Chapter 6: The Reincarnator’s Secret and a Homework Predicament

“Ha… ha…” Qin Jinxuan panted, her face instantly drained of color after successfully summoning the ice sword, perhaps due to this being her very first time wielding her newfound ability.

“With this, can you prevail?” she asked, her voice trembling slightly as she extended the ice sword, a faint chill emanating from its blade, toward Cheng Lan.

Gazing at the familiar, pale blue ice sword, Cheng Lan offered no words. Instead, he swiftly moved to a colossal tree, gently lowering Qin Jinxuan from his back.

“Indeed, I underestimated you,” he conceded, his voice calm, yet tinged with a subtle, almost imperceptible note of admiration.

Taking the ice sword, he gave it a practiced twirl, gauging its weight and balance.

Though slightly shorter than the blade he had favored in his previous life, the difference was negligible.

“Watch closely,” he instructed, his eyes coolly assessing the Tyrannosaurus Rex now barely ten meters away. “This is how your ability is truly meant to be wielded.”

“Roar!”

The Tyrannosaurus Rex, its jaws agape, launched itself forward once more!

The very next second—

Cheng Lan vanished, dissolving into the shadow at his feet.

He reappeared with a sudden surge, erupting from the shadow beneath the Tyrannosaurus Rex, and with the ice sword in hand, unleashed a sweeping horizontal slash against its massive thigh.

Boom!

The Tyrannosaurus Rex, still in a frantic sprint, had no chance to react. Its immense body instantly faltered, losing all balance, and it plummeted to the earth with a thunderous impact.

Its left leg snapped, and blood erupted in a crimson torrent.

Yet, propelled by its immense inertia, the colossal body of the Tyrannosaurus Rex, akin to a runaway boulder, barreled directly toward Qin Jinxuan.

In that critical instant, just before impact—

Cheng Lan materialized from the shadow beside her!

With one swift motion, he hoisted the young woman onto his shoulder, then instantly darted behind the massive tree.

Boom!

The immense creature slammed into the colossal tree with a heavy thud, dislodging a cascade of rustling leaves.

“Roar!”

The Tyrannosaurus Rex roared in agony, thrashing in a futile attempt to rise.

“Um… could you perhaps put me down?” Qin Jinxuan shifted uncomfortably on Cheng Lan’s shoulder. “This isn’t very comfortable…”

“Oh.”

Cheng Lan merely grunted in response, then with a casual flick of his arm, deposited her unceremoniously onto the ground like a sack of potatoes.

“Hey!” Qin Jinxuan cried out, landing hard on her backside and immediately puffing out her cheeks in indignation. “Couldn’t you have been a little gentler, like just now!” She reached down to rub her sore rear.

Cheng Lan, disinclined to humor her, simply returned to stand before the incapacitated Tyrannosaurus Rex.

“You seemed quite gleeful chasing me earlier, didn’t you?”

In a few agile bounds, he scaled the Tyrannosaurus Rex’s colossal form, landing steadily upon its skull, his gaze locking with its amber, slit pupils.

“Now, it’s my turn.”

He raised the ice sword and plunged it savagely into the dragon’s eye.

“Roar!”

The Tyrannosaurus Rex let out a deafening shriek of agony, thrashing violently as its immense body writhed frantically, attempting to dislodge Cheng Lan from its head.

Yet, Cheng Lan clung fiercely to the hilt, periodically twisting the blade with renewed force.

The Tyrannosaurus Rex’s struggles gradually faltered, growing weaker until, with a final, shuddering tremor, its colossal body went utterly still.

“Done,” Cheng Lan declared, dusting his hands before leaping down from the dragon’s skull.

He approached Qin Jinxuan, finding her still seated on the ground, a wide smile gracing her lips as she watched him.

“Well, look at you, still smiling. Weren’t you afraid of being pancaked into ‘Jinxuan-chan’ just now?”

“But you were there, weren’t you?” Qin Jinxuan replied with a sweet smile directed at Cheng Lan, her eyes brimming with unwavering trust.

“And…” She blinked, then suddenly lowered her voice, a playful glint in her eyes. “I saw a rather different side of student Cheng Lan just now~”

“What exactly did you see?” Cheng Lan inquired, a note of curiosity in his voice.

“Cough, cough!” Qin Jinxuan cleared her throat, then lowered her voice to mimic him:

“‘You seemed quite gleeful chasing me earlier, didn’t you?'”

“‘Now, it’s my…… Hey!'”

Before she could finish her sentence, Cheng Lan once again hoisted the young woman onto his shoulder and headed toward the boundary of the rift.

“Hey!” Qin Jinxuan protested, lightly tapping his back with her small, pink fists. “Couldn’t you at least change positions? Carrying me in your arms, or even piggybacking me, would be better!”

Cheng Lan remained oblivious to her complaints, continuing to stride forward with her slung over his shoulder.

Moments later, the scenery around them shimmered and warped, and they found themselves back at the entrance to Qin Jinxuan’s courtyard.

Dusk had long since faded, giving way to the deep of night.

Cheng Lan, still carrying Qin Jinxuan, walked directly to her front door.

“You can put me down now, right?” Qin Jinxuan began to squirm once more. “I’ll open the…”

Beep beep!

The door lock clicked open in response.

Cheng Lan pushed open the door, his hand unerringly finding the living room spotlight switch. With a sharp ‘snap,’ he flipped it, instantly illuminating the interior.

He approached the sofa, and with a casual flick, deposited Qin Jinxuan upon it.

“My task is complete. If there’s nothing further, I’ll take my leave,” he stated, turning without a moment’s hesitation toward the door.

“Wait, wait a moment!” Qin Jinxuan scrambled upright from the sofa, calling out to him.

“What is it?” Cheng Lan paused, turning his head to cast a glance her way.

“How did you know my door’s passcode?” Qin Jinxuan asked, her brow furrowed in confusion.

Cheng Lan met her gaze with an unreadable expression, his eyes seeming to ask, ‘What do you think?’

“Could it be… me?” Qin Jinxuan asked, pointing to herself.

Cheng Lan nodded.

“Then how did you manage to find the living room spotlight switch on your first try?” Before she could fully process the first answer, she swiftly posed a second question.

After all, there were no less than eight switches in their entryway, and he had managed to select the correct one on the first attempt, even in complete darkness.

That was utterly preposterous!

Cheng Lan remained silent, his gaze fixed intently on Qin Jinxuan.

“It’s not as if you’ve ever lived in my house, is it?” she ventured, testing the waters.

Cheng Lan nodded again.

“No, no, that can’t be right!” Qin Jinxuan vigorously shook her head.

“Are you telling me that I gave you my home’s passcode, and you even lived here, yet our relationship in our previous life was… sworn enemies?”

“Precisely,” Cheng Lan answered calmly.

‘Precisely’ my foot!

Who in their right mind would invite a sworn enemy to spend the night at their house?!

And even thoughtfully provide them with the door’s passcode!

‘Oh, it was me,’ she thought. ‘Well, in that case, never mind.’

Qin Jinxuan felt a wave of exasperation wash over her internally.

This was wrong! Utterly wrong!

While she might not fully comprehend Cheng Lan, surely she understood herself?

Their relationship in their previous life simply couldn’t have been as straightforward as mere sworn enemies!

“Anything else? If not, I’m leaving,” Cheng Lan asked once more, his hand already resting on the doorknob.

“Wait!” Qin Jinxuan blurted out, without thinking. “Look how late it is. Why don’t… you just stay over at my place?”

The words had barely left her lips before immediate regret flooded her.

What was she even thinking, let alone saying?!

While she and Cheng Lan had only just shared a somewhat superficial interaction today, allowing someone to stay overnight at her house like this…

It simply felt strange.

A few seconds of silence hung heavy in the air.

“Forget it,” Cheng Lan said, waving a dismissive hand. “I still have things to attend to.”

“What sort of things?”

“My homework for today isn’t done yet. I need to rush home and finish it,” he explained, then turned and pulled open the door.

“Oh… alright,” Qin Jinxuan murmured softly, an inexplicable pang of disappointment stirring within her heart.

“Oh, and one more thing.” Cheng Lan paused at the doorway, glancing back at her, his voice uncharacteristically serious. “Don’t tell anyone that I’m a Reincarnator. This is a secret known only to you.”

With his words, the door softly swung shut.

Peace settled once more within the room.

“Why such a rush? It’s not like I was going to eat you…” Qin Jinxuan grumbled, her gaze dropping to the floor as she idly nudged the carpet with her foot.

Yet, the very next second, a subtle smile played upon her lips.

‘A secret only the two of us share… hehe…’

She let out a couple of silly giggles, her cheeks flushing faintly.

A moment later, a sudden realization struck her—

Homework!

She recalled that Cheng Lan wasn’t the sort of person who ever brought homework home to complete.

She, on the other hand…

Qin Jinxuan suddenly remembered that her homework and workbooks were all tucked away in her backpack, but her backpack—

She had tossed it into the ‘Beast World’ earlier, for the sake of making a swift escape.

‘Oh, spicy!’