They skipped the topic of maxed-out attributes.

The three of them, along with a butterfly (well, let's count the little radish as a person for now), found an open yet secluded stone table and chairs, simply engraved with "Chu and Han River Boundary" on the tabletop.

It was considered hidden because there was an old locust tree overhead, under which hung a weathered kite, perhaps blown over from the estate of some wealthy family.

"How did you guys return to the past? By sleeping?" Li Qianxia leaned her crossed hands on the stone table and asked the little radish softly.

"No, it was by riding something called a 'train.'" The little radish jumped off the butterfly, her tattered skirt fluttering—ah, revealing more than intended, though no one was interested in her.

"There's a train in the forest too?" Li Changzhou asked curiously.

"Yes! It chugged in, and after everyone boarded, with a loud boom, it shot off!"

Li Qianxia raised her left hand, wanting the butterfly to land on it.

The butterfly ignored her, landing in the center of 'Chu and Han River Boundary' and remained still.

Starting from the bottom, the butterfly gradually took on the color of the stone table, even the engraving of the characters included.

"The scenery outside the window ... could it be going to pick someone up?" Li Qianxia shifted her gaze from the butterfly, "But it doesn't feel like it stopped, does it?"

"Maybe it has stopped, but our memories or senses have been altered," Li Changzhou mused.

Li Qianxia also remembered Xiao Yue and her colleagues in "Game Operation."

"But it could also be a different train," Li Changzhou further enquired the little radish, "What did the conductor on your train look like?"

"It looked a lot like a snake."

"Like a snake?"

"Yeah, it could split into several parts, and the whole train was full of them! It was impressive!"

"An earthworm?"

The little radish scratched her behind (her torn clothes were itchy), thought for a moment, and said uncertainly: "Probably."

Then, as if she had been wrongly accused, she gestured with the hand she had just used to scratch her behind and hurriedly explained, "I was watching the train at the time and didn't pay attention to it. I've never been to a safer place than that, I was so excited! I wish I could live there forever!"

"I'll ask for you next time; I have a friend who is a conductor to see if they are hiring," Li Qianxia said.

"Yeah, please, thank you so much!" The little radish nodded vigorously.

Different trains' players might enter the same instance, and even their tasks could differ.

Does the game want to maximize interaction between players?

Li Changzhou pondered.

"What do you plan to do next?" Li Qianxia asked the little radish, "Are you going to protect that what-do-you-call-it, sea star?"

"Ummm—!!!" The little radish shook her head like a rattle-drum, a resolute denial emerging from her nostrils.

Li Changzhou snapped back to reality and leaned back to avoid the drool on her lips.

"So dangerous!" The little radish declared after shaking her head.

"That's one of the last great demons, and you don't plan on completing the mission?" Li Qianxia asked curiously.

"That monster has already died a long time ago, I'm not risking my life to save it!"

"You don't care about the mission?"

"Don't care! We need to survive, right?" the little radish said to 'Chu and Han River Boundary.'

'Chu and Han River Boundary' shook slightly—a flutter of the butterfly's wings?

Li Changzhou suddenly realized a blind spot, that it wasn't just people like Master Huang, but even among their player group with maxed-out attributes, there were those who were just passing the time.

To put it nicely, you might call them 'scenery lovers' (a term dignifying scenery a bit, where one's 'Ability' could also grow slowly).

He wondered if there were life-focused players, those not interested in adventuring or missions, but just responsible for alchemy, trading information, or forging equipment.

There were even shop-keeping players, so logically, these players should also exist.

It's just that since the game recently started not long ago, ninety percent of players were still at the first stage, and the equipment and information of the top players (akin to frontier players) could only rely on themselves.

"So, what do you plan to do next?" Li Qianxia asked.

"Stay with you guys, of course! Why else would I follow your scent?" the little radish said as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"We'll be splitting up for now; you stick with Qian Xia first," Li Changzhou decided immediately.

With the 'Avoid Death and Prolong Life' ability, and since she never took risks, Li Changzhou felt reassured having her with Li Qianxia.

Li Qianxia thought the same, which is why she said:

"Don't follow me; it's not convenient. I sleep in the same room with several girls at night, and except for going to the bathroom, I hardly have any time alone during the day. Stay with my brother; he lives in a big house and has lots of money."

The little radish had her own criteria for choosing companions; her one and only criterion—safety.

She felt that following Li Qianxia wasn't exactly practical, so she glanced around, "What about that really pretty fairy?"

See!

Even the monkey thought Yang Qinglan was a fairy!

In other words, the animals of the entire world thought Yang Qinglan was a fairy!

If one must pose a condition, it would be that—the enlightened animals across the globe all saw Yang Qinglan as a fairy.

"So unwilling to be with my brother, huh?" Li Qianxia chuckled.

"Your brother—" the little radish took a few steps back from him, "might eat me."

"Don't say that; my brother is actually really nice," Li Qianxia said, reaching out a finger to rub the small head of the little radish.

Just as Li Changzhou was wondering if something was off with his sister today, he heard her say, "But if it's Qing Lan, then perhaps you truly might be eaten."

"Exactly, exactly, he might eat people!" the little radish nodded emphatically.

"Yes, yes, definitely!" Li Qianxia agreed, nodding along.

"Nonsense!" Li Changzhou flicked her forehead and stood up, "Let's go. Hand over Qing Lan's letter to me and get some rest. Little radish, you follow me for now."

"Ah—" the little radish sighed deeply, climbing laboriously onto 'Chu and Han River Boundary'.

'Chu and Han River Boundary' flapped its wings, its color fading as it returned to being a beautiful swallowtail butterfly (as per Miss Yang's guidance afterwards).

Back in the shanty area, Li Qianxia fetched the letter Yang Qinglan had written in the morning and gave it to Li Changzhou.

Before parting, she hesitated briefly, then spoke, "Brother."

"Hmm?"

"I want to exchange 'Wolf Howl' and 'Flat-headed Mud Bee·Powerful Neurotoxin.'"

Li Changzhou looked at her with some confusion, waiting for her to continue.

"I won't learn 'Wolf Howl' anymore; even if I master it, it feels like there's no real benefit. 'Flat-headed Mud Bee'...sounds powerful since it can control others, but because it's too powerful, it's not very useful at Grade B. At critical moments, I'm not even sure if I can stab someone accurately."

"We can replace 'Wolf Howl,' but let's keep 'Flat-headed Mud Bee' for now."

Li Qianxia thought for a moment and nodded.

She added, "Brother, do you think I lack ambition since I stopped learning 'Wolf Howl' halfway?"

"Yes, lacking ambition, but pragmatic. Which do you think is better, being pragmatic or having ambition?" Li Changzhou asked her.

Li Qianxia hesitated for a while and answered, "It depends on the situation."

"Qian Xia," Li Changzhou said to his sister, "you don't need to force yourself to have ambition or to become a certain type of person or do certain things. What suits you is the best."

"...Yes."

Li Changzhou smiled, "Just do what you like, leave the rest to me."

Li Qianxia playfully punched her brother, "You're good at coaxing your sister, why don't you go coax Qing Lan?"

"Shy?"

"Scram!"

"Scram it is. Keep all the Identity Cards with you for now, pick the ones you like."

"Get lost, I'm going to sleep now."

"Living in the slums, truly tragic."

Li Qianxia promptly pulled out the 'Desert Eagle' her brother gave her, aiming to fire a few shots at the man in front of her.

Radish was very curious about what they were talking about, but 'Avoid Death and Prolong Life' told her not to ask, not to ask, not to ask.

Li Changzhou returned to the Commander Mansion with Radish and Butterfly.

Butterfly landed directly in the peony-filled garden, blending into the color of the peonies. It could sip nectar while remaining hidden.

In reality, with its small size (the size of two palms), even if someone saw it, at most they would be amazed, not taking it too seriously.

Only Radish, a palm-sized figure with a well-defined body, surely people would regard her as a monster, or as a citizen from the 'Scripture of Mountains and Seas' tiny people's country.

Radish stood on Li Changzhou's shoulder as he quietly returned to his room.

As he walked, he thought about the night's events; Li Bichang had died, and from now on, the skies of Song City would be unpredictably stormy.

Suddenly, Radish shrunk to his back, hanging there as if on a cliff.

Li Changzhou lightened his steps, his wrist ready to draw the Emerald Bee Sword at any moment.

He walked into the bedroom as if nothing was amiss, the scene before him... Li Changzhou felt suffocated.

On the bed, Li Biwei wore a thin nightgown, her bare jade-like legs on display, her left hand supporting her temple, and her right hand playing with a pearl necklace that looked like hanging beads.

"Where have you been?" she asked, lifting her gaze, her voice lazy and soft.

For someone with certain special tastes, this scene might be intriguing; however, Li Changzhou's instinct was to immediately call the police.

"Stuffy, just went out for a couple of rounds." Li Changzhou walked to the table and poured himself a glass of water.

Radish took the chance to slide off his back and scurried to the bed, pressing her back against the edge—the most secure place, right under the eyes of this woman on the bed!

"Not even giving me a glance, were you on your sister-in-law's bed, or the fifth concubine's?" Li Biwei played with the pearl necklace, making it more like hanging beads.

"Just went out for a walk, all the way to a place called Elm Alley."

"Come here, take off your pants and let me smell them."

"...Biwei, I'm not in the mood right now, thinking every day about how to outdo big brother, I'm under a lot of pressure."

"Feeling bad, under pressure, isn't that even more reason to do such things? Come on, brother~"

Li Biwei's voice, calling him brother, almost made Li Changzhou lose his sanity—in terms of disgust.

"Biwei," he suppressed the complex emotions stirring inside him, his tone calm, "I've thought it over seriously, you're grown now, and our relationship should end."

"Do you think by distancing yourself from me now, Li Xinghua will let you off?" Li Biwei sneered coldly.

"It's not related to that." Li Changzhou shook his head gently, "Not just you, Zhong Yingru, the fifth concubine, I want to cut ties with all."

Li Biwei said nothing, just quietly watching him.

After a while, she asked in a flat tone, "The reason?"

"I've met someone I genuinely like."

"Who?"

"An actress."

"Chun Emperor?"

"No."

Li Biwei scoffed disdainfully, devoid of any laughter.

The room was lit, yet plunged in darkness; it was early May, almost early summer, yet Li Biwei felt cold all over.

She turned over, pulling up the blanket, "I'm going to sleep."

Li Changzhou's keen perception sensed tears; he stood up and walked out of the room.

What about me?! What about me?!—Radish pressed against the bed edge, desperately signaling to him.

The next morning, before the sun had risen, Li Biwei left her room, glanced at Li Changzhou who had sat in the courtyard all night, and left without turning her head.

Li Changzhou returned to his room, where Radish, sitting at the end of the bed like a statue with crossed legs, emitted a vibe of "you can't see me, you can't see me."

Ignoring her, he lay down on the bed, still bearing Li Biwei's scent, and fatigue swept over him, and he fell asleep.

When the sun came up, he had just awakened when Li Biwei stormed in like a gust of wind.

She threw herself on Li Changzhou, laughter mixed with tears flowing out.

"Brother, you were afraid that father would find out that you killed big brother and didn't want to involve me, right?"

"Brother, I knew it, you love me the most! Last night, I even cast a spell on you, wanting to die with you, thankfully the spell causes pain for three months before it kills!"

"..."

"Come on, brother, take your medicine." Li Biwei wiped her tears and brought her tear-wet finger to Li Changzhou's lips.

"..." Li Changzhou tasted a bit of it.

He opened his chest, and a bug crawled out from his heart.

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