The night breeze gently ruffled the stray hairs on Cheng Xiaoyu's forehead.
He stood on the terrace of Moonlight Town, gazing at the shimmering sea in the distance, the Moonlight casting a silvery glow on the water, like sparkling broken silver.
A cold smile played on his lips, as if in self-mockery, yet also as if he had everything under control.
"Have a child? Give me a reason?" Tōtō's voice came from behind him, calm and devoid of any anger.
Cheng Xiaoyu slowly turned, his gaze falling upon the former Marine Rear Admiral before him.
She was now dressed in a light purple geisha outfit, lacking her usual heroic spirit but gaining a touch of alluring charm.
He chuckled softly, "Does having a child need a reason?"
Tōtō raised an eyebrow slightly and retorted, "Doesn't it?"
"Does it?" Cheng Xiaoyu countered again, a hint of playfulness in his tone.
Tōtō was momentarily speechless. After a moment of silence, she asked again, "Doesn't it?"
Cheng Xiaoyu didn't answer directly but threw the question back at her, "Then you tell me first, why did you resign from the Marine?"
Tōtō's pretty face flushed slightly. She hesitated, stammering for a long time before finally whispering, "It's all because..."
She didn't finish her sentence, but Cheng Xiaoyu already understood her meaning.
The smile in his eyes deepened. He took a step forward, approached Tōtō, and whispered, "Because of me?"
Tōtō didn't deny it; she just turned her head away, not daring to meet his gaze.
Seeing this, Cheng Xiaoyu didn't press further. Instead, he reached out and gently brushed away the stray hairs by her ear, saying softly, "Since you've already left the Marine, then stay by my side."
Tōtō looked up at his deep eyes, her heart filled with mixed emotions.
She was once a top performer in the Marine, with an limitless future.
She could have even taken over the position of Admiral, becoming the Marine's first female Admiral, but she gave up everything for him, to be an ordinary person.
"Do you really want to?" Tōtō asked softly, a trace of uncertainty in her voice.
"Of course," Cheng Xiaoyu replied firmly, "I need you."
Tōtō's heart suddenly quickened. She knew she couldn't refuse him any longer.
"Alright," she finally nodded, agreeing to his request.
Seeing this, the smile on Cheng Xiaoyu's lips deepened.
He pulled Tōtō into his arms, holding her tightly as if to merge her into his own body.
"From now on, you are mine," he whispered in her ear, his tone full of possessiveness.
Tōtō nestled in his embrace, feeling his warm hug, her heart filled with sweetness and happiness.
She knew she had made the right choice.
Cheng Xiaoyu lowered his head and kissed her forehead, then released her and said, "Alright, it's getting late, let's begin."
Tōtō looked at him in confusion, "Begin what?"
"What do you think?"
"You're so naughty!"
Women like naughty men, not broken men.
...
Three days later, Cheng Xiaoyu bid farewell to Tōtō and once again embarked on his journey of leveling up.
"Wait for me to come back," Cheng Xiaoyu said softly. Tōtō nodded, watching him leave.
At this moment, Cheng Xiaoyu already had a clear goal in mind.
He knew that to gain a foothold in this world, relying solely on his current strength was far from enough.
He needed stronger power, a higher level.
Sigh, as for the other girls, they're completely out of reach. I can't just force myself on them, can I?
It would be very awkward to force it...
He shook his head, pushing these unrealistic thoughts out of his mind.
Once he reached level 120, he would be able to share the General Commander Berlion!
By then, wouldn't the Shadow Legion take off?
You know, the Ant King Pell, who instantly kills everything on land, in the sky, and in the air, is a terrifying existence that instantly kills even S-rank Hunters.
In front of this General Commander, he was just an ant, without a king.
In the following days, he once again became the nightmare of the Sea Kings, wreaking havoc in the Calm Belt.
The Shadow moved quickly across the sea, and wherever it went, the Sea Kings fled in panic.
Every time he killed a Sea King, a pleasant system prompt would sound.
Experience points accumulated continuously, and Cheng Xiaoyu's level steadily increased.
Day after day, month after month, Cheng Xiaoyu's strength continuously grew.
In three months, his level finally reached 110. At this point, the Sea Kings no longer provided any experience.
Cheng Xiaoyu stood on the sea, looking at the empty waters around him, feeling a little lost.
If he kept killing them, the Sea Kings would go extinct.
Cheng Xiaoyu sighed. He knew he couldn't continue like this.
After all, maintaining ecological balance was also very important.
Just as Cheng Xiaoyu was in a dilemma, the system's prompt suddenly sounded.
"Ding! Congratulations to the player for reaching level 110, unlocking a new dungeon—Tower of the Lord."
Cheng Xiaoyu's eyes lit up, and he carefully checked the system's detailed description.
The Tower of the Lord, each floor sealed with powerful Lord-level monsters, each a formidable existence in its own right.
The system's mechanical voice continued: "The Tower of the Lord has a total of 100 floors. Defeating the Lord on each floor will grant massive experience points and integral rewards!"
Besides experience, there were even integral! This was simply a leveling sanctuary tailor-made for Cheng Xiaoyu!
However, the system immediately dropped another bombshell:
"Special reminder: Summoning Shadow Soldiers to assist in combat is prohibited within the tower, and each floor has special challenge conditions. Rewards will only be granted upon successful completion of the kill under the specified conditions."
Undoubtedly, inside the tower, he could only rely on his own strength to 1v1 the Lord; he couldn't use Shadow Soldiers for a group attack.
Cheng Xiaoyu chuckled, not at all bothered: "Rules are made for the weak. If I can't use Shadow Soldiers, then I'll fight with my own hands!"
With that, he unhesitatingly chose to enter.
"Floor 1: Three-Eyed Giant."
"Restriction: Timed challenge, must complete the kill within one minute."
Accompanied by a spatial distortion, Cheng Xiaoyu appeared in a vast mountainous area.
Facing him was a giant nearly ten meters tall, its three glowing eyes coldly staring at him.
Countdown: 3! 2! 1!
The next second, it moved.
The giant's figure was as fast as lightning, its massive body cutting a phantom in the air, appearing before Cheng Xiaoyu in an instant.
A sky-obscuring fist crashed down like a meteor, blasting a huge crater several meters deep into the ground.
Relying on his agile movements, Cheng Xiaoyu narrowly dodged at the last moment, but unexpectedly, the Three-Eyed Giant's offensive was far from over.
Its three glowing eyes simultaneously lit up with dazzling light, and three thick laser beams shot towards him, forcing him to dodge again.
The lasers pursued him like a tracker, leaving scorched marks on the ground.
Cheng Xiaoyu was constantly on the run, with no time to retaliate.
While dodging, a full 10 seconds had passed! Only 50 seconds remaining!
"What the f*ck, does this laser skill not have a cooldown? Just shoot for 60 seconds and directly declare me a failed challenge?"
Watching the time limit for the challenge continuously tick away, being passively beaten like this was not a solution.