Chapter 6: An Encounter

“Hey… hey! What are you thinking about?”

Xia Yanran’s clear, lively voice rang teasingly by his ear.

Seeing Lin Yu still lost in thought, she pouted in annoyance, then reached out her index finger and gently poked his waist.

“Hiss— don’t move, don’t move…” Lin Yu sucked in a cold breath, his whole body tensing up.

Just that little poke made the faint pain in his lower back feel as if he’d been stabbed with a needle, and he couldn’t help but arch his body.

“Uh…” Xia Yanran was startled by his strong reaction. She looked down at her finger, then up at his pained expression, her face full of confusion, “What’s wrong with you? I didn’t even use any strength!”

Lin Yu gritted his teeth and held his lower back.

“I slept with the window open last night, caught a chill.”

Xia Yanran blinked, then suddenly stepped closer, a note of concern in her voice, “Then… want me to massage it for you?”

“No need…” Lin Yu instinctively refused.

But Xia Yanran gave him no chance to decline. Her warm hand was already pressed against his back, kneading gently with just the right amount of pressure.

Her fingers were slender but strong. Even through the thin fabric, he could feel the heat of her palm.

“No need? What do you mean no need,” she said, pretending to be composed, though her voice was much softer than usual, “I’m your Sister Xia, it’s only right that I take care of you.”

Despite her words, Lin Yu noticed a faint blush rising on her fair cheeks. Her lips pursed unconsciously, her eyes darted everywhere, but she just couldn’t look him in the eye.

So, this girl isn’t as composed as she looks.

“Does that feel better?” she asked in a gentle voice.

“Mm, it’s okay.” Lin Yu answered honestly.

Passing pedestrians threw them ambiguous glances, their eyes obviously seeing them as a sweet couple.

Xia Yanran’s face turned even redder, her earlobes flushing pink.

After a while, she slowly drew her hand back, working up the courage to meet Lin Yu’s gaze. “Does it feel better now?”

Her eyes were as clear as a spring, filled with pure concern, with not a trace of anything else.

Looking into those eyes, Lin Yu felt a pang of guilt, like something pricked at his conscience.

“Much better.” He gave her a gentle smile.

“Then let’s go!” Xia Yanran immediately brightened again, as cheerful as a little bird.

Lin Yu followed half a step behind, watching her lively figure and the slight bounce of her ponytail, a wave of guilt rising in his heart.

Just now, he’d been distracted, thinking about something that should never have happened.

Something that had happened with Qin Wuyue, a tangle that never should have started.

The two of them—pure accident.

That day, a woman’s departure left Lin Yu with a heartache like a knife twist, and he got dead drunk all by himself.

When he returned home, somehow he’d pushed open the wrong door.

Looking back, maybe he hadn’t gone to the wrong place at all.

At that moment, what he really wanted was to seek comfort from Xia Yanran, to use her warmth to soothe the wounds left by another woman.

Now that he recalled it, he realized just how much of a scumbag he had been.

It was already late at night. In a daze, he stumbled into Xia Yanran’s room, only to find she wasn’t there.

The alcohol had dulled his mind, so he instinctively searched the room for her figure.

Then… in the next room, he found Qin Wuyue, fast asleep.

Numb from the drink, faced with the sight of a mature beauty with her clothes half off and voluptuous curves, he admitted that he’d lost control in that instant.

As for why Qin Wuyue hadn’t stopped him when she woke up, her explanation afterwards was—

“You were crying so heartbreakingly. I couldn’t bear to reject you.”

After that…

Lin Yu had to admit, he’d been too young and should never have awakened the desires of a lioness who’d held back for so many years.

Most of his back pain afterwards was thanks to being drained by Qin Wuyue.

That woman’s needs were truly terrifying…

Maybe, in the end, Xia Yanran would strike back at him so mercilessly precisely because she found out about what had happened between them.

As they entered the mall, Xia Yanran pulled Lin Yu along, wandering from one shop to another, her curiosity boundless. It was as if she lacked everything and wanted to buy everything.

If Lin Yu hadn’t stopped her in time, they’d probably already be overloaded with bags, unable to take another step.

“Miss Xia Yanran, aren’t you going to watch a movie later? You plan to bring all that stuff into the theater?” Lin Yu reminded her helplessly.

Xia Yanran turned her head, giving him a look that said, ‘You’re such an idiot.’ “We can just store them first.”

“…?” Lin Yu slowly formed a question mark. He really hadn’t thought of that.

He never thought the day would come when this girl would mock his intelligence.

“I mean, why do you seem so excited about going to school? Weren’t you always the one who hated class the most? You always dragged me to skip school.” Lin Yu couldn’t help but ask.

In his last life, after he’d accepted her confession, they’d clung to each other for days, never going shopping or watching movies the next day.

Hearing the question, a look of longing appeared on Xia Yanran’s face.

“Of course I’m excited! That’s Domed Academy! Big Sister Lin graduated from there, my mom teaches there too, of course I want to see it for myself.”

“Domed Academy…” Lin Yu repeated softly, nostalgia in his eyes.

When he first arrived in this world, he thought it wasn’t much different from the one he came from.

Only later did he gradually realize—this was the future.

Three hundred years ago, just as humanity was about to step into space, an unexpected obstacle appeared.

No one noticed when, but a spatial rift spanning dozens of kilometers opened up in the middle of the ocean, and from it poured forth creatures called “Rift Beasts.”

Individually, they weren’t too strong, but their numbers seemed endless. They forced humanity to a standstill and turned technology down a path focused on combat.

Yet with crisis came opportunity.

Matter from the other side of the rift began flowing into this world, driving the evolution of humanity to a certain degree, resulting in the birth of “New Humans” who could wield all sorts of strange abilities.

Most of them were women. His sister Lin Mowei was among the very best, code-named “Boshi Ling,” with the ability of time reversal.

Domed Academy was one of the institutions founded by the remaining great nations, specifically to train ability users. It ran on an academy model.

He glanced at Xia Yanran, who was still chattering on, listing off the legendary figures who had graduated from Domed Academy.

Lin Yu silently thought to himself: You’re not bad either. One day you’ll awaken your own Star Resonance Power, become an ability user, and have a codename like your idols—”Hunter.” Your power will be tracking, pretty insane.

If not for those women all having their own tricks, who knows how many times they would’ve been found by you.

As the two shopped, Xia Yanran suddenly asked, “How come you aren’t buying anything? If you’re short on cash, tell your Sister Xia, I’ll lend you some.”

Lin Yu smiled, “No need, my sister took care of everything already.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” Mentioning Lin Mowei, Xia Yanran naturally believed it.

When it was time to eat, the two of them found a restaurant.

But neither of them expected that they would run into someone there.

Xia Yanran didn’t want to see her.

And Lin Yu… didn’t want to see her either.