I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

Now that he seemed so knowledgeable, it only fueled her curiosity.

"Well, the reason I came here this time, besides visiting my younger sister, is to talk to you about this."

"Looking for me? And stop being so disgusting, can't you speak properly?"

The artist raised an eyebrow, feeling quite uncomfortable with Nian's inexplicably intimate attitude.

"Tch, if a newbie said that, you wouldn't find it nauseating, would you?"

"If it were him, I would have just knocked him out."

"Alright, hurry up and explain what you're all busy with?"

The girl wiped away her playful smile, straightened her face, and then slowly told the painter what her brother had told her.

"What! Why me?"

The artist's face showed a rare expression of surprise.

"Not just you, we all have to go into slumber."

With his hands tucked into his chest, his words revealed a sense of helplessness.

"Is this what he's been busy with? What does this have to do with him?"

"It's related to nature."

Nian pointed to the ground with one finger.

“If we want to go into hibernation, we must hand over all the work we have. None of this work is easy, and there are very few brothers and sisters as relaxed as you and me. Either they have already stepped down, or they simply haven’t taken on any work.”

"These jobs aren't something you can just throw away. If you don't find a suitable person to take over, the chaos and trivial matters that follow will keep Xiaobai sitting in that broken seat all day."

"If he has to do everything, is that dragon just there to freeload?"

"Hey, hey, don't say that. They're blood relatives after all. It wouldn't be good for you if other people heard that."

Nian was almost about to reach out and cover Xi's mouth.

Such words cannot be spoken in this Dragon Palace covered by Lin Yu.

"Humph."

Xi gave a soft hum and didn't say anything more.

"But... is he confident?"

"It will definitely succeed. Little White's current strength far surpasses that of the old man. The living old man is already hesitant to act against his own kind, let alone the dead old man."

"Little White will definitely be able to hang that old man up and beat him. He'll give us a good venting of our anger."

"..."

Despite the various guarantees he received throughout the year, Ah Xi spoke so casually as if he were just going to have a meal with an old man.

"Hey, don't always treat Xiaobai like a child. He's a mature adult now. He might even know more than you do."

Nian always felt that her younger sister was too cautious and timid, which was not good for the child's growth.

"No matter how much he knows, he wouldn't dare to put on airs like a dragon king in front of me."

Xi's expression was unusually high-spirited and smug.

"Yes, yes, my little sister is the most amazing, she's like a dragon-slaying immortal descended to earth."

He gave her perfunctory praise.

What's there to brag about?

"but……"

Nian seemed to have thought of something, and a hint of worry appeared on her face.

"But what? If there's anything else, say it all at once."

Xi looked rather young. Just a moment ago she seemed so confident, how come her attitude changed so drastically after a few words?

"I'm not worried about Xiaobai. But I'm worried about us."

"..."

Upon hearing this, the two looked at each other in silence.

"So that's why we're told to leave the capital and find our own places to rest?"

After a while, Xi asked again.

She already had the answer in her heart, but asking it aloud felt like she had received the answer from Nian, which made her feel better.

"Yes."

Nian leaned back in his chair, head resting on his arm, looking unhappy.

"If the old thing is threatened, it will definitely fight tooth and nail to kill us and regain its full strength so that it can awaken from the virtual realm and return to the real world. If we die before Xiaobai defeats it, then we really will never come back to life."

"Those who survive are new 'brothers and sisters,' strangers."

"We are one, twelve brothers and sisters, none of whom can be replaced."

Even an ant can try to shake a tree (Part 2)

"..."

Xi stared at her without saying a word.

This older sister isn't usually very reliable, but her intentions... are both a good thing and a bad thing.

"Are you going to say next, 'I'll go and fight the old man first'?"

"It was me... Sigh, I actually guessed it. No wonder we're sisters, you really understand me."

A smile reappeared on Nian's face, a smile that was both joyful and bittersweet.

"If you actually do that, you'll be the first one to die."

Xi lowered her voice, her chill directed straight at Nian.

"There's nothing we can do; we are, after all, a part of Him. How can a part resist the whole?"

"We must fight the old thing together. Only in this way can we have any chance of coming back alive."

"Just like you said, there are twelve of us, and none of us can be missing."

Xi interrupted Nian, stopping her from continuing her pessimism.

"That being said... if we get together... we might actually die more."

The old man is a unified entity; even if they band together, they still can't defeat him. If they were sent out one by one, they might be able to hold out until daylight to break the deadlock. But if they were grouped together, and the old man found a slight opening, three or four of them could die in an instant.

"I know."

Xi looked at the portrait of Bai Zhou that she had secretly drawn on the table and suddenly laughed out loud.

“You know what, just the other day, my silly Ah Xi was discussing with me how fun married life would be.”

“I didn’t give him an answer at the time because I was used to living alone, and over the years I felt that the signs of leaving were becoming more and more obvious. If I happily agreed to his request, but I had only been with him for a few years... or even a few months before I died, wouldn’t that have harmed him?”

"In retrospect, this caution was actually a good thing."

"I never made any promises to him, and even if I die, I will not regret it."

“Silly Ah Xi… Time will erase all information about me from his mind. A thousand years from now, when he talks about me again, he might think of me as just a familiar stranger who saved his life.”

"Sigh. If there's nothing else, you can go now. I... have a gift to prepare for him, so I don't have time to chat with you."

Xi picked up her brush, dipped it in ink, and began to depict what was in her heart.

"Okay, I still need to find other people. I'm off."

"No delivery."

The door creaked as it closed, and once again the painter was alone in the room.

She stopped writing, staring at the blank paper, lost in thought.

■

"Sir, I'm back. Whew, I'm exhausted."

As Bai Zhou pushed open the door, he rubbed his shoulders and called out to Xi.

"Yes, dinner has just arrived. Please sit down and eat with us."

The painter in cyan had already taken his seat. Under the gentle light, his once cold eyes now held a hint of warmth, as if he had shed his aloofness and become bright and cheerful.

"Sir, did something joyous happen today?"

Bai Zhou knew that the painter of this pose was in a very good mood at that moment.

"It's not exactly a happy occasion, but it's certainly not a regrettable one either."

"Hmm? Please tell me, sir. I would like to know your joy and share it with you."

"Let's go out and have some fun, Ah Xi."

"Go and see the mountains, lakes, wonders, and human world of this Great Yan."

"Only us."

"Leave politics alone, without any official status, simply go out as an ordinary citizen. Just like... we did at the beginning."

The artist's eyes were filled with anticipation, and his words were full of supplication.

"...Sir, your request is certainly acceptable. However, I would like to trouble you to wait a little longer."

Bai Zhou was naturally willing. He had been extremely busy these past few days. None of the tasks under the command of the Twelve Immortals were easy. The effort and energy required to complete the handover completely and smoothly was enough to make Bai Zhou resign and never want to be this troublesome Dragon Lord again.

Therefore, he naturally wouldn't let go of the opportunity to go out with the painter. Moreover, after he dealt with the immortal god, he could travel with the painter with even more peace of mind.

"No, Ah Xi, the travel time I'm referring to is after you've dealt with their matters."

The artist's words startled Bai Zhou.

So... it's because Sister Nian and the others haven't been communicating with Mr. Nian?

"Sir, I suppose you don't know, I..."