Did he fail the entrance exam?

Teng Xiao hesitated and looked toward the Marshal.

"He has a little more humanity in him now."

The Marshal chuckled, lowered her eyes, and sipped her wine.

Her tone was utterly calm, but her words struck like a bolt from the blue, leaving Teng Xiao dumbfounded.

Who? Who had more humanity?

Oh, the Former Marshal, who had died several hundred years ago...

Wait, had that man never died at all? Then why had he vanished from the universe for centuries?

Teng Xiao trusted his superior. Once he realized what she was implying, he immediately ruled out any connection between the Former Marshal and "The Plagues Author" and forced a smile.

"...People don't come back from the dead, do they, Marshal?"

The Marshal's expression remained unchanged as she continued watching her subordinate with those blue eyes.

Teng Xiao had a terrible feeling. "Do they?"

Instead, the Marshal leisurely continued drinking, then spoke again, putting an end to his attempts to struggle.

"Don't concern yourself with it. In this life, just consider him an idle retiree."

An idle retiree...

The sort of idle retiree who had disposed of who knew how many planets?

Teng Xiao felt dizzy, a chill running down his spine.

Even if he wasn't mara-struck, he was about to become so now!

To give a less-than-apt comparison, how was this any different from letting a Lord Ravager stay aboard the Luofu?

Of course, in terms of destructive power, the Former Marshal far surpassed a Lord Ravager.

As the Luofu General, Teng Xiao greatly admired the Former Marshal and was grateful for everything he had done for the Xianzhou.

But those were separate matters. Even if this devastating divine weapon was on their side...

Having such a god of slaughter aboard the Luofu still left Teng Xiao feeling as though thorns were digging into his back.

He simply couldn't accept it so suddenly!

Teng Xiao smiled bitterly. "You've really given me a difficult problem... Does anyone else know about this?"

"Only you and I know." Seeing Teng Xiao's increasingly troubled expression, the Marshal hesitated for a moment, then asked, "What's wrong?"

Teng Xiao was so immersed in his anguish that he forgot to consider the relationship between the Marshal before him and that man. Veins bulged on the hand gripping his wine cup.

He gave a bitter smile. "You may laugh at me for saying this, but I really feel like I'm sitting on needles right now. Do you know why he went to war with the Swarm?"

The Marshal nodded slightly.

Teng Xiao was in agony. The bearded giant, whose shoulders were as broad as a double-door refrigerator, had tears in his eyes and could barely string his words together.

"He said the Swarm was too ugly! That such ugly creatures shouldn't exist in the universe! Now I'm genuinely afraid he'll think I'm ugly..."

Maybe he should stop being the Luofu General altogether! Just hand over his position on the spot!

The Marshal was utterly exasperated. "He won't. The main purpose of those planetary campaigns was to resolve the Swarm Disaster."

Half of Teng Xiao's mind was drowning in anguish, while the other half struggled to think.

With that man's talent for stirring up trouble, how could he be unknown aboard the Luofu? Could it be that he hadn't joined the Six Commissions yet?

Had he not taken the exam yet, or had he failed?

Damn it, who had written those exam questions?

Teng Xiao had completely forgotten what his superior had just said. Incoherently, he sought confirmation from her.

"Did he pass the exam? Or does he want to..."

The more he spoke, the more distressed he became.

"If he wants to be the Luofu General, that's fine. What scares me is, what if some blind fool fails to recognize who he is and offends him, or he starts hating the Luofu because he wasn't accepted, or because his wages were withheld... What would we do then?"

Wouldn't that spark a universe-wide conflict in minutes?

Then he, Teng Xiao, would be a sinner against the entire universe!

The Marshal gazed at him, emotions churning in her eyes.

It seemed that the attitude he had revealed toward the Former Marshal had left her feeling...

Pain? Helplessness?

More than anything... regret.

Teng Xiao immediately fell silent.

"He has already passed the exam and joined the Divination Commission. He won't attack the Xianzhou, so there's no need to worry." The Marshal lowered her eyes. "You don't need to pay him any special attention."

The Marshal let out a quiet sigh and repeated, "All he wants now is to be an ordinary person. If you go against his wishes-"

Hearing that, Teng Xiao immediately abandoned any thought of handing over his position. He thumped his chest and guaranteed that he would let the Former Marshal live an ordinary life.

After hearing her subordinate's promise, the Marshal couldn't help laughing.

If that man heard how others described him, he would undoubtedly protest indignantly, "What are you talking about? I didn't lose! What gives you the right to call me a sinner?"

The Xianzhou natives of that era had revered him as their faith, while his enemies had seen him as an unbeatable madman-and an unforgivable sinner who stirred up conflict.

But none of that had ever felt particularly real to her.

Rather than his fearsome reputation, which intimidated countless people, the first thing she remembered was the rainy day when they had met.

When he saw her sheltering from the rain, he had showered her with lavish praise.

She could never have imagined that this man, who seemed to be mara-struck, was the Xianzhou Marshal.

Still less had she imagined that he would raise her as his successor.

This guide, who deserved none of her respect and could hardly be called responsible, had crouched down to meet her young eyes.

His gaze had been kind, his tone solemn.

"I have no demands for the Xianzhou's successor, but I do have demands for you. Hua, I want you to accept everyone's favoritism and protection without guilt. I want you to be selfish and willful. I want you to live easily and happily. I want you to obtain anything you desire without the slightest effort-"

"Finally, I want everyone in the Xianzhou to remember your contributions with gratitude, forever and ever-"

After meeting her only once, he had so casually announced that he would entrust the Xianzhou Alliance to her.

Whether as the Xianzhou Marshal or as a guide, he had been far too irresponsible.

He was difficult to define as good or evil. To deceive her, he had glossed over more than ten thousand planets as a mere hundred or so.

He was arrogant by nature and would not allow the people under his rule to suffer in the slightest.

Even when others misunderstood his righteous deeds and the entire universe regarded him as a villain, he had disdained explaining himself.

What Hua hadn't expected was that, even centuries after his death, his fearsome reputation could still intimidate countless people.

If they knew how leisurely and carefree he was now, their jaws would probably drop.

Once everything was ready, she could use his name as bait and hook a few more fish.

Meanwhile, Xianyu, who was determined to try Peppery Soup milk tea, arrived at the milk tea shop.

As a working man enjoying a day off on a weekday, he carried an innate sense of superiority. Along the way, every weary-faced passerby he spotted was a pleasing sight.

Making money? What money? Paid leave and slacking off at work-that was what really counted as making money!

As soon as he reached the entrance, a cloyingly sweet yet spicy smell hit him.

Someone came toward him carrying the newly released Peppery Soup milk tea, just about to leave.

Xianyu's eyes lit up, and he asked, "Is this place's new drink any good?"

The person's expression changed instantly upon hearing him.

Xianyu hesitated. "Is it bad?"

The other customer hurriedly shook their head and said with great sincerity, "No, it's too good. Go on, hurry and buy some."

Seeing Xianyu's hesitant expression, as though he didn't quite believe them, the customer grew more emphatic. "Seriously, trust me. Anyone who hasn't tried Peppery Soup milk tea will regret it for the rest of their life!"

Xianyu half believed them. Tempted by the clerk's offer of "the second cup half price," he ordered two cups of Peppery Soup milk tea.

He planned to give the extra cup to Jing Yuan.

Smelling the sharp, spicy odor inside the shop, Xianyu grew doubtful and ordered another cup of milk tea in a normal flavor.

Once the clerk placed the three cups on a tray, Xianyu fell silent.

Pointing at the fried dough sticks that looked utterly out of place in a milk tea shop, he asked the clerk, "Excuse me, what are these?"

The clerk looked as though it were perfectly obvious. "They're fried dough sticks. You can dip them in the milk tea or eat them with our special cream."

Xianyu grumbled inwardly. How was this bizarre combination any different from strawberry-flavored mapo tofu?

But he was already here...

He could only pick up his tray and walk past the three people behind him.

The three looked unremarkable, aside from the conspicuous white hair of two of them. One had such an abundance of hair that any working person would envy it.

Xianyu marveled inwardly. That amount of hair could rival Jing Yuan's.

As he thought, he walked toward a seat near the floor-to-ceiling windows.

He had only just sat down when the three, holding the receipt the clerk had given them, came over to the seats beside him.

Xianyu looked up and saw a familiar figure outside the window.

The white-haired beauty outside was looking down at her Jade Abacus. She glanced around and happened to meet Xianyu's eyes.

The moment those icy red eyes saw him, they softened, as though their earlier coldness had been nothing but an illusion.

Jingliu? What was she doing here?

There wasn't any good food or a tavern nearby.

Xianyu thought it over but simply couldn't work out why Jingliu had appeared here. He smiled at her and raised a hand in greeting.

Xianyu had expected Jingliu to leave soon, but instead, she walked toward the milk tea shop.

Even when Jingliu sat down beside him, he still hadn't recovered from his surprise.

A refreshing fragrance swept over him, instantly dispelling the cloying sweetness that had lingered around his nose inside the shop.

His first impression was of a night breeze sweeping through a hallway in late autumn.

Then it was as though he stood in a forest after the rain, the fresh scent of greenery mingling with jasmine, soothing both body and mind.

Jingliu first leaned closer to inspect Xianyu. After confirming that none of his exposed skin was injured, she let out a breath of relief. She turned her face slightly aside, seeming a little embarrassed.

Jingliu said softly,

"About what happened last night, I'm very sorry-"

"Cough, cough-"

Before Jingliu could finish, the white-haired person beside them, whose luxuriant hair rivaled Jing Yuan's, erupted into earth-shattering coughs.