An Emanator. This was an actual Emanator.
"Hey, hey, hey, since I'm your future wife, darling, could you let the great Sparkle see your mask? The great Sparkle can do anything."
"You really can do anything?"
Lingchen looked Sparkle up and down. Although she looked incredibly innocent, and her figure was similar to Fu Xuan's in every respect, her demeanor, tone, outfit, expressions, and gestures combined to give her an entirely different nickname from a girl like Fu Xuan-Asakusa.
"Nope, not that sort of thing~"
Sparkle raised both hands and crossed them in front of herself, looking like a girl from a certain country's anime.
Honestly, Lingchen would have found those gestures and expressions awkward on anyone else, but they felt perfectly natural on Sparkle. When she did them, she truly looked like an anime girl who had stepped into the real world.
"All right. Sigh~ How boring."
Although her performance was excellent, Lingchen still chose to give it a bad review.
"What? You're calling the great Sparkle boring! Was my performance just now that bad? I even went to Edo Star to study it firsthand."
Sparkle's eyes widened. To call a Masked Fool like her boring was an outright disgrace.
"No, your performance was excellent. You nailed both the look and the spirit, but it was still boring."
Lingchen shook his head again.
"Huh? Why?"
Sparkle leaned forward curiously.
"Because he wants to do things with you that only couples do."
Fu Xuan explained on Lingchen's behalf. Even she thought Sparkle looked more like a seductive fox spirit than an actual Foxian, with a certain alluring quality about her.
"You shut down that possibility right away. Of course keeping it clean would be boring."
Lingchen had already courted several girls within just a few months on the Xianzhou. She could hardly imagine how much his family would expand if he went elsewhere.
In fact, if Lingchen hadn't been so ambitious and greedy, Tingyun, whom he had gone out of his way to save, might already have started a proper relationship with him.
After all, Lingchen was outstanding in every respect. He even had a fan club on the Xianzhou, and Fu Xuan's investigations had revealed that its membership was far from small.
But none of them wanted to be the first girl to lose in love, nor did they want to be the first to agree to let Lingchen date multiple girls.
Lingchen was certainly exceptional in every respect, but strength aside, the girls were no slouches either. Even among Pathstriders, their abilities were respectable. At least for now, they could all live comfortably without him.
Fu Xuan and Tingyun were exceptions, of course. Between Lingchen's treatment and all the time they had spent living under the same roof, Fu Xuan had actually made her choice long ago.
Still, she needed an opportunity to finally commit. And as the Diviner, a workaholic who hoped to succeed the general someday, she inevitably had some concerns.
As for Tingyun, she probably would have returned even if Lingchen hadn't saved her, since Fu Xuan's divination had foretold great fortune. But people were emotional, and Tingyun was no exception. Faced with someone who had come specifically to rescue her and was excellent in every way, she couldn't possibly remain unmoved.
Besides, Lingchen's presence had greatly reduced the number of casualties.
Every girl had a hero in her heart, and to Tingyun, Lingchen was hers.
"That's not it. While I do think sex is the primary driving force behind human production and daily life, ask yourselves honestly: have I ever actually done anything out of line?"
Lingchen rejected Fu Xuan's guess. He liked pretty girls, but he wasn't that desperate.
"No, you haven't."
Chapter 44: All Right, Enough of the Tricks
Fu Xuan shook her head.
Although they had all kinds of physical contact in everyday life, the reality was that Lingchen hadn't actually gone all the way with any of the girls. He had spent all this time building their relationships.
They could feel his respect for them, and that was one of the reasons they still stayed by his side.
Of course, Lingchen had been very successful at building those relationships. None of them wanted to give up now, and even Yukong had begun to feel that way.
"So what was the reason, then?"
Sparkle looked at Lingchen again. From the few things they had said, she had realized Fu Xuan wasn't the only girl around him.
Ah, this won't do. I'm getting even more excited!
"Because you're right. I believe you'll all be my wives in the future, so there's no harm in letting you see."
Lingchen suddenly gave a gentle smile, his face full of confidence.
Fu Xuan froze for a moment and turned her face away. Even Sparkle was briefly taken aback.
Sparkle had never expected Lingchen to say something like that.
He really is confident~
She admitted he had caught her attention just now, but the great Sparkle wasn't that easy to win over.
With her hands behind her back, Sparkle winked her right eye at Lingchen and leaned slightly toward him, showing off a figure that seemed flat at first glance but actually had a little something-and was quite enticing.
"Then the great Sparkle will be waiting for that future you promised~ Hehe, you really give a girl something to look forward to, darling~"
Lingchen said nothing more.
The next instant, seven masks-Joy, Anger, Sorrow, Happiness, Grief, Fear, and Surprise-suddenly appeared around him. Energy from the Path of [Elation] shimmered over them, each with a different color and aura. After circling him once, the seven masks merged into one and sank back into his body.
"Th-this is?!!"
Fu Xuan no longer had any attention to spare for Sparkle's seductive antics, which she considered positively foxlike. She hurried two steps closer to Lingchen.
"Lingchen, w-were those seven masks just now? Does that mean you have seven authorities of [Elation]?"
The pink-haired girl looked utterly stunned. Never in her life had she seen anything like this.
Lingchen had only brought out the masks for a brief moment, and he had even suppressed his Emanator power and Imaginary Energy.
Even so, the aura they emitted had made Fu Xuan stop breathing for an instant.
They were far too powerful. She had seen Jing Yuan's Lightning-Lord, but it was nowhere near this level.
"Wow~ You're so amazing, darling. So many masks."
"Could you give me one? I'll let you kiss me this time, darling~"
Sparkle looked excited too.
She held her little clenched fists slightly raised in front of her, her big eyes sparkling as she looked at Lingchen.
Why not offer to praise me for a while in exchange for a mask, while you're at it?
Lingchen was rather speechless. It was obvious Sparkle wanted a freebie.
"Forget it. These aren't seven masks, but multiple facets of a single mask. They're also my true authority."
"Even if I gave one away, it would only be a projection of the mask, or a version weakened many times over. Only then might someone else be able to use it without having their mind altered by its power."
"It's somewhat similar to the Cornerstones given out by Diamond, the Emanator of [Preservation]."
"Only one authority?! Then could you tell us what your authority is?"
Fu Xuan asked.
Unlike the Lightning-Lord passed down on the Xianzhou, which came with its own authority, conventional Emanators each possessed an Emanator authority of their own.
"If you can't tell us..."
"There's nothing I can't tell you, Xuanbao."
"Given our relationship, if you want to know, I'll tell you. And you don't need to be so cautious around me."
"This isn't like your usual self."
Clearly, his display had made even Fu Xuan, who knew how powerful Emanators were, rein in her usual temperament a little.
After all, she had known Lingchen was an Emanator, but she hadn't known he was this powerful.
It was natural to feel reserved in the presence of power far beyond one's understanding.
Fu Xuan was now completely certain that the Lord of Eternal Joy held Lingchen in extremely high regard. Sparkle's claim that Aha had sent her here was probably true.
With a relaxed expression, Lingchen patted Fu Xuan's little head.
He had to admit, her pink hair really was silky.
A Pathstrider's hair was simply different.
"Do not touch my head."
"And don't call me that."
Fu Xuan blushed and took a step back.
Sparkle was still here, after all.
Patting her head was one thing, but "Xuanbao"... That was far too embarrassing.
Lingchen had called her that before. At first, she hadn't been used to it and had even found it embarrassing, since the nickname didn't suit her personality or bearing at all. But living in the same mansion, she had gradually grown accustomed to it.
And when she thought about how Tingyun and Qingque didn't have such intimate nicknames, she stood a little taller.
Still, after Lingchen's little gesture, the sudden reserve she had felt earlier was gone.
But Sparkle was right beside them.
"Lingchen!"
"Hmm? What is it?"
"You scoundrel."
Fu Xuan glared fiercely at Lingchen.
Ah, yes, yes, exactly that. Even when she scolds someone, she's so cute.
Lingchen looked utterly content, with no sense that he had just been reprimanded.
Sparkle nearly burst out laughing at the sight.
Leaving aside Lingchen's pet name for Fu Xuan, which she actually envied a little-it meant he must protect Fu Xuan very well, and since the great Sparkle sought amusement every day, wouldn't having someone to shelter her let her seek even greater amusement?
The main thing was the way Fu Xuan insulted people.
"You really are so well-mannered, Lord Diviner~ Even the great Sparkle is a little surprised~"
In the end, Sparkle couldn't hold back her laughter.
Fu Xuan gritted her teeth as she watched.
"Miss Sparkle, let me remind you that this is my mansion. Don't push your luck."
If not for Lingchen, she would have thrown this Masked Fool out already.
"Hmm~~~ Then I really am sorry, my pink-haired Lord Diviner. But I just couldn't help myself~ Sorry, sorry~"
As she spoke, Sparkle hummed a couple of notes that sounded like a song from Edo Star.
"You!"
"All right, Sparkle. Enough of the tricks."
"Doesn't our Lord Diviner still want to know what my authority is? I'll tell you both now."
The moment Lingchen spoke, Fu Xuan and Sparkle both perked up their ears.
Only, the corners of Fu Xuan's mouth rose slightly.
Lingchen looked toward the entrance. It seemed someone was coming.
P.S. Thanks to the reader Coles for urging me to update.
Thanks to Nicholas Zhou Shuren for the monthly ticket.
Thanks to 15283.., the reader with the number username whom I haven't seen in ages, for the monthly ticket.
Chapter 45: A Video Call with Marshal Hua, Gradually Understanding Everything
Lingchen and the others weren't discussing anything top secret, so there was naturally no need to set up a barrier.
Thus, although the stone pavilion where they were chatting in the courtyard was some distance from the main gate, it was late in the evening, and anyone outside could probably hear a little.
After rushing back, Jing Yuan had submitted his report. The Marshal had then contacted him directly, hoping to speak with Lingchen through his communicator.
Time was short and there was much to do. The Marshal had her own business to attend to, so Jing Yuan hurried back to Fu Xuan's mansion. Xianzhou natives went to bed late, and with a Masked Fool visiting as well, they were probably still chatting outside.
That was indeed the case. Although he hadn't heard the earlier part of their conversation, he arrived just in time to hear Lingchen offer to explain his authority.