What caught Mu Zibai's attention was the Flowing Enlightenment Fruit. An Enlightenment Fruit, as the name suggested, could help someone attain enlightenment, improve their cultivation, and increase their comprehension.
Its greater effect was helping people suddenly comprehend the Great Dao. The simplest example was when someone reached a certain level of cultivation and wanted to advance to a deeper realm. They would need to achieve enlightenment.
It was much like how demonic beasts fell into slumber, and the Enlightenment Fruit could help people in this situation achieve enlightenment more quickly.
If Wenren Lingmeng really was as Monk Lanyuan had said, then perhaps the Enlightenment Fruit could help her wake up.
That left Mu Zibai in a dilemma.
It wasn't because he begrudged spending two hundred thousand points. Without Wenren Lingmeng, he wouldn't even have been able to earn any points. Deep down, he was actually more grateful to her than anything else.
He wanted Wenren Lingmeng to wake up. He wanted to see her standing before him, healthy and well.
What worried Mu Zibai was that once Wenren Lingmeng woke up, he might have a hard time earning points again. Points were undoubtedly his only means of defying fate and changing his lot in life.
Mu Zibai could also choose to keep earning points, but deep down, he still wanted to save Wenren Lingmeng. After caring for her so attentively all this time, he couldn't bear to watch her spend the rest of her life lying in bed during the prime of her youth.
He wished he had one more option. For example, he could keep the Flowing Enlightenment Fruit in the shop until he had earned enough points, then wake Wenren Lingmeng. That way, he wouldn't have to agonize over it.
Unfortunately, that wasn't possible.
Once the shop refreshed, there was no telling when the Flowing Enlightenment Fruit might appear again.
What about buying the Enlightenment Fruit, then waiting until he'd earned enough points before giving it to Wenren Lingmeng?
The Flowing Enlightenment Fruit was called that because it was connected to the Dao of Heaven and Earth. The Dao it contained would dissipate as time flowed by.
Mu Zibai couldn't help wondering if the system was making him choose between two options.
He gave a bitter smile, caught between a rock and a hard place.
He tidied Wenren Lingmeng's hair, then gently brushed the back of his hand against her cheek.
Wenren Lingmeng's heart leaped. Is he touching my face?
The familiar warmth made a little deer bound wildly in Wenren Lingmeng's heart. Although Mu Zibai had cared for her for so long, and had touched her in every way there was to touch—massaging her, bathing her, and so on—she was still a young girl experiencing the stirrings of love.
She was innocent and ignorant when it came to matters between men and women.
Looking at Wenren Lingmeng's breathtaking face, Mu Zibai thought, She must look even more beautiful when she smiles.
His heart tangled in knots. He leaned close to Wenren Lingmeng's ear and softly asked, "You'll remember me, won't you?"
Wenren Lingmeng's tense heart relaxed. So Mu Zibai hadn't sighed because he disliked her. He was worried that when she woke up, she wouldn't remember him.
She chuckled inwardly. Her gentle, considerate husband was worried about something like that. It felt as if she'd discovered one of Mu Zibai's little secrets.
Once I wake up, I'll have to tease him about this, she thought gleefully.
At that moment, her heart felt sweet, as if she'd eaten honey. She silently said:
I'd never forget you, my silly husband.
Not only will I remember you, husband, I'll also... hehe.
Mu Zibai's gaze softened. He tucked the covers around Wenren Lingmeng and left the room. He needed some time to think calmly about the question, and he had to come up with an answer before the day was over.
Perhaps there was something else that could cure Wenren Lingmeng. Perhaps there wasn't. Perhaps he'd never get the Flowing Enlightenment Fruit to appear again.
The shop contained everything under the sun, from supreme treasures of the Dao to blades of grass that cost a single point. If he missed out on some things, there was a good chance he'd never see them again for the rest of his life.
[Points -1000] [Points -10000]
Brother Jie's Glasses. Just as Mu Zibai had imagined, simply looking at the glasses brought Brother Jie's image to mind.
Their effect was that once you put them on, men would feel an inexplicable fear of you.
The effect gave Mu Zibai food for thought. Perhaps it had something to do with the glasses' origins. But sorry, he wasn't the sort of person who'd want men on men, or force a man to do what he didn't want.
Mu Zibai couldn't help wondering what the most effective way was for men to earn basic points by touching one another. He stared at the glasses in his hand, lost in thought.
The Drift Bottle of the Sea of Time cost ten thousand points. It didn't seem all that useful.
Its function was to let you put a letter you'd written inside the bottle and send it adrift in the Sea of Time. If someone found it, they might write back, or they might throw it away as trash.
Each letter cost one point to send.
It worked just like Penguin's Drift Bottle, but what was the Sea of Time?
Based on Mu Zibai's experience reading countless fantasy novels, a place with such a lofty, grandiose name had to be impressive. So he spent ten thousand points to buy it.
After a moment's silence,
[Points -1] [Points -1]
he tactfully wrote down what was on his mind, along with his worries. He didn't know if anyone would receive it. He was treating it as a way to get things off his chest.
He also bought a Broken Conch Fragment and put it inside.
After wandering around the courtyard, he looked outside and saw someone sitting there. It was Wenren Qingyi. Even this late at night, the little girl still wasn't asleep.
He walked over and asked, "Why aren't you resting yet?"
"Why aren't you asleep either?" Wenren Qingyi glanced at Mu Zibai, wrapped her arms around her knees, and curled up into a ball. Her cheeks were puffed out as she thought about something.
She wasn't as resistant toward Mu Zibai as before. Her attitude had softened quite a bit, perhaps because she knew he wasn't someone to mess with.
"I couldn't sleep, so I came out for a look. What about you?" Mu Zibai sat beside Wenren Qingyi. The mischievous little girl was much calmer tonight.
She buried her nose between her knees and said, "I couldn't sleep either. Um... thank you."
Mu Zibai: "!"
He wondered if he'd misheard. He stared at Wenren Qingyi in astonishment. Was the little girl thanking him?
Seeing his doubtful look, Wenren Qingyi said crossly, "You're unbelievable. I said thank you, so don't be so ungrateful."
"Wow, I'm truly honored. But I don't accept rewards I haven't earned."
Wenren Qingyi spoke so softly it was almost a whisper. "Thank you for saving me today. Otherwise, I would've died for sure."
So that was what she meant. Mu Zibai waved it off. "It was nothing. Besides, you wouldn't have run into that kind of danger if it weren't for me."
Wenren Qingyi realized he had a point. She'd been thinking she owed Mu Zibai a favor for nothing.
Put that way, she was the victim here!
She immediately put her hands on her hips and went back to her unreasonable self. "So it was your fault after all. Hmph, you have to make it up to me. I tore my shoes and my feet got sore running around to save you."
Mu Zibai didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This girl really was... he didn't even know what to say.
But her feet were covered in mud, and she hadn't even changed her shoes. For someone as pampered as her, she'd certainly suffered quite a bit.
"Hey, hey, in that situation, of course you had to run. And since when have you cared so much about me that you'd save me?" Mu Zibai asked with a laugh.
Wenren Qingyi's face turned red. She retorted furiously, "What do you mean, I care about you? I was saving myself, okay? If you died, my sister would've become a widow. I care about my sister. Who cares about a big villain like you?"
"How am I a big villain?" Mu Zibai asked, puzzled.
"And you still say you're not? Who spanks someone like that? It still hurts!"
Wenren Qingyi rubbed her bottom. It wasn't as painful as before, but the swelling still hadn't gone down. It still hurt when she sat.
She could only sit very carefully.
Mu Zibai pondered for a moment, then said, "You're not going to ask me to rub it for you as an apology, are you?"
"Mu Zibai! You jerk! What are you saying? My sister will get mad if she finds out!" Wenren Qingyi was both angry and muttered under her breath.
This brother-in-law of hers had no sense of propriety. He always gave off this vaguely sleazy feeling. No matter how she looked at him, he seemed like a bad guy.
And he'd even said something like that. What kind of brother-in-law talked that way? Wasn't he ashamed of himself?
But thinking of how he'd spanked her today, this brother-in-law really didn't seem to know the meaning of shame.
Mu Zibai's lips curved into a mischievous smile. "What if your sister doesn't find out?"
At that, Wenren Qingyi's heart suddenly started racing. What kind of outrageous thing was Mu Zibai saying? She'd never experienced anything like this. She shifted away in fear, putting some distance between herself and Mu Zibai.
Even the way she looked at him had changed.
"All right, I'm just kidding. Your brother-in-law is the very embodiment of justice. I'm the model gentleman they based all other gentlemen on." Mu Zibai pointed his thumb at himself, looking utterly smug.
"I don't believe you." Wenren Qingyi wouldn't believe Mu Zibai was a gentleman even if she died.
Mu Zibai smiled. He'd only been trying to scare Wenren Qingyi a little, but she'd actually taken him seriously.
It was pretty fun teasing his silly little sister-in-law. She really wasn't the brightest girl.
Wenren Qingyi fell silent for a while. Though they'd been bickering and trading barbs, she felt much better, and the knot between her brows had loosened.
Earlier, Wenren Qingyi hadn't gotten over the danger she'd been in. The lingering fear had stayed with her for a long time, and Mu Zibai had noticed.
On the surface, this girl acted tough, but deep down, she was just a silly girl. Any other girl would've already broken down and cried.
Mu Zibai wasn't just teasing Wenren Qingyi for fun. His main goal was to distract her, cheer her up, and help her forget what had happened.
What was the best way to distract someone? Of course, this was.
Seeing that Wenren Qingyi had completely forgotten about the danger, Mu Zibai smiled faintly and looked up at the sky.
Wenren Qingyi was only thirteen, wasn't she? Still at that innocent, carefree age. In Mu Zibai's world, thirteen meant just starting middle school, still at the age when dating could land you in jail for three years, with the death penalty at most.
But in this world, it was old enough to marry.
During the new book period, there'll be two chapters every day from now on: one of two thousand words and one of three thousand. Extra chapters will depend on the circumstances. Thank you, dear readers, for your support_(:3"∠)_
If you have any problems to point out—typos, plot issues, pacing, characterization, and so on—please let me know. Sometimes I don't notice things myself, so I need you sharp-eyed readers to help keep an eye out, so I can cut my losses in time.
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