Yang Jia imagined what would happen after he met Li Bai.

But no matter which imagination I had, it was nothing like this moment, calm and natural, as if nothing had happened in between. Especially my own secret thoughts and speculations, which were like dew in the sun, evaporating in an instant, leaving no trace.

Even those feelings of anxiety and fear of loss seemed to suddenly calm down at this moment.

Li Bai didn't even turn around to look at Yang Jia. She raised a hand and placed it on the model, saying, "No. But you can try."

"Me?" Yang Jia was surprised.

"Yes." Li Bai nodded and finally turned around. "Phoenix City and Egret City are partly adjacent to each other. Maybe we can try to put them together." And then see what happens.

Originally, this shouldn't be possible. According to information Li Bai had gathered, Zheng Yizhao's models couldn't be folded or moved either. Since they couldn't be moved, each city model had to be kept in the City Lord's Mansion, making it impossible to put them together.

But Yang Jia is different.

The model in the City Lord's Mansion had completely vanished, leaving her Phoenix Platform as a portable device. The moment she realized this, Li Bai decided to have Yang Jia give it a try. If it succeeded, it would be a pleasant surprise, but if it didn't, there would be no loss, right?

Yang Jia nodded, "Okay."

Then she took out the seal, projected the Phoenix Terrace, carefully moved its position, and spliced it together with the model of Egret City.

Instantly, a flash of light appeared, and a shadowy figure shot up into the sky, only to be drawn back into the seal hovering overhead. It all happened so quickly that by the time Yang Jia and Li Bai realized what was happening, all the movement had vanished, as if nothing had happened.

The projected map in front of him had doubled in size, now also encompassing the area that originally belonged to Bailu City.

"Sure enough..." Li Bai said in a low voice.

Yang Jia frowned slightly, turned around and asked her, "What?"

"Try and see if your authority can also work on Bailu City." Li Bai did not answer her question, but said.

Without a doubt, it is possible.

Yang Jia took a deep breath, "You guessed it a long time ago?" After he guessed it, he still asked me to put the map together. What was he trying to do?

When Li Bai left, Yang Jia assumed she was going to "start her own business," and she had no reason or right to try to keep her. At the time, Yang Jia felt conflicted and reluctant, even a touch of self-abandonment and self-reproach, yet she could only pretend nothing had happened. Later, Li Bai continued to stay in touch with Phoenix City, even considering forming an "alliance" with her. Yang Jia felt a mixture of guilt and secret joy. Compared to leaving, being able to maintain this relationship was enough to make her happy.

But now—

Li Bai was more than just forming an alliance. He was practically handing Bailu City over to her!

In Yang Jia's heart, Phoenix City was actually a gift from Li Bai. Otherwise, even if she had taken over Phoenix Terrace and possessed the so-called "authority," Li Bai would have had plenty of ways to turn her into a mere puppet. But Li Bai didn't. As soon as Yang Jia made the slightest attempt, she immediately took the initiative to lead the team away, without any hesitation.

Now, Li Bai had indeed acquired another city, only to give it to her. Yang Jia couldn't play dumb any longer. To her, what Li Bai had given was too much. Even for a player, generously giving away a city in the game could be considered a huge expense. Haven't you seen how many girls in online keyboard games have rushed to become the gang leader's wife?

What's more, it's Yang Jia. To others, this is just a game, but it is her real world.

She had thought about grabbing everything she could get her hands on, because only in this way could she develop enough strength to gain a foothold in this game, becoming a player rather than a pawn. Only in this way could she live a better life.

So when the first pie hit her, she took it without hesitation, ambitious to run Phoenix City into her ideal state. But when the second pie flew over, Yang Jia was a little hesitant to take it.

Li Bai's generosity is beyond imagination.

While she was thinking about the refusal, Li Bai answered her previous question, "It's just my guess, it needs to be verified." Now that the verification is over, the result is not surprising.

Yang Jia's half-thought-out words were stuck there. She realized that Li Bai probably didn't really care about this. Just like she'd said at the beginning, she wasn't good at these things, so she didn't force herself to adapt. She only did the parts she felt she could do well.

Maybe for her, it was the same whether she captured a city and then handed it over to Zheng Yizhao, Yang Jia, or someone else.

Logically, Yang Jia could accept this with a clear conscience. It wouldn't hurt her anyway. But she couldn't. There were many reasons, and Yang Jia could list them off the top of her head.

After all, this game world is based on the real world, and real-world forces can influence the power distribution within the game. Yang Jia is just one person, without any background or support. Even if she conquers many cities, it's useless if she can't defend them. Therefore, she positioned herself to manage the inconspicuous small city of Phoenix City and form alliances with the surrounding major forces through cooperation and other means. Her trump card is the researchers in Phoenix City, especially the system created by Zhang Zitao.

For example, her personal abilities were limited, and the existing power in the newly acquired city was not easily subjugated. Focusing her energy on this during this golden period of rapid development would not be worth the effort. After all, she was not as resourceful as Zheng Yizhao, nor as capable as Li Bai.

But deep down, Yang Jia didn't want to take these things from Li Bai.

It seemed that the more indifferent Li Bai was, the more despicable she was. Even though she couldn't stand on the same level as Li Bai, Yang Jia still hoped that she would be bright and clear in her heart, and that the past memories would be something beautiful and worth remembering.

But the problem was that Li Bai didn't give her any chance to choose.

It was easy to put the map together, but Yang Jia didn't know how to take it apart. She stared at the picture in front of her for a long time, until her eyes felt a slight sting, and then she asked, "Why?"

She finally couldn't help it and wanted to talk to Li Bai.

Yang Jia had always assumed that they wouldn't bring up this topic. No matter what they thought, they'd tacitly avoided it, as if it wouldn't exist if they didn't mention it. At least Yang Jia didn't think she would bring it up.

But if Li Bai wants to know the truth one day, she will accompany him to the end.

She didn't expect that she would be the first one to give in.

Li Bai, ah Li Bai...

Fortunately, Li Bai didn't play dumb and didn't ask any more embarrassing questions like "why?" But her expression didn't show that she thought it was a big deal. She said, "Because you only have one city, it's not enough."

"What?" Yang Jia felt that she might not be able to speak, or it was difficult for her to organize complete and clear language at the moment.

Li Bai's answer was completely unexpected, but also reasonable.

Yang Jia's plans for the future, her various plans and goals, even the little ambitions and expectations in her heart... Although she never said anything, Li Bai knew everything. She knew everything!

The tip of her nose felt sore, and the world before Yang Jia was suddenly covered by tears, becoming hazy. She gritted her teeth, trying hard not to cry, feeling that she was in such a state of disgrace at the moment. She was no match for Li Bai.

She had always known that Li Bai was not only powerful in combat, but also intelligent and perceptive, with her own opinions and insights on many things. She simply didn't care, so she didn't mention it, maintaining a naive and transparent attitude. Because she was powerful, she was fearless.

This used to be what Yang Jia admired most about Li Bai, and what fascinated her most about Li Bai. But when she faced this point directly, Yang Jia discovered that being Li Bai's enemy was so difficult that she was not even a match for her.

This was the first time she faced the gap between herself and Li Bai.

As Yang Jia herself knew, she was just an ordinary person, a vast gap between her and the geniuses. She had previously tried to ignore it, focusing on her own individuality, not dreaming of catching up. But… that was Li Bai! The one she loved. She was willing to do her utmost to appear calm in her presence, rather than sulking and utterly discomfited.

But she saw through it at a glance.

How can I not be afraid? How can I not feel pain?

Yang Jia tried to say something, but her mind was in a mess. Li Bai seemed to say something, but she didn't hear it. Before her emotions lost control, she finally came to her senses and turned and walked away quickly. At least... not to break down in front of Li Bai again.

But Li Bai grabbed her wrist.

"What's wrong with you?" she asked. She was genuinely confused, genuinely didn't understand, and genuinely questioning.

The feeling of wanting to cry came back, and Yang Jia had to raise his hands to cover his eyes, taking a deep breath to suppress this sudden emotion.

After she calmed down, she put down her hand as if nothing had happened, turned around and looked at Li Bai, and asked her, "When did you know?"

Her thoughts, her intentions, her goals, her plans... Even she herself had stumbled along the way, and had only recently found the clearest direction. As a result, Li Bai seemed to see it more clearly than her.

Li Bai looked at Yang Jia, raised her hand as if to touch her, but then withdrew it. "There's light in your eyes," she said, "I see it."