The girl beamed with delight. “Alright.”
She lifted her head haughtily, trying to make out Fu Ruheng’s expression hidden beneath his black robe. Unfortunately, Fu Ruheng was covered too thoroughly; she only caught a glimpse of skin so pale it seemed to glow.
But she didn’t mind. She was certain the robed man must be regretting his decision now.
Her Brother Yan was a genius at the fourth level of the Mystic Realm, with unfathomable strength—far beyond what this shady, cloaked figure could ever match.
The young man threw a punch aimed straight at Fu Ruheng’s dantian, but his fist hung in the air for a long moment, unable to advance even half an inch, as if blocked by an invisible barrier.
?
The young man was baffled.
He exerted all his strength, yet his fist remained suspended motionlessly in mid-air.
Seeing the young man’s face flushed red with effort, the girl asked curiously, “Brother Yan, weren’t you going to cripple him? Why did you stop?”
The young man gritted his teeth in frustration. “It’s not that I want to stop—I can’t move.”
The girl was startled. “Brother Yan, how could you, at the fourth level of the Mystic Realm, be unable to move? Unless… this person’s cultivation is higher than yours?”
The young man, trying to save face, replied, “It might be some special technique.”
No sooner had he spoken than Fu Ruheng unleashed the aura of the seventh level of the Mystic Realm.
The young man: “”
The girl panicked. The seventh level of the Mystic Realm—three levels higher than her Brother Yan.
She seemed to have kicked an iron plate.
But having been spoiled and willful all her life, the thought of backing down was utterly impossible for her.
Stammering, she declared, “I don’t want the rabbit lantern anymore.”
“Consider it a gift from me.”
Fu Ruheng said softly, “A gift?”
“It was mine to begin with. And you call it a gift to me?”
His voice was gentle, yet the girl felt an inexplicable fear, her hairs standing on end.
Trying to preserve her pride, she shouted, “I already said it—I saw it first! Now that I don’t want it anymore, it’s naturally a gift to you!”
“Then I’ll give you a gift too.” Fu Ruheng’s five fingers closed around the girl’s neck in a phantom grip, severing her life force. “The gift of death.”
His beautiful peach-blossom eyes swirled with overwhelming malice.
Daring to speak ill of the rabbit lantern he intended to give to his sister—he had no qualms about ending their lives.
Fu Ruheng had never been a good person. Those who provoked him had to be prepared to pay the price.
The young man was stunned by this sudden turn of events. He had always been the one crippling or killing others; this was the first time someone had killed his woman right before his eyes.
As those dark, merciless eyes turned toward him, the young man forced a nervous laugh. “Brother, brother, I was just joking. That woman always spoke without thinking. I’ve long wanted to teach her a lesson. I was just pretending to go along with her earlier—I never intended to attack you, really.”
“Is that so?” Fu Ruheng sneered.
“Yes, yes, yes,” the young man replied, thinking Fu Ruheng believed him. He immediately began pouring out his grievances. “That woman, relying on her family’s influence, always made me do all sorts of things. I suffered endlessly. Thankfully, brother, you killed her and freed me from that.”
Fu Ruheng smiled. “Death brings even greater freedom.”
The young man: “”
“Please, no, brother, I don’t want to die yet…”
Before he could finish, his neck was snapped by Fu Ruheng.
The world fell silent in an instant.
Fu Ruheng lowered his gaze and handed a spirit stone to the nearby vendor, who was already dumbstruck. “I’ll take the largest rabbit lantern.”
The vendor’s face turned ashen, terrified that Fu Ruheng might strangle him too. With one hand clutching his throat, he held out the lantern with the other. “G-g-guest, you’re the lucky customer of my stall. You don’t need to pay for the lantern.”
Fu Ruheng ignored his nonsense and tossed a spirit stone into the vendor’s arms.
The vendor numbly touched the spirit stone in his embrace—enough to buy every lantern on his stall—and roughly understood. This black-robed man wasn’t ruthlessly cruel to everyone, only to those who caused him trouble.
His fear eased considerably, and he called out to Fu Ruheng, who was about to leave.
“Guest, with your strength, you might consider going to Mistwater Pavilion to join the competition. The top prize lantern is much prettier than this rabbit lantern.”
Fu Ruheng paused. “Prettier than the rabbit lantern?”
The vendor nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, Mistwater Pavilion releases new, beautiful lanterns every year during the Eternal Light Festival. This year, it happens to be the Beast Lantern. The Beast is fluffy and fits our aesthetic perfectly. Judging by the designs from previous years, this year’s Beast Lantern won’t be anything less than impressive.”
Outside the screen, Ruan Ruoyin was already imagining what the Beast Lantern might look like. Instantly, the rabbit lantern seemed less appealing. She tugged at Fu Ruheng’s arm, signaling that she wanted the Beast Lantern.
Fu Ruheng smiled quietly. “How do I get to Mistwater Pavilion?”
The vendor pointed in a direction. “North, the largest open-air pavilion.”
Fu Ruheng thanked him and hurried off with the rabbit lantern.
Swaying the lantern in his hand, Fu Ruheng pinched the rabbit lantern’s long ears. “Sister can play with the rabbit lantern for now. I’ll get you the Beast Lantern later.”
Ruan Ruoyin happily poked the rabbit lantern’s long ears and short tail. “Mhm~”
Fu Ruheng could see the ears and tail of the rabbit lantern slightly dent under her touch. He gained a new understanding of her.
She was an immature little thing who liked fluffy stuff.
Fu Ruheng’s lips curved upward. He really liked having this person by his side.
With her there, even simple acts like eating or drinking held a faint sense of joy.
How wonderful it would be if such moments could last forever.
Fu Ruheng walked quickly and soon arrived at the place the vendor had mentioned.
Mistwater Pavilion was an aerial pavilion, painted in vermilion and adorned with many delicate small lanterns. Under the night sky, it looked breathtakingly beautiful.
Figures moved across the pavilion in twos and threes, chatting and laughing in groups.
It was rare for Ruan Ruoyin to see such a beautiful scene in the game.
Not a texture patch, nor a lazily rendered half-image, but a full panoramic view!!
So gorgeous!!
Once again, Ruan Ruoyin regretted that screenshots weren’t possible in the game. Otherwise, she would have taken hundreds.
The dent on the rabbit lantern remained in one spot. Fu Ruheng touched that spot, his voice softening. “Sister, don’t just look at Mistwater Pavilion. Look at me too.”
Ruan Ruoyin snapped back to attention.
Huh?!
What did Zaizai say?!
Look at him?
Had she been staring at Mistwater Pavilion for so long that Zaizai thought she was ignoring him?
Ruan Ruoyin nuzzled Fu Ruheng’s cheek, quickly trying to soothe him. She even placed the rabbit’s ears into Fu Ruheng’s palm, using them as a bribe.
Fu Ruheng was easy to appease, immediately breaking into a smile.
He lowered his voice softly. “Sister, I’m going up to Mistwater Pavilion now.”
Ruan Ruoyin shook the rabbit ears to show she’d heard.
Only then did Fu Ruheng begin ascending the stairs.
The place was crowded, with many people wearing sect uniforms, chatting and laughing merrily.
When Fu Ruheng passed by, what he heard most about was the Four Sects Grand Competition.
The Four Sects Grand Competition is a grand event that only occurs every few years. This time, it was even related to a Secret Realm involving King Realm experts, attracting more widespread attention than ever before.
Ruan Ruoyin was also considering whether to let Zaizai join a sect and participate.
Secret Realms—just hearing the name sounded really cool.
She really wanted to see what the Secret Realm, as designed in the game, looked like.
However, the Four Sects Grand Competition was still some time away, so there was no rush. She would wait and see what Zaizai’s wishes were.
Zaizai’s thoughts came first.