亚洲偷自区

(Xyrean Province- Inner Regions)

(The Mermaid\'s Lake- Forested Outskirts)

Night had fallen and now the only source of light from the sky was the full moon that shone brightly on the forest.

Qin Lan leaned against a nearby rock as she rubbed two sticks together over the fire pit. It didn\'t take long before the friction generated enough heat for smoke to form.

Gong Li was standing nearby and quickly tossed in small pieces of dry wood in order to feed the growing flame.

Eventually a crackling fire was created in the middle of the camp site. Qin Lan smiled at Gong Li and gestured for her to take a seat.

Liu Yifei was currently sleeping in one of the tents since she was tired from a long day of training.

Qin Lan planned to wake her up when dinner was ready and then after the two teenagers had eaten, she would meet up with Eve.

"Are you feeling more confident using a gun?" Qin Lan asked softly as she stood up from the ground and walked over to the large pot that was placed near the fire.

"I think so… I\'m just scared that I might freeze up an actual fight," Gong Li truthfully admitted as she stared in the direction of a certain tent.

"Well, that is only natural. Just remember if you get nervous then the most important piece of advice that I can give you is…" Qin Lan spoke casually.

"Never let your opponent know. Point your gun at them even if your fingers start to tremble slightly."

Gong Li thoughtfully nodded her head and gazed into the distance with an absentminded look on her face.

She clearly had a lot going on in her mind tonight and Qin Lan wasn\'t sure how she could help the teenage girl.

Maybe the best way was to bring her some food…

Qin Lan hummed a soft tune as she grabbed a few bottles of water and filled up the large pot until it was nearly full.

She reached for the ramen packs on the ground and tore open their contents with ease. At this point, Qin Lan was very familiar with cooking this simple meal.

Liu Yifei had enough food stored in her storage space to last for years and fortunately the meat and vegetables inside her pocket dimension didn\'t spoil or rot.

In fact, it was almost as though they were frozen in time from the moment, she placed them inside her storage space.

Her ability was truly valuable when it came to logistics.

It was no wonder that those with spatial storage abilities would become integral members of bases in the future.

Even the original Qin Lan had made a puppet out of a space user in order to store food for the harsh winters.

Qin Lan put some additional dried vegetables and chunks of meat in the mixture and then placed the pot on a stand.

She moved the stand over the fire and the flames began to heat up the bottom of the pot. Soon a warm and fragrant scent filled the air.

Qin Lan could feel the corners of her mouth begin to tilt upwards as she inhaled the heavenly aroma of a hearty broth with noodles.

"Sister Lan…" a small voice suddenly spoke.

"How can you tell someone that you like them?"

Qin Lan froze in place as she turned around and saw Gong Li nervously rubbing her hands together and staring at the tent that she shared with Liu Yifei.

"Are you talking about your crush on Liu Yifei?" Qin Lan bluntly asked before realising what she had just said.

"No… I\'m… I\'m straight! I… I… was just talking generally…" Gong Li stuttered in fear as she quickly tilted her head downwards to hide her panicked expression.

Qin Lan knew that she had just said the wrong thing, so she walked over to the frightened teenager and place a warm hand on her shoulder.

"Hey… you don\'t have to be nervous. I like girls as well," Qin Lan gently whispered.

"And even if I didn\'t… you don\'t have to live your life worried about what other people think."

"Really? Sister Lan… you don\'t think it\'s… unnatural?" Gong Li stammered slightly as she spoke about her inner fears.

Qin Lan wrapped her arms around the trembling girl and gently stroked her back until she calmed down.

"No. You should never be ashamed of having someone that you like regardless of what their gender is," Qin Lan warmly spoke as a certain face flashed across her mind.

"Gong Li… look at me..."

Qin Lan moved her hands from behind Gong Li\'s back and stared into the young teenage girl\'s eyes.

"The world has ended… no one really cares if you are a girl who likes girls. Society is not going to judge you when everyone is fighting for survival," Qin Lan explained calmly.

"I can\'t tell you what to do about your feelings for Liu Yifei but all I\'m going to say is that whatever decision that you make…"

"I hope that you will have no regrets."

Gong Li remained silent, but it was clear that Qin Lan\'s words were now echoing through her mind.

She needed some space to process this advice, so Qin Lan simply rubbed the top of the young girl\'s head and then returned to cooking.

The advice that she had given Gong Li about living with no regrets was truthfully something that she wished that she had followed in her original world.

Gay marriage was not legal in her country but attitudes towards homosexual relationships was gradually improving.

It was just that Sui Li was fearful of getting harsh looks from strangers, so she suppressed her feelings and never told any of her crushes that she like them.

Qin Lan let out a heavy sigh as she placed a wooden spoon in the pot and began to stir the mixture gently.

There was no use dwelling on her past.

Especially considering that she had died and could no longer return to her world.

Around ten minutes passed, and Qin Lan placed her finger in the broth to check the temperature. She scooped out some of the noodles and gave them a try.

They were soft and fully cooked, so Qin Lan removed the large pot from the stand and placed it on the ground.

She looked around for some plates and discovered that Liu Yifei had not taken them out of her storage space before she fell asleep.

Just as Qin Lan was about to walk over to the tent and gently shake the sleeping girl awake, she felt a light tap on her shoulder.

"Sister Lan… thank you…" Gong Li whispered softly as curled up her fingers into a tight fist.

Qin Lan could see the determination in the young girl\'s eyes and knew that she had finally made a decision.