Lin Yuan’s first opponent was the vice-captain Rachel.
"You have to be careful. I've made progress." Lin Yuan lowered her center of gravity and made a starting gesture. The black and white bracelet flowed to her palm and became a thin dagger, which she held.
Rachel's blue eyes showed a gentle smile, and her long golden hair was braided and hung in front of her.
He drew out his knife and spun it in a circle.
As soon as his knife came out, Ni Ji knew who Lin Yuan learned the knife skills from.
The two people's knife-playing movements are almost identical.
Rachel had a gentle smile on his face just a moment ago, but once the fight started, his aura changed.
Her eyes were fierce, her legs were full of power, and her golden braids left a shadow in the sunlight.
In just a split second, the blade was close to the tip of Lin Yuan's fair nose, with no intention of holding back.
Lin Yuan's bright eyes were right in front of him, without any hesitation or avoidance, his gaze was sparkling.
Rachel was startled. By the time he reacted, it was too late. The forest in front of him was just an illusion, shattered by the wind of the knife. A cold murderous intent attacked him from behind.
Rachel felt a chill on his neck and his hair stood on end. He relied on his sentinel's sharp body instincts to barely avoid the flash of the knife.
He retreated rapidly, his feet raising two streaks of yellow sand on the training ground. He stopped his retreat with his handbrake and looked up, only to see Lin Yuan putting away his knife and turning around.
A few strands of severed golden hair fell to the ground.
Rachel was shocked.
He had spent quite some time with Lin Yuan, so he naturally knew that Lin Yuan was not a weak person.
But he was also very clear that such close-range hand-to-hand combat was the biggest weakness of the guide Lin Yuan.
Lin Yuan learned his sword skills from scratch, step by step.
After not seeing her for such a short period of time, she has already perfectly integrated her special mental control and combat skills and applied them to such an amazing level.
The speed of progress is almost shocking.
Lin Yuan turned his hand and made a knife flower exactly the same as Rachel's, and the white-bladed black knife flew in a circle between his slender fingers.
The ground beneath Rachel's feet suddenly disappeared.
The training grounds, dormitories, gates, and the entire sentry post were gone. Below and above my head was the vast sky, and in all directions were endless stars.
And Lin Yuan, holding the small dagger in his hand, stood among the stars and looked at him.
Not only Rachel, but almost all the sentinels present were infected by the mental power spreading from Lin Yuan and fell into this starry illusion.
It was difficult to distinguish between heaven and earth, there was no place to stand, and I felt dizzy and had a severe sense of weightlessness.
Several sentries could not stand, and even if they reached out to feel around, their sense of touch was unreal, so they could only retreat far away from the battlefield.
"It's terrifying. Guide Lin has become so strong in an instant."
"That's amazing! Even better than last time."
"Captain Lei won't be defeated so soon. Although I feel that he will lose to Guide Lin sooner or later."
"That's impossible. Look at the sentry from Kyoto. He's standing there firmly, unaffected. Don't you know Captain Lei's character? He would never lose face in front of outsiders, even if he dies."
Rachel pulled off the belt of his tactical uniform, and the black belt covered his eyes.
He steadied himself, and behind him, a golden lion appeared.
The King of the Grassland shook his fluffy golden hair, stepped out from the void, and let out a deep roar.
When Lin Yuan first met Rachel, his mental picture was on the verge of collapse, and his spiritual body degenerated into a lion cub, not much bigger than a cat, with sparse hair, and looked pitiful after being caught in the rain.
Now, in just a few months, this golden lion has escaped from its predicament and is standing among the stars in the universe, majestic and with eyes burning with fire.
The body of the golden beast kept growing bigger and bigger, and the huge lion was facing the forest from afar across thousands of stars.
Behind Lin Yuan, the tentacles were stimulated by the powerful spiritual body and showed their claws and fangs.
[Wow, big... big cat.]
[Golden, lots of hair, I like it very much]
[It's so big, I want to play with it]
[Stop talking now, the fish at home will turn sour soon. ]
The king of the grassland braced himself, and the blond sentinel, full of fighting spirit, rushed towards him at lightning speed.
Lin Yuan felt herself getting excited. A giant deep-sea monster with surging tentacles appeared behind her, heading towards the giant golden beast that was attacking her.
The friends hadn't seen each other for a long time and found that they had become stronger, so they had a thrilling battle.
Lin Yuan and Rachel had a competition, which caused the stadium to shake so much that almost all the soldiers on the sentry post were alarmed.
She was still in high spirits and played another coordinated game with the bird. Although it was her first time cooperating with the bird, she easily defeated the big boss, big cat, coyote, lizard and others who she hadn't seen for a long time.
It was not until the sentry leader Shen Fei came out to call a halt and took them home for dinner that they reluctantly gave up.
"Aren't you going to let me compete with them?" Ni Ji took some time to talk to Lin Yuan in a low voice.
His hands were itching. The fighting here was exciting and the atmosphere made him nostalgic, reminding him of his former sentry post.
Lin Yuan's dark eyes moved and he pretended not to hear.
Her expression was more vivid than ever before, so much so that Ni Ji understood it immediately.
It's just that he has these words clearly written on his forehead: "They are my sentinels, only I can bully them and I don't want you to bully them."
[…]
[…]
[…]
[It's over. Who wants to taste the fish now? ]
[It’s not me anyway]
When they arrived at Shen Fei's house, Shen Fei's daughter was extremely happy to see Lin Yuan coming. She cheered and hugged Lin Yuan's legs.
Lin Yuan brought her a new doll bought in Kyoto. It was in the shape of an octopus, with a pink body, cute black eyes, and eight small tentacles underneath.
So Shen Fei's daughter Xiaoyuan completely stuck to Lin Yuan, holding the octopus doll and occupying the only seat next to Lin Yuan.
Compared to the banquet in Kyoto, Shen Fei's family banquet can only be described as simple. The food is simple and the venue is very small. A group of sentinels gathered around the long dining table, and it was very lively.
But Ni Ji discovered that Lin Yuan was very relaxed here, and his usually cold face now showed many subtle expressions that were rarely seen in normal times.
She and the little girl sat together on the soft sofa, talking to each other in whispers.
Her lips were stained with amber sweet wine, her eyes were bright and her teeth were white, she smiled softly, and the orange candlelight on the dining table softened the contours of her face.
She looked like an ordinary, living girl, completely different from the way she looked around the White Tower, with her mask-like appearance and no strangers allowed.
It turns out that she likes this kind of place and this kind of life.
The sentries spoke in unison, under the banner of welcoming new guests, and concentrated their firepower on Ni Jishen. One by one, they stood up and challenged Ni Ji to a drinking contest.
"Yuanyuan's exclusive sentinel? Come on, let's see if your drinking capacity is worthy of Yuanyuan's." Xiaoniao sat on a horse and raised his hand to take a bowl of liquor.
"I heard that you are the guard assigned by the Queen to Guide Lin? I'll toast to you and hope you can protect our Guide Lin." The one who raised the glass was the man with long golden hair.
"Stop talking nonsense. I'll go with you. If you lie down, Guide Lin will give it back to us." Tiger opened a bottle of wine.
Ni Ji didn't want to be stage-frightened and accepted everyone who came.
For a while, everyone was toasting each other and having a great time.
In the end, all the sentries at the table fell down, leaving only Lin Yuan still sitting there.
Ni Ji's face flushed, and she lay on the table next to Lin Yuan with a dazed look in her eyes.
When she was drunk, she neither made a fuss nor slept. There was a hint of spring in the corners of her eyes, and she looked much more charming than her usual cold and upright appearance.
Lin Yuan had never seen Ni Ji like this before, and found it very interesting. She leaned over to look at him, "Are you drunk?"
"Better than them. They can't drink more than I can."
When he's drunk he's quite honest and easier to talk to than usual, answering everything you ask him.
Lin Yuan took the opportunity to ask him, "Do you like my spiritual counseling?"
"I like it. I like it very much."
"Why do you always carry candy with you?"
"Prepare it for you to eat."
Lin Yuan was happy, and even the wine in his hand seemed to become sweeter.
"Xunhua said that your mental image was injured. What did the Scarlet Egg do to you at that time?"
"No... You can't tell Lin Yuan."
Lin Yuan just asked this question casually.
The last time I was doing spiritual counseling for Ni Ji, I unexpectedly discovered that his spiritual image had been severely damaged in the golden tree pollution area.
He kept that memory well. Lin Yuan remained polite and did not rummage around in the Sentinel's underwater palace. He had no idea what he had encountered.
What kind of mental illusion caused such severe mental trauma.
If he just said he couldn't tell it, didn't want to tell it, it would be fine. But what he said was that he couldn't tell Lin Yuan.
Why didn’t you tell Lin Yuan on purpose
"No, I can't tell you. I can't let Lin Yuan know."
Ni Ji's face lay on the cold wooden table, his complexion was intoxicated, his eyes were blurred, and there seemed to be something diluted by alcohol in the depths of his eyes, revealing the fragility buried deep within.
"Lin Yuan asked you to tell her." Lin Yuan moved closer and coaxed him in a low voice.
Ni Ji's eyes turned and his expression was hesitant and wavering.
"You can tell me. Tell me."
A tentacle climbed onto the wine table, and its soft tip hooked the black glove, penetrated inside, and scratched the back of the sentry's hand that was slumped on the table.
"It... that guy let me see you." Ni Ji frowned, "It let me see you and your tentacles... You are very fierce and have been torturing me."
Lin Yuan's happy mood disappeared in an instant.
That guy turned into her appearance, bullied his own sentinel, and scared him like this
A feeling of anger rose in my heart. I regretted that I didn't cut that abominable guy into pieces with my own hands.
He completely forgot that he was dying and almost died with the monster.
The sentry lay on the table, looking at the tentacles wriggling in his gloves. For a moment, his memory seemed to be confused.
"You, you really went too far that time."
"But then I thought, as long as you're alive, as long as you're willing to open your eyes, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter."
His words were filled with pain, fear, and the influence of alcohol, but they were sincere and came from the bottom of his heart.
As long as you're alive, it doesn't matter what you did to me.
Even the most unruly tentacle felt embarrassed, slipped out from Ni Ji's glove, and touched his hair soothingly.
The sentry finally closed his eyes and fell asleep in the cold night.
"She didn't go to the Land of No Pupils?" a voice in the White Tower said.
"Yes, they did not board the airship specially prepared for them. Instead, they took a long-distance bus."
"… "
"It seems that she changed her mind at the last minute. Our people heard their conversation. Even Ni Ji, who was traveling with her, didn't seem to know what she was thinking."
"What an interesting child. So much like her mother, so nostalgic."
"Don't worry about them? I heard that they have been going in and out of the polluted areas near Dongbin recently, and they are invincible. Now they are famous. Even the sentinels and guides inside the White Tower are talking about them from time to time."
"It's okay. She will go to the land of pupils eventually. Maybe that place will make her feel at home and finally realize her true self."
Almost at the same time, Lin Yuan and Ni Ji had just left the polluted area and passed by a beach, which happened to be Xiaomu's home, so the two of them went to visit him.
Xiaomu, the boy whose spirit body was a seal, had grown taller than when they first separated, almost reaching the height of an adult, but he was as thin as a bamboo pole.
He was delighted to see Lin Yuan, and rummaged through boxes in the dark stone house, pulling out a stack of black scones wrapped in layers.
"Guide sister, I remember you liked to eat this last time, so I saved it for you during this period. You can take it with you on the road."
The cake was made of coarse grains, baked dark and hard, and actually tasted terrible. Lin Yuan was just a bad person at the time and liked to steal other people's food.
"Every time mom bakes pancakes, my brother won't eat his portion and has to hide it in the box. It turns out it's for you, my sister." Xiaomu's youngest sister came out and looked at the stack of pancakes with drooling.
Even such food was not something her family could afford to eat every day; it was only an occasional ration to improve their lives.
Lin Yuan took the stack of black cakes and solemnly put them into his backpack.
Her backpack was filled with many beautifully packaged candies and snacks, all of which were her favorite snacks.
Lin Yuan put the cake in and poured out the candy. He looked at them reluctantly for a while and left them all to Xiaomu and his brothers and sisters.
The children here had never seen such candies and their eyes lit up.
When we said goodbye to Xiaomu's family, the sky had already darkened. The red sunset floated on the sea, the light shone through the clouds, the sunset glowed in a myriad of colors, and the sea water, carrying waves of white foam, washed the beach.
Lin Yuan and Ni Ji sat on a pile of discarded tires to rest, eating hard pancakes to the sound of the waves.
What they didn't tell Xiaomu was that this time they came out, after seeing him, they were going to change their route and head directly to the Land of No Pupils.
Never go back to Dongbin again.
In the past few days since Lin Yuan and Ni Ji came to Dongbin Outpost, they have cleared the surrounding polluted areas. The polluted areas here have been explored back and forth by a large number of explorers, and there are various detailed strategy records, so they are relatively safe.
The two of them formed a team, went in and out of the battle many times, and practiced their combat coordination.
It was time to go to the forest garden she wanted to explore, the dangerous place the queen also wanted her to explore.
Lin Yuan doesn't like long-winded goodbyes.
If you can come back alive, you will naturally meet your friends again one day. If you are stuck in it, this separation will become a tragic memory, so it is better not to have it.
She had already met the friends she wanted to meet, had a few drinks with them, and exchanged skills with them. That was enough.
Come cleanly and leave freely.
It was low tide at this time, and there were many children out fishing in the muddy intertidal zone on the beach.
Most of the severe winter has passed and spring is about to come, but the weather is still very cold.
The young children walked barefoot in the icy sea water, their thin calves turned red from the cold.
But they always laugh with joy because of every little gain.
This is the last peaceful night before entering the Land of No Pupils.
Lin Yuan broke off the black cakes and put them into her mouth bit by bit, pretending that they were still her sweet candies.
Ni Ji knew that she had the habit of guarding her food. As long as it was something she liked to eat, she would always hold it in her hands and would never be willing to share it with others.
"Since you are so reluctant to part with it, why not leave some Imperial Coins for them? They should want Imperial Coins too." Ni Ji asked her.
"The thing you are most reluctant to part with is the gift." Lin Yuan was listless and missed the sweets he had given away.
She opened her personal terminal to show Ni Ji. She sent a message to Shen Fei, hoping that they could make an exception and recruit Xiao Mu in advance.
Sentinels who have not reached the age limit cannot receive the salary allocated by the empire. However, they can first use the money from Lin Yuan's personal account. This little money is actually an insignificant matter to Lin Yuan.
Only with a stable income can we truly help the child and his poor family.
Xiaomu is just a child, his family is poor and he is still young.
But he was sincere to Lin Yuan. Lin Yuan treated him with respect as a friend instead of just giving him a few imperial coins.
The setting sun sank completely into the sea, the sky darkened, and the sea and sky were dyed with rich sunset glow, which dyed people's eyebrows and eyes with a gentle color.
Ni Ji took out a few pointed chocolates with liquor fillings from his pocket and handed them to Lin Yuan, who was looking listless beside him.
Lin Yuan's eyes lit up immediately. She quickly took them, held them all in her arms, and happily broke open one to eat.
Very sweet, she thought to herself.
The sound of the waves was sweet, and the sentinels beside her were sweet too. She found that she seemed to be getting better and better here, almost like a normal person.
Even the pupilless place that they were about to go to seemed less scary and frightening.
Everything is getting better.
[Small fish is better]
[Can be sour or sweet]
[I am a mobile granary, and I also know how to carry sugar with me. I am a good fish.]
[The fight is about to start, it's time for me to masturbate and replenish my sugar intake. ]
The tentacle that calls itself the master enthusiastically hooked Ni Ji's long legs and was about to go around upwards.
There was a slight smell of alcohol from the chocolate in the air.
This reminded the tentacles of what they heard after drinking.
Recall the image of the sentinel’s traumatized spirit.
I remembered that the damn guy might have done something bad in my appearance in the mental illusion.
The unruly tentacles let go of Ni Ji helplessly, like eggplants hit by frost.
They were unhappy, entangled with each other, and twisted back and forth on the beach, swearing and swearing.
The sentry was mentally prepared to be bullied by them if they climbed up.
Seeing the tentacles suddenly change their behavior and loosen their legs, he was very surprised and looked puzzled.
[Xiaoyu, don't use that expression, woo woo.]
[I want to play with you]
[It’s ok, we don’t know anything]
[I did not take advantage of you to get your confession while you were drunk. ]
[We will take good care of you when we go to the Land of No Pupils this time.]
[Don’t let others bully you anymore]
(End of this chapter)