After leaving his bargain master's room, Luo Chen patted his chest, still shaken. "That man's presence is terrifying. Who knows whether taking him as my master was a good thing or a bad one?"
Just then, his stomach suddenly growled.
"Sigh... at this point, I'd better get dinner first. Even if the sky falls, it can wait until tomorrow."
With that thought, Luo Chen strode toward the lobby of the Soto Great Soul Arena. He remembered that the staff member, Xiao Fan, was waiting for him there.
The lobby of the Soto Great Soul Arena bustled with people coming and going.
Luo Chen looked around and soon spotted Xiao Fan standing blankly at the lobby entrance, waiting for someone.
He strode over and was just about to call out to Xiao Fan, but the moment Xiao Fan saw him approaching, he hurried forward to meet him. Before Luo Chen could speak, he handed him an exquisite bank card.
"Mr. Demon Scorpion, this is your Soto Great Soul Bank card. Your record-breaking reward and match winnings have been deposited in it," Xiao Fan said with a smile. "In the future, you can withdraw money at any bank that supports the Soto Great Soul Bank."
Hearing this, Luo Chen's gaze fell on the bank card in Xiao Fan's hand.
The card was silvery-white all over, with the Soto Great Soul Bank's emblem engraved on its surface. It gave off a faint sheen and looked very high-end.
Luo Chen accepted the card, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "Thanks."
"Providing our customers with excellent service is our mission." Xiao Fan gave him a practiced smile. "If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave."
"OK, I don't need anything else. You can go."
With that, Luo Chen turned and headed toward the bank counter.
At the Soto Great Soul Bank counter.
Luo Chen handed his bank card to the clerk and said, "I'd like to withdraw fifty Gold Soul Coins."
"Of course, sir." The clerk accepted the card with a smile, only then discovering that it was actually one of their bank's SSSVIP cards.
Generally speaking, Soul Masters with bank cards of this level were either wealthy enough to dominate a region and could provide financial support to the Soto Great Soul Arena, or powerful enough to guarantee its safety. But whichever kind of Soul Master he was, if she could hook up with him, she would no longer have to work here.
At that thought, the clerk's voice immediately softened, and she said gently, "Please wait a moment. I'll withdraw fifty Gold Soul Coins for you now."
With that, she placed the card on a machine, which soon spat out fifty Gold Soul Coins.
After counting them, the clerk said, "Sir, here are the fifty Gold Soul Coins you withdrew. Please check them."
Luo Chen nodded and counted them twice himself. Only after confirming that everything was correct did he tuck the Gold Soul Coins into his clothes.
Feeling their hefty weight against his chest, Luo Chen was in an especially cheerful mood.
"It sure feels good to have money," he muttered to himself. "Even the air smells sweeter."
"This many Gold Soul Coins should last me quite a while." Luo Chen pondered as he walked outside. "First, I'll have a hearty meal, and then..."
As he was thinking, a familiar voice suddenly came from behind him. "Demon Scorpion, long time no see."
At those words, Luo Chen abruptly stopped in his tracks.
That voice...
Why does it sound so familiar?
He turned and looked toward the voice, only to see a young woman in a pale blue dress waving.
"Oh, it's Shui Bing'er?" Luo Chen was about to wave when he suddenly caught sight of an ice cream shop out of the corner of his eye.
Thinking that they were some distance apart and might chat for a while afterward, Luo Chen turned toward the ice cream shop, intending to buy two ice cream bars so he and Shui Bing'er could eat while they talked.
Meanwhile, when Shui Bing'er saw Luo Chen look her way, she excitedly jogged toward him.
As she ran, she thought, What should I say when we meet?
Should I invite him to dinner, or tell him how amazing he is?
*...*
At that thought, Shui Bing'er ran faster and faster, her smile growing ever brighter.
Yet, to her surprise, Luo Chen merely glanced at her from afar before turning and leaving.
He did not pause or respond at all, as though he had never seen her... as though she were merely a stranger.
Seeing this, Shui Bing'er's once-cheerful steps slowly came to a halt. She stood rooted to the spot, staring blankly at Luo Chen's retreating back as she murmured to herself:
"He... left?!"
"He clearly saw me, so why did he leave?!"
At the same time, her eyes reddened despite herself.
An ache unlike anything she had ever felt welled up in her heart, and scalding tears slid down her smooth cheeks onto her hands.
Only then did Shui Bing'er realize that she was crying-and over a man who did not care about her at all.
The more she thought about it, the faster Shui Bing'er's tears flowed, until they gradually blurred her vision.
Standing there, she felt as though the whole world had abandoned her. The people coming and going around her seemed to have nothing to do with her.
Just then, Shui Bing'er suddenly heard an argument. She turned to look and saw a girl clinging tightly to a young man's sleeve.
Tears streamed down the girl's face, and her voice was choked with sobs. "Was what happened between us that night nothing more to you than a chance encounter that left not a single ripple?"
"Take a good look at me. Do you really not remember me at all?"
Hearing this, the young man's expression turned angry. He forcefully shook off her grip and said, "Please, you were blocking the only passage that night, crying. I wanted to get through, so I gave you a tissue to wipe your tears."
"I can guarantee that I never did anything improper to you."
"I don't understand why you think there's anything between us."
With that, the young man turned and left, leaving the girl alone in the crowd, crying.
Shui Bing'er felt that she was just like this girl, abandoned by someone she knew. And so, for the first time, she reached out in full view of everyone, took the girl's hand, and led her out of the crowd.
Only after they had left the crowd did the girl stop crying.
She thanked Shui Bing'er in a soft, sweet voice. "Thank you, beautiful miss."
"My name is Shui Bing'er," Shui Bing'er said softly. "What's your name?"
"My surname is Li. I'm an ordinary person living in a village near Suotuo City." The girl wiped her tears. "Miss, I'm sorry you had to see that."
Shui Bing'er quickly shook her head and asked, "You and that young man... did something happen between you?"
The girl fell silent for a moment before beginning to recount what had happened between her and the young man.
"He and I have only met three times in total." A hint of reminiscence entered the girl's voice, and a glimmer flashed in her eyes. "The first time we met, he helped me recover my purse."
"I was still young then. I came to Suotuo City alone to buy seeds my family needed, but I hadn't gone far before a thief snatched my purse."
I chased the thief, shouting, "Stop that thief! He stole my purse!" But sadly... not a single person helped me.
At this point, the girl's voice turned somewhat bitter. "Those people just watched me. Some even laughed at me."
"I chased him for a long time, but the thief ran too fast. I couldn't catch him at all."
"In the end, I resigned myself to it, crouched by the roadside, and cried my eyes out."