Chapter 149: Luo Zining: An Ordinary Day

Luo Zining entered her room and stopped in front of her desk, where a photo of her and Lao Deng was placed.

Her soft hand caressed the somewhat rough wooden frame and found that the frame had loosened at some unknown time, with a crack appearing at the upper right corner of the glass.

“Really, that’s why I said it was cheap junk.”

The frame was bought by Lao Deng when she was little.

She took down the frame, removed the photo of herself and Luo Youyou on the surface, revealing a hidden compartment behind it.

Inside the compartment, there was another photo.

In front of a somewhat dilapidated orphanage gate, a tall man stood on the left side, with a little girl standing beside his leg, barely reaching his waist.

Just looking at the background of the photo gave off a strong ‘era vibe.’

“It’s been more than five years… almost six,” Luo Zining sighed.

Though she remembered the time clearly, it felt like over ten years had passed.

The atmosphere when the photo was taken was far from good.

The little girl’s hesitant expression showed resistance, with one of the man’s hands pressing on her crown, as if she wanted to leave but couldn’t.

The man had no smile either, just a stern face, as if born without photogenic grace, looking completely out of place in the photo.

Compared to the current Lao Deng, the old Lao Deng looked like an upright ape from the Tai Mountain.

But for some reason, the more Luo Zining looked, the more she found it appealing.

“How could there be such a huge change…”

Luo Zining sighed helplessly, stroking the photo with a wave of emotion.

There was nothing left to argue about.

Lao Deng was Elira.

No matter how unwilling she was to admit it, the evidence was undeniable—seeing was believing, hearing was believing, it was only a matter of time before Lao Deng admitted it himself.

“What should I do…”

She had repeatedly insisted beforehand that Elira must be absolutely eliminated.

If Lao Deng was indeed Elira, she would have no choice but to uphold justice and sever ties…

But in the end, she could only handle it gently like this.

At first, when she learned the truth, an unnamed fury welled up in her heart.

But after understanding why Lao Deng ventured deep into the Boundless Sea to hunt dimensional beasts, that anger solidified, melting into warm water, no longer able to ignite.

After going through all this, she now somewhat wanted to return to a more normal father-daughter relationship.

Luo Zining held the old photo to her chest and lay back on the bed.

After a moment, she raised the photo, looking up at it.

“Pfft~ The old days were better. (laughs)”

Back then, his shoulders looked so broad—

Now he looked frail like a ball.

Back then, his silhouette was so tall—

Now he was even shorter than her.

Back then, his personality was upright and ordinary—

Now he had become a flirtatious rake.

If Lao Deng still looked like he used to, maybe the feeling of family would be stronger.

It wouldn’t be like now, where she felt utterly drained.

But it wasn’t to say this current state was bad.

She took out the newer photo again.

In it, Luo Zining smiled naturally, but the shorter Lao Deng still wore a stern expression, though he looked better on camera than before.

Compared to before, the current Lao Deng looked small and lacked imposing authority, nor the cold dignity of a high mountain flower, but his serene aura, like autumn wind rolling rain, softened rigidity with gentleness—extremely plain yet resolutely shutting out countless malice.

Well, no one would have guessed that this guy would turn into such a flashy scoundrel once he put on his mask.

“Wuuuuuuuu…”

The Dimensional Beast invasion alarm rang in the Boundless Sea for the first time in a long while.

It was only a Level Three alert, meaning the beasts were haunting the Boundary Pass but hadn’t entered the Boundless Sea yet.

“Zining!”

Ji Yue’s shout came from outside.

“Coming!”

Luo Zining hid the photo back in the frame’s secret compartment and hurried out.

It was a familiar routine by now: transform at home, rush to the frontline and wait, then after a long wait, intercept and exterminate the dimensional beasts as they crossed the Boundary Pass into the Boundless Sea.

Nothing happened.

On the way back, Ji Yue suddenly asked, “By the way, have you found out the answer about Elira after you asked me before?”

“Uh—!”

Luo Zining was instantly speechless.

Seeing her aunt’s voluptuous figure, her face darkened.

Right, her aunt had been trained by Lao Deng!

【My aunt was once… by Dad…】

Her vivid imagination was both a blessing and a curse.

The scene instantly played out in her mind—

Her aunt, as plump as a peach, naked on the bed, holding the petite Lao Deng, in a torrid entanglement of clouds and rain…

Oysters!

Luo Zining quickly covered her face.

Anyone who knew their father/mother had once forcibly taken her aunt would feel conflicted, making it hard to face family.

She definitely did not want such a melodramatic ethical mess in her own life!

“Little Red Riding Hood?”

“Ah… don’t ask, I already found out.”

Luo Zining covered her face and said.

Fortunately, Luo Zining hadn’t heard that Lao Deng had recently done anything forbidden with her aunt, or else her hard-earned calm would shatter again.

But Luo Zining could tell that Lao Deng clearly had feelings for her aunt.

Even before moving to the Boundless Sea, she always suspected Lao Deng had that kind of interest.

And Lao Deng also knew her aunt was a magical girl like herself.

She wondered…

Thinking this, Luo Zining leered a little lewdly at her aunt’s rather scandalous body…

Those two lumps must be Lao Deng’s favorites, right?

Ji Yue shivered violently.

Turning around, she saw her niece looking at her with a strange gaze and instinctively covered her chest with both hands.

“L-Little Red Riding Hood?”

Ji Yue forced a stiff smile.

“When we get back, I want to have a serious talk with you.”

“Eh, eh?! N-No, Auntie, don’t misunderstand! I was just imagining things!”

“That’s why I need to explain things properly to you.”

“Ugh…”

Luo Zining wilted.

Damn, how could she fantasize about her aunt’s body?

Well, no matter how perverted Lao Deng was, he probably wouldn’t brazenly act knowing Ji Yue was family, right?

Haha.

Luo Zining smiled coldly in her heart.

“If he really were that perverted and shameless, wouldn’t he come after me too? Impossible, impossible.”

Just thinking about it made her a little nauseous.

In any case, the fact that Lao Deng was Elira must never be told to her aunt.

Luo Zining wasn’t blind; she could clearly see her aunt’s feelings toward Elira.

If told the truth, she would definitely break down.

After returning, Ji Yue lectured Luo Zining for two and a half hours.

Luo Zining felt sorry for fantasizing about her aunt but still couldn’t help but have related thoughts pop up.

She tried to nap, but all she dreamed about was her own Lao Deng and aunt wreaking havoc.

In the dream, dimensional beasts broke through the Boundary Pass and slaughtered rampantly inland.

She stood amid a pool of blood and corpses, looking around in loneliness.

In the evening, Luo Zining sat on the bed, staring out at the setting sun, lost in thought about the dream for a long while.

“Zining! Come down to eat!”

“Okay, coming—”

Luo Zining turned over and got out of bed.

She laughed at herself bitterly.

“Sigh… another ordinary day.”