Drink and Sing

"Let's go." Wu Shanshan glanced at the two of them and spoke without a care, as if she did not mind them seeing through something.

"Then we'll trouble you, Senior." Zhao Han stood up and sincerely thanked her.

"Hmph..." Wu Shanshan suddenly moved closer, narrowing her long, lively eyes. She bent down and whispered into Zhao Han's ear, "Stay away from him. He isn't something you can touch."

Zhao Han's expression instantly froze as a chill ran through her entire body. In that instant, she seemed to see a thick cloud of pitch-black dust erupt from Wu Shanshan, giving her an immediate sense of Impending Doom.

Someone this terrifying was only close to Skilled Level?

Then just how strong was Wenren Sheng, who had long been rated Expert Level?

The scene of him crushing that ceramic handle had only been the tip of the iceberg.

There was no need to say it—Wu Shanshan's power was absolutely inseparable from him.

"Alright, don't scare our cute and innocent junior sister." Xu Yunshuang stood up and patted Wu Shanshan on the shoulder.

Only then did Zhao Han feel the pressure in her chest ease, and that feeling of terror completely vanished.

"Tch. I thought you had more potential than that. So this is all," Wu Shanshan said disdainfully. She straightened up, turned toward the private room's entrance, and tossed out, "Let's go."

Zhao Han did not retort. She merely gritted her teeth in secret. Just wait, you woman who rose to High-rank through nothing but your body. Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river...

She would start by taking this first incident seriously!

The other party's pressure instead ignited an even stronger fighting spirit within her.

She decisively followed, refusing to show weakness.

Behind her, Xu Yunshuang picked up a silk handkerchief embroidered with a portrait, swept up the powder in front of Wenren Sheng's seat, then picked up the cup and placed it in her shoulder bag.

Wenren Sheng sat in his car with his eyes closed, leaning against the back seat with an utterly calm expression. His hair was slightly damp, as if he had just taken a shower.

The driver steered steadily as they had already entered the web of Elevated Bridges, speeding south along the relatively open roads.

It was only four o'clock. The summer sun still hung high in the western sky, and there were few cars on the road. By five or six, traffic would be congested.

In his mind, Wenren Sheng reviewed everything that had happened that day. The effect of enhanced Extraordinary Memory was that he could replay past events scene by scene with absolute clarity, like watching an animation.

An Ordinary Person's memory, on the other hand, was usually only a rough impression. It was impossible for them to recall many details.

"Zhao Han, Mystery Points: 4/9."

"Mystery composition: Extraordinary Power (initial Extraordinary Physique), Mystic Cognition, ???"

It seemed she possessed an unknown Otherworldly User he had not encountered before. Otherwise, after their close contact today, the Seed of Mystery would have been able to identify it through its aura.

Once it was confirmed, it should be possible to raise the upper limit of her Mystery Points.

With that in mind, he compared her to the other two.

"Xu Yunshuang, Mystery Points: 3/15."

"Mystery composition: Seed of Joy, Extraordinary Power (initial Extraordinary Physique, initial Extraordinary Memory), Mystic Cognition, ???"

"Wu Shanshan, Mystery Points: 5/21."

"Mystery composition: Seed of Fear, Extraordinary Power (initial Extraordinary Physique, initial Mystic Horsemanship), Mystic Cognition, ???"

It was still the same. Even though they were quite close to him, he still could not unlock everything. It seemed both women had something deeply hidden within them.

Still, that was normal. Even between husband and wife, it was difficult to speak from the heart. That was why sincere love was praised—precisely because it was rare. Who would praise something that could be done easily? He skipped past those scenes and turned to another.

"Liu Jian, Mystery Points: 15/40."

"Mystery composition: Seed of Wrath, Extraordinary Power, Mystic Cognition, ???"

This transfer student who had arrived at roughly the same time as Zhao Han was twenty-one according to his file, merely a university student, yet his upper limit of Mystery Points was very high. It seemed he either had a background or a story...

Among Otherworldly Users, the most common were Emotion Seeds: joy, wrath, sorrow, fear, love, hatred, and desire.

But that did not mean they were weak. In fact, these Emotion Seeds were the easiest to raise in rank.

High-rank Otherworldly Users often came from Emotion Seeds. Those rare Otherworldly Users that seemed incredibly powerful, on the other hand, found it difficult to meet the conditions for advancement.

"Sir, we're home." The driver had already stopped the car and opened the rear door. His reminder made Wenren Sheng open his eyes.

He nodded and stepped out of the car.

Before him stood a two-story beige villa with its own courtyard. The car was parked in a small lot within the yard, beside a blue compact car.

A flat path paved with patterned stones stretched beneath his feet toward the main villa.

To the left of the path was a Swimming Pool, while to the right stood a Glass Greenhouse. Its roof was open for the summer, and vegetables, melons, and fruit were growing inside.

"Brother Li, that'll be all for today. Get some proper rest." Wenren Sheng looked back as he walked.

"Yes, sir." The driver followed behind him.

The driver lived with him. There was another separate house behind the villa.

The two entered the villa, and the driver stepped forward to help Wenren Sheng open the door.

The moment the red wooden door opened, they heard a clear recitation tinged with drunkenness.

"Raise a cup and sing, for how long does life last? Like morning dew, the days gone by are far too many.

"Let passion be passion, for sorrow cannot be forgotten. What can relieve my sorrow? Only Du Kang."

"Master is drunk again." After saying that, the driver suddenly took several steps back.

Wenren Sheng walked inside, and his brows furrowed slightly.

A handsome man who resembled him by seventy percent, appearing only thirty-five or thirty-six years old, lay half-slumped on the L-shaped sofa in the entrance hall. His drunken eyes were unfocused. Several cans of Snowflake Beer lay scattered across the silver coffee table beside him.

That was not the important part. A young woman with a slender figure and pretty features was draped over the man, her clothes half-open...

The man seemed completely unaware. A faintly pained expression appeared on his face as he half-closed his eyes and continued reciting "Short Song Style" to himself.

"Ahem..." Wenren Sheng had no choice but to interrupt the live show.

The woman hurriedly climbed up, began straightening her clothes, and explained, "Sorry, A Sheng. I thought you wouldn't be coming back today."

The man finally opened his eyes and unsteadily sat up, greeting Wenren Sheng. "Oh, you're finally back. Give me..."

Wenren Sheng walked over with an expressionless face and raised his hand. Slap! Slap! He gave the man two hard slaps across the face, one on each side.

The woman stared in shock, hurriedly shrinking back into a corner. Was this killing a chicken to frighten the monkeys?

Not only did the man not get angry, a blissful expression instead appeared on his face. "So comfortable... so reassuring... Dad..."

Then he toppled headfirst onto the sofa and began snoring loudly.

"Sorry, Sister Jing. I startled you. This is probably your first time seeing it. It's a unique way our family expresses intimacy."

Wenren Sheng explained to the woman with a perfectly serious expression. Then, with one hand, he slung the man over his shoulder and walked toward a passage on the right side of the hall.

At that moment, two streams of information flashed through his eyes again.

"Wenren De, Mystery Points: 1/2."

"Mystery composition: Extraordinary Power (initial Mystery Resistance), ???"

"Feng Jingjing, Mystery Points: 0/1."

"Mm, mm. Although your family traditions are a little unusual, A Sheng, I can understand." A strange expression flashed across Feng Jingjing's fair face, but she still forced herself to nod.

When the son came home, he immediately slapped his drunk father twice. The father did not get angry and even called his son Dad? The father bringing home a woman other than his wife, then getting beaten by his son, was not that hard to understand—but the whole scene was simply impossible to make sense of.

Was this what families in the mysterious world were like? It did not seem quite the same as what Shuangshuang had told her.

"Then I'll head back first." The more Feng Jingjing thought about it, the more wrong it felt. After saying that, she prepared to leave.

"Brother Li, see Sister Jing off." Wenren Sheng opened the door to a bedroom and gave the order over his shoulder.

"Yes, sir," the driver answered.

Feng Jingjing followed Driver Li Shuangyue out of the villa's main hall. Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, she asked, "Brother Li, you've been with A Sheng for quite a few years, haven't you?"

"Yes. I started following Young Master Wenren three years ago," the driver replied mechanically.

"Then does their family really have this custom?" Feng Jingjing asked.

"Uh, you'll have to get used to it sooner or later if you want to enter this family. Young Master means well. He wants you to adapt in advance..." The driver paused before continuing.

"What happens if I can't adapt?" Feng Jingjing asked curiously.

"Madam left because she couldn't adapt to this situation. She left very peacefully." The driver gave her an inscrutable smile.

Feng Jingjing shuddered and quickly walked toward her blue compact car.

"It seems you've had some alcohol. Let me drive you home," the driver said.

"No, I can just catch a taxi outside." Feng Jingjing repeatedly waved her hands and quickened her pace.

"Ah, I was actually joking with you just now." The driver caught up and explained.

Feng Jingjing immediately let out a great sigh of relief. Patting her chest, she said, "I knew today was only an exceptional situation. Maybe Brother De and I went a little too far."

"No, I meant Madam was in great pain when she left." The driver smiled again.

"Ah..." Feng Jingjing immediately ran out through the villa gates.

Li Shuangyue coldly watched her retreating figure flee in panic. Madam would definitely come back.