Before the rest of the words could tumble out, Baiheng was already scared out of her wits!
She darted forward like an arrow, moving with the speed of "Eternity," covering System's mouth and blocking all the potentially shocking words that were about to come out!
"Hehehe... Sister Xi Tong just loves to joke around. Humorous, very humorous!"
Baiheng kept her hand firmly clamped over System's mouth while giving Jingliu a forced smile, feeling the cold sweat on her back almost forming a stream. "Guest, you must be tired from your journey. The room is ready. Why don't you go rest first? Sister Xi Tong and I happen to be going out to buy some... some ingredients for tomorrow's breakfast! Yes, ingredients!"
As she spoke, she grabbed System's shoulder without explanation and half-pushed, half-pulled her toward the courtyard gate.
Jingliu stood still, her black eye mask "watching" the two figures pulling and dragging each other away, remaining silent.
A subtle atmosphere seemed to linger in the air.
The alley entrance outside the small courtyard
As soon as they were out of Jingliu's sensory range, Baiheng immediately released her hand, let out a long sigh of relief, and felt like she was about to collapse from exhaustion.
"Miss System! I'm begging you!"
She lowered her voice, sounding tearful, "Were you just about to blurt out'stinky beggar,' weren't you?! Is that something you can say to Jingliu?! People will die! Seriously, people will die!"
Although System currently wore her usual plain face, her tone revealed a hint of satisfaction—she calmly adjusted her collar, which Baiheng had crumpled, and replied: "The user's reaction speed under stress meets expectations. Rest assured, all actions strictly follow the pre-set 'System' character logic. A 'Harsh, Conservative Middle-aged Landlady' has an 87.5% probability of making dismissive and probing remarks when encountering an unfamiliar tenant seeking lodging, in order to protect her interests and maintain control. My actions comply with logic and the character setting."
"Who exactly wrote this character setting?!"
Baiheng couldn't help but rub her forehead and complain.
System was expressionless, but her tone inexplicably carried a hint of pride: "I did!"
"Based on 36,000 data analyses of Xianzhou Common Culture, integrating 785 landlady archetypes from classic film, television, and literature, and refining the essence, this character setting was fused and created. It possesses a high degree of authenticity and dramatic tension."
Baiheng: "..."
(She felt that her habit of twitching her mouth wouldn't be cured tonight.)
"Alright... your character setting is very 'successful'."
Baiheng reluctantly conceded defeat and quickly got to the point, "So, does Madam Herta have any new instructions? What should I do next?"
System returned to her usual serious tone: "Madam Herta's directive is: continue maintaining contact with the target, Jingliu. Subsequent identity maintenance and environment refinement work will be personally arranged and scheduled by the Lady; there is no need to worry. You only need to play your role as 'Bai Heng'."
"Continue contact... fine, I understand."
Baiheng sighed, feeling the burden on her shoulders grow heavier.
She looked back at the small courtyard, which now seemed like a dragon's pool and a tiger's den in her eyes, containing an old acquaintance she didn't know how to face, and a "Drama Queen" System that could say something shocking at any moment.
"Should we... actually 'buy' some ingredients before heading back?"
Baiheng asked weakly, trying hard to accept the chaotic reality.
System nodded, crossed her arms, and re-entered her role, saying in that slightly critical tone: "Of course. Remember to buy what's on sale. Also, remember to split the cost of tonight's dinner."
Baiheng: "...Let's go."
Perspective shift.
Stelle felt as if she had sunk into a warm forest of seaweed, enjoying a sweet sleep.
However, this comfort didn't last long. The solid feeling beneath her feet and the change in the surrounding ambient light made her suddenly open her eyes.
(Huh?)
She looked around blankly.
This was no longer March 7th's familiar warm little nest, but a silver-gray space shimmering with metallic luster. The ground was a hard, flat surface made of some unknown material, stretching to the edge of the visible area.
Uniformly distributed soft light sources above illuminated this place that was nothing but "empty."
(What's going on? Wasn't I sleeping in bed? Where is this? A dream?)
Stelle forcefully pinched her arm—there was pain, but it didn't feel like real pain.
(This dream is too realistic, isn't it? Or did... Herta install some new plug-in and secretly load it while I was asleep?)
Just as she was completely confused and trying to call out to the Astral Express Crew or the System menu, a figure silently materialized on the other side of the empty space.
It was a tall, straight man with short white hair like snow on an ice field. His face was stern, and his ice-blue eyes seemed to hold frost that hadn't melted for ten thousand years.
Just by standing there, he exuded a heart-stopping low-temperature field and a heavy sense of oppression.
(This person... looks familiar?)
Stelle tilted her head, trying hard to search her memory database.
Had she seen him in a promotional poster? Or was he some wanted space pirate leader?
It didn't seem like either.
But she felt like she had experienced this kind of cold, powerful aura somewhere before... She tentatively waved at the man: "Hey! Hello? Where is this place? Are you trapped here too?"
Kevin gave no response.
His gaze fell upon Stelle.
He had just finished his initial communication with System, and his heart was filled with complex emotions regarding this new "cage" and the unknown future. He was about to find a place to stretch his muscles and clear his mind.
This Training Ground was part of a new function of the Paradise, capable of simulating various combat environments.
Just as he entered, he discovered a "Training Subject" who seemed to have been randomly matched into the space.
(Is this a Training Program?)
Kevin thought to himself.
His gaze swept over the ordinary-looking Metal Baseball Bat in Stelle's hand. In the cold lake of his heart, a tiny pebble seemed to drop in, spreading a ripple that was almost imperceptible.
(Baseball bat...)
A long, long time ago, during the Previous Era's years, before it was completely swallowed by the Honkai, he was just an ordinary student.
To protect the important people behind him, he too once tightly gripped a similar "weapon" belonging to a young man, facing terrifying monsters far beyond common sense, filled with fear, yet refusing to take a single step back.
That memory was too ancient, so ancient that it was almost covered by the ice and snow of The End.
Seeing this similar weapon now actually gave him a trace of... an illusion close to "nostalgia."
Stelle saw that the man was completely ignoring her, just staring at her with those ice-hole-like eyes, making her feel even more uneasy.
(What's wrong with this guy? Is he mute? Or did this Dream NPC glitch out?)
She tried asking a few more questions, such as "Can you hear me?" "Are there any mission prompts?" and even tentatively said, "Open Sesame?" but the man remained unresponsive, like the most exquisite ice sculpture.
(In reality, Stelle's voice and some features were blurred by Madam Herta's preset barrier; in Kevin's perception, she was more like a phantom used for Sparring.)
Just as Stelle was considering whether to try hitting the ground with the baseball bat to see if it would trigger any mechanism, Kevin finally moved.
He slowly raised his hand, and following his will, the rules of the Training Ground responded to his request.
A Metal Baseball Bat, almost identical to the one in Stelle's hand, materialized out of thin air in his grasp.
He casually weighed it in his hand, and his icy gaze locked onto Stelle once more.
(Well then... let's try it.)
There were no words, no warnings.
Kevin's figure suddenly vanished from where he stood, and in the next instant, he appeared diagonally in front of Stelle. The baseball bat in his hand brought a sharp scream that tore through the air, simple, direct, yet containing terrifying power, sweeping horizontally toward Stelle's shoulder!
(Holy crap?!)
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