Speaking of which, after all the major things I've done, the system should have distributed the emotion points, right?
[Ding... Emotion Value has accumulated to 200,000.]
The system appeared at just the right moment, answering Wende's question.
200,000? Why so much? Wende wondered in surprise.
"Well… we're leaving now. You need to rest and get better. We'll come see you after we've solved the Xianzhou's problems, okay…"
March 7th said to Wende, full of reluctance.
"Alright, alright, you're talking as if you'll never see me again after this."
Little Wende looked at the downcast Stelle and March and spoke to them with a smile.
"Come back soon, and you might even make it for dinner."
"Okay, then we're off!"
March nodded, then pulled the still-reluctant Stelle out of Wende's room.
Watching their departing figures, Wende shook his head. He hoped that on this Trailblazing journey without him, they wouldn't run into any trouble…
No, wait.
Wende suddenly thought of something, then smiled with relief.
"Nothing was ever going to happen to them in the first place. Looks like I was overthinking things."
Little Wende shook his head in Tingyun's arms, completely oblivious to the fact that the face of the woman behind him was starting to flush…
---o---
After feeding the little Wende in her arms until he was full, Tingyun watched him doze off in her embrace and smiled softly. She then picked him up and placed him on the bed.
"As expected, children are always sleepy…" Tingyun whispered, looking at Wende's sleeping face. But she knew the truth: it was because Wende had over-expended his energy, and his body was becoming lethargic to conserve what little power he had left…
She gently took Wende's small hand and placed it over her own heart…
Within Tingyun's body, a Yin-Yang symbol was slowly rotating… Because of Wende's all-out rescue, her body had been reforged from the marrow out by the power of Yin and Yang…
Under his influence, the gate to a brand new Path had opened for her.
"Honestly, my benefactor is so foolish… why work so hard…"
Tingyun slowly transferred the Yin-Yang energy she had accumulated during this time to the little Wende on the bed. Seeing his slightly furrowed brow, her heart ached.
She desperately wanted to smooth it away for him…
Little Wende slept until the afternoon. During that time, the Dragon Lady and Fu Xuan came to check on him once. They concluded that he was in the process of recovering his strength, and then they left.
After he briefly woke up to eat dinner and fell back into a deep sleep, Tingyun swapped shifts with another female Cloud Knight. This was the same one who had temporarily helped her look after little Wende before. Tingyun found her to be a gentle person, so she requested from the Master Diviner that this Cloud Knight be assigned to help her care for him.
And so, Tingyun took care of little Wende during the day, while the "Cloud Knight" protected him at night. The two divided the labor reasonably, providing the same level of care for the unconscious Wende.
Under the moonlight, Jingliu looked at the little Wende sleeping peacefully in her arms and couldn't help but sigh.
She never thought the treatment method she had once conceived of would actually be useful now… Moreover… under Wende's absorption, the shackles of the Mara-Struck state seemed to be slowly weakening, along with her hatred…
She could feel that as Wende endlessly drew the Yin energy from her body, the [Curse] was being drawn out along with it…
Stroking Wende's little head, Jingliu looked at the person in her arms with helplessness in her crimson eyes. Now… her original plan had been completely disrupted. That [Seal] was useless to her now.
Within Jingliu's sea of consciousness, a small Yin-Yang symbol slowly revolved, though it did not attract her attention.
Thus, Tingyun transferred Yang energy to little Wende during the day, and Jingliu transferred Yin energy to him at night. The two worked in an orderly fashion, achieving a certain kind of [Equilibrium] between them.
---o---
In a dark corner of the universe…
"What do you intend to do?"
"Provide him with some necessary assistance. On the day he awakens, he will thank me."
"But he has not yet reached the time to make a choice."
"This… is part of the plan."
"Heh heh, you are seeking death."
"As are you."
"Fun! You two are so boring. Playing the part of riddle-masters? How interesting!"
---o---
Simulated Universe. Aeon Chatroom
[Harmony]: I sense his presence?
[Destruction]: Hmph.
---o---
"...He's here."
Blade put down his game console. Seeing Dan Heng arriving by skiff, a monstrous killing intent surged in his eyes.
"You really kept us waiting. The others have already gone in…"
Kafka stretched her limbs, a hint of dissatisfaction in her beautiful eyes. Although this was fated to happen, playing games with Blade while waiting… it would kill anyone's good mood, wouldn't it?
"Mm, as expected, the tail has followed him."
Kafka looked at the figure chasing after the skiff Dan Heng was on, her expression showing she had anticipated this.
"Just a wet-behind-the-ears brat. No matter. Since it's a long-awaited reunion, allow me to properly introduce them… to who 'he' is!"
Sitting at the prow of the skiff and looking at the familiar figure on the shore, Dan Heng frowned, his expression turning grim.
He had just come from the Alchemy Commission, never expecting such a thing to happen there… That figure had deliberately lured him to a remote place, making him search for a long time, before finally guiding him here… Just what did he want?
Thinking of Wende, whose body had regressed to that of a child and who was still unconscious (napping), Dan Heng couldn't help but tighten his grip on Cloud-Piercer…
High above the Scalegorge Waterscape, Jing Yuan stood with his hands behind his back, looking down at the long-waiting Stellaron Hunters and the two skiffs approaching.
He shook his head wordlessly, his heart filled with a hundred different emotions.
But now was not the time for sentimentality.
Looking at the Ambrosial Arbor not far away, Jing Yuan's heart was incomparably firm.
First, he would eradicate the Luofu's current hidden danger. As for other matters… they could be discussed later!
"Sigh…"
He let out a long sigh, reining in his emotions.
"It seems the position of General really will have to be passed to Fu Xuan. My time for retirement is approaching…"
With a self-deprecating smile, Jing Yuan began to descend.