Max Level Return—I'll Protect That Fragile One

"No wonder she has to avoid the townsfolk."

Xu Xingguang rode her electric scooter, leading Huo Wen’an down a one-way alley, and stopped in front of a small courtyard filled with morning glories. She looked at the three-story house behind the iron gate and said, "This is Yin Su’s address."

Huo Wen’an gazed complexly at the courtyard before him and murmured, "Turns out she’s so close to me."

Noticing that there were two parking spaces inside the yard but both were empty, she said, "No one’s home, let’s head back first."

"Okay."

Song Chi and the others were still collecting medicinal herbs on Cangshan, and no one was home. Xu Xingguang took Huo Wen’an into the kitchen, letting him assist her.

"Can you cut potato strips?" she asked Huo Wen’an.

"I can."

Huo Wen’an said, "When my adoptive mother had to work, I always cooked lunch for Huo Xin. Back then, I hated making potato strips the most, because it involved cutting them into slices first and then into strips."

"But Huo Xin loved them. When I made them, with a bit of spicy sour minced sauce, she could eat two bowls all by herself."

Huo Wen’an’s knife skills were good; he swiftly sliced the potato into thin pieces. His fingertips pressed down on the potato slices, as he cut them into fine strips.

Xu Xingguang picked a few strips, looked at them, and praised, "Not bad, practice a bit more, and you’ll be qualified to be my assistant."

Upon hearing this, Huo Wen’an asked her, "When you were a head chef, did a lot of people want to be your assistants?"

"What do you think?" Xu Xingguang replied, "In that world, head chefs are more sought after than our world’s movie stars and celebrities. Chefs are held in high regard, and those who can cook are globally celebrated."

After hearing this, Huo Wen’an couldn’t help but exclaim, "What a world obsessed with trivial pursuits!"

"Obsessed with trivial pursuits?" Xu Xingguang scoffed, "Their technology is far more advanced than ours. They have semi-invisible hover trains in the sky, and every community roof has a stop. And you say they’re obsessed with trivial pursuits?"

Huo Wen’an immediately fell silent.

He lamented, "If there’s a chance, I’d really like to see it."

"Dreaming, aren’t you?" But after saying that, Xu Xingguang suddenly fell silent.

Go back to those worlds and see?

Thinking about the Reincarnation Mirror Fragment that Lord Mo Xiao embedded into her heart’s flesh, Xu Xingguang couldn’t help but wonder: Sparrowhawks can appear in her world through the Reincarnation Mirror. Could she also return to those ten worlds through the Reincarnation Mirror?

This thought made Xu Xingguang’s heart race.

With a swift chop, she severed the fish’s head, as well as the distracting thoughts in her mind.

Huo Wen’an squinted at the fish head mercilessly chopped off.

Did he offend her for her to suddenly lash out like this?

At that moment, a horn sounded approaching the small courtyard of number 219. Xu Xingguang washed her hands and said, "My older sister is here, Brother A Zui, come with me to greet her."

"Okay."

Zhang Zhiyi stood outside the small courtyard gate with several bottles of alcohol and a bunch of snacks Xu Xingguang used to love. Just as she was about to ring the doorbell, the gate opened from inside.

"Come, chill the alcohol; it takes some time for it to taste better when cold." Zhang Zhiyi handed the basket of alcohol to Huo Wen’an, who reached out to take it. But then Zhang Zhiyi hesitated and asked, "You’re not too frail to handle it, are you?"

Lines of frustration appeared on Huo Wen’an’s forehead. "Big sister, you’re joking."

To prove he could handle it, Huo Wen’an directly grabbed the basket and carried it inside.

Zhang Zhiyi laughed out loud and said to Xu Xingguang, "Your household has a pretty strong sense of pride. Here, I bought these snacks for you, though I’m not sure if you still like them."

Xu Xingguang took the shopping bag, casually taking out an individually packaged piece of imported chocolate. "Of course I still like them. Come in swiftly, older sister." She unwrapped the chocolate and bit a piece.

The taste was indeed good; no wonder she liked it before.

"Didn’t your brother-in-law come?"

"He’s busy with a business trip. Today, it’s just me."

Upon entering the house, Zhang Zhiyi had planned to help Xu Xingguang cook, but seeing Huo Wen’an wearing an apron, busy at the sink, she gave Xu Xingguang a knowing smile, saying, "Since someone is helping you cook, I won’t interfere."

"I haven’t strolled around Cangshan Town for many years. I’m going to wander around, see if there’s much change. By the way, didn’t you open a medicinal herb field in Cangshan? Can I go check it out?"

"Sure, just wait a moment. I’ll call Song Chi to come back and pick you up since you don’t know the way."