Imaginary Characters

Just then, the calm voice sounded beside him again. "Then, do you have a lover?"

"I do!" Zheng Li nodded.

In the Sea of Consciousness, Xiao Nai's eyes flickered faintly. If she had to put it into words... was that anticipation?

"Who is she?"

"Dream Xiaonai!"

Thinking of Xiao Nai in his Sea of Consciousness, Zheng Li answered without hesitation, a gentle smile appearing on his face.

A hint of tenderness appeared in Xiao Nai's eyes, too.

"Dream Xiaonai..." In the Gold and Silver Space, the blurry figure murmured softly. The hazy, two-colored mist around her churned. A moment later, she asked in surprise, "There's no such person?"

In Transparent Space, Zheng Li looked puzzled. Why had she gone quiet for so long?

"She isn't here, is she?"

She could tell whether Zheng Li was lying. Where had that person gone? To another world? That didn't seem likely...

Zheng Li: "??"

"Though I don't know why you're asking, she's right here."

"Hmm?"

Surprise entered the calm voice.

"Do you know that lying in the Valley carries the penalty of death?" The calm voice thought Zheng Li was playing a joke on her, and she instantly grew angry.

"I'm not lying!"

Zheng Li was confused. Could the Valley of Love and Emotion not sense Xiao Nai? It certainly seemed that way.

Then why had it sensed Tian Meng and the Ice Empress in Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness?

And something else seemed strange.

Was it because his Martial Soul and Soul Power had been sealed? If so, the Valley of Love and Emotion should have sensed them.

"Ding! Host, there's no need to be puzzled. With this system here, the Valley of Love and Emotion cannot seal your Martial Soul or Soul Power. I merely cooperated with it so it wouldn't notice. If you wish, you can undo the seal at any time."

"Uh... I understand."

After hearing the system's explanation, Zheng Li knew what to say.

"If you解除 the seal on my Martial Soul and Soul Power, I can prove that I wasn't lying," Zheng Li explained to the calm voice.

The calm voice fell silent for a moment, then said, "Very well. But if you can't provide a reasonable explanation, the penalty is death."

"Fine." Zheng Li nodded.

Gold and silver light flashed before Zheng Li's eyes. He immediately sensed his Soul Power again and knew the system had undone the seal.

A brilliant golden light burst from the space between his brows, and Xiao Nai stepped out. Zheng Li didn't enter combat mode.

In the Gold and Silver Space, the blurry figure fell silent as she watched Xiao Nai suddenly appear...

A lover? A Martial Soul?

Are you kidding me?

Chapter 46: Imaginary Characters

"See? I wasn't lying."

Faced with the calm voice's silence, Zheng Li suddenly felt a mischievous urge and spoke with a grin.

Xiao Nai stepped forward, kissed Zheng Li on the cheek, and took his hand. The two gazed tenderly at each other, proving to the Valley of Love and Emotion that Zheng Li had been telling the truth.

"..."

The calm voice was at a loss for words.

Had she fallen behind the times?

It seemed she'd have to keep up with the times from now on...

"You spoke the truth. The first round continues," said the calm voice. Then she asked, "You know this young woman is your Martial Soul, correct?"

Zheng Li rolled his eyes. "Obviously. Of course I know."

"Then is she the person you love most?"

"Yes!"

There was no need to hesitate. Dream Xiaonai had been his first girlfriend, ever since he was little.

"Do you love anyone else?"

That question stumped Zheng Li.

He hesitated, but didn't answer. Xiao Nai didn't react, as if she understood why he was hesitating.

"Three unanswered questions means the penalty is death."

No matter how he listened, the calm voice seemed to hold a trace of... excitement.

He'd managed to make her eat her words? So this time, he'd finally stumped her.

"I think so?"

After thinking it over, Zheng Li answered uncertainly.

The calm voice sounded slightly puzzled. "Why 'think so'?"

He wasn't lying, so why had he answered that way?

As the calm voice pressed him, several anime characters from Zheng Li's world appeared in his mind. They didn't exist in the Douluo World, so how was he supposed to answer?

Of course, he couldn't say he loved them.

It was like someone asking which anime character you liked.

You'd just answer honestly.

Zheng Li didn't know whether this counted. If it did and he didn't say so, he'd be doomed!

Then he'd have to reunite with his first reincarnation and wait another three years for his memories to return. By then, it would be too late...

Got it! Zheng Li's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Because they're characters I imagined, I don't know if they count."

As he spoke, he used his Soul Power to conjure a blurry figure.

Why was it blurry? Because of the golden Soul Power's glow and his lack of control.

Characters he imagined?

The calm voice: "..."

Impressive! Young people these days were really something!

Or maybe... a brat?

Or had he longed for a lover before awakening his Martial Soul, then gone straight after his Martial Soul once it awakened?

Hmm... Could that be why Zheng Li had awakened a young woman as his Martial Soul?

Zheng Li was ten, and Wang Xin'er was seven... What else could they be but children in her eyes?

She studied the figure before Zheng Li. Though blurry, it was still clearly alluring. Long hair was tied into two braids that fell naturally over her shoulders. Waterfall-like bangs covered the left side of a breathtakingly beautiful face, while the other side revealed a deep, black-hole-like right eye. She couldn't make out the hidden left eye, but if the woman were real, there'd be nothing wrong with covering it.

She was starting to feel worn out... even though she didn't have a heart.

She couldn't be bothered to argue with Zheng Li. She went straight to the next question. "Since you know this young woman is your Martial Soul, would you be willing to die for your Martial Soul Lover?"

Xiao Nai, who was holding Zheng Li's hand, said nothing when she saw him conjure the figure. She'd expected it, and she knew the figure herself.

As for this question, even if Zheng Li answered no, she wouldn't hold it against him. His previous answers had already been more than enough.

After all, they'd known each other for less than a year.

Zheng Li seemed a little nervous. His grip on Xiao Nai's hand tightened, but this time he answered without hesitation. "I don't know, but I think I would. I'm willing."

He wasn't lying. That was how Zheng Li truly felt.

The calm voice didn't respond. Instead, a golden dagger suddenly materialized and shot toward Xiao Nai at incredible speed!

Zheng Li's pupils contracted. Without thinking, he pulled Xiao Nai into his arms and turned his back to the oncoming golden dagger.

Just as the dagger was about to strike Zheng Li, its blade vanished, leaving only the handle to smack against his back. The impact hurt quite a bit.

"Truth Round One: Passed."

After testing him, the calm voice didn't criticize him at all. She simply announced that he'd passed, as if she didn't want to say another word.

However, the bubbles didn't enclose Zheng Li again.

Instead, a small platform appeared, and golden light carried Xiao Nai onto it.

Zheng Li: "??"

Did Xiao Nai count, too?

"Do you have someone you love?" the calm voice asked Xiao Nai.

Though Xiao Nai was a Martial Soul, her intelligence was no different from a human's, so she should be treated as one.

"I do. It's Zheng Li. If you're asking whether he's the person I love most, then yes. I have no other lover; Zheng Li has been my first boyfriend since I was little. As for whether I'm willing to die for him, my answer is yes. Believe me, if I ever die, he'll take good care of my family." Xiao Nai spoke calmly, then asked, "Is there anything else you want to ask?"

The calm voice: "..."

There were words she wanted to say, but wasn't sure she should!

Could she please just get through the procedure in peace?!

Damn it!

Another problem child!

"Round One: Passed."

She didn't want to say another word to Wang Xin'er, Zheng Li, or Xiao Nai. After announcing it, bubbles immediately enveloped the two of them. Zheng Li returned to his original position, while Xiao Nai was taken to a new spot.

Inside the bubble, Zheng Li could sense that his Soul Power and Martial Soul hadn't been sealed. The Valley of Love and Emotion must have realized that Xiao Nai needed to consume Soul Power while outside.

The clock-hand-shaped golden light spun again. This time, it landed on the remaining middle-aged man.

A small platform rose, and the bubble burst. The calm voice then asked, "Do you have someone you love? Three unanswered questions means the penalty is death."

The middle-aged man scratched the back of his head. "I don't."

He was a careful man, too. He'd taken Zheng Li's warning to heart, and coupled with his current sense of helplessness, he chose to believe him.

"Have you ever loved anyone?"

Finally, someone normal...

"I have," the middle-aged man said after a moment of silence.

"Who is she?"

"Cui Furong, from my village."

"...Does she love you?"

"I don't know about now. She liked me before, but after I became a Soul Master, she didn't want to hold me back, so she left the village... When I saw her again, she was already married." The middle-aged man sounded sorrowful, with a hint of regret.

"You have a wife, correct?"

"Yes. How did you know?"

The calm voice didn't answer. Instead, she continued, "Don't you love your wife?"

At this, the middle-aged man hurriedly shook his head. "I've never liked that shrew, not from the start. My mother forced me to marry her..."

"...If you had to choose between Cui Furong and your wife, who would you be willing to die for?"

"Uh... my wife." The middle-aged man didn't hesitate.

"Why?"

The middle-aged man gave a slight shake of his head. "No particular reason. She's my wife."