Fang Lian, feeling the weight of his stare but having no idea what ran through his mind, blinked in confusion.
"Master?" she asked softly.
Her voice tugged him back to the present, breaking the odd spell of his thoughts.
Fang Yuan blinked, shaking off the momentary bewilderment at Xiao Pei's despair over becoming handsome.
Right. Different world, different priorities.
"It'll be fine, Brother Da Pang," Fang Yuan said, his voice regaining its usual calm authority.
He clapped a hand on the despondent man's shoulder.
"Look at it positively. Here, let me tell you something." He gestured vaguely at Xiao Pei's form. "The current you? This is you after metamorphosis."
Xiao Pei sniffled, wiping his nose with the back of his hand, a gesture jarringly incongruous with his sculpted features. "M-Meta... what? What's a 'metamorphosis'?"
Fang Yuan adopted a patient, explanatory tone. "It's a natural process. Think of it like... a caterpillar."
