"I can now ride the Central Elevator for free," Daoist Wang Jixuan said as he walked along the asphalt path in Central Park.
Here, simulated daylight lighting shone, and the system would mimic sunrise and sunset according to the external day cycle of the Fortress.
A grand elevator shaft was flanked by two large paintings.
On the east side was the painting "Fertile Tree," where one could see a colossal tree stretching from the earth to the sky, with the outline of the surface city behind it, appearing during the day in the Fortress.
The painting on the west side was "Star Night Moon," appearing at night in the Fortress, showing a starry sky and a moon.
One side was realistic and the other abstract; both had pretty decent artistic quality.
The one thing he needed to thank the landlady for, was allowing him to freely read those categorized books, comparable to a standard library in the central region, while living in the wooden building.
Previously, Mu Liang’s mories indicated that only water was free, but Wang Jixuan had recently found another free resource.
Books.
All kinds of books.
One only needed to follow the library’s rules: register to borrow, return them on ti, and take good care of the books to continue reading incessantly.
Wang Jixuan found this quite incredible.
When he was cultivating in his sect, all sorts of scriptures were kept in the Scripture Pavilion; it was the foundation and the root of the sect, off-limits to casual access. Only after Wang Jixuan reached the Nascent Soul Realm and beca an elder was he permitted to enter the highest levels of the Scripture Pavilion and read the various profound Immortal Records.
But not here. If the library didn’t have a certain professional book, one could search for it on a terminal device, reserve it, and find it in the library the next day.
Even first and second-level residents with broken promises or criminal records could borrow all the books stored in the Fortress.
"Not bad at all," he mused.
About to turn around the outer wall of the elevator shaft, Wang Jixuan’s gaze shifted to the green belt beside him, noticing several benches at the back of the elevator shaft.
There was only one girl sitting there, a tall and slender silhouette from the back.
Just as Wang Jixuan was about to go over, he instinctively paused in his steps.
His Spiritual Sense was lightly throbbing.
It wasn’t a premonition of danger, but rather... a sense of a possibly powerful being.
There was no mottled qi; could she not be a Spiritual Ability User?
Wang Jixuan observed her carefully. This was the first ti his Spiritual Sense and perception were out of sync.
He didn’t notice anything else unusual; the source of the odd feeling in his Spiritual Sense was coming from the girl with the high ponytail.
Wang Jixuan’s hands ca out of his pockets hanging naturally, his sleeves now containing several talismans and two Bone Penetration Nails, as he slowly moved forward and soon caught a glimpse of the girl’s profile.
Even though Daoist Wang had been imrsed in the beauty of his fellow female practitioners for many years, his eyes brightened at the sight of her.
As he moved closer, the full picture of her beca clear to Wang Jixuan.
The high ponytail girl radiated an air of purity and integrity;
Presently in her pri years, her charm just beginning to blossom, her makeup-free face was smooth and delicate, with peach blossom eyes, slender willow brows, and a nose slightly pointed but not too prominent. Her lightly pursed lips sketched a gentle curve, as she seed engrossed in a thin notebook.
Her delicate features complented her slender swan-like neck, and the creator’s greatest effort on her must have been allocating these beautiful elents to bring forth her extraordinary deanour, free of any vulgar flamboyance.
Her loose, light yellow semi-transparent sports top paired with tight black jeans highlighted her near-perfect figure, her slender legs crossed naturally at this mont.
Indeed, she was a beauty.
But what truly resonated with Daoist Wang’s Dao Heart at this mont, was...
A pair of silver-white chanical arms that were slowly turning the pages of that book.
The chanical arm’s casing was smooth, with many fine, barely visible cracks, and the base of the chanical arm seed to extend to her chest.
Wang Jixuan couldn’t help but admire it from the bottom of his heart.
Indomitable spirit!
Despite life’s accidents and physical pain, she was still able to face it calmly, confidently revealing her physical impairnts for all to see.
Just this cultivation of Dao Heart alone was enough for him to learn from.
Wang Jixuan was certain that the flutter in his Spiritual Sense was because of the girl’s chanical arm—it was like so kind of Magic Artifact, and it was his first ti coming so close to this level of precision machinery.
He made a decision inwardly.
When he gently rejected her later, he wouldn’t look at her chanical arm but directly into her eyes, trying to offer so encouragent and show a stranger’s goodwill.
Stepping forward, Wang Jixuan approached the bench where the ponytailed girl was sitting, drawing on a Cultivator’s composure and the casual confidence of a security team leader, he extended his right hand:
"Hello, my na is Mu Liang."
The girl was clearly taken aback, looking up at Wang Jixuan, her smile vanishing as she stood and shook his hand lightly.
The chanical arm moved very smoothly, with no hesitation.
Wang Jixuan felt that the inside of the chanical arm was very soft, almost indistinguishable from normal human skin.
"Lingtong."
She gave her na.
Spiritual Sense?
Could it be Wen Tongtong’s nickna or childhood na?
The use of the ’Spirit’ character made Daoist feel slightly comforted.
The mont they shook hands, they let go, and Wang Jixuan boldly asked, "May I sit beside you?"
"Please do, this is a public area."
The ponytailed girl sat down with Wang Jixuan, seemingly unfazed.
She marked the page in her romance novel, closed it, and then gazed slightly out of focus toward the front, as if savoring sothing in her mind.
Wang Jixuan took the initiative to say, "Do you understand my situation?"
The girl nodded lightly: "Yes, I’ve looked at your file. Exorcism, upholding righteousness, and the Black Storm."
"Uh, they told you about that too?"
Daoist was sowhat astonished, turning to look at this ’Miss Wen’.
Lingtong’s ponytail swayed gently as she tilted her head and asked quietly, "Am I not supposed to know about it?"
"That," Wang Jixuan raised his hand to his forehead, "I wanted to live quietly for a while, and now, well, you know."
Lingtong looked at his expression and couldn’t help but smile on her delicate face:
"Don’t worry, Captain Zhou has warned , and I will not talk carelessly.
"I just didn’t expect that you’d be less... oh, what do you call it... deep and slightly old-fashioned in your speech as Captain Zhou described, and not so difficult to get along with either."
Wang Jixuan gave an embarrassed laugh.
He didn’t know why, but today he was a little more talkative than usual.
Ah, that’s it—security.
By the side of this girl, an inexplicable sense of relaxation erged, as if he felt very safe.
Was it because of her chanical arm? Indeed, it was precise enough to intrigue him, a novelty for his experience.
"I admit I used to be sowhat difficult to get along with. Back then, I didn’t consider how to face this cruel world. But now, I find... everyone seems interesting. There’s profound knowledge in books, and they offer countless ideas I had never thought of before.
"There is still so much I need to learn... Mordo chided for that. So, tell about yourself, how are you doing?"
"?" Lingtong seed puzzled.
Wang Jixuan chuckled and said, "Exactly, I read in a book that you should try to keep the conversation focused on the other person, instead of always talking about yourself."
"Is that from ’Fortress n and Won’? I’ve read it too."
Lingtong looked ahead and let out a soft sigh, gazing down at her palm.
The synthetic chanical arm had a different kind of aesthetic beauty.
Wang Jixuan quickly changed the subject: "Do you like music?"
"I listen to it sotis," Lingtong said with a gentle smile, a gleam in her eyes, "You’re very good at taking care of others’ feelings, totally unlike what Captain Zhou describes—you seem to have a completely different personality."
Wang Jixuan felt he should offer so encouragent to this disabled woman.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to do these things before, being a cultivator over a hundred years old, it’s not that he couldn’t.
Wang Jixuan spoke in a calm and slightly deep tone:
"Actually, it depends on who I’m with.
"Dr. Wei Na, for instance, feels like a raging fire to . If I don’t keep my distance, I’d be burned to ashes.
"Captain Zhou is like a landscape painting. Just when I think I’ve grasped the full picture, he reveals a little more of the scenery hidden within the shades of mountains and water, like the charm of his personality, or his background."
Lingtong tilted her head and asked, "What about then?"
Wang Jixuan’s gaze drifted to a flower in the green belt.
He imdiately thought of the perfect description: "A flower."
"A flower?"
Lingtong said softly:
"Flowers look frail and, besides, they exist for the sake of bearing fruit."
Wang Jixuan shook his head and, mimicking the tone Zhou Zhengde used when encouraging others, reassured warmly:
"Comparing a woman to a flower isn’t just because the blooming and shedding are part of the plant’s propagation, it’s also because, when flowers bloom, they add a rare beauty to the world.
"Ripples in tender eyes, full bloom in a flower’s pri.
"When I see flowers, they cheer up my heart. It’s the sa when I see you, which is why I thought of this taphor. On behalf of the few team mbers I know in our patrol group, I would like to thank you. Your beauty adds a stroke of color to the gloom of the Fortress."
Lingtong was sowhat stunned.
She watched Wang Jixuan quietly, her lips slightly parted, whispering, "If I weren’t..."
"Hmm?"
"Nothing, it’s interesting chatting with you," Lingtong pursed her lips unconsciously, lightly moistening her lower lip with her tongue.
Wang Jixuan sighed internally.
He hoped his encouragent would brighten her mood, allowing her a few seconds of respite from the pain of losing her hands.
Suddenly.
Without betraying any reaction, Wang Jixuan glanced toward a corner.
An entrance to Central Park, a mottled qi broke into Wang Jixuan’s sensory range.
A Spiritual Ability User.
A powerful Spiritual Ability User.
This was a presence even stronger than the Spiritual Ability Users he had sensed before, those who had gone to pressure Zhou Zhengde on behalf of the Biological Minister!
There was no killing intent, apparently, they had never killed anyone?
But why would such a powerful Spiritual Ability User appear here, heading straight towards them?
’Guns are useless.’
Wang Jixuan silently stood up, his palm now holding a Bone Penetration Nail.
Facing a Spiritual Ability User even stronger than the ones at Bi Anxi Bar, he didn’t stand much of a chance in a head-on clash, but he wasn’t about to sit and wait for death either.
The figure in the corridor suddenly charged forward, the mottled qi beginning to activate rapidly.
There they were!
A masked man with a hat burst out of the passage.
Wang Jixuan was about to make his move, but the man, as if expecting it, extended his left arm and a glowing plasma shield appeared above and below his arm, while his right hand grasped an exaggeratedly large revolver, aiming it right at Wang Jixuan, ready to pull the trigger...
The man’s speed was even faster than Wang Jixuan at full sprint!
Realizing the danger, Wang Jixuan was about to push the woman beside him out of harm’s way and dodge.
Buzz, whoosh—
What was that?
Before Wang Jixuan could react, a strong gust of air hit him from the side.
Lingtong suddenly lunged forward, and a powerful airstream erupted from the elbow of her chanical arm!
After two quick steps, her speed was so fast she left afterimages!
Bang!
The revolver fired a ’fishing net’ sparkling with electricity, but just as the net was unfurling, it was cleanly sliced through by the chanical arm, blades erging from the back of her hand as if cutting tofu!
Lingtong, moving as if dancing, spun around and struck the plasma shield with a punch from her left chanical arm. The man behind the shield was knocked backwards, the plasma shield instantly failing, leaving him wide open!
A strong and elegant leg ca crashing down, pinning the masked man to the ground with her foot on his chest. Lingtong extended her right arm, fingers spread, aid at the man’s brain.
Click, click, click-click.
Orange-red spots appeared in her palm. Her forearm swelled outwards twice its size, generating a powerful magnetic field and an energy flow restrained by that field.
Destruction Laser Cannon in preparation to fire at level one.
"Lingtong! It’s ! Cough, cough!"
The man pinned to the ground yelled out, pulling down his mask to reveal the skinny face of a middle-aged man.
"Calm down! Turn that thing off!
"I was just joking with this young man! Why are you overreacting like this!"
"Oh."
Lingtong vibrated her right hand, deactivating the Destruction Laser Cannon mode, and her chanical arm returned to its normal slender form.
She turned her head towards Wang Jixuan, offered a slight smile, and gave a light nod.
"He’s one of us, I guess."
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