An hour later.
Hongying and the other two had watched the entire process of Lu Ming handling the corpses.
They had originally thought Lu Ming would dissect the remains of these Mysteries to extract some kind of material.
Leng Xuan had even braced himself, determined to endure it no matter how revolting the materials for the Zanpakuto might be.
Yet to their utter surprise, Lu Ming did nothing of the sort.
He simply tapped each corpse lightly with his sheathed Zanpakuto, and just like that, the entire process was over.
Hadn’t he come to gather materials?
Could it be that these corpses of Mysteries were completely useless to him?
Were the material requirements for forging a Zanpakuto really that high?
*** Lost in thought, Lu Ming walked out of the morgue.
The other three followed behind him, exchanging glances.
Finally, Zhao Kongcheng broke the silence.
“These corpses have probably been sitting here for a while.
Maybe they aren’t fresh enough?
Kid, don’t be discouraged if you didn’t find the materials you need this time.
You’ll have plenty of chances to come across corpses of Mysteries in future operations.” Hongying chimed in, “That’s right, Lu Ming, don’t lose heart!
The Night Watch gets plenty of chances to clash with Mysteries…” Even the taciturn Leng Xuan offered practical support, patting Lu Ming on the shoulder to express his concern.
Sensing their reactions, Lu Ming paused in surprise before realizing what they thought had happened.
“Haha, no, not at all!
Sister Hongying, Old Zhao, Leng Xuan, don’t worry about me!
I already got what I needed.
If nothing goes wrong, I should be able to forge a Zanpakuto tonight.” His answer made all three let out an immediate sigh of relief.
Zhao Kongcheng slapped Lu Ming hard on the back.
“We thought you failed!
Why were you wearing such a grim face if you got the stuff?” Hongying and Leng Xuan nodded repeatedly beside him, feeling foolish for tiptoeing around his feelings just now.
Lu Ming rubbed his shoulder.
“Old Zhao, that hurts!
Keep that up and I’ll forge the first Zanpakuto for Leng Xuan instead.” Hearing this, Zhao Kongcheng immediately put on a fawning grin, reaching out with his calloused hands to massage the spot he had just struck.
“Master Lu Ming, how’s this pressure?
Would you like it a bit lighter?” Zhao Kongcheng’s shameless adaptability left Lu Ming with no choice but to give a silent thumbs-up.
As long as it meant getting a Forbidden Realm, Old Zhao wouldn’t mind giving Lu Ming a massage—hell, he wouldn’t even mind sharing a bed with him…
“Alright, alright.
Old Zhao, you’re a senior member of the Night Watch, how could I dare let you massage me?
Stop looking at me like that.
I’ll give forging a try tonight, okay?
But I need to find a quiet place first.” Lu Ming truly could not withstand Zhao Kongcheng’s burning gaze.
He had originally planned on getting a good night’s rest, but now, it seemed Old Zhao couldn’t wait another second.
“You only need a quiet place?
No forging tools or anything?” Hongying asked, voicing the confusion in her heart.
She didn’t know the exact process for forging a Forbidden Relic, but she assumed it had to be incredibly complicated.
“Yeah, nothing else needed.
Just somewhere quiet where no one will disturb me.” Lu Ming’s request was remarkably simple.
Hongying nodded.
“Then let’s go straight to my place.
My house is pretty quiet!
Besides, it’s getting late, so you can just stay over at my place tonight, Lu Ming.” Zhao Kongcheng and Leng Xuan nodded in rapid succession, thinking it was a brilliant idea.
The two flanked Lu Ming like armed bodyguards as they marched toward Hongying’s villa.
*** “Sister Hongying, you’re back.” Hearing the commotion in the living room, Si Xiaonan stepped out of her bedroom.
“Xiaonan, you’re still awake this late?” Hongying nodded, changing into her slippers while taking out three pairs of men’s slippers from the shoe cabinet and placing them by the entrance.
A moment later, Si Xiaonan saw Zhao Kongcheng and Leng Xuan walk inside.
She was quite surprised to see them showing up here tonight, but when she spotted Lu Ming right behind them, her expression instantly froze.
She had not expected Lu Ming to tag along…
“Xiaonan!” Zhao Kongcheng and Leng Xuan waved, greeting Si Xiaonan briefly before immediately turning back to Lu Ming.
“Do you need us to clean up the room for you?
Whatever you need, we guarantee it’ll be done to your satisfaction!” Hongying quickly waved them off.
“I already told the housekeeper earlier, the guest room is all ready.
If Lu Ming has any personal preferences, he can just add some daily necessities later.” Zhao Kongcheng and Leng Xuan nodded with a hint of disappointment, having lost their chance to score points with Lu Ming.
Hongying looked at Lu Ming with a helpless expression.
“Do you want to take a shower first?” Noticing Zhao Kongcheng’s desperate gaze, Lu Ming sighed.
“Old Zhao is already this impatient, so I’ll just head straight to the room.” Hongying nodded and led Lu Ming up to the second floor.
Zhao Kongcheng rubbed his palms together eagerly, looking for all the world like an impatient groom about to enter the bridal chamber, sending a wave of disgust through Si Xiaonan.
[Impatient?
Can’t wait?
Zhao Kongcheng and Lu Ming, they…] [No, no, no, that can’t be, right?] [Wait, why is Leng Xuan acting like that too?
No way, is Lu Ming actually into men?] Si Xiaonan shook her head vigorously.
Just moments ago, she had been annoyed by Lu Ming ignoring her, but now, she was genuinely worried that he would corrupt the entire atmosphere of Squad 136.
“Um, Old Zhao, Leng Xuan…
do you two have some kind of business with Lu Ming tonight?” *** When Hongying came down from the second floor with an odd look on her face, she saw Si Xiaonan wearing an expression of sudden realization.
[So Zhao Kongcheng and Leng Xuan just want Lu Ming to help them forge a Zanpakuto?] [Still, whether it’s real or fake hasn’t even been confirmed.
They’re being so desperate—if Lu Ming is lying to them, it’s really going to break their hearts.] [If that’s the case, I won’t let him off easily.] Si Xiaonan still felt something was off.
Lu Ming had integrated into Squad 136 far too quickly.
She felt as though he treated every squad member with an uncanny familiarity, yet this was clearly their very first meeting.
Perhaps due to her identity as a Divine Agent, she was instinctively skeptical of anything out of the ordinary.
“How is it?
Has Lu Ming started forging the Zanpakuto?” The moment Hongying appeared, Zhao Kongcheng asked immediately.
Leng Xuan and Si Xiaonan looked on with inquiring eyes as well.
Hongying fell silent for a few seconds before offering a helpless smile.
“I don’t really know what’s going on either.
Lu Ming told me he was going to forge the Zanpakuto, then he flopped onto the bed and fell asleep in less than a second…” The entire living room plunged into silence.
Neither Zhao Kongcheng nor Leng Xuan had anticipated such an outcome.
“Old Zhao, Leng Xuan, there are other guest rooms here.
You two should get some rest here tonight as well!” Hongying felt this was the best arrangement for now.
Zhao Kongcheng and Leng Xuan hesitated for a moment before nodding.
“Kid Lu Ming fought a Ghostface Being today and demonstrated his Forbidden Ruins’ power in front of us.
At his age, his mental energy probably can’t take much more strain.” Zhao Kongcheng instinctively made excuses for Lu Ming.
“Hongying, you should get some good rest too and nurse your injuries.
Squad 136 can’t function without you.” Lu Ming’s act of ditching them to go straight to sleep was annoying no matter how you looked at it, but as the man who had brought Lu Ming in, Zhao Kongcheng wanted to make sure the others didn’t form a bad impression of him.
Especially Si Xiaonan, whose expression had already darkened slightly.
“Sister Hongying brought him back despite being injured, and you two escorted him personally.
How could he just…” Si Xiaonan wanted to sway their opinions of Lu Ming.
However, before she could finish, Leng Xuan cut her off.
“Xiaonan, Lu Ming’s Forbidden Realm is different from yours.
When ordinary people like us use a Forbidden Relic, it already takes a massive toll.
Lu Ming’s Forbidden Realm originates from that Zanpakuto, so it’s only natural for him to be exhausted.” “Lu Ming will be our teammate from now on, Xiaonan, don’t…” Leng Xuan calmly analyzed Lu Ming’s condition, hoping to dispel Si Xiaonan’s prejudice against him.
However, he did not realize that his intervention only backfired.
Seeing Leng Xuan speak up for Lu Ming like this, a prickle of frustration welled up in Si Xiaonan’s chest.
Weren’t the Night Watch members who executed the Ghostface extermination mission exhausted tonight too?
Even the injured Hongying hadn’t rested yet!
Zhao Kongcheng was making up excuses for Lu Ming, Leng Xuan was interrupting her to defend him, and Sister Hongying was taking care of Lu Ming’s feelings despite being wounded…
She had no idea what kind of brainwashing Lu Ming had done to them!
This kind of brainwashing ability didn’t seem human at all—in fact, she even felt a slight sense of deja vu from Lu Ming!
“I don’t care about you guys anymore, I’m going to sleep!” Si Xiaonan stomped her foot.
She felt that Zhao Kongcheng and Leng Xuan had become completely obsessed with getting a Forbidden Realm, placing their hopes on an absolute stranger.
Watching Si Xiaonan storm off, Leng Xuan stood there awkwardly.
Zhao Kongcheng patted Leng Xuan on the shoulder, and the two men looked at each other in speechless silence…