Evening
"Xiao Lu! Make me red wine beef stew tonight."
"I want to eat it with steaming hot rice!"
"Look!"
"I already reserved the ingredients this noon!"
Hiratsuka Shizuka carried a bag of ingredients and, with a mischievous grin, pressed her shoulder against Lu Ren's.
Lu Ren dodged her awkwardly, but she shamelessly pressed closer!
It was as if she was saying: If you don't cook for me, I'll stick to you forever!
If one didn't consider their ages, only their heights and their silhouettes at that moment,
they looked just like... a happy couple deeply in love, making onlookers grit their teeth with jealousy!
..."If you want to eat, make it yourself..."
"Aren't there still bento boxes you bought in the fridge at home?"
"I'm too tired today, just eat whatever you can find."
Lu Ren rolled his eyes at Hiratsuka Shizuka.
He was the one who needed to be taken care of!
Hiratsuka Shizuka should be the one providing food and lodging, right!
Besides... he had other things to deal with!
"Just say yes!"
"Xiao Lu~, there aren't any rules against drinking in your home, are there?"
"I have a bottle of treasured red wine, want to have a couple of glasses?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka continued to wheedle.
At this moment, she didn't look like a teacher at all!
"I'm really afraid of you..."
Lu Ren shook his head helplessly.
To get rid of Hiratsuka Shizuka's Entanglement, he had no choice but to agree to her request.
"Eh heh!"
Hiratsuka Shizuka let out a triumphant, wicked laugh, looking forward to dinner tonight.
She fumbled for her apartment key and happily opened the door.
On her left wrist, she wore the amulet Lu Ren had given her.
Thanks to the protection of this amulet,
the dirty thing she saw this morning...
had long since fled to who knows where!
Hiratsuka Shizuka, believing herself to be out of danger, was now doubly happy!
"Xiao Lu, I'm going to open a can of beer to celebrate!"
"Dinner is all up to you!"
Hiratsuka Shizuka took off her coat, casually tossed it on the shoe cabinet, and happily ran towards the kitchen.
However... Tamamo-no-Mae's sigh, through the bond of their contract, echoed in Lu Ren's heart...
"Has that persistent Yokai already sneaked into the house?"
"If I tell her the truth, she'll surely cry little pearls."
"Ohohoho, I'm starting to look forward to it..."
...Tamamo-no-Mae, with schadenfreude, revealed the terrifying truth.
That Yokai had not let Hiratsuka Shizuka go.
Instead, it had gone into hiding.
It was lurking where Hiratsuka Shizuka couldn't see, silently waiting for its moment.
The moment there was the slightest slack, it would seize the opportunity to devour its prey!
..."Damn it!"
"Xiao Tamamo, where is it hiding?"
Lu Ren frowned, his eyes blazing with anger!
..."It's under the floor, right where you're standing."
"Master, do you need me to get rid of it?"
"Hehehe..."
"The scent is coming from the forest behind the mountain."
"Its main body must be hiding there."
"Tamamo here~~, is really angry now!"
...Tamamo-no-Mae, usually so lazy, now had killing intent.
To put it simply... the so-called amulet was merely stained with a wisp of her Yokai aura.
The Yokai aura of a Nine-Tailed Fox!
Ordinary mountain Yokai or wandering evil spirits would die upon contact!
Even great Yokai who had lived for a thousand years would give her some respect!
They would never harm humans under her protection.
But!
This greedy Yokai was courting death!
It knew this was someone she protected, yet it still dared to pester her relentlessly!
Tamamo-no-Mae was furious!
It was time to let the young Yokai witness her power!
..."No need."
"Death would be too merciful for it."
Facing Tamamo-no-Mae's request, Lu Ren refused.
He had already prepared the most cruel execution for that Yokai!
..."Mmm..."
"Alright then... (Fox sigh)"
...Tamamo-no-Mae muttered in disappointment.
Actually... Lu Ren was right... Precisely because they were of the same gender, the competition was even fiercer.
As a Servant, Tamamo-no-Mae had never appeared.
But she had already sensed the existence of Yakumo Yukari.
Similarly... Yakumo Yukari was the same...
The two great Yokai pretended not to know of each other's existence.
But in reality, they were always wary of each other, secretly competing!
This was also why... when Lu Ren asked Yakumo Yukari for help... this great Yokai Sage was so readily agreeable!
..."And one more thing..."
"I can't always rely on your protection."
"It's time to improve my own strength."
Lu Ren said with a sigh.
This seemingly peaceful world hides too many dangers!
Yokai!
Gods!
And monsters from the deep sea!
Perhaps overnight, a city could vanish into thin air!
Wandering souls roam the world, disturbing the living!
To live a stable and happy life in this world,
He needs immense strength, power that can crush everything!
The bloodline of a Gap Youkai (Youkai of Boundaries)!
Passerby-level superpowers!
These are all paths to becoming stronger; he can't delay any longer!
Become stronger!
This thought had never been so strong!
Lu Ren, using his will, opened the spatial backpack provided by the system... [Bloodline — Gap Youkai (Youkai of Boundaries), fusion successful!]
...The process of bloodline fusion did not cause any unusual phenomena.
Not only that... even his appearance remained completely unchanged.
"It succeeded just like that?"
Lu Ren murmured, confused and bewildered.
He felt nothing, even having a sense of being deceived.
In Lu Ren's mind, the scene of Yakumo Yukari using her abilities appeared.
Then!
A bizarre scene actually occurred!
Unstable space rifts reluctantly opened in front of Lu Ren.
This rift was very small, only enough to fit his upper body inside.
But unlike the gaps opened by Yakumo Yukari,
The rift Lu Ren opened had no eyeballs!
The rift was empty, only chaos!
..."I wonder where the other side of the rift leads to?"
Lu Ren stroked his chin, thinking curiously.
Immediately!
He imitated Yakumo Yukari's entrance.
Curiously, he peered into the rift.
Soon... Lu Ren discovered good news and bad news.
The good news was: the other end of the rift was a hot spring.
The bad news was: Yakumo Yukari and Yakumo Ran were also inside!