This is how Fu Xuan had always seen Bai Heng:
Easy on the eyes, not a bad bone in his body, polite to a fault. A bit on the lazy side, sure, but overall a decent sort.
But she never, ever would have guessed.
This man, who'd left a rather favorable impression on her, was capable of uttering such… such shameless words!
"Calculate your romantic fortune?" Fu Xuan let out a cold laugh, her gaze towards Bai Heng shifting in a subtle, unmistakable way.
The corners of her eyes lifted slightly, her pupils drifting a little to the left.
Yes, that's right. It was the look one reserves for garbage.
"If my memory serves, just recently you were touring the skies with your little lady friend, weren't you? I even provided the tickets for the Spring Lantern Festival!"
"Hardly any time has passed since she left, and you're already hunting for your next 'romantic fortune'?"
"I truly never imagined that beneath that gentle and mild exterior, you'd be a complete and utter scoundrel when it comes to matters of the heart."
She punctuated her words by shooting him a particularly sharp glare.
Bai Heng: "..."
Alright, so he knew it was a misunderstanding, but he couldn't for the life of him figure out how to refute it...
"Furthermore, this is not some street-side fortune-telling stall. You can't just waltz in and demand a reading whenever you please."
"One large cup of Great Snow King tea, three times a day—morning, noon, and night. For a full month." Bai Heng stated his offer with a completely straight face.
The moment the words left his mouth, the proud expression on the Diviner's face visibly wavered.
"A... a whole month!"
But quickly, her professional integrity and sheer disdain for scoundrels cooled her rising excitement.
The Diviner gave a light cough, tilted her chin with its delicate curve, and sniffed disdainfully.
"Hmph... Don't think you can bribe me with such petty tricks."
"The divinations I perform are derived from the Matrix of Prescience Ultima. Both the process and the outcome are meticulously precise. Do you truly believe a few cups of tea are enough to warrant tapping into such computational power? You sorely underestimate me~"
"Two months! With door-to-door delivery!"
"Deal!"
With a light clap of Bai Heng's hands, Diviner Fu agreed with startling alacrity.
Bai Heng: "?????"
What happened to the professional integrity you were just clinging to?
With the bribe... ahem, transaction complete, Fu Xuan wasted no more words. Her slender, jade-like fingers pinched together lightly, and she closed her eyes.
A moment later, her golden pupils slowly opened, and her tone took on a teasing note.
"I'm afraid you're to be disappointed. No romantic fortune awaits you in the near future."
Hearing this, it was as if a great weight had been lifted from his chest. Bai Heng let out a long, deep sigh of relief, his face the very picture of utter contentment.
Seeing his reaction, a large, visible question mark formed on Diviner Fu's face.
What was this?
Logically, shouldn't Bai Heng be utterly disappointed? Why did he look so… relieved?
Could it be… that I actually misjudged him?
Was he, in fact, a deeply devoted soul, committed to that one girl for life? And his query about a 'romantic fortune' wasn't about seeking a new one, but rather, inquiring about the future of his existing relationship?
Before Fu Xuan could reason it out, Bai Heng had already slipped his hands into his sleeves, smiled faintly, and gave her a slight bow.
"I am in your debt for this divination, Diviner. I shall certainly fulfill my promise. For the next two months, I will have someone deliver the tea to the Divination Commission promptly, right on schedule."
Hearing this, the Diviner seemed to envision the coming months, each day accompanied by the Great Snow King tea. A satisfied smile touched her lips as she gave a slight nod.
"Very well. If there's nothing else, I shall take my leave."
So saying, she picked up the freshly packed tea she had just acquired and prepared to depart.
But as she reached the door, Fu Xuan seemed to remember something. She turned slightly and asked,
"By the way, are you planning to travel far recently?"
Puzzled by the sudden question, Bai Heng shook his head in confusion as his answer.
"That's strange then. If you're not traveling, why would the divination show such a sign..."
"What sign did you see, Diviner?" Bai Heng asked curiously.
"'Possessing sincerity, yet leaving in apprehension, accords with the will above.'"
"The fourth six, yao: Possessing sincerity. Blood and anxiety depart. No blame."
"Diviner... please, speak plainly." Bombarded by a string of incomprehensible professional terms, Bai Heng massaged his forehead slightly, his expression turning somewhat peculiar.
Seriously? We're both from Xianzhou. Why is it that I can't understand a word you're saying?
Fu Xuan looked slightly embarrassed. She coughed once and straightened her expression. "I observe a darkness gathering between your brows. I fear you may be in imminent danger of a bloody calamity."
Bai Heng: "?????"
That night.
Having closed up shop for the day, Bai Heng, out to grab a bite, felt as if all the strength had been drained from his body. He trudged along Starwatcher Avenue with a look of profound despair.
His dragging footsteps and listless arms hanging at his sides painted the picture of a man utterly hollowed out, crushed by the relentless grind of a brutal work schedule.
All evening, he had turned to Diviner Fu's words—'I observe a darkness gathering between your brows, I fear a bloody calamity'—over and over in his mind, but couldn't make any sense of it.
After all, this was Xianzhou Luofu.
The domain of the Arbiter-General!
The most classic, enduring saying was: "The Arbiter-General proclaims his edicts only with arrows of light..."
Who would dare cause trouble here? Were they prepared to face the business end of a celestial arrow?
But thinking more carefully, around this particular time, there was indeed one notoriously bold individual.
—Phantylia.
The Emanator of Destruction who sought to bring chaos to the Luofu and steal the Ambrosial Arbor's essence to forge a new body for herself.
But...
What did that have to do with him, Bai Heng?
Even if the sky above the Luofu were to fall, there was Jing Yuan to hold it up. Sure, he might be 'stuck in the abyss,' but his plot armor was ridiculously strong!
And if not him, wasn't there the Astral Express?
There was no reason Phantylia would ever set her sights on him.
Though, to be honest, Bai Heng wasn't really afraid.
Having undergone three rounds of simulations, his attributes had reached a remarkably formidable level.
If Phantylia did come looking for him, he'd use her as a perfect test subject for the manual A Guide to Taming Extraplanar Entities of the Heliobus Variety!
Just as Bai Heng was lost in these wild thoughts, he suddenly felt an abrupt chill.
It was like a winter gust sneaking into his sleeves, crawling over his skin and spreading through his entire body in an instant!
In the next moment, before Bai Heng could even react.
From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a cold, sharp light approaching!
The bloody calamity had arrived!
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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If you guys wanna check it out.