Chapter 487 306: Beautiful World (Part 2)

Rong Taotao walked back to the dining table and sat down across from Si Huan Nian. He pulled a pair of chopsticks from the holder, casually broke them apart, and rubbed them back and forth.

"Don't tell anyone about what happened today," Si Huan Nian said suddenly.

Rong Taotao: "Ah, don't worry. I won't."

Si Huan Nian accepted the chopsticks Rong Taotao handed her, the smile on her face returning to its usual brilliance. "You have such a big mouth. It's hard for me to trust you."

Rong Taotao chuckled. "I only run my mouth when I'm roasting someone."

"Mm." Hearing this, Si Huan Nian nodded in agreement.

A unique upbringing had forged Si Huan Nian's unique personality. Her parents died young, forcing her to leave her hometown at a tender age and come to this bitter, cold Snow Realm for boarding school. Rong Taotao could imagine just how rebellious she must have been back then, and how much trouble she must have caused.

After graduating from high school, she came of age and could make her own decisions. She left the Snow Realm at the first opportunity and returned to her hometown, but... just two short months later, she was back here again.

Rong Taotao didn't believe Si Huan Nian's excuse that "it's too hot outside, I'm not used to it."

Rong Taotao didn't know the contents of that letter, nor did he know what the young Si Huan Nian had experienced during those six years in the Snow Realm.

But what Rong Taotao did know was that she had eventually visited the place where her father died and stomped hard on that patch of snow. Yet, during a subsequent assessment, just as she was on the verge of death, a Lotus Petal had suddenly appeared.

That Lotus Petal had completely changed her life.

Otherwise, Rong Taotao didn't think she would be living as a "Guardian." She shouldn't be so noble, confining herself like this, standing watch day and night in the Martial Arts Hall of Songjiang Soul Martial University.

That "death" had, without a doubt, given her a new lease on life.

"Coming through~!" the proprietress called out, walking over with two dishes. "Sliced red sausage and pickled cabbage with vermicelli. Here's something to start you two off."

Rong Taotao picked up a slice of red sausage with his chopsticks. "So you plan on guarding the Martial Arts Hall forever?"

"It's pretty good." Si Huan Nian picked up a mouthful of pickled cabbage and vermicelli, speaking nonchalantly. "I have people waiting on me, I don't have to worry about food or drink, and I get to bully the kids. Life's quite pleasant."

Rong Taotao focused on his food without commenting.

"Heh." The corners of Si Huan Nian's mouth curled up as she tilted her head, watching Rong Taotao wolf down his food. "What, little devil, you want to rescue me?"

Rong Taotao's movements, as he shoveled food into his mouth, stiffened slightly.

Si Huan Nian said with mock seriousness, "I'll be waiting for you."

"Fine." Rong Taotao nodded, his mouth full of food, and mumbled indistinctly, "The day I become principal, the first thing I'll do is fire you."

"Heh heh~" Si Huan Nian couldn't help but chuckle. She reached out, flipped her chopsticks around, and poked Rong Taotao's forehead with the blunt end. "Leave some for me."

"Then go ahead and get some food! Why are you poking me...?"

"If you're gone, all the food will be mine."

Rong Taotao: "..."

'Does that even make sense?'

His chopsticks slowed. Watching Evil Boss Si feast with gusto, he fell silent for a moment before suddenly speaking up, "Coach Si, I want to ask you something. It's been bothering me for a long time."

"Hm?"

Rong Taotao thought for a moment and said, "We've discussed the name 'Nine-Petaled Lotus' before.

"You told me back then that it was the name for the Supreme Treasure passed down by the Snow Realm Soul Beasts, and that we weren't sure if the Lotus actually has nine petals.

"But you also said that besides your Lotus Petal and mine, there is one other Lotus Petal that is confirmed to exist and has already appeared."

Si Huan Nian nodded slightly, already knowing where Rong Taotao's question was headed.

Rong Taotao: "Can you tell me who the person with that Lotus Petal is?"

This time, Si Huan Nian didn't say "take a guess," but replied directly: "Your mother, Lady Xu Fenghua."

Rong Taotao: !!!

'She has a Lotus Petal too?'

'Hm... that does make sense. After all, she's a Soul General, and the recognized 'Number One Soul General of the Outer Region' at that. It wouldn't be an exaggeration for her to be incredibly powerful or have a ton of magical items.'

Rong Taotao: "But she's in the north."

"What do you mean?" This time, it was Si Huan Nian's turn to be surprised. What did he mean by "she's in the north"?

Wait!

Si Huan Nian seemed to understand something. After this kid advanced to the Soul Captain stage, he had mentioned the Prison Lotus's craving for the Lotus Petal inside her.

'In that case, the Lotus Petals inside Rong Taotao must also be craving other Lotus Petals...'

Was everything as the two of them had speculated before? Why were Frost Beauty and Xiao Ziru able to pinpoint Rong Taotao's location so accurately? Did the Prison Lotus really have the ability to lock onto the positions of other Lotus Petals?

"There's one in the west." Rong Taotao had nothing to hide from Si Huan Nian.

He paused, as if sensing something, and after two seconds, confirmed, "Right now, that Lotus Petal is still in the west. Since my mother's post is at a fixed location, this western one must have a different owner."

Si Huan Nian put down her chopsticks and nodded. "So you're saying that besides the four Lotus Petals confirmed to exist in the world, you've found another one, in the west."

Rong Taotao nodded heavily. "Right."

Si Huan Nian: "How far west? Inside the country or abroad? Don't tell me it's in the Western Hemisphere."

Rong Taotao pondered for a moment. "It's very close, probably within the country. Compared to my mother's Lotus Petal, I can feel that this western one's aura is stronger.

"The distance from Songjiang Soul City to the Dragon River is fixed. Since the western petal is closer to me, it should be somewhere within the country's Snow Realm territory. But as for where it's buried, or who might have absorbed it, I have no idea."

Si Huan Nian said, "Let's go take a look."

Rong Taotao: "Huh?"

Si Huan Nian's expression was serious. "Let's go take a look. I'll go with you."

'This...'

Si Huan Nian: "As you said, it might be buried somewhere, ownerless.

"Or, it could belong to a registered Soul Martial Artist, like a member of the Soul Police or the Snow Burning Army. In that case, it would be classified information. It's perfectly normal for something like this to be kept under wraps, since the Lotus can be used as a secret weapon.

"But we also have to prepare for the worst. If that Lotus belongs to a criminal, we'll be in for a vicious fight. We'd be up against another Lotus Petal with unknown effects. In that situation, my Lotus can protect you."

"Mm... mm." Rong Taotao nodded silently.

Si Huan Nian: "Tomorrow morning, I'll call Principal Mei to the Martial Arts Hall. You can report this to him in person."

In a rare move, Si Huan Nian put down her chopsticks.

She reached out a hand and placed it on Rong Taotao's head of naturally curly hair, ruffling it gently. "Don't feel like you're fighting this battle alone. You have a lot of people backing you up.

"And your backers at Songjiang Soul Martial might not even want your backers in the Snow Burning Army to know about this for the time being."

Rong Taotao thought for a moment and nodded as well. "Mm."

Some things were better left unsaid.

Although Songjiang Soul Martial and the Snow Burning Army worked closely together to fight their common enemy, they were ultimately two separate departments, two "leading powers" in their own right.

Si Huan Nian: "Of course, if you just want to investigate secretly, or if you want to avoid any potential conflicts..."

But Rong Taotao just smiled and said, "I'll report it to the principal tomorrow."

Letting greed cloud one's judgment was a grave mistake!

Rong Taotao would certainly not go alone just for the chance to claim the Lotus Petal for himself.

If a villain really did possess a Lotus Petal, was there even any need to guess at their strength?

Forget about getting that Lotus Petal; Rong Taotao's own two petals might be stolen, and he could even lose his life in the process...

For the first time, Rong Taotao felt he had the upper hand, so of course he had to make thorough preparations.

Then again, Rong Taotao was desperately hoping the Lotus was ownerless, something lost on Earth during some blizzard in some forgotten year, buried deep underground.

Failing that, Rong Taotao hoped the Lotus Petal was in the hands of a villain. If that were the case, the world... would be just a little too perfect.