Chen Ming and Dong Qianqiu exchanged a glance. Seeing Lan Mengqin's messages flooding in, they immediately sensed that something was very wrong.
"Uh... I think we forgot that entering the Overworld would cut us off from the outside world..."
Dong Qianqiu scrolled through the messages, feeling a little guilty. Then she turned to Chen Ming.
"Sister Mengqin probably thinks we went missing. We'd better figure out how to explain this."
"Let's just say we went... on vacation to Dragon King Planet! Right! That's our excuse!"
Chen Ming had a sudden inspiration and quickly came up with a plan. Dong Qianqiu hurriedly typed out a message and sent it, while the two of them raced toward Tiantou Technology Academy.
"Qianqiu, Potion of Swiftness!"
Chen Ming pulled out a Potion of Swiftness and called out a reminder. Dong Qianqiu immediately moved closer. The potion shattered, splashing over them, and their speed suddenly surged. They became two blurs as they raced back to Tiantou Technology Academy.
Chen Ming and Dong Qianqiu appeared in the classroom one after the other. They immediately spotted Lan Mengqin sitting in the second seat of the front row, reading something on her phone as resentment practically poured off her.
Chen Ming and Dong Qianqiu's hearts seemed to stop for a moment. Lan Mengqin looked up at them and smiled with terrifying warmth.
"Oh, you two are back from your vacation on another planet?"
At her half-smiling expression, Chen Ming thought he could sense murderous intent. Dong Qianqiu hid behind him and said awkwardly,
"Sister Mengqin, I'm sorry. We left in such a hurry that we forgot to message you..."
"Heh... I see... So I was interrupting your time alone together. I was worried Chen Ming might bully you, so I messaged you every day. And what were you two doing? Off on your honeymoon!"
Lan Mengqin thought back to how she had messaged Dong Qianqiu the very next day, worried something had happened to her, only to get no response at all—not even once that whole day.
When she realized something was wrong, Lan Mengqin tried calling, but the phone was out of service. Convinced that something had happened, she immediately flooded Chen Ming with messages.
Then she discovered Chen Ming had gone missing too. She sent a barrage of messages to Di Qiu'er, only to find that Di Qiu'er was missing as well. In a panic, she rushed back to Chen Ming's home in Doutian City, but the door was locked, so she had no choice but to climb over the wall.
There was no one inside. She immediately reported it, but the Public Security Brigade had no information.
Lan Mengqin spent a whole month searching for the three of them, constantly worrying and doing everything she could to find them.
She had even returned to school a day early before the semester began, hoping she might find them. After all, their phones could have been stolen, leaving them unable to get in touch.
But she had waited around all day and found no one. Then, just moments ago, Dong Qianqiu had said she'd gone on vacation to Dragon King Planet with Chen Ming and Di Qiu'er.
Lan Mengqin should have been happy to learn they were safe. But then she remembered all the misery she'd endured that month, worrying that something terrible had happened to them. She'd grown haggard and had lost her appetite.
At night, she'd dream that the three of them had been kidnapped by human traffickers and were being abused and tormented. Then she'd wake up in a panic.
After that, she'd paid for missing-person notices, offered rewards for information about them, asked her mother for help, and sought help from other people. She'd tried every way she could think of.
For a whole month! Do you know what I went through this past month? Do you?!
Resentment surged from Lan Mengqin. Her long white hair floated in the air, though there was no wind, and a terrifying pressure swept toward Chen Ming and Dong Qianqiu. At that moment, even the Dragon God would have had to give her a wide berth.
Their new Class One classmates all hurried away from Lan Mengqin. The oppressive force she gave off was simply too overwhelming.
"Uh... ahem, sorry, Mengqin. We didn't mean to. We booked our tickets in such a hurry because it was peak travel season..."
"Besides, Mengqin, Qianqiu and I brought you some souvenirs. How about you cool off a little?"
Chen Ming explained through gritted teeth. At the same time, he pulled out a gorgeous, exquisitely crafted, brilliant azure longsword—a Diamond Sword of excellent quality—and placed it on Lan Mengqin's desk.
"Right, Sister Mengqin, we brought you souvenirs!"
Dong Qianqiu hurriedly nodded like a pecking chick, then took out a Totem of Undying and placed it on the desk.
"Vacation? I'll give you a vacation!"
Lan Mengqin suddenly raised her hand, and a burst of extreme cold instantly sealed Chen Ming in ice. Dong Qianqiu timidly came over to Lan Mengqin, massaging her legs and shoulders, acting cute and fawning over her.
"Sister Mengqin~ I was wrong~ I promise it won't happen again."
"Hmph!"
Lan Mengqin snorted. Seeing the beautiful pale-blue longsword and the little golden figure with green eyes on her desk, she finally calmed down.
"If you ever do this again, I'll use this sword to chop you two up and bury one on Tiandou Planet and the other on Douluo Planet."
Lan Mengqin picked up the azure longsword and examined it. It was quite beautiful, though she wasn't sure if it was one of those weapons that looked impressive but was useless.
The next second, as Lan Mengqin set the sword down, its blade touched the desk and sliced it in half as easily as if it were cutting through paper.
"What a sharp sword!"
Lan Mengqin exclaimed in surprise, then took another moment to study the longsword Chen Ming had given her. This sword was definitely no ordinary weapon.
Seeing that Lan Mengqin had calmed down, Chen Ming broke free from the ice. He had only wanted to let her vent a little; that practically tangible resentment had been genuinely terrifying.
"What's this?"
After putting away the sword, Lan Mengqin looked at the little thing. It looked like a small figurine.
"This is called a Totem of Undying. You can wear it close to your body for protection."
Dong Qianqiu immediately explained. Lan Mengqin thought it was probably like a good-luck charm. She knew Dong Qianqiu's circumstances—she had no one else.
She didn't have much money either, so she couldn't afford anything expensive. Still, it was the thought that counted.
"Don't let it happen again."
Lan Mengqin put on the Totem of Undying and let the matter drop. Dong Qianqiu finally breathed a sigh of relief. They'd managed to get out of trouble after all.
"By the way, Qianqiu, did you gain weight? And get taller?"
Lan Mengqin noticed that Dong Qianqiu seemed to have changed a little. She was taller and seemed to have gained some weight too.
"I... did I?"
At that, Dong Qianqiu thought back. She did seem to eat a lot when she was with Chen Ming. After all, Chen Ming's cooking was practically peerless, and Big Gluttonous Shark just couldn't resist it.
"You did. And you've gotten bigger here, too."
Lan Mengqin confirmed it, staring fixedly at a certain part of Dong Qianqiu's body. Dong Qianqiu followed her gaze, looked down, and immediately flushed as she covered herself.
"Sister Mengqin... There are so many people here..."
"Oh? Getting embarrassed now? You spent a whole month away with Chen Ming on your honeymoon and weren't embarrassed then. Why are you embarrassed now?"
Seeing Dong Qianqiu's bashful expression, Lan Mengqin raised an eyebrow. She even lifted her foot and stepped on Chen Ming's instep to show her displeasure.
But Dong Qianqiu really had been doing quite well with Chen Ming. She'd gained weight, grown taller, and gotten bigger in certain places too. It was obvious she'd been eating well. Lan Mengqin really wanted to know how those particular places had gotten bigger, too...
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