Chapter 132: with translation of chapter title

The entire continent is gathering!

Jin Meng heard this and was not surprised; after all, he had experienced this person's strength before. Although most of the actions were carried out by Feng Yan, most of the plans were devised by him.

Therefore, some people may not need great strength; even if they always lose in direct combat, as long as they possess extraordinary wisdom, they still have a chance to turn the tide.

But what if they encounter overwhelming power?

Jin Meng recalled the terrifying power of the Red-clothed Devil at that time, which almost cost Feng Yan his life until the end, when Feng Yan's beloved girl died in his arms, causing him to completely lose his reason, giving that pterosaur the opportunity.

"Sir, I have an idea; perhaps it could help Lord Feng Yan regain his memory." Jin Meng said to Chen Hao.

Upon hearing this, Chen Hao's spirits lifted; he looked at Jin Meng full of hope and asked, "What method?"

"Lord Feng Yan may have been stimulated..." Jin Meng didn't finish; he paused, preparing to continue, while Chen Hao was looking at him.

Chen Hao's eyes were full of sadness; yes, what was the reason he first befriended Feng Yan?

It was only because he seemed to have few friends, appeared to be a solitary person, silent and reticent, always sitting alone in his seat reading books that nobody else liked.

Once he saw him walking with a girl, Chen Hao at that time thought, this weirdo had finally found a romance of his own.

But ah, everything feels like fate's trickery; Feng Yan's love story ended in a muddled way, and the moment he saw Yang Xin walking hand in hand with her, Feng Yan completely shut himself off.

It was then that Chen Hao came, gradually enlightening him, slowly pulling him out of the mire; perhaps someone had once advised him to give up, but he persisted until now.

Even after entering this game's world, when he met that person again and they had two duels, although the outcomes always ended with Feng Yan's victory, when had Feng Yan ever returned without a gloomy face?

Chen Hao knew that there had always been a knot in his heart that could not be untied.

That is the inner world they cannot enter; everyone pursues truth, seeks the so-called 'true self,' but as time passes and age increases, in the end, whether we like it or not, we must wear a mask, constantly putting on an expression called a smile, gradually forgetting our original heart.

But what if that person cannot forget their original heart? Or rather, what if they remain unchanged from before?

They are merely called weirdos.

Then they are gradually sidelined, finally ignored; whether intentional or not, their actions show no regard for that person's feelings, simply because they are different.

"We are different people, after all, but it's luck that made us friends; naturally, I also hope you can change." Chen Hao laughed, feeling something in his heart that he could not tell Jin Meng.

Jin Meng felt a bit sad; he himself had expected Chen Hao to come up with a method to let Feng Yan recover.

Jin Meng still hoped Chen Hao would take some action, even if it couldn't let Feng Yan recover, at least...

Jin Meng stopped thinking and simply said to Chen Hao, "I'll go observe first; please be careful."

"Why wouldn't I want to? I really want to, but I truly can't; not to mention whether we can recall his memory, just that girl—she's too perfect, exactly his ideal type—how could it be good? How could it possibly be good?" Chen Hao lifted his head, his gaze leaving the distant figure of Jin Meng, and fell into thought once more.

As the winter morning's cold gradually withdrew, the warmth of midday gradually took the stage; accompanied by warm sunlight falling on the body, the whole frame felt comfortable.

"This could be called a virtual lover, after all; now I actually feel a bit envious of Feng Yan." Chen Hao said with a smile, then added behind his back, speaking to Feng Yan: "You, too, have you gained love? Perhaps this story—no, this feeling—is everything you, the true you, should possess: pure emotion, tacit understanding, and the feeling of inevitably sharing joy."

Chen Hao narrowed his eyes as the cold east wind blew by; then a chill struck, making him sneeze; afterwards he rubbed his nose, and his eyes turned red together.

In the courtyard of Wanggong, a group of palace maids watched Feng Yan lying on the ground, facing the sun with his right hand outstretched, expressionless, merely gazing at the shadow beneath the sun.

Behind them, a group of palace maids stood, each holding a small basket filled with various court-secret delicacies,

The maids stood near Feng Yan, slightly bending their waists, then waited for his command; their eyes held fear, contempt, and more confusion, as they hoped Feng Yan would take food from their baskets and put it in their mouths, while also fearing that Feng Yan would take them away.

What were they hoping for? Perhaps they themselves didn't even understand.

Power? Or perhaps merely for a stable life?

Feng Yan still didn't understand; he rose, turned his head and caught a glimpse of one or two maids longing for him, walking toward them, just as they felt excited, simultaneously stretching their baskets out long.

Hope, that was all their hope—freedom, power—everything was coming toward them; the maids saw Feng Yan approaching and thought he was like a savior arriving.

Come on, come here; everything here is yours, whether food or us, all belong to you, but that is only temporary pleasure; please bring us to the pinnacle of power, let us feel supreme power! Then slowly return to our lives and find a suitable man to live with.

The maids thought this, while watching Feng Yan approach step by step; they felt as if in a dream, daring not to believe such things could happen to them, but now everything was happening to them, so real, so near.

As Feng Yan walked before all the maids, he stopped his steps and shouted loudly: "Someone come!"

As the soldiers' footsteps approached step by step, the maids felt afraid; they could not imagine what had offended this lord before them, but all they heard was him asking: "Is this the special service your king gave me?"

The soldiers dared not answer, merely lowering their heads.

"Let's go."

Feng Yan said softly, then had the soldiers take all the items from the maids' hands; in the soldiers' hands were foods they had never seen before.

One soldier grew greedy, thinking that when no one noticed, he secretly hid a candy in his chest.

"You divide what's in your hands, this is what I said." Feng Yan said, looking at the soldiers' delighted expressions, their mutual exchange of joy; Feng Yan knew in his heart that these things were merely snacks in the eyes of the upper class, tasty but not particularly precious.

But these things were enough to make them happy for a while.

Those pastries, the kind one might only taste a few times in a lifetime, now they had a whole basket in their hands.

The soldiers' hearts were blooming with joy, and they no longer cared about their image.

They stuffed their pockets full, emptied the baskets in their hands, greedily eyeing others' things, thinking how to get a bit from them.

Thus only a voice from the crowd was heard: "Wouldn't it be good to exchange with each other?"

The soldiers did as said, and indeed during the exchange, someone in the crowd suddenly shouted.

"Who stole my things?"

Everyone hearing that voice fell silent, looking at the person who made the sound; at that moment, a short-statured person quietly took the remaining items from the soldiers' baskets, moving so fast that only a series of afterimages were seen flitting over the basket, and the basket was already empty.

Feng Yan saw all this, but did not speak.

When everyone came to their senses and looked at the baskets before them, not one failed to glare angrily at Feng Yan.

"So you think it's me?" Feng Yan faced the crowd's anger, calmly asking the soldiers before him.

"Return to your original posts, and let those who took things stay; don't say you didn't take anything—better to be honest, this will be good for you all." Feng Yan issued this command to the soldiers.

After all the soldiers left, that person remained.

Feng Yan carefully examined the person before him, discovering that aside from being a bit shorter, her feminine-leaning face and those peach-blossom eyes truly made her the idol of the 'cross-dressing' type that children nowadays love most.

"Why do such a thing?" Feng Yan asked, while looking at the person's tattered clothes and the ankle exposed outside.

The person before him said nothing; the two gazed at each other, listening to the winter north wind.

The howling north wind swept past beside them, and they just stood there until noon.

The maidservants brought Feng Yan his lunch. When the maidservants knelt before Feng Yan and displayed the midday dishes, Feng Yan said to the person in front of him: "Let's eat together; I can't finish all this."

The short-statured soldier in front of him swallowed, after a long internal struggle, still walked over to Feng Yan.

"Hmm, let me see what we have? Game, not bad." Having said that, Feng Yan gestured for the maidservants to bring an unused red carpet to use as a dining mat, laying it on the ground.

"You all come too!" Feng Yan then called the maidservants over.

The maidservants hesitated, wondering whether to go over, and just then, an acquaintance appeared before Feng Yan.

Someone who knew him.