Letting Sun Hanyue’s corpse fall to the ground, Bai Yu didn’t retract the Blood Thread Long Blade. Instead, she controlled the blade to scatter, transforming it into a large mass of blood threads that wrapped around the corpse and rapidly devoured it. This time, she only needed to consume one body, so the devouring speed was incredibly fast.
She didn’t know Sun Hanyue’s specific identity, nor did she need to. This person’s death was her greatest contribution.
“Little Sister Yu, what did that person see just now?” Zhao Mingyue’s voice sounded from within her mind, deeply curious about this matter.
Sun Hanyue didn’t look like someone who couldn’t fight. What on earth could have scared her to that extent? Surely not some terrifying ghostly monster, right? Conjuring up a bit of frightening ghostly horror might work on ordinary people, but on Bai Yu’s “old acquaintances,” it was likely completely useless. Would people like them truly be afraid of ghosts? If they saw a fierce ghost, they’d probably just greet it with a straight punch.
“She saw someone she most definitely would not want to see right now,” Bai Yu could only answer that way.
“I see. So, what do we do now?”
“It’s up to you.”
Bai Yu stepped out of Zhao Mingyue’s body, still dressed the same as before, without any significant changes.
The Blood Thread Armor on Zhao Mingyue’s body gradually dissolved, revealing her original clothing and skin. The Dragon Scale Inner Armor clinging tightly to her body also vanished. Everywhere else was fine; being wrapped in that cool, silky sensation was quite comfortable. The main issue was her chest. Bai Yu probably just didn’t understand her proportions; it was far too tight and constricting.
Patting her chest, Zhao Mingyue let out a long breath. “I’ll just continue back to the park. It’s still too early… Hmm… we can go to another corner of the park, there seem to be kittens there too.”
“Mm.”
They strolled along the road by the river embankment toward the park. The number of people around them noticeably increased; after all, it was the weekend.
When killing Sun Hanyue, Bai Yu had used the Ghost Wall Maze to keep the people around them stationary. Otherwise, witnessing such a “murder scene” would certainly prompt someone to call the police. The police meant nothing to Bai Yu, but they could affect Zhao Mingyue. She was still a student, with a normal life. These recent Quests were merely a small part of her daily routine to her.
A gentle breeze brushed past. Zhao Mingyue reached up, tucking a stray strand of hair blown across her cheek behind her ear. She hopped forward a couple of steps, then turned to face Bai Yu, walking backward.
“Little Sister Yu, I suddenly thought of something just now.”
Zhao Mingyue was smiling brightly, her eyes curved like crescent moons. Her pure smile was quite lovely and healing. It was just that, no matter how Bai Yu looked at it, she felt that smile was a bit malicious.
“What is it?”
“Here’s the thing. Let me ask you a question first.”
“What question?”
“Those wriggling blood threads you usually use… do they count as a part of your body?” Zhao Mingyue asked directly.
“Yes. You can consider these blood threads my flesh and blood, the most crucial substance composing my body. Because I can control them with such precision, I use them for combat. Also, the blood threads on my body far exceed those of other fierce ghosts.”
Bai Yu assumed Zhao Mingyue had become curious after witnessing her use the Blood Thread Long Blade to kill and was momentarily intrigued. So she even added a few more sentences of explanation, helping Zhao Mingyue understand her combat methods. However, what she hadn’t anticipated was that Zhao Mingyue wasn’t inquiring about that at all.
Her lively eyes swiveled, her smile deepening. “So that means these blood threads really are your body. Then, when you used those blood threads to form inner armor to protect me just now… wouldn’t that count as a hug from you?”
At these words, even Bai Yu couldn’t help but pause. Her mouth opened slightly, her brow furrowed gently. She wanted to say something, but didn’t know how to refute it.
The girl had a point…
Were the blood threads her body? Of course.
And since they were her body, regardless of what form they ultimately took, hadn’t they still wrapped around Zhao Mingyue’s body?
Hmm… Using her own body to envelop Zhao Mingyue’s body, in a near 360-degree, dead-angle-free embrace… that probably counted as a hug.
“Hehehe, right? Right?” Seeing Bai Yu deep in thought, Zhao Mingyue’s smile instantly brightened.
No wonder she felt such an overwhelming sense of security. It would be strange if she hadn’t.
To this, Zhao Mingyue could only think: More, please!
Suddenly, being possessed didn’t seem like such a bad thing. After all, weren’t the side effects mitigated by the necklace Bai Yu had given her?
This feeling was like this: when initiating a team fight, you hire a god-tier booster to play for you. You don’t have to do anything, just watch. No matter the enemy, they will all be utterly annihilated. And on top of that, this booster is also an incredibly cute loli.
While she’s boosting for you, she also gently hugs you, pressing her delicate, soft body against yours, letting you clearly feel her presence.
The most crucial part? This kind of divine booster doesn’t even charge money!
Who could resist that?!
Zhao Mingyue was still sweetly lost in thought, grinning foolishly at Bai Yu while walking backward without looking at the road. In the next instant— Bang! She walked straight into a lamppost by the roadside.
Rubbing her head, Zhao Mingyue looked pitiful. “Bai Yu, you didn’t even warn me!”
Bai Yu didn’t answer, merely turning her head to look at the sparkling river beside the road. Perhaps she hadn’t even noticed it herself, but at that moment, the corner of her mouth couldn’t help but curve upward into a subtle, almost imperceptible arc.
They returned to the small park. It was a bit more crowded now. At half-past two in the afternoon, Zhao Mingyue and Bai Yu sat on a bench in front of the small lake. Unfortunately, there were no more stray kittens. Even if there were, they were too far from the crowds and wouldn’t dare come closer.
Zhao Mingyue was too sleepy. She yawned, half-reclined on the bench, her legs curled up, hands folded together beneath her head as a pillow. Her head rested on Bai Yu’s lap.
She had wanted to ask Bai Yu to generously give her a lap pillow or something, but in the end, she decided against it. Getting Bai Yu to let her sleep on her lap like this was already fairly good. If she said another word, Bai Yu would definitely use some excuse to slip into her shadow.
She had figured out Bai Yu’s temperament by now. As long as it wasn’t too excessive, a mundane daily matter without mortal danger, just pleading a few more times would make her agree, just like with the dress and black stockings Bai Yu wore.
But if it was truly too much, exceeding her tolerance threshold, she would just dive into the shadow and refuse to come out.
Zhao Mingyue was experimenting, trying to see if she could gradually expand Bai Yu’s tolerance range. The conclusion she drew was that it was possible, but it all depended on the level of intimacy between her and Bai Yu. If reality had an affection progress bar like a game, achieving the lap pillow milestone would require at least a score of sixty-five.
One could only say the upper limit was too high. She had a long road ahead, a heavy burden.
Leaning against Bai Yu, Zhao Mingyue could feel the faint chill emanating from Bai Yu’s body. She was a ghost, after all. The good news was that it was currently summer. That lingering coolness actually felt quite comfortable.
Before long, Zhao Mingyue fell asleep. Bai Yu could sense her steady breathing.
Reaching out a hand to gently smooth Zhao Mingyue’s hair, Bai Yu used her other hand to shield her eyes, tilting her head back to look at the clear sky.
Such strong sunlight brought her, aside from the warmth provided by Zhao Mingyue’s body heat, another kind of long-lost warmth.
Of course, feeling this warmth came at a cost.
If a normal ghostly monster were exposed to sunlight this intense, it would already be severely injured. For her, her body wasn’t injured, but she could distinctly feel her body’s blood threads being drained. The speed wasn’t fast, and the amount wasn’t large, but accumulated over time, the drain became significant.
She didn’t know how much time had passed.
A voice came from behind her.
“I’m sorry, Bai Yu.”
Bai Yu opened her eyes and glanced to the side.
Lu Liangting stood slightly behind her, his face full of remorse and complexity.
“I never imagined it would be like this. That person was so unscrupulous.”
“The person is already dead,” Bai Yu stated plainly.
“Dead?” Lu Liangting was puzzled for an instant, but then quickly accepted it. It was Bai Yu, after all; her strength was far beyond Gardenia’s.
“I’m very sorry…”
“It doesn’t matter.” Bai Yu’s hand continued to smooth Zhao Mingyue’s messy hair, her gaze fixed forward.
“I… I will talk to my mother. No more of these impulsive actions.”
“Fine. Just stay away from Mingyue.” Bai Yu turned her head, meeting Lu Liangting’s gaze. “You’re surrounded by many women. Just pick one at random.”
“They aren’t normal people.”
“…”
As Lu Liangting tried to continue, Bai Yu stopped responding to him. This made his already stifled heart feel even more depressed. He stared at Bai Yu for a long while, unsure of what to say. A thousand words ultimately became a single sigh.
“I will minimize my contact with her.”
That one sentence seemed to drain all the strength from Lu Liangting.
Dejectedly, he walked down the grassy slope and sat by the small river, tossing stones into the water, wanting to use this to dispel the melancholy in his heart.
But what could he do? Nothing.
As long as he remained in that household for even a day, he would be firmly shackled. He believed his mother’s actions this time were instigated by that woman named Qiangwei, yet he truly couldn’t guarantee something similar wouldn’t happen again.
He couldn’t understand it. Society had already developed to this point; why did his family still cling to the marriage alliance game? Good relations with other families weren’t maintained through marriage alliances, but through mutual interests. Why did they have to fixate on this?
Would marrying a woman from outside truly affect the family’s interests?
As the family heir, could he not even decide his own future?
“Unless… I leave that house.”
“No, just leaving isn’t enough. I need to prepare thoroughly. Maybe I can talk to my father, use this incident as leverage against him, make him understand what’s been happening recently.”
The more Lu Liangting thought about it, the more feasible this plan seemed. As long as he wasn’t in the house anymore, using this kind of firm attitude to rebel should have some effect, more or less.
Of course, he also knew that doing this poorly could backfire, instead making people believe he was doing it all for some woman outside.
After much deliberation, he finally decided to send a message to Gardenia and ask for her opinion.
Gardenia’s reply came quickly. She agreed with his approach, but insisted he must take her with him. If it was just about being troubled by marriage issues, he could discuss it with the Old Master: let him go out and train himself, with a sum of starting capital, and return after a certain period with a multiplied amount. During this time, absolutely no one could interfere in his affairs.
Lu Liangting didn’t think about the fact that he was still just a high school student, nor did he consider that venturing out alone would be even more dangerous. His head buzzing with heat, he immediately made his decision.
Bringing Gardenia along was acceptable; Gardenia was relatively gentle. If the male passersby in the park knew that even in running away from home, Lu Liangting could take a black-clad maid with him, they would grind their teeth in envy, cursing Lu Liangting to remain single forever.
Just as Lu Liangting rekindled his hope, determined to break free from his family’s shackles, Zhao Mingyue finally woke up after sleeping for half an hour.
Stretching languidly, Zhao Mingyue sat up. “Good afternoon. What time is it?”
“A bit past three.”
“Ahh, that was amazing. That was truly the most comfortable nap ever. As expected of Little Sister Yu!” Zhao Mingyue wanted to give Bai Yu a big hug. The next moment, under Bai Yu’s helpless gaze, she seemed to remember something. Her cheeks flushed red, and she whipped out a wet wipe at light speed to wipe her face.
Was there anything more embarrassing than finally getting to sleep on Bai Yu’s lap, only for her old drooling habit to act up?
“Eh, Lu Liangting came too, huh.”
Sitting on the bench, her cheeks burning with embarrassment, her smile awkward, Zhao Mingyue smoothed her hair and pointed at Lu Liangting to change the subject.
“He’s been here for a while. Muttering to himself, no idea what about.”
“Right, right, right. It’s getting late. Let’s hurry up and get going. Arriving a bit early, we can maybe get a feel for the situation at the scene or something.” Zhao Mingyue hastily stood up and walked toward Lu Liangting.
Bai Yu, sitting behind her, shook her head, not understanding what had suddenly gotten into Zhao Mingyue.
A moment later, inside Lu Liangting’s black luxury car. Zhao Mingyue and Bai Yu were both in the back seat.
“This is the location the Store Manager sent me. I forwarded it to you. Give the client a call first.”
For this Quest, Zhao Mingyue felt it wasn’t too complicated. Just a coffin that couldn’t be lifted, and some witnesses seeing the old man’s wraith. It was probably just the old man having some Resentment Energy or something, most likely because his descendants had done something excessive, causing the old man’s ghostly spirit to linger and refuse to leave.
Once the old man’s resentment was resolved, the coffin could naturally be carried away. The ten-thousand-yuan reward would be in hand.
Thinking about the reward, Zhao Mingyue was filled with motivation.
When she had money, she would absolutely go to the big mall in the City Center and buy Bai Yu many, many expensive and beautiful clothes.
To be honest, seeing Bai Yu come out in that outfit today made her feel a bit embarrassed deep down. To put it bluntly, the dress on Bai Yu looked good not because of her own good taste, but because Bai Yu herself looked good. It was a case of the clothes being elevated by the person.
In harsher terms, the dress Bai Yu wore was a street market bargain worth a few dozen to a hundred yuan. To most girls, it was the kind of thing they wouldn’t even spare a second glance if it were tossed on the ground.
