1592 Xia Fan and the Goddess

In a dark and cold world…

Nikai felt a deep sense of solitude. The voices from headquarters and that of her father in the communication crystal were her only hope. As a warrior, Nikai tried her best to control her emotions so that her father wouldn’t worry about her, but the sense of solitude lingered, and all she could do was endure it alone.

The pain from her left leg had diminished, probably from the effect of the pain-relieving spray, but the bone was still broken. Nikai found two thin sheets of alloy metal and then took off her underclothes so that she could bind her leg to the alloy sheets, creating a simple splint. With the help of the splint, she was able to move slowly, and with the energy drink she had on her, she could probably last for another half a day.

“If Dongfang He can rescue me, I might as well agree to his marriage proposal. Jia Yuntian would do as well, although his personality is a little cold.” Nikai was starting to think about random things.

Humans had a natural desire for companionship. While they might not notice it normally, if one was sick and lying weakly in a bed, not even strong enough to pour oneself a cup of water, one would naturally realize how great it would be to have a boyfriend or girlfriend, someone to talk with and make some porridge for them.

Nikai was exactly in that type of situation. Although she was called a goddess, she didn’t actually have any options. Jia Yuntian and Dongfang He had scared off basically everyone else. The other men her age all acted awkwardly in front of her, unable to summon the courage to pursue her.

Many men didn’t understand why such outstanding women were often married off to partners lacking suitability, but that was because everyone understood that they shouldn’t pursue those women, and they couldn’t hope that the goddess would pursue them. The reason why those women were married off to lousy men was because those lousy men were sweet talkers, and also shameless!

“Nikai, it’s Xia Fan.” His voice suddenly came from the communication crystal, startling Nikai.

“Eh? It’s you…”

“Mm! I’ve already deciphered the Demonic Voice, so the city lord wants me to help you get out,” Xia Fan told her.

Nikai was shocked again. She felt the ones most anxious about her being trapped would be Dongfang He and Jia Yuntian, and that they would definitely do everything they could to decipher the Demonic Voice. They might even ride a white horse and descend from the heavens to rescue her from this strange place!

But instead, it was Xia Fan, the stranger she had only met once, who had appeared when Nikai needed him the most. Was it a coincidence, or some inevitability of fate?

“Then I leave it to you. My apologies for giving you and everyone trouble,” Nikai answered politely.

“Haha, if you were trouble, then I would want nothing more than for this trouble to pester me all the time. Although my eyes are closed, my nose is very good. I know that there are many animals staring at me with envy and admiration, particularly your two suitors. They probably even want to eat me! Alright, enough small talk. Do as I say, and I’ll lead you out of here,” Xia Fan responded.

Pft!

Nikai couldn’t help but laugh, not expecting Xia Fan to be so humorous. When she thought about it, she realized that he was right. Dongfang He and Jia Yuntian probably weren’t looking too good right now, yes?

In the darkness and silence, Xia Fan’s little joke was like a precious ray of sunlight, shining into Nikai’s heart. His confident tone also instilled hope in Nikai. Although she didn’t understand Xia Fan at all, she instinctively felt he was worth trusting.

“Right now, you should head forward while paying attention to your surroundings. In 463 steps, you will arrive at an intersection,” Xia Fan began.

Nikai was startled. “463 steps? You’ve even calculated the number of steps I need to take?”

Xia Fan calmly said, “It’s very simple. I’ve been examining you, and the span of your step is 0.84 meters. You’re injured, and your left leg has sustained a level 2 fracture, which applies a coefficient of 0.65. In other words, your every step now only moves you 0.546 meters. Divide the distance by 0.546 and we get the number of steps you need to take. There is about a 2% margin of error.”

What a strange person…

She was clearly in danger, but Nikai suddenly felt very curious about Xia Fan. She wanted to know just what sort of man could calculate the steps she needed to take so clearly!

“I can use my wings to fly over,” Nikai said.

She suddenly felt a little stubborn. After all, this Xia Fan had to be examining her. If he knew how much distance she covered with every step, this guy had to be harboring ill intentions.. Moreover, Nikai felt like she was being controlled like a puppet, and the strings were in Xia Fan’s hands.

“Don’t joke around. It’s best for you to save energy. Your Divine Wings of Color really are quite powerful, but they use up too much energy. Their energy consumption factor is 4.9, and I estimate that your energy stores are already running low. Let’s save them to use at a critical moment,” Xia Fan smiled in reply.

‘As expected! There’s something weird about this guy, for him to examine things in such detail!’, Nikai thought to herself, both surprised and abashed, feeling like she had been stripped naked. It was like Xia Fan was omniscient, perhaps even knowing the measurements of her underwear!

Of course, Nikai was wrong. Observation was just Xia Fan’s instinct. He had always been like that. He hadn’t decided to memorize the details of Nikai’s body for any particular reason. It was just what he did with everyone.

Nikai fell silent while Xia Fan continued to talk. It wasn’t because Xia Fan liked to randomly chatter, but because he knew Nikai’s situation. If she had a voice to keep her company, she wouldn’t feel so lonely, which would calm her down.

Thus, Xia Fan kept talking, talking about books he had read and the strange stories he had heard from the Scourges. He was like a comedian, continuing his performance even though there was no audience or applause.

“I’ve arrived at the intersection. Which path should I take?”

“The middle one.”

“You’re sure?”

“Of course. I’ve got a big pack of your admirers staring at me. I’m under a lot of pressure, okay? If I dare to point you down the wrong path, they’ll probably break my third leg,” Xia Fan said in a very exaggerated tone.

Nikai laughed again. “Ugh, you pervert. If you keep up that smooth talk of yours, I’ll start ignoring you.”

Nikai wanted to be more serious, but Xia Fan’s jokes were constantly amusing her. As she laughed, her mood lightened, and she felt like having Xia Fan accompanying her made this ordeal not so bad.

—

“Pervert? Are they flirting with each other?”

“What’s going on? Have Nikai and Xia Fan known each other for a while or something?”

There were many people around Xia Fan at the moment. Although they were doing their best to remain silent, there was disbelief written all over their faces.

This situation was far too bizarre. It was incredibly difficult to say even one or two sentences to Nikai. After all, goddesses were naturally unreachable existences. Although Nikai was warm to everyone, it was a sort of politeness that came with a clear sense of distance.

But what was she doing with Xia Fan? They were brazenly laughing and chatting, practically holding hands and running off into the sunset!

Xia Fan talked about his third leg and then Nikai called him a pervert. Were they hearing things!? This was clearly a conversation between lovers!

“Xia Fan has successfully gained Nikai’s trust. In this sort of dangerous operation, establishing trust is the most important thing. You must remember this. One day, if your comrade needs to be saved, you need to be like Xia Fan, doing everything you can to try and make the person being rescued relax. Telling jokes and talking about relaxing topics are all good options,” Calvinson lectured everyone.

Xia Fan was clearly teasing the goddess, and now even the city lord was complimenting him?

Everyone’s minds were in turmoil, but they had to admit that Xia Fan was putting on an excellent performance. Through his humor and his meticulous examination of the surroundings, he was able to guide Nikai to safety.

Even a fool could hear that Nikai was very relaxed, already entrusting everything to Xia Fan. If Xia Fan made her walk fifteen steps, Nikai wouldn’t take sixteen. If Xia Fan had Nikai make a 3.15 degree turn to the right, Nikai would do exactly as ordered.

This was not easy. Xia Fan first had to survey the Demon Palace’s route and measure the distance, then he had to perfectly simulate Nikai’s movements. They couldn’t see each other, but it was like they were of one body.

What else could be said at this point? This was probably what it meant to be a genius!

Xia Fan’s feat of taming two top-tier Lion Vultures had just begun to spread through Subduing Demon City, and now, he had exhibited powerful comprehension, friendliness, and leadership. As Nikai made her way through the Demon Palace, though Dongfang He and Jia Yuntian felt extremely envious, they had to accept that they wouldn’t have been able to accomplish what Xia Fan was doing.

Amid the light conversation and jokes, Xia Fan was leading Nikai through the various traps, pulling her out from the jaws of Hell!

—

Nikai didn’t feel like she was in any danger at all. She felt Xia Buyun was rather strange, but she didn’t know that Xia Fan was already covered in sweat, his brain working like a supercomputer, calculating every step she took. Behind that relaxed voice was effort that ordinary people couldn’t imagine.

“I’ve really reached the main hall! A hundred and fifty meters away is the throne of Scarlet Blaze Demon King Stanley, a throne blazing with blood and fire. That has to be it! I’ve seen it before in a book!” Nikai exclaimed in pleasant surprise.

“Congratulations. You’ve done very well so far, but it’s not time for us to celebrate just yet, for the toughest trial is only just beginning,” Xia Fan said with a smile. “If you’ve been doing exactly as I’ve said so far and are standing on the threshold of the side door, then the throne should be 162.3 meters away. Now, you have to do this…”

“Mm, mm, understood. Relax. I trust you. I’ll do whatever you say!” Nikai replied.