Such a Coincidence!

A huge grill pan sat on the dining table, holding a plump roasted fish three feet long, surrounded by an array of side dishes. Charcoal burned beneath the iron pan, and the bubbling broth released the mixed fragrance of the grilled fish to the fullest.

Even though the fish skin had been roasted a scorched yellow, Gao Wu could still see the hexagonal golden stars dotted across it.

He was a little surprised. "Golden Star Grouper?"

Golden Star Grouper was a deep-sea fish from the Otherworld, famed for its delicious flesh. It was said to be difficult to catch and extremely expensive.

A Golden Star Grouper three feet long—who knew how much it cost!

"Mm."

Song Mingyue picked up her wineglass and gestured to Gao Wu. "To celebrate, and to thank you for all your help. Cheers."

The golden-red liquor in the crystal glass was exceptionally beautiful. As it gently swayed, it released a rich aroma of wine that even overwhelmed the heavy fragrance of the grilled fish.

Gao Wu did not know what kind of wine it was, but he knew it had to be good wine—the very expensive kind.

He raised his glass and lightly clinked it against Song Mingyue's. "To our friendship. Cheers."

The two drained their glasses in one gulp. The surging alcohol made a blush rise on Song Mingyue's snow-white little face, while Gao Wu seemed entirely unaffected. His physique was simply too strong, giving him a tremendous advantage when it came to drinking.

Song Mingyue softly exhaled a breath of alcohol, then raised her glass again. "Another toast to friendship. No—to my only friend in the world. Let's drink three in a row."

She briskly drank three more glasses, and Gao Wu accompanied her with three. He felt that Song Mingyue was unusually excited today. Hadn't she failed to kill the Strange Spirit?

He did not ask, though. Saying anything else at a time like this would spoil the mood. Better to drink first.

After four glasses, Song Mingyue's earlobes and neck had turned red, and her bright eyes carried a faintly tipsy haze.

In this state, Song Mingyue instead looked like an ordinary young girl—charming and adorable.

Gao Wu finally could not help asking, "What's got you so happy? Didn't you fail to kill the Strange Spirit?"

"The Strange Spirit's root is in the Void Realm, but I killed its body. Although the Strange Spirit wasn't destroyed, my spiritual power made a breakthrough."

As she spoke of this, a happy smile appeared on Song Mingyue's flushed little face.

She had waited a very, very long time for this day. At last, she had successfully taken this step and entered a new realm.

From now on, the sky was high and the sea was vast. The complicated family ties that had troubled her no longer amounted to anything.

Yet this joy could not be put into words. And this kind of joy, she could only share with Gao Wu.

Unfortunately, she could not explain it in detail, making that shared joy lose a little of its flavor.

Though Gao Wu did not know the details, he understood one thing: for the cool and indifferent Song Mingyue to open her heart like this, it had to be a tremendous joyous occasion, a tremendous good thing.

He was truly happy for Song Mingyue and did not ask further questions. He simply drank with her.

"Unfortunately, I couldn't truly kill the Strange Spirit."

Song Mingyue said with some regret, "I'm afraid we won't be able to find the entrance to the Void Realm anytime soon."

"It's enough that you succeeded. The Void Realm would only be trouble for me." Gao Wu did not care much about it. Having a Void Realm would certainly be nice, but how could he possibly have the strength to operate a Void Realm space?

If a Void Realm space were compared to an unfinished building, then even if it were given away to an ordinary person for free, that person would not have the money to finish it.

The value of a Void Realm was far greater than that of an unfinished building. If others learned that he possessed a Void Realm space, it would instead become an enormous problem for him.

"Normally, the Strange Spirit shouldn't have been able to escape. Perhaps it has a master and a foundation in the Void Realm, allowing it to cross space and flee."

After thinking for a moment, Song Mingyue said, "Some Demon God Believers offer sacrifices to Strange Spirits, then use certain methods to control them. If you ever encounter someone tainted with a Strange Spirit's aura, you must be careful. That person may very well be a Demon God Believer."

"Mm-hmm." Gao Wu obediently nodded. He knew nothing about Strange Spirits, so listening to Song Mingyue was definitely right.

After chatting about Strange Spirits for a while, Song Mingyue suddenly asked, "Do you want to attend Anjing University?"

"Mm." Gao Wu looked at Song Mingyue in confusion. Why had she suddenly brought this up? Did she have a way to get him admitted by recommendation?

"Then I'll go to Anjing University too." Song Mingyue had originally wanted to leave Beizhou and get far away from the Song Family, but today she had changed her mind. Being Gao Wu's classmate was more important than leaving Beizhou.

"Oh..." Gao Wu gave a dry laugh. "I don't have enough points. I might not even get in."

"My relationship with my grandfather is fairly good. I can ask him to write you a letter of recommendation. As long as you pass the interview, it'll be fine." Song Mingyue had great confidence in Gao Wu. With his abilities, he would definitely pass the interview.

"That wouldn't be appropriate..." Gao Wu truly did not want to trouble Song Mingyue again. "I want to take part in the Xuetao Cup. If I win the championship, I'll have enough points to take Anjing University's entrance exam."

"That works too." Song Mingyue nodded in agreement. Like Gao Wu, she did not like asking others for favors. It was naturally better if they could solve things themselves.

Speaking of this, Gao Wu thought of Huang Hai. He told her about what had happened today. "What do you think Huang Hai is trying to do?"

"Jinsheng Hotel has an open arena, and you're quite famous now. Huang Hai probably wouldn't dare act recklessly." Song Mingyue was also somewhat puzzled.

If Huang Hai wanted to harm Gao Wu, it did not quite make sense either. Gao Wu was currently in the limelight; if anything happened to him, Huang Hai would absolutely not be able to escape responsibility.

Gao Wu and Song Mingyue drank and chatted, eventually finishing all four bottles of Golden Leaf Wine Song Mingyue had prepared. Song Mingyue was so drunk that she swayed as she walked, while Gao Wu was fine.

Still, the wine and fish were filled with source force particles and various energies. Even with his physique, he felt somewhat tipsy...

Tonight, he and Song Mingyue had only drunk and talked. There had not been any intimate behavior at all, yet he had enjoyed himself immensely.

Everyone had been relaxed and at ease. Their idle conversation without any particular topic carried a flavor that overflowed from the depths of their hearts. In that moment, the meaning of close friends truly took form, moving and delighting him.

"It's getting late, and it isn't safe outside. Just rest in the guest room." Seeing Gao Wu nod in agreement, Song Mingyue smiled happily, then turned and floated upstairs on unsteady steps.

Gao Wu also carried his sword to the guest room. He came here almost every day and was already quite familiar with the villa.

The second floor held the guest rooms, with the maid's room around the corner. The master bedroom was on the third floor. His guest room was the largest, with a small sitting room, a walk-in closet, a bathroom, and a balcony. The conditions were excellent.

After returning to his room and resting for a while, Gao Wu waited until the alcohol had faded a little, then carried his sword to the training hall on the first floor. The wine and fish were both great tonics, and he needed high-intensity training to digest and absorb their energy.

Aunt Lan watched Gao Wu train from the second floor for a while. Only when she saw that he had practiced for more than an hour without any sign of stopping did she go to the master bedroom to find Song Mingyue.

Song Mingyue had just taken a bath and was sitting on the bed in a robe, holding her head. She had drunk too much tonight. Her mind was perfectly clear, but her body could not quite bear the effects of the alcohol, making her feel even worse.

Aunt Lan went over and gently massaged Song Mingyue's head. With a sigh of admiration, she said, "That young man is truly hardworking. After drinking so much Golden Leaf Wine, he still conscientiously finished all his daily training. He's really extraordinary!"

"Gao Wu has always been extraordinary." Song Mingyue did not think much of it. If Gao Wu lacked such perseverance, he would not have achieved what he had today.

Seeing Song Mingyue's attitude, Aunt Lan became somewhat worried. "Have you really chosen Gao Wu? Isn't it too early?"

"He's my friend. There's nothing to choose or not choose." Song Mingyue did not want to discuss this subject. She felt it was meaningless.

"Ah..." Aunt Lan softly sighed. Letting a young man stay overnight in the house would be too damaging to Song Mingyue's reputation if word got out.

And there was no way to keep it secret. If the security guards at Yunhu Villa did not see Gao Wu leave, they would spread gossip everywhere.

"Aunt Lan, I'm grown up. There's no need to care about such trivial matters." Song Mingyue understood Aunt Lan's thoughts. She was worried that Song Mingyue's reputation would be damaged and that she would not be able to find a good husband later.

Song Mingyue was deeply disdainful of that. Though Aunt Lan was an intermediate Warrior, she could hardly understand Song Mingyue's thoughts, much less know that Song Mingyue had truly grown up.

Having reached this point, there would be no problem even if she did not rely on the Lineage. There was simply no need to tell Aunt Lan any of this...

The next day, Gao Wu woke up and made do with running for over an hour in the training hall, completing his daily training.

After eating breakfast with Song Mingyue, Gao Wu rode his bike to school. There were far fewer onlookers today, and people spoke to him much more naturally.

That afternoon, Gao Wu arrived early at the Martial Arts Arena to train. He had not truly digested yesterday's wine and fish yet, so he needed high-intensity training.

He was pumping iron like mad when he suddenly sensed a wave of sinister chill.

The Martial Arts Arena had no air conditioning, and the temperature was probably a few degrees below zero. Yet this sudden chill carried the cold, eerie strangeness of a snake...

Gao Wu looked up and saw Coach Huang Hai striding toward him. His heart immediately tightened. It couldn't be such a coincidence, could it?!