The King of Black Fog

"Miss Yang."

"Hmm?"

"I need to confess something to you."

"What do you need to confess?" Yang Qinglan took a sip of milk.

"I did something I regret towards you."

While eating her vegetable salad, Li Qianxia abruptly held her breath, halting with her knife and fork in mid-air.

Yang Qinglan quietly watched Li Changzhou for a while.

"What do you regret doing to me?" Her tone was very calm.

"Wasn't my attribute locked by the game?"

"Hmm." Yang Qinglan set down her milk glass and picked up some peas.

"While I was practicing the 'Thunder Book,' whenever my physical condition improved, the game immediately pulled me back. But to get familiar with the 'Thunder Book,' striving to be able to complete the visualization instantly at critical moments, I still practiced diligently. It's—quite boring, you understand?"

Boring...

That's it, Qian Xia thought, boredom is the death knell of a marriage.

Especially for modern young couples; as soon as they get bored, it's pretty much over. They crave non-stop novelty and excitement, wanting to maintain the passion of first love or a first marriage—the only solution is to keep changing partners.

Yang Qinglan popped the peas into her mouth.

Li Changzhou continued his confession, "So I imagined, I was sitting at a first-grade desk, the game was the girl beside me. There was a demarcation line between us. I'd move my elbow over, the game would push it back, I'd move my elbow over again, and the game would push again, and she couldn't even get mad."

Li Qianxia: "?"

"You find amusement in this," Yang Qinglan said as she ate another pea, "to relieve your boredom during cultivation?"

"Yes!" Li Changzhou sat up straight, "Don't you think teasing the game is fun?"

"Wait!" Li Qianxia couldn't listen anymore, "In this process, where did you supposedly wrong Qing Lan?"

"Next time imagine the game as a boy," Yang Qinglan said.

"This...two boys can't play like this for long," Li Changzhou said.

"Then you should imagine yourself as a girl."

"...Wouldn't that mean I'm actively flirting with the game?"

"Don't you think you are playing with the game rather than being played by it?"

As Li Qianxia watched the two go back and forth, she thought marriage was truly terrifying, regulating even thoughts. Even she occasionally fantasized about things she regretted towards her brother, like imagining her brother giving her all his money.

Alas, even that wasn't great; spending money felt like spending her own, and plus! She would have to give money back to her brother!

Li Qianxia picked up a piece of corn.

The vegetables bought within the game now ripen almost daily, producing more than they could feed to the livestock, and even the fish in the lake had become regular diners.

Just the night before, she and Yang Qinglan had been considering how to preserve the vegetables.

After finishing the corn, she deliberated again, between eggs and silverfish.

After some thought, she picked a cherry tomato, eating it while scanning the surroundings.

The cherry-wood dining table sat on the grass-like Bird Nest Plain, where giant leaves from overhead trees filtered sunlight, the morning breeze was gentle, and butterflies danced with casual deer occasionally watching them from a distance.

From here, they could also see the fence containing the cattle, sheep, pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, and rabbits (deer roamed free), which had been built from stone at her insistence (she had insisted on the free-roaming deer too), appearing rustic and aesthetically pleasing.

A vacation-level breakfast scenery.

The only regret was that her brother and Qing Lan hadn't started arguing, lacking a bit of thrill.

After finishing the tomato, she picked up an egg, tapped it twice, and began peeling it with her fingers.

After breakfast, the three of them left "Honey Pot World."

Yang Qinglan went back to check her store briefly before changing into a light blue T-shirt and a high-waisted black denim skirt, tucking the hem of her T-shirt into her skirt.

Elegant, stylish, and with her thin waist emphasized, her chest pushed against the T-shirt, adding a touch of sexiness.

Li Qianxia also changed her clothes into a white knitted short sleeve top and slim-fit jeans, describing her outfit as both pure and alluring, complemented by a youthful ponytail—a perfect campus outfit, rivaling the in-game Changzhou.

Two words, rule-breaking!

Of course, this was just Li Qianxia boasting to herself; at least Li Changzhou thought Yang Qinglan was the real rule-breaker.

His heart was full of affection, but whenever he saw her, it turned into intense desire, making him want to hold her tight, thus proving that Yang Qinglan truly was the ultimate campus style.

Li Qianxia thought she lost out due to their familial relationship; otherwise, Li Changzhou would have long been her devoted admirer.

Talking about who exactly is the top match, they arrived at school and started their day's lessons.

Now, classes weren't just for learning but for time to think.

Cultivation meant not thinking or worrying, focusing solely on tough training, whereas now was a time for reflection without practice, a time for consolidation, as Confucius said (in Yang Qinglan's words): "Learning without thought is labor lost."

It was also time to collect information from forums—Honey Pot World had no internet.

Today, the siblings' first class was on property law, sitting in a corner of the classroom, Li Qianxia whispered to her brother, asking for tips on the 'Thunder Book.'

Their perception, one at 5 points and the other at 7 points, far exceeded the ordinary 2 points, allowing them to speak in the faintest voices and yet chat openly during class.

"How far can you go?" Li Changzhou asked her.

"Last night at Ming'en Hall, I could visualize dark clouds, but I was scared when it thundered."

"I'll punch you a couple of times later, you'll get used to the electricity," he said, then remembered he had promised to practice close combat with Yang Qinglan.

Close combat, ah, lots of room for maneuver! Must teach properly!

Li Changzhou drifted off into his thoughts, wishing he could skip class right then, but since Yang Qinglan wouldn't skip, there was no point.

"You wouldn't be just trying to get back at me by shocking me, would you?" Li Qianxia said lowly, but he didn't hear her.

"Without that Thunder Map, I can't remember anything," Li Qianxia added.

"Can you do it when you're calm?" Li Changzhou asked.

"Hmm—" Li Qianxia murmured thoughtfully, "I can, but it's very vague. I don't even understand how I do it, it's like untangling earphones, suddenly realizing they are untangled after a lot of crackling."

"You make untangling earphones sound like you're bombing a bathroom?"

"It's all because you want to eat."

When it was just the two siblings, their conversations tended to get a bit disgusting.

Who knows if Yang Qinglan would be led astray in the future, but Li Changzhou felt that Yang Qinglan was fundamentally a "bad" woman, not just a fairy-like figure.

"Get me lunch and buy water at noon, and I'll tell you the strategy for dealing with rule-breaking players."

"You really want to eat, huh?"

"Shut up!"

"The one who should shut up is you, brother, that's not edible!"

Both siblings raised their right hands simultaneously, covering their mouths in a thoughtful pose, their eyes fixed on the property law teacher, pretending to listen to the lecture.

"Don't interrupt!" Holding back his laughter, Li Changzhou became serious.

"Okay!"

"Entering tranquility can't be forced; it's a realm. According to my experience, a person's worldview fundamentally determines whether they can achieve tranquility. To achieve it, I think you must first possess a worldview that calms the mind."

"What kind of worldview can calm the mind?"

"There are many kinds. It doesn't have to be one that is detached from fame and fortune. Even if you jest and frolic daily, indulge in pleasures, or gaze at beauties or hunks, you can still find tranquility."

"How is that possible?"

"Know exactly what you want," Li Changzhou said.

"Know what you want?" Li Qianxia repeated.

"A person who doesn't even know what they want will always be restless and find it difficult to achieve tranquility... What do you want?"

Li Qianxia immediately said, "Pretty clothes, pants, shoes; something to eat, drink, play with; and money, a luxury car, a huge luxury yacht, and a very beautiful house with a garden!"

"What do you want the most?"

"The most…," Li Qianxia frowned.

"This is just my opinion. If you can find your own way, that's even better.

"Also, being clear about what you want the most can calm a person, but it can also disturb a person's mind and actions. Everything has its pros and cons. Remember this clearly and try to let the thing you want the most have a positive influence on you," he detailed to his sister.

Unfortunately, he was also a novice. His shallow knowledge was firstly not very clear, and secondly, even if it were clear, it wouldn't be very useful—his current achievements were all due to effort and talent, not theoretical knowledge.

Leaving Li Qianxia to think alone, he flicked his sleeve, sliding the hidden phone into his palm—incidentally practicing the unsheathing move of the Emerald Bee Sword.

On the forum, the board was full of guesses about the 'master'.

Some said he had seven skills, others speculated he had enhanced his 'Intelligence' and 'Charm', and some believed he was a player who had broken through the limits but could still use a bus ticket.

After the morning class, the two went to find Yang Qinglan, planning to go for lunch.

"Brother!" Li Qianxia called out while holding her phone, "Someone is confessing to Qing Lan!"

"What?" Li Changzhou's face darkened, and he quickened his pace.

By the time they reached Si Ming Building, the confession had already dispersed, and Yang Qinglan stood like a dark snow lotus flourishing under the building's eaves.

"What happened?" Li Changzhou took a few quick steps up the steps and asked sharply, his gaze sweeping around, ready to start trouble.

"It's an every other day occurrence," Yang Qinglan crossed her arms, a bag casually slung over her slender shoulders, her attitude nonchalant.

"..." Li Changzhou suddenly lost steam.

With Yang Qinglan being such a beautiful girl, it was inevitable that she would be confessed to regularly.

Even Li Changzhou himself, on the first day after military training in his freshman year, had already had over a dozen girls add him on WeChat and QQ.

"Turned them down?" Li Qianxia asked excitedly.

"What else?" Yang Qinglan stepped down and walked towards the cafeteria, "I don't even know them, coming out of nowhere confessing. I think they should learn from you."

The last sentence was directed at Li Changzhou.

"Learn from me?" The strategy of stockpiling resources before making a move in love?

"Go see a doctor," Yang Qinglan said.

Li Changzhou felt that Yang Qinglan's tongue was particularly sharp today.

But... he liked it.

"Qing Lan, are you in a bad mood?" Li Qianxia noticed something.

"No, it's just that such things happen so often, it gets annoying."

"I have an idea!"

"What idea?" Yang Qinglan looked at Li Qianxia, "Don't say it's to be with your brother."

"Of course not! How could you two get together over this? That's not romantic at all!" Li Qianxia first firmly denied, then suddenly changed her tone, "But!"

She paused, continuing, "You can let him pretend to be your boyfriend, that's how the novels write it."

Yang Qinglan didn't outright reject the idea but asked Li Changzhou, "What do you think?"

"Sure, but you have to treat me to a meal."

Li Qianxia slapped her own face... brother, can't you be a bit more ambitious? Do you really need that one meal that badly?

Yang Qinglan smiled at her, as if to say—you see your brother's attitude.

If it weren't more important to train, Li Qianxia would have loved to make Li Changzhou read all her romance novels, just to broaden his horizons!

During lunch, she said, "Zheng Qing gave me the addresses for 'Fortuneteller,' 'Doctor,' and someone called 'Painter.' Shall we check them out this afternoon?"

"What does the Painter do?" Li Changzhou asked.

"They say he can draw a person down, then pair it with personal belongings. This can have part of the person's soul temporarily reside in the drawing, and they'll honestly answer some embarrassing questions," Li Qianxia read from her phone.

"What's this for? Interrogation? Or providing truth services for couples?"

"Not sure." Li Qianxia shook her head and asked again, "Going this afternoon?"

"No rush on that." Yang Qinglan used her chopsticks to scoop a small bite of white rice into her mouth, "The game currently recognizes your brother as unmatched. We should seize this time to quickly level up."