Chapter 226: Calm and Ascension

"Let's not talk about that for now."

Luo De asked bluntly: "Saixier, you seem very bothered by the sulfur smell on your body?"

The tiefling girl's excitement faded, and she instinctively wore an embarrassed expression.

"Yes, Mr. Luo De, it smells like rotten eggs, and I hate it. You and my teacher are the only two people who don't mind it—everyone else avoids me. My teacher has always hoped I could accept it calmly."

Yes.

How could a sensitive teenage girl endure stinking of sulfur all over her body?

It's a trait of the tiefling race—it's something she was born with.

But Luo De very much wanted to say: just because something is innate doesn't mean it's inherently good.

Intelligent races are intelligent precisely because they possess the right to think independently and to refuse.

He gently brushed a strand of her youthful hair behind her ear.

Though her skin was pale red, she was clearly blushing now.

"I heard even high-ranking tieflings dislike their sulfur smell—some of them are mages. Perhaps they've already found ways to deal with it. I might have some connections in the Magic Control League; I could ask around for you."

"Really?!"

Saixier exclaimed in delight.

"Of course."

"Thank you, Mr. Luo De. But didn't you just say you like special scents on girls?"

"Compared to my preferences, I believe a girl's mental well-being matters far more. I'm merely your teacher's friend—you don't need to please me. More importantly, the decision must be yours alone, Saixier."

She paused, then nodded firmly.

Luo De smiled: "Alright, today's training ends here. I'm going to start my physical conditioning."

"I'll join too!"

"Fine, but keep up."

"I'll definitely keep up! By the way… Mr. Luo De, can I ask you for help again later?"

"Of course, anytime."

But try not to ask at night.

Luo De added silently in his mind.

The next two weeks passed in perfect calm.

Training.

Firing.

Training.

Firing.

Repeating endlessly.

The only regret was with the firing.

Tally's group of four had never successfully activated the 【Euphoric Party】.

Well, naturally.

There were girls in the forest who had slept with Luo De.

But the result: the orc Amy remained unconscious to this day.

The elf Kalist was skilled in night raids, but only struck when everyone present was unconscious.

The half-deer Xiao Ke was shy—he only wanted one-on-one time with Luo De; add one more person and he'd flee in embarrassment.

He'd tried everywhere—outdoors, on trees, by streams—but refused absolutely to have a third person present.

And the ghoul Pan Ni, for reasons unknown, insisted on pretending in front of Tally that she had no relation to her master.

Yet she'd been thoroughly filled to bursting—how could a succubus who understood the Dao of essence and qi not know?

But Luo De had always disliked forcing anyone.

The only two who had no such issues were the tree spirit Wei An and Tally.

Both of them didn't care whether others were present.

Notably,

Despite the bone dragon Mei Gan's bone chain suppressing her, the tree spirit Wei An's 【Mark of Lust】 had not been fully neutralized—she had to remove the chain weekly for lust treatment.

At such times, Wei An transformed into a lust demon, frantically demanding.

Only mid-sixth-rank Tally couldn't match her, forced to grumble and settle for scraps, doing cleanup afterward.

Poor thing.

As for the surrounding environment,

New developments had emerged this week.

First, Coral Bay.

For reasons unknown, all members of the Ruins Brotherhood had been driven out by the dark elves.

They now wandered the Twilight Hills.

Then, Shi Ying Town.

With the arrival of early winter, all things began to wither.

The season's negative energy stirred, reviving undead creatures once more.

Reports of undead and wendigos in the mining zone came nearly daily, forcing the witch Dimia to personally guard the area.

Occasional encounters still happened in the forest.

But these wandering nuisances didn't frighten even Xiao Ke—she could kill one with a single spiritual spear.

As the weather grew colder,

One day,

Luo De took advantage of the first early-winter market in Shi Ying Town to buy the girls a full set of clothes and supplies.

Carrying bags upon bags, he returned to the forest by nightfall.

The girls—except Bang De and Tally—were not fond of leaving the forest or crowds, so they waited expectantly before Bai Yu District.

Seeing Luo De return, they rushed over to pick out their favorite winter clothes.

Kalist disliked human designs; she took some fabric, planning to make clothes by hand with Xiao Ke.

Wei An had no interest—she said she could just wear Luo De's clothes.

The zombie Selina specifically chose a pair of long gloves to cover her two alchemical prosthetics.

The mare Bang De had come along and already picked out her favorite; she chatted with the shy tiefling Saixier, who hesitated to approach.

And the pitiful ghoul Pan Ni stood beside Henry's Farm, watching enviously.

She knew her place—her master's gifts had never been meant for her.

To be favored by her master was already fortune enough; she dared not hope for more… of course she did.

Waaah, I'm so jealous.

So when Luo De placed a wool coat into her hands, she burst into tears of ghoul fluid, swearing eternal loyalty to her master.

Honestly, none of them were low-ranked.

They could all use spiritual or magical energy to resist the cold—but no one liked the constant, heavy drain on their inner energy.

Besides,

They were all girls, and all had some sense of vanity.

Luo De watched them, and despite the night's chill, he couldn't help smiling.

"Why have you been clinging to me since earlier, Tally?"

"I don't want clothes~ I want to be your clothes, so you wear me all the time~"

"You've got quite the imagination."

"Isn't it allowed? My aunt once shrank herself and hid inside a man's body, pretending to be his belly. She walked down the street, moving inside, hidden under his winter coat—no one noticed."

"."

He was about to retort,

When the banshee Krist flew swiftly over from afar.

Her face lit up: "Found it! I found the ratmen's nest!"

Luo De laughed bitterly: "Took you long enough? You've been searching for half a month."

Last time she swore she'd find it soon—now, finally, good news.

"It's not my fault! The wendigos have been too active lately—they kept blocking me! And you know how good ratmen are at burrowing!"

No sooner had she finished speaking,

Boom—

A powerful surge of spiritual energy erupted from the Bai Yu District in the forest.

Everyone turned to look.

Kalist quickly activated the 【Arcane Vision】 placed there.

Then her expression turned strange: "It's the hospital—the orc has awakened, and she's ascended to seventh rank."

(End of Chapter)