Chapter 174
Chapter 174: Beauty? False mother!
Zhao Yan's arm was so sore from Roman's shaking that he quickly pulled his hand back, laughing awkwardly.
"Easy, easy..."
Roman immediately stepped aside, pushing Zhao Yan and Xin An toward the seats of honor.
"Come on, come on, sit here, sit here!"
"The captain's changing, he'll be right out!"
"Everyone eat first, we can talk while we eat! After a long day, I'm starving to death!"
With that, he dropped back into his seat, reached out, grabbed the dishes on the table, and shoved them straight into his mouth.
Oil dripped down his fingers onto his clothes, but he didn't care in the slightest, chewing away with grease running down his chin.
Seeing this, the others said nothing.
Eagle Nation people don't use chopsticks—eating with their hands was normal.
The Joker had already struck up a conversation with Jamie and Allen Dick, laughing and chatting away.
Liu Ruyan and Shadow sat quietly in the corner—one sulking, the other watching the spectacle.
Zhao Yan, Xin An, and Roman were the remaining three, eating and getting down to business.
"Vice-Captain Roman."
Zhao Yan raised his cup and asked casually, "What exactly is going on in this Soul-Return Town? Who's celebrating a wedding?"
Roman gulped down a huge mouthful of wine and wiped his mouth.
"The Phoenix Sovereign! The master of Soul-Return Town—the Sage of Painting!"
He held up one greasy finger.
"She's holding a Groom Selection Tournament. It officially starts at noon tomorrow."
"The final winner..." He gulped down another mouthful and let out a belch. "Not only gets to marry the Phoenix Sovereign—he also gets two spirit instruments. I heard they're Special-Grade!"
Zhao Yan and Xin An both stopped their chopsticks at the same time.
‘Two Special-Grade spirit instruments?’
"How does one enter?" Xin An asked urgently.
Roman's face was flushed red, his tongue a little thick, but his enthusiasm was only higher for it. He slapped the table, spraying as he spoke.
"Hold on, hold on, fellas! Let me tell you!"
"Anyone with more than 50 taels of Silver Banknotes in their pocket can participate—men and women alike!"
"On top of that, the Phoenix Sovereign will also invite some outstanding participants from outside. Those people have invitations—they can enter directly without paying 50 taels!"
He started counting on his fingers.
"The first stage is a one-day Business Performance competition! The top 2 in each profession advance!"
"The second stage tests management and recruitment ability!"
"It's about who can recruit the most people into the livestock factory!"
"Basically, you're acting as a middleman! Top 4 advance!"
"The third stage—the grand final—is a personal test by the Phoenix Sovereign herself!"
Zhao Yan and Xin An exchanged a glance and slowly nodded.
So that was it.
It seemed they would need to get their hands on 50 taels of Silver Banknotes before noon tomorrow.
Zhao Yan was just about to raise his cup in a toast when something suddenly felt off.
He turned it over in his mind for a long while before finally pinning down the thought that was unsettling him.
This place was too comfortable.
From the moment they entered the town until now—aside from that chase that ended without real danger—they had encountered almost no genuine threats.
Food, drink, rules, professions—even a brothel running like a roaring business.
What kind of Yellow Danger Level Forbidden Zone was this?
It was practically an ordinary ancient town.
"Vice-Captain Roman."
Zhao Yan set down his cup and fixed his gaze on Roman's already somewhat glassy eyes.
"What exactly is going on with this Soul-Return Town? Are the townspeople human or ghost?"
Roman let out a belch and chuckled.
"Hahaha... well, about that..."
He shook his head as if trying to sober up, but it was clear he was already quite drunk.
"Sorry, fella, the captain told me I can't say."
"But don't worry—it's safe here."
"Of course, the condition is that you complete your Business Performance on time!"
He clapped Zhao Yan on the shoulder and dropped his voice as if sharing a secret.
"Because in a certain sense... we're competitors too, aren't we?"
Xin An's eyes shifted.
He had sharply caught the information embedded in Roman's words: competitors.
So the Eagle Nation people wanted those two Special-Grade spirit instruments as well.
Although he had no desire to play dirty, time was not on their side.
Huaxia knew nothing about Soul-Return Town.
And they had to figure out the rules and secrets of this place in the shortest possible time.
This dirty role—he'd take it.
"Vice-Captain Roman."
Xin An raised his cup and leaned in with a smile.
"We naturally understand discipline."
"But we're all human beings—helping each other out in another world is only natural."
"I'm particularly interested in those two spirit instruments. Even just catching a glimpse would be nice, as long as I'm not competing."
"Those two Special-Grade spirit instruments—what are they called exactly? What do they do?"
"Xin An!"
Zhao Yan frowned and moved to stop him. This was too underhanded!
But Xin An shot him a look.
“Captain, we have too little time.”
"Haah..."
Zhao Yan fell silent for a moment, then finally sighed, turned his head, and began chatting with Jamie and the others—covering for Xin An.
Roman was already too drunk to find his own way home. He draped an arm around Xin An's shoulder and spoke with a thick tongue.
"Those two spirit instruments... they're incredibly important!"
"We even have a squad member who went undercover for this..."
Xin An's heart rate picked up slightly, though his expression remained perfectly composed.
"As for the name and function... I heard the captain mention it once..."
"Something like..."
Roman leaned in close to his ear, his voice dropping lower and lower.
"It's called..."
"Called what?"
Xin An held his breath.
Roman looked at Xin An with bleary, unfocused eyes, opened his mouth wide: "It's called... called Shan..."
And at the very instant he was about to speak—
Whoosh!
A length of silk flew in from the back of the private room, sealing Roman's mouth.
Swallowing the words he hadn't yet said.
Roman's eyes went wide. He made a series of muffled mmm mmm mmm sounds.
Then his whole body slumped onto the table, and a thunderous snore rang out.
Xin An froze and was just about to turn around.
Then he felt a wave of sweet fragrance wash over him.
Something soft pressed against his back from behind, sinking him deeply into it.
"My, my, little friend—trying to pump my vice-captain for information on our turf..."
"That's a little ungentlemanly, don't you think~?"
A bewitching female voice rang softly in Xin An's ear.
Everyone in the private room went still at once, heads snapping toward the doorway.
A golden-haired, green-eyed woman with what could only be described as a figure carved by the devil was standing behind Xin An, arms wrapped around him from behind.
She wore a deep-red off-shoulder robe, golden hair tumbling over her fragrant shoulders, face adorned in ancient cosmetics.
Those captivating eyes were now fixed on Xin An with a teasing, playful gleam.
Newcomer Leaderboard No. 2—Arielia.
Or rather, the star performer of the Emerald Moon Pavilion—Miss Arielia.
At this moment, Xin An—wrapped in her arms—had gone as rigid as a block of stone.
Because he could feel it unmistakably: the two soft things pressing against his back had nothing between them and him—not a single layer.
That completely unobstructed sensation made Xin An instantly realize something.
Under that robe of hers, Arielia was wearing absolutely nothing!
Freeballing—going in without armor!
Xin An—a middle-aged bachelor who had never been in such close proximity to a woman in his life—felt a rush of heat shoot straight to his head.
His entire body was trembling—not from fear, but from extreme tension and stimulation.
That softness and fragrance he had never experienced before made it almost impossible to breathe.
"I... I..."
Xin An fumbled for words.
Being in the wrong already, he didn't dare forcibly push her away. He could only stand there frozen, every muscle in his body locked tight.
"Go on, tell me—how are you going to make it up to me?"
Arielia playfully blew a puff of sweet breath in Xin An's ear.
Xin An jolted, and half his body felt like it went numb.
What Special-Grade spirit instruments? His mind had completely blanked. All he could think about was how to escape this enchantress.
"It was... it was my fault."
"A man does what he does and answers for it."
"Whatever compensation you want, I can give it—as long as it doesn't violate Huaxia's principles!"
Xin An said in a trembling voice.
Arielia heard this, and the mischief in her eyes deepened.
She licked her lips.
"Oh~? You're the one who said it—any price~"
"Then... keep me company tonight~"
"As it happens... I've never experienced what an S-Grade body feels like~"
The sweet breath drifted past Xin An's ear, carrying away the last shred of his reason and nearly stopping his heart.
His whole body shook like a sieve.
He had survived countless life-and-death situations in the Savage Realm, but this kind of scene—this was truly a first for him.
Maiden voyage. Brand new territory.
Even as a voice in his head was saying:
‘This is the Leaderboard No. 2 genius!’
‘Second only to No Words Needed!’
‘Even if you have to sacrifice yourself, it's worth it!’
His body and moral boundaries still let reason win out in the end.
He fumbled and stammered, practically whimpering:
"Miss Arielia... I... I'm nearly 40 years old. I'm old, it's not appropriate..."
"It really isn't appropriate."
"You... you're the bigger person here—please find someone else."
"Oh~? But what if I... don't mind your age at all, and actually prefer exactly your type~?"
Arielia laughed softly, her hand beginning to wander shamelessly across Xin An's chest.
Her body even gave him two light, deliberate presses against his back.
Xin An felt his mind go completely blank.
That unobstructed sensation had him simultaneously thrilled and terrified.
This torment—swinging between reason and instinct—made his heart feel like it was about to burst out of his chest.
Even though he was a battle-hardened S-Grade Extraordinary One.
In this moment, he had completely collapsed.
His whole body went limp. If Arielia hadn't been holding him, he would likely have already melted onto the floor.
The sensory assault and psychological torment brought him to a kind of breakdown he had never experienced before.
And yet, just as Xin An was feeling utterly hopeless—even beginning to resign himself to his fate.
Right at the moment Arielia gave those two presses.
The God-Slaying Spear...
No, more accurately—something that should not have existed there.
From behind Xin An, gave Xin An an inadvertent little prod.
"......"
Xin An's head turned stiffly. He found himself looking at the woman who was now wearing a deeply amused smile.
Two seconds later.
"What the..."
Xin An let out a howl of utter despair.
In that single instant, he would have rather been stabbed by an actual blade just now.
That blow—it surpassed even the terror of facing an Evil God.
After having lived through the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, through every great joy and great sorrow life had to offer—
Blade Squad's vice-captain Xin An, in this moment, finally bid his complete and utter farewell to a youth that had never truly existed.
That Miss Arielia—Newcomer Leaderboard No. 2—the genius who had stirred in him endless fantasies...
Was not only a man!
But moreover...
This absolute goddamn disaster of a situation—she was a freeballing femboy!
In every sense—physiological and psychological.
He, completely and definitively, went soft.