Borrowing a sword

Chapter 178 Would you be willing to become my Daoist partner?
At the wooden table, Han Shuangjiang listened to Chu Huaixu's words, and her beautiful eyes couldn't help but tremble slightly.

There's no way around it; those who possess the fearless spirit of swordsmanship naturally dare to take a straightforward approach.

We young men should be more spirited, what are we timid about!

The key point is that the guy who ranked second on the "Must-Eat for Playing with Your Partner" list did an excellent job of setting up the story beforehand.

We're not reckless fools; on the contrary, he's even an expert in the art of being a male scheming womanizer.

The dead fox is starting to exert its power!

Han Shuang instinctively looked away.

"That's what I said when I was sober," those words exploded in her mind!
This is sometimes how the tug-of-war between men and women works.

Her emotions have been fluctuating since last night.

During breakfast today, Chu Huaixu acted as if he had a blackout again, as if he had turned his back on everything, which made my emotions fluctuate even more.

All of this makes this last sentence seem extremely sudden.

But it was precisely this thing that made her heart race, her heart flutter like a deer.

For a moment, she didn't know how to respond.

In fact, despite his appearance, Chu Huaixu was actually a little nervous.

I'm not afraid and I have a thick skin, but I can get nervous too.

Deep down, they are actually somewhat insecure in certain aspects.

This may involve their previous family, background, experiences, etc.

Otherwise, given Chu Huaixu's usual personality, why would he be such a vindictive person?
Han Shuangjiang's background was actually even worse.

In fact, if you observe people from humble backgrounds and those born into wealth, even if they both achieve great things and stand at the same level, the feeling and style they give off may be very different.

The large ice block was even a little scared at this moment.

After drinking too much last night, she tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep.

She was having all sorts of wild thoughts.

"Chu Huaixu doesn't really understand me completely, does he?"

"He actually knew nothing about my past."

"If he knew"

That night, Han Shuangjiang thought about many things.

Some feelings of inferiority can stay with a person for life.

But ironically, love can also make people more insecure.

Even the dignified female lead of "Borrowing a Sword" is hesitant and indecisive at this moment.

Just like in one episode of the popular sitcom "My Own Swordsman," the situation between Bai Zhantang and Tong Xiangyu.

"One thinks she's a thief, and the other is a young lady. The other thinks she's a widow, and the other is a master thief."

When you like someone, you often see many of their strengths, but you also see many of your own weaknesses.

For some reason, Han Shuang's left hand, which was resting under the table, unconsciously touched her waist.

She always had a red string tied around her waist.

That was something that "mother" tied on her when she was at [Hongxiuzhao].

This is the last vestige of dignity for women in brothels.

Wearing a red rope around one's waist signifies that one is not completely naked.

"It's just self-deception!"

Han Shuangjiang never cut it because this stubborn girl wanted to use it to constantly remind herself that she must have the ability to control her own destiny!

But at that moment, she suddenly felt as if the rope was getting hot.

It burned her skin.

It burned her flesh.

The heat made her heart tighten.

The girl put down her chopsticks, lowered her head slightly, and dared not look at Chu Huaixu.

Her eyes dimmed slightly as she whispered:
"Chu Huaixu, actually... we don't know anything about each other's past."

The two of them have always tacitly avoided discussing these matters.

However, there are many things we can't talk about with Chu Huaixu; he's a time traveler.

Han Shuangjiang, however, did not want to talk about it.

“You know almost nothing about my background or my past,” she continued, talking to herself.

Upon hearing this, Chu Huaixu thought to himself, "I know."

He does know almost everything.

But he naturally chose not to say.

Moreover, he didn't think his past experiences were any better.

Chu Huaixu had always suspected that the big ice block might be a rather broken person at heart.

Otherwise, they wouldn't be so cold, so strong-willed, so stubborn, and so involutionary and somewhat inefficient.

People like this might always think: It's too hard for people who love me to pick up the pieces and piece me back together, making me whole again.

Little did they know, there would always be someone picking through the pile while muttering, "This piece is mine, this piece is mine too. Hehe, they're all mine."

Chu Huaixu looked at her and put down his chopsticks as well.

He asked, "What exactly are you trying to say?"

That damn woman, she's pretty stubborn, huh!
Han Shuangjiang met his gaze, and finally stubbornly raised her head, daring to meet his eyes.

She looked directly into Chu Huaixu's eyes, her left hand still resting on the red rope under the table.

"Chu Huaixu, perhaps I'm not as good as you imagine." The girl spoke, still stubbornly meeting his gaze, even though her pupils trembled slightly. Seeing her stubbornness again, the dead fox decided to end the match.

The morning sunlight shone on his shoulders and face.

He looked into her eyes and said earnestly:
"Even if you're not that perfect, I already like you a lot."

Outside the bamboo house, Han Shuangjiang felt like her brain was about to explode!
All sounds from the outside world seemed to have been silenced at that moment.

She could only hear her own heartbeat.

"Plop——!"

“Plop—plop—!”

The red rope around her waist was still there, but the red rope on her heart had been severed by the young man sitting opposite her with a single sword stroke.

Stubborn as she was, she suddenly dared not meet his gaze again. From beginning to end, the dead fox had the upper hand.

Because he's not a coward, he's even braver.

"Chu Huaixu, if you understand me better in the future, and know my past, you can too."

However, he interrupted her directly.

"You're so young, why are you so long-winded?" he said irritably.

"But I understand the meaning of the first half of what you said." A smile appeared on the dead fox's face, and the slight tension in his heart disappeared.

Upon hearing this, the girl looked up, a hint of shyness and embarrassment in her eyes, and said irritably, "What do you understand!"

"Anyway, I understood." Chu Huaixu picked up his chopsticks and, as usual, began to eat his breakfast.

"Eat, eat, eat! All you ever think about is eating!" the girl muttered to herself.

Then, for some inexplicable reason, I smiled.

Once that thin layer of paper was pierced, even the most ordinary meal took on a slightly different flavor.

After the meal, Han Shuangjiang washed the dishes as usual.

Chu Huaixu looked at her and sent her a [Information Detection] message.

"Huh? You've already reached the second level of the second realm so quickly?" He was somewhat surprised.

"Well, actually, I felt that suppressing my cultivation level was a bit difficult during the Eastern Continent Grand Competition, and I urgently needed a second-stage cultivation technique to break through," she said.

After saying that, she looked up at Chu Huaixu and asked, puzzled, "Don't you feel that way?"

Chu Huaixu: What can I possibly say?!

He can even rely on the system's features to stay stuck at a certain level forever!
Therefore, people like him are indeed the most suitable candidates to enter the first few levels of the [Original Spirit Realm].

Of course, the premise is that while he is holding the level cap, he also needs to be able to improve his overall strength.

But the dead fox said, "I am exceptionally talented, so suppressing my cultivation level is naturally extremely difficult."

"Then why don't you go to the library to exchange for the second volume of the Daoist Canon?" Han Shuangjiang asked.

She was unaware that Chu Huaixu was heading to the [Origin Spirit Realm].

"Because the sect leader and the others have another task for me to do, I must remain in the first realm."

“They won’t let me say the specifics. But I think you’ll find out sooner or later,” he said.

Han Shuangjiang was very clever; she could guess something from just these few words.

She vaguely realized that perhaps the East-West Continent Grand Competition was also related to what he was about to do?
"Will it be dangerous?" Big Ice Block asked with concern.

"Yes," Chu Huaixu replied.

He didn't hide anything, saying, "According to that old... cough cough, according to my junior grandmaster, even Xiao Xu, who wields a sword in his right hand, might not be able to handle it."

Upon hearing this, Han Shuangjiang immediately understood the level of danger.

"Then you..." she hesitated.

However, Chu Huaixu put on an act and said, "So you understand now, right? Who else but me!"

He continued eating his breakfast heartily, then added, "Don't worry, I'll be careful in everything."

"Hmm." She nodded in satisfaction.

Watching her virtuous demeanor as she washed the dishes, Chu Huaixu couldn't help but ask, "Do you still have enough sect contribution points?"

"That's enough. I didn't use any contribution points to exchange for cultivation techniques in the library," Han Shuangjiang replied.

This is her reward for achieving third place in the Eastern Continent.

Now, she has learned almost all the spells, and these profound-level spells are more than enough for her at this stage.

Her cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds, and she didn't need to take elixirs like Xiao Xu.

Overall, I haven't really needed many sect contribution points lately, so there's no need for high spending.

"Tell me if you need anything. In the early stages, focus on cultivating as efficiently as possible. Don't waste your time and energy on other things," Chu Huaixu said.

"Okay." Han Shuangjiang nodded: "As for the contribution points I owe you, I should be able to pay them back soon once I reach the third realm."

"Do we really need to calculate this so precisely?" Chu Huaixu chuckled.

“It’s different.” The big ice block had its own principles.

The dead fox didn't take it too seriously at all.

Their revolutionary friendship has actually been elevated to a higher level today.

And there will certainly be other places where it will be elevated in the future.

As the head of a family of three, he always believed that a family doesn't need two people who are so good at making money!
Anyway, he makes money easily, so he treats the medicine cauldron like a beast of burden.

He wouldn't really be so calculating with Han Shuangjiang.

"It's just a mountain of debt."

"If things go smoothly, they'll pay the price sooner or later."

(P.S.: First update, please vote with monthly tickets!)

　This is practically writing from my comfort zone.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)