First Contact

  After chatting with a little girl, I went to the office building to find the teacher in charge and reported my arrival. I filled out some forms and finished the day's tasks.

  Since I've come all the way, before leaving, Feng Xiaoxiao took someone to the school library again, borrowed a small basket and led them straight to the religious mythology section.

  "To be honest, I'm not very interested in ancient myths, but I think we'll have more colleagues like that in the future. Shouldn't we brush up on this basic knowledge first?!" Feng Xiaoxiao browsed through the bookshelf and picked out a few books, asking the person beside her who was staring blankly: "How much do you know about mythological figures?"

  "Not many." Yang Yan raised an eyebrow and replied bluntly, "That kind of book without economic benefits, unless it's when I'm flirting with girls and they like it, otherwise I won't even touch it... No, put that back, take out 'Shan Hai Jing', 'Huainanzi'... and a few volumes of 'Records of the Grand Historian'."

  "What's with the history?!" The wind blew gently but made a big fuss.

  "Sometimes ancient myths are assumed to be part of history, only exaggerated for embellishment or momentum." Yang Mo couldn't bear to see the basket of Journey to the West in Feng Xiaoxiao's hands, and said "I am XXX, Cultivating True Self XXX" and other books. He simply rolled up his sleeves and snatched the basket away from her: "Journey to the West doesn't have much significance in terms of preservation, but it can still serve as a reference or auxiliary book. And this pile... you don't even need to touch..."

  "Actually, I personally suggest you don't take it too seriously. The biggest characteristic of Chinese mythology is that it's all over the place. For example, Nüwa is the goddess of creation and one of the Three Sovereigns, but she also merged with Houtu, her identity spanning from the beginning of heaven to the late Stone Age. Which one should you believe?!" Yang Yan said while flipping through a book with disdain: "And then there's Erlang Shen, in Investiture of the Gods he's an elite, but in Journey to the West he's just cannon fodder... The County Annals of Wushan say that Yao Ji is his mother, but Precious Lotus Lamp says she's his little sister... If you take all these as true, sooner or later you'll go crazy."

  "So you mean it's still safer for us to pretend to be illiterate?!"

  “...I mean, after the gods awaken, they all come with past memories, if you want to know something, it's safer to ask someone directly.” Yang Yan was speechless for a moment: “All gods have dharma bodies, and dharma bodies have strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes two contradictory records don't mean one is wrong, but rather different dharma bodies at different times. You're not doing research, knowing roughly is enough... anyway, no matter which scripture describes it, as long as we're both very awesome, that's all that matters.”

  After selecting and reviewing the basket, Feng Xiaoxiao agreed with Yang Yan's statement.

  It's not that she doesn't make progress, mainly because the books he gives her are mostly classical Chinese novels with a large number of words. It is absolutely impossible for her to finish reading them all. Occasionally putting one on the bedside table as a sleep aid is barely acceptable.

  When the wind was small and brushed the student card, the librarian's eyes were straight. I guess she has been working in the school library for so many years, but she hasn't seen such a diligent and serious brave student, and it's still a girl.

  Loaded with joy, I rushed out of the school gate and headed straight for a restaurant. When ordering food, Feng Xiaoxiao once again experienced Yangyan's overbearing manner.

  "This page, this page and this one..." Yang Yan waved his hand: "Except for these few pages, submit the rest as one copy."

  It's just as well he was only looking at the menu. If he had also come up with a drink order, Feng Xiaoxiao estimated that she really couldn't have taken it.

  The waiter estimated that it had been many years since he had encountered such a big fish, opening a restaurant near the school was like this, with a large flow of people, and the taste was generally okay to guarantee customer flow, but the possibility of a single table reaching such a high level of consumption was really not great. Feng Xiaoxiao personally saw that after taking the menu, he directly ran back to the kitchen, probably because he was afraid that if he waited for a while, the person would regain his composure and change the order again.

  "I'm really curious about your social status now." Feng Xiaoxiao poured some free tea from the table, took two bowls and rinsed them before handing one over: "Since everyone's relationship is not ordinary now, I don't know if it's convenient for you to explain? I'm not very interested in your private life, but I'm afraid there might be some trouble."

  She is now just a mascot, to be honest, she doesn't have much ability, can't even play with mud, if she were to offend some big shot, I reckon she'd be taken away to pour cement into the sea and wouldn't even be able to resist.

  Yang Yan was wiping the table with a dozen napkins, repeatedly and carefully cleaning the oil stains. Judging from the history of this small restaurant, by the time he wiped the table to his satisfaction, it's estimated that half of the tabletop would be worn away. After hearing Feng Xiaoxiao's words, Yang Yan finally looked up, pouting: "You don't have to worry about trouble and the like, anyway according to Li Chang's theory you won't die. Those jumping clowns, give me some time and I'll take care of them."

  "What is a period of time specifically referring to?!" Feng Xiaoxiao supported her chin with interest: "You won't be advocating for 'a gentleman takes revenge, ten years later', will you?"

  Yang Yan hummed: "Do I look like that kind of weakling who only knows how to make excuses and escape reality?!"

  "I didn't say you're weak, you said it yourself."

  Yang Yan suddenly felt that this conversation seemed to have a subtle sense of eeriness.

  ……

  After finishing dinner and going out for a walk, Li Chang was already sitting on the new sofa in the living room: "You're back?!"

  Isn't this nonsense? You haven't even left the house, yet you're coming in from outside?! Feng Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes and refused to answer such an insult to her intelligence.

  Li Chang nodded in satisfaction: "That's right, you are also a part of the great god, and at this time, it is necessary to communicate more emotions."

  "Say what you want to say, don't waste my time."

  Since the hospital awakening incident, Feng Xiaoxiao has become increasingly unable to muster respect for this man who is both her caregiver and teacher. Yangyan, on the other hand, was not familiar with him in the first place, so he simply didn't respond.

  "I'm mainly here to discuss our future plans with you." Li Chang sat up straight and placed a copy of the plan on the table: "Because the talismans have been used up, we won't be able to enter the dream if we encounter new gods again. And I've thought about it, modern society's acceptance of mythological things doesn't seem to be high, so I want to temporarily leave for a while and find some friends to refine a few more talismans... During this time, you guys shouldn't idle around either, aside from work, also take the opportunity to look around and see if there are any friends with special talents nearby, who knows, maybe that's the next companion."

  "Excuse me for interrupting. Feng Xiaoxiao was speechless for a moment: "Can you specifically explain this special talent?! I can't just ask if someone knows how to play with mud every time I meet them, right?!"

  "Nüwa is one of a kind!" Li Chang stared with wide eyes: "Your divine power is irreplicable!"

  "...". She didn't care about this divine power at all, whoever wanted to copy it could just go ahead and copy it.

  "Also, during this period of time, you need to consider your living situation... Erlang Shen seems to have a rich family background, but shouldn't Xiaowu also think about what kind of job she should do?!"

  What's wrong?

  A small black line in the wind.