There was no one happier than the guild leader of Baidicheng, Come See The Snow Tonight, over the successful occupation of Immortality City. She thanked each and every one of us personally and promised many generous rewards. In fact, she looked happy enough to give her hand in marriage to anyone who wanted her. Although Xu Yang, Yamete and the rest of the idiots were very interested in the strong and beautiful guild leader, I decided that it would be in the best interest of the guild to stop them before they carried their teasing too far and turned Baidicheng into an enemy. After I put a lid on their antics, we all teleported back to Sky City.
Swhoos.h.!.+
After I returned to Sky City, I looked at the arrow holes and blade marks on my armor and decided to repair my equipment first. My Cyan Netherworld Sword was chipped all along the edge as well. As the player with the highest kill count of the territory war, my weapon suffered the most damage out of everyone. Not even a divine weapon could live without repair and maintenance, especially since my sword had destroyed heaven knows how many armors during this battle.
Beep!
He Yi sent me a message: "It"s late, and both Beiming and Mingyue are howling in starvation! Log off soon so we can go for supper!"
"Okay! I"ll be there soon!"
I quickly repaired my equipment and restocked my potions and consumables. Then, I went to an inn and logged out.
I took off my gaming helmet and sucked in a deep breath. Another great war, another ma.s.sive strain on my poor body. I stretched my arms and punched the air a couple of times, but they lacked any force behind them. Man, gaming professionally can be so harmful to the body. I should work out more in the future.
……
The girls were already fully dressed up and ready to go by the time I walked out of the room. We took off immediately after I joined them.
We hopped into my X12 as usual. He Yi"s Lamborghini was way too conspicuous for a casual supper, and all cars eventually rusted away if left unused.
It was past 8 pm in the night. We chose a hotpot restaurant for our meal.
The girls" faces looked flushed behind the steam bubbling from the soup. It was a sight beautiful enough to put in a painting.
Sometime during the supper, He Yi got up and ordered two bottles of red wine. When she came back, she smiled at me and offered, "Today"s a day worthy of a celebration, Lu Chen. Wanna drink with me?"
Startled, I replied, "Drinking? But… it"s supper, and drinking this late is bad for the skin. I don"t care about that, but you… Also, people usually drink to forget their sorrows, not the other way around, right?"
Beside me, Murong Mingyue elbowed me in the rib before scolding me, "Stupid, Eve is offering you a drink exactly because she knows you"re not feeling well today. Why are you so stupid?"
Slightly dumbfounded, I hurriedly accepted the bottle of wine and poured myself a gla.s.sful. I then clinked gla.s.ses with He Yi before drinking it all in one go.
A bitter but slightly sweet scent flowed down my throat. The wine was extremely good, but I couldn"t quite feel it due to the jumbled thoughts in my mind right now.
He Yi kept up with me as I drank again and again. It wasn"t long before we finished both bottles and felt a bit dizzy.
"Alright, it"s time to go home! Give me your keys. I"ll drive."
After giving Murong Mingyue my car key, I lifted He Yi to her feet and supported her. Beiming Xue also came over to support me just in case I was feeling wobbly on my feet. While we were walking to the entrance, she said in a small voice, "Big bro, it will be fine. Sister Lin Yixin isn"t going away forever. She will come back."
I put my head-on Beiming Xue"s shoulder and murmured, "I feel like I disappointed her, and boss even more so. I just don"t know what to do…"
Beiming Xue snorted. "At least you"re self-aware. Personally, I think you should just continue being yourself. I can see that both Sister He Yi and Sister Lin Yixin like you. The question is… if your feelings for Lin Yixin are real, then what about He Yi?"
"..." I didn"t give her a reply.
I looked at the starry sky above my head as the chilly wind of autumn blew against my skin. Murong Mingyue had left to get the car, and He Yi was leaning on a street lamp while we waited. Her head was tilted, and her black coat was hanging sideways on her shoulders.
I walked up to her and held her shoulders gently. "Boss?"
She rubbed her eyes and looked up with a smile. "What"s wrong?"
I felt like a knife went through my heart when I saw the tear stains at the corner of her eyes. However, I didn"t know what I could say to make her feel better. In the end, I looked at the ground beneath my feet and apologized, "Sorry, I…"
"Don"t. You didn"t let down anyone."
He Yi"s eyes were full of meaning as she smiled at me. "Love is a reward, not a cost. That"s why I don"t think about it too much…"
"Mn," I replied noncommittally.
The car finally came, and He Yi got into the car. However, Murong Mingyue got out of the driver"s seat, pa.s.sed me a bottle of water and pressed me against the wall all of a sudden. She stared at me closely before asking, "Both Eve and Beiming Xue are inside the car, so you can tell me the truth now: Do you love Eve or not? I won"t let anyone bully her, you hear me?"
"Cut it out, sis…"
I brushed aside her hands and said, "I don"t know the answer to that myself, so please don"t push me, okay?"
"Oh?" Murong Mingyue"s eyes gleamed with cunning as she tilted her head at me. "Let me ask you a question then: Does your heart hurt when Eve is unwell?"
I pursed my lips and sighed. "Yes, a lot…"
"Then don"t hurt her!" Murong Mingyue shot me a glare before finally pulling away from me. Before she went back to the driver"s seat, she said, "Stupid boy, you don"t even know how much you love Eve…"
I didn"t know what to say. Beiming Xue came out and pulled me into the car.
……
He Yi sat up and looked at us. "Mingyue, what were you and Lu Chen talking about?"
Murong Mingyue shrugged before answering, "Nothing. It"s just some random talk."
He Yi eyed her a bit warily. "I"m warning you, my business with Lu Chen is ours to handle. If you interfere…"
Unperturbed by the threat, Murong Mingyue buckled her seat belt and puffed out her chest. "Oh, are you finally going to lay a hand on me?"
Amused and exasperated, He Yi slowly leaned back into her seat before saying, "Anyway, don"t make things harder for Lu Chen than they already are. He"s a muddle-headed guy, he"ll get confused if he listens to too many voices."
"I"m not muddle-headed…" I uttered suddenly as I clenched my fists.
"Oh? What are you doing?" Murong Mingyue turned to look at me.
I ignored her and squeezed to the front. I gave He Yi a peck on the cheek and said with a smile, "I don"t know if I love Eve or not, but I know I like her a lot. Anything I can do for Lin Yixin, I can do for Eve as well. If someone insults Lin Yixin, I"ll give my life to destroy the b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Just the same, I"ll destroy anyone who insults Eve as well!"
Shocked, He Yi stared at me with wide eyes for a moment. A while later, her eyes turned watery, and tears started flowing down her cheeks. "Uuuu…"
Furious, Murong Mingyue smacked the steering wheel and accidentally sounded the horn as she shouted, "Lu Chen, you are bullying Eve! I"m going to beat your a.s.s right now!"
The situation was so awkward that Beiming Xue had no idea what to say. She hurriedly pulled out her phone and distracted herself by messaging Chaos Moon.
He Yi hurriedly wiped her tears before an idea came to her. "You know what… I don"t feel like sleeping anymore. Do you guys want to go to the karaoke box and sing for a bit?"
"Sure!" I nodded quickly.
Murong Mingyue abruptly spun the steering wheel and turned the car 180 degrees around. The drivers on the opposite side of the road were so scared and furious that they kept honking at us.
I stared at her. "f.u.c.k, I finally understand why you crashed into a dump truck on the highway. Who the f.u.c.k drives like this??"
Murong Mingyue replied without any shame whatsoever, "Oh, so you guys can get high, but I can"t?"
"..."
What could I even say? As I sank back into my seat in defeat, Beiming Xue giggled. "We"re going to a KTV? That"s awesome! To be honest I don"t feel like sleeping either, my belly is still pretty full…"
I had nothing to say in response.
……
At the city area, Cashbox KTV.
We booked a big room, ordered a ton of snacks and drinks and went inside.
As the one who suggested we come to the KTV in the first place, He Yi took the lead and sang a gentle "More Simple, More Happiness" and "Heart Wall”. Her voice was sweet and melodious; mellow and cleansing. It wasn"t something an innocent girl who hadn"t seen the world could emulate.
Then, Beiming Xue completely destroyed that atmosphere and us by singing 7 songs by Xu Song in a row. Murong Mingyue and I had to force her to sing a "Pretty Young Thing" by Baby Zhang to restore her image as a pretty girl.
Beiming Xue tried to make me sing, so I did. However, the girls were one-shot practically the second I opened my mouth. After much wrangling later, they decided that I was only allowed to sing half a song. Otherwise, they feared that they wouldn"t be able to fall asleep tonight.
The fun continued until 11 pm or so. Finally, the girls were growing a bit tired.
"Alright, let"s sing the last song together!” Mingyue glanced at me menacingly. “Not you Lu Chen. Okay girls?”
Beiming Xue and He Yi agreed immediately. They took a while to make their selection, but they ultimately chose a gentle song and got onto the small stage. They even discarded their outer coats for the final show. The way their bodies swayed beneath the golden light was enchanting to say the least.
"Gulp… gulp…"
I was so enchanted that I didn"t notice that the mineral water I was drinking was dripping down my neck.
He Yi saw my shameful behavior, but wasn"t affected by it. Smiling like the sun and staring at me with endearment, she sang, and sang, and sang.
I was wet by the time they finished.
……
The girls couldn"t stop giggling when we escaped from the KTV and rushed into the X12.
It was exactly 12 am midnight when we finally returned to the workshop. He Yi said while looking at the time, "Mn, the CGL committee will be announcing the latest Guild Ranking at 9 am tomorrow, and I"m sure our guild will be up there at the top. Let"s sleep soon so we can welcome the good news together tomorrow!"
"Okay!"
A tinge of antic.i.p.ation throbbed in my heart as we all went back to our rooms.
……
The next morning, I woke up at around 8 am. Despite all the excitement last night, my sleep quality turned out to be better than expected. After I washed myself and ate breakfast, I joined He Yi, Murong Mingyue and Beiming Xue in front of the notebook and waited for the announcement of the latest Guild Ranking!
At 9 am sharp, China"s Guild Ranking everyone was antic.i.p.ating was announced without delay. The name of ten guilds was displayed in s.h.i.+ny banner and powerful brush strokes on the right side of the official website—
"Candle Dragon" Guild Leader: Candlelight Shadow (Vice Leaders: Blue Sky Scar, G.o.d"s Dance)
"Warsky Alliance" Guild Leader: Warsky (Vice Leaders: October Rain, Lin Bing Dou Zhe)
"Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls" Guild Leader: From Water (Vice Leaders: Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand, Murong Mingyue)
"Purple Lily" Guild Leader: Luo River G.o.d of the Capital (Vice Leaders: Moonkiss, Moonlight Beneath A Rock)
"Snowy Cathaya" Guild Leader: Wind Fantasy (Vice Leaders: Purple Marquis, Clear Perfume)
"Blazing Hot Lips" Guild Leader: Stranger of Three Lifetimes (Vice Leaders: Eyes Like Water, Lasting)
"Hegemon Palace" Guild Leader: Pillar of the Nation (Vice Leaders: Little Piglet, Shangguan Wan"er)
"Hunting Moon Dynasty" Guild Leader: Wei-Jin North-South Dynasties (Vice Leaders: Ghastly Demon Blade, One Meter Sunlight)
"Fate" Guild Leader: Predestined (Vice Leaders: Hero In A Dream, Wind-marked Moon)
"G.o.ds of Destruction" Guild Leader: Dominating Heaven Blade (Vice Leaders: Dominating Knight G.o.d, Dominating Warrior G.o.d)