Getting Stronger, Surviving, Finding the Way Home, Then Going With The Flow, Waiting For An Opportunity!

Tap, tap... tap...

The rhythm was hesitant, yet resolute.

Lu Jing collected his thoughts, turned, and walked toward the door, pulling it open.

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

Under the bright corridor lights, the young girl had clearly just emerged from a bath. She had changed into a soft, form-fitting moon-white silk nightgown. The fabric was light, outlining her developing figure, still a bit youthful but already hinting at a graceful silhouette. Her wet, powder-blue hair was casually draped over her shoulders, its ends still dripping tiny, sparkling water droplets that shimmered like crushed diamonds in the light.

The mist from the bath made her already fair, jade-like skin glow with an alluring pink hue, like the finest rouge.

She seemed a bit rushed, the blush on her cheeks not yet fully faded, unsure if it was from the steam or a slight nervousness at facing Lu Jing.

Her beautiful powder-blue eyes clearly reflected Lu Jing's figure, filled with undisguised curiosity and a hint of almost imperceptible... wariness? At this moment, she was like a begonia flower drenched in night dew, exquisitely beautiful yet tinged with a delicate fragility that evoked tenderness.

"Sister Dong'er?"

A flicker of surprise crossed Lu Jing's eyes as well. He stepped aside, gesturing for her to enter. "It's so late, is something wrong? Come in."

Wang Dong'er nodded and stepped inside. Lu Jing closed the door behind her. As the door shut, blocking their view, it felt as if only the two of them remained in the room, along with the silent moonlight filtering in from the window. The scent of roasted meat and the faint, crisp, cold fragrance of Qian Renxue seemed to linger in the air.

Wang Dong'er didn't speak immediately. She walked to the chair Lu Jing had been sitting in earlier and sat down gracefully. The hem of her nightgown slid down, revealing a slender, smooth lower leg. She crossed her legs slightly, keeping them naturally together, her hands clasped on her knees, her movements reflecting the good upbringing of a young lady from a prominent family. However, her eyes were like searchlights, fixed directly on Lu Jing's face. Her red lips parted, and she cut straight to the chase:

"What did Qian Renxue want with you just now?"

Her voice wasn't as cool as Qian Renxue's; it held a soft warmth after her bath, but the probing tone was just as direct.

Lu Jing sat down in the chair opposite her. Without answering immediately, he picked up a clean cloth from the side and handed it to her. "Wipe your hair, be careful not to catch a cold."

Wang Dong'er paused, seemingly surprised that he would focus on that first. She hesitated for half a second before taking the cloth and symbolically dabbing her hair ends, her gaze still fixed intently on Lu Jing, silently urging him for an answer.

Water droplets traced a path down her delicate jawline, dripping onto the silk nightgown and darkening a small patch.

"It's nothing major,"

Lu Jing's voice was calm, with a soothing quality, as if stating a perfectly ordinary matter. "She just finished a mission and brought some famous roasted meat from Martial Soul City to share. And... "

He paused, meeting Wang Dong'er's scrutinizing gaze. "She asked me some questions about the future."

"About the future?"

Wang Dong'er's hair-wiping motion stopped, her brow furrowing slightly. "What specifically did she ask?"

She keenly caught the key point. Qian Renxue's late-night visit couldn't possibly be just to deliver food. Roasted meat? That was just a plausible excuse. What she truly cared about, she suspected, was the same as them: that distant yet intimately relevant "future."

Lu Jing saw the sudden light in her eyes and the tension in her jawline, understanding dawning on him. In this completely unfamiliar world, fraught with peril ten thousand years ago, any fragment of information about the "future" was like a faint starlight guiding the way through mist, incredibly precious.

Wang Dong'er, while seemingly concerned about Qian Renxue's movements, was actually worried about their own situation and... the possibility of returning home.

Qian Renxue's actions could very well indicate the attitude and plans of the Martial Soul Hall's higher-ups towards them, the two "visitors from another time."

"She asked a hypothetical question,"

Lu Jing chose his words carefully, wanting neither to reveal too many of Martial Soul Hall's core secrets nor to completely brush off Wang Dong'er. "She asked if she could succeed if she were to undertake a very difficult mission."

"Hypothetical?" Wang Dong'er mulled over the word, her powder-blue eyes narrowing slightly. "It seems she doesn't fully trust us."

This confirmed her inner guess. Qian Renxue, or rather Martial Soul Hall, maintained a constant vigilance and scrutiny towards them.

"It's understandable."

Lu Jing shrugged nonchalantly, his tone carrying a detached calmness. "Because if it were us, faced with two strangers claiming to be from ten thousand years in the future, we'd also be suspicious and try to verify. Her probing simply shows we've touched upon something core, and that our 'origin' has garnered significant attention."

He looked at Wang Dong'er, his eyes clear. "This might not be a bad thing for us. At least, we are currently in the Worship Hall, safe for now, and have access to core information of this era. What we need to do,"

He emphasized his words, "is to continuously improve our strength, establish ourselves in this era, and... always keep an eye out for any clues or opportunities that might allow us to return."

Lu Jing's words were like a calming balm. Wang Dong'er's tense body relaxed slightly, and her furrowed brow smoothed out. She casually placed the cloth on the back of the chair beside her. Her wet hair no longer dripped, but the fresh scent after her bath was more pronounced. She was silent for a moment, seemingly processing Lu Jing's words and their current situation.

"Then... do you think her mission can succeed?" she finally couldn't help but ask, albeit from a different angle. Through the "possibility" of Qian Renxue's mission, she wanted to indirectly understand the "fortune" of Martial Soul Hall in this era, whether it was truly destined for decline as recorded in the history books from ten thousand years ago. This concerned the risk of their choice to align themselves with Martial Soul Hall.

Lu Jing didn't answer directly. He simply looked deeply at Wang Dong'er and repeated what he had told Qian Renxue earlier, but with even greater conviction. "Sister Dong'er, remember what I'm saying now. The future is not immutable. Everyone's outcome, the world's direction, hinges on the choices and actions of the present. What matters is ourselves—the strength we accumulate in this era, the information we possess, and... whether we can find our way home."

He stood up and walked to the window, gazing out at the tranquil night and the majestic silhouette of the Worship Hall.

"As for Qian Renxue, or the future of Martial Soul Hall..."

With his back to Wang Dong'er, his voice was low and powerful. "That's not the focus we need to excessively concern ourselves with right now. Our goals are to become stronger, to survive, and to find our way back. Everything else, we'll go with the flow and act when the opportunity arises."

As long as he could become stronger, whether here or back in the past ten thousand years, he would no longer fear anyone. After all, how could the so-called Evil Soul Masters of ten thousand years later compare to his World-Destroying Black Lotus in terms of Martial Souls?

Wang Dong'er looked at Lu Jing's small back, which seemed unusually upright under 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.

That's right. In this strange era, dwelling on the future destinies of others, or even a powerful faction, was meaningless.

They were like lone boats adrift on the sea of time. Their primary task was to reinforce the hull, gather strength, and then—find the star chart for their return voyage.

"I understand."

Wang Dong'er also stood up, her voice regaining its usual clarity, tinged with determination. She nodded in agreement. "You're right. Become stronger, survive, find our way home. That's what we should be thinking about."

She walked to Lu Jing's side, standing shoulder to shoulder with him, both gazing out at the deep and unknown night sky of ten thousand years ago. Her powder-blue hair gently brushed her cheek in the night breeze, her profile appearing exceptionally resolute in the moonlight.

In the small room, two souls from the future, deep within the ancient Martial Soul Hall, silently reached a consensus.

The lamplight stretched their shadows long, casting them upon the wall, as if foretelling their imminent creation of their own path in this magnificent era.

And outside the window, the Douluo Continent of ten thousand years ago, its historical torrent surged along its predetermined course, yet, because of these two "unexpected" pieces on the board, it was quietly brewing changes unknown to anyone.