“I do think so,” Fox Shadow said. “Following the young lady indeed doesn’t offer much of a future.”
“…”
Fox Shadow: “But I don’t need a future. I just want to be a salted fish.”
Ye Piaoling suddenly understood: Great minds think alike!
Her gaze toward Fox Shadow unconsciously held a bit more appreciation.
In her previous life, she had died from overwork—burned out—only then realizing she should have just been a salted fish…
But Fox Shadow had gone straight to being a salted fish. She had skipped a lifetime of detours!
Ye Piaoling couldn’t help but give a thumbs-up: “666!”
…
After the meal, Fox Shadow went back to lie down.
Ye Piaoling also returned to her bedroom.
She took out the exquisite mask from her sleeve and examined it repeatedly.
This truly was an extraordinary treasure. Without it, she would probably have been trapped in the cave forever by the monster beasts…
Suddenly, a cheerful voice rang out in her mind:
[Ding-dong! Your Silly System is now online!]
Ye Piaoling: “Heh.”
System: [Host, what’s wrong?]
Ye Piaoling angrily scolded: [You wretched old system, you tricked me into kissing a dead person!]
The system hurriedly explained: [That wasn’t a dead person, he’s alive!]
Ye Piaoling questioned: [A living person who doesn’t breathe?]
[That person is different,] the system began to educate her: [When he falls into a deep slumber, his spirit leaves his body, so he has no breath or heartbeat. But in reality, he’s still alive!]
[How impressive,] Ye Piaoling clapped: [Then why didn’t you say so at the time?]
[The signal in the cave was poor, and this system had a temporary malfunction,] the system declared earnestly: [Host, rest assured, the system has now been completely repaired. Such a situation will never happen again!]
Ye Piaoling snorted and played with the mask in her hand.
Silly System: [Congratulations, host, for successfully obtaining the Regent King’s mask and unlocking the main quest!]
Hearing this, Ye Piaoling’s hand trembled, nearly dropping the mask: [What did you say? Whose mask is this?]
[The Regent King’s mask!]
[The Regent King… is that the Regent King who resides in Chonghua Palace, Di Xiulan?]
[Correct, quack quack quack! It’s him, it’s him, it’s him!]
Ye Piaoling: […]
Chonghua Palace was a palace more mysterious than the imperial palace itself. It was said that in ancient times, deities had lived there, and mortals could not enter without permission. Until Di Xiulan appeared and made Chonghua Palace his sleeping palace.
Nowadays, the emperor was young. Di Xiulan was both the Regent King and the Imperial Tutor of Great Li, the emperor’s master. Not only did his power overshadow the heavens, but his cultivation was also unmatched.
Most notably, his temperament was said to be extremely bizarre and unpredictable—the kind you couldn’t see through even with a magnifying glass. Outwardly gentle, inwardly twisted, his hands stained with countless blood, his smile forever captivating all who saw it…
In short, quite perverse.
And the great beauty sleeping without breathing in the cave turned out to be the Regent King himself!
Ye Piaoling recalled the events of that time.
She had rashly kissed him, then jumped up and cursed “Holy crap,” before taking his mask and leaving…
Oh right, before leaving, she had also put a homemade mask on him.
A pink one at that.
Ye Piaoling asked tremblingly: [When will the Regent King wake up?]
Silly System: [He might have already woken up by now. Actually, if the host had just kissed him a little longer back then, he would have opened his eyes immediately… But it’s fine. The host has survived and successfully obtained the Regent King’s mask, completing part of the main quest!]
[Main quest?]
【The main quest of this system is to collect the Regent King’s four-piece set, which consists of four personal items belonging to the Regent King!】
The system announced excitedly: 【The host has now obtained the first item—the Regent King’s mask. Please continue striving to acquire the remaining three!】
【……】
Ye Piaoling was speechless.
This Silly System, with its so-called Regent King four-piece set, sounded utterly unreliable…
But she couldn’t help asking: 【If I collect them all, what reward will I get?】
The Silly System replied: 【You can ascend to heaven on the spot!】
【……】
Ye Piaoling: 【I’m laughing my head off, folks! I’ve decided to unbind the system and quit, quit! Whatever four-piece or eight-piece set, find someone else for the job! Goodbye!】
The Silly System hurriedly explained: 【Host, don’t misunderstand! When this system says “ascend to heaven,” it means you’ll reach the peak of life, have everything you want, restore your powers in various ways, achieve financial freedom… The feeling will be as wonderful as ascending to heaven, hehehe!】
【What? Financial freedom?!】 Ye Piaoling quickly zeroed in on the key point.
【Yes, exactly! Getting rich, striking it big, having so much money you can’t spend it all!!】
【……】
Upon hearing this, Ye Piaoling couldn’t help but feel intensely tempted.
Once again, she was filled with worldly desires.
【Your sweet talk has won me over.】 Ye Piaoling couldn’t resist turning over like a salted fish, sighing as she said: 【What are the remaining three items? I’ll make arrangements.】
【The next item: the Regent King’s belt.】
【Belt?!】
【Yes, indeed! The belt worn around the waist to keep robes from opening and pants from falling down!】
【…Fine. And the one after that?】
【The four-piece set must be unlocked in order. Only after the host obtains the Regent King’s belt can the system reveal the next item.】
Ye Piaoling calmed down.
She pondered, analyzing rationally: 【First the mask, then the belt… What could the last two possibly be… If in the end you tell me to steal the Regent King’s underwear, am I supposed to go through with that too??】