133: Another busy day, I'm exhausted from all the dust and grime!

Shelley raised her hand and displayed an image—the arrangement of ice molecules revealed something dangerous: a magical frenzy.

Morning Dew used the holy codex to manifest a prophetic vision: a brightly lit academy festival scene where a crimson vertical pupil was devouring laughing visitors.

Ning Xiwei channeled power with the book of the dead, and the phantom of the bronze coffin woman from a hundred thousand years ago reappeared.

The phantom whispered softly:

"When the lights of Efang Palace are rekindled, it will be the day the Heavenly Dao descends."

Lu Chen suddenly pressed the bronze marriage contract to his chest and withdrew it into his consciousness space.

The true form of white bones manifested.

"So that's how it is..." Lu Chen wiped the tianwen sword. "The Lantern Festival in Tianyong City a hundred thousand years ago was the beginning of the first world-ending catastrophe."

At this moment, the jade ring on the sword tassel of the tianwen sword shattered completely, and a resonance from the twelve golden men echoed from deep within Kunlun Mountain.

This was an omen of impending danger.

Morning Dew grasped his crystallized wrist and said timidly yet gently:

"This time, we're all here."

Holy Light flowed through the gaps in his bones, temporarily halting the spread of the black liquid.

Ignis planted her greatsword heavily on the ground and laughed, "Who cares about the Heavenly Dao? They'll have to get past me first!"

Shelley remained as cool and quiet as ever. Under the moonlight, she unfolded an ice crystal map and said to the group:

"There are seven array nodes at the Lantern Festival site that need to be guarded."

Ning Xiwei's bone talismans formed a defensive formation in the air as she suggested:

"My undead legion can disguise themselves as NPCs and protect from the shadows."

Sun Feifei was installing thunder talismans on her peach wood sword. Looking at everyone, she patted her small chest and assured:

"I've prepared three thousand evil-warding talismans."

Lu Chen watched the busy girls, feeling warmth in his heart.

He gazed at the brightly lit academy festival venue, his heart warmed.

The lights of ten thousand homes reflect the starry river,

A thousand-year killing intent hides in the shadows.

Fortunate to have beauties wielding swords alongside,

Daring to laugh at the Heavenly Dao for lacking valor.

The night breeze brushed past the clock tower, and crimson hues quietly gathered deep within the clouds.

No one noticed that the mirror in the haunted house was still seeping bronze flower sap, and within those buds, fruits engraved with ancient vows were gestating.

---

Early the next morning.

All exhibition areas were normal.

Lu Chen observed the girls from a high vantage point.

Ready to respond to danger at any moment.

Ice Sculpture Exhibition Area:

Shelley: "Can this ice boat carry people?"

Sun Feifei: "I added lightness talismans, but..." (The ice boat suddenly floated into the sky)

Lu Chen: (Riding his sword to chase after it) "Come back! That's a no-fly zone above!"

Holy Light Tea House Café:

Morning Dew: "This 'Angel's Tear' needs to be stirred clockwise three times."

Ignis: (Downs it in one gulp) "Boring! It should be called 'Demon's Kiss' with chili oil!"

Ning Xiwei: (Her cup suddenly frosted over) "My latte... turned into a slushie?"

Ancient Text Restoration Stall:

Ignis: (Annotating beside "Records of the Grand Historian") "Emperor Qin Shi Huang was definitely secretly in love with Xu Fu!"

Lu Chen: (Snatching back the brush) "You're damaging cultural relics!"

Sun Feifei: (Peeking over) "Actually, 'Baopuzi' records same-sex Dual Cultivation..."

Lu Chen: "Where are your brains? Get out, get out, get out!"

The day passed.

The Morning Dew had not yet dissipated when a trending post suddenly appeared on Kunlun Academy's official forum—"Shocking! Ancient Text Restoration Society's Poster Boy Suspected of Dating Five Girls at Once."

The accompanying photo showed Lu Chen surrounded by five girls of different styles: Ignis tugging at the collar of his Hanfu, Morning Dew holding a coffee cup nearby trying to mediate, Shelley's ice crystals freezing spilled milk tea, Ning Xiwei directing a skeleton holding a banner saying "Harmony Brings Wealth," and Sun Feifei in the background using Talismanic Incantations to rescue a scorched "classic of mountains and seas."

Lu Chen was once again the center of attention in daily life.

He became a trending topic.

---

"This generation of netizens is no good." Ignis lay on the roof of the Sword Riding Experience Hall, legs crossed, her Flame Demon tattoo shimmering golden in the sunlight.

She swiped her finger across a tablet, and a new reply popped up on the forum page:

[User3647]: I want all this man's information within five minutes!

[Chief of Alchemy Society] replied: Advise deletion, this guy is the big shot who quelled the Ink Tide last week.

[Loves Ice Jelly] replied to above: Elaborate?

[Necromancer Trainee]: Pointing to Campus Wall post 1476, a girl filmed him and Senior Ning exploring the clock tower at night.

Shelley's ice Phoenix glided past the eaves, precisely placing a strawberry milkshake beside the Flame Demon Girl. "Thepublic opinion has beenFermentation for three hours, topic views have surpassed a hundred thousand."

She tapped open a projection from her smart bracelet. "Look at this, Cultivation Daily headline: 'On the Positive Correlation Between Modern Youth Emotional Relationships and Team Collaboration.'"

Morning Dew hurried across the courtyard, holding the holy codex, rushing over. The special edition smartwatch from the Holy Mother Church on her wrist also lit up with a notification:

[Trending] Holy Light Tea House Café waitress Morning Dew suspected of being involved in a love polygon.

Blushing, she quickened her pace but bumped into Lu Chen, who had come down to meet her, at the corner. The holy codex fell from her hands.

Lu Chen patted cute Morning Dew's littlemilk bags, not little head.

"S-sorry!" The Little Nun frantically adjusted her nun's headscarf. As Lu Chen bent to pick up the book, the wide sleeve of his Hanfu brushed past her reddened ear tip.

This scene was captured by a Paparazzi Club member hiding behind a ginkgo tree.

Ten minutes later, it directly became a hot post on the Campus Wall: "Fall of the Pure Love Warrior! Ancient Text Society Poster Boy Flirts with Clergy in Broad Daylight."

---

At noon in front of the Ancient Text Restoration Society Stall, Sun Feifei held a tablet, laughing to tears. "Quick, look at this analysis post on the Cultivator Forum!"

The projected screen displayed the title: "Deconstructing Lu Chen's Emotional Relationships Through Five Elements Theory—On the Application of Mutual Generation and Restraint in Multi-Person Bonds."

"Here it says Ignis belongs to fire, and she has a restraining relationship with ice-aligned Shelley." The Daoist Girl pushed her plain glasses. "But according to the Zi-Wu-Liu-Zhu theory, the fire spirit energy at the third quarter of the Yin hour... maybe they... no, my brain is rotting a bit!"

On the other side.

At this moment, Ignis's greatsword struck the bluestone slab, sparks flying onto the copy of "Commentary on the Water Classic" that Lu Chen was restoring.

The Flame Demon Girl, flushed with anger and embarrassment, shouted proudly:

"Burn this damn post for me!"

Ning Xiwei promptly threw bone powder to extinguish the fire. "I suggest you forward it to the Flame Tower PR Department. They should be quite skilled at handling public opinion."

Shelley also said somewhat shyly:

"Do you need me to forge a Cultivation Management Bureau ban notice?"

As she said this, the official account of the Arctic Realm was automatically replying to netizens:

"—The Arctic Realm royal family and Mr. Lu Chen are merely in an academic cooperation relationship #IceSmile#"

Lu Chen helplessly raised his hands to cover his face. "Have any of you considered the feelings of the person involved?"

---

As dusk fell, the Holy Light Tea House CaféPeak passenger flow.

Morning Dew, wearing a glowing nun's headpiece, was making latte art for an "Angel's Tear" latte.

The smart ordering screen suddenly displayed a special order:

[Table 23]

Beverage: Demon's Kiss (Extra Spicy Version)

Note: To wake up that Hanfu blockhead.

Ignis chewed on spicy chips, watching Lu Chen choke until his eyes welled up with tears.

The Campus Wall updated in real time: [Breaking News! Flame Tower Young Miss Feeds Mysterious Liquid, Suspected of Public Flirting!] The accompanying image was a close-up of Lu Chen's reddened eye corners.