Chapter 78: The Crown Prince

Su Lin was holding a pancake, rolling it with roast duck, scallion threads, and cucumber, dipping it in sauce, and bringing it to his mouth.

Inside the down jacket, a thin string held a loop of golden hair that emitted a faint glow.

In an instant, invisible energy rippled outward like waves on water, and the surrounding world flickered like an old television, breaking into frame after frame.

【Leni's Hair Strand】 was activated.

Su Lin wasn't panicked; he kept chewing the roast duck, comparing it to the roadside ducks sold for a few yuan apiece.

The skin was crispier, the meat more tender, and the rest seemed no different.

After all, it wasn't his true body—he still had a divine core inside. What was there to fear?

After a dozen seconds, a thud echoed as two figures collapsed in the distance.

They were the two half-breeds who had been tailing him.

A young boy in a black evening tuxedo, with a white chest towel stuffed into his chest and a trendy ceramic collar tie, walked elegantly to Su Lin's table, pulled out a stool, and sat down.

"Surprising."

Lu Mingze tried pulling Su Lin into the mental realm but sensed resistance. He could still force him in, but that would be impolite.

"Want some?"

Su Lin gestured.

"No."

"Has your brother finished his business?" Su Lin asked, pulling from history a glass of red wine he'd seen at the Wu family banquet.

"Dragon blood transcendence is at a critical stage—that's why I had time to leave," Lu Mingze took the wine, sipped lightly.

"To be honest, he's not really my brother."

Su Lin was surprised—he hadn't expected Lu Mingze to say that.

"He's just a pitiful soul who took the wrong path at fate's crossroads."

Lu Mingze swirled the wine glass, watching the red liquid through the light, his golden vertical pupils radiating authority incongruous with his size.

"You say that and he'll cry."

Su Lin wiped his fingers with a sheet of paper, curious. "Why are you here?"

He'd initially thought it was another trouble from Lu Mingfei—project done, client demanding revisions was rude.

Unless extra money was offered.

"I need your help. Of course, there's a reward."

"Oh?"

So he was a new client.

Su Lin pulled from history a lavish banquet—the dishes Zhongli had ordered at "Chunyu Pavilion"—and added a vintage phonograph, placing a black vinyl record of the Carmen Fantasy on it.

He summoned a historical projection of himself wearing a Sui Xifu at a campus job fair, and had it clumsily pour two glasses of 1997 Malbec wine.

"Tell me."

—————————————————

The lights in the watertight compartment had all gone out. Unlike the earlier high temperatures, the submersible had now left the lava-ridden zone; due to the cold, the electrical systems had shut down.

Chu Zihang and Kai Sa had entered the realm where reality and illusion merged; their expressions were serene, smiles faintly on their faces, as if they'd seen something profoundly beautiful.

The ancient dragon script's chant had drawn them into a blissful Illusory Realm.

But in Lu Mingfei's ears, there was no sound from antiquity.

He only felt countless giant earthworms writhing beneath the ruins in the 8,000-meter-deep ocean—their rolling sounds, combined with the dark surroundings, raised every hair on his body.

"Lu Mingze?"

Lu Mingfei whispered softly. According to protocol, Lu Mingze should appear now.

"Guest, did you call me?"

A pair of nimble hands suddenly pressed on his shoulders, vigorously massaging his Jianjing acupoint.

Lu Mingfei relaxed slightly, temporarily abandoning the idea of activating Using Cross-World. He knew it was an illusion—real Lu Mingze was watching nearby.

"Rare indeed—you actually rang the bell yourself. I'd love to give you a full massage today," Lu Mingze kneaded Lu Mingfei's cervical vertebrae with professional skill, easing the stiffness from years of gaming hunched over a desk.

"But unfortunately, opportunities like this are few."

Lu Mingze wrapped his arms around Lu Mingfei's neck from behind, pressing his face against Lu Mingfei's.

"Hey hey hey, what are you doing?"

Lu Mingfei shuddered, goosebumps rising—he hadn't expected this fake little demon to break script. Where were the lines? Stick to the script!

"This useless wreck is so much better—a soul easy to control. Hmm, this half-resisting, half-accepting look."

No sooner had he spoken than, as if disturbed, he snapped his fingers toward the window, scowling.

"Leave!"

The rustling, earthworm-like rolling sounds instantly froze, then retreated in another direction, fading into silence.

"Alright, time's short, brother."

Lu Mingfei finally turned to look at the little demon behind him. He felt this illusion had changed too much from the book's description—and just now, Lu Mingze's scent had made him feel like he was back home.

"I'm not an illusion."

Lu Mingze wore a red Chinese tunic today, embroidered with a black dragon coiling and soaring—the colors clashed terribly. Around his waist hung a jade pendant, ink-green and of superb quality.

"Are you celebrating the New Year?!"

Lu Mingfei stared, astonished—this Lu Mingze bore no resemblance to the book's description.

"I just went to Beijing and had some roast duck with your friends at Quanjude."

Which of my friends is in Beijing? Lu Mingfei was about to ask.

"When you go somewhere, you follow local customs, don't you?"

"Ten!" Caesar's voice cut through their conversation; the cabin's temperature surged abruptly—that was the precursor to Chu Zihang's Sovereign Flame readying to ignite.

"How fascinating," Lu Mingze murmured. "Your friends are all madmen, brother. Not only do they resist the music of Gao Tian Yuan, they're preparing to perish alongside this ancient dragon capital."

"Oh, I forgot—this is a pirated line."

Seeing Lu Mingfei's hostile expression, Lu Mingze snapped his fingers with a smile, and everything fell silent.

Time was paused at this moment.

"Of course, except that guy Su Lin—he's like a panda, only knows how to bask in the sun, eat, and have fun."

"You went to find Su Lin?" Lu Mingfei now believed this Lu Mingze was real, but he hadn't expected him to have sought out Su Lin.

"Alright, consider this a free service," Lu Mingze said with a smile. "Brother, I have a question for you."

"What?"

Lu Mingfei was baffled—he had a thousand questions swirling in his head: How had Lu Mingze gotten involved with Su Lin? And why had Su Lin flown back to China just to eat roast duck?

"Do you accept that an Emperor has conquered a Jiang Shan for you, and has already arranged a harem of thirty-six palaces and seventy-two concubines for you, the Crown Prince?"

"????" Lu Mingfei was utterly confused. "What are you talking about?"

Lu Mingze pulled out four photographs, each showing a beautiful girl he recognized.

"Su Xiaoqiang, Chen Motong, Shangshan Hui Liyi, and our beloved Yi Leina—that is, Zero."

"They each govern the Eastern Palace, Western Palace, Northern Palace, and Southern Palace."

Lu Mingfei swallowed hard, completely lost as to what this riddler was saying.

Then his expression hardened, and he barked:

"Demon! Do not shake my Dao heart!"

It must be an illusion!