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"T-They're smashing stones with their heads?"
Jing Yuan's eyes twitched. Even with his extraordinary composure, he found it hard to keep a straight face.
He even wondered if he was hallucinating from worrying too much about Luofu's safety.
Does even an Aeon have to perform on the streets to survive now?
At least compared to them, his own situation seemed far better.
But then he reminded himself—this Aeon… THEY are Aha.
Well… maybe this actually counts as normal behavior?
He exchanged glances with those around him.
Amid the mutual astonishment, they passed their strained expressions to one another.
Only then did Jing Yuan feel reassured that his hearing was still intact.
Aha is really performing on the streets of Exalting Sanctum!
Lingsha took a moment to process the news before she cautiously said, "The Joyseeker really is… unconventional, mingling with the people."
Then she glanced at the others and noticed the subtle relaxation in their eyes.
Yes, this seemingly absurd information carried a critical message.
This was indisputably good news.
Although no one expected an Aeon to behave so recklessly, on the other hand, the fact that the Joyseeker could cheerfully perform on the streets suggested that THEY bore no grudge over Tail's slip of the tongue—at the very least, there was no intent to retaliate.
This was incredible news; the situation was essentially half-resolved.
"Yet it is rather surprising that the Joyseeker has such playful tastes."
"Indeed."
Sylvester shrugged helplessly, as if saying there was nothing, he could do about Aha: "I just said it casually, didn't think THEY would actually take it seriously."
Jing Yuan, Lingsha, Xueyi, and the others turned sharply to look at him.
So, it was your idea?!
You brought Aha here?
Jing Yuan, a seasoned general, quickly regained his composure.
As for the next step, he already had a plan forming behind his narrowed eyes.
He bowed slightly to Sylvester: "Shopkeeper Sylvester, would you be so kind as to make an introduction?"
"That's easy enough."
Sylvester nodded, his hands idle anyway.
At the central plaza of Exalting Sanctum, the sun had just set. Guinaifen had set up two spotlights, illuminating herself and her newly acquainted companions brightly.
They adjusted their hair and lightly brushed their clothes. It was clear—they had barely finished one performance before immediately starting a second.
She raised the microphone and shouted, "Hey! Fans! Next up, Little Guinaifen's intimate partner, our lively and adorable Hahaha, the embodiment of the Aeon of Elation, will give some gifts to those who've tipped!"
Guinaifen handed the microphone to a radiant woman in a cat-ear maid outfit, her fingers lightly covered in sheer gloves.
The microphone twirled lightly in her hand.
With one hand on her hip and the other raised high, she flicked her wrist, and the section of sky illuminated by the spotlights suddenly exploded into multicolored light, followed by a rain of fireworks without gunpowder.
Amid the colors, faint black humanoid silhouettes could be seen, each holding countless masks.
The shadows tossed the masks into the sky, which scattered among the crowd.
Aha's clone shouted through the microphone, "Hey, dear fans, cheer as loud as you like! Ah-ha!"
"Ah-ha!" The gathered crowd cheered in response, some standing on tiptoe, some jumping high to catch the masks.
A fox-person man held a mask in awe: "They can really create something from nothing. I thought the Joyseeker's avatar was just for show. Now… maybe it's real!"
"Hey hey hey, what are you doing?" his companion nudged him. "Don't put it on me, I haven't grabbed one yet."
"Why not?" he puffed out his chest proudly. "This is from the Joyseeker!"
He put on the mask and returned to the cheering throng.
After a while, seeing that most of the crowd had masks, Aha raised THEIR hand, and their amplified voice rang through the speakers.
"I said, laugh heartily!"
As if imbued with a peculiar magic, the crowd erupted in laughter.
"Hahaha!" The plaza was instantly filled with joy.
Aha watched the scene, very satisfied.
Partly for amusement, and partly because this also increased THEIR strength.
If one trained in destiny the human way, it would take ages to grow strong.
Thankfully, THEY lacked no authority over Elation.
Creating joy and converting it into personal power was THEIR privilege.
This gathering alone yielded more than a month of grueling training.
Next came improvisational interaction with the audience.
After a while, Guinaifen began announcing the end: "Friends, if you enjoyed today's performance, don't forget to tip! Tomorrow at the same time, I, Lil Gui, and Haha will bring an even more spectacular show!"
"Finally, anyone who wants a photo with Miss Haha can queue here. 1,200 Credits per photo."
"1,200 Credits—you can't get a better deal! You can't be cheated; you can only get a thousandth of a Trash Can. But here, you can take a photo with the embodiment of the Aeon of Elation! The first 100 get a free autograph, first come first served!"
Upon hearing this, the already excitable crowd surged toward the center of the plaza.
"Give me an autograph! I was first! I've been a fan of Hahaha for ten years!"
"Bullshit, you just got a discarded Jade Abacus from your elder yesterday. You're too young to chase idols—you need Uncle to handle it."
"How old are you anyway? Besides, your aunt only gives you 600 Credits as pocket money per month. Can you even pay 1,200?"
"Hey kid, I'll show you today." The middle-aged man scraped six hundred credits out from his shoe sole: "Now that's enough, even plenty."
The crowd surged forward, leaving Jing Yuan and the others dumbfounded, like shells left on the beach after the tide receded.
To avoid confusion, they had already dismissed the rest of the Cloud Knights.
Yet seeing a human wall tens of meters thick, they hesitated.
After a long moment, Jing Yuan let out a resigned smile.
"Let's go too. For the safety of Luofu."
He bowed slightly to Sylvester: "Shopkeeper Sylvester, we'll be relying on your connections for the introduction."
"Consider it done."
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