“Is it possible to lead Little Ice Chunk out and avoid her experiencing the chaos happening at the Ying family estate tonight?”
Ke Mo squeezed her icy, soft little hand while his other hand rummaged through his pockets for snacks, thinking hard.
He turned and asked, “Sister Bing, do you want to go out and take a look?”
“Out?”
“Yeah! It’s New Year’s! Qinghe County is bustling with excitement!”
“…”
Little Ice Chunk remained silent, so Ke Mo took it as a yes.
No time to waste!
He grabbed her little hand and headed out of the estate.
The breeze from the distant Qingshui River was gentle.
The sweet scent of the little girl floated through the air, and occasionally, a stray hair brushed against his neck, tickling him.
She rushed out without tying her hair back.
“Woof~!”
At the entrance of the yard, a little yellow dog stood upright, growling at the two kids, but it lacked any real intimidation.
Its brow sported two white spots, making it look more silly-cute than fierce.
“?”
Ying Bing frowned slightly, her gaze fixated on the yellow dog, which immediately transitioned from growling to whimpering.
“Be good, don’t let anyone know we’re sneaking out.”
Ke Mo seriously pulled out a piece of jerky and tossed it to the dog, which promptly wagged its tail in excitement.
What’s with this strange sense of secrecy he was feeling?
Wait, why did he say “again”?
Running off with a sheltered little girl like this during broad daylight? If someone caught them… he’d get dangled by his toes when he returned home!
This must be a dream, right? Just a dream…
“Have you ever been outside before?”
Ke Mo realized he didn’t know much about Little Ice Chunk’s life before she came to his home.
“I’ve been out once, to see the doctor. When I woke up, I was in the clinic,” she replied.
With Ke Mo pulling her along, she gazed at the scenery outside the estate, her eyes brightening with curiosity yet also tinged with shyness.
It was as if her spiritedness had subtly returned for a moment.
Ke Mo chuckled to himself and deliberately let go of her little hand, quickening his pace.
Little Ice Chunk pouted, her lips pressed together indignantly, and sprinted a couple of steps to catch up, silently extending her hand, waiting for him to grab it.
She looked just like a little spring fairy visiting in the winter!
“So tiny, yet so adorable…” Ke Mo murmured.
Her little hand hung in the air, curling slightly: “What did you say?”
Ke Mo straightened his expression: “I said, as the first friend to take you out, shouldn’t you call me ‘Brother’?”
“But you’re younger than me.”
Little Ying Bing tilted her head, looking puzzled.
“That’s just your lack of experience from never having been out!” Ke Mo declared confidently.
“In Qinghe County, it’s customary for girls to call boys ‘Brother.’ Look at Ying Uncle—he’s younger than Auntie, yet Auntie sometimes still calls him ‘Brother.’”
“?”
Little Ying Bing’s eyes floated away as if lost in thought; she looked a bit dazed.
Her mother did sometimes call her father ‘Brother,’ didn’t she?
But does that apply here?
Glancing at Ke Mo’s serious yet slightly chubby face, Little Ice Chunk lowered her gaze, her eyes shimmering with frost.
“Brother…”
“!”
He had been the one misleading her!
But when those crisp words echoed in his ears, Ke Mo felt as though he had been struck by lightning, a thrill coursing through his body.
The Phoenix Sky Empress, the leading lady of the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths!
Usually, she only called him ‘stinky little brother’!
Though this version of Ice Chunk was a cute little cub… not the cold and aloof Cold Fairy everyone else knew.
But that made it all the more adorable!
The contrast was so strong it could instantly drain the bl**d levels of any onlooker!
Even Ultraman wouldn’t stand a chance.
“Is it okay now?”
Friendly reminder: If you’re enjoying this book, don’t forget to add it to your library so you can find it again!
Settings
Traditional Simplified
“Alright… let’s go! What do you want to eat? I’ll buy everything—sugar-coated haws, have you ever had donkey rolls?”
Little Li Mo felt a tingle on his scalp.
He murmured as he led her outside.
But as they walked, he noticed her small hand tightening around his, and looking at her little face, there was a flicker of pain, sweat dotting her pale forehead.
With every step further out, the pain seemed to deepen.
So much so that her gaze became distant, as if she couldn’t feel the outside world at all.
Li Mo froze.
Reality hit him, and he suddenly became aware of his surroundings.
Empty.
The distant Qingshui River flowed softly, and the bustling street below was filled with people celebrating the New Year, yet there was a gaping void between those lively scenes and the Ying family estate, which he couldn’t see from above.
It was as if a line of white space had been erased around the estate, like a pencil drawing missing a chunk.
That mountain of the Ying family estate looked like an island surrounded by emptiness.
“Little Ice Chunk was in a coma when she went out to see the doctor…”
“A person can’t dream of things they’ve never seen.”
“And everything outside the Ying family estate is something she hasn’t experienced, so in her dreams, it’s unreachable?”
Li Mo understood.
Using a video game analogy, the distant market and Qingshui River were just ‘textures’!
Only the Ying estate was real, and he had basically brought Little Ice Chunk crashing into an ‘invisible wall’!
Seeing her pale face growing worse, Li Mo dared not move further out and quickly pulled her back.
“We can’t go out, so we can only stay here; we won’t be able to escape before the ‘Nian Beast’ arrives.”
“What do we do? Can’t we just fight?”
The God Hammer Little Overlord, Little Li Mo, is Qianlong Fourth-level, and can face pressures of mid to late sixth rank easily.
But this is in Ice Chunk’s dream!
Here, he’s just a kid; forget the disaster beasts, even that little yellow dog could chase him down the street!
And there’s only one way: to wake the dream’s ‘subject.’
In one’s own dreams, they’re invincible…
“Time’s running out.”
The sky was shifting towards twilight, and Li Mo glanced at Little Ice Chunk.
“Aren’t we supposed to go play outside?”
Little Ying Bing had completely forgotten what had just happened.
She was still stuck on calling Li Mo ‘brother’ and having him take her out to have fun.
Li Mo pulled her back, saying, “It’s getting late; if Uncle and Auntie can’t find us at dinner, they’ll worry.”
“?”
Little Ying Bing pulled her hand away, her expression serious and cold, an unmistakable air of the big Ice Chunk about her: “Li Mo.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re lying to me. You’re a bad kid.”
“…”
Even though he tricked Little Ice Chunk into calling him ‘brother,’ he truly wanted to take her away from here more than anyone else!
But that wasn’t happening; Little Ice Chunk still had no memory of what just occurred, so where could he argue?
Now she was mad and didn’t even want him to hold her hand.
“Wait a minute, even though we can’t go outside, I can draw for you! Look at where you want to play, and we can go there next time!”
“You… can draw?”
“Hmph, much more than that! Ready, set, art!”
Little Li Mo’s eyes lit up; as soon as drawing came up, he seemed more enthusiastic.
First off, things that appear in dreams are only things one has seen before.
So, his drawings would be new things for Little Ice Chunk!
When he draws the Qingyuan Sect, the Qiushui Pavilion, and even an older version of Ice Chunk, when she sees those strange yet familiar images, maybe it can awaken her conscious mind?!
Killing two birds with one stone!
No wonder you’re a genius, Little Li!
……
P.S.: In these chapters, I took things pretty seriously; although some details got lost in translation, the plot definitely cost me a lot of brain cells.
Careful readers might have noticed, this book has shown some progress from the beginning till now, and I’m a bit better than before.
This is my first attempt at fantasy, and considering how average my writing was at the start, it’s all thanks to everyone’s support.
Thanks to all who have helped me grow, and to everyone who’s read this far, kisses! 030
