Shen Yiyue finished washing the dishes with a red face.
As she walked out, she even caught her younger sister giving her a mischievous grin, which made her grumble:
"What are you looking at!"
Ugh!
She had wanted to tease Ning Yu, but ended up being teased by Ning Yu instead, and even...
Seeing Ning Yu walk out of the kitchen as if nothing had happened, Shen Yiyue couldn't help but sigh inwardly: Why have I never seen Ning Yu blush?
She always seems so experienced, but Ning Yu would never lie to me.
Sitting on the sofa, Shen Yiyue let her thoughts wander, watching Ning Yu's back as she headed toward the bathroom.
Suddenly, she remembered last night, the night they had confessed their feelings to each other, and couldn't help but start grinning again.
No matter how many times I think about it, it only makes my heart feel sweet.
"Sister... you're grinning again, and there's drool coming out of the corner of your mouth."
Shen Qianqian looked at her silly older sister helplessly and reminded her.
"You shut up!"
......
"How are you holding up?"
Ning Yu quietly slipped into Lin Hao's office, finding him asleep among piles of documents, apparently having pulled an all-nighter.
She reached out and patted him on the shoulder.
"Ah! No, no, there's still so many documents left to process."
Lin Hao jolted awake from the desk, wiped the drool from his mouth, and pushed his glasses back up to the bridge of his nose before preparing to get back to work.
Only then did he realize he had been woken up, and he turned his head sharply to see the familiar silver-haired figure.
"It's you..."
He was startled, nearly thinking some dangerous person had entered the office.
"You look like you're having a tough time..."
Ning Yu's expression carried a hint of guilt, since it was she who had put Lin Hao in this situation.
Though they no longer needed to meet in the empty apartment, Ning Yu still preferred to keep their interactions private, so she continued to visit Lin Hao this way.
"Ah, don't even mention it. This job Zhuang Wugou handed me is no joke!"
Lin Hao rubbed his sleepy eyes and grabbed a wet wipe to freshen up.
"Um... just to reiterate, he's really not human..."
At this, Ning Yu couldn't help but chuckle.
"But no worries! Check this out~"
Lin Hao didn't pay any attention to Ning Yu's warning, instead opening his laptop and tilting it toward her.
"Ark... Information Dispatch and... Management System?"
Ning Yu read the words on the screen.
"Exactly!"
Lin Hao nodded proudly and continued:
"A lot of these repetitive, tedious processes can be simplified and digitized. All this paper work is just a waste of time."
Ning Yu propped her chin in thought. So Lin Hao wasn't just talking about 'automation' for the sake of it.
Perhaps he really is suited to take over Zhuang Wugou's position.
She glanced at the documents on the desk and asked:
"Is there anything I can help with?"
Seeing him work so hard through the night while she was at home enjoying herself felt a bit unfair.
"Hmm... not at the moment. I'll handle these for now."
Lin Hao waved his hand, indicating there was nothing she could do, then asked:
"What brings you here?"
"Last time when Yan Xing captured you, you mentioned there was some progress in decoding the serum, right?"
Ning Yu finally explained her reason for coming.
"Oh! I almost forgot about that."
Lin Hao slapped his forehead and pulled out several vials of newly refined golden serum from his pocket:
"The serum you brought back from encountering Zhuang Wugou that time has been purified."
Ning Yu took the vials. She had wanted to give some to Ji Mengyao, but Ji Mengyao refused, saying she hadn't contributed much in the fight.
She only accepted the serum from the Gluttony creatures, but refused the Sloth serum outright.
Ning Yu couldn't persuade the stubborn and prideful Ji Mengyao, so she gave up.
"But the progress I mentioned last time, with these new serums, there's even more information. I'll tell you everything once I've finished my research."
Lin Hao handed over the serums and continued.
"No problem."
Ning Yu nodded, not in a rush. At least now the Ark base was relatively stable, no longer needing to worry about research being interrupted.
"By the way, any news on Zhuang Wugou's contacts with that mysterious group?"
Ning Yu brought up another matter.
"Not yet. It's strange. Usually, they contact us every few weeks, but recently there's been no word."
Lin Hao shook his head.
"Alright, let me know if anything comes up."
With that, Ning Yu's figure disappeared out the window.
......
"Waaah, Sister, please, I beg you, don't cook lunch..."
As soon as Ning Yu pushed open the apartment door, she heard Shen Qianqian's sarcastic plea from the sofa.
Seeing Ning Yu return, Shen Qianqian seemed to find her savior, rushing over to hug Ning Yu and beg:
Can Sister Ning Yu cook lunch instead?
Seeing her pitiful expression, Ning Yu couldn't help but chuckle. It seemed Shen Qianqian really didn't like Shen Yiyue's cooking.
"No! Way! How will Sister improve if she doesn't practice?"
Shen Yiyue forced a smile, rolling up her sleeves, ready for a friendly and harmonious 'discussion' with her sister.
"Here, Sister Yiyue, let's start with this."
Ning Yu interrupted their conversation, pulling out several vials of serum from her pocket.
Seeing the serum in Ning Yu's hand, Shen Yiyue's face fell. She'd have to drink that awful 'glue' again.
Once again, Shen Qianqian was sent back to her room.
The two of them smoothly began to consume the serum.
【Ding! You have consumed a medium-level T-virus enhancement serum】
【2 random attribute points will be awarded】
You have obtained: Spirit *1, Charm *1
Ning Yu rolled her eyes so hard they almost flipped to the back of her head. Not a single point in physical fitness, and no enhancement to her abilities. Why does it always feel like I'm losing out when I take this stuff?
But then Ning Yu remembered something. Last time she dreamt of the Moon Princess was after taking the serum.
She looked at the empty vial in front of her, recalling what the Moon Princess had said about 'some means of strengthening the connection.' Could it be referring to these evolving serums?
Thinking of the terrifying power the Moon Princess had temporarily granted her, Ning Yu couldn't help but wonder even more about why the Moon Princess was in her body.
Shen Yiyue on the other side had also finished taking the serum. She stood up, stretched, and tested her abilities.
"Hmm... it seems there's no change this time."
Her Time Rewind ability seemed to be the same as before, with no new developments.
After testing several scenarios, they found no changes.
"Yu... can you accompany me to go shopping this afternoon?"
Shen Yiyue didn't seem to care about this, instead seizing the opportunity before her sister came out to ask.
Ning Yu looked at her hopeful expression and smiled:
"What, planning a date with me?"