*Thud!* *Thud!* *Thud!*
A few minutes later, as Lucian was in the middle of demonstrating his manly prowess to his two thirsty foxian wives, a series of firm knocks suddenly echoed from the office door, breaking the otherwise intimate rhythm that had filled the room.
"General Feixiao, the Yaoqing procurement project report needs your signature and seal."
Jiaoqiu's calm voice came from outside, but he did not enter directly.
It was only natural, considering it was still working hours, and proper etiquette between superior and subordinate had to be observed. Without receiving permission, even someone as close to Feixiao as Jiaoqiu would never casually enter the Arbiter-General's office.
Feixiao, who had been completely immersed in the love-making, flinched in surprise at the unexpected interruption.
Yet the sudden reaction only caused Lucian, who was smashing her from behind, to lift the corner of his lips into a faint, amused smile as he continued without slowing down in the slightest.
"I'm busy right now. I'll sign it later!"
Feixiao raised her voice and shouted back with heavy breath without even turning around, her answer arriving almost immediately.
"But it's urgent..."
Jiaoqiu's tone carried a trace of helplessness.
"Have General Yueyu sign it!"
As soon as those words left Feixiao's mouth, Yueyu, sitting beside her, immediately shot her a sharp glare that was filled with equal parts annoyance and disbelief.
Left with no other choice, Yueyu quickly composed herself, smoothing out her slightly disheveled clothes and making certain that her appearance was perfectly neat before calmly getting up to deal with the paperwork.
Meanwhile, Feixiao merely stuck out her tongue mischievously at Yueyu, looking completely unapologetic before lowering her head once more and continuing to savor the nostalgic pleasure she had long craved, as though nothing had happened.
When Yueyu stepped out of the office, she was greeted by the familiar sight of the foxian physician standing patiently outside with his usual half-closed eyes and gentle smile.
It was the very physician who had once accompanied her through countless brutal campaigns across the battlefield, tending to the wounded while calmly enduring the chaos of war beside her.
"General Yueyu, what is General Feixiao doing? Is she really that busy?"
Jiaoqiu asked curiously.
He was not trying to interfere with her work.
He was simply curious.
What kind of task could possibly leave Feixiao without even enough time to sign a report that required the Arbiter-General's authorization?
"Nothing much. Right now, she's practicing calligraphy with me, so she can't afford to lose her concentration."
Yueyu answered in a perfectly composed tone, deliberately leaving Lucian out of the explanation.
It was only natural, as there was no possible way she could tell Jiaoqiu that the three of them were actually making love together inside the office during working hours.
"Mm, that makes sense..." Jiaoqiu nodded in understanding before smiling as he handed the report over. "Calligraphy is just like cooking—it requires complete focus. Even a slight distraction can ruin the entire process."
Yueyu accepted the report, swiftly signed Feixiao's authorization in the designated place, then carefully stamped it with the Arbiter-General's official seal before handing it back to him.
"Done. Delay anything else that can wait. For the next few system hours, don't let anyone disturb us. It's rare for Feixiao to finally devote her attention to cultural studies, so we can't let her lose focus."
Jiaoqiu found Yueyu's reasoning perfectly reasonable.
After all, Feixiao usually spent nearly all of her time training, fighting, or charging headfirst into battle. Since she had finally calmed down enough to devote herself to practicing calligraphy of all things, interrupting her now would indeed be inappropriate.
"Understood. I'll let everyone know. No one will disturb your calligraphy practice."
With his trademark squinting smile still resting on his face, Jiaoqiu gave a respectful nod before turning around and walking away down the corridor.
Only after confirming that Jiaoqiu had completely disappeared into the distance did Yueyu cautiously glance around the quiet corridor once more.
After making absolutely certain that no one else was nearby and that nobody had witnessed their conversation, she quietly slipped back into the office, locked the door from the inside, and returned to Lucian's side.
And so, the so-called 'calligraphy practice' quietly resumed, and it continued uninterrupted for an unknown length of time.
===
Early the following day, three unexpected visitors quietly arrived at the Xianzhou Luofu.
They were the Stellaron Hunters who had come to 'gather intelligence' while also 'visiting an old friend'—Kafka and Blade—as well as Silver Wolf, who had enthusiastically tagged along to 'experience the service.'
Although each of them had their own reasons for making the trip, all three ultimately shared the same destination.
"Why're we sneaking in?" Silver Wolf lazily sucked on her lollipop as she looked around at the quiet surroundings. "Why don't we just tell Lucian we're here to visit?"
"We're wanted criminals," Blade answered without the slightest hesitation. "If we enter through the main gate, people will say she's sheltering fugitives. Sneaking in means that even if we're discovered, she can deny any involvement. We won't cause her trouble."
"Wow, who would've thought you'd be this considerate?" Silver Wolf blinked in obvious surprise before grinning mischievously. "Let's just hope Lucian gets what you're trying to do."
"What's Lucian got to do with it?" Blade frowned slightly. "I'm worried about causing trouble for Baiheng."
Silver Wolf immediately burst into an amused grin.
"Heh, just wait till Lucian kicks us out."
"Don't worry," Kafka chimed in as she gracefully adjusted the collar of her jacket before smiling with her usual composed elegance. "We've come with 'sincerity' and 'greetings.' He won't mind if we climb over the wall."
Whether those words were meant to reassure Silver Wolf or simply amuse herself was impossible to tell.
Just like that, the three quietly slipped into the Fyxestroll Garden, avoiding the main streets and patrol routes before making their way directly toward Lucian's residence.
However, before they even had a chance to properly look around the courtyard, a calm voice as clear and tranquil as moonlight drifted over from a nearby pavilion.
"No need to sneak around. Since you've come, you might as well enter through the front gate."
Dressed in flowing white robes, Jingliu sat alone inside the pavilion in the courtyard, calmly wiping her sword with a clean cloth as though she had anticipated their arrival long ago.
She never even bothered to raise her head, her full attention remaining fixed upon the cold gleam of the blade resting in her hands, her movements steady and unhurried.
"W-What the hell?!"
Silver Wolf jumped in fright, nearly swallowing her lollipop whole.
"Jingliu? So you knew Blade would definitely show up."
Kafka remained completely composed and simply gave Jingliu a slight nod in greeting.
Jingliu slowly raised her crimson eyes.
Those crimson eyes, which had once struck terror into countless enemies across innumerable battlefields, calmly swept over Kafka and Silver Wolf before finally settling upon Blade, whose entire body had instinctively tensed the moment their gazes met.
Unlike what Blade had expected, however, there was no killing intent within those crimson eyes.
No hatred.
Not even much emotion.
There was only a quiet calm that seemed to have weathered the passage of countless years.
It was as though she were looking at... a familiar stranger.
"Blade won't come. But Yingxing certainly will."
Jingliu's simple sentence struck like a key turning inside a long-forgotten lock, violently prying open the memories and emotional floodgates that Blade—or rather, Yingxing—had sealed away for centuries beneath layers upon layers of hatred and madness.
In an instant, his entire body shuddered violently.
Pain.
Longing.
Regret.
Self-blame.
Countless conflicting emotions surged through his crimson eyes all at once, crashing together like an unstoppable tidal wave that threatened to consume his reason.
Kafka's expression immediately tightened as she quietly prepared herself to suppress Blade's mara-struck state with Spirit Whisper if necessary. Although she remained outwardly calm, she did not lower her guard for even a moment.
Blade slowly parted his lips, only to find himself unable to speak.
Centuries of pursuit, endless suffering, unbearable guilt, consuming hatred, and the constant torment of being mara-struck had left too many words buried within his heart.
Every apology he had never spoken.
Every regret he had refused to acknowledge.
Every question that had lingered unanswered for hundreds of years.
All of those emotions became countless words lodged inside his throat, refusing to come out.
In the end, everything condensed into the single question that had haunted him for hundreds of years.
"Baiheng... is it really her? Yesterday... the voice I heard..."
Blade feared it had only been another hallucination born from his mara-struck state. He was afraid of allowing himself to cling to hope once more, only to be cast back into despair when reality shattered it again.
Jingliu gently set down the cloth she had been using to wipe her sword before directing her calm gaze toward the corridor that stretched deeper into the courtyard.
"Yes, she was brought back to life, and she's living well."
Her voice remained calm and emotionless, yet those simple words completely confirmed the answer Blade had longed to hear for so many years.
Ever since Lucian had changed Jingliu's fate, her outlook on life had gradually changed as well.
Now, the resentment she had once harbored toward Yingxing and Dan Feng had faded considerably, while the obsession that had once driven her to stab Yingxing hundreds of times with her sword no longer held the same weight within her heart.
Just then, a lively and cheerful voice drifted over from the distance before rapidly drawing closer.
"Jingliu~! Jingliu~! I picked up a new position from this book! When Lucian gets back, I'm totally gonna..."
Holding an erotic novel in her hands, Baiheng happily skipped into the courtyard with an excited smile. However, the moment she noticed the unexpected visitors standing outside the pavilion, she abruptly froze in place.
Almost instinctively, she hurriedly hid the erotic novel behind her back, her fluffy fox tail stiffening slightly as her entire face flushed a bright crimson with embarrassment.
Jingliu quietly rubbed her forehead, unable to hide the helpless expression that spread across her face.
As a proper adult, the least Baiheng could do was check whether there were any guests nearby before blurting out something like that. She truly wasn't afraid of letting everyone know what a naughty little fox she had become behind closed doors.
Silver Wolf and Kafka exchanged a knowing glance.
Without needing to say another word, they both understood that Blade's old friend was genuinely living a happy, carefree, and fulfilling life.
However, a new position?
Baiheng and Lucian certainly knew how to keep 'things' between them interesting.
Blade, however, never let his thoughts wander that far.
At this moment, the only thing he cared about was whether Baiheng had truly returned.
Seeing Baiheng standing there alive and well—laughing, talking, blushing with embarrassment, and even secretly reading an erotic novel—he felt as though time itself had completely stopped.
In an instant, Blade's crimson eyes trembled ever so slightly as countless memories from centuries ago surged uncontrollably through his mind. For a brief moment, he had completely forgotten how to breathe.
Baiheng blinked her bright, lively eyes as her soft fox ears twitched gently atop her head. Looking back and forth between the visitors and the book hidden behind her back, she gave an awkward yet innocent smile.
"Oh my, we've got guests... By the way, what I meant just now was new knowledge, not a new position!"
===
[A bonus chapter for reaching 400 Power Stones]
[Support and get early access to upcoming chapters at: patreon.com/VALRRR]