Along the way, Shen An pondered Pang Tao's words, muttering to himself, "Tom, what do you think Pang meant by 'saving thirty years of detours'?"
"I don't agree with that. With my talent and abilities, I can save at most five years of detours."
"Besides, I think Ning Rongrong, whether in terms of figure or personality, is more suited to being a good buddy. After all, she's both flat and righteous."
Tom rolled his eyes at Shen An, unable to comprehend how "flat" and "righteous" could be associated.
Foolish master, this isn't something you can decide just because you want to. Let me help you with flirting in the future.
Tom raised an eyebrow and smiled. A little rich girl is great—wealthy and protective. Tom himself was planning to just laze around.
It was already late when they returned from the Soul Arena. At this hour, Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing would have long been asleep.
After all, the Douluo Continent didn't have smartphones for them to scroll through videos late into the night before reluctantly falling asleep.
Shen An raised a finger to his lips, signaling Tom to keep quiet as they entered, so as not to disturb the two girls.
Tom immediately understood, nodding his cat head, and followed Shen An cautiously into the teahouse.
Click.
A faint sound of the door opening echoed.
Shen An stepped inside, with Tom close behind. As soon as they entered, both were surprised to see Ning Rongrong still awake, sitting at the counter as if waiting for their return.
The moment Shen An entered, Ning Rongrong looked up at him with a deep, unreadable expression, her delicate face slightly pale.
When she saw Zhu Zhuqing clinging tightly to Shen An on the flying sword, Ning Rongrong felt as if her heart had been gripped by a giant hand, causing immense pain, as if her most cherished possession had been taken away.
This feeling was unprecedented for the little devil.
As the youngest child and only daughter of Ning Fengzhi, and deeply doted on by the Sword and Bone Douluos, Ning Rongrong had always gotten what she wanted without fail.
Thus, emotions like regret and longing had never before appeared in her.
But when she saw Zhu Zhuqing and Shen An sharing a sword, Ning Rongrong felt regret—regret for not agreeing to Shen An that day.
So, these past few days, Ning Rongrong had been in a terrible mood. She hoped Shen An would take the initiative to talk to her, but when he did, she would stiffly say, "It's nothing, don't worry about it."
Ning Rongrong would also ask herself why she felt this way.
Why does my mood sour so much when I see him alone with Zhu Zhuqing, laughing and talking?
Is it because Shen An bullied me? Or because he stood up for me against Dai Mubai and the others? Or is it because I feel incredibly at ease when I'm around him?
Ning Rongrong wasn't sure what she was thinking, but she realized that the more she resisted, the further Shen An would drift away...
So, she waited until now, wanting to have a deep conversation with Shen An, to ask him about his feelings for Zhu Zhuqing and for herself.
Ning Rongrong believed that sincerity was the ultimate weapon.
"Why aren't you asleep yet? It's so late," Shen An whispered.
The flickering light of the oil lamp cast shadows on Ning Rongrong's beautiful, delicate face, adding a touch of classical charm.
Shen An, almost involuntarily, said, "You are beautiful."
Hearing this, Ning Rongrong's pale face flushed slightly, and a sweet feeling bubbled up in her heart, sweeping away her earlier unhappiness.
Her lips instinctively curled into a smile, but she quickly suppressed it. No, Ning Rongrong, you can't be so easily pleased.
He only complimented you once, and besides, he's just stating the obvious.
Ning Rongrong put on a stern face and glared at Shen An, saying, "Why didn't you call me when you went to the Great Soul Arena?"
Shen An scratched his nose and replied, "Well, you've been in a bad mood these past few days. I thought it would be better to let you have some peace and quiet."
Ning Rongrong wanted to say, Then you should pay less attention to Zhu Zhuqing and comfort me more.
But what came out was, "Hmph, you should have asked me. What if I wanted to go?"
At this moment, Tom sneaked over to the counter. Shen An usually kept a lot of snacks under the counter for when he got bored.
As Shen An and Ning Rongrong continued their hushed conversation, Shen An felt a headache coming on. What is this little lady trying to say? Her words seem all over the place.
Suddenly, they noticed the room had gone dark, followed by a larger flame igniting.
They turned towards the source of the light and saw that it was Tom's tail on fire. Tom was covering his mouth with his paws, his cat head swelling and turning red.
Holy crap!
Ning Rongrong quickly grabbed the teapot in front of her and poured water over Tom's tail.
The fire was extinguished, and the room returned to darkness. Fortunately, both Shen An and Ning Rongrong were Soul Grandmasters, so seeing in the dark wasn't a problem.
Shen An then noticed a rustling sound and followed it to find Tom, still covering his mouth.
Tom's swollen, red cat head quickly moved towards Zhu Zhuqing's room. Seeing that she was asleep, he took out a pair of headphones and put them on her.
Then, he dashed out of the teahouse, removed his white gloves, opened his mouth wide, and leaped three feet into the air, staying suspended for a moment.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!"
A piercing, prolonged scream echoed over Soto City. The powerful sound waves even knocked a few birds out of the sky and woke many people from their sleep.
Far away at Shrek Academy, Yu Xiaogang, who had been sound asleep, suddenly woke up in terror. Where did that cat cry come from?
The sound alone sent chills down his spine, making him wonder what kind of suffering the owner of that cry was enduring.
Shen An silently summoned his soul rings. In the dim environment, the glow from the rings illuminated the area slightly.
Ning Rongrong was stunned by Shen An's move. Soul rings can be used like this? She then quietly summoned her two bright yellow soul rings.
The light from the four soul rings brightened the teahouse considerably. By now, the screams outside had stopped.
Ning Rongrong hesitantly said, "Tom's scream was so horrifying. Does burning his tail hurt that much?"
Shen An remained silent, simply pointing at the still-steaming puddle of water on the floor.
Ning Rongrong immediately fell silent, offering an awkward yet polite smile.
First, his tail was burned, then scalded by boiling water. Despite all that, Tom endured it for so long, even putting headphones on Zhu Zhuqing before running out to scream. Truly remarkable.
---
*The next day, noon.*
Inside the Soto Spirit Hall, in a grand room with a dome reaching twenty meters high, the opulent golden decor inspired awe and reverence.
The black-clothed bishop, Field, looked grimly at the subordinate kneeling before him.
"Fool! Didn't you investigate before acting? The daughter of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's leader is not someone you can threaten!"
The subordinate trembled even more, not daring to respond.
"Hmph, you may leave."
Despite his anger, as a bishop, Field knew he had to consider the broader implications after reprimanding his subordinate.
Calming down, Field muttered to himself:
"Why is the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan here? And with a genius boy whose second soul ring is already a thousand-year one?"
In the brightly lit room, Field's face shifted between light and shadow as he calculated his next move.
Soto City was located in the Balak Kingdom, which, though nominally a vassal state of the Heaven Dou Empire, was quite independent. Tensions and gaps existed between the empire and the kingdom, partly due to the Spirit Hall's efforts.
The appearance of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's princess in Soto City was a strange signal. After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan had always supported the Heaven Dou Empire. Could it be that the empire was secretly trying to reclaim the Balak Kingdom?
Fielder's scalp tingled at the thought.
A fully unified Heaven Dou Empire would be an unimaginably powerful force, inevitably threatening the Spirit Hall's authority.
"No, I must report this to the Platinum Bishop immediately!"