Zhu Zhuqing took a deep breath, suppressing the tumult in her heart, then bowed solemnly to Zhao Linchuan.
"Zhu Zhuqing is willing to follow you. For the rest of my life, I will never waver in my loyalty!"
"Good." Zhao Linchuan nodded. "Sit down. The roast chicken will be here soon."
After the little interruption, Lao San eagerly brought over three Fuli Roast Chickens, crisp on the outside and tender within, their aroma wafting through the air, along with several small dishes.
They began eating, and the atmosphere grew much more relaxed than before.
Zhu Zhuqing was still quiet, but her tense body had visibly relaxed a little.
After their hearty meal, they found another clean, comfortable-looking hotel in Suotuo City and checked in.
When they booked their rooms, Ning Rongrong was shocked all over again—Zhao Linchuan had booked only two rooms.
One was for himself, and the other was for her, Xiao Wu, and Zhu Zhuqing.
However, just as she thought Xiao Wu would be staying with them, she saw Zhao Linchuan take Xiao Wu by the hand as naturally as could be, lead her into his room, and close the door.
Ning Rongrong stood in the hallway, staring at the closed door. Her pretty face twisted into a complicated expression, her red lips parting slightly. It took her a good while before she murmured to herself:
"G-Good heavens! Could he... could he be a 'womanizer' too?! A different girl every day?"
"No, wait, Xiao Wu seems to have been following him the whole time... But still... can his body take it?!"
She couldn't help glancing at Zhu Zhuqing, who looked just as stunned, and whispered, "Zhuqing... do you think he... he's a bit... you know?"
Zhu Zhuqing came back to her senses, thought for a moment, then said quietly, "Miss Xiao Wu is the young master's personal maid. It's only natural for master and servant to share a room so she can attend to him at any time... I suppose."
Ning Rongrong blinked, then nodded thoughtfully. "I guess... that makes sense. A maid taking care of her master's daily needs isn't strange..."
Even so, she couldn't shake the uneasy feeling in her heart.
The room was softly lit.
After washing up, Xiao Wu put on a loose, soft nightgown and climbed into bed as usual, slipping beneath the covers.
Zhao Linchuan had changed into his pajamas too, and lay down beside her.
A polite distance separated them. They had shared a bed like this for years, and it had gradually become their usual routine.
Yet tonight, Xiao Wu felt strangely restless.
The Moon Goddess's odd instructions and manner earlier that day, the young master's attempt to recruit Zhu Zhuqing that evening... One scene after another intertwined in her mind.
Just as she was drifting off to sleep, she suddenly felt a weight settle on her.
A warm palm rested lightly on her gently rising chest. Through the thin fabric of her nightgown, she could clearly feel its weight and warmth.
Xiao Wu's breath caught, and her body stiffened instinctively.
A tingling, electric sensation spread from the place where he touched her.
She tried to shift slightly, hoping to move his hand away, but though it seemed to rest there casually, it was as if it had a will of its own, staying firmly in place without budging.
"Young... young master?" she tentatively called out, her voice barely louder than a mosquito's buzz.
The only response was Zhao Linchuan's steady, even breathing. He seemed to have fallen fast asleep.
Xiao Wu lay stiffly, her cheeks gradually growing warm in the darkness.
She hesitated, then stopped trying to push his hand away.
The image of the Moon Goddess that morning, looking satisfied and alluring, flashed through her mind, along with her words: "Linchuan may have been a little tired last night..."
Was the young master really asleep? The thought surfaced against her will.
In the end, she let out a soft sigh, gave up resisting, and slowly relaxed.
The presence of his hand felt impossibly vivid. It made her heart beat out of rhythm, yet, strangely... she didn't dislike it.
Forget it... I'll let him be... It's not like this is the first time we've slept this way...
She tried to fool herself as she quietly pulled the covers higher, hiding half her flushed face, and forced her eyes shut.
Morning light filtered through the hotel's elegant curtains, spilling softly into the room.
Xiao Wu had already gotten up early. Like a diligent little rabbit, she quietly got herself ready, then scampered off to the hotel restaurant to carefully pick out a breakfast Zhao Linchuan would enjoy.
She knew what he liked, and she remembered that he really had seemed "tired" yesterday, so she deliberately chose extra ingredients to nourish him and restore his energy.
In the room, Zhao Linchuan sat cross-legged at the edge of the bed, eyes closed, his mind sinking into his body.
The newly fused fifth Soul Ring—"Samsara"—was slowly revolving around him alongside the other four.
As the fifth Soul Ring fully merged with him, an invisible wave swept through his body.
Through his inner vision, he could clearly "see" that not only the newly acquired fifth Soul Ring, but also his first through fourth Soul Rings, along with the several Soul Bones he had fused long ago,
had all undergone subtle leaps and deepening in the level of energy and the patterns of the laws they contained!
The years of his Soul Rings, which had steadily increased thanks to their growth-type properties, seemed to have crossed some threshold under the influence of the fifth Soul Ring, setting off a chain reaction.
Now, the actual energy strength and the laws borne by all his Soul Rings and Soul Bones had stabilized at the "ninety-thousand-year" level!
All it would take was the right opportunity—a sixth Soul Ring fusion—to trigger a qualitative change and push every one of them across the "hundred-thousand-year" threshold!
However, the "growth" of Soul Rings and Soul Bones mainly raised the quality of their energy, deepened his understanding of the laws, and enhanced the power of their skills. It offered comparatively little direct increase to his total Soul Power.
At that moment, Zhao Linchuan could clearly sense that his Soul Power Level had stabilized at fifty-seven. He had officially become a Soul King.
To outsiders, that speed might seem utterly astonishing, but to him, it was simply the natural result of things falling into place.
What truly gave him confidence, though, were the astonishing Soul Skills granted by his high-ranked Soul Rings and Soul Bones!
They might not come with flashy, dazzling displays of light, but they contained power that came close to the very essence of the laws.
First Soul Ring: Void.
The two characters "Void" could be understood as one active effect and one passive. It was enough to describe them as, "The great need no words."
Back in the game, he had taken six max-level spirits and confidently challenged Puni, only to be defeated and sent packing by this "Void."
War God Gaia, once so imposing that he'd declared, "I'm your Gaia grandpa!", had been beaten down into, "I'm your Gaia... grandpa..."
And the Thunder Sovereign, who had "come riding upon the storm," had ended up saying, "I'm just a nobody..."
Second Soul Ring: Element.
Active Soul Skill—Elemental Control: Freely control, condense, and transform all the elements of the world, shaping them into attacks, defenses, or support effects of any kind. The possibilities are boundless.
Passive Effect—Elemental Resistance: Gain a terrifying "99%" resistance to damage from all elemental attributes!
In the Douluo Continent, where the vast majority of Martial Soul abilities are inextricably linked to the elements, this meant that when the attacks of nearly ninety-nine percent of Soul Masters struck him, less than one-tenth of their power would remain!
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