Does It Feel Nice to Touch?

Taptaptap~~~

At this late hour, a carriage was rumbling over the rugged road, heading this way.

Li Changsheng, who had been meditating, had already sensed it after the God of Wisdom alerted him.

But once he'd confirmed there was no danger, he stayed as he was. Only when the others heard it did he open his eyes too.

The group looked toward the carriage from the dirt slope.

It was called a carriage, but it looked more like a vegetable cart. Several enormous iron cages sat on it, and inside them were many people, both children and adults, locked up.

"Have they kidnapped another batch?"

Star Universe Flying Sword stared at the bobbing heads and the surrounding area lit by torches.

That was exactly what it looked like.

Around thirty people were locked in iron cages on three carriages.

They seemed to be travelers from nearby towns. All their belongings had been piled onto one cart, then they'd been crammed together into the cages.

"What should we do?"

Iron Armor Linked Shield's plan had changed. He turned his gaze to Centrifugal Killing Mirror.

The bandits might kill these people as soon as they brought them up there.

Though they didn't say it aloud, they knew more or less that the previous hostages were probably already dead.

After all, the bandit Soul Ancestor was likely an Evil Soul Master.

Evil Soul Masters were all twisted in the head, with warped habits—yes, habits. They could no longer be called human, and they had no humanity left.

Centrifugal Killing Mirror fell silent for a moment, his gaze fixed on the group.

A dozen or so bandits armed with weapons resembling Soul Tool crossbows stood guard around them. Some others carried ordinary swords and knives.

Soul Tool crossbows were definitely dangerous. They were only Soul Grandmasters. Even if they were geniuses, they couldn't rely on a genius halo to withstand Soul Tool crossbows.

Centrifugal Killing Mirror's decision might well determine whether those thirty-odd people lived or died.

"Xiangjian Yueliang, what do you think?"

Instead, he turned and put Li Changsheng on the spot.

Was this a test?

Li Changsheng didn't even think. The answer slipped out almost at once. "Our mission is to wipe out the bandits, not rescue people. My idea is simple."

"Don't rescue them?" Centrifugal Killing Mirror asked.

"No, we'll rescue them. But first, let them serve a small, insignificant purpose."

"Since we don't know the exact location of their hideout, we should use the cover of night to follow the convoy and find it. That's what we need to do."

Rescue them?

Yes, of course they should.

But not yet. There might be lookouts at the foot of the mountain. If they rescued the captives now and alerted the bandits, what if they all fled?

According to the cave's interior map, there was an escape tunnel inside.

Centrifugal Killing Mirror and the others agreed with Li Changsheng's suggestion.

In the torchlight, they could also see that the captives had distinct features.

Tall and dark-skinned—they were undoubtedly from the Sun Moon Empire.

From their indifferent tone, it was clear that Centrifugal Killing Mirror and the others didn't really care whether these people from the Sun Moon Empire lived or died.

After all, when the Sun-Moon Continent invaded, countless people native to the Douluo Continent had died too, slaughtered indiscriminately.

Even now, with the Sun-Moon Continent having become the Sun Moon Empire, minor clashes still happened often along the border. They'd studied here for so long and had seen plenty of them.

The Star Luo Empire's military town was in the Mingdou Mountain Range; the Sun Moon Empire's sword pointed at the Pointing-to-Heaven Fortress.

The two sides had been at odds for hundreds of years.

"Good. We'll do as Xiangjian Yueliang suggested. Under cover of moonlight, I'll use my Soul Skill to search for their lookouts and hideout. Then we'll make our move. The time is set for... daybreak!"

Li Changsheng froze for a moment. They still had to wait until daybreak after finding the hideout?

He looked deeply at Centrifugal Killing Mirror. Brother, something's off about you. You're way too ruthless.

Centrifugal Killing Mirror released his Martial Soul.

It was a mirror, and there was something distinctly unusual about it. Its surface was slightly uneven, and it emitted a faint glow in the darkness.

Then, right where he stood, he unleashed his first Soul Skill, Image.

One, two, three.

Three exact copies of him appeared, indistinguishable from the original.

There was no visible difference between them and his true self.

Then the carriages ahead began to move.

Centrifugal Killing Mirror's Image clones followed from the hillside.

They'd barely gone any distance when several raggedly dressed bandits suddenly emerged from beneath a dead tree ahead.

There really were lookouts.

And they'd been hidden in an exceptionally strange spot.

If Li Changsheng and the others had attacked just now, they would have alerted the bandits.

Li Changsheng stopped watching. Turning his back to them, he leaned against the dirt slope and waited quietly.

Seven Absolute Zither Master moved closer, stopping less than a fist's width from Li Changsheng.

The faint fragrance drifting from her reached his nose. With the wind rustling through the woods, Li Changsheng paused, then shifted his gaze to Seven Absolute Zither Master.

She tilted her head up. In the darkness, her sky-blue eyes shone like stars and the moon. Looking at Li Changsheng, she asked, "We could have rescued them right away, couldn't we? Why didn't you?"

Li Changsheng shook his head. Keeping his voice as low as possible, he spoke to Seven Absolute Zither Master.

Star Universe Flying Sword and Iron Armor Linked Shield were focused on watching the situation, so they weren't paying any attention to the two of them.

"We could have rescued them, of course. It wouldn't even take me—probably you could handle them all by yourself. But to avoid unnecessary trouble, this is the only way. Besides, look at Centrifugal Killing Mirror and the other two. Does any of them want to save these people?"

Seven Absolute Zither Master glanced at the three and asked, puzzled, "Why don't they want to save them?"

Li Changsheng smiled. A breeze brushed Seven Absolute Zither Master's silvery-white hair. Without thinking, he reached out and stroked the silky, satin-smooth strands. In a teasing tone, he said, "Didn't I just say? The mission is to eliminate the bandits. Whether we save anyone has never mattered. The three of them may look young, but they're all old hands..."

As for why Li Changsheng didn't go rescue them on his own, the reason was simple.

He didn't want to. It was exhausting. That was all.

Li Changsheng hadn't finished speaking when he suddenly realized his mistake. Was he rubbing Seven Absolute Zither Master's hair?

"Ah, sorry." Li Changsheng hurriedly pulled his hand away.

The moment he let go, the soft, delicate feeling of her hair vanished. Li Changsheng suddenly felt a little empty.

Her hair was so smooth. How did she take care of it? Did she just wash it? This world didn't have conditioner, did it?

Seven Absolute Zither Master simply shook her head and tilted it up. Instead, she asked, "Do you like having your head patted?"

Li Changsheng nodded. "Yeah. There used to be someone who often let me pat their head."

"Then how does my hair feel when you touch it?" Seven Absolute Zither Master asked again.

"It's very smooth. Anyway, it feels really nice," Li Changsheng answered honestly.

"Then let me touch yours."

"Huh?"

Before Li Changsheng could react, Seven Absolute Zither Master leaned against his small shoulder. She raised a hand and gave his head a little tug, then ran her fingertips over his scalp and began gently massaging it.

Her touch was a little cool, but it felt good. Li Changsheng couldn't help narrowing his eyes. Beneath his mask, he wore a kittenish expression and yawned.

"...It really does." Seven Absolute Zither Master's small hand passed through Li Changsheng's not-so-smooth hair as she muttered softly.

In the dark, leaning against the dirt slope, Li Changsheng and Seven Absolute Zither Master looked just like two cats grooming each other...

The scene didn't last long.

After a while, all three of Centrifugal Killing Mirror's Images returned.

They brought back information as well.

They'd identified the locations of the lookouts and the hideout.

After discussing the details of their operation, the group waited for time to pass.

Li Changsheng didn't meditate. He simply felt the wind and gazed into the darkness, his eyes shining.

Seven Absolute Zither Master meditated during the latter half of the night.

Daybreak came quickly. The first sounds weren't birdsong, but a sharp scream—no, a series of sharp screams—from the direction of the bandits' hideout, in the language of the Sun Moon Empire.