See You Tomorrow

At that moment, in a secluded courtyard of the Star Luo Zhu Family, a man in black was carrying a small bundle on his back.

"I've got to run, and fast. If they find out I lost the young miss, I'm screwed."

Twelve days had passed since the young miss went missing.

Whether the young miss was even still alive was anyone's guess.

Fortunately, he had been rescued on the third day.

He had still clung to a faint hope that, for the Zhu Family's sake, the other party would return the young miss.

But...

"Good thing I sent my family away over the past couple of days. I need to make a run for it too."

No matter how unwelcome Zhu Zhuqing was, she was still a daughter of the Zhu Family. She could die in the struggle for the throne, but she absolutely could not die because of him.

He would be buried with her!

"Where are you going?"

"Going? Going definitely won't be fast enough. I've got to run...???"

Wait, that wasn't right. Where had that voice come from? And why did it sound so familiar?

The man in black stared blankly behind him. Two figures, one tall and one small, were looking at him with teasing smiles.

Thud!

The man in black dropped to his knees, cold sweat pouring down his entire body.

Holy shit! It's that devil!

"Run? Why aren't you running?"

"Y-young miss, you must be joking. Why would I run? In life, I am yours, young miss, and in death, my ghost will be yours."

"Oh? Then how about I send you to your death~"

Stelle rested the Flaming Lance on the man's shoulder. Its scorching heat nearly made him wet himself on the spot.

Though he had already wet himself once before.

"Tell me, what gossip has there been in the Zhu residence since Zhu Zhuqing went missing?"

"The young miss's disappearance... wasn't taken seriously."

"???"

A loading symbol appeared over Stelle's head. Wait, the disappearance of a duke's daughter hadn't caused even a ripple?

The man in black gave a brief account of what had happened at the Duke's Mansion over the past few days.

Even though she knew full well that her father and mother wouldn't be worried about her disappearance, she had still held out a little hope.

Now...

"Phew~ Sister Stelle, thank you for coming with me."

"You're the disciple I chose myself. If I don't help you, who will?"

Zhu Zhuqing nodded hard. That was right. She wasn't alone.

"At worst, when you grow up, you can become my Brother Lin's little wife. Then we'll be one family!"

Zhu Zhuqing's little face instantly turned into a monkey's bottom. She was still young and thin-skinned.

"Lastly, let me help you one more time."

Stelle turned her gaze to the man in black, who was getting ready to run. Little sparks began to kindle on the Flaming Lance in her hand.

The man in black slid on his knees to Zhu Zhuqing's feet, his cries loud enough to shake heaven and make ghosts and gods weep.

"Young miss! Heaven and earth can bear witness to my loyalty to you!"

"Then why were you packing?"

"I... I... The young miss hadn't come back for so long, so I was packing to go rescue you. If I couldn't bring you back, I wasn't coming back either."

"Tsk, your acting is a lot worse than Lone Wolf's."

Stelle had no patience for his babbling. She drove the Flaming Lance into the ground beside his head.

"I'll talk. You listen."

The man in black nodded so fast his head nearly left afterimages.

Stelle pulled out a vial of medicine and poured it straight into the man's mouth.

His eyes went wide. Looking at the Flaming Lance beside his head, he could only shed tears of humiliation.

"This medicine can take your life, but it can also let you cultivate a little faster."

As Stelle spoke, she snapped her fingers.

A soul-rending pain flashed through him.

But that single instant was enough to make his Astral Express depart once more.

At the same time, though, he also felt the Soul Power circulating inside him nearly triple in speed.

Stelle then took out two more vials of the same medicine.

"The medicine you just took can let you cultivate to Soul Emperor. These two are enough to get you to Titled Douluo, but the price of betraying us will also increase many times over. Do you dare?"

The man in black looked beneath himself, then at the medicine. He absolutely never wanted to experience that pain again, even if it only lasted an instant... but...

The man gritted his teeth and poured all the remaining medicine into his mouth.

If I really can cultivate to Titled Douluo... my life is yours. As long as I'm utterly loyal, there won't be any side effects!

Nothing but benefits!

"You do have a bit of Lone Wolf in you, stopping at nothing to achieve your goals."

The man in black took a deep breath.

"Lone Wolf? He must be a... great senior."

Stelle said nothing, only giving Zhu Zhuqing's little head a gentle rub.

She placed four more vials in Zhu Zhuqing's hands. Seeing the burning look in the man's eyes, Stelle promptly put a stop to his thoughts.

"Don't get any ideas about these. One person can only drink three at most. One more, and you can go report to the King of Hell right now."

A trace of regret flashed through the man's eyes, and he abandoned the greed in his heart.

"Zhu Zhuqing, with this medicine, you can nurture two Soul Douluo to protect you in the future. This stuff is forbidden in Tianshu. If the City Guard found out, even I would have to spend some time in prison. Do you understand?"

Stelle grew serious for once. Zhu Zhuqing understood the gravity of the matter too, and carefully wrapped up the medicine and put it away.

What Zhu Zhuqing might not have known was that even if Stelle went to prison, it would only be for show. At most, the system would lock her in a little black room for a few days, then have Wei Lin come pick her up.

In the system's eyes, Old Wei unquestionably came first.

As long as Old Wei was having fun playing the game, even the rules could make way.

Otherwise, the system wouldn't have turned a blind eye and let Stelle bring the Golden Trash Can here.

Who could know how many rule-breaking things were inside?

Of course, some things couldn't be said outright. That would be impolite.

"By the way, what's your name?"

Zhu Zhuqing looked at the man in black.

"Young mistress, my name is Guo Zhipeng. My Martial Soul is the Earth Berserk Bear. I'm a Power Attack System Battle Soul Ancestor."

Guo Zhipeng revealed his Martial Soul.

Two yellow and two purple.

He was a protector of a Zhu Family daughter, after all. He still had that much strength.

"Young mistress, there's something I don't know whether I should say."

"Speak."

"Young mistress, you should know about the Zhu Family's elimination system. Rather than protecting you, I'm more here to keep watch on you—or, when the time is right, to let you die."

Zhu Zhuqing closed her eyes slightly. Stelle had done plenty to open her eyes these past few days, so she naturally understood these things too.

"I understand."

Zhu Zhuqing didn't answer the question—or perhaps there was no need to.

Stelle rubbed little Zhu Zhuqing's catlike head one last time, especially her pair of little cat ears. Finally, she could only wave goodbye reluctantly.

"Take good care of your young mistress. If I find out you haven't, I'll shove the Flaming Lance up your nostril."

Guo Zhipeng solemnly placed his right hand over his chest.

Zhu Zhuqing watched the direction in which Stelle had disappeared.

She closed her eyes slightly, and when she opened them again, she was once more that "innocent" little girl.

But... she knew things had become... different.

"Sister Stelle, I'll work really, really hard. I want to see how beautiful your home (Tianshu) is, and help you out, even if there's only a little I can do."

"Sister Stelle, see you tomorrow."