Making Plans for the Future

As they walked out of the arena, Zhu Zhuqing followed closely behind Gu Zhi. Although she had made her feelings clear, she was now troubled over how to maintain their relationship.

"Zhuqing! So you were here!"

A female voice suddenly made Zhu Zhuqing tremble. If there was anyone she least wanted to see right now, it was not Dai Mubai, Tang San, or the others—it was Ning Rongrong, also one of the Shrek Seven Devils!

It was not that they had a bad relationship. On the contrary, Ning Rongrong was one of her few close friends. But the sudden appearance of the barrage forced Zhu Zhuqing to be cautious, afraid that Ning Rongrong could see what the barrage was saying too.

After all, she had finally found someone she liked. She did not want things to turn unpleasant between herself and Ning Rongrong because of it.

"Y-you've got the wrong person..."

In her nervousness, Zhu Zhuqing actually blurted out such a foolish lie, making Ning Rongrong laugh in exasperation.

"Really? So you're not Zhu Zhuqing?"

Ning Rongrong strode right up to her, but instead of making things difficult for her, she turned to speak with Gu Zhi.

"Hello, sir! My name is Ning Rongrong! You can call me Rongrong!"

Although Ning Rongrong in the original story was indeed more cheerful, would someone with her spoiled young-lady temperament really be this enthusiastic toward a man?

Gu Zhi felt that something had been off all day. Zhu Zhuqing confessing to him the moment she appeared had already been strange enough. Why did Ning Rongrong seem as though she had changed personalities too?

"Why did Ning Rongrong show up too? Did the system develop some new feature without telling us?"

"Gu Zhi's expression doesn't look fake. Could the system have kept even him in the dark?"

"Damn! If I were surrounded by two beauties like that, I'd already be secretly celebrating!"

"The person above, that's exactly why you can't be the protagonist! With your lower head controlling your upper head, a honey trap would definitely be a hurdle you couldn't get past!"

"Don't just talk about Gu Zhi. I'd be cautious too! Those two are acting like they're possessed. Who can tell whether this is some new scheme?"

"Bullshit! Don't you people know what my Baby Zhuqing is like? She finally found a good home! Don't ruin it for her!"

The barrage became lively again. Ning Rongrong had not even started arguing with anyone, yet the barrage was already fighting among itself.

"Did you come looking for her, or for me?"

Gu Zhi was not the kind of person to let Gu Little Head override the big picture. The two of them were acting far too strangely. Could the system have secretly raised the difficulty on him?

"Of course... I came to find my Zhuqing! But I watched your entire match just now. To be honest, sir, you were truly incredible!"

Ning Rongrong did not dare let Gu Zhi know about the barrage. Gu Zhi was already highly guarded at the moment. If she gave him even more reason to misunderstand, she might never be able to get close to him in this lifetime.

"You flatter me, Miss Rongrong. How could my meager skills possibly catch your eye?"

Gu Zhi suspected that Ning Rongrong wanted to recruit him. After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect urgently needed powerful soul masters with great potential to join them, so that the sect could remain prosperous for generations to come.

In the original story, Ning Fengzhi had been willing to spare no expense to obtain Tang San's hidden weapons. It was not strange for Ning Rongrong to have taken a liking to Gu Zhi's formidable strength now.

"You can't fool me, Young Master Gu! Zhuqing may be exceptionally talented, but she is still too young. If you had not secretly helped her in that battle just now, how could Zhuqing have possibly held her own against her opponent?"

Ning Rongrong was telling the truth, but was it not a little too harsh on Zhu Zhuqing?

"You came here to put me down, didn't you!"

Zhu Zhuqing pretended to be angry, but she knew her own limits and did not truly feel offended.

"No, no! Zhuqing worked very hard today too!"

Ning Rongrong truly was a master at keeping both sides happy. She had just praised Gu Zhi, yet immediately turned around to coax Zhu Zhuqing.

"You two carry on. I have something to do, so I'll be leaving first."

Unable to figure out Ning Rongrong's intentions, Gu Zhi decided to leave first. Besides, he needed some time to think properly about Zhu Zhuqing's confession.

"You're leaving already?"

Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong both panicked at once. Even though they knew Gu Zhi still had to compete to complete the system's mission, they still feared that things would slip beyond their control afterward.

"Will... will we see each other again?"

Zhu Zhuqing wanted to say that she wanted to leave with Gu Zhi, but she did not know how he felt. She was worried that pursuing him too aggressively would make her seem desperate.

"Of course. We're already a team, aren't we?"

Gu Zhi answered naturally. He was not thinking that deeply at the moment; he merely intended to spend more time getting to know her.

"Don't be in such a hurry to leave, Young Master! I actually want to form a team with you too! I have the greatest support-type tool spirit in the world, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda! I can even pay you! You can name any price you want!"

Ning Rongrong had not expected Gu Zhi to continue competing as Zhu Zhuqing's teammate. She wanted to mooch off the system rewards too!

"Oh no! Ning Rongrong really is here to steal him! How can Baby Zhuqing compete with her?"

"That little witch is too capable! In terms of martial spirits, she has the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, the greatest support-type tool spirit in the world. In terms of money, she has the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect behind her. Zhu Zhuqing has no advantage at all!"

"No helping it! If it were me, I'd want to experience the effects of the greatest support-type tool spirit in the world too!"

"Who said my Baby Zhuqing has no advantages? Does Ning Rongrong have a figure as good as my Baby Zhuqing's?"

"Good grief! Another one whose little head controls the big one! Is Gu Zhi that kind of person?"

"Hard to say! Either choice makes no difference to him. Zhu Zhuqing is being so proactive—if it were me, I'd be tempted too!"

"Hard to say!"

As "hard to say" began flooding the screen, Ning Rongrong's newly built confidence was shattered by the barrage! Especially after she secretly glanced at Zhu Zhuqing's lovely figure and got caught, Ning Rongrong became even angrier!

"You're all so young, yet you keep thinking about taking shortcuts. That won't get you very far!"

Gu Zhi was not as disgraceful as the barrage claimed. He first gave Ning Rongrong a proper lecture about wanting something for nothing, then came up with an idea: he would take each of them to one match a day.

This was so they could gain more practical combat experience and see clearly the gap between themselves and powerful opponents. It would also help temper their dispositions.

"Damn! Gu Zhi is way too gentle! I'm crying!"

"Ah! Husband Gu Zhi, look at me! I want my husband to whip me into shape too!"

"The person above is still making outrageous comments! Where are the moderators?"

"Don't let Gu Zhi fool you! He just likes the feeling of girls depending on him!"

"Agreed! Showing off without even trying! That's the deadliest kind!"

"So what? Aren't Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong the ones benefiting? If Gu Zhi treated me like that, I'd accept it too!"

The barrage rambled on about all sorts of things, yet it seemed to have analyzed Gu Zhi's actions quite thoroughly.

After all, even the strongest god would still feel lonely. Gu Zhi did not seek a harem of wives and concubines, but having a few lovely women by his side would still be a wonderful thing...