My Unconventional Online Dating - Chapter 20

Du Xiaotong smiled faintly. “What skill? I just react a bit faster than others. Though I have learned some self-defense techniques.”

“Self-defense?” Tan Xialan exclaimed in surprise. “You know self-defense? Why have you never mentioned it before?”

“I didn’t think I’d ever need to use it,” Du Xiaotong replied calmly.

She was telling the truth. She had learned self-defense to protect herself—and sometimes others. But over the years, she had never had the opportunity to put it into practice. Fortunately, she had kept up with her training, which was why she had been able to react so quickly today and protect Xiao Nianyuan.

“I want to learn! Teach me!” Tan Xialan excitedly grabbed Du Xiaotong’s arm, clinging to her insistently.

Xiao Nianyuan watched them and couldn’t help but smile.

Ji Rongxue noticed Xiao Nianyuan’s expression and asked softly, “What’s up? You seem to be in a good mood?”

Xiao Nianyuan nodded. She was indeed feeling good. She had returned the clothes without suffering any losses, hadn’t been unfairly blamed, and even felt a small sense of pride—pride in having the courage to say no, in not being easily deceived and then left to cry pitifully under the covers.

“How did you feel about today?” Ji Rongxue asked again.

Xiao Nianyuan understood what she meant—this was an invitation for her to spend more time with them in the future. She answered quietly, “It was alright, but I still prefer being alone.”

After so many years, she had grown accustomed to solitude. Suddenly being thrust into lively gatherings with others made her uncomfortable.

Moreover, there was another important reason she avoided crowds—she was afraid that if she stayed too long, she might not be able to resist the urge to touch others.

She had never told anyone, but whenever she was around people, she always felt an impulse to reach out and touch them. It wasn’t about any inappropriate thoughts—just a simple, almost instinctive desire for contact. Yet even so, she felt it was disrespectful, even intrusive.

Though some girls might casually link arms while shopping, Xiao Nianyuan didn’t want to take advantage of others’ trust. She didn’t want to hurt those who believed in her just because of her own impulses. And as for those she didn’t trust, she had no desire to interact with them at all.

This contradiction kept her at a distance. Even if she longed for closeness, the discomfort in her heart held her back.

Ji Rongxue sighed regretfully. “If you ever want to go out with us in the future, just say so. Don’t feel awkward about it.”

Though Xiao Nianyuan had made it clear she preferred solitude, Ji Rongxue still held onto a sliver of hope—what if one day Xiao Nianyuan suddenly wanted to join them?

She still wished for Xiao Nianyuan to blend in with the group and spend time with them.

“Alright,” Xiao Nianyuan responded, her tone neutral but not dismissive.

When they returned to the dorm, Ji Rongxue and the other two hurried out again. They had recently entered a competition that required them to gather materials together, even conducting field research.

Left alone in the dorm, Xiao Nianyuan was just starting to feel bored when her phone buzzed with a notification. She opened it—it was an alert from the game, informing her that maintenance had been completed and she could now log in normally.

Xiao Nianyuan was surprised. She had assumed the game would be down for a long time. She had even suspected this “update” might have something to do with her. But now, it seemed to be back online much sooner than expected.

She couldn’t help but wonder—was it really just a routine maintenance update after all?

With curiosity in her heart, Xiao Nianyuan took out her device and logged into the game.

As usual, the moment Xiao Nianyuan went online, Lian Qiushui appeared by her side.

Upon seeing her, Lian Qiushui immediately handed her a peach blossom.

Xiao Nianyuan had grown accustomed to this and instinctively took the blossom, examining it in her hand.

The surroundings were a grassy field beneath Sky City, the scenery as beautiful as ever.

Xiao Nianyuan looked up toward Sky City, only to find the sky obscured by thick clouds, completely hiding the city from view. She asked, “Can we go up now?”

Lian Qiushui glanced hesitantly in the direction of Sky City, then lowered her head and said helplessly, “Probably not.”

Xiao Nianyuan sighed. She had already guessed as much, but hearing Lian Qiushui confirm it still left her feeling exasperated. She asked, “What happened while I was offline?”

“Probably… nothing,” Lian Qiushui replied uncertainly. “I took a nap and woke up when you logged in.”

Xiao Nianyuan froze, realizing that during the game’s update, Lian Qiushui had been unconscious.

She felt a bit helpless but didn’t say anything more.

Lian Qiushui suddenly spoke up, “You seem to be in a good mood today.”

Xiao Nianyuan was taken aback and asked, “How can you tell?”

Lian Qiushui pointed at her cheeks. “You’re smiling.”

Only then did Xiao Nianyuan notice the slight upward curve of her lips. She had indeed been in high spirits before logging in, and that joy seemed to have carried over into the game.

Seeing that Xiao Nianyuan didn’t deny it, Lian Qiushui tentatively asked, “Since we can’t go to Sky City now, should we go ahead with the apprenticeship?”

They had previously agreed to proceed with the apprenticeship after returning from Sky City. Now that they couldn’t go there, Lian Qiushui was worried Xiao Nianyuan might back out.

She didn’t think Xiao Nianyuan was the type to go back on her word, but what if? What if Xiao Nianyuan refused to proceed with the apprenticeship until the Sky City issue was resolved? She couldn’t force her, after all—they had agreed to handle Xiao Nianyuan’s matters first before anything else.

Xiao Nianyuan could easily see Lian Qiushui’s cautiousness and found it amusing. “Let’s go ahead with the apprenticeship then,” she said.

Since Sky City was temporarily inaccessible, Xiao Nianyuan was annoyed with the game’s actions, but she knew it wasn’t Lian Qiushui’s fault. She couldn’t take her frustration out on her.

The game didn’t seem to have a teleportation function, or perhaps the prerequisites hadn’t been met yet, so they had to walk the entire way.

As they traveled, Xiao Nianyuan tried contacting the system but found it completely unresponsive.

Great. Now she couldn’t even talk to the system.

Xiao Nianyuan sneered inwardly. The system could hide for a while, but could it hide forever?

She didn’t believe other players wouldn’t complain about the sudden disappearance of the game system. She was determined to see how long the game could keep pretending nothing was wrong.

The apprenticeship location was an ancient-style academy, where an NPC resembling a scholar sat inside. The moment Xiao Nianyuan and Lian Qiushui entered, the NPC approached them with a smile and asked, “Are you two here for the apprenticeship?”

Xiao Nianyuan nodded, while Lian Qiushui cheerfully replied, “Yes, we are. There aren’t many people here now, right?”

The NPC smiled and said, “No, someone came earlier, but now it’s just the two of you.”

Without him saying anything, Xiao Nianyuan could already see that the academy was empty, with only the two of them inside.

Lian Qiushui, hearing that someone had visited earlier, said regretfully, “I didn’t expect that. I thought we could be the first.”

Xiao Nianyuan asked curiously, “Is there any benefit to being the first to take a disciple?”

Lian Qiushui shook her head. “No, but I just wanted to be first.”

What she didn’t say was that even though she was just an NPC, if she could become the first NPC to take a disciple, then she’d be the most impressive NPC in the game.

Xiao Nianyuan could tell what she was thinking just by looking at her expression and shook her head helplessly. She hadn’t expected Lian Qiushui to have such a childish side.

The process of becoming master and disciple was simple. The NPC asked if they were certain about their decision, and after both confirmed, the bond was successfully established.

Lian Qiushui happily pulled Xiao Nianyuan along, humming a tune as she led her to a bamboo grove.

Xiao Nianyuan looked at the bamboo grove, puzzled.

But Lian Qiushui said seriously, “Even though the process was simple, I still think you deserve a proper ceremony.”

As she spoke, she began preparing, and soon, a pile of props was laid out.

Seeing her busy, Xiao Nianyuan idly glanced at her interface. There was a red dot on the title section. She opened it and saw the newly acquired title: “Lian Qiushui’s Master.”

Xiao Nianyuan: “…”

The master-disciple bond had indeed been established—but the result was that Lian Qiushui had become Xiao Nianyuan’s disciple.

Xiao Nianyuan watched Lian Qiushui’s bustling figure with amusement, wondering what expression she’d make when she realized the truth. She didn’t point it out, quietly waiting to see how long it would take for Lian Qiushui to notice.

Lian Qiushui solemnly took out a cup of wine and handed it to Xiao Nianyuan.

Xiao Nianyuan found it odd, but Lian Qiushui explained seriously, “Drinking is an important tradition—it’s to celebrate our master-disciple bond.”

Playing along, Xiao Nianyuan drank the wine. It tasted light and sweet, probably low in alcohol content—or maybe even non-alcoholic.

After finishing, she looked at Lian Qiushui, who still hadn’t realized she was the disciple. Xiao Nianyuan smiled helplessly, then quietly equipped the title above her head.

Lian Qiushui was still grinning happily when she suddenly noticed the words floating above Xiao Nianyuan’s head. Upon closer inspection, it read: “Lian Qiushui’s Master.”

Lian Qiushui: “?”