Master of Nine Stars

Fu Tiance’s assessment was a little off. In Rong Taotao’s current state, he wasn’t just *one* person’s dad—his loving gaze was for everyone, for the whole world...

And so... the ”Dad of the World” was finally kicked out of the office by Fu Tiance.

A wolf dog and a warthog walked down the second-floor hallway to the west.

Along the way, they saw nameplates hanging on the doors to their left and right, each named after one of the Twelve Zodiacs.

When they passed the door marked ”Sheep,” Rong Taotao hesitated for a moment but decided not to disturb his brother and sister-in-law.

Gao Lingwei also gazed at the ”Sheep” nameplate, her mind quietly churning.

Unsurprisingly, they reached the end of the western corridor and finally saw the nameplates for ”Xu Dog” and ”Pig.” Their office doors faced each other, conveniently close.

Rong Taotao curiously opened his door. Before him was an office of a decent size, maybe about 30 square meters?

The room’s furnishings were simple. A desk and chair were placed against the far wall, directly opposite the entrance. To the right of the door were a sofa and a coffee table, and to the left were a small single bed, a nightstand, and a wardrobe. A few potted plants were scattered around the room.

’So it really is a combined office and rest area,’ he thought. ’But this bed... why is it on the left, right by the door?’

’Is it to make it easier for a Warrior to jump out of bed and rush out upon receiving an order?’

Rong Taotao took off the ferocious warthog mask, placed it on his desk, and surveyed the small room that was now his, letting out a sigh.

’Holy cow! Who would’ve thought that I, Rong Taotao, would one day have my own quarters inside Hundred Corps Pass?’

’It feels like a dream!’

Rong Taotao walked to the wardrobe at the foot of the bed. When he opened the doors, his eyes lit up.

On the top shelf of the wardrobe sat three more ferocious warthog masks. Hanging inside were three sets of Snow Burning Army snow camouflage uniforms, and on the bottom shelf, three pairs of combat boots were neatly arranged.

’Miss Mao Rabbit really is thoughtful.’

’This is perfect. I won’t have to go to the Social Practitioner building to change. Let’s see if this uniform fits.’

Rong Taotao immediately took off his down jacket and hung it on a hanger in the wardrobe.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. A knock sounded at the door. ”Taotao.”

”Huh?” Rong Taotao recognized Gao Lingwei’s voice and quickly called out, ”I’m changing into the snow camo! Just a sec.”

”Okay, I’ll go change too, then,” Gao Lingwei replied from the other side of the door before crossing the hall back to her own office.

After changing into the snow camouflage and pulling on his combat boots, Rong Taotao stood before the mirror, looking himself over from left to right and nodding in satisfaction.

Unlike his usual snow camouflage, this was an official military uniform, so it had a ”Snow” insignia patch on the sleeve.

Rong Taotao carefully placed his ID in an inner pocket, grabbed his keys and the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow, and pushed the door open. He walked to Gao Lingwei’s door. KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

”Come in.”

Rong Taotao pushed the door open and walked in. He saw that Gao Lingwei had already changed into her snow camouflage uniform and was now sitting on the bed, bent over as she put on her combat boots.

When she saw Rong Taotao enter, she sat up straight and pointed at her boot.

Rong Taotao paused. ’What does... what does she mean by that?’

’Does she want me to put on her boot and tie the laces for her?’

’Well, this is a first.’

Gao Lingwei had a very strong-willed personality. She was the type of Soul Martial Artist who shouldered every burden and always looked after her teammates.

She rarely sought help from others and had certainly never made a request like this before.

Rong Taotao leaned the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow against the wall by the door and walked over.

He knelt on one knee, gripping the pull loop at the back of the boot. Gao Lingwei pushed her right foot down, sliding it into place.

As Rong Taotao tucked her pant leg into the boot, Gao Lingwei leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. She looked down at him and asked in a low voice, ”Why won’t Yang look at me?”

At her words, Rong Taotao’s hands paused for a moment.

’Jeez, and here I thought you were acting like a cute girlfriend asking for a favor! Turns out this was just an opportunity for an interrogation.’

Sensing his hands go stiff, the perceptive Gao Lingwei felt her suspicion confirmed. She placed a hand on his head and gently rustled his naturally curly hair. ”Taotao?”

Rong Taotao snapped out of it, finished tucking in her pant leg, grabbed the laces with both hands, and gave them a sharp tug...

’So many days have passed. It’s about time I told her. Besides, Rong Yang is here too. If they can resolve this, it’ll be a good thing.’

’Most importantly, I can’t just keep quiet about it forever. She’s bound to find out sooner or later.’

As he tied the laces, Rong Taotao said in a low voice, ”I met Gao Lingshi.”

The next moment, Rong Taotao felt the hand on his head clench, pulling his hair painfully.

He shook his head, pulling away from her grip with a grunt of displeasure, and finished tying a bow on her boot. ”That day, the enemy Rong Yang’s team encountered was Wo Xue Mian. I was the one who rescued him, and it was from Gao Lingshi’s clutches.”

”Gao... Lingshi...” Gao Lingwei’s voice, trembling slightly, came from above him.

”Yeah. Gao Lingshi looks almost exactly like you, maybe a bit more mature in appearance, but my vision was blurry then, so I couldn’t really tell.” Rong Taotao reached for her left boot, grabbing the back to help her pull it on.

Gao Lingwei stared down at Rong Taotao, her expression blank.

’No wonder. The day he woke up, he stood by the dorm window, tracing my features with his finger, lost in thought for so long.’

Rong Taotao continued, ”Either way, you two look too much alike. My brother is probably worried he might... react inappropriately toward you.”

With that, Rong Taotao tied another bow, then stood up, turned, and plopped down on the bed beside her.

Beside him, Gao Lingwei remained with her elbows on her knees, but now one hand was pressed to her forehead, her thumb and ring finger massaging her temples as if trying to calm her nerves.

”Did she...”

Rong Taotao answered, ”She said she watched our competition.”

As he spoke, Rong Taotao gently patted Gao Lingwei on the back. ”She called it a ’little squabble’ of a competition and said she found it very amusing.”

”Don’t believe a single word she says,” Gao Lingwei said quietly, turning to face Rong Taotao with a dead-serious expression. ”She’s a master at manipulating people’s minds, at breaking a person’s spirit over and over again.”

Rong Taotao pursed his lips, gently rubbing her back. ”Maybe... you have that potential too?”

Gao Lingwei’s eyes widened slightly. ”What did you say?”

But Rong Taotao just smiled. ”We’ll give her a taste of her own medicine.”

Gao Lingwei stared blankly at Rong Taotao for a few seconds before lowering her head again, one hand returning to her forehead.

Rong Taotao thought for a moment, organizing his words. ”Gao Lingshi spared Rong Yang’s life. She also said she would come find me to... discuss the art of the Heaven-piercing Halberd.”

”And you’ll always be by my side, right?”

Gao Lingwei’s fingers, still pressed against her temples, stiffened. Her eyes flew open. ”She’s coming to find you? When?”

Just a moment ago, Gao Lingwei had insisted not to believe a word she said, but now, her concern was clearly clouding her judgment.

Rong Taotao shook his head. ”I don’t know. All we can do is wait and train every day and every night to grow stronger.”

”She’s the elusive type, and she doesn’t have a Lotus Petal on her. We can’t track her down.”

”Did she...” Gao Lingwei clenched her fists, her voice low. ”Did she say anything else?”

Hearing this question, Rong Taotao fell silent.

’Gao Lingshi did say a lot more. But if what you just said is true—that she’s a demon who delights in breaking people’s spirits—then maybe I shouldn’t tell you what she said about you.’

The room fell into silence. A few seconds later, Rong Taotao chose his words carefully. ”She also said, ’The night is coming,’ and told me to protect my Lotus Petal.”

Gao Lingwei looked at Rong Taotao in disbelief. The message ”The night is coming”... came from Gao Lingshi?

’The massive reaction and mobilization from the Snow Burning Army, Pine Soul City, and even the major towns across the northern Snow Realm... was it all because of Gao Lingshi?’

KNOCK KNOCK.

A knock sounded at the door again. ”Taotao? Ling Wei?”

”Yeah, Chunxi,” Rong Taotao replied quickly.

The door was pushed open, revealing Yang Chunxi at the entrance with Rong Yang standing behind her. ”It’s almost time,” she said. ”We need to gather at the North Gate.”

Gao Lingwei turned her head. She looked at Rong Yang, but he was looking at Rong Taotao with a smile.

”Yang.”

At the sound of his name, Rong Yang had no choice but to look at Gao Lingwei.

Gao Lingwei said, ”I’m sorry.”

Rong Yang hesitated for a moment before smiling and waving a hand dismissively. ”This has nothing to do with you. You don’t need to apologize.”

”Come on, let’s get going. I happen to be on leave, so I’ll go with you to Qianshan Pass for a bit.”

Rong Taotao asked uncertainly, ”Are you well enough for that?”

Rong Yang smiled. ”It’s fine. I won’t be joining the fight.”

While the brothers were talking, Gao Lingwei turned her head, her gaze fixed on the Wolf Dog Mask on the bed, lost in thought.

Now that Rong Yang had confirmed he was coming with them to Qianshan Pass, Gao Lingwei reached for her Wolf Dog Mask.

The next moment, Rong Taotao, who was sitting beside her, leaned over and grabbed her wrist.

Gao Lingwei looked at Rong Taotao’s profile, opened her mouth to speak, but said nothing.

Rong Taotao took her wrist, pulled her hand back, and pressed it onto her thigh. ”Don’t get hung up on this. Your appearance was given to you by your parents. A child doesn’t get to choose.”

”But you can choose the path your life takes.”

”Whether Rong Yang likes looking at your face is not important.” As he spoke, Rong Taotao used his grip on her wrist to pull her to her feet.

He started backing toward the door, his gaze locked on Gao Lingwei’s eyes. ”What’s important is that *I* like looking at it.”

With that, Rong Taotao reached the doorway, released her hand, and snatched up the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow that was leaning against the wall.

Once outside the room, Rong Taotao gently bumped Rong Yang’s chest and grinned. ”This is your problem. You deal with it!”

”Heh, you little punk,” Rong Yang said, placing a hand on Rong Taotao’s head and giving him a light shove.

Rong Taotao and Gao Lingwei exited the room in turn. This time, Rong Yang didn’t step aside.

Looking at Gao Lingwei as she came out, Rong Yang clapped a hand on her shoulder. ”This really is my problem, Ling Wei. Don’t overthink it. Let’s go.”

At her side, Yang Chunxi linked her arm with Gao Lingwei’s, smiling as they started walking. ”If your mind is a mess, killing a few more Soul Beasts later should clear it right up.”

Gao Lingwei’s thoughts were indeed in turmoil, but what she felt most in her heart was warmth.

Yang, Chunxi, Taotao.

This family might not have known about her childhood experiences, but every word and every action from them was soothing her soul.