I Stepped on a Bug, and the System Says I Slayed a Dragon?-Chapter 102: Li Qinghe Explores the Library’s Third Floor at Night
"You’re asking me?"
Li Qinghe pointed to herself, stunned. Qin Yang’s question had caught her completely off guard.
"Heh. Don’t you forget who the newcomer is here,"
Qin Yang chuckled. He slowly stood up from his stool, holding Xiaobai. Using his height advantage to look down on her, he pressed, "Since you’re so knowledgeable about Arrays, why sneak into the library so furtively? What’s your real goal?"
The words had barely left his lips when he unleashed a barrage of questions, turning the tables on her.
Her mind was instantly thrown into turmoil.
"I..."
Hearing this, Li Qinghe opened her mouth, but the words wouldn’t come out. She was left speechless.
’How am I supposed to refute that?’
’I can’t just admit I’m here to steal an Array Map, can I!?’
"..."
At that thought, Li Qinghe was at a loss for words. She quickly looked away and changed the subject. "How did you break my Array...?"
"Heh."
Hearing this, Qin Yang couldn’t help but laugh. He casually stroked Xiaobai and said, "If you’re bad, you should practice more."
With that, he stood up from the stool again, slowly walked over to Li Qinghe, shook his head, and gave her a disdainful look.
It wasn’t physically harmful, but the insult factor was off the charts...
Then he sat back down on his stool and went back to slacking off, scrolling through the news.
"You!"
Seeing this, Li Qinghe’s face turned beet red again, and she stomped her foot in anger.
She was utterly devoted to Arrays, passionate about the Dao to her very core. You could insult her for anything else, but the Array Dao was her life, and every word from Qin Yang was a direct hit.
Every single sentence struck a fatal blow.
More importantly...
She couldn’t even beat him in a fight!
’So frustrating!’
Just then, Li Qinghe looked down and noticed Xiaobai in Qin Yang’s arms.
Human and fox locked eyes.
’Hm? What are you looking at this fairy for?’
Seeing her stare, Xiaobai’s ears drooped. Recalling Qin Yang’s earlier action, the little fox turned its head and began to shake it at her too.
After delivering the mockery, it buried its face in Qin Yang’s chest.
"..."
A critical double-hit!
Li Qinghe was speechless. Her defenses were completely shattered.
’It’s bad enough that your master shook his head at me.’
’But for a little fox like you to humiliate me too? This is too much!’
"You two!"
"Just you wait!"
Furious and ashamed, she spun around and ran off, leaving Qin Yang with only the sight of her pathetic, retreating figure as she fled without a backward glance.
"Master, don’t you think we went a little too far?"
Watching Li Qinghe disappear, Xiaobai finally lifted its head and asked, "That human looked like she was about to cry."
"It’s fine. Her mental fortitude isn’t weak, don’t worry."
Qin Yang said calmly, his eyes following Li Qinghe into the distance.
According to the system, if she was destined to become a great Array Dao Grandmaster guarding a whole region five hundred years from now, despite being a woman...
...then it proved that her perseverance and talent were both top-tier. She wouldn’t lose her confidence over something so minor.
At most, she’d be dejected for a little while before pulling herself together and forging ahead with renewed vigor.
His words just now were, at best, a catalyst to spur her on.
’I reckon it won’t be long before that girl makes her move.’
Thinking this, Qin Yang released his Spiritual Power, enveloping Li Qinghe to monitor her actions and listen in on her movements, all while continuing to leisurely slack off.
「A short while later.」
In Section 2 of the library.
"How outrageous!"
"This is too much!"
Li Qinghe stood by a bookshelf, punching the wall with a clenched fist. She gritted her teeth and stared at the adjacent Section 1, fuming with shame and anger.
Every word from Qin Yang earlier had been a stab to the heart, tearing her down completely.
Lies don’t hurt; the truth is the sharpest blade.
More importantly, it was one thing to be less skilled than him.
But she couldn’t even win the argument. It was a total defeat!
’He actually said my Arrays were terrible?’
At this thought, Li Qinghe slowly walked out of Section 2. Her gaze passed through the rows of bookshelves and settled on the entrance to the second floor, as if she had made a firm decision.
’Fine. You say my Arrays are bad, is that it?’
’Then I’ll just have to beat you with my Arrays!’
"Tonight, I’ll get my hands on the Ten Thousand Array Map. Just wait and see how I teach you a lesson after I’ve mastered it!"
In the adjacent section, Qin Yang casually listened in. He put away his phone and narrowed his eyes. ’So the girl really is making her move tonight. She’s going for the Ten Thousand Array Map...’
「Night fell.」
The stars shone brilliantly.
The Jianghai City library was silent. Starlight streamed through the windows, casting its glow upon the rows of towering bookshelves.
A figure in black emerged from a remote stairwell, gliding toward the second-floor entrance like a phantom.
"They’re finally all gone."
Li Qinghe surveyed her surroundings. She was dressed in a stealth suit that clung to her graceful figure.
After clocking out, she hadn’t left the library. Instead, she had used an Illusion Array to conceal herself, hiding in a corner and waiting until deep into the night.
This saved her the trouble of having to sneak back in.
"Alright, first hurdle cleared. Next up are the guards at the second-floor entrance."
Li Qinghe calculated the time, took a deep breath, and crouched down, slowly making her way toward the second floor while flicking her fingertips to activate an Array.
The next moment.
CLICK.
In a corner, several Star Stones trembled slightly. Responding to her will, they began to orbit her body nimbly, with Li Qinghe herself as the Array’s core.
In an instant,
a vast Illusion Realm spread out like water, distorting the minds of all living beings within its Domain.
With the Star Stones swirling around her, Li Qinghe slowly walked past the entrance like a gentle breeze.
At the entrance, the three elderly guards frowned, a sudden wave of dizziness washing over them. The next second, they were plunged into an Illusion Realm filled with a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
An overwhelming tide of corpses lunged at them, scaring them into raising their blades defensively. They were now trapped in the Illusion Realm.
"It worked!"
Seeing this, Li Qinghe strolled leisurely past the bookshelves, brushing past the Postnatal Realm Martial Artists who stood guard.
"Hehe, I’m pretty amazing after all."
At this thought, Li Qinghe couldn’t resist glancing at the faces of the guards. Their eyes were vacant, and they were muttering to themselves, clearly lost in the illusion.
The confidence she had lost during the day was finally restored.
"Hmph. Once I get the Ten Thousand Array Map, I’ll show that Qin guy what I’m made of!"
Li Qinghe smirked triumphantly. Recalling Qin Yang’s taunts from earlier, she headed slowly toward the third floor.
...
However, just seconds after she left...
...at the entrance to the second floor,
a man and a fox appeared.
"So the Ten Thousand Array Map she mentioned is on the third floor?"
Qin Yang stroked his chin, glancing at the ensnared Martial Artists nearby. He estimated they wouldn’t be waking up anytime soon.
"Master, do you think she can get past the Array on the third floor?"
Xiaobai stood barefoot beside Qin Yang, sniffing the air curiously. "The level of that Array doesn’t seem like something she can handle on her own."
"Let’s go up and see for ourselves."
Qin Yang said calmly, his eyes fixed on the third floor as he leisurely started walking.
