"Lucian, she was bullying me just now! Hurry up and teach her a lesson!"
Silver Wolf wrapped herself around one of Lucian's arms without hesitation, pointed accusingly at Phantylia, and complained in an aggrieved voice, as though she had truly suffered a terrible injustice.
Lucian raised an eyebrow as he looked down at Silver Wolf.
What was with this clingy little girlfriend act?
Silver Wolf had suddenly rushed over, latched onto his arm without hesitation, and immediately started complaining to him the moment she arrived.
Anyone who didn't know better would probably think she was the mistress he had secretly been keeping on the side.
Silver Wolf, however, had absolutely no such thoughts since she was simply furious with Phantylia and wanted Lucian to help her get even.
"Lucian! Hurry up and tell her! We're the best partners in the whole universe, right?"
"Haha, yep—the best partners in the whole universe."
Lucian let out an amused laugh. He casually patted Silver Wolf's hand, then turned his gaze toward Phantylia.
"Take good care of my partner."
Only then did Phantylia obediently lower her head, concealing the faint dissatisfaction that had briefly flashed through her eyes.
"Yes, Master."
However, the moment her gaze shifted back toward Silver Wolf, the obedience in her expression instantly gave way to barely concealed disdain.
"Please, this way, Miss Silver Wolf. I shall personally serve you."
Even though she said those words respectfully, her thoughts were another matter entirely.
'Tsk, so their relationship is actually that good. Looks like this shorty got lucky.'
Seeing Phantylia being forced to swallow her pride and obediently serve her made Silver Wolf grin from ear to ear as the frustration she had been feeling earlier instantly vanished, replaced by a deep sense of satisfaction.
"Lead the way. My legs are kinda tired from all that walking, so you gotta give them a proper massage."
Silver Wolf finally released Lucian's arm, then proudly lifted her chin and spoke in an almost commanding tone, behaving as though this were her own house and Phantylia were merely her personal attendant.
For Lucian's sake, Phantylia could only suppress the annoyance building inside her. Maintaining a respectful expression, she obediently led Silver Wolf away to enjoy a proper massage.
Lucian's arrival subtly changed the atmosphere in the courtyard once again.
He casually walked over to Baiheng and Jingliu, naturally slipping an arm around each of their waists as though the gesture had become second nature. After pulling the two women closer to his sides, he turned his attention toward Blade and Kafka.
"Here to check up on how the Luofu's holding up? I already told you, there's no need to worry about the script. Whatever Stelle's missing, I can provide it."
Hearing Lucian's confident words, Kafka calmly met his gaze.
"At this point, I don't doubt that."
Her expression remained composed as she spoke, and there was no longer any obvious doubt in her eyes.
Blade, meanwhile, silently took a deep breath before stepping forward, his eyes resting on Lucian and filled with emotions too complicated to describe. His gaze held gratitude, relief, and even a trace of bitterness lingering deep within it, as though countless thoughts had surfaced all at once but could not be put into words.
"Lucian... thank you..."
Blade respectfully bowed and expressed his gratitude, though his voice remained as hoarse and rough as ever.
"Thank you for saving Baiheng... and for taking Jingliu in. I'll never forget this kindness."
After a brief pause, his gaze slowly drifted toward Baiheng, who was leaning comfortably against Lucian. A radiant smile rested on her face, and the genuine happiness shining in her eyes made it clear that she was living a life she had never expected to have again.
"Please... take good care of them."
Throughout his long life, the person Blade had always felt he owed the most was Baiheng.
He had failed to protect her in the past, and the guilt of losing her had remained buried deep within his heart for countless years. Now that she had returned and was standing safely before him once more, he could finally see her smiling again.
"Do you even gotta say that?" Lucian cracked a faint smile and wrapped his arms a little tighter around the two women, pulling Baiheng and Jingliu closer against his sides. "They're my wife, so yep, of course I'm gonna take better care of them than anyone else."
As he spoke, his words carried absolute confidence, as though there were no room whatsoever for doubt. At the same time, there was an unmistakable possessiveness hidden beneath his calm tone, making it clear that Baiheng and Jingliu were already someone he considered his entirely.
Inwardly, however, Lucian felt that something was somewhat off as he continued gazing at Blade.
'...Something's kinda off about the way this kid's looking at Baiheng.'
'It's one thing for old friends to reunite, but why does he look like he just can't bring himself to let her go?'
'Nope... I gotta completely crush whatever hope he's still hanging onto.'
'Still... seeing how pitiful and lonely he looks... maybe... I should find someone for him...'
As the idea gradually took shape in his mind, Lucian's smile grew even brighter, making the increasingly friendly expression on his face seem unusually approachable, though no one present knew what strange thought had just crossed his mind.
"Come to think of it, Yingxing, you're still single. You don't even have someone by your side looking out for you. Nope, that won't do, so how about... I find you a good match? I've got a pretty good eye for this kinda stuff."
"???"
For several seconds, Blade's mind went completely blank.
He had stepped forward with the intention of sincerely expressing his heartfelt gratitude.
Why had Lucian suddenly switched to playing matchmaker?
Aside from Blade, the others were equally stunned.
Baiheng blinked in confusion, while Jingliu and Kafka exchanged brief glances. None of them understood where this conversation had suddenly come from or how Lucian had gone from accepting Blade's gratitude to discussing his marriage prospects.
Still, if Lucian was saying it, there was probably some deeper reason behind it.
Meanwhile, the more Lucian thought about the idea, the more brilliant it seemed.
The plan quickly became increasingly convincing in his mind, and he even nodded to himself in satisfaction, as though he had just solved a difficult problem.
"So, do you want a wife or not? If you do, I'll go get you one right away."
Before anyone had the chance to react—or before Blade could even answer—Lucian's figure flickered.
He activated Absolute Hit and disappeared from the courtyard without another word, leaving behind only a faint disturbance in the air.
Silence instantly fell over the courtyard.
Everyone stared at the empty space where he had been standing only moments earlier. No one spoke for several seconds, while Blade remained rooted in place, thoroughly bewildered and increasingly convinced that something terrible was about to happen.
Lucian, meanwhile, already had a very clear destination in mind.
===
A moment later, Lucian appeared inside the Parlor Car of the Astral Express.
However, only Welt Yang was there.
Himeko, March, Stelle, and Evernight were still wandering around the Exalting Sanctum on the Xianzhou Luofu, sightseeing, taking pictures, and activating Space Anchors as they explored the bustling area, so at the moment, only Welt, Dan Heng, and Pom-Pom remained aboard the train.
"Lucian? Have everyone finished exploring?"
Welt asked in surprise as he turned toward Lucian.
"Not yet. I came back to pick up Dan Heng."
Lucian answered calmly before heading directly toward the data bank room in the Passenger Cabin.
As soon as he opened the door, Lucian found Dan Heng standing in front of a terminal, quietly organizing and reviewing the Astral Express's records.
Hearing the door open, Dan Heng looked up, a trace of confusion appearing in his eyes when he saw Lucian standing at the entrance.
"Hm? Do you need something?"
"Yeah."
Lucian strode over with a grin and enthusiastically threw an arm around Dan Heng's shoulders, acting as though they were close friends who had known each other for years.
"Something huge."
Hearing that, Dan Heng's body stiffened almost immediately.
For reasons he couldn't explain, every instinct in his body was telling him to get away from Lucian as quickly as possible.
"What is it?"
"Dan Heng, I've got an awesome gift for you. C'mon, come with me."
"What kind of gift?"
"A gift that'll let you leave the past behind and start a whole new life. You keep dreaming about Dan Feng, don't you? I'll make you become the real Dan Heng, so you'll never have to live in Dan Feng's shadow again."
When Dan Heng heard those words, his expression visibly changed.
Ever since awakening, fragments of another life had constantly appeared in his dreams. A High Elder named Dan Feng had remained buried deep within his memories like an unshakable shadow that he could neither escape nor erase.
Blade, Jingliu, Jing Yuan—every one of them insisted that he was Dan Feng.
Because of that, trouble had never stopped finding him.
Blade wanted to kill him, while Jingliu had repeatedly forced him into battle as well. Even after leaving the Xianzhou Luofu, the shadow of Dan Feng continued to follow him, refusing to let him live peacefully.
More than anything else, Dan Heng wanted to cast off Dan Feng's shadow and live a life that truly belonged to Dan Heng alone.
"You can really help me?"
At Dan Heng's question, Lucian looked him straight in the eye, his expression becoming unexpectedly serious.
"What do I get outta lying to you? You only get one shot, so what's it gonna be?"
Dan Heng remained silent for several long seconds, his gaze lowering slightly as countless thoughts flashed through his mind.
In the end, the temptation to finally understand his past and resolve the burden that had haunted him for so long proved too great to ignore.
"...Alright."
Dan Heng slowly stood up and turned toward Lucian.
"Please help me."
Lucian immediately smiled and firmly patted him on the shoulder.
"You made the right choice."
As soon as he finished speaking, Absolute Hit activated once more.
Space distorted around them, and the next instant, both of them disappeared from the Astral Express.
===
Back in the courtyard of Lucian's residence on the Xianzhou Luofu, both Lucian and Dan Heng appeared just beyond the pavilion where the others were gathered.
With Kafka and Blade still turning their backs on them, Lucian pointed directly at Blade before speaking earnestly to the bewildered Dan Heng.
"Dan Heng, look. Four members of the High-Cloud Quintet are all together now. Jingliu and Baiheng already started a family with me. Yingxing and Dan Feng gotta get started too. Surprised? Didn't see that coming? Touched?"
"!!!"
As soon as his eyes landed on that all-too-familiar gloomy figure, Dan Heng's entire body froze solid.
Almost instinctively, Cloud-Piercer materialized in his hand. Inside his head, countless thoughts exploded all at once, and every warning instinct in his body began screaming at him to run.
'Is this the gift you were talking about? A surprise? It's a nightmare! He's the guy who's been chasing me down!'
Almost at the same moment that thought emerged in Dan Heng's mind, Blade, who had been standing in the courtyard, sensed a familiar presence that had been engraved into his very soul.
He abruptly turned around, and in that instant, their eyes met.
Amid the suddenly deathly silent courtyard, Blade's eyes instantly turned bloodshot, while Dan Heng's face became deathly pale.
For a brief moment, neither of them moved.
"Huh? He looks just like Dan Feng, but he doesn't have any dragon horns..."
Baiheng blinked in surprise as she carefully examined Dan Heng.
Jingliu, on the other hand, remained silent and narrowed her eyes.
Honestly, she had not expected Lucian to bring Dan Heng here, especially at a time like this. Given the current situation, this was probably the absolute worst possible timing for Dan Heng to appear.
"IMBIBITOR LUNAEEE—!!!"
Blade suddenly roared, his voice echoing throughout the courtyard.
At some point, a sword had already appeared in his hand.
It was a shattered sword.
Although it had been repaired countless times over the years, the deep cracks running across its blade remained impossible to hide.
Needless to say, the damaged weapon carried the scars of countless battles, much like the person wielding it.
"Imbibitor Lunae? Ah, so he's the reincarnation of Dan Feng everyone was talking about?"
Baiheng still hadn't fully understood what was happening, though she had finally figured out who Dan Heng was.
Blade, however, had already reached his limit.
Just as Baiheng's words fell, he charged straight toward Dan Heng without another word, raising his shattered sword high as killing intent erupted from his body.
"Lucian, what exactly are you trying to—"
Dan Heng didn't even have time to finish questioning Lucian before Blade's sword descended toward him.
Instinctively, Dan Heng raised Cloud-Piercer to block the attack.
*DING!*
Steel collided with steel, producing a deafening metallic ring that echoed throughout the courtyard.
Just as everyone expected, the moment Blade and Dan Heng met, they immediately started fighting without exchanging another word.
Lucian, however, quietly stepped aside, leisurely walked into the pavilion, and calmly took a seat on a bench.
Just like that, he simply watched the two battle with killing intent, showing absolutely no interest in stopping the fight or interfering with their clash.
"Is this the good match you were talking about for Bladie?" Kafka looked at him with genuine curiosity. "How exactly is Dan Heng a good match?"
Honestly, she hadn't expected someone as powerful as Lucian to possess such unbelievably bizarre tastes.
"Of course it's not Dan Heng..."
Lucian shook his head and paused before a knowing grin slowly spread across his face.
"Since the ship I support is Dan Feng and Yingxing."
===
[A bonus chapter for reaching 400 Power Stones]
[Support and get early access to upcoming chapters at: patreon.com/VALRRR]