After entering the house, Ning Changfeng, who had been chattering non-stop, suddenly fell silent. He rubbed Ning Su’s head and hugged his shoulder tightly with one arm.
Ning Su was slightly stunned.
He recalled the red eyes he saw when he took off Ning Changfeng’s sunglasses.
A seasoned player who had undergone countless trials in the game world, his body was no longer that of an ordinary human. How could staying up late watching competitions make his eyes red?
He knew that Ning Changfeng knew everything.
This person, who appeared flamboyant and dissolute, might have been very disheveled while watching the competitions.
Ning Su placed his hand on Ning Changfeng’s shoulder, opened his mouth several times, and finally, somewhat clumsily, said, “Dad.”
He felt Ning Changfeng’s body suddenly stiffen, saw his jaw tighten, and his eyes redden.
Ning Changfeng hugged him tightly, his fingers almost digging into his shoulder blades, calling him in a hoarse yet joyful voice, “Son.”
Ning Su: “Yes!”
The person who had been chattering non-stop earlier now had very little to say.
Maybe this was what having a dad was like.
Ning Su thought.
“It’s a bit weird to suddenly call you ‘dad’ after always calling you ‘brother.’ How about I call you ‘uncle’ instead?” Ning Su said.
Ning Changfeng had something to say about that. He let go of Ning Su and said, “Doesn’t ‘uncle’ clash with my refined aura?”
Ning Su: “?”
Ning Su: “What refined aura?”
Ning Changfeng: “Don’t you know? I’ve always had the nickname, ‘The Most Handsome Man in the Base.’”
Ning Su: “...”
Ning Changfeng could tell what Ning Su was thinking just by looking at his face. “Do you have some misconception about my looks and aura? You should have a basic understanding of my appearance, given that I fathered a son like you.”
Ning Changfeng: “There are plenty of female players at the base who like me.”
Ning Su: “Do you know how many male players like our guild president? Oh, and female players too.”
Ning Changfeng: “...”
Ning Su continued, “Do you know that Black-clothed Azan really likes our guild president?”
Ning Changfeng: “???”
“Explain yourself clearly!”
Ning Su was surprised. “You didn’t know?”
Back in the dungeon, Ning Su had guessed that Black-clothed Azan looked at Shi Tianzhu strangely.
The guild competition was a public event. Players could watch in the system, leave comments, and replay it.
As soon as the dungeon ended, Ning Su saw some bullet comments that confirmed his guess.
He thought Ning Changfeng knew.
Otherwise, why would Ning Changfeng relentlessly target Black-clothed Azan in the individual competition?
He even bragged about how he looked when he drove Black-clothed Azan away.
Ning Changfeng: “How would I know? I joined the game much later than them!”
Ning Su responded with an “ah,” sat down at the courtyard table, and started eating barbecue while gossiping to Ning Changfeng about the rumors he had heard.
“Did you hear? The rumor is that the Black-clothed Azan hates our president because of a love that turned to hate.”
Ning Su thought about the novels he had read, “Don’t dismiss hatred as nothing; sometimes the deeper the hate, the deeper the love, right?”
Ning Changfeng: “?”
“And you still laugh?”
“Haven’t you figured it out in the guild competition instance? If little Ning Su dies, you die too.”
“The same logic applies: if Shi Tianzhu ends up with the Black-clothed Azan, you will be gone! You will disappear!”
Ning Su let out a sound. “I know, that’s exactly why I don’t want you guys to know that I’m your son.”
He didn’t want to use himself to manipulate their feelings.
When he first learned that Ning Changfeng and Shi Tianzhu were his parents, they were mortal enemies, hating each other.
He knew Shi Tianzhu really liked him. If she found out he was her and Ning Changfeng’s son, she might get together with Ning Changfeng for his sake.
He didn’t want that.
Now Ning Changfeng seemed to feel differently about Shi Tianzhu, but he wasn’t sure if this change was genuine affection or possessiveness because of the “mother of my son” identity.
Ning Changfeng knew what Ning Su was thinking. “Don’t worry, she’s not that kind of person.”
Ning Su also knew that Shi Tianzhu had an independent mind and a clear head, and likely wouldn’t do that.
However, he increasingly felt the greatness of his mother and the marvel of blood ties.
He had to consider: if Shi Tianzhu knew he was her son and grew to love him more, when she realized that not being with Ning Changfeng meant losing this son, would she compromise?
So, his plan was always to tell her after she started seeing Ning Changfeng differently and began to like him.
He could assist, but not be the bind.
But Ning Changfeng’s words truly moved him.
The <Zombie> dungeon made him realize he should cherish what he had now, do what he wanted in time, and avoid leaving regrets and remorse.
At the very least, he couldn’t just sit and wait, doing nothing.
Ning Su took a bite of the red willow beef and asked Ning Changfeng, “How did you two become mortal enemies?”
Ning Changfeng took a sip of beer and said, “It’s a long story.”
“You know her skill is summoning, and I have the inheritance of the Hydra Ancient God.”
“When I first entered the dungeon, she was already the goddess of the base. Her summoning skill was incredibly powerful and everyone revered her.”
Ning Changfeng still remembered when he first entered the game, seeing Shi Tianzhu’s name ranked first on the player leaderboard in the game hall’s light beam.
At that time, the players around him spoke of her with full respect, admiration, or jealousy.
And back then, he was just a newbie who had just entered the game, with zero points, no items, or weapons.
He never thought that he would have any connection with Shi Tianzhu.
Ning Changfeng said, “When I first received the Hydra Ancient God’s bloodline inheritance, it was very unstable and hard to control.”
“We entered the same dungeon. In that dungeon, I was a silver snake for a long time.”
“Shi Tianzhu mistook me for an ancient snake in the dungeon.”
Ning Su: “?”
“Wait a minute, that time in the Yinhua Guild, you said you two were at odds because you looked devastatingly beautiful. You also said our guild president is cold to others, but particularly nice to you at first sight. This ‘you’ was a snake?”
Ning Changfeng: “...”
“The snake is also me. I didn’t lie.”
Ning Su: “...Go on.”
Ning Changfeng continued, “Just like you said, she was particularly nice to me and wanted to sign a summoning contract with me. She really liked me a lot.”
Ning Su exposed him, “As the inheritor of the Hydra Ancient God bloodline, your snake form must be very handsome, and it’s her favorite silver color. It’s not surprising she liked it, but she only liked the snake.”
Ning Changfeng denied, “It wasn’t like the usual contract with ghosts or monsters.”
“In that dungeon, she was poisoned and fell ill, becoming very weak. That night in the cave, she slept on me.”
Ning Su: “Slept on the ancient snake.”
“...”
Ning Changfeng continued, “That night she slept on me and talked about many things in a daze.”
It was then that Ning Changfeng realized that the revered Shi Tianzhu in the base also had a troubled past.
Only then did he notice that maybe she also felt lonely.
That feeling resurfaced from deep within him while watching the guild competition, when little Shi Tianzhu died, holding tightly onto her whip.
When watching Shi Tianzhu die while holding the young Shi Tianzhu, that feeling became even more intense and fierce.
Ning Changfeng: “Later, when I could speak, she liked me even more. She felt that among so many players in the dungeon, none understood her like me, an ancient snake.”
“She sincerely invited me to sign a summoning contract with her.”
Ning Changfeng still remembers how she looked when she said this. She pressed her lips together and told him very seriously, “There are various contracts between people, accompanied by integrity and penalties. I want to sign such a contract with you.”
“I can currently sign only eight summoning contracts in total. No matter what happens in the future, you will always be the most unique and the one contract that will never be annulled.”
Ning Changfeng: “Of course, I couldn’t agree to it. She was disappointed but not angry, and we continued to get along very well.”
Ning Changfeng: “Until one day, she woke up on me, and I had turned back into a human form, without clothes.”
Ning Su: “......”
Ning Changfeng: “At that time, it was still unstable, and I quickly changed back into a snake form, with nine heads emerging one by one, unable to control my expressions.”
Ning Su: “......”
