My Martial Spirit is My Fiancée

Chapter 4: It's Good to See You

The phantom gradually solidified, and upon seeing it, Zheng Li couldn't help but call out, "Xiao Nai..."

Staring at the person in front of him, different from the one in his memories, his eyes couldn't help but moisten...

The system had mentioned that he could return to his own world when he reached the pinnacle of the Douluo World, which was level 100. But how long would it take? A year, two years, three years... He wasn't sure.

By that time, even if he returned to his world, everything might have changed, and Xiao Nai might have married someone else...

Zheng Li gazed affectionately at the "Xiao Nai" in front of him. However, "Xiao Nai" was looking back at him with lifeless eyes. It seemed like she lacked consciousness...

He didn't believe that the "Xiao Nai" in front of him was really her.

If he had truly thought of the Dragon God earlier, then would the Dragon God, after becoming his martial Spirit, possess consciousness? Definitely not.

Zheng Li didn't notice that there was a slight flicker in the lifeless eyes looking at him, but it immediately settled, as if it had never happened.

The "Xiao Nai" in front of him made Zheng Li think of the Master from ten thousand years ago, Luo San Pao. Her existence was very special.

However, he didn't notice that a hint of movement had appeared in the lifeless eyes looking at him at some point, but it immediately subsided, as if it had never happened.

In his memories, Xiao Nai had black shoulder-length hair, big eyes, a cute but always emotionless face, a height of 1.55 meters... But now, the differences between the "Xiao Nai" in front of him and his memories were the black shoulder-length hair and the eyes. The black shoulder-length hair had become waist-length white hair, and the eyes had turned blue.

"Xiao Nai" was wearing a white gown with golden patterns on it, and a large golden ring floated behind her head. On the ring, diamond-shaped crystals were evenly distributed, with one crystal floating between every two others. They were identical, just much smaller, not on the ring's surface, nor inside the ring.

The peculiar ring emitted a golden light that shone on "Xiao Nai's" white hair, giving her originally white long hair the appearance of a platinum waterfall.

"I didn't expect your expression to be so similar..." Zheng Li reached out and touched "Xiao Nai's" face, which felt nearly real.

"Ah..." Zheng Li shook his head with a sigh. "Even if you look like her, you're not her after all..."

"Turns out you're not dead yet." A calm and emotionless female voice suddenly sounded.

Zheng Li, who heard the sudden voice, blinked in surprise.

What do you mean, I'm not dead? Wait, that's not the point! Just now...

‘How come I can hear her voice? Is it an illusion?’

Zheng Li hurriedly looked at the "Xiao Nai" in front of him, but she hadn't changed at all!

"Could it be that I miss Xiao Nai so much that I'm hallucinating?"

Zheng Li touched the fair and lovely cheeks of "Xiao Nai" once again. He planned to withdraw "Xiao Nai." Yes, he needed to stay calm.

"It seems like you're not dead, but your brain has a problem." The female voice spoke again. "Your body also seems to have an issue from the looks of it."

The body referred to Zheng Li's transformation into a child.

"!!!" Zheng Li widened his eyes abruptly. "X– Xiao Nai!!!"

He saw it. He saw "Xiao Nai's" lips moving.

"You don't have to speak so loudly; I can hear you," Xiao Nai said indifferently, looking at Zheng Li.

"You, you, you! System! What's going on?!" Zheng Li hastily inquired.

"System?" Though it was a question, Xiao Nai's voice remained calm. She looked at Zheng Li and said, "It seems like you've encountered something extraordinary."

Zheng Li can only stare at the girl in silence, his mind is still trying to grip at what is happening.

Even though he knew the existence of the system, Xiao Nai's presence still felt so calm. It must really be Xiao Nai...

『Ding! Are you surprised or not?』 the system chimed in. 『Shocked at the unexpected?』

"Surprised? Unexpected? What are you talking about? Explain quickly," Zheng Li demanded.

Xiao Nai commented, "So you're not surprised to see me."

"No, no, no! That's not what I meant!" Zheng Li hurriedly waved his hands to clarify.

Xiao Nai continued to stare at Zheng Li without any facial expression or emotions.

Seeing Xiao Nai like this, Zheng Li shivered. "Xiao Nai, can you stop staring at me like that? It's creepy."

Stare~

Xiao Nai remained unfazed.

At this moment, the system provided an explanation. 『Host, what you thought earlier was correct. When you merge with a martial Spirit, even if you thought of a sentient being, it won't have consciousness after becoming your martial Spirit. Even if you thought of Sea God Tang San, it would be the same.』

『Of course, this doesn't affect the existence of its original form. Theoretically, it's a form of replication transformed into a martial Spirit』

"Replication?" Zheng Li had some thoughts. "So, if I replicated something like the Dragon God but didn't transform it into a martial Spirit, wouldn't I become invincible?"

『You're thinking about it the wrong way, Host. Items in each world's gift package are relative to that world's items. Even if they aren't, they will be represented in the form of items from that world』

『Take the Phoenix, for example. If you don't choose it as a martial Spirit, it will become a spirit beast and then your contract spirit beast. There will be two outcomes: First, the contract spirit beast's strength will grow along with the Host's. Second, the contract spirit beast's strength will be restricted to the hundredth level and will recover its original form's strength as the world level increases』

Zheng Li's eyes lit up slightly. "The second option is great! So, if I..."

『Host, please don't try to exploit loopholes. The strength of the contract spirit beast is not counted as part of the Host's strength. You must reach level 100 yourself』 the system interrupted.

Zheng Li rubbed his chin. "Well, that makes sense..."

『Host, you should understand that the world's gift package is designed to follow the rules of each world. It won't allow the Host to become overpowered』 the system explained.

Zheng Li nodded in understanding but couldn't help but look at Xiao Nai with a vigilant expression. Based on the system's explanation, it seemed that it only protected itself, so Xiao Nai needed his protection.

"Wait a moment. What's the situation with Xiao Nai?" Zheng Li asked.

『When the system replicated and molded it, it discovered that the Xiao Nai you thought of had already died, and her Spirit was about to dissipate. So the system brought Xiao Nai's Spirit here and made her your martial Spirit』

"Xiao Nai is dead?" Zheng Li couldn't believe it. "How could that be?"

Even though he wanted to see Xiao Nai again, he didn't want it to happen like this!

From the moment he started interacting with the system, Zheng Li hadn't held back anything. Xiao Nai could hear everything clearly, even though she couldn't hear the system's voice. She could infer what the system had said.

"I am indeed already dead," Xiao Nai confirmed the system's words.

"Xiao Nai..." Zheng Li's mind was in chaos upon hearing Xiao Nai's words. He thought of many things, and even the possibility that Xiao Nai had been killed filled him with anger!

"Xiao Nai, what's going on? Did someone harm you?" Zheng Li's voice was filled with anger.

Xiao Nai seemed unaffected by the anger in Zheng Li's tone and calmly replied, "Yes."

Instantly, Zheng Li was furious. "Who did this?"

His anger burned, and he wanted to go back immediately and confront the person responsible for hurting Xiao Nai.

Xiao Nai watched Zheng Li, whose emotions seemed to be on the verge of losing control, with her calm blue eyes showing slight fluctuations.

".....It was me wasn't it?," Zheng Li's voice became hoarse in an instant.

Immediately, feelings of self-blame and guilt overwhelmed Zheng Li. Many people had doubts about his relationship with Xiao Nai, including some of his relatives. Even his own brother and sister had reservations. Xiao Nai's emotionless face and flat voice had drawn gossip and idle talk from the beginning, and discussions about their height difference had also become common.

And then, he had disappeared just three days before their wedding. He could imagine that some people thought he couldn't handle being with Xiao Nai, so he had run away.

Gossip always spread like wildfire, and he could imagine how Xiao Nai must have felt when she found out.

"Little Li," Xiao Nai called out calmly.

"Yes?" Zheng Li responded quickly.

Instead of speaking immediately, Xiao Nai embraced the now smaller Zheng Li, lowered her head slightly, and whispered in his ear, "In the past, you used to hold me, and now I can hold you too. Do you know? The last time I closed my eyes, I made a wish, and that wish was to see you again. Now, that wish has come true."

As she spoke these words, Xiao Nai's voice was no longer calm, and there was even a hint of trembling in it.

Her expression still lacked emotion, but being emotionless didn't necessarily mean being heartless.

This moved Zheng Li deeply, and he was somewhat surprised. He opened his mouth to say something but refrained, not wanting to disrupt the atmosphere.

"It's so nice to see you again," Xiao Nai said with a faint smile, closing her eyes.

In that moment, Xiao Nai looked beautiful, but Zheng Li didn't see it. He gently stroked Xiao Nai's white, long hair and replied, "I feel the same way. It's so good to see you again."