any clothes for herself for a long time either, so she decided to use this opportunity to refresh her wardrobe.

    At first, the sales assistants had thought that Shen JIngbin wasn¡¯t going to buy all the clothes that she¡¯d picked out. Instead, she was presented with a very pleasant surprise, and her eyes lit up in happiness as she went to wrap up Shen Jingbin¡¯s purchases.

    It looked like hermission for the month was going to be pretty good!

    After she bought her clothes, Shen Jingbin went back to the third level of the shopping mall with several full bags of clothes in hand. Then, once Papa and Mama Shen were done picking out what they wanted to buy, the group made their way up to the restaurant for lunch.

    Once they¡¯d finished lunch, Shen Jingbin handed her stuff over to Shen Jingchen and bid farewell to everyone before taking a cab down to Yiju headquarters. In the cab, she gave Xiangpeng a call to let him know that she was on her way over. When she arrived, Xiangpeng was already waiting by the entrance for her, and after the two of them exchanged pleasantries, they entered the building.

    Xiangpeng led Shen Jingbin over to the VIP room to wait while he went to fetch the finished version of the trailer. Awhileter, he returned with aptop in hand. Its screen was ck, and only a pause symbol could be seen at the bottom left-hand corner of the screen.

    "This is the final cut from the Technology Department. I had to borrow theirptop for a bit to show it to you," Xiangpeng exined, as he might have been worried that she¡¯d wonder why he¡¯d brought aptop over.

    Xiangpeng ced theptop in front of her and tapped on the space bar.

    Immediately, the unmoving ck screen began to be filled with motes of colourful lights.

    Yiju¡¯s logo was the first thing to appear on the screen, followed by around a second of darkness. An aged, world-weary voice began to speak, their voice emanating from within theputer, "At the beginning of the world, all was chaos..."

    The promotional video spoke of your stereotypical girl who was thought of as trash by others bing the Lead Disciple of a sect. She then went on to lead the Six Great Sects in a battle against the forces of evil. The final scene was that of her and Xue Sijia facing off against one another with weapons in hand. Initially, the Shinra Sect wasn¡¯t supposed to reveal themselves, but due to Xue Sijia taking on the role as the Shinra Sect¡¯s envoy, there was no chance of that happening. With this in mind, they made her a special cloak belonging to the Shinra Sect that hid her face.

    It was your standard run of the mill story, but the trailer itself was a high-quality production. The people at Yiju were confident that it¡¯d cause a sensation once it was released. After all, this was an age where looks meant everything.

    The promotional trailer wasn¡¯t all that long andsted for only around five minutes. When it was over, Xiangpeng asked, "What does Miss Shen think? We can discuss anything you¡¯re dissatisfied with, and we¡¯ll release the trailer once everything¡¯s good to go."

    Shen Jingbin thought that the trailer was very well done and had no qualms about it. "I¡¯m quite satisfied with the trailer. Has Miss Xue seen it yet?"

    Xiangpeng froze for a moment before he thought to himself, "You¡¯re the only one we¡¯d extend this special treatment to! No one else would be allowed to watch the video and make amendments, alright?!"

    "Miss Xue has no issues with it."

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "I have no issues either."

    "That¡¯s great; I¡¯ll have a word with our Marketing Department then. We¡¯ll let you know when we¡¯ve released the trailer... Oh right, Miss Shen, do you have a Weibo ount? Let¡¯s follow one another, and I¡¯ll @ you when the timees."

    Weibo?

    She did have a Weibo ount, but it was private, and the ones who followed her were all people she was close with, so she wasn¡¯t veryfortable with giving it out. Nowadays, online users were filled with evil intent. Just one wrong word would be enough to get you torn apart. Not only that, they loved taking the moral high ground to condemn others. It wasn¡¯t something that sat well with her.

    "Sorry, but I don¡¯t use Weibo."

    Disappointment coloured Xiangpeng¡¯s face. "That¡¯s a shame."

    Shen Jingbin shed a smile and changed the topic. "Is there anything else? I¡¯ll be taking my leave if there isn¡¯t."

    "Ah, there¡¯s nothing else. Safe travels, Miss Shen."

    Shen Jingbin declined Xiangpeng¡¯s offer to escort her out and went home.

    When she arrived home, she spotted the Four Heavenly Kings sitting on her couch in the living room. Sitting by Mama Shen¡¯s legs were, surprisingly, the clothes that Shen Jingbin had bought for Zhao Chengning.

    The atmosphere felt a little strange. While changing to her indoor footwear, she asked, "Mom, Dad, Grandpa and Grandma; why¡¯re you guys here?"

    "Little Jing, tell us the truth: did you get a boyfriend?" Papa Shen asked seriously.

    Shen Jingbin red at Shen Jingchen who was doing his utmost to erase his presence.

    You told them?!

    Shen Jingchen shook his head and blinked back to argue his innocence. I did no such thing! Mom just happened to see the clothes you¡¯d bought when I was bringing them home. You should know just how bad her death re is!

    Sigh.

    Shen Jingbin sighed in her heart and decided to tell them the whole truth. She was nning to tell them now anyway, but the cat was let out of the bag before she had the chance to say anything.

    "Mm."

    Shen Jingbin gave her admission casually and straightforwardly, but the expressions of those on the couch changed in an instant.

    My goodness, my daughter/granddaughter¡¯s gone and gotten herself a boyfriend! What do we about that brat from the Zhao family then?! How are we going to exin this to them?! Do we really have to break couples up in this day and age? Isn¡¯t that a little too melodramatic?!

 Chapter 274

    <b>Chapter 274: Letting The Cat Out Of The Bag (2)</b>

    Regardless of what was going on in her mind, Mama Shen was still the picture of calmness. Shen Jingbin had probably inherited her cool-headedness from her.

    "Which family are they from? Are they serious about you? If they are, bring them over so we can have a look at them."

    Papa Shen looked heartbroken. "My little girl..."

    "Dad, I¡¯m not dead yet, you don¡¯t have to look so sad."

    The knowledge of his granddaughter having a boyfriend didn¡¯t sit well with Old Master Shen. "Little Jing, what does the brat from the Zhao family mean to you? Where did this boy pop out from? Isn¡¯t that boy from the Zhao family good enough? You better think this through!"

    Grandma Shen wasn¡¯t nearly as riled up as Old Master Shen. She turned to Shen Jingbin and offered her heartfelt advice, "Little Jing, we shouldn¡¯t be meddling in something personal like you choose as your boyfriend, but you¡¯re still young, and we¡¯re worried that you might have been swindled because of your inexperience."

    Judging by the expressions on the faces of her elders ¨C ones that looked like they were about to face some great enemy ¨C Shen Jingbin felt that there might have been a misunderstanding.

    "But, Zhao Chengning¡¯s my boyfriend."

    "..."

    "What?"

    "The brat from the Zhao family? Hahahahaha!"

    "Ah?"

    Apart from Mama Shen¡¯s, whose reaction which was a little more subdued, the other three elders were blown away by the news. Papa Shen and Old Master Shen were especially affected by it. Shen Jingbin shrugged and said, "I didn¡¯t want to tell you guys and make it look like I was in a rush since we just got together, but since you guys have found out, then there¡¯s no point in me hiding it."

    Mama Shen was clearly satisfied with Shen Jingbin¡¯s choice of Zhao Chengning and nodded. "Mm, I can ept you having a boyfriend if he¡¯s the one. Take good care of one another then. I¡¯ll be taking another look at him tonight during dinner."

    "Although I¡¯m not too happy about you getting a boyfriend, I can at least rest easy if he¡¯s the one. We know him well, and we don¡¯t have to worry about you being taken advantage of... No, the thought of my sweet baby girl being with another man breaks my heart!"

    "Dad, don¡¯t be like that. You¡¯re a bit too much."

    "Little Jing has a good eye. Hahahaha, didn¡¯t I say that the brat from the Zhao family was pretty good? I knew you wouldn¡¯t blindly pick someone else over him."

    Grandma Shen eyed the bundle of items by Mama Shen¡¯s feet and asked, "Did you buy all these for the Zhao boy?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    "Good, that¡¯s good. Since that¡¯s the case, the two of you should carry on. Let us know if he does anything to make you unhappy."

    With that, what was once a joint hearing had inexplicably turned into a meeting exhorting Shen Jingbin to ¡¯take good care of one another¡¯. Even Shen Jingbin herself was a little confused by this turn of events.

    And the reason for all this was probably because of one thing: Zhao Chengning was just that charismatic.

    After sending her parents off, Shen Jingbin heaved a sigh of relief and nestled herself in her room before making a call.

    No one picked up the first time she called, so she figured that he was busy and couldn¡¯t answer the phone. Sure enough, Zhao Chengning called back shortly after.

    "What¡¯s wrong? You missed me?" A man¡¯s voice asked teasingly, causing Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears to itch a little.

    What a knave! After getting together, he¡¯s taken every opportunity to flirt with her!

    "I¡¯ve told my Mom and Dad about us."

    "Mm? That¡¯s quick. I thought we were going to keep it under wraps for a while longer. I didn¡¯t expect you to be so efficient."

    Shen Jingbin furrowed her brows and harrumped indignantly. "I¡¯ve always been efficient. What about you?"

    "You want me to make an announcement as well?"

    Shen Jingbin sat up on her bed. "You¡¯re not going to do it?"

    Zhao Chengning chuckled. "I wouldn¡¯t dare. My Grandfather is dead set on you bing his granddaughter-inw. As for revealing that we¡¯re together, I should be the one begging you to tell everyone that we¡¯re together. I still haven¡¯t told my Grandfather that we¡¯re attached because I was worried that you¡¯d mind. If you don¡¯t, then I¡¯ll tell them tomorrow before dinner."

    "... I don¡¯t mind."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s tone turned serious. "Little Jing, I¡¯mmitted to our rtionship, and I¡¯m dating you with the intention of marrying you in the future."

    Shen Jingbin gave a faint "Mm" in acknowledgement. "I know that... I¡¯m... serious too."

    "I¡¯m very happy."

    "..."

    Almost as if he¡¯d suddenly thought of it, Zhao Chengning said, "In that case, I need to be better prepared for this dinner. After all, this is my first time meeting Uncle, Aunty, and your Grandparents as your boyfriend."

    While imagining him in formal wear with a stoic expression on his face, Shen Jingbin thought of the clothes she¡¯d bought for him and said, "Ah, I went shopping today and saw some clothes that would suit you, so I bought them."

    Zhao Chengning smiled. "You know my measurements?"

    "I guessed."

    "Aren¡¯t you worried about it not fitting me?"

    "Don¡¯t wear it then. Give it back."

    "I was just joking. It¡¯s a gift from you, so I¡¯d go on a diet if it¡¯s too small. If it¡¯s too big, I¡¯ll find a way to get fatter."

    "Are you an idiot? Just get it exchanged if it doesn¡¯t fit."

    "That¡¯s a pretty good idea, but I don¡¯t know where the shop is. Would you apany me?"

    So that was what he was trying to get at.

    Shen Jingbin felt that theplexity of Zhao Chengning¡¯s thoughts was on a whole other level.

    "Mm."

 Chapter 275

    <b>Chapter 148: The Wildly Popr Promotional Trailer (1)</b>

    The dinner that day was the first time the elders from both families would meet one another in their capacities as ¡¯inws¡¯.

    After hanging up, Zhao Chengning told his parents and Grandfather that he was dating Shen Jingbin. Papa Zhao and Old Master Zhao were obviously overjoyed, but Mama Zhao was far from happy. Her expression immediately darkened, and she refused to attend the dinner, let alone recognise Shen Jingbin as her son¡¯s girlfriend.

    However, Mama Zhao¡¯s opinion was of no importance, and it was just a way for her to let off some steam. A re from both Papa Zhao and Old Master Zhao was all it took for her to shut her up and obediently change into something presentable before apanying them to dinner.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s mood took a turn for the worse when he spotted Shen Jingbin cing the clothes she¡¯d bought for Zhao Chengning in the car. He eyed her with grief written all over his face, and said, "You¡¯re my sister, and you¡¯ve never even bought me a single article of clothing after all these years. Looks like all those years spent looking after you were just so that we could hand you off to someone else."

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "Alright then, pick a day, and I¡¯ll apany you to buy whatever you want. Does that work?"

    "Will you be paying?"

    "Fine, I¡¯ll pay," In the end, she¡¯d just be spending his money anyway if she ran out of money, so this was no different from Shen Jingchen buying himself a present.1

    When they arrived at the restaurant, the waiter led them over to a private room where they found that the Zhao family was already seated. Upon entering, the Zhao family gave them a hearty wee while Shen Jingbin quietly snuck over to Zhao Chengning¡¯s side. "Come with me to the car to get your stuff after dinner."

    Shen Jingbin spoke in a whisper so he couldn¡¯t hear clearly. But, he roughly knew what she was saying. He leaned closer to her and replied in a low voice, "Are you talking about the clothes you bought for me?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded. Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly felt the room grow quiet and looked up. The elders from both families who were initially exchanging greetings with one another had stopped what they were doing and were now calmy eyeing the couple with a gossipy look shing through their eyes.

    Old Master Shen chuckled. "Sigh, kids these days always stick to their partners whenever they get the chance,pletely ignoring us old folks."

    Old Master Zhao chimed in. "That¡¯s not true, even at home, our brat doesn¡¯t talk much to us."

    Grandma Shen smiled. "Youths are all like that. Come, let¡¯s have a seat."

    Shen Jingbin gave her Grandmother a look of thanks. Being teased by your elders was a genuinely embarrassing urrence.

    Shen Jingbin was seated between Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingchen, while Zhao Chengan sat on Zhao Chengning¡¯s other side. By a weird twist of fate, Mama Zhao was sitting opposite Shen Jingbin.

    The moment Shen Jingbin sat down, she received an eye roll from Mama Zhao. Even someone who was blind would be able to tell just how unhappy she was with Shen Jingbin. It wasn¡¯t just Shen Jingbin who could feel it either, the three others sitting near her noticed it too.

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s brows furrowed.

    It looked like he needed to have a talk with his Mother.

    The New Year was still three days away, and both families were discussing the arrangements for New Year¡¯s Eve. Once done, they began drinking and reminiscing over old times. When it was nearing the end of dinner, the Fathers of both households even started referring to each other as inws.

    Mama Zhao issued several unhappy grunts off to the side. "No one knows for sure whether she¡¯s going to be part of the family, so what¡¯s the point of being so intimate with one another now?"

    However, she didn¡¯t actually have the guts to say it out loud. Apart from being afraid of both Papa Zhao and Old Master Zhao, the pressure that Mama Shen gave off was a little difficult for her to bear with too.

    This was why she didn¡¯t like Shen Jingbin one bit!

    Once dinner was finished, Shen Jingchen had the presence of mind to get into Papa Shen¡¯s car for a ride home. Zhao Chengan yed chauffeur for his own family too, leaving the couple to whisper sweet nothings to each other.

    Shen Jingbin brought Zhao Chengning to her car and handed over several bags that were inside.

    Zhao Chengning was slightly taken aback by what he saw. "That much? I thought you were only bringing over one set for me to look at... You did a pretty good job coordinating the colours."

    "It looked nice, so I wanted to find some things to go with it. It seems like I have a pretty good eye for this."

    Zhao Chengning grabbed the bags in one hand and slung them over his back. He stretched out his other hand and rubbed Shen Jingbin¡¯s head. "How thoughtful."

    Shen Jingbin smiled back at him.

    How would it feel to receive a heartfelt smile from the person you like? To Zhao Chengning, Shen Jingbin¡¯s charming smile left his heart tingling. He responded by bending down ever so slightly and nting a gentle kiss on her lips.

    The kiss tasted sweet, warming their lips when they touched.

    At the end of it, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t even know how she¡¯d driven home and gone to sleep. By the time she¡¯de to, it was already the next day.

    Yiju was really efficient. After announcing that they were releasing the promotional trailer, it came out the very next day. True to their expectations, the trailer was an instant hit, climbing to the top of the trending list within an hour of its release. Xue Sijia was quite a popr artist in her own right, so there was a fair amount of discussion revolving around her. Countless eyes were also on Shen Jingbin, a previously unknown beauty who, until now, had never been in the public¡¯s eye. This caused the video to shoot all the way up to second ce on the trending leaderboards.

    Countless people sighed in their hearts afterying eyes on her. Who would¡¯ve thought that someone could look that good?

    They then broke into a mad frenzy trying to look her up. However, to manyizens, Shen Jingbin had basically popped up out of thin air. And, the Administrator of Yiju¡¯s social media ount had, at Shen Jingbin¡¯s request, only listed her as Miss Shen. In fact, they didn¡¯t even include an @, leaving them at a loss.

    That¡¯s so sad; I feel sorry for Shen Jingchen now XD ?

 Chapter 276

    <b>Chapter 149: The Wildly Popr Promotional Trailer (2)</b>

    Having reached an impasse, many people turned their attention to <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> various social media ounts with private messages, bombarding them with demands to release her information. However, regardless of the pressure he faced online, the Administrator didn¡¯t dare to reveal Shen Jingbin¡¯s information. If he did that, he probably wouldn¡¯t even be able to show his face in B City anymore. Someone in the office had said that she was the girlfriend of the Second Young Master of the Zhao family, so he definitely couldn¡¯t afford to provoke her.

    But s, theseizens weren¡¯t ones to be deterred.

    In the end, the Administrator who¡¯d been harassed continuously by them suddenly had a bright idea and hurriedly made a post on Weibo shortly after the trailer was released.

    "Legends of Celestials and Demons¡¯ Administrator: Hey there everyone, I heard that you¡¯re interested in looking for the Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple, right? Hahaha, she¡¯s gorgeous, isn¡¯t she? (¡ñ???) That being said, I can¡¯t possibly hand over someone as stunning as her so easily! But, I¡¯ll let you guys in on a little secret: She ys <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> too. Why don¡¯t you try going into the game and looking for her if you really want to get to know her? (????-)? £¨£þ¡«£þ£©"

    With that, the campaign to ¡¯find the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple¡¯ began. And on that day, <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> saw a never before seen number of new yers.

    Of course, the ones who¡¯d watched the promotional trailer weren¡¯t just limited to those new yers who had yet to get into the game. In fact, it was the veterans who¡¯d already been ying the game from before that made up a majority of the views. Said veterans were utterly unsettled when they finished watching the trailer, with the yers from White Cloud Temple being primarily affected.

    What the f*ck! They¡¯re even trying to go after someone as beautiful as her?! But seriously though Mr Administrator, have you seen what the White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple looks like?! Leading us on like this means you¡¯re cheating your customers!

    However, we¡¯re willing to let it slide if you give us the contact details of the Senior Sister in the promotional video!

    Administrator: I refuse! (Hmph)

    On the other end of things... Song Yubao was all in a tizzy when she saw the promotion video. She hastily opened up her Wechat group and began kicking up a fuss.

    National Treasures: Oi oi oi! Did you guys see the promotional trailer? Wtfwtf, that Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple is the very same girl I¡¯ve been telling you guys about! She¡¯s so beautiful she brings a tear to my eyes!

    Song And Alcohol: I¡¯ve seen it, and she really does look amazing. The motion effects, post-processing effects on the clothes, and everything else alle together to enhance her beauty by several times. I was blown away by her the second I opened the video. What a shame, why do all the beauties have boyfriends!

    I¡¯m Not A Monster: Beautiful +1, but I think this is very hical on the part of the gamepany.

    National Treasures: Why¡¯s that? How is it hical?

    I¡¯m Not A Monster: What¡¯re we supposed to do about Nutty now that they¡¯ve gone and gotten such a beautiful woman to y the part of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple?! As the saying goes: feelings can¡¯t be hurt if noparison is made! Because of... ahem, Nutty¡¯s already being bullied by so many people, and now, this beautiful Senior Sister has made an appearance. Doesn¡¯t that mean that Nutty¡¯s going to beughed right out of the game!?

    Eternal Rest: That¡¯s true. I¡¯ve looked through thements on the Administrator¡¯s post and noticed that lots of people joined the game because of her. But when they see Nutty and realise that not only is she different from the woman in the video, but also so... they might take out their frustrations on Nutty instead. In this day and age, not everyone has a good moral character. I¡¯m just worried about themunching personal attacks against Nutty.

    Descent Of Rain And Snow: But the Administrator didn¡¯t say that Nutty and the woman in the trailer were the same person. All he said was that she yed <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> too.

    Lingering White Clouds: That¡¯s the underlying problem. First impressions are always the strongest, and they¡¯re now all working under the assumptions that the woman in the trailer is the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple. Coupled with the Administer¡¯s post, I suspect that around eighty percent of the people who¡¯ve watched the video would be working under this assumption.

    National Treasures: ¦²(©b¥í©b;) Doesn¡¯t that mean that Nutty¡¯s screwed?

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight: What are you guy talking about? What video?

    Tanabata Evening: Yiju released its new promotional trailer. There was an amazingly beautiful woman inside, but she happened to y the part of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple. Now, hordes of people are rushing into the game just to meet her. We¡¯re worried they might do something drastic towards Nutty when she fails to meet their expectations.

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Something drastic? How bad can it be?

    Temperate Scarlet Moon: We can¡¯t say for sure, but it¡¯s hard to get away from the attacks these kinds of disgusting people use. I¡¯ve also seen quite a few of Xue Sijia¡¯s fansmenting in the Administrator¡¯s post. You guys should know that she has tons of fans, and many of them are very unhappy with the Administrator neglecting Xue Sijia and choosing to prop up a neer instead. They¡¯ve already begun disparaging the woman, and they might even vent their anger on Nutty when they get into the game.

    It was rare to see Shen Jingchen ¨C who loved sleeping in ¨C up so early. He¡¯d reached over to his phone and found that his Wechat was going off non-stop, so he¡¯d opened it up to take a look. When he¡¯d looked through the message history, his sleep-addled mind had some difficulty processing what was happening.

    The promotional trailer¡¯s release had led to the group¡¯s participants thinking up all sorts of verbal slugfest scenarios. Shen Jingchen thought that his little sister might¡¯ve gotten herself embroiled in something big again and hurriedly ran over to her room with his phone in hand.

 Chapter 277

    <b>Chapter 277: The Dragonkin¡¯s Lead Disciple (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the type of person to sleep in, so she was already awake when Shen Jingchen came rushing over. She¡¯d just finished changing and red at Shen Jingchen who¡¯d barged into her room without even bothering to knock. "Good thing I was fast enough and had managed to get my clothes on in time. Otherwise, things would¡¯ve turned ugly," She thought to herself.

    "Why didn¡¯t you knock?"

    "Do you ever knock when you enter my room? Anyway, there¡¯s a huge issue now; there¡¯s no time for knocking."

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "What happened?"

    "Did you know that the promotional trailer you were filming has been released?"

    "Yeah, what of it?"

    "You¡¯re trending now, and lots of people have been asking for your contact information. Yiju¡¯s social media Administrator mentioned that you y <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> too and told all of them to go looking for you... But, at least he didn¡¯t reveal your in-game name."

    Someone of Shen Jingbin¡¯s intelligence didn¡¯t need him to spell out everything for her to understand what the issue was. Her expression turned serious. "That does sound troublesome. I didn¡¯t consider the possibility of this happeningst time. Zhao Chengning and I were nning to hand over the ck Tortoise¡¯s egg to Poison Toad to incubate before we headed out to look for the Vermillion Bird two dayster."

    Shen Jingchen looked concerned too. "I think it¡¯s better if you don¡¯t log in at all during this time."

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit and said, "I¡¯ll see how it goes."

    In spite of her saying that she still logged on after lunch.

    Pure Crane had gotten his hands on a Divine Weapon.

    To facilitate the ease ofmunication, Shen Jingbin gave Pure Crane her Penguin ount1.

    She¡¯d previously logged off at Beiming Sea¡¯s ferry terminal, so that was where she appeared when she logged in. Afternoons were usually the time when yer activity in the game peaked, leading to numerous people crowding around the terminal.

    Those with sharp eyes immediately spotted her and began huddling together and whispering to one another in twos and threes. Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t bother about them, opting instead to hop onto her mount and make her way towards where Pure Crane was waiting.

    At the same time, various guilds in the game started to make a move as well when they found out that she¡¯d logged in. Veterans who wanted to shit stir leaked information about her to their acquaintances who¡¯d just joined the game, and waited for events to unfold with looks of glee on their faces. The newbies were going to get their chance to meet the Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple that they were so looking forward to!

    [Guild] Learning How To Be A Despot: Eh? I think I saw that Senior Sister was on.

    [Guild] Fleeing To The Ends Of The Earth: Hm? Is our renowned Senior Sister on? Please speak up Senior Sister, you¡¯re famous now, and I wanna rub shoulders with people like you!

    Aside from a few people like Delicate Flower, everyone else in Pure Crane¡¯s guild referred to her as ¡¯Senior Sister¡¯. Reason being that they couldn¡¯t bring themselves to call her by her in-game name. Shen Jingbin had a pretty good rtionship with everyone in Bronze Tree, so she found the time to send a reply after ncing at the guild chat.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Good afternoon.

    [Guild] ck Kite: What the f*ck, you really did log in, Nutty. Did you know that lots of people are looking for you?!

    [Guild] Nutjob: I know.

    [Guild] Delicate Flower: Nutty, I think you¡¯re in a bit of a difficult situation. If possible, you should do your best to stay away from ces with many people.

    [Guild] Cheshire Cat: I don¡¯t know who it was, but someone revealed that you¡¯re in our guild. We¡¯ve had tons of people applying to join over the past few days, but we rejected all of them because we weren¡¯t sure of their motives.

    "Looks like more than a few people have found out about it,"

    Shen Jingbin thought to herself as she looked at the guild chat with gratification.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Thank you, everyone.

    Shen Jingbin had reached Pure Crane¡¯s manor by the time they finished talking, so she dismounted and swiftly made her way forward. When she stepped inside, she spotted Pure Crane standing in front of a door in high spirits.

    Pure Crane was a bit of a moneybags, and he¡¯d built himself a refining room within his manor. At present, he stood in front of the door to the room with uncontroble excitement in his eyes.

    When Shen Jingbin called out to him, he looked over and said, "You¡¯re here, hurry over and watch me refine a Divine Weapon!" After saying so, he pulled out a horsetail whisk.

    The entire length of the horsetail whisk was snow white and suffused with a faint golden glow, its sacred aura clear for all to see. White cloud patterns were wrapped around the handle, and the strands on the upper half of the whisk were made of some unknown material. When touched, the strands were iparably soft and supple, and on closer inspection, glistening light could be seen through each length.

    "This is a weapon for you White Cloud Temple disciples; have a look at its attributes," Pure Crane said.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t stand on ceremony and grabbed the horsetail whisk to inspect it.

    "Snow Sealing Mist (Divine). A legendary Divine Weapon said to have the power to shake the very heavens. Rarity: Gold, unable to grow. Durability: 350/350, (Sect Requirement: White Cloud Temple, Level Requirement: 120). Can be upgraded and reforged. Inner Strength +180, Physical Strength +100, uracy +380, Critical Hit Strike +280. Divine Blessing: +50 defence against critical strikes from magical attacks. Human Bane: +68 increased damage against other yers. Enemy Knowledge: +66 defence against attacks from other yers.

    While she inspected the horsetail whisk, Pure Crane said, "Refining a Divine Weapon is much harder than I thought. I¡¯ve failed ten times already. Luckily, all the materials used in the refining process are returned to you if you fail. This is the first one I¡¯ve managed to make."

    Shen Jingbin smiled. "I must have been lucky then."

    "Lend me some of your luck then. I¡¯m currently forging another Divine Weapon. You can have a look when you open up the furnace in a bit."

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    A Chinese social ount ?

 Chapter 278

    <b>Chapter 278: The Dragonkin¡¯s Lead Disciple (2)</b>

    Roughly ten minutes had passed when Pure Crane received a notification. "It¡¯s time. Let¡¯s go check on the furnace."

    "That quick?" Shen Jingbin asked along the way to the refining room. She knew that the time taken to refine weapons increased based on their quality.

    "I¡¯ve been refining it for three days straight before you came."

    Shen Jingbin looked at him with a raised brow. The time needed to refine a weapon would appear after cing the required materials and recipe into a furnace. Weapons of differing grades had different refinement times. However, none of them took more than twenty-four hours. In general, weapons that took more than twenty-four hours to refine would be guaranteed to be items of the highest quality and have the best possible attributes. Shen Jingbin understood the implications of a weapon taking three days to be refined without Pure Crane saying anything.

    This brought up another problem: while you might be able to discern a weapon¡¯s quality based on the time it took, there was no way to know whether you¡¯d actually seed until the refinement waspleted.

    If one¡¯s luck was good, they¡¯d be able to obtain a superior weapon when they finished refining. Otherwise, they¡¯d be met with failure instead, and their dreams of obtaining a superior weapon would remain as that ¨C a dream.

    When she walked in, Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes were drawn to three enormous furnaces that were ced in the middle of the room, looking very simr to the Highest Elder Lord¡¯s pill refining room. Pure Crane pointed to the metal furnace on the left and said, "It¡¯s that one."

    Shen Jingbin made her way towards the furnace on the left and ced her hands on top of it.

    "Do you wish to open the forge? Yes/No. Please note: life is ever changing. Please remain calm regardless of the result, young hero. Continue to strive, and the goddess of luck is sure to smile on you.

    Shen Jingbin gave a wry smile. What a thoughtful notice.

    She selected ¡¯Yes¡¯ without the slightest bit of hesitation, and the enormous furnace issued a groan. The furnace¡¯s cover began to lift up slowly, and a golden beam of light burst out from within.

    Sess!

    That beam of light was all they needed to see to know whether the refinement was a sess and they broke into smiles. Shen Jingbin, in particr, heaved a sigh of relief.

    Pure Crane received a notification at the same time the golden light burst out.

    "Congrattions, you have sessfully forged Demonshaker Skyfrost (Divine). Would you like to make a realm wide announcement? Yes/No."

    When yers refined a weapon of the highest quality, the system would ask whether they¡¯d like to make their achievement known to everyone else. Pure Crane wanted to keep a low profile, and he didn¡¯t want to tip his hand to the disciples of the Shinra Sect either, so he chose no.

    A jet ck dagger slowly rose out of the furnace andnded in Pure Crane¡¯s hand.

    As the furnace belonged to Pure Crane, the weapon still belonged to him even though Shen Jingbin was the one who¡¯d opened it.

    Shen Jingbin knew at a nce that it was a dagger belonging to the Lich ss. Pure Crane smiled. "It has to be said, both husband and wife have pretty good luck; the two of you have imed the first two weapons that were created." After handing the dagger to her, he continued, "Although rumours are going around that the two of you have fallen out of love, I think you guys are even closer than you were before, right? Here, you can be the one to give him the dagger."

    "Oh right, that reminds me, we¡¯ve found the ck Tortoise. We n to look for the Vermillion Bird next," Shen Jingbin said as she received the dagger.

    Pure Crane paused for a moment. "Mm, I¡¯ll try to speed up refining the Divine Weapons as well. I get the feeling the uing battle isn¡¯t far from now."

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly received a notification that someone new had joined the guild.

    [Guild] Chance meetings are fated, yer Gentle Kite has joined the guild.

    [Guild] ck Kite: Everyone, this is my younger brother!

    The name ¡¯ck Kite¡¯ sounded rather familiar to Shen Jingbin, but she couldn¡¯t quite ce her finger on where she¡¯d heard it before. A few people in the guild popped out to wee the neer. Less than a minuteter, two more notifications appeared.

    [Guild] Chance meetings are fated, yer Qi Mu has joined the guild.

    [Guild] Chance meetings are fated, yer Inking A Message has joined the guild.

    Pure Crane was a little put off by this new development. After the promotional trailer was released, he¡¯d given explicit instructions that no new members were to be added to the guild. And now, three of them had suddenly popped up out of nowhere. On closer inspection, he found that ck Kite was the one who¡¯d approved all of their applications. He decided to message her in private.

    "Why¡¯d you suddenly add so many people into the guild? Didn¡¯t I say not to add anyone over the next two days?"

    "Gentle Kite¡¯s my younger brother, while Qi Mu and Inking A Message are his friends. They weren¡¯t happy in their previous guild, so they asked me to take them in. I felt bad rejecting them, so I added them into the guild. I¡¯m sorry, Brother Pure Crane. ( ???????? ?)

    Pure Crane often found it difficult to get angry when it came to ck Kite. He just sighed in resignation and said, "Remember to tell them that things are a little dicey at the moment. No matter what, they aren¡¯t allowed to divulge any information whatsoever regarding Nutjob."

    Pure Crane and ck Kite were busy talking amongst themselves, so they obviously didn¡¯t have the time to wee the two new additions.

    Since none of the guild¡¯s executives had stepped out to greet them, Qi Mu decided to take matters into her own hands instead.

    [Guild] Qi Mu: Is the Guild Leader around? I have something to discuss with you.

    [Guild] Pure Crane: I¡¯m here, what¡¯s up?

    Pure Crane received mail from Qi Mu shortly after sending out his reply.

    "I came over here because I heard that you had most of the Lead Disciples. I¡¯m the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins."

    Pure Crane was taken aback. He hurriedly turned to Shen Jingbin and said, "The one who just joined the guild ¨C Qi Mu ¨C is the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins!"

    "Mm?!"

    Shen Jingbin decisively opened up the guild member list, looked up Qi Mu, and sent her a friend request. At the same time, she sent a message in the guild chat.

    [Guild] Nutjob: Qi Mu, you¡¯re the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins? Please add me as your friend, thanks.

    [Guild] The Winds Of Ximen: What the f*ck, what the f*ck, the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins¡¯ joined too? My bro¡¯s so cool!

    When her friend request went through, Shen Jingbin immediately sent a private message to Qi Mu.

    "Hello, where are you now? I have something to discuss with you."

    After Qi Mu replied with her coordinates, Shen Jingbin had a word with Pure Crane before the two of them rushed over to where Qi Mu was.

 Chapter 279

    <b>Chapter 279: Qi Mu¡¯s Injury (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin felt that Qi Mu¡¯s name sounded really familiar from the very first moment she saw her name. Then, when Shen Jingbin saw her in person, she knew that her memory hadn¡¯t failed her; she really had seen her before! Furthermore, her being able to obtain Mascot was all thanks to Qi Mu.

    Qi Mu was the person who¡¯d bullied her in Xiling City when she¡¯d first started out and forced her up Nameless Mountain to take on the Divine Beast, White Tiger. Qi Mu wasn¡¯t alone; she was apanied by Gentle Kite and Inking A Message. Qi Mu was the first to speak when they arrived. "I¡¯ve only recently be the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins, so I hope you understand why I haven¡¯t revealed myself till now."

    This was why she hadn¡¯t participated in the battle at Eight Trigrams Field.

    "Don¡¯t worry; you¡¯re not toote. I¡¯m the Lead Disciple of the Swordmaster Pavilion, Pure Crane," Pure Crane replied.

    Qi Mu nodded at him before turning her gaze to Shen Jingbin, her expression turning a little conflicted in the process. "So you¡¯re the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple, Nutjob... I¡¯m not sure if you remember... but we¡¯ve met in the past..."

    She probably knew that what she¡¯d done in the past wasn¡¯t all that good, so her words came out haltingly.

    Shen Jingbin nodded and ¡¯Mmed¡¯ in acknowledgement. "Let¡¯s let bygones be bygones; we¡¯re allies now. If possible, I hope we can set aside our differences from the past and now work hand in hand."

    This time around, Shen Jingbin noticed that Qi Mu was different from how she¡¯d been in the past. Be it her gaze or her personality; everything waspletely different from how she¡¯d previously acted in Xiling City. If the Qi Mu of the past was an arrogant and unreasonable princess, then the Qi Mu of the present was like a refineddy who¡¯d matured with time. She wasn¡¯t the only one who seemed different, even the ones behind her, Gentle Kite and Inking A Message, looked like they¡¯d mellowed a great deal.

    If she had to guess, the three of them had likely encountered something major in their lives, leading to such a drastic change in their personalities.

    Which was precisely the reason why Shen Jingbin had said what she did. No matter what, Qi Mu and she were now in the same boat, and she hoped that they¡¯d be able to work towards amon goal together instead of trying to undermine one another. Take Morning Glory Chime for instance; Shen Jingbin had actually heaved a sigh of relief when she¡¯d lost her position as the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs.

    Qi Mu visibly sighed with relief when she¡¯d heard what Shen Jingbin had said. She gave Shen Jingbin a look filled with sincerity and said, "I was wet behind the ears in the past and treated you harshly. I¡¯m very sorry for my past actions, and I¡¯d now like to issue a formal apology to you. I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

    "Mm, I forgive you."

    Although Pure Crane didn¡¯t know what had happened in the past, he could tell that a rift existed between them. It looked like it was all water under the bridge now though, and Qi Mu¡¯s actions had given him a very favorable impression of her.

    Qi Mu more or less knew their current situation; otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t have gone through the trouble of tapping on Gentle Kite¡¯s connection with ck Kite to join Bronze Tree. And, not only was she abreast of everything, she even provided them with a valuable piece of information.

    "The sole reason I managed to be the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins was because I had a part to y in protecting my Sect Leader."

    Pure Crane and Shen Jingbin¡¯s attention was instantly drawn to Qi Mu.

    "I haven¡¯t heard anything about the Dragonkin¡¯s Sect Leader being in troubletely," Pure Crane said.

    "That¡¯s probably because it¡¯s counted as my sect¡¯s internal matters, so it wasn¡¯t leaked out. The Shinra Sect has recently been nning to make a move against the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects, and the Dragonkin Tower was their very first target."

    Different from the Nymphs, the Dragonkins, who were a Celestial sect, weren¡¯t as amicable towards the sects of the Demon race. They harbored hatred towards them and looked down on the Human sects as well. That being the case, they obviously abhorred revealing anything to outsiders. The Shinra Sect had probably decided to take advantage of this, and this had resulted in them choosing the Dragonkins as their first target.

    "I was just doing some quests for the guild when I got lucky and was given the opportunity to receive instruction from the Sect Leader himself..."

    In <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, whenever yers neared the end of their sect quests, there¡¯d be a chance for them to receive instruction from their Sect Leader. However, although it was supposed to be an ¡¯instruction¡¯, it was, in fact, just listening to them prattle on before being given a reward that was slightly better than what yers usually got.

    "Just as I was about to ept my reward, I received a notification informing me that I¡¯d entered someone¡¯s attack radius. Before I had the chance to do anything else, three people who were clothed in ck suddenly popped out of thin air and made a mad dash for the Sect Leader. The situation was dire, and my body moved without thinking. The next thing I knew, I was in front of my Sect Leader and protecting him from their attacks. Iter lost consciousness because of my severe injuries. When I came to, the ck-clothed assants were nowhere to be seen. The Sect Leader then bestowed upon me the position of Lead Disciple for my efforts in protecting him."

    "Do you know what happened while you were unconscious?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Qi Mu shook her head. "I don¡¯t, but I wasn¡¯t out for long; probably only for around ten minutes. I couldn¡¯t see or receive any information for those ten minutes though. While I don¡¯t know for sure what happened during that time, my Sect Leader appears to have been injured."

    "No wonder there hasn¡¯t been much activity from the Shinra Sect; they were nning to strike at the NPCs instead. Once something happened to the NPCs, the Six Great Sects would definitely be thrown into chaos. When that happens, they¡¯ll take the chance to make their move. It¡¯s an ingenious n," Pure Crane thoughtfully added.

    "We should return to our respective sects and warn our Sect Leaders; preparedness averts peril," Shen Jingbin advised.

    Pure Crane mirrored her opinion. Shen Jingbin turned to Qi Mu and said, "All we¡¯re missing is Quiet And Steadfast, and we¡¯ll have all the Lead Disciples that we know gathered. He¡¯s not around at the moment and will probably be on at night. We¡¯ll look for you when hees onter; will you be busy today?"

    Qi Mu shook her head. "Not really, I¡¯m just grinding levels at the moment."

    Shen Jingbin finally took notice of Qi Mu¡¯s level ¨C she was only Level 80. Back then, their levels were almost the same. Even if Qi Mu leveled slowly, her level still shouldn¡¯t have been that low.

 Chapter 280

    <b>Chapter 280: Qi Mu¡¯s Injury (2)</b>

    Noticing the look of confusion on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face, Qi Mu sighed and said, "This was all because I was too stubborn in the past. Not only did my level drop, I even dragged Gentle Kite and Inking A Message into it, causing their levels to drop as well."

    Shen Jingbin hurriedly sent friend requests to Gentle Kite and Inking A Message. After they epted, she noticed that Gentle Kite was Level 90 while Inking A Message was even worse off; he was Level 83.

    Back then, the two of them were already high-leveled yers.

    "I offended the members of Life At First Sight. Afraid of being implicated, my guild worked together with Life At First Sight and tricked us into entering Cloud Dream Swamp where the Universal Envoy resided. Once there, the Universal Envoy drained our levels. Doing it once wouldn¡¯t have been so bad, but the two guilds threw us back in time and time again."

    Resentment carved its way into the faces of Gentle Kite and Inking A Message when Qi Mu said that.

    Such methods were far too despicable.

    "Let me take care of bringing you guys up then. I don¡¯t have anything urgent on hand apart from refining Divine Weapons, so I¡¯ll round up some people toe along with us when we power level you guys," Pure Crane said.

    "Count me in as well; I can help out too."

    Qi Mu, Gentle Kite, and Inking A Message looked at the two of them. A momentter, Gentle Kite voiced a word of thanks.

    After that, Pure Crane got ahold of The Winds Of Ximen, and they each took charge of the lowbie¡¯s leveling. Whenpared to Pure Crane and The Winds Of Ximen, Shen Jingbin¡¯s level was a little lower, so she was responsible for Qi Mu.

    Shen Jingbin looked up Shen Jingchen, and three of them proceeded to clear various dungeons together.

    "Did you know how foolish I was in the past? I thought I was both rich and beautiful, so I should be pampered by men. And, that someone as ugly as you wouldn¡¯t even be worthy of speaking to me. Iter learned that men would only say these things to flirt with me when they were in a good mood. When they weren¡¯t, I was like a pet that they¡¯d kicked aside. This game... No, this world has no shortage of women. I wasn¡¯t special."

    With a formidable fighter like Shen Jingbin and her vicious pet, Mascot, by her side to help her, Qi Mu didn¡¯t even need to ride on a mount while they were in the dungeon. She turned to look at Shen Jingbin who was by her side, ever-ready to protect her, and she suddenly felt a flurry of emotion well up inside of her. "I used to think that the world revolved around me, but Iter found out that Gentle Kite and Inking A Message were the only ones who cared enough to stay by my side. Them not stepping on me when I was down is the greatest kindness that they¡¯ve given me."

    After casually throwing out a skill and finishing off one of the monsters that she¡¯d missed, Shen Jingbin raised her head and nced at Qi Mu. Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze was unfocused, and it wasn¡¯t clear what was looking at. Shen Jingbin knew that Qi Mu had been keeping her emotions bottled up for a long time, and she was looking for someone to pour her heart out to.

    No matter how close Gentle Kite and Inking A Message were with her, they were still men, and some things just couldn¡¯t be said to them.

    "Do you know how I offended Life At First Sight? I knew a man who had both power and elegance. He treated me kindly and even took the initiative to chase after me. Unable to withstand his advances, I agreed to be his. Iter found out that he was already married, and that his rtionship with the other woman even extended to real life. She was from Life At First Sight, and she was the Guild Leader¡¯s close friend. The moment she knew of my existence, she came rushing to my doorstep to settle things with me. I didn¡¯t believe it till she brought him over to confront me. He dered that I was the one who¡¯d seduced him first, and it was then that I knew that I¡¯d made a mistake."

    "What did you do?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Me? Being the arrogant woman that I was, I obviously couldn¡¯t ept it. I wanted to break up with him on the spot. I thought that by doing this, she wouldn¡¯t have an excuse to cause trouble for me anymore. Little did I expect her to view my existence as a form of humiliation, and go on to make ns to drop our levels so that we¡¯d quit the game. Gentle Kite and Inking A Message spoke up for me back then, so they were implicated too. I¡¯d thought that having many powerful friends by my side would deter them from taking any action, but my ¡¯friends¡¯ either ignored me or removed me from their friend list. Some of them even worked together with that woman. As I was being dragged over to the Universal Envoy, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about how much of a failure I was as a person since I had no one who was willing to help me."

    "Didn¡¯t you have Gentle Kite and Inking A Message?"

    "At that time, I would¡¯ve preferred it if they hadn¡¯t stepped out to help me. If they had chosen to avoid me, they wouldn¡¯t have fallen to where they are now... And, after stripping me of my Levels, I really did think of quitting the game, but I wasn¡¯t resigned to such a fate, so I jumped back in to start leveling again. I wanted to run dungeons, but no one was willing to carry me. They¡¯d harass me if I tried doing my dailies, so I could only quietly go and take on quests from my sect instead... After obtaining the position of Lead Disciple, I was kicked out from my guild before I had the chance to do anything. After that, I spent a lot of time thinking about what I could do next until I heard Gentle Kite talking about what you were doing, so I came looking for you."

    Shen Jingbin quietly listened to everything she said. "It takes two hands to p. You¡¯re part of the reason why you¡¯re in your current state..." When she saw that Qi Mu was looking at her, she continued. "However, you can still be saved now that you¡¯ve realised your shorings."

    Qi Mu¡¯s expression turned serious, and she took a deep breath in before she slowly said, "I deserved everything that happened to me, but Gentle Kite and Inking A Message didn¡¯t deserve any of it."

    "Then you should do whatever you can to repay this debt to them."

    Qi Mu¡¯s eyes lit up when she heard what Shen Jingbin said, her expression no longer dull and lifeless.

    "I¡¯ll definitely find a way to repay my debt!"

 Chapter 281

    <b>Chapter 281: Cowing The Masses (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin brought Qi Mu over to meet Quiet And Steadfast when he logged in that night. Now that she thought about it, apart from the Nymph Abode¡¯s Lead Disciple, they¡¯d managed to gather the rest of the disciples from the Six Great Sects.

    After Qi Mu briefly exined the Shinra Sect¡¯s n to take down the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects to Quiet And Steadfast and The Winds Of Ximen, the five of them dispersed; each person returning to their respective sects to warn their Sect Leaders.

    The Dragonkin Tower needn¡¯t be informed since they already knew, but the Nymph Abode didn¡¯t have anyone on their side to spread the news. Hence, Qi Mu was charged with the task of informing them.

    Quiet And Steadfast apanied Shen Jingbin back to White Cloud Temple. Once done, he¡¯d nned for them to head over to the Lich Pce and get Poison Toad to hatch the ck Tortoise¡¯s egg.

    Song Yuqing seemed to have been expecting their return; a pot brewing tea was present when they entered the house. After listening to Shen Jingbin¡¯s thorough exnation of everything that had happened so far, Song Yuqing fell silent for a long while before he acknowledged what she¡¯d said and waved them off.

    Just as they were about to leave, Shen Jingbin nced back at Song Yuqing; something about him felt off. Almost as if he¡¯d felt her gaze, Song Yuqing raised his head and met her eyes before he smiled at her. Unable to discern what was wrong, Shen Jingbin shook her head and left.

    What she didn¡¯t see was that Song Yuqing¡¯s expression changed the moment they left, and he produced a piece of paper from within his robes. On it, information from Lu Yingzhou 1 could be seen.

    "The Dragonkin Tower¡¯s Sect Leader has been poisoned. Jue Tian has made his move."

    "Too fast; everything¡¯s happening too quickly," Song Yuqing¡¯s expression was grave as he balled his hand into a fist, gripping the piece of paper tightly within it.

    Just as Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast were nning to make their way towards the Lich Pce, they were obstructed by a mass of people. Shen Jingbin was struck dumb while Quiet And Steadfast surveyed their surroundings and lowered his brows into a frown.

    "I heard the Great Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple¡¯s back! Where is she?!"

    "F*ck, don¡¯t push me! All I just want is to f*cking catch a glimpse of the great Senior Sister!"

    "Is this Great Senior Sister the same one from the video?!"

    "Which one of them is the real Senior Sister?"

    These people had evidently gotten their hands on information about their ¡¯great Senior Sister¡¯ but had yet make sense of the situation. Shen Jingbin was rendered speechless when she heard the hushed curses of someone beside her.

    F*ck, you¡¯re here to see me? Don¡¯t screw around. Fellow disciple, looking at me will only result in you injuring yourself.Äþ¾²ÖÂÔ¶Ò²Ìý¼ûÁËÕâÐ©ÈËµÄËéËéÄî£¬¶ÙÊ±¾Í³ÁÏÂÁËÁ³£¬Ìù½üËýµÄºó±³£¬ÉìÊÖ»¤×¡Ëý£¬µÍÍ·ÔÚËý¶ú±ßµÀ£º"ÎÒÃÇÇÄÇÄÁïµô¡£"

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s face darkened when he heard the mutterings of everyone around him. He pressed himself close to her and stretched out his hands to protect her as he brought his head to her ear. "Let¡¯s quietly slip away."

    Shen Jingbin fiercely nodded her head. She was of the same mind!

    However, after only taking a few steps, someone suddenly shouted, "White Cloud Temple¡¯s Great Senior Sister is over there!"

    Everyone instantly fell silent, and a half-meter-radius around Shen Jingbin was immediately cleared of people. Countless fervent gazes fell on Shen Jingbin at the same time...

    And then, they vomited.

    "Blergh!" The sound of continuous retching and unpleasant curses filled the air.

    "F*ck, the gamepany¡¯s a liar! Are they trying to jerk our chain with this ugly Senior Sister??"

    "F*ck, White Cloud Temple¡¯s Great Senior Sister is this ugly? I¡¯m leaving this sect!"

    Some of them were so frustrated that they even wanted to attack her.

    "F*ck, what¡¯s an ugly monster like her doing ying this game? She should be hiding at home instead. Get lost!" As they said that, a person threw something in their hand at Shen Jingbin.

    Quiet And Steadfast quickly pulled her behind him and shot a re at that person.

    Though the person in question didn¡¯t recognise him, he still fell back a step, likely due to the imposing aura that Quiet And Steadfast was giving off. When he realised how embarrassing his actions were, he shouted, "What¡¯re you ring at; am I wrong? Why¡¯s she showing her face even though she¡¯s so ugly? Doesn¡¯t she have an ounce of self-awareness?"

    They were still in White Cloud Temple¡¯s territory, and as a disciple of the Lich Pce, Quiet And Steadfast wasn¡¯t able to take any action. Otherwise, the NPC disciples that patrolled the sect¡¯s grounds would immediatelye over and beat him up. Hence, he could only rein in his impulse to throttle this person.

    When the more experienced yers saw how furious Quiet And Steadfast was, they silently lit a candle for the newbies. Honestly speaking, they just wanted to watch what was happening and had no intentions of shit stirring by provoking the Great God. Little did they expect that this bunch of newbs would be so rash!

    None of the more experienced yers said anything. They just quietly distanced themselves from the newbs, inching out of the circle of yers in an effort to escape before Quiet And Steadfast noticed them. After all, they could tell that the Great God who rarely got angry was genuinely enraged this time around.

    What¡¯s worse was that the newbs weren¡¯t even aware of it, and thought that the couple wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything to them since they were greatly outnumbered. With that thought in mind, they became increasingly bold and started tounch personal attacks against Shen Jingbin.

    The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment; they were previously filled with a longing to see their beautiful Great Senior Sister but were instead greeted with a woman so ugly, she caused the earth to shake and the heavens to tremble. Not a single one of them could bear with the disappointment! And so, for the sake of soothing their wounded little souls, this ugly monster had to endure their rage.

    In case you guys have forgotten, he¡¯s the Sect Leader of Swordmaster Pavilion. I know I have, I had to look it up! XD ?

 Chapter 282

    <b>Chapter 282: Cowing The Masses (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin had long since gotten used to being despised andbelled as ugly. But this time around, she flew into a rage when their increasingly caustic insults touched upon her parents and Quiet And Steadfast.

    She stepped out from behind Quiet And Steadfast and pped away a bottle that happened to be flying her way. Her eyes that were as sharp as a hawk¡¯s turned to re at the person who¡¯d first insulted her parents.

    When a beautiful person red at someone, they might feel like that the person wasn¡¯t threatening and that they instead looked pretty. However, when someone who was ugly to begin with red at them with the intent to intimidate others, they¡¯d appear extremely frightening. The yer who was red at felt his hair stand on end and his legs start to weaken.

    Her overly vicious expression stunned the newbies into silence, and they slowly closed their mouths.

    When silence filled the air, Shen Jingbin slowly began to speak, her voice indescribably eerie, "You, repeat what you just said."

    "I... I said it¡¯s definitely your parents¡¯ fault that you look so ugly. They... better apologise formitting such a sin..." The next moment, his voice choked off as a branch was lodged in his neck. The person cupped his throat with both his hands and coughed a few times before dissolving in a sh of light.

    F*ck, an insta-kill in such a way!

    Everyone present immediately cupped their throats in terror.

    Shen Jingbin would never stand for insults towards her family, and that person from just now had undoubtedly crossed the line. Without even thinking, she¡¯d plucked a branch from beside her and mercilessly tossed it at that person.

    That single branch dealt a critical hit, and that person was killed in a second.

    A storm was brewing within Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes as she surveyed the people around her. Those who had insulted her the most ardently now had their heads lowered, as though they were afraid that she¡¯d see them.

    "How I look is my own business; if you can¡¯t stand my appearance, then look away. Those of you who have trouble looking away can take it up with me instead... And, if anyone ever dares to insult me or mine again, you¡¯d best be extremely careful."

    After throwing down her vicious rhetoric, Shen Jingbin pulled Quiet And Steadfast away, her entire being exuding coldness. As the pair made their way out, the masses obediently opened up a path for them, not even daring to breathe too heavily till they disappeared. This was especially so for the more experienced yers who¡¯d hidden themselves beforehand and were still reeling from their lingering fear.

    Who was it that said that the ugly monster was good-natured and a pushover? Was this what they f*king meant by ¡¯good-natured¡¯?! Don¡¯t insult our intelligence!

    Back to the couple that had just left.

    Noticing Shen Jingbin¡¯s sour mood, Quiet And Steadfast tactfully summoned his mount, Sheng Huang, and rode together with her. From his position behind her, Quiet And Steadfast gently wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his embrace.

    "This is my first time seeing you so angry."

    Shen Jingbin was never the type of person who took her anger out on other people; it would only be directed at those who¡¯d provoked her ire. She leaned back onto his chest and asked, "Did I scare you?"

    "I¡¯m not so easily scared. The big sister vibes you gave off just now were pretty nice."

    "How terrifying. Zhao Chengning, I think you¡¯re going nuts."

    Quiet And Steadfast tightened his arms around her. "I¡¯m fine with going nuts, as long as you¡¯re the one who¡¯s causing it."

    Tsk tsk tsk, thank goodness that there weren¡¯t any single pringles around here!

    When they arrived at the Lich Pce, Quiet And Steadfast informed Poison Toad about the Shinra Sect. After that, Shen Jingbin took out the ck Tortoise¡¯s Egg. Poison Toad¡¯s eyes lit up the moment he saw the ck Tortoise¡¯s Egg.

    Poison Toad took the ck Tortoise¡¯s Egg and impatiently asked, "Have you found the ck Tortoise¡¯s Inheritance?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded. Poison Toad ced the egg in his bosom and said, "I¡¯ll hold on to the ck Tortoise¡¯s Egg for now;e back in three days time to retrieve it. Since you¡¯ve gotten ahold of the ck Tortoise¡¯s Inheritance, you can now follow me to the Temple."

    "Alright," After issuing a word of acknowledgement, the two of them proceeded to follow Poison Toad to the Temple.

    When they reached the Temple, Poison Toad dismissed the disciples guarding the entrance with a wave of his hand and led them in. It was spacious, and apart from a towering statue of the ck Tortoise, the area was void of anything else.

    Poison Toad brought the two of them over to the statue.

    "Stretch out your hands and face your palms towards the statue," Poison Toad instructed from the side. Shen Jingbin moved in ordance to what he¡¯d said. "Close your eyes, and feel the spiritual energy surging within your dantian. The ck Tortoise¡¯s Inheritance is different from the body¡¯s spiritual energy; you can only sense it if you make an effort to do so."

    Ever since she¡¯d started practicing martial arts when she was young, the phrase Shen Jingbin had heard the most was probably ¡¯settle your energy into your dantian¡¯, so she didn¡¯t bother asking where her ¡¯dantian¡¯ was.

    After closing her eyes, she sensed a surge of warmth rising from her navel. Her dantian grew a little hotter, and a mystical interface suddenly appeared before her eyes.

    It was a ce enshrouded in blue mist and dotted with dim glowing lights, appearing as though it were a miniature paradise. Shen Jingbin calmed herself and gave it a proper look. When she did so, she realised that a beam of ck light sat right in the center of the swathe of blue mist. It should have stood out, but instead, it might¡¯ve been overlooked if she wasn¡¯t currently focusing her attention on it.

    "After you¡¯ve found the Inheritance, attempt to extract a part of it."

    Shen Jingbin did as Poison Toad instructed. She stared at the ck light and imagined it splitting into two. As she did so, she saw a brief sh of activity from within the ray of ck light before it split itself into two. Now, one tall and one short ck ray of light could be seen.

    "Now, guide it out of your dantian and through your veins."

    Shen Jingbin continued to do as Poison toad had said. At the end of it, she felt a tinge of heat on the tip of her left index finger. When she nced at it once again, a ray of ck light shot out of her fingertip like a bullet and sped towards the statue of the ck Tortoise in front of her.

    The statue of the ck Tortoise lit up and radiated a celestial light, enveloping the entire temple in its glow. This, in turn, caused a warmth to rise within the bodies of both Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingbin.

    "Congrattions onpleting the quest ¡¯The Lich¡¯s Inheritance¡¯. Quest reward: Clear Jade Pendant (1), Brilliant Earrings (1), Shining Ne (1), Misty Drizzle Rings (1 pair), 40,000 Experience, 300 taels of silver, 600 Chivalric Prestige. Lich Pce¡¯s Sect Leader Poison Toad¡¯s Goodwill towards you has increased by 80 points, and the Goodwill of all NPCs in Lich Pce has increased by 20 points."

 Chapter 283

    <b>Chapter 283: A Disturbance On The Forums (1)</b>

    After emerging from the Lich Pce, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast formed a party with Qi Mu¡¯s group and brought them along to clear their dailies. In the midst of their quest, Shen Jingbin found out that there were a fair number of yers from Life At First Sight who were eyeing them like a tiger watching its prey. However, their fear of Quiet And Steadfast ultimately caused them to shrink back and watch the group from afar.

    Inking A Message sighed. "Even after so long, today¡¯s been the first time we¡¯ve been able to clear our dailies without being harassed."

    Daily quests were filled with pointless busy work, but they gave pretty good experience. So, to yers whose Levels weren¡¯t that high, daily quests were a decent way to level.

    Once they were done with their dailies, the group of five started working on their event quests. Quiet And Steadfast still needed another ten General¡¯s Directives, which he wanted to finish collecting before New Year¡¯s Eve and exchange for a mount. Afterpleting their event quests, everyone gathered around and opened their event boxes together.

    Inking A Message and Gentle Kite weren¡¯t so lucky and didn¡¯t manage to get a single General¡¯s Direction. Qi Mu and Quiet And Steadfast received one each, while Shen Jingbin was thest to open her event box and got herself five whole General¡¯s Directives.

    Quiet And Steadfast felt like he was about to die from frustration. Why wasn¡¯t he so lucky?!

    The General¡¯s Directives were useless in Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes, so she handed all of them to Quiet And Steadfast, with thetter feeling very conflicted about it.

    Should he ept the General¡¯s Directives? If he did, it wouldn¡¯t feel right to exchange them for a mount that he was going to present to her. On the other hand, rejecting them meant that he might not be able to collect enough of them by New Year¡¯s Eve.

    The Great God was in quite a pickle.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know why he was feeling so conflicted. She just pushed the General¡¯s Directives into his arms while she stared at him. Either way, she wouldn¡¯t be able to gather enough of them on her own in time, and she was toozy to sell them herself, so giving it to Quiet And Steadfast would be better than leaving them to rot in her inventory.

    A specific Great God who¡¯d been stared at just rubbed his nose and silently epted the items.

    Qi Mu enviously looked on. If she hadn¡¯t seen it for herself, she wouldn¡¯t have believed that Nutjob was the dominant one in their rtionship. She smiled when she thought back to the rumours that she¡¯d previously heard. Rumours really couldn¡¯t be trusted.

    Nutjob and Quiet And Steadfast logged off after opening their event boxes.

    Over the next two days, both of them were busy helping their respective families with their New Year preparations, so neither of them had the timee online. They didn¡¯t keep up with the happenings in the game either and weren¡¯t aware of the new developments.

    A video of Shen Jingbin insta-killing someone at White Cloud Temple in front of everyone, coupled with the vicious ultimatum that she¡¯d issued afterwards, had been recorded by someone using the in-game recording function and posted onto the game¡¯s forums. Paired with an eye-catching title, the thread quickly became popr on the forums.

    Of course, the thread¡¯s title couldn¡¯t be anything good.

    "White Cloud Temple¡¯s Great Senior Sister: is she an exceptional beauty, or is she just beyond ugly? I feel like Yiju has deceived me."

    The excitement generated by the game¡¯s trailer had yet to die downpletely. There were still many people who browsed the forums daily asking for information about the beautiful Senior Sister. The thread¡¯s appearance attracted the attention of countless people who excitedly clicked in to have a look.

    The resulting reaction was one that you could imagine.

    Although the Administrator hadn¡¯t explicitly stated that the Senior Sister in the trailer and the one in-game were the same person, at some point, the thoughts of the masses had shifted in that direction. In their minds, the equation was as follows: the beautiful girl in the trailer = the Great Senior Sister of White Cloud Temple = Shen Jingbin.

    In reality, while that really was the case, Shen Jingbin¡¯s in-game appearance was the furthest thing from the word ¡¯beautiful¡¯. When they found out, people who¡¯d believed in that equation couldn¡¯t ept this oue and felt like they¡¯d been deceived.

    The original poster was one of the crazed fans of the beautiful woman in the trailer. And, he was also present in the crowd when Shen Jingbin had performed her insta-kill. At that time, fear of Shen Jingbin¡¯s threat had prevented him from speaking out, but anger built within him till it consumed him once he¡¯d logged out. Unable to bear it, he ran to the forums and posted his thread.

    He¡¯d started recording the moment he¡¯d heard the Great Senior Sister had made an appearance. His original n was to record the beauty so that he could admire her from theforts of his own home, yet who would¡¯ve thought that he wouldn¡¯t be able to see her... But, looks like it wasn¡¯t all for naught.

    "Hehe, Yiju¡¯s marketing strategies are bing more and more impressive by the day. Look, they even managed to trump up an ugly woman till she became an earth-shattering beauty. What happened to basic human decency? I¡¯m really disappointed with Yiju now."

    "I was there too and saw everything. The Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple... hehe... Forgive me for being blunt, but even calling her trash would be speaking well of her. Not only is she ugly, but she¡¯s also vicious and merciless. If it were in the real world, a woman like her would¡¯vemitted a crime sooner orter. She¡¯s basically a ticking time bomb."

    "You shouldn¡¯t look down on others. From what I¡¯ve heard, this Senior Sister may be a little ugly, but she has the support of the number one God in the game. With his backing, she¡¯s been doing whatever the hell she wants in the game. Do you see the guy protecting her? That¡¯s the number one yer in the game. He could take all us small fries out with just his pinkie."

    "Hehe, what¡¯s the point of looking beautiful in this day and age? You need to live well. (£þ¦Ø£þ)"

    "Don¡¯t you guys think you¡¯re going a little overboard? I don¡¯t think the Administrator said anything about the Senior Sister in the trailer being the same person in-game. Is it right to casually humiliate a girl in-game? Isn¡¯t insulting someone just because of how they look the actions of thosecking in character?"

    "+1. What if she intentionally made herself look worse? Would men of character make fun of a girl just because of how she looks?"

    "You look like a social justice warrior. Tell me, in this day and age, which girl would actually do that to herself? Aren¡¯t all of the girls these days jumping at the opportunity to beautify themselves to the point where even their parents wouldn¡¯t be able to recognise them? So, stop talking about pointless things like ¡¯what ifs¡¯; she¡¯s ugly, and that¡¯s that. She¡¯s already terrified all of us by showing her face, and you¡¯re telling me I can¡¯t even talk about her?"

    "Exactly. Even if she isn¡¯t the Senior Sister from the trailer, she¡¯s still in the wrong because she¡¯s holding a title that she doesn¡¯t deserve. That title belongs to our beauty. Isn¡¯t knowing oneself a virtue? Where¡¯d she work up the courage to actually dare take up the position of Senior Sister in spite of her being so ugly?"

    ...

    The replies in the thread started turning into a slugfest, bing increasingly gruesome the further down one went. But, this wasn¡¯t the highlight.

    Another expos¨¦ appeared on the afternoon that the original thread was posted.

 Chapter 284-285

    <b>Chapter 284: A Disturbance On The Forums (2)</b>

    Hua Juan and her friends secretly posting Shen Jingbin¡¯s picture online was the initial reason why Yiju came looking for her. They forgot to delete the postter on, and now, someone from Weibo had dug it out. Someone else had also dug up a picture of her and Zhao Chengning at B City University.

    Many people had seen them back then, and although Ke Yuan had done his best to remove all traces of her online, his hands were tied when it came to the pictures stored in everyone¡¯s phones. Now that the images had leaked out, everyone¡¯s overactive imagination had resulted in them thinking up what seemed to be this year¡¯s tumultuous drama starring the rich and powerful.

    "Public morals are slipping with every passing day; beauties are but ythings for the rich and powerful."

    "I assume that everyone¡¯s seen the trailer released by Yiju¡¯s management featuring the beauty, right? I was also blown away when I saw her, but, at the same time, I was feeling a little puzzled. Logically speaking, someone as beautiful as her shouldn¡¯t be so obscure. Iter found out why: it turns out that this beauty was one of those legendary ¡¯birds trapped in a cage¡¯, and her backer was the one keeping her locked up. Otherwise, there would¡¯ve been no way for her to maintain such a low profile. £¨£Þ£ö£Þ£©"

    "Don¡¯t think I¡¯m out to paint other people ck. You can see for yourselves; beauties these days are looking for all sorts of means to be famous or popr. And, most of them who don¡¯t, have probably been snatched up by powerful figures. And this woman¡¯s backer is the strongest one out there. I¡¯m a bit of a wuss, so I¡¯m not going to say anything else that might offend this powerful individual. Those of you who are curious though can try Baiduing 1 who the most eligible bachelor in B City is."

    "I¡¯ve heard from various sources that this beauty is the school belle of a certain university in A City. Every single article of clothing she¡¯s wearing is branded, and they¡¯re likely from her backer. A question popped up in my mind when I took a look at the other thread that made fun of the real Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple. Which do you think is more disgusting: an ugly woman or a beauty that¡¯s been kept in captivity? To me, both of them are equally disgusting. (£Þ¦Ø£Þ)"

    Because of the veryst thing that the original poster had said, the rest of the replies to the thread mirrored their sentiment. The number of responses to the thread slowly ballooned, and the two trending threads on the forums rose in poprity. The next day, several forums that dealt with rumours had republished the two threads and even voted on which of the two threads was more off-putting to read.

    By the time Yiju¡¯s staff noticed what was happening, things had more or less spiralled out of control. The Director of the Marketing Department was so terrified that he broke out in a cold sweat, and hurriedly recalled the staff members who were on leave while simultaneously informing upper management of what had happened. The gears in his head rapidly spun as he tried to think up a solution for this situation.

    The others wouldn¡¯t know, but management was painfully aware of who Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning were. These two were people that they absolutely couldn¡¯t afford to provoke.

    This was brought to Zhao Chengning¡¯s attention when someone who despised the rich tried to cause trouble by pasting a small piece of paper on the door to their office but was caught by the security guards. Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin were window-shopping when he suddenly received a call from the office. His expression instantly darkened, and he hurried back to the office. Although Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t know what was happening, she could tell it was nothing good from the look on his face. But, in the end, Shen Jingbin still decided to go along with him.

    When they arrived at the office, Zhao Chengning went straight towards the room that was used to detain the perpetrator. Along the way, Ke Yuan hadpiled some information and handed it over to him. After ncing through it, Zhao Chengning had a rough understanding of the situation, rendering him even more furious than he was before. When she saw his expression, Shen Jingbin was filled with curiosity and took a look at it.

    Shen Jingbin felt like she was about to blow her top when she saw it as well.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s imposing presence billowed out when he opened the door. He looked straight at a vulgar-looking man sitting on a sofa before he turned to Ke Yuan who was beside him and asked, "Where¡¯s that thing he pasted in front of the office?"

    The man gave a start when he noticed their presence, but his eyes lit up the moment he saw Shen Jingbin walking in behind them. He ignored Zhao Chengning¡¯s presence and attempted to rush over to Shen Jingbin. However, he was immediately pushed back into the soft by the two security guards around him when he jumped out of his seat. The man wasn¡¯t willing to give up though, he struggled from his position on the sofa and shouted, "You, you¡¯re the one! You¡¯re really here!"

    The fanatical look in his eyes unsettled Shen Jingbin. Her face darkened, and she asked, "Who are you?"

    The man¡¯s gaze was filled with obsession as he eyed Shen Jingbin. "Me? I¡¯m nobody. I¡¯m just someone who likes you... Are you really together with him? Don¡¯t bother, princes like him are never sincere. You shouldn¡¯t be with him... Stay with me! I¡¯ll-I¡¯ll treat you well!"

    The moment he said that Zhao Chengning¡¯s face darkened to the point where it could even match Judge Bao¡¯s own. Seeing this, Shen Jingbin squeezed his hand in an attempt to calm him down. That didn¡¯t sit well with the man, and his face flushed red as he began to hurl insults at Zhao Chengning.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes narrowed, and she took a step forward, looming over him as she watched the man continue his tirade. Shen Jingbin¡¯s presence was akin to that of an empress, washing over him as she approached. The man unconsciously shut his mouth and stared dumbly at her.

    "So what you¡¯re trying to say is that I can¡¯t be with him, but it¡¯s alright if I¡¯m together with you? Do you think you¡¯re worthy of me?"

    "I... I might not be able to match up to you now, but I¡¯ll do my best to be a man who¡¯s worthy of you!"

    Shen Jingbin looked as if she¡¯d just heard a joke. "Heh, are you still sleeping? You wouldn¡¯t be able to match up to him even if you tried for the rest of your life," She cast a look of disdain at the man and gave him a once over. "You¡¯re better off facing reality now," Shen Jingbin¡¯s gazeid the man bare. Unable to bear being exposed like this, the man broke out into a tirade once more.

    Just then, Ke Yuan came walking in with the slip of paper that the man had pasted onto the door. Zhao Chengning took the paper from him and inspected it. The corner of his lips tugged upwards into a wry smile. Curious, Shen Jingbin grabbed the piece of paper and read it. "This is a trashpany! Drop dead, Zhao Chengning!"

    Hahaha, it looks like this man¡¯s IQ really wascking.

    A Chinese search engine ?

    <b>Chapter 285: Setting An Example (1)</b>

    Zhao Chengning returned the slip of paper, which was still in perfect condition, to Ke Yuan and asked, "Have you called the police yet?"

    "I¡¯ve already called them."

    "Good timing then; we¡¯ll use him to set an example. Take care of it."

    Ke Yuan nodded. "Got it."

    The man who was still being pressed down onto the sofa was originally of the mind that what he¡¯d done was but a small infraction. Even if he were caught, at worst, he¡¯d just be dragged over to the local police station to be reprimanded. But, from the looks of things, he wasn¡¯t going to get off so easily.

    The man¡¯s expression changed when he came to that conclusion. He stopped his endless stream of cursing and started imploring Zhao Chengning. "Mr Zhao, I¡¯m sorry for my actions. I was just... just too impulsive. I¡¯m very sorry, and I promise never to do it again. Can you please let me off just this once?"

    When his pleas fell on deaf ears, the man turned his attention to Shen Jingbin instead.

    "Goddess, I¡¯m begging you, help me out here. We¡¯re about to celebrate the New Year, and I have a wife and child at home. Please, don¡¯t send me to the police... Just help me out on ount of me liking you... please? You¡¯re so beautiful, so you¡¯re definitely filled with kindness as well, right? I know that you¡¯ll help me..."

    Never in her life had Shen Jingbin seen someone so shameless. Shen Jingbin gave him a cold smile and said, "You have a wife and child back home? In that case, they¡¯re truly unfortunate. Forgive me, but I can¡¯t help you. In the first ce, I was never a saint."

    Zhao Chengning shot a look of disdain at the man. "The human brain is a wonderful thing, and I hope that you¡¯ll remember to use it in the future. Take this as a lesson and don¡¯t me me for being ruthless if this ever happens again."

    "Look, all you moneybags are just exploiting us little people! You¡¯re colluding with the government! I¡¯m going to report all of you! I¡¯ll reveal your true colours to everyone... And as for you, you slut, your beauty is wasted on a person like you! It turns out that you were just a whore who cozies up to anyone who¡¯s rich! Pui, shameless..."

    Realizing that begging for forgiveness was useless, his eyes turned red in anger, and he resumed his wave of insults. This only resulted in him being dragged nearer by Shen Jingbin and given a p across his face, stunning him into silence and leaving his ears ringing in the aftermath.

    You really couldn¡¯t look down on the strength of women who practiced martial arts.

    Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. While Shen Jingbin¡¯s p had left the man feeling like he was about to lose consciousness, she¡¯d used way too much force which caused her hand to sting. However, none of the pain leaked through her facade as she gazed coldly at the man. In a voice so cold it could freeze ake, she said, "Allow me to discipline your mouth since you obviously can¡¯t control it yourself."

    Everything happened in a blur that was too fast for anyone to react, leaving the men in the room to just stand dumbly where they were.

    "Good day, Mr Zhao, I received a report stating that someone is causing a disturbance. May I know where the perpetrator is?" Luckily, the police dispatched from the nearby station arrived on the scene. The officer in the lead swept a nce at his surroundings before pausing on Shen Jingbin, whose entire body was emitting an aura of frost. He hurriedly turned his gaze away and shed a wide smile at Zhao Chengning.

    The man on the sofa immediately recovered from his stupor when he spotted the officer and bawled at the top of his voice. "Officer, please save me! I¡¯m about to be beaten to death! They attacked me! They¡¯ve taken matters into their own hands and illegally detained me; I want to report them! Officer, please render your judgement!"

    The man bawled like a pig being ughtered and made it impossible for him to be ignored. The officer in the lead could only helplessly re at him before giving Zhao Chengning a yful smile.

    "Team Leader Fang, this person posted something on the entrance of my office and used it to cause a disturbance by spreading harmful rumours about me. This has caused great damage to my reputation, and I hope that you¡¯ll do a thorough investigation before giving me a report."

    "I will, I will. Rest easy, Mr Zhao, we¡¯ll definitely conduct a thorough investigation."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly cut in, "He even attempted to assault me."

    Team Leader Fang felt a drop of cold sweat threaten to run down his cheeks. Tomorrow was New Year¡¯s Eve, and he was nning to head home a little earlier to spend time with his wife. But, as luck would have it, something had to crop up at this critical juncture.

    "You¡¯re all scum! Officer, you have to back me up! I¡¯m the real victim here; take a look at my face! That woman did it! You have to help me!" The man hollered at the top of his lungs.

    Zhao Chengning shot a chilling nce at Team Leader Fang. "Team Leader Fang, you heard him; this man has been ndering us this whole time."

    "I heard it. Please be at ease, Mr Zhao... But, regarding the matter of your friend hitting him..." Team Leader Fang said embarrassedly.

    "You can ask around and see if anyone¡¯s taken any action against him. He was the only one insulting us the whole time."

    Team Leader Fang raised his head and found that everyone in the room was stone-faced. The only one who was disying just the slightest bit of emotion on their face was an extraordinarily beautiful woman beside the sofa. She winked at him with doe eyes that could ensnare one¡¯s soul. Team Leader Fang almost wished that he could throw himself before her and proim, ¡¯long live the goddess!¡¯.

    "Team Leader Fang, I don¡¯t think this person¡¯s right in the head. It¡¯d be best if you sent him for some tests. Otherwise, he¡¯ll hold us responsible if he gets pped for running his mouth."

    Team Leader Fang repeatedly nodded and said, "Alright, we¡¯ll take custody of him."

    With that, he hurriedly motioned for the young officers that followed him along to deal with the man. The young officers were quick on the uptake too and remembered to cover his mouth when they took custody of him, stifling his cries.

    "I¡¯ll be bringing him away now. Have a happy New Year, Mr Zhao."

    Zhao Chengning slightly rxed once the man¡¯s muffled cries were finally out of earshot, and returned a polite greeting. "Thanks for the hard work, Team Leader Fang. I¡¯ll personally thank you once the New Year¡¯s celebrations are over."

    A splendid smile immediately blossomed on Team Leader Fang¡¯s face, and the two men bid each other farewell.

 Chapter 286

    <b>Chapter 286: Setting An Example (2)</b>

    Everyone else had left the office, leaving only Shen Jingbin, Zhao Chengning, and Ke Yuan behind, so Zhao Chengning suddenly asked, "Ke Yuan, are any of the people from the Technology Department, and the PR Department left in the office?"

    "Most of them have gone on leave, but there are still a few people in charge around."

    "That¡¯s good then; tell the Technology Department to drop what they¡¯re doing and to clear up the nonsense floating around on the inte, and get the PR Department to have a chat with Yiju about this incident. I don¡¯t wish to see any of this tomorrow."

    Ke Yuan grunted in reply.

    Now that this incident hade to a close, Zhao Chengning brought Shen Jingbin over to the General Manager¡¯s room where they greeted Zhao Chengan before they left. Having been interrupted, the couple wasn¡¯t in the mood to shop anymore, and instead decided to head straight home to rest.

    Along the way, Zhao Chengning asked worriedly, "Are you alright?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "Even though this whole mess was a bit of a headache, I¡¯m alright. You look like you¡¯ve got bigger troubles though."

    "Yiju probably couldn¡¯t handle this matter promptly because their staff is on their annual leave. But, that doesn¡¯t discount the possibility that someone is intentionally trying to cause trouble. Let me handle this, don¡¯t you worry about it," Zhao Chengning replied, casting a sidelong nce at her while he drove. "Does your hand still hurt?"

    "My hand?" Shen JIngbin raised her hand and inspected it. It looked youthful and exceedingly beautiful. "It doesn¡¯t hurt, and I think that man¡¯s face is hurting a lot more anyway."

    Zhao Chengning chuckled, and much of the oppressive atmosphere in the car was dispelled. "Truth be told, even I felt it just from looking at it."

    Shen Jingbin solemnly exined herself, "Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t normally hit other people. I was just too angry and couldn¡¯t keep my cool."

    "Mm. Don¡¯t worry; I have every confidence in you. I was just wondering whether Ke Yuan might have been frightened by you."

    Shen Jingbin thought back to Zhao Chengning¡¯s refined assistant, and her eyes widened. "Assistant Ke Yuan is a world-wise individual, right?"

    Zhao Chengning turned the steering wheel to navigate the curve ahead of them. "I¡¯m not so sure about that, he¡¯s actually quite timid," He said, the hint of a smile ying at his lips.

    Back at the office, Ke Yuan, who was in the middle of a conversation with the PR Department suddenly sneezed.

    "... Should I give him a big red packet to make him feel better?"

    "That¡¯s workable. Give it to me, and I¡¯ll pass it on to him. But, I¡¯ll only ept red packets that contain 5201 or 1314 2 within them."

    Shen Jingbin fell silent. Mr Zhao, are you trying to tease me even at a time like this?

    As for whether Ke Yuan was timid, well, that remained a mystery. But, he was pretty efficient at what he did. Within less than an hour, Yiju received a fax from the Zhao family, stirring Yiju¡¯s Director into a frenzy as he recalled which Managers from the various departments that had already gone on leave and swiftly deployed the countermeasures that they¡¯d long since set in ce.

    On that afternoon, <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> yers found that the hottest two threads on the forums had suddenly disappeared. In fact, even articles that republished these two threads had all gone missing as well.

    This was then followed by the Administer of <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>, who¡¯d previously dered that he was going to go on annual leave, now pop out of the woodwork and put up two posts on Weibo.

    "I was catching up on some Z¡¯s when I was jolted awake by a string of calls. One look was all it took for me to know that shit had hit the fan. It turns out that my beautiful Great Senior Senior was being hazed! F*ck, I won¡¯t stand for this! ©c(£à§¥¡ä)¥Î As for a certain OP, all I can say is: are you jelly or are you jelly? Great Senior Sister likes to maintain a low profile in real life, so I didn¡¯t reveal much information about her. Little did I expect this to be an excuse for you guys to attack other people! (*£þ£Ï£þ)¥Î Since that¡¯s the case, it¡¯s time to call out the big guns. @Special Assistant Ke Yuan. Mighty Assistant, please render divine judgement upon these heathens!"

    "The Administrator¡¯s rebuttal: Firstly, the beautiful Senior Sister is ying the role of White Cloud Temple¡¯s disciple in the promotional video; it doesn¡¯t mean that she¡¯s the same person as the Senior Sister in-game. Don¡¯t you guys know what an ambassador is? To those yers whounch personal attacks against other people you should either apologise, or just kill yourselves. Secondly, I find this trend where people brazenly make fun of how others lookpletely uneptable. From now on, threads like these will be deleted on sight. At the same time, do you guys seriously want to talk about beauty in this day and age, where photoshop and stic surgery run rampant? Sorry, I¡¯m blind to all of this. (=?¦Ø?)¥Î (Of course, no one can match my beautiful Senior Sister!)"

    The first post was directed towards Nutjob, while the second addressed Shen Jingbin. As people were slightly more interested in Shen Jingbin, the second post was pinned the moment it went up.

    The ount Ke Yuan registered under was ¡¯Special Assistant To The Zhao Group¡¯s CEO¡¯. Normally, he¡¯d only be involved in sending out some internal circrs to the Zhao Group or things like recruitment notices. But now, the countless onlookers that had followed the Administrator¡¯s ping to Ke Yuan¡¯s ount found a very lengthy and eye-catching statement on his front page.

    In the end, Ke Yuan and the PR Department had decided that the best way to deal with this was to just reveal Shen Jingbin¡¯s identity and give them all a good p on the face.

    In this day and age, the terms ¡¯pretty university girl¡¯3 and ¡¯second generation children¡¯4 always carry a negative connotation no matter what context they¡¯re used in. In particr, attempting to restore a woman¡¯s reputation was a punishingly difficult process. The only way a woman could escape from such a predicament was if she could find a way to turn her title of a ¡¯pretty university girl¡¯ into a ¡¯miss perfect¡¯ that had both beauty and brains.

    Shen Jingbin was one such person.

    While Shen Jingbin was reluctant to reveal herself because she wanted to maintain a low profile, she was even less inclined to suddenly be seen as a caged bird for some unknown reason. Carrying around such abel would be an utter disgrace to herself.

    So, when Ke Yuan had called her up to discuss the matter, Shen Jingbin had immediately agreed to reveal her identity.

    520 (pinyin: w¨³ ¨¨r l¨ªng) in Mandarin sounds simr to ¡°ÎÒÛÄã¡± (pinyin: w¨¯ ¨¤i n¨«; literally: ¡°I love you¡±). ? 1314 (pinyin: y¨© s¨¡n y¨© s¨¬; Cantonese Yale: y¨¡t s¨¡am y¨¡t sei) sounds like ¡°Ò»ÉúÒ»ÊÀ¡± (pinyin: y¨©sh¨¥ngy¨©sh¨¬; Cantonese Yale: y¨¡t s¨¡ng y¨¡t sai; literally: ¡°one life one lifetime¡±) meaning ¡°forever¡± and is often used romantically. ? Originally meant to be a phrase that describes youth, beauty, and knowledge. Now, it¡¯s used to describe mistresses, women who use their nudes as coteral for loans, shallow women, gold diggers, and surrogate mothers. ? Children that live off of their parent¡¯s wealth. ?

 Chapter 287

    <b>Chapter 287: The Night Before Chinese New Year (1)</b>

    "My Boss has gotten himself a girlfriend as ofte. As a single man, I had to watch these two being lovey-dovey every day. V¡ñ?¡ñV 1In spite of that, doing so brought me great happiness because the two of them were just thatpatible! But now, I¡¯ve found out that someone¡¯s been spreading rumours that our new Lady Boss is actually the Boss¡¯ mistress. Excusez-moi?2 Are you screwing with me? I feel that there¡¯s a need for me to issue a rification: my Lady Boss is someone of both wealth and status. If you really want to talk about someone being taken care off, then my Boss would probably be the ¡¯mistress¡¯ in question (??? ). If you don¡¯t believe me, then let the facts speak for themselves; I guarantee that it¡¯ll leave you in tears (???)."

    Ke Yuan then proceeded to post a video of the time when Shen Jingbin was interviewed after participating in a martial artspetition. The video itself was concise; less than two minutes long. However, she could be clearly seen clutching the champion¡¯s trophy alongside Old Master Shen.

    After that, Ke Yuan threw out a screenshot taken from Baidu that talked about a martial arts master from the Shen family. Then, by extension, he went on to post Baidu entries rting to Granny Shen, Papa Shen, and Mama Shen.

    Everyone single one of them was an awe-inspiring individual that made others want to prostrate themselves before them. What¡¯s more, they hailed from the same family. It didn¡¯t take much to figure out just how terrifying this family was.

    That wasn¡¯t the end of it either.

    Back in the day, Shen Jingbin used to take part in quite a few friendly matches both at home and abroad. With her charisma, she¡¯d managed to win the favor of many foreign judges. Photos of her touring around with these judges and eating with them were posted as well, terrifying countless users on the forum.

    In short, even winners at life couldn¡¯t match up to her!

    Which was why someone like her beingbelled as a mistress was the biggest joke of the century, leaving the ones who¡¯d previously condemn her feeling like they¡¯d been pped when they finished reading everything.

    With that, Shen Jingbin¡¯s naysayers quietly shut their mouths, while those who were previously enamoured with her looks came out of the woodworks to worship her.

    Although there¡¯s a saying that beauties should be shared amongst everyone, when a woman reaches a certain level of excellence, you¡¯d be hard pressed to share her with anyone else. Many people from A City University were of this mind, and they felt that Shen Jingbin was their little secret. They alone would know of her existence, and they loathed the idea of speaking out and letting others know of her brilliance. As such, they¡¯d adopted a cautious approach and never spoke of her in front of anyone else.

    However, when they saw their Goddess being vilified by all these keyboard warriors, these little schemes of theirs lost all importance.

    Ke Yuan¡¯s Weibo was like a signal re, and the previously silent students of A City University appeared in droves to support their Goddess.

    Like a gathering storm, Shen Jingbin¡¯s poprity grew by leaps and bounds, eventually culminating in her bing the most popr woman online.

    Of course, this was all said in retrospect.

    Since Zhao Chengning had said that he¡¯d handle it, Shen Jingbin left everything in his hands and did her own thing after reaching home.

    On New Year¡¯s Eve, the Shen family had gotten an early start in the morning and busied themselves with their duties. To make herself stand out more, Shen Jingbin, who normally didn¡¯t bother with dolling herself up, ran over to Mama Shen¡¯s room and borrowed her makeup.

    Shen Jingbin, who was a natural born beauty, only possessed toners and moisturizers.

    After applying a lightyer of makeup, Shen Jingbin¡¯splexion looked even better, and her beauty surged upwards by several points. When Mama Shen saw her, she viciously tossed a pair of sunsses at her.

    What should I do if my daughter looks too beautiful? Urgently waiting online for a reply.

    Putting aside how other families celebrated their New Year¡¯s Eve, in the Zhao household, everyone had to make time in their schedule; regardless of how busy they were. In this day and age, due to the constant pursuit of material possessions and wealth, the social connections holding people together were gradually thinning out. This was primarily so for wealthy families, where some of their members wouldn¡¯t even go home for the New Year. Instead, they rushed about to conduct business and attend the various social niceties required of them.

    As Old Master Zhao was a very traditional person, he obviously ced a great deal of importance on days like New Year¡¯s Eve and the New Year. Adding to that was the fact that he felt like he didn¡¯t have much longer left, so pushing aside all work-rted activities for these two days had be an irond rule. In addition, there was one other rule: invitations from others, as well as those who were trying to worm their way into the family¡¯s good graces, would be rejected.

    But, it looked like thetter rule would have to be broken for this year.

    Carrying bags of varying shapes and sizes, Shen Jingbin made her way over to the Zhao household with the rest of her family. Apart from them, Old Master Xie would also be present to usher in the New Year. It¡¯d been countless years since the Old Masters had met up, and it¡¯d been even longer since they¡¯d had the chance to get together at an event like this. And so, everyone split up into their little group and went to talk about everything under the sun.

    On her end, Shen Jingbin went to join the youths that were casually enjoying themselves.

    And just like that, everyone passed a joyous and harmonious day together. After dinner, the Shen family decided to stay for the night at Old Master Zhao¡¯s very generous behest, allowing them to usher in the New Year together.

    These get-togethers were bing increasingly insipid by the year, and Shen Jingbin found herself unable to sit around any longer after only a short period. Shen Jingchen, who also felt the same way, locked eyes with her and took advantage of the time when the older generation was happily chatting amongst themselves to haul Zhao Chengning out of the house. Of course, they didn¡¯t forget Zhao Chengan either.

    While Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t have the best of rtions with Zhao Chengan in the past, it was all water under the bridge when Zhao Chengan exined the reason for his actions.

    If you guys are having trouble figuring it out, that¡¯s supposed to be a dog emoji =P ? Another phrase that was originally written in English. This one¡¯s a lot easier to decipher though XD ?

 Chapter 288

    <b>Chapter 288: The Night Before Chinese New Year (2)</b>

    "It¡¯s the New Year; how can we not light up a few fireworks? Let¡¯s go get some," While she normally projected a cold facade, Miss Shen was still very much an innocent young girl on the inside. Lighting up fireworks during the New Year was something that no one could change her mind on, so she brought it up as soon as they¡¯d stepped out of the house.

    "You¡¯re not a kid anymore; why¡¯re you still talking about lighting up fireworks at your age? Don¡¯t you know anything about being environmentally friendly?" argued Shen Jingchen for the sake of it.

    Shen Jingbin stared him in the eye before turning her gaze to Zhao Chengning. One look at him was all it took to befuddle Zhao Chengning, who was addicted to coddling her. Let alone setting off fireworks; he¡¯d even be willing to make one for her. And so, he nodded his head without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    Shen Jingchen helplessly held his head in his hand, while Zhao Chengan looked a little unsettled by his henpecked brother. He shook his head and whispered something to Shen Jingchen before walking off to the garage.

    "Where¡¯s he going?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Where do you think? He¡¯s going to buy your fireworks. We¡¯ll be splitting up; Zhao Chengan and I will form a pair while you two lovebirds can walk together. This way, we won¡¯t be suffocated to death by all your lovey-dovey antics. Let¡¯s meet up in a bit. I¡¯ll say this now: you aren¡¯t allowed to set off the fireworks first if you get back earlier than us!" Shen Jingchen glumly replied.

    "Tch, and who was the one calling me childish just now?"

    "Hmph, mind your own business. Either way, just remember what I said!" Shen Jingchen said as he stared at the couple who¡¯d been holding hands ever since they¡¯d left the house. Then, shaking his head, he jogged to catch up with Zhao Chengan. A minuteter, a car could be heard starting up, and two headlights shed before slowly disappearing.

    B City was especially cold during the twelfth lunar month. Today, Shen Jingbin was wearing a woolen shirt and hat. She¡¯d topped it off with a red overcoat, and its brilliant colour made her look exceptionally beautiful. Affected by the cold, her cheeks adopted a faint reddish hue. In spite of that, her eyes remained bright, clear and full of life.

    Generally speaking, most men couldn¡¯t tell whether a woman had makeup on or not. That is, aside from yboys who flitted from one woman to another. This was why Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t tell that Shen Jingbin had makeup on today. All he knew was that she looked even more stunning than she usually did, but he couldn¡¯t figure out why.

    "Is it me or do you look even better than you usually do?" He asked as he pulled her into his embrace. This way, she could share some of his warmth.

    "Is that so? I thought I always looked this good."

    "You¡¯re absolutely stunning today," Zhao Chengning replied in a whisper before he lowered his head and delivered a peck at an ear that had broken free from her hat with his warm lips.

    It was cold, but still aforting sensation.

    Shen Jingbin, who was ticklish, shied away and shot a reproachful look at him. "What do you think you¡¯re thinking?"

    Zhao Chengning returned her re with an innocent smile. "I just wanted to see if you were cold... Oh, you are pretty cold. Should I warm you up?" After saying so, he began reaching towards her ears.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s ears were one of her sensitive spots, and she wasn¡¯t about to let anyone just casually grab them. She hurriedly struggled free from his embrace and dashed off like a wisp of smoke. A moment passed as Zhao Chengning stood there in stunned silence before he ran after her as well.

    "Where are you running off to? It¡¯s cold; you shouldn¡¯t be running in this weather."

    "I¡¯ll stop running if you stop trying to y with my ears."

    "Alright, alright. I won¡¯t y with your ears. Stop running."

    Shen Jingbin obediently stopped running and waited where she was for him to catch up. However, little did she expect him to immediately pounce on her and grab her ears as soon as he caught up. Shen Jingbin was utterly furious and dashed off once again.

    Although they were supposed to buy fireworks, there weren¡¯t any shops that sold them in the vicinity of the Zhao household. The district they were in was filled with vis, and the price of houses here was even more expensive than those in the city by a fair bit. That being said, there obviously wouldn¡¯t be any fireworks factories around them, and those mom and pop shops that sold fireworks wouldn¡¯te anywhere near this district either. As a result, the couple just toured their surroundings for a bit and flirted with one another as they waited for their unlucky elder brothers to return with the fireworks.

    Said brothers returned rather quickly, and it didn¡¯t take long before their car could be seen at the entrance to the district.

    "Hehe, I knew you two were just going to flirt with one another! We¡¯d probably be waiting till next year if we really did send the two of you out to buy fireworks," The car stopped beside the couple, and Shen Jingchen got off. He rounded the car and made his way to the boot, motioning for Zhao Chengning to follow him at the same time.

    Shen Jingbin tagged along with Zhao Chengning and found that the boot was filled to the brim with all sorts of fireworks.

    "Why¡¯d you buy so much?"

    "Your future brother-inw was afraid that you wouldn¡¯t have enough fireworks to y with, so he almost bought out the entire shop¡¯s stock," Shen Jingchen said as he emptied the contents of the boot.

    Speaking of which, Zhao Chengan was your stereotypical person who was cold on the outside but warm on the inside. He looked rather stern but was actually really caring. Shen Jingchen was originally nning to buy just a box of sparklers and hand Shen Jingbin a single stick. But, Zhao Chengan purchased all of the fireworks that were suitable for girls to y with as soon as he stepped into the shop.

    Once all the fireworks were removed from the boot, Zhao Chengan stuck his head out of the window and said, "You guys go look for a good ce to light the fireworks. I¡¯ll park the car."

    The three others nodded in agreement.

    Shen Jingbin felt that Zhao Chengan wasn¡¯t the type of person who looked like he¡¯d participate in these types of activities. So, to prevent him from slinking away after parking the car, she said, "Thank you, Big Brother! After we find a ce, we¡¯ll wait for you toe before setting off the fireworks." After she said that, an absurdly sweet smile blossomed on her face.

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. Wasn¡¯t she implying that they wouldn¡¯t light the fireworks if he didn¡¯te?

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s gaze drifted over to Zhao Chengning, who only had eyes for his future wife. "Alright," He replied after a moment of silence.

    Once she¡¯d received his reply, Shen Jingbin began looking for a suitable spot to light the fireworks with Shen Jingchen and Zhao Chengning.

    The vis were constructed in suburban areas with fewer people, so it didn¡¯t take them long to find an empty plot ofnd once they¡¯d stepped out of the district. By this time, there were already many small groups of two to three people clustered together and setting off their fireworks. There were even young lovers or families that brought their children along.

    The trio randomly picked out an area with rtively fewer people and set down their fireworks to wait for Zhao Chengan.

    Afraid that she¡¯d be cold, Zhao Chengning shifted over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and grabbed her hands before stuffing them into his own pockets.

    Off to the side, Shen Jingchen was howling in anguish on the inside as he hurriedly covered his eyes.

    Single dogs really did lead wretched lives! He really had to find a wife of his own ASAP. Once he did, he¡¯d show his wife off to Shen Jingbin!

 Chapter 289

    <b>Chapter 289: Our Objective Is To Oppress All Single Dogs! (1)</b>

    Once they were lit, the fireworks sparked for a brief moment before surging upwards. With a bang, they burst apart, and brightly coloured rays of light blossomed in the sky. The people on the ground were enraptured by the sight, tilting their heads upwards in wonderment to take in the view. When the fireworks exploded, the light of the resulting ze was cast across their faces, rendering them hazy and indistinct for the briefest of moments before it passed.

    Zhao Chengning heard a quiet sigh of admiration from his side and turned his head to look.

    A slender person stood beside him. When they looked up, he was greeted with a small yet dazzlingly beautiful face. Her bright red lips were slightly parted, lending them an air of allurement. Her eyes were single-mindedly focused upwards, and the sight of the fireworks exploding in the sky could be seen reflected in them. At that moment, those fireworks looked like stars falling into her eyes.

    In the cold night air, her breath was visibly condensing.

    When Zhao Chengan arrived, Shen Jingchen quietly dragged him off to some other spot, leaving the couple by themselves.

    Zhao Chengning discreetly reached for Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand and gently rubbed it.

    "Mm?" Shen Jingbin looked at him curiously.

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t say anything in reply, opting instead to lean down to her lips and allow his warm breath to brush at her face. Shen Jingbin was briefly startled, but calmed herself down the next moment and epted his intimacy.

    "Bang!"

    Another firework exploded in the night sky; it¡¯s scarlet red ze lighting its surroundings to a vermilion hue.

    "F*ck."

    Zhao Chengan was watching the fireworks he¡¯d bought being lit up when he heard a man beside him curse in a low voice. He looked curiously down at the man and asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    Shen Jingchen had a constipated look on his face as he motioned to his side.

    Zhao Chengan looked over, and under the brilliant glow of the fireworks, a man and a woman were sharing an intimate kiss. You didn¡¯t even have to be close to them to tell just howpatible these two were.

    "Oh my god, aren¡¯t these two being a little too brazen? They¡¯re actually doing it in such a public ce! I¡¯m going to call the police!" Shen Jingchen went on and on like a broken record while ring hatefully at the two of them.

    Zhao Chengan¡¯s expressionless face disyed a rare moment of warmth. He patted the shoulder of the man beside him and said, "It¡¯s normal for young people to act like this. Just rx and act like you didn¡¯t see anything."

    "..." Shen Jingchen turned his head away and shook his fist at the sky.

    Being a single dog really! Isn¡¯t! Easy! Please treat your friends nicely if they¡¯re single dogs too!

    There was still a bit of time before midnight when they finished setting off all the fireworks. After mulling over what to do next, the four of them decided to head home and y some mahjong. Shen Jingbin¡¯s run of good luck seemed to have continued even outside of the game. She¡¯d been winning right from the very beginning. On the other hand, Shen Jingchen was howling in anguish throughout their entire y session because he was the only person who hadn¡¯t won even a single time.

    Grandma Shen came knocking at the door when it was almost midnight. "It¡¯s nearly midnight; let¡¯s go watch the countdown."

    Although Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t like watching the New Year Celebrations, she didn¡¯t mind the countdown.

    The four of them grunted in acknowledgement and finished up their round before going over to the living room to wait for the countdown.

    "There¡¯s only another ten seconds left before we usher in the year of 201x. Let¡¯s all count down to the New Year!"

    "10, 9, 8, 7..." A dignified-looking presenter on China Central Television was brimming with smiles as he started counting down.

    Shen Jingbin silently began to count down as well.

    When the count reached 1, almost as if it¡¯d been decided upon beforehand, firecrackers and fireworks began to go off from all around. Looking out the French window to her left, Shen Jingbin found that the jet-ck night sky was now lit up with the same intensity that it had been during the day. shes of all shapes and sizes could be seen lighting up the sky in session.

    "Happy New Year."

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt a gust of warm air beside her ear and found that Zhao Chengning had taken her into his arms. His head was slightly tilted towards her, and he was staring at her with single-minded concentration. When she looked into his eyes, she could see that there was nothing but affection for her.

    "Happy New Year to you too," Shen Jingbin replied with a smile. Noticing that everyone¡¯s attention was elsewhere, she worked up her courage to bring herself upwards and nted a kiss on his lips.

    Zhao Chengning gave her a satisfied rub on the head.

    Once the countdown was over, the old timers didn¡¯t force themselves any further and retired to bed. Shen Jingbin andpany were also tired after a night of ying around, and they had an early morning the next day, so they too decided to go to bed.

    As she wasn¡¯t used to sleeping in a different bed, Shen Jingbin woke up a little earlier than she usually did. After washing up, she was walking down to the first floor when she found that her Grandfather and his buddies were already up and chatting in the living room.

    Shen Jingbin was in the midst of wishing them a happy New Year with a smile on her face when she unexpectedly received two thick red packets from Old Master Zhao and Old Master Xie. OId Master Zhao¡¯s red packet, in particr, was especially thick. She secretly weighed it, thinking that it might be a little too heavy.

    After lunch, the Shen family said their farewells and left. Papa and Mama Shen were both busy people, and they¡¯d reached the limit on the amount of time that they could spend in B City. They headed back to their apartment and packed up their belongings before preparing to return to A City that night.

    Papa and Mama Shen had initially nned oning to B City to spend time with their children. At the same time ¨C mm, that¡¯s right ¨C they¡¯d have a look at the youngster that had forced them to y matchmaker, and that Old Master Shen had said was very patible¡¯ with their daughter.

    Since they had nothing to do in B City, Grandpa and Grandma Shen decided to follow the siblings¡¯ parents back as well. When they reached the apartment, their elders nagged them for a bit before they packed up and left.

    Papa Shen was thest to leave. His nced back at his daughter several times before he said in a voice that was filled with hidden bitterness, "Young maiden, you must remember to exercise restraint and control yourself. I don¡¯t wish to be a Grandfather so soon."

    Shen Jingbin was utterly gobsmacked!

    Papa Shen then said in a small voice, "I saw everything that happenedst night in the living room."

    Suddenly, Shen Jingchen¡¯s head popped out from behind the door. "I saw it too!"

    Following that, the two of them stared at Shen Jingbin like they¡¯d been wronged.

    Shen Jingbin felt as if a mountain was weighing her down.

    Do the two of you have eyes on the back of your heads when ites to romance? Why the hell are you eyeing me all day for?!

    Papa Shen and Shen Jingchen: This is our way of showing our love and concern for you!

    Shen Jingbin: Hah.

 Chapter 290

    <b>Chapter 290: Our Objective Is To Oppress All Single Dogs! (2)</b>

    That night, the Shen family ate out for dinner before the siblings sent their elders off to the airport. They¡¯d just reached home when Shen Jingbin received a call from Zhao Chengning.

    When she fished out her phone, she¡¯d inadvertently allowed Shen Jingchen to see her caller ID. Upon seeing who it was, he gave a tsundere-like grunt before he spun around and walked off. He even gave an earth-shaking m of his door when he entered his room.

    Shen Jingbin was left scratching her head. What was up with him? Why was he so pissed off?

    But, he was shunted out of her mind the next second, and she happily received her call from Zhao Chengning.

    "Are you back home yet?" She¡¯d told him that she was going to send her family off at the airport, so that was the very first thing he¡¯d asked as soon as she picked up the phone.

    Shen Jingbin sandwiched her handphone between her neck and shoulder while swapping her shoes. "Mm, I just reached home."

    "Alright, thene online. I¡¯ve got something I want to give you."

    "Mm? What sort of thing?"

    Shen Jingbin heard him chuckle. "It¡¯s a New Year¡¯s gift. You¡¯ll know what exactly it is when youe online."

    "Okay, I¡¯ll log on."

    After hanging up, Shen Jingbin made her way up to her room. She knocked on Shen Jingchen¡¯s door when she passed by, but didn¡¯t receive a reply. It looked like he was either having a bath or he¡¯d already logged into the game. She heaved a sigh of resignation and continued making her way towards her room.

    Shen Jingbin opened her friend list the moment she logged into the game.

    She didn¡¯t have many friends in-game, but all of them were online. Were they the type of people who didn¡¯t go visiting on New Year¡¯s day?

    Shen Jingbin sent Shen Jingchen a message when she found his name.

    "Where are you? Hurry up ande find me!"

    Time passed, and she didn¡¯t receive a reply. Instead, she got a party invitation from Quiet And Steadfast. Shortly after forming a party, she saw him descending from the sky on Sheng Huang.

    When he touched down, Quiet And Steadfast handed her a gilded gift box with dragon and phoenix motifs printed on it.

    Shen Jingbin took the gift box from him and eyed it curiously. "What is it?"

    "You¡¯ll know when you open it," Quiet And Steadfast answered mysteriously.

    Shen Jingbin nced at him before slowly opening the gift box. When the box waspletely opened, the sky began to surge like a gathering storm, and eye-catching golden words burst forth from within the box.

    "yer Nutjob has opened yer Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s gift of the Dragon and Phoenix Gilded Gift Box. A golden light shes by to reveal [Mount: Great Sage¡¯s Child] resting within it. What an act of true heroism!"

    When the announcement had passed, Quiet And Steadfast scratched his head and looked at her. "Happy New Year. I¡¯ve heard that this mount is favored amongst women, so I decided to exchange one for you."

    "This... weren¡¯t the event items for this event really hard to collect?" Shen Jingbin looked at the chibi stuffed toy of the Great Sage, the Equal of Heaven, and suddenly thought back to when ck Kite wasining in the guild about how the event items were both difficult to get and impossibly expensive.

    "It was ok. Earning them wasn¡¯t that bad, but they were indeed expensive... However, I did use the five General¡¯s Directives that you gave me. If it weren¡¯t for them, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to collect the required amount so quickly."

    "I¡¯ve got Mascot already, so why would I need another mount? You¡¯re too wasteful," She said in a small voice as she clutched the gift box.

    Quiet And Steadfast smiled. "Mascot wouldn¡¯t be happy with you treating him in such a way. You should let him take a break every now and then. Also, a specialised mount like this is different from a pet. It doesn¡¯t have as many limitations, and, when the need arises in the future, you can escape on it while Mascot provides cover."

    "Wouldn¡¯t Mascot be even more unhappy this way?" Shen Jingbin thought to herself.

    For yers, both specialised mounts and pets could be used as mounts, but the speed of pets might not be able to match up to that of a specialised mount. (Of course, to a Divine Beast like Mascot this wasn¡¯t a problem!) In addition, having a specialised mount meant that yers could issue instructions to their pets while they were mounted. This was a significant point.

    Since Quiet And Steadfast had already given it to her, there was no way she could return it. She quite liked this mount as well, so she decided to keep it. Speaking of which, Quiet And Steadfast had prepared a New Year¡¯s present for her, but getting one for him had utterly slipped her mind.

    Regardless, this wasn¡¯t something that she¡¯d tell him.

    She quietly lifted her head and cast a nce at the expectant look on his face. She gritted her teeth and began to flip through her inventory in the hopes of finding something that she could pass off as a gift to him.

    She¡¯d give him a proper present when she had one ready for him!

    Don¡¯t ask why she didn¡¯te out and tell him the truth. This was their very first New Year spent together as a couple, and he¡¯d spent so much time and effort toe up with a present for her. Just imagine how much of a blow it¡¯d be to him if he¡¯d found out that she hadn¡¯t prepared anything for him in spite of everything he¡¯d done!

    She¡¯d been far too careless this time around and hadpletely overlooked getting him a present!

    Thankfully, heaven never bars one¡¯s way. Her desperate struggles bore fruit, and she found the Divine Weapon for Liches that Pure Crane had refined! Due to that incident with Qi Mu, she¡¯d forgotten to give it to him.

    But, since this wasn¡¯t something that she¡¯d refined, she felt a little bad about passing it off as a present. Still, she ended up handing it to him after mulling it over for an extended period.

    "This is for you, happy New Year. Although I wasn¡¯t the one who refined this, I did open the furnace... If you¡¯re not happy with your present, I could give you another er on," She said in a whisper.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes lit up the moment heid eyes on the dagger. Truth be told, he¡¯d only been staring at her out of habit and wasn¡¯t expecting anything from her. While she didn¡¯t refine the Divine Weapon, and it was more than likely that she¡¯d just pulled it out as a stopgap present, the fact that she was willing to reciprocate his gift was all that mattered.

    Who knows; he might even be able to make use of her guilt to tease her a little.

    With that thought in mind, his smile became even more dazzling, and he felt the urge to kiss her.

    However, when he turned his gaze to her lips...

    Mm, he¡¯d be better off waiting till the next time they met in real life! Otherwise, she might im that his sense of aesthetics had gone to the dogs once again!

 Chapter 291

    <b>Chapter 291: Encountering Quarrelsome Fish Once Again (1)</b>

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: They say that the New Year ushers in change. But, if that¡¯s the case, then why am I still a single dog being oppressed by all the couples out there!?

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: You¡¯re wrong. You were only slightly mistreated before this, but you¡¯ve been absolutely destroyed now. ( ?¨Œ?)/ Tch tch tch. I see our Leader gifting his wife a mount the moment I log on. Our Leader is truly overbearing.

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Monster: Am I the only one who¡¯s noticed that Leader gave the Great Sage¡¯s Child? There¡¯s only one Great Sage¡¯s Child in the entire server, right? Madam Guild Leader sure is lucky!

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: Woof woof woof woof woof!

    [Guild] Yanmen Imperial Sister: Ole Four, what¡¯re you trying to say?

    [Guild] Slight Chill: ... Please speak human.

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: I was trying to say that I¡¯d noticed!

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: ...

    [Guild] Eternal Rest: ...

    [Guild] Long Life: ...

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: You truly are a master of the Englishnguage.

    The server-wide announcement instantly made Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast the talk of the town once again. And with that, the popr rumour of them getting ¡¯divorced soon¡¯ that had spread since the day they¡¯d gotten married finally stopped circting.

    After all, if you didn¡¯t truly love someone, you wouldn¡¯t put so much effort into trying to make her happy; especially if her looks were nothing to write home about.

    Crying Fish¡¯s entire body started trembling the moment she saw the announcement. Despite that, she couldn¡¯t do a single thing about it. She wasn¡¯t a match for Nutjob any longer, and Quiet And Steadfast wouldn¡¯t even spare a nce for her. All she could do was stew within her impotent rage.

    When her party members following behind her noticed how depressed she was, they asked, "Leader, what¡¯s wrong?"

    Crying Fish shook her head. "I¡¯m fine."

    "Tactless much? Didn¡¯t you guys see the server announcement just now? Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s blind. Forget marrying that ugly wench; he¡¯s now even putting on a public disy of affection for her. Isn¡¯t he only with her because she¡¯s a Lead Disciple? Hmph!" The Nymph who was on good terms with Crying Fish said indignantly.

    "Sigh, Lead Disciples like her are a ss apart from us. Commoners like us can¡¯tpare to her."

    The Nymph girl snorted. "So what if she¡¯s a Lead Disciple? That doesn¡¯t change the fact that she¡¯s an ugly cow!"

    Following that, her eyes suddenly lit up as if she¡¯d thought of something. She turned to Crying Fish and said, "Fish, don¡¯t be so down, isn¡¯t the position of Lead Disciple for the Nymph Abode still open? Come on, let¡¯s head back to the sect and have a look at it. You¡¯re lucky, so who knows? You might discover the hidden quest to be the Lead Disciple of the Nymph Abode. When Quiet And Steadfastes looking to you for help, he¡¯ll realise howrge the difference is between you and that ugly monster. I refuse to believe that those blind men won¡¯t be able to see your worth at that time!"

    The girl¡¯s words seemed to have revealed a brand new realm in Crying Fish¡¯s head.

    "That¡¯s right, why didn¡¯t I think of that? The Lead Disciple of the Nymphs is the only Lead Disciple position that¡¯s open now. They¡¯re probably thinking of gathering all the Lead Disciples as quickly as possible too. If I be the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs, Quiet And Steadfast wouldn¡¯t be able to ignore me even if he wanted to!"

    Crying Fish gave a solemn nod at what she¡¯d just said as if she was trying to reassure herself before turning to herpanions. "Let¡¯s head back to the Nymph Abode now!"

    The people following her grunted in acknowledgement and hurried over to the Nymph Abode.

    On Shen Jingbin¡¯s end, she¡¯d finally received a reply from Shen Jingchen after the server-wide announcement. However, it remained just as caustic as his previous behaviour. "What do you want?! Hurry up and go cuddle with your husband! Hmph!"

    As she stared at his reply, she couldn¡¯t help but wonder once again whether she¡¯d unintentionally shattered his fragile ego.

    Seeing her at a loss, Quiet And Steadfast asked, "What¡¯s wrong? Who was it from?"

    She handed him the letter from Shen Jingchen and said, "I don¡¯t know what happened to him, but he¡¯s suddenly all riled up."

    Quiet And Steadfast figured out what the problem was the moment he read the mail and was torn betweenughing and crying. "You haven¡¯t shown much concern for your brother as ofte, have you?"

    Shen Jingbin innocently blinked at him. "Haven¡¯t I always been like this to him though?"

    Quiet And Steadfast gave a light cough. "Things have changed; you have me now. Him bing unhappy when he realises how differently you treat the two of us is only normal."

    His words had allowed her to see the light.

    It finally dawned on her that her older brother was probably feeling jealous, and that was why he¡¯d been giving her the cold shoulder!

    Sigh, what a tsundere.

    Quiet And Steadfast figured she¡¯d understood what he was trying to get at when he saw the look of realization on her face.

    "Then what should I do now?" She had no idea how to pacify Shen Jingchen; especially since she¡¯d gotten used to bullying him!

 Chapter 292

    <b>Chapter 292: Encountering Quarrelsome Fish Once Again (2)</b>

    Quiet And Steadfast thought for a bit before asking a question on the guild channel.

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Dawn, where are you?

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: Can I not answer?

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: No.

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: ...

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: Tsk tsk tsk, Dawn¡¯s actually going against our Leader. What an eye-opener!

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: Hehehe, Dawn, you¡¯re finally going to be the one on top?

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: Fujoshis are scary.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: Terrifying!

    [Guild] Dawn¡¯s Twilight: I¡¯m at the Nymph Abode helping someone with their quest.

    Shen Jingchen was greeted with a wave of enthusiastic teasing when he said that. Quiet And Steadfast ignored all of it and told Shen Jingchen to wait there for him before he leading her towards the Nymph Abode.

    The two Great Sects of the Demons were situated at Beiming in the north, while on the other hand, the two Great Sects of the Celestials ¨C the Nymph Abode and Dragonkin Tower ¨C were located to the south of the continent in the Southern Mountains. As for the Great Sects of the Humans, they were sandwiched between the two sects of the other two races.

    The couple spotted Shen Jingchen the moment they passed through the Sect¡¯s main gate. Feeling guilty, Shen Jingbin ran forward and issued an enthusiastic greeting to Shen Jingchen. But s, a certain tsundere ignored her.

    "What¡¯s got you guys looking for me so desperately?"

    Nutjob shrugged. "Nothing, I just wanted to y with you."

    Shen Jingchen looked as if he¡¯d seen a ghost when he heard what she¡¯d said. He cast a nce at Quiet And Steadfast who was standing by the side, and muttered softly, "Did the sun rise from the west?"

    "You said you were helping someone out with their quest? Who is it? A girl?"

    "Hmph, how¡¯s it any of your business?!"

    "Aren¡¯t I showing concern for your love life?"

    "I don¡¯t need your concern!"

    "That¡¯s it, I¡¯ve had it with you Shen Jingchen! Keep up this tsundere act of yours and I¡¯ll smack you!"

    "Sob sob sob, look at her, Leader. She¡¯s so violent! It¡¯s not toote to for you to back out!"

    "..."

    Quiet And Steadfast: I¡¯m just an onlooker; please don¡¯t drag me into this.

    While the three of them were chatting, a familiar girl suddenly ran up to them.

    "Brother Dawn, is your friend here yet?"

    Shen Jingbin looked up when she heard the person¡¯s voice, revealing an adorable and sugary sweet looking girl with a pair of pretty, expressive eyes framed by wispyshes that continuously fluttered.

    Shen Jingchen turned to nce at the girl. "They¡¯re here, let me introduce you guys. This is my little sister, Nutjob. The person beside her is her husband, Quiet And Steadfast. He¡¯s also our Guild Leader."

    "Ah, I know, this is White Cloud Temple¡¯s great Senior Sister and the number one God in the game!" The girl eximed excitedly after hearing Shen Jingchen¡¯s introduction.

    Shen Jingbin shed a friendly smile at the girl. Quiet And Steadfast nodded at the girl, his expression hidden by the veil on his face.

    "This is Leisurely Viewing Nanshan; a girl I happened to pick up along the way."

    When he mentioned that he¡¯d ¡¯picked her up along the way¡¯, Leisurely Viewing Nanshan stuck out her tongue in embarrassment.

    "Quiet And Steadfast and I have nothing better to do anyway, so let¡¯s do the quest together. Are you doing a sect quest?" Nutjob asked.

    Leisurely Viewing Nanshan¡¯s expression fell. "No, I¡¯m not. Honestly speaking, I don¡¯t know what it is either as I suddenly received it when I was strolling around the sect, and it immediately tasked me with hunting monsters. After asking around, I found out that the monsters were all high leveled ones. There¡¯s no way that I could beat them!"

    Leisurely Viewing Nanshan was still a little Nymph with her Level only in the 60¡¯s, and Shen Jingchen bumped into her at the Heartless Precipice in Youzhou. After seeing her getting killed countless times by a Rock Eagle, he couldn¡¯t bear watching any longer and partied up with her to help herplete her quest.

    Quiet And Steadfast cupped his chin on his hand and thought for a moment. "Looks like you received a hidden quest. What do you need to do next? We¡¯ll help you out."

    "I just finished hunting the monsters and was about to look for my Sect Leader to submit my quest," Leisurely Viewing Nanshan replied.

    "Let¡¯s go together then," Shen Jingbin said.

    "Okay."

    With that, the four of them made their way over to the residence of the Nymph Abode¡¯s Sect Leader.

    Quiet And Steadfast, who belonged to the race of Demons, was suddenly barred from entering by the NPCs standing by the entrance to the Sect Leader¡¯s residence. Further inside, both Shen Jingbin and Shen Jingchen were prevented from advancing as well. In the end, only Leisurely Viewing Nanshan was allowed to meet with the Nymph Abode¡¯s Sect Leader.

    "Celestials sure are troublesome. How can they discriminate against the other races even at a time like this," Shen Jingchenmented.

    "They¡¯re Celestials. You have to understand that amongst the three races, they¡¯re the noblest," Shen Jingbin replied.

    When they thought back to how Quiet And Steadfast was still stuck outside, the siblings left the Sect Leader¡¯s residence to wait outside with him. Besides, it¡¯s not like they could enter anyway.

    But, little did they expect to see Crying Fish walking over with herpanions before Leisurely Viewing Nanshan hade out.

    "Quiet And Steadfast!" Eximed Crying Fish. It was as if her eyes had been affixed with a Quiet And Steadfast radar, allowing her to spot him from afar.

    Having sessfully attracted their attention, Shen Jingbin¡¯s group turned to look in the direction of the voice.

    Quiet And Steadfast brows furrowed slightly when he saw Crying Fish.

    "Why are you here? Who¡¯re you waiting for? Were you waiting for me? How¡¯d you know I¡¯d be here?" Crying Fishpletely ignored Nutjob and her brother. The only one in her eyes was Quiet And Steadfast.

    Quiet And Steadfast, on the other hand,pletely ignored her existence and paid no heed to anything she said.

    There was a stark contrast in their attitudes towards one another. Unable to bear the sight of this scene any longer, the person who¡¯d apanied Crying Fish discreetly tugged.

    Only then did Crying Fish realise that the man in front of her had no intention of paying any attention to her. Her face flushed an unnatural shade of red, and she nced away. When she did so, she finally took notice of Shen Jingbin and her brother.

    She shot Shen Jingbin an indifferent nce and unconsciously stuck out her chest. "Heh, looks like you¡¯re here too."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze was tinged with pity as she gave Crying Fish a once over before she turned back to Quiet And Steadfast and said, "Is she suffering from poor vision? How unfortunate, she¡¯s still so young."

    "Pfft!" Both men chuckled when they heard what she¡¯d said.

 Chapter 293-294

    <b>Chapter 293: An Invitation From The Sect Leader (1)</b>

    "Hey, is that how you talk to people?!" Before Crying Fish had the chance to re up, the woman apanying her took the opportunity to angrily rebuke Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce in her direction before proceeding to ignore her.

    Crying Fish stuck out her hand to restrain herpanion. Then, she turned to Shen Jingbin, but her gaze was still focused on Quiet And Steadfast who she could see out of the corner of her eye. "My friend¡¯s a little impetuous. I mean you no ill will and us running into you was a mere coincidence."

    "No worries. Happening to run into us or not is of no consequence."

    "Our purpose today was to look for the Sect Leader of the Nymphs. What are you guys here for?"

    "What does it have to do with you?" Shen Jingchen rudely replied.

    Unable to bear with the treatment they were receiving any longer, Crying Fish¡¯spanion spoke up. "Why¡¯re all of you so rude? Were your gentlemanly manners fed to dogs?"

    "Mm, they were eaten up by you guys," Quiet And Steadfast unexpectedly cut in.

    "You...!"

    "Quiet And Steadfast, don¡¯t be like this. We were... we were just trying to..." Whenever Crying Fish encountered Quiet And Steadfast, her brain would automatically swap over to its stupid mode, and result in her stumbling over her words.

    "Brother Dawn, we¡¯re heading over to Hidden Eye Abyss to hunt Echo Bats," Before she had the chance to finish speaking, Crying Fish was abruptly interrupted by Leisurely Viewing Nanshan who¡¯de running out of the Sect Leader¡¯s residence.

    "Eh? There are other people here as well?" Leisurely Viewing Nanshan froze for a moment when she saw Crying Fish before eyeing her curiously.

    "We don¡¯t know them. Hidden Eye Abyss, was it? Let¡¯s head over there now then."

    He then proceeded to lead Leisurely Viewing Nanshan away with Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast trailing behind them, leaving Crying Fish and herpanions behind.

    "Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s being too much! You¡¯ve liked him for so long, but he hasn¡¯t even spared a nce at you. Forget responding to your feelings, he¡¯s even treating you like this!" Crying Fish¡¯spanion indignantly said.

    Troubled by her rtionship with Quiet And Steadfast, Crying Fish¡¯s expression turned cloudy. A long while passed before she finally said, "This isn¡¯t the first time he¡¯s done such a thing, so what¡¯re you kicking up a fuss for? Let¡¯s just bide our time for now. Once I be the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs, it¡¯ll only be a matter of time before he falls for me... Alright, let¡¯s head inside."

    With that, she led herpanions into the Nymph Sect Leader¡¯s residence.

    At this time, Shen Jingbin¡¯s party had just reached Hidden Eye Abyss.

    Hidden Eye Abyss was a ce that almost never saw the light of day. It was a dark and damp locale, with Echo Bats being a specific monster that thrived in such conditions. Coming in at Level 118, they weren¡¯t particrly difficult to beat. However, they always appeared in a colony, making them incredibly annoying to deal with.

    Leisurely Viewing Nanshan¡¯s quest was for her to hunt down two hundred Echo Bats. While two hundred might sound like arge number, with the presence of three experts in their party, the task only took several minutes for them toplete. Once done, the party hurriedly made their way back to the Sect Leader¡¯s residence.

    When they returned, they spotted Crying Fish¡¯spanions hanging around the Sect Leader¡¯s courtyard. Crying Fish herself was nowhere to be seen, and they guessed that she was probably still in the midst of having an audience with the Sect Leader.

    Ignoring the woman who was intensely staring at him with wide eyes, Shen Jingchen patted Leisurely Viewing Nanshan on the shoulder, indicating that she needn¡¯t bother with anything and should just focus on going inside to hand in her quest.

    Leisurely Viewing Nanshan obediently nodded and jogged into the Sect Leader¡¯s residence. Along the way, one of the women intentionally knocked into her. She stumbled a little before she cast an aggrieved look at the woman in question. But in the end, Leisurely Viewing Nanshan put the matter aside and wordlessly walked into the residence.

    "Tch, useless," Said the woman disdainfully in a low tone.

    Herpanions tugged at her clothes, hinting for her to be less brazen. After all, Shen Jingchen and Quiet And Steadfast were just outside.

    The woman cast an indignant gaze at the three people standing outside. To her frustration, they didn¡¯t even spare her a nce, and she angrily stomped her foot down on the ground.

    But, what she didn¡¯t know was that, with Shen Jingchen leading the discussion, the three of them were talking about how to take care of the woman once she stepped out of the Nymph Abode.

    While the two groups were waiting for their respective party members, all disciples of the Nymph Abode suddenly received a piece of news that stirred their hearts.

    All yers from the Nymph Abode that were online received an invitation from their Sect Leader at the same time to ¡¯Battle for the Position of Lead Disciple¡¯.

    [Guild] Slight Chill: I received an invitation to battle for the position of Lead Disciple of the Nymphs! Did anyone else receive it?!

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: I got one too! I got one too! What the f*ck is going on?

    [Guild] Lingering White Clouds: I received one too +1.

    [Guild] Gentle Flower: Same here +2.

    All of the Nymphs within Jade Sea Pavilion popped out and indicated that they¡¯d received an invitation as well. After a moment of stunned silence, they began guessing what had led to this.

    Shen Jingchen, who was whiling the time away, noticed what was going on in the guild chat the instant it became active, and immediately informed the two people beside him. When they heard the news, Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast hurriedly checked their guild chat.

    Bronze Tree was also abuzz with activity as a result of the Sect Leader¡¯s invitation.

    [Guild] ck Kite: Wtfwtf! Did any of you receive an invitation? £¨¦¯¦¤¦¯£»£»£©

    [Guild] Cheshire Cat: I received it. It wasn¡¯t just me; my Nymph friends got them as well.

    [Guild] The Winds Of Ximen: What¡¯s happening?

    [Guild] ck Kite: I suddenly received a letter from my Sect Leader with an invitation in it. It¡¯s an invitation to participate in a battle to be the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs!

    [Guild] Little Tadpole: Sister ck Kite, I¡¯ve got bad news for you: I got one as well.

    Little Tadpole was the lowest leveled Nymph in the guild.

    [Guild] ck Kite: ...

    [Guild] Delicate Flower: Ahahahaha!

    [Guild] Cheshire Cat: Haha.

    [Guild] The Winds Of Ximen: Hahahahaha. Rofl.

    [Guild] ck Kite: ... Stopughing, you bunch of beasts! Sobsobsob, someone tell me what¡¯s going on!

    [Guild] Nutjob: Dawn, Quiet And Steadfast, and I are helping a Nymph out with her hidden quest. Her quest was probably what triggered it. I¡¯m guessing that all of the Nymphs have received an invitation.

    [Guild] Pure Crane: A grand melee within the sect?

    [Guild] Nutjob: We can¡¯t say for sure at the moment.

    [Guild] Pure Crane: Since that¡¯s the case, all of the Nymphs who¡¯ve received an invitation are to gather at the Nymph Abode. Let¡¯s have a look at what¡¯s going on.

    <b>Chapter 294: An Invitation From The Sect Leader (2)</b>

    Since Pure Crane was taking charge of things, Shen Jingbin closed up the guild chat. At this time, Leisurely Viewing Nanshan had finallye running out of the Sect Leader¡¯s residence with a broad smile on her face. Following behind her was Crying Fish who also wore an ecstatic smile on her face.

    "Brother Dawn, I¡¯vepleted my quest! I received lots of Experience, gold coins, and was even named the change for some thingy! Do you know what I¡¯m supposed to be the judge of, Brother Dawn? Does the Swordmaster Pavilion have something like this?" Asked Leisurely Viewing Nanshan as she happily skipped over.

    Shen Jingbin andpany exchanged nces with one another.

    "Nanshan, you¡¯re a judge now? Did it talk about anything that¡¯s happening now?"

    "Eh? You guys don¡¯t have anything like this in your sects? My Sect Leader said that there are many outstanding talents in our sect, but we¡¯re currently in a something-something state of crisis, so we need a leader. He decided to use the mostmon method of having a sectpetition to select the Lead Disciple. He also told me that after many rounds of testing, he found that I met all of the requirements to be a judge, so he appointed me as one to oversee thepetition."

    "What rights do you have?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    Leisurely Viewing Nanshan looked at her control panel and said, "My description says that I have to oversee thepetition and determine whether anyone¡¯s throwing their matches. If they are, I¡¯m to disqualify those that are guilty of cheating. Also, I have the final say when ites to the rules."

    Shen Jingbin andpany¡¯s eyes lit up when they heard thetter half of what she said.

    That also meant that the decision on who bes the Nymph Abode¡¯s Lead Disciplergely rests on Leisurely Viewing Nanshan¡¯s shoulders! If that¡¯s the case, didn¡¯t that mean they didn¡¯t have to worry about it falling into Crying Fish¡¯s or some other random person¡¯s hands?

    Quiet And Steadfast shot a nce at Shen Jingchen, who immediately understood what was going on. So, after gently taking hold of Leisurely Viewing Nanshan¡¯s shoulders, he pulled her over to the side in an attempt to sweet talk her.

    Quiet And Steadfast allowed the elite Nymphs in Jade Sea Pavilion to pull out their best equipment, allowing them to enter thepetition in the best possible state.

    If nothing unexpected were to happen, then the position of Lead Disciple would likely end up in the hands of his guild!

    "Fish, Fish! You received one as well, right?! That invitation!" There were also some Nymphs who¡¯d gone with Crying Fish on her trip to the Nymph Abode but hadn¡¯t apanied her inside. When they spotted her, they revealed looks of tion on their faces and surged up to question her.

    "Fish, did the Sect Leader give you any preferential treatment when you went in?"

    Crying Fish¡¯s gaze swept past Quiet And Steadfast, who was standing outside and had his back towards her; her sightnding on the little Nymph that had been pulled aside by Shen Jingchen. Although she didn¡¯t know what the Sect Leader had said to that Nymph, she could say with certainty that she, Crying Fish, had obtained a considerable advantage! With this advantage, securing the position of Lead Disciple would be a cinch!

    Due to her high Luck, she had a sufficient amount of reputation with the NPCs in the sect. She¡¯d also umted a significant amount of Contribution Points. All she needed to do was ask, and the Sect Leader had divulged plenty of inside information regarding thepetition to her.

    For example, thepetition would begin the next day at seven in the morning and wouldst all the way until eight at night. Once yers had confirmed that they¡¯d be participating, they weren¡¯t allowed to take any breaks till it was over. Thepetition was ted to take ce at two battlegrounds, and each location was ying host to a battle of attrition. Thest man standing in each battlefield would then proceed to the final round where the winner would be decided.

    However, she, on the other hand, had been seeded directly into the finals!

    During the finals, she¡¯d have the absolute advantage when facing two other opponents who¡¯d be both physically and mentally exhausted!

    Whatever preferential treatment that the little Nymph had received was nothing to be afraid of!

    When she thought of this, Crying Fish couldn¡¯t hold back the joy that was threatening to break free from within, and she returned her gaze to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s back. It was a scorching gaze filled with desire, and it was almost as if she¡¯d already be the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs.

    "Did I receive any preferential treatment? Hehe, I received lots of it... just wait and see. The position of Lead Disciple will definitely be mine!" Said Crying Fish as she gave herpanions a determined smile.

    At that time, Shen Jingbin happened to turn back and saw Crying Fish¡¯s smile, and she felt a sense of foreboding run down her spine. She tugged at Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s sleeve and gestured for him to lower his head before she whispered into his ear, "Something¡¯s not right with Quarrelsome Fish; she probably got her hands on some secret information when she was inside. Tell the members of Jade Sea Pavilion to be careful."

    Quiet And Steadfast looked in Crying Fish¡¯s direction when he¡¯d heard what Shen Jingbin had said. His expression darkening when he caught sight of Crying Fish¡¯s lingering smile.

 Chapter 295-296

    <b>Chapter 295: Battle For The Position Of Lead Disciple (1)</b>

    The next day, the entire game was abuzz with activity as everyone excitedly logged into the game. In particr, it was the Nymph yers who were practically bouncing on the balls of their feet.

    When the clock hit seven, the notification from the system popped up right on time.

    [System Announcement] The battle for the position of the Nymph Abode¡¯s Lead Disciple has now begun. Nymphs who are participating in thispetition are to follow instructions from the system and proceed to their assigned battlegrounds. The battlegrounds are as follows: Mysterious Sky Region ¨C Xiling City¡¯s Imperial City, Yellow Earth Region ¨C Matchless City. Thepetition strictly prohibits throwing fights, fraud, etc. Once found, both parties will be disqualified. In addition, 100 points will be deducted from the offenders¡¯ sect contribution points, and sect NPC¡¯s goodwill towards them will also drop by 30 points. Youths, strive for the top and give your all in battle!

    The Nymphs from Jade Sea Pavilion were evenly split between both battlegrounds, while a majority of the Nymphs from Bronze Tree were clustered in Matchless City. When Shen Jingbin logged in, she asked Quiet And Steadfast where he¡¯d be watching thepetition from before she hit up Pure Crane and went over to the Imperial City in Xiling City.

    The battleground in Xiling City¡¯s Imperial City was an elevated stage that was built beneath the city gates. A seat of power was ced at the top of the gates, which Shen Jingbin guessed was probably for Leisurely Viewing Nanshan to oversee the battle.

    A higher position meant a better vantage point, and only a ce as high as that would afford Leisurely Viewing Nanshan the ability to take notice of all the little schemes that participants might try to pull off.

    Xiling City¡¯s Imperial City epassed arger area than Matchless City. Although both battlegrounds were designed with the same specifications, concerning spectatorfort, the spacious area that the Imperial City offered within Xiling City meant that the spectators there were slightly morefortable. So, by the time Shen Jingbin arrived, the Imperial City¡¯s gates were already swarming with people.

    Looking at the number of people present, Shen Jingbin felt that she probably wouldn¡¯t be able to squeeze her way in. Instead, sent a message to Quiet And Steadfast to let him know where she was. Shortly after, the crowd of people blocking her way suddenly parted, revealing a path that was wide enough for two people to walk abreast. A ck-clothed man could be seen at the other end. He was tall and well built, with an air of confidence about him as he made his way to Shen Jingbin.

    When the man reached her side, his gaze instantly turned warm, and the imposing aura he exuded significantly dissipated. "Let¡¯s go. They¡¯re all inside now, and they¡¯ll probably be thrilled to see you."

    Shen Jingbin nodded, and Quiet And Steadfast held her hand in his like it was the most natural thing in the world. They then made their way through the stupefied crowd towards the innermost section that was upied by Jade Sea Pavilion.

    After they¡¯d walked off, the yers who were left behind began pping themselves in a vain attempt to wake themselves up from this dream.

    What the f*ck?! The scene they¡¯d witnessed just now was far too much of a blow for them. They were having a little trouble taking all of it in!

    But, from the looks of things, had the Great God and his wife taken their rtionship to the real world as well? Was the Great God¡¯s sense of aesthetics genuinely distorted?!

    Or, could it be that the ugly monster, Nutjob, was rather beautiful in real life?

    Of course, they weren¡¯t aware of the truth.

    "Ahhhh! Nutty! It¡¯s been so long!" When Shen Jingbin saw the members of Jade Sea Pavilion, she didn¡¯t even have a chance to greet them before a woman lunged at her and pulled her into an embrace.

    "Eh? National Treasures?" Shen Jingbin nced at the woman who¡¯d wrapped herself around her like an octopus before she cast a pleading gaze at Quiet And Steadfast.

    Having received his wife¡¯s plea for help, Quiet And Steadfast coughed and separated National Treasures from his wife, pushing her over to a corner. "Please restrain yourself; she¡¯s my wife."

    Having been cast to the side, National Treasures shot a dissatisfied re at her Leader. With an aggrieved expression on her face, she turned to Shen Jingbin and said, "Nutty, when are you nning to return to Jade Sea Pavilion? Life feels so meaningless without you around."

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit and replied, "If lifecks meaning for you, then you should find yourself a husband. That will help to fill the void both physically and mentally."

    National Treasures turned pale with fright. "Oh my goodness! Nutty, you¡¯ve gone bad!"

    Quiet And Steadfast cut in, "Alright, stop fooling around. How¡¯re the preparationsing along?"

    Lingering White Clouds suddenly popped up out of nowhere and said, "Everything¡¯s ready. I asked around just now, and the first person to make an appearance from our side is Blooming Flower. She¡¯s also the first contestant in thepetition. Thest from our side to enter is Southern Creeping Foam, who¡¯s rtively far behind on the list."

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. He¡¯d more or less foreseen this result.

    Due to the nature of thepetition, the stronger yers would be pushed up on the list to equalize the difference in power between yers. Blooming Flower was the strongest Nymph in Jade Sea Pavilion, and she was also the number one Nymph in the entire game. This was the very reason why her being selected by the system as the first person to fight was no surprise. On the other hand, Southern Creeping Foam was a Life Skill yer who focused on cultivation, so herbat strength wasn¡¯t all that high.

    "What about National Treasures and Seaweed?"

    "They¡¯re all further up on the list. Blooming shouldn¡¯t have used up that much of her strength when National Treasures and Seaweede up, so the question now is whether she should soldier on or let Southern Creeping Foam take overter on."

    Regarding Battle strength, even if Blooming Flower was exhausted, she still had a higher chance of winning than Southern Creeping Foam.

    "We¡¯ll let Blooming Flower continue on. Even if she makes it to the finals, Southern Creeping Foam¡¯s chances of winning were way too low. Tell Next Week Is Unlikely to gather up some people and head over to the Eternal Ind in the East sea to gather some roselle nts. After that, he needs to hurry and refine Soul Returning Pills. When the battle over here at the Mysterious Sky Region concludes, he has to hand over the Soul Returning Pills to Blooming immediately, and also look in on the battle in Yellow Earth Region. If it looks like there¡¯s a high chance of our guild members winning over there as well, get Shen Jingchen to hurry over and retrieve some Soul Returning Pills."

    "Mm, I got it," Lingering White Clouds replied. She then bade farewell to Shen Jingbin before she went off to convey Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s instructions.

    <b>Chapter 296: Battle For The Position Of Lead Disciple (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin suddenly remembered that she herself was an Apothecary and curiously asked, "What¡¯s a Soul Returning Pill?"

    "Soul Returning Pills are a high-grade healing pill that cures all abnormal statuses and restores a yer¡¯s strength. Although there¡¯s no way to recover mental fatigue, Blooming Flower knows how to handle herself. As long as her body¡¯s in good shape, she has a very high chance of winning."

    The instant he finished speaking, the urgent sounds of drum beats could be heard from the ring, drawing everyone¡¯s attention to it. Shen Jingbin saw an onee-san looking woman jump onto the stage with a stern expression on her face. Shortly after, a man stepped out from the crowd on the opposite end and also jumped onto the stage.

    "It¡¯s Plum River Wind from Sovereign¡¯s Descent; he¡¯s ranked third amongst all the Nymphs," Quiet And Steadfast whispered an exnation into her ear.

    Shen Jingbin took another nce at Plum River Wind. He was a rather handsome man, but his face was marred by a vulgar expression. He was practically watering at the mouth when he jumped onto the stage and gazed upon Blooming Flower¡¯s cool and elegant countenance.

    After both contestants stepped onto the stage, a white-robed woman with a simr white veil appeared in the middle of the stage and began a methodical countdown. "Round one: Blooming Flower versus Plum River Wind. The first one who falls off the stage loses. The round will begin in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! Fight!"

    Plum River Wind instantly struck out when the countdown reached ¡¯1¡¯ in an attempt to catch Blooming Flower off guard. Unfortunately, he¡¯d underestimated his opponent. Blooming Flower had seen through his attack as soon as he¡¯dunched it. Taking advantage of his impatience, she leapt over to his unguarded back and sent a skill flying towards it.

    Bullseye!

    Even if her opponent was the third best Nymph in the game, receiving that one attack from her was unbearable, and the oue was a foregone conclusion.

    Plum River Wind was quickly defeated and mercilessly pushed off the stage by Blooming Flower,nding in a heap where the members of Jade Sea Pavilion were watching the fight from.

    "The victor of round one is Blooming Flower."

    "Will the nextpetitor please step onto the stage..." The veiled woman in white appeared on stage once again and emotionlessly announced the results.

    Just as the system had announced, there were no breaks at all, and thepetitors went onto the stage in session. Thankfully, Blooming Flower possessed sufficient valiance, taking down the first few yers in the shortest possible time. She had an even easier time when she was matched against her fellow guildmates. Although the system stated that yers couldn¡¯t throw their matches, it wasn¡¯t able to see through Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s acting. They were absolutely wless.

    Midway through thepetition, Leisurely Viewing Nanshan came over while making her rounds and was pulled to the side by Quiet And Steadfast. When he reappearedter, he was practically beaming with joy.

    "What did you say to Nanshan?" Shen Jingbin curiously asked.

    Quiet And Steadfast cast a sidelong nce at her and said, "Don¡¯t worry, I just gave her some suggestions about thepetition. You¡¯re the only one in my heart."

    "... Thatst part waspletely unnecessary."

    All of thepetitors had finally entered the stage by the afternoon. Blooming Flower really dug deep and persevered to the end. Although, her body was in a wretched state during the second half of the battles, especially in thest few rounds, resulting in her looking as if she¡¯d fall with just the of slightest breezes. But, through it all, she¡¯d still soldiered on and pushed every single one of her opponents off the stage.

    Regardless of how others perceived Blooming Flower¡¯s victory, Shen Jingbin had be a Blooming Flower fan by the end of the preliminary rounds!

    The battle over at Yellow Earth Region ended at the same time as well. Shen Jingchen came back with the news that the winner there was a never before heard of female yer. She was guildless, but it looked like she knew Pure Crane.

    [System Announcement] The preliminary rounds have now concluded. Congrattions to yer Blooming Flower and yer Sentimental Musings for advancing to the finals. Please proceed towards the residence of the Nymph Abode¡¯s Sect Leader to receive your final test and determine the victor of thispetition.

    [System Announcement] Due to space constraints, representative spectators for the final round will be selected. The selected spectators are the top five yers on the leaderboards for each of the Six Great Sects and the five Lead Disciples.

    With the preliminary rounds over, the two victorious yers made their way towards the Sect Leader¡¯s residence. During the interval between the system¡¯s announcements, Lingering White Clouds took the Soul Returning Pills that they¡¯d prepared and stuffed them into the hands of Blooming Flower who was still on the stage.

    Luckily, Lingering White Clouds was quick enough and managed to pull it off in the nick of time. As soon as she stuffed the pills into Blooming Flower¡¯s hands, a beam of white light shed in front of them, and Blooming Flower was teleported straight into the Nymph Sect Leader¡¯s residence.

    When Shen Jingbin and the rest of the representatives hurried over to the Sect Leader¡¯s residence, the NPC disciples guarding the door announced that the innerpetition venue was still being set up and that the people outside still had to wait for a spell.

    Taking advantage of this time, she sized up the rest of the representative spectators. Aside from the Lead Disciples, most of the top ranking yers were from Jade Sea Pavilion, while the ones who weren¡¯t were also familiar faces. In particr, she paid special attention to the fact that Nine Bads and Crying Fish weren¡¯t present amongst them.

    Just as she was about to say something to Quiet And Steadfast, the NPCs guarding the door suddenly stated that preparations wereplete and that they could enter. Seeing this, Shen Jingbin quietly swallowed her suspicions and followed the rest of the spectators into the residence.

    There was a ratherrge courtyard within the Sect Leader¡¯s residence. At present, there were already five people standing inside of it. Apart from Blooming Flower, Leisurely Viewing Nanshan, and the Sect Leader of the Nymph Abode, Fennel, there were two other women present.

    One of them was a woman that she hadn¡¯t seen before. She looked just like any other person but had an ethereal air about her. Now that Shen Jingbin thought about it, that woman should be the winner of the preliminary round in Yellow Earth Region, Sentimental Musings.

    As for the other person... Shen Jingbin felt her heart in her throat when she took a good look at her, and a wave of unease threatened to overwhelm her.

    It was Crying Fish.

    After he swept a nce about the entire room, the Sect Leader of the Nymph Abode, Fennel, spoke in a gentle voice, "The ones on my left are the three finalists of thispetition. Two of them have managed to get this far through martial prowess, while thest one is the disciple who¡¯s contributed the most to the Nymph Abode, and was seeded directly into the finals as a reward for all she¡¯s done. On my right is the Nymph Abode¡¯s newly-appointed judge who will oversee thepetition¡¯s proceedings. Regardless of the oue, I hope that the disciples of the Nymph Abode can work together as one and cooperate with the other Great Sects. Themon people are depending on all of you tobat the Shinra Sect and save them! Now, the judge will announce the rules of the final round."

    After he finished speaking, Leisurely Viewing Nanshan stepped forward before everyone else had a chance to react. She first turned to the members of Jade Sea Pavilion, giving them a smile and a nod of her head. She then cleared her throat and announced the rule that Quiet And Steadfast had suggested to her.

 Chapter 297-298

    <b>Chapter 297: The Decisive Battle (1)</b>

    Once Fennel finished speaking, Quiet And Steadfast felt thankful for his foresight. Otherwise, the position of Lead Disciple might really have fallen into Crying Fish¡¯s hands. Although she could be a little idiotic at times, her strength was nothing to scoff at.

    "Everyone knows that in order tobat the Shinra Sect, we need to band together and work as one, so our ability to cooperate with one another is vital. For that to happen, we need to have a good understanding of one another. And, the best way to familiarize ourselves with the tactics and habits of other people is through battle. To that end, I¡¯ve decided that the finals will proceed as follows: each of the three finalists will take on the other five Lead Disciples. The person with the most number of victories will be crowned the winner. I hope that the other five Lead Disciples can assist us in this matter."

    Looks of astonishment appeared on everyone¡¯s faces after Leisurely Viewing Nanshan made her announcement.

    Shen Jingbin andpany were surprised for a brief moment before their expressions were reced with joy, while Crying Fish broke into a frown.

    The five Lead Disciples were on that ugly monster¡¯s side. With things as they are, they¡¯d definitely give her a hard time, and no amount of levels or equipment would help her!

    Crying Fish hated Leisurely Viewing Nanshan so much that she was crying tears of blood.

    Amongst the representative spectators, two of them hailed from Life At First Sight. Crying Fish cast a meaningful nce at her guild members, and they immediately stepped out to protest.

    "Hey, this isn¡¯t right. Isn¡¯t this an internal issue amongst the Nymphs? Why¡¯re you dragging other people into this? To top it off, they might not even ept this arrangement."

    After the yer from Life And First Sight spoke up, The Winds Of Ximen immediately chimed in, "Not really; we¡¯re more than happy to help out."

    F*ck! Where the hell did thate from?!

    If looks could kill, who knows who many times the Winds Of Ximen would have died at the hands of Crying Fish¡¯s death re.

    Pure Crane nodded. "I think that having a match now to get know one another better is a pretty good idea. I¡¯ll cooperate."

    "I have no objections," Qi Mu said.

    Quiet And Steadfast wordlessly nodded his agreement.

    Shen Jingbin cupped her chin and added, "I don¡¯t have any objections either."

    Crying Fish continued to cast meaningful looks at her guild members, while the person who spoke up racked his brain to think of a rebuttal. Unfortunately, Fennel spoke up before he could offer a retort. "I think this is a good idea too. It looks like I¡¯ve picked the right person, so let¡¯s do it like this then. We¡¯ll be troubling the five Lead Disciples."

    "You¡¯re too kind, Sect Leader," Pure Crane replied.

    "The battle for the position of the Nymph Abode¡¯s Lead Disciple will now begin. Competitors, please get ready," Just as Crying Fish was about to issue her final struggle, the referee NPC whose eyes were hidden by a white veil appeared in the center of the courtyard and emotionlessly announced themencement of the final round. With that, the matter wasid to rest.

    Crying Fish nced dejectedly at Leisurely Viewing Nanshan and concentrated all of her dissatisfaction into it.

    Alright, she¡¯s remembered Leisurely Viewing Nanshan¡¯s face. She was going to hunt her down if she didn¡¯t manage to get the position of Lead Disciple.

    Once themencement of the finals was announced, an enormous circle appeared at the center of the courtyard. The five Lead Disciples stood on the left of the circle, while the three Nymphs stood on the right. Leisurely Viewing Nanshan, Fennel, and the veiled referee stood on top of the circle itself, and the spectators stood beneath it.

    "The order in which the three of you willpete will be left to you to decide. Who will be the first to fight?" Leisurely Viewing Nanshan asked.

    Blooming Flower and Sentimental Musings exchanged a nce with one another before revealing a friendly smile. "I¡¯m tired after a day of fighting. The sooner I die, the sooner I¡¯ll respawn, so I¡¯ll be going first. Do the two of you have any objections?"

    "That¡¯s fine, I have no objections," Blooming Flower said.

    Sentimental Musings then turned her attention to Crying Fish who hadn¡¯t even once looked her in the eye this entire time and asked, "What about you?"

    "Do whatever you want."

    Sentimental Musings pulled out a recovery pill from her inventory and swallowed it before she stepped into the circle. She sped her hands in greeting and said, "My name is Sentimental Musings. I request your guidance."

    Surprise shed across Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s face when he noticed Sentimental Musings consume the pill. It turns out that she¡¯d had a Soul Returning Pill too. It looks like there was more to this guildless yer than meets the eye.

    These pills ¨C Soul Returning Pills ¨C sounded very terrifying, but in truth, it was their refining process that was difficult. The minimum proficiency required to refine them was a Grandmaster Apothecary. Furthermore, the main ingredient, the rozelle nt, only grew in Eternal Ind which was filled with aggressive high-levelled monsters that boasted strong attacks. While making the nt, there was even a chance of running into a guardian that was only slightly weaker than a world BOSS, making even the process of gathering the nt a tall order.

    He held back Shen Jingbin who wanted to make for the stage, stepping forward as he said, "Let me handle the first round. She¡¯s likely a high profile individual too. I¡¯ll go probe her."

    Shen Jingbin backed off and watched Quiet And Steadfast step onto the stage. Bothpetitors exchanged a bow before jumping straight to fighting. As his objective was to sound Sentimental Musings out, Quiet And Steadfast fought in a very conservative manner.

    Noticing Shen Jingbin focusing intently on Sentimental Musings, Pure Crane broke into an exnation from behind her. "Sentimental Musings was previously the top Nymph in Sovereign¡¯s Descent, so her battle sense andbat process are both formidable. However, she had some issues in real life that prevented her from ying. It¡¯s been a while, but she¡¯s recently made a return. I myself was surprised when I saw her in Matchless City."

    "Eh? Sovereign¡¯s Descent?"

    "Mm. Back then, she left the guild due to the conflicts she had with Neverending Journey¡¯s wife. When she left, she removed all of the guild members from her friend list as well. I used to frequently run dungeons and fight in battlegrounds with her. We were on good terms, so she didn¡¯t remove me from her friend list."

    "Looks like there¡¯s going to be a nice show to watch then."

    "Maybe. I don¡¯t know the exact details since I don¡¯t concern myself with these things."

    While the two of them were speaking, the battle on the stage concluded. Quiet And Steadfast had continued to fight conservatively, but there was too much of a difference in power between them. Sentimental Musings gradually fell into a disadvantageous position and was eventually pushed off the stage by Quiet And Steadfast.

    "You¡¯re strong. I admit defeat," Sentimental Musings calmly said after she was pushed out of the stage.

    Quiet And Steadfast wordlessly nodded, folded his hands behind his back, and walked off the stage.

    "The victor of round one is the Lich Pce¡¯s Quiet And Steadfast. Will the nextpetitor pleasee forward."

    Pure Crane patted Shen Jingbin¡¯s shoulder and stepped past her onto the stage.

    <b>Chapter 298: The Decisive Battle (2)</b>

    At the end of the five rounds, Sentimental Musings had beaten Qi Mu and nearly won against Shen Jingbin. Unfortunately, Shen Jingbin had managed to wrap her horsetail whisk around Sentimental Musings and pull her off the stage just before Shen Jingbin herself was rung out, leading to an unfortunate defeat.

    The second to step up was Blooming Flower. Naturally, nothing needed to be said about herbat prowess. Apart from losing to Quiet And Steadfast and fighting Pure Crane to a draw, she easily won her other three matches.

    Crying Fish¡¯s expression was extremely unsightly when Blooming Flower descended from the stage.

    Since Blooming Flower had won three rounds, it meant that she had to win at least four. Fighting against Quiet And Steadfast was a guaranteed loss; no one in the game could beat him. Putting him aside, out of the remaining four Lead Disciples, three of them were difficult for her to deal with. Even trying to win three battles was a challenge for her.

    After Blooming Flower walked off the stage, the veiled referee announced, "In the second battle, yer Blooming Flower has three victories, one draw, and one loss. Will the nextpetitor please step forward."

    Crying Fish took several deep breaths before she slowly stepped onto the stage.

    The first person she was up against was Quiet And Steadfast.

    "Ah Ning, we¡¯ve known each other for so long now, you..." Crying Fish gazed lovingly at the tall and well-built man in front of her, the apprehension evident on her face.

    Before she had the chance to finish speaking her mind, I¡¯m Not A Monster suddenly interjected. "Who¡¯s friends with you?! Can you stop spouting nonsense, Quarrelsome Fish? Stop mincing your words! It¡¯s like you¡¯re going through menopause!"

    The rest of what Crying Fish wanted to say found itself stuck in her throat. She red hatefully at I¡¯m Not A Monster, while the yers beside him cast admiring gazes at him.

    This was the first time that Quiet And Steadfast had openly approved of I¡¯m Not A Monster¡¯s actions in public. He then turned his attention back to Crying Fish. "Let¡¯s begin."

    Since things turned out like this, there was nothing else for her to say. All she could do was look at him with grief-ridden eyes before she reluctantly leapt into action.

    The result was a foregone conclusion. Quiet And Steadfast mercilessly defeated Crying Fish in less than a minute.

    "Quiet And Steadfast, you!" Crying Fish red at the man on the stage the instant she was knocked out. Quiet And Steadfast was the picture of calm as he nced at her and said, "I¡¯ve already wasted a day¡¯s worth of time, I just wanted to get this over and done with a little quicker."

    "Tsk tsk tsk, this person has no gentlemanly air about him at all," Shen Jingbin said with a sigh as she repeatedly shook her head. "But, I like it!"

    "Hehe, people who disy public shows of affection should get lost!" The Winds Of Ximen said.

    Pure Crane and The Winds Of Ximen fought in the second and third rounds. Although both of them didn¡¯t say anything, their attacks were just as merciless as Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s, giving Crying Fish no opportunity to strike back.

    Truth be told, Shen Jingbin found it a little hard to watch theter rounds. When they were up against Blooming Flower, these men still held onto their gentlemanly spirit, ensuring that even if she lost, she didn¡¯t do so in an unsightly manner. But, when it came to Crying Fish, they acted like they were tearing open the seal on an envelope.

    After being brutally beaten in her earlier three matches, the light finally returned to Crying Fish¡¯s eyes when Shen Jingbin stepped onto the stage. "It¡¯s finally your turn. I¡¯m going to use this chance to settle the debts between us."

    Even if she couldn¡¯t beat Shen Jingbin, at the very least, she wouldn¡¯t lose too badly. At this point, she¡¯d realised that there was no chance of her bing a Lead Disciple. Since that was the case, she wanted to throw some shade at this ugly monster!

    "I¡¯m the only one who has a score to settle with you, not the other way around. If any debts are being settled, I should be the one doing it," Shen Jingbin corrected Crying Fish without the slightest change in her expression.

    "Heh, whatever you say then. In the past, you had a Divine Beast by your side so I couldn¡¯t beat you. But now, without it around, the victor is no longer certain. Do you have what it takes to make a bet with me? If you lose, you¡¯ll..."

    While Crying Fish was still going on and on about her bet, the referee unexpectedly appeared and delivered a deadpan warning. "Please begin fighting as soon as possible. It will be viewed as the challenger giving up if the battle doesn¡¯tmence within the next ten seconds."

    "Pfft!"

    "Hahahahaha!"

    "Lololololololol!"

    All of the spectators burst intoughter.

    Crying Fish¡¯s face went from surprised to angry. When the referee counted down to ¡¯2¡¯, her eyes hardened, and she rushed forward. At the same time, an underhanded attack flew towards Shen Jingbin.

 Chapter 299

    <b>Chapter 299: When the Dust Settles (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin dodged the dark green beam of light flying towards her face by performing an exceptionally quick split. At the same time, she sent a rooting spell in Crying Fish¡¯s direction.

    Crying Fish, who¡¯d exploded in anger, narrowly dodged Shen Jingbin¡¯s spell before throwing out another skill of her own and charging forward with it.

    Crying Fish was moving much more agilely today than she usually did. If it was any other person, they might¡¯ve been hit. Unfortunately, her opponent was Shen Jingbin. To Shen Jingbin, Crying Fish was moving in slow motion; avoiding it was as easy as flipping her hand.

    Having missed her opponent and nearly being hit by their attack, Crying Fish gritted her teeth and shouted, "Is dodging all you¡¯re good for, ugly monster? Aren¡¯t you supposed to be hot stuff? What, are you too afraid to face me head-on?"

    Shen Jingbin let out a coldugh. "I wanted to let you keep some of your dignity by surviving for a little while. But, since you¡¯re in such a hurry to get off the stage, then don¡¯t me me for what happens next!"

    Shen Jingbin stopped holding back and threw out all of her skills that were off cooldown. At the same time, she whipped out her horsetail whisk and brandished it several times. It came alive with the intelligence of a person and the flexibility of a snake, wrapping itself around Crying Fish and restraining her.

    The distance between them was now infinitely small, but Shen Jingbin kept slithering around like a snake, leaving no trace of herself behind. All of Crying Fish¡¯s skills failed to find their target. If she wasn¡¯t careful, she even ran the risk of hitting herself. Thankfully, damaging skills wouldn¡¯t harm its user; otherwise, there was a high chance of her bing the very first yer in the game who¡¯d killed themselves with their own skill.

    "What the f*ck, this is my first time seeing someone fight like this. It looks really cool," The Winds Of Ximen muttered to himself. All of the other spectators were captivated by her movements and sighed in admiration.

    Pure Crane looked at Shen Jingbin for a little while more and asked, "Nutjob knows martial arts, right? Her movements and breathing are different from your average person¡¯s."

    "Eh? You¡¯re able to tell? She¡¯s been learning since was young, and she¡¯s a violent psycho."

    Pure Crane shook his head. "Crying Fish definitely isn¡¯tcking in strength, but Nutjob¡¯s growth is far too astonishing. Even with thepetition prohibiting the use of pets, Crying Fish¡¯s victory isn¡¯t assured."

    Quiet And Steadfast no longer paid any attention to the battle, turning his attention to Qi Mu who was behind him instead. "Crying Fish has already lost four rounds. She won¡¯t be able to attain the position of Lead Disciple regardless of whether she wins or loses the next round, so there¡¯s no pressure on you. You can even forfeit if you want."

    Qi Mu¡¯s expression was as tranquil as ake. She gazed intently at Shen Jingbin who was going all out against Crying Fish and resolutely shook her head. "She¡¯s part of the reason why I¡¯m in this state today, so I want to fight her even if I end up losing."

    "Do as you please then. All that matters is that you did your best, it¡¯s not the end of the world even if you lose."

    Qi Mu finally looked away and turned her attention to Quiet And Steadfast. "I know, thank you."

    "Mm."

    It was clear who the victor of the round was going to be: it would without a doubt be Shen Jingbin.

    Before Crying Fish had a chance to react to her body being bound, Shen Jingbin made her way behind Crying Fish and swung her horsetail whisk at her back. Crying Fish felt an enormous force bear down on her back, and she fell forward.

    She was already at the edge of the stage, and this fall of hers would send her out.

    It can¡¯t end like this!

    Crying Fish¡¯s heart was filled with resentment, to the point where she felt like wiping Shen Jingbin off the face of the Earth.

    In the midst of her helplessness, she felt a dull pain from her abdomen, and her vision turned ck. Before she had a chance to recover, she heard the referee¡¯s emotionless voice.

    "The victor of round one is Nutjob from White Cloud Temple. Will the final Lead Disciple please step onto the stage."

    Moments after the referee spoke, Crying Fish fought to stand up and took a deep breath. "Don¡¯t bother, I forfeit!"

    Qi Mu was just about to step up to the stage when she turned her attention to the normally high-spirited Crying Fish, who was now beaten and exhausted. In fact, Crying Fish didn¡¯t even bother to spare her a nce.

    The two yers from Life At First Sight hurriedly ran forward to support her.

    "There¡¯s no need for the fifth round, I concede," Crying Fish slowly said with a hand to her chest, the bitterness in her voice evident to everyone present.

    Leisurely Viewing Nanshan nced at Shen Jingchen before turning her attention back to Crying Fish. "Are you sure?"

    Fennel spoke up before Crying Fish had a chance to reply. "You need to think this through; you won¡¯t have any chance of bing the Lead Disciple if you forfeit."

    "The five Lead Disciples from the other Great Sects are giants amongst men, and they¡¯re all highly skilled individuals; I¡¯m no match for them. Thank you, Sect Leader, for thinking so highly of me, but I¡¯ve disappointed you!" Having yed for so long, Crying Fish obviously knew the importance of leaving a good impression, so she swallowed her grievances and did her best to act as if she was putting on a strong front in spite of the mistreatment she¡¯d received.

    As expected, Fennel wore aplicated expression on his face, but he didn¡¯t utter a word. He just waved his hand and epted her request to forfeit.

    The white veiled referee stepped forward once again and raised her voice, "Thepetition for the position of Lead Disciple of the Nymphs has nowe to a close. yer Sentimental Musings has one victory and four defeats. yer Gentle Flower has three victories, one draw, and one loss. yer Crying FIsh has zero victories and five losses. Congrattions yer Gentle Flower on bing the new Lead Disciple of the Nymphs."

    "Gentle Flower, you¡¯ve now be the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs, but I hope you will remain free from arrogance and rashness as you lead the sect¡¯s disciples and work with the other Great Sects tobat to Shinra Sect and purge the world of evil!"

    Gentle Flower took a step forward. "Yes, Sect Leader!"

 Chapter 300

    <b>Chapter 300: When the Dust Settles (2)</b>

    Fennel reached out, his hand clenched into a fist with only his index and middle finger extended, and touched the spot between her eyebrows.

    "Ding!" Gentle Flower heard a system notification.

    "Congrattions on bing the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs."

    [System Announcement]: A precious sword is produced by sharpening it on a grindstone, while the fragrant aroma of plums wafts about after a bitter cold. Congrattions to yer Gentle Flower for emerging as the Lead Disciple of the Nymphs after an intensepetition.

    [System Announcement]: The Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects have now been gathered, and the battle between good and evil has increased in intensity. The final battle could ur at any moment. Young heroes, are you ready to face theing tide?

    Two streams of scarlet red text scrolled across the sky, informing yers of the conclusion to thispetition that had captured everyone¡¯s attention.

    As the saying goes: some will weep while the others rejoice. After the system announcement was made, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion and Bronze Tree heaved a sigh of relief. The members of Jade Sea Pavilion, in particr, dropped everything they were doing to congratte Gentle Flower. Even Quiet And Steadfast, who rarely bothered about these things, congratted her and gave out red packets to everyone in the guild.

    Inparison, the members of Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent sunk into a deep depression. It wasn¡¯t so bad on Life At First Sight¡¯s side though, since Crying Fish was their Leader. They had to bury whatever dissatisfaction they had deep within their hearts.

    The situation on Sovereign¡¯s Descent¡¯s side was a different story altogether. Amotion immediately broke out, and several veteran members brought the issue up to Neverending Journey and asked what was going on. Why did Crying Fish lose every single one of her fights? Did she do so intentionally?

    Hehe, if that was the case, they could forget about the alliance. In their eyes, Crying Fish¡¯s didn¡¯t know how to prioritize things. If she could throw her matches just to gain the favor of a guy she likes, who¡¯s to say she won¡¯t go one step further and sell them out?

    Neverending Journey found the current situation a little hard to stomach too when he saw the flood of mail his guild members had sent in. He felt that it was time for Crying Fish to show some sincerity.

    Crying Fish immediately received mail when she walked out of the Nymph Abode. Shortly after, Neverending Journey himself appeared in front of her.

    "We need to talk," Neverending Journey said as he eyed the two guild members supporting Crying Fish. Understanding what he meant, Crying Fish sent them away and led him to her manor.

    "Didn¡¯t you say that you were confident you¡¯d be able to obtain the position of Lead Disciple? And didn¡¯t you say that when the timees, Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane wille crawling for help?! What¡¯s all this then?" Demanded Neverending Journey the moment they stepped into the manor; he sounded irritable and impatient.

    Crying Fish¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t any better either. "I didn¡¯t expect things to turn out this way."

    Neverending Journey narrowed his eyes, his tone taking on a dangerous edge. "Guild Leader Crying Fish, my guild hasn¡¯t gotten a single benefit ever since we formed this alliance. In fact, we¡¯ve lost swathes of skilled yers, and I¡¯ve also fallen out with my closest friend. You say you want to work together, but you go behind our backs to try and gain favor with Quiet And Steadfast... At the moment, I have very little confidence in our alliance."

    "I am trying to gain Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s favor, but in the end, our goals align. You want to crush Jade Sea Pavilion so that Sovereign¡¯s Descent can rise and be number one, while I can¡¯t stand Jade Sea Pavilion. Why don¡¯t you have any confidence in our alliance when there are benefits to be had for the both of us?"

    "Because I can¡¯t sense any sincerity from you. Rather, it feels like you can betray me at any moment. Take today, for instance; I heard that you lost all five matches in thepetition. Based on what I know, at the very least you should¡¯ve been able to beat the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins, and you also should¡¯ve been able to draw with that ugly monster from White Cloud Temple. So, why did it turn out like this?"

    "Sincerity?" Crying Fish was struck dumb by his words and noticed that he was sizing her up through narrowed eyes. "Then, what would you have me do to show my sincerity?"

    "My guild members have been kicking up a fuss. They say that the yers from Life At First Sight are far too arrogant and look down on Sovereign¡¯s Descent. So, I¡¯m thinking..." Neverending Journey¡¯s eyes suddenly took on a profound look. "Why don¡¯t we connect our guilds through marriage?"

    "Marriage?" Crying Fish asked back, thinking that she might¡¯ve misheard him. "Guild Leader Journey, what exactly do you think we¡¯re doing? This is just a game, why are you bringing up marriage?"

    "See? Your attitude shows how little you think of us," Said Neverending Journey as he drew closer. "Even if it¡¯s a game, it¡¯s still one of your ¡¯lives¡¯. So, Guild Leader Fish, will you or will you not ede to my proposal?"

    "..." Crying Fish fell silent for a moment before she said, "How will we proceed?"

    "You and I will get married. You¡¯ll also select a few girls from your guild to wed the veteran members of mine. This way, everyone from both guilds can set their minds at ease, and I won¡¯t doubt your sincerity any longer. In addition, we¡¯ll be able to go all out when we work together." He paused for a moment before he continued, "News of you being mercilessly defeated by Quiet And Steadfast has long since spread throughout the game. At a time like this, only the news of our marriage will be enough to save what¡¯s left of your reputation. Guild Leader Fish, I¡¯m doing this to help you too; you should be grateful."

    Crying Fish¡¯s face turned pale, but she didn¡¯t immediately reply. It looked like she was still hesitating.

    "What, you¡¯re still thinking of Quiet And Steadfast? Forgive me for being blunt, Guild Leader Fish, but he won¡¯t even spare a single nce for you. The longer you hesitate, the more of aughingstock you be in the eyes of others."

    Neverending Journey¡¯s words stabbed into Crying Fish¡¯s chest like a sharp sword. She suddenly remembered Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s coldness towards her during thepetition, and how he ruthlessly defeated her. Her eyes turned red as love and hate wove together to form a new emotion that she couldn¡¯t quite describe, making her appear even more enchanting.

    "Fine, I agree!"

 Chapter 301

    <b>Chapter 301: The Southern Sea (1)</b>

    The Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects had been gathered, so Quiet And Steadfast could finally turn in his quest. But, he didn¡¯t immediately do so when he considered the time of day. Instead, they agreed to meet the next day.

    The next day, all six Lead Disciples came online at the appointed time. Once everyone had gathered, Quiet And Steadfast brought them over to the Lich Pce. They decided that they would find Poison Toad to turn in the quest, while simultaneously picking up the ck Tortoise that they¡¯d left with him to incubate in the process.

    "You¡¯vee. The new ck Tortoise has been born,e along." When they arrived at the main hall of Lich Pce, Poison Toad was sitting at the Head Seat with one hand holding a cup of tea, while the other hand stirred it with the cup¡¯s lid. Sipping his drink, he spoke without looking up.

    Realising that the atmosphere was a little off, he raised his head and noticed the people standing behind Quiet And Steadfast. He furrowed his dashing eyebrows in confusion and asked, "They are...?"

    "Master, the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects have all been assembled," Said Quiet And Steadfast as he sped his hands in respect.

    Unconcealed joy bloomed on Poison Toad¡¯s face. He hurriedly set down his cup and walked over to the rest of the group before giving them a once over ¨C with the exclusion of Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast, of course.

    After examining everyone, Poison Toadughed loudly. His face was brimming with happiness; to the point where The Winds Of Ximen gulped down his saliva in surprise. He pulled Quiet And Steadfast over to the side and asked in a whisper, "Hey, Great God, isn¡¯t your Sect Leader too beautiful?"

    "Mm? He looks ok."

    When The Winds Of Ximen thought back to the Mara Hall¡¯s Sect Leader, who was as ugly as Zhang Fei, and tears began to stream down his face.

    All of them were Sect Leaders, but why did the other Sect Leaders have sage-like, alluring, or at least majestic appearances; while his was the only Sect Leader who was rough and hulk-like? Wasn¡¯t this discriminating against Maras?!

    "Wonderful, you really are a good disciple! You managed to gather the other five Lead Disciples in such a short time. Good, good! I¡¯ve truly picked the right person for the job!" Poison Toad was clearly ecstatic.

    "The Shinra Sect has been increasing in strength and I was worried that we wouldn¡¯t be able to make it in time but, I can rest easy now! Take this and keep it somewhere safe," He said as he retrieved a wooden que from his bosom. Apart from it beingpletely ck, it wasn¡¯t anything special.

    "What¡¯s this?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    "This is a miraculous wooden que. Take it to the Southern Sea and hand it over to a man named Su Qin. He¡¯ll update you on the Shinra Sect¡¯s current situation."

    Once Quiet And Steadfast had taken the wooden que from Poison Toad, Shen Jingbin stepped forward and asked, "Sect Leader Poison Toad, can I have the ck Tortoise now?"

    Poison Toad nced at her, a smile still lingering on his face. "Sure. The two of you can follow me, while the rest of you can wait here for a little while. Hannya, serve some tea for our guests."

    A disciple standing outside the main hall acknowledged him. Soon after, he led a few junior disciples in; each of them holding a pot of hot tea.

    Pure Crane and the other three sat down on both sides of the hall as Hannya and the junior disciples served them tea. The Winds of Ximen was the first to take a sip from his cup.

    Moments after sipping the tea, he heard a chime from the system notification. "You have drunk the Lich Pce¡¯s Spring Tea. Inner Strength has permanently increased by one point (Notice: Spring Tea can only increase a yer¡¯s attribute once. The attribute affected and the amount increased are random.). You have received the Tranquility buff for 30 minutes."

    What the f*ck?!?! The Winds Of Ximen was so surprised that he almost fell off his chair. Wasn¡¯t the Lich Pce getting too many perks? Was it toote for him to jump ship over to the Lich Pce?

    After rounding numerous bends, Poison Toad finally led Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast to an outdoor pond. When they approached, they saw ayer of steam rising from the surface of the pond.

    "This is the Lich Pce¡¯s Evil Warding Pond. Its waters have been refined by Samadhi fire, so it¡¯s perfect for hatching the ck Tortoise Egg," Poison Toad exined.

    "So, the ck Tortoise will be born in this pond? Wouldn¡¯t it be boiled alive?" Shen Jingbin questioned as she slowly approached. She trembled a little as she gazed at the bubbling pond.

    How hot did it have to be for the waters to bubble like that?

    Poison Toad wordlessly smiled as he slowly squatted, and brushed the pond¡¯s water with his hand. Several secondster, a stream of bubbles appeared as a jet-ck shadow started to rise from within the depths of the pond.

    The shadow drew closer and closer till it finally broke the surface of the water with a ssh, revealing a palm-sized tortoise that proceeded to intimately rub its head against Poison Toad¡¯s hand.

    "This is the ck Tortoise?" Shen Jingbin asked as she squatted in an attempt to take a closer look.

    Poison Toad patted the little tortoise¡¯s shell and picked it up before handing it to her. "This is a baby ck Tortoise. It¡¯s still too young for it to advance in rank, but it¡¯ll regain its power once it¡¯s old enough for its advancement."

    Shen Jingbin held the little tortoise in both hands and examined it carefully. "It only has the body of a tortoise; where¡¯s the winged snake?"

    "It¡¯s still within the tortoise¡¯s shell. The winged snake will appear when the ck Tortoise advances."

    Shen Jingbin looked down at the tortoise¡¯s shell once again. After examining it carefully for a while, she finally found an earthworm-like winged snake in the middle of the tortoise¡¯s shell.

    Why did she suddenly feel like her future was bleak?

    The two of them didn¡¯t dawdle any longer once they retrieved the ck Tortoise. Shen Jingbin stored the ck Tortoise in her pet inventory and they made their way back to the main hall. After bidding farewell to Poison Toad, Quiet And Steadfast majestically led the rest of the Lead Disciples on their journey to the Southern Sea.

 Chapter 302

    <b>Chapter 302: The Southern Sea (2)</b>

    The Southern Sea was an underwater map that was revealed after <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> released its Demonic Sect update. Ever since it¡¯s reveal, it became the game¡¯s most dangerous region. The Southern Sea was unique in that all monsters and NPCs in this area were able to freely move about. Furthermore, they were all high leveled and aggressive.

    Many yers had gone there to explore when the map had first opened. The unlucky ones had run into the roaming monsters before they¡¯d even had a chance to take in the sights of the new map. On the other hand, there were some lucky dogs who¡¯d managed to spend an entire day wandering about without encountering a single monster.

    There was little information about the Southern Sea on the official website. The only thing mentioned was that this was one of the main battlefields where the battle between good and evil was going to take ce. It was a yer who¡¯d first found out that the NPCs were able to move about freely in this map.

    It¡¯s hard to say whether that yer was lucky or not. There was an extremely limited number of NPCs in the Southern Sea, and he¡¯d managed to run into one shortly after the map was opened. The NPC had initially nned on giving him some items, but that yer might¡¯ve said something that ticked off the NPC while they were conversing because he promptly summoned a monster that instakilled him.

    Once he¡¯d respawned, he went back to the spot to look for the NPC. To his surprise, the NPC was no longer there. Unwilling to just give up, he returned several dayster and found the NPC leisurely strolling back from somece else.

    Until then, yers had had no idea that NPCs in the Southern Sea could roam about freely!

    As for that yer, finding the NPC didn¡¯t help him one bit. The NPC red daggers at him and once again summoned a monster to instakill him. Rumour has it that after this incident, the yer never stepped foot into the Southern Sea ever again.

    Quiet And Steadfast had heard from Hundred Daybreaks that the Southern Sea was far more dangerous than other areas, but that the opportunities to be had were proportionate to the danger too. He¡¯d long since been thinking of exploring this ce but hadn¡¯t had the time to do so because he¡¯d been held up by other matters.

    The teleportation arrays from other maps weren¡¯t able to transport yers to the Southern Sea. The only entrance was the Door of Sea and Sky that was located at the boundary between Thunder Marsh and the Southern Sea.

    The Door of Sea and Sky would only allow yers to pass through one at a time, and it would randomly send yers to anywhere within the Southern Sea. Where they ended up, and whether there¡¯d be any monsters nearby, would all depend on one¡¯s luck. Thankfully, yers who were in a party would all be sent to the same spot.

    To be on the safe side, Quiet And Steadfast was the first to pass through the Door of Sea and Sky, followed by Shen Jingbin, Pure Crane, Qi Mu, Gentle Flower, andstly, The Winds Of Ximen.

    They were lucky enough to be transported to Soundwave Temple, which was located in the middle of the Southern Sea, and where there weren¡¯t any nearby monsters.

    "Who are we looking for?" Pure Crane asked.

    "Su Qing," Quiet And Steadfast replied.

    "Su Qing? Never heard of him."

    Qi Mu chimed in, "Probably because no one¡¯s met him yet."

    "Then what should we do now?" Gentle Flower asked.

    The Winds Of Ximen nced around. "Let¡¯s just take our time to look for him. There¡¯s no teleportation array or ry station, so it looks like we¡¯re going to have to hoof it."

    Pure Crane retrieved a map from his bag. "I¡¯ve got a map for the Southern Sea. Let¡¯s see... At the moment, we¡¯re in the middle of the map. Which way should we go?" He asked while looking at Quiet And Steadfast.

    Quiet And Steadfast thought for a bit before he turned to Shen Jingbin who was ying with the ck Tortoise. She¡¯d let it out as soon as they¡¯d arrived at the Southern Sea. "Nutty, which direction do you think we should take?"

    "Eh?" Shen Jingbin looked up in confusion. Realizing that everyone was looking at her, she pulled herself together and asked, "You want me to decide?"

    "Nutty, you should decide as you¡¯re the luckiest amongst us," Gentle Flower said.

    The others nodded in agreement. The benefit of being in a party with friends made itself known at that moment: There was no need to worry about someone kicking up a fuss.

    "Alright then. Give me a moment..." Shen Jingbin said as she held the ck Tortoise and subconsciously stroked its shell with her hand while casting her gaze about.

    Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that even though she was holding it, the ck Tortoise was continuously wiggling its legs in an attempt to swim towards the south. Inspired by the ck Tortoise¡¯s odd behaviour, she pointed south and eximed, "That way!"

    The other five looked in the direction she¡¯d pointed in. Pure Crane nced down to consult the map in his hand and said, "Majestic Cloud Hall and Virtuous Heaven Temple lie south."

    "Good, let¡¯s head in that direction then," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    They summoned their mounts and took up the same formation that they¡¯d entered the Southern Sea in, moving in an orderly path towards the south.

    Surprisingly, they didn¡¯t encounter a single monster along the way!

    Aside from Qi Mu¡¯s mount, everyone else¡¯s mounts were of the highest quality and were able to move at incredible speeds. However, they took Qi Mu¡¯s mount into consideration and cut down their speed. In spite of that, they reached Majestic Cloud Hall before long.

    Majestic Cloud Hall was a three-story tall building with only a single door leading inside, and it was constructed in a strange manner. At first nce, it appeared broken beyond repair. Broken pieces of the wall seemed to be held up by some mysterious force as they floated above the structure. Those who stood in front of Majestic Cloud Hall¡¯s door would subconsciously feel like the debris hovering above them coulde crashing down at any time.

    Without any hesitation, the party entered the hall in session. However, the building was empty. They searched every nook and cranny, but their search yielded nothing.

    In the interest of saving time, they decided to leave Majestic Cloud Hall for Virtuous Heaven Temple.

    Virtuous Heaven Temple wasn¡¯t far from Majestic Cloud Hall, and it didn¡¯t take long for them to reach it. In contrast to Majestic Cloud Hall, there was now a tightly locked brass door.

    Without any prompting, the three men stepped forward and worked together to open it.

    Thankfully, this was only a game. Otherwise, they¡¯d never be able to open such a huge door in real life.

    ¡¯Creeeaakkk.¡¯

    The sound of the door groaning could be heard as it slowly opened.

    Just as the door was about to bepletely opened, a st of wind mixed with the scent of blood blew towards them.

    At the same time, the three women standing behind them shouted in unison.

    "Watch out!"

 Chapter 303

    <b>Chapter 303: A Phoenix In The Ocean (1)</b>

    A sharp screech broke the air, and a fireball shaped object came hurtling towards them from within Virtuous Heaven Temple at a speed that was nearly beyond the perception of the human eye.

    The three men released the door at the same time and rolled to the sides as the fireball-like thing flew out of the brass door and sped towards the surface of the ocean and disappeared. All that was left of its passage was the rippling of the sea and the ringing of their ears, courtesy of its screech.

    "Are the three of you alright?" Shen Jingbin cried out as she and the other two ran forward to check on the three men getting up from the ground.

    Quiet And Steadfast shook his arms and swiveled his neck to assure her that he was okay. "We¡¯re alright. We managed to dodge it in time, so none of us were hurt."

    The Winds Of Ximen looked in the direction that the fireball-like thing had flown off in and asked quizzically, "What was that?"

    Pure Crane held his wrist with his other hand and gave it a good shake. He then turned to the threedies and asked, "It was too fast, so I couldn¡¯t get a good look at it. Did any of you see what it was?"

    When the incident had happened, all of their attention had been focused on the three guys, preventing them from noticing anything else.

    "I caught sight of what looked to be a giant tail, but I couldn¡¯t make out the finer details of it," Qi Mu said unsurely.

    "A giant tail? Though we couldn¡¯t get a good look at it, it should be a type of bird. If it has an enormous tail, it should be... a Phoenix?" Quiet And Steadfast mused.

    Upon hearing the word ¡¯Phoenix¡¯, the party froze for a moment before they subconsciously recalled the creature¡¯s figure and cry.

    "Now that you mention it, it did sound like the Phoenixes I¡¯ve seen in shows on TV. Simrly, it has an extremely harsh sounding cry," The Winds Of Ximen said.

    "But, why¡¯d it fly into the sea? It doesn¡¯t make any sense," Pure Crane asked.

    "I agree. Yiju has always been a stickler when ites to lore, so I doubt they¡¯d allow a Phoenix to fly out of the ocean; it must be something else," Gentle Flowermented.

    Shen Jingbin had felt distraught ever since that unknown creature had flown into the ocean. Currently, everyone else was trying to figure out what the heck it was, leaving her the only person who was staring out into the ocean; her thoughts an enigma.

    Different from the Eastern Sea, the Southern Sea was an underwater map. Usually, an oxygen meter would appear whenever yers were underwater. After remaining underwater for a set amount of time, their oxygen meter would start to slowly deplete. Once that happened, their HP would start to drop until they surfaced or died. However, things were different in the Southern Sea. Here, yers would be able to move about as if they were onnd and there were no side effects whatsoever. At the same time, the art team had made the ocean water a shade of clear dark blue, allowing yers to see their surroundings even when they were in the ocean. Still, taking into consideration the depth they were at and the refraction of light in the water, yers wouldn¡¯t be able to see as clearly as they would be able to onnd.

    At this point, the others finally noticed Shen Jingbin¡¯s silence. The Winds Of Ximen waved a hand in front of her and asked, "Hey, what are you looking at?"

    Shen Jingbin continued to stare unblinkingly at the ocean¡¯s surface as she batted aside his hand. "Don¡¯t move..."

    Her pupils suddenly constricted when she was midway through her sentence. There it was!

    "Move!" Shen Jingbin suddenly roared.

    The group heard a loud bang above them just after she spoke, and the scenery before them began to distort.

    This was the same phenomenon that could be seen when a weight was dropped into water!

    Not daring to waste even a single second, the six of them scattered in different directions. Although Qi Mu¡¯s mind reacted quickly, her body wasn¡¯t able to keep up with her thoughts. At this moment, The Winds Of Ximen tugged her belt and pulled her to the side.

    ¡¯Bang!¡¯ As soon as they dispersed, a wave of force came crashing down from the sky,nding where the two of them had stood just moments ago. Immediately after, the surrounding seawater began to roil.

    The pair took a deep breath of air after they regained their footing. Luckily for them, they¡¯d managed to dodge in time. Otherwise, they definitely wouldn¡¯t have survived.

    No other activity could be heard after that. The five of them disyed an unspoken understanding and made their way towards Quiet And Steadfast.

    "What happened?" Quiet And Steadfast asked with furrowed brows, while the rest of them turned their gaze to Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin stared intensely at the center of the turbid ocean and said, "That fireball-like thing just flew out again."

    "The giant bird?" The Winds Of Ximen asked.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. The little ck Tortoise in her arms seemed very excited as it struggled nonstop in her arms. However, try as it might, it wasn¡¯t able to break free as Shen Jingbin was holding its shell.

    "I¡¯ll have a look," Said a certain Miss Shen from the of Bottomless Courage, as she nced at the little ck Tortoise before taking a step forward.

    Quiet And Steadfast quickly grabbed onto her hand and said, "Hold on, let¡¯s go together."

    Shen Jingbin nced back at him but didn¡¯t reject his proposal.

    The pair carefully made their way towards the center of the turbid ocean. As soon as they approached, a familiar cry suddenly rang out. Shortly after, an enormous zing wing reached out from the muddy waters and shot towards them.

    "It¡¯s the Phoenix!" Shen Jingbin managed to get a good look at the creature when she dodged it. It looked almost the same as the Phoenixes she¡¯d seen in Chinese fantasy shows. The only difference was that its feathers were more brightly coloured.

    While shielding her, Quiet And Steadfast cried out, "Who cares what that thing is! It¡¯s definitely not an NPC, so just attack it!"

    Apart from Qi Mu, everyone else appeared with a ¡¯whoosh¡¯ and proceeded to surround this odd Phoenix with their weapons in hand.

    Shen Jingbin ced the little ck Tortoise back in her pet inventory and released Mascot, while Quiet And Steadfast summoned Fuzhu. The group then began their assault on the Phoenix whom they¡¯d surrounded.

 Chapter 304

    <b>Chapter 304: A Phoenix In The Ocean (2)</b>

    Legends say that the Phoenix is a God Bird that represents fortune and wealth. However, when the seawater gradually calmed down, they found that apart from its brightly coloured feathers, which bore a simrity to that of a God Bird, everything else about it was nothing like the bird of legend; be it the air about it or any other feature. Rather, it was more like a monster than a God Bird.

    No white was present within the creature¡¯s eyes. Instead, they were a strange shade of blood-red. When it opened its beak, an unknown ck liquid dripped out of it and onto the sand with a hiss. The creature was also apanied by a stench so foul; it assailed the noses of everyone present.

    Thank god they were able to endure it. Otherwise, they probably would have passed out when they got close.

    They were all experts. While there was some difficulty at the start when they weren¡¯t familiar with one another, theyter worked out a battle n, and their coordination only grew smoother from there. Even the legendary Phoenix couldn¡¯t do anything to them and was being gradually pushed back.

    "What¡¯s it doing?!"

    When the Phoenix was just about to breathe itsst, it suddenly retreated and hovered in the air, continually pping its wings while numerous ck threads began to spill out from its body. These threads were as thin as silk and extremely long, snaking out in all directions.

    The ck threads continued to grow in length, gradually covering the area above them to resemble a spider¡¯s web. With the increase in threads, the Phoenix began to screech continuously. It was a mournful cry, and everyone present who heard it felt waves of throbbing pain.

    All of a sudden, Mascot and Fuzhu turned restless. Fuzhu, in particr, fell to the ground as its legs twitched and its body trembled. On the other hand, Mascot was growling off to the side and repeatedly mming its head into the nearby corals like a madman.

    Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast were taken aback by the sight and hurriedly ced their pets back into their pet inventory.

    Quiet And Steadfast tried throwing his dagger at the Phoenix who was floating in the sky, but the dagger rebounded off it, almost as if there was an enchantment surrounding the Phoenix. Pure Crane and Qi Mu¡¯s skills were able to reach further than the others, so they triedunching their skills at the Phoenix. However, the result was the same as the dagger, and they rebounded harmlessly off the Phoenix.

    As the six of them looked on helplessly at the Phoenix floating in the sky, Qi Mu noticed that the ground beneath them was trembling slightly.

    "Be careful of the ground," She shouted anxiously.

    At times like these, even the slightest change in their surroundings could be the precursor to something else. Everyone immediately took what she said to heart and hurriedly nced down at the ground.

    At present, the tremors had already built up in intensity, and they now felt like a mighty army with thousands of steeds stampeding towards them.

    Quiet And Steadfast was the first to react. "Stop staring! Hurry up and head towards Virtuous Heaven Temple! Move!" He shouted.

    The six of them immediately did an about face and made a beeline for Virtuous Heaven Temple.

    Although the brass door of Virtuous Heaven Temple was left only slightly ajar, the gap wasrge enough for them to enter single file. Without any bickering, they quickly made their way into the temple in the same sequence they¡¯d used before.

    By this time, the tremors had be so violent that they could barely even stand.

    "Shut the door!" Quiet And Steadfast shouted.

    All of them rushed forward without a single question and pushed against the door with all their strength. Strangely, the copper door seemed to be frozen to the ground. It refused to budge no matter how hard they tried.

    "It won¡¯t move!" The Winds Of Ximen shouted.

    Shen Jingbin looked up and nced outside. That one look was all it took for her scalp to go numb.

    Considering the unique geography of the Southern Sea, monsters here naturally weren¡¯t as numerous as those in other areas. That being said, the number of monsters in this map wasn¡¯t small either.

    Now, countless monsters of various shapes and sizes had suddenly appeared outside Virtuous Heaven Temple and were jostling against one another as they made a mad sprint towards the temple.

    Every one of the monsters had a strand of ck thread sticking out of their heads. With every move that they made, the ck threads floated about in the water as if they were alive. It was truly a frightening sight.

    When she looked up this time, the water above Virtuous Heaven Temple was utterly enveloped in ck threads that stemmed from the strange Phoenix. These ck threads were arranged so densely that not even light could pass through. Itpletely blocked out the sky, and their vision turned dark.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the only one who¡¯d noticed this change; the others had as well.

    "F*ck!" The Winds Of Ximen swore. "What the f*ck is that?!"

    Qi Mu¡¯s face turned pale, and her legs grew weak, but she did her best to remain standing and give her all to shut the door. "Those... must be... all of the nearby monsters... right?" She whispered. Her exnationing out haltingly since she was straining herself to her limits.

    Pure Crane¡¯s expression turned serious. "It¡¯s not just the ones that are nearby; I¡¯m afraid that all the monsters in the Southern Sea are currently here."

    Gentle Flower wasn¡¯t looking so good. "Why did so many monsters suddenly appear?"

    "It¡¯s the Phoenix," Shen Jingbin exined. "The ck strands of thread that it produced have forced all of the monsters in the Southern Sea to appear here."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s eyes were a sea of calm as he stared at the many monsters that were drawing ever closer. He then once again turned his attention to the Phoenix whose voice sounded more mournful with every cry.

    "Don¡¯t stop! Use everyst ounce of your strength to shut the door! If we can¡¯t... we¡¯ll go out and ughter everyst one of these monsters!"

 Chapter 305

    <b>Chapter 305: Virtuous Heaven Temple (1)</b>

    "Don¡¯t...don¡¯t do anything rash. I... I know how to close the door..." As the horde of densely packed monsters continued to draw nearer, the party of six prepared to face theing onught. Just then, they heard the halting voice of a person behind them.

    The six of them looked back as one and found a youth who was covered from head to toe in blood leaning against the frame of Virtuous Heavenly Temple¡¯s door. His hair was a mess, and there were several terrifying scars on his face. He looked like he¡¯d just returned from a great battle.

    When everyone¡¯s attention was focused on him, the youth straightened his body with great difficulty. With one hand pressed against the other, he stumbled as he jogged towards the brass door. He then started feeling around the left side of the door. He appeared to have found something, as a series of clicks could be heard and the door slowly shut on its own.

    Everyone took a step back as they watched the door gradually close. Thankfully, when they¡¯d previously opened the doors, they hadn¡¯t opened them too wide, or the monsters would¡¯ve been able to make it inside in an instant. With that, the enormous doors were shut tight.

    ¡¯Bang. Bang. Bang.¡¯

    The moment the doors closed, the people inside could hear the distinct sounds of several weighty objects mming against it in session.

    Seeing the party standing there in silence, the youth thought that they were worried about the monsters outside breaking in, so he put on a weak smile and said, "Don¡¯t... worry... this door has my Master¡¯s seal on it; they won¡¯t be able to enter."

    As soon as he finished speaking, the youth fell to the floor; almost as if he¡¯d used up thest of his strength. Luckily, he was caught by The Winds Of Ximen who¡¯d instinctively reached out to support him.

    The youth¡¯s eyes unfocused for a moment. It took him a long while before he was able to regain consciousness. He struggled to stand up before giving his thanks.

    Looking at the condition the youth was in, Quiet And Steadfast had no idea when the youth was going to kick the bucket. "Your wounds are extremely severe and you need immediate attention."

    "Then I¡¯ll have to trouble the young... young heroes, to help support me into the temple¡¯s interior where there¡¯s medicine that I can use for healing."

    With The Winds Of Ximen¡¯s help, the youth made his way into Virtuous Heaven Temple. Under his guidance, Pure Crane found some medicine that could be used to heal the youth. After applying the medicine, the youth¡¯s face turned a healthy shade of pink in the blink of an eye.

    So, it looked like he was an NPC.

    Afterpletely recovering from his injuries, the youth was full of vigor when he spoke. "I really have to thank you, young heroes, for your help today. If it weren¡¯t for you, both Virtuous Heaven Temple and I probably wouldn¡¯t be around anymore."

    The six of them still weren¡¯t clear on what was going on with the youth and Virtuous Heaven Temple, so Quiet And Steadfast stepped up to the te and asked, "Little Brother, could you tell us what exactly that giant bird outside is? Also, what¡¯s Virtuous Heaven Temple¡¯s current situation?"

    The youth had a somewhat innocent look about him, but he didn¡¯t seem to be all that simple a person. Upon hearing Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s question, a corner of his mouth curled up into a momentary smile, and he returned Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s question with one of his own in an attempt to sound him out. "May I know who you young heroes are? Why have youe to Virtuous Heaven Temple? The Southern Sea is filled with danger, and few outsiders ever drop by."

    "We¡¯re the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects. We¡¯ve been tasked by our sect leaders to travel here and search for someone. Unexpectedly, instead of finding the person we were looking for, we ran into this situation instead," Pure Crane replied.

    The youth¡¯s eyes immediately lit up. "You¡¯re the Lead Disciples dispatched by the Six Great Sects!"

    The sudden joy on the youth¡¯s face might have been too much for the group to immediately adapt to, so they exchanged nces with one another instead.

    "Yes, we are," Quiet And Steadfast confirmed.

    "Do you carry any proof of your identity?"

    "Proof?"

    Asking them for proof would be putting them in a bit of a bind. After bing a Lead Disciple, the system publicised their new position, and the everyone else had epted it just like that. Thus, they had nothing on hand to prove their identity. If they really needed to do so, then the only thing they could probably do was bring over an NPC from one of the sects and get them to testify. But, they obviously couldn¡¯t do such a thing.

    Noticing the difficulty that they were facing, the youth didn¡¯t push them for proof any longer. He rolled his eyes in contemtion before he switched to a different question instead. "You said you were looking for someone. Who¡¯s this person you¡¯re looking for?"

    The Winds Of Ximen wasn¡¯t all that happy with the way the youth was questioning them. "Why¡¯re you asking us so many questions? Regardless, we did help you, and you show your gratitude by interrogating us? Also, we don¡¯t even know who you are. For all we know, you could be one of the bad guys! If you were, wouldn¡¯t it be horrifying if we revealed everything to you?! Why don¡¯t you tell us who are you are first instead?"

    The youth¡¯s face turned dull and lifeless for a moment before he recovered his previous vigor. "Young hero, what you¡¯ve said makesplete sense. My apologies for offending you. My name is Shao Feng, and I¡¯m one of the disciples of Virtuous Heaven Temple. Several days ago, my Master foretold the future and said that there would be some changesing to the Southern Sea. He left the temple to patrol the area, and till today has yet to return, leaving me alone by myself to guard it," He said somewhat apologetically.

    "By ¡¯it¡¯, you mean that giant bird?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Shao Feng nodded his head. "That bird is actually the legendary Vermillion Bird..."

    Before he even had the chance to finish, Shen Jingbin cried out in astonishment, "The Vermillion Bird? You mean that thing outside is the Vermilion Bird?!"

    Seriously? The Divine Beast, Vermillion Bird, has such a ghastly appearance? Are you screwing with me?

    "Yup, it¡¯s the one and only Vermillion Bird. Ah, that¡¯s not right. I¡¯m not quite sure it counts as the Vermillion Bird in its current state. It¡¯s a ratherplicated situation. I¡¯m not too clear on the details, but my Master knows what¡¯s going on. You can ask him about it when she returns... Anyway, things have been fine ever since my Master left, but I never expected the Vermillion Bird to go crazy today and try to break through my Master¡¯s seal. I¡¯m no match for it, so I was nning to activate the seal and use it to suppress the Vermillion Bird. But s, I... pressed the wrong button... and identally released it by opening the temple doors."

    Quiet And Steadfast rubbed his chin and said, "So the reason we managed to open the Virtuous Heaven Temple¡¯s doors just now was because you pressed the wrong button?"

    Hahaha. He was wondering why they were able to open such enormous doors so quickly. It ultimately went against Yiju¡¯s trollish way of doing things.

    Shao Feng awkwardly scratched his head. "That¡¯s...about right..."

    "..."

 Chapter 306

    <b>Chapter 306: Virtuous Heaven Temple (2)</b>

    "After the previous great battle between good and evil in the past, the Vermillion Bird was trapped under Virtuous Heaven Temple. Now that it¡¯s escaped, it¡¯s naturally filled with grievances. This was why it gathered all of the monsters within the Southern Sea with the intent of taking revenge. That¡¯s more or less the current situation. Young heroes, do you understand what¡¯s going on now? If you do, can you tell me who you¡¯re looking for and why? Each of the four corners of the Southern Sea has a guardian, and my Master is the Guardian of the North. Who knows, I might know who you¡¯re looking for, and I might even be able to help you guys out a little."

    Pure Crane and Quiet And Steadfast exchanged a nce with one another before Quiet And Steadfast spoke, "I¡¯m the Lead Disciple of the Lich Pce, Quiet And Steadfast. My Sect Leader, Poison Toad, has sent me here to look for someone named Su Qing and hand an item to him. From what I know, it has something to do with the Shinra Sect." After speaking, he pulled out the ck que that Poison Toad had given him.

    Shao Feng¡¯s face immediately lit up when he spotted the ck que. "This is the Immortal Transformation que... This Su Qing you speak of is actually the reincarnation of the Southern Sea¡¯s Eastern Pagoda Master, and he¡¯s also the Guardian of the East. My Master is on excellent terms with him. When she¡¯s back, she can take you to meet Su Qing."

    ¡¯Bang!¡¯ Another resounding thump could be heard from outside.

    "When will your Master be back?" Gentle Flower asked.

    Shao Feng appeared as if he was trying to perform fortune telling. "My Master didn¡¯t say when she¡¯d be back, but now that the Vermillion Bird has escaped and caused such a huge ruckus, she should be hurrying back. Let me figure out how long she¡¯ll take... Ah! Master¡¯s right at the temple¡¯s doorstep!"

    The group looked back at the brass doors when they¡¯d heard what he said. But, apart from the doors trembling slightly whenever it was attacked, nothing else could be seen.

    "Little Brother, are you sure your calctions are urate?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Shao Feng¡¯s face flushed, and he proceeded to count once again. While he did so, he said, "Of course it¡¯s urate! Eh? That¡¯s strange. By my calctions, my Master should have been back already. Why¡¯d it turn out like this..."

    Before he had a chance to finish, the familiar cry of a bird sounded out.

    It was the cry of the Vermillion Bird.

    Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane both stood up with a ¡¯whoosh¡¯.

    "Your Master is probably back, but she¡¯s been obstructed by the monsters outside," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    Shao Feng¡¯s face turned sullen. "We¡¯re done for, we¡¯re done for. Master is never going to forgive me when she gets in."

    When she thought back to the scenery that she¡¯d seen before she stepped in, Shen Jingbin was a little suspicious about how reliable Shao Feng¡¯s Master would be. Would she really have to strength to take on all of the monsters within the Southern Sea and the Vermillion Bird, who was bursting at the seams with hatred?

    She clearly wasn¡¯t the only one who harboured such doubts. "Is your Master that strong? Will she be able to take on all of those monsters outside?" Qi Mu asked.

    "Of course she can¡¯t! My Master may be strong, but she isn¡¯t that strong."

    "... Then how is she going to get in?" Shen Jingbin asked again.

    "You young heroes will, of course, be going out to help her~ My Master is going to bring you guys to see Elder Su Qing, so you guys should obviously do something to help my Master in return," Shao Feng said innocently.

    "..."

    Sure enough, there was no such thing as a free meal in this world.

    All sorts of monstrous shrieks began to sound out from behind the door.

    "Let¡¯s go. Let¡¯s go out and help her. The faster we get this over with, the faster she can lead us to Su Qing," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    The rest of them stood up, drew their weapons, and ensured that they were in the best possible state to do battle.

    When the group stood in front of the door, they heard Shao Feng call out from within the temple, "I¡¯ll help you guys to open the door." Then, the brass door which felt like it had been welded shut suddenly began to slowly creak open.

    The outside was a scene straight from purgatory.

    Torn limbs were strewn all over the ground, but none of them were human shaped. The once densely packed throng of monsters no longer encircled the temple doors.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s sharp eyes suddenly caught sight of a person who was buried in monsters.

    The person¡¯s skirt that was once white had now been stained with various shades of blood. She held in her hands a long sword that was suffused with a golden light. With a swing of her de, any monsters that came in touch with her de¡¯s edge all fell without exception. However, there were far too many monsters, and in spite of how strong she was, she wasn¡¯t able to deal with their numbers, let alone the Vermillion BIrd that was eyeing her like a tiger from above.

    Upon hearing the brass door open, the woman shouted at the top of her voice while her hands continued to brandish her weapon, "If you¡¯re out, thene over and help me!" The woman used some unknown technique to raise her voice, allowing it to be clearly heard by everyone present.

    "Qi Mu, remain by the door and refrain from joining in the fight. Just focus on looking after yourself," Quiet And Steadfast instructed Qi Mu.

    "Advance!"

    ¡¯Whoosh!¡¯

    The five of them leapt out with the speed of an arrow leaving a bow and made a beeline for the woman who was being surrounded by the monsters.

    "Cover me, and help me catch the Vermillion Bird!" The woman instructed when she saw them drawing closer. At the same time, a red beam of light shot out from her sleeves. The red beam moved as if it were alive, and shot straight towards the Vermillion Bird above them as soon as it left her sleeve.

    When the Vermillion Bird saw the red beam of light speeding towards it, it raised its head and cried out as it pped its wings in an attempt to flee. Unfortunately, it was a step too slow and was firmly caught within the light and unable to break free.

 Chapter 307

    <b>Chapter 307: Saving the Vermilion Bird (1)</b>

    Virtuous Heaven Temple¡¯s Overseer sliced through the monsters like a hot knife cuts through butter. With every swing of her de, a monster fell. She made it look easy, but for Shen Jingbin¡¯s group, taking these monsters on posed some difficulty. Despite that, they were able to clean out a sizeable area.

    Not needing to worry about the monsters sneaking up on her any longer, Virtuous Heaven Temple¡¯s Overseer turned all of her attention to dealing with the Vermilion Bird flying above her. Currently, it was restrained by the red light and unable to break free, no matter how it struggled. The ck threads on its body suddenly surged upwards to twist and distort;shing out at her like a whip.

    The monsters around them seemed to have gone berserk because of the Vermilion Bird¡¯s rage. Seeing this, the Overseer feltpelled to issue a warning. "Look out for those Soul Locking Threads. Make sure you don¡¯t get hit! If you¡¯re hit by the Vermilion Bird¡¯s Soul Locking Threads, your soul will be trapped, and you¡¯ll be its puppet; just like those monsters. When that happens, you¡¯ll never be free unless you defeat the Vermillion Bird."

    Everyone was taken aback when they heard her warning. At first, they were only focused on killing the monsters. Now, they had no choice but to do their best to dodge those tentacle-like Soul Locking Threads. The Overseer nced at them before turning her attention back to the Vermilion Bird. She pursed her red lips, used her legs to exert a bit of strength, and leapt straight into the air; appearing before the Vermillion Bird in the blink of an eye.

    The Vermilion Bird cried out before opening its mouth. ¡¯Boom!¡¯ A jet-ck ball of fire erupted from its beak.

    "It looks like you¡¯ve still got quite a bit of spirit even after being locked up for so long. I must¡¯ve gone too easy on you in the past!" The Overseer said as she stared straight into the Vermilion Bird¡¯s eyes that were devoid of any white. Her expression turned cold, and she whipped her long sleeves forward to deflect the fireball towards the throng of monsters below; immediately burning all of the monsters in a wide area to death.

    Holding her golden sword in her right hand, she ced her left index finger and middle finger against her forehead and pulled out another sword that radiated a silver glow. She thenbined the two swords and pulled a flower from her sleeve to obstruct the Vermillion Bird¡¯s vision. At the same time, she rushed forward to attack and viciously plunged her de into the Vermillion Bird¡¯s abdomen.

    Everything happened in an instant. The ones fighting hard only heard the Vermillion Bird¡¯s shriek above them before an object mmed heavily into the ground.

    All of the monsters¡¯ movements instantly became strangely sluggish; as if they were frozen in time. Shortly after, a few of them began to move again and dazedly examined their surroundings. Looks of shock appeared on their faces when they found that they were at Virtuous Heaven Temple, and they immediately beat a hasty retreat. More and more monsters gradually regained consciousness, but each of them reacted the same way. Not long after, not a single monster was left. If not for the traces of battle left by their fight, Shen Jingbin would¡¯ve thought that everything she¡¯d seen was all a dream.

    The Overseer sheathed her sword, walked over to the Vermilion Bird¡¯s side, and kicked its body. "Come over and help me get this thing back into the temple," She said to Shen Jingbin and the others.

    In the game, NPCs were kings, and none of them had the slightest inclination to decline her. They obediently approached the Vermilion Bird.

    "Master!" Shao Feng, who was hidden inside the temple, could tell from the silence that the battle was over and hurriedly ran out.

    The Overseer awarded her disciple with a rap on the head. "I told you to guard the temple, and this is how you do it? If I¡¯d beente or held up by other matters, Virtuous Heaven Temple would¡¯ve been destroyed."

    Shao Feng covered the spot where he¡¯d been hit and looked at his Master with the expression of a kicked puppy.

    "What¡¯re you staring at me for? Quickly, go help. Clean up after yourself."

    "Okay," Came Shao Feng¡¯s pitiful response. He jogged up to Shen Jingbin¡¯s group and began helping them move the paralyzed Vermilion Bird into the temple. It currently couldn¡¯t move, and it wasn¡¯t able to shoot mes out of its mouth, but its feral re still creeped him out. In response, Shao Feng took out a piece of dark colored cloth and covered the Vermillion BIrd¡¯s head with it.

    Realising that everyone was now staring at him, he offered an awkward exnation. "Its... its re was too intense. I was worried that youdies might be scared, so... right, so I covered it up. No thanks are needed."

    Heh, you¡¯re the one who¡¯s actually scared!

    After the fight, Qi Mu took the initiative to heal everyone and cleanse their negative status effects before helping them out. All of them worked together to move the Vermilion Bird into the temple.

    "I¡¯m the Overseer of Virtuous Heaven Temple, Xu Sheng. Your efforts today prevented this incident from bing a catastrophe." After resealing the Vermilion Bird, Xu Sheng bade them be seated in the main hall. "Are you the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects?"

    "We are," Quiet and Steadfast said as he cupped his fist in greeting

    "If my guess is right, you¡¯vee to the Southern Sea in search for someone, right?" Asked Xu Sheng.

    Quiet and Steadfast nodded.

    "Then, the day has finallye." Xu Sheng let out a heavy sigh. "I happen to know the person you¡¯re looking for. As repayment for your help, I¡¯ll be your guide."

 Chapter 308

    <b>Chapter 308: Saving the Vermilion Bird (2)</b>

    "Wait," Shen Jingbin suddenly said, stopping Xu Sheng in her tracks. "Overseer, there¡¯s something I¡¯d like to ask you before we leave."

    Xu Sheng turned to look at her. "What is it?"

    "Both Shao Feng and you refer to this bird as the Vermilion Bird. What I don¡¯t understand, is that the Vermilion Bird is one of the Divine Beasts mentioned in the legends. How did it end up like this? And, why was it sealed within in the Virtuous Heaven Temple?"

    "What¡¯s the intent behind these questions?"

    "I¡¯ll be frank with you; Shentu and Yul¨¹ have tasked me with finding the four Divine Beasts. Thus far, I¡¯ve already found the White Tiger and the ck Tortoise. All I¡¯m missing is the Vermilion Bird."

    Xu Sheng turned back and briskly walked up to her. "You¡¯ve found the White Tiger and the ck Tortoise?" She asked anxiously. "Where are they? May I see them?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded and released Mascot and the little ck Tortoise from her pet inventory. The moment they appeared, Mascot jumped onto the little ck Tortoise¡¯s shell like an idiot. The little ck Tortoise couldn¡¯t be bothered to move or deal with Mascot, so it resigned itself to letting this childish thing kick up a fuss on top of its shell.

    Good thing Mascot didn¡¯t revert to its original form and was now the size of a kitten. Otherwise, all it would¡¯ve taken was just a single paw from Mascot to crush the little ck Tortoise.

    Xu Sheng was thrilled to see the two Divine Beasts. "After all these years, the time has finallye!" She slowly approached the two Divine Beasts and squatted before them. She stretched out her hand with the intent of touching Mascot¡¯s furry head but was deterred when it bared its teeth.

    Shen Jingbin gave a wry smile. "Um, Mascot¡¯s a little... dumb," She said as she used the tip of her foot to gently kick Mascot.

    Xu Sheng was dumbfounded for a moment, but then she quickly recovered. "It¡¯s alright. This is the Divine Beast, White Tiger. It¡¯s natural for it to dislike being touched... You were asking about the Vermilion Bird, weren¡¯t you? We¡¯re not supposed to tell anyone else, but..."

    She stood up and went back to her seat. Everyone¡¯s attention was now focused on her.

    "Do you know that the Southern Sea was one of the main battlefields in the great war between good and evil?"

    All six of them had read the official announcement when the Southern Sea map was first opened, so they nodded their heads in unison.

    "In that war, the two Celestial sects worked together, and with great difficulty, they managed to convince the Vermilion Bird to leave its home and help them. However, the Vermilion Bird was at the end of its life, and its rebirth happened on the battlefield in the Southern Sea. The Vermilion Bird isn¡¯t a Phoenix, but they¡¯re simr in some ways. It can also rise from the ashes and be reborn. During this time, the Vermillion Bird is at its weakest. When the Vermilion Bird was about to reborn, the Sect Leader of the Shinra Sect contaminated the karmic ze lotus of its Nirvana with his sin fire. The Vermilion Bird was unable to reborn and was corrupted by the evil qi of the Shinra Sect, turning it into an evil spirit."

    "As a Divine Beast, the Vermilion Bird must have known that it was at the end of its life. Why would it agree to leave?" Asked Pure Crane.

    Xu Sheng sighed. "Because the Vermilion Bird was the guardian of the Celestials. Both sects of the Celestials were in trouble and beseeched it for help, so how could it deny them? It had no chance but to ede to their request. Regardless, the Vermilion Bird was still a Divine Beast, so it managed to retain some of its consciousness after emerging from the sin me. It held itself back and even killed many people from the Shinra Sect. Back then, the Shinra Sect suffered a great loss at the hands of the Vermillion Bird."

    "Before itpletely turned into an evil spirit, the Vermilion Bird worked with the Sect Leaders who were present at the time to seal itself. Virtuous Heaven Temple guards the southern end of the Southern Sea, and it has the strongest seal because of our location. So, the Vermilion Bird was sealed here."

    "The Vermilion Bird¡¯s a Divine Beast," Said Quiet and Steadfast. "Would just a few Sect Leaders be enough to seal it?"

    "Normally, even if all six Sect Leaders from the Six Great Sects worked together, they still wouldn¡¯t be a match for the Vermillion Bird. But, as you¡¯ve said yourself, the Vermilion Bird was born from the world¡¯s qi and possessed a Celestial body. The Vermillion Bird naturally took a huge hit to its strength when it was corrupted by the sin fire. That, coupled with the Vermilion Bird suppressing itself, allowed for this to happen." Xu Sheng¡¯s face became forlorn. "I¡¯ve been guarding this seal for countless years as I watched the Vermillion Bird¡¯s true nature struggle against the evil qi within. However, not long ago, I found that the Vermillion¡¯s Bird¡¯s true nature was weakening while the evil qi within it grew ever stronger. It won¡¯t be long now before itpletely turns into an evil spirit... If it manages to escape when that happens, a great disaster will follow."

    "When the Demonic Sect¡¯s dungeons were first opened, I wondered why a Divine Beast like the Vermillion Bird would be part of it," Pure Cranemented. "Now I know why."

    "Overseer, is there any way it to return it to its former state?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Xu Sheng fell silent for a good long while before she finally looked up at Shen Jingbin and said, "There is a way, but it¡¯s far too difficult; you might not be able to see it through."

    "There¡¯s no such thing as it being too difficult. Just tell us! Our Nutty is never afraid!" The Wind of Ximen said without thinking.

    "..."

    "Then I¡¯ll tell you. The Vermilion Bird knew that things wouldn¡¯t end well when sin fire contaminated its karmic ze lotus, so it left behind its Blood of Regret. This Blood of Regret is the key to helping it recover. But s, no one knows where it is."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes twitched. This Blood of Regret sounded awfully familiar.

    "Wait, I think I¡¯ve heard of it before."

    "Huh?" Everyone¡¯s attention immediately shifted to her.

    Back then, when she was running the three Demonic Sect dungeons with Morning Glory Chime, National Treasures, and the others, she received an item called "The Vermilion Bird¡¯s Blood" in the Blood Soaked Hell. She didn¡¯t know what it was for, so she kept it in her bag and paid it no mind. Little did she expect it to show its worth now.

    She took the Vermillion Bird¡¯s Blood out and showed it to Xu Sheng. "Overseer, is this it?!"

    Xu Sheng¡¯s face lit up in joy. "It is! Everything truly is preordained; I didn¡¯t expect you to have it!" She looked Shen Jingbin in the eye and said, "Young hero, you¡¯ve tamed the White Tiger and the ck Tortoise, and possess the Vermilion Bird¡¯s Blood. In my mind, the mission of rescuing the Vermilion Bird falls to you and no other! I¡¯m about to tell you how to heal the Vermillion Bird. I hope that you¡¯ll listen carefully to what I have to say and that you¡¯ll stand firm no matter what happens. You¡¯re the only one who can help the Vermillion Bird."

    A glint shed through Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes.

    "Alright."

 Chapter 309

    <b>Chapter 309: The Vermillion Bird¡¯s Consciousness (1)</b>

    "Congrattions, you¡¯ve triggered the hidden quest ¡¯The Divine Beasts¡¯ Salvation. (Trigger condition: Be above Level 110, possess the Vermillion Bird¡¯s blood, and own at least one Divine Beast.)"

    "Quest: ¡¯The Divine Beasts¡¯ Salvation ¨C Rescue the Divine Beast, Vermillion Bird (0/1). Will you ept this quest? Yes/No."

    "Yes."

    After Shen Jingbin epted the quest, Xu Sheng¡¯s red lips moved as she continued, "I¡¯lly down a formation in a bit and send you into the Vermillion Bird¡¯s consciousness. Your mission is to eliminate all the evil spirits afflicting its mind. Beware: these evil spirits have grown over the years and are night and day from how they used to be. Be on your guard at all times."

    Right after she finished speaking, Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression darkened. "Wait, are you saying that she¡¯ll be going alone?"

    Xu Sheng gave him a questioning look and nodded. "Mm."

    "No, we¡¯re going with her," came Quiet And Steadfast emphatic refusal.

    The others chimed in as well and echoed his sentiment.

    "Yeah. How can we let Nutty go on her own? Count us in!" The Winds of Ximen said.

    "It¡¯s far too dangerous to go alone. If possible, allow us to apany her," Pure Crane added.

    "Although my DPS isn¡¯t enough, I¡¯ve brought lots of healing and cleansing potions. They should be able to provide some help, at least," Qi Mu said.

    "I too think it¡¯s better for us to stick together at a time like this," Gentle Flower said.

    Xu Sheng gave a helpless sigh when she saw the insistent looks on everyone¡¯s faces.

    "I¡¯m not trying to stop you guys from going along with her, but you have to understand that she¡¯s delving into the consciousness of a Divine Beast. This isn¡¯t a ce that just anyone can enter. She¡¯s only able to do so because she possesses the Vermillion Bird¡¯s blood, and she has the presence of a Divine Beast on her person. If that wasn¡¯t the case, why do you think I¡¯d be guarding the Vermillion Bird for all these years without doing a single thing?"

    Everyone was stunned into silence. Quiet and Steadfast frowned, and his eyebrows tightly furrowed in contemtion. In spite of this, he still couldn¡¯t ept this oue. He took Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand and said, "It¡¯s too dangerous for you to go alone. Don¡¯t go."

    She looked back at him. "I won¡¯t be able to obtain the Vermillion Bird if I don¡¯t. I have to go."

    "But..."

    Quiet and Steadfast wanted to say something else, but Shen Jingbin cut him off. "You should trust me. After all, I¡¯m your..."

    She whispered thest few words into his ears; too soft to be heard by anyone else. All they knew was that after she finished speaking, although Quiet and Steadfast still appeared to be reluctant, he let go of her hand and allowed Xu Sheng to lead her away.

    After Shen Jingbin left with Xu Sheng, Pure Crane went up to Quiet and Steadfast and gave him a pat on the shoulder to reassure him that nothing would happen. "Since we can¡¯t go with her, let¡¯s just wait here for her. Rx, everything¡¯s going to be okay."

    The Winds of Ximen still felt a little down about not being able to tag along, but when he saw Quiet and Steadfast¡¯s expression, he suddenly felt that his disappointment was nothing inparison. He gave himself a pat on the face before moving tofort Quiet And Steadfast as well. "Hey, Great God, don¡¯t worry. There¡¯s no point dwelling over it. Besides, it¡¯s only a game. Anyone who dies will still be resurrected in one piece, so there¡¯s no need for you to be so serious~"

    Quiet And Steadfast remained silent. This might just be a game, but he still wasn¡¯t willing to see her walk into danger while his hands were tied.

    Qi Mu and Gentle Flower wanted to say something as well, but neither were good with words. They opened their mouths, unsure of what to say. In the end, they exchanged nces with one another before returning to their silent vigil with the rest of the group as they waited for Shen Jingbin¡¯s return.

    Noticing that the atmosphere was a little heavy, Shao Feng, who was left in the main hall and charged with the important task of greeting guests, piped up and tried to say something to lighten the mood.

    "Just sitting around and waiting¡¯s kind of boring, why don¡¯t I tell you about the dangers of entering the Vermillion Bird¡¯s consciousness... Eh, why are all of you ring at me?"

    Quiet and Steadfast: ...

    Everyone else: ...

    Motherf*cker, this idiot¡¯s definitely trying to stir up trouble, isn¡¯t he?!

    Shen Jingbin, who was led away by Xu Sheng, had stepped into a room covered in talismans. It wasn¡¯t arge room, but it was empty.

    After entering the room, Xu Sheng pulled out a handbell and a strand of red string from thin air. She tied one end of the string on the second section of Shen Jingbin¡¯s right pinky finger, and the other end on the handbell¡¯s handle.

    "After entering the consciousness of the Vermillion Bird, you only have the time it takes for an incense stick to burn; regardless of whether you seed or not. After which, I¡¯ll ring the bell. When you hear it, you muste out immediately. Otherwise, you might be trapped in there forever. Do you understand?"

    Shen Jingbin sobered when she saw the serious look on Xu Sheng¡¯s face. "I understand."

    "Then, I¡¯ll activate the formation."

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    Xu Sheng guided her to the center of the room. She then stepped back, closed her eyes, and began muttering to herself. The talismans covering all four walls of the room started to glow red as she chanted. Shen Jingbin saw a sh of red light, then, nothing. She felt a wave of dizziness, and she reflexively closed her eyes...

    When she opened her eyes again, she was no longer in the room, and Xu Sheng was nowhere to be seen. Looking down, she found that the red string was still tied on her pinky finger; trailing from behind her and disappearing into the darkness.

    "You have entered the consciousness of the Vermillion Bird. Attention: the consciousness of the Vermillion Bird exists in the mind of the Divine Beast, Vermillion Bird. This is an opportunity, but at the same time, it is also a challenge. The yer is advised to be careful, do not let your guard down."

 Chapter 310

    <b>Chapter 310: The Vermillion Bird¡¯s Consciousness (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin focused and surveyed her surroundings.

    The world she saw was like the Mountain of mes in Journey to the West. All around her were fiery red hills of varying heights. The ground under her feet was fractured, with no sign of vegetation or life. Looking closely, she could even see waves of heat slowly floating around.

    Before her was a narrow winding road that twisted and turned like a snake that disappeared between the hills in the distance.

    There was only this one path, so she didn¡¯t need to ponder over which direction to take. She released Mascot, followed by the little ck Tortoise, and ced it on Mascot¡¯s head. Following that, she and the two divine beasts began their journey on the winding path together.

    Hm, the ck Tortoise was a little small, but regardless, it was still a Divine Beast. Having it around was better than nothing!

    Not long after, two weirdly dressed men suddenly jumped out from behind one of the hills. They were identical in height, appearance, the clothes they wore, and their temperament. Shen Jingbin immediately thought of the twins from Alice in Wondend.

    The twin on the left grabbed hispanion and suddenly said, "This was tree nted by me!"

    "Where¡¯s the tree?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    The creepy smile on the face of the twin on the right froze for a moment. "That¡¯s not the point... Cough, this road wasid by me!"

    The twins looked at each other before shouting in unison, "If you wish to pass, you must first answer these questions!"

    Shen Jingbin said, "... Um, that doesn¡¯t rhyme."

    "... You talk too much!"

    "You better y along, or we won¡¯t let you pass!" The brothers suddenly said while ring at her. Shen Jingbin shrunk back and stopped talking. NPCs were kings in the game so she couldn¡¯t afford to upset them.

    "I¡¯m 101, the older brother of the two."

    "I¡¯m 102, the young brother of the two."

    "We are the guardians of the first stage in the Vermillion Bird¡¯s consciousness. You have to correctly answer a question posed by each of us to enter the next stage."

    Shen Jingbin stared at the twins, who were doing everything they could to pass off as AIs. "Human NPCs?" She asked hesitantly.

    Unsurprisingly, the one on the left gave her a look of shock and immediately said, "Shit, how¡¯d you find out?"

    "Heh, isn¡¯t it obvious from your names alone? I¡¯m someone who¡¯s met 001 and 002," She thought to herself. But, in reality, what she said was different. "The annoyance you harbour towards one another is as in as day."

    The twin on the right¡¯s mouth twitched. "I knew pretending to be twins with this moron was doomed to fail. After all, I¡¯m far too clever. I don¡¯t know what the Team Leader was thinking."

    "Go to hell, you idiot! You were the one who gave us away! I¡¯m going to report you to the Team Leader!" The one on the left retorted.

    "What did you say? Do you want me to beat you up?!"

    "Try me! If you think you¡¯ve got what it takes thene and take a swing at me!"

    Hey mates, I only have an incense stick¡¯s worth of time, and I have other stages to clear.

    "I don¡¯t have a lot of time. Can you maybe ask me the questions first so that I can proceed?" Shen Jingbin asked exasperatedly. Only then did the twins stop fighting. 101 looked at her and was about to ask his question, but her far too unique appearancepelled him to ask, "Is this how you look in real life?"

    Shen Jingbin blinked. "Is this your question? If so, I¡¯ll answer. If not, I think I¡¯ll reserve my right to reject your question."

    101 blinked, his mind drawing a nk for a moment. A conflicted look appeared on his face.

    In the end, his curiosity got the better of him. He swallowed the question he was originally going to ask and said, "Yes."

    "Then my answer is ¡¯no¡¯."

    101 cursed inwardly. Why the hell did he ask such a stupid question?

    "You¡¯ve answered the first question correctly."

    "What an idiot," Said 102, taking pleasure in his misfortune. "You¡¯re screwed. I¡¯m definitely going to tell on you to the Team Leader once I get off work."

    101 rolled his eyes at him. "How old are you? Telling on me? Can¡¯t you be a bit more mature?"

    "Bah, it¡¯s none of your business. Wait till you get scolded!" 102 said as he stuck his tongue out at his colleague. He then turned to Shen Jingbin and cleared his throat. "Listen carefully to the second question. There was a man with a strange form of colorblindness. The blue sky appeared green in his eyes, and a greenwn would appear blue. However, he always believed that the ¡¯blue¡¯ he saw was called ¡¯green¡¯, and the colour ¡¯green¡¯ he saw was called ¡¯blue¡¯. Therefore, no one realized that he was colorblind. Now, how do we make him realize that he¡¯s suffering from colorblindness?"

    After hearing the question, Shen Jingbin went silent for a good long while. Seeing this, 102 lifted his chin at 101 provocatively, as if he were trying to say, "See? This is a real question. As expected, she doesn¡¯t have an answer for it."

    Shen Jingbin had heard of this question before. This was allegedly one of the so-called ten most difficult problems in the world. In reality, this was a paradoxical question. In other words, it was a question that caused a paradox. It didn¡¯t matter if your answer was right or wrong, because either could be argued against. It was a specious question, and it was also a type of logic trap.

    "There¡¯s no answer to this question."

    102ughed. "Wrong! You¡¯re done. We can¡¯t let you go since you didn¡¯t answer correctly."

    Shen Jingbin pretended to be deep in thought and said, "I still think there¡¯s no correct answer. How about you tell me what the correct answer is?"

    102 had a smug look on his face. "You¡¯ve failed already, so I suppose it doesn¡¯t matter even if I tell you. The correct answer is to give that person two pens, one blue and one green. Then, tell him to use the blue pen to write in green, and to use the green pen to write in blue. It¡¯s that simple hahahaha..."

    "If that¡¯s the case, I have a question," Shen Jingbin asked calmly, interrupting hisughter. "How do you prove that you don¡¯t have the same kind of colorblindness that he has?"

    "Uh..." 102 choked on his saliva.

    This time it was 101 who startedughing. "Told you this kind of question wouldn¡¯t work. Tit, meet tat... Come on; it¡¯s your win. Take this and walk forward for about 200 meters and you¡¯ll see the Vermillion Bird. This anti-spirit water will make it easier for you to defeat your enemies."

    101 handed her a white ceramic bottle. Shen Jingbin took it and looked inside. The bottle was as white as snow, with only a single piece of paper with the words "anti-spirit water" attached to the front of the bottle.

    "Good luck," 101 said with a smile. He then grabbed onto 102, who was deep in contemtion and disappeared into thin air.

    Shen Jingbin ced the bottle into her bag, patted Mascot, and continued onwards.

 Chapter 311

    <b>Chapter 311: Quest Cleared (1)</b>

    101 was a reliable fellow.

    As he¡¯d said, not long after Shen Jingbin started walking, she reached a vast open space. The fiery red hills had disappeared, thend beneath her seemed less dry, and the fractures were much smaller. Looking closely, she could see tiny grass shoots growing from within them.

    In the middle of this wide open expanse, a man and a woman sat across from one another. The man was dressed in ck, while the woman was dressed in red. These eye-catching colors were further entuated by the brown backdrop.

    Shen Jingbin walked up to them without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    "You¡¯vee, youth," Said the woman dressed in red when Shen Jingbin drew close.

    Shen Jingbin stopped in her tracks, and Mascot bared its teeth at the woman, giving the impression that it was going to lunge at her at any moment. Shen Jingbin shifted her focus to the women and gave her a once over. She had a gentle expression, but she had an extraordinary presence about her.

    "You have the Vermilion Bird¡¯s blood and the presence of a Divine Beast on you. You must havee to help me. Good, please kill this man. He is the evil spirit that¡¯s been bothering me. Kill him, and I¡¯ll be free."

    Shen Jingbin remained where she stood, almost as if she hadn¡¯t heard what the woman had said. Mascot, who was by her feet, gave off a low growl. The woman in red nced at Mascot from the corner of her eyes and frowned. "Why aren¡¯t you doing anything? Have you been charmed by this evil spirit?"

    The little ck Tortoise suddenly moved. With great difficulty, it struggled off Mascot¡¯s head and crawled towards the man dressed in ck.

    Shen Jingbin eyes narrowed. "You¡¯re not the Vermilion Bird," She said.

    The woman¡¯s face stiffened. "What makes you say so?"

    Shen Jingbin gestured at the little ck Tortoise which was crawling towards the man. The woman took a look at it, and a smile blossomed on her face. "Young woman, seeing isn¡¯t always believing," She slowly said. "You humans think you¡¯re so clever, but isn¡¯t your race often fooled by appearances? What can this little guy prove?"

    Shen Jingbin pursed her lips and didn¡¯t respond. Instead, she turned to the man and tried to discern something from his face. At the same time, the little ck Tortoise had reached the man¡¯s feet. He silently picked it up and put it in his arms, poking at the little ck Tortoise¡¯s shell every once in a while.

    Understanding shed through Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes as she reached a conclusion. She sauntered over to the man and stood next to him. Mascot followed but twisted its little head to the side as if the man wasn¡¯t worthy of its attention.

    "Even so, if I say you¡¯re not the real Vermilion Bird, then you aren¡¯t. The decision is mine to make, and you¡¯re not who you im to be."

    The woman¡¯s face darkened. Her beautiful eyes widened, and she mmed downwards with both her palms, propelling herself into the air. "Then I¡¯ll kill both of you! Neither of you is leaving this ce alive!"

    "You shouldn¡¯t havee," The man finally said. He shoved the little ck Tortoise back into her arms, stood up, and nudged Mascot away with his foot. "You fiend, you¡¯re much easier on the eyes in this silly form!"

    As he spoke, he gave a flourish of his hands and blocked the woman¡¯s attack from above.

    "Ugh," He grimaced. Dark red blood streaked down from the corner of his mouth. "Listen, I¡¯ve used too much energy over the years, and I can no longer rival her in power. You¡¯re no match for her either. The ck Tortoise and this fiend are still young, so they¡¯re not strong enough to fight her yet. You need to go; I¡¯ll stop her from going after you."

    "nning to run? You¡¯re overestimating yourself, Vermillion Bird. Let¡¯s see which of you escapes!" Said the woman as her beautiful face distorted. Like an arrow loosed from a bow, she dived downwards with a ¡¯whoosh¡¯ and charged straight into man¡¯s body.

    The man¡¯s entire body started to tremble, and his face continuously switched between that of a man and a woman.

    "You... hurry and leave with these two!" The man shouted with his hand around his throat. He looked as if he¡¯d exhausted all of his strength.

    Shen Jingbin was speechless. What was this, a soap opera?

    Stone-faced, Shen Jingbin took out the Vermilion Bird¡¯s blood and walked up to the man. As he watched in astonishment, she grabbed his chin and shoved the blood into his mouth before she pped him on the back.

    After the man choked down the blood, his face finally stopped changing.

    He fell to the ground. "What did you just feed me?" He asked while coughing with his eyes turned upwards towards her.

    "The blood you left behind years ago."

    The man¡¯s eyes widened. "You found it! I thought no one would ever be able to get it."

    Shen Jingbin hesitated. "I don¡¯t have a lot of time. Do you know how to destroy her?"

    He gave her a long look before he finally said, "I shall revive when pushed to the edge of death..."

    The man suddenly used both of his hands to w at her face after he uttered the word ¡¯revive¡¯. It happened so quickly that a gust of wind was left in its wake. Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t fast enough to dodge the attack, and a deep gash was left on her round face, leaving her flesh open for all to see. It wasn¡¯t a pretty sight. Her HP also dropped by more than half, and it continued to decline.

 Chapter 312

    <b>Chapter 312: Quest Cleared (2)</b>

    "Notification: The evil spirit has contaminated you. For the next three minutes, you¡¯ll lose 500 HP every minute. This affliction cannot be cleansed."

    Everything happened in a blur, and Mascot and the ck Tortoise didn¡¯t have time to react. Fortunately, Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t forgotten to grab ahold of them when she¡¯d dodged the spirit¡¯s attack.

    "Hahaha, you thought the Vermilion Bird¡¯s blood alone could stop me? Think again! I¡¯m going to exterminate the two of you and your little pets! From this day forth, there will no longer be Divine Beasts in this world. Nothing is going to stop the Shinra Sect from conquering the world!" The man¡¯s face suddenly changed into the woman¡¯s, and she stared at Shen Jingbin with a malicious grin.

    Shen Jingbin touched the wound on her face and pulled out a healing potion to restore her HP. She felt her anger slowly bubble up from within her dantian. This spirit dared to harm her face? Ha, Shen Jingbin wouldn¡¯t be Chinese if she didn¡¯t get her revenge!

    The woman arrogantlyughed. "Heh, are you angry? Enraged? Do you want to kill me? Let me tell you something: I¡¯m in the Vermilion Bird¡¯s body. If you kill me, he¡¯ll die too. Come at me if you¡¯ve got the stones for it. Without the Vermilion Bird, you¡¯re never going to find the Azure Dragon. And, without collecting each of the four Divine Beasts, you won¡¯t be able to defeat the Shinra Sect!"

    "You talk too much. Just try me, and you¡¯ll find out whether I dare to kill you or not!" Shen Jingbin took out her Divine Weapon, Snow Sealing Mist. Her eyes went cold, and she lunged forwards along with Mascot. Even the little ck Tortoise started to slowly crawl forward; its tail leaving behind a golden trail on the ground.

    Shen Jingbin hadn¡¯t forgotten what the man had said: he would revive when pushed to the edge of death. He didn¡¯t go into detail, but for someone as smart as her, it wasn¡¯t difficult to figure out what he¡¯d meant. She paid no mind to the woman¡¯s threat.

    Normally, Shen Jingbin wouldn¡¯t be a match for the woman at all, but the blood the Vermilion Bird had swallowed allowed him to further suppress her power. As a result, they were evenly matched. They exchange blows round after round, but neither of the two was able to defeat the other.

    Shen Jingbin, however, was getting anxious. She knew that her time was limited. This stalemate couldn¡¯t drag on; she had to do something...

    Aha! The anti-spirit water that 101 gave her!

    To hell with using it the right way. All that was left was for her to wing it!

    She decisively pulled out the white ceramic bottle, unstoppered it, and sshed the water at the woman; hitting her right as she approached Shen Jingbin.

    "Ahhhhhh!" The woman¡¯s high-pitched scream could immediately be heard.

    "Go, Mascot!" Shen Jingbin cried out.

    Mascot shot forward like a bullet and bit the woman¡¯s neck. At the same time, Shen Jingbin waved her horsetail whisk and prepared to use her ultimate skill.

    Bullseye. The woman copsed onto the ground with Mascot¡¯s teeth still around her neck.

    "You... you¡¯ll regret this... Once I die, the Vermilion Bird... will too... Nobody... will survive..." She breathed herst breath before she managed to finish, and her face changed back to that of the man¡¯s.

    ¡¯Ding-a-ling!¡¯ Shen Jingbin was just about to check on the man when the sound of a bell rung by her ears. The red string that was tied around her pinky began moving as if someone was tugging at it.

    "Time¡¯s up! You have to return," Came Xu Sheng¡¯s voice from the dark void above her. Then, a transportation formation appeared behind her.

    "..."

    Behind her was the exit portal, and before her was the real Vermilion Bird, who may or may not be dead. What a decision to make...

    Shen Jingbin took a deep breath and decided she had to first check on the man.

    Xu Sheng snapped at her the moment she stepped forward, "Stop! You won¡¯t be able toe back if you take another step forward!"

    Her foot froze in mid-air. A few secondster, she pulled it back. She then patted Mascot¡¯s head, ced her two pets back into her pet inventory, then turned around and stepped into the formation, disappearing on the spot.

    What she didn¡¯t see was that after she left, a sh of golden light formed a circle around the Vermilion Bird. The light became brighter and brighter until it created a golden shield that covered the man.

    After a while, the man¡¯s chest started to rise and fall in time to his shallow breaths, and his left pinky unconsciously twitched.

    "What happened?" The formation sent Shen Jingbin back into the room she was in before. When she looked up, she saw Xu Sheng¡¯s anxious face.

    "You didn¡¯t see it?" Shen Jingbin had assumed that Xu Sheng had seen everything based on what she¡¯d said before.

    "Of course I didn¡¯t, I could only see you. What happened?"

    Shen Jingbin sighed. "The evil spirit was eliminated, but... the real Vermilion Bird seemed to have died with her. I¡¯m sorry, I wasn¡¯t able to save the Vermilion Bird," She said as she opened her quest window. Then, all of a sudden, she saw the 0/1 for her quest, ¡¯The Divine Beast¡¯s Salvation¡¯ had turned into 1/1, followed by the familiar ¡¯Ding!¡¯

    "Congrattions onpleting the quest ¡¯The Divine Beast¡¯s Salvation¡¯. Quest reward: The Vermilion Bird¡¯s younger form (1) (Please retrieve this reward from the Vermilion Bird¡¯s true form), 30,000 Experience, 90 taels of silver, 500 Chivalric Prestige in the Southern Sea, Qianfang Temple¡¯s Overseer, Xu Sheng¡¯s, Goodwill towards you has increased by 100 points, Qianfang Temple¡¯s Lead Disciple, Shao Feng¡¯s, Goodwill towards you has increased by 150 points."

    Shen Jingbin blinked in astonishment. What happened? Quest cleared? How did that happen? Was it a bug?

 Chapter 313

    <b>Chapter 313: Gathering The Four Divine Beasts (1)</b>

    Xu Sheng looked at Shen Jingbin in bewilderment. "What did you say? You failed to save the Vermillion Bird? What does that mean? That shouldn¡¯t be the case. If you hadn¡¯t saved the Vermillion Bird, then this sealing room wouldn¡¯t be around any longer. The fact that it¡¯s still here means that the Vermillion Bird is alive."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes twitched. "Don¡¯t ask me. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s happening either!"

    "Well, maybe I was wrong then... Erm, why don¡¯t you find out what¡¯s going on?"

    Xu Sheng nodded and made some unknown gestures, causing a mirror to appear floating between them. Xu Sheng stared at it for a moment before she ecstatically said, "You did it! You saved the Vermillion Bird! Head back to the main hall first while I unseal it!" Then, without waiting for Shen Jingbin¡¯s reply, Xu Sheng shoved her out of the room.

    Shen Jingbin shrugged and made her way back to the main hall.

    "How was it? Did everything go smoothly?" The moment Shen Jingbin stepped into the main hall, Quiet And Steadfast immediately stood up and rushed over to anxiously examine her.

    "Hey, Great God, what are you going on about! The fact that she¡¯s standing in front of you unharmed means that everything went well," The Winds Of Ximen said disdainfully from behind him. He was clearly overdoing it with his concern.

    People in love are all fools.

    Shen Jingbin winked at Quiet And Steadfast and said, "Don¡¯t worry, everything went well. Xu Sheng¡¯s unsealing the Vermillion Bird; she¡¯ll be over in a bit."

    Only then did Quiet And Steadfast calm down.

    "What¡¯s your reward for saving the Vermillion Bird?" Pure Crane asked.

    "A baby Vermillion Bird. The system told me to ask the Vermillion Bird for my reward. I think he¡¯ll being along with Xu Shengter."

    "What the f*ck! The Vermillion Bird¡¯sing? I heard she¡¯s a beauty! I have to take a good look at her!" The Winds Of Ximen eximed.

    Gentle Flower had a puzzled look on her face. "How do you know Vermillion Bird¡¯s a beauty?"

    "Actually, I heard that the Vermillion Bird¡¯s a guy," Qi Mumented.

    ".... Don¡¯t screw with me. All the Vermillion Bird¡¯s I¡¯ve seen on TV are beauties!" Dered The Winds Of Ximen as he looked at Shen Jingbin with eyes filled with hope. It was as if he was trying to say, "Hurry up and say that the Vermillion Bird¡¯s a beauty!"

    Shen Jingbin ced a fist near her mouth and coughed. "Well... the Vermillion Bird is beautiful, but he¡¯s a guy."

    The Winds Of Ximen¡¯s face fell. He looked as if he had nothing left to live for.

    Shortly after, Xu Sheng walked into the main hall with a lively man wearing beautiful red clothes in tow. Although he had yet to step into the main hall, the man¡¯s billowing robes and extraordinary presence were a sight to behold.

    The moment he stepped into the main hall, the Vermillion Bird didn¡¯t even spare a nce for anyone else and looked straight at Shen Jingbin. "Young woman, you were the one who saved me."

    Shen Jingbin nodded him. "I only did my duty."

    The Vermillion Bird said, "Back then, I absorbed the evil spirit¡¯s qi by ident and turned into a demonic creature, making numerous mistakes in the process. With the world in chaos, I should be doing everything in my power to right my wrongs. However, the evil spirit is far too strong. I¡¯ve yet to regain my former strength, and I¡¯m unable to fight. I know you¡¯re looking for the four Divine Beasts, and you already possess the White Tiger and the ck Tortoise. Since that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll leave a baby Vermillion Bird in your care."

    Shen Jingbin was ecstatic. "Then I¡¯ll give you my thanks in advance."

    The Vermillion Bird waved his hand, his long sleeve tracing a perfect arc in the air. "No thanks are needed, you deserve it. Yourpanions don¡¯t seem to be regr people. How about this then: I¡¯ll give you guys a gift. The Shinra Sect¡¯s evil qi is extremely strong, and while my blessing can¡¯t guarantee your lives, it can at least ward off some of its harmful effects."

    Everyone was overjoyed when they heard the Vermillion Bird¡¯s proposal. "Thank you," Said Quiet And Steadfast.

    The Vermilion Bird went silent and he drew several strokes on his chest. Several rays of red light shot out from it and embedded themselves in everyone¡¯s sr plexus.

    "Congrattions, you¡¯ve received ¡¯The Vermillion Bird¡¯s Blessing."

    "The Vermillion Bird¡¯s Blessing ¨C A blessing from the Vermillion Bird, the Divine Beast who protects the North, that is brimming with vital energy. It can protect you from 40% of damage inflicted by the Demonic Sect. Limited to three uses."

    After bestowing his blessing, the Vermillion Bird pulled out a red egg from his bosom, and all eyes turned to the egg. Shen Jingbin felt a bit of a headache when she saw the egg. She knew that birds and tortoisesid eggs, but holding on to them and waiting for them to hatch was really annoying.

    To Shen Jingbin¡¯s surprise, the red egg in the Vermillion Bird¡¯s palm began to crack in front of everyone while she was silentlyining to herself. The cracks gradually spread across the egg, and with one final ¡¯crack¡¯, a fluffy little bird stood cutely on top of the Vermillion Bird¡¯s palm. It raised its tiny head and gave a little chirp to everyone present.

 Chapter 314

    <b>Chapter 314: Gathering The Four Divine Beasts (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin had never liked fluffy creatures before, but this baby Vermillion Bird was so adorable that she couldn¡¯t help but step forward and carefully pick it up with both hands.

    As soon as she touched the baby Vermillion Bird, several system notifications and announcements popped up.

    "Congrattions, you¡¯ve received the baby Vermillion Bird."

    "Congrattions, you¡¯ve sessfully gathered the Divine Beasts, White Tiger, ck Tortoise, and Vermillion Bird. You¡¯ve met the requirement to summon the Divine Beast, Azure Dragon. Do you wish to summon the Azure Dragon? Yes/No."

    "Summoning Azure Dragon... Attention: Since the Azure Dragon is a Divine Beast, summoning it will take longer. Please be patient."

    "Sessfully summoned the Azure Dragon. Congrattions, you¡¯ve received the Divine Beast, Azure Dragon."

    "Congrattions, you¡¯ve gathered the four Divine Beasts. You¡¯ve received the Divine Beast Halo."

    [System Announcement] These are turbulent times, and the world is experiencing great change. yer Nutjob has sessfully gathered the Divine Beasts, White Tiger, ck Tortoise, and Vermillion Bird. The legendary Divine Beast, Azure Dragon will now appear.

    [System Announcement] yer Nutjob has sessfully summoned the Divine Beast, Azure Dragon, and gathered all four Divine Beasts.

    [System Announcement] All four Divine Beasts have descended. The war between good and evil has now entered its next chapter ¨C The Chaotic War. All yers in the Shinra Sect have received the Infection skill. This skill allows them to infect any yer other than the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects and convert them over to the Shinra Sect¡¯s side. This skill will be avable till the maximum number of yers in the Shinra Sect has been reached.

    [System Announcement] In view of the beginning of The Chaotic War, the Sect Leader of the Shinra Sect, Jue Tian, has made an appearance once again. What is he nning? What¡¯s his goal? Will the world be saved? All these questions remain unanswered. Young heroes, please pay close attention to the changes around you, for you might be the one who ends up rewriting the ending to this story.

    Regardless of how excited the rest of the yers in the game had be due to the appearance of these announcements, all six of the Lead Disciples in Virtuous Heaven Temple had fallen into a stupor. When the system notification informing everyone that Shen Jingbin had sessfully summoned the Azure Dragon appeared, the entirety of Virtuous Heaven Temple was surrounded by a faint cyan light. Everyone within it felt an indescribable feeling of warmth andfort that rose from their feet to their heads.

    While they were immersed in this feeling offort, something surrounded by a ball of light fell from the sky, and gradually descended into Virtuous Heaven Temple¡¯s courtyard.

    The party of six came to their senses and ran out to have a look, while Xu Sheng and the Vermillion Bird exchanged nces with one another before following suit.

    "Youngdy, were you the one who awakened me?" Asked a gentle voice worn by the vicissitudes of time from within the light.

    "Yes," Shen Jingbin answered.

    "How long has it been? I can¡¯t even remember. I thought that was it for me and that I was never going to be summoned again," Said the voice with a sigh. "Let the White Tiger, ck Tortoise and Vermillion Bird out."

    Without asking any questions, Shen Jingbin ced the little Vermillion Bird in her hands in front of the light and released Mascot and the little ck Tortoise from her pet inventory.

    The light immediately split into three beams and enveloped each of the three Divine Beasts.

    "Mascot has been bathed in the Azure Dragon¡¯s auspicious light, and has reached its maximum level."

    "The ck Tortoise has been bathed in the Azure Dragon¡¯s auspicious light, and has reached its maximum level."

    "The Vermillion Bird has been bathed in the Azure Dragon¡¯s auspicious light, and has reached its maximum level."

    Three chimes rang out as she received a system notification for each of them. Shen Jingbin hurriedly looked over at the three Divine Beasts on the ground.

    Mascot had regained its original appearance. There weren¡¯t many changes apart from the stripes on its body that were visiblyrger, its body bing much bigger than it was in the past, and it¡¯s wings growing to twice its original size. The most notable change was the air about it. In the past, it had looked a little silly, but now it possessed the awe-inspiring presence of the king of the forest.

    Compared to Mascot, the little ck Tortoise and baby Vermillion Bird saw considerable changes to their bodies. The ck Tortoise grew many timesrger, and its shell turned golden. The winged snake pattern on its shell disappeared and was reced by several vast and terrifying winged snakes that now upied the top of the ck Tortoise¡¯s shell and were making threatening gestures. The Vermillion Bird had grown from a fluffy chick to an enormous zing bird. It looked simr to the Demonic Vermillion Bird, but it was wreathed in a faintyer of mes. With its long slender neck, it looked like it was brimming with vigor.

    "The fate of the world has fallen into chaos, and leveling them up isn¡¯t an easy task. Allow me to help you." That light gently said. "Come closer, young woman."

    Shen Jingbin nced at herpanions and stepped forward till her little t nose almost came in contact with the light.

    "Stretch out your hand."

    Shen Jingbin did as instructed. When her hand touched the light, she immediately felt a warm andfortable sensation. She stretched further and felt something cool, somewhat hard, and a little ufortable to the touch.

    "Can you feel it? I¡¯m within this sacred light. Try to imagine my appearance and lead me out."

    Shen Jingbin closed her eyes, imagining the character of an Azure Dragon that she¡¯d seen on TV shows and in books... While imagining, she felt something moving onto her hand.

    She grabbed onto the object and pulled it towards herself. With a ¡¯bang¡¯, the light dispersed, and the Azure Dragon¡¯s majestic form towered above her, while the pointed end of its tail was quietly curled up in her palm.

    "Wow~" The Winds Of Ximen couldn¡¯t help but exim.

    Feeling the tail in her hands move slightly, Shen Jingbin loosened her grip and took a step backwards, and the Azure Dragon immediately shot to the sky. A few secondster, a ¡¯bang¡¯ could be heard, and it came speeding towards the ground. The instant itnded, there was a sh of light, and the Azure Dragon¡¯s awe-inspiring form suddenly disappeared. In its ce was an outstanding man of talent who had a domineering air about him and was dressed in ck.

    The Vermillion Bird suddenly spoke up. "It¡¯s been awhile, Azure Dragon," He said as he slowly walked over to the man in ck.

    The man in ck stood with his hands behind him and gave a slight nod to the Vermillion Bird. "Yes, it has been awhile. Back then, the White Tiger and ck Tortoise falling into a deep sleep caused you to lose much of your strength and shorten your lifespan. It almost resulted in a disaster, and I¡¯m thankful for being able to see you once again."

    The Vermillion Bird gave an enchanting smile. "It¡¯s all thanks to these youths; otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t be standing here. If it¡¯s them, I can rest easy leaving the task of saving the world in their hands."

    The Azure Dragon calmly nced at Shen Jingbin andpany before stepping past the Vermillion Bird anding to a stop before Shen Jingbin. Under everyone¡¯s astonished gazes, he slowly knelt on one knee.

    "I, the Azure Dragon, would like to take you as my Master and aid you in saving the world. Will you ept my oath of loyalty?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes faintly shone.

    "I ept."

 Chapter 315

    <b>Chapter 315: Su Qin and Reincarnation Pagoda (1)</b>

    The Shinra Sect.

    Jue Tian had an unsightly look on his face as he sat on his seat of power. He lowered his head and focused his chilling gaze on the NPC followers and yers beneath him.

    "I charged all of you with the task of eliminating the Lead Disciples from the Six Great Sects, and all you do is get rid of the weakest one. I tell you to assassinate that old fogey from the Dragonkins, and you end up injuring some woman instead and give yourselves a pat on the back. Now, the Four Divine Beasts have been reborn, and you lot can¡¯t even do the simplest job of reporting that back to me. Tell me, what the hell have I been keeping you bunch of useless sacks around for?!" Roared Jue Tian as he viciously smashed the luminous jade cup 1in his hand onto the floor. "Where¡¯s Elder Yang and Wuyang?"

    A junior disciple stepped out and said, "About that... Sect Leader, Elder Yang and Miss Wuyang have been dispatched by you to gather information."

    "What of our elite disciples?"

    Nine Bads, Reckless East Emperor, and the rest of the elite disciples who were urgently recalled plucked up their courage and stepped forward. "Disciple is present!" They shouted in unison.

    Truth be told, the Shinra Sect¡¯s Sect Leader was a real piece of work. Putting aside his temperamental personality, he¡¯d hand out corporal punishment whenever he felt like it. This ass even had a buff called ¡¯Torment¡¯. Regardless of what level yers previously set their pain level at, as long as Jue Tian was the one performing an action that inflicted pain, your pain level would be set to the highest level. This was why even someone as egotistical as Nine Bads had to be careful when she was around him.

    After being punished by Jue Tian, the elite yers who¡¯d failed their mission contacted customer service to file aint, stating that this would affect their mental and physical health. However, the customer service representative was not one to be deterred. They argued that such a skill was in line with the Shinra Sect¡¯s setting and that this would be an incentive to yers to be even more conscientious when it came to discharging their duties. After all, the Shinra Sect only had so many people. If there were dead weights within the sect, there wouldn¡¯t even be a need to wage war.

    As for the issue of a yer¡¯s mental and physical health being affected, the pain yers felt was all a figment of their imagination. In reality, they weren¡¯t being harmed at all. Furthermore, most of the people who yed <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> would be lying in gaming pods when they yed. Due to this, some yers might see a decline in certain bodily functions. In such a situation, giving yers a bit of stimulus would actually be beneficial for their bodies.

    In the end, the yers who¡¯d lodged aint were left speechless, while the rest of the yers in the Shinra Sect had a rough idea of what they were dealing with.

    "The Six Great Sects are moving faster than I¡¯d anticipated. We can¡¯t wait any longer; I want each of you to lead a group of people and convert outstanding disciples from the Six Great Sects over to our side! The Shinra Sect isn¡¯t interested in trash, and you lot would do well to remember that."

    "Yes, Sect Leader!"

    "Get going! If you screw this up, you¡¯d better end yourselves. Otherwise, I¡¯ll help you do it."

    Be it NPCs or yers, everyone who heard the sinister tone in Jue Tian¡¯s voice shivered.

    F*ck. Hey developers, did you guys really need to make him so lifelike? Also, that girl called Nutjob from the White Cloud Temple, just you wait, we¡¯re not done with you yet! If it weren¡¯t for you, that damn pervert Jue Tian wouldn¡¯t have taken his anger out on us!

    And so, Shen Jingbin unwittingly attracted the ire of many yers from the Shinra Sect.

    Going back to what was happening in the Southern Sea.

    Shen Jingbin had just epted the Azure Dragon¡¯s oath of loyalty and met the requirement of gathering all four Divine Beasts for the battle between good and evil. All that remained was Pure Crane¡¯s Divine Weapons and Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s task of seeking Su Qing out.

    Qi Mu raised her hand and asked in a small voice, "Does this count as solving Virtuous Heaven Temple¡¯s problem?"

    Everyone shook themselves out of their astonishment that was induced by the Azure Dragon¡¯s descent and the gathering of the Four Divine Beasts.

    "Of course, it was perfectly done! Are you nning to look for Su Qing now? If you are, give me a bit of time to prepare some things, and then I¡¯ll lead you to him," Said Xu Sheng.

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. "The sooner, the better." The Shinra Sect was going all out with leveling its disciples. To prevent the current situation from taking a turn for the worst, it was best to resolve everything as quickly as possible.

    Xu Sheng grunted in acknowledgement and returned to her room with Shao Feng in tow. The Vermillion Bird, who was standing with everyone else, gazed at the Divine Beasts by Shen Jingbin¡¯s side. Mascot now exuded an oppressive aura, while its baby Vermillion Bird was now fully grown. "I never expected to see the day where the Four Divine Beasts would be gathered once again."

    "All hardship in the world can be ovee as long as one has the determination to do so," Said the Azure Dragon.

    Everyone: ... What the hell are you two NPCs doing?

    The Winds Of Ximen suddenly acted as if he¡¯d discovered the New World and pointed towards the Vermillion Bird and the Azure Dragon. "Eh, why are only the two of you humanoid? Do the three of them only look like this?"

    Without waiting for the two NPCs to reply, Gentle Flower said disdainfully, "You idiot, the Azure Dragon and the older Vermillion Bird are from an older generation, while these three are from the younger generation."

    The Azure Dragon nodded his head and turned a gentle gaze towards the three second-generation Divine Beasts. "The Vermillion Bird and the ck Turtle are second generation Divine Beasts, so it¡¯ll take some time for them to attain a human form. But the White Tiger..."

    He paused for a moment as if he was trying to figure out how to exin Mascot¡¯s circumstances. Amongst the Four Divine Beasts, Mascot has been with Shen Jingbin for the longest time and was also the one that she liked the best. Thinking that Mascot might be suffering from some problem, Shen Jingbin hurriedly asked, "What¡¯s that about the White Tiger?"

    The Azure Dragon shook his head. "The White Tiger¡¯s circumstances are special. It can be considered as both a first and second generation Divine Beast." When looks of confusion appeared on the faces of everyone present, he continued, "The White Tiger is different from the ck Tortoise and the Vermillion Bird. As it represents ughter, itcks the ability to reproduce. To ensure its continued existence, the White Tiger will fall into a deep sleep at certain times to restore its vitality. When it regains consciousness, its memories and strength will see a regression. However, it willpletely regain everything at ater date."

    Shen Jingbin looked as if she still couldn¡¯t quite get it. She was just about to ask another question when Xu Sheng appeared from her room. "I¡¯ve finished packing, let¡¯s get going. I¡¯ll be leading you guys to look for Su Qing at Reincarnation Pagoda."

    Shen Jingbin pushed down her question and followed Su Qing as the group made their way towards Reincarnation Pagoda.

    The luminous jade cup is a renowned and expensive alcohol-drinking vessel made of a variety of jades. It is so named because it sparkles when filled with alcohol and ced under the moonlight. Luminous jade cups can endure very hot and cold temperatures and still preserve their natural splendor. They are popr souvenirs among tourists from China and abroad. Here¡¯s a picture of what it looks like:

    ?

 Chapter 316-317

    <b>Chapter 316: Su Qin and Reincarnation Pagoda (2)</b>

    The Vermillion Bird had only just been released from the seal and was still weak, so it remained with Shao Feng to guard Virtuous Heaven Temple. On the other hand, the Azure Dragon had returned to Shen Jingbin¡¯s pet space to give the other three Divine Beasts some ¡¯special training¡¯.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s head was filled with question marks. Could pets actually undergo special training while they were in the pet space? Huh, the more you know.

    Reincarnation Pagoda was located in the Southern Sea and had a total of seven floors, with each floor representing a different kind of hardship. And, Su Qing just so happened to be the Master of Reincarnation Pagoda. He guarded Reincarnation Pagoda all year round and never left it. Aside from people whom he was familiar with, there was no chance at all for one to meet with him.

    So, when they reached Reincarnation Pagoda, Xu Sheng bade them wait outside for a bit while she went in to check which floor Su Qing was currently on.

    Reincarnation Pagoda had a barrier, rendering most people incapable of entering. However, the four guardians of the Southern Sea had the ability to freely enter each other¡¯s domain. Xu Sheng appeared again not long after going in. She stood at the entranced and waved for everyone toe over.

    The group walked in as Xu Sheng spoke. "You guys are lucky; Su Qing happens to be on the first and simplest floor today ¨C the suffering of birth. If it were one of the other floors, bringing you to meet him would have been a far more difficult task."

    The exterior of Reincarnation Pagoda was a worn, dull grey; giving it the appearance of something that had been weathered by the passage of time. However, the inside was like apletely different world. Putting aside the other floors which they had no knowledge of, for the time being, the first floor was truly a sight to behold. It was so magnificent that people who hadn¡¯t prepared themselves in advance would feel like their eyes were dazzled by the splendor before them.

    There was nothing on Reincarnation Pavilion¡¯s first floor. All that was present were walls lined with gold that sparkled with its brilliance. Looking at the scene before them, the party felt like all of their ws wereid bare.

    A ring of people could be seen at the center sitting cross-legged with their eyes closed. In spite of that, the expressions they wore had nothing inmon with one another. The emotions on their faces ranged from joy, sadness, anger, and grief. On closer inspection, there were even some enchanting women present. On the other hand of the spectrum, there were also horrifyingly ugly women. In fact, they looked even worse than Shen Jingbin. There were others who seemed to be in the pink of health, which was juxtaposed by individuals who had lost their arms or legs.

    Xu Sheng walked up and patted the ugliest looking person who¡¯d also lost an arm and a leg. The person¡¯s eyelids fluttered open, but there were empty sockets instead of eyes.

    It was as if Xu Sheng didn¡¯t notice how the person looked, and nonchntly uttered a few words into his ear. After hearing what she had to say, the person looked over to where Shen Jingbin andpany were standing.

    The person¡¯s empty gaze caused a chill to run down the spines of everyone present. At that moment, all of the girls in the group sucked in a deep breath.

    ¡¯What the f*ck, what the f*ck!¡¯ Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart was about to explode. This was unbearable!

    Seeing this, Quiet And Steadfast walked in front of her and protectively shielded her. Pure Crane and the Winds Of Ximen did the same for Qi Mu and Gentle Flower.

    Su Qing stood with Xu Sheng. He was missing his left leg, but he still stood firm, like someone who was whole. He and Xu Sheng walked abreast with one another and made their way over to the group. At a nce, it was like a real-life version of the story: Beauty and the Beast.

    Then, something miraculous happened. When Su Qing took his first step, his body began to undergo a change. His barren head sprouted thick, jet-ck locks of beautiful hair. His scar-riddled face turned glossy and fair, while his face itself gradually became more handsome. His short stature began to grow taller, and his missing leg started regrowing.

    Several stepster, what was once a horrifying creature had now turned into a tall, handsome man! It was even more amazing than those people you¡¯d see in real life who were able to make themselves look like apletely different person!

    When he drew nearer, he asked in a low and gentle voice, "Are you the Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects?" It was aforting voice, like a warm breeze that gently caressed the ears as it blows by.

    Seeing the infatuated looks on hispanion¡¯s faces, Quiet And Steadfast sighed and stepped out. He handed the que that Poison Toad had given him to Su Qing and said, "That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve been sent by the Sect Leader of the Lich Pce, Poison Toad, to pay you a visit and ask you about some matters pertaining to the Shinra Sect."

    Su Qing took the que from Quiet And Steadfast and nced at it without any change to his expression. He then ced the que in his bosom and inspected Shen Jingbin, who was being shielded by Quiet And Steadfast. "What¡¯s the rtionship between you and the person behind you?" He asked.

    "She¡¯s my wife," Quiet And Steadfast stoically replied.

    A glint shed across Su Qing¡¯s eyes. "You have an outstanding appearance, and you don¡¯tck in strength either. Yet, you choose to marry this unbearably ugly woman. Are you satisfied with this?"

    Shen Jingbin was shocked back to her senses by what he¡¯d said. Whatever good impression she¡¯d had of him because of his looks was nowpletely blown away. She wrinkled her nose in disdain. If you weren¡¯t an NPC, I would¡¯ve beaten you up!

    "It doesn¡¯t matter whether I¡¯m satisfied or not; this was my choice."

    "This was your choice? Then, would you still be willing to take her if she were disabled, poor, or incapable of doing a single thing?"

    Shen Jingbin red at Su Qing. Oi oi oi, what¡¯re you trying to get at with such spection?

    "This was my choice, so I would take responsibility for my actions," Quiet And Steadfast answered.

    With that, the atmosphere became a little strained as Su Qing silently stared at Quiet And Steadfast. Not willing to back down, Quiet And Steadfast stared right back at him.

    Shortly after, Su Qing suddenly smiled. "That¡¯s good to hear."

    <b>Chapter 317: The Final Battle (1)</b>

    "There are seven sufferings in life: birth, associating with those we dislike, leaving one¡¯s love, being unable to attain what we desire, disease, old age, and death. The sufferings of birthes in five forms: The first is pregnancy. When a woman is pregnant, the fetus inside the woman¡¯s womb is subjected to a cramped and dirty environment.

    The second is fertilization. The fetus is formed through the union of its Father¡¯s sperm and a Mother¡¯s egg. While the fetus is within the Mother¡¯s womb, it is entirely dependant on its Mother andcks freedom.

    The third form is growth. During the fetus¡¯ ten months of incubation, the womb is hot, making the fetus feel like it¡¯s being cooked alive. As it continues to grow, it is inundated with the filth inside the mother¡¯s womb.

    The fourth is when the baby is born. For the first time, the baby is subjected to the elements and the sensation of clothes brushing against its tender skin; simr to how a person would feel when they¡¯re stabbed.

    The fifth form is circumstances. A person can be born with high or low moral standing. Their body may be whole or disabled, and they may either be beautiful or ugly. These are the sufferings of birth."

    A string of awkward sounding words came flying out of Su Qing¡¯s mouth, rendering everyone dumbstruck. Su Qing sighed. "Every person faces their hardships in life, and these urrences aren¡¯t umon. Bemoaning one¡¯s lot in life won¡¯t change anything, and since it can¡¯t be changed, why not focus on what¡¯s before you instead?"

    The Winds Of Ximen looked like he didn¡¯t quite get it. He turned to Pure Crane who was beside him and asked in a whisper, "What was he talking about just now?"

    Pure Crane thought for a little while before he replied, "He¡¯s referring to the saying: if you can¡¯t fight against it, then you might as well enjoy it."

    The Winds Of Ximen looked like he still didn¡¯t really get it.

    Su Qing gave a wave of his long sleeve, and the circle of people behind him disappeared without a trace. He then turned to everyone and beckoned them. "Come over."

    The groupplied and went to where he was.

    "Shinra Sect¡¯s Jue Tian is someone who has broken free from the cycle of life and death. Destroying him is an extremely difficult task. But, if we don¡¯t get rid of him, the Shinra Sect will always remain."

    "He¡¯s broken free from the cycle of life and death? Doesn¡¯t that mean we won¡¯t be able to do anything against him?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Su Qing shook his head. "All living creatures can be ovee. There¡¯s a way to defeat him, but..."

    "But it¡¯s very difficult, right?" The Winds Of Ximen asked.

    "Do you know why Poison Toad tasked you with finding me? It¡¯s because I¡¯m in charge of Reincarnation Pagoda, and it¡¯s the only thing that can truly destroy Jue Tian. Everyone says that Reincarnation Pagoda has seven floors, but in reality, there are eight floors. The only thing is that it¡¯s impossible to open up the eighth floor unless certain conditions are met. Even I, the Master of Reincarnation Pagoda, have no way around this." Su Qing pulled out the que that Quiet And Steadfast had previously given him and weighed it in his hand. "Opening the eighth floor requires three items: the Immortal Transformation que, Magic Stone, and Wooden Figurine. Back then, the Mara Hall and Lich Pce were in charge of searching for these three items, but in the end, they only managed to find the Immortal Transformation que before the situation got out of hand. When that happened, they had no choice but to put off the search for the other two items and turn their attention to dealing with the Shinra Sect instead."

    "Then, does that mean that once we find the Magic Stone and Wooden Figurine, we¡¯ll be able to open up the eighth floor and destroy Jue Tian once and for all?" Quiet And Steadfast asked.

    "Can you tell us what these two items look like?" Pure Crane added.

    "You can¡¯t judge a book by its cover; these two items look nothing out of the ordinary. To your average person, they would look like a broken rook and damaged que..."

    An idea sparked in Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind while Su Qing was in the midst of speaking. She thought back to that broken rock and que that the system had given her when she¡¯d first started ying and hurriedly pulled them out. "Could you perhaps be referring to these two items?"

    "Eh?" Su Qing looked dubiously at the items Shen Jingbin held up before him. He then took them in his hands and carefully inspected them. His expression turned serious, and he used one hand to form a hand sign over the items.

    "These... these are the real things!" Su Qing eximed. "Never would I have expected that these items, which we¡¯ve been searching for so many years, would actually end up in your hands!"

    Shen Jingbin silently mocked up. "Heheh, it¡¯s the system¡¯s divine providence, after all, so you guys obviously wouldn¡¯t be able to find it."

    Everyone else stared at Shen Jingbin like they¡¯d just seen a ghost.

    What the f*ck, this girl¡¯s practically a bug-like existence! The man had just said that these items were incredibly difficult to find, and here she is pulling them out the very next moment!

    The hell! Now they definitely knew who they were going to cling to in the future!

    Su Qing excitedly stood up and issued a quick reminder before he hurriedly left. "Since the items have been found, we can begin preparations to open the eighth floor! Just remember, you¡¯ll have to lure Jue Tian over to Reincarnation Pavilion if you want to destroy him!"

    At the same time, the group received a system notification.

    "Congrattions to you and your party for finding Jue Tian¡¯s fatal weakness. The battle between good and evil will begin once the Divine Weapons have been forged and the number of yers within the Shinra Sect has reached its limit. Please continue to do your best."

    Why did it feel like trouble was brewing on the horizon?

    Although the New Year holidays still hadn¡¯t ended, the Shen siblings break was already over. They had no choice but to rejoin the ranks of the working ss. Ye Linfan had taught them whatever he could, so he sent in his leave request to Papa Shen and had gone on holiday. Now, B City¡¯s branch office was officially in the hands of the siblings.

    For now, matters in the game had to be put on hold. At present, Pure Crane needed to forge Divine Weapons for the rest of the Lead Disciples, and they still needed to wait for the Shinra sect to hit its target of one thousand disciples.

    Partway through the forging process, Pure Crane found out that there wasn¡¯t enough Floating Light Silk, so Quiet And Steadfast helped out by leading a group of yers from Jade Sea Pavilion to defeat the Universal Envoy. From this, Jade Sea Pavilion and Bronze Tree¡¯s alliance was officially established.

 Chapter 318

    <b>Chapter 318: The Final Battle (2)</b>

    Days went by, and the Shen siblings were so busy that they were practically flying all over the ce. Because of this, Shen Jingbin could only log into the game at night to monitor the situation. She¡¯d found that everyone within the game had fallen into a strange state of excitement. There was a mad rush to level up and upgrade their equipment; probably because everyone knew that the uing battle was imminent, and they wanted to do everything they could to prepare for it.

    Quiet And Steadfast heard from Hundred Daybreaks that a number of yers on the Shinra Sect side had identally revealed their identities. It turned out that more than half of them were from Life At First Sight or Sovereign¡¯s Descent.

    So, it looked like they were going to be up against an old enemy. Things worked out nicely as they were evenly split into opposing factions.

    Aside from this, Shen Jingbin also heard another interesting bit of information ¨C Crying Fish and Neverending Journey had gotten married! Honestly, she¡¯d never even thought of such a thing beforehand, but now that she did, the two of them seemed like quite a good match for one another.

    The New Year holidays officially came to an end on Thursday, and nning for new projects began as well. With great difficulty, Shen Jingbin managed tost till Friday and finally got the chance to get some rest. She¡¯d just gotten off a long phone call with Zhao Chengning and was nning to turn on herputer and read the news before going to bed when she was given a fright by Shen Jingchen who¡¯de barging into her room.

    The news that he¡¯d brought with him was astonishing enough to stifle whatever insult she had prepared for him.

    Pure Crane had finished forging all of the Divine Weapons, and the Shinra Sect had finished expanding its numbers. The battle between good and evil was scheduled to take ce on Saturday at 8 am.

    ¡¯What the f*ck!?¡¯ Was the only thing that came to Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind when she heard the news. The news was so surprising, that whatever sleepiness she was feeling waspletely shaken out of her, and she jumped straight into the game.

    She saw a notification the moment she logged in. "Your husband Quiet And Steadfast has logged in."

    He¡¯d probably logged in as soon as he¡¯d heard the news too.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s carrier pigeon came shortly after. "Join the party; we¡¯re going to look for Pure Crane." After reading the message, Shen Jingbin decisively epted the invitation.

    Qi Mu, Gentle Flower, and the rest of the Lead Disciples were already in the party. Apart from them, there were also a few elite yers from Jade Sea Pavilion, including Shen Jingchen. Shen Jingbin summoned her mount and zed a path to Pure Crane¡¯s manor.

    Many people were already at Pure Crane¡¯s manor by the time she reached it. In fact, Quiet And Steadfast had arrived even faster than her. He beckoned her over when he caught sight of her, and the crowd parted to make way for her as she cut a path to the innermost section.

    "These people are...?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "Some of them are Pure Crane¡¯s friends, while others are from neutral guilds that havee to find out what¡¯s happening. After all, the uing battle involves all yers," Quiet And Steadfast replied as he lead her towards the forging room.

    While speaking, they¡¯d arrived at the room. Present were the six Lead Disciples and some members from Jade Sea Pavilion. Shen Jingbin gave them a nod of acknowledgement.

    Pure Crane walked up to greet Shen Jingbin when he saw her. "The final Divine Weapon has just been made. It¡¯s Qi Mu¡¯s, and I¡¯ve already given it to her."

    "Has Qi Mu hit Level 120?"

    "I¡¯m 114 now, just a little bit more," Qi Mu answered.

    "That won¡¯t do. The battle will be taking ce tomorrow morning. You won¡¯t be able to use your Divine Weapon if you can¡¯t hit 120," Quiet And Steadfast said.

    "I won¡¯t sleep tonight then. I¡¯ll apany her to raise her level. I don¡¯t have lessons tomorrow anyway," The Winds Of Ximen said.

    "Won¡¯t it be too much for just you alone?" Gentle Flower asked.

    "Don¡¯t worry; I¡¯ve got a few friends that I can call along."

    "If your friends go at it hard enough, and you use a five times EXP pill, hitting Level 120 by tomorrow morning isn¡¯t impossible," Pure Crane said.

    "Then let¡¯s not waste any time. Ximen, call your friends over now so that you can go leveling with Qi Mu," Shen Jingbin said.

    The Winds Of Ximen grunted in acknowledgement and was making preparations for Qi Mu¡¯s leveling when he suddenly received a letter from his Sect Leader. At the same time, the rest of the Lead Disciples also received a letter from their respective Sect Leaders too.

    The contents of their letters were simple and straight to the point ¨C all six of them were to return to their sects.

    The six of them agreed to meet back at Pure Crane¡¯s manor once they were done and left for their respective sects.

    Shen Jingbin could feel that the atmosphere about White Cloud Temple had changed as soon as she reached it. The gatekeeping disciples stood ramrod straight, and they wore serious looks on their faces. When they caught sight of her, one of them said, "Senior Sister, the Sect Leader¡¯s waiting for you in the main hall."

    Shen Jingbin thanked him for telling her and quickened her steps.

    What Shen Jingbin saw when she reached the main hall gave her a fright. The entire hall was filled to the brim with people. The left side was made up of yers, while the right side were NPCs. From the looks of it, all of the sect¡¯s yers and NPCs were present. Song Yuqing and all of White Cloud Temple¡¯s Hall Masters were standing on the steps.

    Shen Jingbin squeezed her way through the crowd and walked up to Song Yuqing. "Teacher, I¡¯ve arrived."

    Song Yuqing looked at her and nodded his head. "I take it that you know what the current situation is, right?"

    "Yes."

    "Good, stand behind me for now."

    "Mm," She acknowledged and obediently stood behind him.

    Song Yuqing cleared his throat and spoke. His deep, rich voice resonated throughout the hall. It wasn¡¯t very loud, but his voice carried itself clearly to the ears of every person present.

    "Disciples of White Cloud Temple, the world is in chaos, and the Demonic Sect has made its appearance. The battle between the Six Great Sects and the Shinra Sect has finallye, and I hope that all of you will give your best in tomorrow¡¯s battle. Remember, the fate of the world lies in your hands. You are the saviors of the world and the hope of all people!"

    After hearing his speech, everyone¡¯s blood began to boil.

    "In tomorrow¡¯s battle, I, my Hall Masters and your Senior Sister, will fight with all of you! We live and die together! Everyone will remember the names of the heroes who participate in this great battle! Don¡¯t get careless and give it your all!"

    "Yes, Sect Leader!"

 Chapter 319

    <b>Chapter 319: Preparing For Battle (1)</b>

    Early the next morning, B City was greeted with a pleasant sunny day; one which hadn¡¯t appeared for the longest of times in winter. Despite that, many people didn¡¯t have the time to enjoy the wonderful weather.

    As the sun peeked over the horizon, many people had awakened to the sound of the rms they¡¯d set. In high spirits, they pulled themselves out of bed and climbed into their gaming pods. The dark patches beneath their eyes making it clear that they hadn¡¯t slept the previous night.

    The system had announced that the final battle would take ce at 10 o¡¯clock sharp. Zhao Chengning¡¯s call at 8 awakened Shen Jingbin. She logged into the game and checked her friend list. Other than Gentle Flower, the rest of the Lead Disciples were present. When she asked Qi Mu for an update, Shen Jingbin found that Qi Mu had leveled at a pretty quick pace, and she was at Level 119 now, with around half a bar of experience left to reach Level 120. There was still another two hours to go, reaching Level 120 should be possible if she worked a little harder.

    Shen Jingbin logged back into the same ce she was at when she¡¯d disconnected yesterday ¨C White Cloud Temple. Though it was still early, the entirety of White Cloud Temple was jam-packed with yers. Different from the strange or mocking looks she used to receive in the past, everyone¡¯s gaze was now filled with hope and fervor. There were even a few of them who ran up to her and emotionally grabbed her hand.

    "Senior Sister! No matter what you look like, please lead us to glory!¡±

    "Senior Sister, please continue bringing in your luck. Love you, muack!"

    "Senior Sister, I¡¯ve decided to follow your lead and protect you today! Please don¡¯t recklessly charge ahead!"

    After finally escaping the White Cloud Temple yers who were bing increasingly passionate, Shen Jingbin decided to seek out Song Yuqing. Shen Jingbin just so happened to run into himing out of his residence when she reached the entrance to his abode.

    "Master, where are you heading out to?"

    Song Yuqing was dressed differently from how he usually looked. Though he was still donned in the in robes of White Cloud Temple, the material was clearly of a much higher quality, and light grey cloud-like patterns were adorning it. He appeared exceptionally well-groomed today; as though he¡¯d taken extra care of his appearance.

    "You came at just the right time. Come with me to the Southern Sea; the Six Great Sects are joining forces with the Four Guardians of the Southern Sea to defend against the Shinra Sect. The Dragonkin Tower has sent word for us to head over to Samgha Ruins first."

    The top ten officially recorded individuals of exceptional strength were made up of the Southern Sea¡¯s Four Guardians and the six Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects. Of course, other rogue individuals weren¡¯t taken into consideration. That being said, both groups were evenly matched in strength (NPCs from the Shinra Sect aside). The alliance between the Six Great Sects and the Four Guardians of the Southern Sea further assured their victory.

    Shen Jingbin nodded and followed him after sending mail to Quiet And Steadfast andpany.

    However, when she reached Samgha Ruins, she realised that Quiet And Steadfast and Pure Crane were there as well.

    "Daoist Song, you¡¯ve arrived," After theynded, the first to speak was Sect Leader Fennel from the Nymph Abode. "Daoist, pleasee along with me; there¡¯s something I need to discuss with you."

    Song Yuqing looked around. When he saw that none of the disciples from the Mara Hall, Nymph Abode nor Dragonkin Tower were present, he asked about them.

    The Sect Leader of the Swordmaster Pavilion, Lu Yinzhou, spoke up. "The three Sect Leaders from the younger generation are tied up with something else at the moment. Brother Song, doe inside with us."

    "What¡¯s going on?" Shen Jingbin had just arrived, so she didn¡¯t quite understand the situation. Despite that, she could still sense the tense atmosphere.

    "The Sect Leader of Dragonkin Tower is injured, so she can¡¯t fight. The ten strongest individuals are now short one member, and the individual in question is a mage ¨C the ss that does the highest damage. As the Lead Disciple of the Dragonkins, Qi Mu would have been the Sect Leader¡¯s recement, but there¡¯s no way she can put out the same amount of damage," Quiet And Steadfast answered.

    "In other words, we¡¯ll have a problem when our BOSS appears," Pure Crane added.

    Shen Jingbin frowned. "What are we going to do then?"

    "The Sect Leaders have probably gone inside to discuss how to deal with this situation. The Shinra Sect has five elders, and each of them has the strength to take on a hundred men. The ten Masters are there to keep them in check. If we¡¯re short on even a single person, someone else has to take up the empty position," Quiet And Steadfast replied.

    "How do you know all that?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression turned a little ufortable. "Hundred Daybreaks told me."

    Shen Jingbin gave him a meaningful look.

    "Uh, it¡¯s only a temporary alliance; we¡¯re only working together for this battle," Quiet And Steadfast stammered out.

    Shen Jingbin shrugged. "I haven¡¯t said anything."

    "..."

 Chapter 320

    <b>Chapter 320: Preparing For Battle (2)</b>

    The situation didn¡¯t seem very hopeful. A long while passed, and the three of them saw no sign of their Sect Leaders. Instead, two unexpected individuals made an appearance.

    A striking man apanied by an elder dressed in tattered clothes walked over to the three of them. The man recognized Shen Jingbin the minute he saw her. "Youth, we meet again. I knew that you were going to aplish great things the moment I met you in Evening Sun Vige. It looks like I wasn¡¯t wrong. I¡¯ve heard of your aplishments.¡±

    Shen Jingbin was blown over as soon as sheid eyes on the man. ¡°Vige Chief?!¡±

    Bai Hua gave a satisfied nod. ¡°I didn¡¯t think that you¡¯d still remember me.¡±

    ¡°It really is you! Vige Chief, why are you here? I went back to Evening Sun Vigeter on, but you¡¯d already left.¡±

    ¡°I had some unfinished business, so I left Evening Sun Vige after my wounds had healed.¡±

    ¡°Cough cough. Say,ss, haven¡¯t you noticed this old fogey?¡± The old man looked quite put off when he saw the two of them reminiscing about the past as if they were the only ones around. ¡°And you, the two youths, don¡¯t tell me you haven¡¯t noticed this old fogey either?¡±

    Beautiful people were always the center of everyone¡¯s attention, so when Zhang Wudi stood beside Bai Hua, he was entirely overlooked by the three of them.

    Pure Crane immediately said, "Oh, it¡¯s Senior. My apologies for not noticing you just now.¡±

    ¡°Humph!¡±

    ¡°Many thanks to Senior for helping us refine our weapons. May I ask what brings you here?¡±

    ¡°You can ask this shamelessd. I don¡¯t know how he caught wind of the fact that the Six Great Sects were going to battle the Shinra Sect soon, but the Sect Leader of Dragonkin Tower appeared to have been injured. Hence, he sought me out and forced me toe over to help.¡±

    His words sparked a ray of hope. Back then, the ability Zhang Wudi revealed at the Shadow Snaring Pool was nothing to be scoffed at. Coupled with the fact that he was a cksmithing Grandmaster, it meant that he was likely one of those rouge skilled individuals.

    ¡°This old fogey is but an insignificant cksmith; what talent do I have to speak of? Why would you drag an old fogey like me into a matter of life and death!¡±

    Zhang Wudi¡¯s ceaselessints ensued, and Bai Hua revealed a helpless look on his face. While this was happening, the Sect Leaders and the Four Guardians finally emerged from their discussions. Shen Jingbin noticed that Fennel was thest one to exit, and he was pushing a wheelchair with a cold looking woman sitting atop it. However, the icy aura that she exuded was greatly suppressed by the paleplexion of her face that was caused by her injuries.

    The face of the Mara Hall¡¯s Sect Leader, Distant Tyrant, who was walking at the forefront of the procession immediately lit up when he saw Zhang Wudi. ¡°Zhang Wudi! You¡¯re actually still alive! Hahaha! The heavens must be helping us! Did youe over to help because you knew that something had happened to this woman from Dragonkin Tower? Hahaha, how kind of you, old man!¡±

    Zhang Wudi puffed up in anger. ¡°Shut up, you barbarian. Who permitted you to address this old fogey by his name?! In the end, barbarians are barbarians; they¡¯re allcking in manners.¡±

    Ignoring Zhang Wudi¡¯s anger, Distant Tyrant rushed forward and lifted the thin old man into the air. "Hey guys, look over here!¡±

    When the rest of the Sect Leaders and Guardians looked over and saw Zhang Wudi, whose face was flushed in anger, the worry clouding their faces instantly dissipated.

    Song Qingyu rushed up and hurriedly made Distant Tyrant release Zhang Wudi before issuing an apology. ¡°Senior Zhang, please forgive him. This is just what Distant Tyrant is like, so I hope you won¡¯t take what he did to heart... May I ask if Senior Zhang is here to aid us?¡±

    Zhang Wudi red at Distant Tyrant. ¡°Away with all this pointless formality. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that I know thisd, I wouldn¡¯t bother about any of you. Whoever ends up bing the Leader of the world is none of my business.¡±

    As he spoke, Lu Yinzhou and the rest walked forward. They looked to his side when they heard what he¡¯d said.

    "Bai Hua!" Lu Yinzhou¡¯s voice quivered slightly.

    "Master, this disciple is unfilial for only returning now, please punish me!" Bai Hua¡¯s emotions wereplicated when he finally saw his Master after so long, and he knelt without another word.

    How could Lu Yinzhou bear to me his beloved disciple? He immediately went forward to help him up and said, ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about all of this. All that matters is that you¡¯re back. Why would I me you for being gone!¡±

    ¡°Fellow Sect Leaders, please put aside your private matters for now so that we can discuss how we¡¯re going to deal with the Shinra Sect¡¯s five elders.¡±

    A female voice broke the happy atmosphere. Shen Jingbin looked over and found that the person who¡¯d spoken was the Dragonkin¡¯s Sect Leader, Yu Youchen, who was sitting on a wheelchair.

    ¡°Indeed, since we have Senior Zhang, who can take Celestial Yu¡¯s ce, we can proceed with our original n," Xu Sheng said.

    ¡°I will be busy opening the eighth floor of Reincarnation Pavilion, so I won¡¯t be able to help you. But, during our previous battle with the Shinra Sect, the Grand Elder of the five elders and Jue Tian were never far from one another. The same will probably be the case this time around as well. As such, I will entrust you youths with the task of defeating Jue Tian and the Grand Elder... Don¡¯t worry, one of us will be there to aid you, along with the subordinates from the Six Great Sects and the Guardians of the Southern Sea.¡±

    Shen Jingbin andpany had no reason to reject, so they nodded in agreement. These elite NPCs had their preparations to do, so with a wave of their hands, they forced their three pitiful disciples to prepare pills and the like for them while there was still time.

    Gentle Flower logged in at 9 o¡¯clock. After purchasing all of the needed medicine, the four of them made their way over to where Qi Mu and The Winds Of Ximen were leveling and focused on helping Qi Mu raise her level.

    After being fed an endless amount of experience pills like they had cost nothing, Qi Mu managed to hit Level 120 at 9:57, and Pure Crane handed her her Divine Weapon.

    At 9:59, all of the good yers rushed over to Soundwave Temple, which was located in the middle of the Southern Sea.

    At 10 o¡¯clock sharp, the system promptly announced the start of the battle.

    [System Announcement] Heaven and Earth are shaken; the wolves howl, and the devils cry. The Shinra Sect, under the leadership of Jue Tian, have once again risen to ughter all living creatures, and send the world spiralling into chaos. The Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects, the Four Guardians of the Southern Sea, and the yers on the side of good have joined forces to meet this threat head-on!

    [System Announcement] The battle between good and evil is a fight for survival. Young heroes, you shall be the ones who¡¯ll write your future! It¡¯s a winner-take-all battle; will you be victorious?

 Chapter 321

    <b>Chapter 321: Pathfinder Monsters (1)</b>

    At 10 o¡¯clock sharp, the skies darkened and the clouds began to churn. Terrifying bolts of lightning shed through the sky, while menacing booms of thunder sent all forms of life cowering in fear. They wept andmented; almost as if they could feel the oing catastrophe.

    The yers gathered at Soundwave Temple raised their heads to look past the ocean¡¯s water and towards the stormy skies above them, and a feeling of solemness washed over them. The calm ocean waters began to roil, and arge shadow suddenly appeared in the sky, painting a scene like the one back at Eight Trigrams Field. The six Sect Leaders and Four Guardians of the Southern Sea, along with Zhang Wudi, stood at the vanguard of the battle line. Behind them was Bai Hua, the Guardian¡¯s disciples, and the six Lead Disciples. Further behind them stood the yers and NPCs from the Six Great Sects.

    ¡°They¡¯re here, ready yourselves!¡± Distant Tyrant of the Mara Hall was the first to speak. His voice was loud and distinct, clearly making its way towards everyone present. It was actually a little too loud and caused Shen Jingbin andpany¡¯s ears¡¯ to throb in pain.

    In that instant, the telltale light of various skills being activated could be seen. Everyone began buffing themselves and summoning their battle pets. Gentle Flower added a few more buffs to herpanions, while Shen Jingbin summoned her four Divine Beasts.

    The moment they appeared, the Four Divine Beasts took on their original form; the sacred invible Azure Dragon, the murderous White Tiger, the Vermillion Bird whose body was surrounded by fireballs, and the benevolent ck Tortoise who always carried itself in a dignified manner. Each of the Four Divine Beasts took their positions to form a protective circle around Shen Jingbin.

    The yers who were nearby all sighed in shock and admiration.

    The faint roar of wild beasts could be heard from the ocean¡¯s surface.

    Poison Toad immediately began issuingmands when the sound of heavy objects hitting the water could be heard. "Disciples of the Lich Pce, heed mymand: activate the barrier!"

    ¡°Yes!¡± Answered the Lich Pce yers and NPCs in unison. They then began forming mudras with their hands, and an enormous golden dome appeared on top of everyone¡¯s heads, enveloping the entirety of Soundwave Temple and the surrounding areas.

    The Southern Sea wasn¡¯t actually thatrge, but since the battle between good and evil was being held there, the development team had made some modifications to the map. With Soundwave Temple and Reincarnation Pavilion at the center of the map as their focus, they opened up several parallel realms, making the maprge enough to amodate all the yers.

    The moment the golden barrier was activated, countlessrge objects smashed against it. Fortunately, this barrier was created through the efforts of all the yers and NPCs of the Lich Pce, so it was extraordinarily resilient, and it only trembled slightly when faced with the vicious onught.

    Suddenly, the ck Tortoise beside Shen Jingbin made an indescribable sound, and all the yers from the Lich Pce who were conjuring the barrier felt their energy being replenished. The golden barrier was also affected, and it now boasted a mustard coloured radiance that caused all the monsters that smashed against it to bounce off it.

    ¡°Disciples of the Swordmaster Pavilion, heed mymand! Exit the barrier and exterminate these monsters!¡±

    ¡°Disciples of the Nymph Abode, heed mymand! Protect ourrades from the Dragonkin Tower!¡±

    Fennel and Lu Yinzhou issued their orders at the same time. The result was an awe-inspiring roar from both NPCs and yers of both sects. After which, thebined force of disciples crossed the barrier and smoothly worked with one another to cut through the Shinra Sect¡¯s advance force of Pathfinder Monsters.

    There were four different stages in the final battle between good and evil. In the first stage, the Pathfinder Monsters that the Shinra Sect sent out weren¡¯t all that strong, but they came out in droves. The second stage would involve yers battling against the Shinra Sect¡¯s Guardian Monsters. The third stage consisted of the yers on the side of good shing head-on with the yers of the Shinra Sect. Thest stage was, of course, the battle against the five elders and the founder of the Shinra Sect ¨C Jue Tian.

    What¡¯s worth mentioning was the fact that yers would only be able to proceed to the second stage if they exterminated all of the Pathfinder Monsters. From the second stage onwards, the rest of the stages would have individual time limits. The yers from the good sects only had an hour to prevail against the Shinra Sect¡¯s Guardian Monsters. After an hour had passed, the third stage would begin, and the yers from the Shinra Sect would enter the battlefield regardless of whether they¡¯d managed to defeat the Guardian Monsters or not. From there, they¡¯d only have another hour before the start of the fourth stage.

    In short, if they wanted to have an easier time in theter stages, they¡¯d have to kill as many Guardian Monsters and Shinra Sect yers as they possibly could.

    Taking into consideration the few yers that were on the Shinra Sect¡¯s side and the massive number of yers that were on the side of the righteous sects, it was made such that yers on the side of good wouldn¡¯t be able to rejoin the battle once they died. Moreover, yers from the Shinra Sect would be revived three times before they were eliminated from battle.

    To win, yers on the side of good had to work together to seal Jue Tian. On the other hand, the Shinra Sect yers would win if they managed to destroy the Lamp of Life within the Watchtower of Longevity that was located on the west side of the Southern Sea.

    The yers on the side of good would gain a point if they killed a Pathfinder Monster, two points if they killed a Guardian Monster, and three points if they killed a yer from the opposing faction. Once the battle ended, a leaderboard disying the number of points each yer had amassed would appear. Regardless of which faction they were from, the overall top three yers would receive a mysterious reward.

    Therefore, this battle which was to take ce across the entirety of the Southern Sea was fated to be a difficult one.

    The Pathfinder Monsters that the Shinra Sect had sent outnumbered twice that of the yers on the side of good. Furthermore, these monsters were of varying races and levels, making it quite the problem to deal with.

    Some yers managed to eliminate the enormous monsters that they faced, only to be attacked by the poison of small parasitic animals that lived within these monsters. They would then go on to die from the poison before the Nymphs could heal them, and just like that, their part within the battle woulde to a regretful close at the very first stage.

 Chapter 322

    <b>Chapter 322: Pathfinder Monsters (2)</b>

    With destroying the barrier set by the Lich Pce disciples as their objective, the Pathfinder Monsters would relentlessly throw themselves against it whenever they had the chance; even if doing so meant them dying in the process. The resulting scene was far too graphic, and when the yers within the barrier who had yet to fight saw this, their faces turned a sickly green. Some of them, who had a lower tolerance for these things even began to puke. There were also some yers from other sects who were getting restless, and entertaining thoughts of jumping into the fray. After all, these Pathfinder Monsters were points!

    When Yu Youchen discovered a yer trying to sneak past the side of the barrier to join the yers battling outside, she shot out an icicle thatnded right in front of the yer. She then cycled her qi and spoke loud enough for everyone to hear. "No one is to act without thinking! This is a fierce battle! What you need to do now is to conserve your energy; you¡¯ll have your chance to sher!"

    When they heard that, the yers who¡¯d harboured thoughts of sneaking out immediately reined in their impulsiveness.

    yers of all skill levels were engaged in the battle. However, the majority of them had some tricks up their sleeves. Only the terribly weak ones and newbies didn¡¯t join the battle and instead watched from the sidelines where their sects were.

    After about two hours, almost all of the Pathfinder Monsters had been defeated. When thest Pathfinder Monster was eliminated, all the yers that were still alive immediately rushed back into the safety of the barrier.

    Shen Jingbin looked at Shen Jingchen. Though he was covered in monster blood that had yet to be removed by the system, he was still in pretty good shape. He¡¯d also noticed her, and he shot her a smug smile before obediently returning to his position in the battle lines.

    Shen Jingbin did her best to restrain herself.

    Gentle Flower and Pure Crane had returned too. They¡¯d formed a two-person team in the first stage and gone on to mercilessly kill all of the Pathfinder Monsters;pletely destroying all of the monsters in their path. In the process, they¡¯d even managed to save many yers who were on the verge of death.

    Pure Crane looked worriedly at The Winds Of Ximen, Shen Jingbin and Qi Mu. "It¡¯ll probably be you guys from the White Cloud Temple, Mara Hall, and Dragonkin Tower for the next stage. Be careful."

    The three of them nodded back before Shen Jingbin turned and locked eyes with Quiet And Steadfast, who was maintaining the barrier and just so happened to be looking at her as well.

    "Be careful," He mouthed.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s gaze turned firm, and she silently mouthed her reply, "I will."

    Not even two minutes had passed since the yers had returned to the area shielded by the barrier when the skies above the ocean began to roll once again. The howling winds grew in intensity, and waves that were half a man high began forming on the ocean¡¯s surface. Even though they were standing at the bottom of the sea, the yers could hear the howling winds, the crashing thunder, and lightning that looked like it could tear the heavens asunder.

    Then, it suddenly rained. The rain smashed down onto the ocean¡¯s surface, working with the crashing waves to create endless ripples. The ocean waters grew turbid, and as it did, it began to contaminate the waters beneath it bit by bit.

    The clouds that were dark and looked like they¡¯d drip ink at any moment abruptly released densely packed ck shadows that were apanied by an enormous ssh when they hit the ocean¡¯s surface. Everyone knew that the second stage had begun ¨C the Guardian Monsters were here.

    As expected, Yu Youchen, Distant Tyrant and Song Yuqing issued orders to their disciples a momentter.

    "Disciples of the Dragonkin Tower, heed mymand! Exit the barrier and drive out this filth!"

    "Disciples of the Mara Hall, heed mymand! Exit the barrier and exterminate these ugly things!"

    "Disciples of the White Cloud Temple, heed mymand! Aid ourrades from the Mara Hall and Dragonkin Tower in eliminating these monsters!"

    "Yes!" The disciples of the three sects replied in unison. Shen Jingbin and The Winds Of Ximen exchanged a nce with one another before thetter gave Qi Mu another stern reminder. "Make sure you take good care of yourselfter on. We only have a single life in this battle, so you have to make it to thest stage."

    Qi Mu naturally knew of the heavy responsibility that she bore. She nodded and replied, "I know."

    After which, the three of them exited the barrier together.

    The disciples of Dragonkin Tower, White Cloud Temple and Mara Hall surrounded the barrier, encircling it in a protective formation. All of them wore stern expressions as they knew they¡¯d be facing a far more treacherous situation than that of the first round.

    When Yu Youchen saw the Guardian Monsters closing in on them from above, she shouted, "You only have one hour. Do your best to eliminate as much of the filth from the Shinra Sect as possible during this time!"

    After voicing a reply, the Dragonkin disciples tightened their grips around their staffs to mask their fear or excitement.

    Song Yuqing¡¯s brows furrowed in disapproval. "Though time is of the essence and your mission is important, you must remember that protecting yourselfes before anything else!"

    In the past, Distant Tyrant would have shared the same opinion as Yu Youchen. However, this time, he chose to support Song Yuqing. "All the lil¡¯ brats from my Mara Hall, listen up! Don¡¯t worry about killing off all those dregs from the Shinra Sect; focus on staying alive!"

    "What do the two of you know! At a time like this, we should be focusing on killing more enemies! Since both of your sects are so afraid, then you can cower in a corner on your own. The Dragonkin Tower..."

    Before Yu Youchen could finish, she was interrupted by the sound of something heavy crashing onto the ground, and everyone instinctively looked over.

    This was the first time any of them hadid eyes on the Guardian Monsters of the Shinra Sect. When the yers finally got a chance to get a good look at them, many yers sucked in a breath of cold air. Yu Youchen¡¯s expression darkened, and she swallowed down whatever else she was nning to say.

    This was nothing like what we¡¯d expected!

    That was the only thought in Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind when sheid eyes on the Guardian Monsters.

 Chapter 323

    <strong>Chapter 323: The Guardian Monsters (1)</strong>

    The Pathfinder Monsters from before were like kittens whenpared to the Guardian Monsters; they were in a league of their own.

    There weren¡¯t as many Guardian Monsters, numbering half that of the Pathfinder Monsters. Every single Guardian Monster differed in appearance, but there was one thing they held inmon: regardless of their size, every inch of their body oozed with an intimidating level of power.

    They were like experts in wuxia stories who¡¯d gone into seclusion. At first nce, there was nothing out of the ordinary about them; you could even say that they looked foolish. But, in spite of that, they had an iparable air of intimidation about them.

    Shen Jingbin noticed that some of the female yers from White Cloud Temple had already lost their wits and were shivering with fear. That being said, this was a very normal reaction for a person when they were faced with someone whose strength was far beyond theirs.

    There were quite a few yers from Jade Sea Pavilion near Shen Jingbin, and they subconsciously drew closer to her when theyid eyes upon the Guardian Monsters.

    "We don¡¯t have much time, let¡¯s finish this as quickly as possible."

    Shen Jingbin led the charge by attacking first. When Mascot noticed the change in its owner¡¯s emotions, it raised its head and issued a deafening roar. Even with the ocean¡¯s waters reducing the impact, the roar was still just as powerful, leaving everyone¡¯s ears ringing in the aftermath.

    Mascot leapt forward like a lightning bolt and pounced onto the closest Guardian Monster. At the same time, the ck Tortoise poked its head and legs out of its shell and raised its little head. It opened its mouth and spat out five mustard coloured bubbles. The bubbles slowly drifted away and enveloped Shen Jingbin and her Four Divine Beasts. The winged serpents on the ck Tortoise¡¯s back also swelled in size before it shot into the air. They turned their gaze to Mascot¡¯s target and flew straight towards the Guardian Monster¡¯s throat like an arrow shot from a bow. The Vermillion Bird also acted and rose to the sky. It issued a piercing shriek that everyone could clearly hear, and the next moment, its entire body was shrouded in brightly coloured mes. The fact that the Vermillion Bird could give rise to such intense mes in the ocean was a testament to its prowess. It pped its enormous wings, and zing fireballs began to fall from them like raindrops, smashing into the monsters beneath it and causing them to howl with pain. Not wanting to lose out, the Azure Dragon circled around itself and rose into the sky, its long beard fluttering about in the air while the other three Divine Beasts acted. As it did so, the body of water behind the Guardian Monsters began to surge. The Azure Dragon opened its mouth and shot out a faint cyan coloured Divine Beast. Almost as if it could see, the construct floated over to where the mob of monsters were and gradually dispersed once it was above them. When the particles descended, the monsters wearing armor found that their armor had instantly melted away, and all sorts of unpleasant roaring started up once again.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s attack was like a signal for everyone else. Everyone, from the yers who were adopting a ¡¯wait and see¡¯ approach to those who didn¡¯t know what to do, began jumping into the fray. With that, the battle between the yers on the side of good and the Shinra Sect¡¯s Guardian Monsters officially began.

    Shen Jingbin used a rooting skill on a monster with the head of a cow and the body of a deer. The skill¡¯s special effects shed past the monster, but it appeared to have no effect. In return, the monster aggressively charged at her with its pair of sharp horns taking point.

    "Ding."

    In the next moment, The Winds Of Ximen¡¯s broadsword appeared in front of the monster and blocked its attack. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Shen Jingbin threw out another rooting skill. It took effect this time around, and the monster was stopped in its tracks.

    "Qi Mu, use Heavenly Punishment!" Shen Jingbin shouted.

    Qi Mu reacted swiftly and cast all her buffs before calling down a Heavenly Punishment on the monster. The Vermillion Birdunched a fireball at it as well, and the monster with a cow¡¯s head roared in pain. Try as it might, the monster couldn¡¯t move due to the effects of Shen Jingbin¡¯s rooting skill, and all it could do was re hatefully at Qi Mu with its eyes that were asrge as bronze bells.

    The monster¡¯s bloody gaze was so vengeful that Qi Mu¡¯s hand involuntarily trembled, causing her skill to miss its mark. At the same time, the effects of the rooting skill had expired, and the monster immediately spun around and charged at Qi Mu. Seeing this, The Winds Of Ximen used every ounce of strength in his body to swing his broadsword and cut down the cow head monster who only had a sliver of HP left, and as a result, had its reaction speed decreased.

    "Focus, don¡¯t get distracted."

    A now pale-faced Qi Mu nodded back.

    Shen Jingbin only had enough time to briefly nce at them before her attention was once again stolen away by another monster that beset her.

    Although the Guardian Monsters were vicious, the elite yers were managing to defeat them without too much trouble when they worked together. The ones who were really struggling were the yers of average skill that were killed off by the monsters after only exchanging a few blows. If this continued, the number of monsters that the elite yers would have to deal with would steadily increase, and this would affect their performance in theter stages of the battle.

    By this point, the three Lead Disciples had already grouped up with the remaining elite members of Jade Sea Pavilion. If they hadn¡¯t, Qi Mu might not have been able to make it this far.

    At first, several yers would band together to take on one monster, but as the number of yers decreased, it turned into a situation where each yer had to take on two or more monsters.

    "Nutty, we¡¯ve lost too many people. We can¡¯t do it like this, what should we do?" The husband and wife pair, Long Life and Eternal Rest, weren¡¯t looking so good. Not only did the Guardian Monsters have high attack and mobility, but their hardened skin also made it difficult for an attack to prate. Just half an hour of fighting in close quarters with these monsters had used up far too much of their strength.

    Shen Jingbin wore a solemn look on her face. She instructed everyone to consume some of their Soul Returning Pills, but at the same time, these things weren¡¯t easy toe by. They couldn¡¯t keep relying on these pills. If they kept at it, they wouldn¡¯t have anything left for the next two stages of the battle. Worst of all though, was that they were now boxed in by a ring of Guardian Monsters.

    Compared to the Pathfinder Monsters, the Guardian Monsters were clearly far more intelligent and knew how to pick their fights. They¡¯d go after easy targets, and they also knew how tounch a coordinated attack.

    The Guardian Monsters had probably sense that Shen Jingbin¡¯s group posed the greatest threat, so they dedicated a significant portion of their remaining forces to encircle them. And, it looked like they were nning to employ psychological warfare too...?

 Chapter 324

    <strong>Chapter 324: The Guardian Monsters (2)</strong>

    Big Buddhist Nun eyed the monsters around them. They were trapped, but the monsters refused to attack. Instead, they chose to slowly tighten the noose around them with joy in their eyes. "Pui, do these monsters think we¡¯re a bunch ofmbs?" She softly cursed.

    Little Monk cast a worried nce around them. Through the small gaps in the encirclement, he found that there were several other areas on the battlefield where yers were more or less trapped too. But, it was clear that there were far fewer monsters than before. He turned his attention to Shen Jingbin and the other two Lead Disciples and said, "If possible, the three of you should conserve your energy. I¡¯m not sure what¡¯s going to happen in the third stage, but you guys will probably be the main offensive force in therge face off against the founder of the Shinra Sect. It won¡¯t be good for us if you end up exhausting all your strength now."

    "Then, what should we do now," Eternal Rest asked.

    Long Life thought for a moment and said, "We might be able to brute force our way through, but our losses would be too great. Our only choice is to outwit them."

    As someone who¡¯d only focused on increasing his strength and not his brains, The Winds Of Ximen couldn¡¯t understand a thing they were saying. While alertly watching his surroundings, he said, "How do we outwit them? Everyone, please hurry up and think of something! I¡¯m under a lot of pressure here, f*ck! Why do I have to endure something like this in a game?! I¡¯m going to lodge aint with Yiju; they¡¯re ruining my poor, fragile heart!"

    Shen contemted the matter for a little while before she suddenly said, "Look at that monster that¡¯s covered in white fur to the northeast, do you think it looks weird?"

    The Winds Of Ximen howled with grief. "My goodness, girl, stop screwing around! Haven¡¯t you noticed that the monster¡¯s eyes are bing even more ravenous? No one¡¯s in the mood to pay attention to these things! And, if you ask me, I think that every single one of them looks weird!"

    Unexpectedly, after hearing what Shen Jingbin said, Qi Mu happened to look in the direction of the white monster. Something in her head clicked, and she nced over to the other encirclements. Sure enough, another white-furred monster was present as well. "The groups of monsters that utilize this encirclement tactic all have this type of white monster within their ranks."

    The Guardian Monsters surrounding them were forcing them closer and closer towards one another. At this point, even if Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t speaking loudly, the rest of the group would still be able to make out what she said clearly.

    "I don¡¯t think Yiju would be able to pull off something as big as making each of the Guardian Monsters able to think on their own. So, their ability to disy such intelligence means that there¡¯s definitely a monster amongst them that acts as a think tank. It¡¯s just like in the case of the wolf and the bei.1 Here, the white-furred monster is the ¡¯bei¡¯. And, my guess is that this monster is actually the demonized version of the White Marsh.2"

    "So, our target¡¯s that monster?" Qi Mu asked.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression grew stern, and she nodded her head. "Put bluntly, these bunch of blockheads are just monsters with slightly higher levels. I¡¯m confident we¡¯ll be able to do something about them once we eliminate the brains behind their operation."

    Eternal Rest had long since gotten sick of these monsters. When she heard Shen Jingbin¡¯s suggestion, her eyes immediately lit up, and she hoisted up her broadsword. "Since that¡¯s the case, what are we waiting for? Let¡¯s get going! I can¡¯t stand the fact that we¡¯ve been backed into a corner by these bunch of idiots!"

    "Count me in too; it doesn¡¯t sit right with me," The Winds Of Ximen chimed in.

    "Me three! I¡¯ll take good care of that white-furred monsterter on!" Added Big Buddhist Nun.

    The group pumped themselves up and reactivated all their buffs. The White Marsh who¡¯d been targeted by them might have sensed something because while it had previouslymanded the group of monsters to tighten the encirclement slowly, it now suddenly gave the order tounch an all-out attack instead!

    The Winds Of Ximen started swearing. "Screw you! It looks like Yiju¡¯s artificial intelligence is quite the genius! If the world ever gets taken over by machines, it¡¯ll definitely be Yiju¡¯s fault, no doubt about it!"

    Shen Jingbin andpany acted just a step faster than the demonized White Marsh, so by the time the group of monstersunched their attack, they¡¯d already arrived in front of the White Marsh. Seeing this, it hastilymanded a robust monster beside it to defend it from the attack of Eternal Rest, who was boiling over with rage.

    However, even though the Guardian Monster managed to block Eternal Rest¡¯s attack, it wasn¡¯t able to block the attacks of the rest of the group who were hot on her heels.

    Speaking of Yiju, they were actually quite fair when it came to designing their characters. While the demonized White Marsh possessed high intelligence and had the ability to control a group of monsters, itcked in both attack and defence. Having been surrounded by them with no way out, the demonized White Marsh was split in half on the spot, and its reddish-ck blood stained its fur that had remained white even after its demonization.

    After the demonized White Marsh died, the monsters surrounding Shen Jingbin andpany acted like a pack of wolves that had lost their leader and fell into chaos. The group took advantage of this opportunity and attacked. A short whileter, all of the monstersy dead on the ground.

    After cleansing the area of monsters, Shen Jingbin looked around and saw that the other areas weren¡¯t doing so well. "Let¡¯s help the others!" Shen Jingbin eximed, and the group took off in the direction of the closest encirclement.

    "Attack the white-furred monster first, he¡¯s the one who¡¯s holding them together!" As the Guardian Monsters over here were mainly of therger variant, she wasn¡¯t able to clearly make out the yers trapped within. All she could do was shout at them while running and hope that they¡¯d be able to hear her.

    A bei is a legendary wolf whose forelegs are too short for it to walk on its own. To get around, it has to ride on the back of another wolf. ? A creature that the Yellow Emperor ran into in the past. This creature went on to dictate a guide that covered the forms and habits of all 11,520 supernatural creatures in the world, and how to ovee their hauntings and attacks. ?

 Chapter 325

    <b>Chapter 325: Meeting Lonely Moon Once Again (1)</b>

    They didn¡¯t know whether the people inside had heard her, but regardless, Shen Jingbin andpany rushed tounch an attack from the outside of the encirclement. No matter how clever the demonized White Marsh was, it couldn¡¯t possiblye up with the perfect solution to handling an onught from both ends in such a short period. Furthermore, the fact that they needed to surround this group meant that the people trapped within weren¡¯t weak. Even if they hadn¡¯t met each other before, they should still at least be somewhat capable of fighting.

    Shen Jingbin grouped up with Qi Mu and The Winds Of Ximen, while the rest of the party did the same and acted on their own. Their primary targets were those mobs that were smaller in size and that weren¡¯t wearing any tough armor. Mobs like these were either nimble and had quick reflexes, or boasted high attack power. However, their weakness was that their defense was nothing out of the ordinary. As long as their movements were restricted before they took action, it¡¯d be easy to take them out.

    Their first target was an enemy that was located further away from the demonized White Marsh. It looked like a wolf, yet it had the ability to walk upright. It stood slightly further behind the rest of the mobs performing the encirclement. From the looks of it, it was nning tounch a sneak attack.

    Shen Jingbin cast a meaningful nce at her two party members before the trio began to quietly creep closer. With the mobs¡¯ attentionpletely focused on the yers trapped within the encirclement and the White Marsh¡¯s control over them, their approach wentpletely unnoticed. After making sure that the mobs were within their attack range, Shen Jingbin made a signal to herpanions.

    In an instant, White Cloud Temple¡¯s Root skill, and Dragonkin Tower¡¯s Soul Bind skill, simultaneously hit the wolf mob. At the same time, The Winds Of Ximen brandished his broadsword. A wave of imposing sword qi burst forth from it and sped towards the wolf mob. The wolf mob had its wits about it and managed to detect the oing attack. However, the sword qi was already upon the wolf mob, and an overwhelming sense of oppression bore down on it. It was toote for it to dodge.

    The blood curdling cries of the wolf mob rang out.

    At the same time, the others who¡¯d been spread out elsewhere started to take action as well. The effects of skills being activated in quick session could be seen, and several gaps appeared in the tightly knit encirclement.

    Realising what was happening, the people within the encirclement began to move as well. Shocked by this sudden development, the demonized White Marsh was scared stiff and stood there gaping with its eyes wide open. Invisible sound waves rippled out of its mouth in circles and swept around the area, sending all of the mobs into a rampage.

    Sure enough, the demonized White Marsh had shot itself in the foot.

    This made things much more manageable. With the two groups coordinating their efforts, it didn¡¯t take long for them to get rid of the encirclement of anotheryer of mobs. It was at this point that Shen Jingbin was able to clearly make out the people trapped within.

    They turned out to be from Life At First Sight, and the person leading them was Lonely Moon.

    Simrly, Lonely Moon froze when he caught sight of her, and his expression became even moreical when he saw Qi Mu.

    "Um, er, I mean, thanks for the help."

    Lonely Moon wasn¡¯t actually a bad person. Previously, he¡¯d had no choice but to oppose them because of their difference in positions. But, that didn¡¯t mean he wasn¡¯t able to distinguish right from wrong. They¡¯d saved him, and regardless of why they¡¯d done so, he still needed to express his thanks. This was especially so since he felt terrible about Qi Mu.

    In the past, the man who Qi Mu had liked had been one of Lonely Moon¡¯s bros. At the time, Lonely Moon and Qi Mu¡¯s rtionship was quite good. He¡¯d also borne witness to the dispute between Qi Mu, his bro, and his bro¡¯s wife, and was perfectly aware of everything that had happened. However, in spite of that, he¡¯d held his tongue all this while for the sake of his bro. When Qi Mu was surrounded by Life At First Sight, he¡¯d felt that, as a man, it wasn¡¯t his ce to meddle in matters between women, so he¡¯d stood idly by.

    It was onlyter when he found out that Qi Mu¡¯s level had been maliciously purged that he realised just how horrible his actions had been. He¡¯d wanted to apologize to Qi Mu, but he no longer had the guts to do so...

    Till this very moment, when they rescued him.

    Speaking of which, this was actually the very first time he¡¯d seen Qi Mu ever since she¡¯d left the guild.

    It was clear that Qi Mu had significantly changed during this time. Her previous arrogance was utterly gone, and it was reced with a sense of calmness. Such a drastic change left Lonely Moon feeling even more ufortable.

    "Qi-Qi Mu, have you... been welltely?" Lonely Moon asked shyly.

    Having no knowledge of what had transpired between the two of them in the past, based on what he¡¯d said and his expression, Shen Jingbin jumped to the conclusion that Lonely Moon was the man who¡¯d previously bullied Qi Mu.

    Qi Mu seemed to know what she was thinking, and calmly said, "It¡¯s not him." Following that, she turned her gaze to Lonely Moon and said, "Not bad. At the very least, I¡¯m morefortable than I was in my previous guild."

    "About that, back then I..." Lonely Moon felt so stifled that his manly face began to turn a little red.

    Qi Mu knew what he wanted to say, but she had no intention of listening to him. "This isn¡¯t the time to be talking about these things, let¡¯s just focus on fighting." This utterance forestalled Lonely Moon¡¯s apology. He quietly rubbed his nose, while hispanions behind him remained silent as well; none of them daring to speak up.

    Shen Jingbin peered over at Lonely Moon¡¯spanions. Apart from Lonely Moon and a few other yers, the rest of the members from Life At First Sight were unfamiliar. This prompted her to ask, "Where¡¯s your Guild Leader and Vice-leader?"

    When they were mentioned, Lonely Moon¡¯s sad expression instantly fell away. "I¡¯m just as puzzled as you are. Previously, only our Vice-leader seldom made an appearance. Putting aside everything else, Guild Leader Fish would still show up and mingle with the guild. But, ever since Nutjob gathered the Four Divine Beasts, we haven¡¯t seen hide nor hair of our Guild Leader. Even Sovereign¡¯s Descent¡¯s Leader, Neverending Journey, seems to have stopped showing up as well. It¡¯s as if they¡¯ve gone to another world. The friend list still clearly shows that they¡¯re online, but we just can¡¯t seem to find them. We weren¡¯t even able to catch sight of them for an event as big as today¡¯s final battle; I have no idea what they¡¯re thinking."

    Lonely Moon appeared to be feeling rather indignant. After all, their Guild Leader and Vice-leader weren¡¯t present, and there weren¡¯t many other people within the guild who could take up the mantle while they were gone. In the end, he¡¯d had no choice but to grudgingly assume the role. However, his words caused Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart to skip a beat. She had a bad feeling about this.

 Chapter 326

    <b>Chapter 326: Meeting Lonely Moon Once Again (2)</b>

    Shen Jingbin had long since suspected that Nine Bads was a part of the Shinra Sect. However, she didn¡¯t have any evidence to back it up; it was just a gut feeling. But, looking at it now, it seemed as if Crying Fish and Neverending Journey had joined the Shinra Sect as well. Otherwise, based on their personalities, there was no way they¡¯d let go of such a great opportunity to show off.

    Qi Mu shared the same sentiment as Shen Jingbin and abruptly turned to face her. They met each other¡¯s gaze for several seconds and understood what the other was thinking. On the other hand, The Winds Of Ximen had been lost from the moment they saw Lonely Moon. His mood soured when he saw that the two of them were casting ¡¯flirtatious¡¯ nces at one another.

    "Hey, I say, why are the two of you helplessly staring at one another? And is this the time to be reminiscing about the past? There are only six minutes left!"

    The Winds Of Ximen¡¯sment snapped everyone back to reality.

    "I¡¯m not cut out to be a leader, and neither do I have the guts to lead my guild, so I only brought along a few bros that usually y with me. If you guys don¡¯t mind, can we tag along with you? An event like this is a rare urrence, and none of us wants to meet an early demise," Lonely Moon said.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t hate Lonely Moon, and they needed more people right now, so she nodded her head in agreement.

    When Shen Jingchen, who was recovering his energy within the barrier looked up, he saw his sister rushing about outside the barrier with arge group of yers from Life At First Sight in tow.

    "What the f*ck, what the f*ck?! What¡¯s that girl doing?! Why is there a bunch of yers from Life At First Sight following her? Don¡¯t tell me that she wants to lead them towards the pinnacle of life?!"

    National Treasures heard his outburst and looked in Shen Jingbin¡¯s direction as well. She was stunned into silence when she got a good look at what was going on. "Nutty¡¯s a god; she¡¯s able to win over the hearts of rival guilds with just the snap of her fingers. Her personality and charm are on another level."

    Lingering White Clouds clearly had a different opinion. Her slender brows knitted together into a frown when she nced out of the barrier.

    "Something doesn¡¯t look quite right."

    "Mm? What¡¯s wrong, Lingering? What¡¯d you see?" National Treasures asked.

    "Take a closer look at the people who are still outside, and then take a look at the people who are inside. There aren¡¯t many elite yers from Life At First Sight and Sovereign¡¯s Descent around. Crying Fish, Nine Bads, and Neverending Journey are missing as well."

    National Treasures wasn¡¯t fazed by what she¡¯d said. "They must have either been too busy to log on, or they¡¯ve already died. It¡¯s also quite possible that they didn¡¯t participate in this event at all."

    Lingering White Clouds¡¯ments helped Shen Jingchene to a realisation. His expression turned solemn. "No, none of the three scenarios you suggested took ce."

    Due to their long-standing rivalry with Life At First Sight, they knew exactly who the elite members of Life At First Sight were. A quick nce revealed that not a single one of them was present. Although it hadn¡¯t been long since Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Jade Sea Pavilion had be enemies, due to Sovereign¡¯s Descent¡¯s prominence, the yers from Jade Sea Pavilion roughly knew who Sovereign¡¯s Descent¡¯s elite members were. Right now, most of them weren¡¯t present either.

    "Don¡¯t you know how these two guilds go about doing things? Forgetting about everyone else, do you really think Neverending Journey would let go of such a fantastic opportunity to show off? If something wasn¡¯t preventing himing, I reckon that even if he were to die in the process, he¡¯d still w his way over here. And, them dying and being sent back at such an early stage would be even more impossible. Although the yers from both guilds are pretty trashy, they aren¡¯t so bad that they¡¯d be beaten by mobs like these. Thus, some exceptional circumstances must have prevented them froming."

    National Treasures thought about it carefully and felt that what Shen Jingchen had said made sense. "Then, what¡¯s their reason for noting?" Shen Jingchen¡¯s expression darkened. "I¡¯m afraid things would probably be a little more interesting if I said it out loud..."

    Momentster, a system notification rang out in everyone¡¯s ears.

    "The second stage of the final battle between good and evil is over. The third stage has now officially begun. The Shinra Sect¡¯s disciples will reach the battlefield in approximately one minute. You have this one minute to rest and prepare yourselves. Note: The Guardian Monsters will continue their attacks during this time. yers are advised to exercise discretion."

    The yers who were outside the barrier stopped fighting when they heard the chime of the system notification. When that happened, a good number of survivors were immediately cut down by the mobs.

    After the system notification sounded, the Sect Leaders began taking appropriate action.

    Distant Tyrant took the broadsword that he held in his hands and smashed it into the ground. He then took a deep breath and bellowed, "All disciples are to return immediately! Disciples of the Lich Pce are to remain where they are and rest for one minute!"

    He then shot a mischievous smile at Zhang Wudi and said, "Old man Zhang, it hasn¡¯t been easy for this bunch of young fellows to survive up to now; at least let them rest for a while. Why don¡¯t you help them to sustain the barrier during this time?"

    Zhang Wudi was so furious that his moustache was practically curled up in anger. But, he epted Distant Tyrant¡¯s request all the same.

    He pulled out a tiny ck furnace from his sleeve and tossed it upwards. The little furnace floated in the air, and a few secondster, it emitted a dazzling beam of light, enveloping the barrier that was previously formed by the Lich Pce disciples.

    "You¡¯ve got a quarter of an hour. Hurry up!" Zhang Wudi said grumpily.

    "You got it!" Distant Tyrant said with a wide smile on his face. "You brats, use this opportunity to rest up!"

    The yers outside the barrier broke off from the mobs they were fighting against and hastened back to the safety of the barrier. Having lost their targets, the Guardian Monsters shifted their attention to Zhang Wudi¡¯s newly erected barrier. But, try as they might, the barrier remained unaffected.

 Chapter 327

    <b>Chapter 327: Battle Amongst The yers (1)</b>

    Sixty seconds passed with everyone in a daze.

    After stepping into the barrier, many yers hadn¡¯t even been able to find a ce to rest their feet before their one minute break was up. The skies above the sea began to roll once again, but with a far greater intensity than the previous two times.

    "F*ck!" The more hot-tempered yers cursed out loud.

    "All disciples, assemble!" Distant Tyrant cycled the qi within his dantian once again and tookmand of the situation.

    Following the arrangement made by the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects, yers from the Mara Hall would be stationed at the forefront to take the enemies head-on. With their high HP and ability to endure attacks, they¡¯d act as a shield for the rest. Next in line were the yers from the Swordmaster Pavilion. While the Swordmaster Pavilion wasn¡¯t able to match up to the Mara Hall in terms of HP, they boasted higher defence stats. Skills targeted at them would often miss, and many of their skills had the effect of increasing their defence. cing them behind the Mara Hall was undoubtedly done to provide the shield, the Mara Hall, with an additionalyer of protection. Then, third in line was White Cloud Temple.

    yers who hailed from White Cloud Temple possessed an average attack range. With their current cement in the formation, monsters would simultaneously be entering both theirs and the Mara¡¯s attack radius. Since White Cloud Temple specialised in crowd control skills, keeping the monsters locked within the Mara Hall¡¯s attack radius was a great strategy. Behind White Cloud Temple were the healers from the Nymph Abode. Nymphs had rather short hands, and aside from those Nymphs who specialised in using poison, their offensive power was nothing out of the ordinary. Thus, they were stationed here to act as the reserve for the yers in front of them. After all, no matter how short their hands were, they were still capable of healing their teammates.

    Dragonkin Tower stood at the very back. Dragonkin Tower was made up of magic DPSers. Their role was to attack from a distance and deal devastating damage. However,pared to the other sses, they were much frailer. In a sense, the vanguards were done up in this manner to protect the yers from the Dragonkin Tower who were the main DPSers.

    As for Lich Pce, due to the nature of their ss, the Sect Leaders didn¡¯t assign them to a party. Instead, they were given free rein to do as they pleased. In the eyes of themanders, yers from the Lich Pce only possessed an advantage when they were allowed to roam about the battlefield, or if they were to engage in closebat. However, cing them at the forefront of the battle would be far too dangerous for them. So, the decision was made for the other five Great Sects to draw the attention of the enemy, while Lich Pce¡¯s yers would roam around and mount sneak attacks whenever the opportunity presented itself.

    An earth-shatteringmotion was raised when the Pathfinder and the Guardian Monsters made their appearance. This was especially so when they entered the water. It was as if they were afraid that the people beneath the ocean wouldn¡¯t be aware of their arrival. However, this time around, all of the Shinra Sect¡¯s yers appeared without a sound. Many people only sensed the area above their heads turning dark. When they looked up, they saw a whole swathe of people standing about fifty metres away from where they were!

    These neers were all d in ck cloaks thatpletely covered their bodies. They stood there, unmoving, without making a single sound. They looked as if they were a group of dummies, and looking at them from afar gave people chills. The Guardian Monsters, who before were furiously attacking the barrier with all their might, seemed to have received amand as they ceased their attacks in session. They slowly turned around and haltingly ran over to the ck-clothed people, taking their ce beside them.

    A person in the middle of the first row took a step forward. He looked tall andnky, making the ck cloak that draped around his body seem a little empty. He stretched out his right hand. The wide sleeves of the clothes he wore slid past his arm, revealing a fair and smooth arm.

    This ought to be the hand of a woman, which meant that the person with the highest status amongst the Shinra Sect yers was a woman.

    The woman¡¯s slender hand made a slight motion, and several people stepped out from the crowd behind her, positioning themselves between her and the other Shinra Sect yers. This time around, she brought out both her arms and raised them over her head, appearing as if she were trying to conduct some kind of ritual. Several secondster, her hands that were previously over her head suddenly shot to the front. With a ¡¯swoosh¡¯, all of the Shinra Sect yers disappeared before everyone¡¯s eyes!

    The Lead Disciples of the Six Great Sects weren¡¯t required to stand in formation with the rest of the yers. Instead, they formed a row right at the forefront. When the yers from the Shinra Sect disappeared, Quiet And Steadfast immediately shouted, "Everyone, be on guard!"

    Zhang Wudi¡¯s refining furnace was supposed to be able hold out for a quarter of an hour. But, he¡¯d stowed away his furnace when the yers from the Six Great Sects assembled. This meant that the yers on the side of good no longer had the safety of the barrier to protect them.

    With both the Shinra Sect and the Lich Pce having the ability to turn invisible, neither side was able to see the other party. All they could do was rely on their intuition.

    But, no matter the case, the Lich Pce was still a sect of assassins. When it came to their intuition and senses, they were definitely head and shoulders above any of those converted Shinra Sect yers. Even if the other party was invisible, the Liches were still able to pick out their quarry by using their intuition.

    Sure enough, when the Shinra Sect yers suddenly showed up where the ¡¯good¡¯ yers were with the intention to blitz them and eliminate all of their healers, the yers from the Lich Pce also made their appearance without a moment¡¯s dy. The Liches either mercilessly plunged their daggers into the chests of their enemies, or theyunched every single one of their skills at them.

    The Shinra Sect had gone through great pains to bring their n to fruition, but it ended up falling through before it had even begun. The much-anticipated results of their first-rate n didn¡¯t manage to achieve the desired oue in the least. Instead, it caused numerous yers to lose their lives.

    "F*ck, are these people from the Lich Pce all a bunch of perverts? How¡¯d they manage to guess where we were?" Return Of The Jediined beside Nine Bads.

    Nine Bads gave a coldugh. "Humph. From the very beginning, I never expected this n to seed."

    "Then why didn¡¯t you speak out before? What¡¯s the point of mentioning it now?" Tiny Little Loli said enigmatically.

    Nine Bads shot a re at Tiny Little Loli before turning her attention to a pair of figures standing at the forefront of the yers on the side of good, right in the middle; one short, and one tall. "What kind of person do you think Quiet And Steadfast is? He probably saw through your little trick a long time ago and passed the word on to a Lich he could trust. Them discovering our yers is a very normal thing. The reason why I didn¡¯t say anything before was to let you guys see just how naive your way of thinking was."

    By this point, Tiny Little Loli was fuming with anger. But, the oue was indeed as what Nine Bads had said, so she was wasn¡¯t able to refute her.

    "Nine Bads, it¡¯s our loss. Let¡¯s go with your n; we can¡¯t afford to lose," Inseparable Love said.

    Nine Bads narrowed her eyes. "What¡¯s the point of overthinking it? I say... just charge them head-on!"

    Inseparable Love was stunned. By the time he¡¯d returned to his senses, he realised that Nine Bads had already activated her invisibility and was sprinting towards the ¡¯good¡¯ yers.

    True, at this point, everyone¡¯s blood was boiling. There was no need for these petty tricks; they should just charge them head-on! Inseparable Love¡¯s gaze turned resolute. He called out to hisrades, and they went invisible themselves before charging the enemy as one.

 Chapter 328

    <b>Chapter 328: Battle Amongst The yers (2)</b>

    "Bros from the White Cloud Temple, use your CC! It¡¯s fine if we don¡¯t earn any contribution points, but we have to CC our enemies!"

    "Brothers from the Mara Hall, hang in there! You¡¯re everyone¡¯s shield. If you guys fall, the people behind will be left without any protection! We have to kill those bastards from the Shinra Sect!!"

    "Sisters from the Nymph Abode, do whatever it takes to heal everyone! Make sure you send every ounce of healing to the front lines even if it costs us our lives!"

    "Companions from the Dragonkin Tower, use Divine Punishment! Use Raging Wave! Hurl all your skills! MP? What¡¯s that! Crush those bastards!"

    "Handsome men and beautiful women of the Swordmaster Pavilion! Unleash your talkative nature! Annoy those bitches from the Shinra Sect to death! Drive them up the wall!"

    "Pros of the Lich Pce, do your best! Gambatte, you guys are the best! You guys are the most handsome. Cut down whoever goes invisible!"

    People from each of the Six Great Sects were screaming at the top of their lungs. They then brandished their weapons with all their might and fought against their enemies to their heart¡¯s content. Even if they knew that they couldn¡¯t defeat their opponent, they still charged forward. They¡¯d rather die advancing on the battlefield than to live at the cost of theirrades¡¯ lives.

    The Shinra Sect was feeling just as hot-blooded. Perhaps they were influenced by having to live in such a cheerless environment when they first joined the Shinra Sect, but after a while, they themselves turned a little gloomy as well. However, no one could deny the fact that this was the most hot-blooded moment in their lives. So what if the other side had lots of people? <b>Charge!</b>

    So what if the other side was formidable? <b>Attack!</b>

    So what if they fell on the battlefield the very next second? <b>Crush!</b>

    A furious roar from both sides of the battle intermingled as one and broke through the ocean¡¯s surface and rushed to the sky.

    Shen Jingbin felt her pulse quicken. Beside her, Quiet And Steadfast was no longer his usual calm and collected self either. His dark eyes were now filled with fighting spirit.

    The two had their backs against each other and were soaked in blood from the battlefield. One of them would use a root, while the other went forward to slit their throats. They were the "Reaper" duo. The yers from the Shinra Sect who¡¯d already died once to them decisively relocated and went in search of new targets. Gradually, the enemies surrounding them began to thin out.

    Just as the two of them were nning to move to another location to help the others, five ck-clothed figures with distinctly different auras appeared soundlessly and attacked them without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    ¡¯ng¡¯, the shrill, grating noise that was produced by the collision between metals resounded. A ck-clothed man swung a poison-coated dagger at Shen Jingbin¡¯s chest, only to be intercepted by Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s weapon. The other party¡¯s dagger collided with Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s Divine Weapon and immediately disintegrated into dust.

    The ck-clothed man was dumbfounded.

    Shen Jingbin seized the opportunity and spun her wrists in a circle, and her horsetail whisk coiled around the ck-clothed man¡¯s still outstretched hand. The ck-clothed man immediately began to thrash about wildly. But, was it really that easy to break free from a Divine Weapon?

    Tiny Little Loli¡¯s heart had alreadypleted one round of cursing all eighteen generations of ancestors of the ugly freak who stood in front of her. The man next to her who she couldn¡¯t quite make out was also a devil! How the hell was he able to react so quickly? Was he doping or something?!

    When Inseparable Love and the others saw Tiny Little Loli being captured, they immediately grouped up andunched an attack. Shen Jingbin flipped her hand and flung several crowd control skills. At the same time, she silently counted the number of enemies present.

    If she wasn¡¯t mistaken, these five people were the same ones who¡¯d previously attacked them at Eight Trigrams Field. This meant that they were themanders of the Shinra Sect yers.

    One, two, three, four. Including the one that she¡¯d caught, all five of them were ounted for. Since they were all here, there was no need to worry about being ambushed.

    She shot a nce at Quiet And Steadfast, indicating for him to get rid of the one she¡¯d caught before she recalled her four Divine Beasts that were scattered across the battlefield. Each Divine Beast would face off against one of them; it was perfect.

    Just as Quiet And Steadfast was about tond the killing blow on the ck-clothed man Shen Jingbin had caught, she saw the man behind her staring with a look of astonishment on his face.

    A foreboding sense of danger prompted Shen Jingbin to turn around, only to see a ck-clothed man suddenlying towards her. Just as before, she could tell from a nce that this was a formidable opponent. She took a step, intending to dodge, but she when she tried to lift her leg, she realised that without her knowing, someone had frozen her legs. She couldn¡¯t move!

    The lethal weapon in the ck-clothed man¡¯s hands drew nearer, and was about to prate her body...

    Suddenly, a sh of green sped past them and got between Shen Jingbin and the other party¡¯s weapon.

    ¡¯Shunk¡¯

    The muffled sound of the ck-clothed man¡¯s weapon burying itself into the neer¡¯s chest could be heard.

 Chapter 329

    <b>Chapter 329: Status And Responsibility (1)</b>

    The sudden turn of events caused the ck-clothed man and Shen Jingbin to freeze.

    Shen Jingbin looked at the person defending her in astonishment. She¡¯d made many friends in the game, but there were few who¡¯d risk their lives for her. Furthermore, who¡¯d be able to help someone out at a time like this? Much less risk their own life without hesitation.

    Additionally, she unexpectedly recognized the person protecting her. However, this person wasn¡¯t actually a "person".

    More urately, this person was neither a human nor a yer.

    Half kneeling in front of her was a disciple from White Cloud Temple. The back of hisbel had a small number that was unique to an NPC. Its purpose was to differentiate between yers and NPCs.

    One nce was all it took to reveal the NPC¡¯s number.

    806.

    Thankfully, she remembered who 806 was.

    Just like how every human has their own personality, every NPC had one as well. 806 was a shy person. Though he was shy, he was exceptionally hardworking and had be part of the patrol squad at a young age. The patrol squad was in charge of White Cloud Temple¡¯s security, and they punished anyone who dared to threaten the peace, which included restless disciples from the temple.

    As the patrol squad often patrolled the area, Shen Jingbin had run into 806 several times and had even exchanged pleasantries with him.

    Whenever 806 saw her, his face would turn red, and he¡¯d murmur, "Greetings, Senior." Shen Jingbin had a tendency to tease people who were shy and delicate like 806, but she¡¯d never done so in real life for the sake of being courteous. However, this was a game, and the other party was an NPC, so she couldn¡¯t help herself.

    Gradually, Shen Jingbin remembered everything about this NPC.

    However, at this moment, this cute and bashful boy had a sword in his back. Blood spurted out of his mouth as he half kneeled in front of her; his slender body shielding her from danger.

    "Se... Senior... you must destroy this shameless evil sect for the sake of White Cloud Temple. All of White Cloud Temple¡¯s disciples are under yourmand..." With every word, 806 coughed up a mouthful of blood, staining his robes till they were a deep crimson. Before he could finish what he wanted to say, he breathed hisst. His body turned into smoke and dispersed in front of Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes.

    yers coulde back to life when they died. But, for NPCs, there was noing back. He would be reced by another NPC, and he¡¯d forever disappear from the game as if he¡¯d never existed.

    There would never be a strong and bashful 806 ever again.

    In the future, she wouldn¡¯t be able to tease this cute little disciple of hers whenever she returned to the temple.

    Everyone who practiced martial arts had a warrior¡¯s soul and tended to look after those who looked up to them. This was a virtue that had been inculcated in them since young. When 806 had called her "Senior" again, she suddenly remembered that she¡¯d once had a delicate and cute disciple like him in the past too. Back then, she¡¯d loved teasing this junior of hers, and they¡¯d had a pretty good rtionship. However, that junior had an ident, resulting in him losing both of his legs and the ability to ever walk again. Not long after, the junior left Old Master Shen¡¯s care.

    Since then, she¡¯d never seen him.

    A junior who¡¯d disappeared forever and another who could never walk again. Both of them had disappeared from the stage of martial arts.

    The image of 806 and her junior¡¯s face suddenly merged, and Shen Jingbin felt her heart sink. She felt a surge of grief, and her face turned as cold as ice. Suddenly, she began to give off an imposing air, forcing her attacker who¡¯d juste back to his senses and was about tounch another attack to take a step back.

    "I¡¯ll kill you!" Shen Jingbin roared at the ck-clothed man, her eyes bing frenzied. She flicked the horsetail whisk in her hand and appeared before the man in a single step. Before he could react, she wrapped her whisk around his neck and unleashed all of her skills on him. The man¡¯s HP instantly dropped like a rock, and nearly bottomed out. "So, you like stabbing people, huh? Then, let me give you a taste of what it feels like!"

    After making her cold deration, she drew a dagger from her bag. Without batting an eyelid, she thrust it into the man¡¯s chest. Thest of his HP disappeared, and the man¡¯s body fell to the ground.

    It wasn¡¯t over, though; she continued to stare at his corpse.

    Shinra Sect yers had three chances to revive where they died. When they resurrected, a protective barrier would form around them for ten seconds. These ten seconds was meant for them to escape. As long as they didn¡¯t attack other yers within these ten seconds, yers would not be able to harm them.

    She was determined to make him use up all three of his revivals right here and now!

    Only a short while had passed from the time the ck-clothed man attacked to Shin Jingbin¡¯s current intimidating demeanor. By the time Quiet and Steadfast had broken free from his incredulity that an NPC was actually able to shield a yer from an attack of their own volition, Shen Jingbin was already standing over the ck-clothed man¡¯s corpse with a look of death on her face. Looking at her expression, a sense of foreboding washed over him.

    He frantically ran up to her and nced at his surroundings. Although the four Divine Beasts were in a deadlock with their opponents, the remainder of the ck-clothed men simrly had their hands full. Neither hide nor hair could be seen of the one that had died. He¡¯d probably revived and slipped away.

    Out of the corner of his eye, Quiet And Steadfast saw the "Four Monsters" approaching. yers belonging to the same guild were granted a buff that allowed them to see invisible guild members. That, coupled with his high level, meant that the invisibility of other Liches didn¡¯t work against him.

    "Four Monsters, I¡¯ll leave these guys to you!" Quiet And Steadfast shouted.

    Hearing their Leader call out to them, the Four Monsters rushed over.

    When they drew nearer, Quiet And Steadfast was once again impressed by his foresight.

    Without any warning, Shen Jingbin suddenly recalled the Four Divine Beasts!

    Thankfully, Quiet And Steadfast had called for the Four Monsters in the nick of time. Otherwise, the moment the four ck-clothed men were freed from their deadlock, they¡¯d rush over and focus their attacks on the two of them. As the saying goes: Oveing four hands with two fists is a difficult task. Furthermore, these opponents looked like they were skilled; if things went south, there was a very real chance of them getting injured.

    At a time like this, they couldn¡¯t afford to be injured. After all, the final BOSS had yet to make an appearance.

    "The four of you, keep him boxed in. Don¡¯t let him out of my attack radius!" Shen Jingbin emotionlessly ordered the Four Divine Beasts.

    At Shen Jingbin¡¯smand, the Four Divine Beasts immediately surrounded the ck-clothed man¡¯s corpse.

 Chapter 330

    <b>Chapter 330: Status And Responsibility (2)</b>

    Seeing as Shen Jingbin was still camping his corpse, the ck-clothed man saw no point in dragging this out. He decided to revive himself.

    He was going to fight his way out of this. As long as he broke free from the encirclement of the Four Divine Beasts, there was a chance that he could live! This ugly bitch underwent such a drastic change, to the point where he wasn¡¯t even able to defend against her. Even worse, she had this scary look in her eyes, and he had no intention of facing her a second time.

    The moment the light of resurrection shone, the ck-clothed man made a break for the gap between the ck Tortoise and the Vermillion Bird.

    The ck Tortoise¡¯s main body was a tortoise, so it was naturally slower than the other three Divine Beasts. They were also at the bottom of the ocean, so the Vermillion Bird¡¯s speed was limited. Therefore, they were his best bet at escaping!

    What he failed to realize, was that Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the only one who had battle pets. Quiet And Steadfast summoned all of his battle pets and used them to cover the gaps between the Four Divine Beasts.

    With a loud bang, the ck-clothed man rammed into a white deer and fell to the floor.

    As he was the one who¡¯d run into the deer, the system interpreted that as his intention to attack and released his protective barrier. Shen Jingbin immediately rushed forward and sent out another skill. Then, she grabbed the old dagger from Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s hand and ended the ck-clothed man¡¯s life once again.

    Over the next few minutes, the two of them continued this cycle of "I supply you with knives, and you kill him." Very soon, they extinguished all three of the man¡¯s lives.

    When he¡¯d lost his final life, the ck-clothed man revealed his true identity; arge and burly man.

    It was Reckless East Emperor.

    Shen Jingbin brushed past his corpse and turned to Quiet And Steadfast. Her present expression was a lot less cold than it was previously.

    "Let¡¯s go; we still have to deal with the other five of them."

    Quiet And Steadfast wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Ok."

    After exchanging nces, the two of them moved quickly towards the four ck-clothed men who were still trapped by the Four Monsters.

    Shen Jingbin was the conservative type, and both her attacks and retreats were always careful and considered. However, today, it was like a seal had been released, and every attack from her showed no mercy. Her attacks didn¡¯t give her opponents the chance to react. At the same time, her attacks also didn¡¯t leave any opening for her to escape either. Such a manner of fighting shocked the Four Monsters and the ck-clothed men alike.

    The more she fought, the more worried Nine Bards got. She had always believed that the only person who could beat her was Quiet And Steadfast. Furthermore, ever since she¡¯d joined the Shinra Sect, her strength had increased by leaps and bounds, and she was now able to hold her ground against Quiet And Steadfast. Her previous loss at the East Sea was just a mistake on her part; she wasn¡¯t in the right state of mind. Once she put her mind to it, it was hard to say who would win or lose.

    This ugly and crazy bitch was never a person she¡¯d considered her equal. In fact, killing her was easier than squishing an ant.

    Yet, that now couldn¡¯t be further from the truth!

    Nine Bard¡¯s eyes turned cold. Stop screwing with me! How could I be pressured by this ugly bitch?

    When the cooldown for her invisibility was up, Nine Bads immediately went invisible and stilled her breath as she jumped out of the encirclement. Her n was to wait until Shen Jingbin was within her attack radius and thenunch a sneak attack.

    With Nine Bard now invisible, Inseparable Love and the others began to panic, thinking that she¡¯d run away. Just as they were able to make a break for it, they noticed her carefully making her way back, and they realised what she was trying to do. They quickly calmed themselves and focused on covering her.

    The Four Monsters before them were well-known yers. They were the cream of the crop within the Lich Pce; god ranked yers. Their abilities and intelligence were beyond ordinary, and winning against them wasn¡¯t possible unless sacrifices were made.

    "Jedi, you have to keep the two of them busyter on. Make sure to keep them there even if you have to blow yourself up. North By Northwest, the other two over there are yours. Leave Quiet And Steadfast to me. We¡¯ll keep them busy and give Nine Bads time to finish that bitch off. Not only is she lucky, but she also has the Four Divine Beasts on her side too. Letting her live would mean trouble for us in the future. No matter what, we have to kill her!" Inseparable Love frantically barked out her orders. "If the chance presents itself, we can even trade what¡¯s left of our revivals for even more attack power. In the end, we can self-destruct and finish the Four Monsters off! Life or death isn¡¯t important. What¡¯s important is that Shinra Sect wins!"

    The Shinra Sect had a skill that could only be used during the final battle. This skill allowed them to sacrifice their remaining lives for a buff that increased their attack for one minute. The more lives they had left before using the skill, the greater their attack buff would be.

    Return of the Jedi and North By Northwest looked solemnly at Inseparable Love and nodded their heads in unison. "Alright! Let¡¯s drag them down with us even if we die." Underneath their masks, their faces no longer showed any fear of death.

 Chapter 331

    <b>Chapter 331: Death Before Defeat (1)</b>

    After a quick nce, Quiet And Steadfast noticed that one of the ck-clothed men was missing and hurriedly issued a warning. "One of them¡¯s missing. They¡¯ve probably gone invisible. Everyone, be on guard."

    "Maybe they ran away?" I¡¯m Not A Monster suggested.

    "That¡¯s right, they must have been scared off by our power and majesty," I¡¯m Really Not A Monster chimed in.

    "I agree with what you said about us being ¡¯powerful and majestic¡¯, but I¡¯ll hold back on everything else," Actually, I Am A Monster said.

    "I think the chances of that person running away aren¡¯t high. This group of people feel different from the ck-clothed men we met in the past. They look like elite inner disciples of the Shinra Sect. They probably wouldn¡¯t turn tail and run so easily," I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me added.

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. "Just be careful and don¡¯t let any of them through." He then turned his attention to Shen Jingbin.

    With one with them having disappeared, the three remaining ck-clothed men didn¡¯t bother to fight against Shen Jingbin any longer. Instead, they retreated several steps and looked as if they were preparing to defend. Shen Jingbin was about to chase after them when she felt Quiet And Steadfast pull her back and force a pill into her hand. "Heal up; you¡¯re at half HP."

    His voice sounded a little low, as if he were angry. Shen Jingbin paused and calmed herself a little before she turned to face him. His unusually serious face made her realise that she might have been a little too hasty just now. "I¡¯m sorry, I was in too much of a rush."

    Quiet And Steadfast heaved a sigh of relief when Shen Jingbin finally calmed down. "Time and tide waits for no man. I understand how you feel, but you still need to be careful. By my guess, their target is most likely you."

    The moment he said that the three ck-clothed men dashed over. Quiet And Steadfast was shocked by their sudden attack, but the Four Monsters moved with the speed of lightning and rushed to chase after them. They were all under the impression that the ck-clothed men¡¯s target was Shen Jingbin, and all of them subconsciously took action to protect her.

    However, the ck-clothed men¡¯s target wasn¡¯t Shen Jingbin at all. Their speed, coupled with the disregard for their own safety, allowed the ck-clothed men to split up Shen Jingbin¡¯s group in just a few moments.

    In the end, Shen Jingbin was left alone. Quiet And Steadfast was up against one ck-clothed man, and the Four Monsters were held up by the remaining two.

    Shen Jingbin was just about to rush forward to help when she heard a gust of wind by her ear, followed by the faint whistling sound of a de cutting through the air. She bent her body to the side to dodge, and she felt something brush by her cheek. The injured part of her cheek immediately began to burn up, which was also apanied by a chime from the system.

    "Note: You¡¯ve been afflicted by poppy poison. You will lose 200 HP everything minute. Your MP has been halved, and these effects will persist for the next 3 minutes. This poison is incurable."

    Shen Jingbin felt a wave of panic surge upwards from within after hearing the system¡¯s notification. These were life-threatening symptoms to someone who had less than 50% of their HP and MP. She didn¡¯t want to be careless, so she hurriedly pulled out a bottle of Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine and drank from it.

    But, even after drinking it, while her health had returned to full, her MP was still at half. It was clear that Shen Nong¡¯s secret medicine was useless against poppy poison.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s skills were stronger than that of your average Daoist, but those skills used up more MP as well. With her MP now halved, it¡¯d be tough for her to use any skills for these 3 minutes.

    The ck-clothed man who attacked her clearly knew the effects of their poison-coated dagger. After missing their first attack, the ck-clothed man rounded back several secondster and brandished their dagger once again, unleashing a flurry of blows upon Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin now had to calcte how much MP she was using for each skill, while the ck-clothed man took to fighting dirty. They¡¯d wander around at the edge of Shen Jingbin¡¯s attack radius, looking for the right moment to strike. In addition, their entire weapon was coated in poison. asionalpses in attention caused Shen Jingbin to be hit several times. While the attack itself didn¡¯t do much damage, the poison took off a fair bit of HP.

    Noticing that Shen Jingbin was at an impasse with her opponent, I¡¯m Really Not A Monster shouted to I¡¯m Not A Monster, "Big Monster, Nutty¡¯s in trouble. You take care of this guy while I go over and help!"

    I¡¯m Not A Monster was getting frustrated with his opponent too. He couldn¡¯t figure out what this ck-clothed man was trying to do. The person was dead set on holding them up, but they were shying away from any real confrontation. It was infuriating.

    "Mm! Leave this guy to me." I¡¯m Not A Monster¡¯s patience had run out, and he was preparing to go all out.

    When North By Northwest heard their n, he knew that there was no way he¡¯d be able to keep the two of them here if he didn¡¯t blow himself up. He snuck a nce to see how Jedi was doing and found that he was in the same situation.

    The time hade.

    North By Northwest¡¯s gaze turned serious, and he pursed his lips. He then leapt over to I¡¯m Not A Monster, and I¡¯m Really Not A Monster and pulled them into a death grip. The two Monsters were caughtpletely off guard by this move of his that was akin to sending himself to death¡¯s door. They weren¡¯t expecting him to just run up and grab them.

    "Are you sure you want to exchange your remaining lives for more attack power? Yes/No. (Note: You have 3 lives remaining. You can exchange them for a 150 increase in attack.)

    "Yes."

    "Conversion in process... Conversionplete. You have received a 150 attack boost."

    The moment he heard the system¡¯s notification, North By Northwest chose to blow himself up without any hesitation. Before the two Monsters had the chance to react, they saw the ck-clothed man who was grabbing them begin to inte like a balloon.

    Both of them had faced Shinra sect yers in the past, so they naturally knew the signs when a Shinra Sect yer was about to blow themselves up. Seeing the ck-clothed man inte had the two of them in a fluster.

    Blowing themselves up was a double-edged sword. Shinra Sect yers who chose to blow themselves up would sacrifice their lives to deal damage equal to their HP. In addition, their current attack strength would add to the explosion¡¯s power. The higher their attack value, the more damage the explosion would do. Although the two Monsters didn¡¯t know the ck-clothed man¡¯s exact stats, they weren¡¯t betting on being able to survive the ensuing explosion.

    As the ck-clothed man in front of them continued to inte, I¡¯m Not A Monster made up his mind. He held his dagger vertically and used all of his strength to cut off the hand that was holding onto him.

    "Second Monster, run!" I¡¯m Not A Monster¡¯s dagger sliced cleanly through the ck-clothed man¡¯s hand. The moment he was free, I¡¯m Not A Monster broke into a run and dashed away from the ck-clothed man. With the loss of one arm, the ck-clothed man was ovee by a moment of weakness. I¡¯m Really Not A Monster used that opportunity to break free, and ran for it as well.

    North By Northwest felt his body going weak. His cast bar for his explosion was just about filled up, but he no longer had the strength to chase after his prey. A look of regret and reluctance appeared on his face.

    ¡¯Boom!¡¯

    A loud explosion could be heard from behind the two Monsters. They nced back and saw that the ce they were originally at was now a mess. No trace of the ck-clothed man could be seen. All they could see were several scraps of his ck cloak drifting down to the ground.

    "Go help our Leader, I¡¯ll help Ole Three and the others," Said I¡¯m Not A Monster.

    The two of them hurriedly parted ways and rushed off to help the rest.

 Chapter 332

    <b>Chapter 332: Death Before Defeat (2)</b>

    Thanks to I¡¯m Not A Monster¡¯s timely assistance, Actually, I Am A Monster, and I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me escaped from the ck-clothed man¡¯s explosion without a scratch. But, Quiet And Steadfast wasn¡¯t so lucky.

    The ck-clothed man facing off against Quiet And Steadfast was swift and decisive. As soon as he realised his dying tactics weren¡¯t going to be of much use against Quiet And Steadfast, he immediately activated his self-destruction skill, and he finished his cast before I¡¯m Really Not A Monster even reached them.

    ¡¯Boom!¡¯

    "F*ck! Leader!¡¯

    I¡¯m Really Not A Monster swore at the same time the explosion rang out. But, all that he received as a reply was the sshing of water that had been muddied by the st.

    "Second Monster, where¡¯s Leader?"

    I¡¯m Really Not A Monster dejectedly rubbed his face. Just then, he heard National Treasures¡¯ voice. He turned back and saw that his guildmates from Jade Sea Pavilion were anxiously looking at him. I¡¯m Not A Monster also came running with the two other Monsters in tow.

    "You guys..." I¡¯m Really Not A Monster pointed dumbly at the rest of them. It then dawned upon him that the battlefield had devolved into a grand melee.

    Next Week Is Unlikely stepped forward and said, "The Shinra Sect has changed its tactics. They¡¯re now fighting using their invisibility. Yu Youchen told us to split up from the rest of them and act on our own. We¡¯re to take out whatever Shinra Sect yers we can, and we needn¡¯t go along with what the rest of the good yers are doing... I heard something over here from far away just now. Did someone blow themselves up? Where¡¯s Leader?"

    I¡¯m Really Not A Monster¡¯s face fell, and he pointed to his back. "There was an... explosion where Leader was just standing. I couldn¡¯t reach him in time."

    Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s expression changed. "Temperate, National Treasures, and Dawn. You guyse with me to take a look. The rest of you are to go around and see which ces need help."

    The battle between Shen Jingbin and her opponent had moved to a different location. The members of Jade Sea Pavilion didn¡¯t catch sight of her, and Shen Jingchen wasn¡¯t able to find any traces of her even though he looked all over the ce.

    "I¡¯m going to look for my sister. You guys look for our Leader."

    The mention of Shen Jingbin jolted I¡¯m Really Not A Monster¡¯s memory. "Ah! Nutty! I saw her over there just now, but she wasn¡¯t looking so good. She was being pressured by her attacker, and her opponent¡¯s weapon was coated with poison. She looked like she¡¯d been poison too."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s handsome face darkened in an instant, and he ran towards the spot I¡¯m Really Not A Monster pointed at without a word. Next Week Is Unlikely made no move to stop him, and led the rest of them to where Quiet And Steadfast wasst seen.

    The huge explosion had naturally kicked up lots of debris. By the time Next Week Is Unlikely andpany got closer, the water had be a little clearer. Thankfully, they weren¡¯t treated to the sight of a certain Great God¡¯s dead body sprawled on the floor.

    Quiet And Steadfast had been hurt by the explosion. He had no way of healing himself, so all he could do was sit on the ground and wait till his debuff subsided. He was worried about his wife, but he was utterly powerless to do anything, leaving him in a very irritable mood.

    His ck eyes lit up when he spotted Next Week Is Unlikely. The change was so sudden, that Next Week Is Unlikely wondered whether he was just that attractive. Did he turn into an angel or something? Otherwise, why was this guy giving him googly eyes?

    After National Treasures dispelled all the status ailments that could be removed and topped up his health, Quiet And Steadfast stood up and hurriedly asked, "How¡¯s Nutjob doing?"

    "We haven¡¯t seen her, but Dawn¡¯s gone off with a few White Cloud disciples to look for her," Next Week Is Unlikely answered.

    Quiet And Steadfast raised a brow. "What¡¯s the status of the battle?"

    "There are 15 minutes left before the final stage, and it¡¯s now turned into a battle royale. We¡¯ve lost many people from the Six Great Sects, but we¡¯ve currently still got the upper hand. Also, Neverending Journey, Crying Fish and Nine Bads aren¡¯t among our number. I suspect that they¡¯ve probably gone over to the Shinra Sect¡¯s side."

    Quiet And Steadfast suddenly thought of the ck-clothed man that Shen Jingbin was fighting. He¡¯d crossed des with Nine Bads many times in the past, so he still had some recollection of her fighting style. Now that Next Week Is Unlikely had mentioned it, he realised that there was a 70-80% chance that that ck-clothed man was Nine Bads.

    At that moment, his raised brow shot up even higher. "You guys..."

    Just as he spoke, everyone suddenly heard a series of explosions originating from nearby.

    Having just experienced what self-destruction was like themselves, everyone immediately knew what the explosions meant, and they were all caught off guard by it. They turned to look in the direction of the explosions with slightly astonished looks on their faces.

    The area where the disciples of the Six Great Sects were gathered had now turned into a patch of ckened earth. Scraps of ck cloaks and fragments of disciple robes in an assortment of colours could be seen drifting about.

    "Death before defeat!" Came an earth-shattering roar. That person¡¯s voice clearly made its way to the ears of all living yers.

    That person¡¯s deration made everyone feel as if someone had their hearts in a vice grip.

 Chapter 333

    <b>Chapter 333: The Price Of Victory (1)</b>

    The ck-clothed man led Shen Jingbin further and further away from Quiet And Steadfast and the Four Monsters. By the time she realised what was happening, she¡¯d already left Soundwave Temple¡¯s vicinity.

    Shen Jingbin knew this wasn¡¯t good. She wouldn¡¯t be able to tell what was going on at Soundwave Temple from where she was, and that put her in a disadvantageous position. Thinking this, she lost all interest in chasing after the ck-clothed man and, intentionally or otherwise, began hurrying back to Soundwave Temple.

    But, it was it as if the ck-clothed man knew what she was thinking and changed up their strategy. They turned ruthless and violent, cutting off Shen Jingbin at every turn.

    Shen Jingbin had no choice but to release her Four Divine Beasts.

    The previous battle and having to box in Reckless East Emperor had exhausted much of their strength. With the uing BOSS fight looming ahead of them, Shen Jingbin had stored the Four Divine Beasts in her pet space to rest after getting rid of Reckless East Emperor.

    Nine Bads gritted her teeth the moment she saw the Four Divine Beasts. She had no way of closing in on Shen Jingbin now. She gave a cold sneer and said, "This is a one-on-one battle, you ugly monster. Fight fair and put away your Divine Beasts." So as not to reveal their identity as disciples of the Shinra Sect, their voices would be altered by the system after donning their mantles, making them sound gender ambiguous. ording to the management team¡¯s exnation, this would further emphasise their perverse nature.

    Shen Jingbin was stunned silent for a moment before she came to her senses and smiled. "I must be an idiot if I talk about ¡¯fairness¡¯ with someone from the Shinra Sect!" Then, without giving the other party a chance to react, Shen Jingbin ordered the Four Divine Beasts to restrain the ck-clothed man.

    The Four Divine Beasts leapt into action and surrounded the ck-clothed man in the blink of an eye.

    However, this ck-clothed man was clearly different from Reckless East Emperor. Their level was much higher than his, and they were far stronger too. It only took them a little while to break free from the encirclement.

    If their order had been to ¡¯attack¡¯ instead, it might have taken the ck-clothed man a little while longer to break free. Instead, the ugly monster had told them to ¡¯restrain¡¯ the ck-clothed man, unintentionally giving her the chance to escape.

    Nine Bads¡¯ lips curled into a smile. So what if the Divine Beasts were intelligent? In the end, they were all just a bunch of data. Whatever their owner says, goes. They aren¡¯t able to act ording to the situation.

    Nine Bads¡¯ mood soared when she saw Shen Jingbin¡¯s back towards her. Shen Jingbin probably never would¡¯ve expected the legendary Four Divine Beasts to not be able to restrain her. Or, she might be preupied with something else and wasn¡¯t able to pay attention to her.

    Either way, this was wonderful news for Nine Bads. She disregarded the Four Divine Beasts who were chasing after her and fixed her gaze solely on the person before her. As she sprinted towards her prey, Nine Bads coated her dagger with her most lethal poison.

    The distance between the two of them grew smaller and smaller. Soon, there was only a small gap separating Nine Bads¡¯ dagger and Shen Jingbin¡¯s back. Nine Bads began to feel a surge of unprecedented happiness and chose not to toss her dagger at Shen Jingbin. She wanted to personally feel the sensation of her dagger digging into this woman¡¯s body!

    "Boom!"

    Just as Nine Bads was about to sink her knife into Shen Jingbin¡¯s back, several loud explosions could suddenly be heard from the direction Shen Jingbin and Nine Bads had previouslye from at varying intervals. There were three explosions in total, and thest one was exceptionally loud.

    The enormous explosion shook the two of them. At that moment, Shen Jingbin felt something peculiar behind her. She quickly spun around and faced her assant. Meanwhile, the Four Divine Beasts who were chasing after the ck-clothed man had caught up as well, trapping her one again.

    F*ck!

    When she came back to her senses, Nine Bads realised she¡¯d lost the upper hand and was beyond annoyed.

    Not knowing the cause of this hugemotion made Shen Jingbin even more anxious. Her face darkened as she turned to the ck-clothed man who was trapped in the encirclement with her and said, "Take care of them."

    With that, she turned to leave. Nine Bads was startled by this turn of events. Before she coulde up with a n, a group of ck figures appeared out of thin air in front of the ugly monster and surrounded her.

    "We¡¯ll protect you, your lordship." Another group of ck figures also appeared behind Nine Bads and charged towards the Four Divine Beasts.

    When Nine Bads took a closer look at them, she realised these NPCs were disciples from the Shinra Sect!

    Just like how everyone one of the Six Great Sects had NPC disciples in addition to yers, the Shinra Sect was the same too. However, due to how the sect worked, Nine Bads had never expected these NPCs to actually help her.

    The tables had turned.

    Shen Jingbin looked at the ck-clothed men blocking her way. Without any hesitation, she pulled out her horsetail whisk and charged towards them. Beams of silver light flew towards the ck-clothed men who were drawing closer, pushing them back bit by bit. In spite of her efforts, there were no gaps in the ck-clothed men¡¯s encirclement, and she¡¯d received several small wounds from their exchange.

    Thankfully, these NPCs didn¡¯t coat their weapons with poison. Otherwise, she¡¯d probably have died from poisoning.

    Shen Jingbin swung her horsetail whisk and tossed out another skill, bottoming out her MP at the same time. In that instant, she heard her brother¡¯s voice. "What the f*ck, what the f*ck! Hold fast lil sis; your big bro¡¯sing to save you!"

    She had to hand it to him; her brother was beyond handsome right now! She¡¯d never call him ugly again!

 Chapter 334

    <b>Chapter 334: The Price Of Victory (2)</b>

    Shen Jingchen came charging over with Lingering White Clouds, Long Life, and Eternal Rest in tow. With a swung of his de, he created a gap in the encirclement, and Shen Jingbin made a break for the gap without a second thought. During this, with the help of the NPCs, Nine Bads had finally broken free from the Four Divine Beasts who were swelling with killing intent. But, when she looked back, she found that the Jade Sea Pavilion hade to provide support.

    "All forces, charge! Get rid of each and every one of them!" howled Nine Bads.

    The NPCs immediately surged towards them.

    After escaping from the encirclement, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t even have a chance to catch her breath before she saw all of the ck-clothed men charging towards her. "ck Tortoise, battle formation!" roared Shen Jingbin.

    The ck Tortoise, who wasgging behind the ck-clothed men, spat out a bubble in response. The bubble sped towards Shen Jingbin¡¯s group and formed a barrier around them.

    All of the ck-clothed men who were charging towards them were stopped by the bubble.

    Shen Jingbin opened up her pet window and found that all four of her Divine Beasts weren¡¯t in good shape. She hurriedly recalled them into her pet space.

    It might have been that the ck Tortoise wasn¡¯t feeling well, or that these NPCs had a far greater attack power than the Guardian Monsters, but it only took a few hits for the ck Tortoise¡¯s barrier to be broken.

    Lingering White Clouds looked up and surveyed their surroundings the moment she finished dispelling all of Shen Jingbin¡¯s status ailments, topping off her health, and buffing everyone. "We can¡¯t let this go on. We need to rejoin the rest of our forces."

    Shen Jingchen was of the same mind. He was nning to issue a full retreat while the ck Tortoise¡¯s barrier was still up. Unexpectedly, he heard a high-pitched voice from within the group of ck-clothed men. They were holding a dagger, and they viciously attacked the portion of the barrier that had a crack in it.

    The sound of ss breaking rang out, and the ck Tortoise¡¯s barrier waspletely destroyed.

    After the barrier broke, the ck-clothed men didn¡¯t rush them as expected. Instead, they formed a ring around Shen Jingbin¡¯s group, and the ck-clothed man who¡¯d broken the barrier stepped forward. They adopted a tone that sounded like they were giving alms to the poor and said, "If you guys leave her behind, we¡¯ll consider letting you go for now."

    As Shen Jingchen looked at the ck-clothed man, a name popped into his head. He gave a cold smile and said, "Nine Bads, I have a newfound respect for your narrow-mindedness. Is there really any meaning to you chasing after my little sister like a rabid dog?"

    The moment he said that everyone present froze up in astonishment with the exception of Shen Jingbin. She¡¯d already had an inkling of who this person was but wasn¡¯t able to confirm it.

    Nine Bads wasn¡¯t the least bit deterred by having her identity revealed. She pulled off her mantle and revealed a cold and elegant face. A look of ridicule could be seen stered on her face. "That¡¯s none of your business. All that matters is that this is what I want. Just tell me whether she¡¯s going to die alone, or do all of you want to be buried with her."

    Eternal Rest spat. "Shut up, bitch. If you want to fight, then let¡¯s fight. Stop spouting all this nonsense!"

    Long Life was at a loss over what to do about his wife¡¯s bad temper. But, he agreed with her too. He nodded to his wife, letting her know that he¡¯d fight with her.

    Lingering White Clouds didn¡¯t say a word. She gave her answer by standing in the middle of the two siblings.

    "Since all of you feel like dying, then I¡¯ll help you along!" Nine Bads viciously eyed Shen Jingbin¡¯s group and motioned for the ck-clothed men to attack with her slender arm.

    However, the ck-clothed men only had time to take a single step forward before everyone heard a series of explosions in quick session, but at different intervals and intensity. This unexpected urrence caused the ck-clothed men to falter.

    "What¡¯re you standing around for? Attack!"

    But, almost as if they¡¯d turned deaf, the NPCs ignored all of hermands.

    "Now," said Shen Jingbin in a whisper. The rest of them immediately understood what she meant. The next instant, they were charging through a small gap in the encirclement and making a beeline for Soundwave Temple.

    "All of you are worthless!" roared Nine Bads as she threw her dagger to the ground and rushed up to one of the NPCs.

    The NPCs who were stuck in a daze suddenly came around. The innocent NPC whom Nine Bads had decided to take her anger out on blinked at her and said, "Your lordship, our fellow disciples are currently sacrificing themselves to take down those hypocrites from the Six Great Sects. We need to provide assistance; we shouldn¡¯t be wasting time over here."

    Nine Bads¡¯ brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

    "Our disciples are blowing themselves up for the sake of the sect¡¯s victory! We should be doing the same!" said the NPC as his eyes began to glow with fervor.

    As if in reply, another explosion could be heard.

    Nine Bads recoiled internally and subconsciously looked towards Soundwave Temple.

    Over at Soundwave Temple, it was as if everyone had fallen into a frenzy. Most of the Shinra Sect yers had bloodshot eyes. The moment they saw a ce with many people gathered, they¡¯d immediately rush over and blow themselves up without the slightest bit of hesitation.

    Self-detonation was an omnidirectional attack. Regardless of how many there were, all enemies would be affected by the explosion as long as they were within the attack radius. So, yers who blew themselves up would be able to bring some small fries with them when they died.

    Amongst the Six Great Sects, the Dragonkin Tower received the most damage. As they were the frailest, they¡¯d obviously be the Shinra Sect¡¯s primary target.

    "Everyone scatter, don¡¯t bunch up!"

    "No, we¡¯ll be easy pickings for them if we split up!"

    "F*ck these guys, I¡¯m going to have it out with them! They want to blow themselves up, right? I¡¯ll kill them off first. Let¡¯s see who¡¯s faster!"

    "Frail Dragonkins,e to where your big bro is. I¡¯ve got lots of meat on me, so I¡¯ll be your meats shield for

    ...

    This was what Shen Jingbin andpany saw when they arrived.

    "This is...a little too much..." muttered Eternal Rest.

    No one replied.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face darkened. "Let¡¯s go! Kill those bastards from the Shinra Sect!"

    Everyone nodded and dashed forward.

    At this moment, a p of thunder that sounded as if the heavens were being torn asunder could be heard from the ocean¡¯s surface. Shortly after, arrogantughter originated from the same spot and travelled clearly to everyone¡¯s ears.

    "Hahaha, the disciples of my sect are truly loyal! Keep going! Blow all these self-righteous hypocrites to smithereens! I¡¯ll bring all of you back to life once I¡¯ve conquered this world!"

    "Come, use your flesh and blood to paint a scarlet road to victory for me!"

 Chapter 335

    <b>Chapter 335: Rebirth (1)</b>

    "The third stage of the final battle between good and evil has ended. The battle will now proceed to the fourth stage. The Shinra Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Jue Tian, has arrived. Please defeat him with all due haste and save the world. Note: The quest reward will scale ording to how much time is taken. A faster clear will result in greater rewards."

    Just after the system announcement was made, six people slowly floated down from the ocean¡¯s surface.

    Although there were only six people this time around, the amount of pressure they exerted was unprecedented. When theynded, the bigshot NPCs from the Six Great Sects stepped out and made their appearance.

    The moment Distant Tyrant saw Jue Tian, he ran up to him and started cursing up a storm. "Jue Tian, I can¡¯t believe filth like you would actually dare to make an appearance. I still haven¡¯t gotten back at you for sullying my sect¡¯s reputation back then!"

    Shen Jingbin hurried over to Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s side when she caught sight of him. Shen Jingbin knew that this was the ¡¯usual banter¡¯ between NPCs when she heard Distant Tyrant speak.

    Sure enough, Jue Tian stepped forward the next second and smiled. A trace of cruelty appeared on his gentle and reserved face. "Does your Mara Hall even have any reputation to speak off? You¡¯re just a bunch of barbarians to other people anyway."

    "You!" Distant Tyrant was boiling with anger. He was struggling against the urge to rush up and take revenge on Jue Tian.

    Song Yuqing and Lu Yinzhou hurriedly stepped forward to stop Distant Tyrant.

    "Jue Tian, we may not have gotten rid of you previously, but you won¡¯t be so lucky this time. We¡¯ve found a way to destroy you this time!" dered Poison Toad.

    Shen Jingbin had a helpless look on her face. Dear Sect Leaders, was it really a good idea to announce our ns to the enemy?

    But, NPCs had a different way of thinking from normal humans.

    Jue Tian smiled. "Hahaha, good, I¡¯d like to see how you n to destroy me. I¡¯m just worried that the ones dying, in the end, might be all of you!"

    Yu Youchen might not like the two demonic ns, but she despised Jue Tian even more. "Don¡¯t act so arrogant, you evil creature. Your life ends today."

    "Hah, we¡¯ll see!" Jue Tianughed for a moment before his expression turned stern. "Attack!"

    At hismand, four of the Shinra Sect¡¯s five legendary Elders rushed forward like a tornado and shed with the Sect Leaders of the righteous sects. Only the Grand Elder remained standing behind Jue Tian, looking as imposing as ever.

    Upon the arrival of their Sect Leader, who was also the strongest BOSS, the Shinra Sect yers felt their confidence swell, and they jumped into the fray with renewed vigor.

    At the same time, they also received a system notification.

    "Jue Tian¡¯s arrival has increased all of your stats by 5%."

    Look at how cool our BOSS is! Are you feeling scared now, you trash from the righteous sects?!

    "Notice: the demonic sect¡¯s Sect Leader has appeared. Please rejoin the rest of the Lead Disciples and use your advantage to vanquish the evil. Note: You possess many advantages; please make good use of them."

    All six of them received the same notification when they gathered where Quiet And Steadfast and Shen Jingbin were.

    "Many advantages? What are those? How are we supposed to ¡¯make good use¡¯ of them when we didn¡¯t even receive an exnation?" The Winds Of Ximen asked out loud.

    Shen Jingbin turned to Quiet And Steadfast and said, "I remember you saying that there were three elements to this battle: the Divine Beasts, the yers, and the Divine Weapons. Could our ¡¯advantages¡¯ be referring to these things?"

    Quiet And Steadfast grew solemn. The NPCs were taking care of the Shinra Sect¡¯s Elders for now, so they didn¡¯t need to worry about the Elders. As for the Shinra Sect yers, they¡¯d resigned themselves to not being able to defeat all six of them plus one unknown NPC, and they gave the group a wide berth. This meant that within this entire battlefield, only they and Jue Tian were free to move about! At the same time, the current situation also validated one of Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s theories.

    "Our primary target is Jue Tian. Little Jing, summon all four of your Divine Beasts. Everyone, ready your divine weapons and make sure you¡¯re buffed up. We¡¯re going to focus fire on Jue Tian!" Quiet And Steadfast looked to Su Qing and said, "Senior, we¡¯ll leave the Grand Elder to you. Is that alright?"

    "Ick the ability to take out this fellow, but restraining them isn¡¯t out of the question. Just focus on taking care of Jue Tian."

    "Thank you, Senior!"

    A sense of unease washed over Qi Mu. She was under the impression that Su Qing would be fighting alongside them when they took on Jue Tian. She was really tempted to ask whether they¡¯d be able to defeat Jue Tian like this.

    But, she held back what she wanted to say when she saw everyone else¡¯s serious expressions.

    Using the game¡¯s qinggong techniques, the group of them broke apart and surrounded Jue Tian and the Grand Elder. Su Qing was extremely quick and raced to the forefront in an instant. Jue Tian swept a nce at Su Qing, and without any further prompting from him, the Grand Elder shot forward like an arrow. The Grand Elder and Su Qing¡¯s palms ruthlessly smashed against one another in mid-air, causing ripples to flow outwards with them as the epicenter. Before the ripples dissipated, Su Qing used one of his hands to make several motions, and a crack appeared out of thin air behind them. Then, the two of them, along with the ripples that were brimming with danger, were sucked into the crack before disappearing.

    Jue Tian¡¯s expression finally changed a little when Su Qing and the Grand Elder disappeared. At the same time, Shen Jingbin andpany had made it over to Jue Tian.

    As they didn¡¯t know how Jue Tian¡¯s aggro worked, The Winds Of Ximen was designated as the main tank for the time being. He would initiate the fight with a skill, while the rest would wait till Jue Tian was focused on him before releasing skills of their own. Gentle Flower was in charge of giving everything she had to heal him. If she had the chance, she¡¯d help to heal the rest of the party too. The rest of the party would throw out CCs and DPS as much as they could. The moment they were injured, they were to top their health with potions. If Jue Tian¡¯s aggro were based on DPS, Gentle Flower would focus her efforts on Quiet And Steadfast instead, while The Winds Of Ximen and Pure Crane would help to defend against attacks and split the aggro. Shen Jingbin would be in charge of CCing Jue Tian, while Qi Mu just needed to mindlessly DPS.

    Shen Jingbin summoned her Divine Beasts once again. This time around, they were clearly doing a lot better. Once again, the ck Tortoise enveloped everyone in a barrier at hermand.

 Chapter 336

    <b>Chapter 336: Rebirth (2)</b>

    "Just the few of you n on taking me on? Such arrogance!"

    The Winds Of Ximen was a closebat specialist, and as soon as Jue Tian was in his attack radius, the battle began in earnest.

    Jue Tian gave a cold smile and blocked The Winds Of Ximen¡¯s sword qi with one of his wide sleeves. Quiet And Steadfast, who was following closely behind The Winds Of Ximen, brandished his dagger and threw out a skill of his own as well, immediately attracting Jue Tian¡¯s aggro.

    "n B!" Pure Crane shouted.

    Gentle Flower was standing between The Winds Of Ximen and Quiet And Steadfast at first, but she hurriedly rushed over to where Quiet And Steadfast was standing when she heard Pure Crane¡¯smand. Her hands never stopped as she loaded buff after buff onto Quiet And Steadfast.

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s attack power was much higher than your average yer. If Jue Tian¡¯s aggro wasn¡¯t random, or if he didn¡¯t just focus on the first person who attacked him, there was practically no chance of Jue Tian¡¯s aggro being taken away from Quiet And Steadfast. But, this also meant that Quiet And Steadfast was the most at risk.

    However, all of them had neglected one thing: that all the damage dealt by the Four Divine Beasts would count as damage done by Shen Jingbin.

    Just like how in cultivation novels higher level cultivators would be able to exert pressure on lower cultivators, Jue Tian was also able to exert the same type of pressure against battle pets. So, aside from Shen Jingbin, no one else thought to use their pets. The Four Divine Beasts were different though. They were a pinnacle existence, so they weren¡¯t subject to Jue Tian¡¯s influence. But, due to their connection with their owner, their strength was somewhat reduced. But, no matter how much their strength was reduced by, that didn¡¯t change the fact that they were Jue Tian¡¯s nemesis. As Jue Tian was weak to their attribute, every strike from them would deal additional damage and would they also be a critical attack. The firepower of all four Divine Beasts, plus Shen Jingbin¡¯s own, quickly exceeded what Quiet And Steadfast was putting out. And with it, Jue Tian¡¯s attention shifted to Shen Jingbin.

    "Be careful!" Quiet And Steadfast was the first to notice that Jue Tian¡¯s target had changed, and he hurriedly called out a warning.

    But, everything was happening too quickly and there just wasn¡¯t enough time to react. Without being able to dodge in time, Shen Jingbin took a massive blow from Jue Tian¡¯s skill. In that instant, Shen Jingbin¡¯s health almost bottomed out. Gentle Flower quickly leapt into action and healed Shen Jingbin, saving her from an untimely demise.

    Jue Tian¡¯s offensive didn¡¯t just stop at that though, and heunched into a barrage of attacks. Realising that their Master had been injured, the Four Divine Beasts drew closer to protect by blocking the attacks. Seizing the opportunity, Quiet And Steadfast hurriedly mustered all his strength in an attempt to redirect Jue Tian¡¯s aggro back on himself.

    Jue Tian¡¯s high attack and HP were rather obscene. A long while passed with all six of them and the Four Divine Beasts grinding away at Jue Tian¡¯s health before they managed to shave off a portion of his health. But, just as the group was at their wit¡¯s end, something happened.

    The ten expert NPCs who were locked in battle with the four Elders looked as if they were intentionally deadlocked, but they were actually luring the Elders to a designated area. When all four regions were joined up, it would form an array.

    "Our era has passed; it¡¯s time for the youngsters to take over now. Us old people won¡¯t be around to keep you guyspany any longer."

    Song Yuqing used all of his strength to unleash a wide range attack that knocked each of the Elders towards one of the areas. Then, Poison Toad used the opportunity to activate a skill that was exclusive to the Sect Leader of the Lich Pce ¨C The Big Dipper.

    An enormous ck spiral suddenly appeared above Soundwave Temple. The spiral¡¯s immense attractive force caused everyone on the battlefield to drop what they were doing and steady themselves so that they wouldn¡¯t get sucked into the vortex.

    When the ck spiral appeared, Jue Tian became invulnerable. Before the group could figure out what was going on, they heard him booming with anger. "You ignorant fools, to think you¡¯d even be willing to throw away your lives. But, do you really think you have the skill to pull it off?!"

    The moment Jue Tian finished speaking, he raised his head to the sky and roared as a ck gas left his body. The shockwave was so immense that Shen Jingbin andpany were brought to the ground and they vomited a mouthful of blood. When they checked their health bars, they noticed that they were all sitting at half health now. Everyone hurriedly drunk a health potion before Gentle Flower got to her feet and topped them up.

    Another ck spiral had appeared above Soundwave Temple. Only this time, the spiral was half the size of the previous one, and its attractive force was weaker as well.

    After the two spirals appeared, regardless of which faction they were from, whether they were alive or dead, or whether they were fighting in this battle or not, yers who were Level 80 and above received a system notification.

    "Due to the suppression array¡¯s activation, the stats of the Shinra Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Jue Tian, have been reduced by half. Young heroes, please make good use of this time."

    "All members of the Six Great Sects have offered up half of their HP to activate the suppression array. Please make good use of this time."

    "These are turbulent times, and the world is in disarray. The Six Great Sects havee together to defend the Southern Sea. The Weapons Grandmaster, Su Qing, has activated the Lich Pce¡¯s suppression array ¨C The Big Dipper. All yers from the Six Great Sects who¡¯re Level 80 and above have the option to participate in this battle once again. Young heroes, are you willing to join the battle? Yes/No. (Note: The Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects have sacrificed themselves to obtain this opportunity. Young heroes, please give careful consideration to your decision.)"

    "Twilight beckons and darkness descends. The Shinra Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Jue Tian, has sacrificed his strength to activate the Heaven and Earth Reversal Array. All yers from the Shinra Sect who¡¯re Level 80 and above have the option to participate in this battle once again. Are you willing to take arms once again for your Sect Leader? Yes/No. (Note: yers who join in at this time will no longer have multiple lives. However, all of their stats will be increased by 5% in turn.)"

 Chapter 337

    <b>Chapter 337: A Race Against Time (1)</b>

    "My disciple, Nutjob. Your Master probably won¡¯t be around to guide you for much longer. When I enter the Big Dipper array, whether or not I¡¯ll be able to return will be for the heavens to decide. But, regardless of the oue, your Master hopes that you won¡¯t forget the basic qualities of a human being, and that you¡¯ll lead White Cloud Temple¡¯s disciples to a brighter future. As for who the next Sect Leader will be, I¡¯ve already asked Elder Tang from the Disciplinary Hall to take up the position. Elder Tang may look stern, but he has a heart of gold. I hope that you can show him the same respect that you do for me. The road ahead is filled with twists and turns, so you have to be careful." Shen Jingbin tried to move her body but found that the system had frozen it in ce. It looked like the rest of the yers were locked in ce by the system as well.

    Just as she was pondering this issue, she heard Song Yuqing¡¯s voice. She looked in the direction his voice wasing from and found him looking back at her from a distance away. In her mind¡¯s eye, she could even make out his expression that was filled with emotion.

    "Let¡¯s go!" In the next second, Lu Yingzhou suddenly shouted. The Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects grabbed the Elders they were assigned to and jumped into the ck spiral that Poison Toad had opened.

    Although Yu Youchen couldn¡¯t participate in the battle because of her injury, this array required the Sect Leaders to sacrifice their lives in order to activate. There was no way she could ask Zhang Wudi, who¡¯de here to help, to sacrifice himself in her ce. So, even if she was unable to stand, without a second thought, she dragged her body, wheelchair and all, into the ck spiral with the Elder in tow while Zhang Wudi was keeping him busy.

    The disciples of the Six Great Sects stared nkly as their Sect Leaders disappeared with their enemies before their very eyes.

    For some reason, this left a sour taste in a yers mouth. "F*ck... Did they really have to make it so emotional...?" he muttered in a slightly nasally voice. The yers nearby who heard him nodded their heads in agreement.

    Every single yer received parting words from their Sect Leaders. Some of them only consisted of a few words, while others were as long as an essay. They knew full well that the contents of these letters were based on what their personalities were like, and what they¡¯d done in the past, but it still deeply touched them.

    For a moment, everyone was ovee with an inexplicable sense of sorrow.

    After the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects jumped into the ck spiral, it shed for an instant before turning blue. The next moment, it expanded to twice its size, and the light it emitted began to glow with increasingly greater intensity. Finally, there was a brilliant beam of light, and everyone was forced to shut their eyes...

    When they reopened their eyes, the yers from the Six Great Sects saw many familiar and unfamiliar looking faces. But, based on what they were wearing, they were all allies!

    Before they even had the chance to rejoice, the spiral that Jue Tian had formed shed as well. A beam a red light began to swell in size, and after several seconds, another blinding ray of light shed...

    Reinforcements from the Shinra Sect hade as well.

    At the same time, everyone finally regained control of their bodies.

    "I¡¯ll prepare to open Reincarnation Pagoda. Remember to bring Jue Tian over." Su Qing appeared out of the void and quietly spoke to Shen Jingbin andpany. Then, without waiting for them to reply, he made a beeline for Reincarnation Pagoda.

    Shortly after Su Qing¡¯s appearance, the Grand Elder of the Shinra Sect returned as well and took his ce behind Jue Tian once again.

    Zhang Wudi dashed over to where Shen Jingbin¡¯s group was and red daggers at Jue Tian and the Grand Elder. "Disregard everything else and force this evil creature towards Reincarnation Pagoda. I¡¯ll help you guys to protect the Lamp of Life!"

    Quiet And Steadfast nodded. He narrowed his eyes and tightened his grip around the dagger in his hand before turning invisible.

    His invisibility was like a signal, and the moment of tranquility was broken once again as both factions shed against each other.

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight and Next Week Is Unlikely made it over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side during the lull in the fighting. All of the Lead Disciples had charged into battle and were now fighting against Jue Tian. On the other hand, the Grand Elder was locked in battle with Zhang Wudi and had no way ofing to his Sect Leader¡¯s aid.

    Opening the teleportation spiral had caused Jue Tian¡¯s stats to drop. So, when Quiet And Steadfast and the rest fought against him, they could clearly tell that he wasn¡¯t as much of a challenge as he was before.

    "I¡¯ll leave this ce to you guys. Remember, you can¡¯t let anyone from the Shinra Sect get to the Lamp of Life, and you have to it at all costs!" Shen Jingbin quickly surveyed the battle. She only had time for this one sentence before she rushed back in to help the other Lead Disciples.

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight and Next Week Is Unlikely wanted to help too, but two ck-clothed men appeared out of nowhere. One was tall and muscr, while the other was short and skinny. Neither of them said a single word beforeunching themselves at the pair. Every single one of their attacks was aimed at their blind spots as if the two ck-clothed men had aplete understanding of them.

    While fighting the two ck-clothed men, Dawn¡¯s Twilight and Next Week Is Unlikely shared a knowing nce with one another.

    These two had finally shown themselves.

    Shen Jingbin felt like something was missing when she returned to the fight, but only realised that the system had recalled the Divine Beasts back to her pet space when Quiet And Steadfast yelled for her to summon them.

    Shen Jingbin received a system notification while she was in her rush to open her pet window. "Your pets¡¯ human form has been unlocked."

    What the f*ck, what the hell is this?!

    Shen Jingbin nked for a moment before she hurriedly summoned her Divine Beasts.

    Sure enough, she wasn¡¯t greeted with the sight of her Divine Beasts, but four charming men who lookedpletely different from one another!

    There were no changes to the Azure Dragon. The Vermillion Bird looked like a slightly younger and more lively version of its predecessor. In fact, he looked like a tsundere princeling. The ck Tortoise was slightly older than the Vermillion Bird. He had a gentle expression on his face, and the feeling he gave off was that of a cleansing spring breeze.

    Mascot, on the other hand, made Shen Jingbin feel like covering her face the moment sheid eyes on him!

    My god! Why did my cute little Mascot end up looking like Tarzan?! Although he¡¯s buff, handsome, and he¡¯s oozing with charm, this game¡¯s set in ancient China. Is it really a good idea to appear with some unknown beast¡¯s pelt around you?! He probably wasn¡¯t even aware of what was going on. He¡¯s just foolishly smiling at me with one canine sticking out!

    Ah, he¡¯s still an idiot even after he¡¯s turned into a human.

    Shen Jingbin helplessly sighed.

 Chapter 338-339

    <b>Chapter 338: A Race Against Time (2)</b>

    The Four Divine Beasts saw an increase in stats after unlocking their human form. Their intelligence had also increased greatly, improving their cooperation with Shen Jingbin andpany.

    Before this, their party had fallen into their old habits of fighting Jue Tian like they would a world BOSS. But, they¡¯d forgotten one thing: that Jue Tian wasn¡¯t meant to be defeated by them. Having remembered that point, they no longer persisted in stubbornly trying to eliminate him, and instead switched to a different tactic. They would partly lead and partly force Jue Tian over to Reincarnation Pagoda.

    Due to his stats being cut in half and the Four Divine Beasts taking on a human form, it only took a little while to force Jue Tian to follow along with their n.

    When he saw his Sect Leader being led away, the Grand Elder turned his back on Zhang Wudi and attempted to go to Jue Tian¡¯s aid. But, it looked like Jue Tian had a better grasp of the situation than the Grand Elder did. "Don¡¯t worry about me! Gather some people and destroy the Lamp of Life!"

    Jue Tian¡¯s voice boomed throughout the area. Not only could the Grand Elder hear it, all of the yers could as well. The Shinra Sect yers suddenly remembered that their primary mission wasn¡¯t to cut down disciples of the righteous sect, but rather to destroy the Watchtower of Longevity and the Lamp of Life. While killing other yers might be fun, they still needed to win in the end!

    "Everyone, our target is the Watchtower of Longevity and the Lamp of Life!" Nine Bads no longer devoted all her efforts to ambushing the members of Jade Sea Pavilion, and instead made a beeline for the Watchtower of Longevity.

    During this time, Shen Jingchen and Next Week Is Unlikely hurriedly organised the yers from the Six Great Sects.

    "Form up; our mission is to protect the Watchtower of Longevity! Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s group has already driven Jue Tian to the Reincarnation Pagoda! All we need to do is guard the Watchtower of Longevity and we¡¯ll win!"

    The yers from the Six Great Sects gathered and formed a human wall to block the Shinra Sect¡¯s advance. Due to their numerical superiority, they were even able to send a number of elite yers ahead to the Watchtower of Longevity.

    The Six Great Sects had discrepancies in their individual power levels, while those from the Shinra Sect were amongst the more elite yers. If the ones at the front weren¡¯t able to hold back the Shinra Sect, they¡¯d at least still have another line of defence.

    With Shen Jingchen inmand of the rearguard, all of therge scale guilds picked out several of their elite yers and sent them along with him to the Watchtower of Longevity to act as thest line of defence. Next Week Is Unlikely took charge of the vanguard with the Guild Leaders from Imperial City, Memelord, and a few of the otherrger guilds. yers from Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight were too embarrassed to ask for a leading role. Because, by this point, some unsavory rumours were floating around about their guilds.

    For example: Reckless East Emperor is part of the Shinra Sect. There was also someone who personally saw Nine Bads disappear with someone who was suspected to be Reckless East Emperor in the Underworld. There was also the fact that the Leaders of both guilds weren¡¯t present even at such a critical stage of the battle.

    Longtime yers of this game were no fools. All it took was a bit of thinking, some hints, and they¡¯d be able to figure out what was going on.

    Under these circumstances, the members of Sovereign¡¯s Descent and Life At First Sight were akin to traitors amongst the yers of the Six Great Sects. With all eyes on them, there was no way they¡¯d try to do anything funny.

    On the Shinra Sect side of things, Nine Bads had joined up with Tiny Little Loli, Crying Fish, and the rest of them. Neverending Journey had also gathered additional forces. Their objective was simple: to break through the human wall in one fell swoop before dispersing andunching sneak attacks on the Watchtower of Longevity and the Lamp of Life.

    Jue Tian suddenly gave a cold smile. "You think this little ything will be able to destroy me? Dream on! I¡¯ll destroy this thing now, and then we¡¯ll see if you still have any ideas left on how to defeat me!"

    With that, Jue Tian flew up and made his way to the top of Reincarnation Pagoda.

    A faint outline of the pagoda¡¯s eighth level could already be seen. But, it had yet to fully materialise. Based on the way Jue Tian was acting, there was no way the eighth level could withstand his attack.

    There was always this thought bothering Quiet And Steadfast. Even if Jue Tian¡¯s stats had been halved, the n to bring him to Reincarnation Pagoda shouldn¡¯t have gone so smoothly. Now, it was clear that Jue Tian had intended toe here, and he was nning to destroy the one thing that posed the greatest threat to him.

    "We can¡¯t let him near the eighth level!" shouted Pure Crane as he chased after Jue Tian. Pure Crane nned to get in front of Jue Tian and obstruct him, but he was obviously no match for thetter.

    "Azure Dragon, ck Tortoise, block his path!" Shen Jingbinmanded.

    The Azure Dragon and ck Tortoise weren¡¯t affected by being in the water, so they quickly caught up to Jue Tian. Each of them grabbed onto a leg and viciously dragged Jue Tian back down.

    Jue Tian¡¯s face was filled with malice, and with a flip of his hand, heunched a wide range skill at the ck Tortoise and Azure Dragon. The two of them managed to endure the attack, and with that, they bought enough time for everyone else to catch up.

    <b>Chapter 339: Emerging Victorious (1)</b>

    Crying Fish looked apprehensively at the wall of yers before them. "Nine Bads, what¡¯re we going to do now? I¡¯m afraid it¡¯ll be hard for us to get past their defense line; it looks pretty solid."

    Nine Bads maintained her calm. "Fish, you¡¯ll be in charge of breaking through their first line of defence. You should know which ones are easy to take down; target them."

    She then turned her attention back to Neverending Journey and changed topics. "Guild Leader Journey, round up a squad and secure kills in this area whenever you see an opportunity."

    "What about you?" Neverending Journey asked.

    "I¡¯ll find a way to bring a party over to the Watchtower of Longevity." Nine Bads replied. "Tiny Little Loli, Inseparable Love, Return Of The Jedi, and North By Northwest, each of you is to bring along someone reliable and follow me."

    The named individuals gave a solemn nod of their heads. Nine Bads turned back to look at Crying Fish. This woman was the most prone to getting into trouble, so Nine Bads had no choice but to remind her once again.

    "Fish, remember that you have an important part to y. If you don¡¯t manage to attract their attention, there¡¯s a high chance that they¡¯ll realise we¡¯re trying tounch an ambush on their backline. Once their backline receives backup, we won¡¯t have any chance of winning this battle. We don¡¯t know what the situation is with that ugly monster either, so we have to seize every opportunity we have."

    Stirred by the gravity of her words, Crying Fish gave a solemn nod of her head. Following that, Nine Bads left with her party.

    From the time she¡¯d joined the Shinra Sect till now, Nine Bads was able to subdue all of the yers within the sect with her imposing presence. Not a single person objected to her n.

    Crying Fish took a deep breath before she swept out her hand and howled in anger as she charged forward with the remaining yers.

    Next Week Is Unlikely calmed himself. The Guild Leaders of Imperial City and Memelord exchanged a nce with one another and came to a tacit understanding. Both of them immediately encouraged their respective guild members to buck up!

    Under their leadership, yers that weren¡¯t a part of the three guilds joined in as well, and their spirits became just as indomitable as the rock-solid human wall they formed.

    Both sides shed. Their roars shook the heavens and their blood boiled.

    During this time, Nine Bads and her party were looking for a loophole in the enemy¡¯s defence. There were numerous yers from the Six Great Sects. Next Week Is Unlikely had also carefully ced people he trusted at every corner of Soundwave Temple, making sure to block off all the routes to the Tower of Longevity.

    Nine Bads silently cursed.

    At times, having more people was an advantage, while at other times, it was a detriment. There¡¯d always be something that was overlooked. Crying Fish noticed that Lonely Moon was the one guarding an area with a team of yers.

    She immediately brought her party to where Lonely Moon was and called out to him when they were near enough.

    Crying Fish¡¯s affectionate title of ¡¯Goddess¡¯ wasn¡¯t just because she was pretty. She had a unique voice and ent as well ¨C the type that made it difficult for men to controls themselves when they heard it. Though her voice had changed, her ent was still the same. Lonely Moon had been secretly in love with her for a very long time, so he immediately froze when he heard her voice.

    An opportunity!

    Having waited a long time for this chance, Neverending Journey decisively charged forward, working together with Crying Fish to create an opening in their defence line.

    "Go!" Nine Bads seized the opportunity and rushed forward.

    Next Week Is Unlikely rushed over as soon as he realised what was happening. But, Nine Bads andpany moved quickly, and by then, it was toote. They were all cloaked as well, so he failed to notice them.

    Without looking back, Nine Bads andpany dashed towards the Tower of Longevity.

    Shen Jingchen was guarding the Tower of Longevity when he was suddenly ovee by a strange sensation.

    Though his martial arts wasn¡¯t up to snuff, he was still pretty sharp when it came to sensing danger and bloodlust thanks to Old Master Shen¡¯s training.

    "Someone¡¯sing!" Shen Jingchen shouted as he raised his sword.

    The yers guarding the Tower of Longevity immediately went on alert. Though the surrounding was silent and nothing seemed off, they didn¡¯t rx their guard. All of them had faith in Dawn¡¯s Twilight¡¯s abilities.

    As expected, a figure in ck appeared barely a minuteter. The figure rushed forward without any concern for themselves before blowing themselves up. Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t expect the opponent to unleash such a considerable attack as soon as they began their assault, so he immediately gave themand for everyone to scatter.

    The number one thing to do when an enemy was about to blow themselves up was to avoid standing together.

    "Now!"

    As soon as they scattered, several figures in ck emerged andunched abined attack against one of the yers.

    The yers, who were now scattered and left on their own, couldn¡¯t hope to rival thebined strength of a group of ck-clothed men and died within seconds. The ck-clothed men didn¡¯t waste any time either. They immediately turned their attention to their next target the second they finished off a yer.

    All the people Shen Jingchen had brought had an acute battle sense. Though they were a little disoriented in the beginning, they quickly grouped together without the slightest bit of hesitation once the surprise wore off.

    "Hold them back! I¡¯m going to put out the light!" Nine Bads shouted before she ran towards the Tower of Longevity without looking back.

    Shen Jingchen rushed after the figure in ck that barged into Watchtower of Longevity and shouted, "Hurry and call for backup! You guys guard this ce; I¡¯ll take care of the inside."

 Chapter 340

    <b>Chapter 340: Emerging Victorious (2)</b>

    The interior of the Watchtower of Longevity was very spacious, yet all there was inside of it was a single solitary oilmp burning away at the forefront.

    Nine Bads rushed forward without hesitation, the dagger in her hands pointed at the oilmp. She raised her hand...

    ¡¯ng!¡¯

    Her dagger was blocked by a long sword. Nine Bads looked up and was met with a palm flying in her direction.

    Nine Bads wasn¡¯t as strong as the other party. She couldn¡¯t advance any further after her dagger was blocked, so she could only retreat.

    "You¡¯ll have to defeat me if you want to put out themp!" Shen Jingchen said coldly.

    Nine Bads sneered before she wordlessly shed against him once again.

    Dawn¡¯s Twilight wasn¡¯t a match for her in the past, and neither was he a match for her this time around either. In Nine Bads¡¯ eyes, he was nothing.

    Shen Jingchen hadn¡¯t been serious at first when he went up against the figure in ck. However, after exchanging a few blows, he realised he was in trouble!

    I¡¯m not a match for this person!

    Don¡¯t tell me...she¡¯s Nine Bads?!

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s expression changed, and he switched up his method of attack, choosing to buy time instead.

    However, Nine Bads saw through his n and refused to go along with it. She had her heart set on extinguishing the oilmp. In the end, Shen Jingchen had no choice but to use himself as a shield to prevent her from reaching the Lamp of Life.

    Nine Bads was sick of his dying tactics, and her attacks became even more merciless. No matter how high Shen Jingchen¡¯s defense was, he wouldn¡¯t be able to hold out forever. His health was just about to run out.

    Nine Bads shoved him out of the way and raised her dagger once again...

    Reinforcements had finally arrived, but they could only watch as the tip of Nine Bads¡¯ dagger drew closer and closer to themp.

    The world seemed to be copsing.

    Are we going to lose?

    "The leader of the Shinra Sect, Jue Tian, was unable to defy the will of the heavens. He has been sealed, and all life on earth has escaped this cmity."

    Just as the oilmp¡¯s light went out, a system notification resounded in everyone¡¯s mind.

    Eh?

    Everyone froze and only reacted when several consecutive notifications floated through the air.

    After a brief moment of stupor, the yers of the Six Great Sects exploded into deafening cheers, while yers from the Shinra Sect copsed in dejection.

    [System Announcement] Evil shall never prevail over good. Through the efforts of the disciples of the Six Great Sects, Jue Tian, Leader of Shinra Sect, has been sessfully sealed in the eighth floor of the Reincarnation Pagoda and shall never again disrupt the realm¡¯s peace.

    [System Announcement] The disciples of the Six Great Sects have won the battle between good and evil, congrattions!

    [System Announcement] The battle between good and evil has ended. An update and maintenance will be conducted in half an hour. Rewards for the victors will be given out after the update, and the leaderboards for the top contributors will also be made public at that time. To all the yers who have made it onto the leaderboards: please return to your respective sects to collect your rewards. To prevent any unnecessary loss of data, please n your time wisely.

    [System Announcement] As a show of thanks to all the yers who have participated in this battle between good and evil, all yers who log in after the update will receive a mystery gift bag. Thank you for being a part of this legendary tale. Yiju Technology Pte Ltd wishes you all the best in your future endeavours.

    The final battle between good and evil that they¡¯d spent so long preparing for had finally ended. Shen Jingbin felt as if her body was much lighter after she got out of the gaming pod. When she thought back to what Zhao Chengning did at the veryst moment, her heart melted once again. Without thinking about it, she changed her clothes, went downstairs, and prepared to head over to the Zhao family¡¯s household to look for him.

    Along the way, Shen Jingbin recalled what had transpired while she drove.

    After they¡¯d drawn Jue Tian over, she¡¯d found that all of Jue Tian¡¯s aggro was directed at her. Without any warning, Jue Tian began tounch all of his attacks at her.

    At that time, Zhao Chengning was clearly some distance from her. She didn¡¯t expect him to pounce over and take all of Jue Tian¡¯s attacks in her stead. She could say for certain that this was Zhao Chengning¡¯s most miserable state ever since he¡¯d started ying.

    Luckily, Su Qing managed to open the eighth floor in time. As soon as it opened, Pure Crane and The Winds Of Ximen immediately grabbed Jue Tian and flew towards the eighth floor. However, they didn¡¯t expect Jue Tian to suddenlysh out and grab onto her with a wave of his long sleeve. It was as if he wanted to drag her into the Reincarnation Pagoda together with him.

    "No, there¡¯s no way out once you enter the eighth floor!" Su Qing eximed.

    When Zhao Chengning heard this, he pushed himself up despite clearly not having recovered from Jue Tian¡¯s previous attacks and tightly grabbed onto Shen Jingbin¡¯s foot tightly, refusing to let go. When Qi Mu and Gentle Flower saw what was happening, they hurriedly sliced off Jue Tian¡¯s sleeve. Only then did Pure Crane, The Winds Of Ximen, and Su Qi manage to seal Jue Tian within the Reincarnation Pagoda.

    The moment the system notification popped up, Zhao Chengning disappeared in a glorious sh of white light as thest of his health was shaved off by Jue Tian¡¯s debuffs.

    It was a good thing he¡¯d be transported to the Southern Sea when he respawned. There was no need for him to pass through the Underworld.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s head was filled with the image of Zhao Chengning¡¯s pale face before he died. She couldn¡¯t wait to see him.

    She soon reached the Zhao family¡¯s household. When the auntie who worked as the family¡¯s helper opened the door and told her that the Second Young Master was in his room with a smile, Shen Jingbin thanked her and headed straight for Zhao Chengning¡¯s room.

    After not hearing a reply when she knocked on the door, she decided to boldly enter the room.

    He probably couldn¡¯t hear because he was still in the gaming pod.

    Thankfully, the door wasn¡¯t locked. She twisted the knob and pushed it open.

    Her hand was pulled inwards the moment she stepped in, and the door mmed shut. The next thing she knew, she felt herself pressed against the wall.

    His smouldering masculinity enshrouded her. Before she could react, his lips pressed against hers, lightly licking at them before they mercilessly invaded.

    Shen Jingbin reflexively tensed. She raised her hand, wanting to strike back on instinct. But, she felt her body go soft when she locked eyes with his gleaming pupils. Her arms dropped weakly onto his shoulders, and her tensed body rxed as she leaned into his embrace.

    The two of them hugged and kissed, heedless of anything else.

    There was no such thing as time when it came to lovers. An indeterminate period of time passed before Zhao Chengning, seemingly satisfied, let go of her. However, he didn¡¯t release her from his embrace; she was still trapped between him and the wall, and he began to dot butterfly kisses along her face every now and then.

    "You..." Shen Jingbin was a little breathless and stopped to pant after uttering a single word.

    "I know you miss me, that¡¯s why I left my door unlocked... How did I know that? Because, I miss you too." He pecked her soft lips again. "I know what you¡¯re thinking. Ever since we went to Virtuous Heaven Temple to tame the Vermillion bird, I resolved to never let you face any danger by yourself. I¡¯d stand in the way of any harm that befalls you, even at the cost of my own life."

    His eyes glowed too brightly, and Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but shut her own eyes.

    The unique taste of Zhao Chengning¡¯s lips pressed onto hers once again.

 Chapter 341

    <h4>Chapter 341: Cocktail Party (1)</h4>

    <b>Chapter 341: Cocktail Party (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin yed on her own in Zhao Chengning¡¯s room while he went to take a shower after logging out of the game.

    She¡¯d sped over to his home immediately after logging out without even eating a bite. Since his Grandfather wasn¡¯t home, there was no need for her to feel shy around him. So, Zhao Chengning simply instructed the housekeeper to prepare some food for them.

    Upon returning to his room, Zhao Chengning saw hisdy quietly sprawled across his bed with her head propped up, reading a book.

    The weather was still quite chilly. Shen Jingbin was wearing a light yellow down jacket with a beige turtleneck sweater underneath when she¡¯d arrived, looking both youthful and beautiful in it. However, Zhao Chengning was afraid she¡¯d feel cold, so he¡¯d set the air conditioning in the room to a rather high temperature.

    She was probably feeling warm by now as her jacket was cast aside and she was only wearing her turtleneck sweater. The sweater had a form-fitting design, and it vividly outlined her exquisite curves. Her long hair cascaded down the side of her face, and it gently swayed along with the motion of her body. The sight of it stirred his heart; the feeling was simr to that of a cat pawing at his heart.

    "What are you reading?" He asked as he walked over and sat by her side.

    Shen Jingbin flipped the book to its cover for him to see. "I just took a book at random; I don¡¯t know what it is either. The books on your bookshelf are quite varied."

    One of the walls in Zhao Chengning¡¯s room had been converted into a bookshelf, and its shelves were chock full of books. All of these books were mostly bought by him during his schooling days, and a majority of them were purchased because of their attractive cover designs. As for their content, he was still clueless about them.

    Shen Jingbin held a book containing a collection of prose in her hands. Previously, during his schooling days, Zhao Chengning would kick up a great fuss over them and was interested in anything that was new and unknown to him. However, after he entered the workforce and became a shrewd businessman himself, his interest in these things waned.

    "You like prose?" He ced his hands on her sides, and his shadow fell over her.

    The two of them were extremely close to one another. His breath fanned her ear, and she could feel the heating from his breath. "I think it¡¯s alright. It¡¯s a decent read every now and then. But, I tend to get bored if I read too much of it."

    "Great minds think alike."

    "You don¡¯t like it? Then, why¡¯d you buy it?"

    Zhao Chengning took the book away and ced it aside. "I was young and insensible at that time, and I liked contrived things."

    Shen Jingbin raised her head to look at him. The doe-eyed look that she wore caused his heart to melt in an instant. "But, I can be unreasonable at times too, will you mind?"

    The affectionate gaze of lovers could really make others flush red with embarrassment. "That¡¯s not being unreasonable, that¡¯s being cute."

    Shen Jingbin sank back onto the bed. "You¡¯re such a sweet talker. Who on earth did you learn it from?"

    Zhao Chengning slowly leaned over her, and his voice deepened. "Ites naturally the moment I see you..."

    Just as the two of them were about to get intimate again, someone suddenly knocked on the door. Zhao Chengan¡¯s voice travelled through the door.

    "Chengning, are you home?"

    Zhao Chengning sighed. His brother sure knew how to make a ¡¯timely¡¯ arrival. He grudgingly stood up and made for the door. "I¡¯m here, give me a moment."

    Shen Jingbin got up to put on her jacket. Although her clothes weren¡¯t in a state of disarray, she thought that it would be more proper for her to don it.

    "I heard that sister-inw is here, but I don¡¯t see her..." Zhao Chengan said as he entered the room. He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Shen Jingbin seated in the room. He stared nkly at her and said, "Did I disturb the two of you?"

    Zhao Chengning was following behind his brother and very much wanted to agree with a resounding ¡¯YES!¡¯

    However, his rationality made him hold back. "No, you didn¡¯t. Bro, shouldn¡¯t you be at the office right now? What¡¯s the matter?"

    Zhao Chengan exchanged a simple greeting with Shen Jingbin before he said, "I wanted to bring along a document from home, so I came back to get it. By the way, there¡¯s something I wanted to talk to you about. There¡¯ll be a cocktail party tonight, but I can¡¯t make it. Dad wants you to attend it in my stead. I was afraid that you¡¯d be busy ying your game and wouldn¡¯t pick up your phone, so I specially came over to inform you."

    Zhao Chengning frowned. "A cocktail party?"

    "Mhm. You¡¯re just in time, sister-inw. Are you free tonight?"

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t quite used to being addressed as ¡¯sister-inw¡¯ yet, but she still meekly replied all the same. "Yes, I¡¯m free."

    "Why don¡¯t you apany Chengning then? It just so happens that he¡¯s in need of a femalepanion."

    Shen Jingbin looked at Zhao Chengning, and thetter gave her a helpless nod. "Sure."

    "It¡¯ll be held at 7 pm tonight, on the twelfth level of Luofu Hotel. I¡¯ll be off then." Zhao Chengan said with a dismissive wave of his hand and made to leave.

    "Bro, aren¡¯t you going to eat at home? I¡¯m sure you have some time to take a break at this...this hour."

    "I don¡¯t have time to eat; there are still many things that need to be done. Enjoy your time while you can, because I¡¯ll be going back to Africa soon."

    "So soon?"

    "Time passes quickly for you lovebirds, but for me, each day feels like a year. I¡¯ll be off then."

    He looked very busy, and they were disinclined to keep him any longer. After Zhao Chengan left, Zhao Chengning shrugged at his wifey. "Oh no, it looks like I¡¯ll have to trouble you tonight."

    Shen Jingbin acted as if she was in a pickle. "What are you nning to do about this? It costs a lot for me to make an appearance."

    "I¡¯ll give you all of my future earnings. Will that do?"

    Shen Jingbin thought about it for a moment. "I¡¯ll consider it."

    Zhao Chengning went forward and held her with a smile on his face before leading her downstairs to eat.

    The two of them were suddenly faced with the task of attending a party. Zhao Chengning took time out from his afternoon to shop for a gown with Shen Jingbin. Once they were done shopping, the loving couple proceeded to the party as nned.

    Those who sent invites to members of the Zhao Family typically belonged to the upper echelons of society, and a majority of the people present were familiar faces. As soon as he made his entrance, Zhao Chengning immediately became the focus of attention. Of which, arge portion of their attention was directed at the peerless beauty beside him.

    Those who were unaware of Shen Jingbin¡¯s identity thought that Young Master Zhao had merely brought an ordinary femalepanion, and tried to find out who she was. On the other hand, those who knew of her immediately pushed aside all other thoughts and looked at Zhao Chengning with undisguised envy.

    The upper-ss had made many sacrifices to attain their current status - this, above all, included marriage. However, as they witnessed Zhao Chengning appearing in front of them with a partner who possessed the perfect appearance and family background, acting all lovey-dovey with each other, they couldn¡¯t help but feel jealous.

    However, what did it matter if they were jealous? This was fate.

 Chapter 342

    <strong>Chapter 342: Cocktail Party (2)</strong>

    Jian Cishu spotted them the moment they appeared. Initially, she''d had no ns to attend the party. She''d only agreed toe when she heard Big Brother Zhao mention that Zhao Chengning would be making an appearance. However, she didn''t expect to receive such a ''surprise'' aftering here.

    She knew that she had no chance with him. But, she couldn''t help but want to be near him. Seeing how happy he was with this beauty as hispanion pained her greatly, and she was too overwhelmed to speak. She could only use going to the washroom as an excuse to avoid them.

    It looked like she really needed to give up on him.

    However, she didn''t expect to still be hounded by rumours even after seeking respite in the washroom.

    Just as she was hesitating over whether she should go out or not, she suddenly heard the raucousughter of various womening from the doorway and her name being mentioned.

    "Hey, did you guys see the woman that Second Young Master Zhao brought with him today? They say that she has a remarkable background. It''s little wonder that someone like Second Young Master Zhao would be head over heels for her. His eyes were glued to her the whole time, and he was unwilling to look away for even a moment."

    "Ugh, don''t talk about it. Putting aside her family background, just look at that face! If I were in his shoes, I wouldn''t be able to look away either."

    "Second Young Master Zhao''s life isplete with thepany of a woman who''s as beautiful as a flower. The Jian Family Miss sure is pitiful though. Her rumoured fianc¨¦ is openly appearing in public with another woman. I wouldn''t be able to stand it if I were her."

    "What, you mean the girl from the Jian Family who is besotted with Second Young Master Zhao? Second Young Master Zhao has never once acknowledged the betrothment between the two of them. The whole thing was a set-up by her. Her Mother is even more arrogant, using the Zhao Family name to make a scene everywhere. I say, this p to their face is really satisfying!"

    The women outside gossiped non-stop, though the topic of their conversation had shifted from being envious of Shen Jingbin to chastising Jian Cishu.

    These women had previously indulged in wishful thoughts of getting together with Zhao Chengning. Now that someone had beat them to it, they were feeling a little resentful. However, their opponent was far too outstanding in every aspect and had no ws. So, they could only swallow their resentment and bear with it.

    Now, Jian Cishu had be an easy target for them to vent their frustrations on. They directed all their dissatisfaction and resentment towards her, which manifested as personal attacks.

    Jian Cishu trembled with rage when she overheard their conversation. But, she couldn''t do anything, and neither did she dare to go out. All she could do was hide in the cubicle as the rims of her eyes reddened.

    "Lower your volume when you''re talking about other people behind their backs. After all, the sound-proofing might not be as good as you think."

    Just as Jian Cishu was on the verge of a mental breakdown, a female voice suddenly spoke up. It sounded a little cold but was pleasant to the ears.

    It didn''t take long for her to recognise who it belonged to.

    The women outside quietened down, not daring to make a sound. They looked foolishly at the woman in front of them who was dressed in a ck, backless gown. Her outstanding appearance and the intense aura that she projected caused their minds to go nk. Their legs instantly turned to jelly just from being subjected to her gaze.

    They were only able to breathe normally when she entered the cubicle and closed the door. The women hurriedly fled the washroom without looking back.

    Jian Cishu couldn''t describe how she was feeling at the moment. When she stepped out of the cubicle, Shen Jingbin happened to walk out as well.

    Shen Jingbin gave a polite nod upon seeing her; her manners were impable.

    "You¡­" Jian Cishu walked forward haltingly, intent on saying something. However, after uttering the word "you", she was left tongue-tied as she faced Shen Jingbin''s breathtaking appearance.

    "Never lose your sense of self no matter what. People called me a flower vase and said that I was just a pretty face with no talent or substance. But,ter on, I made all those people who said that about mee back and personally apologise." Shen Jingbin raised her head and looked at the mirror, which reflected the woman who was standing behind her. Jian Cishu''s slightly red-rimmed eyes were especially noticeable when seen through the mirror.

    Honestly speaking, Shen Jingbin didn''t have any long-standing feud with Jian Cishu. They just happened to fall in love with the same man. The only difference between them was that this man had chosen her.

    Shen Jingbin was no saint. If Jian Cishu had been the kind of viinous supporting character found in novels or dramas, she definitely wouldn''t have stood up for her. However, Jian Cishu didn''t do anything wrong and didn''t deserve to be chastised as such.

    Furthermore, as the saying goes: to the victor go the spoils. Jian Cishu had lost to her, so she was the only one who had the right to chastise her, not that bunch of ignorant women.

    Disrespecting her rival meant disrespecting her. This was Shen Jingbin''s way of doing things.

 Chapter 343

    <b>Chapter 343: Crushed By Luck Yet Again (1)</b>

    The next day, Zhao Chengning talked about it with Shen Jingbin while sending her home.

    Shen Jingbin paused for a moment before she said, "I¡¯ll go if I have nothing on that day. Anyway, I have a feeling that that manservant, Shen Jingchen, would probably give me hell for it if I don¡¯t agree to go."

    Zhao Chengningughed. That really did seem like something Shen Jingchen would do.

    "National Treasures and the rest are very curious about you."

    "I hope I don¡¯t disappoint them."

    "You won¡¯t disappoint them. The only thing you¡¯ll do is exceed all expectations," Zhao Chengning replied confidently while looking ahead.

    Zhao Chengning left after dropping her off at the lobby without even stopping for a drink. Even though the couple was in their ¡¯honeymoon¡¯ phase, the period where they were passionately in love, they weren¡¯t interested in heart-wrenching goodbyes.

    Shen Jingbin had just fished out her keys when the door opened, and Shen Jingchen appeared before her with an extremely vulgar smile on his face.

    On reflex, she raised her hand to look at the time. It was only just after 8, and this brat was actually awake? How odd.

    Shen Jingchen stood before the doorway, blocking her path. "Hey, Shen Jingbin. You didn¡¯te homest night, right?" He knew the answer to his question, yet he still asked anyway. The shit eating grin on his face only growing wider.

    Shen Jingbin tossed what was in her hand at him and pushed him away. "Don¡¯t you know the answer already?" she asked as she changed her shoes.

    Shen Jingchen rounded her and stood on the other end. "Did you stay at Ah Ning¡¯s ce? How was it? What happenedst night? How did it feel?" he asked in a depraved manner.

    Shen Jingbin looked up and rolled her eyes. "Why are you so dirty minded?"

    Shen Jingchen immediately adopted an innocent look on his face. "Why am I the filthy one?! I was just worried about how you sleptst night. What are you going on about?!"

    Shen Jingbin shot him a withering gaze. Shen Jingchen recoiled for a moment before he spoke again. "You and Ah Ning are in your honeymoon phase, so I was just afraid that the two of you might¡¯ve gotten caught up in the moment. Besides, the two of you are adults, and you know what you¡¯re doing, so there¡¯s no need to be secretive about it."

    Shen Jingbin shot a disdainful re at him. "Would a single dog like you even be able to understand if I told you?"

    Shen Jingbin then spun around and made her way back to her room without waiting for him to reply. Shen Jingchen was left standing there dumbfounded till he finally came to the realisation that he¡¯d been made fun of. "Zhao Chengning definitely didn¡¯t manage to satisfy that girlst night!" he shouted in a fluster.

    Shen Jingbin had taken a bath the night before at Zhao Chengning¡¯s ce, but she didn¡¯t have a change of clothes. So, the very first thing she did when she got back to her room was put on a fresh set of clothes. Once done, she made her way downstairs and was greeted with the sight of Shen Jingchen sitting on the sofa with an expectant look on his face.

    "You¡¯re aware of the offline meetup, right?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "Yeah. If I¡¯lle along with you guys if I don¡¯t have anything on that day."

    "You¡¯lle along with us? You mean Ah Ning agreed to it too?"

    Shen Jingbin provoked him once again. "Do you really think he wouldn¡¯t go if I went?"

    "..."

    Shen Jingbin was his senior when it came to romance, so he had no choice but to bow to her seniority. Shen Jingchen red at her for a moment before he pulled out his handphone and began fiddling with it. "I¡¯ll tell National Treasures and the rest. You have no idea how much they¡¯re looking forward to meeting you. Even I don¡¯t get this kind of treatment, hmph!"

    "What happened to the game¡¯s update?" she asked.

    "Oh, it¡¯s a littleplicated. Loginter in the afternoon and see for yourself."

    After her lunch, Shen Jingbin jumped straight into the game. Since information on the update and rewards for the previous event were all listed on the official website, she made sure to have a look at it before logging in.

    The leaderboard for ¡¯The Battle Between Good and Evil¡¯ was stered on the homepage. Shen Jingbin nced at it and found the names of the top 3 yers. The system had coloured their names, making them especially conspicuous.

    Unexpectedly, the one who¡¯d umted the most points was actually Shen Jingchen. After which was Quiet And Steadfast, followed by Neverending Journey.

    Shen Jingbin was ranked eighth. As she skimmed through the rest of the list, she couldn¡¯t help butment how destiny had matched her together with her nemesis yet again. Just below her name and ranked ninth was Nine Bads.

    Other than the leaderboards, there was also information about the event¡¯s rewards and the offline meetup. Shen Jingbin briefly ran through them before closing the game¡¯s webpage.

    The moment she logged in, Shen Jingbin saw a system announcement making its way across the sky.

    [System Announcement] Since time immemorial, heroes have been born from youths. Congrattions to yers Dawn¡¯s Twilight, Quiet And Steadfast, and Neverending Journey for taking the top 3 ces on the leaderboards. They have been awarded the gold, purple, and red coloured title of ¡¯Hero¡¯ respectively along with the following: ¡¯Large Exquisite Grade Contribution Gift Box ¡¯, Medium Exquisite Grade Contribution Gift Box ¡¯, and ¡¯Small Exquisite Grade Contribution Gift Box¡¯. Let¡¯s give these heroes a round of apuse; three cheers!

    [System Announcement] To thank yers for their participation, there will be an ¡¯Exquisite Grade Lucky Gift Box¡¯ drop every 15 minutes. Opening these gift boxes will give you a chance to obtain items like Pan Gu¡¯s Stone, top quality equipment, and vaulted mounts. Note: These boxes will drop at random locations. Time to test your luck, young heroes.

    [System Announcement] To thank yers for their participation, contribution and xp rates will be increased from 7 pm to 10 pm tonight. yers who are interested are advised to n their time ordingly.

    [System Announcement] The Battle Between Good and Evil has ended. All of the yers within the Shinra Sect have reimed their original identities. But, tomemorate them as once being part of the Shinra Sect, they will receive a 10% increase in chance for fortuitous events to ur within the Shinra Sect¡¯s map. yers from the Six Great Sects who have yet to receive their rewards are advised to return to their sects as quickly as possible and im them. yers who fail to im their reward within these 72 hours will be deemed to have forfeited them.

 Chapter 344-346

    hapter 344: The Legendary Offline Event (2)

    The guest room was different from what Old Master Zhao had said. Instead, it was rather clean and tidy. After Zhao Chengning saw her to the guest room, he stood at the doorway and took her hands into his, reluctant to part. ¡°Just now, my Grandpa...don¡¯t mind him.¡±

    Shen Jingbin peeked out of the room and looked over to Old Master Zhao¡¯s room. ¡°I know. It¡¯ste, and you must be tired. Go to bed early and get some rest.¡±

    ¡°You know, Grandpa¡¯s suggestion suddenly doesn¡¯t seem so bad after all.¡±

    Shen Jingbin red at him. ¡°You beast!¡±

    Zhao Chengning chuckled and bent down to kiss her before returning to his room.

    Knowing that his sweetheart was currently in his house gave Zhao Chengning a rare bout of insomnia. He tossed and turned, but couldn¡¯t fall asleep. Giving up, he got up and opened up his WeChat.

    As expected, those night owls in the guild were still awake, fervently discussing something. He skimmed through the chat history and realised that they were talking about meeting up in real life.

    After the final battle ended, <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> was updated. Following which, the people who made it onto the leaderboards were on the game¡¯s official website. Most of the members from Jade Sea Pavilion were listed on it. Quiet And Steadfast, Next Week Is Unlikely, and the Four Monsters were even ranked among the top. Apart from the leaderboards, the game¡¯s officials also released a piece of news. In order to thank yers for continuously supporting <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> and the Yiju Corporation, theirpany¡¯s headquarters would be organising an offline event to celebrate the smooth conclusion of ¡°The Battle Between Good And Evil¡±. The top 50 yers in the event, as well as the top 10 yers from each leaderboard, would receive an invitation. Even the yers on the game¡¯s unofficial beauty leaderboards were included. (The ¡®top-ranked¡¯ ugliest women were obviously excluded.)

    The event would be held in a carnival-like setting. yers who weren¡¯t on the guest list but were interested in participating could join in as well. However, they had to pay for their own travel expenses and amodation.

    Since Yiju¡¯s headquarters were located in B City, the offline event this time around would be held in B City.

    Most of Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s members lived in B City, and they were ecstatic when they heard the news. Although they had been in the same guild for a long time, were on good terms, and weren¡¯t all that far away from one another, they never had a gathering for some reason. Yiju¡¯s offline event this time round undoubtedly served as an excellent opportunity for them to meet up. So, it was no surprise that all of them were very excited.

    There were numerous elites from Jade Sea Pavilion, and most of them made it onto the guest list. They talked about it the whole night and decided that they¡¯d seize this opportunity and meet up no matter what. It was no small feat for all of them to get along and y the game for such a long time, so this was indeed something worth celebrating.

    National Treasures: Oh my god, oh my god! Am I finally going to meet our amazing Guild Leader and the two Vice-leaders? Ah! I¡¯m so excited!

    I¡¯m Not A Monster: Hehe. Treasures, let me remind you that at this moment, apart from Dawn, the other two pros still haven¡¯t said that they¡¯d be going.

    National Treasures: I don¡¯t care, I don¡¯t care! It¡¯s really difficult for an opportunity like this toe by, they¡¯ll surely attend.

    Quiet And Steadfast: ??? What?

    Descent Of Rain And Snow: Ah, Leader appeared.

    Lingering White Clouds: Leader is actually still up at this time, how rare. /secretlyughs.

    Quiet And Steadfast: I couldn¡¯t fall asleep, so I thought I¡¯de and see what you guys were talking about. What¡¯s National Treasures so excited about?

    National Treasures: Ahhhhhh! My dearest Leader! To tell you the truth, I¡¯ve been your die-hard fan since the very first day the game released. For your sake, I¡¯ve been lying in wait in Jade Sea Pavilion this whole time just for this day! You¡¯ll definitelye for the gathering, right?! /pitiful.

    Zhao Chengning mulled over it for a moment. ¡°I haven¡¯t decided yet. I¡¯ll give you a reply tomorrow after I¡¯ve asked around.¡±

    I¡¯m Not A Monster: Bleh. Ask around? Who¡¯re you asking?

    I¡¯m Not A Monster: Could it be Nutty?

    I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: Oh, I think I smell an affair.

    Eternal Rest: Me too.

    Temperate Scarlet Moon: +1.

    Faint Blue Seaweed: In that case, is there a chance of Nuttying along as well? I saw her name on the guest list. Leader, I request to be a part of the live audience when you have your affair!

    Yanmen Imperial Sister: Request to be a part of the live audience when you¡¯re having an affair +1.

    Long Life: +2.

    Big Buddhist Nun: +3.

    ==

    Chapter 345: Crushed By Luck Yet Again (1)

    The next day, Zhao Chengning talked about it with Shen Jingbin while sending her home.

    Shen Jingbin paused for a moment before she said, ¡°I¡¯ll go if I have nothing on that day. Anyway, I have a feeling that that manservant, Shen Jingchen, would probably give me hell for it if I don¡¯t agree to go.¡±

    Zhao Chengningughed. That really did seem like something Shen Jingchen would do.

    ¡°National Treasures and the rest are very curious about you.¡±

    ¡°I hope I don¡¯t disappoint them.¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t disappoint them. The only thing you¡¯ll do is exceed all expectations,¡± Zhao Chengning replied confidently while looking ahead.

    Zhao Chengning left after dropping her off at the lobby without even stopping for a drink. Even though the couple was in their ¡®honeymoon¡¯ phase, the period where they were passionately in love, they weren¡¯t interested in heart-wrenching goodbyes.

    Shen Jingbin had just fished out her keys when the door opened, and Shen Jingchen appeared before her with an extremely vulgar smile on his face.

    On reflex, she raised her hand to look at the time. It was only just after 8, and this brat was actually awake? How odd.

    Shen Jingchen stood before the doorway, blocking her path. ¡°Hey, Shen Jingbin. You didn¡¯te homest night, right?¡± He knew the answer to his question, yet he still asked anyway. The shit eating grin on his face only growing wider.

    Shen Jingbin tossed what was in her hand at him and pushed him away. ¡°Don¡¯t you know the answer already?¡± she asked as she changed her shoes.

    Shen Jingchen rounded her and stood on the other end. ¡°Did you stay at Ah Ning¡¯s ce? How was it? What happenedst night? How did it feel?¡± he asked in a depraved manner.

    Shen Jingbin looked up and rolled her eyes. ¡°Why are you so dirty minded?¡±

    Shen Jingchen immediately adopted an innocent look on his face. ¡°Why am I the filthy one?! I was just worried about how you sleptst night. What are you going on about?!¡±

    Shen Jingbin shot him a withering gaze. Shen Jingchen recoiled for a moment before he spoke again. ¡°You and Ah Ning are in your honeymoon phase, so I was just afraid that the two of you might¡¯ve gotten caught up in the moment. Besides, the two of you are adults, and you know what you¡¯re doing, so there¡¯s no need to be secretive about it.¡±

    Shen Jingbin shot a disdainful re at him. ¡°Would a single dog like you even be able to understand if I told you?¡±

    Shen Jingbin then spun around and made her way back to her room without waiting for him to reply. Shen Jingchen was left standing there dumbfounded till he finally came to the realisation that he¡¯d been made fun of. ¡°Zhao Chengning definitely didn¡¯t manage to satisfy that girlst night!¡± he shouted in a fluster.

    Shen Jingbin had taken a bath the night before at Zhao Chengning¡¯s ce, but she didn¡¯t have a change of clothes. So, the very first thing she did when she got back to her room was put on a fresh set of clothes. Once done, she made her way downstairs and was greeted with the sight of Shen Jingchen sitting on the sofa with an expectant look on his face.

    ¡°You¡¯re aware of the offline meetup, right?¡±

    Shen Jingbin nodded. ¡°Yeah. If I¡¯lle along with you guys if I don¡¯t have anything on that day.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯lle along with us? You mean Ah Ning agreed to it too?¡±

    Shen Jingbin provoked him once again. ¡°Do you really think he wouldn¡¯t go if I went?¡±

    ¡°...¡±

    Shen Jingbin was his senior when it came to romance, so he had no choice but to bow to her seniority. Shen Jingchen red at her for a moment before he pulled out his handphone and began fiddling with it. ¡°I¡¯ll tell National Treasures and the rest. You have no idea how much they¡¯re looking forward to meeting you. Even I don¡¯t get this kind of treatment, hmph!¡±

    ¡°What happened to the game¡¯s update?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s a littleplicated. Loginter in the afternoon and see for yourself.¡±

    After her lunch, Shen Jingbin jumped straight into the game. Since information on the update and rewards for the previous event were all listed on the official website, she made sure to have a look at it before logging in.

    The leaderboard for ¡®The Battle Between Good and Evil¡¯ was stered on the homepage. Shen Jingbin nced at it and found the names of the top 3 yers. The system had coloured their names, making them especially conspicuous.

    Unexpectedly, the one who¡¯d umted the most points was actually Shen Jingchen. After which was Quiet And Steadfast, followed by Neverending Journey.

    Shen Jingbin was ranked eighth. As she skimmed through the rest of the list, she couldn¡¯t help butment how destiny had matched her together with her nemesis yet again. Just below her name and ranked ninth was Nine Bads.

    Other than the leaderboards, there was also information about the event¡¯s rewards and the offline meetup. Shen Jingbin briefly ran through them before closing the game¡¯s webpage.

    The moment she logged in, Shen Jingbin saw a system announcement making its way across the sky.

    [System Announcement] Since time immemorial, heroes have been born from youths. Congrattions to yers Dawn¡¯s Twilight, Quiet And Steadfast, and Neverending Journey for taking the top 3 ces on the leaderboards. They have been awarded the gold, purple, and red coloured title of ¡®Hero¡¯ respectively along with the following: ¡®Large Exquisite Grade Contribution Gift Box ¡¯, Medium Exquisite Grade Contribution Gift Box ¡¯, and ¡®Small Exquisite Grade Contribution Gift Box¡¯. Let¡¯s give these heroes a round of apuse; three cheers!

    [System Announcement] To thank yers for their participation, there will be an ¡®Exquisite Grade Lucky Gift Box¡¯ drop every 15 minutes. Opening these gift boxes will give you a chance to obtain items like Pan Gu¡¯s Stone, top quality equipment, and vaulted mounts. Note: These boxes will drop at random locations. Time to test your luck, young heroes.

    [System Announcement] To thank yers for their participation, contribution and xp rates will be increased from 7 pm to 10 pm tonight. yers who are interested are advised to n their time ordingly.

    [System Announcement] The Battle Between Good and Evil has ended. All of the yers within the Shinra Sect have reimed their original identities. But, tomemorate them as once being part of the Shinra Sect, they will receive a 10% increase in chance for fortuitous events to ur within the Shinra Sect¡¯s map. yers from the Six Great Sects who have yet to receive their rewards are advised to return to their sects as quickly as possible and im them. yers who fail to im their reward within these 72 hours will be deemed to have forfeited them.

    ===

    Chapter 346: Crushed By Luck Yet Again (2)

    [System Announcement] Extra, extra, read all about it! Fevered preparations are being made for <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> first offline meetup! For more detailed information, please refer to the game¡¯s official page, Wechat ount, and Weibo page. We will inform you of any further updates as soon as possible. The exciting tales of Celestials and Demons will leave you wanting more. Yiju looks forward to meeting you in person for the very first time.

    All of the system announcements appeared in session every hour to ensure that all of the yers were aware of the news. After Shen Jingbin read all of the system announcements, she slowly made her way towards White Cloud Temple to receive her rewards.

    These past few days, White Cloud Temple was filled with yers who wanted to collect their rewards. Different from before, she was greeted with many sincere gazes and smiles that were filled with praise when she returned to the sect. Those looks of disdain and resent from before seemed to have disappeared overnight, and Shen Jingbin¡¯s mood suddenly took a turn for the better.

    Out of habit, Shen Jingbin made her way over to the Sect Leader¡¯s residence, only to remember that Song Yuqing was no longer around when she arrived at the door. The rare good mood that she¡¯d had just moments ago turned gloomy in an instant.

    Just as she was about to leave, the door suddenly opened, and a grey-haired old man appeared from within. ¡°Junior disciple, are you Song Yuqing¡¯s direct disciple, Nutjob?¡±

    Shen Jingbin sized up the old man before her. He appeared to be the very stern sort and had a stone-faced expression. He stared at her with a piercing gaze akin to that of a hawk¡¯s; the kind that could make your scalp go numb.

    Was this Elder Tan of the Discipline Hall?

    ¡°I am her. Greetings, Elder Tan.¡±

    ¡°You know me?¡± Elder Tan strode forward and stopped in front of Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly felt immense pressure from his gaze. ¡°My Master told me about you in his final moments.¡±

    Elder Tan¡¯s expression softened. ¡°Your Master was a great man who sacrificed himself for the sake of the world. The karmic cycle and heavenlyws of reincarnation are still in y. He won¡¯t be gone from us for long.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t understand what he was saying, and she shot him a puzzled look.

    Elder Tan just quietly shook his head and assumed his stone-faced expression once again. Left feeling helpless, Shen Jingbin could only bid Elder Tan farewell and prepare to return to Radiant Dawn Hall for her reward.

    Just as she was about to leave, Elder Tan unexpectedly spoke again. ¡°You did well in thest battle; these are your rewards.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say so earlier?¡± Shen Jingbin thought to herself.

    Shen Jingbin thanked him like a well-behaved child after receiving her rewards from him. ¡°Thank you, Elder Tan. I¡¯ll be taking my leave first.¡±

    ¡°Go on.¡±

    All of the rewards were bundled together. yers would have to open the bundle to find out what their rewards were. Shen Jingbin left White Cloud Temple and made her way over to her own manor before taking the time to open her bundle.

    The moment she opened it, a ray of dazzling golden light erupted. After it subsided, an ornately decorated gift box appeared before her along with a snow-white robe and 3 Pang Gu¡¯s Stones.

    [System Announcement] yer Nutjob has opened ¡®Large Common Contribution Gift Box¡¯. A golden light burst forth from it, revealing a ¡®Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry Gift Box¡¯, a ¡®Bustling Robe¡¯, and 3 Pang Gu¡¯s stones. Such phenomenal luck is simply unheard of!

    Shortly after the system announcement, countless yers were driven into an uproar once again.

    The contribution packages were ingeniously designed. The gift packages that the top 3 yers received had a 100% chance to produce a vaulted flying mount, a vaulted cosmetic item, some Pang Gu¡¯s Stones, and several rare materials. The materials¡¯ rarity was dependant on the type of contribution package opened. Gift packages given to 4th to 50th ce on the leaderboards had a 100% chance to produce several Pang Gu¡¯s Stones and a cosmetic item. Whatever else they could get was dependent on their luck. Gift packages for the 51st ce onwards had progressively diminishing chances to obtain items.

    Several thousand people had received their gift packages at this point. While most of them had receivedmon gift packages because they were ced further behind on the leaderboards, not a single person had gotten anything as amazing as Shen Jingbin had.

    It was yet another case of overwhelming Luck.

    Countless people who saw the announcement were left roaring in frustration. It was truly vexing.

    In spite of that, the charming beauty, Miss Shen, was unexpectedly calm. She blinked several times before picking up all of the items to inspect them.

    The Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry Gift Box contained a mount that could traversend, sea, and air. It was released shortly after the game went into service and it looked amazingly cool, had blindingly fast speed, and there weren¡¯t many of them in cirction. At present, there were almost none of them in cirction. They were so rare that their going rate on the market was absurdly high, and Shen Jingbin had somehow managed to get her hands on one. The Bustling Robes were a cosmetic item that was released not long ago. It wasn¡¯t all that rare, but due to its unique design, it was very well received by female yers and sold pretty well on the market. In short, she¡¯d struck the jackpot.

    The Bustling Robe¡¯s design appealed to her sense of aesthetics, so she chose to bind it to her ount without any hesitation. However, the mount box remained untouched. Shen Jingbin had always kept that incident on New Year¡¯s Eve, when Zhao Chengning gave her a New Year¡¯s gift, in her heart. She had her own specialised mount now too, so she didn¡¯t have much of a need for this one. Since the Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry Gift Box was so rare, she might as well give it to Zhao Chengning. And, it could also double as her New Year¡¯s gift.

    But, who knew exactly what he¡¯d be able to get from the gift box? It¡¯d be no fun if he managed to get a mount that was even cooler than what she currently had.

    As she was letting her imagination run wild, she suddenly saw a system notification float by.

    ¡°Your husband, Quiet And Steadfast has logged in.¡±

 Chapter 347

    <h4>Chapter 347: Comparing Yourself To Others Will Only Lead To Frustration (1)</h4>

    <b>Chapter 347: Comparing Yourself To Others Will Only Lead To Frustration (1)</b>

    [System Announcement] yer Quiet And Steadfast has opened ¡¯Medium Exquisite Contribution Box¡¯. A golden light burst forth from it, revealing a ¡¯Great Sage¡¯s Gift Box¡¯, a ¡¯Fallen Afterglow Robe¡¯, 5 Pang Gu¡¯s stones, and 6 strands of ¡¯Ice Silkworm Heavenly Thread¡¯. Such phenomenal luck is simply unheard of!

    Shen Jingbin had only just sent a private message to Quiet And Steadfast when the system announcement appeared. It looked like his luck was pretty good too.

    "The guild members and I are at Cherry Blossom Ind getting ready to fight a world Boss. Do you want toe along?" asked Quiet And Steadfast in his reply.

    After seeing his message, Shen Jingbin set aside her ns to drop by the shopping center for some wrapping paper. She summoned her mount and hurriedly made her way over to Cherry Blossom Ind.

    Cherry Blossom Ind was a small ind at the edge of Thunder Marsh. It was an ind filled with cherry blossoms, and it had wonderful scenery. It was also one of the must-visit spots for lovers. But, due to the fact that a world Boss, the Cherry Blossom Man, could spawn here, most of the yers that came by were all high levelled couples.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t able to find anyone when she arrived, and only managed to spot the members of Jade Sea Pavilion standing around in twos and threes when she arrived at the Cherry Blossom Man¡¯s spawn point.

    Quiet And Steadfast, who was the first to notice her arrival, quickly went over to greet her.

    "You¡¯re here. We¡¯re waiting for the Cherry Blossom Man to spawn in a few minutes."

    "There aren¡¯t many people here today," Shen Jingbinmented.

    "To avoid any idental injuries, Next Week Is Unlikely cleared out the area."

    "Oh? You¡¯re being that overbearing?"

    "Previously, the fight between good and evil had always been on our minds. We¡¯ve finally managed to get through it, so we obviously have to let loose a little. The rest of the guild hase up with apetition to see who can get their hands on the Cherry Blossom Man¡¯s ¡¯Cherry Blossom Hairpin¡¯. Whoever gets it will be able to make one request of anyone else in the guild at the offline event."

    The Cherry Blossom Hairpin is a drop that¡¯s exclusive to the Cherry Blossom Man. While its stats are nothing out of the ordinary, it looks great. Furthermore, it can add between 1-3 points of Luck. That being said, it has an astronomically low drop rate.

    "Oh, you¡¯re here too, Nutty. It feels like it¡¯s been forever since we¡¯vest seen you. Sob sob sob, everyone¡¯s been thinking of you!" National Treasures happened to spot Shen Jingbin too as she was looking around, and sped over to greet her. "Our Leader told me that you¡¯d being to the offline meetup too, right? Hahaha, it looks like I need to work hard today. Nutty, be sure to listen to what I say after I get the hairpin, alright?~"

    Eternal Rest, who¡¯de over with National Treasures said, "Nutty isn¡¯t part of our guild, so she doesn¡¯t have to listen to what you say. Isn¡¯t that right, Nutty?"

    Only then did she remember that Shen Jingbin had left the guild. "When are you nning to rejoin Jade Sea Pavilion?"

    Shen Jingbin paused for a moment. "Uh, there¡¯s no rush, so I think staying in Bronze Tree, for the time being, is pretty good too."

    Quiet And Steadfast¡¯s expression turned bitter. "You think staying in Bronze Tree is pretty good even if I¡¯m not in it?"

    National Treasures was thrown into a frenzy. "Oh my god! Was that person who was acting like a jealous young wife really our Leader?! How terrifying!"

    Eternal Rest discreetly pulled National Treasures off to the side. "It¡¯s none of our business, and it¡¯s rude to stare at them..."

    At this moment, a gigantic cherry blossom tree spawned behind Quiet And Steadfast, and a person¡¯s face appeared on its broad tree trunk. Its branches swayed wildly, littering the floor with cherry blossom petals.

    "The Cherry Blossom Man¡¯s spawned!" someone shouted. Everyone present raised their weapons, pumped themselves up, and jumped straight into the fray. Their ferocity was so overwhelming that Shen Jingbin got a fright.

    However, just as they were about to reach the Cherry Blossom Man, they suddenly felt the earth tremble beneath their feet. Countless boxes came crashing down from the sky andnded with a bang. Some of the boxes happened tond on the yers, smashing into those who didn¡¯t notice them in time and taking off half their health. The yers were so surprised; they began crying out in shock.

    "F*ck, f*ck! What the hell is this?!"

    "F*ck! Does that bastard have concealed weapons?!"

    In the midst of this chaos, a system announcement suddenly appeared in the sky. The members of Jade Sea Pavilion were stunned stupid by it, while the couples who had just left Cherry Blossom Ind were left cursing and swearing.

    [System Announcement] Blessings descend from the heavens. Her flower basket in hand, Xuan Nu who was elegantly drifting by has been mesmerised by Cherry Blossom Ind¡¯s beauty. With a wave of her hand, the ¡¯Exquisite Lucky Gift Boxes¡¯ in her basket descend to Cherry Blossom Ind. Make haste, young heroes, now is the time to test your luck!

    What the f*ck, what the f*ck?! The Lucky Gift Boxes had been delivered to them on a silver tter!

    Several moments of lifelessness passed before the members of Jade Sea Pavilion excitedly made a mad rush for the Lucky Gift Boxes, all thoughts of fighting the Cherry Blossom Man having been forgotten. Quite a number of Lucky Gift Boxes had dropped this time around, but the odds of obtaining anything good from them were incredibly small. Unless yers were ridiculously lucky, it was impossible for them to get anything good by opening just one or two boxes. With things as they were, the only solution was to go for quantity over quality. After all, all they needed to do was open more boxes, and they¡¯d be able to improve their chances.

    The other yers were quick on their feet too. In just a few minutes, Shen Jingbin witnessed countless flying mounts closing in from afar. Shortly after, theynded and got straight to grabbing a box for themselves.

    The Cherry Blossom Man had just respawned, so no one dared to unleash any skills in an attempt to fight for a box. Everyone was worried that a poorly aimed skill would not only result in them losing out on the box, it¡¯d also draw the Boss¡¯ ire and give them a free ticket back to their respawn point.

    And so, this was the very first time no intense conflict for the boxes urred since the event had started.

 Chapter 348

    <strong>Chapter 348: Comparing Yourself To Others Will Only Lead To Frustration (2)</strong>

    Shen Jingbin stood by the Cherry Blossom Man''s side. There were some yers who were so afraid of the Boss, they didn''t even dare to go near it to pick up the boxes. As a result, this one little box was snatched up by her.

    The Lucky Gift Boxes would only be active for 15 minutes. Any unimed boxes after this would be despawned by the system. But, there was no need to worry about that happening. The speed at which the yers moved was nothing to scoff at.

    At the end of it, Shen Jingbin had managed to get her hands on 8 boxes. During this time, Quiet And Steadfast hadn''t bent over a single time to pick up a box. Instead, he chose to stand vigil beside Shen Jingbin, giving off the impression that he wasn''t the least bit interested in the boxes.

    "Why didn''t you grab a few for yourself?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "I was feelingzy, and I don''t have much faith in my luck," Quiet And Steadfast said with a shrug.

    Shen Jingbin''s lips curled. She fished out the mount she''d previously gotten and said, "Since you don''t have any faith in your own luck, then you should trust in mine instead. Here, this is for you. Think of it as repayment for your New Year''s gift."

    Quiet And Steadfast''s eyes widened after receiving the item from her. "A Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry? That''s a huge sum of money, beautiful. Are you trying to keep me as your mistress?"

    "Mhmm. Is that enough? If it isn''t, can I pay by installment instead?"

    Quiet And Steadfast chuckled and tried to return it to Shen Jingbin. When she refused to ept it, he said, "You''re better off keeping it. I appreciate the gesture, and it''s a great mount, but it doesn''t suit me. Besides, I have lots of mounts already, so I have no need for it."

    Shen Jingbin remained resolute. "No, this was meant for you. I''ll toss it if you don''t want it."

    The moment she said that a number of people crowded around her. On closer inspection, they all turned out to be members of Jade Sea Pavilion.

    I''m Not A Monster scratched his head. "Leader, Nutty, hurry up and get rid of it. We can pick it up if you toss it! The two of you are brimming with heroism, so you should keep to what you said and toss out something as insignificant as the Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry. Spare a thought for how losers like us feel."

    The rest of the people surrounding them nodded in unison before fixing their gaze onto the gift box in Quiet And Steadfast''s hands.

    Left with no other choice, Quiet And Steadfast could only ept it. If he didn''t, Shen Jingbin might have really gotten rid of it.

    Satisfied with the oue, Shen Jingbin said, "All I need is the Great Sage. I''m afraid Mascot might feel jealous if I got a few more mounts."

    Mascot: Hey, don''t turn me into a scapegoat!

    Feeling somewhat disappointed that the Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry had ended up in the hands of their Leader, everyone shook their heads.

    Sigh, why couldn''t you have been a little more stubborn, Leader? Give us a chance!

    In an attempt to console their broken hearts, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion decided to open a few Lucky Gift Boxes.

    After fighting for the Lucky Gift Boxes, many of the yers weren''t in a hurry to leave, so they sat down and began opening their boxes as well. They firmly believed that the area the Lucky Gift Boxes dropped in would bring them good luck.

    But s, it was not to be. The unlucky ones would still remain unlucky regardless of the location they were at. Take for instance Next Week Is Unlikely; he''d managed to get over 50 boxes, but all that got him was some health and mana potions along with several small experience pills.

    Shen Jingbin decided to join in on the fun and opened up a gift box. The moment she opened the box, she was enveloped in a ray of golden light.

    [System Announcement] yer Nutjob has opened an Exquisite Lucky Gift Box. A ray of golden light rises to the heavens, and a gale wind blows. Suddenly, all is calm once again. Within the box lies a ''Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry Gift Box''. Such luck is truly second to none.

    F*ck!

    What the f*ck!

    F*ck, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck!

    The yers near Shen Jingbin were nearly blinded by the golden light. But, when the system announcement appeared, they almost had a mind to stab out their own eyes.

    If memory served them right, this was the second Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry Gift Box this woman had obtained today! F*ck, what kind of luck did she have? GMs, are you sure this woman isn''t your rtive or something?!

    Next Week Is Unlikely scowled miserably at his bro''s wife. It felt as if his heart was crumbling to pieces. "Hey, Nutty¡­ I mean, Big Sis! Can I have a chat with you? If you happen to get another Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry, could you lower your price a little and sell it to me?!"

    "Nutty, I''ll hand over all of my boxes to you in the future. Just think of it as you helping me to open them. How''s about it?"

    "Sob sob sob. I wanna go for a sex change so that I can marry Nutty. She''s a walking hack! Leader, I''m going to fight you for her!"

    Everyone else started to kick up a fuss.

    Quiet And Steadfast could only stare helplessly at his wife, while thetter also stared helplessly back at him.

    In the end, Shen Jingbin didn''t manage to get another Ninth Heaven Phoenix Cry, but she did get a pretty good mount which she gave to Next Week Is Unlikely. The Cherry Blossom Man was also defeated, and they even managed to get the Cherry Blossom Hairpin, which went to National Treasures.

    When she was logging off, she remembered how National Treasures had clutched the Cherry Blossom Hairpin in her hands whileughing evilly at her.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly didn''t feel like going to the offline meetup anymore. She was feeling a little troubled.

    Unfortunately for her, time passed in the blink of an eye, and it was already Saturday. On Wednesday, Yiju gave out more information about where and when the offline meetup would be held. It would be held over a two day period on Saturday and Sunday, at B City''s Panlong Kaiyuan Intercontinental Hotel.

    Truth be told, Shen Jingbin had received an SMS from Xiangpeng on Wednesday when the information was released.

    Yiju''s higher-ups had attached a great deal of importance to the offline meetup. As such, they wanted to invite Shen Jingbin to attend, which also served as a perk for the other yers.

    When Shen Jingbin thought of how she''d be with Zhao Chengning and the rest of the members of Jade Sea Pavilion, and how she probably wouldn''t have the time, she decided to reject their offer.

    Shen Jingbin''s rejection caused Xiangpeng to fall into a slump for some time. That is until he saw Shen Jingbin at the hotel''s entrance on Saturday, and he felt even worse.

 Chapter 349

    <b>Chapter 349: The World Works In Mysterious Ways (1)</b>

    Early on Saturday morning, Shen Jingbin was actually woken up by Shen Jingchen for the first time ever. Once she¡¯d shaken off her grogginess, the first thing that came to her mind was that aliens had brainwashed this fellow.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s eyes shone with a mysterious light. He squatted down in her room and kept rushing her.

    "Hurry up! It¡¯s already sote, and yet you¡¯re still taking your own sweet time."

    Just put up with it.

    "Hey, you¡¯re still doing your makeup?! Lil Sis, trust your Big Bro. You¡¯re beautiful; you don¡¯t need makeup!"

    Just keep putting up with it.

    "Lil Sis, why haven¡¯t you changed yet?!"

    I can still put up with it for a little while more.

    "My god! Lil Sis, you¡¯re so slow!"

    F*ck, I can¡¯t put up with it anymore!

    Shen Jingbin, who¡¯d finally reached the end of her patience, grabbed the pillow on her bed and threw it at her brother¡¯s face. "Get out!"

    Peace was finally restored to her world.

    It was around half an hourter when the Shen siblings finally left their house. As they were passing by their neighbourhood¡¯s guard booth, the security guard happened to see Shen Jingbin who was seated at the front passenger seat through the half-opened window. He instantly fell into a trance, not even realising that the breakfast in his hands had dropped on the floor. It was only when the car hadpletely left his sight that he finally react by mumbling, "Fai-Fairy! ...No, this one is even better-looking than the fairies on TV..."

    Although this was just an offline meetup, considering the fact that she was going to meet Shen Jingchen and Zhao Chengning¡¯s long-time gaming buddies whom they had a good rtionship with, she thought that she should treat it a little more seriously. Thus, she put on some light makeup to enhance herplexion. It couldn¡¯t be helped that she was a natural born beauty. All she needed to do was casually apply some makeup, and she¡¯d look stunning. It was impossible for her to keep a low profile.

    This just goes to show that beautiful people have their own woes too.

    When the two of them reached Panlong Kaiyuan Intercontinental Hotel, Zhao Chengning was already seated in the lounge waiting for them.

    The yers who were invited to the event came from various cities across the country. Yiju had generously reserved threerge ballrooms and two entire floors of hotel rooms for the yers from the other cities. Most of them had already arrived on Friday and checked into the hotel. As for yers like Shen Jingbin who stayed in B City and disliked staying in a hotel, they chose to show up on the day itself.

    The event officially began at 10 PM. It was only 8 PM at the moment, and there were still two more hours to go. As per their n, thepanions from Jade Sea Pavilion woulde together before the event started, so that they could officially get to know each other.

    Due to the event, the hotel was livelier than usual. The lounge, which was usually empty, had been filled to the brim with people since early in the morning. This was especially so for the area around Zhao Chengning. There wasn¡¯t even a single empty seat around him. On closer inspection, it was apparent that he was surrounded by females. They either sat alone or in twos and threes, and were smiling bashfully at him as they sized him up, inwardly trying to guess the identity of this extremely eye-catching man.

    People would enter through the doorway from time to time. The moment the elevator doors opened, a wave of people woulde and go. People dressed in all sorts of styles could be seen as they moved about.

    At first, the Shen siblings didn¡¯t attract much attention when they entered the hotel lounge. It was only when Xiangpeng - the person-in-charge of receiving the guest performers for the event - saw them from behind and called out to them, that all eyes fell on them.

    Xiangpeng was one of the event organisers, and many of them had already gotten to know him during their first day. Now that they saw him leading a group of people with outstanding looks, they couldn¡¯t help but take a few more nces at them out of curiosity. When they heard him calling out to someone, they casually looked over as well.

    Then, the lounge which was initially buzzing with noise suddenly became incredibly quiet. It was so quiet; you could even hear a pin drop.

    "Miss Shen, you actually came!" Xiangpeng called out to her, appearing pleasantly surprised when he realised he¡¯d recognised the right person. He abandoned the guest performers behind him, whom he¡¯d just received from the airport, and ran forward to greet her. "Did you change your mind? Why didn¡¯t you give me a call, I would¡¯ve sent someone over to pick you up in person."

    Shen Jingbin waved her hands at him and was about to say something when she heard a pleasant male voice speak from behind her. "She¡¯s with me."

    When she turned around to look, she found out that Zhao Chengning hade over.

    Xiangpeng was stunned when he saw Zhao Chengning. Feeling a little nonplussed, he asked, "Master Zhao, what¡¯re you doing here?"

    "I¡¯m one of your yers."

    Xiangpeng was appalled. "What the f*ck! Master Zhao, don¡¯t scare me like that! You rake in millions of dors every second, and you actually spend your time ying our game? I feel that I¡¯vemitted a sin just thinking about it!"

    Xiangpeng wasn¡¯t making a mountain out of a molehill. In his mind, Zhao Chengning was a man of high standing who shouldn¡¯t even be mentioned in the same sentence as games. Shouldn¡¯t his recreational activities be things like ying golf, listening to concerts, or asionally attending charity gs and charity balls?

    The fact that he yed gamespletely shattered Xiangpeng¡¯s impression of him.

    Zhao Chengning looked helplessly at him. "After being in the sky for so long, it¡¯s time for me toe back to Earth."

    Shen Jingbin felt that his answer was just asking for a beating.

 Chapter 350

    <b>Chapter 350: The World Works In Mysterious Ways (2)</b>

    Seeing some rtively familiar faces behind Xiangpeng, Zhao Chengning gently ced his hands over Shen Jingbin¡¯s shoulders and said, "You still have things to do, right? Go ahead and take care of it. Don¡¯t worry about us; we¡¯ll be here waiting for someone."

    Only then did Xiangpeng remember that he still had things to do. He reluctantly exchanged a few more pleasantries before bringing his guests upstairs.

    After they entered the lift, a woman with a rather enchanting appearance curiously asked, "Who are those people from just now? They looked rather familiar. That girl, in particr, was quite pretty. Is she one of the invited guests as well?"

    A rather handsome man answered first without waiting for Xiangpeng¡¯s reply. "I¡¯m not too sure about the two guys, but, seeing as they¡¯re dressed quite affluently, I suppose they¡¯re yers. I still remember that girl, though. Didn¡¯t she appear in the official promotional video as White Cloud Temple¡¯s Great Senior Sister previously?"

    After saying that, he looked towards Xiangpeng as if seeking confirmation. When Xiangpeng nodded his head, the manughed and said, "I thought she was rather pretty when I saw her in the promotional video previously, and I quite like her. I didn¡¯t expect her to be even prettier in person. Brother Xiang, could you introduce her to me after the event?"

    "I can¡¯t help you there. Thatdy just now wasn¡¯t someone we hold sway over." He paused for a moment before continuing. "In fact, prior to this, we personally extended an invitation to her for this event, but we were rejected. The reason why she came by today is because of her boyfriend."

    "So, she has a boyfriend already? What a pity," the man said a little dejectedly.

    Xiangpeng wordlessly nced at the man. However, in his heart, he thought, "You wouldn¡¯t stand a chance even if she didn¡¯t have a boyfriend."

    Surprisingly, no one had sat on the sofa that Zhao Chengning had previously upied. Seeing as it was still empty, Zhao Chengning brought the siblings over to rest while they waited.

    The sofa didn¡¯t look that big, but it was able to amodate all three of them. Previously, Zhao Chengning¡¯s looks caused everyone to only sit around him, but not next to him.

    "I just called up Big Monster, and he said that they¡¯re in National Treasures¡¯ room. National Treasures is still doing her makeup, but they should being down soon," Zhao Chengning said once they¡¯d sat down.

    Shen Jingchen humphed twice and shot a nce at Shen Jingbin. "You women are so troublesome. You always need to wear makeup whenever you leave the house."

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him. "You make it sound as if the person who spent ten minutes standing at the doorway and looking at themselves in the mirror before we left was me."

    Shen Jingchen gulped and rubbed his nose, staying silent. Zhao Chengningughed when he saw the siblings¡¯ antics. Unwilling to ept defeat, Shen Jingchen changed his target and said, "Ah Ning, quick, manage your wifey! Are there actually people like her who bully their own brother?!"

    Zhao Chengning held his hands up. "My hands are tied."

    Shen Jingchen angrily clicked his tongue. "She¡¯s got you under her thumb!"

    Shen Jingbin showed off by leaning against Zhao Chengning. "What? Not willing to admit defeat? You single loser."

    "..." Shen Jingchen¡¯s anger instantly faded away.

    "My beauty! Long time no see I¡¯ve missed you so much!" Just as Shen Jingbin was gleefully mocking her brother, she suddenly heard a very familiar voice. Shen Jingbin then saw a woman burst through the doorway and throw herself straight at her.

    "Jiang Weiwei, please mind your manners." Without another word, Zhao Chengning obstructed Jiang Weiwei who was making a mad dash for Shen Jingbin. There was no way he¡¯d let this female hooligan get near his wifey!

    "Hey, Zhao Chengning, don¡¯t be so petty. You¡¯re only dating her, and you¡¯re already so strict. Will she have any rights in the future when she marries you?!" Jiang Weiwei, who didn¡¯t get to hug Shen Jingbin, was filled with resentment.

    Zhao Chengning brushed herment aside without the slightest change in expression. "That¡¯s none of your concern." He then looked behind her and asked, "... Where¡¯s Xia Qihui?"

    "I don¡¯t know; he probably went to park his car."

    Just as she said that another suave and dashing man walked over from the doorway. The eyes of the women seated in the lounge practically popped out of their head when they caught sight of him.

    Oh my god, three extremely fine male specimens have appeared at the same time. Could B City really be a ce where the elites gather?!

    "Where are they?" Xia Qihui subconsciously asked when he couldn¡¯t spot the people he was expecting to see. It was then that he noticed the Shen siblings. His gaze rested on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face for a moment before shifting to Shen Jingchen.

    Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t look all that different from how he looked in-game. However, his temperament waspletely different. Unlike Jiang Weiwei, who couldn¡¯t sense anything at all, Xia Qiwei merely hesitated for a moment. "Dawn?"

    "Hm? Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re Next Week?" There wasn¡¯t much change in Xia Qiwei¡¯s appearance either, so Shen Jingchen was able to recognise him at a nce.

    Xia Qihui nodded, and Zhao Chengning stepped in to introduce them. "This is my bro Xia Qihui, also known as Next Week Is Unlikely. Qihui, this is my girlfriend, Shen Jingbin, and her brother Shen Jingchen."

    Xia Qihui nced a few more times at Shen Jingbin before breaking out intoughter. "Who¡¯re also known as Nutjob and Dawn¡¯s Twilight. I say, Nutty, you¡¯ve hidden yourself quite well."

    Shen Jingbin said, "This was just a beautiful coincidence."

    "Dawn, you¡¯re easily recognisable as you look practically the same as your in-game character, so there¡¯s nothing to be excited about. Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, is different. Oh my god, I can already imagine the others going crazy when they see youter... Hey Chengning, why¡¯s your luck so good?" Xia Qihui said with feigned regret.

    "Hold up, what did you guys call him just now? Dawn?" Jiang Weiwei was slow-witted and realised that she seemed to have heard something mind-boggling. "You¡¯re that fe, Dawn¡¯s Twilight? And you, beauty, you¡¯re Nutjob?!"

    "I¡¯m a normal person, not a nut job," Shen Jingbin said seriously.

    Shen Jingchen rubbed his nose and answered with a tinge of guilt in his voice, "Cough. I, uh... do seem to recall my in-game name being Dawn¡¯s Twilight."

    "..." Jiang Weiwei looked back at the four of them with grief and indignation.

    This world really works in mysterious ways!

 Chapter 351

    <b>Chapter 351: Meeting Online Friends (1)</b>

    Meeting online friends in real life has always been a magical thing where opportunities and risks are both present. Even in today¡¯s online gaming era, this is still the case.

    Everyone used their actual appearances in the game. It wasn¡¯t like how it was in the past where everyone controlled an avatar, and the other party¡¯s appearance was hidden behind the screen. Yet, due to the beautification system, there were still inevitably some differences between one¡¯s in-game and real-life appearance.

    Song Yubao still remembered the excitement she felt when she first met her guildmates. At first, she was still quite reserved. After all, no matter how familiar they were with each other, that was all in-game. This was their first time meeting each other in person. Fortunately, all it took was a single meal for everyone to act like how they did in the game.

    Her only regret was that she wasn¡¯t able to immediately meet the executive in the guild.

    Song Yubao¡¯s university was rtively far away from Panlong Kaiyuan Intercontinental Hotel. Even if she managed to catch the morning train during the rush hour, there was still a good chance that she¡¯d miss them. So, she might as well stay at the hotel instead. When she reached the hotel, she learned that several other B City yers had the same idea as her. The executives, however, were not of the same mind as them.

    All women loved to look pretty. Even if their own nature came to light, they still had to make themselves look pretty. Under the urging of theirpanions, Song Yubao and her girlfriends were finally done putting on their makeup, and they got ready to head downstairs.

    I¡¯m Not A Monster had already gotten in touch with Quiet And Steadfast while waiting for them, and he told them that the executives were waiting for them downstairs. Everyone immediately perked up when they heard the news.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion were all experts who excelled in real life as well. They were either top students of prestigious universities or CEOs of big corporations. Any one of them was a giant amongst men, yet they deeply admired their Leader from the bottom of their hearts. Given the chance to personally meet the leader which they so admired, it was understandable for them to be excited.

    While they waited for the elevator to arrive, I¡¯m Not A Monster cast a nce at Song Yubao, whose emotions were visible on her face and decided to tease her. "Treasures, remember not to get too worked up and throw yourself at Leader when you meet himter. You¡¯ve got to have some modesty."

    Song Yubao snorted. "Of course, I know that. You, on the other hand, like sucking up to people. Do your best to tone it down today, so you don¡¯t embarrass our guild. There¡¯s going to be lots of peopleing today, so don¡¯t do anything to embarrass us, or I¡¯ll ask Leader to kick you out of the guild when we get back."

    "My god! How audacious!" I¡¯m Not A Monster angrily rapped his knuckles against her head.

    Descent Of Rain And Snow looked at the numbers on the elevator which continuously changed and nervously said, "I feel so nervous now. What should I do? We¡¯re about to meet Leader and Vice-Leader. If I can¡¯t control myselfter, make sure you hold me back."

    Lingering White Clouds patted her back as if tofort her and said, "Don¡¯t be afraid, everyone¡¯s feeling just as nervous. In my opinion, you definitely won¡¯t be the most embarrassing one out of all of us."

    I¡¯m Really Not A Monster suddenly sighed. "Sigh, it was onlyst night when all thedies¡¯ hearts belonged to us. Now, they¡¯ve flown over to the executives. It really does seem like public morals are declining by the day. Morales aren¡¯t what they used to be. Long Life, make sure you keep a close eye on your wifeyter. Women are fickle creatures."

    Long Life immediately jabbed back. "You talk too much."

    Long Life also hurriedly embraced his own wifey and firmly said, "My wife is the best, humph."

    The elevator arrived while they were talking, and the group entered it with smiles on their faces. When they got to the first floor and exited the elevator, a few highly conspicuous people in the lounge caught the attention of Song Yubao.

    "What the f*ck! What the f*ck! Look over there!" Song Yubao suddenly cried out and excitedly pointed. "It¡¯s the Goddess, it¡¯s the Goddess, it¡¯s the Goddess!"

    Truth be told, there was no need for her to shout. The rest of them had already spotted said Goddess the moment they stepped out of the elevator.

    Before she came, Song Yubao was already wondering if Yiju would invite the Goddess to the event. Never did she expect the Goddess to actually make an appearance!

    "Hey, do you think the Goddess will give me her signature?" I¡¯m Not A Monster craftily asked.

    Just then, Linger White Clouds spoke up. "Hang on, why do they look kind of familiar?"

    "Ahhh, I sent a picture of the Goddess and her boyfriend to the WeChat groupst time. Look, the person next to the Goddess is her boyfriend!" Song Yubao replied.

    "No, besides the two of them, don¡¯t the other three people look familiar as well?" Lingering White Clouds asked.

    Now that she mentioned it, they did look familiar. This was particrly so for the man who stood to the Goddess¡¯ left and bore a slight resemnce to her. The more they looked at him, the more familiar he seemed. As they were trying to recall where they¡¯d seen him before, I¡¯m Not A Monster¡¯s cell phone rang.

    "Leader¡¯s calling, be quiet!" I¡¯m Not A Monster hurriedly hushed them before answering the call.

    Song Yubao noticed that the Goddess¡¯s boyfriend happened to be making a phone call at the same time too, and a thought suddenly struck her.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s group had been waiting in the lounge for some time now, but still hadn¡¯t caught sight of the others. Jiang Weiwei was starting to get anxious, so she urged him to call to find out what was going on. When the call connected, he heard noise from I¡¯m Not A Monster¡¯s end.

    "Hello, Big Monster? Where are you guys? Have youe down yet?"

    "We¡¯re here, we¡¯re here. We just came out from the elevator. Where are you, Leader? I don¡¯t see you."

    Zhao Chengning turned to look at the elevator with his phone to his ear. Indeed, there were a group of people standing in front of the elevator who were looking around, seemingly in search of someone. "I¡¯ve found you. Wait there; I¡¯lle over right now."

    He then hung up and turned to his group. "They¡¯ve arrived, they¡¯re right over there."

    Everyone looked in the direction that he spoke up. "Let¡¯s go over then," Xia Qiwei said.

 Chapter 352

    <b>Chapter 352: Meeting Online Friends (2)</b>

    The five of them began making their way over to the area in front of the elevator. At the same time, everybody in the lounge followed their movements.

    "This isn¡¯t right. Why does it feel like they¡¯re walking towards us?!" Temperate Scarlet Moon nervously clutched Gentle Flower¡¯s hand when Zhao Chengning¡¯s group suddenly started walking in their direction.

    Gentle Flower¡¯s in-game and real life appearances were very simr; she was overflowing with big sister vibes. She took a look at them and said, "Maybe they¡¯re taking the elevator. We¡¯re in the way, let¡¯s move to the side."

    Apart from National Treasures, the rest of them were of the same mind, so they took it upon themselves to move to the side of the walkway and free up space in front of the elevator.

    Before this, both groups were separated by some distance. National Treasures and herpanions felt that these people had great temperaments and were good-looking. It wasn¡¯t until they drew nearer that they realised that the words ¡¯good looking¡¯ were a gross understatement!

    This was particrly so for the man and woman in the middle. What the f*ck! They were truly drop-dead gorgeous. They couldn¡¯t tear their eyes away from them! Without even doing anything, they seemed to be a match made in heaven. This waspletely different from when they saw the couple¡¯s pictures!

    Eh, hold on. Why did they stop? Weren¡¯t they going to take the elevators? The elevator¡¯s already here.

    The group of them looked on in bewilderment as Zhao Chengning¡¯s group came to a stop in front of them, and Song Yubao¡¯s eyes started to light up.

    "I¡¯m Not A Monster?" The man in the center who was the tallest and the best-looking one suddenly called out.

    I¡¯m Not A Monster was momentarily scared witless. A long time passed before he realised that the man was referring to him. "Ah, ah! Y-yes! You¡¯re... Leader?!"

    The man nodded and nced at everyone. "How do you do? I¡¯m your Leader, Quiet And Steadfast," he said with a smile.

    What the f*ck?! Surely not! T-t-t-t-this p-person is Leader?!

    "If you¡¯re our Leader, then the rest of you are..." Eternal Rest said with astonishment.

    "Hi everyone, I¡¯m Dawn¡¯s Twilight," Shen Jingchen said.

    "Next Week Is Unlikely," Xia Qihui said.

    "I¡¯m Slight Chill," Jiang Weiwei said.

    All of them then turned to look at Shen Jingbin as one. She gave a soft cough and said, "I¡¯m Nutjob."

    F*ck!ÎÒ²Á£¡

    Oh f*ck!

    Nutjob, you¡¯re joking, right? Aren¡¯t you supposed to be ugly? How¡¯d you suddenly turn into the Goddess?!

    Goddess is Nutjob, Nutjob is Goddess. The gap between the two of them was simply far too great for them to ept!

    "Oh my god, oh my god, is that really you, Nutty? Heavens! Quick, tell me that I¡¯m not dreaming! The Goddess is actually mypanion!" Song Yubao suddenly went up to Shen Jingbin and said with sparkling eyes, "Nutty, I¡¯m National Treasures."

    Shen Jingbin eyed Song Yubao. While her round face was adorable, she also looked somewhat familiar. "National Treasures, have we met before? Outside of the game, I mean."

    Song Yubao¡¯s sparkling eyes suddenly turned watery. She clutched Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand and said excitedly, "Yes, yes, yes! We met at B University¡¯s basketball court before! I even gave you and Leader some water."

    Song Yubao¡¯s retelling jogged Shen Jingbin¡¯s memory. "Oh, so that was you."

    Song Yubao nodded her head furiously.

    "This isn¡¯t a good ce to talk; let¡¯s move somewhere else. I¡¯ve booked a cardroom for us upstairs, so let¡¯s make our way there. We¡¯ll head over to the event together when it starts," Xia Qihui said.

    And so, the group went back to the elevator and began making their way to the cardroom.

    After they left, the hotel lounge was abuzz with excitement; everyone was discussing what they¡¯d just witnessed. However, the people in question were blissfully unaware of it.

    The cardroom that Xia Qiwei booked was on the eighteenth level, and the next situation happened on the level between the hotel rooms and the ballrooms. The elevator doors suddenly opened when it reached the fourteenth level, revealing another group of people standing outside. A pretty, ssy lookingdy stood at the front of the group.

    The neers nced at the elevator which was already packed with people. The prettydy at the front of the group frowned at the sight, and when she saw who was in the elevator, her brows scrunched up even more.

    I¡¯m Not A Monster, who was standing next to the elevator buttons, looked to the people outside and said with a smile, "Apologies, but the elevator is full. You guys will have to wait for the next one." He then pressed the button to close the elevator doors without waiting for them to reply.

    After the doors closed, Eternal Rest said, "That woman just now looked rather familiar."

    "She looks like a yer too. You¡¯ve probably met her in-game before. You¡¯ll soon be seeing more familiar-looking people," Long Life replied.

    Eternal Rest felt that what he said made sense, so she brushed the matter aside. Once the elevator had reached its destination, they made their way over to the cardroom and began mingling.

    Back to the people outside the elevator.

    Crying Fish¡¯s real name was Yao Zhen, and she was from Lin City. She was invited to the event as she was ced on the beauty leaderboards. Some of the people standing behind her were from her guild, while she only got acquainted with the others after reaching the hotel.

    The perks of being pretty were that one could make friends easily wherever they went, whenever they wanted.

    Yao Zhen knew from the very beginning that Quiet And Steadfast would definitely be invited to the event. So, after reaching the hotel, she tried various ways and means to find out whether he¡¯d reached yet. It had to be said that she had quite a childish way of thinking. The grudge between the two of them ran far too deep in the game and resolving it might not even be possible. However, they were strangers in real life, so it was possible for them to have a fresh start.

    Besides, she was very confident in her own appearance, and she believed that Quiet And Steadfast would definitely be captivated by her beauty.

    Yao Zhen truly wanted to know what kind of person the man she¡¯d been smitten with for so long was like in real life.

    And, if he was worthy of her affection.

 Chapter 353

    <b>Chapter 353: A Dazzling Entrance (1)</b>

    It was almost 10 am when the three ballrooms started letting people in.

    The group of people from Jade Sea Pavilion chatted in the cardroom for a bit till it was almost time for them to head to the ballroom. They were all youths and hadmon interests to talk about. It didn¡¯t take long for them to go back to their usual in-game selves after spending some time getting to know one another. Throughout this time, Shen Jingbin was often pulled over by various members of the group, who¡¯d ask her all sorts of questions. They even started gossiping about her and Zhao Chengning.

    Fortunately, all of them knew how to be discreet, and nobody tried to delve too far into their backgrounds or curry favour with them.

    As for National Treasures, she clung on to Shen Jingbin the whole time, acting the part of a rabid fangirl. This drew the ire of Zhao Chengning, who red daggers at her several times. He even announced that he would be kicking her out of the guild when they got back.

    When it was almost 10 am, the group made their way towards the designated ballroom for registration.

    Panlong Kaiyuan Intercontinental Hotel was one of the best hotels in B City, with onerge ballroom being able to amodate up to two thousand people. Among the three ballrooms reserved by Yiju, the first ballroom was used to entertain the invited yers with prepared activities and performances. The other two ballrooms were set up like an anime convention and were used to host the yers who weren¡¯t invited but wished to participate in the event.

    The event would be held over two days, from Saturday to Sunday. On Saturday morning, a special performance and prize-giving segment would be held for the invited yers. During this time, the game¡¯s officials would take shots of the relevant staff members and broadcast it live on their official channel. Once the performance was over, the first ballroom would then be converted into an anime convention styled format, just like the other two ballrooms. Not only would there be booths, but there would even be autograph sessions done by the celebrity, COSER, and renowned video game voice actors as well. In addition, there would also be stage performances and simtors for all of Yiju¡¯s games. All of this could be viewed as a special carnival for Yiju¡¯s gaming fans.

    By the time they¡¯d arrived at the ballroom¡¯s entrance for registration, they could already hear the crowd warming up inside. They quickly searched for their names on the list and put a tick next to it, before they were led into the ballroom by female attendants who looked a little dazed.

    There were a lot of yers invited this time around. To make things easier, Yiju had assigned seats to them in advance based on their status. Every seat was alsobelled with each yer¡¯s ID to show just how important they were to thepany.

    Since the ballroom was big enough, arge stage was set up within it. Seats were positioned below the stage. One could tell from a single nce that these were all top quality. Yiju truly spared no effort in preparing for this event.

    The seats were divided into three areas - the left, middle, and right. The seven front rows in the middle area that were set before the stage were reserved for yers from the Six Great Sects¡¯ who were ced on the Overall Strength Leaderboards, as well as the legendary Lead Disciples from said sects. Behind them were the yers who¡¯d managed to obtain a cing on the Leaderboards for The Battle Between Good And Evil. Following that came the Level Leaderboards. The left and right areas were for the yers on the other leaderboards such as the Rich Leaderboard, the Charmer Leaderboard, Leaderboard for Life Skills, and the Prestige Leaderboard.

    It was worth mentioning that the yers who were voted on the Beauty Ranking and the Handsome Men Ranking by the yers themselves were seated at the very front of the left and right areas respectively. They were probably seated there to enhance the venue¡¯s aesthetics.

    Those who¡¯d yed games before would know that the yers who appeared on one leaderboard, would more often than not, appear on other leaderboards as well. One such example would be the Leaderboards for Overall Strength and the Level Leaderboards. Also, not all yers on the leaderboards were able to participate in the event. To allow more yers to attend this event, Yiju decided that each yer would receive one invitation based on their highest ranked leaderboard. Once a yer was invited, he or she wouldn¡¯t be included in subsequent leaderboard invitations. If their name did appear on another leaderboard, they would be passed over, and the invitation would be extended to the next yer on the list. If that yer rejected the invitation, then it¡¯d be passed onto the subsequent yer. All the yers who confirmed that they¡¯d be attending would have to submit basic information about their character. Based on this information, the game officials would then distribute real and virtual gifts to them. The benefits were abundant.

    Most of the yers from Jade Sea Pavilion, who were led by female attendants to their designated areas and seats, were seated in the middle area.

    The hostess on the stage was a newbie that B City¡¯s television station was currently grooming. She was quite pretty and somewhat knowledgeable. She was fairly popr as well, so she managed to capture a majority of the audience¡¯s attention. That was, until Shen Jingbin¡¯s group of people slowly made their way to the middle area, and everybody got into an uproar.

    The lighting was dimmed to add to the ballroom¡¯s ambiance. However, it was utterly incapable of concealing the group¡¯s radiance! Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning, who walked at the front of the group, were practically glowing. Once they entered someone¡¯s peripheral vision, their eyes would be glued to them.

    "Look there! Isn¡¯t that the Great Senior Sister of White Cloud Temple who appeared in the promotional video previously?! What the f*ck, I didn¡¯t hear that she wasing."

    "Isn¡¯t the guy next to her the rich heir that she got into a scandal with? Why are they together in broad daylight?"

    "What scandal? You¡¯re behind the times. That guy is her official boyfriend."

    "Something seems off. Look at how they came as a group. No matter how I look at it, they seem to be here for the event, just like Life At First Sight, who showed up just now."

    "Didn¡¯t Yiju mention before that Great Senior Sister herself ys the game as well? It¡¯s not unusual for her toe."

    "Heyyy! Look guys; they¡¯re walking to the front. Isn¡¯t the front reserved for the legendary yers? Can a flower vase sit there too?"

    "Oh, f*ck!!!! They sat down! Row 5!! Sheesh, those are the people on the Leaderboard for Overall Skills!"

    "Great Senior Sister, her boyfriend, and that onee-san are still walking towards the front... f*ck me! First row! That¡¯s where the Lead Disciples sit!"

    "They sat down, they sat down, they sat down!! Let me recall who those seats are for... Ah, aren¡¯t those three seats for the Lead Disciples of White Cloud Temple, Lich Pce, and Nymph Abode!? What the f*ck?! Could they be from Jade Sea Pavilion?!"

    "F*ck me!!! What the hell! Don¡¯t tell me that this Great Senior Sister is the same person as that ugly freak Great Senior Sister from White Cloud Temple? This is enough to make me think my entire life is a lie!! Also, could that be the God Quiet And Steadfast? Sheesh! If I¡¯d known he was so handsome earlier, I would¡¯ve done everything I could to hook up with him!!!"

    "What should I do? The world doesn¡¯t feel real anymore! I need to make a post on Weibo to calm myself down!"

 Chapter 354

    <b>Chapter 354: A Dazzling Entrance (2)</b>

    Everyone¡¯s attention was like a spotlight that was focused on the people from Jade Sea Pavilion. This was especially so for the three people who were seated at the first row, who were the center of everyone¡¯s attention!

    The middle area had six seats per row. The seats on the first row were exclusively reserved for the Six Great Sects¡¯ Lead Disciples, while the seats from the second row onwards were for the yers on the leaderboards. There were three other people ¨C two males and one female ¨C seated there when Shen Jingbin, Zhao Chengning, and Gentle Flower reached the first row. It wasn¡¯t hard to guess that they were Pure Crane, The Winds Of Ximen, and Qi Mu.

    The three of them were a little stunned upon seeing them. In particr was the man on the right, who was especially affected. He looked as if his eyes were about to fall out of his sockets.

    There were still three empty seats to the left. When they nced at the names behind the chairs, they found that the middle seats were reserved for Zhao Chengning, Shen Jingbin, and Gentle Flower respectively, with Gentle Flower being ced at the aisle.

    The hostess realised that the audience¡¯s attention had been drawn away, so she was doing her best to get it back. As a result, she raised her voice. It was rather difficult for them to exchange greetings with each other in such a setting, so they just nodded in acknowledgment to the other group before sitting down.

    The moment she sat down, Shen Jingbin vaguely heard the sound of something hitting the ground.

    "Alright, I¡¯m sure everyone must be tired after hearing us promote Yiju Corporation for so long. Now, without further ado, let¡¯s give a gracious wee to <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>¡¯s development team, who have decided to attend today¡¯s event! They¡¯ll be telling us about their future ns for the game as well as the game¡¯s highlights. At the same time, we¡¯ll see if they have any exclusive news to share with us."

    The first row¡¯s lighting was much brighter than the others. Once the hostess realised that the neers¡¯ entrance was the one that caused the uproar, she changed her manner of speaking. To avoid losing her rice bowl, she hurriedly pushed through to the event¡¯s next segment.

    After she spoke, several seconds of silence passed before it was followed by a light smattering of apuse. On closer inspection, it could be seen that the people pping were all from Jade Sea Pavilion. Most of the others still had dazed looks on their faces.

    Song Yubao pped half-heartedly, while she spoke to I¡¯m Not A Monster with a hint of smugness, "Look at these people. Tsk, tsk, tsk. They¡¯re really such good-for-nothings. They¡¯ve even forgotten their surnames afterying eyes on our Goddess. It looks like we¡¯re the ones with more willpower."

    I¡¯m Not A Monster nodded in agreement.

    Ten people ¨C half male and half female ¨C walked onto the stage. One could tell with a single look that they were tech gurus. After greeting the yers, they introduced themselves before they proceeded to analyze the current situation of <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> and future content developments. This seeded in capturing some of the yers¡¯ attention from below.

    After the development team was done with their talk, the hostess went on stage once again to invite the event¡¯s main organisers on stage. Three Yijupany executives, including Xiang Peng, walked up on stage. The three of them happened to catch a nce of the extremely eye-catching couple seated at the first row of the middle area at the same time, and their palms began to sweat slightly.

    <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> had an extremelyrge and terrifying yer base. As such, today¡¯s event had long be a trending topic on Weibo after its yer base repeatedly mentioned it. It even overtook other entertainment news and seized first ce on the list of popr search terms. The main reason for this was because of Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning.

    Although Yiju Corporation¡¯s senior management didn¡¯t attend the event, they were concerned about how things were faring at the event. After all, this was <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>¡¯s first offline event. Whether the event was sessful and was able to open up new business opportunities, depended on today¡¯s performance. The moment the event trended on Weibo¡¯s hot searches, senior management speedily contacted the three main event organisers and demanded that they invite the two people on stage no matter what. They wanted to let the two of them talk about their story in the game, and it¡¯d be best if they let everyone know that they yed a significant role in bringing the two of them together!

    The fact that they were able to upy the senior management position of apany as big as Yiju meant that every single one of them was a capable man, possessing a clear understanding of consumers¡¯ needs and wants. yers these days harboured all sorts of fantasies towards the game itself, and Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning could be said to be the perfect realisation of the ultimate fantasy of all male and female yers. There was also the matter of the two forum posts on the forums previously, so most of the yers already knew that the couple was dating in real life. If they revealed that the two of them had actually met in the game and ended up together from there, then it¡¯d be the perfect form of free advertisement for them! If that happened, they¡¯d be able to usher in a new batch of yers as well!

 Chapter 355

    <b>Chapter 355: The Award Ceremony (1)</b>

    "As everybody knows, the main reason behind organising this offline event is to share exclusive news with our yers. But, apart from that, we have one other important objective: to distribute awards to the top yers on the various leaderboards. Thanks to the efforts of all the yers here and the yers who are watching this live broadcast, <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> has achieved remarkable results since it began service. To repay you all for the love and support you¡¯ve shown towards ourpany, we¡¯ve prepared lots of exciting prizes for you!" The only female amongst the three organisers took over from the hostess, wanting to liven up the atmosphere. However, she didn¡¯t manage to achieve her intended effect, so she was left awkwardly standing there.

    Seeing this, Xiang Peng sighed and stepped forward. "Just like how every school has its own prominent individuals on campus, every game simrly has their own legendary Great Masters. Be it everybody who is present here or everybody who is watching the live broadcast right now; I¡¯m sure all of you must be very interested in finding out what the Great Masters look like in real life. That being the case, I shan¡¯t keep you in suspense any longer and will proceed to the first segment of the award ceremony for today! Let¡¯s give a round of apuse and invite the Six Great Sects¡¯ Lead Disciples on stage!"

    The crowd immediately broke out into thunderous apuse as soon as his voice died down. Even thements on the live stream¡¯s bullet screen suddenly skyrocketed.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t expect the event to unfold so quickly and was only able to react after the spotlight had shone on her. By this time, the people beside her had already stood up. Zhao Chengning looked at her and, in a very gentlemanly manner, extended his hand to her. She very naturally ced her hand in his and stood up.

    This little movement of theirs caused amotion amongst the crowd, and the bullet screen skyrocketed yet again.

    "Is that Great Master Quiet And Steadfast and that Nutjob from White Cloud Temple? Goodness! That¡¯s what they look like?! How terrifying!"

    "What¡¯s a handsome couple? What¡¯s a match made in heaven? This is! This is what it f*cking looks like!"

    "It feels as if I¡¯ve suddenly been forced to face my single lonely existence without any warning. Yet surprisingly, I feel really happy. What¡¯s happening?"

    "Previously, I thought the game¡¯s management was just trying to pacify us when they said that she was a yer as well, but it looks like she really is one!"

    "Is Jade Sea Pavilion still recruiting? My skills are ordinary, but I have money! I¡¯ll be your ATM as long as you guys are willing to add me into your guild!"

    "Hmph! Are you having fun? I seem to recall that when the game¡¯s officials posted a rification back then, you said that ¡¯this Great Senior Sister is not that Great Senior Sister¡¯. Aren¡¯t you eating your own words now? What a joke."

    "What happened to the bullet screen just now? I can smell sour grapes even from across the screen."

    There were both butthurt and idolisingments on the bullet screen for the live broadcast. The atmosphere at the event itself, however, was quite good.

    When Shen Jingbin stepped onto the stage, she was suddenly made aware of the countless looks filled with all sorts of emotions behind them that were directed her way. She couldn¡¯t help but lightly knit her brows together. Zhao Chengning seemed to have sensed the change in her mood as his hand, that was previously holding her own, had moved to wrap itself around her shoulder in a single smooth movement. He then attempted to use the crook of his arm to soothe her nerves.

    "Rx," he slightly leaned over and spoke into her ear.

    She looked up to nce and him and was met with his eyes that were filled with mirth.

    Normally, after going up on the stage, they¡¯d introduce themselves after being prompted by the host. It might¡¯ve been intentionally done, but Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning were both assigned to stand at the back.

    When it was Shen Jingbin¡¯s turn, the crowd suddenly erupted in cheers and whistles, which mostly came from the males. However, Shen Jingbin acted as if she couldn¡¯t hear any of it and said, "I¡¯m the Lead Disciple of White Cloud Temple, Nutjob."

    Zhao Chengning followed closely behind. "I¡¯m the Lead Disciple of Lich Pce, Quiet And Steadfast."

    Now, it was the females¡¯ turn to cheer.

    The hostess hurriedly came out and attempted to get the crowd under control. After the crowd¡¯s enthusiasm died down, the people on stage followed the usual routine ? the presenters gave out the awards, while the recipients gave their speeches. Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning were both the conservative type. They just said a few words with indifferent expressions. But, in spite of that, it didn¡¯t detract from their attractiveness. Instead, it served to make the crowd want them even more. While those who were watching the live broadcast leftments on the bullet screensmenting their inability to travel through the screen and see them in person.

    After the first segment of the award ceremony ended, Shen Jingbin was about to get off the stage with Zhao Chengning when they were unexpectedly called back.

    "Great Senior Sister and Great Master, please remain on stage."

    Both of them turned back and looked perplexedly at the main organiser who asked them to stay behind. They then looked towards Xiang Peng, who was trying to send them a hint with his eyes.

    Since the hostess wasn¡¯t very sure about the game¡¯s specifics, the main organisers took over from there.

    Upon seeing both of them stop in their tracks, the male organiser who called them back walked to the front of the stage and said to the audience below, "The moment Iid eyes on them, I knew that everyone else would be curious as well. So, I decided to seize the opportunity and exercise a little bit of my authority to hold them back for a chat with everyone. However, before we continue, is everyone familiar with who they are?"

    The people below chorused, "We are!"

    The organiser chuckled in satisfaction and continued, "Actually, I myself y this game as well, so I can understand how all of you are feeling right now... Come,e, Great Senior Sister and Great Master, pleasee to the centre of the stage. I see that the two of you are rather close to each other; the fact that both of you are husband and wife in the game is also widely known by everyone here. I have a question I¡¯d like to ask; may I?"

    Shen Jingbin really wanted to say ¡¯no¡¯, but that didn¡¯t seem very polite. So, she just nodded.

    The organizer then turned his attention to Zhao Chengning and looked inquiringly at him. He waited till Zhao Chengning also nodded before he asked with augh, "Are the two of you a couple in real life as well?"

    The crowd broke into an uproar the moment he asked that question.

 Chapter 356

    <b>Chapter 356: The Award Ceremony (2)</b>

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t like being caught in this sort of situation. However, when he noticed the lustful gazes of the male audience, he nodded coldly in response. The audience¡¯s hearts went wild.

    The female organiser followed by asking, "Did the two of you get together because of our game?" after saying that, she winked mischievously at them.

    Zhao Chengning pursed his lips together. Zhao Chengning¡¯s gesture was spotted by Xiang Peng, who was standing by the side. He knew that this was a sign of the honourable Great Master¡¯s displeasure, so he hurriedly rushed to smooth things over. "Let me tell you guys a secret. Actually, I¡¯m high school ssmates with our Great Master Quiet And Steadfast. Not only is he a pro in the game, but he¡¯s also outrageously talented in real life as well. Back in high school, he was your typical smart kid. Be it in exams or other areas; he would always crush the existence of peasants like us. At that time, we¡¯d always wonder behind his back what kind of girl he¡¯d find in the future. Now, it¡¯s clear that the Great Master has impable taste. Of course, this also goes to show that our yers are all quite good-looking. If you¡¯re still single, why not try your luck and y our game!"

    Xiang Peng blurted everything out at one shot without stopping for a single pause. Then, under the confused looks of the two organisers, the dissatisfied looks from the audience, and Zhao Chengning¡¯s approving gaze, he sent the two of them off the stage. He then forcibly made the host continue the award ceremony.

    After Shen Jingbin got off the stage, she pulled at Zhao Chengning¡¯s side and whispered, "Your high school ssmate sure knows how to read people."

    Zhao Chengning looked at her affectionately and said, "That¡¯s because of my imposing presence."

    Shen Jingbin snorted at him and turned to face the stage.

    During this time, the camera used to broadcast the event was trained on them. Although it wasn¡¯t able to record the conversation between them, it was able to effortlessly capture all of their movements. Unbeknownst to them, their exchange evoked the wrath of all the single people who sat in front of theirputers. At the same time, it also established their status as a golden couple.

    After all sorts of bizarre awards were handed out, it was finally time for the award-giving segment for yers on the Beauty Leaderboard and the Handsome Men Leaderboard.

    The Beauty Leaderboards and the Handsome Men Leaderboards weren¡¯t established by <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>¡¯s officials. It was Hundred Daybreaks who took the lead to organise the yers, and that led to the emergence of the two leaderboards. It¡¯s said that this was an era that focused on appearances, so the emergence of these two unofficial leaderboards had attracted many people¡¯s attention. Before the start of the offline event, and even before Shen Jingbin¡¯s appearance, the award-giving segment for these two leaderboards was the most anticipated segment of the event.

    Being the one who¡¯d prompted the establishment of these two leaderboards, Hundred Daybreaks name was amongst the list of people who were invited to the event. She was attending in her capacity as a guest award presenter.

    Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning were nibbling on each other¡¯s ears and whispering sweet nothings to each other when they suddenly heard the hostess say the name ¡¯Hundred Daybreaks¡¯. They looked up and saw a woman wearing a red V-neck dress stand up from the right side of the front row, and slowly walk onto the stage.

    The back of her dress had an openwork design, which revealed her alluring back and shoulder des. After she went on the stage, the lighting was cast on her exquisite, dolled-up face. Although she wasn¡¯t as beautiful as Shen Jingbin, she was still a femme fatale in her own right.

    She seemed to have sensed that Shen Jingbin was looking at her, as she suddenly turned her attention to Shen Jingbin. She gave Shen Jingbin a subtle, provocative smile before shifting her gaze to Quiet And Steadfast, who was sitting next to her. She wiggled her eyebrows at him, appearing to be teasing him.

    Shen Jingbin immediately turned to look at Zhao Chengning. Zhao Chengning seemed to have sensed her gaze and turned to face her as well. His eyes looked at her innocently, as if to say, ¡¯Don¡¯t get the wrong idea, I didn¡¯t respond to her.¡¯

    "Hundred Daybreaks?" She lowered her voice and said, "She¡¯s quite pretty."

    "Definitely not as pretty as you."

    "She has a really good and sexy figure."

    "Mhm. I prefer yours; she¡¯s not my type."

    As the two of them were whispering to each other, the stage was abuzz with chatter as well. The hostess eximed that the game had as many hidden talents as there were beauties amongst the crowd. Whileughing, she asked, "Could this beauty be the famed Hundred Daybreaks?"

    The woman nodded, and the hostess asked again, "I¡¯m curious, since you¡¯re so pretty, aren¡¯t you on the leaderboard as well?"

    Hundred Daybreaksughed when she heard the hostess¡¯ question. At this moment, she gave off an indescribable sense of allure. She and Shen Jingbin were two different types of women. She couldn¡¯t hold a candle to Shen Jingbin, yet she had her own graceful bearing. Thisugh of hers captured the hearts of various male yers.

    "I¡¯m the one who kickstarted the leaderboards. If I myself ced on it, people would inevitably gossip. Furthermore, I¡¯m a low-profile person."

    "It seems that all of our beauties like to keep a low-profile," the hostess said. "Now, would you please help us call out the top ten yers on the Beauty Leaderboards and Handsome Men Leaderboards?"

    Hundred Daybreaks received two cue cards from the hostess and called out the names that were written on them. There weren¡¯t many yers that Shen Jingbin recognised on the two leaderboards. However, she did hear a few familiar names such as Crying Fish and Inking A Message. She looked at the stage to see a woman standing next to Hundred Daybreaks. To her surprise, it was thedy they¡¯d met at the lift a little while ago.

    She then saw Hundred Daybreaks take the trophy for third ce from a female attendant and hand it to that woman.

    Funnily enough, Crying Fish seemed to be ranked third on the Beauty Leaderboards as well.

 Chapter 357

    <h4>Chapter 357: A Gathering Of Enemies (1)</h4>

    <b>Chapter 189: A Gathering Of Enemies</b>

    Crying Fish cast an affectionate gaze in their direction, almost as if she were looking at her boyfriend.

    Shen Jingbin followed her gaze, and, as expected, she was looking straight at Zhao Chengning. The man beside her really was ady killer.

    Unfortunately, for Crying Fish, it was an unrequited love. During this time, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t even spare her a single nce. This caused Crying Fish to be so ticked off that, after getting off the stage, she shot a vicious re at Shen Jingbin as she passed by their group.

    Truth be told, Shen Jingbin found this really strange. Crying Fish had seemed normal when she saw her and Zhao Chengning together in the lift. But now, after finding out that the man she¡¯d met was Zhao Chengning, her attitude immediately took a 180. This led her to wonder: Did Crying Fish like Quiet And Steadfast as a person, or was she only attracted to the name ¡¯Quiet And Steadfast¡¯? In that case, did that mean she didn¡¯t care who he was, as long as he bore that name?

    Due to the number of awards that had to be presented to yers, the award ceremony was a little drawn out. Of course, the game¡¯s officials wouldn¡¯t just let the yers dumbly sit there and watch. As the award ceremony went on, a performance was held in conjunction to help alleviate boredom. Surprisingly, the performance was actually a skit held by COSER, one of the more famous celebrities, and the cosy society.

    Currently, 2D culture was bing increasingly popr in the world, which also meant that their target audience grew proportionately. Although <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>¡¯s yer base consisted of youths, a fair number of them loved 2D culture as well. As such, the entire ballroom broke into an uproar when COSER made an appearance.

    Thanks to Huajuan, Shen Jingbin had a superficial understanding of 2D culture and knew a bit about these celebrities. She didn¡¯t notice it when she was at the hotel¡¯s entrance before, but now, she realised that she recognised some of them. This gave her a great deal of constion and piqued her interest at the same time. On the other hand, this was unknown territory for Zhao Chengning. When he saw how everyone around him - including his wifey - was looking on with keen interest, he felt a little bewildered as he couldn¡¯t figure out what was so exciting about it.

    In an attempt to recapture his wifey¡¯s attention, Zhao Chengning leaned over to her ear and asked, "Where do you want to go when we¡¯re done with the activities on this side?"

    "Mm? Let¡¯s head over to the other two ballrooms and have a look... Oh, that¡¯s right. Let¡¯s call, Qi Mu, Pure Crane, and The Winds Of Ximen along with us."

    Zhao Chengning was of the same mind, so he nodded. He nced out of the corner of his eye and noticed that the guest performers wereing down the stage. Just as he thought that it was finally over and that the event could continue, another group of people got on stage. At this moment, Shen Jingbin¡¯s body stiffened.

    "What¡¯s wrong?" he asked, confused.

    "Look at the girl who¡¯s dressed up as a Nymph, that¡¯s Morning Glory Chime."

    "Eh?" Zhao Chengning looked over and found that they did indeed look familiar. "They do look kind of familiar. How do you know that she¡¯s Morning Glory Chime? Do you know her in real life?"

    Looks like he didn¡¯t remember.

    Shen Jingbin kindly helped to jog his memory. "She¡¯s from my school. You saw her when you went to my school to give a speech."

    Zhao Chengning finally managed to recall who she was, and he adopted a look of interest. "It looks like apart from Nine Bads, all of your enemies are gathered here now."

    Shen Jingbin red at him. "Really? 90% of the people I¡¯m enemies with came after me first!"

    Zhao Chengning innocentlyughed, nearly blinding the countless women who were staring at him in secret with its brilliance.

    By the time all of the activities were over, it was nearly 1 pm. No wonder she was feeling so hungry.

    After they exited the ballroom and finally had some time to talk, The Winds Of Ximen asked with a look of disbelief on his face, "Hey, are you really Nutjob and not just some actor?"

    Shen Jingbin, who found it ridiculous, looked at him and asked, "What kind of joke would that be?"

    The Winds Of Ximen looked at her seriously and said, "It¡¯s like the kind of story you read in novels, where a person who doesn¡¯t look that good but doesn¡¯t want to lose face, hires an actor to stand in for them at these kinds of offline meetups."

    A kind looking man stood up from behind The Winds Of Ximen and said with a smile, "Ximen, you¡¯ve read too many novels. No one would do such a thing in real life."

    Zhao Chengning shook the other man¡¯s hand. There was hardly any difference in the two men¡¯s expressions. "Quiet And Steadfast."

    Qi Mu feebly got up from her seat and said in a whisper, "Ah, I¡¯m Qi Mu."

    "Boss, where to next? Next Week Is Unlikely said to tag along with you," asked I¡¯m Not A Monster. He and the other members of Jade Sea Pavilion, who were seated in the back row, had also gotten up and walked over to them. Upon seeing Pure Crane, he froze for a moment before happily skipping over. "Eh? Are you Pure Crane? I never expected you to be just as handsome in person as you were in-game."

    Pure Crane eyed the group and asked, "Jade Sea Pavilion has the most number of people attending this event, right?"

    I¡¯m Not A Monster puffed up his chest. "Of course, we¡¯re the cream of the... Hey, you guys are The Winds Of Ximen and Qi Mu, right? Did youe on your own, or did youe with friends?"

    "I live near B City, so I came on my own," The Winds Of Ximen said.

    "I came on my own too," replied Qi Mu.

    I¡¯m Really Not A Monster pped his thigh and said, "That¡¯s great, why don¡¯t youe along with us and have some fun then. It¡¯s fine since we know each other in the game, right?"

    Actually, I Am A Monster cut in. "Hey bro, even though the Boss said that he¡¯d be footing the bill for today, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s a little rude if you don¡¯t ask for his opinion?"

    "Don¡¯t bother about him Boss, we¡¯ll help you take care of him!" dered Actually, I Am A Monster.

    Zhao Chengning ignored their buffoonery and said to Pure Crane andpany, "It¡¯s a rare opportunity for us to meet together like this, so let¡¯s have a meal together. Are you guys free?"

    Pure Crane¡¯s group exchanged looks with one another before nodding.

    yers who¡¯d received an invitation from Yiju would have breakfast, lunch, and dinner provided by the hotel. However, the food¡¯s quality was nothing to write home about.

    As such, Zhao Chengning decided to switch to a high-end restaurant instead and ordered two tables worth of food for them before bringing the group over.

    Panlong Kaiyuan Intercontinental Hotel was situated in a pretty good location, with several restaurants unique to B City near it. In fact, one could even walk to a restaurant without worry.

    The moment they stepped out of the hotel¡¯s lounge, the group saw a beautiful woman in red. Upon seeing them, the woman in red walked up to greet them. In particr, the woman¡¯s joy-filled eyes were focused on Zhao Chengning who was in the middle of the group.

    "Long time no see, Chengning." The woman in redfortably walked up to Zhao Chengning, intent on nting a kiss on his cheek. But, her attempt was thwarted by Zhao Chengning dodging to the side.

    "Long time no see, Senior Sister." In contrast to the woman in red¡¯s passionate greeting, Zhao Chengning¡¯s attitude was much colder.

 Chapter 358

    "Hey, Chengning, Weiwei and I will head off with the rest of the group first. Make sure you catch up soon." As expected of someone who¡¯s been Zhao Chengning bro for years now; he was able to detect the subtle change in Zhao Chengning¡¯s expression and knew what he was thinking. He immediately stepped forward to speak before leading the rest of the group off, giving the pair space to talk in private.

    "I thought you weren¡¯t going toe, but it looks like you decided to show up in the end. I remember you disliking these kinds of events, where both shady and upright people would mix." As she spoke, the woman in red¡¯s gaze drifted over to Shen Jingbin who was standing by his side.

    Zhao Chengning looked at his wifey with eyes filled with adoration and said, "She wanted to have a look at the event, so I decided to apany her."

    The woman in red¡¯s smile immediately froze. A short whileter, she regained herposure and asked, "I saw the two of you on stage just now. Aren¡¯t you going to introduce me?"

    Hundred Daybreaks¡¯ real name was Zhang Lu. She came from an average family and got to know Zhao Chengning in university during one of the university¡¯s social events. Since she wasn¡¯t a part of his daily interactions, she wasn¡¯t aware that Shen Jingbin was his fiancee. As for the news about the couple being together that was revealed just now, she just treated it as a sex scandal that was used to hype up the game. She knew a bit about how illustrious families with daughters liked to do things. Nowadays, didn¡¯t rich people like marrying off their daughters to raise theirpany¡¯s stock price?

    In Zhang Lu¡¯s mind, she firmly believed that the rtionship between Zhao Chengning and this flower vase definitely wasn¡¯t true love. As for their status as husband and wife in the game, well, that was definitely fake as well.

    If she were going to put on an act, she¡¯d follow through with it all the way. It looked like the daughters of wealthy families were all very cunning.

    Zhao Chengning said, "This is my fiancee, Shen Jingbin. Little Jing, this is my senior from university, Zhang Lu." Zhao Chengning had a casual look in his eye, but he actually took the job of introducing them very seriously.

    "Hello, Senior Sister." Shen Jingbin blinked her eyes before taking the initiative to stretch out her hand.

    Zhang Lu tilted her chin upwards ever so slightly and shot a nce at Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand before she unwillingly shook it. "Oh, so you¡¯re Nutjob. I¡¯m Hundred Daybreaks."

    She didn¡¯t mind being called Nutjob by someone she was familiar with, but she¡¯d really have been a Nutjob if she actually responded to a love rival; especially one who was clearly trying to make fun of her by referring to her as ¡¯Nutjob¡¯. Since that was the case, Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t bother being polite any longer. "Senior Sister, my name is Shen Jingbin, not Nutjob."

    "You know that¡¯s not what I meant; why do you have to pick at what I say?" Zhang Lu said helplessly. She then looked to Zhao Chengning, as if to say, ¡¯Look, your girlfriend can¡¯t even take a joke.¡¯

    However, Zhao Chengning acted as if he hadn¡¯t seen the look she was giving him, and said, "Senior Sister, my friends are waiting for us, so we can¡¯t stay to talk any longer. We¡¯ll be taking our leave first. Let¡¯s meet again if time permits."

    "Hey, are you meeting up with the rest of the members of Jade Sea Pavilion? In that case, I¡¯ll tag along so I can meet them too. We don¡¯t normally have gatherings like this, and we don¡¯t know when the next time an event like this is going toe around. I want to meet them while I still have the chance." Zhang Lu wasn¡¯t the least bit polite and interjected immediately after Zhao Chengning spoke.

    Truth be told, Zhang Lu did interact quite a bit with the members of Jade Sea Pavilion in the game. That being the case, Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t find a reason to reject her.

    When Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t reply, she turned to Shen Jingbin and said, "You don¡¯t mind if I join in on your gathering, right?"

    Shen Jingbin shrugged. "Senior Sister can join us if that¡¯s what you want. I don¡¯t mind."

    "Uh huh, in that case, please lead the way, Chengning."

    Zhao Chengning had a bad feeling about this. He nced at his girlfriend, but to his surprise, she didn¡¯t look the least bit unhappy about this. He couldn¡¯t figure out what she was thinking, so he didn¡¯t say anything else and just held her hand as he led the way.

    Zhang Lu, whogged behind the couple, nced at their interlocked hands and her expression darkened.

    The food had already been served by the time the three of them reached the restaurant. Everyone else was waiting for them while sipping on some water. Upon seeing the couple, they acted as if they¡¯d met their saviour, only to find out that there was someone following behind the pair shortly after. At that moment, the lively atmosphere that had just sprouted immediately fizzled out.

    As a woman who came from a wealthy family, Jiang Weiwei could immediately sense Zhang Lu¡¯s hostility and that she was scheming something. Jiang Weiwei dropped back into her seat and haughtily asked, "You¡¯re Hundred Daybreaks? Why¡¯d youe to Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s gathering?"

    Zhang Lu froze. She probably wasn¡¯t expecting someone to just call her out like that.

    "I thought that since we¡¯re quite familiar with each other in-game, I should take the opportunity to join in on your gathering and meet everyone. Oh right, you are?"

    "Who I am doesn¡¯t matter. All you have to know is that you and I aren¡¯t on close terms with one another," Jiang Weiwei said as she rolled her eyes at Zhang Lu.

 Chapter 359

    <b>Chapter 359: Sowing Dissension</b>

    Zhang Lu made a conscious decision to sit beside Zhao Chengning and began inserting herself into everyone¡¯s conversation. Everyone present wasn¡¯t an idiot though. They could more or less guess what she was thinking, even if she didn¡¯t say anything. Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression was unreadable when they nced over at her, so they decided to m up and discontinue conversation with Zhang Lu. The atmosphere subsequently became a little awkward.

    Zhang Lu, who probably had an inkling of what was happening, no longer tried to force herself into conversations with others and tried to strike up a conversation with Shen Jingbin instead.

    "You¡¯re Miss Shen, I take it? You¡¯re from B City, right? Are you still studying?"

    The chopsticks Shen Jingbin was using to pick up food from the dishes suddenly froze, and she turned to look at Zhang Lu. "I¡¯m from A City."

    Zhang Lu went, "Ohhhh." and continued. "So, you¡¯re from A City. That¡¯s quite a distance from B City. It¡¯s at least a few hours away. That being said, I¡¯m curious as to how you and Zhao Chengning got to know one another. Did you really meet each other in-game, and further your rtionship from there?"

    The implied meaning was that Zhang Lu was calling the couple¡¯s online rtionship into question. Zhao Chengning¡¯s face immediately darkened, and he coldly said, "Senior, please mind what you say."

    Zhang Lu paused for a moment before sticking out her tongue in a cutesy manner. "Oh, you¡¯re so fierce today, Chengning... Hey, Miss Shen, now you¡¯ve seen it for yourself, right? He¡¯s so fierce."

    F*ck!

    Everyone present couldn¡¯t help but curse inwardly. They hadn¡¯t thought much of it when reading simr situations in trashy romance novels, but seeing it in person was unbearable.

    In spite of that, Shen Jingbin remained as cool as a cucumber. While slowly turning her gaze away from Zhang Lu and grabbing some food for Zhao Chengning with her chopsticks, she said, "I don¡¯t think it¡¯s that bad. He¡¯s never been fierce towards me before," After saying that, she looked at Zhao Chengning, shed him a gentle smile, and the couple locked eyes. In that instant, the entire room was filled with the stench of star-struck lovers.

    Shen Jingbin kneaded Zhao Chengning¡¯s arm in a cating manner and made eye contact with Zhang Lu, taking in the entire view of thetter inwardly curling her lips.

    Haha, trying to sow discord between the two of us with such a petty trick? Is she stupid or stupid?

    "Our two families have been long time friends. We knew each other before, and we just happened to run into one another in-game. The idea that we¡¯d met each other in-game was obviously just some marketing stunt on Yiju¡¯s part. Anyone with a brain wouldn¡¯t believe something like that."

    Thatstment of hers was directed to everyone present, but she was clearly making fun of Zhang Lu.

    Zhang Lu pulled her face into a smile. "That¡¯s true. How could someone as beautiful as Miss Shen find romance in something like an online game? There must be many suitors going after you in real life, isn¡¯t there, Miss Shen? I wonder, where does Chengning rank amongst all the suitors that have gone after you? I¡¯ll have you know that Chengning, B City¡¯s golden bachelor, has countless women who have their minds set on him as their husband."

    Shen Jingbin turned a curious eye to Zhao Chengning before breaking into a mysteriousugh. "There really isn¡¯t anyone who¡¯s chasing after me."

    Everyone who heard that wore a look of disbelief. Zhang Lu¡¯s expression, in particr, was the most exaggerated. She sucked in a breath of air and covered her mouth before she said, "How can that be? Miss Shen, you..." Then, she seemed to suddenly think of something and revealed an apologetic smile. "Oh my, men these days care so much about face. Not only do the women they go after have to be beautiful, but said beauty also has to be natural. If there¡¯s even the slightest bit of ¡¯alternation¡¯, they will kick up a huge fuss. Miss Shen, you made the right decision to stay away from those types of men. When youe to B City in the future, there¡¯s plenty of men who... wouldn¡¯t take issue with you."

    Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t listen to this any longer. To begin with, he didn¡¯t like Hundred Daybreaks all that much in-game. But now, here she was trying to make his sister look bad, and she was even making fun of his sister by implying that she¡¯d undergone stic surgery.

    What the hell? The two of them bore a 70-80% resemnce to one another. If Zhang Lu was implying that Shen Jingbin had undergone stic surgery, wouldn¡¯t the same apply to him as well?

 Chapter 360

    <b>Chapter 360: Sowing Dissension (2)</b>

    Shen Jingchen had always a lot of confidence in his appearance. The one thing he couldn¡¯t stand wasn¡¯t people making fun of him by calling him a ¡¯rich kid¡¯, but rather them calling the authenticity of his looks into question. As such, he began his counterattack against Zhang Lu without the slightest bit of hesitation.

    "Hundred Daybreaks, you¡¯re a very intelligent person in-game, so why are you so *ahem* in real life? Why don¡¯t you have a look around and find out whether any hospital can actually produce results like this? Could it be that you think anyone who¡¯s more beautiful than you must have undergone stic surgery? Are you saying that you¡¯re the number 1 natural born beauty?" Shen Jingchen said all of that with a dark look on his face. His handsome features were all stretched taut, making him look even a little scary.

    "Ah, I didn¡¯t mean that. I..." Zhang Lu hadn¡¯t expected there to be someone other than Jiang Weiwei who¡¯d stand up to her. When she looked over, she found that the person who¡¯d spoken up bore a resemnce to Shen Jingbin, and was able to guess his identity. She immediately turned a pleading gaze to Zhao Chengning.

    "Hey, can you not use that kind of expression on someone else¡¯s boyfriend at the drop of a hat? People who aren¡¯t in the know might think you¡¯re his mistress," Jiang Weiwei said.

    "I¡¯m not. Don¡¯t say such things..." Zhang Lu revealed an aggrieved look on her face and secretly shot a nce at Shen Jingbin. It was as if those eyes of hers were trying to say that Shen Jingbin was the one inciting them to go against her.

    Shen Jingbin felt her temper re. Beneath the table, she stepped on Zhao Chengning¡¯s foot, and without even looking at Zhang Lu, she stood up and said, "I¡¯m going to the washroom."

    Before leaving, she cast a nce at Zhao Chengning. ¡¯You take care of her!¡¯

    Zhao Chengning helplessly rubbed his temples before turning his attention to Zhang Lu with a stormy look on his face.

    When Shen Jingbin finished touching up her makeup, she noticed that Zhao Chengning was already outside waiting for her. She harrumphed at him, and focused on washing her hands without sparing him a nce.

    Zhao Chengning surreptitiously inched forward, stood behind her, and pressed his chest against her back. She could feel his warmth and scent from behind her.

    "Hey, are you angry?"

    Shen Jingbin shook her hands. Without looking up, she said, "I¡¯m not angry. Why would I be angry? So, you decided to leave her back there ande looking for me?"

    "No, I told her to leave."

    Shen Jingbin turned to face him. "She left? You asked her to leave just like that?" Now, the distance between them had shrunk even more.

    "This was meant to be a guild meetup in the first ce. It¡¯s not right for an outsider like her to be sticking her nose into it."

    Shen Jingbin narrowed her eyes. "It¡¯s a little toote for that, isn¡¯t it?"

    Zhao Chengning wrapped his arms around her slender waist. "It¡¯s my fault. I should¡¯ve rejected her from the very beginning so that she wouldn¡¯t make things difficult for you. In the future, I swear that she won¡¯t appear before you ever again."

    Shen Jingbin pinched him. "The way you say it makes it sound like you and her have something going on."

    "Truth be told, I¡¯ve never had a rtionship with anyone else but you!"

    "I¡¯ll believe you for now. Let¡¯s go back. Once we¡¯re done eating we can go walk around for a bit."

    Zhao Chengning nodded in satisfaction and led her back to the rest of the group. When they returned to the room, everyone began to kick up a fuss when they saw the couple holding hands.

    When it came time to pay for the dinner, Pure Crane tugged at Shen Jingbin¡¯s clothes and whispered, "ck Kite and Delicate Flower have reached the city. They¡¯re at the train station, so we¡¯re going to pick them up. We won¡¯t being along with you."

    "Alright then. Give me a call once you¡¯vee back to the hotel. I want to meet them."

    Pure Crane cocked an eyebrow at Shen Jingbin before fishing out his handphone. "I never expected to get the Goddess¡¯ number so easily. Aren¡¯t you afraid that the God might get jealous?"

    Shen Jingbin read out a string of numbers before saying, "It¡¯s just a handphone number. It¡¯s no big deal."

    Pure Craneughed and waved farewell before leaving.

    The group happened to bump into Xiangpeng, who was escorting some guests out to dinner when they arrived back at Panglong Kaiyuan Intercontinental hotel.

    National Treasures, Descent Of Rain And Snow, and several other girls began to kick up a fuss.

    "Look, look, look! Isn¡¯t the one standing beside Luofeng and Momo, Mr Vv?!"

    "Where? Let me see... F*ck! It really is him! It¡¯s Mr Vv!"

    "What the f*ck?! Oh my god! It¡¯s Mr Vv! Quick, take a picture, take a picture!"

    Gentle Flower looked on in bewilderment at her friends who¡¯d suddenly started kicking up a fuss. "Is he someone you know?"

    "Of course, we know who he is! He¡¯s the God of cosying, Vv! I¡¯m a die hard fan of his! All of his cosying looks are so handsome and amazing! They¡¯re so good that he even puts a woman like me to shame. Most importantly, he¡¯s got a great voice, and his singing¡¯s pretty good too. He¡¯s an all rounded man. But, he¡¯d left the cosying circle for some time now, so I never expected to see him here today! National Treasures, you didn¡¯t see him at the guest performance this afternoon, right? I didn¡¯t miss out or anything, right?!" Descent Of Rain And Snow had done aplete 180 from her previous shy and gentle self, turning into crazy fangirl instead.

    The name Vv sounded kind of familiar to Shen Jingbin. After thinking about it for a while, she finally remembered that this was the person Huajuan really liked for a period of time. But, for some reason, she stopped bringing him up afterwards.

    While thinking that, her phone suddenly rang. Shen Jingbin nced at the screen and found that Huajuan was the one calling.

    The moment she picked up, she could hear Huajuan¡¯s trembling voice over the phone. "Little Jingjingjingjing!"

    "Eh? What¡¯s wrong? Calm down."

    "T-t-t-there¡¯s no way I can calm down! I was looking through Wechat when I saw that my number 1 person, Vv, made a post! F*ck, did you know that this is the very first time he¡¯s made a post on Wechat ever since he disappeared?! He said he was at your something or other game meetup! Jingjing, you remember what he looked like when I showed you a picture of him, right? Although he¡¯s been gone for a while now, he definitely hasn¡¯t changed much. Help me look for him and get an autograph! Please, my wonderful Jingjing, I¡¯m begging you! You¡¯re my benefactor!"

    "I don¡¯t need to look for him, he¡¯s standing right in front of me," Shen Jingbin said.

    As expected, Huajuan began screeching at the top of her voice.

    Xiangpeng, who was waiting for the rest of his guests, had also caught sight of Shen Jingbin andpany. The one who¡¯d previously taken an interest in Shen Jingbin said, "Brother Xiang, look over there, isn¡¯t that the Senior Sister? Why don¡¯t we wait for them before going up?"

    "Mm, if you guys don¡¯t mind, let¡¯s wait for them. I have something I need to speak to them about too."

    A very tall, beautiful man with soft features silently wrinkled his brows. Xiangpeng happened to catch sight of his expression when he turned his head, and said, "Vv, you can head up first if you don¡¯t feel like waiting. I¡¯ll get someone to wait upstairs for you."

    The man called Vv shook his head. "It¡¯s alright, let¡¯s go together."

    Xiangpeng shrugged. Vv had suddenly made an appearance, but he was another big celebrity, so he couldn¡¯t afford to offend him.

    Thankfully, even though Vv seemed to be on the cold side, he was still somewhat amicable.

 Chapter 361

    <strong>Chapter 361: Touring The Exhibition Hall (1)</strong>

    "Hey, Miss Shen, so we meet again."

    When the group walked over, the man who¡¯d shown interest in Shen Jingbin that morning when they were in the lounge spoke up first. His peach shaped eyes were filled with delight, but also carried a faint sense of yfulness about them.

    Shen Jingbin nced at him and returned his greeting with a nd ¡¯hello¡¯ before turning her attention to Vv who was behind Xiangpeng and the man.

    "Miss Shen, Mr Zhao, will the two of you be free tonight? I was thinking of asking the two of you out to dinner."

    Zhao Chengning gestured at the people behind him. "We¡¯ve already made ns for tonight. You¡¯re toote."

    Xiangpeng had a regretful look on his face. "I didn¡¯t know you guys wereing earlier. The office just gave me a call and told me to invite you out to eat. I told them that you didn¡¯t have the time, but they refused to believe me."

    Zhao Chengningughed. "There¡¯s always time in the future if you¡¯re the one inviting me. Don¡¯t worry about it this time."

    "That¡¯s true. Are you nning to go up and have a look around? Let¡¯s go together."

    Zhao Chengning nodded before leading the rest of the group inside.

    As he was escorting guests with a certain level of status, Xiangpeng decided to swipe his card and use the hotel¡¯s staff lift. The lift was huge, allowing both groups to enter without issue.

    It might have been her imagination, but Shen Jingbin got the feeling that the man who¡¯d greeted her just now was shifting towards her. But, when she looked up at him, he wore the same harmless smile as before.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face darkened. Just as she was about to make a move, the person beside her tugged her and pulled the two of them apart. Seeing the beauty in front of him being snatched away, Luofeng was about to kick up a fuss when he looked up and saw a pair of ck pupils staring at him, causing him to feel a chill run down his spine. Whatever he was nning to say got caught in his throat, and he couldn¡¯t bring himself to say anything.

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t hold back against the person who was trying to make a move on his wife. Without any regard for who they were, he unreservedly criticised them. "There¡¯s more than enough space in the lift, so there¡¯s no need for you to keep inching towards my girlfriend."

    Either way, it¡¯s not like they could be any higher up on the food chain then he was. Hmph!

    The moment he said that everyone in the lift froze. Luofeng, in particr, was most affected by what he¡¯d said.

    Luofeng was a God within the cosying circle, and he had nearly a million followers on Weibo. This was the very first time he¡¯d been relentlessly reprimanded by someone ever since his rise to fame. Although his actions were indeed thoughtless, he still found Zhao Chengning¡¯s criticism rather hard to bear. However, regardless of how unhappy he felt, he didn¡¯t dare to say a word in return because he knew exactly who Zhao Chengning was. All he could was viciously re at Zhao Chengning before quietly shifting over to the side a little.

    Their circle was only so big, so they¡¯d all worked together before, and through their interactions, they knew just what kind of a person Luofeng was. On the surface, they wondered what was going on and acted as if they didn¡¯t know what was happening. However, on the inside, they were looking down on Luofeng.

    Xiangpeng nced between both individuals and felt a little awkward because of his position. So, he decided to remain quiet. With that, the lift fell into an awkward silence.

    The lift finally arrived at its destination. The moment it opened, Luofeng was the first to rush out of it towards the lounge. A derisive look shed by Xiangpeng¡¯s face as he nced at Luofeng¡¯s retreating figure, but he remained silent. He told the remainder of his guests to go on ahead to the lounge to get some rest, and that he¡¯d be over shortly. Vv wasn¡¯t on the list of guests, so he wouldn¡¯t need to attend the autograph session. But, since Yiju had always shown an interest in working with him, Xiangpeng wanted to invite him over to the lounge for a break as well. Unfortunately for him, Vv declined his invitation.

    Apparently, Vv said he wasn¡¯t interested in hanging around with scum like Luofeng.

    This caused Shen Jingbin to see Vv in a new light. He might look cold on the outside, but he was a rather upright individual. Suddenly, she thought back to the rumour that stated he left the cosying circle because he couldn¡¯t stand the way they did things, which were worse by the day. It looked like there was some truth to the story.

    "Sorry about that, Miss Shen. Just because they look a little better than other people, they¡¯ve grown a big head and have gotten used to everyone sucking up to them. They have no sense of propriety. You should stay away from people like them,¡¯ Xiangpeng said.

    Shen Jingbin waved him off, indicating that it wasn¡¯t all that big of a deal. She then turned her attention to Vv, who was standing beside her and said, "Mr Vv, I know a few girls who¡¯re fans of yours, and they¡¯d like to have your autograph. Would you be alright with that?"

    Vv never expected her to suddenly turn her attention to him, so he froze for a moment. He then noticed the expressions of the girls behind him who were failing spectacrly to hide their excitement. Vv silently wrinkled his eyebrows.

    Seeing this, Xiangpeng tugged at Vv¡¯s sleeve, and said, "Vv, just give them a few autographs. Look at how happy meeting you has made them."

    Vv nodded. When National Treasures and the rest saw him agree, they immediately pulled out a pen and notebook from their bags and offered them up to him. Shen Jingbin spoke up again just as he¡¯d finished signing National Treasures¡¯ notebook and was about hand it back to her. "I have a roommate who¡¯s also a fan of yours. Could you please sign one more autograph? Mm, please make it out to Huajuan."

    Vv¡¯s hand froze for a moment. It almost looked as if he found it curious how she knew about making autographs out to other people, even though she wasn¡¯t a part of the cosying circle. In spite of that, he still retracted the notebook and made out an autograph to Huajuan as well.

    Xiangpeng looked at the time and realised that it was about time for him to organise the rest of the guests for the autograph session. He bade farewell to Shen Jingbin and walked off with Vv in tow.

    The girls who¡¯d received an autograph stared at Vv¡¯s retreating figure with starry-eyed infatuation. It was so bad that it ticked off some of the men in their group. Shen Jingbin kept the autograph that National Treasures had torn off for her somewhere safe before realising that Zhao Chengning was looking at her with a profound expression.

    "What¡¯s wrong?"

    Zhao Chengning coughed. "So, you like guys like him?"

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes and wrapped her arms around him with a smile on her face. "Huajuan is the one who likes him. I just found out about him through her. He¡¯s not good enough for me to ¡¯like¡¯ him."

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t say anything, seeming quite satisfied with her answer. She nced at her arm which was hooked around his and smiled before walking towards the exhibition hall.

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion, who¡¯d identally caught sight of the husband and wife couple, suddenly felt like stabbing their eyes out.

    My Guild Leader¡¯s torturing singles on a daily basis. What should I do?

 Chapter 362

    <strong>Chapter 362: Touring The Exhibition Hall (2)</strong>

    The two ballrooms that were used as the exhibition hall were interconnected, so the venue epassed a wide area. In spite of that, the number of people dwarfed the avable floor space. When the group walked into the exhibition hall, the very first thought that crossed their minds was: a sea of people.

    Shen Jingbin looked back to the rest of the group. "Should we look around together, or?"

    Every single one of them shook their heads.

    "Us four bros are gonna have a look around on our own."

    "Ximen and I will be fine on our own. We¡¯ll also be waiting for Pure Crane and ck Kite while we¡¯re at it."

    "I¡¯ll be going with Snowy."

    "Mm, it¡¯ll be fine with just me and Gentle Flower."

    Even her own brother was abandoning her to run off with Xia Qihui and Jiang Weiwei.

    You gotta be kidding me. People who get in the way of a couple¡¯s lovey-dovey time will get struck by lightning!

    "Looks like these guys have a sense of propriety," Zhao Chengning said with a sigh.

    Shen Jingbin cast a sidelong nce at him. Her gaze was using, but at the same time, it was quite charming and attractive.

    Zhao Chengning, who was in a great mood, pinched her cheeks and dragged her inside.

    The first ce the couple visited was Yiju¡¯s game experience zone. The experience zone was further divided into individual areas for each online game. When Yiju first started, it produced several popr single yer games. Even now, it still had arge following of die-hard fans. Currently, Yiju¡¯s most popr game was a First Person Shooter.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s ¡¯violent tendencies¡¯ started to run amok, and she dragged Zhao Chengning over to the FPS game. Every individual game¡¯s experience zone had, at most, five gaming machines in them; the less popr games only had one machine. Unfortunately for her, while other games might not have a single person ying the game, this particr FPS had a long line of people queuing up to y it.

    Shen Jingbin was interested in trying the game, so she didn¡¯t care how many people there were in front of her. She pulled Zhao Chengning to the back of the line and started queuing up with an expression on her face that said ¡¯I don¡¯t care, I just want to y this game.¡¯

    Normally, Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t stand queues. He nced at the adamant look on his wifey¡¯s face, then turned to look at the dense mass of people in front of him before helplessly sighing and resigning himself to his fate.

    At some point, the people queuing up in front of them noticed the couple¡¯s presence. Every single one of their faces lit up in delight, almost as if they¡¯d picked up a bar of gold from the ground. In particr, the person directly in front of them acted faster than their brain could process. They whipped out their phone and snapped a photo. In their haste, they forgot to turn off their camera¡¯s shutter sound, and a resounding ¡¯kacha¡¯ was produced from their phone. The sound brought the person back to their senses, and under the couple¡¯s watchful gaze, they awkwardly and silently deleted the photo with a sullen look on their face.

    The person hesitated for a moment. Then, after looking like they¡¯d managed to muster up the courage, they moved their trembling body forward to ask the couple a question. "Are the two of you here to y this game?"

    Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning looked towards the person who appeared to be a weak-looking boy. He wasn¡¯t very tall, and he spoke in a whisper. With the couple¡¯s attention focused on him, the boy¡¯s face instantly flushed. "I-i-if the two of you want to y this game, you can go ahead of me," he said with a stammer.

    "Hm?" Shen Jingbin was amused by what the boy had said and shed him a charming smile, stunning all the onlookers in the process. "It¡¯s okay; we¡¯ll be fine queuing up here."

    The boy¡¯s face burned even redder. He uttered a simple ¡¯oh¡¯ and hurriedly turned his head back. Following that, he refused to look back again, no matter what.

    Shen Jingbin noticed that even the boy¡¯s neck had turned red, and she couldn¡¯t help but find it funny. She turned to Zhao Chengning, wanting to whisper sweet nothings into his ear when she noticed out of the corner of her eye that a familiar looking woman, who was leading a group of several other women, had taken their ce behind Zhao Chengning.

    "Q-Quiet And Steadfast?" squeaked the leading woman in a dainty voice.

    Having heard his name being called, Zhao Chengning turned back to find himself face to face with several unfamiliar women. The woman at the forefront of the group did look slightly familiar, but he clearly didn¡¯t know who she was either.

    "I¡¯m Crying Fish..." Yaozhen felt her heart clench when Zhao Chengning¡¯s gaze fell on her, and she hurriedly announced who she was. She spoke in a cute and bashful manner, akin to that of a young girl who¡¯d run into her sweetheart.

    Unfortunately for her, Zhao Chengning was blind to all of this. His eyebrows knitted the moment he heard who she was. He then grunted in acknowledgement before returning her greeting with a ¡¯nice to meet you¡¯. Following that, he turned around and didn¡¯t look back at her.

    Crying Fish¡¯s beautiful and charming face went stiff, causing a woman with an unkind face behind her to immediately speak up. "Sigh, why is he like that? He¡¯s so rude. Quiet And Steadfast, even if we¡¯re enemies in-game, this is our first time meeting in real life. Are you really going to bring over the grudges you harbour in-game to real life as well? That¡¯s very ungentlemanly of you."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s gaze drifted over to the woman who¡¯d spoken. There was a thickyer of eyeshadow around her eyes, and who knows how manyyers of foundation applied to the rest of her face. When she spoke, it almost felt as if her face was going to split apart.

    Seeing as how Zhao Chengning wasn¡¯t very willing to deal with this group of women, Shen Jingbin decided to step in and help him out. "I¡¯m sorry, Miss, but what kind of reaction were you hoping for when meeting with a stranger for the first time?"

    The woman with thick eyeshadow appeared a little embarrassed when she saw that Zhao Chengning had utterly ignored her. When Shen Jingbin spoke out in his stead, she immediately jumped at the opportunity to vent her anger on Shen Jingbin; her voice turning shrill as she kicked up a fuss. "And who are you? We¡¯re speaking to him. Why¡¯re you butting in?"

    From the very beginning, Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning¡¯s presence had already attracted the surreptitious gaze of countless people. Once the woman with excessive makeup started to kick up a fuss, even more people¡¯s attention was drawn to them. Shen Jingbin could feel the innumerable number of curious gazes being sent their way from every direction.

 Chapter 363

    <b>Chapter 363: The Best Out There (1)</b>

    Everyone liked watching a good show. Regardless of whether it had anything to do with them or not, they¡¯d gather round to spectate. Now that this woman had caused a scene, everyone nearby had gathered to watch the spectacle.

    Unexpectedly, the woman wearing eyeshadow became even more emboldened when she saw the crowd form around them, and a stream of unkind words flowed out of her mouth. Aside from Crying Fish, who was now teary-eyed, the rest of the women behind her were parroting what she was saying; almost as if they had some massive grudge against Shen Jingbin.

    But, Shen Jingbin had absolutely no idea who they were.

    "These days, some women have no manners at all. They think that they can interrupt other people just because they¡¯re beautiful, without even considering their own position beforehand."

    "That¡¯s right, we were speaking to Quiet And Steadfast, not you. Why¡¯re you butting in?"

    "In spite of you sticking so close to your boyfriend, he still married someone else in-game. Not only that, he even married an ugly wench. You¡¯re a failure of a girlfriend."

    Out of this group of women, the only one qualified to take part in the award ceremony earlier this afternoon in exhibition hall 1 was Crying Fish. Crying Fish hadn¡¯t told them that that ugly woman in-game was actually even more beautiful than herself in real life, so they werepletely unaware that Shen Jingbin was that very same ugly woman from White Cloud Temple.

    In this world, there¡¯d always be people who¡¯d harbour unreasonable malice towards others who were better than them. This group of women were that type of people. They were under the impression that they¡¯d grabbed ahold of this perfect beauty¡¯s weaknesses, and were beyond ecstatic about it. Little did they know, that in the eyes of others, they were just a bunch of monkeys.

    Crying Fish had noticed this as well and quietly tugged at the group before whispering something to them. Shortly after, their faces screwed up in displeasure, and they shut their mouths.

    Crying Fish cleared her throat and gave Shen Jingbin an apologetic smile. "They tend to be quite straightforward when they speak, and it can sound harsh at times. But, they bore you no ill intent, so I hope you won¡¯t take it to heart," she said miserably.

    Shen Jingbin shot a cold stare at Crying Fish and said, "If you can really twist an issue of upbringing into them having straightforward personalities, then I honestly have nothing to say to any of you."

    "What did you say!?" The brows of the woman with excessive eyeshadow instantly shot up. She marched up to Shen Jingbin, intent on holding her up by her cor. She was confident she could put up a good enough fight, owing it to the time she¡¯d spent with those ¡¯brothers¡¯ of hers in the past.

    But, she¡¯d picked a fight with the wrong person. Before she even had the chance to touch Shen Jingbin, she found her hand behind her back. The piercing pain caused her to cry out in pain.

    "Ah, why¡¯d she suddenlysh out!?"

    "Help, i-it¡¯s an assault!"

    "How can there be someone like this? All the other person did was say a few words, and now she¡¯s attacking them. Why¡¯d they let someone like this in?!"

    "She might look beautiful, but she¡¯s rotten on the inside!"

    After the woman was subdued, the rest of herpanions tried to shit-stir and began kicking up a fuss, pushing all the me on Shen Jingbin.

    "Silence," Zhao Chengning rebuked them, his face frosted over in displeasure. None of them dared to say anything after that.

    On the surface, Zhao Chengning might look mild-mannered and gentlemanly, but in truth, that imposing manner of his was impossible to overlook. Having been pissed off, all traces of warmth were gone from his face, and he now exuded an aura of intimidation. These shallow-minded women obviously couldn¡¯t stand up to Zhao Chengning, who¡¯d cultivated this bearing of his over a long period of time.

    Shen Jingbin narrowed her eyes and leaned in close to the ear of the woman with eyeshadow. "Next time, would you mind thinking of your own position first before you act out? Otherwise, don¡¯t me me if you end up making a fool out of yourself."

    The woman with eyeshadow was unwilling to admit defeat, and even now, she was still hurling abuse. Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t hold back either and tightened her grip. The pain caused the woman to inhale sharply, and only then did she fall silent.

    "What¡¯s going on?" The exhibition hall¡¯s security guards rushed over upon seeing themotion.

    "Mr security guard! There¡¯s a fight over here! Please,e help quickly!"

    The woman acted as if she¡¯d seen her savior the moment sheid eyes on the security guard and cried out for help once again. Shen Jingbin scoffed. It looked like this woman was even shallower than she¡¯d thought.

    The security guard didn¡¯t recognise Shen Jingbin. The only thing he could tell was that the woman in front of him was more than meets the eye, and he avoided taking any rash action. After working in a high-end hotel for so long, the one thing he¡¯d picked up was how to read people.

    While the security guard was still trying to work out how to deal with the situation at hand, several people appeared from within the crowd. Amongst them was the woman in charge of this event.

    "What¡¯s going on here?" Before she even had the chance to figure out what was going on, she suddenly felt a stern gaze sweep past her. When she looked over, she realised that it came from Second Young Master Zhao, who they absolutely couldn¡¯t afford to offend. Her heart leapt into her throat, and she was ill at ease. She hurried forward with an apologetic look on her face. "Miss Shen, what happened? What¡¯s going on?"

    Shen Jingbin nced at the woman she¡¯d subdued. The woman in charge of the event looked over as well and immediately figured out what was going on. "It looks like we have a situation on our hands... Security, escort this woman out and tell the guards at the entrance to bar her from entering. Everyone present is a VIP, and we cannot afford to let anything happen to them," she said sternly.

    The woman stared with wide-eyed disbelief at the person in charge when she heard what she¡¯d said. "Hey! What¡¯re you going on about?! I¡¯m the one being assaulted here! How did I be the culprit? Are all you people at Yiju blind?!" she cried shrilly.

    The woman in charge turned a deaf ear to the other person¡¯s pleas and urged the security guard to take her away. The security guard acted as if he¡¯d just woken from a dream, and hurriedly called upon his co-workers to take the troublemaker from Shen Jingbin and evict her from the exhibition.

 Chapter 364

    <b>Chapter 364: The Best Out There (2)</b>

    Crying Fish couldn¡¯t take it any longer. She anxiously walked up and said, "Ma¡¯am, you can¡¯t just chase my friend out like that... You saw it yourself; Miss Shen was the one who¡¯d taken action against my friend. How can you..."

    The woman in charge cut her off. "I can¡¯t pass judgement now since I didn¡¯t see everything for myself. But, what I can say is that Miss Shen would never harm another person without reason. If you think your friend has been wronged, feel free to take it up with thepany."

    Crying Fish shot a meaningful nce at herpanions. They immediately understood what she was getting at, and started kicking up a fuss. "She¡¯s clearly the one who acted first, so how can you distort the truth like this?!"

    As the saying goes: three women are enough for a drama. What then, if there¡¯s a group of them? The venue suddenly turned into a real life version of pce intrigue.

    "There¡¯s no justice in the world. How can the victim be the assant and be chased out at that?! I¡¯m going to report all of you!"

    "This is how Yiju treats us yers! Pui! I¡¯m going to expose all of you on Weibo!"

    "Let go of her. She¡¯s just a girl! What are you men nning to do to her? I¡¯ll report you guys for sexual harassment!"

    Due to them stirring up trouble, a state of confusion filled the surroundings. Crying Fish¡¯s group was kicking up such a fuss, that Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning¡¯s temples were throbbing in pain.

    Out of the corner of her eye, Shen Jingbin spotted a table with a half drunk bottle of mineral water on it. She suddenly walked towards it, grabbed the bottle, and viciously smashed it onto the table...

    An enormous bang shocked everyone into silence. It wasn¡¯t just their area of the exhibition hall that had fallen silent; it was almost half of the exhibition hall that had gone quiet.

    Everyone subconsciously looked towards the origin of the sound and found an unearthly beauty expressionlessly standing beside a table with a half smashed bottle in hand. The table, which was made of wood, had wood chips king off it. It wasn¡¯t hard to figure out what had happened.

    How terrifying. How much strength did she have to pull that off?

    The woman with eyeshadow quietly swallowed her saliva, and suddenly felt as if she¡¯d been far too rash today. She couldn¡¯t bring herself to imagine whether both her hands would still be there if Shen Jingbin had been serious.

    "Don¡¯t you guys think that you¡¯ve been wronged?" Shen Jingbin indifferently asked the group of dumbstruck women who, before this, were kicking up a fuss. Although Shen Jingbin¡¯s upset face was still beautiful, it made others feel as if there was a weight pressing down on the pit of their stomach, making it hard for them to breathe.

    The group of women subconsciously shook their heads.

    "If you think you¡¯ve been wronged, I can step outside with you now. This exhibition hall has cameras. I don¡¯t mind having a look at the recording so we can figure out who¡¯s the one causing trouble!"

    Shen Jingbin issued a very domineering statement. No one dared to say anything after she spoke. All they did was stare dumbly at her.

    After a moment of silence, a soft voice suddenly spoke up. Looking over, it turned out to be the small boy who¡¯d been standing in front of Shen Jingbin before. "Ah, there¡¯s no need to look at the video footage. I was standing in front of this wo- I mean Miss Shen just now, and can attest that this woman was the one who provoked her first. Miss Shen was only acting in self-defence. Furthermore, she didn¡¯t attack anyone as that group imed."

    His face was flushed, and he stood shyly behind Zhao Chengning. Due to what he¡¯d said, everyone¡¯s attention was now on him, making him turn even redder. Shen Jingbin looked at him. Her face softened when she saw the bashful look on his face, and she smiled at him.

    A number of silly people caught sight of her smile, causing them to stand and speak up for their Goddess as well. At the same time, they quietly shot looks of displeasure towards the small boy.

    "That¡¯s right; there¡¯s no need to check the recording. We can act as witnesses! That woman was the one who started stirring up trouble first!"

    "Sigh, this is my first time seeing someone as unreasonable and crafty as her! It¡¯d be best to get rid of her as soon as possible. Just looking at her makes me angry... Those ones over there who were with her aren¡¯t any better either. They¡¯re all a bunch of trash."

    "Hey, isn¡¯t that something Fish from that guild... what was it... Life At First Sight? I saw her during the live stream of the award ceremony in the afternoon. She looks so pretty, so why is she hanging out with this group of women? Tsk, she can¡¯t be any good either."

    "Tch, you don¡¯t know what happened, right? You see that man standing in front of them, the most conspicuous looking one? He¡¯s Quiet And Steadfast. Rumour has it that she tried to hook up with himst time. Now, she¡¯s probably trying to do the same in real life as well. I never expected him to have a beau already, so how could she have a ce in his heart? This is what I think, but she brought along this group of crazy women here to stir up trouble. Tsk tsk tsk, women sure are scary."

    The atmosphere suddenly changed, and Crying Fish could hear an endless stream of vitriol and conjecture. At that moment, her face turned an unsightly pale shade. Now that things had reached this point, it didn¡¯t matter what the truth actually was. The end result was that she¡¯d suffered a considerable loss.

    The rims of her eyes reddened. With a stomp of her foot, she spun around and ran off, pushing everyone in her way aside. The women from her posse who were left behind nced at each other before following after her. With that, one of the lead characters left in a wretched state.

    "Alright, alright, break it up. Nothing more to see," came the timely prompt from the woman in charge, urging the crowd to disperse. At the same time, she quietly instructed the security guards to take note of what that group of women looked like and to bar them entry from the exhibition.

    Now that all the onlookers had dispersed, Shen Jingbin strolled back to Zhao Chengning¡¯s side. She smiled at the boy and thanked him, while the boy bashfully scratched his head, not daring to look her in the eye.

    Zhao Chengning was watching off to the side before he suddenly wrapped his hand around her waist and gently pinched her. "Looks like you¡¯ve caused an innocent young boy to be smitten with you."

    Shen Jingbin dodged him before looking up to stare him in the eyes. "What, I¡¯m not allowed to be charming?"

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s expression softened, and he took her into his arms. "Of course, you can. You¡¯re the most charming person in the world."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips curled. "I¡¯m nowhere near as charming as you. You¡¯re the best out there, hmph."

    That tsundere harrumph of hers left Zhao Chengning not knowing whether tough or cry. He pulled her even closer and whispered sweet nothings into her ear. At the same time, he began nning how to pay that group of women back for today¡¯s affront.

 Chapter 365

    <b>Chapter 365: Ruthlessly Crushing Your Love Rivals (1)</b>

    Once the troublemaker had left, the exhibition hall regained its former peacefulness with the help of the exhibition¡¯s staff. Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning got back in line, and it wasn¡¯t long before their turn was up. The couple chose a pair ofputers that were near each other.

    "Wanna have a match?" Zhao Chengning suddenly suggested when the game began.

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit before nodding. "What does the winner get?"

    Zhao Chengning shed an evil smile. "The loser has to do any one thing that the winner says."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips curled, and her face screwed up in discontent. "That doesn¡¯t seem like much of an incentive for me to win." But, she changed her mind when she saw the feigned look of disappointment on his face. "How do wepete?"

    "Each roundsts for five minutes. We¡¯ll choose the same mode, character, and weapon. The one with the most kills wins."

    "Fine."

    They donned their headsets and entered the game. Shortly after, an opening animation yed, and they were brought to the mode selection screen. After selecting their mode, character, and starting weapon, the screen faded to ck, and a countdown began.

    This particr single yer FPS that Yiju had released had a premise simr to that of Resident Evil, in that they had to go up against all kinds of disgusting zombies. At present, even though the game didn¡¯t have much to offer other than it¡¯s lifelike graphics, the avable modes and graphics it offered when it was first released made waves amongst gamers.

    When it was first released, Shen Jingbin had dabbled a little in the game with Shen Jingchen and had really enjoyed the guny. But, after a while, she couldn¡¯t put up with its lifelike visuals and decided to shelve the game. Even after being away from the game for a couple of years, her little heart still gave a slight shudder when she saw the zombies in-game.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. Our fearless maiden, Miss Shen, didn¡¯t have much of a resistance against things that reeked of blood like zombies.

    Even then, she was only mildly affected by it, and her performance wasn¡¯t impacted. The people waiting behind her could only see her back as her fair, slender hand flew across the keyboard. Her in-game character responded ordingly and dashed about. Such nimble movements could only be showcased in this game. If it were any other game, her character would¡¯ve long since died. Practically all the enemies that entered her character¡¯s line of sight received a headshot. Her level of skill, and her impressive dynamic vision, was apparent for all to see.

    Numerous other yers who were gathered around her couldn¡¯t help but gasp in surprise. Nowadays, even women were skilled at gaming.

    Obviously, Zhao Chengning was no pushover either, and two of them were evenly matched. Throughout the match, their score only differed from the other by one or two kills.

    Five minutes quickly passed, and the match ended. In the end, Zhao Chengning managed toe out on top with just two more kills.

    When the two of them pulled off their headsets and stood up, they found out that at some point, the other threeputers nearby had been vacated, and everyone¡¯s attention had been drawn to their battle. From the looks on the couple¡¯s faces, it looked like they still wanted to go on with theirpetition.

    Suddenly, an impably attired man stepped out of the crowd. "May I have a match against the two of you?"

    Not one hair was out of ce on the man¡¯s head, which had an inordinate amount of hair gel applied to it. Even when they were several steps away from him, they could still clearly catch a whiff of his thick cologne. It was so bad that Shen Jingbin wondered whether he¡¯d dumped half a bottle of cologne on himself.

    "Count me in too," said a woman in a red dress as she stepped out of the crowd. Shen Jingbin nced at her out of the corner of her eye and realised it was Zhang Lu.

    I never expected to find her over at this part of the exhibition.

    "I don¡¯t mind," said Shen Jingbin. She then turned to Zhao Chengning to see what he had to say.

    Zhao Chengning was extremely unhappy that this man was running his eyes over his wife. This was furtherpounded by the provocative gaze that the man was looking at Zhao Chengning with.

    "Let¡¯s go for a round then. You guys know the rules?" Zhao Chengning asked insipidly.

    The man immediately replied, his tone carrying an air of insufferable arrogance. "Of course. Back then, I used to be the Emperor. In fact, I could even take the two of you on by myself."

    In the past, the title of ¡¯Emperor¡¯ was given to yers with the highest achievements. Obtaining this title was an incredibly difficult feat. Back in the day, the game was extremely popr, and many people yed it. However, only one of ten people would be able to obtain this title.

    As expected, as soon as he uttered the words ¡¯Emperor¡¯, the small crowd that was gathered around them broke into an uproar. The man cast a slightly smug nce in Shen Jingbin¡¯s direction. Unfortunately for him, the beauty looked as if she hadn¡¯t heard what he¡¯d said and remained unphased.

    No matter. Maybe she didn¡¯t know what being an ¡¯Emperor¡¯ meant. All he needed to do was strut his stuff in-game, and she¡¯d know how good he was. The man thought inwardly in an attempt to console himself.

    Zhao Chengning sneered in his heart. Emperor? This guy probably didn¡¯t know that he was the very first Emperor in the game.

    "I only yed this game casually in the past, so I¡¯m not very good at it. Since all of you are so good at it, make sure you go easy on meter on," Zhang Lu said with a smile as she nced at the two men.

    Shen Jingbin looked at her oddly. "Isn¡¯t this apetition? Why would we go easy on you? You¡¯re better off not ying if you want us to go easy on you."

    "Ah..." Zhang Lu was left dumbfounded for a moment. She was just about to exin what she really meant when Zhao Chengning interrupted her.

    "Alright, let¡¯s start."

    Zhang Lu swallowed the words in her throat and shot a re at the woman who¡¯d caused her to lose face. All four of them separated and selected theirputers before donning their headsets and entering the game.

    Nothing needed to be said about Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning. Their movements were efficient and precise, and they had formidable micromanagement skills. Their kill count rocketed upwards from the very beginning of the match, leaving the man and Zhang Lu in their wake.

 Chapter 366

    <strong>Chapter 366: Ruthlessly Crushing Your Love Rivals (2)</strong>

    The man was seated beside Zhao Chengning. At first, he sported a self-confident look, but it melted away when he nced at Zhao Chengning¡¯s aplishments.

    T-this person clearly wasn¡¯t ying like this just now!? Alright, I admit that he yed pretty well before, but he definitely wasn¡¯t this good!

    Zhang Lu was just as unsettled as the man. In fact, she felt even more disgusted than if she¡¯d stepped on a pile of dog droppings.

    She was obviously bluffing when she¡¯d said she wasn¡¯t that good. If that were the case, she wouldn¡¯t even have stepped out, to begin with. In the past, she¡¯d spent a good long time arduously training herself when she found out that Zhao Chengning was ying this game; all for the sake of having amon topic with him. Unfortunately for her, she caught wind of him dropping the game just after she¡¯d gotten the hang of it. She¡¯d taken notice of how Shen Jingbin yed as well. Shen Jingbin had pretty good micromanagement skills, but there was still a definite gap whenpared to her. This was why she¡¯d stepped out. But<b>!</b>

    In reality, both husband and wife were ying amongst themselves, so of course, they wouldn¡¯t go all-out. Zhang Lu and the man were asking for it by wanting to have a match with them, so they obviously wouldn¡¯t hold back.

    Ruthlessly crushing your love rivals was obviously the best!

    As a result, it was no surprise that Zhang Lu and the impably attired man suffered a crushing defeat. The rest of the men who were watching in the crowd quietly tore their eyes away from the spectacle.

    On the other hand, the couple who¡¯d just finished an enjoyable session of stomping their love rivals into the ground held hands and went to tour the rest of the exhibition.

    Just after stepping out from the individual experience zone, Shen Jingbin heard her phone ring. She epted the call and realised it was from Pure Crane. He¡¯d picked up ck Kite and Delicate Flower, and the three of them were now in the exhibition hall. ck Kite was in a tizzy when she found out that Shen Jingbin was here, and was kicking up a fuss saying she wanted to see her. Seeing no other way out of it, Pure Crane decided to give Shen Jingbin a call.

    The two of them decided to meet below the stage in exhibition hall two before hanging up.

    "ck Kite and the others are here. We¡¯ve decided to meet beneath the stage. Let¡¯s go together."

    Zhao Chengning nodded. Shen Jingbin consciously hooked her arm around his, and they began making their way towards the stage.

    Each and every ballroom had a front and rear entrance. Exhibition hall two¡¯s stage was located beside the rear entrance. When they weren¡¯t far from the stage, they spotted several people standing beside the stage.

    As they drew nearer, the group, who was idly chatting amongst themselves, took notice of them. A slightly plump looking younger girl took a closer look at them and called out in a probing manner, "Eh? N-nutty?"

    Shen Jingbin hesitated for a moment because she hadn¡¯t seen ck Kite yet. Upon hearing the girl call out to her and confirming that she hadn¡¯t recognised the wrong person, she smiled and nodded. "Yup."

    The man and woman beside the slightly plump girl instantly froze, and it took a long while before they finally came back to their senses. The slightly plump girl let out a cry and rushed up to Shen Jingbin before cing her hands against Shen Jingbin¡¯s shoulders. Her eyes were likesers as she gave Shen Jingbin a once over while incessantly muttering something.

    "This can¡¯t be! There¡¯s too big of a difference! Oh my god, I can¡¯t believe Nutty¡¯s so beautiful! She¡¯s much prettier than I¡¯d imagined! I can¡¯t believe what I¡¯m seeing! I¡¯mgoingblind I¡¯mgoingblind I¡¯mgoingblind!"

    "Oh, you¡¯re here."

    The girl¡¯s reaction caused a bitter smile to appear on Shen Jingbin. Just then, she suddenly heard Pure Crane¡¯s voice from behind her. She turned back to see him cradling a mass of food.

    Pure Craneunched into an exnation when he saw the two of them staring curiously at the items he was carrying in his bosom. "They came over immediately after getting off the car and haven¡¯t eaten anything yet, so I went to buy something for them... What are you doing, ck Kite?"

    The slightly plump girl was ck Kite. She rushed up to Pure Crane with tear-filled eyes as soon as she saw him. Obviously, this was a very moving sight.

    "Brother Pure Crane, hurry and tell me whether this person is Nutty or not! My god, this is too out of this world."

    Pure Crane clearly found what ck Kite said very amusing. He handed over the food he was carrying to the other man and woman before saying, "She¡¯s Nutty. You didn¡¯t get the wrong person. Didn¡¯t I tell you that Nutty¡¯s really good looking in real life?"

    "Bro! Aren¡¯t you a little too casual about it?! This isn¡¯t just at the level of ¡¯really good looking!¡¯" cried ck Kite in her heart.

    The man and woman were far moreposed than ck Kite. Apart from their initial surprise, they didn¡¯t reveal any other superfluous emotions.

    "Nice to meet you, Nutty. This is our first time meeting. I¡¯m Delicate Flower," said the girl with a smile as she greeted Shen Jingbin. She had a slight heroic air to her.

    "I¡¯m Cheshire cat," said the man standing beside Delicate Flower.

    Shen Jingbin took another look at Cheshire Cat.

    She was surprised at how different he looked in real life. He looked more or less average in-game, but he looked especially handsome in real life. He had an androgynous look about him, but no one would say he looked girly.

    Only, he looked really familiar. On closer inspection, he was especially familiar!

    "You look rather..." Shen Jingbin frowned slightly. She¡¯d just started speaking when she was suddenly interrupted.

    "Wei Wei."

    The door beside the stage that was closed beforehand was suddenly opened, and a line of people walked in. At the forefront of the procession was a tall and slender man who wore a ck mask. The clothes he wore helped Shen Jingbin figure out that the man was Vv - the very same person who¡¯d interrupted her!

    Shen Jingbin came back to her senses. Why did she feel that Cheshire Cat looked so familiar? That¡¯s because he looked remarkably simr to Vv!

 Chapter 367

    <b>Chapter 367: Something Fishy¡¯s Afoot (1)</b>

    A trace of impatience shed passed the eyes of the tall, slender man wearing a mask as he hurriedly walked towards the group.

    "Did you just arrive? Have you eaten yet?" Vv gave Cheshire Cat, who was also known as Wei Wei, a once over. When Vv saw the snack in Cheshire Cat¡¯s hand, his brows knitted together slightly.

    Wei Wei looked a little embarrassed by Vv¡¯s eagerness and concern. He managed to put on a somewhat forced smile and said, "Brother, why are you here?"

    Cheshire Cat was actually Vv, the renowned cosyer¡¯s, little brother?

    Shen Jingbin alternated her attention between the two siblings as she eyed them with interest.

    "Vv, I¡¯ll lead the rest of them off if you have something to take care of here. Remember to give me a call if anything crops up, or if you n to leave." Xiangpeng felt a tug of pain when saw Vv run off without a word. He hurriedly rushed up to convey his parting words before leading the rest of his VIPs towards the autograph area.

    Luo Feng, who¡¯d tried to make a move on Shen Jingbin previously, tilted his head and gave a snort as he walked by the couple. It was almost as if he was acting like it was Shen Jingbin¡¯s loss.

    "Eh, was that Luo Feng? Do the two of you know him? And that other person was... Vv? Could it really be Vv?" ck Kite btedly asked as she stared in the direction that Luo Feng had walked off in. She then looked back at Vv who was still standing off to the side, and she nearly went bug-eyed.

    Wei Wei was just about to exin things, but Vv, who was looking a little impatient, pulled off his mask and said, "You¡¯re not going back today, right? Have you booked your hotel? You can stay at my ce if you haven¡¯t booked a room."

    "I¡¯ve already booked a room, so I won¡¯t need to trouble you."

    "Which hotel are you staying at? Let me have a look to see if it¡¯s up to snuff. If it¡¯s not, we can get it changed; the earlier, the better."

    "Can you stop trying to meddle in my affairs? I can sort things out on my own!" Wei Wei suddenly shouted, his voiceced with dissatisfaction.

    "Wei Wei!" Vv¡¯s expression didn¡¯t look any better now either.

    Wei Wei looked away from Vv and refused to say another word.

    Unable to understand why the two siblings had begun quarreling all of a sudden, ck Kite foolishly assumed that it was because she¡¯d asked an inappropriate question. Her voice with tinged with fear as she said, "I¡¯m sorry, Mr Vv. Did I ask something I wasn¡¯t supposed to? I may blurt out inappropriate things at times. I hope you¡¯ll forgive me if I¡¯ve offended you in any way."

    Fans would always subconsciously walk on eggshells when speaking with their idols for fear of identally incurring their displeasure. At the moment, ck Kite was more or less of the same mind. Although she didn¡¯t exactly know what she¡¯d done wrong, apologising to her idol was definitely the right move!

    Wei Wei chose this time to speak up. "You don¡¯t need to apologise to him, ck Kite. You¡¯ve done nothing wrong." His voice sounded a little calmer now, but he still bore a look of hostility when he faced Vv. "There¡¯s no need for you to feel so anxious. I came to B City to meet my friends. You¡¯ve got your own things to take care of, right? You don¡¯t need to worry about me."

    Vv said nothing and just stared fixedly at Wei Wei for several seconds before giving a sigh as if he¡¯d decided topromise. "Fine, I¡¯ll take care of my own matters then. Let me know when you decide to leave. Also, be sure to inform me of where you¡¯re staying and where you¡¯re going if you go out to have fun at night. Auntie went out of her way to call me and tell me to look after you since you wereing to B City. I can¡¯t very well disregard what she says."

    "..."

    "Alright then, you guys go have your fun. I¡¯ll be on my way." Vv donned his mask once again and made to leave. As he did so, he noticed Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning who were off to the side and looking as if they were enjoying the show. His brows furrowed and he thought for a bit before giving Shen Jingbin a pat on the shoulder.

    "Miss Shen? Could I trouble you to follow me for a bit? There¡¯s something I wish to discuss with you." After he spoke, he noticed a sh of displeasure on Zhao Chengning¡¯s face. "Mr Zhao, would it be alright if I had a word with your girlfriend?"

    Zhao Chengning had no intention of allowing it, but he gritted his teeth and nodded when he saw his girlfriend winking at him.

    And so, under the watchful gazes of everyone present, Vv pulled Shen Jingbin off to the side and said, "Miss Shen, are you amongst the friends Wei Wei¡¯s nning to meet today? If so, I hope you can help me look out for him."

    Shen Jingbin raised a brow. "You want me to monitor him?"

    "Nothing like that. He¡¯s a little meek, so I¡¯m worried that something untoward might happen to him when he isn¡¯t paying attention in B City."

    "Why ask me?"

    "You¡¯re the only one I know out of everyone present," Vv helplessly said.

    A thought urred to Shen Jingbin when she thought back to how Huajuan was head over heels for this person. "How do you n to thank me for helping you?"

    Vv froze for a moment before his expression turned serious. "What do you want as thanks?"

    "Do a recording for meter on. I¡¯ll decide its contents... Rx, I¡¯m a good person, and I won¡¯t make you spout nonsense. You should know that one of my friends is a fan of yours; the recording is for her."

    Vv mulled over it for several seconds before reluctantly agreeing. He handed her a name card. "Alright. My number¡¯s on this; please give me a call if anything happens. As for the recording we talked about, send me a private message via Wechat after you¡¯ve decided on the script and I¡¯ll record it for you."

    Shen Jingbin took the name card from him and shed him a brilliant smile that dazzled Vv for a brief moment.

    "It¡¯s a deal."

    The two of them then proceeded to shake hands to symbolise their agreement.

    Everyone else who was standing beside the stage could only see the legendary Vv and Shen Jingbin standing very close together as they talked about something. Following that, Shen Jingbin took something from Vv, and they shook hands, looking as if they¡¯de to some sort of agreement. After which, Vv turned back to nce at them before he took his leave.

    "Hey Nutty, what did you and my brother talk about?" Wei Wei asked a little anxiously when Shen Jingbin returned.

    Shen Jingbin brought up the name card in her hand and gave an even smile. "One of my friends is a fan of your brother. Before this, I asked your brother if he could give me his number, which he refused. But, he decided to give it to me now on ount of you. You brothers are quite close; it looks like he considers anyone who¡¯s a friend of yours as his friend as well."

    Wei Wei face turned an unnatural shade of red.

    Zhao Chengning: Is it really a good idea for you to be asking for another man¡¯s number in front of me?!

    Shen Jingbin gave Zhao Chengning a cating tug of his hand and whispered into his ear, "There¡¯s something fishy going on between these two brothers! Let me sate my curiosity! Muack muack!"

    Zhao Chengning helplessly put a hand on his forehead. He looked into Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes and saw that there was an inscrutable glint to it. Suddenly, he felt like he¡¯d been made privy to yet another hidden aspect of her personality.

 Chapter 368

    <strong>Chapter 368: Something Fishy¡¯s Afoot (2)</strong>

    This brief interlude passed quickly. Shen Jingbin led ck Kite and the rest of them to meet up with Qi Mu and the members of Jade Sea Pavilion before they continued their tour of the exhibition. By the time they were through, most of the morning had gone by. As there were quite a few people in their group, and all of them were either a beauty or a hunk in their own right, they quickly drew the attention of yers attending the event. When they found out that Shen Jingbin¡¯s group was from Jade Sea Pavilion, many of them secretly decided that they¡¯d leave their guild and join Jade Sea Pavilion instead! Regardless of whether they¡¯d manage to get in or not, they were going to send in their application first before thinking about anything else!

    In the afternoon, several other members from Jade Sea Pavilion who didn¡¯t receive an invitation, but happened to be in B City, dropped by. They decided by a unanimous vote to have an official gathering at night.

    As the second day of the event fell on a Sunday, although the event was still ongoing, it was about time for those who¡¯de to B City from other parts of the country to get ready to leave. So, this was their only chance to have a gathering.

    As Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s Leader and Vice-leader, along with the fact that they were locals and were loaded, the task of hosting the dinner naturally fell on Zhao Chengning and Next Week Is Unlikely¡¯s heads. Seeing as Zhao Chengning was romantically involved at present, Xia Qihui resigned himself to being the one who did the legwork and made the booking. On the other hand, Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t stand seeing how his sister had suddenly turned into a cute and helpless-looking girl. So, based on the principle of ¡¯see no evil¡¯, he decided to go along with Xia Qihui.

    When a man acts, the extent of his wealth can easily be seen.

    Xia Qihui booked a table for dinner at Blooming Flower Pavilion. As there were many of them, he even specifically requested Chen Yi to provide them with arge private room. Unfortunately for him, Zhao Chengning was on the verge of throttling Xia Qihui when he found out about it.

    Although there wasn¡¯t any secret rtionship between Zhao Chengning and Chen Yi, he was still afraid that his wife would be upset!

    In spite of his fears, Shen Jingbin took it in her stride and didn¡¯t look the least bit unhappy.

    It takes two hands to p, so Chen Yi didn¡¯t pose any threat whatsoever. She wasn¡¯t worth losing sleep over.

    It was a very enjoyable meal, and there was a harmonious atmosphere in the air. Everyone acted as if they were old friends, and they talked about everything under the sun. In fact, people who weren¡¯t in the know would never have guessed that this was their first time meeting one another.

    Halfway through dinner, Shen Jingbin stepped out to visit the washroom. Just as she was walking past the private room beside theirs, someone happened to open the door from within. With the door open, the once narrow passage became virtually impossible for her to cross. Left with no other choice, Shen Jingbin just stood there and waited. While waiting, she happened to nce at the person who¡¯d stepped out. Noticing her gaze, the person looked over to her as well, and they locked eyes.

    It was Luo Feng.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face darkened in that instant.

    Luo Feng froze as well before he immediately shed an immacte smile at her. He was confident that if any of his fans saw this smile of his, they¡¯d fall head over heels for him.

    Unfortunately for him, the only thing that Shen Jingbin felt was disgust.

    People that pretended to be elegant and refined were the most disgusting type of people; he didn¡¯t even know how to hide the lust in his eyes. Did he really think that everyone in the world was a fan of his?

    "What a coincidence, Miss Shen. Are you dining here as well?" Luo Feng shut the door and cast his gaze around. Upon realising that she was by herself, the smile on his face broadened by several degrees.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t feel like humouring him, so she just gave an apathetic nod in reply before she stepped past him and headed towards the washroom.

    "Don¡¯t be so cold, Miss Shen." Luo Feng caught up to her after she¡¯d walked quite a distance and was now in a more secluded area. He even boldly held onto her hand.

    "Mister, please maintain your sense of propriety. Don¡¯t try to make a move on me," Shen Jingbin said unkindly as she shook off Luo Feng¡¯s hand that had grabbed onto her own.

    "Miss Shen, this should be our first time meeting with one another. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve done anything to offend you in the past, right? Why¡¯re you so...?" Luo Feng blocked her way forward, and he now wore a smile that seemed somewhat sinister.

    Shen Jingbin cast a nce at him. "How I treat other people is my own business. Please step out of the way," she said, her voice ice cold.

    Luo Feng reached out to grab her once again. "Miss Shen, what you¡¯re doing might give me the impression that you¡¯re trying to y hard to get... Ah!" Luo Feng cried out before he had a chance to finish. Shen Jingbin had grabbed onto that perverted hand of his and turned it over. It was now stuck in a very unnatural position.

    Shen Jingbin eyed Luo Feng¡¯s face, which was now distorted by pain, and sneered. The warm lighting gave her expression a demonic sort of beauty. Luo Feng was mesmerised by it, and for an instant, his howls of pain even halted.

    "There¡¯s a saying: your appearance reflects the quality of your heart. With that vulgar look of yours, even taking another look at you would rot my eyes. Also, why don¡¯t you figure out how strong the other party is before you try acting like a hoodlum. Don¡¯t think all women are easy pickings."

    "L-l-let go!" Shen Jingbin¡¯s merciless tongueshing caused Luo Feng toe around. He drew out a breath of air as he cried for Shen Jingbin to release him. At the same time, he tried struggling free. He didn¡¯t know how she¡¯d done it, and she clearly only had one hand in her grasp, but every movement caused his entire body to re up in pain. Not only that, he found that his hand that was being held prisoner couldn¡¯t exert any strength whatsoever. Breaking free was impossible.

    "What¡¯s wrong? What¡¯s wrong?"

    Luo Feng¡¯s cries of pain had kicked up quite a bit of fuss. The people within the nearest two private rooms came running when they heard him. Their expressions twisted when they had a good look at the scene before them.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s handsome face darkened, and his displeasure was open for all to see as he walked forward. Seeing this, Xiangpeng¡¯s face paled, and his little heart trembled as he jogged up.

 Chapter 369

    <b>Chapter 369: A Single Dog¡¯s Life (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin finally released Luofeng when she realized a number of people had formed a crowd around them. She gave him a nudge forward, sending him stumbling towards Xiangpeng, who was making a beeline for him.

    "Are you alright?" Zhao Chengning asked as he briskly walked over to Shen Jingbin and ced his hands on her shoulders. She nodded, and he let out a sigh of relief. He was well aware that an average person was no match for her, but he was still worried about hering out on the losing end.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s eyes narrowed when he turned his attention to Luofeng, who was currently flexing his wrist. He then looked to Xiangpeng and said, "Xiangpeng, in the future, I think yourpany should take a person¡¯s moral standing into consideration before inviting them as a guest of honor. Otherwise, they might end up staining yourpany¡¯s reputation."

    Xiangpeng had never seen Zhao Chengning get angry in the three years he¡¯d known him as a ssmate. With how upset Zhao Chengning was right now, Xiangpeng could feel himself breaking out in a cold sweat. He hurriedly nodded his head, and said, "Got it! I¡¯ll head over and handle this matter myself, and I¡¯ll report back to you afterwards."

    Luofeng knew this meant that Yiju was nning on ¡¯taking care¡¯ of him. He let out a howl of frustration before turning his attention to Xiangpeng.

    "Mr Xiang, what¡¯s the meaning of this? Yourpany was the one that invited me for this event. Now, not only are you not providing any assistance when I¡¯m injured, you¡¯re even nning on looking into whether I¡¯m responsible for this incident? Is this how Yiju handles its rtionships with its partners? Before wrapping things up with those two over there, why don¡¯t you answer to me first? Otherwise, this won¡¯t be thest you hear of me!"

    "I¡¯ll leave this to you then, Xiangpeng. I¡¯m sure you know what I mean by that," said Zhao Chengning as he shot Luofeng a look of disgust. He then helped Shen Jingbin up, and said to hispanions, "Let¡¯s go back."

    "Leader¡¯s so cool, what a man!" I¡¯m Not A Monster said with a perverted look on his face.

    "Get lost, you damn gay," said I¡¯m Really Not A Monster with a look of disgust.

    Actually, I Am A Monster chimed in as well. "Now taking votes: those who want to kick I¡¯m Not A Monster out of the room raise your hand. Yup, I¡¯m raising both hands."

    "Me too... Alright, it¡¯s unanimous, you¡¯re getting kicked out," I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me said.

    "... You assholes!"

    Xiangpeng gazed at Zhao Chengning andpany with lingering fear in his heart until they rounded the corner and disappeared from sight. He then turned his attention back to Luofeng and said, "Luofeng, I¡¯m afraid our partnership hase to an end. We¡¯ll settle your fees for making an appearance today, but we won¡¯t be inviting you to any future events."

    Luofeng¡¯s face turned pale. He shot a nce at the people behind him who were supposed to be hispanions, and said, "Mr Xiang, don¡¯t you think you¡¯re being rather unkind? How are you going to exin this to my fans?"

    Xiangpeng immediately broke into sarcasticughter. After a while, heposed himself and pretended to put on a serious front. "A word of advice, Luofeng: don¡¯t be too full of yourself. Do you have any idea just who you¡¯ve offended today? Putting aside Young Master Zhao, Miss Shen alone can crush you beneath her heel! Forget being repentant; now you¡¯re even thinking of threatening them. Kids these days really are full of themselves. Do you really think things like those online fangirls of yours can help you in any way? Although the saying ¡¯with money, anything is possible¡¯ isn¡¯t all that right of a thing to adhere too, it is the truth. Go ahead and try blowing things up, we¡¯ll see who has thestugh at the end of it."

    "You!" Luofeng was so enraged by what Xiangpeng had said that he couldn¡¯t get another word out.

    "I¡¯ve already taken care of the bill for your hotel, so there¡¯s nothing else that needs to be said. I hope to see you gone by tomorrow morning, otherwise, things aren¡¯t going to be so rosy if I have toe looking for you."

    "So that¡¯s how Yiju wants to y it, huh? Alright then, just you wait and see!" Luofeng shouted, his chest heaving. He then red at everyone present and stormed off.

    Xiangpeng stood in stunned silence for several moments as he watched Luofeng¡¯s departing figure before giving a small sigh. "Haah,cking the ability to read other people is fine and all, but it¡¯s a wonder how you managed to get to this point in life with that personality of yours."

    One of the people standing off to the side noticed Xiangpeng¡¯s expression and approached to give him aforting pat on the shoulder. "Don¡¯t take what Luofeng did to heart, Brother Xiang. On the surface, he might seem like a decent enough guy, but people in the know are all aware of his bad reputation. He was clearly in the wrong to begin with, so even if he tries to besmirch Yiju¡¯s reputation, there aren¡¯t many people who¡¯re going to believe him."

    Xiangpeng smiled at the person who was trying tofort him. "I¡¯m not sure what everyone¡¯s takeaway from today¡¯s incident was, but all I can say is that as long as you earnestly cooperate with us at Yiju, and don¡¯t do anything inappropriate, Yiju will definitely offer you many benefits... Alrights, let¡¯s head back too. Let¡¯s not spoil the mood just because of one bad incident." With that, Xiangpeng¡¯s group made their way back to their private room.

    Going back to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side of things...

    Upon returning to their private room, someone started up a round of ridiculing, and the target of said ridicule just so happened to be Luofeng. Those who weren¡¯t aware of what he was truly like would be blissfully unaware, while those who found out about it would be taken aback. Who would¡¯ve thought that this rather famous individual had such a dark history about him. The more Zhao Chengning heard about Luofeng, the darker his expression became. He silently railed at himself for letting that piece of trash go so easily.

    Whenever youths met up, the one activity that they¡¯d be remiss to leave out would be KTV. After their meal, the group happily made their way over to a KTV outlet, proiming that they¡¯d party all night.

 Chapter 370

    <b>Chapter 370: A Single Dog¡¯s Life (2)</b>

    Several ¡¯interesting¡¯ songs came up, and the atmosphere in the room became even more lively. Singing wasn¡¯t up Shen Jingbin¡¯s alley, so she remained nestled by Zhao Chengning¡¯s side as she watched the rest of the group have their fun.

    After several rounds of alcohol, National Treasures, who¡¯d be a little tipsy, suddenly suggested that they y Truth or Dare. The moment Shen Jingbin heard that, she vigorously shook her head like a rattle-drum.

    There were far too many uncertain elements in a game like that. There¡¯s no way she¡¯d y!

    Unfortunately for her, even after drinking herself stupid, National Treasures still somehow managed to think of her. When National Treasures caught sight of Shen Jingbin¡¯s shaking head, her hand mmed down onto the coffee table with a ¡¯bang¡¯, giving everyone a big shock.

    "G-g-goddess, you have t-to participate in this g-game... I¡¯m the one who managed to get the peach hairpin, so I¡¯m using my request to make you y this game with us."

    Shen Jingbin continued to resolutely shake her head. "I refuse. I¡¯m not part of Jade Sea Pavilion!"

    "I don¡¯t care. You are who you marry. You *hic* you¡¯re married to our Leader, s-so you¡¯re one of us," National Treasures said shamelessly.

    Everyone around them started kicking up a fuss as well.

    "Don¡¯t be like that, Nutty~ We haven¡¯t gotten a chance to y with you yet today. We¡¯re all really sad~"

    "Nutty, muack~ Look into my eyes, see how filled with sincerity they are! How can you bear to reject one of your fans?~"

    "Come on Nutty, we¡¯re all good people! Even if you choose to do a dare, the most we¡¯ll ask is for you to kiss Leader. We won¡¯t ask you to do anything too outrageous."

    Obviously, Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t hold back either, and joined in with the rest of them. "Come on sis, don¡¯t be such a downer. Join us! Either way, with Chengning around, you don¡¯t have to worry about being taken advantage of! You¡¯re just a scaredy cat if you don¡¯t wanna y!"

    "..." Fine, I admit I¡¯m a scaredy cat!

    Feeling everyone¡¯s passionate stares bearing down on her, Shen Jingbin forced down her saliva and turned to look at Zhao Chengning, only to find that he was smiling at her, his eyes twinkling with delight. Ovee with the urge to throw a tantrum, she reached out and gave Zhao Chengning a pinch with just the right amount of strength. She then braced herself and said, "Alright, I¡¯ll y."

    Everyone gave a celebratory whoop, and the game began in earnest.

    As expected, Shen Jingbin¡¯s initial decision not to y was the right one! As it turned out, the first two victims in the game were herself and Lingering White Clouds.

    "Hahaha, Goddess, Lingering, the two of you have quite the luck. What a strong showing right at the start of the game~ Alrighty then, make your choice. Truth or dare!?"

    Shen Jingbin looked at Lingering White Clouds, but she appeared just as helpless. "I¡¯m fine with either. What about you, Nutty?"

    "I choose dare," Shen Jingbin resolutely dered.

    A ¡¯tsk¡¯ of irritation could be heard from Shen Jingchen. Judging from his sigh, Zhao Chengning appeared to be just as disappointed.

    "A dare, huh? What a waste. But, don¡¯t think it¡¯s going to be easier just because it¡¯s a dare. Heh heh, the two of you have to passionately kiss the wall for ten seconds!"

    "Pfft!"

    The moment National Treasures said that, several people burst outughing. What the hell is ¡¯passionately kiss the wall for ten seconds¡¯?! National Treasures, your brain truly works in mysterious ways!

    However, the two people involved actually felt that it was a pretty good dare, all things considered. They exchanged a nce with one another and stood up.

    Just as Shen Jingbin was about to step past Zhao Chengning, she was caught off guard by him and was pulled on top of hisp. He wrapped his arms around her, a look of anguish on his face as he eyed National Treasures and said weakly, "National Treasures, seeing my girlfriend kiss the wall before my very eyes wounds my pride."

    National Treasures couldn¡¯t weather his onught, and immediately corrected herself. "Ahem, uh, those with a boyfriend are allowed to kiss their boyfriends for ten seconds instead."

    The whole room went quiet for a moment before breaking out into uproar of cheers and whistles. Even the Four Monsters were apuding her in their hearts.

    People whose excitement increased upon on seeing other couples make out, than if they themselves were to do it, were truly an enigma.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t ustomed to public shows of affection, but the thought of rejecting the dare never crossed her mind. After all, just imagine how big the hit to his reputation would be if she rejected him.

    While still remaining nestled against his chest, Shen Jingbin slightly adjusted her posture to make herself morefortable.

    Let it be known that she was a kind and considerate girlfriend!

    Zhao Chengning had never expected such an amenable reaction from her, but the reason she was like that became clear to him when he thought about it. In the moment, the warmth in his eyes almost seemed to overflow, and he found it impossible to conceal his emotions.

    The lighting in the room was dim to begin with, and looking face to face with one another made the atmosphere even more ambiguous. Zhao Chengning slowly drew nearer to her, and their breathing interweaved to be one. They felt abnormally warm, and their heartbeats sounded unfathomably louder than normal. Ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum. There was no way to figure out who the heartbeats belonged to.

    Zhao Chengning felt something soft touch his lips. Shen Jingbin was looking at him withughter in her eyes. In that moment, the light in the room was like starlight falling into her eyes. He lifted up the hand that was wrapped around her waist and used it to cover her eyes as they made his body temperature rise. He was deathly afraid that he might lose control of himself and...

    For some inexplicable reason, even the single loners around them felt their faces heating up.

    This didn¡¯t make sense! Weren¡¯t they all veterans when it came to life experiences?! Why were they feeling so innocent?!

    Ten seconds passed in what felt like the blink of an eye. As other people were present, the couple shared a simple kiss; there wasn¡¯t any hot and heavy French kissing. In spite of that, the overwhelmingly sweet atmosphere that they¡¯d about them still managed to sessfully cate the hearts of the single loners around them.

    And so, the game continued.

    Did Lingering White Clouds kiss the wall, you ask?

    Ah, who cares about that! Soaking up the single dog¡¯s life is more important!

 Chapter 371

    <strong>Chapter 371: Taking Shamelessness To The Next Level (1)</strong>

    The group partiedte into the night before returning to the hotel. Both Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning¡¯s cars were parked in the hotel¡¯s carpark, so they followed the rest of them back to the hotel as well.

    They weren¡¯t the only ones who were having ate night out. Just before reaching the hotel, they ran into another group of people who looked like they were having a guild meetup as well.

    Said group was now trailing behind them, and it was clear that they¡¯d had one cup too many. It was the middle of the night, but they were still belting out a merry little tune at the top of their lungs. Shen Jingbin did her best to figure out what song they were singing, but s, try as she might, she wasn¡¯t able to even after some time had passed.

    "Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯re a much better singer than they are," Zhao Chengning suddenly said as he lowered his head and whispered to her; a smile ying on his lips.

    Much to the surprise of everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion, it turned out that the perfect beauty, Shen Jingbin, had no talent for singing whatsoever! Although one couldn¡¯t say that her singing was bad to the point of her being tone deaf, it was just very... average. In Shen Jingchen¡¯s words, it was: a waste of a perfectly good set of vocal chords.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes narrowed in anger and she gave his shoulder a hard squeeze. "Was that apliment or an insult?"

    Grinning, Zhao Chengning pulled her into his embrace.

    Shortly after, a man suddenly jogged up to them and asked, "Excuse me, may I know which guild you guys are from?"

    Pure Crane and Qi Mu brought up the rear of the group, while Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning stood at the forefront. Interest piqued by themotion, they stopped in their tracks and turned back to find out what was happening.

    The person who¡¯d approached them turned out to be a young man. He wasn¡¯t all that handsome, but he had a rather likable face. At the moment, his cheeks were a little flushed, likely due to him drinking beforehand.

    Upon noticing the puzzled looks on their faces, the youth scratched his head and shed a candid smile. "I uh, was feeling a little curious since I saw so many people in front of me, so I decided toe over and ask where you guys were from. Would you mind telling me? We can party up in the future if we ever bump into one another~"

    Likely due to how frank the youth was, Pure Crane decided to give him a proper response. "The few of us are from Bronze Tree."

    The youth appeared a little bewildered when he heard the words ¡¯Bronze Tree¡¯, but realization dawned upon his face shortly after. "Oh, it¡¯s the same Bronze Tree that formed an alliance with Jade Sea Pavilion, right? Looks like my luck¡¯s pretty good today! Are the people in the front part of your guild as well?"

    Pure Crane nced in the direction the youth was referring to and figured that he was probably talking about Sheng Jingbin and Zhao Chengning. Just as he was about to reply, a man wearing a tuxedo walked up to them.

    "Hey, what¡¯re you doing?"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes narrowed the moment she heard the man¡¯s voice. It turned out to be the one who¡¯d challenged her and Zhao Chengning to apetition in the day, only to leave with his tail between his legs when he lost.

    Qi Mu¡¯s gaze was fixed on the man, the corners of her eyes slightly red.

    Shen Jingbin motioned at Qi Mu with her chin. "Have a look at Qi Mu." Puzzled, Zhao Chengning turned his attention to Qi Mu.

    The youth¡¯s expression brightened when he spotted the other man. He grabbed the man¡¯s hand and raised his voice. "Bro, these people y <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> too!"

    The man gave an emphatic grunt before giving Pure Crane andpany a casual sweeping nce. When he saw Qi Mu, he paused for a moment and knitted his brows, almost as if he were considering something.

    "Excuse me Miss, have we met before?"

    Qi Mu¡¯s expression darkened for the first time today. "Sorry, but your method of picking up girls is way too old fashioned."

    The man¡¯s face twitched for a moment before he turned his attention away from her. It was then that he noticed Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning who were slightly further behind, and realization dawned upon his face. He immediately stepped past Pure Crane andpany and presented himself before Shen Jingbin. "So, we meet again."

    Shen Jingbin almost wanted to roll her eyes, but Zhao Chengning jumped in before she could do anything. "And you are...? Have we met before?"

    The man¡¯s face twitched yet again. "I, I¡¯m from..."

    But, he was interrupted before he could finish.

    "Sorry, but it¡¯ste, and we have to head back and get some rest. Could you please step aside?" Unexpectedly, the one who spoke up was Qi Mu.

    The man looked over to Qi Mu and was faced with her darkened expression and his cousin¡¯s look of obliviousness. He gave an awkwardugh and said, "Haha, my apologies. Where are my manners... I¡¯m Dragon¡¯s w from Majestic, and this is my little brother, Wyvern. Let¡¯s party up in the future if we get the chance."

    Qi Mu butted in once again and said, "We¡¯ll see."

    Dragon¡¯s w didn¡¯t have anything to say this time. His face was scrunched up in displeasure as Zhao Chengning¡¯s group nced at him with either indifference or curiosity as they walked off.

    "Bro, did you do something to offend them? Why does it look like that girl has something against you?"

    Dragon¡¯s w found that rather curious too. "I don¡¯t even know who they are, or what guild they¡¯re from. How could I possibly have offended them?! What did you say to them beforehand?"

    "Ah, I just asked them which guild they were from. They told me they were from Bronze Tree."

    "Bronze Tree..." It felt like something was on the tip of his tongue, but before he had the chance to recall what it was, the rest of hispanions caught up to him.

 Chapter 372

    <strong>Chapter 372: Taking Shamelessness To The Next Level (2)</strong>

    By this time, Zhao Chengning andpany had already created some distance between them and Dragon¡¯s w. ck Kite looked over to Qi Mu, and it looked like she¡¯d been scared witless. A wave of concern for Qi Mu washed over her, and her intuition told her that there was something up with that man too.

    "What¡¯s wrong, Qi Mu? Do you know that man?"

    "Hm?" Qi Mu looked as if she¡¯d suddenly been wrenched free from her thoughts, and was ovee by a brief stint of confusion. Upon making out what ck Kite¡¯s question was, her confusion quickly turned into resentment and bitterness. A thought suddenly urred to Shen Jingbin when she caught Qi Mu subconsciously looking back.

    Sure enough, Qi Mu¡¯s answer proved her right.

    "That man was the one who caused Whitey, Gentle Kite, and me to lose our levels."

    "Ah!" ck Kite cried out softly in surprise. "So, he¡¯s the one? I never expected someone decent looking like him to turn out to be such scum! Good thing my little brother didn¡¯te today, otherwise, he might¡¯ve tried to beat him up," she said as she gave herself a calming pat on the chest.

    "You¡¯re the only one who thought that that man looked decent. Didn¡¯t you see how he stuck to Nutty the moment heid eyes on her? Calling men like him ¡¯trash¡¯ is an insult to trash," Delicate Flower said.

    Qi Mu nibbled at her lips as she looked to Shen Jingbin and said with some hesitation, "Nutty, do you know him? He said..."

    Shen Jingbin knew what she was getting at. "No, I don¡¯t know him. But, I happened to run into him at the exhibition hall in the afternoon. He¡¯s a brainless, arrogant idiot."

    Qi Mu¡¯s expression turned unreadable.

    Seeing this, Pure Crane attempted to console her. "Men like him aren¡¯t worth reminiscing over. Knowing his true colours sooner rather thanter is a good thing."

    "I wasn¡¯t reminiscing about him. It¡¯s just hard for me to look at him. He couldn¡¯t even recognize me... Sigh, do you think I¡¯m a fool?"

    Shen Jingbin really felt like nodding her head and saying ¡¯yes¡¯, but she held herself back when saw how Qi Mu looked like she was about to break out in tears at any moment.

    While the group was doing their best to console Qi Mu, telling her not to bother about such scum, they suddenly heard the impatient shuffling of footsteps from behind them, followed by a man¡¯s excited yet somewhat frustrated voice.

    "Qi Mu! You¡¯re Qi Mu, right?!"

    Dragon¡¯s w came running over and went straight up to Qi Mu, grabbed her shoulders, and gave her a good shake. In his excitement, he failed to control his strength and nearly shook her senseless.

    "Qi Mu, it¡¯s you, right?! I knew you looked familiar... Don¡¯t you live in C City? Why¡¯re you here? I asked you toe over to B City in the past, but you refused. We wouldn¡¯t be like this if you¡¯d listened and hade to B City a little earlier."

    Dragon¡¯s w¡¯s tone made everyone present feel like puking. This person was rewriting what it meant to be ¡¯shameless¡¯ all by himself!

    "L-let go of me!" Shortly after, Qi Mu came to her senses and she began struggling to break free. Unfortunately for her, there was too much of a disparity in strength between a man and a woman and she failed to do so.

    Being the nearest to Qi Mu, The Winds Of Ximen and Cheshire Cat rushed over to help her. One of them held the man back, while the other shielded her.

    Dragon¡¯s w wasn¡¯t the least bit happy about being interrupted, and he began swearing up a storm. "Who the hell do you think you are? What¡¯re you doing? What I say to my wife is none of your business. Butt out!"

    Qi Mu, who was wrapped in Weiwei¡¯s embrace, was so ovee with anger that her body began to shudder.

    How blind must she have been to actually date such a ¡¯man amongst men¡¯?

    Pure Crane couldn¡¯t bear to look on any longer and stood between Qi Mu and the man. "Take this nonsense about her being your wife and whatnot somewhere else. There¡¯s no wife of yours here."

    "The f*ck did youe from, you little shit? Do you have any part to y in this? Listen up, that woman behind you is my wife in-game. We agreed to extend that to real life as well, so she¡¯s my wife both in-game and outside of it. Don¡¯t butt into our matters!"

    "Bullshit!" At this moment, Qi Mu broke free from Weiwei. "Your wife is Angelic Mira! You have nothing to do with me, so stop spouting bullshit!" cried Qi Mu with reddened eyes.

    Dragon¡¯s w, who still couldn¡¯t break free from The Wind¡¯s Of Ximen¡¯s hold, immediately softened his tone. "Qi Mu, I know you me me for not helping youst time, but you know how powerful Mira- no, that woman is. If I stepped out to help you, she would¡¯ve made things even more difficult for you... You... you have to know that I did this for your sake... I still have that picture you sent me of you in a nightgown fromst time. If you don¡¯t forgive me, I-I can¡¯t be sure of where this photo will end up tomorrow."

    Unexpectedly, he decided to turn to threats at the end. Qi Mu¡¯s eyes turned yet another shade redder.

    The photo that Dragon¡¯s w was referring to was the one she¡¯d sent when they first got together, and they were in their ¡¯honeymoon phase¡¯. At the time, she didn¡¯t know of the evil that lurked within the hearts of men, and she¡¯d hadplete confidence in herself. One word from him was all it took for her to send him an R18 photo of herself. She¡¯d even fantasised about how she was going to have him wrapped around her thumb. Although the photo didn¡¯t reveal her entire face, those who knew her would be able to immediately figure out who she was.

    "You bastard!" Unable to keep his anger in check any longer, The Winds Of Ximen rushed at him and gave Dragon¡¯s w a good kick.

    Dragon¡¯s w let out a blood-curdling shriek before falling to the floor.

    "Eh? What¡¯s wrong? What are you guys doing?" The members of Jade Sea Pavilion who¡¯d drunk themselves silly and hadn¡¯t noticed themotion behind them finally realized that something was wrong and came running back to see what was happening. They couldn¡¯t help but be taken aback when they saw The Winds Of Ximen kicking someone, while the rest of the people present had dark looks on their faces.

    Why¡¯d it feel like the entire world had changed in just the blink of an eye?

    Before they had the chance to figure out what was going on, they heard Shen Jingbin speak up in a conspiratorial whisper, frostcing her voice, "Zhao Chengning, would you stop me if I decided to beat someone up?"

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice sounded just as dangerous as hers did, "I was just about to ask you the same question."

 Chapter 373

    <b>Chapter 373: The Beauty Takes Action (1)</b>

    Dragon¡¯s w, who wasn¡¯t aware of the impending danger, was still going off on his rant that was bing increasingly abusive.

    Shen Jingbin walked up to Wei Wei and extracted Qi Mu from his embrace. She then gave Qi Mu a gentle pat on the shoulder and whispered a few words offort into her ears. Shen Jingbin¡¯s voice was pleasant to begin with, but it sounded even more luxuriant when she put her mind to it, allowing her to stabilize Qi Mu¡¯s mental state. Once done, Shen Jingbin turned her attention back to Wei Wei and shot him a meaningful gaze, prompting him to retreat with Qi Mu in tow. With a nod of his head, Wei Wei half coaxed and half forced Qi Mu back towards the hotel.

    "Stop right there you little shit, where the hell do you think you¡¯re running off to with my wife?!" Dragon¡¯s w scrambled to his feet when he saw Wei Wei walking off with Qi Mu. Unfortunately for him, he was struck by The Winds Of Ximen and sent crumbling to the ground the moment he stood up, his head swimming in pain.

    Before the pain subsided, a pair of long slender legs appeared before him. He looked up, only to find that they belonged to the woman he¡¯d been lusting after. In that moment, his face took on an exceptionally vulgar look.

    "What are you ying at, Miss? Weren¡¯t you the one who said that you didn¡¯t know me? In that case, why¡¯re you meddling in my affairs? And, what are you nning to do now? Beat me up? I¡¯ll have you know that assault is a criminal offence! I¡¯ll report you to the police if you dare toy a hand on me! I know people in the public security bure..."

    Before he had a chance to finish, he felt a jolt of pain from his chest. It was so painful that it felt like he¡¯d broken a rib. He copsed onto the floor and erupted in a fit of coughing, all five of his senses inplete disarray.

    "You *cough* you actually hit me... Don¡¯t think I¡¯ll hold back just because you¡¯re a little *cough* pretty! I know people in high ces! You¡¯d better *cough* apologize to me right now, or else just wait and see what¡¯ll happen to you tomorrow! *cough cough*"

    Shen Jingbin sneered and looked down at him with her eyebrows raised in askance. "If you¡¯re really a man, you¡¯ll get up right now and fight me one on one. Otherwise, shut your trap and stop spouting rubbish!" Shen Jingbin pulled out her handphone from her handbag and sent it flying towards Dragon¡¯s w¡¯s chest that had previously been trampled on, eliciting yet another groan of pain from him. "You know people in high ces, right? Here¡¯s a phone, go give them a call. I¡¯d like to know just how powerful these backers of yours are."

    In reality, Dragon¡¯s w was the type of person who feigned his strength. To him, women were akin to flower vases. This was particrly so for beautiful women. But, to his surprise, he was left without any recourse the moment Shen Jingbin took action. To top it up, judging from the fearless looks on both her and her boyfriend¡¯s faces, it was clear that they weren¡¯t your regr everyday person. At this point, his alcohol addled brain finally sobered a little, and he realised that he¡¯d bitten off more than he could chew.

    "Why aren¡¯t you saying anything now? What happened to all that bluster?" The Winds Of Ximen asked sarcastically. If not for his rationality holding him back, he would¡¯ve long since gone up and given Dragon¡¯s w a few more kicks so that he¡¯d be bedridden for at least a month.

    Dragon¡¯s w continued to remain silent.

    Zhao Chengning, watching off by the sidelines, suddenly sneered. He stepped forward and took his girlfriend into his arms before shooting Dragon¡¯s w a look of disdain. "You good-for-nothing coward."

    One look from Zhao Chengningbined with his five words made Dragon¡¯s w¡¯s face flush red in anger. However, the throbbing pain in his chest reminded him that he was, in fact, a good-for-nothing coward thatcked even the ability to defend himself.

    Pure Crane jumped in at just the right time to help smooth things over, and urged them to leave. "Alright, it¡¯s not worth wasting our time on a good-for-nothing like him. Let¡¯s head back."

    The sight of a sniveling man killed off whatever she¡¯d had nned. She shot him a look of disgust before walking off. Zhao Chengning knelt beside Dragon¡¯s w and rummaged through his pockets for a moment before fishing out his name card. He then gave Dragon¡¯s w a profound smile and walked off after Shen Jingbin.

    When Shen Jingbin andpany had walked out of sight, Dragon¡¯s w¡¯spanions finally appeared. They were faced with the shocking sight of him lying on the ground, and hurriedly rushed over to help him.

    "Bro, what happened? Didn¡¯t you say you saw someone you know? How¡¯d you end up like this?" Wyvern dashed to his brother¡¯s side and looked over him anxiously.

    "I¡¯m fine. I just felt a little woozy and tripped." When Dragon¡¯s w saw the looks of concern on everyone¡¯s faces, he mped down on the hatred brewing within his heart and acted gave an indifferent reply. With the help of one of hispanions, he managed to get back to his feet. "*Cough cough*, let¡¯s head back."

    Hispanions nced worriedly at one another. This definitely wasn¡¯t something as simple as him just falling over. But, since the person himself wasn¡¯t willing to say anything, it wouldn¡¯t be right of them to force the matter. After all, this was their first time meeting one another; they were only acquaintances.

    Upon returning to the hotel, Shen Jingbin andpany found out that Wei Wei had spent this time consoling Qi Mu. Having calmed down, she¡¯d gone to sleep. With thest of their concerns taken care of, they bid those that were staying at the hotel good night and made ready to leave for home.

    After exiting the hotel, Jiang Weiwei checked the time and made a suggestion. "Hey, Nutty and Leader, if I remember correctly, the two of you live pretty far away, right? Since it¡¯s sote, why don¡¯t you crash at my ce instead? I have a ce near here and there¡¯s quite a few empty rooms... Oh and the other two of you can stay over as well."

    Normally, Shen Jingbin would reject such a suggestion without the slightest bit of hesitation. But, this time around, there was the inclusion of her brother who¡¯d drunk himself stupid and had half a mind to just roll over and fall asleep on the spot. Before she had the chance to reject Jiang Weiwei¡¯s offer, Shen Jingchen butted in and agreed. Shen Jingbin¡¯s ¡¯agreement¡¯ led to Zhao Chengning¡¯s silent consent as well. Xia Qi, who was the only one left who¡¯d yet to decide, looked around for a bit before taking Jiang Weiwei up on her offer as well, since he was feeling tipsy too.

    With that, the five of them drove off in two cars in the dark of the night and made for Jiang Weiwei¡¯s apartment.

 Chapter 374

    <strong>Chapter 374: The Beauty Takes Action (2)</strong>

    Jiang Weiwei¡¯s apartment was in an upmarket district, and was only a few minutes drive away from the hotel. It was just your standard three room apartment unit, of which, one room was used as a study. However, due to her not using it much, she¡¯d decided to convert it into a guest room that was just a little smaller than usual. Naturally, this room was assigned to Shen Jingchen.

    Due to the maliciousness thaty in the hearts of single people, Jiang Weiwei rejected Shen Jingbin¡¯s idea for the two of them to share a bed, and instead allowed Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning to have the master bedroom to themselves.

    Yeah right! If she¡¯d actually agreed, then Zhao Chengning probably would¡¯ve torn her head off!

    Feeling helpless, Shen Jingbin could only grit her teeth and ept while the person standing behind her had a profound smile on their face.

    It was gettingte, so Zhao Chengning just took a quick shower and made a beeline for the room.

    By this time, the ceiling light was already turned off. He was left with the warm yellow glow from the wall light, which cast hazy shadows around the entire room.

    A small mound could be seen sticking out of the bed. Judging from its size, he guessed that it was Shen Jingbin lying on her side.

    He subconsciously quietened his steps, slowly walked over, lifted one of the corners of the nkets, and carefullyid down onto the soft mattress, gradually sinking into it.

    "You¡¯re done washing up?" Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes were slightly zed over as she turned to face him. A lemon scented fragrance wafted into her nose; the exact same fragrance that she had on her.

    "Mm. Were you sleeping?" he asked as he gently shifted closer to her side, wrapped his arms around her waist, and rested his beautifully shaped chin on top of her head.

    With her head buried in his chest, her voice came out muffled, "Not yet."

    Zhao Chengning rested a hand on her waist and felt how perfect it was as he subconsciously stroked it. Her slim and shapely waistline that didn¡¯t have a hint of excess fat was probably a result of her practicing martial arts from a young age. Going a little lower, he could make out two dimples on her back.

    He suddenly thought back to something Xuya had said when he was showing off one of his girlfriends: women with back dimples were the sexiest. Back then he¡¯d scoffed at what Xuya had said, thinking that only perverts like Xuya would believe in something like that. But now, maybe there was some truth to what he¡¯d said. If nothing else, his throat was feeling like it was about to dry up.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s waist was one of her sensitive spots. Her lower back, in particr, was especially sensitive. It normally wasn¡¯t that sensitive whenever Zhao Chengning drew her by the waist. But today, with hisrge warm hands gently rubbing against her back, separated only by a thin set of pyjamas, left her feeling like she was about to burn up whenever he brushed against her bare skin.

    "Up for a chat?" he asked as he angled his head towards her ear and blew against it.

    Shen Jingbin buried her head even deeper into his chest. A long time passed before he finally heard a faint "Mm." from her. Her voice was akin to that of a kitten that had just had just woken up. It was so soft and delicate that it could make a person melt into a puddle of water.

    Zhao Chengning couldn¡¯t help but break into a smile. He lifted up a hand and run it through her hair like ab, going past locks of her jet ck hair that had fallen onto the pillow. In the warm glow cast by the wall light, Shen Jingbin¡¯s exceptionally cared for ck glossy hair, which was spread out on the white pillow, had an inexplicable allure to it.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s freshly bathed body was starting to warm up as well.

    In an attempt to distract himself, Zhao Chengning tried to change the topic. "That kick you did when you trampled Dragon¡¯s w looked pretty ferocious. From the way he acted, one might think you even broke his ribs. National Treasures and rest of them were pretty stunned by what you did."

    "I made sure to hold back. He only felt pain, but none of his bones were broken. He won¡¯t be able to find anything even if he goes to a doctor to get it checked out," Shen Jingbin replied as she stretch out a hand and wrapped it around his lean waist. Even with his pyjamas in the way, she could still feel his sturdy abs. Out of curiosity, she let go of him and tried pushing against him a little. She tried jabbing at his stomach with a finger at first before full on feeling it up with her hand. "You¡¯ve done a pretty good job training up your stomach."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s breathing suddenly became heavier, carrying with it a warmth that was filled with eagerness as itnded against her neck.

    "Don¡¯t feel me up," he said as he released her waist and caught hold of her rogue hands.

    Shen Jingbin let out a dissatisfied ¡¯"Tsk.", but she listened to what he¡¯d said and obediently returned her hands to his chest.

    "These hands of yours really are lethal weapons. When do you n on giving me a lesson?" Zhao Chengning asked.

    "Do you think any Tom, Dick or Harry can learn it? This was a result of years of sweat and blood ever since I was a child," she said as she wrinkled her nose, clearly unhappy with this question of his.

    "Hm? Why¡¯s that?"

    "I was a little mischievous when I was a kid. This was especially so when I was learning martial arts with my Grandfather. There was one time back then when I got into a fight with a boy at school and I broke his nose. It just so happened that his parents were one of the city¡¯s officials and had quite a lot of clout, so the matter was blown up. Even though Grandfather and Grandmother managed to clear everything up by making an appearance, because of that, the very first thing that my Grandfather taught me was to control my strength so that I¡¯d never causesting damage."

    Zhao Chengning burst outughing when he heard that. He never knew that something like that had happened when she was younger. "Looks like I can¡¯t afford to offend you in the future. I won¡¯t even have a chance to seek redress if you beat me up."

    Shen Jingbin red at him. "So, you¡¯re nning to offend me?"

    Zhao Chengning lowered his head and looked into her eyes. It looked as if there were stars dancing in his eyes, and they shone so brightly that it could blind a person. "By doing this."

    After saying that, he lowered his head and pressed his lips against hers. Feeling like that wasn¡¯t enough, he used his tongue to pry open her lips and snaked it into her mouth. His hands that he¡¯d left wrapped around her waist weren¡¯t left idling either as they explored the edges of her clothes and ran about the curvature of her back, gradually making their way upwards, lighting fires throughout her body in the process...

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind was in a haze when she heard a man whisper three words into her ear.

    "I love you."

 Chapter 375

    <b>Chapter 375: Distorting The Truth (1)</b>

    The next day, Shen Jingbin was woken up by Shen Jingchen¡¯s blood-curdling screams. By this time, Zhao Chengning was no longer around. She ran her hand over the part of the bed that he¡¯d slept on and found that it was cold. Looks like he¡¯d been awake for a while.

    As she thought this, the room door was thrown open and in came Zhao Chengning with something in his hands.

    "You awake? Jiang Weiwei brought back porridge when she went out. I got some for you." He walked over to the bedside and ced the bowl of porridge atop the bedside table. Noticing that she was just sitting on the bed and staring at him, he reached out and patted her head.

    The porridge was clearly just cooked, and was exquisitely prepared. One whiff was all it took to whet a person¡¯s appetite.

    "What was that sound just now?" she asked.

    "Your brother was grousing about how the porridge Jiang Weiwei brought back didn¡¯t suit his pte, so he was taken care of."

    "Tch, just leave him to his tantrums."

    "I¡¯ll wait for you outside. Come out once you¡¯re done washing up. Pure Crane said that his and ck Kite¡¯s tickets are at ten. If we leave now, we can still make it in time to send them off."

    Shen Jingbin nodded and sent him off with a nce before she crawled out of bed, washed up, and got dressed. While washing up, she noticed that there were several red marks on her neck and shoulders. Her brain immediately thought back to what had happened the previous night.

    Although they were able to stop themselves from doing the deed, she could feel her restraint eroding bit by bit whenever they got intimate with one another.

    "This is a dangerous sign. Looks like I¡¯ll have to stay a little further away from that beast in the future. Otherwise, who knows when he¡¯ll turn into a big bad wolf and try to eat me up," she thought to herself as stretched out her neck.

    By the time Shen Jingbin had finished washing up and downing her bowl of porridge, the rest of the group were already sitting on the sofa in the living room and waiting for her with filled bellies.

    Aside from ck Kite andpany, a few other people from Jade Sea Pavilion were also heading home today. A majority of their departure times were at ten, so everyone in Jade Sea Pavilion decided to meet up and send them off.

    After sending the others off, Shen Jingbin¡¯s group was making their way back when Song Yubao, who was scrolling through Weibo, suddenly cried out, "The f*ck!? Leader, Nutty, take a look at this Weibo post! That Luofeng from yesterday is spreading rumours that he¡¯d been maligned, and he¡¯s saying all sorts of horrible things about Yiju and you guys!"

    "What what? Let me see!" All four of the Four Monsters dashed over to Song Yubao¡¯s side and craned their necks to look at her phone.

    What appeared before them was a Weibo post from a Yellow V ount.[FOOTNOTE: Think of it as the Weibo equivalent of twitter¡¯s blue checkmark. The colour of the V determines what category you fall into. Blue is used for people who work in governmental institutions, while yellow and red are used for entertainers, the media, educators, etc.]

    "Luofeng hopes he can be an even better person: Although I¡¯ve always known that the world wasn¡¯t fair, I never expected it to be this bad. What I first thought to be just another normal event turned out to be a smear campaign where they tried to raise false charges against me. To a certain woman, young master, and multi-million dorpany: I¡¯m just an ordinary citizen, I¡¯m not capable of standing up against you guys. I just want to go about living my simple and ordinary life, and release movies that I like. Please don¡¯t spread any bad rumours about me. My reputation can¡¯t take the hit."

    Based on the time of posting, it was clear that it¡¯d only just been submitted. The location marker beneath the post revealed that it was sent from an unknown hotel in B City. In just these few short minutes between the time of posting till now, there were over a thousandments and reblogs. When they opened thements page, apart from the first fewments that were trying to figure out what happened, the rest of them were all raging alongside Luofeng. On Yiju¡¯s page, thements page on the most recent posts by them were filled with all sorts of curses and vilenguage. There was even someone who threatened to blow up Yiju¡¯s headquarters.

    As Yiju had gone all out with this offline event, and they¡¯d put in a lot of effort to market it, many people knew that Luofeng was a guest of honor. They also knew that Yiju had thrown out money to secure a reservation for a high end hotel. After reading this post and where it originated from, the very first thought that entered most people¡¯s minds was: Luofeng was taken advantage of during the event. And, they were 90% sure that the person who¡¯d taken advantage of him was this ¡¯certain woman, young master, and multi-million dorpany¡¯. Aftering to that conclusion, Luofeng¡¯s fans worked themselves into a frenzy and rushed to Weibo to console their idol. At the same time, they hurled vicious curses at the people who¡¯d taken advantage of their idol.

    Shortly after, someone iming to be Luofeng¡¯s friend posted several screenshots, which riled up his fans even more as they aimed their ire straight at Yiju and a ¡¯certain woman and young master¡¯ that he¡¯d talked about in his Weibo post - Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning.

    It was a screenshot of Luofeng¡¯s message history. In it, Luofeng revealed that he¡¯d be participating in the event. He happened to catch the eye of a certain unyielding woman, who began dropping hints about wanting to ¡¯befriend¡¯ him. The word befriend was written with quotation marks, causing everyone¡¯s thoughts to run astray. Luofeng tried to tell this woman that he only wanted to be regr friends with her and nothing else, but she unexpectedly flew into a humiliation fuelled rage and tried to force him to give into her. It just so happened that this woman also had an influential boyfriend who hailed from a wealthy family. When he found out about this, he tried to besmirch Luofeng¡¯s reputation while also putting pressure on Yiju by demanding that they bar him from all future events.

    One would think that as argepany, Yiju wouldn¡¯t yield to demands like these. However, Yiju actually gave in to the couple and did as they were bade. They even went as far as to throw him out of the hotel that very night. Even worse, that young master mentioned in private that he was going to end Luofeng¡¯s career.

    Countless people were outraged when these screenshots were revealed. Aside from Luofeng¡¯s fans, there were also some otakus who joined in the mix.

 Chapter 376

    <strong>Chapter 376: Distorting The Truth (2)</strong>

    Regardless of the times, rich young masters who abused their power to oppressed others were always derided by the general public. In the eyes of this group of people, it was an even greater sin. The contents of the screenshots undoubtedly touched these people¡¯s bottom line, and in a fit of rage, with absolutely no regard for the veracity of the screenshots, they rushed forward to unreservedly criticize Yiju, the woman in question, and the young master.

    There were some people who tried to convince Luofeng to reveal the identities of the woman and young master so that they couldunch a crusade against them. But, Luofeng tried to y the victim and said that he didn¡¯t want to antagonize these people; the further he got from them, the better.

    This in turn made everyone even angrier.

    It¡¯s bad enough that you¡¯re using your status to oppress other people, but now you¡¯re even threatening them! How utterly intolerable!

    However, due to the identities of the woman and young master remaining a mystery, countless self-proimed warriors of justice could only channel all their ire at Yiju¡¯s official ount and demand that they reveal who these two despicable people were. On top of that, they also demanded that Luofeng be given an apology andpensation. In fact, there was even a thread titled: Get out of gaming, Yiju!

    Yiju was still busy taking care of the offline event, so it didn¡¯t have time to bother with this and remained silent. But, in the eyes of these warriors of justice, Yiju¡¯s silence manifested as a silent admission and a guilty conscience. This in turn led to an even more vicious tongueshing from them.

    Of course, not everyone believed Luofeng¡¯s one-sided story. The more intelligent people out there asked Luofeng to produce tangible evidence that he¡¯d been taken advantage of instead of asking everyone to trust him by his word alone. Unfortunately, this sort of talk was brutally shot down by everyone else, which led to it quickly dying out.

    Song Yubao became increasingly upset as she read on. "This is too much. How can he distort the truth like this. His morals are in the dumps!" When she reached the end, she had half a mind to throw her phone onto the ground.

    Although Luofeng didn¡¯t expose who the heavy-handed ¡¯woman¡¯ and ¡¯young master¡¯ were, it didn¡¯t take much for the members of Jade Sea Pavilion to figure out that he was referring to Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning.

    "In the past, my school¡¯s anime club worked together with Luofeng once before. They said that he had a horrible personality, and that he was self-important and loved taking advantage of women. In short, he was scum. Looking at him now, I¡¯d say he¡¯s even lower than scum," said Descent Of Rain And Snow.

    Lingering White Clouds turned her attention to Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning. "Nutty, Leader, what do you guys n to do? What Luofeng¡¯s doing is outright libel."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s head was still bowed as she continued to silently read through Weibo. On the other hand, Zhao Chengning¡¯s face was pitch ck as he made a call to someone. When the call connected, he bluntly told the other person to look at Weibo and figure out how to fix this before hanging up.

    "Little Jing and I are going to make a trip down to Yiju. Xia Qihui, grab the rest of them and look up Xiangpeng in Panlong. Those who want to head back can do so, while those of you who are willing to testify as witnesses cane along with us."

    The members of Jade Sea Pavilion nced at one another for a moment before they unanimously decided to follow along. The party split into two groups, and then they each made their way towards their target destination.

    Xiangpeng was practically boiling over with anger after he got off the phone with Zhao Chengning and checked Weibo. He hurriedly rounded up the other two people in charge of the event and gave them a summary of what had happened. He then made a call to Yiju¡¯s PR department. The PR department informed him that they¡¯d get right on the case, and also suggested that he find the relevant individuals and get them to refute Luofeng¡¯s ims. Also, it¡¯d be best if they were people of some status. Although Luofeng had many fans behind him, the PR department felt that Luofeng was employing the use of ¡¯sock puppets¡¯ and ¡¯bots¡¯ this time around for reblogs andments. If they wanted to reveal the truth to everyone, they¡¯d have to present the public with someone who was even more influential to speak up for them. Otherwise, the voices of minor individuals and Yiju¡¯s own refutes would fall on deaf ears.

    Heeding the PR department¡¯s advice, Xiangpeng rushed to look for some of the guests of honor who were resting and tried to enlist their aid to reveal what really transpired. Upon hearing what happened, the guests of honor immediately assured Xiangpeng that they¡¯d work with Yiju to help get the truth out.

    And so, while the warriors of justice were giving their all in talking about Yiju and rich heirs, several celebrities that they¡¯d been following suddenly made a post. And, it turned out, that all of them were calling out Luofeng for distorting the truth. He was the one who didn¡¯t know his ce and tried to hook up with the daughter of an affluent family. When that didn¡¯t work, he¡¯d try framing her. What truly disgraceful and repulsive behaviour.

    The big name celebrities suddenly getting themselves involved in this incident sparked a lot of confusion. Some people felt that Luofeng¡¯s version of the story was the truth, and that those celebrities who¡¯d spoken upter on were bought over by Yiju to smooth things out. Other people were moved by what the celebrities said, and entertained the possibility of Luofeng lying. Because of this, what was once a simple attack against Shen Jingbin, Zhao Chengning, and Yiju, had now turned into a war consisting of people taking various sides. Furthermore, due to the increasing number of celebrities who¡¯d chosen to get involved, the situation devolved to the point where fans wouldsh out at anyone who tried to speak ill of their idol.

    That is, until a certain Yellow V Weibo ount holder who only posts once in a blue moon made a statement.

    "Vv: @Luofeng hopes he can be an even better person - I¡¯ve seen some shameless people in my time, but you take the cake. I¡¯ve never seen someone who could distort the truth as well as you do. You tried to hook up with a woman and failed, but you still tried to force your way. When that didn¡¯t work out, you tried to use force against her but got beaten up instead. Now, you¡¯re trying to besmirch her reputation online. You¡¯re truly a disgrace to all men. PS: Will those who are aware of how the legal system works please tell me what counts as libel? I¡¯m referring to the kind that leads to you being charged in court."

 Chapter 377

    <b>Chapter 377: The Old Master¡¯s Plot (1)</b>

    Vv was a mystical existence in the industry; low-key, of few words, and mysterious. No matter how much his fans shouted and pleaded, he did whatever he liked. Yet, this ¡¯devil may care¡¯ attitude of his garnered even more support for him. Moreover, since making his first public appearance till now, he wasn¡¯t involved in even a single scandal. At times, one sentence was all it took from him to send ripples across the industry.

    After his appearance on Weibo, what was once a battle royale immediately turned into a one-sided massacre. Only a few fans who didn¡¯t have enough brain cells to rub together were left on Luofeng¡¯s side, while the rest of them no longer dared to mouth off.

    However, things definitely wouldn¡¯t end just like that.

    By the time Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin reached Yiju¡¯s headquarters, its senior management had already received word and personally came out to receive them. Then, they were sent straight towards the Public Rtions Department.

    "We¡¯ve already contacted the hotel and asked them to provide the elevator¡¯s surveince footage. However, if the surveince footage was made public, your identities would be exposed in the process. Would the two of you be alright with this?" Yiju¡¯s senior management carefully asked the fearsome looking group as they wiped a bead of cold sweat from their brows. They were deathly afraid of identally offending B City¡¯s overlord.

    "I¡¯ll agree to it as long as you ensure this person never shows their face again," Zhao Chengning said.

    The senior manager anxiously looked towards the public rtions director - a woman in her forties. She wore a business suit and was adorned with immacte makeup. She presented herself well, and not a hair was out of ce. She pushed up her spectacles and said, "I¡¯m afraid that people in that industry are extremely tolerant towards one another. It would take substantial evidence to ensure that he never shows his face again."

    Zhao Chengning pondered the matter for a moment before he said, "Wait."

    Then, under everyone¡¯s gaze, he called Chen Yi and simply exined the reason for his call: he wanted Blooming Flower Pavilion¡¯s surveince footage.

    Chen Yi was a little excited when she first picked up, but after finding out the reason for his call, her spirits plummeted. But, after thinking about it for a bit, she realised that this was a chance to threaten Zhao Chengning. However, she was stopped short by Zhao Chengning just as she was about to say something. "Chen Yi, do you believe that if I wanted to, I could make Blooming Flower Pavilion part of the Zhao family tomorrow?"

    Chen Yi froze. She suddenly realised that Zhao Chengning¡¯s friendly attitude towards her previously was really just out of courtesy. Yet, she was under the impression that he was being gentle towards her. With a dejected sigh, she agreed to hand over the surveince footage to him.

    Blooming Flower Pavilion¡¯s surveince footage proved to be much more useful than the one from Panlong Kaiyuan Hotel. After viewing the footage, they knew that Luofeng would have absolutely no chance at aeback once it was released to the public. At the same time, the storm brewing in the depths of Zhao Chengning¡¯s eyes became fiercer.

    Shortly after Vv made his Weibo post, Yiju, which had been silent thus far, suddenly threw out two videos. One was taken from the inside of an elevator. In it, Luofeng could clearly be seen trying to cozy up to a young woman beside him till another man, who was on the woman¡¯s other side and appeared to be her boyfriend, stepped in. He then flew into a humiliation-fuelled rage and stormed out of the elevator. The second video taken in a restaurant. In it, the young woman from before made an appearance yet again, followed by Luofeng, who she happened to run into. She tried to avoid him, but Luofeng insisted on sticking close to her. The two of them exchanged a few sentences before Luofeng suddenly made a move on her. Unfortunately for him, he was knocked t on his stomach before he even touched her.

    These two videos were like a bolt from the blue, thoroughly silencing Luofeng¡¯s supporters. In that instant, inte sentiment did aplete 180 and everyone now stood against Luofeng.

    Following that, Yiju¡¯s management revealed Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning¡¯s identities. After watching the videos, everyone felt like they¡¯d been yed for fools and exploded in a rage, including Luofeng¡¯s fans. They switched sides and tore at their former idol.

    Hence, a celebrity ended upmitting career suicide just like that.

    After this incident, Vv¡¯s fame soared to even greater heights. In fact, even the celebrities that had sided with Yiju increased in poprity as well, while Luofeng, who found out about itter on, was frothing from the mouth in anger.

    And yet, no medicine existed for regret. One had to reap what they¡¯d sowed.

    In the end, the incident had a satisfying conclusion, and Jade Sea Pavilion¡¯s offline meetup was a resounding sess.

    Shen Jingbin noticed that Zhao Chenging responded a lot more strongly this time around than the previous online incident. When she asked him about it, Zhao Chengning made up an excuse to throw her off.

    He certainly wasn¡¯t going to tell her the reason was because Luofeng had set his sights on her, and even dared to make a move. Even though Luofeng failed in the end, he still had to pay for his crimes.

    Grandpa Shen learned about the incident several dayster when it was almost time for the new semester to begin. He told the siblings to have a meal at the Zhao household before returning to A City, which the pair agreed to without much further thought.

    The siblings arrived at the Zhao residence early in the morning. When they walked up to the front door, they noticed that there were many other wealthy and reputable people present. When the butler, who was receiving the guests by the door, caught a glimpse of them, he hurriedly dealt with the person in front of him before walking over.

    "Mr Shen, Miss Shen, you¡¯ve arrived."

    Shen Jingbin asked, "This is?"

    "Oh, many paid the Old Master a visit during the New Year. At that time, he was busy so he couldn¡¯t attend to them. Now that he¡¯s free, he¡¯s decided to host a banquet to return the favor."

    Shen Jingchen took a quick nce at the casual clothes he and Shen Jingbin were wearing. Feeling a little embarrassed, he asked, "Why didn¡¯t you tell us about this beforehand? Our attire isn¡¯t really befitting of such an asion..."

    The butler interrupted him. "It doesn¡¯t matter Mr Shen. Our Old Master has said that both of you are like family, so there¡¯s no need for you to stand on ceremony. You¡¯re free to wear whatever you want."

    Even though the Old Master Shen had given them the okay, the siblings still weren¡¯t feeling veryfortable about it. Just think about it: everyone else would be in formal attire while the two of them wore sweaters and flip flops. It didn¡¯t seem right no matter how you looked at it.

 Chapter 378

    <strong>Chapter 378: The Old Master¡¯s Plot (2)</strong>

    Just as they were toying with the idea of returning home anding back the next day to apologise to the Old Master, they saw Zhao Chengning step out of the house. Upon seeing them, Zhao Chengning made a beeline for them.

    "Uncle, I¡¯ll be around to look after them, so you can take care of your other duties." After Zhao Chengning sent the butler off, he then asked the two siblings, "Why are the two of you just standing around instead of going inside?"

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him unhappily, and motioned for him to look at the noble wives anddies who were dressed to the nines for the asion that the butler was receiving. "Putting aside your Grandfather who didn¡¯t tell us about this, why didn¡¯t you say anything either? It¡¯s too inappropriate for us to enter dressed like this."

    Zhao Chengning smiled. "We were the ones who failed to realise it. But no matter, the antechamber will be used to host the guests, while we¡¯ll be eating upstairs."

    "Is that okay?" Shen Jingchen asked.

    "Xuya, Xia Qihui, and Jiang Weiwei are all here. It¡¯s fine. Come on, let¡¯s head upstairs."

    After taking in Zhao Chengning¡¯s serious expression, the two siblings decided to skeptically head inside with him before quietly going upstairs.

    However, no matter how quiet they were, there were still some ambitious individuals who noticed Zhao Chengning¡¯s treatment towards them.

    Amongst the people who were attending the banquet, most of them knew that the Zhao family¡¯s second son had a girlfriend whom was very fond of, but there were still some who thought that as long as he hadn¡¯t gotten married yet, their daughters still had a shot at nabbing him. In addition, the Old Master hadn¡¯t formally introduced said girlfriend yet. That being the case, there was still a bit of wiggle room for them.

    Putting aside the fact that Zhao Chengning himself was an outstanding individual in his own right, even just the Zhao family standing behind him alone would be tempting enough. It was no wonder that some people were unresigned and kept thinking of ways and means to get their hands on him.

    When those who were currently chatting with Old Master Zhao saw Zhao Chengning bring a man and a woman upstairs, they began hatching their own ns and attempted to discreetly fish for more information.

    Fortunately, while Old Master Zhao¡¯s body was getting on in years, his mind was still sharp, and he immediately knew what schemes these people were trying to plot. His rolled his eyes upwards as he answered, "Oh, I think Chengning went to pick up his wife-to-be. She should be the one you spotted."

    The person who posed the question probably didn¡¯t expect Old Master¡¯s response, and was at a momentary loss for words. But, as expected, someone else followed up and asked, "Then, may we know which family she hails from? It¡¯s very easy for them to be caught up in their emotions at such a young age. You¡¯ll have to keep a close eye on Chengning to protect him. After all, Chengning is an outstanding individual. Who knows how many women are racking their brains trying to think of ways to marry him."

    Old Master Zhao chuckled, clearly pleased with this future daughter-inw. "Be at ease, this daughter-inw is someone I personally picked for this boy. She¡¯s definitely a good pick."

    This time around, everyone was left speechless. All they could do was privately instruct their daughters to look out for any opportunities to act. No matter what, they had to fight for a chance to appear before Zhao Chengning.

    Since this person was chosen by Old Master Zhao, they obviously couldn¡¯t make any inroads with him. So, the only path left to them was through Zhao Chengning himself. The hearts of youngsters are easily swayed.

    Old Master Zhao, no matter how pleased you are with this future daughter-inw of yours, if your grandson is the one who changes his mind, then there¡¯s nothing to be done, right?

    Hence, these people who¡¯d brought their daughters along were looking forward to the start of the banquet so that they could show off their daughters. But, much to their dismay, neither hide nor hair of Zhao Chengning could be found at the dining table when the feast started.

    Some people couldn¡¯t resist the urge and decided to ask Old Master Zhao where Zhao Chengning was. Old Master Zhao¡¯s reply was blunt and straight to the point.

    "That useless grandson of mine is upstairs having a meal with his wife-to-be. Honestly, the older he gets, the harder it is to restrain that child. No matter how much I tried to persuade him to have a meal with us, he insisted on apanying his girlfriend instead. Aren¡¯t youngsters these days getting sappier and more unreasonable? Back in our day, which one of us would dare to do something like this? Hahaha."

    Old Master Zhao, did you know that your body¡¯s betraying your true emotions? You might say that you¡¯re frustrated, but your expression says otherwise!

    "So, when is Second Young Master nning to get married? When the timees, you definitely have to treat us to drinks," asked a person who still wasn¡¯t willing to give up. Heheh, was there anyone who didn¡¯t know how wealthy families were like? No matter how close a couple was to one another, nothing was set in stone as long as they weren¡¯t married!

    "Don¡¯t worry, you guys won¡¯t be left out. The youngdy will be heading home in a few days. That boy Chengning is feeling rather anxious too. He¡¯s already spoken with his father ande to a decision. This time around, he¡¯ll tag along with her and ask her parents for her hand in marriage so that they can tie the knot as soon as possible. After all, that youngdy is both bright and beautiful. If he doesn¡¯t hold on to her tightly enough, I reckon she¡¯ll end up catching someone else¡¯s eye. If that happens, it¡¯ll be toote for tears."

    "Would you mind telling us which family she¡¯s from?"

    "Oh, don¡¯t you know? Old Shen¡¯s granddaughter from A City. Do you guys remember Old Shen?"

    F*ck, it can¡¯t be that Old Shen, right?!

    What the f*ck, if it really is Old Shen, then why even bother trying to go up against him? Chances are, they¡¯d probably be beaten to death by him before they could execute any of their ns!

    Forget it. No matter how tempting the Zhao family is, they¡¯re probably not going to end up in bed with them anyway, so they shouldn¡¯t provoke the Shen family.

 Chapter 379

    <b>Chapter 379: Let¡¯s get married (1)</b>

    Compared to the stormy atmosphere below, the table of youngsters upstairs shared a very harmonious atmosphere.

    Zhao Chengning whispered in his little wife¡¯s ear as he shot Xuya a meaningful nce, ruthlessly abusing the single dog Xuya. In the past, when Zhao Chengning himself was still a single dog, that bastard Xuya never failed to show off his girlfriend that he changed on a daily basis. Now, after going through great lengths, he¡¯d finally managed to seize a chance to counterattack, so how could he not pay Xuya back for all the years of suffering that he¡¯d endured.

    It was a super effective move! Never before had Xuya eaten such a stifling meal in his life. Had he known that things would turn out like this beforehand, he would¡¯ve eaten with that tiger of a sister of his instead. Though his appetite would be poorer, at least he wouldn¡¯t be as physically and emotionally exhausted as he was now.

    He could only me himself for being so unreserved! He¡¯de running the moment he heard Little Jing was going to be present! Sigh, a woman¡¯s charm is truly deadly!

    "Zhao Chengning, when I arrived I saw a group of youngdies from influential families that hailed from B City downstairs. If one didn¡¯t know any better, they¡¯d think that they were gathering for you to pick a wife." What made it unbearable was that apart from Xuya, Jiang Weiwei was present as well. Whenever she saw Zhao Chengning¡¯s pleased expression, she¡¯d re daggers at him.

    Xuya was quick on the uptake and immediately followed up. "That¡¯s right. Brother Chengning, you already have Little Jing, so why are you still doing these things. Little Jing, you arrivedter, so I doubt you saw what happened. When the three of us arrived just now, the entire hall was filled with the scent of perfume from these youngdies. If you took a close look at them, you¡¯d find that each and every one of them was beautifully dressed; almost as if they were participating in a beauty contest... You can ask Brother Qihui if you don¡¯t believe me. He was there too, and he evenmented that amongst us, only Chengning had such good fortune."

    "Shut it. What kind of nonsense are the two of you spouting?" Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t bother with public disys of affection anymore when he saw how the two of them were trying to drag him down. Feigning anger, he stared at them and said, "Jiang Weiwei, why can¡¯t you just shut your mouth and eat your food? Are you upset because I didn¡¯t let you to bring your Jack along?"

    Jack was Jiang Weiwei¡¯stest beau.

    Jiang Weiwei rolled her eyes and stopped talking, opting to focus on eating her food. Xuya, who saw that hisrade had fallen in action, was just about to rescue her when he saw Zhao Chengning¡¯s expression and was scared witless.

    "Little Jing, you¡¯re heading back to A City soon, right?" Xia Qihui had long since gotten used to the way this group of people interacted with one other. He chose not to participate in their conversation, and instead he looked towards Shen Jingbin and asked a her question.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "Mm, it¡¯s about time for school to start."

    Xia Qihui shot a nce at Zhao Chengning and teasingly said, "In that case, Chengning¡¯s going to have to suffer. His sweet days are ending."

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s face didn¡¯t change as he interrupted, saying, "Says who? I just so happen to be taking a trip to A City in the next few days."

    "Ah, that¡¯s not right. Brother Ning, what¡¯re you going to A City for? Brother Chengan left not too long ago, so doesn¡¯t thepany need you now? Is it alright for you to leave like that?" Xuya hurriedly asked.

    Zhao Chengning stared at him. "Do I need to report to you whenever I¡¯m going somewhere? Just eat your food."

    "... Tch. You¡¯re just bullying me because I¡¯m younger! Hmph!"

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s curiosity was piqued. She blinked and asked in a whisper, "You¡¯reing back with us too? What¡¯re youing for?"

    Zhao Chengning cast a sidelong nce at her and revealed a profound smile. "It¡¯s a secret. I¡¯ll let you know when the timees."

    Shen Jingbin nced at him unhappily, but thetter received it with pleasure.

    Shen Jingchen, who was oppressed throughout the entire meal and sitting opposite the couple, noticed what was going on. He nced at his future brother-inw¡¯s expression a few more times before a bold conjecture came to him, which then proceeded to terrify him.

    When his soul came back to him, the first thing he did was to fish out his phone and send a message to his Mother.

    And so, when Madam Shen was having a candlelight dinner with her husband, she received a text message from her worryingly foolish son. With a casual tap of her finger, she opened the message and saw that her foolish son had typed out a whole page of exmation marks to express his inner emotions.

    "Mother!!!!!!! I feel like I¡¯ve stumbled across something huge!!! It looks like that silly younger sister of mine is going to get married!!!! I think there¡¯s a high chance that my future brother-inw is going to pay us a visit and propose! What should I do?! What to do?! What to do?!"

    Madam Shen curled her lips in disdain before she calmly typed out a reply to her foolish son.

    "Shen Jingchen, why don¡¯t you act more like an older brother? What are your future prospects going to be like if all it takes is a trivial matter like this?"

    "That¡¯s not it, Mother! How can I be calm if there¡¯s someone who actually wants this violent, silly girl?! Furthermore, if she marries out, then wouldn¡¯t I be alone in the future?!"

    "You can look for a wife now too if you want. My requirements for you aren¡¯t very high."

    "... Mother, are you speaking from the heart? No, my Mother isn¡¯t like this! W-w-who are you?! Return my noble and elegant Mother to me!"

    Madam Shen couldn¡¯t hold back the smile that tugged at the corners of her lips. Mr Shen, who was sitting opposite her, saw what was happening and asked curiously, "What is it? Who messaged you?"

    Madam Shen put down her phone and sampled some of the red wine. She raised the corner of her eye and said indifferently, "Thendlord¡¯s foolish son."

    "..." Three ck lines appeared on Mr Shen¡¯s forehead. Why did it feel as if she was referring to him?

    "What did the foolish son say?"

    "He said that it looks like thendlord¡¯s daughter might be getting married soon."

    Mr Shen: So she was referring to himself!

    But, why did it feel like this wasn¡¯t the crux of the matter?

    After the handover of work waspleted, the Shen siblings set off on their journey back home. Zhao Chengning had a fair bit of work left to take care of in thepany, so he didn¡¯t go back together with the siblings, and would instead arrive several dayster.

    The siblings had to report to school on the second day they were home. As such, they went back home for a meal before setting off for their vi. To avoid the peak period of reporting, the pair slept till noon before they climbed out of bed and went to school together.

 Chapter 380

    Chapter 380: Let¡¯s get married (2)

    After reporting their attendance, Shen Jingbin and the other girls who were with her in the same dormitory had their first meal of the school term together. As they ate, they chatted about their hopes for the future.

    Practically all students their age were starting to consider what path they wanted to walk in the future. They could either sign up for a graduate program, start working, or perhaps just return home and get married. Regardless of what they did, it was important for them to have a n in mind.

    The ss President, Jiangmeng, had good results, so she nned to attempt the postgraduate exam first and find a job if she couldn¡¯t get in. Xiaohe¡¯s family owned apany. Although it wasn¡¯t arge corporation, it had pretty decent future prospects and she¡¯d always wanted to work for her family after graduating. As for Huajuan, her focus was never on her major to begin with. Huajuan had beautiful features, and she had a good sense of aesthetics. In her second year of university, she was scouted by a somewhat famous fashion magazine and would usually moonlight as a model in her free time. She was probably nning to model full time once she graduated.

    Once all three of them had said their piece, they inevitably became curious about Shen Jingbin¡¯s ns for the future; especially regarding marriage. After all, she had an outstanding boyfriend.

    They were really curious if this fairytale of the princess and the prince woulde to fruition.

    "Jingjing, will you be getting married after you graduate? I want to apply to be your bridesmaid if I haven¡¯t left A City by then," said Huajuan.

    "Me too! Me too! You can count me in as a bridesmaid too," Xiaohe said hurriedly.

    Jiangmeng didn¡¯t try to push her way in as well. Instead, she asked, "You did your vacation internship in B City, right? How was it? How did your rtionship develop?"

    All four of them had shared a great rtionship with one another since the start of university, so Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t mind talking about these kinds of things with them.

    "In the past, I used to think that I¡¯d grow old alone. Never did I imagine that there¡¯de a day where I liked a person this much," she said with a smile.

    Once she¡¯d finished speaking, the smile on her face made the other three single girls feel just how sweet it was to be in a romantic rtionship.

    Huajuan clicked her tongue, and her voice took on a regretful tone. "In the past, we used to wonder what kind of a man it¡¯d take to match up to you. There was a time when we considered all these so-called famous seniors in our university and paired them up with you. But, in the end, we found that none of them could stand next to you without losing out in some aspects. We thought to ourselves: if things continued like this, wouldn¡¯t you really grow old alone? If that happened, who were we supposed to give our red packets to? That all changed when we saw Zhao Chengning. We realised that the reason why those people couldn¡¯t match up to you wasn¡¯t because you were too outstanding, but because they just weren¡¯t good enough. You and Zhao Chengning are what people call a ¡¯match made in heaven¡¯ when the two of you stand together."

    "When I look at you, I sometimes wonder whether I should try my hand at dating too," Jiangmeng added.

    The other girls couldn¡¯t help butugh at what she¡¯d said. It was one of those rarely seen days with good weather ever since the start of winter, where the warm winter sun in the sky immersed the whole world in its radiance. The sunlight streamed through the French windows, illuminating the bodies of the four smiling youngdies. Seeing this, the pedestrians who were outside the window unconsciously slowed their steps, hoping to steal a few more nces at them.

    Huajuan happened to nce out the window from the corner of her eye when a slender and ssy looking individual caught her attention. She calmed herself and took another look at the person. When she¡¯d gotten a good look at the person, the smile on her face widened, and she turned to look at Shen Jingbin who was sitting opposite her.

    "Little Jing, we haven¡¯t asked yet, but did youe back by yourself?"

    Unable to find anything amiss, Shen Jingbin said, "Yes, why?"

    Huajuan had an inscrutable smile on her face. "No reason. I just happened to spot a pretty familiar looking person. You have a good memory, so why don¡¯t you have a look and see if you know who it is... See? Over there."

    Shen Jingbin unsuspectingly looked in the direction she¡¯d indicated. When she saw the person¡¯s face, her beautiful eyes widened. The other two girls looked over curiously as well, and smiles of understanding appeared on their faces.

    "Ah, I¡¯ll head over first." With that, Shen Jingbin grabbed her bag and ran towards the person.

    Separated by a ss window, the three girls saw a fairy-like maiden smiling as she threw herself into the embrace of a handsome youth. Sunlight rained down on their heads, making it look as if it were a scene from a beautiful oil painting.

    "Ah, I really feel like dating," Huajuanmented. The girls looked at each other and smiled.

    Shen Jingbin, who¡¯d thrown herself into the person¡¯s embrace, was pleasantly surprised. A long while passed before she finally raised her head, and asked, "Didn¡¯t you say that you had quite a few things to handle, and would only be here a couple of dayster? How¡¯d youe over so quickly?"

    Zhao Chengning tilted his head downwards and gave her nose an intimate rub. "A day apart from you feels like three autumns of separation. How could I bear to wait for several more days? Little Jing, will you marry me?"

    After he¡¯d spoken, Shen Jingbin looked into his earnest eyes and saw her own face brimming with uncontainable joy reflected within them.

    At that moment, it felt as if her reply was a forgone conclusion.

 Chapter 381

    <b>Chapter 381: First Step: Getting Engaged (1) </b>

    By the time Shen Jingchen was done having a meal with his dormmates, it was twenty minutes past the time he was supposed to meet up with Shen Jingbin. This was hisst semester of university, and they were now about to part ways after spending so long together. The thought of this left Shen Jingchen feeling wistful, so he dawdled for a little longer.

    As he sped towards the school gates in his car, he thought about what excuse he¡¯d give to cate the demon queen.

    His sister was both warm and courteous towards outsiders, but there wasn¡¯t any trace of said courtesy when it came to dealing with him. She always hated it when people werete, and now that he¡¯d made her wait for twenty minutes, there was a good chance she was going to tear him a new one.

    Little did he expect toe across his sister¡¯s enchanting figure before he even reached the school gates. Unexpectedly, there was a man standing beside her, and even more shockingly, they were acting all lovey dovey! If he hadn¡¯t spotted the luggage bag beside the man, he might have suspected that his sister was having an affair!

    Shen Jingchen drove up to the couple, wound down the window, and greeted Zhao Chengning with a smile. "Hey, Ah Ning, why¡¯re you here so soon? I thought you wouldn¡¯t be here for a few more days yet."

    "I¡¯ve sorted out all the important things already. All the minor details have been left to the grunts to take care of."

    "Open up the boot," Shen Jingbin said as she bent down to pick up Zhao Chengning¡¯s luggage before heading to the back of the car to stow it away.

    Thinking to himself that Shen Jingbin probably wouldn¡¯t be able to hear them from this far away, Shen Jingchen hurriedly motioned at Zhao Chengning with his eyes for him toe nearer. Zhao Chengning walked over with a look of confusion.

    "Did youe over because you¡¯re nning to do ¡¯it¡¯?" Shen Jingchen asked with a wink.

    Zhao Chengning froze for a moment before a smile blossomed on his face. "That¡¯s a secret for now."

    Shen Jingchen tsked in irritation. "Fine, fine, fine. Single dogs like me can¡¯t figure out what you young couples are interested in. Hop in, it¡¯s freezing outside."

    By this time, Shen Jingbin had returned from putting away the luggage. With a nod, Zhao Chengning pulled opened the car door and sat inside with Shen Jingbin.

    "Where are you staying? At a hotel? Which one?" Shen Jingchen couldn¡¯t help but shiver when he looked into the rear view mirror and saw how intimate the two of them were being.

    Zhao Chengning was currently caught in Shen Jingbin¡¯s clutches. He looked towards the driver¡¯s seat and said, "I came over as soon as I got off the ne, so I haven¡¯t had the time to make any reservations yet."

    "Don¡¯t bother booking then. Our vi has some empty rooms, so you¡¯re free toe stay with us if you¡¯re okay with it. And, if the guest room isn¡¯t up to your standards, why don¡¯t you stay in her room instead?" as he said that, he turned and looked at the couple with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

    Shen Jingbin shot him a withering re that was borne either out of embarrassment or frustration. "Enough with the nonsense, just focus on driving."

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s lips curled upwards and he looked back to the front, but not before remembering to toss another sarcastic remark her way. "Tch. Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re feeling embarrassed?"

    Zhao Chengningughed. "I need to get her approval before I decide where to stay."

    He might have been said it to Shen Jingchen, but his eyes were locked on Shen Jingbin.

    Shen Jingbin just silently red at him.

    Didn¡¯t he already know the answer? Men who do these kinds of things are the worst!

    In the end, Zhao Chengning really did opt to stay at their vi. Aunt Zhang still hadn¡¯t returned, so they hired a temporary housekeeper for the interim. The recement housekeeper was both hardworking and fleet-footed. By the time they¡¯d reached home, she¡¯d managed to get the guest room all tidied up.

    Upon hearing that Zhao Chengning hade, Old Master Shen picked up the phone and called both generations of the Shen family back to the Shen estate for a meal. After dinner that night, Old Master Shen looked like he wanted to say something to Zhao Chengning. A nce from him was all it took for his wife to figure out what he wanted. Grandmother Shen proceeded to usher the siblings upstairs, leaving Zhao Chengning alone with the three seniors from the Shen household.

    While ascending the stairs, Shen Jingbin worriedly looked back at Zhao Chenging, but he gave her a reassuring smile to ay her fears. He could more or less guess what was going to happen next, so he psyched himself up and made ready to face it.

 Chapter 382

    <strong>Chapter 382: First Step: Getting Engaged (2) </strong>

    Old Master Shen craned his neck and cast his gaze around to make sure that the siblings had gone upstairs. After making sure that he couldn¡¯t hear any other voices, he spoke up in a leisurely manner, "Did youe over because you have something you wish to ask of us, boy?"

    Zhao Chengning shed a calm smile. "Looks like I can¡¯t keep anything from you."

    Old Master Shen snorted, but smile lines were etched all over his face. Zhao Chengning turned his attention to Mama and Papa Shen, and found that there was no surprise on their faces either. He couldn¡¯t help but sigh in admiration. The elderly definitelye out ahead when ites to experience.

    "Ole Zhao couldn¡¯t hold himself back and called to let me know everything as soon as you boarded the ne. But, in the end, this is an issue pertaining to you youngsters, so I want to hear what you n to do from your own mouth."

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t bothering up with any schemes and spoke straight from the heart. He steeled himself and said, "Grandpa Shen, Uncle, Auntie, I n to tie the knot with Little Jing, so I¡¯ve specially made a trip over to talk it over with the three of you and to find out what you think about it."

    Although Papa Shen was satisfied with his ¡¯son-inw¡¯, he hadn¡¯t expected his baby girl to fly the coop so quickly. "Chengning, we¡¯ve already discussed this issue amongst ourselves. I¡¯m not trying to pour cold water over the two of you, but honestly speaking, you and Little Jing haven¡¯t known each other for very long. Don¡¯t you think bringing up the topic of marriage so early on in your rtionship is being a little too hasty?"

    Zhao Chengning eyed Papa Shen with a gaze filled with unwavering resolve. "Uncle Shen, I¡¯ll be honest, I¡¯ve thought about this for a long time as well. You might not believe me, but I¡¯ve always harboured thoughts of marrying her right from the very beginning. This is my way of showing my love for her, and also taking responsibility."

    Mama Shen suddenly cut in. There wasn¡¯t the slightest bit of emotion on her face. One look from her could easily terrify a person.

    "Anyone can spout pretty words. You¡¯re at an age where your social status and position are rising day by day. Are you really willing to shackle yourself by getting married?"

    Zhao Chengning wasn¡¯t cowed by Mama Shen and looked her straight in the eye. "Auntie, I don¡¯t view marriage as restricting myself, so I don¡¯t think ¡¯shackle¡¯ is the right word."

    "Enough with the semantics. Although Little Jing is an outstanding individual, that doesn¡¯t mean there aren¡¯t people out there who are better than her. How can you be so sure that she¡¯s the one? If we ede to your request and hand over our daughter to you, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be deeply devoted to one another since you¡¯re in your honeymoon phase. But, what about when the passion fades?" Mama Shen was clearly someone difficult to deal with. After spending so many years battling within political circles, the type of aura she gave off wasn¡¯t one that the average person could deal with.

    But, the youth sitting opposite her didn¡¯t so much as wince at her onught. "I¡¯m not the kind of hot-headed kid that rushes into things without thinking them through. I know what I want. And, I can say now with certainty, that what I want is Little Jing and no one else. You might think me arrogant for saying this, but over my many years of staying in B City, I¡¯vee across all sorts of women. It¡¯s certainly true that there are women who are on the same level as Little Jing, but none of them could make me feel the same yearning and feeling of belonging that I have with her."

    Zhao Chengning had always known that amongst the Shen family¡¯s elders, Mama Shen would be the hardest to deal with. Mama Shen was a battle tested veteran of the political arena and held a high position. The number of enemies she¡¯s had to face might even be more than the number of times he¡¯d eaten. In front of her, all pretenses would fall away, and the only way to deal with her would be facing her head on with the truth.

    "I know that you think I¡¯m still young and that I still have many more days ahead of myself in life. But, I feel that my life¡¯s only so long. Twenty something years have already gone by in my life. Take away the time needed for eating, sleeping, and working, and there¡¯s not much time left. All I want is to spend what little time I have left with the person I love and to do all the things I¡¯ve longed to do."

    Mama Shen silently eyed him without any change in her expression. A long time passed before she finally shifted her gaze, and she simply said, "You¡¯re pretty eloquent."

    Zhao Chengning smiled.

    After checking to make sure that Mama Shen didn¡¯t have anything else to add, Old Master Shen silently heaved a sigh of relief and said, "I too feel that the two of you haven¡¯t known each other for that long. And, while I understand wanting to get married when passions are running high, don¡¯t you think that it¡¯s really a little too soon? Most people of your generation don¡¯t get married even after remaining in a rtionship for seven to eight years."

    Zhao Chengning was also silently heaving a sigh of relief. He smiled and said, "There¡¯s only two reasons why a couple wouldn¡¯t have gotten married after being in a rtionship for so long: One, they haven¡¯t saved enough to support their marriage, so they¡¯re dragging it out till they¡¯re able to. Two, they don¡¯t love each other enough. I believe that any man whoes across a woman he likes would scramble to get married as soon as possible instead of dilly-dallying. The amount of time a couple has spent in a rtionship isn¡¯t indicative of the amount of love they have for one another. Back then, didn¡¯t Uncle Shen and Auntie Shen didn¡¯t get married within a few months of knowing one another? Look at the two of you now, you¡¯re still happily together."

    Upon hearing her own marriage being brought up, the tsundere, Mama Shen, wasn¡¯t pleased. Papa Shen wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulled her close, and tilted his chin upwards. "You can¡¯t say that. Do you think everyone¡¯s like us?" Unfortunately for him, all he got in return was looks of disdain from Mama Shen and Old Master Shen.

    Papa and Mama Shen were bound together by a political marriage. Roughly two months passed from the time they knew each other to the point where they were married. In effect, it was a lightning marriage. In spite of them, their feelings for one another grew with each day, to the point where Old Master Shen often found it hard to look at the two of them when they were together even when they were this old. Using the two of them as an example was ingenius on Zhao Chengning¡¯s part.

    The Shen elders were quite pleased with the oue of their talk with him, and at the same time, he also disyed his feelings for Shen Jingbin and his resolve. As the saying goes: The younger generation will find their own happiness. The three elders weren¡¯t willing to meddle too much in the younger generation¡¯s affairs when it came to matters of the heart, so they gave their blessings.

    Mama Shen casually turned her attention to the youth opposite her who¡¯d kept a stiff upper lip the whole time and was neither servile nor overbearing, and narrowed her eyes in contemtion. "Little Jing still hasn¡¯t graduated. It¡¯s too early to talk about marriage. If you agree to it, you can get engaged first. The engagement date can be discussed with your parents at ater date. If you still have your heart set on Little Jing, we can talk about marriage once she¡¯s graduated... Till then, you should be able to wait, right?"

    In that instant, the invisible weight that was resting on Zhao Chengning¡¯s chest disappeared, and a warm smile blossomed on his face. "Of course I can. That¡¯s the least I can do for her."

    Truth be told, even though he was nning to bring up the topic of marriage with the members of the Shen household, he wasn¡¯t expecting anything toe of it. Being able to settle on an engagement was enough to make him overjoyed. What more could he ask for?

 Chapter 383

    <b>Chapter 383: A New Life (1)</b>

    That night, for the first time ever, both Grandpa and Grandma Shen didn¡¯t try to convince their grandchildren to stay overnight. It was so out of the ordinary that the siblings felt that something wasn¡¯t quite right.

    It was slightly after 9pm when Shen Jingbin, Shen Jingchen and Zhao Chengning said their goodbyes to the rest of the Shen family. Looking at the time, it wasn¡¯t toote, so they decided to slink off and y <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>>. Different from how the wealthy Shen siblings did things - opting to buy new gaming pods for their apartment during their internship - Zhao Chengning hade to A City this time with only a smattering of luggage. He had no intention of buying a gaming pod during his stay, so if he wanted to y, his only option was to go to an inte cafe. There was no way the siblings could just leave him at the inte cafe by himself while they went home to y in their gaming pods, so the three of them made their way towards an inte cafe together.

    They got themselves a private room, donned their VR helmets, and logged into the game.

    This was their very first time gaming together ever since the offline meetup. The game had been updated during this time, and when they logged in, there were several big changes awaiting them.

    "The two of you can go have your fun. I¡¯ll do some research and find out what changed in the update." Not wanting to be a third wheel, Shen Jingchen cooked up an excuse and slipped away.

    "Do you have anything that needs to be done?" Shen Jingbin turned to Zhao Chenging and asked.

    Zhao Chengning expressionlessly rejected the various party invitations he¡¯d received from his guild members, and said, "Nope... Let¡¯s have a look around and see what¡¯s changed."

    "Alright," Shen Jingbin said with a Duchenne smile. She smiled so widely that her eyes formed crescents.

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s little heart trembled, but he powered through it and grasped her hands and held them in the palms of his own. He then gave them a rub and returned her smile.

    His wifey would always be his wifey no matter what she looked like!

    Due to the offline event, most of the yer base now knew that White Cloud Temple¡¯s Senior Sister of unparalleled beauty from the promotional video was the very same Senior Sister in-game! Even if the truth was a little too out there, everyone had seen it for themselves during the award ceremony. This, coupled with the hubbub that Luo Feng had created during the Weibo incident, exposing all sorts of information, had caused Shen Jingbin to shoot up in poprity once again. These two things put together was all the evidence that one needed. It was irrefutable.

    Because of this, everyone¡¯s eyes were glued on Shen Jingbin the moment she walked into Jiang City.

    Everyone knew that the Goddess had a boyfriend, and that he was both handsome and rich; someone with power and influence. In spite of that, they weren¡¯t able to hold back their nerdy infatuation for her. They bore the brunt of Zhao Chengning¡¯s killing intent and bravely stared straight at her character to express their love for her! Things like: muack muack, please whip me, and all sorts of other morally degrading nonsense came out of their mouths.

    Honestly, if they¡¯d showed such determination and perseverance in the beginning, it might have turned into yet another story of an in-game rtionship blossoming into real life romance.

    Then again, there was a person who was thinking otherwise. If he could, Zhao Chengning would¡¯ve sent all of these gutter rats straight back to hell in one fell swoop! Never in his life had he seen someone be as brazen as this bunch of bastards when it came to snatching another man¡¯s woman!

    Unfortunately for him, it was not meant to be. In the end, all he could do was swallow his anger, tighten his grip around her hand, and shove the gawkers out of the way as he attempted to snake his way out.

    There were eyes everywhere, and throwing them off was no small feat. A long time passed before the two of them were finally able to throw off their fanatical pursuers.

    "If I knew things were going to be like this, I wouldn¡¯t have let you attend the event. I underestimated how thirsty these guys can be," said Zhao Chengning half jokingly.

    "There were quite a few people who were running towards you as well. At the most, only half of them can be attributed to me," Shen Jingbin said indignantly.

    Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t the only one who¡¯d risen in poprity after the offline event. Zhao Chengning saw quite a bit of interest as well, and he was a very popr individual to begin with. He had both looks, influence, and not to mention was deeply devoted to his girlfriend. Any woman would swoon at the thought of having a man like him. Even if they didn¡¯t know who he was in the past, there was no way they could let him go now that they¡¯d seen how he was like. Because of this, a number of women who saw themselves as unique and talented mixed in with the army of thirsty men and tried to snag themselves a catch.

    They looked at one another and saw the slightly sorry state they were in before exchanging a smile of understanding.

    While they were smiling at one another, Shen Jingbin suddenly felt that the dark alleyway they were in looked rather familiar. "Eh, is this..."

    Although Jiang City¡¯s alleyways were supposed to be more or less the same, in their rush to escape their pursuers they¡¯d dove into whatever hiding spot they could find. Now that they had a chance to calm down, didn¡¯t this look like the ce where Shen Jingbin had first bumped into Wu Lang?!

    Speaking of which, this was where the two of them had met for the first time as well.

    "Should we pay Wu Lang a visit?" Shen Jingbin suddenly made a suggestion when she thought back to what had happened when they first met.

    Zhao Chengning had never thought of going back to see how an NPC was doing afterpleting their quest. But, now that she mentioned it, it didn¡¯t seem like all that bad of an idea, so he nodded in agreement.

 Chapter 384

    <strong>Chapter 384: A New Life (2)</strong>

    The alleyway was just as dark as it wasst time. The only difference this time around was that there was a ray of light from antern at the end of it. The fire within thentern continuously flickered, as if it could be blown out by a stray gust of wind at any time. In spite of that, it continued to resolutely light the surrounding area. Apanying it was the faint sounds of people speaking. On closer inspection, it turned out to be a man and a woman speaking to one another whose voices could be heard. One could even hear the sound of the woman¡¯s delicateughter.

    The couple exchanged a nce before Shen Jingbin walked up to the door and gave it a rap. Someone from inside immediately replied, and fragmented sounds of footsteps could be heard.

    ¡¯Creak.¡¯ The door was opened halfway, and a small and delicate face poked out.

    "May I know who you¡¯re... Ah! You¡¯re the Heroine!" At first, the littledy only spotted Zhao Chengning. While posing her question, she noticed Shen Jingbin. After making out who it was, she cried out for her brother. "Brother,e quick! Look who¡¯se!"

    "Coming. Who¡¯s got you in such a tizzy?" A tall and well-built man hurriedly appeared before the door. "You¡¯re the Heroine?! It¡¯s really you! There really is a god! My sister and I were just talking about how we haven¡¯t had the chance to repay you for what you did back then. Who would¡¯ve thought that we¡¯d get a chance to see you once again... Come in,e in!"

    With that, Wu Lang and his sister ushered the couple into the house.

    After entering, Shen Jingbin grabbed thentern and gave Wu Lang a once over. He now looked a lot more rugged than he did back then, and he looked to be in much better spirits.

    "Have you been well? We never got the chance to see you again after that day, so I didn¡¯t get the chance to show my appreciation for your act of kindness. Not being able to do so has truly been a source of embarrassment for me." While Wu Lang¡¯s sister steeped tea for the couple, a look of shame appeared on his face, and he said, "This is Longjing tea that was picked before the Grain Rain that I obtained during my bodyguarding days. Would the two of you like to try some?"

    They looked down at the brown tea that was encased within a white porcin cup. Inhaling deeply brought a scent reminiscent of fresh and clean air after the rain. Without any hesitation, they brought it up to their mouths and took a sip of it.

    "Congrattions, you¡¯ve just drunk a cup of [Unique] Longjing tea picked after the Grain Rain. All stats increase by 3 (permanent). Note: This effect can only be obtained once and it doesn¡¯t stack."

    Moments after imbibing the tea, a ¡¯ding¡¯ from the system could be heard. Coincidentally, they nced at each other once again. There was only one thing written in their eyes: how interesting.

    Once they were done drinking their tea, out of curiosity, Shen Jingbin asked Wu Lang about what had happened after she¡¯d left.

    From Wu Lang¡¯s retelling, she found out that Landlord Yang¡¯s misdeeds were revealed after she¡¯d saved his sister. Although the siblings were reunited, his sister had received grievous injuries. To afford his sister¡¯s medical bills, he started a bodyguard service. Due to his honest personality, and being a man of some skill, he quickly be the number one bodyguard in Jiang City. By then, both officials and nobles were both scrambling to have him guard their goods. With the money earned from his bodyguarding duties, he managed to save enough to cure his sister, and their days got better from there.

    Once their lives had improved, the thought that was on Wu Lang¡¯s mind most often was how to repay his benefactor. However, he had absolutely no idea where she was. Later on, his sister mentioned that since this was where they¡¯d first met, then maybe they should stay here forever. She was confident that there¡¯de a day when they met again if they stayed here.

    One¡¯s effort will always pay out. Sure enough, they bumped into each other once again.

    As he said that, Wu Lang was ovee with gratitude. Shen Jingbin tried to calm him down by switching the topic back to what his life was like after she¡¯d rescued his sister.

    From there, Shen Jingbin found out that the battle against the Shinra Sect didn¡¯t have much of an impact for amon man who wasn¡¯t affiliated with the Six Great Sects, like Wu Lang. All he knew was that there was some upheaval going on within the world.

    Shortly after, Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning said their goodbyes to Wu Lang and his sister. Wu Lang¡¯s sister reluctantly sent them off and said that they definitely had to visit often. No matter what happened, the two of them would never move so that Shen Jingbin would be able to find them.

    Shen Jingbin smiled and waved goodbye to the siblings. After passing through the doorway, she turned back and saw how happy and content the siblings looked as they chatted and made their way back into the house. The scene before her was so realistic that it didn¡¯t feel like a game at all.

    "Sometimes, I really can¡¯t tell whether they¡¯re real people or NPCs that are controlled. They live their own lives, and just like us, each and every one of them has their own fate guiding them."

    Zhao Chengning was also silently looking towards Wu Lang¡¯s house. A long time passed before he finally replied, "<<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> has been released for a long time. The reason why it¡¯s so well-received is due to both its entertainment value and its realism. All of the NPCs within this game act like living people, allowing the yers to feel as if they¡¯re living a different life rather than just ying a simple game."

    "How about apanying me back to the Lich Pce?" Zhao Chengning suddenly asked. "I sort of miss that enchanting Master of mine. It¡¯s been a while, so it¡¯s high time I went back and paid my respects to him."

    "Alright," replied Shen Jingbin when she thought of the amicable Guild Master.

    They walked out of the alleyway, and heedless of whether they drew any attention, summoned their mounts and made their way towards the Lich Pce.

    As they neared the Lich Pce, they saw a gigantic stone tablet that could be seen from far away. On it were characters etched in calligraphy of the highest order. When they drew closer, they found that the characters were actually the names of yers who¡¯d contributed in the battle against the Shinra Sect. The names at the top of the tablet even had a faint golden glow about them, almost as if it were trying to say that these were the people who¡¯d contributed the most in the battle.

    Zhao Chengning suddenly pointed at the upper left hand corner of the tablet. "Your name¡¯s on it."

    Shen Jingbin looked in the direction that he was pointing and found that her name really was there. Coincidentally, Zhao Chengning¡¯s name was just above hers. Their names were right next to one another, and they were pulsing with golden light at the same time.

 Chapter 385

    <b>Chapter 385: The Sect Leader Returns (1)</b>

    The newly appointed Sect Leader of the Lich Pce was a woman who oozed sexuality. But, for some strange reason, she had a pair of exceptionally clear eyes. She spoke to others in an earnest manner, making them subconsciously forget all about her sensuality.

    Her name was Yu Xiao.

    "Sect Leader Yu Xiao," greeted Zhao Chengning respectfully as soon as he stepped into the main hall.

    Yu Xiao was sitting in her seat of power as she watched the pair walk in. She nced at them with her charming eyes and gave them a once over.

    "It¡¯s you? Long time no see. Why are you here?"

    "I came to pay respects to my Master."

    Yu Xiao sized him up and said, "Senior really did pick a good disciple."

    Zhao Chengning pursed his lips and smiled.

    Yu Xiao and Poison Toad were martial siblings, but before she took up the mantle of Sect Leader, very few people knew of her existence. After Poison Toad¡¯s passing, she made her appearance with a letter penned by Poison Toad himself when several elders were battling it out for the position of Sect Leader. With Poison Toad¡¯s letter in hand, she dominated everyone - including the elders harbouring selfish thoughts - and imed the title of Sect Leader.

    Only a brief description was provided by the game¡¯s officials about this person who was the previous Sect Leader¡¯s Junior Sister. Apart from saying that she appeared to be very mysterious, nothing else was written about her.

    Yu Xiao led the pair over to the Eternal Spirit Pavilion. The Eternal Spirit Pavilion was a ce of rest for everyone who¡¯d made a contribution in the name of the Lich Pce.

    Yu Xiao stopped at the entrance and indicated for the two of them to go in by themselves.

    As they pushed opened the door and entered, the wind generated from their passage caused the altarmps to sway. They quickly returned to their former state once the door was shut.

    A wooden rack ran the entire height of the pavilion¡¯s interior, and many memorial tablets could be seen stacked on it. Poison Toad¡¯s tablet sat right at the forefront of the rack.

    The pair stepped forward. Each of them lit an incense stick for Poison Toad and stood rigidly in front of his tablet for several moments. Shen Jingbin suddenly remembered how precious the ck Tortoise was to Poison Toad. In a moment of emotion, she summoned the ck Tortoise from her pet storage.

    The ck Tortoise transformed into a handsome man as it fell to the ground. At first, there was some confusion in his eyes, as if he were unsure of where he was. But, after getting a good look at the tablet behind him, the confusion in his eyes gave way to pity and sorrow.

    "ck Tortoise, why don¡¯t you light an incense stick for Poison Toad as well," Shen Jingbin said.

    Several moments of silence passed before the ck Tortoise lit an incense stick. He ced it between his hands and went back to his original spot. After another moment of silence, he slowly ced the incense stick into the censer.

    Just then, something unexpected happened.

    All of the tablets within the Eternal Spirit Pavilion began to shine with a golden light the moment the ck Tortoise ced his incense stick into the censer! The dazzling light easily passed through the room¡¯s windows and spread in all directions before dying out as a beam of light that shot towards the heavens. Yu Xiao, who was standing guard by the door, was scared witless for a moment before she pushed open the door and stormed in.

    "What happened?!"

    By this time, the golden light within the room had started to diminish. Three dimly lit shadows could be seen standing inside... Wait a minute, <b>three</b> shadows?!

    Yu Xiao froze. She held her weapon tightly in her hand at the ready and calmed herself before she took another look. There really were three people present!

    She saw two people entering with her own two eyes. Now, there was a third person who¡¯d somehow managed to get inside without making a peep. There was definitely foul y afoot!

    "Who are you?!" cried out Yu Xiao coldly.

    When the golden lightpletely dissipated, Yu Xiao, Shen Jingbin, and Zhao Chengning were finally able to make out what was going on in the room. As they looked around, their eyes widened in surprise!

    Poison Toad, who should¡¯ve been gone, was now smiling before them! He looked just as elegant and as sensual as he always did. The nts of his brows expressed his heart-filled emotions, causing others to feel an ethereal sensation when they looked at him.

    When Shen Jingbin came around, she hurriedly scanned her surroundings, but she couldn¡¯t find the ck Tortoise anywhere. She decided to check her pet inventory next, and received a huge fright when she opened it up.

    Not only was the ck Tortoise missing, but even Mascot, the Vermillion Bird, and the Azure Dragon which she hadn¡¯t let out were all missing as well.

    Noticing that something wasn¡¯t right with Shen Jingbin, Zhao Chengning asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    "Mascot and the rest of the Divine Beasts are missing."

    They¡¯re all gone? For a moment, Zhao Chengning had absolutely no idea what was going on.

    Yu Xiao¡¯s shock from seeing Poison Toad again was quickly reced with anger. She hardened her expression and denounced the neer. "Where are you from, evildoer? How dare you impersonate my Senior Brother!"

    Yu Xiao couldn¡¯t be more clear on how her Senior Brother had sacrificed himself, along with the rest of the other Sect Leaders in the battle between good and evil. Now, someone who looked exactly like him was standing before her once again. She absolutely refused to believe it was him even if someone told her he¡¯d reincarnated.

    In spite of that, the Poison Toad imposter still insisted on quietly calling out to her. "Junior Sister..."

    "Silence! I don¡¯t see any Junior Sister of yours here, you monster!"

    Yu Xiao¡¯s expression twisted even more. She raised her weapon and swung it down at Poison Toad¡¯s face. Unexpectedly, her attack went straight through his body and smashed into the floor. Poison Toad still remained where he was, having not moved a single inch.

    Yu Xiao was taken aback.

    "You¡¯re just as impulsive as ever, Junior Sister," said Poison Toad. His tone was suffused with a sense of familiarity and affection.

    "A-are you really Senior Brother?" Yu Xiao asked, disbelief creeping into her voice as her limbs started to freeze up.

 Chapter 386

    <b>Chapter 386: The Sect Leader Returns (2)</b>

    Poison Toad nodded and turned his attention to Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning who were standing off to the side the entire time. Both of them had stern looks on their faces as a result of either his sudden appearance, or the disappearance of the Four Divine Beasts.

    Seeing Poison Toad looking in his direction, Zhao Chengning cried out a greeting. Poison Toad gave a satisfied nod of his head.

    "Seeing you like this means you¡¯ve seeded; as expected of my disciple."

    "Sect Leader, my Four Divine Beasts have disappeared. Do you know what happened to them?" Shen Jingbin asked.

    "They disappeared? Was this a recent urrence?"

    "It happened when you appeared."

    Poison Toad muttered uncertainly to himself for several moments before turning to face his tablet. A glint shed across his eyes as he said, "Step forward and grab ahold of my tablet."

    Shen Jinbing had no idea what was happening, but did as he asked anyway. She realised something wasn¡¯t quite right when she picked up his tablet.

    Poison Toad¡¯s tablet was unnaturally heavy. It was nowhere near what a wooden tablet should weigh.

    Poison Toad was able to more or less confirm his hypothesis when he saw the look on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face. He sighed and said, "I owe the ck Tortoise a great deal. I fear even giving my life wouldn¡¯t be able to repay it for all it¡¯s done for me."

    "What do you mean, Master?" Zhao Chengning asked.

    Before Poison Toad had the chance to reply, the tablet in Shen Jingbin¡¯s hand started to violently shake. Four differently coloured beams of light burst forth from the tablet and disappeared out the door in the blink of an eye. Immediately after, a notification appeared before her.

    "Your Divine Beasts have volunteered to guard the Abyss Realm in exchange for the freedom of the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects. You have lost the [True] Four Divine Beasts and gained the [High Grade] version of them instead. (Note: To continue the quest, the owner of the Four Divine Beasts has to step into the Lich Pce. This is apulsory event that automatically activates.

    As thanks for helping to advance the plot and topensate you for your loss, you¡¯ll be awarded with the permanent buff: ¡¯Shentu and Yul¨¹¡¯s Blessing¡¯ on thepletion of the quest. This buff allows you to return to the realm of the living regardless of which Door of Rebirth you choose when you¡¯re dead. <<Legends of Celestials and Demons>> thanks you for your cooperation. We wish you a pleasant gaming experience."

    The notification only went away after a whole five minutes had passed. When it finally went away, Shen Jingbin noticed that there was a faintyer of white light covering Poison Toad¡¯s body. At the same time, his body gradually began to take on a corporeal form till he was back in the flesh.

    Meanwhile, everyone else in game noticed that the sky had started to churn, and a system announcement appeared before them.

    [System Announcement] A gale wind blows, and there¡¯s changes within the heaven and the earth. A rip is torn open in the air and six figures speed out of it. Lo and behold, they turn out to be the six missing Sect Leaders!

    A voice that could have belonged to either a man or woman spoke from within the void: The six Sect Leaders act of sacrificing themselves for the greater good has moved the heavens, and they¡¯ve been returned to thisnd as a result. From this day forth, the Four Divine Beasts will guard the Abyss Realm where the demonic Shinra Sect reside!

    [System Announcement] Young heroes, your Sect Leaders have returned. Why not head back to your sects and pay them a visit? Whether or not this is a fortuitous event depends on you taking the chance to grasp the opportunity.

    After a moment of shock had passed, everyone was bubbling with excitement! Those who were picking herbs dropped what they were doing, while those who were digging for treasures threw down their shovels. Anyone who was running a dungeon just outright quit their run. Aside from those who were getting married, all of the yers excitedly sped back to their sects. Some of them were heading back for a chance at getting a reward, but even more yers were going back just because they wanted to see their Sect Leaders once again.

    Back then, the sight of their Sect Leaders perishing together with their enemy was too much for everyone to bear. Even now, many people still found it difficult to put how they¡¯d felt back then into words.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s heart started to race as well. For the moment, she was able to set aside the loss of the Four Divine Beasts. Her eyes were shining as she turned to look at Zhao Chengning.

    "I¡¯m going back to see my Master!"

    Shen Jingbin was so riled up that her cheeks had turned red. Zhao Chengning eyed her for a moment and nodded. "Go then. Be sure to stay safe."

    Shen Jingbin gave a bow to Poison Toad and Yu Xiao before she rushed out of the Lich Pce and sped back to White Cloud Temple.

    Zhao Chengning watched her gradually retreating form till she waspletely out of sight before he turned to face his Master. A long time passed before his eyes curved upwards in happiness and he gave his Master a formal greeting in the form of a sped fist.

    "Wee back, Master."

    Poison Toad eyed him for a moment before looking up at Yu Xiao whose eyes were brimming with tears. He smiled and helped Zhao Chengning up.

    The entire ce was crawling with yers by the time Shen Jingbin reached White Cloud Temple. But, as if by some unspoken agreement, all of them opened up a path for her to move forward. Because of this, she was able to make her way over to the main hall unimpeded.

    A figure with divine poise and sage-like features dressed in the sect¡¯s robes stood at the top of a flight of stairs in White Cloud Temple¡¯s main hall. His clothes fluttered in the wind further emphasising the air of excellence that he had about him.

    Shen Jingbin made her way up the stairs till she stood face to face with Song Yuqing.

    "Master," she called out.

    Song Yuqing looked just as mysterious as he always did. His expression softened when heid eyes on her, and in that instant, he seemed much more personable.

    "You¡¯re back?" he asked.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "Mm."

    "Elder Tan said you did pretty well during this time."

    "I did ok."

    Both Master and disciple suddenly fell silent. Song Yuqing looked down at his disciple who was craning her neck to look at him and gave a long sigh.

    More time passed before he finally spoke again. "My disciple, us Sect Leaders want to thank you for what you¡¯ve done."

    Shen Jingbin silently rubbed her nose and looked at the sky.

    It was a blue sky with white clouds. You¡¯d be hard pressed to find such nice weather even in real life.

    ......

    ...

    <u><i>Yiju¡¯s game development department.</i></u>

    Beta Tester 1 logged out from the game and gave a long sigh. The moment that happened, they were instantly surrounded by people who were mouring for an update on the state of things.

    The corner of Beta Tester 1¡¯s lips curled into a smile and they put up a ¡¯V¡¯ sign. Everyone around them immediately broke out into apuse and celebrations.

    After the battle between good and evil had ended, the customer service department received a deluge of calls, emails, and private messages from yers on a daily basis asking for the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects to be brought back. As the number of requests had ounted for over 70% of the yerbase, the higher ups gave the order for the game development department to bring them back to life.

    However, NPCs were designed to only have one life. They couldn¡¯t just revive an NPC all willy nilly! That wasn¡¯t their way of doing things! But, at the same time, it¡¯s not like they could ignore an order from the higher ups either. So, all they could do was put in extra hours to think up a way to bring the Sect Leaders back to life. And so began their rounds of testing.

    Today, the program monitoring the triggering of the revival quest had finally gotten a positive. The developers immediately sent one of their beta testers in to take a look at what was happening as they were deathly afraid of something going wrong.

    Now that everything had worked out, the worries hanging over their heads werepletely purged.

    The Sect Leaders were all brought back to life, and they wouldn¡¯t be harrassed any longer!

    That is, except for those people who¡¯d spent all that time working on the recement Sect Leaders, only to have them take office for only a few days... Sigh, this truly was a case of: for those that win there¡¯ll be those that lose.

 Chapter 387

    <b>Chapter 387: The Engagement (1)</b>

    After aplishing his goal in A City, Zhao Chengning stayed for another two days before returning to B City. When Old Master Zhao and Papa Zhao got wind of the Shen family agreeing to the couple getting engaged, they happily gave Zhao Chengning a p on the back, with Mama Zhao being the only one left pouting. She muttered something to herself, but no one could make out the exact contents of what she said.

    With theing of spring, the days became progressively hotter. During this time, Shen Jingchen had started on his internship and moved out of the vi to move to B City on his own.

    When he arrived at B City, Zhao Chengning rounded up a group of his friends and weed Shen Jingchen at the airport. Following that, they ate a meal together.

    On that day, this group of rich wastrels realised that the untouchable Zhao Chengning had gotten himself a brother-inw who hailed from A City.

    That night, when Shen Jingbin was talking to Zhao Chengning over the phone, she asked why he¡¯d introduced Shen Jingchen. Zhao Chengningughed and exined why he, who¡¯d always done his best to keep a low profile, had done something so conspicuous.

    The rich folks in B City were an extremely xenophobic bunch. Previously, the siblings hadn¡¯t stayed for long when they¡¯d visited B City, so the thought ofing into contact with B City¡¯s upper ss had never crossed their minds. The people they did meet with were all Zhao Chengning¡¯s friends, so they weren¡¯t exposed to any xenophobic sentiments. But, it looked like Shen Jingchen was nning to stay in B City for an extended period this time around. He had to do something like this to ensure that this bunch of rich wastrels - who tended to have more of an ego than your average person - would know that this ¡¯neer¡¯ wasn¡¯t someone they could pick on.

    The Shen family had power and influence, but a faraway river wouldn¡¯t be able to put out a fire nearby. Papa and Mama Shen¡¯s influence didn¡¯t extend all the way to the upper echelons of B City, so there weren¡¯t many people who knew of the Shen family¡¯s might over here.

    But, things were different now that Shen Jingchen¡¯s association with the Zhao family was made clear. Those who wanted to make things difficult for Shen Jingchen had to think about whether they could afford to go up against Zhao Chengning.

    Shen Jingbin was touched by how considerate her boyfriend was being towards her family. So much so that she felt like flying over to give him a kiss.

    After discussing amongst themselves, the parents from both the Zhao and Shen households decided to hold the wedding on April 15th. It¡¯s said that a day as auspicious as that was one that didn¡¯t evene by once every hundred years, and it was the best day to hold a wedding.

    As usual, the engagement party was held in the bride¡¯s hometown. As both families had influential personages, the engagement party turned out to be quite the grand affair. The ones who attended the engagement banquet were all rich and influential individuals. It was more or less a gathering of the who¡¯s who of both A and B cities.

    Shen Jingbin only invited her three dormmates to her engagement party, while Zhao Chengning invited Xi Qihui and Xu Ya. Jiang Weiwei kicked up a fuss about wanting toe as well, but she was firmly denied.

    During the engagement ceremony, when the couple were exchanging engagement rings, Huajuan and Xiaohe were crying as they clung to Jiangmeng. They cried so much that all of their makeup was washed away. Those who weren¡¯t in the know might have even thought that they were crying because they were holding a me for Zhao Chengning. It turns out that these two single dogs were actually crying for their own lonely and miserable existences.

    Once the engagement party was over, the groom-to-be wasn¡¯t allowed to stay the night in the bride-to-be¡¯s house. It¡¯d be best for the groom-to-be to return home. Unfortunately, Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t live in A City, so he had no choice but to make his way back to his hotel with a frown on his face.

    The VIPs that attended the engagement party bid their farewells as they made their way back, each appearing to be in more of a rush to leave than thest. The only ones left were those from the younger generation, who looked like they wanted to run wild for a little while longer.

    When Shen Jingbin looked at the engagement ring that adorned her finger, an indescribable sense of satisfaction and happiness welled up within her. She pulled out her handphone, and for the first time ever, she made a Weibo post,plete with a picture of the engagement ring on her finger.

    The Weibo ount she used was one with her real name on it that, with Keyuan¡¯s rmendation, had received Yellow V status. Although she¡¯d only created her ount recently, and she¡¯d only retweeted several news articles, she had a shocking number of followers.

    She had over 9 million followers. In fact, she¡¯d almost caught up to a few female celebrities.

    "Shen Jingbin: Congrattions to myself. [Picture]"

    As soon as she made the post, the number ofments and retweets she received went through the roof. At first, thements expressed surprise that she¡¯d finally made her first official post on Weibo, and that she wasn¡¯t retweeting news articles anymore. But, theyter turned into sighs of admiration or howls of anguish that the Goddess had finally gotten engaged, and that the love of their life was gone, just like that.

    Zhao Chengning just so happened to be hanging out with Xia Qihui, Xuya, and Shen Jingchen when he heard his handphone go off. His newly recognized wife-to-be had made a Weibo post. When he opened up the post, he was greeted with a picture of her engagement ring adorning her hand.

    Shen Jingbin possessed a beautiful hand. It was fair and slender, and she had well-defined knuckles. The silver engagement ring sat atop her ring finger and the happiness that she was experiencing could be felt through the camera¡¯s lens.

    Zhao Chengning retweeted the post with a smile and added a picture of his own engagement ring into the mix.

    "Zhao Chengning: Mm, congrattions to myself too. [Picture]//@Shen Jingbin: Congrattions to myself. [Picture]"

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s retweet brought forth a tidal wave of tears from everyone online. After looking through a fewments, he smiled and stowed away his phone.

    Xuya, who¡¯d been secretly keeping an eye on Zhao Chengning, was immediately unsettled by Zhao Chengning¡¯s smile. "Tsk tsk tsk. Take a look at my bro Chengning¡¯s killer smile."

    Zhao Chengning red at him. "Can it beat yours?"

    Xia Qihui burst outughing. "Xuya, Brother Ah Ning¡¯s finally seen a glimmer of hope at leading the good life. He might hold it against you if you make fun of him."

    Xuya¡¯s lips curled. "Hey, why¡¯re you making fun of me now?"

    "Weren¡¯t you asking for it?"

    "As if!"

    Shen Jingchen didn¡¯t joke around with the rest of the group like he did in the past. Instead, he wore a serious look on his face and turned to face Zhao Chengning. "Ah Ning, step out with me for a bit. I¡¯d like to have a word with you."

    Zhao Chengning grunted in acknowledgement and followed him out. Xia Qihui and Xuya exchanged a nce before Xuya spoke up. "What¡¯s Brother Chen up to?"

    Xia Qihui took a sip of his tea and shrugged. "Dunno."

    "..."

 Chapter 388

    <strong>Chapter 388: The Engagement (2)</strong>

    After stepping out, Shen Jingchen eyed Zhao Chengning for a long while before he finally spoke up.

    "Ah Ning, looks like you¡¯vended my sister as your wife."

    "Huh, I thought you realised it a long time ago."

    Shen Jingchen sucked in a breath of air. "In the past, I did have an inkling that the two of you might work out, but it was more of a feeling than anything. The reality of it only really sunk in when I saw the two of you exchanging engagement rings today. I feel empty... I only have one sister, and even though we might argue with one another, I...I don¡¯t really know how I feel right now. It just feels weird. I didn¡¯t call you out for anything in particr, I just wanted to tell you that while that girl may look like she¡¯s even tempered on the surface, in reality, that couldn¡¯t be further from the truth. When the two of you get married in the future, you should give in a little more to her. If she gets mad, she might get violent. Even then, she doesn¡¯t hit too hard - sort of like a cat scratching you - so make sure you don¡¯t retaliate... Sigh, why does it feel like I¡¯m her ex-boyfriend and I¡¯m telling her current boyfriend how to deal with her?"

    Looking at how conflicted Shen Jingchen was, Zhao Chengningughed and gave him aforting pat on the shoulder. "Don¡¯t worry, I know what you¡¯re trying to say. I promise to treat her well."

    "It¡¯s not that, you¡¯re the one who¡¯s going to be henpecked. But... Sigh, just what am I trying to say?"

    Zhao Chengningughed as he watched Shen Jingchen repeat himself over and over like a broken record.

    In truth, he understood why Shen Jingchen was so anxious. He¡¯d grown up with his sister, and now there was all this talk about her getting engaged. Before long, she¡¯d wind up leaving to be with another guy. Once that happened, the other guy would be the one eating, gaming, watching movies, or anything else with her instead. Shen Jingchen wasn¡¯t in love with his sister or anything, but it was more of a sense of loss and being forced to get used to a new way of life. Zhao Chengning doubted his reaction would be all that different if he were in Shen Jingchen¡¯s shoes and his beloved sister was about to get married.

    Different from how Zhao Chengning acted, Mama Shen went looking for Shen Jingbin right after Shen Jingbin made her Weibo post.

    Their mother-daughter rtionship was very good in spite of them rarely having any heart-to-heart talks. The reason why they didn¡¯t have this kind of talk much was because Mama Shen didn¡¯t have the time, and also because that was just the way the two of them were.

    Shen Jingbin was a little surprised when her mother appeared before her.

    "Mum!" Shen Jingbin cried out as she stood up.

    "Have a seat. I came over to have a talk with you," Mama Shen said as she sat by Shen Jingbin¡¯s side.

    Shen Jingbin obediently sat down.

    "How do you feel after the engagement?" Mama Shen had always been a straightforward person, and this time around was no different.

    "I feel blessed," Shen Jingbin replied just as bluntly.

    Mama Shen scrutinized Shen Jingbin for several seconds, making sure that she wasn¡¯t faking it. "I realised this hasn¡¯t been brought up yet. What stage of your rtionship are you and Zhao Chengning at?"

    Shen Jingbin froze and her eyebrows knitted, but she replied honestly, "We haven¡¯t gotten to the veryst step yet."

    Mama Shen¡¯s delicate face remained expressionless, making it difficult to tell whether she was satisfied or upset by Shen Jingbin¡¯s answer. "Zhao Chengning is 26 or 27 years old. He¡¯s at an age where he¡¯s just able to hold back his urges and be responsible for you. My reason foring here today was to say that now that you¡¯re engaged, we¡¯ll be watching how he treats you. You don¡¯t have to worry about holding back if there everes a day when you aren¡¯t able to restrain yourselves. But, I hope you¡¯ll know how to moderate yourselves and refrain from getting pregnant before you graduate."

    "I know."

    "At first, I felt that either getting engaged or married was too early for you. But, I changed my mind when I saw how determined he was, and I didn¡¯t want to y the bad guy by saying no. Your life is your own to walk. Regardless of how it turns out, make sure you see it through to the end; even if that means you have to crawl to get there. That¡¯s the type of attitude a daughter of the Shen family should have. You hear me?"

    "Mm."

    "Are the two of you nning to go out at night? Your Grandfather asked me to pass along a message: no matter howte you stay out tonight, you have to spend the night at home. Otherwise, it¡¯ll be inauspicious. The older generation believe in this sort of thing, so you should show some restraint."

    "Mm."

    "That¡¯s fine then. I don¡¯t want to drag things out, and I can¡¯t y the part of an all-knowing mother either, so I¡¯ll be going."

    "Mum!" Shen Jingbin suddenly called out as Mama Shen was about to go out the door. Mama Shen turned back.

    "What¡¯s wrong?"

    "It¡¯s nothing. I just suddenly felt like saying thank you, and that I love both you and Dad."

    A thin smile appeared on Mama Shen¡¯s lips. "You should be saying that to your father. He¡¯ll be overjoyed to hear it."

    "He¡¯ll be even happier if you pass it on to him instead."

    Noticing the sly smile on Shen Jingbin¡¯s face, Mama Shen red at her before walking out.

    Shen Jingbin fell back onto her bed and brought up the hand with her engagement ring to inspect it. The light shining in from the window gave it a beautiful sparkle.

    She rubbed the ring with her other hand. It felt cold to the touch, but her heart was filled with warmth.

 Chapter 389

    <strong>Chapter 389: A Group Of Women Kicking Up A Fuss (1)</strong>

    At night, several youngsters, including Shen Jingbin¡¯s three roommates, went to a members-only bar in A City together. Actually, though it was said to be members-only, there were still exceptions like Shen Jingbin who wasn¡¯t a member, but who could use her face to get in.

    The eight people chose a rtively quieter area separated from the rest of the bar by a light muslin, forming their private area.

    Once she arrived, the tomboy, Huajuan, made the waiter serve an entire carton of beers. Then, under the astonished stares of several men, she used her teeth to open two bottles. "Little Jing, no matter what, you have to drink a bottle with me tonight. You¡¯re already engaged, so take pity on us three sisters who are still single," she said with gusto.

    After she spoke, she tipped her head and drank a mouthful of beer. The way she cleanly down her alcohol left Xuya speechless. He discreetly tugged at Shen Jingchen¡¯s sleeve and asked quietly, "Brother Chen, has that youngdy always been so bold?"

    Shen Jingchen thought for a bit and said, "I think so."

    Xuya silently nced at at Huajuan several more times, thinking to himself that ady like her was really rare.

    In B City, Young Master Xu was used to seeing sweet looking and soft spoken small time celebrities or models who could make men go weak in the knees. Even those aristocratic youngdies would be bashful when theyid eyes on his group of brothers. To be honest, this was his first time seeing a girl as bold and unconstrained as Huajuan. Him paying more attention to her was inevitable.

    Seeing how straightforward and determined Huajuan was, Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t say no and tipped her head after her.

    A beauty is a beauty regardless of what they do. When Shen Jingbin did it, even a crude action appeared refined. Zhao Chengning stared at her slightly moving throat, and felt like his mouth was dry and that he was thirsty too. He silently opened a bottle for himself and took small sips from it. Xia Qihui, who was by his side, elbowed him and said to his ear, "What happened? You can¡¯t even bear something like this?"

    Zhao Chengning put down his bottle and nced at him. "What nonsense are you spewing?"

    Xia Qihui looked at him with a ¡¯I¡¯ve already seen through you, you don¡¯t have to put on an act¡¯ expression. "Don¡¯t rush, you¡¯ve almost achieved sess."

    Zhao Chengning rolled his eyes.

    The singer waiting outside got into position, and the sound of instruments being tuned could be heard. Shortly after, a supple female voice rang out. She sounded a little hoarse, but that lent an expected element of sexiness to her voice.

    Several people listened to the music as they chatted. Shen Jingbin knitted her eyebrows when she noticed that Xuya was, intentionally or not, continuously ncing at Huajuan. Conversations with him also always drifted towards Huajuan.

    "Hey, I¡¯ve got a question for you," she pulled at Zhao Chengning and whispered.

    Zhao Chengning motioned for her to ask with his eyes. She thought for a while and asked, "Does Xuya have a girlfriend right now?"

    "He dated a small time celebrity previously, but I¡¯m not too sure if they¡¯re still together now," Zhao Chengning said.

    "Go find out."

    "Eh?" He looked at her in confusion, not really understanding why she¡¯d bade him to do so.

    "Have a gander at who he¡¯s looking at."

    Zhao Chengning looked over and realised what the problem was. He turned back to her. "Xuya¡¯s a pretty good guy. He¡¯s just too young and a little yful."

    "I know, that¡¯s why you have to find out if he has a girlfriend. Huajuan said that she likes younger boys. If Xuya doesn¡¯t have a girlfriend, hooking the two of them up isn¡¯t a bad idea."

    Finally understanding what she wanted to do, Zhao Chengning said, "I¡¯ll found outter. You sound your friend out too."

    Whilst the two of them were discussing amongst themselves, Huajuan spotted them whispering in each other¡¯s ears and spoke up in feigned anger. "There¡¯s so many people here, yet the two of you are still whispering. Doesn¡¯t that defeat the purpose ofing here?"

    Shen Jingbin straightened her body and said unflinchingly, "We were just discussing if there¡¯s anyone suitable we can introduce you to so that you won¡¯t spend all day moping about."

    Huajuan¡¯s smile reached her eyes. She mischievously moved closer and wrapped her arms around Shen Jingbin¡¯s neck. "Oh, my Little Jingjing still loves me the most~ Come, let me give you a kiss."

    Shen Jingbin pushed her away in disdain. "Don¡¯t think of covering my face with your saliva."

    Huajuan released her. "Hehe, you belong to someone now, so I can¡¯t tease you like how I did before. Right, Mr Zhao?"

    Zhao Chengning leaned back, smiling as he looked at them and said, "I¡¯m not so petty. It¡¯s fine as long as you guys are happy."

    Xuya suddenly interrupted them. "Hey, Big Sis, you¡¯re so beautiful, yet you don¡¯t have a boyfriend. Don¡¯t tell me nobody¡¯s chasing you?"

    Huajuan pointed at her nose and asked, "Were you talking to me?"

    Xuya blinked and nodded cutely.

    Huajuan happily pped Xiaohe¡¯s thigh, who happened to be sitting beside her. A crisp sound rang out and whoever heard it thought to themselves that it must¡¯ve hurt. Xiaohe grimaced in pain and nearly jumped up.

    "The hell?! Are you insane?!"

    "Hahaha, Xiaohe, Room Leader, did you guys hear? This kid said I was beautiful! Hahaha."

    "Sigh, and that¡¯s all you have to your name," Xiaohe said condescendingly.

    "You are beautiful. Your beauty¡¯s just been overshadowed by Little Jing," Jiangmeng said sincerely

    "So, the reason I don¡¯t have a boyfriend after all these years is because of Little Jing... That¡¯s not right. I didn¡¯t manage to find a boyfriend even in year 3 when Little Jing moved out."

    Shen Jingbinnded the finishing blow. "You¡¯re just like an old man. Finding a boyfriend? More like finding a girlfriend."

    Huajuan humphed. "Shoo shoo. You and Xiaohe don¡¯t have what it takes to see my beauty... Hey handsome, what¡¯s your name? It¡¯s rare for me toe across someone like you who can spot a beauty. Why don¡¯t you pass me your number?"

    Xuya immediately beamed with joy and offered up his contact details.

    After witnessing everything, Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning silently looked at one another.

    Those two people just got together on their own. There was absolutely no need for them to y matchmaker!

 Chapter 390

    <strong>Chapter 390: A Group Of Women Kicking Up A Fuss (2)</strong>

    Shortly after they arrived, another group came and sat beside them, each booth separated by the same kind of light muslin. Through the hazy gauze, they could make out the indistinct figures of four young women. Among them, one of their voices seemed somewhat familiar. It sounded like someone they knew.

    "It¡¯s Huoqing and the others," Jiangmeng suddenly said.

    Shen Jingbin came to a sudden realisation, but Huajuan and Xiaohe looked as if they¡¯d swallowed a fly.

    Huoqing, Shen Jingbin, and the others were in the same faculty and also lived in dorms that were opposite one another. It was a pity that the inhabitants of both dorms shed as soon as they started school.

    Speaking of which, the reason why they were at odds with one another was very simple: Men. Huoqing came from quite a well to do family. Her father did business and had managed to earn arge sum of money a few years ago, rising in the ranks and entering the B City¡¯s upper ss. She herself was quite pretty and looked exquisite when she dressed up. During military training, she fell for a male student, but it turned out that the boy liked Shen Jingbin. She couldn¡¯t get what she wanted, so she ended up hating Shen Jingbin for it. Later, after military training had ended, she got herself a boyfriend. Unexpectedly, rumours started circting not long after about how he¡¯d failed to chase after Shen Jingbin, so he¡¯d switched targets and went after Huoqing instead. Feeling humiliated, she immediately rounded up a bunch of people and charged into Shen Jingbin¡¯s dormitory. Coincidentally, only the bad-tempered Huajuan was present that day. Hence, both sides began quarrelling with one another, nearlying to physical blows. Fortunately, the next door neighbour returned and separated Huajuan and the others. Since then, both dorms¡¯ animosity was set and they¡¯d had many fights out in the open, and in secret.

    After Huoqing¡¯s group sat down, Shen Jingbin heard them speaking in shrill voices and mocking people. The first one to be attacked was her. Women always tended to have this misconception that they didn¡¯t speak loudly, yet little did they know, every sentence they spoke clearly reached the ears of those beside them.

    "Hey, did you guys hear? Rumour has it that that nutjob got engaged, and the groom-to-be seems to be some impressive person," one woman said.

    Just as she finished speaking, someone spoke up. "Engaged? She¡¯s so slutty, she even manages to get herself involved with the lecturer during a lecture. Can she really bear getting engaged and tying herself down?"

    "Speaking of, thest one who gave a lecture was quite handsome, but I didn¡¯t expect him to get involved with that sort of woman. What a waste."

    They suddenly stopped talking. Shortly after, another delicate female voice said, "Hmph, with just her looks, I reckon she¡¯s been dumped rather than engaged... Oh, by the way, how many people in school know about this?"

    "There shouldn¡¯t be that many people. I only found out about it because I went to the hotel to look for my friend that day."

    "When we go back, you guys go to the news society and leak this to them."

    "Eh, why?"

    "Think about it. The president of the news society has been chasing after that woman for so long without any results, that if he heard that she¡¯s engaged, what would his reaction be?"

    "Haha, Ah Qing, you¡¯re still the one with the n. That news society president is so petty that he¡¯ll blow his top if he finds out about it. After all, being engaged and dating are two different things. He¡¯ll surely think of a way to retaliate and drag her reputation through the mud."

    The four women immediately smiled. Off to the side, Shen Jingbin and the others who¡¯d heard their conversation were stunned, especially Zhao Chengning¡¯s trio.

    "Sister Jing, what grudge do those women next door have against you?"

    Before Shen Jingbin could answer, Huajuan, who was unable to restrain her anger, pped the table and rushed over to Huoqing¡¯s group.

    "Pui, what nonsense are you cheap sluts spouting?! If you guys speak another word of nonsense, I¡¯ll personally take each and every one of you out tonight!"

    Those four women probably never expected to bump into the person in question. They stared nkly for a good long while before they finally responded.

    "Huajuan? My, howughable. We weren¡¯t talking about you, so why do you have to be so anxious? Are you that nutjob¡¯s dog? You¡¯re so eager to show your loyalty."

    "Up yours! Can¡¯t you be a bit more f*cking civil, Houqing?"

    Hearing their voices growing increasingly louder, Shen Jingbin and the others feared that Huajuan might have been picked on by Huajuan¡¯s group and hurriedly went over. Most notably, Xuya led the pack. He looked at the four women who were dressed to the nines and then at Huajuan who was so mad, her face was red. He said, "Big Sister, don¡¯t get so worked up. It¡¯s not worth hurting yourself by getting too angry."

    Huoqing didn¡¯t recognise Xuya. Seeing his delicate features and appearance that made it clear he was younger than Huajuan, her thoughts momentarily went astray. She gave a coldugh and said with a sneer, "Say, Huajuan, just how thirsty are you? You couldn¡¯t find yourself a man so you went looking for a gigolo instead?" Her gaze swept over the men from Shen Jingbin¡¯s group who¡¯d rushed over. One of them seemed familiar, but she didn¡¯t put too much thought into it and continued, "Birds of a feather really do flock together. Not one of you from that dormitory is a good person! You even grouped up to go looking for gigolos together."

    At that time, when Zhao Chengning went to A University to give a talk, Huoqing didn¡¯t attend and only saw the few photos on the school¡¯s BBS afterwards. So, she didn¡¯t recognise him. But, herpanions did when they took a good look at him. Thinking back to the long list of impressive positions attached to his name, they nervously pulled at hem of Huoqing¡¯s clothes in a bid to get her to stop talking.

    However, Houqing didn¡¯t understand their ¡¯earnest thoughts¡¯ and continued to mock and ridicule the group.

    Seeing the man growing increasingly upset, the three women silently swallowed their saliva and observed a moment of silence for themselves.

 Chapter 391

    <b>Chapter 391: The Hero Saves The Girl (1)</b>

    Having a brain is a good thing, but sadly, not everyone possessed one. All four of the men were clearly bing increasingly upset, but Huoqing acted as if she didn¡¯t notice any of it and had no intention of backing down.

    Of course, Huajuan was no pushover either. The sight of both women tearing into one another gradually attracted the attention of many people. Although Huoqing had a sharp tongue, she still wasn¡¯t quite Huajuan¡¯s match. Realising she was about to lose her verbal sparring match with Huajuan, she turned her attention to Shen Jingbin.

    "Aren¡¯t you supposed to be all that, Shen Jingbin? Why are you so quiet now? Can you match up to a graceful woman like me? Hurry up and get that bitch of yours under control, she attacks everyone she sees. It¡¯s almost like she has rabies. She isn¡¯t even afraid of being treated as a mad dog and being beaten to death."

    "Go f*ck yourself. You¡¯re asking for it, Huoqing!" Huajuan didn¡¯t bother arguing with her any more. She rolled up her sleeves and got ready to duke it out with Huoqing.

    "What are you... Hurry up and hold her back... Ah!" In a moment of inattention, Huoqing¡¯s long ck hair was snagged by Huajuan. Huoqing was so wracked by pain that she started crying. "Huajuan you bitch! Hurry up and let go of me! Otherwise, there¡¯s going to be hell to pay! Get this bitch off of me!"

    Huoqing¡¯spanions broke out of their stupor and hurriedly went forward to try and help her.

    "Pui. Just the few of you are trying to have it out with me? Dream on!" Even though Huajuan had never learnt martial arts, the barbaric strength that she possessed wasn¡¯t something a few women could deal with. Let alone helping Huoqing, herpanions actually pulled out several chunks of her hair in the scuffle, causing her to cry out in even more pain.

    "Trying to subdue her with numbers? You guys must think that other people don¡¯t exist in our dorm. Dorm Leader, let¡¯s go! Don¡¯t worry Huajuan, your big sisters areing to save you!"

    When Xiaohe saw the whole group of them surrounding Huajuan and attacking her, Xiaohe¡¯s heroic spirit red. She rolled up her sleeves and jumped into the fray, tearing at their hair and biting her enemies the entire time. Jiangmeng was always the good student, but that didn¡¯t mean she¡¯d let other people walk all over her. Without any further ado, she too joined in on the melee. With these women duking it out, the scene was starting to look pretty savage.

    How did the three men, who lived in B City like princes, and were ustomed to dealing with ¡¯noble women¡¯ fare when they saw this scene unfold before them? Other than Zhao Chengning, who, because of his personality, didn¡¯t reveal his emotions on his face, Xuya and Xi Qihui¡¯s eyes were practically popping out of their heads. Due to his ties with his sister, Shen Jingchen had fortunately borne witness to several of these cat fights in the past, so he was still doing fine.

    Xuya swallowed his saliva and forced out his question. "Uh, Little Jing... A-aren¡¯t you going to help them?"

    It was really awkward for men to just stand by the side and watch as a cat fight took ce.

    "Do... do we really not need to break them apart?" Xia Qihui asked hesitantly.

    "My advice is for you not to. Women are even scarier than men when they get into a fight. Friend or foe means nothing to them. Kicking, punching, grabbing, pinching, anything goes. Even if you want to mediate, it¡¯s best to let them duke it out for a bit and wait till they¡¯re out of breath before doing so," replied Shen Jingchen.

    Huajuan happened to turn her head and caught, out of the corner of her eye, Shen Jingbin looking on with interest whilst she, Xiaohe, and the Dorm Leader were fighting with all their might.

    "What the f*ck, where the hell are you, Shen Jingbin?! Why the hell are you standing over there for? Get over here and help your sisters take care of this bitch!" she roared.

    Xiaohe spoke up immediately after. "Little Jing, don¡¯te over just yet! It¡¯ll be over in a sh if you join in! Let me beat them up for a little while longer." Immediately after that, she bit the interdigital folds of the woman who was grabbing her, causing her to cry out in pain. "Ah! My god, you actually bit me! You think you¡¯re the only one with teeth? Take this!"

    Jiangmeng: ...

    Everyone watching: Fights amongst women are ferocious.

    Zhao Chengning surveyed his surroundings and found that more and more people were being drawn to the spectacle. Even the music from the speakers wasn¡¯t enough to drown out the sounds of battle. "We¡¯re causing too much of amotion. Go help out your roommates, otherwise, things are gonna turn ugly if securityes."

    Shen Jingbin looked around after he said that and noticed that several security officers were doing their best to squeeze through the crowd of onlookers. Shen Jingbin immediately dropped out of spectator mode and walked forward.

    Jiangmeng and one of Huoqing¡¯spanions were locked in one another¡¯s grasp at the edge of the battlefield. They were deathly afraid that the moment one of them let go, the other would run to the aid of their friends. Shen Jingbin walked over to the pair and grabbed the wrist of the girl who had a death grip on Jiangmeng¡¯s waist and gave it a downward tug. With a cry of pain, the girl released her hold on Jiangmeng. Shen Jingbin took advantage of the opportunity to separate the girl and Jiangmeng. Freed from the girl¡¯s clutches, Jiangmeng sped towards Xiaohe and Huajuan. The girl tried to chase after Jiangmeng, but she stopped dead in her tracks when Shen Jingbin red at her, no longer able to muster up the courage to take another step.

    Having taken care of one problem, Shen Jingbin turned around and made her way over to Huajuan and the rest.

    The ongoing battle was beyond savage. In spite of losing their makeup, Huajuan andpany still looked fine apart from some scratches on their faces. Huoqing¡¯s group, on the other hand, didn¡¯t just have scratches on their faces, but their makeup was in disarray. With splotches of ck and white on their faces, disheveled hair, and disorganized attire, it wouldn¡¯t be strange if a person thought they¡¯d just gotten out of the looney bin.

    Huajuan and Huoqing were in the midst of grappling with one another, and breaking them up wasn¡¯t possible for the moment. Xiaohe¡¯s fight with her opponents seemed like a prime target to be broken up though. Shen Jingbin walked over to Xiaohe and efficiently took out the two women guing her in less than a minute.

    "I¡¯lle help you, Huajuan!" Now that the girl Xiaohe was tussling with was taken care of, she called out to Huajuan and was about to run over and help her when she was held back by the hawk eyed Jiangmeng.

    "Don¡¯t stir up more trouble, Little Jing¡¯s taking care of it."

    Xiaohe paused for a moment before letting out an ¡¯okay¡¯ and obediently taking her ce beside Jiangmeng. "Go for it Huajuan, I¡¯ll be supporting you in spirit!"

 Chapter 392

    <strong>Chapter 392: The Hero Saves The Girl (2)</strong>

    When Shen Jingbin approached Huajuan and Huoqing, they were wing at each other¡¯s hair whilst hurling insults at one another. Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t hold back and pinched the back of Huoqing¡¯s hand that was clutching onto Huajuan¡¯s hair.

    "Ah! Shen Jingbin you bitch! Where¡¯s your sense of shame? How dare you pinch me!" Huoqing immediately retracted her hand as if she¡¯d been burnt and rubbed at it. She then shot Shen Jingbin a re before pouncing at her with the intention of wing her.

    Huoqing loved dolling herself up, which also extended to her fingernails. She¡¯d kept them long and even went the extra mile to have them manicured. Who knows how painful a scratch from her would be, so Shen Jingbin obviously wouldn¡¯t be silly enough to allow herself to be injured by them. She grabbed Huoqing¡¯s hand and used her free hand to send a p flying towards Huoqing.

    The sound of Shen Jingbin¡¯s p was crisp and clear. Just the sound of it alone was enough for others to know that there¡¯d be swelling for sure. Some of the onlookers even subconsciously rubbed at their faces. Thank goodness they weren¡¯t the ones being pped!

    Huoqing¡¯s eyes widened as she clutched her face, looking as if she couldn¡¯t believe that she¡¯d just been pped. A long time passed before she came to her senses. When she finally did, she charged forward like a madwoman whilst baring tooth and nail. It was almost as if she was nning to stake her life to take Shen Jingbin down.

    When the hotel¡¯s security officers managed to make it through the crowd of onlookers who were deliberately obstructing them, they were greeted with the sight of a woman who was acting like a crazy olddy trying to harm Miss Shen! There was no way they¡¯d let this stand!

    They hurriedly stepped forward and restrained Huoqing from both her left and right, preventing her from taking even a single step forward. Later, when the hotel¡¯s manager arrived and saw what was happening, he jogged up to Shen Jingbin and issued an anxious apology. "Apologies for startling you with this incident, Miss Shen."

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t appear to be upset. She patted the manager on the hand and said, "My Father likesing here because he feels that your members-only establishment is quite peaceful, and that there aren¡¯t crooks mixed in amongst honest folks. Who would¡¯ve thought that just anyone could be a member of your establishment now."

    Cold sweat started to form on the manager¡¯s forehead. "I¡¯m so sorry, Miss Shen. This was an error on our part. We¡¯ll be escorting them out."

    Huoqing immediately started throwing a fit when she heard that she was going to be thrown out. "What?! Hey, what did you say, you damn fatty? You¡¯re going to chase us out?! I¡¯m a member! Your god! What right do you have to throw me out?! I¡¯m going to lodge aint!"

    The manager¡¯s expression distorted in an instant. He hurriedly turned to the two security officers restraining Huoqing and said, "What¡¯re you standing around for? Hurry up and throw her out!"

    The two security officers acknowledged the manager¡¯s order, hoisted Huoqing up, and brought her out. The manager then said, "There¡¯s a few more over here. You lot, throw them out as well!"

    The rest of the security officers that were on standby ran over and dragged Huoqing¡¯spanions out.

    "Watch out!"

    Unexpectedly, as Huoqing was walking past Shen Jingbin and Huajuan, she somehow managed to throw off the security guards restraining her and grabbed a bottle of beer from a table. She then mustered up her strength and smashed it towards their heads!

    Huajuan and Shen Jingbin were standing side by side. In that moment, no one could tell who she was aiming for!

    The expressions of the men, who¡¯d been quietly standing by the side and watching the events unfold, quickly changed. Zhao Chengning and Xuya locked eyes on their targets, and without saying a word, charged forward. One protected Shen Jingbin while the other protected Huajuan.

    Pa. The sound of the beer bottle shattering against someone could be heard. On inspection, a line of dark red blood could be seen oozing down the back of Xuya¡¯s head as he slowly slumped onto Huajuan.

    "Xuya!"

    "Little Ya!"

    Everyone cried out in rm.

    Upon seeing the blood running down Xuya¡¯s head, Huoqing fell into a fluster. She dropped the remains of the beer bottle and started to flee. Herpanions were scared out of their wits as well. However, they were restrained by the security officers and couldn¡¯t escape. They went weak in the knees and fell to the ground.

    The manager was beside himself in anger. "What are you standing around for?! Go after that woman and bring her back! Also, get someone to call an ambnce and the police!"

    Although he didn¡¯t know who the ones apanying Miss Shen were, since they were associated with her, they wouldn¡¯t be too far off in terms of status either. They definitely weren¡¯t people he could afford to offend.

    The servers broke out of their stupor and started hurrying around. The manager put a hand to his brow and felt the cold sweat collecting there. He felt as if his legs were turning into jelly, but he forced himself to remain strong and began pacifying the rest of the guests.

    "Hey, hey, are you alright, Xuya?! Wake up!" Xuya, who was close to 1.8 meters in height, was now slumped against Huajuan. She couldn¡¯t see his face, and could only feel the blood trickling down the back of his head. When she saw that her entire hand was dyed red, she started to panic and she sounded like she was on the verge of crying.

    Several people hurriedly surrounded them as a press of bodies attempted to hoist him onto the sofa.

    "Have you called for the ambnce yet?" Zhao Chengning asked calmly.

    "We have! Sir, please be calm. The ambnce is on its way," replied the server.

    Shen Jingchen¡¯s expression turned stoic as well. He swept his gaze past the women who were now paralyzed on the ground and said, "Make sure you keep an eye on these people. Don¡¯t allow them to go anywhere before the police arrive. Also, apprehend the one that ran away and send her over to the police station!"

    The server¡¯s back was ramrod straight as he delivered his reply. "U-understood Mr Shen. W-we¡¯ve already dispatched some people to retrieve her."

    Xuya¡¯s eyes remained tightly shut as hey on the sofa. Hisplexion was now a pale shade of white. It was a far cry from the frivolous and joyous expression that he¡¯d previously had.

 Chapter 393

    <b>Chapter 393: Taking ¡¯Courting Disaster¡¯ To The Extreme (1)</b>

    All they wanted was to rx and have some fun outside at night. Never did they expect their outing to turn out like this instead.

    The ambnce quickly arrived and Xuya was sent off to the hospital along with several other people who apanied him. Along the way, Xuya regained consciousness, but he didn¡¯t seem to be in good shape. He remained nestled in Huajuan¡¯s embrace and appeared out of it. Thankfully, they found out that the injury he¡¯d sustained wasn¡¯t very serious when he was examined at the hospital. Only the skin had been broken. All it took were several stitches and a bit of bandaging and he was as good as new. But, Xuya kicked up a fuss about wanting to be put under observation and staying the night at the hospital, fearing that he might be suffering from a concussion. Unable to convince him otherwise, the doctor could only agree to let him stay the night and put him under observation.

    As expected, Huajuan chose to stay behind and keep Xuyapany.

    Truth be told, Huajuan¡¯s heart had practically jumped out of her throat when she saw Xuya taking the hit for her. Afterwards, when he was lying in her arms with blood dripping out the back of his head, she felt both heartache and a sense of tenderness welling up within her heart. It was an inexplicable sensation. Now that he¡¯d gotten back some of his strength and was looking at her with sparkling eyes, that mix of emotions now turned to joy.

    Huajuan wasn¡¯t some little girl who¡¯d never been in a rtionship before, so she obviously knew what this sudden change of emotions signified. When she saw theughter in his eyes she couldn¡¯t help but cry out in her heart.

    This is bad! This is bad! I¡¯m harbouring improper thoughts towards someone else¡¯s kid!

    Little did she know, this ¡¯little kid¡¯ was scheming how to conquer this big sister in front of him.

    The bar¡¯s manager gave Shen Jingbin a call and informed her that Huoqing had been apprehended. She and herpanions were now being detained at the police station. He also said that the police would like to get a better understanding of what had happened, and they were wondering if she and the rest of her group could drop by to answer some questions.

    Shen Jingbin agreed and also told him to keep an eye on them. He was to stop them from leaving by preventing anyone from paying their bail.

    The manager saw this as a good chance to redeem himself, so he agreed without a moment¡¯s hesitation.

    Shen Jingchen was charged with sending Jiangmeng and Xiaohe back to school, while Shen Jingbin, Zhao Chengning, and Xia Qihui would make their way over to the police station.

    Upon reaching the police station, they found that apart from Huoqing and themselves, there were several other people there who appeared to be parental figueres. Amongst them, the most immactely dressed was a man who froze when he saw Shen Jingbin¡¯s group. He then turned his gaze to his daughter and shot her a vicious re.

    Shen Jingbin didn¡¯t recognize them, so she just nced at them before passing by.

    The police officer enquired about what had happened and the condition of the victim.

    "It¡¯s a rather serious injury. He had to receive eight stitches, and the doctor said that he might have a concussion. He was asked to stay the night for observation," Zhao Chengning said seriously.

    Huoqing began to panic when she heard what he said. "You¡¯re lying! How can being hit on the head with a beer bottle result in the possibility of a concussion? Are men really so frail? You guys are clearly trying to use this as an opportunity to make things difficult for me!"

    Zhao Chengning turned to re icily at her. Under his gaze, all of her courage fled her as she swallowed her saliva and fell silent.

    "He can¡¯t possibly have a concussion? Why don¡¯t I try hitting you on the head with a beer bottle and we¡¯ll see what happens? So what if he¡¯s a man? Should a man¡¯s head be harder so you can hit them?"

    The middle aged man beside Huoqing hurriedly spoke up. "Sigh, young man, that¡¯s not what my daughter meant. You don¡¯t need to be so upset." He could tell that the two youths in front of him weren¡¯t people that he could afford to offend. He was deathly afraid that one wrong move on his daughter¡¯s part would set the other party off.

    The police officer spoke up to try and defuse the situation. "Alright, let¡¯s put aside our differences and try to settle this calmly. Look at howte it is, and these girls over there are still students. Do you have lessons tomorrow? Why don¡¯t we settle this as quickly as possible so that we can all go home? You guys are the victims, so how would you like to settle this incident?"

    "We¡¯ll follow standard legal proceedings. I want to sue them for causing intentional harm to another," replied Shen Jingbin.

    Huoqing¡¯s group paled when they heard what she said. Huoqing¡¯spanions and their parents, in particr, had especially horrified faces.

    Just then, someone else walked into the room and heard what she said.

    "Little miss, I advise you to think it through. I just got off the phone with the hospital. Your friend¡¯s injury isn¡¯t serious enough to be counted as a case of causing intentional harm. I¡¯ve also obtained the bar¡¯s surveince footage. Your group was the one who started the conflict, so please be reasonable."

    "Leader." The police officer stood up and saluted when the man walked in.

    The man who was referred to as ¡¯Leader¡¯ turned to the police officer and waved his hand. "It¡¯ste, why don¡¯t you head home. Let me handle this case."

    "But..." The police officer looked at Shen Jingbin, then turned to Huoqing and her father.

    "Go on, do you really think that things can get out of hand with me around?"

    The police officer knew what he was getting at and sighed. He then obediently packed up and left the office.

 Chapter 394

    <strong>Chapter 394: Taking ¡¯Courting Disaster¡¯ To The Extreme (2)</strong>

    "You are?" Shen Jingbin gave the Leader a once over. He looked to be about forty or so years old; around the same age as Huoqing¡¯s father. He seemed to be an honest and straightforward type of person. Unfortunately, his radiant eyes gave away his true nature.

    "I¡¯m the Leader of the civil division. Myst name¡¯s Li."

    The man then proceeded to plop down onto the officer¡¯s chair and looked through the records. He looked up at Shen Jingbin¡¯s group and said, "This incident is neither big nor small. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a need to go through so much trouble to clear things up."

    Xia Qihui was a forthright person and had a long history of dealing with all sorts of people. Naturally, he also knew a thing or two about shady characters. He could tell that something was fishy the moment Leader Li walked into the room and spoke. Xia Qihui smiled and gestured for Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin not to say anything.

    "You¡¯re Leader Li, right? Since you¡¯ve looked at the recording, you should know that my friends and I aren¡¯t locals. We were just ovee by a moment of panic. Leader Li, why don¡¯t you tell us what you think is the best way to handle this incident?"

    Leader Li looked at Xia Qihui with eyes full of praise and said, "I¡¯d rmend you guys to settle this privately. You should be aware that the other party consists of a few little girls. I don¡¯t think two grown men need to quibble with a bunch of girls."

    "Leader Li, while they might look like frail little girls, they¡¯re exceptionally vicious when they make their move. Tsk, tsk, tsk. I myself was tongue-tied when I saw what happened. My friend was knocked out the moment Huoqing sent that bottle of beer his way."

    Leader Li shot a nce at Huoqing¡¯s father. He got the message and immediately chimed in. "Yes, this was indeed my daughter¡¯s fault. How about this then: I¡¯ll cover all of your friend¡¯s medical fees. Also, I¡¯ll also give him an additional 20,000 aspensation. That should be enough, right?"

    Unexpectedly, Xia Qihui shook his head. "Uncle, your daughter caused quite the fuss tonight. Many people have borne witness to my friend being attacked by your daughter. Just imagine how shameful it¡¯ll be for him if word of this gets out... Why not this then: In addition to whatever you said before, you get your daughter to go over to the hospital and issue an apology in front of all the doctors and nurses."

    "Dream on. I¡¯ll never apologize to all of you. That little gay ran up and took the hit all on his own. How is it my fault?!" Huoqing roared.

    Zhao Chengning and Shen Jingbin¡¯s faces darkened when they heard what she said. Even the smile on Xia Qihui¡¯s face receded and was instead reced with an ice cold exterior.

    "What did you just say? Who did you say was a gay?"

    "I was talking about your friend! Just look at how he looks like. Who¡¯d believe it if he said he wasn¡¯t gay?" Huoqing knew that Leader Li was someone her father had sought out, so she felt safe in the knowledge that she¡¯d be protected.

    Huoqing¡¯s three otherpanions couldn¡¯t sit still any longer when they heard what she said. All of them stepped forward and said that they would be willing to apologize and pay forpensation. They also hoped that Shen Jingbin¡¯s group wouldn¡¯t hold this incident against them. One of them even went as far as to beg Zhao Chengning to be merciful and let them go.

    Huoqing was both puzzled and incensed by her roommates actions, and proceeded to berate them for their betrayal.

    In spite of beingbelled as traitors, herpanions didn¡¯t refute her.

    What a joke. Huoqing and Zhao Chengning¡¯s social status are miles apart from one another. They must have been possessed back at the bar when they tried to help her. If they still sided with her now, they probably wouldn¡¯t even know how they died the next day.

    All three of them hailed from ordinary families. Apart from being a little vain, they were still aware of their own position. A person like Zhao Chengning wasn¡¯t someone they could go up against.

    Zhao Chengning cast a sidelong nce at the three girls. His face remained expressionless, and it was difficult to tell what he was thinking. He was interrupted by Leader Li just as he was about to speak.

    "What do you think this ce is!? Quit kicking up a fuss and shut up!" Leader Li roared as he mmed a hand down on the table. The three girls were shocked into silence, no longer daring to utter another word. Their parents were incensed by this, but they didn¡¯t dare to say anything either.

    Shen Jingbin suddenly smiled and said to the three girls, "The three of you should find a time to head over to the hospital and apologize. Afterwards, you can apologize to my roommates as well, and we¡¯ll treat it as if you yed no part in this incident. You don¡¯t need to pay anypensation either since Uncle Huo said that he¡¯ll shoulder all the costs."

    The three girls were overjoyed by the news. They dragged their parents over and repeatedly thanked her. Afterwards, under Leader Li¡¯s unwilling gaze, they signed their forms and immediately left.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression changed once the three girls had left. She eyed Huoqing¡¯s parents and Leader Li and said, "I would¡¯ve let it go if you¡¯d agreed to Xia Qihui¡¯s suggestion. But now... hmph."

    Following that, Shen Jingbin pulled out her handphone and dialed a number.

    Huoqing¡¯s father knew that Shen Jingbin looked very familiar when heid eyes on her. After seeing her mannerisms, he had an inkling that she might belong to one of the wealthy families in A City. This was why he¡¯d red at his daughter just now.

    Offending anyone wasn¡¯t a good idea, but his daughter just had to offend a wealthy family¡¯s daughter.

    As he looked at Shen Jingbin¡¯s face while she was making her call, he finally remembered where he¡¯d seen her and immediately broke out in cold sweat.

    Didn¡¯t she belong to the Shen family?

    He¡¯d previously seen her once before at a martial artspetition sponsored by hispany. Back then, she, a young girl, was amongst a group of martial artists who were at the pinnacle of their sport, and she was neither cowed nor arrogant in spite of where she was. When he caught wind of her background, he sighed and said that she was a golden child. But, due to hisck of social standing, he only had that one chance to see her, so he wasn¡¯t able to recognize her till now.

    Huoqing¡¯s father had already thought up a tens of thousands of different bad endings that could happen if they offended the Shen family. He ced a hand on his daughter and said through clenched teeth, "Huoqing, go apologize! Come with me to the hospital and apologize right this instant!"

    Huoqing and Leader Li stared at him in disbelief when they heard what he said.

    "Dad, what are you saying? What do you mean ¡¯go apologize¡¯? You want me to apologize to a gay? I..."

    The expressions from Shen Jingbin¡¯s group darkened a little further. They looked as if they had the urge to beat someone up. In that instant, Huoqing¡¯s father gave her a vicious p.

    "Enough! How can a girl say such things! You¡¯re going to apologize tonight, no matter what!"

    "Ole Huo, you..." Leader Li couldn¡¯t understand the reason behind Huoqing¡¯s father¡¯s sudden 180. Leader Li wanted to say something to reassure Huoqing¡¯s father and say that they were just a bunch of kids who couldn¡¯t do much. At the most, they were second generation moneybags. He had people on his side higher up on the hierarchy too, so these kids couldn¡¯t do anything.

    Before Leader Li could finish what he wanted to say, the exceptionally beautiful girl¡¯s icy voice could be heard. "So, now you want to apologize? Sorry, Mr Huo, but it¡¯s toote."

    A shiver immediately ran through Huoqing¡¯s father.

 Chapter 395

    <b>Chapter 395</b><b>: The Importance Of Having A Backer (1)</b>

    Papa Shen was being lovey-dovey with Mama Shen when he received a call from his daughter. Being interrupted when they were just about to get to the good part was definitely not ok! His tone was extremely unfriendly when he picked up!

    "Hello!? Who is it?!"

    Thinking back, his tone might have been unfriendly, but the voice of the other party over the phone sounded even worse.

    "Dad, regardless of whether you¡¯re working or doing some indescribable thing with Mum, your daughter and your future son-inw are being held up and bullied at the police station. I don¡¯t dare toy a hand on the civil police, so think on whether you want toe over and lend a hand or not." She then hung up without giving him a chance to reply.

    "Who called?" Mama Shen asked when she saw Papa Shen holding his handphone in a daze.

    "Our daughter."

    Mama Shen knitted her brows. "What happened?"

    "She said that she and Zhao Chengning are being held and bullied in the police station. She wants me to bail her out."

    Mama Shen¡¯s frown grew even deeper.

    Papa Shen continued, "From the way she spoke, she sounds furious."

    Mama Shen got up from the bed and donned her clothes. While doing so, she said, "Go get the car, I¡¯ll give Liufang a call."

    Liufang was the Vice Chief of the police.

    "Sigh, you¡¯re calling Liufang just like that? Aren¡¯t you worried that that girl might have been the cause of whatever happened?" Papa Shen unhappily asked has he put on his pants.

    "I would have my doubts if Shen Jingchen was the one calling. Pick up the pace, it¡¯s your daughter we¡¯re talking about."

    Papa Shen gave a sigh of resignation and donned the rest of his clothes.

    I knew this little shit was a troll!

    Over at the police station, Shen Jingbin had just finished her call. Leader Li¡¯s face was twisted into an unsightly expression. His expression flickered as he looked at Shen Jingbin and spoke in a lowered voice, "Little Miss, don¡¯t you think there¡¯s a problem with your attitude? The fact that you dare to threaten someone in front of me shows just how out of line you are!"

    Shen Jingbin harrumphed and ignored him. Speaking to scum like him was an insult to herself.

    "You!" Leader Li was infuriated by her attitude.

    "Leader Li! I¡¯m sorry for the trouble we¡¯ve caused you tonight! This was indeed our fault. We¡¯re willing to apologize... Miss Shen, we really are willing to apologize! I swear that my daughter will apologize to your friend in front of the entire hospital. We¡¯ll also apologize to your roommates. Will that be enough?"

    "Dad, what are you doing?!" Huoqing clutched her face as she stared at her father in disbelief.

    Leader Li was upset by the pathetic way Huoqing¡¯s father was acting too. He stood up and said, "Ole Huo, step out with me for a moment. I need to ask you something."

    "Is there something that can¡¯t be said here?" asked Zhao Chengning.

    Leader Li red at him and said, "Do you really think I¡¯d dare let anyone else speak in front of you after you¡¯ve threatened them?!"

    Huoqing¡¯s father¡¯s gaze darted between Shen Jingbin and Leader Li for a moment before he sighed and walked out with Leader Li. He wanted to apologize for implicating Leader Li in tonight¡¯s incident.

    As soon as they stepped out of the room, Huoqing¡¯s father immediately told Leader Li not to involve himself with this case anymore.

    Leader Li was greatly upset by what he heard.

    You were the one who asked me for help in the middle of the night, and this is how you show your appreciation? Not only that, if he were topromise after being threatened by those brats, they might get the impression that he was afraid of them. Now that they were at this point, there was no going back even if Ole Huo wanted to pull out!

    Aren¡¯t they just a bunch of kids from rich families? How good could they be? On top of that, his brother-inw was the Vice Chief! Would they really have what it takes to ovee a governmental position even if they had money and status? He¡¯d definitely be putting the squeeze on themter!

    When Huoqing¡¯s father saw the look on Leader Li¡¯s face, he knew that he had to disclose Shen Jingbin¡¯s identity. After mulling over what to say for a moment, he was just about to speak up when Leader Li dashed back into the room. Along the way, he even warned Huoqing¡¯s father not to evere asking him for help again if he dared to bring up the topic ofpromising!

    A wave of exhaustion washed over Huoqing¡¯s father. Why¡¯d he have to be stuck between a rock and a hard ce?

    Leader Li pretended to identally bump into Shen Jingbin when he returned to the room. When Zhao Chengning tried to stop him, he acted as if he¡¯d been knocked down. When he got up, he pointed at Zhao Chengning and proimed that he was attacking a police officer.

    Leader Li¡¯s clumsy acting was so bad that Shen Jingbin, Zhao Chengning, and Xia Qihui couldn¡¯t even bring themselves to call him out.

    Just as Leader Li was about to forcibly detain them, the door to the room swung open and three people walked in. Leader Li immediately started panicking when he saw who was in the lead.

    "V-V-Vice Chief, what are you doing here at this hour?"

    Liufang silently surveyed the room and said, "What¡¯s going on?"

    "Ah, I-I was just looking into some small issue."

    "And, what issue would that be?" Liufang asked as he shot Leader Li a disdainful nce. "Be clear about it."

    "It¡¯s..."

    Liufang¡¯s brows knitted when he spotted the handcuffs in Leader Li¡¯s hands. "What are you nning to do with those handcuffs?"

    "They attacked an officer just now!"

    Papa Shen sneered. "Attacked an officer? You mean they ¡¯attacked¡¯ you, right? The ones standing before you are a martial arts champion and an ex special forces soldier. If they really wanted to attack you, do you think you¡¯d still be standing here?"

 Chapter 396

    <strong>Chapter 396: The Importance Of Having A Backer (2)</strong>

    Liufang cut him off. "Who¡¯s on duty today?"

    "Xiaozheng."

    "Where is he?"

    "I told him to go home," Leader Li answered hesitantly.

    Liufang¡¯s gaze became as sharp as a knife. "Give Xiaozheng a call right now. I want to speak to him."

    Leader Li tried to drag things out by rejecting Liufang¡¯smand, and as he did so, Liufang locked eyes with Mama Shen. He walked over and grabbed Leader Li¡¯s phone, looked up Xiaozheng¡¯s number, and made the call.

    At that moment, Leader Li was incredibly vexed by how he had Xiaozheng as the only number in his contacts list. All it took was a moment for Liufang to find him.

    Leader Li didn¡¯t know what Xiaozheng said to Liufang, but he saw Liufang repeatedly nodding his head and his expression growing darker and darker. When he hung up the phone, his face was as ck as Judge Bao¡¯s!

    Liufang red at Leader Li for a moment before he turned to Mama Shen and said, "Secretary Li, we, the police, have failed in our duties. I¡¯ll look into this matter and report to youter on."

    Mama Shen gave an indifferent wave of her hand and asked, "So, can I take them away now?"

    "Of course."

    The three of them immediately stood up and walked over to Mama Shen when she beckoned at them. Then, the group made their way towards the door. When they were about to leave, Shen Jingbin tugged at Mama Shen¡¯s clothes. Knowing what her daughter wanted, Mama Shen turned back and said, "Vice Chief Liu, the interrogation this time around was rather harsh. Do take care of this. I¡¯m sure you wouldn¡¯t want to be implicated, right?"

    Liufang froze for a moment. "I understand, thank you, Secretary Li."

    When Shen Jingbin¡¯s group disappeared from sight, the first thing that came out of Liufang¡¯s mouth when he turned back to Leader Li was an unending stream of curses. Following that, he made Leader Li write a letter of resignation and told him to get lost. Everything had happened so suddenly that he was left in a daze, looking like he had no idea what just transpired even after a while had passed.

    Seeing this, Liufang sighed and said, "I¡¯ve always known you were brainless. It¡¯s fine if you were brainless, but I didn¡¯t expect you not to have an eye for people either. The person you offended today was Secretary Li¡¯s daughter." He then casually turned to look at Huoqing and her father. "As for these two, treat it as a case of intentional harm... Don¡¯t try to argue with me on this. The one she attacked was Young Master Xuya from B City. One of the leadersing for an inspection belong to the Xu family."

    Liufang¡¯s words struck Leader Li like a bomb, dazing him yet again. Huoqing herself was scared witless too. She honestly thought that he was just... She never expected him to be...

    Ole Huo was the only one who gave a deep sigh. Upon seeing this, Liufang shook his head and walked out.

    After leaving the police station, Mama Shen cast a nce at Shen Jingbin, while thetter shrunk back.

    "You lot are rather impressive as well. You managed to have fun all the way to the police station," Papa Shen softly chided.

    Afraid of leaving a bad impression on Mama and Papa Shen, Xia Qihui hurried to exin, "Uncle, Auntie, we really were the victims..."

    Mama Shen interrupted him. "We know. We already got an idea of what was happening along the way. Alright, it¡¯s gettingte. Go back and get some rest."

    Xia Qihui silently gulped down his saliva and gave a grunt of acknowledgement. Mama Shen was too imposing, and he had trouble withstanding it.

    "Auntie, Little Jing should go back with the two of you. Xuya¡¯s still in the hospital, so we¡¯ll be paying him a visit," said Zhao Chengning.

    Mama Shen took a moment to recall who Xuya was before she nodded and left with Shen Jingbin.

    Once the Shen family¡¯s car had driven out of sight, Xia Qihui let out a deep breath and said, "Your future mother-inw¡¯s presence is way too strong."

    "Yeah, it was quite strong, but it was only directed at you," replied Zhao Chengning.

    "..."

    Xia Qihui was at a loss when it came to this bro of his!

    Huajuan had fallen asleep by the time Zhao Chengning and Xia Qihui arrived at the hospital. Xuya was lying on his side on the hospital bed staring at Huajuan with a vulgar look on his face.

    As soon as he saw the two of them walk in, Xuya jumped up and spoke in a hushed voice, "Brother Ah Ning, you¡¯vee! So, what happened to that woman who attacked me?!"

    "Your bro and his mother-inw took action. What do you think is going to happen to her?" countered Xia Qihui.

    "You¡¯re referring to Auntie Shen? My god, I can see her ending already!"

    Zhao Chengningughed and sat beside Xuya¡¯s bedside. He nced at Huajuan and said, "So, this is the girl you¡¯re interested in?"

    Xuya violently nodded his head. "Up for helping me, bro?"

    "Have you gotten rid of all the other women by your side?"

    Xuya continued to vigorously nod his head. "I got rid of them long ago!"

    "Alright then, just wait and see."

    Xia Qihui looked at them in confusion. "Hold on, what are you guys talking about? Who¡¯s interested in whom? What¡¯s going on?" Why did he feel like he missed out on a lot of things?!

    Unfortunately, the two of them acted as if they hadn¡¯t heard him andpletely ignored him, leaving Xia Qihui in a state of mncholy.

    Shen Jingchen arrived shortly after Shen Jingbin was dropped off at the vi. After asking about what happened at the police station, Shen Jingchen started grousing about why he had to be the chauffeur. If he¡¯d known beforehand, he would¡¯ve gone along with them to the police station to join in on the fun!

    Shen Jingbin rolled her eyes at him and went up to her room. Not long after, she received an SMS from Zhao Chengning.

    "I just checked up on Xuya. He¡¯s gotten rid of all the girls around him. Please be at ease, Organizer."

    Shen Jingbin smiled.

    "That¡¯s good then. Please pass on the message that after careful consideration, the Organizer has decided that he¡¯s turned over a new leaf. However, he has to swear to be devoted to the Organizer¡¯s personnel."

    "He¡¯s promised to be devoted, just like how I¡¯ve promised my devotion to the Organizer. Mother-inw was very imposing today. I feel like I¡¯ve found a huge backer."

    "She¡¯s not your mother-inw yet. Hmph!"

    Zhao Chengning didn¡¯t immediately reply after she¡¯d sent her message. A while passed before she finally received his reply. When she opened it, she was greeted with several words.

    "Hurry up and graduate, Little Jing, so that I can make you my wife."

    Shen Jingbin tossed her handphone aside and hummed a good-natured tune.

 Chapter 397

    <b>Chapter 397: Graduation (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin had no idea what transpired between Liufang, Leader Li, and Huoqing after she¡¯d left. Later on, she happened to hear from the bar¡¯s owner that Leader Li resigned. As for Huoqing, she skipped lessons for a few days. When she finally came back to school, she apologized to Huajuan andpany and proceeded to avoid them. From what Huajuan heard, Huoqing was detained for a few days. She probably learnt her lesson after all this.

    After checking with Xuya, Shen Jingbin found out that Huoqing never did go to the hospital and apologize to him. But, since Huajuan was in a good mood, he didn¡¯t see a need to make things difficult for Huoqing. He decided to treat Huoqing as a passerby and put her out of his mind.

    Following this, peace returned to their lives.

    People would often feel that in spite of not having done much, time seemed to fly by. By the time they realised it, a month or even a year would have gone by. This sentiment was especially prevalent when it came to students in their third and fourth years. One moment it felt like they¡¯d just enrolled as a new student, and were only beginning their university lives. The next moment, they¡¯re told they¡¯re about to graduate, and they had absolutely no recollection of what happened in-between. In fact, the passage of time was so sudden that they even suspected their time in school might have been stolen by someone else.

    But, even if they refused to admit it, reality was immutable.

    Six months passed in the blink of an eye, and Shen Jingbin was in the second half of her semester as a fourth year student. Her graduation was fast approaching as well.

    Not all the students had to participate in a thesis defence. Instead, students in each faculty were chosen at random. By sheer luck (or ack of luck), all of Shen Jingbin¡¯s roommates except for her were chosen to participate. She on the other hand was chosen to be the honor student and defend her thesis in front of the school¡¯s leadership!

    Thankfully, she¡¯d done a pretty good job preparing, and she performed exceptionally during her defence. At the end of it, the principal even asked if she had any ns to join the school¡¯s faculty since he just so happened to becking an assistant.

    Shen Jingbin smiled and rejected him.

    Graduation photos were up next. Filled with dreams and aspirations, these youths d in their academic dresses were about to take their first step into society. With the sun shining down on them, they shed their most dazzling smile, giving their four years of university life a picture perfect ending. Beneath the deep blue sky, their sleeves rustled as they tossed their graduation hats high up into the air.

    The words ¡¯Happy graduation!¡¯ resounded all around.

    It¡¯s said that graduation was a time of losing one¡¯s love and goodbyes. During this time, many people would pluck up their courage and profess their long held love for another. They didn¡¯t do so for the sake of being together with the other person, but rather, to let them know how they felt. It was also a form of closure for the confessor.

    The Management and Sports faculty¡¯s thesis defence and graduation photos took ce at around the same time. After they were done taking the faculty photos, a burly yet shy male student, at the behest of his other simrly well-built friends, walked over to where Shen Jingbin¡¯s group was having their ss photos taken.

    "Goddess Shen, can youe over for a bit?" shouted a male student who was obviously here to enjoy the show.

    His ssmates immediately started heckling him. Upon seeing that his escape route was cut off by his ¡¯well-intentioned¡¯ ssmates, the shy student¡¯s face turned beet red.

    "Looks like there really is someone who¡¯se to bid farewell to you. Looks like he isn¡¯t afraid of death. Tsk, tsk, tsk. The restless hearts of young men really can¡¯t be stopped," said Huajuan as she stood beside Shen Jingbin and winked at her.

    Shen Jingbin red at her. Then, in spite of the heckling, she walked up to the male student without any change in her expression and said, "Come over by yourself." She didn¡¯t forget to spare a nce at his friends, as if to say: Don¡¯t kick up a fuss ore closer. Otherwise, you¡¯ll bear the consequences.

    The Goddess¡¯ powers of intimidation weren¡¯t half bad. One look from her was all it took to silence both the male student¡¯s ssmates and his well-built friends.

    Shen Jingbin led the shy male student to a more secluded locale. After ascertaining that there wasn¡¯t anyone nearby, she asked, "What did you want to speak to me about?"

    She sounded just as cold as she always did, but there was a touch of warmth mixed in now as well. It might have been due to the mncholy of graduating, but for the first time, Shen Jingbin was feeling quite patient when it came to members of the opposite sex rushing up to her and professing their feelings.

    Going through four years of university wasn¡¯t easy, so she might as well be ¡¯gentle¡¯ with them.

    A gentle rejection, that is.

    "G-G-Goddess Shen, I¡¯m from the Sports faculty just beside you. I-I-I¡¯ve liked you for the past four years. I¡¯ve liked you since military training sses in year one..." At first, the male student did try to confess at the behest of his friends, but now that the Goddess he¡¯d been smitten with for the past four years was in front of him, the feelings that he¡¯d been nursing suddenly burst forth like a tidal wave.

    "Is that so? Thank you. Unfortunately, I already have a boyfriend, so I can¡¯t return your feelings. I¡¯m really sorry."

    When she saw the look of defeat on the male student¡¯s face, she thought to herself, "Haven¡¯t I been a lot gentler with my rejection this time around? Why¡¯s their reaction still the same?"

    The male student dipped his head and spent the next few seconds in silence. When he looked up, his eyes were tinged red as he faced her and said, "Goddess Shen, I know I¡¯m not worthy of being with you, and I knew that you wouldn¡¯t be able to ept my feelings either, but I still wanted to tell you how I feel... Can... you give me a hug...? I-I don¡¯t have any ulterior motives, I just..." He knew that his request wasn¡¯t very appropriate, so his cheeks were flushed red by the time he was halfway through. But, at the same time, he really did want a hug, and he wasn¡¯t willing to give up just like that. In the end, he wasn¡¯t quite sure what to do.

    However, no matter how much he agonized over it, there was no way Shen Jingbin would agree to his request. Since she was going to reject him, she might as well be direct about it so he wouldn¡¯t try to find any way around it.

    Just as she was about to reject him, she suddenly heard a familiar voice shouting for her.

    "Little Jing!"

 Chapter 398

    <b>Chapter 398: Graduation (2)</b>

    Following the sound of the voice, she found Xuya holding Huajuan in his arms not far away. He was looking in her direction with a brilliant smile on his face.

    The two of them got together not long after that incident. It happened so quickly that Xia Qihui¡¯s jaw practically dropped to the floor in surprise. Once they were officially together, they were so lovey-dovey that even Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t bear to look at them. It was so bad that she had the urge to beat someone up whenever she saw them together. Since they lived in different cities, and Xuya came from a wealthy family, he was the one who usually made the trip to visit Huajuan. At the same time, he¡¯d also asionally bring Zhao Chengning along. If it wasn¡¯t for this, Shen Jingbin would have long since taken care of these two idiotic lovebirds.

    There was one other person standing beside the couple. He was tall, handsome, and wore casual clothes. He looked just like a poster child for a movie.

    "I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t fulfill your request." With that, Shen Jingbin jogged over to the other person, leaving the shy student standing there with a look of disappointment as he watched her retreating figure.

    A breeze blew past, causing her hair to flutter in the air and draw a perfect arc as she fell into his arms like a butterfly. In that instant, she felt his arms tighten around her, followed by a gentle peck to her ear. Whilst gentle, his kiss also felt a little ticklish.

    He leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "Happy graduation."

    "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Brother Ah Ning, you¡¯re still in public. Can¡¯t you show some restraint?" teased Xuya off to the side. He then had the idea of kissing his own partner, but that idea was stopped in its tracks when she pped him away.

    Zhao Chengning cast a sidelong nce at Xuya¡¯s wretched expression. "The one who was caught having sex in the car over at the female dormitory by the dorm mother has no right to say anything."

    The moment he said that, Xuya immediately fell silent, and Huajuan¡¯s cheeks flushed red. She then shot her sex-crazed boyfriend a re.

    "Master Zhao, please have mercy! Stop making fun of me! Here, look, I¡¯ll get on my knees to thank you for your generosity!" cried out Huajuan bitterly.

    Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help butugh at the sight, which earned her a roll of the eyes from Huajuan.

    The incident caused a huge uproar in A City, to the point where she refused to be intimate with him in public anymore.

    Both Huajuan and Xuya were bold individuals, and they did the deed not long after getting together. They truly loved one another, and once they crossed the line, they only got bolder from there. One moonless night, Xuya was giving Huajuan a goodbye kiss after dropping her off at the female dormitory when their passions ran high. With their inhibitions unbound, they decided to have car sex. The activity in the car caught the attention of the dorm mother. Putting aside her matchmaking show and holding a small torch in hand, she slowly made her way outside.

    What kind of person was the dorm mother?

    She was a meticulous person who was an old hand when it came to historical romances. This could be seen from the way she matched wits and bravery against the students when she inspected them for contraband electronics. One look was all it took for her to figure out what was happening in the car. For some reason, once she shone her torch at the car, Xuya and Huajuan were so surprised that any coherent thoughts fled their minds.

    Thankfully, it waste that night. No one else knew of what happened apart from the three of them. But, just because no one else saw it didn¡¯t mean no one else knew of it. Just think about it, how old was the dorm mother? There was no way she could keep that gossipy streak of hers in check.

    The news passed quickly from mouth to mouth, and before long, more than half of the school knew what had happened. Huajuan was so infuriated by this that she almost broke up with Xuya. It took Xuya several visits to talk things out with Huajuan and the school authorities showing up for the incident to blow over.

    Although this didn¡¯t lead to them breaking up, Huajuan refused to be intimate with Xuya in public from that point onwards. This upset Xuya greatly for a long time, but he didn¡¯t have the guts to say anything. More than that, he didn¡¯t want to give Huajuan any attitude. So, he decided topromise and give the dorm mother a verbal tongueshing instead.

    "Why are you here?" asked Shen Jingbin with joy in her eyes.

    Xuya, who was jealous that he wasn¡¯t able to get some, cut in and answered for Zhao Chengning. "Little Jing, Brother Ah Ning wanted to see you present your thesis defence, so he dropped everything toe over with me. Who would¡¯ve thought that we¡¯d be greeted with the sight of someone confessing to you. Looks like arriving early can¡¯t beating at the right time."

    Huajuan gave Xuya¡¯s waist a sharp twist. Why was Xuya so troublesome? He already knows how two-faced Zhao Chengning can be, yet he¡¯s still doing something like this? God knows when he¡¯ll decide to retaliate! Just thinking of being marked by him caused a shiver to run down her spine.

    Sure enough, Huajuan caught sight of a certain God¡¯s gaze casually drifting over to her just after she pinched Xuya.

    It¡¯s over.

    That was the only thought in Huajuan¡¯s mind.

 Chapter 399

    <b>Chapter 399: A ze Of Passion (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin, her roommates, and the two tagalong boyfriends went out for a farewell meal. After a few rounds of alcohol, tears flowed freely amongst the women. Even Shen Jingbin was no exception, and her eyes were dyed red.

    Unlike their senior high and middle school days, university students came from all over the country and all walks of life. Because of how varied they were, many people had conflicting personalities or lifestyles and often ended uping to blows due to it. There were even murderers that appeared on the news after stabbing or poisoning other people just because of one wrong word. Also, didn¡¯t murders happen in universities every now and then too? After taking all this into consideration, finding roommates that you could get along with was extremely important.

    Thankfully, be it lifestyles or personalities, Shen Jingbin¡¯s group got along swimmingly. The four of them were like sisters, and they always included each other in everything they did. They never talked behind each others¡¯ backs or tried to undermine anyone else in their group. Although Shen Jingbin was almost non-existent for thetter half of her university life, it didn¡¯t affect their rtions with one another in the slightest.

    Four years of close ties were nowing to an end. When that happened, they¡¯d each go their separate ways. There¡¯s no way way they wouldn¡¯t feel some sadness at the thought of that.

    Huajuan wept in Xuya¡¯s bosom, while Xiaohe and Jiangmeng quietly wiped away their tears. On the other hand, Shen Jingbin felt her chest tighten at the sight before her when her hand suddenly felt warm. Zhao Chengning had gently taken her hand into his underneath the table as he gave her aforting look.

    "All good things muste to an end. But, you shouldn¡¯t be too distraught by this. With how easy it is to get around nowadays, all you need to do is hop on a ne or a train and you¡¯re on your way," said Xuya, as he lovingly wiped the tears off Huajuan¡¯s face.

    To his surprise, Huajuan red at him. "Do you think everyone¡¯s as rich as you? Not everyone can just spend money when they feel like it. What, you think a ne or train ticket is free? What if I¡¯m working? Do you think I can just drop everything and go on a trip whenever I feel like it?"

    Xuya was utterly cowed by her rebuttal. He pulled out a piece of tissue, handed it to her, and pitifully said, "Yes, yes, yes. I was in the wrong... Please don¡¯t cry, big sister."

    Jiangmeng chimed in next. "Truth be told, we¡¯re considered lucky. All of us will be working in either A or B City, and they¡¯re not too far apart. The main sticking point is finding a time to meet up. I¡¯m worried that we¡¯ll start drifting apart since we won¡¯t have the time to see one another. Making friends with you guys is the happiest thing that¡¯s happened to me here. I don¡¯t want to lose our friendship to the ravages of time, but..."

    But, it can¡¯t be helped.

    Due to his young age and immature thinking, Xuya couldn¡¯t quite understand the problem at hand. "Don¡¯t you just need to talk more often?"

    Xiaohe sighed. "It¡¯s not that simple."

    Everyone suddenly fell silent, leaving a confused Xuya to wonder what the issue was. He wanted to find out more, but he was afraid he¡¯d touch on another one of his girlfriend¡¯s sore spots. In the end, he decided to remain tactfully silent.

    Shen Jingbin gazed at her three friends. She understood why Jiangmeng was worried, but there wasn¡¯t anything that could be done about it. Suddenly ovee with a feeling of mncholy, she picked up the cup of alcohol in front of her and downed it.

    Time truly was the greatest enemy of friendships.

    All of them were feeling rather down when it was time to leave. Xiao and Jiangmeng had gotten themselves drunk. Not wanting them to return to the dormitory by themselves, Xuya and Zhao Chengning decided to get the two girls a separate room at the hotel they were staying in. Following that, Xuya escorted Huajuan, who¡¯d drunk herself into a stupor, back home.

    Based on how blurry Shen Jingbin¡¯s vision was, it looked like she was quite drunk as well. Worried about leaving her all alone in the vi, Zhao Chengning decided to take her back to his room in the hotel.

    In spite of having the air-con on, the hot weather made them feel all sticky and sweaty after their meal. After taking care of everyone¡¯s amodations, Zhao Chengning went to the bathroom and grabbed a hot towel before wiping down Shen Jingbin¡¯s face. Every movement was gentle and delicate, like he was taking care of a rare treasure.

    The smell of alcohol and their hotpot meal stuck to Shen Jingbin. Both odours blending together left her feeling very ufortable and she quietly whined about wanting to take a bath.

    Zhao Chengning felt that a better idea would be to just help wipe her down. He didn¡¯t feel that it was safe to let her take a bath on her own with how drunk she was.

    A certain drunkard was very difficult to cate. Her usual cold and aloof demeanor was nowpletely gone, and in its ce was a child kicking up a fuss about wanting to take a bath. Unable to deter her, Zhao Chengning had no choice but to give in to Shen Jingbin and get the water running for her. Thankfully, the hotel¡¯s bathrooms came equipped with a bathtub. Otherwise, there was no way he¡¯d allow her to take a bath on her own.

    By the time Zhao Chengning had heated up the bath water and stepped out of the bathroom, he found Shen Jingbin fast asleep on the bed. He walked over to her and brushed away the strands of hair covering her face. "Still awake and up for a bath? I¡¯ve gotten the water ready for you," he said in a whisper.

    He knew how she was like. If she was kicking up a fuss about wanting to take a bath, it meant that she really wanted to bathe. If she didn¡¯t get what she wanted, she¡¯d probably have a bone to pick with him the next day when she woke up.

    Shen Jingbin, who was dead to the world, suddenly sat up when she heard Zhao Chengning¡¯s whispered words. She stared groggily at him for a moment before she groped her way off the bed and headed for the bathroom.

    Zhao Chengning felt a bittersweet sensation as he watched her stagger towards the bathroom. He rubbed at the headache that was forming on the sides of his head and muttered, "What a handful."

    Afraid that she might trip along the way, he hurriedly made his way behind her and got ready to support her should the need arise.

    Although she was drunk and her steps were unstable, Shen Jingbin managed to slip into the piping hot bathtub with her half-open eyes. Since Shen Jingbin looked like she could handle herself, Zhao Chengning was just about to step out when he noticed her slowly sliding further and further into the tub, to the point where she was almostpletely submerged.

    He rushed up to her, helped her up, and brushed away the stray strands of hair sticking to her face. "Little Jing, be a good girl and take off your clothes when I¡¯m gone. Call for me once you¡¯re done washing up and you¡¯re dressed, alright?" he said helplessly.

    Shen Jingbin grunted in acknowledgement with her eyes still closed.

    Zhao Chengning nced uneasily at her. Afraid that he wouldn¡¯t be able to bring himself to leave if he stayed any longer, he hurriedly left the bathroom and shut the door. Zhao Chengning¡¯s mind was in a tizzy and his breaths came in ragged gasps. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted two bottles of mineral water sitting atop the table. Without a second thought, he grabbed one of the bottles and drank a mouthful of water.

    The cool water made its way down into his belly, quenching some of the fire that was stirring within him.

    "She¡¯s drunk, I can¡¯t make a move on her. I can¡¯t!" he silently told himself.

 Chapter 400

    <strong>Chapter 400: A ze Of Passion (2)</strong>

    Zhao Chengning heard a muffled sound after repeating that mantra of his once more. It sounded like someone falling to the ground, followed by a woman¡¯s hushed sobbing that came at uneven intervals. Kind of like how a cat would meow every now and then.

    Zhao Chengning felt his heart clench. He tossed the bottle of water aside, ran over to the door, and threw it open.

    "Little Jing!"

    The bathroom was filled with steam. Amidst the steam, he spotted a figure sprawled on the ground with their back undting ever so slightly.

    He hurried over to Shen Jingbin¡¯s side and helped her up. Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyebrows were knitted and her mouth was cast into a frown. Faint sounds of sobbing asionally escaped her lips whilst droplets of water, that might have been tears or from the steam, ran down her cheeks.

    "What happened?" he asked gently.

    Shen Jingbin buried her head in his chest. Zhao Chengning looked down at her, and was greeted with the full glory of her curves.

    Crack!

    The sound of something shattering within his heart could be heard.

    Just then, he heard her squeaked reply, "You forgot to get the shower gel for me."

    Zhao Chengning gave her a bitter smile and carried her back to the bathtub. His gaze remained above her head the entire time, not daring to look any lower.

    "I¡¯m sorry, it¡¯s my fault. You wait here and don¡¯t move a muscle. I¡¯ll get it for you," he said gently to her.

    He felt a tug at his hand just as he was about to leave. When he looked back, he found her leaning against the bathtub with her head resting against her arm. Her eyes were now clear, crystalline spheres that held none of their previous cloudiness. "You were staring at me."

    F*ck, anyone who could hold themselves back in such a situation wouldn¡¯t be a man anymore!

    Zhao Chengning gave up on resisting. He squatted down and pulled her in for a deep kiss. Both of their lips impatiently attacked the moment they came into contact, and the bathroom was filled with the fiery passion of their intimacy.

    Zhao Chengning was ufortable with having the bathtub between them. He cast his hand into the bathtub and wrapped it around her waist. With a tug, he lifted her out of the tub and carried her over to the bathroom counter. After propping her up, he went right back in for the kill.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s back was stered against the bathroom mirror. It was slightly cold to the touch, eliciting a whine of protest from her. This in turn caused the sides of his head to throb with repressed desire.

    With great difficulty, Zhao Chengning separated himself from Shen Jingbin and gave her a good long look.

    Because of his love for her, Zhao Chengning did his best to restrain himself from stepping over thatst line. He¡¯d previously hoped that their first time would be on their wedding night.

    He wasn¡¯t being chauvinistic, he was trying to be respectful towards her.

    But, he probably wouldn¡¯t be able to hold himself back any longer.

    As he gazed at the cute look of dissatisfaction she had on because he¡¯d tried to leave, he reached out to her face and gently wiped at it with his thumb.

    "Look at me, Little Jing. Do you know what you¡¯re doing right now?" Zhao Chengning¡¯s voice was unbelievably low at the moment, giving him an unnatural level of sexiness.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s face took on a momentary look of sluggishness before going back to normal. She then looked squarely at him and said, "I know."

    "Do you know who you are? Or who I am? What¡¯s our rtionship?" he asked once again.

    "I¡¯m Shen Jingbin, you¡¯re Zhao Chengning, and we¡¯re... husband and wife."

    Thosest three words were like a hammer, breaking through whatever restraint was left. His eyes now bloodshot, he grabbed a towel beside him, wrapped her up in it, and princess carried her to the bedroom at a brisk pace.

    He gently set her down on the bed and lightly kissed her brows, the tip of her nose, and other parts of her... Zhao Chengning guided Shen Jingbin¡¯s body, and they explored parts of her that she wasn¡¯t aware of. As they did, the atmosphere in the room slowly built up.

    As he entered her, she took the chance to whisper three words into his ear in between her gasps of pain.

    "I love you."

    In that moment, Zhao Chengning felt that he had absolutely no regrets in his twenty-something years of life.

    The youthful man¡¯s eyes welled up.

    ...

    Shen Jingbin awoke the next day feeling sore all over. Before she had a chance to puzzle out what had happened to her, a turn of her head revealed Zhao Chengning¡¯s sleeping face.

    His handsome facial features were indescribably alluring. For some reason, she reached out and gently traced a line along the side of his face with her fingers.

    He suddenly opened his eyes without warning, causing her hand to stop in surprise. The next moment, he grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips for a gentle kiss. With mirth in his eyes, he said, "Good morning."

    Shen Jingbin froze in surprise for a second before snuggling closer to him.

    "Good morning."

 Chapter 401

    <b>Chapter 401: A Spokesperson (1)</b>

    After matters at school were taken care of, Shen Jingbin grabbed her luggage and hopped on a ne that was bound for B City. This time around, she wasn¡¯t going for pleasure or for her internship. She was headed there to start a new life.

    Be it intentional or not, once Papa Shen came to the realisation that his daughter would be living in B City, he spent the rest of the year shifting the coreponents of hispany to B City. This in turn led to B City¡¯s branch office seeing the most growth apart from thepany¡¯s main office.

    Shen Jingbin was greeted at the airport by Zhao Chengning, Xia Qihui, and Jiang Weiwei. Shen Jingchen had other matters to take care of and couldn¡¯t be there to wee her. After having lunch, Shen Jingbin returned to her apartment and dropped off her luggage before heading to the office.

    Shen Jingchen had officially taken over Ye Linfan¡¯s position and looked to be doing a good job of it. Shen Jingbin, on the other hand, retained her position as the General Manager¡¯s assistant, which she was actually quite pleased about.

    The General Manager would be so busy, they¡¯d basically be living a dog¡¯s life, and that was a perfect fit for a single dog like Shen Jingchen! Nope, this was none of her business!

    Once Shen Jingbin had gotten used to her work life, Papa Shen made a trip over to B City with the rest of the Shen family to discuss wedding ns with the Zhao family. Mama Zhao, havinge to the realisation that her son was dead set on Shen Jingbin, and having heard the news that her eldest son was together with Jian Cishu, finally acknowledged Shen Jingbin as her future daughter-inw.

    Getting married was a momentous asion in a person¡¯s life, and it¡¯s execution wasn¡¯t something that could be decided over the course of one or two meetings. Both families only managed to agree on a rough date for the wedding after their first meetup.

    If all went well, the couple¡¯s wedding would take ce in October. The rest of the details would be decided at ater date.

    The younger generation, like Zhao Chengning, didn¡¯t know much about arranging for a wedding, so they decided to just leave it up to the older generation to worry about. All they needed to do was focus on their work and love life.

    That being said, these days, Shen Jingbin was so busy, she didn¡¯t even have time for romance.

    The Shen family had their hand in businesses across various industries. The recent discussion over arranging Shen Jingbin¡¯s wedding led to the family thinking of going into the wedding dress design industry.

    As everyone knows, most of the famous wedding dress brands such as Pronovias, Rosa ra, Cymbelin, Dior, and so on are all foreign brands. China itself has several reputable brands too, but they can¡¯t quite match up to those other brands.

    It¡¯d be fine if China just didn¡¯t have what it takes to make high-end wedding dresses, but all these famous foreign brands were clearly outsourcing their production to China. What China was reallycking in was its brand recognition.

    As such, Shen Jingchen was currently mulling over how to develop a high-end wedding dress design brand.

    Developing a brand was no easy feat. To begin with, one needs to conduct an enormous amount of market research, while also investing vast quantities of capital and manpower. Fortunately, Papa Shen was a born businessman. He had more than enough money for Shen Jingchen to try his hand at it without any fear of failure.

    The n was to build up the brand from within the country itself through the use of the Shen family¡¯s name and celebrity endorsements. Following that, they¡¯d look at expanding into overseas markets.

    The first season¡¯s dresses were alreadypleted. All that¡¯s left was to advertise it and get ambassadors on board. The problem was that the popr artistes didn¡¯t have the right personality, while those that did have the right personalities were of the wrong age.

    The Shen family was nning to put out high-end products, so they needed a female celebrity with an aloof air about her to be their ambassador.

    The issue of looking for a suitable ambassador had the wholepany in a tizzy. Thinking that a woman¡¯s touch was more appropriate here, Shen Jingchen decisively passed the buck over to Shen Jingbin. It was such a headache for Shen Jingbin that she was left mulling over it all the way up to the time she met up with Zhao Chengning.

    Zhao Chengning was very upset by his wife-to-be¡¯sck of attention. In his eyes, they were both very busy, and they didn¡¯t have much time together. Now, even that little bit of time was being taken up.

    Uneptable!

    And so, he began his inquiry. "What¡¯s got you so worried?"

    Shen Jingbin thought for a bit before telling him the whole story. "I¡¯m trying to figure out who should be the ambassador for the first season¡¯s wedding dresses. This is our very first showing, so we need to wow everyone. This is why choosing the right person is so important."

    Zhao Chengning never concerned himself with looking for ambassadors when it came to his ownpany. He left that to his secretary to worry about, which was why as much as he wanted to help, he couldn¡¯t. He thought for a moment and said, "Why don¡¯t you try asking Xuya about it? Since he¡¯s spent so much time with women in the entertainment industry, he¡¯s bound to know them better than we do. You can trust his rmendation."

    Asking Xuya had never even crossed her mind. The moment Zhao Chengning brought Xuya up, Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes lit up and she gave Xuya a call. When she called, Xuya happened to be spending time with Huajuan who¡¯de over to B City for a magazine shoot. When she heard about it, she immediately epted, leaving poor Xuya who¡¯d been looking forward to spending time alone with Huajuan feeling down in the dumps.

 Chapter 402

    <strong>Chapter 402: A Spokesperson (2)</strong>

    Huajuan didn¡¯t take long to finish her work, and the four of them arranged to meet up somewhere. Shen Jingbin then proceeded to exin her request.

    After some thought, Xuya said, "If you want someone aloof, you can try Fan Wenqi. She¡¯s recently taken part in a huge production. To top it off, she¡¯s popr and of the right age too."

    Shen Jingbin shook her head. "Fan Wenqi won¡¯t do. Someone else in mypany mentioned her before too. Thinking that it was a pretty good idea, Shen Jingchen spoke to her to see how she felt about the opportunity. Unexpectedly, she decided to put on airs and said that if we wanted to use her this time, we¡¯d have to use her in every other instance. We have our own considerations when ites to who we choose, so we can¡¯t have her dictating everything. And, it feels like that whole aloof facade of hers is more than likely not just an act. I don¡¯t want our very first ambassador to be someone like that."

    "Then, what about Xu Fangfang? I don¡¯t think she¡¯s putting on an act, right?" Xuya asked.

    "Xu Fangfang¡¯s a little too young, and her poprity seems to be dying down."

    "Gao Kesong should be fine, right? She¡¯s young, pretty and has the right personality. On top of that, shees from a rich and powerful family too. She alone is enough to get people talking."

    Zhao Chengning suddenly let out an unnatural cough. "Don¡¯t bother with Gao Kesong. There¡¯s no way she¡¯ll agree."

    Xuya looked at him in confusion. He didn¡¯t know why Zhao Chengning was so sure about it.

    Zhao Chengning nced helplessly over at Shen Jingbin and said, "Recently, mypany had an ambassador partnership with her. As I was acquainted with her father, I was the one who took charge of it. She got the wrong impression and came running over to me to offer herself up. In the end, she was pushed away by your big sis Little Jing over there."

    Xuya and Huajuan were both dumbfounded. At first, they sympathised with Gao Kesong. But, after hearing how she threw herself at Zhao Chengning and how she tried to push Shen Jingbin out of the rtionship, wasn¡¯t she just asking for it?

    "That¡¯s why there¡¯s no way she¡¯ll agree to be the Shen family¡¯s ambassador."

    "I¡¯m all out of ideas then. Nowadays, all of these celebrities try to connect with their fans. To begin with, there aren¡¯t that many aloof idols. All the ones who are of the right age have already been rejected by you. All that¡¯s left are the ones that are a little older," Xuya said awkwardly.

    Huajuan suddenly chimed in. "What about Xue Sijia? Her personality¡¯s pretty close to what you want. And, she¡¯s always been rather popr!"

    As a former fangirl, the moment she heard the word ¡¯aloof¡¯, Huajuan¡¯s former goddess immediately popped into her mind.

    Due to her conflict with Xue Sijia in the past, Shen Jingbin had subconsciously overlooked her when she was considering potential candidates. On the other hand, the rest of the employees at thepany felt that while she did have an aloof air about her, she was also kind of terrifying, so no one brought her up as they felt she wasn¡¯t a good fit.

    "Xue Sijia? Isn¡¯t she the one that shot an advertisement together with Little Jing? Now that you mention it, she does seem like a good fit. It¡¯s a shame I¡¯ve never spoken to her before though, so I don¡¯t know her that well," muttered Xuya.

    Shen Jingbin seriously considered Huajuan¡¯s suggestion. Putting aside the inexplicable grudge that they had, she really did seem like a very suitable person. Since they couldn¡¯t think of anyone else, she decided to give it a shot.

    "Mm, sounds like a good idea. I¡¯ll get in touch with her. Thanks, Huajuan," said Shen Jingbin.

    A brilliant smile lit up Huajuan¡¯s face. "I wholeheartedly ept your thanks... Come on, let¡¯s order some food. I¡¯m starving."

    Zhao Chengning chuckled. "As thanks for helping my Little Jing solve her problem, this meal¡¯s on me. Order whatever you like."

    Both Huajuan and Xuya gave a shudder. My god, he¡¯s spoiling her so much it¡¯s terrifying!

    With a n in mind, Shen Jingbin contacted Xue Sijia¡¯s manager the next day.

    When Yangshu, Xue Sijia¡¯s manager, heard that there was an opening to be the Shen family¡¯s ambassador, she almost wanted to ept the offer then and there. After hanging up the phone, she had this nagging feeling that the other party¡¯s voice sounded somewhat familiar, but she pushed it aside and tossed it to the back of her head.

    Xue Sijia was rather interested in the ambassador position after she heard everything her manager had to say. But, since she was in the midst of filming for a movie, she couldn¡¯t find the time to attend the meeting with the Shen family¡¯s liaison, so she sent Yangshu in her stead. Yangshu happily gave a call to the Shen family¡¯s liaison and arranged for a meetup.

    They agreed to meet up at a Starbucks near Xue Sijia¡¯s office. Yangshu was the first to reach, but a familiar face entered not long after. Before Yangshu had the chance to react, the person started walking towards towards her before stopping right in front of her.

    "Long time no see, Miss Yang. I¡¯m Shen Jingbin, and I¡¯ll be in charge of overseeing this matter."

    Yangshu was an experienced manager. She quickly recovered from her momentary shock and shook hands with Shen Jingbin. "Miss Shen? It really has been a long time. I never expected to be meeting you here today. So, you really were rted to the Shen family."

    Shen Jingbin smiled and pulled out the contract that she¡¯d been working on for the past few nights from her bag. "This is the draft contract with our requirements and remuneration clearly listed on it. Please have a look at it, Miss Yang. If you don¡¯t have any major objections with it, please bring it back and show it to Miss Xue."

    Yangshu nced through the contract. The conditions that the Shen family set out were very favourable. Putting aside everything else, this was a fantastic job opportunity that offers both fame and fortune for Xue Sijia.

    But...

    A look of consternation appeared on her face.

    Seeing this, Shen Jingbin said, "I know what you¡¯re worried about. There may have been misunderstandings between Miss Xue and I in the past, but I¡¯m not the one requesting Miss Xue to act as the Shen family¡¯s ambassador, but rather the Shen family itself, and we¡¯re very sincere about our offer. If possible, I hope Miss Xue will be able to set aside her animosity for the time being."

    Yangshu inwardly heaved a sigh of relief, but her face didn¡¯t betray any emotion. "I understand. I¡¯ll let Sijia have a look at the contract. Don¡¯t worry, Miss Shen, I¡¯ll do my best to convince her as well."

    Shen Jingbin nodded.

    Yangshu had many things to take care of, so the two of them briefly exchanged ideas for a bit before leaving. As Shen Jingbin watched Yangshu¡¯s departing figure, she thought to herself: I only hope that Xue Sijia has the good sense to know what she should and shouldn¡¯t be doing.

 Chapter 403

    <b>Chapter 403: All Out War (1)</b>

    Shen Jingbin had no idea what Yangshu said to Xue Sijia, but Shen Jingbin received a call from her the next day saying that she wanted to meet up with her to discuss the specifics of their partnership.

    Shen Jingbin knew that Xue Sijia was involved in filming a movie as ofte, and that travelling put a strain on her schedule. So, she was rather skeptical when Xue Sijia mentioned wanting to meet in person.

    No matter how she looked at it, this didn¡¯t seem like something she¡¯d do. After all, her being an aloof goddess wasn¡¯t just for show.

    However, Shen Jingbin wasn¡¯t afraid of meeting up with her regardless of her reasons.

    They agreed to meet at Xue Sijia¡¯s office. When it was time for them to meet, Shen Jingbin arrived right on the dot with all of the relevant materials on hand. With some help from the receptionist, she managed to find Yangshu, who then led her to a room and served her a cup of warm water.

    "Sijia¡¯s speaking to Chairman Long at the moment. She¡¯ll be out in a bit. Please wait here for the time being, Miss Shen," said Yangshu.

    Shen Jingbin nodded. "Alright."

    Xue Sijia sauntered in about half an hourter.

    Xue Sijia looked like she had absolutely no intention of apologising for beingte and went straight to sitting before Shen Jingbin. She crossed her hands and gave Shen Jingbin a once over.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression remained indifferent, almost as if she didn¡¯t notice the haughty look on Xue Sijia¡¯s face. "Have you looked through the contract, Miss Xue? Do you have any objections to the terms we¡¯ve listed?"

    "I¡¯ve looked through the contract, and the terms you¡¯ve set out are very generous. I¡¯m happy with what¡¯s being offered."

    "That¡¯s good to hear. So, are you willing to be our ambassador, Miss Xue?"

    Xue Sijia put on a fake smile and shook her head. Sidestepping the question, she said, "There¡¯s something I¡¯m curious about. Why did you choose me, Miss Shen? I would¡¯ve thought that with our past history, the position as the Shen family¡¯s ambassador would never fall to me."

    "I¡¯m speaking to you as a representative of the Shen family, Miss Xue."

    Xue Sijia sneered. "I heard that you tried asking Fan Wenqi beforehand, so why are you giving me an olive branch now?"

    "Miss Fan wasn¡¯t satisfied with the terms we set out for her, so we weren¡¯t able toe to an agreement."

    Xue Sijia fell silent for a moment. "I¡¯m very impressed by your magnanimity and work ethic. I¡¯ll ept the position as the Shen family¡¯s ambassador. However, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re well aware that I¡¯m filming a movie for Wang Dao, so I don¡¯t have much time..."

    Shen Jingbin immediately cut her off. "Fret not, Miss Xue. Our filming will take three days at most."

    Xue Sijia looked conflicted. A momentter, she appeared to have made up her mind and said, "Alright then, I¡¯ll try to squeeze out some time for the filming."

    "I¡¯ll send someone to deliver the final version of the contract tomorrow afternoon. If there¡¯s no objections on your part, we¡¯ll start filming this week."

    "Alright."

    Everything happened so smoothly that Shen Jingbin couldn¡¯t help but take another nce at Xue Sijia before leaving.

    Xue Sijia was so easy to deal with today, that it was kind of absurd. It felt like there was some sort of conspiracy in the works. But, on second thought, even if she was scheming something, the biggest loser had yet to be determined.

    With that thought in mind, Shen Jingbin went back to report to Shen Jingchen. She didn¡¯t forget to warn him to be more conscious of Xue Sijia in the future either. After all, it was better to be safe than sorry.

    After Shen Jingbin left, Yangshu looked at Xue Sijia in confusion and asked, "You¡¯re epting the contract, just like that?"

    Xue Sijia was uncharacteristically amicable today. Based on what Yangshu knew of her, she was definitely plotting something.

    As expected, Xue Sijia¡¯s expression turned ice-cold when she heard Yangshu¡¯s question.

    "Hmph, getting me to agree to the contract is one thing, getting me to cooperate with them will depend on how well they perform."

    Out of concern, Yangshu said, "Don¡¯t be too hasty. You¡¯re going up against the Shen family, they¡¯re not people..."

    A minor celebrity like you can go against.

    But s, the rest of what she wanted to say was caught in her throat when Xue Sijia red daggers at her.

    "I asked aroundst night. The Shen family has ced a great deal of importance on finding a suitable ambassador. There aren¡¯t many people who fit their criteria to begin with, so they should havee crawling on their hands and knees to beg me to be their ambassador. Why do I have the be the one acting meek?"

    "But, Chairman Long said not to..."

    "Said not to provoke her? Don¡¯t worry, I know what to do," said Xue Sijia, as the corners of her lips curled into a sinister smile.

    Yanshu was filled with apprehension. She suddenly felt as if she¡¯d underestimated just how much Xue Sijia hated Shen Jingbin. But, where did all of this hostilitye from? Could it really have been due to what happened to Yijust time? If that was the case, she was definitely making a mountain out of a molehill.

    It might be a good idea to try talking her around. Otherwise, she might be on the road to ruining her future.

 Chapter 404

    <strong>Chapter 404: All Out War (2)</strong>

    It was Friday in the blink of an eye. After talking things over with her film crew, Xue Sijia set aside three days toplete the Shen family¡¯s marketing campaign shoot for their new line of wedding dresses. Shen Jingchen had his hands full with work, so the task of overseeing the production was left to Shen Jingbin.

    The cinematographer was a big shot of Chinese ancestry that Zhao Chengning had invited from overseas. Rumour has it that even A list Hollywood celebrities weren¡¯t guaranteed his services and it was dependent on his mood. People like these typically don¡¯t have very good tempers, and this was proven to be the case when Shen Jingbin arrived at the set, only to be greeted by him flying into a rage and cursing at the top of his voice in English. He was so loud, he could be heard even at a distance away.

    Shen Jingbin knitted her brows and pulled aside one of the staff on site. "What happened?"

    The staff seemed somewhat upset as well. "Miss Shen, this Xue Sijia has gone too far. She imed that she couldn¡¯t understand English, so she insisted that we secure an interpreter for her. When we did so and started filming, she startedining shortly after about how she injured her hip a few days prior and wasn¡¯t able to perform the actions we asked of her. On top of that, she wanted to rest. Now, the cinematographer¡¯s flying off the handle."

    Looking at how the cinematographer was going crazy and Xue Sijia was leisurely fiddling with her handphone, Shen Jingbin now understood what Xue Sijia was ying at.

    The contract was a double-edged sword. It restricted not only Xue Sijia, but the Shen family as well. The Shen family required her to perform her duties, but at the same time, she also had the right to make demands to meet her needs. To the Shen family, her self-centered demands was her clearly trying to be difficult, but from an outsider¡¯s perspective, it was a reasonable ask, leaving the Shen family with no way of penalising her.

    "Go to the coffee shop downstairs and bring back atte. It has to be freshly ground and without any milk or sugar," said Shen Jingbin to the staff member. She then forged ahead, putting on her sweetest voice to ask the cinematographer how he was doing.

    When the cinematographer, Abner, noticed her, it was as if a dam had broken open and he began voicing all his grievances. Abner and Zhao Chengning were friends that got along pretty well, so he was naturally friendlier towards her as well.

    Shen Jingbin calmed him down before sending him off to take a break. She also gave the rest of the staff on site, who¡¯d been running themselves ragged, some time off too. She herself would take care of Xue Sijia.

    Once everyone else had gone, leaving only Shen Jingbin, Xue Sijia, and her Manager, Shen Jingbin walked up to Xue Sijia.

    Xue Sijia stopped swiping at her screen when Shen Jingbin drew near. She nced up at Shen Jingbin for a moment before going back to fiddling with her phone.

    "Do you really get a kick out of doing something like this, Miss Xue?" asked Shen Jingbin as she loomed over Xue Sijia.

    "I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. I haven¡¯t recovered from my hip injury yet, so I couldn¡¯t pull off the movements that he asked for. You can¡¯t me me for that," said Xue Sijia tly.

    Shen Jingbin let out a snort of disgust. What a conniving woman. If Abner wasn¡¯t here because of his friendship with Zhao Chengning, but was instead invited over by the Shen family, Xue Sijia¡¯s actions would¡¯ve been more than enough to set him off. Apart from Xue Sijia having to take responsibility for her actions, the responsibility for her poor conduct would also fall on the Shen family¡¯s head. Judging by how high up he is in the industry, antagonizing him would be the equivalent ofmitting suicide.

    "Miss Xue, you wowed everyone when you and your film crew showcased ¡¯The Descending Dragon¡¯s Disciple¡¯ at the film festival in Cannes three years ago. Don¡¯t tell me your fluent English from back then has withered away in just a few short years?"

    Xue Sijia looked up at her in surprise. "How¡¯d you know about that?"

    Ignoring her question, Shen Jingbin continued, "You said you injured your hip, right? From what I know, there weren¡¯t many parts for you to act out in the past month. In addition, most of them were just spoken lines. May I know how you injured yourself? Otherwise, I could escort you to the hospital for a checkup instead."

    Xue Sijia no longer bothered with her handphone. She shot Yangshu a nce, prompting Yangshu to leave and shut the door on the way out.

    "Sounds like you know quite a lot," Xue Sijia said in an even tone.

    "It can¡¯t be helped, we had to take some extra precautions since we¡¯re working with you. I assume you know just how important this marketing campaign is for the Shen family. I hope you can y the part of a professional and cooperate with us in making this a sess."

    "Sure, I can cooperate with you. But first, I want you to apologize to me. Then, I want you tag along with me and help me carry stuff. Once we¡¯re done, I¡¯ll cooperate. Otherwise, who knows, that big name cinematographer you guys invited might be leaving in a huff this afternoon."

    Shen Jingbin wore an agitated smile on her face. Other than Nine Bads, no one else was as nitpicky as this woman. "Miss Xue, did you forget that you¡¯ve signed a contract? Your actions already constitute a vition of our agreement. I have the right to remove you from the agreement and demandpensation."

    Xue Sijia appeared unfazed and wore a carefree smile. "That¡¯s fine with me. I can afford to pay that pittance of a penalty fee too. But, make sure you think it through carefully. From what I know, I¡¯m the only one who fits your criteria for an ambassador, no?"

    Shen Jingbin red at her for a good long while, but just as Xue Sijia thought Shen Jingbin was about topromise with her, Shen Jingbin smiled.

    "In truth, you never had any intention of cooperating with us to begin with, right? The only reason you epted was because you wanted to make things difficult for me. The best case scenario for you would be to antagonize Abner. Alright, since that¡¯s the case, I don¡¯t need to stand on ceremony with you either. Xue Sijia, pack up and get the hell out of here."

    "Hmph, you better think this through. Once I leave, I won¡¯te back even if youe crawling on your knees!"

    "Get out of here right this instant! Beg you? Aren¡¯t you being too conceited? Do you think you¡¯re the only person in the world?"

    Xue Sijia¡¯s expression twisted into one of disgust. With a harrumph, she grabbed her belongings and stormed out.

    Halfway through, Shen Jingbin called out to her, "Xue Sijia, you don¡¯t really think viting an agreement just constitutes paying a fine, do you? When you get back, I think you should go online and have a good look at what the Shen family¡¯s doing. I¡¯ve only ever seen a witless and conceited woman like you twice in my life. You¡¯re one, and the other¡¯s called Nine Bads. If you y <<Legends Of Celestials And Demons>>, you should look up your fellow kindred spirit."

 Chapter 405

    <b>Chapter 405: The Grand Finale (1)</b>

    After Xue Sijia stormed off, Shen Jingbin gave her brother a call and let him know what happened. Shen Jingchen was so riled up by this development that he nearly passed out from anger in the office.

    They could have had a falling out at any time, but they just had to do it now. Were they intentionally trying to screw him over!? The photographer was already on site. How was he supposed to find a recement when their ambassador skipped out at the veryst moment? They¡¯d be in big trouble if Abner somehow thought they were making fun of him and left in a huff.

    "What the hell is wrong with you, Shen Jingbin!? What¡¯re you going to do now that our ambassador¡¯s run off?! Who¡¯s Abner going to film now, huh? You?!" roared Shen Jingchen into the phone. This was the very first time he¡¯d spoken to Shen Jingbin in such a way.

    Unperturbed, Shen Jingbin remained calmly seated within the studio. "Film me? That¡¯s not a bad idea."

    Shen Jingchen was taken aback. "Are you serious? Would you really be willing to star in the advertisement?"

    "This whole incident started because of me. If we¡¯re not able to find anyone else, and you think I¡¯m suitable, then I¡¯m not exactly opposed to the idea. Regardless, I do still have a few million people following me on Weibo."

    The moment she said that, she heard Shen Jingchen yelp with joy on the other end of the phone.

    "Why didn¡¯t you say that sooner! You were my ideal ambassador from the very beginning, my little sister! You¡¯re attractive, have a good background, and your aloofness towards others stands at the very pinnacle. To top it off, you¡¯re an inte celebrity too. The buzz around you might have dropped off a little, but all we need to do is put you and Ah Ning out in the open for a bit and you¡¯ll be all set. Tell me, who could possibly be a better fit than you?"

    "I can¡¯t believe I didn¡¯t realise you were lusting after me this whole time."

    Shen Jingchen sighed. "Previously, after the meeting, someone came to me in private and said that they felt that you¡¯d be a choice over those amorous bitches from the entertainment industry. But, thinking that you¡¯d reject the idea, I told them not to bring it up in the future. Little did I expect you to bring it up yourself. Lil sis, do your best and I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll outshine everyone else and kick off our brand with a bang!"

    Suddenly, a thought came to Shen Jingbin¡¯s mind. "There¡¯s one problem: will I be able to wear the dress? There¡¯s quite a big difference between Xue Sijia¡¯s and my figure."

    Xue Sijia wasnky, while Shen Jingbin had a buxom figure. If the wedding dress was sized to Xue Sijia¡¯s proportions, there was no way she¡¯d be able to wear it.

    "Don¡¯t you worry about that. The wedding dress was originally sized for you. We only altered it to fit Xue Sijia after we secured her services. We still have several spares in reserve that don¡¯t even need any adjusting. All we need to do is bring them over and you¡¯ll be able to wear one immediately."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s expression darkened. "They were based on my proportions? And how exactly did you get them?"

    Shen Jingchen "I, uh, ah...got them from Ah Ning..."

    "... You¡¯re asking for it, aren¡¯t you, Shen Jingchen!"

    "Ahahaha. If you¡¯re really going to step up to the te, then we won¡¯t be able to use that male model that we had nned. Otherwise, Ah Ning would really have it out for me. Besides, your marriage is drawing close, and you haven¡¯t taken any wedding pictures either, so why not call Ah Ning over and two of you can get your pictures taken. Two birds with one stone. I¡¯d imagine Abner would be all for it too."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes narrowed. "You just didn¡¯t want to pay for me, right?"

    "Ah, you saw right through me."

    "You little shit, don¡¯t tell me you were actually thinking that?!"

    And so, after the staff members came back from their break, they found themselves short of an annoying Xue Sijia. At first, they thought that she¡¯d thrown a tantrum and stormed off. Onlyter, when the Zhao family¡¯s Second Young Master - who was also Shen Jingbin¡¯s husband to be - made an appearance to deliver a wedding dress, did they find out that it was Shen Jingbin who fired Xue Sijia and personally stepped forward to rece her!

    Oh my god! T-t-this...

    Was absolutely amazing!

    The staff members weren¡¯t the only ones who were pleased with this oue. Abner was overjoyed too. While he was abroad, Abner took a liking to Zhao Chengining and wanted him to be his model. Unfortunately, Abner was ruthlessly rejected by him. Even after they became friends, Zhao Chengning still refused to be his model.

    With an opportunity like this, why wouldn¡¯t he be happy?

    Zhao Chengning had a simr build to the male model that they¡¯d hired, so he looked right at home in a tuxedo that they¡¯d prepared for the model.

    The Shen family nned to put out a flower-themed wedding dress for their debut release. It was a strapless dress made out of whitece flowers with flower buds made out of the same material interspersed throughout. This brought out a woman¡¯s sex appeal while at the same time enhancing their innocence. The designer intended the dressed to symbolize the bride¡¯s willingness to shoulder the burden of love, and signifying her transformation into a beautiful woman.

    When Shen Jingbinid eyes on the very first sample of the dress that was produced, she decided to keep it simple and wear that design for her own wedding. Little did she expect it to actually be a reality.

    When Shen Jingbin stepped out of the changing room, the whole studio fell silent. Even Abner, who was ustomed to viewing spectacles was left speechless.

 Chapter 406

    <strong>Chapter 406: The Grand Finale (2)</strong>

    Shen Jingbin being beautiful was a well-known fact amongst everyone. It was as if she were God¡¯s finest creation, and she looked perfect from every angle imaginable. Even Abner, who was hailed as a king in the realm of cinematography, didn¡¯t dare to hit the shutter on his camera for fear of not being able to fully capture her beauty.

    But now, Shen Jingbin, dressed in her wedding gown,pletely shattered everyone¡¯s conception of beauty. Never did they imagine that a woman¡¯s beauty could reach such heights.

    Every moment spent looking at her was precious, and spending even a single second blinking was seen as a waste.

    Just as everyone was captivated by her beauty, the door to the men¡¯s changing room quietly opened and a man clothed in a white garment stepped out. He silently made his way towards Shen Jingbin and stopped behind her. A smile broke across his face as he gazed at the woman before him. The tender emotion in his eyes caused the hearts of all women present to beat faster and they couldn¡¯t help but blush.

    Shen Jingbin had gone past the pinnacle of beauty, and it was hard to think of someone - man or woman - who could withstand the psychological pressure of standing beside such a person. But, such thoughts fled everyone¡¯s minds when theyid eyes on Zhao Chengning.

    Yes, it had to be this man. No one other than him was suitable.

    When Zhao Chengning made his appearance, Shen Jingbin restrained her aggressive demeanor and slowly reced it with shyness and gentleness instead. That was what her partner had given her.

    On the other hand, Shen Jingbin¡¯s beauty caused Zhao Chengning to be even more eye-catching.

    Sensing a presence, Shen Jingbin turned back and spotted Zhao Chengning wearing a white tuxedo. The meticulously crafted suit conformed to his proportions, bringing out his well-built figure. He had handsome features and wore a smile on his face. Not a hair on his head was out of ce. Every part of his ensemble was just right; there were no excessive embellishments and nothing wascking.

    Upon seeing her look back, he walked over to her side, bowed, and stretched out his hand.

    Shen Jingbin returned his bow with a curtsy of her own and gave him her hand with a look of joy on her face.

    Zhao Chengning enveloped her petite hand within his own. The heat transmitted touching one another caused the two of them to break out in smiles.

    At that moment, it felt as if sunlight was radiating out, with the two of them at its center. Everyone present couldn¡¯t help but shut their eyes as they felt their heartbeats speed up for some unknown reason.

    They¡¯d never forget this scene for the rest of their lives.

    Abner reflexively brought up his camera and snapped a picture of that moment. With how close he was to the camera lens, he could feel their love and longing for one another.

    "I probably won¡¯t be able to touch my camera for a good long time after this," he thought to himself.

    None of the staff present were able to describe how the rest of the shoot went about after this; their heads were in the clouds the entire time. On the other hand, Abner¡¯s finger never left the camera¡¯s shutter. In fact, he didn¡¯t even bother to get the couple to pose in any particr manner. To him, every single position they were in was perfect.

    Only true, raw, emotion was the most realistic, and it was the most beautiful.

    ...

    Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning¡¯s wedding was set for the 1st of October, which was also the nation¡¯s national day.

    It not raining on a national day was almost akin to a rule written in stone. Today¡¯s weather was no different from all the other national days. The downcast weather, which persisted for the past few days, had finally dissipated, leaving clear blue skies for miles on end.

    When B City¡¯s bell tower was struck, Shen Jingbin made her appearance. She wore a wedding dress that was specially designed by her brother for her. She held a bouquet in one hand, while the other held onto her father¡¯s hand as he led her down the aisle towards a man wearing a white tuxedo who was standing as straight as a pole.

    At the urging of the master of ceremony, her father handed over her to the other man.

    He wrapped his hand around hers, never to let go ever again.

    "Zhao Chengning, do you agree to take Shen Jingbin as yourwfully wedded wife, to love her in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for now, and forever?"

    "I do."

    "Shen Jingbin, do you agree to take Zhao Chengning as yourwfully wedded husband, to love him in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for now, and forever?"

    "I do."

    "In that case, by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

    Zhao Chengning gazed at the woman wearing a white wedding dress in front of him and felt his spirit, that had unwittingly wandered off for so long finally return to him. Every inch of his face was suffused with joy as he slowly lowered his head and brought it closer to his new wife. As he drew nearer, he saw his own face reflected in his wife¡¯s eyes, a face that looked blessedly content.

    When their lips finally brushed against one another, he felt his lips go numb, and he felt the sensation spread throughout the rest of his body. He could smell the faint fragrance wafting off her body, and he felt her body faintly tremble.

    He took in every single one of her reactions with unblinking eyes.

    "Bang!"

    Fireworks exploded over the couple¡¯s heads. Beneath them, Zhao Chengning heard periodic sobbing. These weren¡¯t cries of sorrow, but rather tears of joy; tears of joy for himself, for Shen Jingbin, for the two of them.

    Following that was apuse that grew more intense with every passing moment.

    He slowly parted with Shen Jingbin¡¯s lips and mouthed, "I¡¯ve been waiting forever for you. I love you."

    His wife¡¯s only reply was a face filled with tears of joy.

 Chapter 407

    <b>Chapter 407: Side Story (1)</b>

    The Shen Group¡¯s new wedding dress brand, Lieban, made its debut on thest day of the National Day holidays.

    Lieban¡¯s dresses turned a number of heads in the fashion industry from the very day it went on the market.

    Of course, just like any other brand, Lieban garnered supporters, detractors and those who were in it just to watch how things yed out.

    Lieban¡¯s supporters felt that for a magnificent country like China that was overflowing with talent, designing something as simple as a wedding dress was a piece of cake! To top it off, it was being produced by the Shen group, so the dress¡¯ quality would be guaranteed.

    As for their detractors, they felt that the country trulycked talented individuals. All these years, whenever some Tom, Dick, or Harry designer made their debut, they¡¯d always have their work copied not long after. Furthermore, just because the dresses were made by the Shen Group didn¡¯t mean that the product¡¯s quality would be guaranteed either. These days, even bigpanies skimping on quality and workmanship isn¡¯t something unheard of.

    Andstly, those who held no opinion had the mindset of sitting by the sidelines and watching the world burn.

    Regardless of what each group thought, when Lieban hosted its news conference, everyone shut their mouths and turned on theirputers.

    Whether Lieban¡¯s new line of wedding dresses would be the real deal, or just a pile of trash, would be revealed at first sight.

    One other issue was who exactly Lieban¡¯s ambassador was. Before the conference, their ambassador had always remained a mystery.

    There were rumours floating around online that the Shen Group¡¯s senior management had met up with the aloof princess, Xue Sijia, and they¡¯d engaged in a rather agreeable discussion.

    There were others making bold ims that they¡¯d seen the Shen Group¡¯s golden boy, Shen Jingchen, and the cool and elegant goddess, Fan Wenqi having a meal together.

    There were even those who said that they saw Gao Kesong storming out of the Shen Group¡¯s building.

    Rumours spread like wildfire, leadingizens to specte on which goddess managed to snag themselves the role of the Shen Group¡¯s ambassador.

    At 10 in the morning, Shen Jingchen - the Shen Group¡¯s golden boy; the founder of group¡¯s Lieban wedding dress brand; and also the General Manager of B City¡¯s branch office - made his appearance in front of the swarm of journalists that had gathered for the conference.

    He kicked off the conference with a simple introduction as to why he¡¯d chosen the name ¡¯Lieban¡¯ for the brand. He then went on to talk about his design philosophy, the brand¡¯s goals, and so on.

    Following that, he showcased Lieban¡¯s new advertisement for all the journalists present and everyone who was watching online.

    Everyone present at the news conference abruptly went silent. Shortly after, a gigantic LED screen lit up. The Shen Group followed by Lieban¡¯s logos were shown in quick session before the screen faded to ck.

    A single feather suddenly appeared on screen and slowly floated downwards. Just as everyone was thinking ¡¯This feather is such a pain. Why the hell does it keep floating?! Show me a real video!¡¯, the feather finally reached its destination - a woman¡¯s shoulder. The camera pulled back, revealing a woman¡¯s silhouette.

    It was the silhouette of an impossibly alluring woman. She wore a white gown with an open back, revealing snow-white skin, causing those who were just looking feel like they were about to pop a nose bleed. The camera zoomed in again, and the woman turned around...

    Oh my god, how could she be so beautiful!?

    Everyone couldn¡¯t help but hold their breaths. They were deathly afraid that even something as trivial as their breathing might scare away the woman on screen.

    By this time, with the help of special effects, the beauty¡¯s dress had transformed into a strapless whitece wedding gown that hadce flower buds sprinkled all over it. The beauty was expressionless as her eyes that seemed to draw one¡¯s soul in remained transfixed ahead of her. It was as if she were looking through the screen and observing herself.

    This beauty was abination of both nobility and sex appeal, melding aloofness and innocence into one.

    She was the pinnacle of beauty.

    Without giving the audience a chance to react, the scene changed once again. The journalistic interns, who¡¯de along for the experience, couldn¡¯t help but cry out in surprise when that happened.

    The following scene featured the beauty yet again, but she wasn¡¯t the only one around this time. A man wearing the same line of clothing now stood beside her.

    "Ah, isn¡¯t that..." whispered a number of people in surprise. They¡¯d recognised who the man was the moment he appeared.

    Only to have their speech cut short by what happened next.

    The man and woman on screen were both top ss in terms of their looks. One might not be able to find someone with aparable appearance even if they were to go through all of the artists in the entertainment industry.

    Both of them wore wedding apparel that was both gorgeous and unique. Be it looking at the camera, smiling at one another, pressing their foreheads against each other, looking angry, and even mischievous, each and every action of theirs and expression of theirs looked as natural as one could be. At the same time, the audience was able to sense the depth of love they had for one another.

    As the audience continued watching, a smile gradually began to form on their faces. It was as if they and their lover were in the pictures instead.

    ...

    The lights suddenly turned on with a ¡¯click¡¯, and the two people on the screen disappeared. In their ce was a smiling Shen Jingchen on stage instead.

    After a brief moment of silence, the crowd broke out into thunderous apuse. Shen Jingchen continued smiling as samples of the wedding apparel that were disyed in the video were rolled on stage.

    The journalists, who remained stunned for a long time, mechanically raised their cameras

    Less than an hour after the news conference, numerous well-known media outlets started reporting on it, with a majority of them singing Lieban¡¯s praises. This was quickly followed by someone releasing pictures and video taken from the news conference. Netizens singing Lieban¡¯s praises and megathreads around it started popping up all over the ce, and Lieban instantly became one of the most searched words on search engines.

    The Shen Group¡¯s Lieban wedding dress brand had be an overnight sess.

    Lieban¡¯s enigmatic ambassador was also revealed to actually be the daughter of the Shen Group who¡¯d recently gotten married to the Zhao family¡¯s Second Young Master!

    F*ck, this was basically a real-life fairy tale. A perfect beauty,ing from a perfect background, had now gotten themselves the perfect marriage.

    And so, Lieban, Shen Jingbin, and Zhao Chengning once again took the world by storm, and ended up having more than half of the inte¡¯s content dedicated to them during this time. As an added bonus, the Shen Group¡¯s stock price also shot up.

 Chapter 408

    <strong>Chapter 408: Side Story (2)</strong>

    Although there were many whouded the brand, there were also a fair number of people who imed that Lieban¡¯s designs were just average. It wasn¡¯t all that unique, and it relied heavily on Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning to stand out. In fact, the Shen Group was basically putting the cart before the horse!

    But regardless of whatever was said, Lieban¡¯s debut was a resounding sess.

    ...

    Recently, Xue Sijia¡¯s been feeling very depressed! She was oh so depressed!

    Why?

    Because, ever since the day she fell out with Shen Jingbin, she¡¯d mysteriously received notices of her being removed from a number of productions. Representatives from a number of films that she was supposed to star in had also informed her that they¡¯d be swapping her out for another actress.

    More importantly, her manager was suddenly switched out as well. Her manager was changed without giving her any prior notice at all!

    Her manager¡¯s recement was a new recruit whocked any experience or connections!

    At this point, if she couldn¡¯t figure out why all of this was happening to her, she¡¯d have spent all these years in the entertainment industry in vain!

    Who could do such a thing to her? And, who would have the gall to do it?

    Shen Jingbin was the very first person that came to her mind.

    That¡¯s right, it was that woman. Apart from her, no one else would be able to pull such a thing off. Furthermore, didn¡¯t Shen Jingbin threaten her not long ago?!

    She became increasingly sure of herself, the more she thought about it. At the same time, she became increasingly enraged. Shen Jingbin was far too despicable. How could she have resorted to such means!?

    No. There was no way she was going to take this lying down!

    After making up her mind, Xue Sijia rushed back to the office, intent on speaking with Long Dingtai. She was the apple of his eye, and he¡¯d supported her the entire time; there was no way he¡¯d sit back and watch this happen!

    Little did she think that she¡¯d be barred entry to the chairman¡¯s office when she¡¯d previously had free reign toe and go as she pleased. The alluring secretary gave her a look of derision and stopped her at the door. "My apologies, Miss Xue, but Chairman Long is currently in a meeting, and he¡¯s given very specific instructions not to let you in," said the secretary curtly.

    Xue Sijia red daggers at the secretary who was barring her way. "Get out of my way!"

    The secretary quailed under her piercing re, but she recovered her gging courage when she thought of what the Chairman had tasked her with. She puffed out her chest and said, "Please don¡¯t make things difficult for me, Miss Xue, I¡¯m just doing as I¡¯m told. Chairman Long said that you don¡¯t know your ce, and you¡¯ve been acting as you please, so you need to be taught a lesson. You...ah!"

    Before she had the chance to finish, the secretary felt a surge of pain from the arm that she was using to bar Xue Sijia¡¯s way. It felt as if someone had broken it. When she looked over, she found that Xue Sijia really had broken her arm!

    Ah, that¡¯s not right. In truth, Xue Sijia had only dislocated it, but the secretary didn¡¯t know that.

    The secretary instantly lost whatever imposing presence she had. With an air of violence about her, Xue Sijia pushed open the door to Long Dinghai¡¯s office.

    Surprisingly, apart from Long Dinghai himself, there were also two other people present.

    The first was Yangshu, while the other was a young woman she didn¡¯t recognize but looked oddly familiar.

    Long Dinghai turned to face Xue Sijia who¡¯de charging in, and his eyebrows creased in displeasure. "What¡¯re you doing here?! Get out!"

    Acting as if she hadn¡¯t heard what he said, Xue Sijia shot a nce at Yangshu and the young woman before she walked straight up to Long Dinghai and said, "Chairman Long, I¡¯d like to speak with you."

    Long Dinghai went all out against her, not sparing even a single shred her of dignity. "Xue Sijia, you¡¯d best get out of my office right this moment. Otherwise, I won¡¯t just change your manager, I¡¯ll stop promoting you altogether!"

    "Chairman Long, I wanted to let you know that Shen Jingbin¡¯s been making things difficult for me due to my past history with her... Wait a minute, what did you say, Chairman Long?" Xue Sijia¡¯s speech was cut off my Long Dinghai, and she looked as if she¡¯d heard a world-ending promation.

    What did Long Dinghai just say?

    "Chairman Long, did you just say that you were the one who swapped Yangshu out, and you¡¯ll stop promoting me as well?"

    Long Dinghai was a mask of displeasure. "That¡¯s right, I did it. You¡¯ve been getting cockiertely. If I don¡¯t teach you a lesson, you¡¯ll end up thinking the wholepany belongs to you!"

    "W-w-why would you do this to me?"

    Long Dinghai gave a sniff of disdain. "Why? Didn¡¯t I tell you before not to provoke Shen Jingbin? But what did you do? Hm!? The photographer that the Shen family hired is someone I¡¯d have to be careful around, but not only did you not take the chance to forge a rtionship with him, you even made him look bad just so that you could make things difficult for Shen Jingbin. Now, he¡¯s going around saying that he¡¯ll never work with any artist under our banner! Do you have any idea how much losses you¡¯ve incurred for thepany!? Just the sight of you makes me feel like hitting you. So, you¡¯d best. Get. Out. Of. My. Office. NOW!

    With that, Long Dinghai picked up a folder and tossed it at Xue Sijia.

    Xue Sijia was scared witless. She might be ballsy and unafraid of anyone else, but Long Dinghai was absolutely someone couldn¡¯t afford to upset. Seeing how angry he was, Xue Sijia quietly stood up and wordlessly left the office. There¡¯d be time in the future to speak to him once again once he¡¯d calmed down.

    As was closing the door to the office, she suddenly realised why she felt that that woman looked familiar.

    She bore a striking resemnce to Shen Jingbin.

 Chapter 409

    <strong>Chapter 409: Side Story (Continued) (1)</strong>

    Changes in the entertainment industry took ce faster than a cell¡¯s metabolism. You might see advertisements for an idol all over the ce today, but they could vanish without a trace the next day; a nobody today might rise to fame the very next day.

    Xue Sijia was holing herself up and her apartment and meekly scrolling through Weibo. She was looking through the top searches and wanted to see if there was any mention of her. After thepany swapped out her manager and stopped promoting her, her poprity was now a far cry from what it had once been. If a person were to think of herst time, they¡¯d sigh wistfully and say: "Ah, the Goddess!" But, if one were to bring her up now, many people would just say: "Oh, that woman who really knows how to beat other people up, right?"

    Although she still had a following of fans who left messages on her Weibo page every day, there was a huge difference in numbers whenpared to the past. How could someone as proud and as arrogant as her bear the ignominy of it all?

    Just then, a new message appeared on her home page. It was from an artiste in herpany.

    "Minshu: #LiebanNewsConference The wedding dress looks so so beautiful! I¡¯m definitely wearing their wedding dress if I get married in the future [Picture] [Picture]. PS: Rumour has it that the models were actually the scions of the Shen and Zhao families who had recently gotten married in secret. All I can say after watching the promo vid is that they¡¯re a match made in heaven! I¡¯m just about ready to be their fangirl! Here¡¯s a random pic for you guys to get in on the feels too! [Picture]"

    Xue Sijia felt a moment of panic before she hurriedly opened the picture.

    The first two pictures were images of the wedding dress. They looked almost the same, with only some minor differences, as the one she was supposed to wear when the Shen Group request her to be their ambassador. Thest picture was a magazine advertisement featuring a man and a woman. The couple in the picture looked like celestial beings no matter which angle they were pictured from.

    But, pictures of the couple had Xue Sijia tossing her phone away in rage!

    She¡¯d nned on waiting for Shen Jingbin and the Shen Group to make a fool of themselves. After all, finding a suitable model was no easy task. The reason why she¡¯d had such a catastrophic falling out with Shen Jingbin was because she believed that they wouldn¡¯t be able to immediately find a recement, and they¡¯d end up upsetting that photographer. In the end, they might even end up implicating the entire brand into that debacle, rendering them unable to deal with her and her plotting.

    The Shen Group¡¯s actions,ter on, validated her initial assumption. They didn¡¯t take action against her, nor they didn¡¯t try to report her. In fact, there was no form of retaliation whatsoever. The only thing they did was send someone over to herpany to annul the contract. Her being ¡¯buried¡¯ by her ownpany was just Long Dinghai making the call on his own because he was afraid of the Shen and Zhao families.

    So, what was going on with the news conference? Did Shen Jingbin herself step up to the te?!

    F*ck! Why didn¡¯t she think of that?!

    Brushing away her earlier listlessness, Xue Sijia got up and began madly searching through Weibo for anything rted to the news conference. She immediately found the hashtag, #LiebanNewsConference#, zing its way up to the top 3 most search topics on Weibo. To top it off, the number of clicks it got was steadily rising.

    When she opened up the feed, she found that all of it consisted of praise for Lieban! Amongst the most popr posts, she found one made by Abner, the photographer that she¡¯d upset. He was gushing about how much he loved the Lieban¡¯s wedding dress and its models. In fact, he even went as far as to volunteer to be Lieben¡¯s exclusive photographer!

    Following that were praises from numerous fashion bloggers and reposts...

    Based on general online sentiment, the news conference was a resounding sess!

    T-this waspletely different from what Xue Sijia had nned!

    She just stood there, ovee by the impossibility of it all. It felt like her brain had been twisted into a knot. A long time passed before she finally came back to her senses. With trembling fingers, she dialed Yangshu¡¯s number. Although Yangshu wasn¡¯t her manager anymore, they did have a long history together. Yangshu wouldn¡¯t just abandon her just because she was reassigned.

    Sure enough, Yangshu picked up on the very first ring.

    "Hello, is that you, Sijia?" Yangshu¡¯s voice sounded just as warm as it had always been.

    "Yangshu, did Lieban¡¯s news conference take ce today? Was it the same one that the Shen Group wanted me to be the ambassador for?"

    Yangshu fell silent for a moment before she said, "S-Sijia, don¡¯t think too much about and have a good rest at home. I¡¯m sure Chairman Long will forgive you if you give him some time to cool down and apologise to him afterward."

    "Yangshu, I want your honest opinion: was me going against Shen Jingbin really biting off more than I could chew?"

 Chapter 410

    <strong>Chapter 410: Side Story (Continued) (2)</strong>

    "Sijia..."

    "Answer me!"

    Yangshu steeled herself and said, "Yes. I did warn you beforehand not to make an enemy of the Shen family. No matter how famous you are, you¡¯re still a minor celebrity at the moment. The Shen family is both rich and powerful. Taking care of someone like you is as simple as flipping over their palm for them. Looking at the big picture, even if the Shen family didn¡¯t take any action against you for your schemes, there are still many other people within the entertainment industry. Just think about how many people you¡¯ve offended over the years. Do you think these people and those who want to curry favor with the Shen family would let go of such a fantastic opportunity pass them by? You were far too impulsive, Sijia."

    "Bang." Xue Sijia tossed away her handphone in a fit of rage.

    She suddenly felt that her making an enemy of Shen Jingbin just because of her dislike and sense of superiority towards the other person waspletely irrational; be it in-game or in real life.

    But, the die was cast, and her pride wouldn¡¯t allow her to lower her head to Shen Jingbin.

    Perhaps, her career as an artiste might really being to an end because of her own doing.

    After the wedding ceremony, Shen Jingbin moved into Zhao Chengning¡¯s apartment and the two of them enjoyed the joys of life together as a married couple.

    In the day, they¡¯d go their separate ways to work. Bute night, they¡¯d return home to prepare dinner together. Naturally, Zhao Chengning was the one doing the cooking most of the time. Shen Jingbin would stand by his side and watch him, asionally helping out by handing him condiments and other such tasks.

    When Zhao Chengning was too tired from work to cook, they¡¯d eat out instead. All in all, they led a simple, blissful life. Life was so satisfying for them that they¡¯dpletely forgotten about <<Legends Of Celestials And Demons>>.

    When the members of Jade Sea Pavilion couldn¡¯t stand waiting for their guild leader and Shen Jingbin to log on any longer, they began pestering Xia Qihui and Shen Jingchen for their whereabouts instead.

    Where¡¯s the Boss?! Why hasn¡¯t hee online!?

    Where¡¯s my Nutty?! Why hasn¡¯t shee online!?

    Don¡¯t tell me the Boss and his wife decided to abandon the game?!

    Don¡¯t ask why they didn¡¯t just go straight to Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning and ask them instead. None of the guild members had dared to message them in private ever since meeting them in real life.

    Why was that so? They themselves didn¡¯t know either! All that mattered was that they couldn¡¯t bring themselves to do it anymore!

    Xia Qihui didn¡¯t reveal anything. All he said was that the two of them were rather busy in real life, and they couldn¡¯t find the time to y. But, they¡¯de back before long.

    He was thinking that the lovey-dovey couple woulde back to the game once their honeymoon period was over.

    On the other hand, Shen Jingchen identally spilled the beans. "Ah, those two? They¡¯d recently gotten married. They¡¯re probably too busy whispering sweet nothings to one another and being all lovey-dovey. I doubt they¡¯d be in the mood to y any games.

    Everyone: ...

    National Treasures and her pals from B City suddenly had an epiphany.

    "So those pictures released online of Leader and Nutty wearing Lieben¡¯s wedding apparel weren¡¯t just promotional pics, but actual wedding pictures?!"

    "No, they were both promotional and wedding pictures," said Shen Jingchen.

    National Treasures started weeping. "My Goddess has been snatched away by another man, and I was thest to find out."

    Everyone else: Hey, we still exist, you know!

    And so, everyone from Jade Sea Pce began kicking up a fuss and pestered both Shen Jinchen and Xia Qihui. Left with no other choice, they got in contact with the newlyweds who were knee-deep in marital bliss. "Hey guys, why don¡¯t the two of you give those crazy fans of yours some attention? Spending all day being lovey-dovey just won¡¯t do!"

    Only then did the couple remember that they¡¯d neglected their friends for too long. So, after getting off work that day, for the first time ever, they didn¡¯t spend their night holed up at home watching some trashy show and doing things that shouldn¡¯t be done around children. Instead, they climbed into their gaming pods and logged into the game.

    [Guild] Guild Leader Quiet And Steadfast has logged in.

    [Guild] Eight National Treasures: Ah, Leader¡¯s here! Ahhhhhh, Leader, why didn¡¯t you tell us that you were getting married to Nutty?!

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: Sorry.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Not A Monster: Sob sob sob, my Goddess has gotten married, and I¡¯m not the groom.

    [Guild] I¡¯m Really Not A Monster: Waah, my Goddess has gotten married, and the groom¡¯s better than I am. I can¡¯t even steal her away from him.

    [Guild] Actually, I Am A Monster: *Sniffle* My Goddess has gotten married, and the groom¡¯s more handsome than I am. There goes my chance at seducing her.

    [Guild] I¡¯m A Monster, Dare To Hit Me: Waah, my Goddess has gotten married, and I¡¯m inferior to the groom in every possible way. What should I do?

    [Guild] Nutjob: ... You can go kill yourself.

    [Guild] Descent Of Rain And Snow: Oh, the Goddess herself is here!

    [Guild] Syrup Time: Capture the Goddess alive!

    [Guild] Tanabata Evening: Good evening, Goddess. Muack~ Goddess, do you need a lover on the side? I can live somewhere else, I know how to be cutesy, and I can even warm your bed for you~

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: ...

    [Guild] Quiet And Steadfast: I think it¡¯s about time we cleaned up the guild¡¯s roster. I¡¯ve always felt that there are too manyyabouts in here.

    Everyone: !!! We¡¯re sorry, Leader! We were wrong!

    Shen Jingbin had long since returned to Jade Sea Pavilion, and Bronze Tree and Jade Sea Pavilion had also formed an alliance with one another. Since it was rare to see the couple online, Pure Crane suggested that the two guilds hunt a World BOSS together. Since everyone had nothing better to do, they agreed.

    Thebined force of one hundred yers from both guilds broke up into smaller parties with their preferred members and began clearing out the map in an impressive disy of force, taking out one BOSS after another.

    Once thest BOSS was down, the sky suddenly began to churn.

    On closer inspection, it turned out to be realm messages from members of both Jade Sea Pavilion and Bronze Tree.

    [Realm Message] Pure Crane: Congrattions to Nutjob and Quiet And Steadfast on getting married. Although we¡¯re just in-game friends, I still feel happy for you all the same. Congrattions once again.

    [Realm Message] Cheshire Cat: I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s toote for congrattions, but I still want to say: Congrattions on your wedding.

    [Realm Message] National Treasures: I love you Nutty! All the best to you and Leader. Hurry up and give birth to a son!

    [Realm Message] I¡¯m Not A Monster: I¡¯m writing this message on behalf of those three useless bros of mine: Congrattions on your wedding, Goddess and Leader! Here¡¯s a kiss from me to you, Goddess *muack*! Don¡¯t forget to spare a thought for us four bros if you ever decide to get a divorce! I¡¯m sure a difference in age won¡¯t be a problem! Love between an older woman and a younger man is a beautiful thing!

    [Realm Message] Lingering White Clouds: Congrattions on your wedding, Nutty. It¡¯s been a pleasure getting to know you and Leader. I hope Jade Sea Pavilion and Bronze Tree will keep going strong.

    ......

    ...

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s nose suddenly felt a little runny as she watched at the stream of realm messages roll by. Zhao Chengning wrapped his arm around her shoulders and silentlyforted her.

    Being able to meet these people in-game was truly a blessing for them.

    Shen Jingchen stood behind the couple and watched his sister¡¯s depressed figure. All of a sudden, he said, "Hey sis, don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re pregnant? What¡¯s with that frail and pitiful look? That¡¯s not like you."

    Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning: ...

 Chapter 411

    <strong>Chapter 411: Side Story (We¡¯re not done yet!) (1)</strong>

    Shen Jingchen had only meant it as a joke, but Zhao Chengning ended up taking it seriously. The next day, he insisted on taking time out of his day to visit the doctor with his wife.

    In his mind, he¡¯d been tirelessly ¡¯sowing his seeds¡¯ all day and night, so there was no reason for his hard work not to pay off!

    Sure enough, as the saying goes, heaven doesn¡¯t disappoint those who put in effort.

    His hard work did pay off!

    If it weren¡¯t for the mass of people in the hospital, he wouldn¡¯t put his hands on his hips andughed at the sky.

    Hahaha, I¡¯m going to be a father!

    The doctor said that Shen Jingbin was three and a half weeks pregnant. Her condition was fine, so there was no cause for concern.

    Shen Jingbin was still in a bit of a daze when she stepped out of the hospital. She subconsciously rubbed her belly. Was there really a baby inside?

    It was a truly wonderful feeling. Although she did think that such a day woulde to pass at some point, what she imagined and reality were different. She was only able to truly experience the emotions that motherhood brought about now.

    "Dear," yelled Zhao Chengning all of a sudden.

    "Hm?" Shen Jingbin shot him a look of confusion as she turned to face him.

    Zhao Chengning stered himself against her and ced a hand behind her back. His tender gaze was locked on her as he said, "I¡¯m going to be a father."

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s couldn¡¯t help but curl her lips into a smile, whilst her eyes and eyebrows were filled with mirth.

    "Mm."

    "I¡¯ve always been thinking of this day, even when I¡¯m dreaming," he said as he squatted down and gently pressed his head against her belly.

    Shen Jingbin remained silent as she gazed lovingly at the man squatting before her.

    Everyoneing and going from the hospital couldn¡¯t help but slow their steps and look at the young couple.

    News of Shen Jingbin¡¯s pregnancy quickly reached the Shen and Zhao families. That night, both families rushed to the married couple¡¯s apartment. The elders passed on their knowledge to Shen Jingbin whilst discussing her children¡¯s names. Later on, Shen Jingbin waspletely excluded from the conversation as they hotly debated the topic amongst themselves.

    ¡¯ck lines¡¯ ran down Shen Jingbin¡¯s head. Hey, isn¡¯t it a little too early to be talking about a name? And is it really a good idea to be ignoring a pregnant woman!?

    Helpless, Shen Jingbin returned to her room with Shen Jingbin following behind her like a curious child. He inspected her from every angle, to the point where just watching him made her feel dizzy.

    "Can you just stand still and stop walking all over the ce?" Shen Jingbin asked as she red at him.

    Shen Jingchen rested a hand on his chin and stared at her with a strange look on his face. "How curious. Sis, are you really pregnant?"

    He then gave Shen Jingbin¡¯s belly a solid pat and said, "There¡¯s a baby in here?!"

    "What the f*ck is wrong with you, Shen Jingchen?!" yelled Shen Jingbin as she kicked at him.

    Zhao Chengning just so happened to walk into the room holding a cup of milk at that time. He hurriedly rushed over when he saw her kicking Shen Jingchen.

    "Hey, you¡¯re pregnant. You shouldn¡¯t be making such exaggerated movements; take it easy," said Zhao Chengning as he set down the cup of milk and reached out a hand to support her.

    Shen Jingbin red at him. "I¡¯m pregnant, not handicapped."

    "She doesn¡¯t look pregnant to me. Hey Ah Ning, are you sure the doctor didn¡¯t misdiagnose her?" Shen Jingchen asked sarcastically.

    "Can the single dog who doesn¡¯t even have a girlfriend please shut up?" said Shen Jingbin.

    "What, a single dog doesn¡¯t have any rights?!"

    "Don¡¯t be angry, wifey. Here, have some milk. Get some rest afterward," said Zhao Chengning catingly. "Jingchen, my wife will be going on maternity leave. Hm...she¡¯ll be taking it from tomorrow onwards."

    "What the f*ck. Bro, that¡¯s not how things work. A person usually goes on maternity from the fourth to eighth month, alright!? What¡¯s the point of her going on maternity leave now?!" said Shen Jingchen in surprise.

    Zhao Chengning raised his head and said, "Can other wives match up to mine?"

    Shen Jingbin nodded and looked at her husband with satisfaction. Shen Jingchen gave an involuntary shudder before distancing himself from them with a hand over his face. He¡¯d rather put up with the elders prattling away in the living room than be with them!

    It was too much for him to take!

    When the elders were about to leave, for the first time ever, Mama Zhao actually spoke to Shen Jingbin pleasantly. She even brought up the idea of the couple moving into the Zhao family¡¯s residence where there¡¯d be other people to help look after her.

    Shen Jingbin nced at her parents. She epted Mama Zhao¡¯s offer with a smile after receiving a gentle nod of acknowledgment from them.

    Mama Zhao took off a jade bracelet that she wore on her hand and attached it to Shen Jingbin before giving her a hug. When they separated, Shen Jingbin heard her whisper an apology into her ear.

    Shen Jingbin¡¯s eyes turned red once again.

 Chapter 412

    <strong>Chapter 412: Side Story (We¡¯re not done yet!) (2)</strong>

    After the elders had left, the couple quietly lounged on the sofa in the living room with Zhao Chengning¡¯s hand wrapped around Shen Jingbin¡¯s shoulders. It was if they were just enjoying the peace and quiet.

    A long time passed like this before Zhao Chengning heard Shen Jingbin say, "Let¡¯s move back tomorrow."

    Zhao Chengning was momentarily caught off guard before a radiant smile blossomed on his face.

    "Alright."

    They discovered that Shen Jingbin would be having twins when she was two months pregnant. That was also the time when she was expressly forbidden from ying games. Thankfully, she still had Jiang Weiwei, Grandmother Shen and Mama Zhao who weren¡¯t busy, so they could keep herpany. The time spent this way wasn¡¯t all that boring for her.

    When Shen Jingbin was six months pregnant, Zhao Chengan and Jian Cishu returned from Africa. Zhao Chengning immediately got his brother to take over for him at work, and he freed up all his time to spend with his wife at home.

    Zhao Chengan obviously wasn¡¯t happy about this.

    "Lil bro, you have a wife, but I have a girlfriend too!"

    Zhao Chengning¡¯s lips curled in disdain. "Hmph, my wife¡¯s pregnant! Pregnant women are the most important!"

    "Cocky little shit."

    Zhao Chengning jittered his leg. "Get Jian Cishu pregnant if you¡¯ve got what it takes."

    Zhao Chengning silently turned to look at his girlfriend. Mm, looks like he could pick up the pace. That little shit Zhao Chengning¡¯s getting too full of himself!

    Just looking at Zhao Chengning got him annoyed!

    When the members of Jade Sea Pavilion found out that Shen Jingbin was pregnant, they kicked up a fuss and went on and on about wanting to visit her. This was especially so for members that lived in B City.

    Zhao Chengning thought about it, and came to the conclusion that since he and his wife didn¡¯t have much to do at home anyway, they might as well have a gathering. Who knows, it might even help to brighten up Shen Jingbin¡¯s spirits.

    And so, on one fine day, the members of Jade Sea Pavilion who lived near B City came over to the Zhao family¡¯s residence. The residence was huge, and there was more than enough space to amodate them.

    Mama Zhao and Old Master Zhao knew that a group of young¡¯ uns wereing to visit and were worried that they might be on edge due to their presence, so they¡¯d long since gone out.

    Shen Jingbin remained just as beautiful as ever even after getting pregnant. In fact, she became even more eye-catching because of the faint motherly air she had about her now. In the past, while beautiful, she seemed somewhat distant. Anyone who looked at her would feel like they were gazing up at a celestial fairy in the sky. Now, she felt more personable, and it was easier to interact with her.

    Worried that a noisy environment might not be suitable for a pregnant woman, everyone subconsciously lowered their voices. It was as if they were worried they¡¯d scare the baby in Shen Jingbin¡¯s belly.

    Whilst chatting with one another, National Treasures suddenly thought about a thread that had received a lot of attentiontely and brought it up. "Hey Nutty, did you know that woman who was always at odds with you, Nine Bads, was actually the artiste, Xue Sijia who was very popr in the past? You know, the one who did an advertisement with you."

    "Nine Bads is Xue Sijia?" asked Shen Jingbin in surprise.

    No wonder they looked so familiar, they were actually the same person! She could finally understand why Xue Sijia was so hostile towards her.

    There was animosity between them to begin with. When Shen Jingbin¡¯s identity was exposed after the event, Xue Sijia must have found out about it and began hating her, to the point where she even put herself at risk just to go against Shen Jingbin.

    That woman had it rough too. She just couldn¡¯t let bygones be bygones, and instead chose to pursue old grudges.

    "How¡¯d you guys find out?"

    "Everyone in-game knows about it now. The expos¨¦ is posted on the forums. Rumour has it that Yiju¡¯s technological department tried to have the thread deleted but failed," answered Lingering White Clouds.

    "She brought it upon herself. It was her fault for provoking people she shouldn¡¯t be provoking." Descent Of Rain And Snow said with a hint of schadenfreude.

    "Someone she shouldn¡¯t provoke? Did something happen?"

    "Here¡¯s what happened: isn¡¯t Xue Sijia past her prime? Rumour has it that she¡¯s being thoroughly sidelined. And, she¡¯s even being overshadowed by that now artiste from herpany... Eh, speaking of which, the celebrity from Xue Sijia¡¯spany that recently debuted looks very simr to you, Nutty. But, shecks that X factor that you have... Ah, that¡¯s not the point... The point is, Xue Sijia probably wasn¡¯t very happy about being sidelined, so she vented her frustration by going around beating people up in-game. A majority of her kills were PK. It¡¯d be fine if she PKed regr yers since they knew how strong she was. All they had to do was bear with it since they couldn¡¯t beat her. But, she even started going after newbies that just entered the game..." said National treasures

    National Treasures was going on for too long, so Lingering White Clouds decided to cut in. "A newbie that just entered Novice Vige and lost their newbie protection was cut down by her. That newbie actually turned out to be some godlike hacker in the real world, and they were the type to hold a grudge. After they were killed by her, they began digging out information about her. Yiju¡¯s security is pretty good, but that newbie was even better. They easily bypassed Yiju¡¯s security and retrieved Xue Sijia¡¯s personal information. They also hacked herputer and found all of the underhanded things she¡¯s done from her debut till now and released it online.

    "This caused quite a stir on not just the gaming forums, but also only tforms like Tianya and Zhihu. Everyone is denouncing her now. In the leaked post, there was lots of information detailing how her personality was just a farce, and how she¡¯d stolen resources and roles from her colleagues in thepany. She¡¯s basically lost her image as a cold and aloof goddess. But, thanks to this, she¡¯s shot up in ¡¯poprity¡¯ once again." said National Treasures.

    Lingering White Clouds sighed. "I don¡¯t think anyone wants this kind of ¡¯poprity¡¯."

    National Treasures spread out her hands in a shrugging motion. "It can¡¯t be helped. This was all her own doing."

    Shen Jingbin silently listened to everything they said without expressing her own opinion. All she thought was that nothing ever remains the same.

    "Ah, that¡¯s right. There was that thing too. Rumour has it that Crying Fish and Neverending Journey have extended their rtionship to real life. Now that I think about it, they do seem quitepatible," said Descent Of Rain And Snow.

    "Yeah, I think so too..."

    Yet another round of gossiping...

    National Treasures andpany left after dinner. Shen Jingbin and Zhao Chengning were lounging on the sofa and cuddling when Shen Jingbin said, "I haven¡¯t yed for a long time. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to catch up to their pace."

    "Don¡¯t worry about it. We can y together once you¡¯ve given birth and you¡¯re feeling better. When our children are a little older, we can y together with them too," replied Zhao Chengning.

    Shen Jingbin tilted her head upwards and looked him in the eye. "Is that how you really feel?"

    Zhao Chengning kissed her forehead and said, "Yup. We made so many memories in-game. I know you can¡¯t give it up, and neither can I. In the future, I¡¯ll tell our children that this is where I met their mother. Back then, she was ugly, but that didn¡¯t matter to me. Your father didn¡¯t snub her for it..."

    Zhao Chengning received a punch to the stomach before he could finish. He smiled through the pain and caught his wife¡¯s hand...

    When Mama Zhao and Old Master Zhao returned home, they saw the young couple sitting on the sofa with their backs towards them as they watched TV. The elders smiled.

 Chapter 413

    <strong>Chapter 413: Weiwei¡¯s Past (1)</strong>

    Vv¡¯s original name is Wei Heping. Although his surname was Wei, he had no blood rtion to Weiwei. The two of them just happened to be neighbours that got along well. Because of that, their parents adopted their respective neighbours¡¯ son as their godson.

    But, the two of them never saw it that way.

    Wei Heping was three years older than Weiwei. Both of them studied in the same school, but one of them was in junior high, while the other was in senior high. From an outsider¡¯s point of view, Wei Heping was the stereotypical child that other parents wished their own child could match up to. He had a good personality, handsome features, and excelled in his studies.

    But, to Weiwei, he was just a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing!

    A good personality? Haha, have you ever met someone with a good personality that tries to steal another person¡¯s breakfast on a daily basis? Afterward, he would threaten Weiwei not to tell on him, otherwise, he¡¯d beat him up the next time he saw him.

    Handsome features? Haha, what¡¯s the point of having good looks!? Snow White¡¯s stepmother was beautiful too, but no one cared about that when she had a wicked heart. Wei Heping was just like Snow White¡¯s stepmother!

    Good grades? Haha. Yeah, he did indeed have good grades, but did having good grades mean he could just chuck his homework at Weiwei?! Could he!? Most importantly, Weiwei would get beaten up if he made a mistake when doing Wei Heping¡¯s homework. Come on, no matter how you looked at it, he was a junior high student doing a high schooler¡¯s homework...

    All in all, Wei Heping was a nightmare for Weiwei during his younger days; a nightmare that he had absolutely no way of breaking free from! As such, young Weiwei¡¯s most cherished wish for Wei Heping to be epted into a university as quickly as possible, pick up his things, and get out of his life! The further the better!

    At first, this wish of his was supposed to be a reality before long. With his good grades and numerous awards, he had a very good chance of being rmended to a university.

    That was, of course, before that one unfortunate incident.

    Weiwei had possessed a slim build. During his junior high days, a boy like him would have been well-received by girls. This was especially so during his sophomore days of junior high school, when boys and girls would start to develop an interest in romance. During that time, there was an ever-increasing number of girls who confessed to him. In stark contrast, the number of people who were openly and inwardly unhappy with him was also steadily increasing.

    Thanks to Weiwei¡¯s ¡¯training¡¯, Weiwei developed a mindset that, as long as it wasn¡¯t too extreme, allowed him to endure any hardship. This came about because he knew that neither telling his teachers nor his parents would be of any use. At best, the ones who bullied him would be taught a lesson. But, the resulting blowback would be even more intense and result in a vicious cycle. If he just endured out, the bullies would just put him through one or two rounds of bullying before they got bored and left him alone.

    However, he never expected Wei Heping to see him being bullied.

    There was an enormous sports field separating the middle school and high school division. For the most part, junior high schoolers and high schoolers wouldn¡¯t cross the sports field to visit the other side.

    As they were neighbours, Wei Heping and Weiwei would usually go home together after school. The journey back home that day was the first time Weiwei had ever heard his neighbour speak to him in such a cold and terrifying manner.

    Wei Heping¡¯s tone was even more terrifying than how he usually sounded when he threatened Weiwei to do his homework for him.

    "Who were the ones bullying you today?" he asked.

    Weiwei shook his head, refusing to say anything. Wei Heping immediately pushed him up against a wall and nted both his arms by Weiwei¡¯¡¯s sides to box him in.

    "Weiwei."

    Upon hearing his name, Weiwei reflexively looked up at Wei Heping. He looked as if he had mes bursting out of his eyes. Weiwei felt his legs begin to tremble. "I¡¯m asking you a question: who were the ones who bullied you today? If you don¡¯t tell me, I¡¯ll go over to the middle school division tomorrow and go through every single ss."

    Weiwei was almost brought to tears by his demeanor. He sounded as if he were about to cry when he spoke. "T-they were Fanghe¡¯s group from ss 3."

    From then on till they reached home, Wei Heping walked in silence with a stormy look on his face.

    The next, Fanghe and his group of bullies from ss 3 apologised to Weiwei during recess whilst sporting bloody noses and swollen faces. Weiwei waspletely bewildered when that happened, and he felt his ssmates looking at him strangely.

    In the afternoon after school, Weiwei and Wei Heping walked home together like they always did, with Weiwei walking behind Wei Heping. While observing Wei Heping silhouette, he said in a whisper, "Thank you."

    Wei Heping stopped in his tracks and turned to face him. Sunlight shone down on his back, obscuring his expression. All he could hear was Wei Heping¡¯s curt reply. "What did you say? I couldn¡¯t catch it. Speak louder."

    Weiwei raised his voice a little and said, "I said...thank you..."

    "Ah? What¡¯s that? Did you miss lunch or something? Why are you speaking so softly? Are you a sissy?"

    Weiwei¡¯s anger red up. He gathered his courage and shouted, "You¡¯re an asshole, Wei Heping!"

    The two of them stood there in stunned silence.

    From that point onwards, their rtionship improved. Of course, this might have all been in Weiwei¡¯s head. Wei Heping treated him the same as he always did: he continued to steal his breakfast and force him to do his homework. But, Weiwei realised that although Wei Heping stole his breakfast, he¡¯d quietly snuck his own breakfast allowance into Weiwei¡¯s bag. And, while he Wei Heping did force him to do his high school homework, he also tutored him on parts he didn¡¯t know or didn¡¯t understand that well.

    After setting aside his earlier prejudice, he realised that Wei Heping was actually a really good person. Sometimes, he even thought that having a godbrother like him wasn¡¯t all that bad.

 Chapter 414

    <strong>Chapter 414: Weiwei¡¯s Past (2)</strong>

    Weiwei¡¯s grandmother passed away during the summer vacation that followed. His father and mother decided to return to the countryside to take care of her funeral. Ever since he was a baby, his fortune was neverpatible with his grandmother¡¯s, so he¡¯d never received any affection from her. Now, after she¡¯d passed away, he still wasn¡¯t allowed to go back to visit her onest time. Left with no other choice, he was ced in his neighbour¡¯s care for the time being.

    If Weiwei could go back in time, he¡¯d definitely have chosen to live on his own instead! That way, he wouldn¡¯t have found out about Wei Heping¡¯s improper thoughts towards him, and it also wouldn¡¯t have given rise to the years of regret that followed.

    One night, when he was on the way to the toilet, Weiwei heard somethinging from Wei Heping¡¯s room. Curious, he snuck over and eavesdropped. When it came to certain things, boys his age knew a lot more than the adults thought they did. Weiwei immediately knew what Wei Heping was doing from sound alone. Just as Weiwei was thinking to himself about how even someone like Wei Heping would do such a thing, he suddenly heard Wei Heping cry out his name, and a strange panting that followed afterward before the room fell silent.

    At that moment, Weiwei felt his scalp go numb.

    The next day, Weiwei was kicking up a fuss about wanting to go home at first light. He refused to change his mind no matter what Wei Heping¡¯s parents said. In the end, the sight of Wei Heping standing by the door and giving him a meaningful look scared him so much that he ran home without even bothering to take his luggage.

    From that point onwards, he started avoiding Wei Heping. The distance between them grew, and they didn¡¯t even contact one another anymore.

    During the opening ceremony after he advanced to his third year in middle school, Weiwei suddenly heard that the all-star from the high school division, Wei Heping, had gotten into a fight outside of school and received several stab wounds from a knife. He was now lying in hospital and had also received a huge demerit for it. There was a good chance that he wouldn¡¯t even be able to attend his university exams.

    At the time, Weiwei was shocked when he learned of the news, but he didn¡¯t dwell on it. All he thought was that Wei Heping had no rtion with him anymore, so he didn¡¯t bother about it. Later that day, he saw a moving van outside his neighbour¡¯s house when he got home. When he asked his parents about it, he found out that Wei Heping had gotten mixed up in something really bad, and the whole family had no choice but to move back to their ancestral home. Otherwise, he might not even be able to finish high school, let alone get into a university.

    When his mother told him to say his farewells to Wei Heping, he argued with her and refused to go. Just as he was about to enter the house, he glimpsed Wei Heping standing on the balcony with his gaze fixed on Weiwei. Weiwei rushed into his house in a panic and locked himself in his room.

    When Wei Heping hadpletely removed himself from Weiwei¡¯s life, it felt like he¡¯d never even been there in the first ce. At first, his parents were always reminiscing about him, but they stopped bringing him up not long after.

    Weiwei followed a normal progression path, and moved on to high school after graduating from junior high school. Ironically, Fanghe, who¡¯d bullied him in the past, attended the same high school as him and was even his deskmate.

    Heter learned of something he should never have found out about from Hefang.

    "Weiwei, do you still keep in contact with that bro of yours? If you do, could you help me apologise to him? I went too far in the past and I¡¯d like to apologise for it," said Fanghe.

    Fanghe said that he¡¯d always harboured resentment towards Wei Heping after he beat him up. But, since he wasn¡¯t strong enough to take Wei Heping down, all he could do was swallow his dissatisfaction and asionally curse at Wei Heping and Weiwei when he was ying around outside. There was one time when he was hanging out with a particrly fearsome hoodlum and he was cursing both Weiwei and Wei Heping as they yed around. The hoodlum himself was gay, and he maliciously suggested how Wei Heping and Weiwei might be together in a rtionship. They happened to run into Wei Heping as the group wasughing their heads off, and a fight ensued.

    Wei Heping beat the hoodlum to a pulp, but he¡¯d received two stab wounds in turn. Fanghe was scared stiff, and remained frozen on the spot till a passerby saw the scene and dialed an ambnce for Wei Heping.

    Weiwei didn¡¯t react at the time, but he bawled his eyes out when he returned home. It felt as if his heart was about to explode. His mother remained outside his room by the door, not knowing what happened, but refusing to enter.

    Weiwei changed after this incident. He was no longer the meek boy he was before. Now, he actually hit back when someone bullied him, and redoubled his efforts in his studies. In the end, he surprisingly managed to make it into an unexpected university.

    It was the one that Wei Heping said he wanted to get into the most.

    After entering university, Weiwei joined a club and made many friends. He even started ying games with his dorm mates, and met a girl he liked in-game.

    She was a very cute girl. She was slightly plump, but she had the most adorable smile. She liked radio dramas, and for the sake of sharing amon interest, he started participating in web dubbing circles. That was when he got to know the 2D web dubbing star, Vv, that she was so infatuated with.

    Vv, Weiwei, two very simr-sounding names.

    At the time, he mused about how this Vv might be his long lost godbrother. Vv¡¯s voice sounded very familiar, and he was sure he¡¯d heard it somewhere before.

    Later on, he heard that Vv was holding an offline event right beside his school. For the sake of getting an autograph for the girl he liked, he woke up at the crack of dawn and ran over to queue up. The girl in front of him received an autograph and Vv looked up to thank her. Upon locking eyes with Weiwei, they froze.

    It was Wei Heping.

    Weiwei brain suddenly drew a nk. All other sounds around him faded into nothingness, and the person in front of him started to be blurry.

    He saw the man¡¯s thin lips open and close, and he heard a very familiar voice escape from the man¡¯s mouth.

    "Weiwei, long time no see. Have you been well?"

    At that moment, Weiwei broke into tears.

    Epilogue: The God, Vv, had once again been reunited with Weiwei. Old mes die hard, and Vv¡¯s desire was once again rekindled. However, it was not meant to be. Weiwei was straight, and he refused to bend the other way, even if he was beaten to death. In fact, this caused him to spend even more time in-game with that girl he liked as they beat monsters, leveled up, and deepened their rtionship. Vv, in a fit of rage, decided to step out into the limelight and start cosying. His goal was simple: he refused to believe that the girl Weiwei liked would continue to like him after she saw Vv! And, once she rejected Weiwei, he would be there to slip in through the cracks!

    In addition, by using his rtionship as Weiwei¡¯s brother, he invaded all aspects of Weiwei¡¯s life.

    I¡¯m going to force you to get used to having me around so that you never leave me again!

    Although Weiwei felt stifled by this, it also warmed his heart a little.

    No, I¡¯m straight! I Like girls!

    Weiwei would always tell himself that whenever he felt himself faltering. This was why he continued to stay by the girl¡¯s side like an infatuated puppy even after he was rejected by her.

    Upon seeing this, Vv sighed. It looked like his road of romance was going to be a long one.

    Feeling helpless, Vv set aside his improper thoughts and decided to leave the cosying circle so he could focus on chasing after his ¡¯wife¡¯.

    Never fear! With enough effort, even a straight man can be a bride!

    <strong>--- THE END - --</strong>

 Chapter 414 (end)

    <strong>Chapter 414: Weiwei¡¯s Past (2)</strong>

    Weiwei¡¯s grandmother passed away during the summer vacation that followed. His father and mother decided to return to the countryside to take care of her funeral. Ever since he was a baby, his fortune was neverpatible with his grandmother¡¯s, so he¡¯d never received any affection from her. Now, after she¡¯d passed away, he still wasn¡¯t allowed to go back to visit her onest time. Left with no other choice, he was ced in his neighbour¡¯s care for the time being.

    If Weiwei could go back in time, he¡¯d definitely have chosen to live on his own instead! That way, he wouldn¡¯t have found out about Wei Heping¡¯s improper thoughts towards him, and it also wouldn¡¯t have given rise to the years of regret that followed.

    One night, when he was on the way to the toilet, Weiwei heard somethinging from Wei Heping¡¯s room. Curious, he snuck over and eavesdropped. When it came to certain things, boys his age knew a lot more than the adults thought they did. Weiwei immediately knew what Wei Heping was doing from sound alone. Just as Weiwei was thinking to himself about how even someone like Wei Heping would do such a thing, he suddenly heard Wei Heping cry out his name, and a strange panting that followed afterward before the room fell silent.

    At that moment, Weiwei felt his scalp go numb.

    The next day, Weiwei was kicking up a fuss about wanting to go home at first light. He refused to change his mind no matter what Wei Heping¡¯s parents said. In the end, the sight of Wei Heping standing by the door and giving him a meaningful look scared him so much that he ran home without even bothering to take his luggage.

    From that point onwards, he started avoiding Wei Heping. The distance between them grew, and they didn¡¯t even contact one another anymore.

    During the opening ceremony after he advanced to his third year in middle school, Weiwei suddenly heard that the all-star from the high school division, Wei Heping, had gotten into a fight outside of school and received several stab wounds from a knife. He was now lying in hospital and had also received a huge demerit for it. There was a good chance that he wouldn¡¯t even be able to attend his university exams.

    At the time, Weiwei was shocked when he learned of the news, but he didn¡¯t dwell on it. All he thought was that Wei Heping had no rtion with him anymore, so he didn¡¯t bother about it. Later that day, he saw a moving van outside his neighbour¡¯s house when he got home. When he asked his parents about it, he found out that Wei Heping had gotten mixed up in something really bad, and the whole family had no choice but to move back to their ancestral home. Otherwise, he might not even be able to finish high school, let alone get into a university.

    When his mother told him to say his farewells to Wei Heping, he argued with her and refused to go. Just as he was about to enter the house, he glimpsed Wei Heping standing on the balcony with his gaze fixed on Weiwei. Weiwei rushed into his house in a panic and locked himself in his room.

    When Wei Heping hadpletely removed himself from Weiwei¡¯s life, it felt like he¡¯d never even been there in the first ce. At first, his parents were always reminiscing about him, but they stopped bringing him up not long after.

    Weiwei followed a normal progression path, and moved on to high school after graduating from junior high school. Ironically, Fanghe, who¡¯d bullied him in the past, attended the same high school as him and was even his deskmate.

    Heter learned of something he should never have found out about from Hefang.

    "Weiwei, do you still keep in contact with that bro of yours? If you do, could you help me apologise to him? I went too far in the past and I¡¯d like to apologise for it," said Fanghe.

    Fanghe said that he¡¯d always harboured resentment towards Wei Heping after he beat him up. But, since he wasn¡¯t strong enough to take Wei Heping down, all he could do was swallow his dissatisfaction and asionally curse at Wei Heping and Weiwei when he was ying around outside. There was one time when he was hanging out with a particrly fearsome hoodlum and he was cursing both Weiwei and Wei Heping as they yed around. The hoodlum himself was gay, and he maliciously suggested how Wei Heping and Weiwei might be together in a rtionship. They happened to run into Wei Heping as the group wasughing their heads off, and a fight ensued.

    Wei Heping beat the hoodlum to a pulp, but he¡¯d received two stab wounds in turn. Fanghe was scared stiff, and remained frozen on the spot till a passerby saw the scene and dialed an ambnce for Wei Heping.

    Weiwei didn¡¯t react at the time, but he bawled his eyes out when he returned home. It felt as if his heart was about to explode. His mother remained outside his room by the door, not knowing what happened, but refusing to enter.

    Weiwei changed after this incident. He was no longer the meek boy he was before. Now, he actually hit back when someone bullied him, and redoubled his efforts in his studies. In the end, he surprisingly managed to make it into an unexpected university.

    It was the one that Wei Heping said he wanted to get into the most.

    After entering university, Weiwei joined a club and made many friends. He even started ying games with his dorm mates, and met a girl he liked in-game.

    She was a very cute girl. She was slightly plump, but she had the most adorable smile. She liked radio dramas, and for the sake of sharing amon interest, he started participating in web dubbing circles. That was when he got to know the 2D web dubbing star, Vv, that she was so infatuated with.

    Vv, Weiwei, two very simr-sounding names.

    At the time, he mused about how this Vv might be his long lost godbrother. Vv¡¯s voice sounded very familiar, and he was sure he¡¯d heard it somewhere before.

    Later on, he heard that Vv was holding an offline event right beside his school. For the sake of getting an autograph for the girl he liked, he woke up at the crack of dawn and ran over to queue up. The girl in front of him received an autograph and Vv looked up to thank her. Upon locking eyes with Weiwei, they froze.

    It was Wei Heping.

    Weiwei brain suddenly drew a nk. All other sounds around him faded into nothingness, and the person in front of him started to be blurry.

    He saw the man¡¯s thin lips open and close, and he heard a very familiar voice escape from the man¡¯s mouth.

    "Weiwei, long time no see. Have you been well?"

    At that moment, Weiwei broke into tears.

    Epilogue: The God, Vv, had once again been reunited with Weiwei. Old mes die hard, and Vv¡¯s desire was once again rekindled. However, it was not meant to be. Weiwei was straight, and he refused to bend the other way, even if he was beaten to death. In fact, this caused him to spend even more time in-game with that girl he liked as they beat monsters, leveled up, and deepened their rtionship. Vv, in a fit of rage, decided to step out into the limelight and start cosying. His goal was simple: he refused to believe that the girl Weiwei liked would continue to like him after she saw Vv! And, once she rejected Weiwei, he would be there to slip in through the cracks!

    In addition, by using his rtionship as Weiwei¡¯s brother, he invaded all aspects of Weiwei¡¯s life.

    I¡¯m going to force you to get used to having me around so that you never leave me again!

    Although Weiwei felt stifled by this, it also warmed his heart a little.

    No, I¡¯m straight! I Like girls!

    Weiwei would always tell himself that whenever he felt himself faltering. This was why he continued to stay by the girl¡¯s side like an infatuated puppy even after he was rejected by her.

    Upon seeing this, Vv sighed. It looked like his road of romance was going to be a long one.

    Feeling helpless, Vv set aside his improper thoughts and decided to leave the cosying circle so he could focus on chasing after his ¡¯wife¡¯.

    Never fear! With enough effort, even a straight man can be a bride!

    <strong>--- THE END - --</strong>

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    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!