70: Chapter 70 I will take responsibility for you

"What stress? I'm here."

Anna looked at Li Taiping. On her cold, frosty, beautiful face, a trace of rare seriousness actually appeared.

"I'll take responsibility for you. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire area fell silent.

Everyone seemed to have been hit by a paralysis spell, each one dumbfounded, their brains short-circuiting.

The few top-tier powerhouses who had just been on high alert now had mouths agape enough to fit an egg, their eyes wide open and bulging.

They looked at Anna, then at Li Taiping, their faces plastered with confusion that read 'Who am I, where am I, what did I just hear?'.

What the heck?

Responsibility?

A woman, telling a man she'll take responsibility for him?

And in such a tense, standoffish situation?

Did they get the script wrong?

Even Li Taiping himself was slightly stunned.

Again?

He stared blankly at Anna, momentarily at a loss for how to react.

What do you mean, 'take responsibility for me'?

Could it be... women from across the ocean are all this fierce?

Just as Li Taiping's mind was in complete turmoil, Anna made another move.

She reached out, pulled a few pieces of energy stones shimmering with a faint blue light from her personal backpack, and directly offered them to Li Taiping.

"Last time I saw you really liked these things, trading for them everywhere. I saved a few pieces for you. They're yours."

Her tone remained as flat as ever, as if she were merely doing an insignificant little thing.

But this action, in the eyes of the others, was like dropping a bombshell.

Those are good grade energy stones!

At this stage, they are absolutely the hardest of hard currency!

And this woman just casually takes them out to give away?

Moreover, judging by her words, she seems to have specifically saved them for this man?

What exactly is the relationship between these two?

Instantly, a ten-thousand-word saga of love and hate flashed through everyone's minds.

As for Li Taiping, looking at the few energy stones Anna held out, his heart was a chaotic mix of emotions.

Damn, this... am I being fed?

Fed by a woman, like a little puppy?

He, the captain of the Many Children, Many Blessings, a man who possessed a treasure basin and could mass-produce various resources infinitely,

had one day been 'kept' by a woman with a few good grade energy stones?

If word got out, how could he ever save face?

The atmosphere became awkward to the extreme.

Li Taiping didn't know whether to accept them or not. His handsome face flushed bright red. He felt that in all his eighteen years of living, he had never been this embarrassed.

Right at that moment, a clear, melodious voice, like that of an oriole, broke the strange silence.

"I say, the dungeon clearance countdown is only half an hour. Time is tight. Can you two lovebirds stop feeding us dog food here?"

Everyone followed the voice and saw a petite woman, as delicate and cute as a doll, standing with her arms crossed, looking at them with impatience.

This woman was none other than the one who had introduced herself earlier as 'Sakurako'.

She didn't look very old, but her life level had also reached Good-Grade Late Stage, clearly not someone to be trifled with either.

"Lovebirds?"

"So they're a couple!"

"No wonder! I was wondering!"

The others immediately wore expressions of sudden understanding. The looks they gave Li Taiping and Anna shifted from shock and suspicion to gossipy comprehension.

So it's a couple's quarrel, a lovers' spat!

That makes sense now!

Hearing the word 'couple,' the corner of Li Taiping's mouth twitched violently.

He really wanted to shout out loud:

We're not! I'm not that close with her!

But looking at Anna's serious expression that screamed 'I've got you,' he knew any explanation now would be futile.

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the awkwardness and discomfort in his heart, and reached out to take the energy stones from Anna's hand.

Might as well take them, it's not like he's losing out.

He looked at Anna and said in a lowered voice:

"Alright, alright, I get it. Let's focus on the main task first! We'll talk about whatever this is after we finish the dungeon!"

Then, he cleared his throat, waved a hand towards Anna, and declared with exaggerated bravado:

"Other matters can wait until after we clear the dungeon. Let's get you through this fast first!"

He had to seize back the initiative!

He had to re-establish his tall, mighty, and imposing manly image!

Seeing him putting on this act of forced dominance, a flicker of a nearly imperceptible smile passed through Anna's ice-blue eyes.

She nodded, said nothing, and silently stepped back behind Li Taiping.

Her obedient and docile demeanor further solidified the others' assumption that they were a couple.

A storm had thus come to a dramatic end.

The atmosphere within the team also eased up considerably because of this little interlude.

At the very least, they now knew that this Excellent Grade powerhouse wasn't a murderous lunatic; he was just having a spat with his little girlfriend.

"Let's go. Don't waste any more time."

The Archer named Archer called out and led the way, heading deeper into the icy plains.

The others immediately followed.

Li Taiping and Anna walked at the very back of the group.

Along the way, Li Taiping kept thinking about that Helya woman, feeling a sense of unease in his heart.

This woman's resurrection ability was truly bizarre, like an unkillable cockroach, forcing him to stay on guard.

Not long after they ventured deeper into the icy plains, a rustling sound suddenly came from the snowy ground ahead.

Immediately after, over a dozen giant wolves with massive builds, snow-white fur, and sharp fangs leaped out from the snowdrifts, blocking the group's path!

[Icy Plain Terror Wolf (good grade Early Stage)]

"Monsters! Everyone, be careful!"

Iron Ox at the front of the group roared, raising his giant shield.

A skirmish instantly erupted!