After a while, the light gradually dissipated, and Feng Yuan slowly opened his eyes, looking around with confusion.
("Don’t use my body to do weird things.")
Not quite sure how to speak using Feng Yuan’s body, Xiao Ji could only nod. Feng Yuan’s voice kept echoing in Xiao Ji’s mind, directing him to clumsily carry out the ritual with his own body. After much difficulty, the ritual was finally complete, and a pale blue light once again enveloped the pair. Moments later, Xiao Ji slowly opened his eyes and curiously surveyed Feng Yuan.
The recent experience gave Xiao Ji a novel sensation. Bending down, Feng Yuan stroked Xiao Ji’s head and said,
"Once you reach the Legendary Level, you can try to condense your own human avatar. Don’t be in a rush."
Xiao Ji nodded happily, looking up at the sky with anticipation.
"Do you want to go through it as well?"
Noticing that Najia also wanted to participate in the ritual, Yang Hongzhi, who had just completed the ritual, asked. After hesitating for a moment, Najia nodded. Yang Hongzhi picked up Najia and asked,
Najia turned and shook her head with a smile at Yang Hongzhi, then leaped down from his arms, and began to float slowly in mid-air. He Nanqing looked at Najia with growing curiosity. She wanted to ask, but noticing Yang Hongzhi’s seemingly clueless demeanor, she thought better of it and murmured to herself,
"I wonder if that guy knows the truth."
Xiao Yi Yognot silently glanced at He Nanqing. Sometimes, it really wanted to urge her not to be so curious.
"Wow~ Sister, are you preparing to worship the Dragon God again~"
At that moment, a little girl ran over and excitedly said, looking at the altar. Noticing the others, including Qi Chen, who followed behind the little girl, He Nanqing asked with some confusion,
Qi Chen smiled and said,
"They said they’d take us around the stronghold. What’s all this..."
"Worshipping Amitis. After today, there’s no meaning to the ritual."
Remembering something, Qi Chen asked in a low voice,
"Can we participate too?"
"Of course, come on over."
Realizing that Najia had finished the ritual, He Nanqing said. At this point, the first little girl who spoke stared at He Nanqing and said,
"Do all of you... remember the steps for the ritual?"
He Nanqing looked at the crowd of children surrounding her with a hint of a headache. Those little rascals could be so mischievous sometimes that they gave her a headache. Qi Chen had met them for the first time and could already play along with them, and even subtly get them to listen to him. He Nanqing felt a sense of envy she couldn’t quite explain.
She didn’t notice that, while she was observing Qi Chen, Dou Yanlan was watching her warily. Except for Qi Xiaoshuang, who had a vague suspicion due to their earlier conversation, no one noticed the fierce light hidden in Dou Yanlan’s eyes.
After Qi Chen and the rest had gone through the ritual, it was the children’s turn. As He Nanqing had expected, their ritual was chaotic. Had it not been for Qi Chen and Dou Yanlan’s assistance, she might have had to stop their reckless actions.
Once the ritual was over and seeing the children joyfully sharing the offerings with He Nanqing’s permission, Qi Chen felt a mix of emotions. Qi Xiaoshuang, accepting a piece of roasted meat from a little boy, said,
"I used to look forward to this moment the most. There was always something good to eat. But..."
Thinking of the recent news reports, those initial estimates of casualties, Qi Xiaoshuang felt like there was a heavy stone pressing on her heart. He Nanqing smiled and said,
"Sharing the offerings after a ritual implies that the recipient enjoys them and receives blessings. Only by sharing can we enact the best practice."
"That’s the case with most rituals."
Dou Yanlan said calmly. Seeing that Qi Chen looked a bit upset, Dou Yanlan, holding Cotton, approached Qi Chen and softly comforted him. After a while, Qi Chen smiled at Dou Yanlan and said quietly,
After a glance at Qi Chen, Dou Yanlan revealed a smile and said,
"You should learn from that guy; if something is bothering you, just say it. If there’s something you want to do, just go ahead and do it."
Remembering Feng Yuan’s carefree way of doing things, Qi Chen said with a bit of a headache,
"He gets into trouble so easily with that attitude. If it weren’t for his own strength, he probably would have faced a lot of problems already..."
"And... I just can’t do things that way; there’s a hurdle in my heart that I really can’t get over..."
Seeing Qi Chen’s tangled expression, Dou Yanlan chuckled and said,
"Just kidding, of course, I know you wouldn’t do something like that. If that guy follows the big rules but is a bad kid in the details, then you are utterly well-behaved."
Qi Chen, speechless, glanced at Dou Yanlan and said,
After staring at Qi Chen for a long time, Dou Yanlan smiled helplessly and said,
"For us people from the West City District, following all the rules strictly is just asking for trouble. Maybe you don’t know, but in elementary and middle school, not a single boy in our school dared to get close to me. Do you know why?"
Watching Dou Yanlan press close to his face, Qi Chen moved a bit backward, somewhat shyly, and asked,
"Because I scared them all away by fighting them, just like he did at the beginning."
Qi Chen looked at Dou Yanlan in disbelief, utterly unable to imagine her, like Feng Yuan when he first started school, taking on the whole school by herself. Noticing Qi Chen’s thought had strayed, Dou Yanlan, somewhat amused, said,
"I’m not as strong as him to take on the whole school by myself. It was just those annoying little boys. I beat each one that came along."
In a puzzled tone, Qi Chen asked quietly,
"Is the West City District really that chaotic? Why don’t I feel it?"
"If you had been to the real West City District, you would understand... maybe that guy knows too..."
Dou Yanlan sighed deeply and leaned against Qi Chen, who, somewhat confused by her words, said,
"Him? He shouldn’t have been to the West City District much, right? How would he know?"
In the past, Qi Chen might have guessed that Feng Yuan might have lived in the West City District, but ever since he learned that Feng Yuan was an outsider, he no longer entertained that notion. After all, according to him, he came during high school, and his usual behavior didn’t seem like someone who had always lived in a place like the West City District.
Dou Yanlan glanced at Qi Chen somewhat helplessly and said,
"It’s amazing that you’ve been in the same dorm with him for three years, yet you can’t see that he has actually been through a lot?"
Seeing Qi Chen’s puzzled look, Dou Yanlan sighed. Although she wasn’t aware of Feng Yuan’s status as an outsider, she could clearly sense from everyday conversations that Feng Yuan must have experienced many things, although she also didn’t quite understand how, given that he was about the same age as them, he could have experienced those things.
"Where have you been just now? We couldn’t find you in the stronghold."
At dinner time, seeing Feng Yuan humming a tune as he walked in, Qi Xiaoshuang asked with some confusion. They had been searching the entire Fire Stronghold with the kids all afternoon but hadn’t come across Feng Yuan once. Pointing in the direction of the back mountain, Feng Yuan asked in confusion,
"I took a walk around the back mountain, what’s up?"
"So that’s why we haven’t bumped into you all this time. Is the back mountain fun?"
Glancing at the curious Qi Xiaoshuang, Feng Yuan sat down at the dining table and said,
"It’s all the same, it’s not a tourist spot, what could be different?"
He Nanqing laughed and said,
"If you guys had come in the fall, the back mountain would be full of all kinds of fruit."
Feng Yuan lifted Xiao Ji onto the dining table and said,
"Those fruits are sour; Xiao Ji likes them."
He Nanqing looked at Feng Yuan with some confusion and said,
"Sour fruit? You didn’t pick Red Fruit, did you?"
Feng Yuan looked at He Nanqing and described the fruit he had picked earlier, He Nanqing said with some amusement,
"It is indeed Red Fruit. Those are mature all year round but too sour for anyone to pick."
Feng Yuan, puzzled, glanced at He Nanqing and said,
"Why? There should be quite a few Spirit Beasts that like that taste. I saw a lot of the Red Fruit up there, and wondered why you all wouldn’t pick them to sell."