Encore: Keep the Music Playing, Keep on Dancing

Now that we've had our fun, it's time to get back to normal life.

His friends didn't have the chance to attend the shooting star's wedding because he was going on a trip with his lover—a trip to the surface world.

Eight months later, A Xing will hold a proper wedding banquet. Before that, he wants to introduce San San Ling Yi to the place where he was born and raised, the mountains that accompanied his growth, and the beaches he conquered—after all, San San Ling Yi is a girl from the underground world and rarely has the opportunity to return to the mortal world.

Meteor knew he had to seize the day and enjoy life to the fullest. But after becoming Qingjin's son-in-law, he was destined for a life of imprisonment after marriage.

Jiang Xueming returned to his small fishpond, traveling between the Nine Realms and Hong Kong every day to pick up and drop off his children at school. Occasionally, he would return to Galahad to teach, and in his spare time, he would visit his two students, Tang Ning and Hasben, who, together with Red Sister, managed JoeStar very well.

The trip to Shinto City almost destroyed all of the Nameless One's equipment. Brother Ping An's advice was for Xue Ming not to rush, but to wait for the BOSS to work hard, grow a few more bones, and then rebuild a set of weapons and equipment.

Xue Ming was initially puzzled.

--For a boss, can bones really grow back with a little effort?

The Twelve Elders Council's magical scepters number far more than twelve.

According to the BOSS, Mingde's remains can indeed regenerate. In each harvest season, in addition to the Universal Elixir, Taowu's body can also grow some new bone. The Arcane Library happens to have some in stock. As for how many of these psionic items will be finished products, and whether they can be rendered harmless through psionic rituals to completely eliminate the risks and prevent users from becoming Chang Ghost —these questions are hard to say and require time to verify. The entire staff-making cycle is about sixteen months.

For the next two weeks, Xue Ming worked with the workshop apprentices to repair a VIP psionic item. It wasn't anything special, but it was very time-consuming, as it included multiple bowl-shaped gears, planetary gears, and meshing teeth. Because the psionic materials were not replicable and had special properties, the whole process was laborious and time-consuming. The client was quite generous, and it took up most of the fisherman's normal working hours.

As for the next exploration mission related to Shinto City, it should be scheduled for sixteen months from now.

Jiang Xueming and Bu Liuxing's weapons need to be modified and reforged. Luo Ping'an has entered standby mode. It seems that he has used up his ultimate move. His spiritual energy reserves are similar to those of an over-discharged battery, so he also needs to rest for a while.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world.

District 61, in the countryside outside the underground city of the Kupol gold mine, near the Northern Territory.

Our Jason Megan is still bringing the latest fun from the front lines.

At this moment, he had no time to rush back to the Nine Realms, nor the time to welcome his friends who had once shared life and death with him.

In order to investigate a historical case related to the Madness Butterfly Sect, he and his young attendant traveled to Kurpo, to the cold eastern Siberia, deep in the unknown ice fields.

Alongside a highway near a town, railway tracks run parallel to the asphalt road, connecting the east and west sides, and the cold wind bends the wild grass on both sides of the road.

Jason and Ms. Wendy lay face down on the ground, their ears pressed tightly against the earth.

On the other side, the gentle and considerate waitress Katusha rushed back from the food cart, carrying two bags of roasted chestnuts in her hands and another bag in her mouth, running very fast.

When she arrived at her employer's side, she was immediately overjoyed and filled with pride.

--She thought to herself, this investigation has yielded no clues whatsoever. The boss just read out a location and mentioned a few words, and Mr. Good immediately set off for this cold, frozen land.

It seems Mr. Good has found a clue? Otherwise, why would he be lying on the roadside?

Perhaps they spotted a suspicious vehicle? That's Jason Megan for you! That's the renowned Lapis Lazuli Guards for you!

Katusha crouched beside her employer, waiting with a mixture of curiosity and anticipation. She looked at the new bluish-gray hairs on Jason's face—proof of the blood transfusion.

At this moment, the nearly forty-year-old wolf, after becoming azure gold, reverted to its appearance of being in its early twenties. However, some features remained unchanged, such as that resentful, blaming look in its eyes.

"My dear sir! Have you discovered some crucial clue?"

Jason pressed his ear against the asphalt. "No."

Katusha: "Are you listening for the sounds of passing vehicles to track your target?"

Jason: "That's right."

Katusha immediately cheered up, her smile as sweet as a ripe, juicy lychee.

"As expected of you! I was completely clueless when I arrived around the town, but you found a clue so quickly?! And you even identified the target?"

Jason's face darkened. "Vehicle model, Volkswagen Magotan, probably an old car from ten years ago."

Katusha nodded as she took notes, "Mmm-hmm!"

Jason continued, "The driver was a woman, around twenty-seven years old, without makeup, with fierce eyes; she was probably from a wealthy family in the Kurpo underground city."

Katusha was overjoyed and peeled a chestnut, feeding it to Mr. Good.

"You're amazing!"

But Jason didn't eat; he just continued muttering to himself.

"Approximately 86 kilometers per hour."

Katusha asked in surprise, "You could tell that from that?"

Jason rolled his eyes and laboriously pointed to the tire tracks ahead on the road.

"The braking distance was 34.67 meters, but the impact threw me 21.44 meters, and the perpetrator successfully fled the scene."

Katusha's expression changed.

Jason continued.

"Could you please summon a medic from the rapid reaction force? I feel like I can't move; I don't know how many bones I've broken. Thank you."

Katusha was so frightened she almost dropped her chestnut. She quickly pulled out her satellite phone, calling for help while frantically searching her pocket for Universal Elixir. Her employer anxiously inquired, "Are you alright?"

Jason was in so much pain that he was sweating profusely, but fortunately, he was no longer in the physical body of Homo sapiens and could still speak sanely.

"I look perfectly fine? Good heavens! What's wrong with you asking a victim who was just hit by a car and thrown more than 20 meters, 'Are you alright?' Are you here to take a dump, Katusha?"

Katusha looked pitiful, as if she was about to cry.

"Oh no no no no no!" Jason was unable to move and pleaded desperately, "Girl, I can't wipe your tears, please don't, please don't."

Katusha hung up the phone and quickly said, "I've tried my best, employer, the rapid reaction force is on their way! But could you please not be so harsh on me?"

"Sorry." Jason's eyes dimmed, and he pursed his lips unwillingly. "I have almost zero tolerance for stupidity. It's a flaw in my character. How about I tell you a joke?"

Katusha held back her tears. She couldn't help him right now. Her employer's fractures looked very serious. If she rashly used Universal Elixir, the complex injuries might hinder Mr. Jason's next actions. Currently, he seemed conscious and had a high pain tolerance. They had to wait for a professional doctor to arrive and make a basic assessment of the damage to his body. Rashly using the medication could very likely leave Jason Megan with a three- to six-month bone disability, requiring further bone fractures for a full recovery.

Katusha nodded and picked up the chestnut again. "Okay, go ahead."

Jason pointed a finger at Wendy Mills, at his spirit, his other lover.

"Do you know why this woman is lying here like me?"

Katusha: "Ms. Wendy, like you? Was she also hit by a car?"

Jason: "No, guess again."

Katusha: "Is she mimicking your gesture? Is she mocking you?"

Wendy: "Do I look that boring?"

Jason: "No, guess again."

Katusha: "She wants to empathize with you? To experience your pain? My God, she's so kind."

Jason: "She thought I was just like you, lying on the ground listening for passing cars, but my ears got frozen to the road. I was hit by a car and was disoriented, so she couldn't dispel the spirit from me, and ended up lying here with me, making a fool of herself."

Katusha laughed a few times before quickly stopping.

Ms. Wendy and Jason rolled their eyes together.

"Laugh if you want to, a half-smile is kind of scary."

"Hahahahahahaha!" Katusha finally unleashed her mockery of her employer and Soul Might: "Hahahahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahahahaha!"

Amidst the waiter's unrestrained laughter.

Wendy and Jason asked each other about completely unrelated things.

"Jiang Xueming and Bu Liuxing returned to the Nine Realms from TD, but you didn't go to see them."

Jason: "We'll meet again."

Wendy: "Are you disappointed?"

Jason: "It's a real shame."

Wendy: "No chance to have a drink with old friends? What a shame!"

Jason: "No, I heard they were badly injured and came back lying sideways in their hospital beds. They didn't have the chance to get there first and laugh out loud. It's such a shame."

Wendy: "You need to mature a bit. You're almost forty."

"How mature?" Jason and Wendy faced each other, eye to eye, almost touching. "By the standards for the half-wolf of the Lapis Lazuli Guards, I'm about three years and eighteen weeks old now—not fully weaned yet."

Wendy: "That's certainly true."

Jason continued his rambling, "You know what? When we used to go out together, people always thought we were father and daughter."

Wendy: "That's so weird."

Jason: "Now if you stay any closer to me, people will mistake us for mother and son."

Wendy: "It's even more fucking insane."

Jason: "How about I call you 'stepmother'? Try your best, even if you lose your ear, snatch the chestnuts from the waiter's hand, don't let this girl keep gnawing on them."

"Why?!" Katusha exclaimed, confused. "Didn't you say you wouldn't eat it?"

Jason explained, "I can't stand seeing others do well either. Besides, she's getting fatter and taller every day. They say Russian girls have a short shelf life; they turn into sturdy, unyielding armored vehicles by their early thirties. A few years ago, she was a fresh-faced Cossack cutie, but now she looks like she could punch me and make me cry."

"Really?!" Katusha blushed, rolled up her sleeves, and suddenly realized that her arms had indeed gotten a bit thicker, so she quietly put the snacks back into her backpack.

Wendy Mills didn't say anything more; she just remained motionless.

The waiter squatted down beside Jason and Wendy, between them, waiting quietly.

Jason's tone softened.

"Sometimes I think it's nice for the three of us to just stand there quietly without saying a word."

Katusha: "Sir."

Jason: "Yeah, hold on, don't open your mouth, don't open your mouth, have some self-consciousness."

Katusha: "Sir! Sir!"

Jason: "Don't say anything. Look how well-behaved Wendy is."

Katusha: "She's asleep. I share a bed with Wendy, and she can sleep with her eyes open."

Jason looked closely and saw that Wendy Mills' pupils were indeed dilated; she was asleep with her eyes open.

"Damn it! All that effort was for nothing!"

The other side of the world --

Xue Ming's two students are very dedicated to their work, but they are a handful in their personal lives.

It was originally a very simple family story. Here's what happened: On Friday evening, Xiao Qi picked up the children from school and drove more than 40 kilometers. She quickly changed her clothes and went clubbing with her friends. As agreed, she left the children in the care of Tang Ning and Red Sister.

However, a small problem arose. Friday evening was the children's outdoor activity day, and these toddlers under the age of seven went out to walk the dogs with Uncle Tang Ning. The eldest son, Zheng Yang, insisted on riding on the back of the wolfhound, but the Black Brother's fur was too stiff. The eldest son didn't feel anything when he climbed off the wolfhound's back, but he kept crying in pain after they got home.

When Xue Ming returned, Zhengyang's arms and calves were covered with a dense patch of red spots, as if he had been pricked by needles.

Xue Ming didn't blame his wife and students, nor did he blame Black Brother. When treating his son's wounds, he didn't use Universal Elixir or White Lady's products. These little ones were still developing, and whether they would stay underground or return to the mortal world in the future was still unknown. These items related to spiritual energy should be avoided if possible.

So Zhengyang kept crying, and no one could comfort him.

Until the little one started crying, wanting his aunt to come and play with him, wanting his aunt to hold him.

Upon hearing the words "elder aunt," Xue Ming felt a chill run down her spine.

Zhengyang always called her "Big Sister," and he liked Big Sister very much, even more than his own mother and father.

On the other hand, this chill came from Hasben Madison at the field counter. When the student heard the young master call out "Auntie," he was like a Piranha Plant from Super Leo, who had been fixing circuits under the counter and suddenly poked his head out.

Jiang Xueming and Hasben scolded, "Why are you peeking out?! Do you want your aunt to hold you too?"

"Teacher," Hasben scratched his cheek, a little embarrassed, "I just haven't seen Glory in so long, the last time was a year ago—I don't know what secret mission she's on, so I'm a little worried and miss her."

This red-haired boy has a bit of a mother complex; he can't forget Glory's red hair.

He was a reliable comrade-in-arms, a benefactor who helped him avenge himself, and a guide who transformed his soul and granted him the power of Soul Might. The Nameless War King held an irreplaceable place in Hasben's heart—but he never knew that Marika was Radagon.

The other Phoenix Chick, who corresponds to this Crouching Dragon, also arrived.

Tang Ning had just finished a full day of meetings; her back ached, her mouth was numb from talking, and she wanted to go back to her teacher's side, go to an internet cafe to see his virtual VUP, and talk to her dear Masha about their date next month. She was completely bewitched by the ghost.

"Teacher! Teacher, please renew my subscription! Two hours!"

On one side, children are crying and screaming; on the other side, students are going crazy.

Xue Ming only felt the noise. He finally handed Zhengyang to Xiao Qi and ran to the infirmary to find his little finger, as if he were running away.

"I need to handle some things as the Big Sister."

After learning all this, Little Finger first drew a line on Xue Ming's arm with B·SIDE, and then silently wrote another line in the journal.

"Our Holy Father has sacrificed so much for this family—he is so gentle, I'm crying so much."