"Uh, Dumb and Dumber? Those two icy guys?" Lin Kuang couldn’t help but ask.

Although Zhantai Mingyue didn’t answer, it was obvious from her expression that those two were indeed Dumb and Dumber.

Lin Kuang was speechless. What god-awful names!

"AHEM. You can’t blame me for that. They tried to kill me, so I had to fight back, didn’t I? So, to be clear, you came looking for me to have a duel? Is that it?" Lin Kuang asked, looking at Zhantai Mingyue with some confusion.

Zhantai Mingyue simply nodded in response.

"Wait a minute. Didn’t you just say you snuck out? Then why did you bring Dumb and Dumber along?" Lin Kuang pressed, still confused.

"Are you an idiot? Yes, I snuck out, but do you think it’s that easy? My family permitted it! Otherwise, how could I have gotten away? That’s why they sent Dumb and Dumber to protect me!" Zhantai Mingyue retorted with a look of disdain.

Lin Kuang’s head spun. Am I an idiot? I always thought I was pretty smart!

"Alright. What are you going to do now? Going home?" he asked.

"Yes, but... you don’t want to kill me anymore?" Zhantai Mingyue asked curiously, her big, beautiful eyes blinking at him adorably.

Her words made Lin Kuang so angry he nearly coughed up blood. He raised his hand and gave Zhantai Mingyue a sharp rap on the head.

Zhantai Mingyue winced, her nose crinkling in pain. She was on the verge of crying, tears already welling up in her eyes.

Seeing this, Lin Kuang was left speechless. How could I possibly lay a hand on this girl? I just can’t do it.

"Forget it. I can’t be bothered to kill you. Just go home," Lin Kuang said, exasperated.

He then reached out and tapped a few points on her body. Instantly, Zhantai Mingyue found she could move again, and her True Qi was flowing freely.

Having done this, Lin Kuang turned to leave.

Just then, Zhantai Mingyue called out, "Hey, wait up!"

"Ugh, now what do you want?" Lin Kuang asked irritably, watching her catch up.

"I... I don’t have any money... and... and I don’t know the way," she stammered, blushing as she reached him and placed her small hands over her chest.

"You... what did you say? Are you asking me for money?" Lin Kuang demanded, dumbfounded. This is just... damn, how can someone be this weird?

"Of course not! I’m asking you to lend me some money. And it would be best if you could escort me home. I’ll pay you back then," Zhantai Mingyue said with a bright smile. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"What the hell? Why should I lend you money? And why should I take you home?" Lin Kuang couldn’t stop himself from yelling.

At his words, Zhantai Mingyue’s lip quivered, and her big eyes filled with a misty sheen. "W-why are you yelling at me?" she asked, looking like she was about to burst into tears at any moment.

Seeing this, Lin Kuang was so frustrated he felt like tearing his hair out. This is a total freaking nightmare!

"Alright, alright! I’ll give you money, but I don’t have time to take you home," he conceded. "How about this? Just call your family and have them come pick you up, okay?"

"Okay, but... I don’t know my family’s phone number," Zhantai Mingyue said, blinking her large eyes.

Hearing this, Lin Kuang wanted to bang his head against the nearest block of tofu. This girl is truly a top-grade handful!

"Then how are you supposed to get back? In any case, I am not taking you," Lin Kuang said, feeling so frustrated he could vomit blood.

"W-well, how about this? I’ll stay at your place for now. I can owe you for the room and board, and you can lend me a little extra money. When my family comes to find me, I’ll pay you back everything, okay? Don’t worry, my family will definitely come looking for me. I’ll pay you back then, I promise!" Zhantai Mingyue crinkled her little nose, thinking she had come up with an excellent plan.

"Where... where is your home?" Lin Kuang asked, forcibly suppressing his mounting frustration.

"My home? Oh, it’s deep in the mountains. This is my first time ever leaving." She seemed a little excited as she said this.

When she was young, her health was poor due to a strange illness, forcing her to live deep in the mountains. The elders of the Zhantai Family were constantly treating her. Her condition only began to improve when she turned eighteen. Around that time, the Zhantai Family discovered she possessed an incredible talent for Martial Arts, so they had her constantly practice Ancient Martial Arts at home.

Because of this, Zhantai Mingyue had almost never left the mountains. Her personality was one of childlike innocence, and she had practically no concept of what a "bad person" was. The Zhantai Family had intentionally allowed her to leave this time. In their view, with Dumb and Dumber protecting her, combined with her own formidable strength, nothing could possibly go wrong. That was why they had finally let her out. The Zhantai Family never imagined she would be captured. If they had known, they would have been sick with regret.

Listening to her words and seeing her slightly excited smile, Lin Kuang felt completely defeated.

"Fine. Come with me. You can stay at my place for now," Lin Kuang finally said.

"You... You agree?" Zhantai Mingyue asked, thrilled. In her excitement, her hands dropped away from her chest, giving Lin Kuang an unobstructed view for several long moments.

"Bastard! Pervert!" Seeing his eyes fixed on her chest, Zhantai Mingyue hurriedly covered herself again.

"AHEM. You’re the one who uncovered them. It has nothing to do with me," Lin Kuang said with a straight face.

In response, Zhantai Mingyue shot him an exasperated eye-roll.

"AHEM. Alright, let’s head back now," Lin Kuang said, feeling helpless.

Zhantai Mingyue simply agreed with an "Oh," then picked up her treasured sword and followed him.

"Hey, what’s that sword of yours called? It’s incredibly sharp," Lin Kuang couldn’t help but ask, eyeing the pitch-black longsword in her hand.

"You mean Little Black? Its name is Little Black," Zhantai Mingyue said cheerfully, giving the sword a little shake.

Hearing this, Lin Kuang nearly walked straight into a tree. A fine, treasured sword like this is named Little Black? That’s just criminal! If this sword had a spirit, it would probably curse this girl nonstop, right? he grumbled to himself.

"Ah, so it’s called Little Black. Mmm, that’s a... very nice name," Lin Kuang said, lying through his teeth.

"Of course it is! I’m the one who named it, so how could it not sound good?" Zhantai Mingyue declared proudly, completely oblivious to the disdain in his tone.

At that, Lin Kuang was utterly defeated. It looks like I’ll have to be more direct with this girl. Otherwise, she just won’t get it!