When Lin Ciyan returned to Building Jia Room 301, night had already fallen.
To his surprise, Bei Bei had gotten back even earlier than he had.
At that moment, Bei Bei was sprawled across another bed, grinning foolishly up at the ceiling. The corners of his mouth nearly reached his ears, and the sour stench of love practically radiated from him.
"Hey, did the sun rise in the west today? Young Master Bei actually came back to the nest this early?" Lin Ciyan said, taking off his coat and teasing him out of habit.
Hearing him, Bei Bei turned his head. His goofy grin faded a little as he asked curiously, "Brother Lin, you're only getting back now? What were you doing out so late?"
Lin Ciyan yawned and answered casually, "Nothing much. I went into town with Sister Lexuan, walked around, and grabbed something to eat."
"Sister Lexuan?" Bei Bei blinked, then abruptly sat up in bed, his face alight with gossip.
"Nice, Brother Lin! Come on, tell me how far you've gotten. Have you held hands yet? When are you making it official?"
Seeing Bei Bei even more excited than if he were the one in love, Lin Ciyan tossed a pillow at him in exasperation.
"Making what official? We just went shopping and had a meal as ordinary friends. Could you try keeping your thoughts pure?"
"I don't believe you!" Bei Bei caught the pillow and hugged it to his chest, chuckling. "Sister Lexuan is so amazing—beautiful, gentle, and a genius of the Inner Court. You two standing together would be a perfect match! If you and Sister Lexuan got together, I'd support you with both hands and feet!"
He meant every word.
Ever since he'd started hanging around with Lin Ciyan as a child, he'd naturally spent less time with Zhang Lexuan.
In his heart, Zhang Lexuan had always been a big sister who treated him well and looked after him. He respected her, but had no other feelings for her.
Now that he saw his best friend might get together with the big sister he respected, he was genuinely happy for them.
It felt like having two treasures he'd kept safe for years, then suddenly realizing that together, they could shine even brighter. There was a peculiar satisfaction in it.
"Stop making things up." Lin Ciyan couldn't be bothered to explain his "no women in my heart, and I'll naturally become a god at doing nothing" Sigma Theory. Instead, he steered the conversation back to Bei Bei. "Enough about me. How are things going with that Sect Master of the Tang Sect?"
"Have you won her over—no, I mean, have you made it official?"
The moment Tang Ya came up, Bei Bei's face lit up several degrees. With a hint of pride, he announced, "Of course!"
"This afternoon, Xiao Ya officially agreed to be my girlfriend!"
His face beamed with a blissful, foolish grin, as if he owned the whole world.
Looking at Bei Bei's "pure, clear-eyed stupidity," Lin Ciyan swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue, left with nothing but helplessness.
Well, that sealed the deal. Tang San had chewed the key up like a sugar bean.
He silently face-palmed.
Brother, this isn't dating.
You've signed a deed of servitude along with a decades-long, unpaid labor contract!
Rebuilding the Tang Sect? Easy to say. It's a bottomless pit!
Labor, materials, money—selling you off wouldn't be enough to fill it!
You'll find out soon enough what it means to "enter the Tang Sect's depths, and leave your wallet behind."
Alas, give up the urge to help and respect other people's fate...
This time, it's Zhou Yu striking Huang Gai: one's willing to take the beating, and the other's willing to give it.
Bei Bei's completed the whole set of top-tier love-struck fool.
After letting the complaints run wild in his head, Lin Ciyan still managed to force a "pleased" smile. "Congratulations. Treat her well."
Bei Bei didn't notice how insincere he sounded at all. Still basking in the joy of having a girlfriend, he happily began planning where to take Tang Ya tomorrow.
As he listened to Bei Bei ramble on, Lin Ciyan's thoughts drifted away.
Another name surfaced in his mind—Jiang Nannan.
He'd seen her name on the class assignment list today. The future Outer Court's top beauty seemed to be facing her own predicament, too.
According to the original timeline, it was probably around now.
She was twelve or thirteen.
Her mother was gravely ill and needed the Mysterious Underworld Sect's exclusive pill, the Black Tortoise Divine Pill, to be cured.
The Mysterious Underworld Sect's proposed exchange was utterly vile: they needed a girl with a special constitution to offer her virginity.
To help the sect master's son, Xu Sanshi, awaken his Black Tortoise Turtle Martial Soul...
The method went without saying.
"Using something like this to hold a girl hostage in exchange for medicine to save her mother..." Lin Ciyan furrowed his brow.
Even if he was determined to laze around, his soul had still received a twenty-first-century education.
Deep down, his values made him instinctively disgusted and uncomfortable with this sort of taking advantage of someone's desperation—something that came close to coercion.
"This is just too low!"
The Black Tortoise Divine Pill might have been precious to other people.
But to him, a direct descendant of Shrek and Mu En's last disciple, it wasn't rare at all.
To maintain its ties with Shrek, the Mysterious Underworld Sect offered a batch of pills to the Sea God Pavilion every year. Those included the Black Tortoise Divine Pill and the more potent Black Water Pill.
When Lin Ciyan was little, he'd eaten so many of them like sugar beans.
He probably still had quite a few lying around in his Soul Tool.
Bei Bei definitely had an allotment, too, but with his love-addled brain in its current state, those pills would probably end up in Tang Ya's stomach sooner or later, helping to improve her pitiful Blue Silver Grass Innate Soul Power.
Should he help or not?
Lin Ciyan's heart and mind waged a brief battle.
If he helped, he might get into trouble and stray from his core plan of "peacefully doing nothing."
If he didn't...was he really supposed to watch a girl in the prime of her youth be forced down that path just to save her mother?
He thought of Jiang Nannan's eyes, which would one day be called the Outer Court's most beautiful. Right now, they might be filled with helplessness and inner turmoil.
"Forget it." Lin Ciyan let out a soft breath and made up his mind.
"Lazing around is one thing, but I can't abandon my principles."
"Now that I know about this, I can't pretend I don't."
"Besides, I'm a good young man raised on the core values of socialism. If I see someone in trouble, I should lend a hand if I can."
"It's not like I want anything from her. I'm just doing what I can. As long as my conscience is clear, that's enough."
As for winning over a future powerhouse or earning her favor, that hadn't even crossed his mind.
"A Sigma man acts only to keep his conscience clear. Benefits are just drifting clouds!"
Having made up his mind, Lin Ciyan stopped agonizing over it.
If he got the chance, he'd find a way to send Jiang Nannan the pill. He'd count it as one good deed for the day.
Meanwhile, within the Sea of Consciousness.
Xiyao, who had been quietly keeping an eye on the outside world, felt the pure kindness and resolve in Lin Ciyan's heart.
The little pout on her lips, which had formed earlier because he'd gone out with Zhang Lexuan, gradually faded.
The girl of light tilted her head. A hint of confusion passed through her clear golden eyes, but above all, she felt reassured.
Her Ciyan really was a gentle person.
Though...she still got a little unhappy sometimes when other girls were involved.
She gave a quiet huff, then curled up deeper into the Sea of Consciousness and continued absorbing the Holy Radiance that made her feel warm and safe.
The next morning, just after dawn.
Lin Ciyan was still discussing the "ultimate meaning of doing nothing" with Duke Zhou when he was woken by a rustling sound.
He blearily opened one eye and saw Bei Bei fully dressed, carefully fixing his hair in the little mirror in their dorm room.
He looked a hundred times more serious than when he practiced his Soul Skills.
"Bei, are you...getting ready for a beauty pageant or something?" Lin Ciyan teased, still thick with sleep.
Bei Bei didn't even turn around. His voice brimmed with excitement. "What would you know? I made plans to have breakfast with Xiao Ya today, then show her around campus!"
"First impressions—no, wait, every impression matters!"
With that, he gave the hair over his forehead one last touch. Once he'd confirmed it was flawless, he darted out of the dorm, light-footed as the wind, leaving Lin Ciyan in bed with nothing but silence.
Lin Ciyan: "..."
He silently pulled the covers up over his head.
"Unbelievable!"
"The smell of love's gone straight to his head!"
"Looks like I won't be able to stay in this dorm in the mornings anymore..."
At least my bed is loyal. It's always warm and never drags me into anything.
And it certainly never gets up early to dress up for a date.
What's eternal? Doing nothing and sleeping—that's what!