CHAPTER 535
Black Yao's Hand
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Xiao Ai merely offered a token gesture. Truthfully, she had initially feared Ye Qinghan had met with some misfortune, for Heiyao's power far exceeded what this world could bear.
But the moment Xiao Ai saw Heiyao, she froze in place, as if her system had crashed!
"Qinghan greets Lady Gu Ai," Ye Qinghan bowed respectfully.
"Shiyao greets Lady Gu Ai~" Li Shiyao offered a somewhat careless bow.
Xiao Ai remained silent, her pupils tinged gold, radiating a dazzling golden glow that made her aura feel slightly terrifying.
At Heiyao's current level of cultivation, she could naturally sense that Xiao Ai's divine sense had already seen her completely.
Was she really no different in Xiao Ai's eyes whether clothed or naked?
Xiao Ai surveyed her once, then smiled. Was this the so-called variable?
If altering the past could rewrite the future, would Xiao Ai be able to see Lord Xunye again?
"Shiyao, has Lord Xunye returned?"
"Naturally." Shi Yao's expression held no joy. Her small hands fidgeted uncertainly, her gaze shifting restlessly—the very picture of someone caught in a lie.
This ability to return to the past was still beyond Shiyao's current grasp. She couldn't control when she'd end up—it was entirely unpredictable.
But if she could, she would naturally help Xiao Ai retrieve that important person.
Yet at the same time, she feared what she had seen in Lord Xunye's photograph.
If Master found Lord Xunye, would he abandon her…
If the past were altered, perhaps Master would never have taken her as a disciple in the first place, or perhaps he would never have come to this parallel world at all. Who could say for certain?
Thanks to her master, thanks to that Heart-Confusing Bell, no one called her Dumb Yao anymore.
Yet, she still longed to be Daiyao. She didn't want to be clever at all.
Daiyao could act spoiled, speak without restraint, and be childish. But Shiyu couldn't. Shiyu was no longer a child.
Only her Master would spoil her unconditionally. Even though she had grown up, even though she was over two thousand years old, she remained her Master's baby.
Xiao Ai could naturally read Li Shiyu's expression. It seemed she was merely unable to do it at that moment, not that it was completely beyond her.
Xiao Ai possessed no divine power to reverse time, return to the past, or rewrite the future. On this point, she had to admit her master was truly far-sighted.
"Thank you, Second Young Miss. I imagine your visit is to see my master. But as you likely surmised, he is occupied with urgent matters, hence sending me to protect you both first."
Li Shiyao's divine perception already covered the entire combat zone, but how could the battle between a master and a deity possibly unfold in this world?
"Hmm, I see. Sister Xiang and Sister Mengdie have both arrived. Not surprising. Shouldn't it be over soon?"
"This bastard was only recently born, so dealing with it isn't too troublesome. However, because this world is so fragile, removing it is still somewhat troublesome."
Li Shiyao nodded thoughtfully, her expression suggesting she was either assessing the battle's trajectory or gauging her master's current power level.
"Lord Gu Ai, Xiao Ai wishes to borrow the positioning anchor point."
Xiao Ai paused. Though the locator anchor was on her person, such matters still required Su Cheng's approval.
It wasn't that Xiao Ai lacked authority or distrusted Li Shiyao.
Rather, she suspected Su Cheng would likely have words to exchange with Heiyao.
"Hehe, Second Young Miss, you may not know this, but the positioning anchor is currently being used to rivet the space. Though it's on Xiao Ai's person, she still needs it to stabilize the space where the Master resides."
"If the Second Young Miss isn't in a hurry, perhaps you could wait here a while longer. Based on Xiao Ai's estimates, it shouldn't take more than half a month before we have results."
Li Shiyao froze for a moment. She knew perfectly well that Xiao Ai was stalling. She wasn't the clueless fool she once was.
She understood that anchoring a space required positioning anchors. This process harnessed the energy generated by the core drive of the mansion or other Leviathan-class aerial gardens, applying it to a constant space. It created a specialized zone for slaying deities, thereby minimizing the damage combat inflicted on the real world.
But once the space was generated, the positioning anchor point should no longer be necessary, right?
"May Shiyu take a look? Shiyu won't cause trouble for the Master."
"If the Second Young Miss can guarantee she'll stay behind Xiao Ai, Xiao Ai isn't entirely opposed to letting her come."
But even Xiao Ai hadn't anticipated just how reckless Li Shiyu could be.
"Master Gu Ai worries too much. Truthfully, if Shiyao were to handle this, such trash would be dealt with in three days at most."
"But Shiyu must avoid interfering with the world's course as much as possible. Otherwise, it could trigger an even more terrifying catastrophe."
Xiao Ai nodded. Li Shiyu was absolutely correct. The slightest alteration occurring now could potentially cause irreparable damage in the future—a burden Li Shiyu could not afford to bear.
After all, both she and the Master were responsible for the world's trajectory. The Master, in fact, held the futures of countless worlds in his hands—the sole remaining Child of the Future.
"The Second Young Miss is correct," Xiao Ai replied, her smile as sweet as ever, utterly free of any hint of unpleasantness.
But Ye Qinghan froze: "Shiyao, are you saying you're more powerful than our Master?"
Hei Yao glanced at her senior sister, then at Xiao Ai, and smiled.
"Senior Sister, don't flatter Shiyu to death. No one in this world surpasses our Master. It's just that both our Master and Zero Two are currently hampered and unable to unleash their full power."
Ye Qinghan merely smiled at this, dropping the subject to shift the conversation elsewhere.
Following behind the two, Ye Qinghan's heart, through a series of twists and turns, began to shift and change.
Ye Qinghan had already commenced her cultivation. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that in the blink of an eye, her cultivation had concluded.
After all, Su Cheng merely wished Ye Qinghan to be more level-headed and show reverence, rather than constantly shouting about fighting and killing—that was far too reckless.
In Su Cheng's eyes, Ye Qinghan held far greater importance than he appeared.
Su Cheng didn't want this young man to throw his life away over trivial matters; he needed to learn flexibility.
Often, cowardice demanded greater courage—a profound lesson Su Cheng had learned over millennia. Yet Ye Qinghan clearly grasped not this truth.
Charging forward to fight tooth and nail wasn't difficult. What was difficult was carrying on the beliefs of the dead, learning to bend and stretch, and not getting bogged down in trivialities. That was the true path.
Su Cheng needed Ye Qinghan to survive. Regardless of the reason, he had to live on.
Like a talisman, the city didn't need her to do anything. It only needed her to be there when it thought of her…
If the day ever came when Su City ceased to exist, she still had to live on.
For the time being, the three watched from the sidelines. As Xiao Ai demanded, Ye Qinghan and Li Shiyao had to stay behind her.
Neither objected. Though they were supposed to be observing the battle, they couldn't actually see much.
Ye Qinghan could only see occasional flashes of white light in the distance, different auras and shockwaves colliding against the barrier in front of Xiao Ai.
"Lady Gu Ai?"
Xiao Ai merely smiled as she glanced at Ye Qinghan diagonally behind her: "Young Miss, don't even think about it~"
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