Blue Smoke

[Advent Ended]

[Settling the results of this Advent—

Results:

Discovered living beings in Lotus Valley, gaining 16 Exploration Points; discovered the special location Autumn Moon Forest in Lotus Valley, gaining +6 Exploration Points; discovered a Lotus Valley curiosity, gaining +3 Exploration Points.

Discovered a Deity in Lotus Valley and activated that character's profile, earning a 50-point Exploration reward.

Calculating exploration results.

You have received the following rewards for this exploration:

1: Soul Strength +3.1

2: Special Character Affinity +2; the character's personal information is now available.

3: The Special Character shared her insights with you. You have received a special item—the Nine-Tailed Spirit's Contract.

Congratulations, Summoner.]

The exploration reward was high, but his Soul Strength had only increased by 3.1. Li Ke wasn't surprised, though. He'd already realized the last time his Soul Strength increased that Exploration Points didn't translate into Soul Strength through simple addition.

But Ahri's personal information and the Nine-Tailed Spirit's Contract?

Li Ke first took a look at his own profile.

[Name: Li Ke]

[Race: Human Soul]

[Soul Strength: 10.4 (Scattered Soul)]

[World Exploration: 1.5%]

[Current Item: Nine-Tailed Spirit's Contract]

He checked the item section first and saw a stone marked with a fox paw print. After taking it out, Li Ke read its information.

[Nine-Tailed Spirit's Contract (Bound)]

[Quality: Red (Mythic)]

[Required Level: None]

[Effects: Increased Charisma, Increased Affinity]

[Description: A powerful Deity, intrigued by you, has branded you. But is it really a good thing to have attracted a Deity's attention?]

"Charisma and affinity?"

Li Ke turned the Nine-Tailed Spirit's Contract over in his hand, then chose to use it.

The description said that attracting a Deity's attention wasn't necessarily a good thing. But Li Ke wanted to grow stronger and change Zaun. Power was essential to that, and the Soul Blossom was his lifeline. Besides, being branded by Ahri was surely better than being branded by Thresh, right?

Li Ke was just relieved. Damn, Ahri had saved him just in time. If Thresh had branded him instead, would he still have been able to go to the Soul Blossom?

That old bastard!

He opened the character panel and looked it over. In addition to Thresh's lit-up portrait, it now showed Ahri, dressed in a long skirt, one hand emerging from a pink sleeve as she toyed with an orb. Her alluring face wore a sweet smile.

Li Ke reached out and touched Ahri's portrait. When he opened her profile, her personal information appeared.

[Lotus Valley—Ahri]

[Soul Strength: ???]

[Personality: Gentle, kind, cheerful, and intensely curious about this world]

[Likes: Hearing stories she hasn't heard before, meeting souls she hasn't met before]

[Stage: Encounter]

[Status: Currently guiding a newly reborn soul onto the right path.]

Things had changed. Ahri's Soul Strength was still hidden, but two new entries—Personality and Likes—had appeared.

Was this an indirect hint about how Li Ke could gain Ahri's affection?

She liked listening to stories.

Li Ke wondered if he might be able to bring things from the outside world into the Soul Blossom. If so, he could bring Ahri some books. She'd probably like them, wouldn't she?

He looked at Ahri's personality description again and felt reassured.

There was no way someone like Ahri would hurt him, right?

Li Ke could already guess what Thresh's personality would be: antisocial, gloomy, and perverted!

The mere thought of Thresh ruined his good mood. Grumbling, Li Ke closed the panel and exited the Soul Blossom.

He still had one Advent left, but there was no need to use it in a hurry. The three points of Soul Strength he'd just gained had already brought about another major transformation.

He could feel the obvious changes in his body. To put it simply, Li Ke estimated that he was at least twice as fast as before and had about twice the strength.

Bending a five-centimeter-thick steel plate with his bare hands—well, it wasn't impossible.

The weapons Jinx made could barely break through two-millimeter steel plates. His strength really was beyond that of an ordinary person.

He couldn't exactly do whatever he wanted across the Twin Cities, but if Li Ke were on his own, then there really wasn't anyone who could stop him from doing what he wanted, was there?

If anyone could, it was probably Camille.

And the Deity in Zaun who had vanished without a trace and appeared only in the murals?

With that thought in mind, Li Ke woke up in the Material Realm.

As soon as he sat up, his ears twitched. He heard voices outside.

With his Soul Strength above ten, Li Ke's senses had also improved. Even though he was inside a tent, he could hear what was happening outside.

"That's Jinx!"

"We have to get over there right away! Go get Li Ke!"

"Vi, calm down. I'll go get the Bo—"

Malson hadn't finished speaking when Li Ke appeared in front of him. He stared, startled. "Good heavens, Boss, when did you get here?"

"Just now. What happened?" Li Ke looked at Vi.

Vi was just as bewildered to see Li Ke suddenly appear.

She'd watched him go to the tent twenty meters away. When she'd said something to Malson, she'd even pointed at the tent. But now Li Ke was standing right here?

What was going on?

But Vi didn't have time to dwell on it. She looked toward the blue smoke appearing in the distance in broad daylight and said, "That's Jinx. It has to be Jinx. That's the signal flare I gave her. We have to go find her now."

Vi was frantic.

She and Jinx had been arguing just yesterday, but now that Jinx might be in trouble, Vi was the one who couldn't sit still.

Li Ke looked up. Far from the Lotus Gang's base, small clouds of blue smoke were appearing one after another.

"Malson, didn't I tell you to send people to protect Jinx?"

"Boss, Wright and Marvin went after her, but they lost track of her. She shook them off with Isha." Malson explained.

Li Ke didn't blame Malson any further. After all, that was Jinx.

If she were the type to sit still, the Twin Cities wouldn't have had so much trouble.

Being well-behaved just wasn't in her nature.

"All right, I understand. Get everyone up and have them grab their weapons. I'm heading over now."

"Wait, take me with you!" Vi reached out and grabbed Li Ke.

Li Ke hesitated, then put an arm around Vi. "I'm very fast. You'll need to be ready."

Vi instinctively wanted to argue, but then she remembered Li Ke suddenly appearing in front of her. She nodded. "I'm ready, so—whoa!"

A blur shot past. Malson shut his eyes and started coughing. When he opened them again, he stared blankly at the figure already dozens of meters away, darting across the rooftops, his mouth hanging open.

"Holy shit?"

No, he knew Li Ke was strong, but was he even human?

Could that strange Alchemical Canned Man who'd wiped out the Ci Mu Gang really have been even half as fast as Li Ke?

Malson started trembling, excitement surging through him.

Following someone like this—

The future looked incredibly bright!