Chapter 14: What Exactly Did Cao Bin Do Wrong?

"Hey, handsome, did you enjoy yourself last night?"
"It wasn't bad at all!" Cao Bin stretched out lazily.
This girl really was something; spending money made all the difference. She had a strong sense of service, so he didn't have to trouble himself much.
"So... what about my reward...?"
But Cornelia herself possessed a powerful will and determination. Though her gaze gradually grew numb, her expression was filled with persistence and distortion—just as when Xiao Ran had used this ability on Suzaku. She, too, was resisting Xiao Ran's GEASS.
"So this is Lanruo Temple? It's just as eerie and frightening as expected," Ou Jingyan remarked after surveying the surroundings, as if nothing was amiss.
Yet when he turned around, the teacher Naoko, who had just been lying on the bench, had vanished without a trace.
She thought of her terrifying mentor, wondering how many railgun blasts her master could withstand—one shot, or two?
Qin Kun left without exchanging pleasantries with the Yu family. Before departing, he quietly asked for the address of the Black Soul Cult's gathering and the account number that Father Yu frequently transferred money to.
Xiao Ran slowly walked toward Char, who saw him approaching with a smile. Their gazes met, and they both smiled, reaching out their right hands to one another.
"Hahaha, who would've thought even Tomoko could hit a wall!" Watching Tomoko falter before Su Cheng, Yoshizawa, fiddling with his camera, gloated gleefully.
"I am Ouyang Fei. Greetings to all the masters of the Azure Cloud Sect. Forgive my intrusion," Ouyang Fei cupped his hands in salute to everyone.
"Jingjing, you... you're so annoying..." Shangguan Haitang's face flushed from forehead to neck. She spun around, summoned her lightness skill, and fled in embarrassment. The crowd burst into laughter at her awkward retreat.
Lu Qiming suddenly recalled the yellow distress signal in the sky earlier—could it have been to save someone? Judging by the timing, it seemed very likely.
The dense forest symbolized death; unknown dangers lurked in the darkness, instilling fear. The villagers were deeply superstitious, so upon seeing the corpse, they felt terror rather than grief. Someone who should never have appeared was now on the outskirts—yet he was already dead.
Both sides exchanged pleasantries out of routine, and the efficient secretary quickly served fragrant tea to the two, then withdrew from the room at the leader's request.
"In broad daylight, you dare commit robbery? You truly have no regard for the law!" Wu Feng roared, his voice contained the power to shake the heavens, piercing everyone's ears. All the people of Tianyi Village nervously watched as a red spirit beast charged toward them. Seeing its massive, sturdy form, no one dared stand in its way.
Han Tian frowned; logically, the poison had already been neutralized, so such severe symptoms shouldn't occur.
"Father, pay no mind to these matters. Now that the Blood Hand decree has been issued, who wins or loses is still up in the air." The young sect leader flicked his iron folding fan, glancing at He Jie and the Gun Alliance behind him. Their faces were grim, caught in an awkward position.
The final match of the round of 128 to 64: Old Liu from Yangzhou faced Bingbing from Jizhou. Due to regional customs, Jizhou players favored infantry combat and often wielded halberds. Though halberd infantry had a disadvantage against sword-and-shield fighters in duels, many still studied halberd techniques for foot combat.
The gathered ministers and princes were most concerned about the matter of enthroning a new sovereign—who would become the second emperor of the Ming dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang's ideal successor.
By now, the two previous moves had cleared a wide space around them; Xie Yundu's swordplay scattered into fine, fluttering strokes—seemingly careless yet penetrating every gap. The others retreated again.