After a muffled sound, a flash of light appeared under Ji Jue's hands, and then, a faint vibration emerged from the blade, buzzing uncontrollably.

The continuous crackling of breaking sounds revealed fissures spreading from the overwhelmed spine of the sword to the guard.

Complete, collapse!

After enduring thousands of successful or unsuccessful assaults by the Dissociation Technique in recent days, the long-suffering sword finally gave out. It was like a camel that died resentfully under the last straw.

A dreamlike trace of light then slowly rose from the cracks, falling into Ji Jue's hands, and it was instantly absorbed and digested by Mechanical Descent.

"Phew—"

Ji Jue looked up comfortably, exhaling deeply, almost to the point of tears.

At last, he had his first taste since returning from the Crack Realm!

Pure! Right! That's the flavor!

Stimulating!

Feeling the myriad scenes fragments assaulting him and the torturous pain as if his body were made of steel, Ji Jue clenched his hands tightly, his fingers flexing.

Finally, he had taken another step on the long road of the Embers Path.

How joyful and congratulatory!

However, his happiness did not last long before he saw the progress on his wristwatch again ...

After the number [1] was filled, on the number [2], a barely discernible faint color appeared, almost invisible without a magnifying glass.

It wasn't even a percent, it had to be calculated after the decimal point!

The more tasks he did, the less money he earned.

The progress bar grew longer, and the capability required more investment, yet the gear recycling was so troublesome ... Damn, was he playing a fake legendary game?

Ji Jue could no longer hold back his desolation.

Life was unbearable; there was no hope left.

In this manner, exhausted from the lack of spiritual material and brutally assaulted by reality, he drifted out of the workshop like a walking corpse and collapsed onto the sofa.

He fell into a deep sleep.

Until, he was reawakened by Ye Chun.

The sunset outside the window had already risen, the dim light growing faint, it was already evening.

And Ye Chun had already changed into a black, simple evening dress, her hair up, makeup neat, wearing a necklace and bracelet that she hadn't worn in a long time, clutching a small bag.

"Do you have plans tonight?"

Seeing Ji Jue's bewildered look, she anticipated his answer and waved him off first, "Continuing to work doesn't count."

"No."

"Then good, hurry up, get ready, and prepare to go out with me."

Ye Chun beckoned, her expression cheerful, "You've been short on money recently, right? I'll introduce you to a gig. If it works out, you owe me a finder's fee!"

Damn, money?!

Instantly, Ji Jue's eyes lit up, wide as bells, all traces of sleepiness vanished, and he shot up from the sofa like a reanimated corpse.

Then, he heard Ye Chun's voice, "By the way, do you have formal attire?"

"Umm ..."

He hesitated for a moment, "I do, but..."

"That's true."

Ye Chun realized—it was the same formal attire she had seen before. The cuffs were nearly unraveled, and although the fit was barely satisfactory for blending into the background at a graduation ceremony or some other formal event, it was better not to wear it for more prominent solo appearances.

She scanned Ji Jue's attire and finally nodded, "Never mind, just wear that set, switch to a plain T-shirt, and that'll be fine."

"Is that appropriate?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" She turned and headed upstairs, unconcerned, "It's just a music hall, not a session at the Central City Senate. Why so serious? Go wash up, and wait for me later."

After Ji Jue washed his face and changed into his workshop clothes, Ye Chun had already come downstairs. Her previously styled hair had been let down again, and after removing her jewelry, she had changed into jeans and a T-shirt, simply throwing on a cardigan over it.

From a well-born young lady dressed for a dinner party to a casual older sister ready for a stroll, relaxed and joyful, within immediate reach again.

This made Ji Jue less conspicuous.

He couldn't help but pause slightly.

"What are you standing there for?"

Ye Chun threw the car keys over, "Do you know the way to the music hall?"

"The one at Lihua District's Mingyue Square?"

"Right, you drive."

Ye Chun walked ahead, urging, "You changed clothes just in time. If we hurry, we can still grab dinner before it starts, I'm starving."

"Ten minutes, on the dot!"

Ji Jue laughed, waving his hand in assurance.

.

.

In fact, they arrived in six minutes.

With the help of Mechanical Descent, Ji Jue drove his car through the congested traffic of the peak hours as if he were passing through an uninhabited area, leaving countless drivers in the dust, and then sped away amid a chorus of cursing.

Not only did he squeeze out time for eating, but he also left Ye Chun time to touch up her makeup.

Before the concert hall performance began, they leisurely completed their entry.

It was only after sitting down that Ji Jue realized that they were actually in a private box.

However, the performance had already started, and the person who had actively invited them was late because of the traffic—apparently, they were startled by a reckless driver on the way, crashed into the guardrail, and could only come by taxi...

To this, Ji Jue could only maintain an innocent expression in Ye Chun's telling gaze.

He feigned appreciation for the performance on stage.

According to the booklet handed to him, the performing group was the famous Radiant Troupe from the Empire, making their last stop on their Federation tour.

As an internationally renowned group, their performance in Cliff City was hard to get a ticket for. Before the tickets were publicly available, they had been snapped up through various channels, not even scalpers had a chance to act.

The attendees were either rich or noble, and Ji Jue, looking out from the box, saw some familiar faces from TV and even spotted a few Chosen Ones, though everyone seemed quite used to it.

As the curtain rose, a faint melody started and the low murmurings ceased, ushering in silence as the performance finally kicked off.

The lighting was good, the music pleasant, and understanding the Empire's language had some obstacles, but not many.

The flashy dancing was genuinely stunning.

Especially the statuesque blonde in the front, her vigorous figure and graceful dance moves!

Even someone as plain as Ji Jue couldn't help but pull out his phone to snap some photos, occasionally nodding his head with the music.

Ye Chun was amused by the sight.

"It's my first time seeing you appreciate art like this," she asked, "How do you find it?"

"Fantastic."

Ji Jue responded without hesitation, "Truly harmonious and joyful, yes, the dancing is also exceptionally graceful!"

Ye Chun turned her head, trying hard to suppress a laugh.

Having known him for so many years, she knew Ji Jue all too well—deeply technical, irreparably indifferent toward the arts.

Ji Jue, lacking any music genes, hardly ever engaged with music, classic or modern, other than a few widely known pop songs he learned for the team-building karaoke…

"We really need to cultivate it more," Ye Chun shook her head, "You see, those big shots in movies always listen to Mozart before doing anything drastic. Without an appreciation for art, you're already losing half the battle when you step out."

"Why would a craftsman need pretentiousness?"

Ji Jue was baffled.

Besides, it's not like playing a tune on the piano would make an opponent willingly expose their neck to be chopped. If he met an adversary, could he really say, 'Wait, I'm great at the cello?'

Sometimes Ye Chun's thoughts were just too erratic for him to grasp.

However, seeing how intently she was enjoying the show, it must be quite impressive.

He clapped along with the crowd, restraining himself from playing with his phone.

Soon, Ye Chun's phone buzzed.

"He's finally here," she glanced at the screen, "I'll introduce him to you in a moment, and then you can talk. Once the introduction is done, I'm out of it."

"Bothering you?" Ji Jue sensed her reluctance.

"It's okay, the guy just likes to show off a bit, not difficult to handle and is generally decent.

If I had to point out a flaw..."

Ye Chun hesitated, then sighed wistfully, "I don't really like the way he looks at me."

Ji Jue froze for a moment, then became alert.

Something that even his senior paid attention to?

Could it be some sort of Evil Spirit with lecherous intent?

He decisively got up and sat next to Ye Chun. She paused, her expression growing complicated.

Before long, the door to the box was pushed open and a stout man, wiping the sweat from his forehead and gasping for breath, walked in. Dressed just like the other spectators in formal attire, his round face bore glasses, and his smile was both pleasant and hopeful.

"Ah, Ye Chun, you're already here? I'm so sorry, look at this mess. God, these drivers nowadays, don't even know how they drive! If I catch one, I'm sending him back to driving school!"

Thus, he complained as he greeted, then turned his beaming smile toward Ji Jue, "This must be Mr. Ji that Ye Chun mentioned, right? Oh, such a promising young man! Nice to meet you!"

With enthusiasm and seriousness, he stretched out both hands, shaking Ji Jue's vigorously as if he were seeing a savior.

He handed over a business card.

"Name's Chen, Chen Yubo, dealing with some import-export business usually. I hope for your kind attention, Mr. Ji!"

As the saying goes, you don't hit a smiling face, and especially with Chen's warmth and friendliness, Ji Jue, who was inwardly on guard, became somewhat confused.

Besides, the tone of his chat with Ye Chun didn't seem unpleasant.

It wasn't until he finally sat down, pulling his seat closer to Ye Chun, and taking out his phone to adeptly share videos of his home's kitten kneading milk from a few days ago, interspersed with topics on cosmetics, hair conditioner, and skincare, and quickly shifted to discussing which TV drama's couple was most shippable.

Only then did Ji Jue see, with the change in his sitting posture, his necktie subtly revealing a saucy pink interior, and his face bearing a friendship-filled, radiant smile...

And Ye Chun's resigned, exasperated look toward him.

Ji Jue's expression twitched.

Finally, he realized.

Damn, that look of his was just a touch of camaraderie between good GAY friends, wasn't it?!

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