Chapter 172: Liked Before, Still Like Now

"Whatever," "I'm easy," "Anything is fine." These similar, repetitive phrases often make people feel troubled.

Xu Xi knew that Klisa had no ulterior motives; she was pure and simple.

No matter what gift he gave Klisa, she would accept it gladly, express that she liked it, and thank Xu Xi.

Even if it were just a weed from the roadside, the witch would cherish and preserve it.

There was no other reason; it was only because the person who gave it was Xu Xi.

It was precisely because of this that Xu Xi did not want to be perfunctory or trample on the witch's unreserved trust with an indifferent attitude.

"Let's keep looking around, Klisa."

"…Yes."

Xu Xi chose to move forward, wanting to see if there were any items worth buying inside the supermarket.

The witch followed quietly behind.

The overhead lights were arranged in a scattered layout; neither possessing the scorching heat of the sun nor the coldness of a crescent moon, it was a silent, gentle illumination.

It shone obliquely onto Xu Xi, casting a long shadow.

The witch walked forward, seeking the shadow, following closely at Xu Xi's heels.

Her hollow eyes were not attracted by the myriad of goods, but remained fixed on Xu Xi's back.

Chasing the light.

Moving with the light.

"There are plenty of things here, but I'm just not that interested…"

Walking to a new merchandise section, Xu Xi slowed his pace.

His gaze swept over the shelves on both sides, quickly scanning row after row of products.

His inspection carried a sigh.

Mo Li was Supreme, Klisa was Supreme, and Yingxue was also Supreme.

For the Supreme who transcended the heavens, there was almost nothing in this world that was difficult.

Whatever they wanted could be generated with a single thought.

Whatever they wanted to do could be realized with a single word.

Therefore, Xu Xi felt conflicted: what kind of New Year's gifts should he prepare for the three girls?

By comparison, it was easier to think of answers for the gifts for Master and A-Niu.

Li Wanshou liked to drink tea; he could buy a batch of tea trees later, irrigate them with Dragon blood, and cultivate a unique dragon blood spiritual tea.

A-Niu liked to eat—meat, vegetables, rice—so preparing enough food would suffice.

"Since that's the case—"

"Then I'll prepare A-Niu's share first."

Xu Xi thought for a moment.

He decided to temporarily put aside the gifts for the three girls.

He would first purchase enough rich and varied food in the supermarket, and when the end of the year approached, he would send it all to A-Niu's home.

With A-Niu's gluttonous nature, he should be very happy, right?

Thinking of that scene, Xu Xi chuckled and took the witch back to the deli section and the rice, flour, grain, and oil section.

Compared to before, there were even more people in the supermarket.

People were crowded together, packing the originally spacious aisles until they were impassable.

There were sweet, clingy couples, families laughing and chatting, or close friends.

With the New Year approaching, many people wanted to stock up.

They were jostling and pushing together, like a mass of cotton that was hard to disperse.

Fortunately, neither Xu Xi nor Klisa were ordinary people.

When Xu Xi led the witch forward, people would subconsciously step aside, revealing an unobstructed path ahead.

Thanks to this, Xu Xi quickly bought enough food, and prepared a little extra, thinking of giving it to the other residents of Qingniu Town.

"This amount should be enough."

After paying, Xu Xi packed all the items separately into a new spatial ring to use for future gifts.

As for the other New Year's gifts, Xu Xi felt that staying in the supermarket wouldn't help him prepare them.

At least after walking around once, he hadn't seen anything that suited his wishes.

"Still, it really is lively here…"

Before leaving, Xu Xi looked at the crowded, chaotic mass of people, his expression filled with emotion.

Before this year, because his legs were crippled, he had always deliberately avoided such crowded places.

Come to think of it, it had been a long time since he had seen such a lively scene in the real world.

The noisy crowd, the running children, the aroma of food, the atmosphere of the New Year, and—standing by his side—Klisa.

These overlapping elements made Xu Xi recall his experiences in the Magic World.

"Master. What… are you thinking about?"

Klisa's eyes were somewhat dazed.

Her intuition was truly very sharp.

Meeting those beautiful, hollow eyes, Xu Xi smiled: "It's nothing, I just suddenly thought about my life in Alenson City before."

"Klisa, compared to before, you have really changed a lot."

Looking at the witch's exquisite face, the miserable scenes of the past surfaced in Xu Xi's mind: the dirty, foul-smelling muddy alleys and her broken, scarred body.

The girl, covered in scars, holding a small knife, asking Xu Xi for that tiny piece of bread with a trembling, fearful tone.

That kind of witch, that kind of Klisa, truly echoed with cries for help from head to toe, to the extent that Xu Xi could not ignore her.

But now, Xu Xi could no longer see those past cries for help on the witch.

Although her emotions were still very hollow and she could not express joy or sorrow freely, this version of the witch was already much better compared to her misery when they first met.

Xu Xi felt gratified by this and sincerely looked forward to the witch heading toward a brighter future.

"Do you not like me as I am now?"

Klisa seemed to have misunderstood something, and confusion flashed across her lifeless face.

"No, I like you very much."

Xu Xi paused, then continued: "I liked the Klisa from before, and I still like the Klisa of now."

"Because Klisa is very well-behaved and obedient; you have always been very sensible. I think no one would dislike such a Klisa."

Is… is that so…

The witch's hands were folded over her chest, the location of her heart.

It was the place where her nervous heart resided.

Now, her heart was no longer nervous, but the witch still maintained the original posture because her heart was beating even faster.

"As long as Master likes it…"

The frail and slender Klisa responded to Xu Xi with a hollow and faint voice, completely devoid of self-will.

Xu Xi smiled, reached out, placed his hand on Klisa's head, and rubbed that gray-silver hair again.

Klisa was truly very cute, making Xu Xi unable to resist rubbing it a few more times.

"Let's go, Klisa, it's time to go home."

"Yes, Master."

The shopping was completely finished, and Xu Xi and the witch walked out of the supermarket's main entrance.

The wind and snow roared; the raging storm seemed as if it wanted to swallow the entire world, making one feel the vastness of heaven and earth and the smallness of oneself.

The huge disparity made one deeply feel the power of nature.

Compared to when they arrived, this wind and snow were several levels stronger.

The whistling carried a chill, and frost and snow danced in the wind.

Xu Xi had just stepped out of the supermarket entrance when his head was dusted with swirling snowflakes.

Under the sunlight, the color of his black hair and the snowflakes tended to blend.

It was as if, in a mere instant, patches of aged white hair had appeared.

This scene was something the witch absolutely did not want to see.

Ripples appeared in her soulless eyes, and in an instant, heaven and earth inverted.

The storm dissipated.

The falling snow was annihilated.

The white snow that had dusted Xu Xi's body was also cleaned away completely.

"I don't like… white-haired… Master."