[Fang Yuan]: You’re welcome. It was just a small thing. Su Zhi helped me too.
After sending the short reply, Fang Yuan put his phone back in his pocket.
Just then, Lilith floated over, holding an orange. She broke off half with her short little claws and offered it to Fang Yuan’s mouth.
Fang Yuan opened his mouth and took the orange. As he gently bit down, refreshing citrus juice filled his mouth.
"It’s delicious. Thanks."
"Chirp~" Lilith scratched her head shyly and turned away.
While her head was turned, a smile spread across Fang Yuan’s face. But when he caught his reflection in the glass, he quickly composed himself, pretending nothing had happened.
A moment later, he took out his phone again and found the contact with the Huajing Cat avatar.
[Fang Yuan]: Wish Su Zhi a happy birthday for me.
[Shao Ya]: !!! I totally ship it! I totally ship it!
"..." Fang Yuan’s face darkened.
"Shao Ya" retracted a message
[Shao Ya]: Roger! /salute
·
By the time he left the Huichun Alliance General Hospital, the daylight had already retreated to the horizon.
The setting sun rested faintly among the distant mountains, dyeing its surroundings a lazy orange. Above, the vault of the sky was shrouded in deep blue, vast and profound.
The two completely different skies intertwined and merged in the distance, as clear and bright as a watercolor painting.
Su Zhi ran for his life in the direction of the sunset—the garden where he had arranged to meet Shao Ya was also in that direction.
Although it was some distance away, Su Zhi ran very fast.
After awakening a Tier Two Beast Taming Space, a Beast Tamer’s physical constitution undergoes a complete transformation. It wasn’t that they became indestructible, but they could definitely wipe the floor with an ordinary person.
He finally ran into the garden, just as the sky was completely enveloped by a canopy of stars. Su Zhi glanced at the time on his phone and sighed in relief.
6:59—thankfully, one minute before the agreed-upon time of seven o’clock.
A classic college student move.
Su Zhi looked around again.
Although the Flying Shadow Alliance’s architectural style was always minimalist, the garden was surprisingly beautiful.
It was the height of summer, a season of splendid blossoms.
Pine trees, willows, birches, and various other trees that Su Zhi didn’t recognize were arranged in a harmonious fashion. Waves of green, graduating from light to dark, rippled vividly in the evening breeze.
Peonies and peach blossoms swayed gently, their tender pinks looking even more succulent against the green backdrop. In a nearby pond, lotus flowers floated quietly, creating a harmonious and dreamlike scene.
Thanks to the help of various Pet Beasts, many plants with naturally different blooming seasons could flower at the same time, creating a beautiful landscape impossible under normal circumstances.
But the person he was waiting for hadn’t arrived, making the beautiful scenery feel a little dull.
Su Zhi scanned his surroundings but couldn’t see Shao Ya. He had Yu Bao search, but it couldn’t find her either.
So Su Zhi curiously lowered his head and started typing:
[Su Zhi]: I’m here. Where are you?
...
...
No response.
Su Zhi raised his eyebrows in surprise. ’Normally, she would have replied in seconds.’
Just as he was wondering, a pair of cool, soft hands suddenly reached out from behind and covered his eyes.
"Guess who?"
The girl’s voice was mischievous and lively.
A smile tugged at the corners of Su Zhi’s lips.
"You’re Cao Mingyu."
"The hell I am!"
Exasperated, the girl let go and gave him a light kick.
Noticing that the kick felt a little different than usual, Su Zhi turned his head to look:
The girl was wearing a cinched, sheer white dress. One of her feet was still suspended in the air. Her legs were wrapped in thin, over-the-knee white silk, and two thin straps were faintly visible beneath the sheer pleats of her skirt.
His gaze traveled upward, past her perfectly formed curves, to her slightly puffed cheeks. Her beautiful, azure eyes blinked, reflecting his image.
Her hair clip was in the shape of cat ears, also made of sheer white material, blending seamlessly with her entire outfit.
"What are you doing?"
Seeing Su Zhi bend over to look behind her, Shao Ya put her hands on her hips and snickered. "So, Su Baby is a little pervert after all!"
"I was checking to see if there was a tail."
Su Zhi stared for a good while before looking up, shaking his head in slight disappointment. "No tail? This design isn’t up to snuff."
"You really are a pervert!"
"Yep, I’m a pervert," Su Zhi admitted, laying his cards on the table.
But under the girl’s teasing gaze, his face quickly turned red, and he stood there, looking a little awkward and uneasy.
’After all, talking big online is completely different from real life...’
’Some people can casually drop all sorts of lewd comments online, going so fast that even the platform’s censors can’t keep up, only to have their composure shatter the second they’re offline.’
’Su Zhi was exactly that kind of person...’
Looking at the lovely girl standing before him, he suddenly didn’t know what to say or do.
Today, she was more beautiful than ever—lovely, lively, and pure, yet also full of a seductive charm that precisely dismantled a young man’s willpower.
"So, what do you think?" The girl took a step forward, looking at him as a faint, sweet scent wafted from her.
"It feels... like a dream."
Amid his nervousness, Su Zhi asked curiously, "Is today some kind of important day?"
The girl didn’t answer. She just stared at him for a moment, her eyes curving into crescents and the corners of her mouth forming a sweet smile.
Su Zhi pressed his lips together, trying his best to only look at her eyes.
’Damn it, this vixen has me completely figured out. She knows my tastes even better than I do.’
’But Su Zhi really couldn’t remember what holiday it was...’
As he pondered, a streak of light suddenly lit up the sky.
BOOM.
Then, a firework blossomed outward. The outermost ring was a shower of gold and red sparks, followed by an inner layer of pale pink and deep purple, and finally, a multicolored center.
This single firework nearly filled half the starry sky with its brilliant display.
Immediately after, more fireworks shot up with a whistle. The pitch-black, curtain-like night sky was instantly filled with radiant, flowing colors, making it even more dreamlike than a dream.
Su Zhi watched, completely captivated.
Even though he knew this was the fireworks celebration for the end of summer camp, he was still struck by their beauty.