"Mom, he asked me to meet him tomorrow," Feng Hongjin said excitedly to Zhu Yin'e, holding up a conch shell.
"Oh? He replied to you?" Zhu Yin'e asked with a smile.
Feng Hongjin nodded happily at this.
"She's been talking into the conch shell all morning. I suspect Master Liu is probably terrified of her," Zhu Yuchan said with a light laugh from the side.
At this moment, Feng Hongjin ran out and transformed into a red carp again, excitedly chasing a large fish.
"What is she doing?"
"She probably wants to catch a fish as a gift for Master Liu."
"Ah..." Zhu Yin'e froze for a moment at this, then covered her mouth and chuckled.
"Is she trying to get Master Liu himself into trouble?"
The reason for saying this was that the fish Feng Hongjin was chasing was particularly special.
"But, Miss, why are you letting Little Fish interact with Master Liu? Is it because of the Su sisters?"
Zhu Yin'e smiled and didn't answer the question. Instead, she said, "If we consider Little Fish's age in human years, she should be starting school by now, right?"
"Ah—right." Zhu Yuchan was a little confused as to why she suddenly brought this up.
Zhu Yin'e turned and went back into the house.
Zhu Yuchan, seeing Feng Hongjin still chasing the large fish, suddenly understood something.
Master Liu might be a most suitable candidate.
Meanwhile, when Liu Nanfeng returned home, "Su Jinxiu," wearing a bathrobe, immediately greeted him.
"You're back."
She gave Liu Nanfeng an enthusiastic hug.
Liu Nanfeng could smell the faint scent of shampoo in her hair.
So cautious, even washing up after returning.
"You stink, go take a bath."
"Su Jinxiu" released Liu Nanfeng with a look of "disgust."
"Here, the fresh milk you wanted," Liu Nanfeng said, handing over the fresh milk he was holding.
Su Jinxiu glanced at the date on it and said, speechless, "Don't you check the dates? This fresh milk is three days old."
"Uh... I really didn't notice, but does it matter?"
"Although it's still within the expiration date, it's best to buy it on the same day."
"Okay, I understand." Liu Nanfeng really hadn't thought of this.
"Never mind, hurry up and take a bath."
"Su Jinxiu" turned around, and Liu Nanfeng's gaze fell on her back.
The orange-yellow light shone through her silk bathrobe, making her inner clothes faintly visible, possessing a uniquely seductive charm.
Liu Nanfeng quickly headed for the bathroom. No wonder they say beautiful women are temptresses.
True temptresses exude alluring charm at all times.
Arriving at the bathroom, Liu Nanfeng instinctively glanced at the laundry basket. It contained a few changes of clothes, but they were the ones "Su Jinxiu" had worn during the day, not the ones from the bar.
Of course, she wouldn't leave such an obvious clue.
Liu Nanfeng took off his clothes and entered the bathroom, but instead of washing immediately, he summoned the painting.
He first looked at the Nightmare that had just been collected into the painting.
It was similarly located on the volcanic lava, but the mist around the volcano had receded further, even revealing a part of the forest.
Name: Chen Guang Sheng (Chen Yao Hui)
Race: Nightmare
Cultivation: Eight years
Identity: Manifestation of Liu Xiu Juan's inner demon.
Cause: Triggered.
Abilities: Dream Invasion, Memory Recall.
Note: Human demons are manifestations of inner demons. Once captured in the painting, their roots are severed and can be refined.
Refinement: Can randomly obtain one ability.
Dream Invasion: Inner demons devour dreams, giving rise to nightmares, distorting reality, and confusing yin and yang.
Memory Recall: What you see, hear, and smell, memories are never forgotten, just not recalled.
Liu Nanfeng was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected this seemingly weak Nightmare to possess two such powerful and miraculous abilities.
Dream Invasion allows one to enter another's dreams, control their dreams, and blur the lines of reality.
Memory Recall allows one to remember everything heard, seen, and smelled, which is essentially another way of expressing eidetic memory.
He wanted both abilities, but could only keep one. It was a matter of having to choose, as one could not have both.
With a thought, the volcanic lava engulfed the Nightmare, and wisps of mist began to rise.
This also served to verify his guess: was the refinement process also twenty-four hours, and did the duration vary with cultivation level?
He then stopped paying attention and took out the pill for refining human demons that he had stored in the painting.
He had previously put it back into the painting because he was going out drinking with Zhu Zhicheng and worried he might lose it, which would have been a great regret.
Looking at the ordinary-looking pill before him, Liu Nanfeng swallowed it without hesitation.
The painting was so magical that it wouldn't need to go to such lengths to harm him, so he wasn't worried at all. Of course, worrying would be useless.
At that moment, Liu Nanfeng felt a warmth spread from his abdomen to his limbs. His physique didn't change, but his muscles became denser, and his body was filled with power.
It was indeed miraculous. With almost no special reaction, he had effortlessly acquired this ability.
He clenched his fists a few times, feeling a surge of strength, as if he could smash everything.
"So it's immense strength," Liu Nanfeng murmured.
He wasn't disappointed, but he wasn't particularly happy either. Among the three abilities, if he truly had to choose, he would have chosen the first one, suspicion.
This ability, though seemingly weak, required the use of one's mind, and to some extent, it enhanced intelligence.
Strength could be developed gradually, but improving intelligence was very difficult.
As for the last ability, absolute suppression, it was the strongest, almost bordering on influencing rules, but it had limitations. One couldn't simply ask anyone to be their wife and expect them to agree.
Immense strength was the most mediocre of the three abilities.
But since he had obtained it, he didn't dwell on it any further.
"Nanfeng, I've put your clothes here," "Su Jinxiu's" voice came from outside the door.
Liu Nanfeng opened the door and poked his head out, asking, "Want to wash together?"
"Eh, I just washed."
"Is there a rule that you can only wash once?" Liu Nanfeng reached out and pulled her in.
"Wait a minute, wait a minute, I haven't taken off my clothes yet."
"No need to take them off, this is just perfect..."
...
The next morning, Liu Nanfeng woke up from his dream and habitually turned his head to look beside him. He saw "Su Jinxiu" sleeping soundly next to him.
Her fair complexion, gentle breathing, and a lock of her hair half-obscuring her face.
Even in sleep, she was beautiful.
Liu Nanfeng gently kissed her cheek and got out of bed.
Naked, he found clothes for himself and also found a set for "Su Jinxiu."
He had now completely changed his opinion that immense strength was the most mediocre of the three abilities, and now considered it the strongest.
Immense Strength: Grows stronger through anger, can output continuously when facing female creatures, doubling power.
Gently closing the bedroom door, Liu Nanfeng walked into the living room. After some thought, he decided not to make breakfast this morning and to go out and buy something.
With that in mind, without even washing his face, he left the house.
Going downstairs, he saw many elderly people exercising and returning with groceries. They were indeed up early.
"Did you hear? The supermarket owner's wife passed away last night."
"How could a healthy person suddenly pass away?"
"They say it was sudden myocardial infarction. It's a shame, as she only had her son left, and he has his college entrance exams coming up. She's quite pitiful."
"What about her husband?"
"They divorced long ago. She raised her son alone."
"..."
Listening to the old folks' discussions, Liu Nanfeng didn't have much to say. Those who deserve pity must have something detestable about them. Liu Xiu Juan could be said to have brought it upon herself.
He mused that after Chen Guang Sheng and Chen Yao Hui died, she remarried Yuan Zhi Qiang, had a son with him, and successfully moved to the city as she wished.
But in the end, Yuan Zhi Qiang divorced her again.
She was left to raise her son alone, enduring torment from the Nightmare every day. He wondered what the reason was back then, was it just for fleeting pleasure?
Now that she was dead, it was all over. Perhaps it was a form of release for her.
Exiting the residential area, there were several breakfast stalls in the shopfronts nearby.
Liu Nanfeng bought a few steamed buns and two bowls of soup.
When he returned home, "Su Jinxiu" had already gotten up.
However, she wasn't making breakfast; she was combing her hair in front of the mirror.
Seeing Liu Nanfeng wasn't there, she had already guessed where he had gone.
But she hadn't changed into the clothes Liu Nanfeng had provided. Instead, she had put on an embroidered qipao dress.
The fusion of retro qipao elements with a fashionable dress made it both stylish and retained the gentle elegance of retro qipao, making it very beautiful.
She braided the hair on her forehead into a twisted plait, then brought it around her ears, like a headband to tie back her unruly hair, securing it with a butterfly hairpin, thus completing a perfect hairstyle.
"Does it look good?"
"Su Jinxiu" asked, smoothing her temples.
"It looks good. With such a beautiful wife, tell me, what if you leave me one day?" Liu Nanfeng walked over, put his arm around her shoulder, and asked.
He could clearly feel her body stiffen for a moment, but she quickly replied coquettishly, "What nonsense are you talking about? Why would I leave you?"
"Really?"
"Of course, it's true. As long as you stay loyal, I will stay with you until death."
"Don't worry."
Liu Nanfeng gently patted her and said softly, "Let's eat breakfast."
After breakfast, "Su Jinxiu" went to the shop, and Liu Nanfeng continued with his food delivery.
"Liming Road, number 53..."
Liu Nanfeng glanced at the delivery order in his hand. He planned to finish this delivery and then have lunch; he had been running deliveries all morning.
Even though his physical condition had improved after acquiring the ability of immense strength last night, he felt exhausted.
"Huh, Xiao Liu." Suddenly, a voice called out from the roadside.
Liu Nanfeng turned his head to look.
Name: Zhang Xin Wu
Race: Monkey Demon
Cultivation: Three hundred forty-one years
Identity: Great Sage Barbecue, specializing in barbecued beef for three hundred years.
Cause: Not triggered.
"Brother Zhang, what are you doing here?" Liu Nanfeng's gaze fell on the large bag he was carrying, unsure of its contents.
"Visiting a friend," Zhang Xin Wu said with a smile.
"A demon friend?" Liu Nanfeng thought to himself.
Of course, he couldn't say that aloud, so he joked, "Are you treating me to beef too?"
To his surprise, Zhang Xin Wu nodded.
"Yes, it's all beef."
He lifted the bag he was holding, looking serious.
"Alright, I won't keep you any longer."
Liu Nanfeng quickly rode away on his bike. Partly because he was in a hurry, and partly because seeing the words above the other person's head, he couldn't resist the urge to capture him in the painting.
Seeing the other person's tall and sturdy physique, he should be quite strong.
"Come for skewers tonight!" Zhang Xin Wu shouted from behind.
"We'll see," Liu Nanfeng replied without looking back as he rode away.
After finishing the order in hand, Liu Nanfeng found a shop with air conditioning and ate a casual meal.
The weather was truly hot. Sometimes he wondered why he was making himself suffer by delivering food.
But the exhilaration of being drenched in sweat and feeling completely refreshed after a delivery was something that could never be experienced sitting in an air-conditioned room.
Thinking about meeting Feng Hongjin in the afternoon, Liu Nanfeng went to a nearby supermarket to buy some food. However, this time he didn't buy fried chicken; he couldn't eat fried chicken every time.
Seeing that there was still time, he found a place to rest for a while and summoned the painting to examine it closely.
After "sealing" the Nightmare yesterday, a patch of forest had appeared around the crater.
However, Liu Nanfeng didn't recognize any of the trees or vegetation in the forest; they didn't seem to be from Earth.
Moreover, the forest was eerily silent, with no small animals at all. Liu Nanfeng wondered if he should place some animals inside.
But he didn't know if real animals could survive inside.
He decided to buy a rabbit to try first, as rabbits eat grass. The dense grass in the forest should be enough to support a rabbit, but he wasn't sure if it was poisonous.
Seeing that it was getting close to the appointed time, Liu Nanfeng decided to head to the meeting spot in advance.
"Person..."
Before Liu Nanfeng had even parked his bike, he saw Feng Hongjin standing by the river and waving excitedly from afar.
"Can you please not call me 'Person'? That way of calling is very strange," Liu Nanfeng said loudly.
It was noon, the weather was hot, and there was no one else by the river, so they could speak without any reservations.
"Then what should I call you? Friend? Master Liu?"
"Didn't I tell you my name? Call me Brother Liu."
"Okay, Big Brother."
Liu Nanfeng: ...
Liu Nanfeng parked his bike, picked up the bag, and got off the embankment.
Feng Hongjin immediately trotted over, asking excitedly, "Is there fried chicken?"
"There's no fried chicken today. If you eat any more, you'll turn into fried chicken."
"I won't, I'm a fish, I'll blow bubbles," Feng Hongjin said with some disappointment.
Liu Nanfeng chuckled at her expression.
"Although there's no fried chicken, I bought you something else delicious. I guarantee you'll like it?"
"What is it?"
"You'll know when you open the bag," Liu Nanfeng said, handing over the plastic bag.
"Is all of this for me?" Feng Hongjin asked in surprise.
"Of course."
Feng Hongjin suddenly remembered something and turned to run towards the river.
"Wait a moment, I have a gift for you too."
"What is it? A big fish?" Liu Nanfeng followed her to the riverside.
He saw her jump into the water and then disappear into the river, leaving Liu Nanfeng bewildered on the bank.
However, after a short while, she poked her head out of the water again, dragging something with her small hand. Judging by its appearance, it looked like a large fish struggling fiercely, splashing water everywhere.
"Big Brother, this big fish is my gift for you!" Feng Hongjin said with great delight.
But when Liu Nanfeng saw the large fish she was dragging, he froze.
You're not trying to give me a gift; you're trying to get me locked up!
It turned out that what Feng Hongjin was dragging was a Baiji dolphin.