Su Lin had once loved Dragon Raja, and not just him—several of his friends had too.
Back in high school, on the way home after evening self-study every day, they often discussed what plot developments Dragon Raja would have next and how long the author, who loved delaying updates, would drag things out this time.
The most interesting part was when Erii appeared in Dragon Raja III. One of his friends thought the protagonist would finally stop being single.
During breaks between classes, he would describe it with such animation that it was as if he himself were about to get a girlfriend.
Then, while secretly reading the ending during class, he got caught by the teacher with tears still hanging from his face.
"The desire to become extraordinary is something people fantasize about in adolescence and even adulthood."
Stepping along white jade stairs, the two headed toward the mountaintop by another path.
Every now and then, they came across a spiritual fruit tree. Su Lin would pick a few fruits and share them with Lu Mingfei.
Sweet, refreshing juice flowed from the bite marks in the fruit. Lu Mingfei swore he had never eaten fruit this delicious before.
"Nom nom." Lu Mingfei swallowed the fruit whole without spitting out the pit. "But I passed that stage a long time ago. If I could, I'd just want to live a peaceful, stable life."
"Really? I've always been in that stage."
Su Lin spat out a pit the size of a date seed, then plucked a spiritual herb from the ground, one covered in dense clusters of crystal-clear fruits. He stripped it with his teeth, leaving behind only a thin, tender stalk.
"Because if I could become extraordinary, life wouldn't have to be so hard. I wouldn't have to be exploited by those capitalists for money, either."
Lu Mingfei, who was imitating Su Lin's earlier movements and searching by the roadside for the same spiritual plant, froze at those words.
"That reason is pretty real, huh."
Su Lin smiled helplessly.
"What else did you expect? That it was for saving the world, or being admired by everyone?"
"Or satisfying some other desire."
Seeing that Lu Mingfei had spent ages searching through the weeds without finding any Dingdong Grass, Su Lin pointed beneath a tree some distance away.
"Then you should have achieved your wish by now, right?"
"Yeah." Su Lin stretched lazily. "You have no idea how good I've got it now."
"When there's nothing to do, I cultivate. When I don't feel like cultivating, I watch anime, play games, and read novels. When I get tired of that, I go back to cultivating. Once in a while, I go out and mingle with society so I don't fall behind."
"When I'm thirsty, I drink spiritual spring water. When I'm hungry, I munch on spiritual fruit. Of course, I can also order takeout, drink cola, and eat fried chicken."
"When I don't have to worry about my lifespan, illness, housing, or all those everyday necessities, every day is just enjoying life."
Lu Mingfei imagined it. That kind of life really did sound great, but weren't their versions of being extraordinary a little too different?
The moment he thought of how his own extraordinary life involved a damn little brother constantly coveting his soul, a bunch of Berserker classmates whose eyes turned red at the sight of Dragon Raja, and the Equipment Department's explosive maniacs who wanted to add alchemical technology to missiles all day—
Oh, my God. I, Lu Mingfei, swear on the two pieces of fried chicken Fingel hid under his bed that I absolutely do not want to hold a knife and dance ballroom dances with Dragon Raja ladies. This kind of extraordinary life is terrible, I swear.
"So, my story is about a loser kid becoming extraordinary." Lu Mingfei pulled up several stalks of Dingdang Grass and stuffed them into his mouth, sucking the sweetness from their tiny fruits.
"It's just that this road to becoming extraordinary is a little too painful."
"Nothing ever goes perfectly smoothly. When we're young, we think gaining things is normal, but as we grow older, loss often accompanies life." Su Lin continued onward.
"The girl you secretly loved, the dreams you cherished in your youth, friendship, love, family—even your worldview and values. Any of them can suddenly be lost. Most people can keep one or two of them, while very few can keep them all."
"Resources are limited. If you want to possess something, you need sufficient resources."
"Where do those resources come from? Either you're outstanding enough, or your parents are outstanding enough."
"But most of us are ordinary people, just like you, Lu Mingfei. In fact, many people aren't even as fortunate as you."
"You want to have something, prove something, get a chance to change—but where are there so many opportunities in this world?"
Lu Mingfei suddenly felt that Su Lin had become a little like his little brother, Little Demon Lu Mingze, whenever he entered one of his philosophical moods.
But he was also somewhat different.
"Not everyone, but a lot of readers do like you. Your popularity votes are even higher than your handsome senior brother's."
"Really?!" Lu Mingfei's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Yeah, because there's a loser kid living inside a lot of people. Sometimes, that loser kid works hard and gains something. But more often than not, he works hard and gets nothing."
"But life has to go on, doesn't it? Whether you feel lonely or isolated, you still have to keep going."
"Master, I understand now. You mean that no matter what difficulties we face, we have to confront them diligently. They'll always pass eventually." Lu Mingfei wore an enlightened expression.
"No. What I mean is that your story became popular because aside from being able to ask Lu Mingze for cheats, you're no different from ordinary people like us."
"..."
"..."
People like Chu Zihang, Ye Fan, and Xiao Yan would live quite comfortably even in ordinary human society without special powers, because they were already rather exceptional.
But he and Lu Mingfei were about the same. They were the green leaves and roots that set off the flowers.
Su Lin grabbed Lu Mingfei by the collar and leaped onto a massive tree. Fist-sized Vermilion Mulberry Fruits were giving off a rich fragrance.
Su Lin formed his hand into a blade and slashed through the air, actually cutting open the bark. Rich tree honey flowed from the trunk.
Vermilion mulberries dipped in tree honey were enough to make one forget all the troubles in the world.
"Among readers nowadays, some want to see you mature, some want to see you get cheats, and some want to see you build a harem." Su Lin wiped the corner of his mouth.
"Mmph, burp—" Lu Mingfei let out a full belch. "Our Old Lu family believes in monogamy."
"People want you to take them all—Nono, Erii, Zero."
Lu Mingfei's eyes flew open at those words. His expression stiffened as he swallowed with difficulty.
"That's really not... I mean... well, they think too highly of me, Lu Mingfei."
He did not even dare dream of such romantic fortune.
Lu Mingfei was silent for a while before asking, "Su Lin, what kind of person do you want to see me become?"
"Huh?" Su Lin tilted his head, thought carefully for a moment, and said, "I don't think I ever had any expectations for you."
"You just need to be yourself. You get to choose what you become."
"Is that so...?"
"That's right, so don't overthink it. Eat more fruit." Su Lin stuffed a few more into Lu Mingfei's hands.
(End of Chapter)