Love, Gun, Cupid

"Thank you for your advice, but I won't. Take care of yourself too," Kapok said.

Kane nodded and left. Lin Jiade closed the door again, exchanged a glance with Hehuan, and said, "There's something I need to tell you."

"Go ahead and speak."

“Among the eight remaining contestants in the knockout stage, at least one is your sister,” Lin Jiade said. “I didn’t say this before because I didn’t want to disturb your mindset.”

"...Ha, hedging, they really can do something like that."

Hehuan encouraged her good friend: "So you have to win, keep winning. As long as you win to the end, you will reap the rewards of freedom, happiness, and everything that people expect from you!"

Kapok clenched her fist: "Of course, we've already made it to the quarterfinals, I'm determined to win no matter what!"

That evening, Kapok took a helicopter to the airport and then flew back to Fuxing City without stopping. By noon on Sunday, they had seen this city, which was almost stagnant in its development and exuded an outdated and lazy atmosphere. Perhaps it could not compare with big cities, but it was a paradise for everyone who longed for a slow pace of life but was not idle.

The group of Kapok didn't sit idle on the plane either. Gladiolus and Reed Warbler analyzed information about Kapok's next opponent, Emerald Curtain, from their respective areas of expertise.

Lin Jiade had some impression of Cui Mu Fenglian because the contestant, the beautiful diamond elf Qi Yanli, said that she and Cui Mu Fenglian were both mixed-race goblins and victims of the lesbian Karsak.

Despite this less-than-honorable experience, both Qi Yanli and Cui Mufenglian made it into the top eight, proving themselves to be formidable opponents.

"This person is not easy to deal with," Jianlan said.

Cui Mufenglian's abilities are manifested in her amazing memory and learning ability. Like Murong Fu, she can quickly copy and paste her opponent's moves after seeing them, and then defeat her opponent with the moves that the opponent is good at, killing them and destroying their spirit.

While Cui Mu Fenglian's combat abilities are inferior to Tianlong's, Mu Mian's side cannot expect her team to make fatal mistakes like Tianlong's lover. By now, Cui Mu Fenglian has mastered three magic systems that she is proficient in using, specializing in physical enhancement, stacking debuffs on enemies, and long-range shooting.

Moreover, if Kapok cannot defeat Emerald Curtain Wind Curtain in the first instance during the battle, and her opponent learns her techniques, it will add variables to the battle.

Wei Ying crossed her arms and said, "What's so difficult about that? Since the opponent's ability is to copy, we can start by attacking the opponent with moves that are difficult for her to copy, and end the battle quickly before she can react."

“However, the Emerald Curtain can enhance the body and apply a debuff to Senior Kapok. With this increase and decrease, it’s probably unrealistic for Senior Kapok to end the battle in a short time,” Lin Jiade said.

"What's wrong with copying a little? After the power of the kapok tree reshapes itself, it repeatedly destroys and repairs itself, gradually increasing its strength in a safe way."

If Emerald Curtain Wind could truly transform herself into a sword body, she wouldn't be able to replicate the process of destruction and repair, thus significantly reducing her strength.

Lin Jiade retorted, "But after she learns it, she will be able to make some inferences about Senior Kapok's situation."

"Then let's take care of her before she makes any assumptions!"

"Senior Kapok's strength is insufficient to quickly resolve this!"

Lin Jiade suddenly realized that everyone was looking at him. Jianlan made a gesture to be quiet. Lin Jiade smiled awkwardly and looked around. Du Juan was flipping through a magazine. She seemed to notice his gaze and looked up at him with a friendly smile.

It's such a shame we can't rely on Miss Dujuan's wisdom at a time like this. Jasmine isn't here either, so she can't offer any advice... Dujuan, Jasmine?!

Lin Jiade suddenly had an idea. He walked over to Mu Mian and whispered, "I have an idea. If we can't stop Cui Mu Feng Lian from copying our moves, we can choose to let her copy something."

After a few seconds of silence, Kapok said, "I think I know what you're thinking, but I need to ask the organizing committee first."

Encouraged, Mu Mian opened her notebook to write emails, while Lin Jiade put on an eye mask to catch up on sleep. However, he was so excited about the idea he had come up with that he couldn't fall asleep at all. Just then, a wet and shy kiss landed on his lips.

"Thank you," said Kapok. "Please forgive my cowardice. Only at times like this do I have the courage to kiss you."

Chapter Sixty: Punishment

As expected, Kapok chose a time when no one was watching to kiss him, but his non-human companions saw everything clearly.

Gladiolus and Kapok were interrupted by the Hatter during their discussion about the sovereignty of Lin Jiade. They couldn't reach an agreement and weren't theoretically allies yet, so she took a picture and sent it to Jasmine with the comment "Local specialty."

In winter, Jasmine experienced symptoms similar to low blood pressure after waking up. It seemed that the photo of Lin Jiade kissing Kapok was enough to serve as a good remedy for Jasmine's low blood pressure for a period of time.

The kiss put Lin Jiade to sleep, but he wasn't completely asleep. In his half-awake state, he felt himself being kissed multiple times. Some of the kisses came from one person, while the rest were completely different. There was even a fool who tried to stick his tongue into his mouth, but his jaw rejected it, and he just licked his lips.

He was weak in his limbs and unable to open his eyes, so he could only let the hateful, infatuated women bully him. When he woke up again, he found himself sleeping in the back seat of Gladiolus.

"What's wrong with me?" he asked, still groggy.

"You've only slept four hours recently, you're too excited, keeping your already tired body active in a harmful way, so the kiss from Kapok is infused with a spell to help you get a good night's sleep... As for why she kissed you, that's probably her own selfish reason."

Lin Jiade touched his swollen lips: "Only she kissed you?"

"And me? What, did you have a wet dream?"

"No, no, no, it's just that my lips feel swollen and a little painful."

"It might be cheilitis? I suggest applying some lip balm."

She happened to have some Gladiolus, so after parking the car in the community parking lot, she first applied it to her lips, then held Lin Jiade's shoulder and kissed him. The cool sensation mixed with the sweet taste of the lipstick came over her.

Jianlan repeated it three times before finally letting Lin Jiade go, satisfied. The pain from the inflammation in Lin Jiade's mouth subsided, but during the kiss, another kind of inflammation was brewing inside him. He didn't need to say anything because Jianlan was very understanding.

Jasmine greeted Lin Jiade with an unfriendly attitude. Jianlan smiled but didn't say anything. She put down her suitcase and went to the water tap first. Lin Jiade nervously grabbed his pants and backed away when Jasmine approached.

She squinted at Lin Jiade for a while, then grabbed his shoulder and made him bend down. She stood on tiptoe, trying to reclaim the lost ground.

Lin Jiade said pitifully, "Jasmine, my lips are swollen, can we kiss later?"

"Kapok tree?" Jasmine asked.

Lin Jiade's eyes darted around: "Uh, maybe so. I'm not sure if it's just her."

"Thank you so much for curing my low blood pressure!"

"You're welcome, you're my girlfriend."

In matters like these, honesty and dishonesty lead to the same result. Lin Jiade checked Jasmine's homework and exam papers, and apart from some scraps of paper containing curses about the names of the kapok, cuckoo, and reed warbler, Jasmine's grades were steadily improving.

When Lin Jiade first tutored Jasmine in September, her grades were so good that getting into his alma mater was like Princess Jihad activating Black March – completely impossible. Now, Jasmine's chances are that she can activate two Thirteen Month series weapons simultaneously without going insane – possible, but quite difficult.

Lin Jiade turned around and saw Jasmine's profile as she read intently. He felt a surge of relief. He had cheated on Jasmine and would continue to do so in the future, which hurt Jasmine's heart, but he had also had many positive influences on her life.

Now, he thinks Jasmine's non-human identity is a good thing, because human women might tolerate their partners having other women, but it's hard to imagine how much love is involved.

Gladiolus brought over some fruit, and Lin Jiade breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she had changed her sweater, since eating alone could easily arouse Jasmine's jealousy.

"You've worked hard," Jianlan said, looking at Lin Jiade and Jasmine with a strange expression. "What do you mean by this?"

"My relationship with Jasmine is unbreakable!" Lin Jiade declared.

Jasmine, sitting on Lin Jiade's back, gently nudged Lin Jiade's ribs with her calf: "Quiet, you're disturbing me."

Lin Jiade lowered his head and remained silent, continuing to act as a human chair. Jasmine gently wrapped cushioning material around his left leg to prevent his left knee from suffering further damage from the punishment to come.

It wasn't until dinner that Jasmine let him go. Lin Jiade omitted several details that might have upset her and recounted his experiences in Pelican Town.

“That’s nothing new,” Jasmine said casually. “Last year, when I was working for the newly appointed governor of the 18 districts, I killed a contestant in the elimination rounds.”

"?"

"In order to climb up, people will do anything. The rule of not killing other humans is a red line in the elimination rounds. I am an alien, so I was sent to kill the rising stars of the governor's faction's opposing forces."

The former governor served a female elder named Hillary, and although there was no evidence, it was widely believed that she controlled a secret warband to eliminate her rivals.

So, assassination is practically part of this faction's corporate culture. Thanks to it, I have a terrible sense of humanity, and I still do... Oh, I forgot you like bad women, so telling you about this dark history of mine won't make you too…”

Jasmine stopped talking abruptly. He patted her head and said, "Don't be stubborn. We've worked so hard so that you can get rid of the past and not repeat it in the future."

"After living together for so many days, all I've improved is my ability to make people happy... but I'm willing to be fooled by you."

"Could you two please consider my feelings? I'm both relieved and tormented," Jianlan said.

Jasmine smoothly changed the subject: "What about those two who were eating and drinking for free?"

"They went to the supermarket. After all, they need to refer to real objects to achieve the best effect when they materialize clothes with energy. Senior Kapok, Senior Hehuan, and the senior students from other clubs went back to rest. It's quite tiring to travel back and forth once a week."

The two celestial beings fell to the ground the instant Lin Jiade finished speaking, startling him so much that he dropped his chopsticks. He looked down, his hand brushing against the edge of his skirt. He looked up and met the gaze of Wei Ying, whose hair was combed straight.

"I'm sorry," said Wei Ying.

"???"

Lin Jiade was puzzled, but after glancing at Wei Ying's attire, he still complimented her slightly. Wei Ying glanced at Jasmine, patted his shoulder, and walked away.

“She looks exactly like her sister,” Jasmine whispered.

"If you mean arrogance, then she was arrogant from the beginning... Ah, do you know about the priestess Diana and the King of the Forest?"

"I know a little about her. Diana's reputation is well-known among our alien races. What, you have your eye on that position?"

Since I can't schedule updates, I'm posting them all at once.

Chapter Sixty-One: No Mercy (Bonus Chapter)

Lin Jiade's interest in Priestess Diana mainly focuses on the oracle Diana gave the priestess, "inheritance." Procreation is the manifestation of inheritance, and Lin Jiade's motivation to become stronger is procreation.

His attack on Jasmine was only the first step in solving the problems in his and Jasmine's lives. Even if he broke through her defenses, the birth rate of humans and dragons was lower than that of human-human or dragon-dragon combinations, and Jasmine desperately wanted to have children.

The probability is too low, the goal remains the same, quantity will make up for it. Lin Jiade felt desperate at the thought of being penniless in the future. Only men with savings have confidence, so the most confident person in the world is a virgin who has never even been in a relationship.

However, the King of the Forest is burdened with the cruel fate of killing each other generation after generation, and Lin Jiade does not want to live in fear of being murdered, so he said, "I want to get the opportunity to negotiate with Diana and see if there is any other way to obtain the oracle."

Reed Warbler replied instantly: "You're dreaming. Although in a broad sense all the spells that we celestial observers give to humans are considered divine oracles, there are formal and informal ones."

Informally, like me, I might give you an oracle that allows you to use celestial weapons. Since I'm just saying it casually, the effect will probably only cover celestial toy guns, melee weapon practice equipment, and so on.

The formal one, such as the Oracle of Alternate Death you wear on your chest, is an amulet made by your sister by expending energy and sacrificing a part of her body (three feathers and one hair), which she then weaves according to her own characteristics (transformation and connection) for you to use. Only you can use it.

Most importantly, a formal oracle is based on a formal relationship. For example, if your sister gives you an oracle, it's because you and she are lovers who have entered into a contract.

Therefore, if you wish to request Diana to perform the inherited oracle, you must establish a formal relationship with her. To the best of my knowledge, Diana has not established any other formal relationships with anyone other than the priests.”

“So it’s just a thought,” Lin Jiade said. “If I can’t take shortcuts, I’ll have to work hard.”

A glimmer of light appeared in Jasmine's eyes. At Lin Jiade's age, he must have a strong aversion to having children, but for her sake, he still seriously considered the matter.

Jasmine's good mood lasted until Monday afternoon, when she saw her boyfriend being held captive by Kapok, her mood turned extremely bad. Driven by anger, her claws and tail clashed repeatedly with "Lin Jiade," sparking fierce flames.

Because Jasmine showed no mercy, and combined with Emerald Curtain's enhanced physical strength and the advantage gained from applying debuffs to her opponent, Mian received a high-quality training session. In fact, in the last few minutes before the end, Jasmine showed signs of fatigue, and Mian had a chance to defeat her. However, Jasmine's anger also ignited Mian's fury.

In terms of the order in which we met, I was the one who came first. The connection and understanding between us are no less than that of love. What right do you have to look at me like that?

Therefore, Kapok deliberately slowed down her offensive and tormented Jasmine during the garbage time. She also paid the price for this: when she was about to deliver the final blow to Jasmine, Jasmine suddenly exhaled a breath of fire that had been brewing for a long time, making Kapok smell the burning of her own hair.

Why should I argue with a stupid baby dragon? Mu Mian felt regretful, but when she saw Lin Jiade, who had returned to human form, check on Jasmine first, she couldn't help but feel jealous.

She raised her arm, palm facing Lin Jiade's back. If she wanted, Lin Jiade would obediently turn back into the sword in her hand. But looking at Lin Jiade's profile, Mu Mian's hand clenched, she slowly lowered her arm, and turned to leave.

Du Juan commented: "So you see, the kapok tree yearns for Lin Jiade, but cannot obtain him, and thus suffers. Suffering is part of love."

Jasmine knew that Lin Jiade wanted to help Kapok win, and she should have been on the same side as Lin Jiade, but jealousy made her rebel against Lin Jiade's arrangements. Rebellion is part of love.

Hehuan was initially just an observer, only wanting happiness for those she knew. However, changes in interpersonal relationships and increased contact awakened her feelings. She didn't understand them, but she succumbed to reality, becoming the affectionate woman she is now, ready to appear at any moment. Therefore, succumbing is also part of love.

"So, happiness belongs to the gladiolus then?" asked the reed warbler.

Du Juan shook her head: "I don't think Gladiolus can be happy. On the contrary, she should feel pain."