"Woo-hoo"
The cold wind slapped Lucian's face wildly.
Not long after taking off, Chixia caught up to him.
"Heh heh, daring to race against Jinzhou's Speedster? You've got some nerve!"
"Jinzhou's Speedster? That title won't do."
"Jinzhou's Speedster won't do? I worked hard to come up with that! What do you think would be better then?"
An old man on the ground watched as the man and woman flew through the air and couldn't help but sigh: "Ah, youth..."
Lucian laughed loudly three times: "From now on, call me Spider-Man!"
"Spider... what?" The two were flying so fast that the roaring wind drowned out Chixia's hearing. She didn't quite catch it.
"I am Peter Parker!"
Lucian's face was full of excitement. He never expected that in this world, he could actually swing from rooftops like Spider-Man.
The two chased each other, their destination now in sight.
But...
"Hey, wait! How do I get down!?"
Lucian suddenly realized there were no more Grapples ahead, which meant he was about to free-fall from a great height.
"You can use an Echo glider from the gourd!" Chixia shouted urgently from behind, but unfortunately, Lucian didn't hear her.
"Ahhh—I haven't even gotten married yet!" Lucian closed his eyes in despair.
But the moment he finished speaking, the expected pain didn't come. Instead, he felt a warm sensation enveloping him.
Lucian cautiously opened one eye and saw that Chixia was holding him in her arms, her other hand gripping an Echo glider.
Lucian took the opportunity to wrap his arms around Chixia's slender waist, twisting his body in lingering fear.
Chixia's face flushed red: "Stop squirming..."
Hearing this, Lucian held her even tighter.
The two descended slowly, and at that moment, the system's voice chimed in.
[Option 1 Completed: Acquired Talent 'Language Mastery']
[Language Mastery: Can communicate with any living being in the world, even Echoes!]
[Option 3 Completed: Obtained a bowl of Jinzhou stew!]
Lucian was puzzled: "How did I both win and draw? Is the system bugged?"
[Theoretically, you should have face-planted and won, but Chixia saved you, resulting in a draw. Based on this, you get double rewards!]
"System, you truly are a just and righteous lord..."
[...]
Chixia's face was still flushed.
"Chixia, words cannot express my gratitude. I've decided to offer myself to you!"
Before she could react, Lucian cupped Chixia's lovely face in his hands and slowly leaned in.
At that moment, a passing white-haired old man silently put on his reading glasses:
"Good heavens! These youngsters!"
Hearing the voices around them, Chixia snapped back to reality and pushed against Lucian's chest.
She brushed her hair aside, stealing a shy glance at Lucian, who looked at her with regret.
"Isn't this... progressing... a bit too fast...?" Chixia stammered.
The white-haired old man on the roadside, seeing the two separate, suddenly widened his eyes:
"Oh! Isn't this Patrol Officer Chixia!"
Chixia turned toward the voice: "Ah! Uncle Zhang!"
She hurried over: "Uncle Zhang, you were the one who asked for help earlier, right?"
Uncle Zhang hunched over, his voice hoarse: "Yes! My Mao Mao has gone missing. Patrol Officer Chixia, could you help me look for her? Mao Mao is mischievous and doesn't know any better—I'm worried something might happen to her!"
Lucian walked over as well: "Mao Mao? A cat?"
"Yes! Young man, are you here to help too? You look like a fine fellow you and Patrol Officer Chixia make a good pair."
Lucian grinned smugly, wrapping an arm around Chixia's shoulder: "You flatter me. I'm here to help too!"
Chixia patted Lucian's chest: "Alright, you've had your fun. Let's hurry and find Mao Mao."
"But... where should we look?" Chixia scratched her head, at a loss. Searching for animals was always troublesome.
"Leave it to me!" Lucian smiled mysteriously.
This was the perfect chance to test his newly acquired talent.
Lucian walked over to a large yellow dog by the roadside and patted its head.
"Kon'nichiwa?"
"Woof!"
[Is this human talking to me?]
"I am talking to you."
"Woof woof!" The yellow dog jumped back in surprise.
[You can actually understand me!?]
Lucian stroked the dog's chin: "Do you know Mao Mao?"
"Woof!"
[Mao Mao? Oh~ You mean that orange cat who's been messing around with Āfú, right?]
"Āfú?" Lucian's face lit up with gossipy interest. "How exactly are they messing around?"
The yellow dog stuck out its tongue excitedly: "Woof woof woof!"
[I'll tell you, but don't spread it to other dogs! This is my exclusive scoop! I could milk this for life!]
"Don't worry, my lips are sealed. In the martial world, they call me Lucian the Vault!"
"Woof!"
[It was a dark and stormy night. I saw with my own eyes Āfú mounting Mao Mao's back...]
Just then, Chixia suddenly popped up behind them.
"Lucian, what are you whispering about with the dog?"
"Ahem!"
The yellow dog took the hint and immediately clamped its mouth shut.
"Yellow, actually, I was asking if you know where Mao Mao went?"
"Woof!"
[I know, I know! This morning, I saw her heading toward that Relic Hunter's place!]
"Relic Hunter?" Lucian turned to Chixia: "Do you know where the Relic Hunter is?"
"Relic Hunter? You mean Uncle Chenpi's place?" Chixia was stunned. "Did the dog tell you that? You can do that?"
"Of course! I am Spider-Man!"
Lucian then walked over to Uncle Zhang: "Sir, is your Mao Mao the one who's been messing around with Āfú?"
"How did you know!?" Uncle Zhang was shocked. Almost no one in Jinzhou knew about this. "She's even pregnant now! Do you already know where Mao Mao is?"
Excellent! The yellow dog didn't lie!
But Lucian didn't expect the yellow dog to follow him and eavesdrop.
The dog tugged impatiently at Lucian's pants leg: "Woof woof!!"
[You said you were a vault!?]
Lucian smirked triumphantly: "You only said not to tell other dogs. You never said anything about humans."
The yellow dog froze, then bared its teeth at Lucian. For the first time, it understood the cruelty of society.
"Woof!"
[I might not be human, but you're truly a dog!]
Lucian shuddered: "How did you know I'm Magistrate Jinhsi's dog? Have you been on the Jinzhou Forum too?"
"?"
Lucian couldn't help but sigh. No wonder they say you never know who's behind the screen even this yellow dog surfs the web.
Chixia: "Alright, since we don't have any other leads, I'll trust you this once! Let's go!"
She grabbed Lucian's hand and pulled him away. Before leaving, Lucian patted the yellow dog's head.
"Yellow, don't look at your phone too much. It's bad for your eyes."
"???"