"Whatever."
"Fufu, knead my shoulders. They're kind of sore."
"Fufu, pour me a glass of water. I'm a bit thirsty."
"Fufu…"
"Are you done yet?! You really think I'm your servant or something?!"
Ju Fufu bared her little tiger fangs. Why did he have to call her by name and make her "repay" him? She wasn't a maid.
"Fufu, when Heaven is about to place a great responsibility upon someone…" Koji mumbled on and on about a bunch of nonsense.
"What does any of that have to do with me running around like your errand girl?" Ju Fufu's mouth twitched.
At this rate, was she supposed to help him bathe too?
"It has nothing to do with it. I just really enjoy Fufu's service."
"I'm exhausted, okay?! I'm not doing it anymore!" Ju Fufu rolled her eyes hard.
She was a free tiger Thiren. Absolutely not a slave.
"Fine, fine. So, Fufu, how old are you this year— 'nine-three-seven'?" Koji asked casually.
Ju Fufu immediately went on guard. "Why are you asking that?"
Was he trying to confirm whether she was an adult yet—so if he made a move, it wouldn't count as being into minors?
Koji had a great vibe, sure, but she didn't feel anything for him.
"What are you even thinking?" Koji stared at her.
"I'm just asking."
Koji guessed what she was worried about and rolled his eyes, speechless.
Where was the trust between people?
"Who knows? I'm not telling you." Ju Fufu huffed.
"Then what about your master, Yixuan?" Koji didn't push and just asked offhand.
"Master Yixuan?"
Ju Fufu shook her head. "I don't know my master's age either. She's never said."
Probably close to thirty, but she showed no signs of aging. She looked about the same as a teenager—just more mature.
"As for Master Yixuan, she's a bit older than me."
"When I first joined, she already looked like this. She hasn't changed at all these years."
Her face hadn't changed much, but her aura had only gotten better.
Ju Fufu remembered plenty of elite types who tried to get close to her master. Strength and beauty in one package—who wouldn't be tempted?
"Ya, these past few years… nobody's tried to pursue you?" Koji asked curiously.
As a Void Hunter, did Miyabi have admirers or not?
"Yes. I found it annoying, so I set a standard: if someone wants to pursue me, they should at least be able to fight me to a draw." Miyabi's voice was calm and flat.
She didn't say they had to beat her—honestly, that was already lowering the bar.
Even so, it still scared everyone off. Just to force a draw with Miyabi, you needed Void Hunter–level combat power.
That standard was basically impossible to reach.
Not everyone could become a Void Hunter. It depended on talent. Otherwise, even if you trained your whole life, you'd never touch that realm.
"Uh… that's some aristocratic pride right there." Koji's mouth twitched.
If you treated "Void Hunter" like the Seven—on Teyvat, people who could reach god-level combat power were extremely rare, the kind you could count on one hand in a nation.
"That's just not possible," Ju Fufu said, utterly exasperated.
Anyone with Void Hunter-level strength would have a solid mindset. What they pursued would be something higher.
"Honestly, Ya, that standard of yours really makes a lot of people back off," Koji said with a sigh.
"I know. But if nobody bothers me, I can do my own things," Miyabi nodded.
How could she not know how harsh that standard was?
But if someone wanted to pursue her without having any real strength… even if they did get together, wouldn't that person end up feeling inferior?
"Yixuan, Yunqi Mountain should have a place for forging weapons, right?"
"Huh? It does, but it hasn't been used in years."
Yunqi Mountain really could forge its own weapons. Weapons were consumables, sure—but not the kind you throw away after one use. Their existing weapons still worked.
"Let me borrow it."
"Fufu, you know where it is. Take Koji over there."
"Yes, Master. I understand."
Ju Fufu led Koji to the forging room.
"It's here… cough cough—so much dust. Looks like we'll have to find time to clean this place," Ju Fufu said as soon as she opened the door, choking on the dust. The forging room was tucked away in a pretty remote corner.
"Not bad. This'll do," Koji said, looking around.
He had a forging bench in his Serenitea Pot, but since these were Zenless Zone Zero weapons, he might as well use this world's forge.
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing," Koji said casually.
Alright—let's start. Time to upgrade you guys.
Koji worked with practiced ease. The Blessing of Forging activated, and before long, the forging room echoed with rhythmic clanging.
Two and a half hours later, Koji finished forging. Brand-new Wu-Wei and Qingming Sword were born.
Their sharpness was contained—hidden, not flaunted—yet you could still feel a cutting edge that seemed capable of severing anything.
"Try them."
Koji brought the freshly forged weapons to Miyabi and Yixuan.
"The weight's a bit heavier. The feel is better," Miyabi tested the grip, unable to hide her surprise.
To strengthen them this much in such a short time… it was hard to believe.
And the cursed blade's negative influence was gone too—she could still feel the cursed blade's power, but without the backlash.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that once she added the cursed blade's full power, her overall strength could rise by another tier.
"Indeed. Godlike forging technique," Yixuan said with a sigh of admiration.
For Void Hunter-level fighters, a weapon's support wasn't strictly necessary.
If someone only had Void Hunter strength because of their weapon, that was flimsy. The moment they lost it, they'd drop right back down.
"Master Yixuan, should we go down and test them?"
After the upgrade, Miyabi looked eager—she wanted to see just how much her strength increased when she used the cursed blade's full power.
"Sure. Together."
Yixuan wanted to try it too, so she agreed.
Yijiang didn't stop them. With two Void Hunter-level fighters entering a Hollow together, there was no need to worry about them. If anything, the real worry was whether the Ethereals inside would be enough for the two of them to cut down.
"Yijiang-jie, can you give me some guidance on how to use the cursed blade properly?" Koji asked.
"More or less. Borrowing the Qingming Sword, I can bring out top-tier Void Hunter power," Yijiang nodded.
Her talent was a bit worse than Yixuan's, but still stronger than most. Given enough time, she could reach Void Hunter-level strength too.
Without talent, no amount of effort would ever let you touch the Void Hunter tier.
She had been the previous generation's sect leader of Yunqi Mountain—her talent couldn't possibly be that bad. She was just slightly inferior to her younger sister, but the gap wasn't huge.
(End of Chapter)
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