"I still don't know where Tingyun's and my deaths will be answered, so it's too soon to say. But Changchang's future is much easier to change."
Ji Yuan thought to himself.
To stop his little sister from becoming a widow in the future, he could just keep her from getting married or dating for now.
Anyway, even after a hundred years, Changchang would only be around two hundred and fifty or sixty—a young adult. There would still be plenty of time to deal with it then.
"Mm, I'll go educate Changchang about the dangers of puppy love later and make sure she absolutely doesn't fall in love. If she so much as gets the slightest thought of dating, I'll break her legs."
They could joke around all they wanted, but as the older brother who had grown up with her, Ji Yuan felt it was necessary to ensure his sister's happiness.
As for whether that short-lived person she mentioned might refer to him, the thought merely flashed through Ji Yuan's mind before he cast it aside.
When they were little, Sushang had said she wanted to marry her brother and become his wife, but children didn't know any better.
They were siblings, after all.
Now that she had grown up, she should have long since thrown aside that childish notion.
The three boarded a Star Skiff used for travel within the Starfaring Vessel. Ji Yuan carried the luggage alone as he walked behind, while Tingyun and Sushang went ahead. As they walked, Tingyun kept trying to draw information out of Sushang.
"Changchang, did your brother have anyone he liked back when he was on the Yaoging Star-skiff?"
"Someone he liked? Nope~"
Sushang thought for a moment, then spread her hands at Tingyun.
Tingyun's smile became even brighter.
Ji Yuan had booked a small Star Skiff with only three seats.
With Sushang there, Ji Yuan was at ease sharing the same Star Skiff with Tingyun.
If it had been just the two of them, even if someone lent Ji Yuan a hundred times his courage, he would not have dared.
Sushang reached the side seat first, patted the middle seat, and called out to Ji Yuan, "Bro, bro, come sit here."
Ji Yuan was still dragging the heavy luggage when Tingyun came before him and reached out to grab it.
"You're sweating all over from exhaustion. Let this humble lady help you with this stretch."
Tingyun said to him.
Then she gripped the luggage handle and tried to lift it, but even after tugging hard twice, she could not raise it.
She scratched her head, looking somewhat troubled.
Seeing this, Ji Yuan hurriedly grabbed the handle.
"I'll do it."
As he said this, he prepared to lift the luggage. But just as he did, he realized Tingyun had grabbed his hand.
"Let's do it together."
Ji Yuan looked at Tingyun's hand.
If you're helping me carry the luggage, why are you holding my hand instead of the handle beside it?
Tingyun ignored that and held Ji Yuan's hand as the two of them lifted the luggage onto the Star Skiff.
Ji Yuan sat in the middle seat, while Tingyun took the other side and naturally crossed her legs. That was not all—she even reached down and took off her high heels.
Seeing Ji Yuan looking at her, Tingyun leaned against her seat and said lazily, "Wearing these is so tiring. There are no outsiders here anyway, so I might as well take them off."
As she spoke, she deliberately spread her toes and flexed them properly in front of Ji Yuan.
Her little feet were delicate and lovely, her toes pale as pearls, her ankles slender as willow branches. Ji Yuan dared say that if he held one, not only could he wrap his entire hand around it, he would even have a finger joint's worth of room to spare.
Ji Yuan felt his palm itching to make a move.
Beside him, Sushang said in agreement, "Yeah, walking around in boots really is tiring. How about..."
Before she could finish, Ji Yuan's nearly uncontrollable hand finally found a proper use.
It turned into a hand blade and came down hard on Sushang's head.
"You've been walking around in those boots all day. Aren't you afraid they'll smell?"
"They don't smell! I sniff them every day before I bathe. They're not stinky at all."
Sushang clutched her head in grievance after taking the hand blade, protesting to Ji Yuan.
Ji Yuan immediately wore a look of disgust.
Good grief, this little sister was beyond saving.
Sushang was beside herself with frustration and tried several times to take off her boots to prove it to Ji Yuan, but he stopped her every time and gave her a few more hand blades.
After taking several hand blades, Sushang was not only aggrieved but also astonished.
When had her brother become so powerful? She could not evade him at all. That was only with his hand—if he used a sword instead, he would probably be even more formidable.
Could it be that after falling behind him in academics, I've also been left behind in martial arts?
No!
Mother will scold me to death then!
Sushang thought to herself.
The Star Skiff arrived at Exalting Sanctum, and Ji Yuan led Sushang and Tingyun toward the house he had bought.
As they walked, Ji Yuan spoke to the two of them.
"Once we enter the house, stay behind me. I've set up a whole bunch of defensive systems inside. If you go in without knowing about them, your lives could easily be in danger."
Hearing this, Sushang asked in surprise, "Hey, bro, we're just living there. What are you doing?"
"Better safe than sorry."
Ji Yuan said seriously.
"What if someone invades our home while we don't know about it?"
His tone was immensely proud.
But that pride only lasted a few seconds before it was instantly replaced by solemnity when they reached his front door.
The house's defense system had activated.
"Stay behind me."
He stood before Sushang and Tingyun.
At the same time, he opened the remote surveillance feed.
He needed to see who the intruder was, then hurry and report them to the Cloud Knights.
When he opened the feed, Ji Yuan saw that a Laser Net had already activated.
Behind the Laser Net was a green-haired little Fox Folk girl sitting on the ground in a duck-sitting posture, trembling all over.
Ji Yuan: When Will I Be Able to Catch a Powerful Suiyang?!
The green-haired little girl was curled up in the corner. At some point, both her shoes had been kicked aside, leaving only her tiny feet in cotton socks tucked close to her body as they trembled nervously. Ji Yuan estimated that they were only around size thirty or thirty-one. The Fox Folk naturally had smaller feet than other races, and Huohuo was still a child, making them look even tinier.
Her knees were pressed tightly together, her short little legs splayed outward, and her green hair was a mess. She kept waving a small flag in her hand, seemingly hoping to rely on it to escape her current predicament.
Sushang's expression became conflicted, then she looked toward Ji Yuan.
She clenched her teeth and said, "Bro, you only locked this girl up—you didn't hurt her, right? If you did, hurry up and run. I may be a Cloud Knight, but you're my brother!"
Ji Yuan immediately gave her a hand blade.
"What do you take your brother for? That's the defense system I set up. She entered my home and got trapped by it."
"Bro, why would you install defenses like this in a house beside a bustling market?" Sushang complained speechlessly. Then she said excitedly, "So the girl inside is a thief? Mm, as a Cloud Knight, maintaining public order is my duty. Come on, I'll go catch her and give her a proper lesson."
"She isn't a thief. She's my student."
Ji Yuan introduced Huohuo's identity to Tingyun and Sushang.
"A student?"
Sushang looked utterly confused.
Tingyun also wore a curious expression.
Ji Yuan had no time to concern himself with either of them. His student was still in danger, so he had better rescue her as soon as possible.
Watching a strand of her fallen hair touch the Laser Net and instantly burn into ash, Huohuo's trembling legs shook even harder.
"Tail Master, wh-what do we do? It's, it's all your fault. You pushed me in here."
She complained to Tail.
This morning, she had come to Ji Yuan's doorstep to study the technique with him, but Ji Yuan had already set off for Flowing Cloud Ferry by then, so Huohuo had missed him.
She could only wait outside the door for Ji Yuan to return.
After standing there for so long, Huohuo was fine, but Tail had grown impatient.
Who do you think I, Tail Master, am? How could I wait around for someone like you? So Tail exerted some force and pushed Huohuo into Ji Yuan's courtyard.
After she entered the courtyard, before Tail could say anything else, Particle Cutters suddenly flew toward Huohuo. Huohuo hurriedly dodged them, but after avoiding that one, a second trap appeared, then a third.
After dodging several attacks in succession, Huohuo was ultimately forced into the corner by the Laser Net.
"How was I supposed to know this guy was so paranoid?"
Tail was also extremely frustrated.
"What do we do now?"
"Take it as it comes. At worst, I'll leave you and find a new host." Tail said this, but it had already fixed its attention on the wall behind them, intending to smash through it with force and take Huohuo out with it.
But it had clearly overestimated Huohuo's courage. As soon as it spoke, her trembling worsened. Then, suddenly, her right leg stiffened, and her whole body froze.
"C-cramp."
Huohuo said with a pained expression.
The intense pain made her lose control of her body, and she could not help falling forward.
"Ah!?"
The Laser Net was in front of her, and Huohuo could not help closing her eyes.
It was over. Everything was over.
Just as she prepared herself for the pain, she suddenly felt someone catch her body, and she landed on a sturdy "cushion."
"Good grief, what is going on with you? How did you end up in my house?"
Huohuo pushed herself up with both hands and discovered that the person cushioning her was her teacher, Ji Yuan.
"T-teacher."
Huohuo greeted Ji Yuan with a blush.
She was actually lying on top of her teacher.
"Huohuo, be careful. This guy's lolicon level has gone up again. Seeing you in danger, he threw himself beneath you to act as a human cushion."
Tail spoke up again.
Ji Yuan clenched the Suiyang Manipulation Technique tightly in his hand. He wished he could control it immediately and make it fly around the Luofu Starfaring Vessel for three years.
"No, Teacher isn't that kind of person. I... I believe in Teacher."
Huohuo defended Ji Yuan.
She hurriedly tried to struggle to her feet, but her cramped foot immediately made her cute little face scrunch up tightly.
"Ugh... it hurts."
Before you continue