Seven Treasures Glazed Tile, Battle of Life and Death!

After the purple beam of light vanished, the night wind poured in, causing the curtains to rustle loudly.

Ning Rongrong remained standing by the window, staring into the distance for a long time. Only when the lingering mist had completely dissipated did she slowly turn around, her gaze falling back onto Lin Mo—or, to be precise, onto the purple glowing characters still flickering in his right eye.

"The thing in your eye," she pursed her lips, "what exactly is it?"

Lin Mo blinked and silently thought the word "Close." The light screen vanished, and as he opened his eyes, he saw Ning Rongrong looking at him with a complex expression, a mixture of vigilance, curiosity, and a hidden trace of fear.

"A system," he said truthfully. "I don't know where it came from either. When that bronze mirror shattered, it just crawled inside on its own."

Ning Rongrong frowned: "A system? What kind of Soul Tool is that?"

"It's not a Soul Tool." Lin Mo thought for a moment, unsure how to explain it. "Just think of it as... a tool that can talk."

Ning Rongrong was clearly unsatisfied with this answer, but she did not press further. She began to survey the studio again, her gaze shifting from the oil paintings on the wall to the chandelier overhead, and from the bronze artifacts in the glass cabinet to the old-fashioned radio in the corner that still had its standby light on.

"This place," she said slowly, "is it really not an illusion?"

"It isn't."

"Then how did I get here?"

"I don't know."

Ning Rongrong stared at him, seemingly trying to find traces of a lie on his face. After a long while, she whispered: "Do you know the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"

Lin Mo shook his head.

"Then do you know about Soul Masters?"

He shook his head again.

Ning Rongrong's expression turned complicated. She was silent for a few seconds before suddenly extending her right hand; seven-colored light condensed once more, and that exquisite seven-story pagoda appeared in her palm. Four soul rings rose from beneath her feet, slowly rotating around her body—yellow, yellow, purple, purple—emitting a faint glow.

"This is the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, the inherited Martial Soul of our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect." As she said this, her chin lifted slightly, carrying an innate sense of pride. "I am a direct descendant, born with the ability to cultivate. I am a level 42 auxiliary-type Soul Master. These four soul rings—the yellow ones are hundred-year, the purple ones are thousand-year. Do you understand?"

Lin Mo looked at those rings, recalling the "Soul Saint" and "level 76" mentioned by the system. He asked: "Is level 42 considered strong?"

Ning Rongrong was stunned, and then her face turned slightly red: "It's... it's alright. I'm only twelve; I'll definitely be able to reach level 70 or higher in the future."

"What about level 76?"

Ning Rongrong's expression changed: "Level 76? That's a Soul Saint. Why are you asking about that?"

Lin Mo pointed toward the window: "That purple light from just now—the system said it was a man named Shi Nian, a level 76 Soul Saint. He will descend in that direction in forty-eight hours."

Ning Rongrong's face turned pale instantly.

"Shi Nian?" Her voice trembled slightly. "That Shi Nian with the Residual Dream Martial Soul? The owner of the Wisdom Skull of Illusion?"

"You know him?"

"He hunted down the Shrek Seven Devils!" Ning Rongrong blurted out, then realized she had let something slip and quickly clamped her mouth shut.

But Lin Mo had already heard it: "The Shrek Seven Devils?"

Ning Rongrong pursed her lips and said nothing. She retracted her Martial Soul and crossed her arms over her chest, looking as if she didn't want to talk. However, her slightly trembling fingers betrayed her nervousness.

The silence lasted for a long time.

Finally, Lin Mo spoke first: "Are you hungry? There is still noodles in the pot."

Ning Rongrong was taken aback, clearly not expecting him to ask that. She wanted to say "no," but her stomach growled loudly and uncooperatively.

Her face turned even redder.

Lin Mo said nothing and turned into the kitchen. When he came out with a freshly cooked bowl of noodles, he saw Ning Rongrong crouching in the corner, cautiously reaching out to touch the old-fashioned radio.

"Don't worry, it won't bite."

Ning Rongrong pulled her hand back in fright and glared at him: "Who's afraid!"

But she still took the bowl of noodles.

This time she ate very slowly, stealing glances at Lin Mo as she ate. Lin Mo sat in the chair opposite her, not looking at her, but staring blankly out the window. The light from the desk lamp cast a soft outline over his profile, making him look not like a bad person.

But Father always said that the better-looking a man is, the more likely he is to lie.

Ning Rongrong quickly shook that thought away and buried her head to continue eating.

After finishing the noodles, she set the bowl down and suddenly asked: "That system you mentioned—besides saying that Shi Nian is coming, did it say anything else?"

Lin Mo turned his head to look at her. He hesitated over whether to mention the part about "bearing a child to delay the collision." But looking at the little girl who appeared to be only twelve or thirteen, he simply couldn't bring himself to say it.

"It also said," he picked the parts he could tell her, "that by summoning people from your world, we can delay the collision between the two worlds."

"Summoning?" Ning Rongrong frowned. "Is that what happened to me?"

"I believe so."

"Then how do I go back?"

Lin Mo was silent for two seconds: "The system didn't say."

Ning Rongrong lowered her head, staring at her toes. After a long while, she whispered: "My father will be worried to death. And Grandpa Sword, Grandpa Bone... they must be looking for me everywhere."

Her voice was calm, but Lin Mo could hear the trembling within it.

He didn't know what to say. He had never been good at comforting people.

Ning Rongrong looked up at him. "If that Shi Nian really comes, what do you plan to do?"

Lin Mo thought for a moment. "I'll fight him, even if I can't win. He might be coming for you."

"For me?"

"The system says that once male characters descend, they have an instinct to hunt down female summoned characters." Lin Mo paused. "Since you were the first to arrive, you're likely his primary target."

Ning Rongrong's face turned a shade paler. Yet, she bit her lip, refusing to show any fear.

"Then what about you?" she asked. "Can you beat him?"

"No."

"Then why fight?"

Lin Mo looked at her and suddenly smiled. "What else? Let him kill you?"

Ning Rongrong was stunned, then turned her head away. "I don't even know you. Why do you care if I live or die?"

Lin Mo did not answer.

The wind outside the window grew stronger. A bell tolled in the distance; it was two in the morning.

Ning Rongrong yawned, forcing herself to stay awake. "I'm not sleepy... Spirit Masters can go days without sleep..."

Before she could finish, her head began to nod. She struggled to keep her eyes open, but her lids grew heavier and heavier until her body slumped, and she fell asleep against the sofa.

Lin Mo stood up, took a blanket from the cabinet, and draped it gently over her.

Asleep, Ning Rongrong looked much younger than when she was awake. Her long, powder-blue hair spilled across the sofa, and her long eyelashes fluttered slightly, as if she were lost in a dream. Her right hand was still tightly clutching the token at her waist, her knuckles white, as if she feared that letting go would mean losing her last shred of hope.

Lin Mo watched her, suddenly reminded of when he was seven. After his parents died in a car accident, he had clutched their funeral portrait in the mortuary just like that, gripping it until his fingers went numb.

He gently pried the token from her hand and placed it on the side table. He pulled the slipping blanket up to cover her shoulders.

Then, he sat back in his chair, staring at the lingering purple mist outside the window, and did not sleep all night.

As dawn approached, there was a slight movement from the sofa.

Lin Mo turned to see that Ning Rongrong had woken up and was watching him. They locked eyes for a few seconds before she looked away and slowly sat up.

"You didn't sleep?" Her voice was raspy from sleep.

"Couldn't."

Ning Rongrong looked down at the blanket on her shoulders, then at the token on the side table. She was silent for a few seconds before whispering, "Thank you."

Just as Lin Mo was about to speak, a sharp pain pierced his right eye.

A purple light screen flickered open:

[Side Quest Progress Updated]
[Current Target: Ning Rongrong]
[Current Favorability: 32 (Increased)]
[Time Remaining: 18 hours]
[Hint: The key to building trust is sincerity. She comes from another world and is wary of everything. Making her feel safe is more effective than any rhetoric.]

Lin Mo cursed inwardly. Could this broken system pick a better time to appear?

Ning Rongrong saw the glowing text, froze for a moment, and then suddenly asked, "What does that 'favorability' mean?"

Lin Mo was silent for two seconds before deciding to tell the truth. "The system wants me to make you drop your guard within twenty-four hours. Favorability is how it measures progress."

Ning Rongrong's expression shifted.

"So, you being nice to me... it's just a mission?" Her voice was calm, but with an unnatural edge to it.

Lin Mo looked at her. "At first, yes."

"And now?"

Birdsong drifted in from outside. Dawn was breaking, and the morning light filtered through the curtains, casting a long, thin beam across the floor.

Lin Mo said, "Now, I just don't want you to be afraid."

Ning Rongrong stared at him for a long time.

Then she suddenly smiled—not the forced smile from before, but a genuine, slightly happy one. She quickly suppressed it, put on a stern face, and said, "I suppose you know how to talk."

She stood up, walked to the window, and pulled back the curtains.

The morning light flooded in, illuminating the entire room. The distant skyscrapers shimmered in the sun, and ships were already moving along the Huangpu River, leaving long, white wakes behind them.

Ning Rongrong watched it all and said softly, "This world... is actually quite beautiful."

Lin Mo walked to her side and watched Shanghai with her.

"You can see it slowly from now on," he said. "There's plenty of time."

Ning Rongrong turned to look at him but didn't speak.

However, the corners of her mouth curled up ever so slightly.

Just then, a whistle echoed from the distance—the same as last night, but closer, and much sharper.

The two of them looked up at the same time.

In the direction of the suburbs, another purple beam of light shot into the sky. This time, the beam was twice as thick as the one from last night, lasting for a full five seconds before vanishing.

The system's voice followed immediately:

[Warning]

[The planar rift continues to expand.]

[Target "Shi Nian" arrival time has been advanced once more.]

[Remaining time: 36 hours.]

The smile on Ning Rongrong's face vanished.

Lin Mo stared at the lingering purple glow in the distance and suddenly asked, "That Shi Nian, what are his weaknesses?"

Ning Rongrong thought for a moment and said slowly, "His Martial Soul is Residual Dream, and he excels at creating illusions. But while maintaining an illusion, he cannot move himself."

"Anything else?"

"Also..." Ning Rongrong recalled things she had heard at Shrek Academy, "That Wisdom Skull of his is said to enhance mental power, but it has a side effect: if the illusion is forcibly shattered, he will suffer a backlash."

Lin Mo nodded and said nothing more.

He calculated the time silently in his heart.

Thirty-six hours.

One and a half days left.

Ning Rongrong stood beside him and suddenly reached out to tug on his sleeve.

Lin Mo looked down at her.

Her eyes were very bright, but they were unnaturally so—the brightness of someone forcing themselves to stay strong while suppressing fear.

"You will protect me, right?" she asked.

Lin Mo looked at her, suddenly recalling how she looked while asleep last night, how she clutched the token, and how she turned her head away when she said, "I don't even know you."

He nodded.

"I will."

Ning Rongrong let go of his sleeve and looked away, pretending to watch the scenery outside the window.

After a few seconds, she whispered:

"Then... I'll help you too."

The voice was soft, but Lin Mo heard it clearly.

Outside the window, the morning light grew brighter. A new day had begun.

And for them, there were thirty-six hours left.

The system suddenly popped up another notification:

[Host detected to have reached a preliminary intent of cooperation with the target.]

[Hidden quest triggered: Complete at least one effective combat training session within 36 hours.]

[Reward: Primary World Origin Points ×200.]

[Failure penalty: None.]

Ning Rongrong leaned in to look at the glowing text, frowning: "Effective combat training? What is that?"

Lin Mo thought for a moment: "It probably means we need to practice how to fight together."

Ning Rongrong was stunned, then, thinking of something, her face flushed slightly.

But she quickly straightened her expression, pretending to be indifferent as she said: "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go."

She turned and walked toward the door, but stopped after two steps and looked back at him:

"Hey, in this world of yours, is there a place where we can fight?"

Lin Mo looked at that small face pretending to be calm in the morning light and suddenly felt that the next thirty-six hours might be much more interesting than he had imagined.