"I'm Feixiao!"
Feixiao didn't mind, grinning as she replied.
"Oh, so you're High-Ceiling Fei."
As everyone knows, some characters get a makeover before they're added to the banner. For example, "My sword shall cleave the tides." At the very least, they get a new outfit.
The last two times we met, my rabbit-head sense didn't activate because Feixiao wasn't wearing the right outfit.
But now, it finally matches, so it can activate.
Sorry, ma'am, I didn't recognize you just now.
"High-ceiling?"
Feixiao gulped.
She knew what "high-ceiling" and "low-ceiling" meant, but she didn't understand the significance of using it as a nickname.
"Ah, I get it now."
Feixiao suddenly exclaimed.
"You think I can win the championship, don't you!"
She thought about his reason for being here and felt she understood what Leon meant.
"I don't know if you can win the championship."
This was the immediate judgment from Leon's rabbit-head.
"But you require too much skill. You're not my type of character."
High-Ceiling Fei is out. Too much skill required, not suitable for someone like him who needs a wheelchair.
Feixiao was about to put her arm around his shoulder, intending to say something along the lines of how she would absolutely not disappoint his expectations.
But after hearing the words "not my type."
Her outstretched arm froze in mid-air, and she stood there, completely stunned as if struck by lightning on a clear day.
"Then... then what kind do you like?"
Feixiao asked, the fox ears on her head drooping slightly.
He had said before that he liked characters with high power levels, and she had always kept it in mind.
In the month since they parted, she had never slacked off for a moment, increasing her training difficulty from twice as hard at the beginning to ten times by the end.
She had forgotten to eat and sleep while improving herself, just to reach the "top-tier" he spoke of.
But it turned out that even the top-tier was divided into "wheelchair" and "high-skill."
It was like drinking egg custard for a year, only for him to suddenly say he preferred naturally brewed milk tea.
So depressing.
"Of course, I like myself the most."
Just like Herta's narcissism, if he were to follow her example and extract his own "tags" for a simple summary.
It would be:
Human, female, young, fox ears, cute.
Demigod, rabbit-head, stats, wheelchair, power.
In Leon's view.
He himself was the perfect culmination of everything, with no one who could surpass him.
He had the strength, and the arrogance to match.
If I say I don't eat beef, I don't eat beef!
What's your station? Someone of your rank has no right to talk back to me!
He never hid his talents, vowing to take down the entire world by himself.
To ascend to the realm of the Celestial Emperor!
Whether it's an Aeon or an enemy from beyond the stars.
Leon would never lose to anyone.
He would talk down the nine heavens and ten earths until no one dared claim supremacy, showing them all what it meant to be the sole emperor ruling over all of eternity!
Hah!
"Likes himself..."
Feixiao murmured these words.
"Does that mean the closer someone is to you, the more you'll like them?"
Caught between having no path forward and no path of retreat, she chose to forcibly carve out a new one.
"Bold, isn't it?"
Fine, Leon approved.
Using him as the benchmark for power was the right move. This High-Ceiling Fei has limitless potential.
"Then just you watch!"
Seeing that he didn't deny it, Feixiao's eyes lit up.
Her previously drooping fox ears instantly perked up, and her expression became vibrant, as if she had found a new goal.
"I will definitely obtain the position of Arbiter-General!"
Feixiao clenched her fist and pumped it towards him, giving a confident smile as she declared with conviction.
"I will do everything I can to catch up to you! The title of Arbiter-General will only be my beginning!"
Since getting closer to him would win Leon's favor.
Then the first thing Feixiao had to do was win this Martial Decree Ceremony, take first place, and receive the heavy burden of the Yaoqing from General Yueyu.
And most importantly, become an Emanator!
Feixiao was determined to win this Martial Decree Ceremony because she had a reason she absolutely could not lose!
Leon himself was an Emanator, and one at the very peak of the pyramid!
In other words, if she wanted to catch up to him.
Then she had to become an Emanator at the very least. Only then could she get closer to his level of power!
"So!"
Feixiao took a deep breath, looking at him with bright, determined eyes.
"Be my sparring partner, Leon!"
Feixiao said sincerely, grabbing his hand like she was recruiting him to be a school idol.
"Can you call me something else?"
Leon had a condition where he felt uncomfortable whenever someone called him by his real name without an honorific.
It was one thing for March 7th to do it, but shouldn't others use his title when in public?
"Then what should I call you?"
Feixiao scratched her head.
"Just don't call me by my real name."
Of course, if she dared to call him 'Leo' or 'Lee-boy', he'd have a thing or two to say about that.
"Then..."
Feixiao thought carefully for a moment.
Forms of address were the best reflection of a relationship. If Leon wanted to get closer to her, she certainly wouldn't refuse; in fact, she couldn't be happier.
"How about just one part of your name? 'Le'? Or 'o'?"
Feixiao thought for a moment.
Short of making up a random nickname, calling someone by one syllable of their name was the best way to show intimacy.
"Fine, pick one."
Leon had no objection. Anything was better than his full name.
"Then I'll go with 'Le'!"
Feixiao nodded with a gulp, her fox ears twitching happily as she shouted with excitement.
"So, about the sparring?"
Feixiao asked, not forgetting her original goal.
"You're really something else..."
Since she was so eager to see the stats of a real 'man,' Leon figured he might as well oblige and show her a thing or two.
"Alright!"
Having gotten the answer she wanted, Feixiao threw her arms around his neck and jumped up and down excitedly.
She completely ignored the propriety between men and women; you could only say that's how it is when you treat each other like bros.
If March 7th was too innocent and not feminine enough, then Feixiao was too much of a bro.
Bro, shake my hand. Bro, give me a hug. Bro, you smell nice.
Bro, why are you grabbing my handle?
I always thought of you as my bro up top, but bro, why are you after my bro down below?
Don't ask all that stuff, 'cause we're just bros.
It's normal for bros to go through life and death together.
And someone has to step up and take responsibility for the 'birthing' part, and then 'do' their bro to 'death,' because only then can you achieve the accomplishment of 'going through life and death'.
Seeing that the two had a good relationship with the obvious potential to go even further, Yueyu couldn't help but let a small smile grace her lips.
"I heard from General Jing Yuan."
She stepped forward, bringing up a new topic while also signaling to her disciple that she had done enough.
After all, this was a public place. What kind of decency was this, hugging and clinging to each other?
This sort of thing should be done with the lights off.
Of course, given Leon's status.
Hugging and cuddling in public could also be considered a form of offering incense and worship.
"General Leon, are you planning to leave this child here on the Yaoqing?"
Yueyu said, her gaze shifting to the girl in the formal dress standing by his leg.
"Yes."
Leon nodded.
"Just train her until she's grown up."
"When she's grown, if she wants to leave, I'll have to ask General Yueyu to accommodate her."
Leon said, ruffling Rapa's hair beside him.
"This is the last stretch of my term in office. By that time, I won't be a general anymore..."
Yueyu smiled and shook her head.
"Nevertheless, I have taken note..."
"If I am still here then, I will be sure to convey your words to the Arbiter-General of that time."
However, Yueyu felt he didn't even need to mention it.
The person he was leaving behind was tantamount to someone personally appointed by Lan. Who would dare question her decision to stay or leave?
Normally, no matter how highly regarded someone was, they would never be given this much leeway.
Training is about polishing a rough stone into a beautiful jade.
In other words, the girl would definitely have to join the military, and the military required discipline.
It absolutely could not be a one-person show, or everything would fall into chaos.
Mistakes would be punished as they should be; they wouldn't go easy on her just because of who she was connected to.
"Thank you for your trouble."
Leon nodded.
Yueyu replied politely, then caught sight of Rapa and, remembering something, asked:
"I haven't asked the girl's name yet?"
Rapa subconsciously shied away from her gaze, appearing a bit timid around strangers.
She actually wanted to stay by Great Lord Lan's side forever, like Ruri Ninja.
But she knew she didn't possess the same incredible power as Ruri Ninja.
Although March 7th hadn't shown much of her strength.
...Rapa's intuition, being of the same Path of The Hunt as Leon, would not deceive her.
If Leon was a LV100 player, then March 7th was a LV80~LV90 player, while she herself had barely scraped LV30.
Even after receiving the blessing of the "Great Lord Lan" and leaping to LV50, she was still no match for the two of them.
Let alone the fact that this LV50 was built on an unstable foundation, not steady progress.
With her current abilities, if she insisted on following them, she probably couldn't even protect herself and might even hold them back.
For now, she had to build her foundations. It was the only way.
"Rapa. That's her name."
Leon answered truthfully.
"Mm. 'Undisturbed mind, breaking evil to reveal righteousness.' A fine name."
Yueyu nodded in approval.
Rapa, who had been a bit shy, widened her eyes the moment she heard her name being praised.
She actively looked toward Yueyu, meeting her direct gaze.
In that moment of silent eye contact, the two reached an unspoken resonance.
She likes Master of Bitter Tea's name. She has taste!
"The kid lacks some common sense."
While the two were still staring passionately into each other's eyes, Leon had already started handing out cigarettes to the onlookers.
"Folks, I'll have to trouble you all to look after the kid for me."
Leon said, preparing to build a social safety net for Rapa.
"Hey, General Leon, you can count on us!"
Many of the Foxians expressed that since he had called them "folks," there was nothing more to say.
"From this day on, your child is our child, and even more so, a child of the Yaoqing. We may not have great abilities, but we can help with these small things."
Your child is my child is all that needs to be said!
"We will definitely look out for your child at all times."
The Yaoqing Foxians knew they weren't just accepting cigarettes, but a social contract.
And what they were taking on was by no means a burden, but a direct line to the top.
"Aiyo, you people of the Yaoqing are really something else!"
Leon gave them a thumbs-up.
"You got it!" xN
The Foxians replied in unison, giving him a thumbs-up in return.
Maybe I should give the Yaoqing the nickname "Freljord" one of these days.
Leon thought, then paid them no more mind.
Instead, he turned to Yueyu and asked:
"So, has this Martial Decree Ceremony actually started or not?"
The Borisin were handled by Leon and didn't require the Alliance's intervention, but the traitorous Vidyadhara still had to be dealt with by the Alliance.
After the meeting between the four of them ended, Jing Yuan immediately dispatched troops to the Scalegorge Waterscape and the Alchemy Commission to arrest all the Vidyadhara who were involved.
In the public's perception, this was the first time the Divine Foresight had acted with such speed and decisiveness.
Jing Yuan wanted to dig out every last detail of how these Vidyadhara met the Borisin and how their collaboration came to be.
To this end, he needed Fu Xuan to use the Matrix of Prescience for the interrogation work.
The welcome banquet thus ended inconclusively.
Although Jing Yuan had given her leave, telling Fu Xuan she could attend the banquet before starting her work.
After all, this was for Leon, which took precedence over everything else.
But in the end, Fu Xuan herself refused. On a normal day, she might have gone, but not this time. Absolutely not.
She was too ashamed to go.
Fu Xuan never imagined that Borisin had infiltrated the Luofu, and for a considerable amount of time at that.
Yet for so long, this group of Borisin hadn't slipped up once, not revealing a single clue.
This was a failure on the part of the Divination Commission.
And as the current Grand Diviner of the Divination Commission, it was even more so her failure.
That was why she refused Jing Yuan's suggestion, choosing to become a workaholic.
She vowed to redeem her honor!
When she refused, she suggested that Yukong could bring Hanyi along to take her place.
But Leon had refused as well.
He said: Let's do it again when there's another chance, there's no rush.
At worst, we can just schedule the welcome banquet for after the Martial Decree Ceremony ends.
A welcome and a celebration all in one.
Everyone would surely be free then, with no worries about anyone being unable to attend.
And the final result was that the welcome banquet was scheduled for after the Yaoqing's Martial Decree Ceremony concluded.
It was clear Fu Xuan was quite insistent on giving him a proper welcome.
"Of course it's already started."
Yueyu nodded, not understanding why he would ask that.
"What do you mean, started?"
Jing Yuan had said the Martial Decree Ceremony would begin once the Luofu arrived.
But now the Luofu was here, and Leon couldn't see any sign that things were about to begin.
Neither the people nor the atmosphere showed any signs of tension, just a scene of harmony.
There was none of the pressure you'd expect when something big was about to happen, that feeling of a storm brewing.
Nor did he see any of those bloodthirsty brawlers who think "seeing a scene like this is worth the price of admission, even if I die."
To put it simply, everything was far too calm.
It was as if no major event was being held at all.
"Haha, if General Leon is referring to the matches, then yes, those won't be held for a few more days."
Yueyu knew what he meant and nodded.
"Wow, there are matches."
That was something Leon hadn't expected.
This Martial Decree Ceremony was quite the proper event.
But did inheriting the position of Arbiter-General really require so much effort?
He had thought the current general would just appoint a successor and pass on the title directly. It seemed there was more to it than met the eye.
Ah.
____
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