Chapter 138: The One Who Lies is Ning Xiao, I am Ning Ji

Ning Qing reached out a finger, and the lamp went out.

The room turned dark again.

She kept her bright eyes open in the darkness, staring calmly at the ceiling.

She possessed a certain Night Person lineage, and the reason Night People were named Night People was precisely because they liked to rest during the day and come out at night—Curator An liked to sleep in the martial arts hall during the day and only come out to practice martial arts at night when no one else was there, enjoying the entire martial arts hall to himself. Therefore, Ning Qing also had excellent vision at night.

The courtyard in the dead of night was unusually quiet.

Being a residential compound on the edge of the city, it was almost as quiet as the countryside.

Ning Qing lay quietly, able to hear the sound of Chen Shu's breathing beside her, the sound of Taozi doing parkour outside, and even the sound of the little girl in the next room watching TV instead of sleeping; that silly girl thought that by turning the volume to the minimum, she wouldn't be able to hear it.

Two o'clock—

Chen Shu turned over.

Three-thirty—

He reached his hand toward her side, groped around until he found her hand, and held it.

A little past four—

Perhaps it was too hot and he felt uncomfortable, so he pulled his hand back.

Scumbag.

Five o'clock.

He turned over twice more, and the last time he rested a leg on her leg; an hour later he pulled it back, turned around, and slept with his back to her.

Really want to hit him.

Seven o'clock.

He turned back, slept on his side facing her, and even draped an arm over her stomach.

It was already bright outside.

Ning Qing had not slept all night, nor had she made any movements; she just kept her eyes open, looking at the ceiling, sometimes pondering things, sometimes turning her head to look at Chen Shu, remembering every single thing he did that night clearly.

She had wanted to get up early in the morning, but because of this hand draped over her stomach, she had no choice but to continue lying in bed.

Until eight o'clock in the morning.

The activity under the eyelids of the person beside her became increasingly frequent, and his breathing rhythm changed, until he opened his eyes silently, met her gaze, and the hand resting on her stomach even gave a naughty rub.

Ning Qing brushed his hand away and got out of bed.

The person behind her even hypocritically asked her, "How did I end up in your bed?"

"I can discern lies."

"How embarrassing." Chen Shu scratched his head; he had been seen through, but he didn't care at all. "Did you sleep well last night?"

"..."

Ning Qing couldn't be bothered to pay him any mind and walked straight toward the window.

With a swish, she pulled open the curtains and opened the window; the air that surged in during the early morning was exceptionally crisp.

The two went downstairs side by side.

The little girl had also long since gotten up and finished washing, and was sitting in the living room concentrating on watching TV, ignoring everything outside the window, single-mindedly waiting to eat breakfast.

Taking advantage of the time Chen Shu was making breakfast, Ning Qing went to the courtyard to look at the flowers, cut two branches of Night-Illuminating Clear, cut a few branches of Refraction that had just opened a little, and then cut two branches of Canary to bring back for Chen Shu to take away later.

Breakfast was Tomato Egg Noodles.

The tomatoes were stir-fried until mushy before being boiled, so they all dissolved into the soup, resulting in a bright red broth base, golden eggs, and snow-white noodles; it tasted sour and was very appetizing.

After eating and cleaning up, the three of them and the cat left the courtyard.

Ning Qing brought the box of Bath Kimchi and the box of Sour and Spicy Cowpea that Chen Shu had prepared for her back to the Dormitory, only to see Zhang Suannai sitting on the sofa with dark circles under her eyes; for the first time, she didn't greet her like a husky, but just looked at her listlessly.

Ning Qing glanced at her indifferently and put the things into the refrigerator.

Zhang Suannai couldn't hold it in after all, and looking at them, she said, "You didn't come back all night!"

Was this some kind of rare occurrence?

Ning Qing ignored her.

The little girl, however, nodded and whispered "mm," then stared expectantly at Sister Suannai.

Zhang Suannai didn't let her down and immediately forced herself to perk up and ask, "Why didn't you come back all night?"

"Because we only came back this morning."

"..."

Zhang Suannai wore a pained expression, her features all scrunched together, and then she looked at Ning Qing: "That... that what's-his-name... what is that person called?"

"The boyfriend I'm not dating?"

"Yes, yes, yes, that's the one." Zhang Suannai nodded repeatedly, then asked, "Was he at your place last night too?"

"Yes."

"!!" Zhang Suannai was very surprised. "Do you really like him?"

"Yes."

"That's fake, right?"

"I do not lie."

"Oh, oh, I mean..." Zhang Suannai's expression was complex; she paused. "What I mean is, is it from the bottom of your heart?"

"What do you want to say?"

"Curious, I want to know the answer."

"Boring question."

"Ah..."

"?"

"But when I chat with you, when I talk to you about this aspect, I've said several times that falling in love is meaningless, and you even agreed with me once! Don't you not know how to lie?" Zhang Suannai looked at Ning Qing with some disbelief, as if she had encountered a betrayal of her convictions.

"Because what you said was indeed very reasonable." Ning Qing's expression was very calm, "People can live without falling in love, and they can live very well."

"Then you..."

"I never said I wouldn't fall in love."

"Ah..."

Zhang Suannai still found it hard to believe that her roommate, whom she felt would absolutely never fall in love, the Ning Qing she revered as a cold and aloof goddess, had actually long ago made up her mind to fall in love with and marry a man, and perhaps even wanted to bear his children. How could this be?

"How did you come to like him?"

"A boring question."

"Tell me quickly! I'm curious!" Zhang Suannai felt as uncomfortable as if a cat were scratching at her heart.

"Because I have known him since I was a child; we grew up together, childhood sweethearts." Ning Qing looked at her with a calm expression, "The me you see now, from the inside out, every single bit of me, is related to him. I cannot imagine what I would be like without him, and I cannot imagine what my life would become if I lost him."

Having said this, she paused slightly, pursed her lips, and said, "Perhaps if it weren't for him, I would be the way you imagine me to be."

"..."

Zhang Suannai was completely stunned.

She would rather have seen Ning Qing show a troubled expression, would rather have heard Ning Qing say she was forced, than for this answer to be so real.

This answer dealt a blow to her inherent perception.

"I don't believe it..."

"I'm not listening..."

"Ah, I know—"

"You must be lying to me..."

Zhang Suannai felt a complex mix of emotions for a moment and waved her hand, indicating that she was temporarily deaf and couldn't hear anything being said, then plopped back onto the sofa and watched blankly as Ning Qing turned and walked into the bedroom; for a moment, she felt that this world was so unreal.

The little girl beside her didn't speak to her either, but instead turned on the television by herself and pressed the remote control to select the program she wanted to watch.

A long time passed.

Zhang Suannai gradually came back to her senses.

Having staked out Yujing Academy for half a day yesterday without seeing Meng Chunqiu, it reminded her of more details, and she urgently needed the little girl to answer her now.

But looking at the little girl, she hesitated, suddenly feeling a bit timid.

After thinking for a long time, she finally said, "Xiaoxiao, I have a few questions. If you answer them well, I'll buy you lots of delicious potatoes later, how about that?"

"Okay!"

"You're just like your sister, you don't know how to lie either, right?"

"..."

"Fine, fine." Zhang Suannai raised her hands in surrender, "I won't ask such boring questions."

"Mm."

"Who made the Sausage and Wax Ribs in the fridge?"

"Brother-in-law made them."

"What about the Dumplings?"

"Brother-in-law wrapped them."

"..."

Zhang Suannai couldn't help but fall silent.

No wonder Ning Qing was generous at other times, with a kind of indifferent generosity, yet she was so calculating about these few things.

No!!!

This was just too hard to accept!

This was her goddess, the roommate she had decided would absolutely never fall in love or marry, whom she was going to develop into a lifelong friend to grow old with!

Zhang Suannai was silent for a long while, then continued to ask, "On the day of the Blue Flower Festival, did you go to admire the jacarandas with your brother-in-law?"

"Yes."

"Did you take pictures too?"

"Yes."

"Did you ask a girl to help you take them? Your brother-in-law had his arm around your sister and was patting your head? And after you finished, you gave her a stick of Sugar-coated Haws?"

"How did you know?"

"..."

It wasn't the cold relationship she had imagined at all!

Hugging and patting heads, what kind of scene is this exactly!? Why couldn't she imagine it at all?

No! Not necessarily!

I don't believe it!

That was just for taking pictures and doesn't reflect their daily life; it was very likely just for posing!

The little girl tilted her head and looked at her in confusion:

"?"

"It's nothing..." Zhang Suannai waved her hand to indicate she could still handle it, paused for a moment, and continued to ask, "Did your brother-in-law stay in the small courtyard last night too?"

"Of course."

"Did he sleep in the same room as your sister?"

"Brother-in-law slept on the sofa." The little girl thought about it carefully; it was indeed like that last night, but when she woke up in the morning, she didn't see her brother-in-law, and she watched TV on the sofa for an hour before her brother-in-law walked down from upstairs, though that was already in the early hours of today.

"That's a relief..."

Zhang Suannai let out a sigh of relief.

At least things weren't too outrageous yet—

The current scene was already hard for her to imagine; if Ning Qing were to share a bed with someone else, it would completely challenge the limits of her imagination... In any case, in her impression, Ning Qing would never allow herself to lie on a bed with a man.

The little girl couldn't help but knit her beautiful brows, tilting her head to look at her suspiciously: "Sister Suannai, why are you so interested in my brother-in-law?"

"I'm just very curious!"

"Is that so?"

"What else could it be?" Zhang Suannai countered, "Your sister is my goddess!"

"..."

"Do you have a photo of your brother-in-law?"

"..." The little girl still stared at her suspiciously, thinking for a moment before deciding to tell a truth that wasn't quite so true: "No."

"Aren't you on very good terms with him?"

"Only my sister has one."

"What about in her Flying Letter updates? Can't you find it there?"

"No."

Zhang Suannai was a bit skeptical, but thinking that the little girl, like her sister, wouldn't lie, she believed her and asked again: "What does your brother-in-law look like? Is he handsome?"

"Average."

"What about his personality?"

"My sister likes it very much."

"Is that so? What kind is it?"

"The kind my sister likes very much."

"Describe it in detail."

"My sister likes it very much."

"Oh..."

Zhang Suannai nodded to show she understood, licked her dry lips, and said: "Alright, that's it for now. I'll ask you again when I think of something."

"Sister Suannai, are you okay?"

"Haha, I'm doing just fine! Haha!"

"Then my potatoes..."

"I'll buy them for you tomorrow!"

"Okay."

"But let's get this straight, you can't tell your brother-in-law that I asked you these questions."

"Mm."

The little girl withdrew her gaze and watched TV.

Zhang Suannai also stood up and walked toward the bedroom.

She hadn't slept well last night, having spent the whole time letting her imagination run wild; now she felt a bit dazed and walked unsteadily.

Chen Shu carried a few flowers and opened the dormitory door.

He still put the flowers in a vase, but didn't place it in the bedroom; instead, he set it on the living room coffee table.

Meng Chunqiu ran over again to appraise them carefully, offered a couple of comments, exclaimed twice about Brother Chen's refined taste, and kept spouting a bunch of pretentious words. Chen Shu ignored him directly; in any case, Meng Chunqiu had no utility today, not even as much as Jiang Lai.

"Brother Jiang," Chen Shu asked. "There's a week-long Hunting Festival this month, what do you think?"

"What do you mean, what do I think?"

"I heard a Sword pig can sell for tens of thousands. Haven't you ever thought about targeting Sword pigs?"

"I have thought about it, but wild Sword pigs are very dangerous, thick-skinned, strong, and fast," Jiang Lai said honestly. "Unless a Four-stage Martial Artist is particularly skilled at combat, they aren't necessarily able to beat an adult male Sword pig. Besides, whether one can win is one thing, but whether one can kill or capture it is another. If I go, I might not have any harvest after a whole week, and I might even get injured, which would affect the Arena matches."

"So you've never been to the Hunting Festival?"

"Never... Brother Chen, do you want to go this year?"

"A little."

"You could go to the edge of Qingshan Ridge to join in the excitement."

"I want to go catch Sword pigs, eat the meat, and sell them for money."

"This..." Jiang Lai said, conflicted, "If you're alone, I suggest you don't go. If you're in a group, you need a fairly reliable team. And it's best not to go too deep; once you accidentally enter the depths of Qingshan Ridge, the Forbidden Land is extremely dangerous."

"Then shall we team up?"

"Ah?"

"Didn't you say it's not recommended to go alone? So, shall we team up?"

Chen Shu formally extended an invitation to Jiang Lai: "You can definitely beat a single Sword pig in a one-on-one fight, you just lack the lethality, while I possess the ability to easily kill a Sword pig. You can also act as the manual laborer to carry the Sword pig down the mountain. We'll cooperate and split the profits fifty-fifty."

"This..."

Jiang Lai hesitated for a moment, then looked at Chen Shu and immediately made up his mind: "If you really must go, I'll definitely go with you. I don't want the money."

"That's good..."

Chen Shu smiled, nodded, and said: "Then it's settled. We'll prepare over these two days and set off the day after tomorrow."

"Are you really going?"

"What's there to be afraid of?"

"Alright..."

Jiang Lai also nodded and fell silent.

Meng Chunqiu at the side looked at Chen Shu, then looked at Jiang Lai, and fell into deep thought—

As a dignified member of the Meng imperial clan, handsome and overflowing with talent, why did he seem to have no popularity at all in this dormitory?

……

After lunch.

Chen Shu arrived at another laboratory.

This was not one of the two public laboratories on the first floor of the Ancient Cultivation Building provided for students; it was for teachers and graduates to work on projects and assignments, and students usually had to apply specially to use it.

Doctor Shi Qian was already inside, along with three teachers in related fields and five senior students who had already graduated but remained at the school for further study.

This was the team Doctor Shi Qian had pulled together.

Researching "How to make Thunder Method penetrate Spirit Power Defense."

The common solution in various countries at present is to attach Spirit Power to a physical object, use the physical object to penetrate the Spirit Power Defense, and then activate the Spirit Power to release lightning and cause damage. This simple and effective scheme has been widely used for many years, such as the Electric Shock Bullet of police Anti-riot Guns.

But it belongs to a lateral solution, not a direct one.

Now the National Defense Military Academy has a related project, preparing to completely solve the difficult problem of "Thunder Method being difficult to penetrate Spirit Power Defense," but it is said that the results are not high.

At the beginning of this semester, as soon as Doctor Shi Qian proposed this idea, it sparked heated discussions among the teachers of the Ancient Cultivation Academy and received approval and support from many teachers.

The result of the discussion was roughly that the teachers at the National Defense Military Academy have limited ability, and the fact that they haven't figured it out in several years doesn't mean we can't. This thing is not difficult; as long as our Yujing Academy Ancient Cultivation Academy wants to do it, we can produce results in minutes.

Some teachers indicated that they had projects on hand but could provide consulting support, or provide assistance, and take some credit for the assist when the time came.

Some teachers indicated that they could not join, but could provide some manual labor, such as these five senior students.

There were also some teachers who were just idle, saying they would do it right away.

So at the beginning of this month, the project was officially established, receiving an exclusive laboratory allocated by the academy and 20 million in research funds, and the participants, including Chen Shu and the five "pre-doctoral students" gifted to Doctor Shi Qian, all received a salary.

"Hello, teachers."

"Yo, little Chen is here?"

"I'm late."

"Not late, come over, come over!"

Chen Shu knew from the teacher's expression that he must have had some new idea again, or that the research had made progress, and he couldn't wait to find someone to share it with and listen to him show off.

So he obediently walked over.

Currently, this research team has set a preliminary research direction.

They abandoned the idea of giving Thunder Method a shockwave to break through Spirit Power Defense, because Spirit Power Defense often also has a strong defensive ability against shockwaves. And integrating Thunder Method into other attacks would dilute the inherent characteristics of Thunder Method, turning it into an incidental effect of other Spells, which is also a path that others had thought of long ago and eventually proved to be of low efficiency.

How proud the teachers of Yujing Academy are; they directly chose to turn the wooden spear into a steel gun, using a reinforced spear to head-on clash with this shield.

This is the most direct and most difficult path.

The final direction is: to endow high-density Thunder Method Spirit Power with high penetration characteristics.

The imagined effect of this Spell release is as follows: the released Spirit Power will be as highly condensed as the Tracer Technique, but will possess penetration capabilities exceeding the Tracer Technique, even being able to pierce through most Cultivators' Spirit Power Defense and physical defense; after piercing through, the scattered Spirit Power will release the Thunder Method lightning on the opponent. To prevent certain Cultivators from possessing multi-layered composite defenses, this Spirit Power will not only cover the opponent's body surface, but can even strike into the opponent's body before being triggered.

Of course, this is only an imagined, ideal effect; it may not necessarily be achievable in reality, or it may take many, many years to achieve.

Currently, this research is just starting, but Chen Shu has already had a very big harvest; at least he has already obtained the Penetrating Runes mastered by several teachers—this should already be eighty percent of such Runes mastered by Yiguo.