"Great. Even if that Master of Ceremonies refused to admit it, at least the wager still counted."
Lu PingAn's "victory" had looked easy, but in truth, it had been the only possible victory under desperate circumstances.
Because he genuinely could not defeat her. As he was now, facing head-on a Rule-level being who had already come far down that path—a true quasi-god prospect—he had no chance of winning.
If his opponent had possessed obvious personality flaws, or had been arrogant enough to look down on him, Lu PingAn could have taken a gamble and seen whether some trump card might work. But his opponent was Phil, this "perfect person." Even when hunting a rabbit, a lion used its full strength.
Stall for time? Leaving aside the possibility that she possessed rules involving time, and that the final time limit was most likely a lie anyway—heh, Pactbearers' words—if they really reached that moment, it would likely mean a Rule-level being unleashing everything for her own safety. If Phil truly went all out, Lu PingAn would very likely be killed instantly.
Throwing her out of the secret realm and leaving this deathmatch without a result had been the best outcome among Lu PingAn's repeated calculations.
". . . Is there really no way for you to kill her?"
". . . Anything is possible. But I don't look forward to that future. I'm not you. I've had enough of cleaning up your fucking messes."
This time, Lu PingAn's words carried some genuine anger.
Why? Probably because of love—cough, cough—probably because he rather liked Xiao Mu, something rare for him, and how they would get along from now on would also be quite troublesome.
Though the source of that goodwill was rather subtle, in just a few days they had gone from being