Chapter 204: Qin Rushuang

Cold on the outside, warm inside; kind‑hearted and soft‑handed.

This is the temperament of Qin Rushuang, the prodigy disciple of the Li River Sword Sect.

Although Qin Rushuang wasn't interested in Zhang Xingyu, she still took the message jade slip from his hand.

Qin Rushuang floated in gracefully, while Zhang Xingyu waited slowly outside.

Watching her slender, graceful silhouette, Zhang Xingyu praised her silently.

Senior Sister Qin truly is a rare beauty—her looks are stunning and her heart is very kind.

A quarter hour passed, and Ouyang Lanlan hadn't emerged.

Two quarters later, Ouyang Lanlan was still nowhere to be seen.

One hour, two hours, three hours…

Seeing the sun about to set, Zhang Xingyu had to leave dejectedly.

That girl Qin Rushuang was clearly just toying with me.

Is that so? It's just that I lost a match in the arena! How petty!

I even praised her, treating her as a friend I could entrust matters to.

The road back was long.

The setting sun glinted on the snow, stretching his silhouette far, far long.

The next day, around noon.

Zhang Xingyu was repairing a magic gun.

In front of him, the guns awaiting repair piled up like a mountain.

Disassembling one gun and drawing one talisman—this efficiency is truly too slow.

At this repair pace, we might not finish until the Year of the Monkey and the Month of the Horse.

"Li Bantiou, how about I draw the talismans while you all handle the disassembly? That way, as soon as one is taken apart, another can be swapped in, and efficiency will surely improve a lot," Zhang Xingyu suggested.

"Is that so? You drawing talismans alone, can you manage?" Li Bantiou asked anxiously.

"Of course. Who am I? I'm a talisman prodigy, a direct disciple of Master Huo Lingwu of the Talisman Dao, who is the Talisman Master of Wanfa Immortal Gate, the top cultivation sect of Central Realm Immortal State," Zhang Xingyu patted his chest.

These days, he's become very proficient at drawing the spirit talismans needed for repairing magic guns.

With his control over spiritual energy, drawing a talisman is just a matter of minutes.

Spreading the talisman skin, dipping it in cinnabar, Zhang Xingyu assumed his stance.

"Junior Brother Zhang!"

Ouyang Lanlan's graceful figure appeared at the doorway.

"Senior Sister Ouyang!"

Ouyang Lanlan's arrival truly caught him off guard.

"Junior Brother, I heard Senior Sister Qin of the Li River Sword Sect say you came to see me for something?" Ouyang Lanlan asked.

Zhang Xingyu nodded: "Senior Sister, I waited for you at the camp gate of your Formation Battalion all day yesterday."

Ouyang Lanlan's calm, still face faintly broke into a smile.

"You waited for ages. I only got word this morning that you were looking for me. Senior Sister Qin said she was too busy yesterday and forgot to give me the message jade slip."

"Hmph! That girl did it on purpose. Claiming she forgot, it's really revenge for losing to me. So petty, and I still trusted her!" Zhang Xingyu said angrily.

He was truly angry. Anyone would be upset to be stood up.

Ouyang Lanlan glided forward with lotus steps to stand before Zhang Xingyu, extending her pristine, delicate jade hand.

"Weren't you asking me to help forge a formation? Hand over the blueprint."

Zhang Xingyu nodded, retrieving the "Zhou Tian Xing Dou Great Array" diagram from his storage ring.

"Senior Sister, this great array was commissioned by a senior to find someone to forge it. As you know, I don't know formations, so I have to ask for your help."

"Hmm."

Ouyang Lanlan gave a soft assent and reached out to take the formation scroll.

She gently unfurled the scroll, and her gaze never left it.

Her phoenix eyes fluttered, her jade nose twitched slightly, her jade fingers moved lightly, like a white jade Guanyin.

Senior Sister Ouyang's focused expression was truly beautiful.

If Fifth Senior Brother could marry her, he'd have endless bliss.

Alas, Fifth Senior Brother is of the Demon Clan.

How should Fifth Senior Brother handle his own affairs then?

There must be many who like Senior Sister Ouyang, but finding someone as handsome as Fifth Senior Brother and as good to his senior sister as he is seems hard.

If Senior Sister Ouyang doesn't mind, should I, the junior brother, sacrifice a bit?

Ugh! So evil! Can't do that!

Zhang Xingyu quickly put the thought away.

He likes Tang Yunxi; his relationship with Senior Sister Ouyang can only remain pure senior‑junior.

Ouyang Lanlan stared for an hour.

Zhang Xingyu called softly a few times, but she didn't respond.

Having no choice, Zhang Xingyu had to attend to his own matters.

From noon to sunset, from sunset to dawn.

Ouyang Lanlan kept watching the formation diagram intently.

Until Qin Rushuang and the members of the Formation Battalion arrived searching, the bustling clamor finally roused her.

"Junior Sister Ouyang, glad you're okay! You didn't return all night, we thought something had happened…"

Seeing Ouyang Lanlan safe and sound, Qin Rushuang glared fiercely at Zhang Xingyu.

Zhang Xingyu was at a loss for words.

However, he also did not wish to have the same experience as Qin Rushuang.

"Junior brother, I'll take this illustrated scroll back for study. If I obtain any results, I'll come find you," Ouyang Lanlan said to Zhang Xingyu.

Her voice was soft, her expression listless, and a single silver strand appeared in her jet‑black, glossy hair.

Obviously, the array diagram research that night took a heavy toll on her spirit.

Zhang Xingyu nodded and escorted Ouyang Lanlan and Qin Rushuang out of the camp gate.

On the way back, he kept wondering whether handing the "Zhou Tian Star Array" to Ouyang Lanlan was right or wrong.

Ten days slipped by in a flash.

During those ten days, no news came from Ouyang Lanlan.

Zhang Xingyu also had no leisure to inquire.

In the Engineer Company, the spell guns and spell cannons brought in for repair had already piled up across the entire camp.

The camp headquarters issued an order that all those spell guns and spell cannons must be fully repaired within a month.

The person delivering the order said it was a death‑order personally issued by the senior officers; failure to complete it would be a military offense.

These days, Captain Baolian of the Engineer Company was so anxious his head spun.

Fortunately, Squad Leader Li reported Zhang Xingyu's segmented repair method.

The whole company's repair progress improved greatly, and Captain Baolian's complexion finally looked a bit better.

As the talisman‑drawing machine of the entire company, Zhang Xingyu had been drawing spiritual talismans continuously for a month.

Fortunately, his spiritual core was abundant and his cultivation deep; after a month, only his eye sockets darkened a bit and his frame grew a little gaunter.

According to his dormitory comrades, the kid had become a bit more handsome, and his capital for courting girls had thickened.

Besides that, his ability to wield Spiritual Aura had also strengthened a few points.

At present, the meridian he uses for Spiritual Power is mainly the Hand Taiyang Small Intestine Meridian; the Hand Shaoyang Triple Burner Meridian and the Hand Yangming Large Intestine Meridian have not yet been opened.

Unexpectedly, after a month of drawing spiritual talismans, his Hand Shaoyang Triple Burner Meridian had also been opened. Once that meridian is open, Spiritual Aura can flow directly to the ring finger.

From now on, when drawing talismans, he no longer needs to pinch the orchid finger.

With one day left before the deadline, all the spell guns and spell cannons stored in the barracks were repaired.

The soldiers of the Engineer Company all breathed a sigh of relief.

Captain Baolian went to report the good news to the superiors, while Zhang Xingyu lay on his bed, snoring loudly.

He slept so soundly and deeply that Squad Leader Li shouted at him three times, yet could not wake him.

Outside the room, Squad Leader Li apologized with a smile to Ouyang Lanlan and Qin Rushuang.

"Ladies, Zhang Xingyu has been drawing spiritual talismans for a month and now sleeps like a dead pig; no matter how we call him, he won't wake. Perhaps you two could come another day?"

Ouyang Lanlan nodded and took a storage bag from her bosom.

"Squad Leader Li, when Zhang Xingyu wakes up, please hand this storage bag to him."

Squad Leader Li patted his chest: "Miss Ouyang, rest assured, I will definitely pass it to him."

As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp assembly whistle sounded from outside.

"Emergency assembly!"

Zhang Xingyu rolled over and sprang out of bed.