Chapter 40: Next Time We Meet, I’ll Treat Him to Dumplings [4K]
In the end, Jumeng successfully elevated her position and became Lu Yibei’s romantic advisor.
On one hand, Lu Yibei respected Jumeng’s authority as a deity of fate and considered that Jumeng had come all the way from the Peach Source because her own fate had been disrupted.
Moreover, Jumeng seldom showed such enthusiasm. If he didn’t satisfy her, she would likely get angry and throw a fit, right?
On the other hand, Lin Yiqi was concerned about Jumeng’s feelings and politely declined Lu Yibei’s request.
Standing on the battered main road of Gate Four, watching Lin Yiqi walk deeper into the campus shrouded in darkness, Lu Yibei glanced at Jumeng beside him and sighed silently, “Alright! Three stinky sisters can top a Zhuge Liang. Who knows, the two of us might just shine.”
“Hmph!” Jumeng raised her chin slightly, clearly disapproving of Lu Yibei’s words. “Such foolish talk! You’re a loser, I’m not the same! Do you know how many people’s fates I’ve seen?”
Lu Yibei cooperatively shook his head, waiting for Jumeng to provide her answer.
“An average of tens of thousands of people every month, meaning tens of thousands of romantic histories!” Jumeng said, “Unrequited love, mutual love, love triangles, teacher-student relationships, interdimensional love, twisted dusk!”
“Hmm?” Lu Yibei made a strange sound, turned to look at Jumeng, and his eyes sparkled with an unusual light. That gaze seemed to say, “Twisted dusk? Sounds exciting, please elaborate!”
Under Lu Yibei’s stare, a hint of embarrassment flashed across Jumeng’s face. She waved her small hand, saying, “In any case, who says that a master of emotions must have their own romantic experiences?”
“Have you seen anything I haven’t? This is a solid win!” “Let’s hope so!” Lu Yibei replied flatly.
If things really go wrong, I can just lie down and let it be. As long as I have no feelings, no one can manipulate my emotions, Lu Yibei added in his mind.
The reason he agreed to let Jumeng be his emotional advisor was mainly to make Jumeng happy; whether it works or not didn’t matter, as long as it didn’t complicate things. “What do you mean by hope? You b*stard, I think you trust me a little less!”
Jumeng pointed to her head with confidence, saying, “Here, I have hundreds of thousands of samples as references. Can’t handle a little Yu Jianqiu?”
“This is data flow players suppressing technical flow players, you understand?!”
“Alright, got it!” Lu Yibei replied dismissively, then changed the subject, “So should I send the data flow player back to the apartment now?”
“Back to the apartment? You b*stard! What are you planning to do by yourself?” Jumeng squinted her eyes, examining Lu Yibei up and down.
“Heading to the Happy Neighborhood.”
He mentally added that he was delivering the blueprints for spirit energy items and alchemical potion recipes he obtained from Dachunyang Palace.
“Into your lair?” Jumeng scoffed, “Then why can’t I go with you? Are you doing something you can’t show me?” “For urban legends, indeed it counts as something to hide. On the way, I’m planning to contact Zhang Hainan,” Lu Yibei shrugged, “If you don’t mind, you can head to the Happy Neighborhood and wait.”
Once he contacts Zhang Hainan, he will definitely cast his gaze on Huacheng. Who knows what he might think when he sees Jumeng beside me! Lu Yibei thought.
Although he was well aware that both Zhang Hainan and Jumeng were close to him, they were, after all, a protector of the Siye Society and a Cataclysm Grade urban legend, and it was impossible for them to coexist peacefully.
Such matters, like a terrible mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship, are best avoided by not letting them meet, ensuring peace.
“Contacting who?” Jumeng tilted her head.
The name Zhang Hainan sounded familiar, but she couldn’t recall who it was at the moment. “Protector of the Siye Society, Black Emperor, Zhang Hainan,” Lu Yibei explained expressionlessly.
“The rogue paper cicada losing control is related to an urban legend he sealed some time ago. I think something fishy is going on, and it’s necessary to inform him.”
After confirming the identity, Jumeng’s eyes widened slightly. “How did you get in contact with that old monster? Do you know he’s weirder than an urban legend? Be careful not to get killed by him!”
Although Jumeng hadn’t faced Zhang Hainan directly, she had heard many accounts of him tearing apart high-level urban legends, and among those who had fallen at his hands were certainly Cataclysm Grade entities.
With her fearless nature, there were very few supernatural ability users in the world that she held any fear of, and Zhang Hainan was one of them.
If not for him, the Siye Society in Tangcheng wouldn’t have been able to establish a foothold around the Peach Source, and part of the success in constructing the Tangcheng barrier was due to Zhang Hainan’s involvement.
Thus, upon hearing that Lu Yibei knew Zhang Hainan, Jumeng’s first reaction was concern, worrying that Lu Yibei would be tricked by Zhang Hainan.
“Don’t worry!” Lu Yibei sensed Jumeng’s concern and reassured her, “He has old ties with my family, so he won’t harm me.” If he knew I was hanging out with the top three most wanted urban legends on the Siye Society’s red notice, he might worry that you’re going to harm me!
After pausing for a moment, she added, “Didn’t I tell you before that the set of kitchen knives I completed reforging had its last shard with him? It was entrusted to him by an elder in my family for safekeeping.”
After hearing Lu Yibei’s explanation, the frown on Jumeng’s face eased, and she shrugged, nonchalantly saying, “Well then, I’ll reluctantly head back to rest!”
“Just to clarify! I’m not afraid of that old monster. I just want to go back and continue playing games because I just solved a bottleneck.”
“Really, if it comes to a fight, even if I get severely injured, I can still let him have a child in his old age!” Jumeng thought fiercely. Oh, I see!” Lu Yibei nodded.
If you’re not afraid, then why don’t you just call Zhang Hainan directly by name? Don’t refer to him as “old monster”! She’s just a little chick who just came out of the nest—soft legs, sharp tongue, Lu Yibei thought.
Although she saw through Jumeng’s fear of Zhang Hainan, she didn’t expose the stubbornness in Jumeng’s final stance. “Alright, you go back and play! Also, keep an eye on Wang Ying for me.”
Upon hearing Lu Yibei mention Wang Ying, Jumeng’s expression darkened.
She was also a little afraid of Wang Ying.
It was like how some little girls are afraid of huge worms—
After Jumeng excitedly exclaimed, “This family has Wang Ying but not me!” Lu Yibei spent a lot of effort explaining that Wang Ying was basically harmless, and finally managed to persuade her to coexist with Wang Ying in the same room.
On the way back to the Jingyi Apartment, after finishing the latter part of the story with Uncle Zhang Shan, Lu Yibei suddenly had a bold idea.
In the future, when riding with Uncle Zhang Shan, why not not finish telling the story in one go?
Dividing an urban legend event into prequels, sequels, and transactions to tell, wouldn’t that allow for more free rides?
As long as the chapters are appropriately broken, Uncle Zhang Shan would feel as if ants were crawling all over him while waiting for the next story, greatly stimulating his enthusiasm.
Having watched series and read novels for many years, Lu Yibei knew just how powerful well-practiced chapter-breaking techniques could be.
When leaving the Jingyi Apartment Complex, Lu Yibei didn’t continue riding Uncle Zhang Shan’s taxi but instead returned to Huacheng University, found the little scooter that had been stolen by the paper cicada, and rode it towards the Happy Neighborhood.
Jingyi Apartment Complex, Building 3, Room 903.
“I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid!”
After standing in front of the door and saying “I’m not afraid” three times, Jumeng finally took out the key Lu Yibei had given her and opened the door.
The little urban legends residing in Lu Yibei’s home hadn’t returned yet; the house was quiet, without the lights on, and the various furniture outlines could be vaguely seen in the darkness.
Jumeng stood at the door for a moment, seeing that nothing unusual was happening, she sighed in relief and walked inside, shutting the door behind her. With a click, she pressed the switch, illuminating the first floor of the apartment.
Jumeng changed into the peach-patterned slippers Lu Yibei had prepared for her, crossed the hallway, and as soon as she stepped into the living room, she froze in place.
She saw that Wang Ying, who should have been on the bedside table on the second floor, had somehow come down to the sofa, rolling around happily with headphones on, seemingly dancing along to the music in the headphones.
Jumeng, “???”
Isn’t this thing supposed to be conscious and asleep, almost equivalent to a lump of dead meat? This “is a lump of dead meat?!
Suddenly illuminated by the lights in the living room, upon noticing Jumeng’s presence, Wang Ying seemed startled, its round body stiffened, and it instantly collapsed on the sofa, unmoving.
As if it truly became the “lump of dead meat” Lu Yibei had described.
Jumeng…. “That b*stard Lu Yibei must have some misunderstanding about this ghostly thing. While it was indeed asleep earlier, it now seems to have some weak consciousness—
Riding her beloved little scooter on the way to the Happy Neighborhood, Lu Yibei began to attempt contacting Zhang Hainan through the paper cicada left in the Moon Gathering Cave.
In fact, before leaving the Dachunyang Palace, she originally had the opportunity to retrieve the paper cicada but intentionally chose not to. Although she could contact Zhang Hainan using the Cang Owl Badge, that method only worked when in human form.
Calling Zhang Hainan on his old phone was one way, but it didn’t rule out the possibility of someone with powers similar to the Void intercepting telephone communications, which wasn’t very secure.
Therefore, after becoming an urban legend, contacting Zhang Hainan through the paper cicada left in the Moon Gathering Cave was considered the safest and quickest method.
Focusing her mind to link with the paper cicada in the Moon Gathering Cave, scenes from the perspective of the paper cicada began to appear in Lu Yibei’s mind.
A pitch-black scene.
Presumably, it had been sealed away by Zhang Hainan in some sort of container.
Slightly controlling the paper cicada to move, she could feel the hard, cold inner walls of the container.
Then, as Lu Yibei concentrated, the paper cicada raised its short, stubby little hand and knocked hard on the container’s inner wall. Thud, thud, thud—!
Night fell, and the moonlight poured down like water from the sky to the earth.
On this moonlit night, no other matters occupied him; Zhang Hainan would typically stay in the Moon Gathering Cave, basking in the moonlight, and adjusting the spirit energy fluctuations within him.
Today, as usual, he sat cross-legged on the meditation mat by the window of the Moon Gathering Cave, just about to enter a trance when he heard rhythmic knocking sounds coming from the corner.
After distinguishing the source of the sound, he confirmed that it came from the metal box housing the paper cicada. Zhang Hainan, “”
Is that brat Lu Yibei?
Hmph, I knew it! He didn’t take the paper cicada with him when he left, and it’s not for nothing! I want to see what nonsense he’s up to!
As he pondered, Zhang Hainan walked toward the corner of the Moon Gathering Cave, took down the metal box etched with a simple sealing spell, infused spirit energy, and lifted the sealing spell.
In the next moment, the paper cicada jumped out of the small box like it had been unearthed, landing on the desk nearby, standing upright.
“Good evening, Senior Black Emperor, I’m Gu Qiqi! It’s been a while since we last spoke, but I hope everything is still the same?”
Thanks to your dumplings the other day, I’m doing quite well. Zhang Hainan suddenly realized that his guess was off. Lu Yibei wouldn’t contact him through the paper cicada; it could only be Gu Qiqi reaching out through it.
Zhang Hainan, “” “Different forms, different ways to connect? Hmph, quite meticulous!”
Just as he was grumbling in his heart, the paper cicada again relayed Gu Qiqi’s voice.
“Senior Black Emperor, there’s an urgent matter I want to discuss with you.”
Lu Yibei spent about five minutes elaborating on how the paper cicada she left at Huacheng University was corrupted by the Pink Fluffy Rabbit.
“That’s about it. Do you have any leads? Could it be that there was some oversight when sealing the Pink Fluffy Rabbit?”
“Do I make mistakes?!?” Zhang Hainan darkened his expression and replied coldly, “Have you ever considered that little b*stard Lu Yibei might be trying to use that method to escape schoolwork, getting himself grounded?”
Regarding the sealing he personally participated in, he had absolute confidence.
Not to mention, the combined sealing of three Cataclysm Grade beings could not possibly fail to contain an entity known as F; we might as well wait for d*ath together!
Lu Yibei,
After a brief silence, Zhang Hainan continued, “The F entity has indeed been securely sealed with no possibility of causing further disturbance, but the incident involving the F entity has a very wide impact, and the Siye Society can’t clean up the residual effects in a short time…”
Halfway through his words, Zhang Hainan paused to think for a moment, then added, “Based on what you described, I suspect that there are supernatural ability users or entities with powers similar to the F entity who have, through the individuals or objects corrupted by the F entity, intercepted some of its powers for their own use.”
“I’m already aware of the situation. You should keep a close watch on that paper cicada, and I will notify the Siye Society to begin investigations. When necessary, I might ask you for that paper cicada for research purposes.”
“Is there anything else?”
“Nothing else, senior.” Lu Yibei replied.
“Then you can withdraw!” Zhang Hainan said. “By the way, tell that little b*stard Lu Yibei that next time he comes to Dachunyang Palace, I’ll treat him to dumplings.”
Lu Yibei, “” “Seriously? This old man actually holds a grudge too?”
