Chapter 38: Greater Unity After the Battle
“What’s wrong?” I asked on my phone.
He blinked, his long eyelashes lending a dreamy quality to his gaze. The seriousness on his face disappeared in a blink. When he looked up, he offered his usual gentle smile. “Worried about you.” Just the three words, and my heart couldn’t help but give a small “thump.”
Even if Mò Míng said to me a thousand times, “I won’t let you leave my sight,” it wouldn’t be as touching as the three words Fēng Língcàn, my senior, just said to me.
Luckily, my mask covered my face today, concealing all my embarrassed expressions. I slightly averted my gaze and fiddled with my phone in my hand.
Fēng Língcàn continued speaking, “Humans are inherently somewhat spiritual. When they’re on the brink of death, they might experience an out-of-body phenomenon. Their souls can wander on the edge between the mortal world and the netherworld. However, this is very dangerous. So, I’m worried that you might have experienced that. If you can’t return, it could be troublesome.”
Listening to his words, I suddenly felt that I shouldn’t be so guarded with him. I should tell him where I went. That way, if I truly can’t come back, at least someone will know where I’m staying in that world and can try to rescue me.
I was just about to pick up my phone to tell him when he reached out and took my phone. While adjusting the settings, he smiled and said, “Actually, the phones in the celestial realm have a telepathic function.” His slender fingers lightly tapped on my phone screen, his movements as enchanting as playing the piano. I was so focused on his fingers that I didn’t pay attention to what he was actually doing.
“As long as telepathic mode is activated, it connects with your mind. Whatever you want to say, it can articulate for you. Alright, give it a try.” He smiled and handed the phone back to me. I looked at him, puzzled, and mentally asked: Articulate?
“Articulate~” At the same time, the voice of Lín Zhìlíng sounded from the phone!
I involuntarily shivered.
Fēng Língcàn laughed, his smile as warm as a spring breeze. “You can set your own voice.”
Alright, alright, I immediately retrieved the settings, and indeed, there was an option for “Owner” inside.
“Well then, rest early. If you need help with anything, you can find me. I’ve already input my number into your phone.” Fēng Língcàn smiled, pointing at my phone. He turned to open the door to my room. I immediately called out to him, “Senior Fēng Língcàn!”
He halted and turned to me gently. “What’s the matter?”
Looking at the gentle warmth in his eyes, there was a moment when I almost wanted to spill everything to him. However, in the end, I swallowed the words back down when faced with his overly profound gaze. I bowed deeply to him, “Thank you!” I straightened up, “Next time, if I astral project again, I’ll make sure to remember where I went!”
He gazed deeply at me for a moment, his smile resurfacing. He extended his hand and lightly tapped my forehead, “Silly girl, don’t push yourself so hard next time. Remember, you’re just a mortal.” Finishing his words, he slowly turned, lowering his head. I noticed a trace of deepness in his downcast gaze, and that deep gaze briefly passed over the location of the pendant hanging on my chest.
Then, he closed the door and left. I held my phone with one hand and gripped the pendant hidden beneath my clothes with the other. Today, for the first time, the pendant responded.
I took out the pendant and walked to the mirror, wanting to take a look at it. Suddenly, the mirror started talking, “Hey there, oh goodness! You scared the heck out of me!” After speaking, the mirror darkened from the top down, as if someone was pulling down a black curtain.
“I mean, seriously, there’s no need to black me out like that!”
A mouth appeared in the mirror, “What if you wanted to see your own face and gave me a fright?”
I looked at it speechlessly, “Dude! You’re a mirror! Who hasn’t looked in a mirror before?”
“Well, I don’t mirror monsters anyway.” It finished speaking and even the mouth disappeared.
Ah~~~ What a face-judging world!
Feeling annoyed, I sat back on the bed, took out the pendant, and examined it closely under the sunlight. The pendant looked like an ordinary cross-shaped crystal pendant on the surface, with no apparent differences. However, there seemed to be something flowing inside it.
It’s definitely a protective talisman since it heats up when I get close to malevolent forces. But will this thing transform? Do I need an incantation? Like “I am the moon, I’ll eliminate you”?
Or summon a divine beast!
Or transform!
Whoa!
That would be so cool!
Shouting an incantation aloud: “Abracadabra, magical transformation—”
Orz, my imagination is so childish…
I’m definitely past the age for watching “Abracadabra Fairy”.
Oh well, forget about it, let’s hide it away.
I carefully concealed the pendant once again and went to check if Māomao and Jiang Yan had woken up.
When I went to open Māomao’s room, I found the door locked. She must have woken up! Because there’s no way Sī Yīnò would lock the door after he put her back in the room.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
No one answered the door?
I leaned against the door and listened carefully, hearing faint footsteps. Could it be that Māomao didn’t want to open the door?
Did she get angry because I used her against the faceless monster?
Because the drawback of the faceless monster is its fear of ugly people…
In other words, I treated her as an ugly woman. From her perspective, she must be very upset and hurt. When I first arrived at this dorm, she warmly received me, eagerly prepared a room for me, and made everyone welcome me. She always treated me like a big sister…
“Māomao… I’m sorry…” I said using my phone, “I know I shouldn’t have used you against the faceless monster. You must be angry. I’m really sorry. I was just in a hurry… If you’re angry, just scold me. In that case, I’ll take off the mask and let everyone mock me…”
“Whew!” Suddenly, the door opened. Māomao looked at me with complex emotions, holding her phone in her hand which displayed a scene from our battle. Her furry face was wet, apparently from crying. Seeing that made me even more guilty, “I’m really sorry…”
“Little Lán, I’m not mad at you!” She wiped her tears excitedly, picked up her phone, “I was watching today’s video. I really, truly never thought I could fight like a werewolf! I’ve always believed that I’m a disgrace to our Láng family, that my existence only brings shame to the family, but today!” She clutched my arms in excitement, her sapphire eyes sparkling, “Little Lán, do you know? Many people have added me as friends! Look, look! So many people have liked and followed me on Weibo, I have fans now!” She excitedly showed me her phone, her number of followers was rapidly increasing, “Look! They’re calling me ‘Queen Sakura’! Me, me!” She shyly covered her face, “I really don’t know what to do~~~”
“So you weren’t opening the door…” I looked at her.
She wiped her eyes and looked at me, feeling guilty, “I didn’t want you guys to see me crying happily. And also…” She glanced at my face, becoming even more apologetic, “Also, it’s because I used to be so timid and cowardly. That’s why I messed up your face… I felt really bad about it…”
Hearing her say that, I was genuinely relieved. I held her hand, “Still, I apologize. I shouldn’t have used you against the faceless monster. But I’ll definitely find a way to help you with the hair removal.”
“I’m really okay, ah, well, I’m used to it…” She sighed lightly, touching her furry face and smiled again, “Besides, after what happened today, it seems like appearance doesn’t matter as much. Otherwise, why would so many people encourage me today?”
Seeing Māomao so spirited, I felt reassured.
“By the way, is Jiang Yan awake?”
Māomao smiled, “Jiang Yan is fine. It’s just that due to malnutrition over a long period, the sudden intense battle today exhausted him. He’ll be okay after sleeping a while longer. It’s my brother that I’m more worried about…” Māomao looked towards the window of the room, “Lán, come inside.” She pulled me in.
She led me to the window, and as I looked down, I saw Jiang Yan still sitting quietly alone on the steps of the cabin.
“Today, my brother was affected the most…” Māomao held her chin in her hands, looking sadly down at the silent Mòmíng.
I looked at him in confusion, “Why?”
She sighed, “Because we’re Guardians, you know? Our responsibility is to protect our master. But in battle, when our master doesn’t summon us, it means we aren’t trusted by them or our abilities are doubted. For our family that’s focused on protection, this is the biggest blow. And my brother… he’s the strongest Guardian in the Celestial Realm… yet he… wasn’t summoned by you…” She glanced at me, lowering her head, “He must be feeling really upset now…”
“But he usually protects me…” I mimicked Māomao, resting my chin on my hands, “So I didn’t think of him.”
“I know~~~” Māomao sighed again, “But today was a battle, and you were in danger. Guardians are expected to fight, not participating would make us the laughingstock among our peers. Most importantly, as Guardians, even if we have to sacrifice ourselves, we must protect our master. But… you got hurt today. So now, he must be blaming himself for everything, and it’s also my brother’s fault, he can’t interact well with girls, so he can’t gain your trust, sigh…” Māomao spoke with a sigh.
The sunlight gradually took on the colors of the sunset. I looked at the seated Mò Míng below, his silvery-gray hair tinted with the hue of old gold in the evening light. He looked like a person from an old photograph, sealed away in the past, slowly fading from memory.
He’s a warrior, yet today, as his master, I excluded him. Would he feel lonely, desolate?
Even in the Celestial Realm, there is sunrise and sunset, allowing these children of gods and demons to experience the world and appreciate the various natural scenery.
