I really don't want to date a girl addicted to the internet!

"By what right do you order me around? Get to the bottom of who is whose servant."

"If someone truly has the awareness to be my master, they should be the one to satisfy me."

"Does the brain of aquatic mammals become increasingly insane over time? I can't understand the logic behind that."

"Anyway, I want to see that you've saved it in your photo album next time."

"I've already deleted the chat history, so I don't know where to save it."

"This is easy, I'll send you another copy."

*Selfie

"Cheng Fei!"

The boy put down his phone, dried himself off, changed into dry clothes, and then slowly put on his infiltration helmet and lay down.

……

The teardrop-shaped airship sails through an unknown area of ​​the sea of ​​clouds, like a lonely little dot suspended between heaven and earth, facing the moon in the sky.

As Cheng Fei opened his eyes on the floor of the driver's cab, a small foot in a white boot stepped hard on him.

Shen Xi and Nagasaki Asuna were carrying Miriam's character down to the lower decks like they were moving corpses.

Leia was doing the same thing, taking Zhou Han and Ruan Jingyi off by tucking them under her armpits.

The shadow crouched in the corner, watching from the sidelines.

After the group finished moving the equipment and returned to the driver's seat, Cheng Fei looked at Shen Xi and asked, "Teacher Shen, if I remember correctly, I was sitting in the corner before I logged off, right?"

"Oh, so what?" Shen Xi said indifferently.

"Why did I run into the middle of the road and get stepped on?" the boy asked, puzzled.

"Because I just want to stomp on you, you piece of trash, a few times, is there a problem?" Shen Xi raised her chin, casting a cold gaze at him.

"No problem, but have you noticed that you've become more violent and cold towards me lately? You're losing the elegant and reserved demeanor you had when we first met, no matter how much I went too far, you were never the kind of lady who would act politely and reservedly."

"I'm just treating you, this complete marine trash, in the most appropriate way. Besides, you're the one who thinks I'm sarcastic after only meeting me once. I've never been the kind of person you described from the beginning. Stop with your ridiculous moral blackmail and clumsy brainwashing rhetoric. If I'm polite to you, this perpetually unrestrained Cheng Feiyu, I don't know what outrageous things you'll do to me. I'm not that stupid." Shen Xi glared at him fiercely.

"Okay, even though it's complete paranoia, she really is always as alert as a clever little animal." The boy looked at her with a doting expression.

Shen Xi narrowed her eyes and frowned slightly, her disgust palpable.

“Gentlemen, I know you’re eager to chat, but since we’ve come all this way, let’s get down to business first,” Nagasaki Asuna casually joined the conversation.

“That’s right, we can discuss it at the next meeting, Professor Shen.” Cheng Fei nodded.

"I've already said this is the week's routine meeting, so some people don't need to pretend," Shen Xi sneered.

"Teacher Shen, what's wrong with you...?"

"You two!" Nagasaki Asuna interrupted, her tone slightly more forceful, and let out a small sigh.

Leia and Shadow, standing nearby, glanced back and forth at the two who kept talking, as if it were commonplace.

"Okay, I'll shut up." Cheng Fei paused. "So what's the important matter again?"

“I’ll handle this this time.” Nagasaki Asuna pondered for a moment with her hands behind her back. “I’ll be frank, Rhea, you’re actually the saintess of the elves, right?”

At this moment, the group was standing by the map table in the cockpit. As soon as they finished speaking, even Shadow looked at Leia.

The elven girl's eyes flickered, and she clenched her fist, taking a half-step back. "You knew from the very beginning?"

Asuna Nagasaki shook her head. "It was an imperial nobleman who told us. He paid us to rescue you and send you out of the imperial airspace."

“Imperial nobles…” Leia frowned slightly.

“Don’t recognize him? A young man named Hysen, with a katana at his waist, and a red-haired familiar.” Cheng Fei gestured.

Leia paused for a second, "I saw him, but I thought he was an enemy, so I avoided him."

374. Rhea is not competent.

"Teacher Shen, are all your elves so wary?" Cheng Fei asked, turning his head.

"You're talking nonsense." Shen Xi squinted and kicked him.

“Anyway, if you have no objections, we’ll send you here.” Nagasaki Asuna’s finger moved across the entire map of Elconis. “Windwhisper Harbor, at the border between the Empire and the Iris Federation.”

Leia bit her lip, staring intently at the map without saying a word for a long time.

"Is there a problem?" Nagasaki Asuna tilted her head.

“I want to know why we went to this place,” Leia said softly.

“The reason? That’s simple. Windwhisper Harbor has a branch of the Merchant Corner, which makes it convenient for us to collect our mission rewards.” Nagasaki Asuna pointed to the sky map. “In addition, our goal is to reach the canopy of the World Tree. The best route is to cross the Imperial airspace, but if we go that way now, we’ll definitely die a horrible death, so we have no choice but to detour through the Federation’s airspace.”

Leia hesitated for a moment, "Why go to the canopy?"

“We’re looking for the world’s largest ancient ruins, just like we told you before, remember?” Nagasaki Asuna stared at her.

Leia lowered her head and fell into a new silence.

"Teacher Shen, it seems like she's thinking about something important." Cheng Fei covered his mouth with one hand.

"Shut up, anyone can see it." Shen Xi kicked him.

"Could you be... survivors of the ancient ruins?" Leia asked softly.

"Huh? Why do you ask that?" Nagasaki Asuna tilted her head.

“Because you not only know how to manipulate ruins and relics, but the magic you use is also ancient magic.” Leia’s complicated gaze swept over the three of them.

"Is this what ancient magic is?" Cheng Fei made a shooting motion.

“No, it’s that.” Leia pointed to the staffs on Shen Xi and Nagasaki Asuna’s bodies.

"Is this ancient magic?" Nagasaki Asuna picked up the staff and examined it.

Leia nodded. "According to ancient elven records, ancient magic is magic that anyone can activate with the help of a staff, and whose power is like that of the elven holy-level magic."

"I see." Cheng Fei said seriously. "By the way, what is Saint-level magic?"

“Saint-level magic is magic that can only be mastered by each generation of Saintess…” Rhea said, turning her face away and her eyes becoming evasive.

"I see." Cheng Fei stroked his chin. "Then the power doesn't seem to be particularly great, right, Teacher Shen?"

"Do you have to drag me into every single thing you say?" Shen Xi glared at him.

"Not every word was said, and besides, Nana, you're upset again."

"Shut up."

“Because I actually…” Leia clenched her fist and looked up.

"What's wrong? You can tell me anything." Nagasaki Asuna looked at her.

"Although I am the saintess of this generation... I do not know how to use holy-level magic." The elven girl lowered her head, her face showing signs of flushing.

There was a moment of silence in the driver's cab.

Cheng Fei stroked his chin. "So, did your people all laugh at you, and you were so ashamed that you fled here alone from the World Tree?"

“Cheng Fei, I think it would be better to be more tactful in this situation,” Nagasaki Asuna said in a low voice.

“I didn’t run away.” Leia looked up abruptly. “Legend has it that the first Holy Maiden gained power deep within the roots of the World Tree, so I decided to give it a try.”

"So it was a pilgrimage, I understand." Cheng Fei nodded.

Nagasaki Asuna immediately flipped through the aerial maps at different altitudes, pondered for a moment, and said, "If we're going to the roots of the World Tree, let me see. That means you'll have to go to the lowest level of the airspace, while we're going to the highest level. In that case, you'll have to disembark at Wind Whisper Harbor and figure out a way yourself."

“Actually, the largest ancient ruins aren’t on the World Tree,” Leia said, looking at her.

"Huh? Where is it?" Nagasaki Asuna blinked and looked into Leia's eyes.

“Legend has it that beneath the roots of the World Tree lies a passage connecting to the Elven Sanctuary, which is filled with ancient ruins,” Leia said softly.

"You're not trying to scam us out of our boat tickets, are you?" Cheng Fei raised an eyebrow.

“There are many ruins distributed on the crown of the World Tree, but the Elven Sanctuary is entirely composed of ruins. The Sanctuary is also where the first Holy Maiden obtained her power. That’s all I know,” Leia said through gritted teeth with a subtle expression.

The trio looked at each other.

"Nana, is what she said true or false?" Cheng Fei asked suspiciously.

“At least she believes it’s true, but the legend might be false.” Nagasaki Asuna tapped her chin lightly with her fingertip.

Leia opened her mouth.

"Teacher Shen, what do you think?" Cheng Fei turned his head.

Shen Xi asked expressionlessly, "How long will it take to reach the tree crown and roots respectively?"

Asuna Nagasaki flipped through the aerial map. "After all, we're already in the upper levels, so going to the canopy is definitely closer, about a month? Going to the roots would probably take more than twice that distance, depending on the specific route and the supply points along the way."

"So it's either one or the other." Shen Xi frowned, pinching her chin.

"Why choose between two options? Let's go to the canopy first, and if we don't find anything, we'll just parachute down to the roots." Cheng Fei shrugged.

“Um, Cheng Fei, navigating the crash site isn’t that simple.” Nagasaki Asuna hesitated before speaking.

"Those who were absent from the research on the airship should shut up. Making such ignorant remarks only makes them look extremely stupid. But whatever, Cheng Feiyu is extremely stupid anyway." Shen Xi rubbed her temples.

"Huh? There are settings for this?" The boy looked bewildered.

“Cheng Fei, the descent of the airship will cause the Light Magic Core to heat up, so it cannot descend too much in a short time. Therefore, a flight path needs to be planned from the upper airspace to the lower airspace. I will explain it to you in detail later if you want to know more,” Nagasaki Asuna said softly.

"It's one thing for that vixen to make trouble over there again, but let's focus on the main issue now. Which side should we go over there first?" Shen Xi said coldly.

“It seems like a difficult choice. How about we hold a vote?” Nagasaki Asuna looked at the two of them.

Cheng Fei nodded, "Then I'll throw it at the tree root."

"Reason?" Shen Xi frowned.

“Obviously.” Cheng Fei turned his head. “Leya, what’s your pendant for?”

The elven girl paused for a moment, then picked up the silver triangle on her chest. "This is a token passed down through generations of saintesses. It is said to be able to open a passage to the Holy Realm."

"That settles it. You see, she even has a key, which means the Holy Domain is most likely real." Cheng Fei spread his hands, looking completely unsurprised.

"You already knew the purpose of that pendant?" Shen Xi stared at him with a puzzled look.

"It was just a guess, but I didn't expect to be right." The boy straightened his back.

"He's just putting on an act again." Shen Xi narrowed her eyes slightly.

“Then I also agree to go to the tree roots first, since that way we can travel together with Leia and help each other.” Nagasaki Asuna raised her hand.

The elven girl looked at her.

Shen Xi paused for a moment, then said, "It's decided then. We'll change our target to the roots of the World Tree."

"Teacher Shen, you're not using the veto power?" Cheng Fei asked in surprise.

375. The Shadow Yearns for Freedom

"Why should I veto it?" Shen Xi frowned slightly, looking puzzled.

"Because you're a rebellious kid, and you get jealous whenever I get close to any member of the opposite sex," Cheng Fei said seriously, looking at her little face.

"You're spouting disgusting nonsense again. Please get this straight: it's you, Cheng Feiyu, who's been defying me illogically all day long. Besides, nobody here cares who you get close to, and nobody's jealous. I advise you to give up these ridiculous fantasies as soon as possible." Shen Xi kicked him viciously.

"Disobedience? That's quite an arrogant way of putting it. Teacher Shen, you're becoming more and more like an empress."

"Shut up."

"The word 'shut up' is becoming more and more like something an empress would say."

"Shut up."

As the two were talking, Nagasaki Asuna turned her smiling gaze to Leia, "So you heard it too, we can go to the roots of the World Tree with you, as long as you don't object."

“…Thank you.” Leia opened her mouth and then closed it again, finally managing to utter only two words.