Chapter 69: Sixty-Nine Cuts "Who is more beautiful, me or Xie Changming?"...
Luo Mingshu dried herself off completely and lay down on the bed. She curled up her legs and touched her ankles, where Xie Changming had wrapped his arms around when the little dragon's tail was still wrapped around her.
His body was warm, and the little wolf's tail naturally carried a different kind of warmth as well.
Luo Mingshu patted her cheeks, telling herself that there were plenty of handsome men like her in the Demon Realm, and she mustn't be bewitched by the one in front of her.
To distract herself, she decided to check the online community for any new information.
When it's time to browse the Four Directions Water Mirror, Luo Mingshu will switch back to her familiar main account, "Beautiful 300-Year-Old Water Spirit Root, Super Easy to Foole," as this name on the spirit network gives her a sense of belonging.
She saw a brand new message on the square water mirror, but at a glance, she only saw the title.
[Latest news from the cultivation world: Just how good-looking are these two cultivators who appeared in the Starry Sky? The Demon Clan exclaimed—they're even more handsome than us?!]
Luo Mingshu didn't even have time to look at the accompanying picture before scrolling down and starting to reply.
[A 300-year-old beauty with a water-elemental root is incredibly gullible: Her combined beauty doesn't even compare to... Luo Mingshu.]
As soon as she finished speaking, many monks responded to her and raised questions about her.
[Passing Cultivator Number One: Did you see the picture? Do you even know what these two cultivators look like? What kind of unparalleled beauty does Luo Mingshu have to be to be more beautiful than them combined?]
[Passing Monk Number Two: Eyes that are no longer needed can be donated to monks in need.]
[Passing Monk Number Three: I happened to be on Star Shore today and just happened to see this pair of monks. They are even more handsome in person than in the images uploaded to the Spirit Network.]
Luo Mingshu, who had only read the headlines of the news, was instantly enraged. She clicked on the news and prepared to read it carefully. She wanted to see what the two cultivators who were praised to the skies by the Spirit Network cultivators actually looked like.
As soon as she opened the picture, Luo Mingshu saw herself and... Xie Changming walking side by side. Xie Changming, who was standing on her left, seemed to reach out to hold her hand, but he couldn't touch her wrist.
How could this be photographed? Aren't the Star Shore Monks being far too gossipy?
Luo Mingshu stared at the pictures, studying them back and forth. This time, she didn't choose to argue back because she felt that what they said was true.
Of course, her argumentative remark naturally attracted another person, Xie Changming, who replied to her.
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Talking big on the spirit network?]
Luo Mingshu thought, Xie Changming didn't speak to her in this tone today. Not long ago, he praised her tail for being beautiful, but now he's turned his back on her?
She got angry as soon as she saw it, and it reminded her of the painful memory of Xie Changming blocking her account.
Luo Mingshu typed a reply to Xie Changming.
[A 300-year-old beauty with a water-elemental root is incredibly gullible: I told you the female cultivator in the picture is prettier than the male cultivator, and you agreed, right?]
Xie Changming had long forgotten the name of her spiritual network. At this moment, he just felt that the name "[Beautiful 300-year-old Water Spiritual Root, Super Easy to Foole]" seemed somewhat familiar.
However, he surprisingly agreed with Luo Mingshu's statement.
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Yes, that's correct.]
Because of this sentence, Luo Mingshu's fighting spirit subsided. In fact, to be fair, Xie Changming's appearance was indeed comparable to hers, and excluding the factor of narcissism, Luo Mingshu thought Xie Changming was even more handsome than her. This was mainly because demons tend to show a more attractive demeanor in front of the person they like.
So, Luo Mingshu had a sudden inspiration and launched a poll under this news article. Every cultivator who clicked to vote would receive a spirit stone, which naturally attracted a large number of cultivators to participate.
The poll initiated by Luo Mingshu was very simple, roughly like this: "Do you think the male cultivators or the female cultivators in the video are more attractive? (Single choice)."
A spirit stone—why not take it? Every cultivator who clicked on this news article chimed in with their opinions.
Due to the principle of like repels like and opposites attract, most female cultivators chose Xie Changming, most male cultivators chose Luo Mingshu, and some cultivators who couldn't distinguish between genders simply cast their votes randomly.
In the end, Luo Mingshu and Xie Changming received almost the same number of votes, which is quite remarkable. The cultivators on the Spirit Network can be considered masters of impartiality.
If the initiator hadn't been unable to vote, Luo Mingshu would have been so anxious that she would have cast her own vote.
Finally, Xie Changming appeared. He saw the voting activity, and naturally, he only had one answer to this question—
He voted for Luo Mingshu, and in the end, before the voting deadline, Luo Mingshu won by one vote, and she was finally satisfied.
That's all for today's spiritual network surfing. She was very satisfied. Luo Mingshu logged off her main account, "Beautiful 300-year-old Water Spirit Root Super Easy to Foole," and logged into her alternate account, "Shushu is Super Beautiful."
Sure enough, Xie Changming had sent her a message not long ago.
[Anonymous cultivator (192cm tall): Forwarding poll message—Which is prettier, the male cultivator in the picture or the female cultivator in the picture?]
[Anonymous cultivator (192cm tall): Some fools have started a vote; each click costs one spirit stone.]
Luo Mingshu: "?" Who are you cursing?
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): I went to check you out.]
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): You win.] He was clearly trying to take credit.
Luo Mingshu finally found out who cast the extra vote she received.
She thought for a moment and replied to Xie Changming.
[Shushu is so beautiful: Who are you calling a sucker?]
[Anonymous cultivator (192cm tall): I think the person who started the poll is a 300-year-old beauty with a water elemental root who's super easy to fool. She's a total sucker.]
Yes, that's me! Luo Mingshu was so angry she almost jumped out of bed.
[Shushu is so beautiful: Okay, I understand. Tomorrow's swimming lesson is canceled.]
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): ?]
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Oh, so we have swimming class tomorrow.]
Actually, there wasn't one. Luo Mingshu fabricated one to get revenge on Xie Changming, and then immediately canceled it, in order to achieve the goal of greatly disappointing the scoundrel.
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Why?]
Xie Changming actually believed there would be a swimming lesson tomorrow, so Luo Mingshu played along.
[Shushu is so beautiful: Actually, I think you're prettier, so you voted for the wrong person, and the swimming lesson is canceled.]
Xie Changming was indeed happy when he saw it.
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Is that so?]
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Okay, let's cancel then.]
Luo Mingshu hadn't expected him to be so easy to coax. She lay in front of the Spirit Network interface, pondering what message she should send to make this cute little wolf furious.
She racked her brains but couldn't come up with any good ideas. However, she did remember the Wuwang Lock that she had obtained at the Zishuangmen auction.
[Shushu is so beautiful: I have a favor to ask you when I'm writing the project proposal tomorrow.]
Xie Changming wasn't stupid; he quickly guessed Luo Mingshu's intentions.
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Is it related to what you bought at the auction?]
[Shushu is so beautiful: Yes, it seems that the system wanted to take it away beforehand, and Lu Yaoyao told me about it beforehand.]
[Anonymous Cultivator (192cm tall): Hmm, we'll talk about it tomorrow.]
[Anonymous monk (192cm tall): Sleep, it's late.]
Luo Mingshu tilted her head and buried it in the pillow, but she didn't forget to send a message to Xie Changming.
【Shushu is so beautiful: Goodnight.】
When Xie Changming saw the message she sent, his tail reappeared, and he excitedly wagged it.
Both of them went to sleep contentedly until the next day.
In the early morning, Luo Mingshu received a message from Lu Yaoyao.
[It's Fairy Yao Yao: Senior Sister Luo, I've arrived at Star Shore, why aren't you here?]
[It's Fairy Yao Yao: Senior Sister, why did you post a poll on the Spirit Network yesterday asking everyone to choose between you and the security captain as prettier?]
[It's Fairy Yao Yao: You get spirit stones for every investment! I immediately shared it in the sect group so everyone can earn spirit stones together. Did I do the right thing?]
【Shushu is so beautiful: ?】
Luo Mingshu wondered why so many people voted last night, and she even spent a lot of spirit stones.
Thinking that she still needed to monitor the system on Lu Yaoyao's body, she sent over the address of her Yingtian Palace.
[Shushu is so beautiful: I'm here on my newly discovered plot of land, you can come over.]
Luo Mingshu had another reason for calling Lu Yaoyao over. If the Yingtian Palace experience project was successful, she could open the "Little Heavenly Realm" experience project. Although she had the largest plot of land, there were also other explorers participating. She thought she could call all the cultivators who held Heavenly Realm plots over to develop it together.
Lu Yaoyao was flattered to find that Luo Mingshu was actually willing to share her location, and she quickly replied.
[It's Fairy Yao Yao: Senior Sister, I'm coming right away.]
[It's Fairy Yao Yao: Fan Qing, who kept touching her earrings during the auction, would be furious if she knew you were this rich.]
Lu Yaoyao also reminded Luo Mingshu to tell her about Fan Qing's strangeness.
Her last, seemingly random, sentence caught Luo Mingshu off guard. She glanced at it briefly, then subconsciously touched her earlobe. She was wearing a heavy amethyst earring today, and naturally wouldn't touch her ear; it was a sign of nervousness.
But why would Lu Yaoyao tell her this? Since Lu Yaoyao was still being monitored by the system, Luo Mingshu could only guess.
She thought for a while but couldn't come up with a solution. Then Xie Changming came to her courtyard.
His attire today was refreshing; he had even changed into a light blue long robe, which accentuated his delicate features and made him look even more dashing.
Xie Changming's reason for not wearing black was simple: his black long gown was a bit too heavy and would affect his performance in swimming class—yes, he was still looking forward to a swimming class that didn't even exist.
Luo Mingshu was engrossed in refining her Yingtian Palace development plan when she saw Xie Changming arrive. She stepped aside to give him some space.
Xie Changming sat down beside her as a matter of course. He turned his head slightly and asked Luo Mingshu, "Can I take a look at the auction items now?"
Luo Mingshu took out the Wuwang Lock from her spatial pouch, and placed this golden, ring-shaped magic treasure on the table.
She moved the plan in front of her aside a bit so that Xie Changming could carefully examine its effectiveness.
Xie Changming glanced at it and said, "This is a magic weapon used to sever divine senses."
Luo Mingshu certainly knew how to use it: "I know, but what does the system in that jade bracelet need this for? It's impossible for it to just add another magic item to block divine sense and make two negatives positive, right?"
Xie Changming slammed the ring-shaped magic weapon onto the table, his slender fingers hooking around it, causing the Wuwang Lock to sway in mid-air. He was more observant than Luo Mingshu and naturally discovered another use for the Wuwang Lock.
"Clang—" A small key landed on the table. Xie Changming picked it up and said to Luo Mingshu, "Where there is a lock, there is a key. The key in this Wuwang Lock can unlock the spell that blocks divine sense. That's probably what the system wants."
Luo Mingshu hadn't expected that there was such a thing as buying a lock and only needing its key. She suddenly realized, "Then can this key break your shielding spell?"
“No.” Xie Changming said, his eyes lowered. His spell was much stronger than the ordinary Wuwang Lock.
Luo Mingshu took the key from Xie Changming, and then pretended to drill twice in front of Xie Changming: "Click, the lock is open."
Xie Changming cooperated by illuminating his body with a dark magical light, indicating that the non-existent lock on his body had been unlocked.
"Is there someone else at the auction who wants the Wuwang Lock?" Xie Changming remembered something and asked directly.
"Yes, but she probably just doesn't like me. How can there be such a strange person?" Luo Mingshu said, stroking her chin.
Xie Changming fiddled with the Wuwang Lock in his hand, raised his eyes and said, "If she didn't like you, she should have snatched the other items you bid on before. Why did she only snatch this one? It shouldn't be a very rare magic weapon."
“That’s true.” Luo Mingshu assumed that everyone else was like her, with the tendency to deliberately annoy people they disliked. Why was Fan Qing the only one living in the Wuwang Lock and competing with her for it?
Fan Qing wants the Wuwang Lock, but does she really want the lock or the key? Also, why did Lu Yaoyao say she likes to touch her earrings? Fan Qing's personality doesn't seem like someone who would touch her earlobes to relieve tension.
She's so strange, even more annoying than Lu Yaoyao.
Luo Mingshu tapped the key to the Wuwang Lock lightly on the table. She pondered for a long time but still couldn't figure out why Fan Qing was targeting her for no reason. It seemed that she would need to observe this person more carefully next time they met.
After learning the true purpose of the Wuwang Lock, Luo Mingshu only answered one question: Lu Yaoyao's system attempted to use this key to unlock the shielding spell cast by Xie Changming.
At this moment, deep within her mind, as the villainous female supporting character, another extremely wicked idea popped up.
“I’ve got it! Since this key can’t unlock your shielding spell, we can do this.” Luo Mingshu clapped her hands. “We’ll secretly let Lu Yaoyao take the key first, and then have Lu Yaoyao pretend to help the system unlock it.”
"In reality, the system couldn't unlock it at all. We used magic to disguise ourselves and talk to him, pretending to be his superior, to gain his trust and trick him into revealing information." Luo Mingshu felt that she was simply a genius.
Xie Changming: "..." This system is truly cursed.
He lowered his eyes and said, "I want to play too."
“Let’s play together, we can play together.” Luo Mingshu waved her hand and immediately created a chat group on the Spirit Network with Xie Changming and herself.
“I’ll play the boss inside, and you’ll play my assistant. We’ll have the system communicate with us through Lu Yaoyao’s Spirit Network system.” Luo Mingshu was indeed good at being wicked. “He definitely knows a lot of inside information, and he will naturally tell his superiors everything he knows.”
Xie Changming changed his name in the chat group and sent a message to Luo Mingshu for confirmation.
[Anonymous Assistant: Is this okay?]
[Shushu is so beautiful: This seems too purposeful. Give it a name with a celestial feel.]
[I cultivate, I am proud, I am the King of the Heavenly Scrolls: Is that so?]
[Shushu is so beautiful: I want a celestial vibe, like a graceful immortal lord or something with an ethereal feel.]
[I cultivate, I am proud, I am the King of the Heavenly Realm: This is the prevailing atmosphere in the Heavenly Realm. They will not let go of any opportunity to cultivate. After ascending, they clearly have plenty of time to return to the lower realms to spread the Dao, but no one can bear to part with the rich spiritual energy of the Heavenly Realm. Every extra breath is precious, and every extra breath means falling behind.]
【Shushu is so beautiful: ?】
[Shushu is so beautiful: So they're not planning on dating after they ascended to heaven.]
[I cultivate, I am proud, I am the King of the Heavenly Realm: That is so.]
Luo Mingshu suddenly raised her head and looked at Xie Changming, saying, "We're face to face, why are we still talking through the Spirit Network?"
"What should I call you?" Luo Mingshu asked.
"I'll give you half," Xie Changming said coldly.
Afterwards, his group name changed to "I cultivate, I am proud," while Luo Mingshu's name became "I am the King of the Heavenly Scrolls."
"Our names are really too strange." Luo Mingshu still couldn't believe that the style of the Heavenly Realm was like this.
“The Celestial Realm also has a system similar to the Spirit Network. Even the Four Immortal Lords on it would use such a name,” Xie Changming explained.
"Can it really be like this?" Luo Mingshu was still skeptical, but she wasn't afraid that Lu Yaoyao's system would discover their schemes. Even if it did, the system couldn't do anything to them; at most, it would just cause the system some psychological trauma.
Specifically, after Lu Yaoyao arrives, Luo Mingshu will continue to refine her Yingtian Palace development plan after devising this insidious scheme. Xie Changming will also begin designing formations beside her.
The complexity of the array that controls the entire Yingtian Palace's simulated operation mode of the Misty Star Sea is beyond imagination. Even Xie Changming had to calculate the data and array details on the blueprints first.
The two worked with unusual seriousness, and by noon, Luo Mingshu was a little hungry.
She touched her belly, pondering what delicious food she could take out from her spatial pouch.
Xie Changming volunteered: "I'll roast the corn."
He cast a fire spell in the yard, and the acrid smell of roasting corn slowly drew out the corn that had been sleeping soundly in its cage.
Slowly holding a pine nut in his arms, he watched Xie Changming's actions and was shocked. He pointed at Xie Changming and croaked, complaining.
Xie Changming said calmly, "She just likes to eat this kind of food."
Slowly, she looked at Luo Mingshu in shock. Luo Mingshu nodded and said, "I've eaten a lot of delicious corn, but this kind of corn with a burnt taste is quite peculiar."
Slowly, she stomped her feet in anger, then stormed into her little cage and closed the door tightly to prevent the burnt smell from getting in.
"This corn is driving him crazy," Luo Mingshu said casually, taking the roasted corn from Xie Changming's hand and blowing on it.
It takes considerable skill to roast corn to this state consistently, with the same level of charring every time, and Xie Changming clearly possesses a deep understanding of this art.
He ate his corn as well, completely unconcerned: "Isn't this the flavor you like?"
Luo Mingshu did like it. She lowered her head and ate her corn, saying vaguely, "Your cornbread is actually quite delicious too."
Xie Changming said confidently, "If you like, I can learn some new ones."
"For example, fish head tofu stew?" Luo Mingshu glanced at him sideways.
Xie Changming did have this idea, but he wisely chose to keep quiet.
After finishing her corn, Luo Mingshu wiped her mouth with a white handkerchief. Such simple food gave her a sense of satisfaction, as if she were eating a delicacy. (Pianozl)
What she appreciates is the effort and emotion that chefs put into making food. For example, the peach blossom dew she often drinks is made with a complex process, which reflects the chef's hidden feelings and emotions.
Ordinary food would lack this sentiment and taste bland. But the corn Xie Changming roasted for her unexpectedly carried a strange emotion; she could feel that he was earnestly preparing the simplest meal for her.
With this attitude, that's enough; she's actually a little dragon that's very easy to coax.
They went about their business together again. Lu Yaoyao, the first victim and accomplice of this conspiracy, arrived at Yingtian Palace. Unable to break through the restrictions of Yingtian Palace, she could only call for Luo Mingshu through the Spirit Network.
[It's Fairy Yao Yao: Senior Sister Luo, I've arrived at Yingtian Palace. How do I open the barrier?]
Luo Mingshu waved her hand, releasing the restrictions outside Yingtian Palace, and Lu Yaoyao arrived at her residence.
As soon as she entered the courtyard, Lu Yaoyao saw Xie Changming. She covered her mouth in surprise and said, "Senior Sister Luo, why are you still with him?"
“Let’s develop Yingtian Palace together and make money together, what’s the problem?” Luo Mingshu said casually.
Xie Changming lowered his eyes to calculate the array in his hand, not paying any attention to what Lu Yaoyao said. However, he didn't like the idea of "getting rich together," so he moved a little closer to Luo Mingshu.
Lu Yaoyao: "..." Does this look like you're exchanging business information? I think you're discussing interspecies reproduction.
She swallowed hard, suppressing her inner complaints, and wisely chose not to bring it up.
"Senior sister, what are you developing?" Lu Yaoyao asked, leaning closer.
"I want to use Yingtian Palace to create an experiential project, allowing cultivators who want to experience palace intrigue literature to participate for a fee, probably similar to the gameplay we had in the Misty Star Sea," Luo Mingshu said, revealing her idea.
"Are you talking about 'How Deep Are the Palace Walls?'" Lu Yaoyao's eyes lit up.
“Yes.” Luo Mingshu moved her pen to a certain item in her plan. “I plan to invite the author of ‘How Deep Are the Palace Walls?’ to come and provide guidance.”
“I remember Neng Da told me that he knew that author,” Lu Yaoyao provided the key information.
Luo Mingshu nodded: "That's good, I'll go find her then."
She stood up and walked to Lu Yaoyao's side: "He and I are going to feed the fish. You can find a familiar place to rest."
Luo Mingshu did not forget her mission to sabotage the system. She and Xie Changming pretended to leave, and a small key fell silently from her body.
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