A Certain Kind of Strength-Based Beauty

Su Ling stood there, motionless.

The Lord of the Rings finally stopped his ruthless display of wealth, extinguishing the sapphire crystals and gradually dimming the light from the chandelier.

The VIP, who remained expressionless and motionless, slowly spoke.

"Hello, this isn't our first meeting, Popsicle Boy."

His voice was like a loud seagull's, just like Xiao Qi's, full of energy and aggressive.

Even without any expression, a strong sense of aggression could be seen in those eyes.

Xue Ming sensed the spiritual pressure inside the carriage.

--It's quite strange, but the Inspiration Pressure brought by these VIPs are all different.

Teacher Victor was evil and high-pitched, with a pain that could almost burn you.

Mr. Wen Bucai is both refreshing and gloomy, extremely dualistic, and possesses a very contradictory sense of chaos.

Jack Martin, the Ripper who isn't registered in the Abyssal Railway system but possesses the Morpho Butterfly, is like chocolate—bitter, sweet, and rich, with a grainy texture.

By analogy with the aforementioned figures, the strikingly beautiful woman with black hair and eyes before us, Xiao Qi's mentor—

--The feeling she gave Jiang Xueming was one of intense aggression.

It resembled a marching army, with bright red flags.

It was the military band playing the timpani, exuding an air of unwavering determination and self-assurance.

It's as if, in the face of disaster, her mere presence would instantly bring a sense of security.

--This was not Xue Ming's imagination. In the VIP tea room of the Abyssal Railway, he had met many Shining Butterflies. These VIPs had different spiritual pressures, but only Teacher Su Ling left a deep impression.

Because the holders of the colorless stone have Inspiration and spiritual pressure that are completely different from ordinary people.

People who possess other colors of pyroxene have distinct personality traits, ranging from introverted to outgoing, from arrogant to cheerful.

Only black stones, White Stone, and completely colorless transparent stones are enigmatic, unfathomable, and difficult to describe.

There was another reason why Xue Ming treated Xiao Qi's teacher differently.

The Inspiration Pressure faced by Master A Ling is the same as that faced by Xue Ming.

Although there are subtle differences, they are very similar.

--People cannot smell their own body odor.

Xue Ming couldn't sense his own spiritual pressure either, but he had asked countless times, explored countless times, and communicated with people repeatedly to confirm it during his journeys.

His spiritual pressure expression is a kind of intense heat, as sharp as a razor's edge.

It was a burning pain, like being cut by ice, followed by the gushing of hot blood.

Even just a few glances would make someone instinctively avoid them.

If spiritual pressure is a high-level expression of personality...

So, Master A Ling, sitting upright in the VIP carriage, is also a ruthless and cold-blooded killer who shows no mercy to her enemies.

"What do you want from me?" Master A Ling spoke very quickly, and after taking off her sunglasses, she didn't make any further movements.

After meeting her mentor, Xiao Qi put away her usual playful and carefree expression, as if she had met her idol and naturally had to maintain a certain image.

"It's nothing, Master."

"You can call me even older, I'm only twenty-seven this year." Su Ling immediately said, "Even if you call me seventy-two, I won't be angry, I really won't be angry."

"Hahahaha." Xiao Qi immediately changed her tune. "Okay! A Ling! A Ling! A Ling!"

Su Ling remained motionless. The warm light shone on her waitress uniform, giving it a wine-red hue that inexplicably reassured people.

She then turned her gaze and fixed it on Xue Ming.

At that moment, Jiang Xueming felt his hair stand on end.

Something inside me seemed to shatter; my breathing became rapid, and my nerves began to feel fragile.

He stared incredulously at his hands, which had become sensitive, like when we hold a stick and unconsciously twirl and swing it around.

At this moment, Xue Ming's hands were in this state, reacting in sync with the other person's gaze that locked onto his aura.

"Welcome to the top tier of Abyssal Railway strength."

Su Ling said this.

"[JoeStar]'s rising star [Ming] -- You look incredibly strong, my combat power indicator is about to explode, the BOSS must really like you."

Xue Ming is still trying to tame his limbs.

Su Ling then asked, "Did you come to see me for something?"

Xue Ming, "No, it wasn't before, but it is now—Teacher, what did you do to me? Was it a soul power ability? Or some other technique? I want to learn it! Can a normal person learn it through study?"

"That would probably take a very long time to learn," Su Ling immediately explained. "The questions will be asked one by one, and I can only answer them one by one. Which one do you want me to answer first?"

Xue Ming carefully observed the downy hair on his arm. It seemed to be stimulated by a weak electric current, standing up unnaturally. The texture of the skin also slowly undulated in rhythm with the other person's breathing, as if it had completely fallen into the control of this VIP.

So he asked the most important question, "Is this incredible superpower caused by your soul power?"

Su Ling: "Yes."

Xue Ming: "What is your soul power? Why can't I see its spiritual form? I've already been hit without any reaction?"

Su Ling hooked a chair with her foot, the force of which was just right, sending both chairs flying towards Xiao Qi and Xue Ming at the same time.

The black cloth boots stomped hard on the ground, causing the long table under the display case to bounce and land in front of the three people.

Then came the clean and efficient way of serving tea and water, followed by Su Ling's unhurried and detailed explanation.

"This is my ability."

Xue Ming immediately helped the distinguished guest wipe the table and prepare the cups. The two worked together very well, and in the blink of an eye, a steaming cup of crocheted milk tea appeared in front of Xiao Qi.

Xue Ming: "Explain in detail."

Su Ling: "The BOSS told us to keep the special features of our spiritual power a secret and not to tell outsiders, but I could tell at a glance that you are not an outsider."

Xiao Qi playfully said, "He is me."

Su Ling answered quickly, "He is your husband."

Xue Ming: "It hasn't come to that. But it is."

Su Ling quickly followed up with, "But it's about right."

This almost mind-reading magic astonished Xue Ming.

If it's said that Master A Ling knows Seventh Brother very well and can occasionally read his lines in advance, then that can be explained.

However, Jiang Xueming and Su Ling had only met twice, and the feeling of having one's thoughts read through could only be described as terrifying.

Xue Ming continued, "I want to know."

Su Ling: "Your next sentence is -- [Why do your abilities seem so complex, as if you possess more than one Soul Might and can activate so many Radiant Stones? What is the reason for that?]"

This was a bit of a difficult conversation to have.

Xue Ming simply stopped talking.

Immediately afterwards, the aggressive VIP became easygoing and indifferent, although he still maintained that expressionless and ruthless demeanor.

Judging from her feigned sleep and slightly squinting eyes, it was as if the lion or tiger had stopped staring at its prey and turned its head slightly away.

"I'm sorry for offending you, but I won't apologize. Just try to make do for now, and if we can't, we'll end the conversation."

Xue Ming remained silent, a strong sense of curiosity swirling within him.

In that instant, he glimpsed a sliver of the truth in the VIP's eyes.

It was a wondrous, indescribable, and extremely complex supernatural ability.

In those dark eyes, one could occasionally glimpse lines of code and data, like various UI elements and status monitors, almost like a game screen.

In the reflection of those eyes, Xue Ming even see his own health bar and the speech bubble above his head.

"My soul power is called [Phoenix], and it's something very complex, something that can't be explained in just a few words." Su Ling spoke fluently, her words like a machine gun. "If you don't want to hear a long explanation, I'll keep it short."

Xue Ming then saw the dialog box above his head through the VIP's eyes.

"Perfect."

He had barely opened his mouth when the corresponding text appeared in the dialog box.

It's so eerie and mysterious.

Is the world as seen through this VIP's eyes entirely composed of data?

This data is complex and redundant. If she were to walk into a square with tens of thousands of people, and all this information flooded her eyes, wouldn't she be overwhelmed by the chat boxes?

The sentence I just heard--

Welcome to the top tier of Abyssal Railway difficulty!

This might be referring to this VIP's recognition of Jiang Xueming.

After all, in her eyes, there might be more than just textual information; there's also the most direct calculation of combat power.

Xiao Qi said--

--This teacher is a doctor, a compassionate and skillful angel in white who saves lives.

But at this moment, Xue Ming was hesitant to believe those words.

This ability to read minds and make predictions.

This is a force that observes combat power or destructive power as visualized data.

This is a top-of-the-line electronic reconnaissance system with a built-in, all-weather FOB radio receiver.

This method quantifies damage data, transforming thermal, tensile, frictional, shear stress, and pressure into observable numerical values.

This kind of DEBUFF monitoring can instantly reveal the target's symptoms and injuries, whether they have entered Gate of Death, and whether they are in a state of coldness, fragility, neurasthenia, disability, fear, etc.

This is the control with which chairs and tables are delivered to the guests.

Without a doubt, Xiao Qi's master is extremely powerful.

Even if her arm only has seventy kilograms of strength, with the blessing of such soul power, no one in the world can defeat her, and even if they do, it would be very difficult to kill her.

"Aha!" Su Ling snapped her fingers, "Your comprehension is exceptionally high. If there's a chance, I'll recommend you to my teacher to become a Daoist priest. He's always wanted someone to inherit his mantle. I'm too playful; I'm not suitable."

Jiang Xueming wasn't sure, so he asked again.

"Master A Ling, is your ability really what I think it is?"

"Why don't you see for yourself?" Su Ling said, then used her hands to draw a golden square in Xue Ming's line of sight.

That's the UI panel drawn using two index fingers.

--Exactly the same as the game interface.

As the spiritual threads and ethereal bodies formed on her fingers, a completely different world seemed to appear in Xue Ming's eyes.

It consists of a border in a luxurious gold color, followed by a prompt.

[Player Su Ling invites you to join the team.]

Xue Ming took a deep breath and gently clicked the [Agree] button.

At that moment-

--The world has changed dramatically.

Countless things appeared in his eyes.

As soon as you focus your gaze on a certain point, a whole bunch of data will immediately appear.

He looked at the wooden table and immediately knew its material, age, and the possibility of disassembling it to make other tools.

He went to look at the milk tea, and the ingredient list and calorie count popped up.

He looked at the train's display case, his gaze sweeping over the pyroxene jewelry. The text listed the names and functions of these jewels one by one, and also explained how to activate them. It was already in a state of complete identification.

He looked at the train's iron walls, observing the wear and tear and pressure dynamics, and the steel wheels that bounced with the gravel and sand from the tracks, constantly reminding him that it was time to maintain the wheel's axle.

He only glanced at Xiao Qi—

I won't go see it.

The girl had a whole row of pink hearts above her head, a seductive aura. Pink experience points were also popping up above her head, as if she was accumulating dating experience. It was very mysterious, both mysterious and embarrassing.

Turning her head, Xue Ming looked at the VIP.

Then you see a golden health bar, a blue SoulPower bar, and a bright green stamina bar, which together form the three elements.

Su Ling immediately explained, "Oh, this golden thing is Inspiration shield, just like you. Many Spirit Calamity and environmental conditions cannot affect you or break your defenses. Only after it collapses can the Inspiration Pressure harm our spirit and affect our physical body."

Everything became clear and distinct, and Xue Ming was so surprised that she was almost speechless.

At first, all he knew was that Soul Power was like a gift from God, an essential path for everyone to reach the protagonist's position after birth. Obtaining Soul Power meant starting a new journey and having a cheat code.

Seeing A Ling's soul power now, it's not just a cheat code; it's like she pulled up and went through the backend data of Earth Online.

Like a scene described in many novels--

--People suddenly see various numerical values in their daily lives. They immediately experience a miraculous transformation.

At this moment, Teacher A Ling asked her teammates to adjust the UI layout, placing the health bar, mana bar, and stamina bar in appropriate positions.

Xue Ming dragged these mysterious game UI indicator bars with both hands, arranging them in the most comfortable way possible so that they wouldn't obstruct his view, but then he remembered something else.

"Master A Ling, if you release your soul power and kick me out of the team, then I won't be able to see any of this, will I?"

Su Ling: "That makes sense, but we'll have plenty of opportunities to work together in the future. Maybe if you save the game settings, you won't need to adjust them next time."

Xue Ming hesitated for a few seconds, his heart filled with doubt. "I'm afraid there's little chance. I don't want to become a VIP. Perhaps I'll run a bar at the Nine Realms Station, making iron and guns for people. I don't want to put myself in danger."

Su Ling reached out and pulled off the health bar on her head, then held it in her hand and played with it like a stick.

"Are you sure? I received orders from the BOSS that you and Jason Megan are going to Red Star Hill. The mission of my emergency order is to protect your safety. Otherwise, how would you have found me in this car?"

Xue Ming asked in confusion, "Why? Is it because of Xiao Qi? You care a lot about this disciple? She definitely wants to go to Red Star Hill with me."

Su Ling shook her head. "No, because from the perspective of the assault team in Guangling Zhixi, Red Star Hill is a tough nut to crack. It requires very strong people to handle it, and my beauty mostly comes from strength."

If someone else were to say this line, it would sound like a comedic joke.

But the way Master A Ling described it, with her brandishing her health bar and preparing for battle, really didn't seem fake.

It's really reassuring, considering what the intercity express train attendant said—that Red Star Hill is a death trap.

It was shrouded in miasma and toxic fumes, with extremely low temperatures, and severe wind and animal disasters.

If we could maintain this [squad member] status and observe the various attributes of the disaster and the tools, that would be wonderful.

There is also this kind of honest and straightforward mentor.

All of this made Xue Ming feel very at ease.

--At the same time, I also hope that I can possess this kind of pure beauty.