Tengxiao, "..."
General Luofu seemed to still be alive, but in truth, he had already passed for quite a while.
After receiving Zero's location message, he immediately put aside his heavy official duties and rushed over.
But he never, ever expected… that he would witness something that made his spine go completely cold.
Tengxiao instinctively held his breath, afraid to make even the slightest strange noise that might draw attention.
That man, the one once called the God of Slaughter who made the entire universe tremble, was now using a tone… that sounded almost like he couldn't breathe, and calling Jingliu "sister."
Tengxiao's CPU fried on the spot.
Sure, that man was terrifyingly clever, every word he said worth deep thought and interpretation by his subordinates.
But… no matter how hard Tengxiao racked his brain, he couldn't think of any other meaning behind those words.
What was that man doing?
Was he… acting cute toward Jingliu?
When he reached that conclusion, Tengxiao's body shook violently, and his vision went dark.
He was acting cute, right? He was definitely acting cute, right?
'Huh?! The former marshal acting cute?!'
That kind of mental shock… even if Tengxiao weren't born with a demonic body, he'd still grow ginkgo leaves on the spot.
Dazed and trembling, Tengxiao looked down at his limbs after a moment to make sure he hadn't fallen into demonic corruption. Only then did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
He actually... actually saw that man acting cute?
Now that he'd stumbled onto something like this, would he even live to see tomorrow's sun?
Maybe he should just send that farewell letter to the marshal now?
Forget whether he lived or died, the Luofu couldn't be allowed to collapse. He had to finish all the handovers quickly.
As for Jing Yuan… sigh… he was still too young.
Though, surely that man wouldn't harm Jingliu's disciple… right?
Tengxiao's thoughts spiraled out of control.
After learning the former marshal was on Luofu, he'd kept imagining what to do if he suddenly died from an "accident."
And as for why it had to be an accident…
If that man wanted someone dead, he'd never dirty his own hands. That'd be beneath his dignity.
In any case, if he died, there'd be no traces left behind.
He'd imagined it all many times, so at this moment, Tengxiao felt oddly peaceful inside.
That heart of his, the one he'd been holding in suspense, was finally dead.
His expression flickered unpredictably, and finally settled into his usual formulaic, polite smile.
He waited quietly, but heard no response from Jingliu.
That swordswoman, who was normally so cold and composed in front of others, didn't speak for a long while.
Then, Zero, still using that strange, breathless tone, pressed her again, "Big sister, do you like it?"
Tengxiao gasped sharply.
He had no idea how Jingliu herself felt, but he was about to lose his mind.
That peerless swordswoman, who never took a step back before any powerful enemy, was now completely undone by two simple words, "Big sister."
Jingliu slowly took a step back, putting some distance between her and Zero.
Her face flushed red. Her lips parted as if to answer, but this time, she couldn't bring herself to say the words "I like it."
Zero watched her chest rise and fall slightly, and took a deep breath.
Just as he thought she was about to say something, Jingliu turned around and left.
Zero, 'Ah, got a little carried away. Teased her too much by accident.'
He stood up with the cat in his arms, about to say something more, but Jingliu quickened her pace, grabbing Yanqing, who was feeding Aha candy, and the two of them ran off like the wind.
Zero chuckled softly. Holding the cat in one arm, he took out his jade communicator with the other and snapped a picture of Aha's childlike avatar, who still hadn't recovered from shock.
Click!
The sound finally brought Aha back to his senses.
"This photo should fetch a decent price among the Masked Fools."
Zero lifted the jade device and admired his photo.
"If my other close friend, Fuli, saw this, she'd probably name it 'Joy That Is No Longer Joyful.'"
Aha's lips twitched. He'd originally planned to use the excuse of an "accidental meeting" to come enjoy some fun watching his friend.
But that one word, "sister", hit like thunder, and Zero almost beat him half to death.
Seeing that Zero didn't bring up their previous agreement, Aha didn't mention it either.
He put the candy meant for the fox back in his pocket and sighed deeply, "...Dearest friend, you really haven't changed at all."
"Huh? Really?"
Zero looked up, holding the cat, his eyes clear as water, like someone completely untainted by knowledge, and waved the cat's paw at Aha.
Aha, "..."
He was used to seeing Zero scheming, playing "Interstellar Match-Three" with his enemies, as he called it…
But now, watching him hug a cat with that innocent, good-guy expression plastered all over his face…
Ah, it felt like this avatar's eyes might as well go blind.
Aha really couldn't laugh this time.
Unbelievable, Aha, the embodiment of laughter, actually couldn't laugh.
Seems that when it came to creating chaos for fun, his dearest friend was still the true master.
As for that woman, she probably wouldn't be laughing again in this lifetime.
Too pitiful. Destined to be toyed with in the palm of my dear friend's hand.
Aha briefly pitied the woman caught in his friend's sights, then cheerfully leaned closer to Zero, asking him for a copy of that photo of his changed face.
Zero put away the jade device and refused.
Aha, surprisingly easygoing, didn't press for the photo, but then turned around and asked for a share of the profits instead.
The two of them chatted casually, completely ignoring Tengxiao, who was still frozen stiff nearby.
Tengxiao was utterly shaken.
'Wait, what did that man just say? This was "Aeon of Elation"? And his other close friend was "Aeon of Remembrance"?
'Were the legends actually true?!'
'Then… the part about beating up "Aeon of Hunt", was that real too?!'
Aha turned his bright, dazzling smile toward Tengxiao, seeing the Luofu General drenched in cold sweat, and immediately got the urge to mess with him.
Zero looked at Tengxiao's near-death expression and sighed helplessly.
He set the cat back into its carrier, grabbed the handle with one hand, and caught Aha's childlike avatar by the collar with the other, lifting him straight off the ground.
Aha kicked in midair, struggling fiercely.
Zero gestured with his eyes for Tengxiao to leave first.
Catching the signal, Tengxiao wiped the sweat from his forehead and bolted from the scene.
Only after Tengxiao was gone from view did Zero set Aha down.
Then, using the same gentle tone that had just half-killed Aha, he asked softly, "My dear friend, would you like to go to another world, one that's more real, more interesting?"
In truth, Zero had no intention of using the Aether Resonance Engine.
For one thing, there was no need.
He'd once been obsessed with bringing the people of the Xianzhou to ascend dimensions, just to clear the game and return home.
But as it turned out, he couldn't go back anymore. Might as well just stay on the Luofu and retire in peace.
And besides, he was too lazy to grind reputation again.
In this current world, under the Xianzhou Alliance's dimension, he already had full reputation, basically a 100% exploration save file.
If he chose to ascend to a higher dimension… he'd probably have to start from scratch again, dealing with higher-dimensional natives.
Not exactly optimal. Better not.
Of course, he couldn't let the other Aeons know that.
After all, one was a ticking time bomb, and the other was a permanently sealed bomb.
Anyone would be more worried about the first one.
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