"I-I will be right back!" Wang Xiuying said to Xi Meili before logging off the game and picking up her phone.
"Hello?" Meixiu quickly answered the phone after seeing Wang Xiuying's name as the caller.
"Hey, Meixiu, great news. I think Yuan will be done by sunrise," she relayed this news to her.
"Really?" Meixiu asked.
"Yes, and I will stay inside the game tonight to let him know about the situation."
"Thank you very much, Wang Xiuying," Meixiu said to her.
"Don't worry about it. I am only doing what's natural. Then I'll speak with you again later."
After hanging up, Wang Xiuying went back into the game and waited for Yuan to finish his enlightenment with Xi Meili by her side.
Meanwhile, inside Yuan's mind, he could only see a pair of golden eyes staring at him from a distance that grew closer the longer he stared at it.
This pair of eyes resembled Xi Meili's eyes, but it also gave him a feeling of the Great One.
Although Yuan was not aware of it himself, he has been staring at this pair of eyes for the last three days inside his mind.
Suddenly, a familiar sound echoed in his mind.
Ding!
[Your comprehension for Dragon's Gaze has improved tremendously from enlightenment]
[Your comprehension for Dragon's Gaze has reached a new level]
[Dragon's Gaze Mastery Level (2) → (3)]
[Dragon's Gaze]
[Rank: Ancient]
[Mastery Level: 3]
[Description: A technique created by the 'Great One'. A single gaze will cause Immortals to bow and the Heavens to tremble in fear! Used by Royal Families of the Dragon Race.]
After the notification resounded, the pair of golden eyes inside Yuan's mind slowly closed itself before disappearing.
Yuan slowly opened his eyes afterward.
"Congratulations on your enlightenment, Yuan." Xi Meili greeted him with a bright smile on her pretty face.
"Xi Meili? Did I just experience another enlightenment?" He mumbled in a dazed voice.
"Another enlightenment? Why am I not surprised that this isn't your first time?" Xi Meili said with a bittersweet smile on her face.
"How long has it been in that state?" Yuan asked.
However, before Xi Meili could answer that question, Wang Xiuying stood up and approached him with a serious-looking expression on her face.
"Wang Xiuying? What's the matter?" Yuan asked her in a somewhat nervous voice because of the way she approached him.
"Yuan... or should I call you Yu Tian?" Wang Xiuying said to him.
"W-W-What did you just call me?" Yuan's eyes widened with shock when he heard his real name come out of Wang Xiuying's mouth— or at least that's what he thought he heard.
"I know the truth, Yu Tian. To think you were Player Yuan all along. I feel foolish for not recognizing you earlier…" Wang Xiuying sighed.
"H-How…? How did you find out?" Yuan asked her.
Did she finally recognize him from his appearance? But even if he looked similar to his appearance in the real world, she didn't have solid proof that they were the same person! And judging by the way Wang Xiuying is speaking, it sounded like she was absolutely confident about his identity!
"As much as I hate to admit it, I didn't find out by myself. It was Meixiu who told me." Wang Xiuying said.
"What? Meixiu told you my identity? Impossible!" Yuan became even more shocked after hearing this, feeling a little betrayed that Meixiu would reveal his identity to someone— even if that person was someone he trusted! And this made him feel extremely uncomfortable for some reason.
"Do you have any idea how worried Meixiu was because of you?" Wang Xiuying then said.
"What?"
Seeing Yuan's puzzled face, Wang Xiuying decided to reveal everything to him.
"You have been in enlightenment for three whole days, Yuan. That means you haven't logged off for three days!"
"WHAT?!"
When Yuan realized the situation, his heart immediately sank.
He'd been inside the game for three days straight?! No wonder why Meixiu would be worried!
"And because she had no idea what you were doing, she told me the truth about your identity. I was also very worried at first when I learned that you haven't logged off for three days. I even visited your apartment to check your condition!"
"Heavens! I will be right back! I need to speak with Meixiu as soon as possible!" Yuan said to her, and without waiting for a response, he immediately logged off the game.
"Uhhh…" Xi Meili was left speechless by their confusing conversation just now, but when Yuan disappeared, her questions also disappeared, almost like she suddenly forgot about them.
"Meixiu!" Yuan called for her the moment he returned to the real world.
"Yuan! You're finally back!" Meixiu released a deep sigh of relief after hearing his voice again.
"I am so sorry! It was never my intention to stay inside the game for so long! I had another sudden enlightenment, which completely screwed with my sense of time." Yuan explained to her why he didn't log off for so long.
"It's okay, you don't have to say anything. I have already heard of your situation from Wang Xiuying. I am just relieved that you're okay." Meixiu said to him.
"Even if you say that… I am really sorry for making you worried!"
"I would be lying if I told you that I wasn't worried, but thanks to Wang Xiuying for telling me the situation, it wasn't too bad."
Sometime later, once they calmed down, Meixiu said, "Now it's my turn to apologize. I promised to keep your identity a secret, yet I revealed your identity to Wang Xiuying… I am sorry…"
"What are you talking about? You had a legitimate reason to do so. Although I felt a little betrayed at first, I didn't know anything at that time. Just know that I don't blame you at all, Meixiu." Yuan said to her.
"Okay…" Meixiu said.
A few moments later, Meixiu asked him, "How is your body feeling right now? Do you feel hungry? It's been three days since you last ate, after all."
"Now that you mention it, I do feel a little hungry."
"I will go cook something right away," Meixiu said before going outside to prepare for his breakfast.