Chapter 108: Snow Alley Cottage

Chapter 108: Snow Alley Cottage

Lu Ran woke up hungry.

When he opened his eyes from his slumber, he realized it was already 2 pm in the afternoon.

"Hmm," Lu Ran rubbed his head, still feeling a bit drowsy.

Lu Ran had slept very late. Since waking up in the middle of the night, he had been experimenting with the Black Lantern evil art.

Especially, he had also woven a beautiful dream for Little Li Hua.

The cat sister was relaxed and enjoying herself, but Lu Ran was mentally exhausted, feeling rather worn out.

"Meow~" In his arms, Little Li Hua lay lazily, her fluffy tail swishing back and forth.

Looking at the little one's adorable appearance, Lu Ran couldn't help but kiss her little head again.

He held Little Li Hua in his arms, lay on his side, and casually picked up his phone from the bedside.

Unexpectedly, there were many messages in the group chat, and Lu Ran had thought that after yesterday's events, everyone would be rather quiet.

Lu Ran opened the group chat and saw the last message Chang Ying had sent ten minutes ago:

"It's so boring staying at home, let's go out and play?"

Unfortunately, no one responded, and the group chat fell silent.

Lu Ran thought for a moment, his fingers tapping the screen.

Ran: "Let's go out and relax?"

Seeing someone showing interest, Chang Ying immediately sent another message: "Yeah, yeah! Where should we go?"

Seeing this, Lu Ran was at a loss.

Rain Alley City was small, where could they possibly go for fun?

This city only met the basic living needs of its people, and as for other amenities...

There wasn't even an amusement park, only a single cinema, and even that was half-open.

Chang Ying: "How about we go for some cold drinks?"

Ran: "Cold drinks in late autumn, you really have nowhere else to go."

Chang Ying: "Why are you picking on me again? I'm going to cry!"

Ran: "I'll treat you."

Chang Ying: "Wow, Ran Bao is the best!"

Lu Ran looked at the words on the screen, his expression quite vivid.

Three words could describe his appearance at this moment: subway, old man, and phone.

Ran Bao?

It had been a long time since he had heard this nickname.

Lu Ran's heart stirred slightly, and he had bleated like a sheep on the battlefield yesterday, bringing back this nickname?

Indeed, people's feelings and reactions were mostly the same.

Tian Tian: "Are we going for cold drinks?"

Ran: "3 pm, West River, Snow Alley Cottage."

Tian Tian: "Okay~(▽)"

Lu Ran smiled, put down his phone, and headed straight for the bathroom to freshen up.

Twenty minutes later, Lu Ran, wearing a duck-billed hat and a round-neck sweater with jeans, stepped out of the house.

Since becoming a believer, Lu Ran rarely had the chance to wear casual clothes.

He also rarely had the opportunity to wear the dark red knitted scarf that someone had given him.

It was quite warm.

Lu Ran exhaled a thin white mist, feeling the coolness of the late autumn in Rain Alley.

On the trees in the neighborhood, there were still some orange-red and withered yellow leaves hanging.

A gust of autumn wind blew by, and a few more leaves fell.

Like withered leaf butterflies, they swirled in front of him before finally fluttering to the ground.

"Crunch~"

Lu Ran stepped on a leaf, and it made a distinct crispy sound.

At this moment, he should have been in the pitch-black demon cave, fighting fiercely.

An unexpected event had brought him back home, and he also witnessed this somewhat familiar scene.

Lu Ran's mind was filled with the image of someone's departure, a beautiful yet melancholy autumn painting.

He also imitated someone's action, pulling up the large knitted scarf to cover his lips.

Hmm... Lu Ran felt it was quite good.

In this damnable world, having an extra thought in his heart could also bring a little hope.

As for the motivation to survive, Lu Ran didn't need anyone to give it to him.

Regarding the desire to exterminate all the demons in the world, Lu Ran's heart would only burn more fiercely as his strength increased bit by bit.

At 2:50 pm, Snow Alley Cottage.

This cold drink shop had a unique style, resembling a wooden cottage.

Even more distinctive was that in front of the cottage, there stood a tall bald woman.

A bald woman? Lu Ran was surprised, and the closer he got to the cottage, the more astonished he became.

"Lu Team!" The bald woman smiled brightly, waving at Lu Ran.

Lu Ran's expression was strange: "You called me Ran Bao in the group chat, but now you're calling me Lu Team in person?"

"Hehe~" Chang Ying placed her hand on her head, rubbing her bald head.

"You really don't care about your image, do you?" Lu Ran stood before Chang Ying, gazing up at her bald head.

Believe it or not, it was quite round? The Chang Ying from the past was both wild and beautiful, but now...

She was even wilder.

When Tian Tian sees you later, she'll probably be scared to tears, right? Chang Ying pouted: "My hair was burnt in some places and scorched in others, and it was so annoying to look at that I just shaved it all off."

But Lu Ran laughed: "Then why don't you wear a hat?"

"Thanks." Chang Ying casually took off Lu Ran's white duck-billed hat and put it on her head.

Lu Ran: ???

Chang Ying, with a smile, hugged Lu Ran's shoulder: "Thank you, Ran Bao... Cough, thank you, Lu Team, for treating me to cold drinks and giving me a hat."

Lu Ran: "..."

She really took it and ran!

Chang Ying curiously examined Lu Ran: "Your scarf looks so nice, is it hand-knitted?"

"No way!" Lu Ran shook his head vigorously.

Other things were just material possessions, but this scarf, he absolutely couldn't let this bald female bandit take it away.

"Stingy." Chang Ying muttered, pushing Lu Ran towards the shop door, "Let's go, let's go."

"Ring~"

The wooden door opened, and the copper bell on the door jingled, making a crisp sound.

"What would you like to order?" The female server stood up from behind the bar, curiously observing Lu Ran.

The server had noticed the bald woman standing outside the door earlier and had been wondering what kind of boy she was waiting for.

Now she had her answer.

Hmm... This young man seemed a bit thin.

Would this small frame do?

"Three to four people," Lu Ran looked around and went straight to a private room.

Chang Ying happily said: "Then I'll order!"

"Get something to eat, I haven't eaten all day," Lu Ran replied casually and sat down on the wooden chair.

Chang Ying's voice came from outside the private room: "I want this, this, this, and this..."

Lu Ran: "..."

Why don't you just throw the menu at the server's face and ask her to bring you the whole menu?

A few minutes later, Lu Ran was eating fried potato chips when Tian Tian arrived.

Unexpectedly, Deng Yutang, who had been quiet in the group chat, came along as well.

"That Miss Si went to my house," Deng Yutang said as he sat on a wooden chair.

Lu Ran was a little surprised. "She hasn't left yet?"

Yesterday, the auntie had sent everyone home one by one, and after expressing her gratitude again, she finally drove away.

Deng Yutang nodded, "Yes, she came with gifts and expressed both apologies and gratitude."

Tian Tian spoke softly, "The auntie also visited my house this morning."

Lu Ran nodded thoughtfully.

After all, the team had saved her and her daughter's lives, and no amount of gratitude would be too much.

"So, it's our turn next, right?" Chang Ying looked at Lu Ran.

Lu Ran shrugged, "I guess so."

Chang Ying suddenly became interested and turned to Deng Yutang, "What gifts did the auntie bring?"

Lu Ran suddenly spoke up, "I've been wanting to apologize to you all."

"Hmm?"

"Huh?" The group looked at Lu Ran.

Lu Ran said awkwardly, "I chose the demon cave, and you all came with me. As a result..."

"What are you talking about!" Chang Ying interrupted Lu Ran, "Every demon cave is dangerous, and accidents can happen anywhere!

You can't predict the future! Even if you want to apologize, it should be me."

As she spoke, Chang Ying's face was filled with guilt, "At the critical moment, I drew a broken stick and couldn't help at all."

Tian Tian looked at Chang Ying and refuted, "You contributed the most, always at the forefront.

I, as the team leader, should bear the greatest responsibility."

Tian Tian's voice grew softer, and her head lowered, "I took the initiative and led the team into danger.

If it weren't for Lu Ran's command and leading us out, we might have..."

The small room fell silent, and the previously relaxed atmosphere became gloomy again.

They had agreed to come out and relax, but it turned into a session of self-criticism.

Deng Yutang suddenly spoke up, breaking the silence, "I was wrong too."

Chang Ying looked at Deng Yutang curiously, "What did you do wrong?"

On the battlefield, this Red Handkerchief believer's performance was commendable, following orders without hesitation, and he didn't falter in his duties.

"I...I..." Deng Yutang struggled for a while but couldn't find the right words.

His mistake might have been his eagerness to fit in.

As the three teammates reflected, Deng Yutang felt a little embarrassed.

Finally, Deng Yutang picked up his juice, "Surviving is our greatest success and the most worthy of celebration!

We must quickly regroup and prepare for the dangers ahead!"

Self-criticism was indeed necessary, but in this dangerous world, one couldn't dwell on it for too long.

Growth inevitably involves experiencing some hardships and learning lessons.

The top priority for people is to find better ways to survive.

"Okay," Lu Ran picked up his juice, and the four clinked their glasses.

The crisp sound was like a dividing line.

Deng Yutang took a big gulp of orange juice and said, "It's still early, should we go to the demon cave for training?"

At this moment, the characteristics of a Red Handkerchief believer were fully displayed in Deng Yutang.

Just yesterday, everyone had experienced life and death and witnessed the terrifying demon nest.

If it were someone else, they might not recover for days or even be haunted for life.

But the Red Handkerchief believer was already ready to pick up his spear and charge into battle again!

"I'm about to advance to the third stage of Stream Realm," Tian Tian said softly, "I want to cultivate before the divine sculpture."

It was rare for Tian Tian to be so brave and express her wishes.

Training in the demon cave was not slow, but compared to cultivating at the shrine, it was still inferior.

Tian Tian's choice was understandable; after all, she was just a seventeen-year-old student who wanted to calm her mind, which was perfectly reasonable.

"Me too, I feel like I'm about to advance soon," Chang Ying agreed.

"Alright, then I'll focus on cultivation at home too," Deng Yutang didn't insist.

After all, he was also close to advancing to the third stage of Stream Realm, and the Stream Realm, Third Stage Spell was very attractive to him.

"What about you, Lu Ran?" Chang Ying looked at Lu Ran.

Lu Ran shook his head, "I just advanced to the third stage ten days ago, and it'll take some time."

Chang Ying said, "Come on, you're the most likely to catch up for the big competition."

Deng Yutang was confident, "Lu Ran must be able to catch up! We haven't even finished this semester yet!

There are still four months until the start of the next semester, and Lu Ran will easily advance to River Realm!"

Chang Ying suddenly remembered something and smiled, "That's right, by the start of the next semester, our school might only have Lu Ran in River Realm.

With only one person competing, it's a guaranteed win!

We'll get awards and points, how wonderful!"

Lu Ran laughed, "That's a nice thought, but with four months left, how can I be the only one in River Realm?"

The demand for River Realm was because believers could assemble water armor at this stage.

In this unique era, Daxia not only encouraged students to strive but also aimed to minimize casualties.

Therefore, there was an unspoken rule for friendly competitions: when the water armor breaks, you lose.

"Pfft," Chang Ying refuted, "After the third stage of Stream Realm, it's one step at a time.

Especially when breaking through to River Realm from the fifth stage of Stream Realm, it's extremely difficult.

I remember that during the last semester, there were only 2 or 3 River Realm believers in the senior class at the start of the second semester.

The top three were decided in just a few minutes."

Lu Ran said, "Ma Tianchuan should be able to make it. It's been a while since we heard from him, I wonder how his cultivation is going."

Deng Yutang said, "If we meet Ma Tianchuan, Lu Ran must teach him a lesson, haha!

Our teams' sparring has been put on hold, so you can represent our team.

By the way, what about Wu Shanshan?"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end