Time passed slowly.
A month went by.
Jianghai had undergone significant changes during this month.
Due to the Night King's attack a month ago, more martial artists had flooded into Jianghai.
Gu Yan had been keeping a low profile these days, not drawing any attention to himself.
However...
Perhaps the news of the Night King's resurrection had attracted some fanatical individuals.
Over the past month, a series of terrorist attacks had occurred worldwide, all claiming to be attempts to catch the Night King's attention.
In short, the fans' mistakes were being blamed on the idol.
These actions only deepened everyone's hatred for the Night King.
The Leng Family.
A vast, gray-blue sky stretched silently across the cold winter air.
Leng Qingqiu stood by the window, feeling the chilly breeze seeping through. She extended her fingertips, and in the quiet atmosphere, the first snowflake, as light as a feather, melted on her skin.
Leng Qingqiu withdrew her hand, leaving a faint red mark where the snowflake had melted, a trace of its lingering warmth.
"It's snowing..."
A faint smile appeared on her lips. It was hard to believe how much time had passed.
Many things had happened over the past month.
First, her relationship with Gu Yan had deepened significantly, though it hadn't yet crossed into the next stage.
She could tell from the slowing pace of her sensory improvement.
Leng Qingqiu believed that, for the sake of better revenge and further enhancing her sensory abilities,
it was necessary to explore new ways of intimacy with Gu Yan.
Of course, this was all for the sake of revenge, not for any other reason.
Secondly,
due to the annihilation of a martial arts sect in Jianghai a month ago,
it had drawn widespread attention, and the fake Night King had stolen the spotlight.
Hmph, but this suited her just fine.
Thanks to the fake Night King,
Mei Xue and others had managed to infiltrate the Martial Arts Department.
They had even established something called the "Special Investigation Team for Night King Operations."
The team members included: Mei Xue, You Xingxue, Murong Ci, Shangguan Miaoyin, Bai Lian, Bai Jun, Liu Jianxing...
In short, more than half of them were familiar faces.
This would greatly aid her future plans to eliminate martial artists.
Lastly, and most crucially...
"Hehe^_^, I finally finished knitting it before the end of the year!"
"Just a mere scarf, nothing too impressive!"
Leng Qingqiu picked up a black scarf she had knitted herself, her lips curling into an uncontrollable smile.
But now, she faced a rather vexing problem.
That was...
How should she give it to Gu Yan?
[The other me, your furnace is here.]
[You can give it to him now.]
At that moment,
Little Cold suddenly reminded her.
?!
Leng Qingqiu, unsure of what came over her, quickly tucked the scarf away.
[......]
A few seconds later.
Click~
"Qingqiu~ My Qingqiu~! I'm here!"
Gu Yan pushed the door open and walked in.
Many things had happened over the past month.
First, his relationship with Qingqiu had grown much closer.
Second, Little Cold had been calling him out less frequently, and as a result, his mental state had improved significantly.
Additionally, his base had been successfully renovated, with all the necessary equipment in place.
All that was left was to recruit children to join his organization.
Jianghai had seen many changes, with more factions pouring in.
Martial artists and ordinary people were now mixed together.
You could say that out of every ten people you met on the street, one of them might be a martial artist.
In any case, Gu Yan had been very well-behaved this month, spending most of his time with Qingqiu.
And today was no exception.
As soon as Gu Yan entered, he zeroed in on Leng Qingqiu's small hand, naturally grasping it and starting his usual affectionate greeting: "Qingqiu, you're as beautiful as ever today."
"Your hands are cold; let me warm them up for you."
Leng Qingqiu didn't resist. She feigned calmness and replied, "Flattery won't get you anywhere. What do you want today?"
"Hehe."
Seeing his intentions exposed, Gu Yan gently leaned his shoulder against Leng Qingqiu and said with a smile, "I found a nice place on a small review app. How about we go there for lunch?"
"....."
Leng Qingqiu was tempted. Over the past month, she had decided to push herself and try going to crowded places with Gu Yan.
She realized that it wasn't so bad after all; as long as she was with Gu Yan, anywhere was fine.
A month of eating, drinking, and having fun had also made most of the families and martial arts factions in Jianghai aware of her relationship with Gu Yan.
Although she really wanted to go...
Today was a bit special.
Because she had made a plan: once the scarf was finished, she would focus on studying and getting serious about her goals.
So...
Leng Qingqiu opened her mouth slightly, about to refuse: "Sor..."
"They also have limited-edition milk mango pudding. I checked, and if we go before noon, we might still be able to get some."
At these words,
Leng Qingqiu looked up at Gu Yan, her cheeks slightly flushed: "Then let's go now."
Mhm, limited-edition pudding—she really wanted to try it!
Seeing this, Gu Yan's lips curved into a slight smile. Operation Dessert Success.
.......
.......
Jianghai High School.
Leng Ling'er and Bai Qionglan had just finished their midterm exams and were flipping through the returned test papers.
"Ling'er, you've improved!"
Bai Qionglan exclaimed in surprise, looking at Leng Ling'er's Chinese, Math, and English test scores.
"Of course, I have."
Leng Ling'er smiled smugly, tapping her head. "Qionglan, I've finally discovered my talent."
"It's my memory. Once I master Chinese, Math, and English, the humanities subjects are a piece of cake!"
Bai Qionglan nodded, feeling a slight sense of urgency.
Yikes!
If Ling'er is working this hard, I need to step up my game too, or I won't be able to get into the same school as her.
No, no... I have to study harder too!
But speaking of good grades...
Bai Qionglan glanced at the seat where Deng Feng used to sit.
For some reason, Deng Feng hadn't come to school for a month.
Since he was an orphan, there was no way to contact his parents.
The school had reported it to the police, but there had been no news since.
No one knew what had happened to him...
Of course, this had nothing to do with her, but the fact that a missing teenager was her classmate made her feel a bit uneasy.
Oh well, never mind. The most important thing right now is...
Thinking of this,
Bai Qionglan looked at Leng Ling'er with anticipation: "Ling'er, can I come to your house to study with you during winter break?"
The latter immediately nodded happily: "Sure, Qionglan! Winter break is coming up anyway, so why don't you just stay at my place?"
"We can study together!"
Wow!
Happiness came so suddenly that she didn't know how to react.
Bai Qionglan swallowed hard and quickly agreed: "Deal! Hehe!"