Runes • Rifles • Reincarnation
138. And Then He Said…

The silence was deafening.

"That's not...! I didn't...! Argh!" For the first time, Liu Hua was too flustered to form a proper response.

"Oh?" Li Xue tilted her head with exaggerated curiosity. "I never even said who that woman was. Why... you’re not admitting to being that crazy woman, are you?"

"..." Liu Hua had no comeback. She could only glare down at Li Xue, her eye twitching in irritation.

The crowd, previously stunned into silence, finally stirred. Whispered speculation rippled through the stadium.

"Wait—Liu Hua really slept with Li Xue's husband?"

"That's wild."

"I knew she was eccentric, but I didn't know she was that eccentric..."

"Remind me never to let my man near Senior Sister Liu."

"Phew, thank the heavens I like girls."

"You never know... maybe she's into that too."

Though whispered, the murmurs carried clearly across the arena—every cultivator present could hear them without effort.

Liu Hua glanced around at the sea of gossiping faces. She took a slow, steadying breath and forced her expression into composure.

"Fine. You win."

Li Xue’s face lit up. She spun toward Elder Li. "Did you hear that? She said I won!"

Elder Li shook her head with a sigh. "The match hasn’t even started. Speaking of which, are you both ready?"

"More than," Liu Hua said firmly.

"Nope! I surrender!" Li Xue chirped.

Liu Hua’s eye twitched again. "If you were just going to surrender, why did you go that far?!"

"Well… two reasons," Li Xue said, ticking them off with her fingers. "First, you brought it up. And second, I can’t beat you with my fists—but apparently, my words pack quite the punch!"

She laughed brightly as she turned to walk away.

“Buh-bye, crazy woman!” she called over her shoulder.

"You…!" Liu Hua started, then paused, brow furrowing. “I'm heading up there too. Let’s go together.”

"Uhh... you can't hurt me outside the arena. That’s against the rules."

"I won’t. Promise."

Li Xue narrowed her eyes. “Hmm… o-kay…”

The two ascended the stairs, seemingly chatting like old friends—though no one dared guess how long that peace would last.

Jin Shu sighed in exasperation as he watched the two women ascend the steps together.

Tian Li turned to him. “Want to go down together?”

“What?”

“We’re the last two.”

“Oh. Right… yeah, let’s.”

He followed her, and as they passed Li Xue and Liu Hua, the pair were still chatting animatedly.

“...And then he said: ‘Li Xue, I can’t live without you! Please, won’t you marry me?’ I was so touched, I agreed on the spot.”

“Really? From what I saw, he didn’t seem like the type to say that. Honestly, he came off kind of… wishy-washy. Like he couldn’t make up his mind.”

Jin Shu nearly choked. He barely stopped himself from blurting out a retort—half to defend himself, half to deny Li Xue’s blatant lie. But he couldn’t. Not here. Not now.

Both women gave him a passing glance—smirking knowingly, their eyes gleaming with mischief.

“Be careful with those two,” Tian Li said as they walked down toward the stage.

“Huh?”

“With Li Xue’s mouth, she either makes lifelong enemies or best friends. And Liu Hua? She’s not the type to make enemies… unless you hurt her sister.”

Jin Shu blinked. “Good for her, but what’s that got to do with me?”

Tian Li gave him a long look, opened her mouth, then closed it again. Finally, she just shook her head. “You’re going to suffer.”

“…What does that even mean?”

“You’re not ready for what’s coming.”

“No, seriously. What are you talking about?”

She only sighed and went quiet as they stepped onto the stage.

She’s right, you know, Gold muttered in his mind.

Right about what? I still don’t get it…

And that’s exactly why you’re going to be in a world of trouble.

That doesn’t help!

His mental outburst was met with silence—and the image of two souls casually shrugging.

“…Ready?”

“Uh? Yeah,” he replied automatically to the voice—probably Elder Li’s—barely registering the question.

Then the qi barriers shimmered into place around them.

“Wait—no, hold on!”

Too late.

Tian Li was already charging him, her palm outstretched and aimed straight for his chest.

Jin Shu panicked.

No weapons. His knives were with Zhu Ren. His guns were sealed in his spatial earring—strictly off-limits during the duel.

With no time to think, he acted on instinct.

Ripple!

A shimmering blue ripple flared to life between him and Tian Li. He didn’t think about what it would do—he just needed something.

And somehow… it worked.

Tian Li’s momentum carried her into the portal, and she vanished without a sound—like a stone dropped into still water.

Seconds passed.

The entire arena was silent.

Then came the murmurs.

“…Huh?”

“Where’d she go?”

“What was that blue thing?”

“Did she turn invisible?”

“Is that even possible?”

“…Maybe?”

Jin Shu blinked, still trying to process what had just happened. That wasn’t a normal portal. He didn’t even know what kind of portal it was.

“Have you trapped her within your technique?” Elder Li called from outside the qi barrier.

“Uh… yes?”

“Then… winner, Jin Shu!”

He stared blankly for a moment, then sighed and stepped forward—into the portal—hoping it would let him retrieve Tian Li, and hopefully without launching him into another dimension.

Jin Shu squinted against the bright light, raising a hand to shield his eyes. Before he could take in his surroundings, he heard the soft crunch of grass—and then felt a hand press lightly against his chest.

“Eh? Why is my attack so weak?”

He recognized Tian Li’s voice and looked down. Her palm rested gently against him.

“…What are you doing?” he asked.

She tilted her head, puzzled. “I was trying to hit you. But for some reason, I can’t put any strength into it.”

To demonstrate, she lifted her hand and attempted a slap. Instead of a sharp impact, it landed as a feathery pat against his cheek.

“What is this place, anyway?” she asked, frowning after a few more failed attempts.

Jin Shu looked around, equally baffled. A windswept grassy field stretched before them, a small crystal-clear pond shimmered nearby, and a cluster of trees grew from a rocky mound in the distance.

“I… have no idea.”

Jinshu? he asked inwardly. Ever seen or heard of this place?

“No,” Long Jinshu replied curtly.

Really? Confusion laced his mental voice.

Yes. I may be several hundred years old, but I spent most of that time researching ways to bring Mother back. There’s a lot I’ve never seen.”

Fair enough.

“Jin Shu?” Tian Li called, snapping him back to the present.

“Oh… sorry. Got distracted... again.”

She crossed her arms. “You really don’t know what this place is? Even though you threw me in here?”

“Uh… accident?” he offered, not sounding convincing even to himself.

“Whatever,” she sighed. “Let’s just go back. We still have a duel to finish.”

He scratched the back of his neck. “Yeah… about that. They already called it my victory.”

“Huh?! But we didn’t even fight!”

He shrugged helplessly. “You were trapped and couldn’t continue… so they ruled it for me.”

She sighed again, louder this time. “Fine…”

Then, muttering under her breath, she added, “…Wanted to win… could’ve at least enjoyed it longer…”

“What was that?”

“Nothing.” She waved a hand. “Let’s just go.”

“Sure.”

Jin Shu closed his eyes, trying to spread his senses outward—to find the arena, the qi barrier, the crowd. But instead of reaching the outside world, his perception extended only across this strange place: the rustling grass, the still pond, Tian Li standing just inches away, watching him with what looked like mild curiosity.

Opening his eyes, he frowned. “Uhh… we might be stuck here.”

“Stuck? What do you mean? Can’t you just do the thing again—with the glowing circle?”

“The portal?” He scratched his ear. “Yeah… that was an accident. I don’t really know how I did it.”

Tian Li tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Hmm… how about this: you try to figure out the portal thing, and I’ll scout the area. Sound good?”

“Works for me.” He nodded and shut his eyes again, trying to recreate the moment in his mind.

He recalled the feeling of urgency, the instinct to act—and the portal. But instead of the near-invisible ripple from his usual Ripple Walk, this one had been a distinct, clear blue—like water.

“Why was it blue…?” he murmured.

You probably leaned too hard on the Water element, Shuang suggested gently.

“Water?” He rolled his eyes upward in thought. “Yeah… you might be right.”

“Right about what?” Tian Li’s voice came from behind him again.

He turned, surprised. “That was fast. Didn’t you go to check the area?”

“I did. That’s why I’m back,” she said, as if it were obvious. “This place is small—maybe a hundred meters wide, two hundred deep. It’s enclosed.”

Jin Shu sighed. “So we really are stuck…”

Jin Shu blinked, glancing around. “Wait—enclosed by what? I don’t see any mountains or anything…”

“Here,” Tian Li said, waving him over as she stepped toward the outcropping of trees. “It’s easier if I show you.”

They climbed the small rock formation, and she pointed toward the tallest tree before leaping into it, bounding from branch to branch with effortless grace until she reached the crown.

Jin Shu could only stare, stunned—not just by her elegance, but by how easily she moved. Not a single leaf rustled as she ascended.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t climb a tree… but doing so without disturbing it? Not a chance.

The first branch he landed on groaned and bent under his weight. The second cracked and broke entirely. By the third, which gave a loud creak in protest, he winced and made one final leap, landing in the upper canopy beside her.

To his surprise, the crown held.

“You really need to practice Qinggong when we get back,” she said, barely hiding a laugh as she glanced at the twigs and leaves tumbling below.

“Qinggong… lightness technique, right? Aren’t those mostly for mortal martial artists?”

“Yes,” she nodded. “But they pair exceptionally well with movement techniques. Especially if you don’t want to announce your arrival by demolishing every tree you pass.”

He gave a sheepish nod. “Fair point. So, what did you want to show me?”

In response, she silently pointed.

His gaze followed her arm, trailing down to her delicate finger—briefly marveling at the smoothness of her skin—before turning in the direction she indicated.

He froze.

Rubbed his eyes.

Looked again.

Roughly a hundred meters away, the field simply… ended.

And not in the way open fields stretch into horizons or distant trees. No, this was true nothingness. A wall of void. A flat edge of black, like the world had been sliced clean.

Beyond the grassy terrain was inky emptiness—dark and absolute. It stretched straight ahead for about two hundred meters before taking a sharp, unnatural ninety-degree turn.

He scanned the edges of the land beneath them. The ground was a long rectangle floating in a sea of darkness, completely cut off from any recognizable world.

“…What is this place?” he whispered.