Aegean Sea City.

Outside the cinema.

It was nearing noon, so there weren't many people coming to watch movies, but those who were here were mostly in pairs or on dates. Taotie didn't think much of it at first. Following Liu Wan's suggestion, he bought a bucket of popcorn and two bottles of mineral water. He grabbed a few kernels of popcorn and tossed them into his mouth.

Liu Wan also reached out her hand, nibbling on the popcorn.

Taotie was a bit puzzled. "Should I go buy another one?"

"No need, I eat very little," Liu Wan waved her hands repeatedly.

"But I can eat a lot."

Taotie stated earnestly, "I'll go buy a few more then."

Liu Wan was speechless.

She watched Taotie's back as he headed to the counter to buy more, wanting to say something but hesitating.

Soon, Taotie walked back and stuffed a large bucket of popcorn into Liu Wan's arms. "Here."

"Thank you."

"It's nothing."

Taotie looked around and frowned. "It seems like a lot of the people coming to watch movies are couples."

"Yeah," Liu Wan said softly. "Couples often choose the cinema for dates."

"Then why are we here if we aren't a couple?" Taotie wondered.

Holding the large bucket of popcorn, Liu Wan blushed and looked down, her heart inexplicably starting to race. "Don't you like it here?"

"I don't..."

What Taotie liked most was fighting and killing. Sitting there blankly for two hours to watch a movie was worse than death itself!

Yet the word "dislike" suddenly got stuck in his throat.

By now, even a fool like Taotie was beginning to understand. Could this woman… have feelings for him???

For a moment, the burly Taotie was completely stunned.

BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ.

Just then, his phone rang, startling him. He almost dropped the popcorn he was holding and clumsily answered the call.

Watching Taotie's awkward movements, Liu Wan held back a smile. "Take your time."

Taotie felt inexplicably flustered. He had never been so discomposed, not even when he faced a rebel army of thousands, alone with his war saber.

He quickly walked to a corner. Freed from her gaze, he felt a sense of relief and said, "The Supreme Emperor, what is it?"

"Is Liu Wan next to you?" Xu Lai asked directly.

"Ten meters away."

Taotie hesitated. "The Supreme Emperor, I suspect Liu Wan has feelings for me."

Xu Lai was silent.

The girl was just short of writing 'I FANCY YOU' across her forehead, and this idiot still only *suspects* it??? I must have been out of my mind back then to even consider entrusting the Heavenly Court to you after my death. With a reaction time that's a hundred billion beats too slow, he would be gnawed to the bone by the other Tao Lineages and Holy Lands!

Dispirited, Xu Lai hung up without even getting to state the purpose of his call. He was just too disappointed in his subordinate.

Taotie scratched his head.

Was The Supreme Emperor angry again? No, that can't be. He probably just had something important to do.

As Taotie pondered, a soft voice came from behind him. "The movie's about to start. Should we go in?"

"Ah? Oh, sure."

Taotie nodded mechanically.

...

「Elsewhere.」

After hanging up the phone, Xu Lai cursed, "That brute, he's infuriating!"

"...What happened?" Ruan Tang inquired.

Xu Lai relayed what had happened, and Ruan Tang also had a strange expression. "He probably just didn't think that far."

"Don't make excuses for him, he's just an idiot! His mind is full of fighting and killing. Why can't he be more like me and think about the more romantic things in life..." He trailed off, sensing the atmosphere shift. His expression unchanging, as if he hadn't noticed a thing, he smoothly changed the subject. "...like the idiom 'growing old together.' A person really should read more."

Ruan Tang's expression softened slightly. "I didn't realize you were so fond of studying."

"But I'm most fond of you and Yiyi."

"Flatterer."

"Phew—"

Xu Lai let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding, thankful he had managed to talk his way out of it.

Upon reaching the mall, Ruan Tang still couldn't decide what gifts to buy for the employees.

Bags? No, not practical.

Clothes? The price range would be hard to determine.

After much thought, Ruan Tang bought dozens of Huawei's new flagship smartphones in one go, spending just shy of a million.

"Just a phone?" Xu Lai raised an eyebrow.

"And a fifty-thousand-yuan bonus for everyone."

As she spoke, Ruan Tang took Xu Lai's arm and said gently, "Thank you."

Without Xu Lai, Above the White Clouds, with its broken capital chain, would have been beyond saving, let alone dominating the domestic high-end market and breaking into international high-end channels in just a few short months.

"Is that a verbal thank you?" Xu Lai curled his lip. Then, a thought struck him, and he said earnestly, "Actually, that works too."

Ruan Tang was confused.

At first, she didn't understand what Xu Lai meant. When realization dawned, Ruan Tang's face turned red, and she kicked him.

"Get lost!"

Ruan Tang was so angry she clenched her teeth. That jerk, always thinking about such trash.

"Honey, did you get the wrong idea?"

"...Say one more word of nonsense and I'll castrate you!"

"Alright, alright, I'll stop talking, okay?"

Xu Lai took Ruan Tang's hand, and the two of them strolled through the mall.

...

「Meanwhile.」

In Jiangbei.

In a suburban manor owned by a Wealthy Martial Dao Family, the gates were kept shut year-round, as if it were uninhabited.

In the main hall directly facing the entrance, a man wrapped in a black robe stood. He took off the robe, revealing a face covered in hideous scars.

They appeared to be blade wounds, slanting from his left eye all the way down to his chin.

On closer inspection, his left eye had no eyeball, only a hollow, chilling darkness.

This man in the black robe was none other than Ji Wuming.

The manor he was in was an asset belonging to a Wealthy Martial Dao Family under his control. Its ownership had passed through dozens of procedures, making it nearly untraceable.

No one would have ever guessed that there were members of the Moon Clan in Jiangbei.

Ji Wuming looked to be only about forty-five, though the passage of time had flecked his hair with gray.

Staring at the wooden table, Ji Wuming fell silent.

He had been on Earth for four hundred years. In that time, he had killed many of Earth's prodigies and done much for the Moon Clan. Yet, the day the Moon Clan would finally control Earth seemed to be getting further and further away.

Will I live to see that day? he murmured to himself.

At that moment, a young man who looked to be about twenty years old knelt on one knee outside the door. "My lord, the Crown Prince requests to speak with you."

"Stand up," Ji Wuming frowned and scolded. "The Crown Prince has said not to kneel to anyone, including him and the Moon King!"

"Yes."

The young man placed the Sound Transmission Jade Slip on the table, then bowed and retreated.

Ji Wuming crushed the disposable Sound Transmission Jade Slip.

A vast screen of light appeared in the air, revealing the face of Crown Prince Ji Gui.

"Crown Prince," Ji Wuming said respectfully, lowering his head.

"Is Xu Lai dead yet?" the Crown Prince asked, getting straight to the point. His face was abnormally flushed with a mixture of excitement and nervousness.

Having used one of his trump cards, he needed a definitive answer.

Only with Xu Lai dead could he confidently allow the Moon Viewing Clan, the Eight Great Crescent Moon Clans, and the various other Moon Clans to attack Earth. Otherwise, it would be a suicide mission.

Ji Wuming remained silent.

His silence was like ice-cold seawater, spreading across the vast distance of nearly four hundred thousand kilometers to seep into Ji Gui's heart.

Ji Gui's face went deathly pale, then flushed purple with rage. "Speak to me!"

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