Invincible Dad

Xu Lai's footsteps were very light. He was standing right behind Ruan Tang before she even noticed him.

Ruan Tang sighed, set her pen down, and raised her arms to stretch. Just then, a pair of hands suddenly wrapped around her slender waist!

Although the movement was gentle and light, it startled Ruan Tang so much that goosebumps broke out all over her body. She was about to scream when a deeply familiar voice whispered in her ear, "Don't be afraid, it's me."

"..."

Ruan Tang instinctively turned her head. Seeing it was Xu Lai, the fear in her heart gradually faded. Still annoyed, she glared with her beautiful eyes. "Do you realize you could have scared me to death!"

"I was afraid of disturbing you, so I kept quiet," Xu Lai said.

Ruan Tang froze, her face growing warm. "So, you saw what I was writing?"

"I saw a little bit," Xu Lai replied. "But if you need me to, honey, I can erase the memory right now."

Ruan Tang covered her face, mortified.

After finishing her work that afternoon, she had nothing to do, so she started writing down memorable dates to keep from forgetting them. Naturally, things like their daughter Yiyi's birthday were on the list. But there were also some dates that were significant to her and Xu Lai, like that day five years ago, and...

She had written down quite a few—seven, in fact.

Ruan Tang had planned to hide the notebook away and look back on it when they were old. She never expected Xu Lai to see it. She felt both frustrated and ashamed.

However, she quickly feigned composure, put away her notebook, and asked, "What brings you here?"

"I missed you."

"..."

Her hands paused as she was putting the notebook away. She spoke nonchalantly, "I washed your clothes. The sleeves were covered in blood."

She sniffed, as if to express her displeasure.

"I'll be more careful next time. On another note, there's something I feel I need to explain."

Xu Lai took a cell phone out of his pocket, along with a business card bearing the name 'Murong Chi' and a phone number.

"I happened to run into her last night when I went down the mountain to buy playing cards, but there's absolutely nothing between us," Xu Lai explained carefully, even including details about how down-and-out Dongfang Xun had become.

Although Ruan Tang wasn't angry, seeing Xu Lai explain himself so earnestly made her heart feel inexplicably warm.

He really cares about my feelings.

As for Murong Chi... she's not important at all. I've trusted Xu Lai from the start, and I still do.

So Ruan Tang said softly, "I'm not that petty. You didn't really need to explain."

"Indeed not petty at all," Xu Lai said meaningfully. The hand resting on her abdomen started to wander upward but was quickly stopped.

Blushing, Ruan Tang slapped his hand away and scolded, "Believe it or not, I'll chop those wandering hands of yours right off!"

"I believe you," Xu Lai said with a hint of regret. "It seems I'll have to wait until tonight to draw little turtles then."

"Hooligan," Ruan Tang scoffed. "Is that all you think about? Now get out, I need to work."

"Alright, I'm taking the car. I'll come pick you up this evening."

"Mhm, be careful on the road."

Ruan Tang waved goodbye as Xu Lai turned and left.

As Xu Lai drove to the school...

「In Harbour City.」

A thousand meters beneath the Pseudo-Spiritual Vein, the monster known as No-Face was suppressed. She was, in fact, a peerless beauty, and few knew that she was especially fond of drinking.

The woman held a crystal-clear wine glass, a faint smile on her lips as she looked at the white-haired old man kneeling outside the seal.

That was Li Sanbai.

He was the 'dog' she kept in the outside world, useful for gathering intelligence and handling her affairs. Although this dog had made quite a name for himself, becoming an idol and a source of pride for countless people, here it was a different story.

Whether it wore clothes or could speak, a dog was still a dog.

"Master, Dongfang Xun has thoroughly investigated Xu Lai," Li Sanbai said cautiously, passing a Jade Slip through the weakest point of the seal into her cage.

With a light tap of her snow-white, jade-like finger, the contents of the Jade Slip appeared in the woman's mind. Her smile instantly turned to ice.

"Li Sanbai, do you take me for a fool!"

SNAP!

The Jade Slip shattered in mid-air.

Li Sanbai didn't dare to look up, staring at the ground in bewilderment. "Master, is there... a problem with the information?"

"Your precious disciple claims that Xu Lai's Boundary is the Divine Gate Realm," the woman sneered. "My avatar, a half-step Golden Core, was killed instantly. How could someone in the Divine Gate Realm possess such power? He's spouting complete nonsense."

"This..."

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Li Sanbai's forehead.

"Where is the backup plan I had you arrange? Bring it out," the woman said impatiently. She had felt from the beginning that Dongfang Xun was unreliable, so she had wisely instructed Li Sanbai to make other arrangements.

Li Sanbai handed over a second Jade Slip.

This time, No-Face was even more furious.

Apart from Xu Lai's name and the names of his wife and daughter, all details regarding his Boundary, birthplace, and origin were listed as unknown.

"Li Sanbai, years ago, you begged to offer me your Soul Blood so you could kill the master who had taken your wife," the woman said, rubbing her temples. Her voice was flat. "You failed as a man, and now you're even more incompetent as a dog. What use do I have for you, hmm?"

Li Sanbai's face went deathly pale. He kowtowed repeatedly, pleading, "Master, spare me! Master, spare my life!"

Soul Blood.

It could control the life and death of not only monsters but humans as well, all with a single thought. Li Sanbai knew his master was capricious and feared being cast aside the moment he lost his usefulness.

Grasping at straws, he said hastily, "The Martial Dao Association of East Sea City contacted me today. They want to build a Spirit Vein and hope that I will personally set the Formation. Xu Lai is in East Sea. I guarantee I will complete the task you've given me this time!"

"Oh?" The woman's interest was piqued. She asked, "Are you confident you can use a Formation to condense a true Spirit Vein at your current level?"

"...I'm afraid it will still be a Pseudo-Spiritual Vein."

"Hmph."

The woman wasn't angry; she knew this was the limit of Li Sanbai's talent. Or rather, the limit of the Human Race.

No-Face drifted into a trance, recalling the man who had given her a 'top-tier Spirit Gathering Formation.' He had sworn it could condense a true Spirit Vein, not a Pseudo-Spiritual Vein.

"Jing Ke, you promised you would save me. You said you would take me to the Nine Kings' Palace, where I would enjoy the worship of all living beings, achieve the supreme Dao fruit, and forge an eternal golden body. You even said you'd introduce me to an Emperor Realm Master," the woman murmured. "But it's been two thousand years, and you never came back. I've waited too long, Jing Ke. you lied to me."

She drained the wine in her cup.

The priceless jade cup was then crushed to dust, sifting through her fingers to the ground like those promises she could never grasp, never hold onto.

"Go," No-Face said flatly. "You know how to tamper with the Formation, don't you? Don't disappoint me again."

"Yes, Master." Li Sanbai responded quickly, crawling backward on the ground as he retreated.

"If I can't wait for you, then I'll just have to save myself. East Sea, here I come."

No-Face lowered her head, her smile twisting into something increasingly sinister, a sight that was deeply unsettling and utterly terrifying.