Become Stronger, Survive, Find the Way Home, Then Go with the Flow and Wait for the Right Moment!

Tap, tap... tap...

The rhythm carried a hint of hesitation, yet also a certain resolve.

Lu Jing composed himself, turned toward the door, and pulled open the room door.

Standing outside was not Qian Renxue, who had returned after leaving, but Wang Dong'er.

Under the bright hallway light, the maiden had clearly just finished bathing. She had changed into a soft, close-fitting moon-white silk nightgown. The light fabric outlined her figure, which had only just begun to mature—still somewhat youthful, yet already possessing graceful curves. Her wet powder blue long hair was casually draped behind her shoulders, tiny crystalline Water Droplets slowly falling from its ends and glinting like crushed diamond beneath the lights.

The lingering mist lent her jade-white skin an enticing flush, like the bloom of fine rouge spreading across it.

She seemed to have come in a hurry. The blush on her cheeks had not completely faded, and it was impossible to tell whether it came from the hot bath or the slight nervousness of facing Lu Jing now.

Her beautiful powder blue big eyes clearly reflected Lu Jing's figure, filled with undisguised curiosity and a trace of barely perceptible... vigilance? At that moment, she was like a begonia flower dampened by night dew, exquisitely lovely yet carrying a delicate softness that stirred pity.

"Sister Dong'er?"

A flicker of surprise crossed Lu Jing's eyes as well. He stepped aside from the doorway and said, "It's so late. Is something wrong? Come in."

Wang Dong'er nodded and walked inside. Lu Jing casually closed the room door. As the door leaf that blocked others' view shut, the room seemed to contain only the two of them and the tranquil moonlight streaming in through the window. The air still seemed to carry the scent of grilled meat, along with Qian Renxue's faint, crisp, cool fragrance.

Wang Dong'er did not speak immediately. She merely walked over to the chair Lu Jing had occupied earlier and sat down with elegant composure. The hem of her nightgown slipped down, revealing a slender, smooth stretch of calf. Her legs bent slightly and rested naturally together at an angle, her hands folded atop her knees. Every movement displayed the fine upbringing of a noble young lady. Yet her eyes were like searchlights, fixed directly on Lu Jing's face. Her red lips parted as she asked bluntly:

"What did Qian Renxue come to see you for just now?"

Unlike Qian Renxue's cool voice, hers held a warm softness from her bath, but the probing undertone was equally direct.

Lu Jing sat in the chair opposite her. Rather than answering at once, he picked up a clean towel from nearby and handed it to her. "Dry your hair. Don't catch a chill."

Wang Dong'er froze for a moment, apparently not expecting him to care about that first. After hesitating for half a second, she accepted the towel and symbolically pressed it against the ends of her hair. Yet her gaze remained stubbornly fixed on Lu Jing, silently urging him for an answer.

Water Droplets slid down the line of her delicate jaw and fell onto the silk nightgown, spreading into a small dark patch.

"It wasn't anything important."

Lu Jing's voice was calm and soothing, as though he were recounting an utterly ordinary matter. "She had just returned from a mission and brought back some of Spirit City's famous grilled meat, so she shared some with me. And then..."

He paused, meeting Wang Dong'er's scrutinizing gaze. "She asked me a few things about the future."

"The future?"

Wang Dong'er's hand paused as she dried her hair. Her brows knit slightly. "What exactly did she ask?"

She had sharply caught the key point. Qian Renxue could not possibly have visited in the middle of the night merely to deliver food. Grilled meat? It was nothing more than a high-sounding excuse. What Qian Renxue truly cared about was likely the same thing they did: that distant yet deeply relevant "future."

Seeing the sudden light in her eyes and the tension in her jawline, Lu Jing understood. In this utterly unfamiliar world of ten thousand years ago, filled with danger on every side, any fragment of information about the "future" was as precious as a faint starlight guiding one through the fog.

Wang Dong'er appeared to be concerned about Qian Renxue's movements, but in truth, she was worried about their own situation and... the possibility of returning home.

Qian Renxue's actions likely represented the attitude and arrangements of Spirit Hall's upper ranks toward the two of them, these "visitors from another time."

"She asked a hypothetical question."

Lu Jing carefully chose his words. He did not want to reveal too many of Spirit Hall's core secrets, but neither could he completely brush Wang Dong'er off. "She asked whether, if she undertook an extremely difficult mission, she would ultimately succeed."

"A test?" Wang Dong'er chewed over the word, her powder blue eyes narrowing slightly. "It seems she doesn't fully believe us."

That confirmed her inner suspicion. Qian Renxue—or rather, Spirit Hall—had always remained wary and watchful of them.

"That's understandable."

Lu Jing shrugged his shoulders indifferently, his tone carrying a detached calm. "Even if it were us, if two strangers suddenly appeared claiming to be from ten thousand years later, we would have doubts and try every possible way to verify their story. Her test proves that we have come into contact with the core of things. It also proves that our 'origins' have drawn sufficient attention."

He looked at Wang Dong'er, his eyes clear. "That may not be a bad thing for us. At the very least, we are currently in the Worship Hall, temporarily safe, and we have a channel to access information at the heart of this era. What we need to do—"

He emphasized his next words. "—is continuously improve our strength, gain a firm foothold in this era, and... always watch for any clue or opportunity that might let us return."

Lu Jing's words were like a calming pill. Wang Dong'er's tense body relaxed slightly, and her tightly furrowed brows eased. She casually draped the towel over the back of the chair beside her. Her wet hair was no longer dripping, but the fresh scent from her bath had grown stronger. She fell silent for a moment, seemingly digesting Lu Jing's words and their current circumstances.

"Then... do you think her mission can succeed?" In the end, she could not help asking, though she had changed the angle of the question. Through the "possibility" of Qian Renxue's mission, she wanted to indirectly understand the "fortune" of Spirit Hall in this era—whether it was truly destined to decline, as the history book from ten thousand years later recorded. This concerned the risk of choosing to rely on Spirit Hall.

Lu Jing did not answer directly. He merely looked deeply at Wang Dong'er and repeated what he had told Qian Renxue earlier, though his tone was firmer now. "Sister Dong'er, remember what I'm saying. The future is not unchangeable. Every person's ending, the direction of the world—all of it rests on the choices and actions of the present. What matters is ourselves—what strength we accumulate in this era, what information we grasp, and... whether we can find the way home."

He stood and walked to the window, gazing out at the quiet night and the solemn outline of the Worship Hall.

"As for Qian Renxue, or Spirit Hall's future..."

With his back to Wang Dong'er, his voice low and forceful, he said, "That is not what we need to focus on excessively right now. Our goal is to become stronger, to survive, and to find our way home. As for everything else, we'll go with the flow and wait for the right moment."

As long as he could grow stronger, then whether here or after returning to ten thousand years later, he would no longer need to fear anyone. After all, how could those so-called Evil Soul Masters of the future possibly compare to his World-Destroying Black Lotus in terms of martial souls?

Wang Dong'er watched Lu Jing's small back, which appeared exceptionally straight beneath the lamplight. Listening to his clear analysis and firm sense of purpose, the last trace of inexplicable irritation caused by Qian Renxue's visit dissipated from her heart.

That was right. In this unfamiliar era, agonizing over the future fate of others—or even some vast faction—was meaningless.

They were like a lone boat adrift upon the sea of time and space. Their first task was to reinforce their vessel, gather strength, and then—find the star map that would guide them home.

"I understand."

Wang Dong'er also rose to her feet. Her voice regained its usual brightness, carrying a hint of determination. She nodded in agreement. "You're right. Become stronger, survive, and find a way home. That's what we should be thinking about."

She walked to Lu Jing's side and stood shoulder to shoulder with him, gazing together at the deep, unknown night sky of ten thousand years ago. Her powder blue hair brushed lightly across her cheek in the night wind, and her profile looked especially resolute beneath the moonlight.

Within that small room, two souls from the future silently reached an understanding deep inside the ancient Spirit Hall.

The lamplight stretched their shadows across the wall, as though foretelling that they would carve out a place for themselves in this magnificent, turbulent era.

And beyond the window, the historical tide of the Douluo Continent from ten thousand years ago surged onward along its predetermined course, yet because of these two "unexpected" pieces that had fallen onto the board, unseen changes were quietly brewing.