Chapter 155: Qingque: Why Is My Luck So Terrible Today?
Welt didn't disbelieve Leon.
It was more… could such a thing truly be done?
If it could, did that not mean Leon had known the location of his old world all along? And not only did he know its location, but he could also travel freely between this universe and his own… What kind of existence was Leon to possess such an ability?
His gaze was fixed on Leon's face, searching for an answer.
Leon simply met his stare, his expression perfectly composed.
'Heh,' he chuckled internally. 'After teasing Old Yang for so long, it's about time I gave him something nice.'
Calculating the time, Welt and Tesla hadn't seen each other for at least two and a half years… or was it closer to a full Xianzhou year?
Reuniting this long-separated couple… now wasn't that a wonderful thing to do?
Leon raised an eyebrow slightly. "You only need to answer me—do you want this, or not?"
"…I want it."
Welt's voice was soft, yet the single syllable was as clear and solid as stone.
"Then there's no problem," Leon chuckled lightly. "Once we return to the Astral Express, I'll bring Tesla here."
Welt gave a slow, deliberate nod, the storm of emotions in his eyes masked by the glint of his spectacles.
Meanwhile, Qingque, who was playing Celestial Jade with Qlipoth, Nous, and Nanook, was currently scratching her head in utter frustration.
'This isn't right… It doesn't make any sense… How can my luck be this awful today?'
After a glorious three-round winning streak at the very beginning, her luck had taken a nosedive off a cliff. She was losing almost every single hand.
And that mechanical lifeform called 'Nous' had an astonishing learning ability. He'd seemed a bit clumsy for the first three hands, but after that, his plays became smoother and smoother. Even when he didn't win, he never lost too many points.
After just a few more rounds, Qingque was already breaking out in a cold sweat.
Just then, a message arrived from Fu Xuan: Qingque, go and notify the Trailblazers from the Astral Express. The Matrix of Prescience is ready. Bring them over.
Qingque weakly typed back, "Okay…" before casually snapping a photo of the game table and sending it to the contact information Fu Xuan had provided.
'No way… I have to win at least one more hand…'
The Astral Express crew soon received the message.
[Qingque]: Hello, everyone. The Grand Diviner ordered me to wait for you.
[Qingque]: By my calculations, you should be arriving just about now.
[Qingque]: I have some urgent business at the moment and can't step away.
[Qingque]: [Image.jpg]
"What does this mean? She just sent a picture? Are we supposed to meet her here?" March 7th couldn't help but complain.
"It looks like a secret meeting between kidnappers in a movie," Stelle agreed heartily.
"I know where this is," Leon said with a chuckle, looking at the picture. "Qingque is actually still playing cards."
"Oh? Big Brother, you know her?" Caelus leaned in, his curiosity piqued.
"Yes. When we first arrived on the Luofu, this very same Qingque was responsible for guiding us to the Divination Commission," Leon said, a smile playing in his eyes. "Miss Qingque is quite the character."
"Really?" Serval and the others were intrigued as well.
Anyone Leon described as "quite a character" had to be genuinely interesting.
When the group arrived at the location from the photo, they found Qingque frowning, anxiously staring at her tiles.
'Hard… This is too hard… When did playing Celestial Jade become so difficult?'
"I heard the Divination Commission's own sanctum was also affected. Qingque, how can you still have the heart to be playing cards?" Leon walked up behind her and spoke in a leisurely tone.
"If the sky falls on the Divination Commission, the Lord Diviner will hold it up. Her height might be lacking, but her capability is sky-high."
Qingque didn't even turn around, her mind completely focused on her hand. "Besides, I'm not just messing around. I was ordered by her to wait for important guests… Time is precious. This is called slacking off and working at the same time."
Only then did she register that the voice sounded familiar. She turned her head and her eyes lit up. "Oh, it's Young Master Zixuan! You're back so soon? Where are the other two?"
Qingque was naturally asking about Oroboros and Aha.
"Them? They went to 'play' in the Shackling Prison," Leon replied with a grin.
"Huh? The Shackling Prison? What's fun about that place?" Qingque looked completely bewildered.
"Wait, you said you had urgent business," March 7th couldn't help but interject, gesturing at the game table. "Is this the 'urgent business' you were talking about?"
"How is playing Celestial Jade not urgent business?" Qingque retorted righteously, her eyes still glued to her tiles. "My luck is absolutely terrible today. I haven't even won two hands since the start, and I refuse to give up!"
"Good heavens, you actually intend to win…" Leon said, suppressing a laugh.
'Trying to win against Nous… that's some lofty ambition you've got there.'
"Why can't I win… Ugh, what kind of awful tile is this…" Qingque sighed deeply, looking at the piece she had just drawn.
But she finally seemed to collect herself. She turned to the Astral Express crew and put on a bright, professional smile. "Hello, everyone! Seeing your distinguished presence, I knew you must be the important guests of the Divination Commission!"
"You called us over just to watch you play this?" Stelle raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, my apologies, my apologies…" Qingque said, quickly turning back to the table. "Pèng!"
With a swift motion, she pushed down a set of two identical tiles, then turned back to them. "I originally wanted to wait for you properly, but that area over there was occupied by people from the Department of Fortunes, and it was terribly noisy."
As she spoke, she glanced back at the table. "Chī!"
She continued her explanation, "I thought, if I were to meet you all in such a noisy place, wouldn't it—wait, Gàng!"
She skillfully declared a quad while chattering away, "Wouldn't that just ruin the mood? So I thought, why not take advantage of this free time to give you a tour of the Exalting Sanctum and let you experience the classic Xianzhou folk game, 'Celestial Jade'…"
Before she could even finish her sentence, her eyes suddenly widened. She slammed her tiles forward with a triumphant crash.
"Hú! I win! That was so difficult!"
Qingque was practically in tears… After playing for so long, she had finally, finally won another hand. The last time she'd won was during that fleeting three-hand streak at the very beginning.
"My wish here is fulfilled. I have no more worries…"
She stood up contentedly, dusting off her clothes. "Esteemed guests, let us depart now!"
Beside her, Nous, Qlipoth, and Nanook also stood up in silence.
Compared to Aha and Oroboros, who actively sought out fun, these three were more like the "quiet faction" on a group tour, having barely spoken the entire time.
Only now did the Astral Express crew, whose attention had been completely monopolized by Qingque and her card game, truly notice the three figures and their uniquely overwhelming presences.
"Wow… that one is so big!" March 7th couldn't help but gasp, her eyes fixed on Qlipoth, whose sheer scale was staggering.
"Is that… a sentient machine?" Welt stared at Nous's precise and silent mechanical form, a deep curiosity glinting in his eyes.
"And the one next to him… has a very unique aura," Serval, meanwhile, was looking at Nanook, who stood quietly with an expression of utter indifference.
"Oh dear, my apologies," Qingque finally remembered her three "card mates." She turned to them and said apologetically, "The Lord Diviner has given an order. I need to take these distinguished guests to the Divination Commission, so I'm afraid the game will have to stop here."
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