"Did Brother Su come out alone?" Xu Luo asked calmly, continuing his inquiry. He was almost certain now that the annihilation of the Su Family had little to do with Su Qingyi.
"No, it was a group of people. I just had nothing to say to them, so I left on my own. As for themā¦ hah." Su Qingyi gave a cold laugh and said no more, but the disdain on his face was obvious to anyone who wasn't blind.
"Alas, conflicts and disputes between people are quite normal. Brother Su doesn't need to dwell on it," Xu Luo said comfortingly.
"No, you don't understand. Those peopleā¦ hehehā¦ they're a bunch of cold-blooded creatures. They have no humanity whatsoever. Remember my words: if you ever see me with a group of people one day, do not, under any circumstances, come over to greet me. Otherwise, you'll be in great danger!" Su Qingyi said, looking at Xu Luo seriously.
Xu Luo's heart warmed. He nodded. "I understand."
"Meeting a brother like Luo Tian on this trip to the Central Plains Star Continent has been a reward in itself. As your elder brother, I don't have anything particularly valuable on me, so let me give you this jade tablet." As he spoke, Su Qingyi took an exquisite, palm-sized, perfectly square jade tablet from his robes. It emanated an exceptionally lustrous glow.
The front of the jade tablet was engraved with the character for "Su," and the back depicted a purple vine that resembled a swimming dragon!
It was identical to the Dharma Aspect that Xu Luo had just seen Su Qianqian manifest!
Xu Luo suppressed the shock deep in his heart and looked at Su Qingyi. "Brother Su, what is this?"
"Heh, this is the identity medallion for the Su Family of the Ancient Race Continent. You might not get a chance to set foot on the Ancient Race Continent, but it has other uses. If you wear it, your speed at gathering Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi during cultivation will be thirty percent faster!" Su Qingyi said with a smile. "What can I say? Your Brother Su is just too poor and has nothing of value."
"Thisā¦ if it's an identity medallion, how can I accept it?" Xu Luo was touched. This Su Qingyi was actually a very simple personāand a simple, good-hearted one at that.
They were complete strangers who had just had a pleasant chat, yet he was willing to give away something so valuable.
A thirty percent increase in cultivation speed might not sound like much, but this was a treasure that any Martial Artist would dream of!
In fact, it wasn't much inferior to a Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact!
"It's nothing. I have more than one of these on me. And if by some chance you do make it to the Ancient Race Continent one day, you can use it to find me." Su Qingyi smiled, then said, "Alright, this nice chat has eased my worries quite a bit. I have to go now. Take care!"
"You're leaving already?" Xu Luo was a little disappointed. He had genuinely wanted to talk more with Su Qingyi.
"Why wouldn't I leave? You're not actually going to take me to find a Holy Beast, are you? Stop joking." Su Qingyi chuckled. He clearly thought Xu Luo's offer to help him find a Holy Beast was just a lie.
"Erā¦" Xu Luo didn't know how to explain. After all, they'd had a pleasant conversation, and Su Qingyi had given him such a precious gift. Saying anything more would seem disrespectful.
"Will we meet again?" Xu Luo asked after a moment of silence.
"If fate wills it, we might have a chance to meet again. You should work hard on your cultivation. If you break through to the Sword Saint realm one day, you'll be able to enter the Ancient Race Continent. You'll find more opportunities there!" With that, Su Qingyi gracefully flew away.
"There are quite a few Spiritual Objects in this Small World. It's pretty interesting. This poor bastard is going to go gather some Spirit Medicine. Goodbye, Brother Luo Tian!"
"Goodbye!" Xu Luo waved at Su Qingyi's receding figure. He had been hesitating just now, wondering whether to tell Su Qingyi the truth.
But after some thought, he held back. No matter how kind-hearted Su Qingyi was, he would never let Su Qianqian go. Their positions were completely opposed.
If he revealed the truth, even if Su Qingyi didn't turn on him and try to kill him, their parting would certainly not be as reluctant and friendly as it was now.
'To resolve this feud, I'm afraid I'll have to wait until the day I'm strong enough to stand as Su Qingyi's equalā¦' Xu Luo muttered to himself before leaving the area as well.
He didn't go looking for Su Qianqian. The black tower was too fast; even if he used his Shaking Light Step at full power, he probably couldn't keep up. He figured Su Qingyi understood this as well, which was why he had departed in a completely different direction from the one the black tower had taken.
...
After entering the black tower, Su Qianqian felt like she was flying for a very, very long time before it finally stopped. It was pitch-black all around, and she had no idea where the tower had taken her.
Outside was dead silent, without the slightest sound.
Su Qianqian couldn't help but ask, "Where are we?"
"The bottom of a lake," the Divine Thought replied again.
"The bottom of a lake?" Su Qianqian was startled for a moment, then asked, "Why did you save me?"
"Your soul is very pure. I am willing to become your Lifebound Magical Artifact," the Divine Thought transmitted once more. "But you must take me away from here."
"Really? You're willing to become my Magical Artifact?" Su Qianqian's face lit up with joyful surprise. She still couldn't figure out why this Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact had taken a liking to her.
'A pure soulā¦ That's too vague a reason.'
Su Qianqian guessed that the most likely reason was that the profound state she had entered in the moment before attempting suicide had resonated with the tower.
"Yes, I am willing to become your Magical Artifact and recognize you as my master," the black tower confirmed again.
"That's wonderful! Thank you!" Su Qianqian couldn't stop her tears. In just a few short months, she had gone from heaven to hell.
She had gone from being the little Princess of a powerful family to a homeless wanderer, then to being hunted down and hovering on the brink of life and death.
She never expected such a turn of events at this critical moment, and she found it hard to control her emotions.
"However, it will take two days before we can leave," the black tower's Divine Thought transmitted again.
"Two days? Why? When I came in, it was through a crack in space!" Su Qianqian didn't know that the crack had closed shortly after she entered.
"The crack you mentioned only appears once every three hundred years, and it only opens for a very short time each time. It has already closed," the black tower's Divine Thought conveyed.
"What a coincidence," Su Qianqian said in astonishment.
"This is fate."
The Divine Thought from the black tower made Su Qianqian cover her mouth and chuckle lightly. She then said, "Alright, it really is fate. Is the person who was chasing me still after me?"
"No. A young man led him away," said the black tower's Divine Thought.
"What? There are outsiders in this Small World?" Su Qianqian was surprised. She hadn't encountered anyone else since entering this Small World.
"That's right. A few days ago, a large number of young members of the Human Race entered. I observed them for a few days, but finding no one suitable, I left." The black tower's Divine Thought was impassive, but Su Qianqian could sense its pride.
'When it says "no one suitable," it must mean it looked down on all of them!'
Then, Su Qianqian's face suddenly turned a little pale. A possibility occurred to her, but she immediately shook her head, denying her own suspicion.
"It can't be such a coincidenceā¦" Su Qianqian muttered to herself, grumbling, "Even though the timing fits, it's impossible. It can't be him. It absolutely can't be him!"
What Su Qianqian had thought of was how, before entering the Celestial Break Mountain Range, she had seen people active on its outskirts from a distance.
And this year's sect conference was being held at the Jade Balance Sect, near the Celestial Break Mountain Range!
The timing was right. Su Qianqian had once jokingly told Xu Luo that she would take him to the sect conference.
When the black tower mentioned that a young human male had led her pursuer away, Su Qianqian, for some reason, immediately thought of Xu Luo.
She then dismissed her own guess, but a sense of unease lingered deep in her heart.
"Then how are we supposed to leave?" Su Qianqian asked.
"From what I've heard the newcomers say, a passage out of the Small World will open in two days. When the time comes, we can just leave through that passage," the black tower's Divine Thought conveyed to Su Qianqian.
"Butā¦ the person hunting me will probably use that chance to leave too, right?" Su Qianqian was a little worried. Although the black tower seemed powerful, she feared it was no match for her pursuer.
"Iā¦ have an incomplete Transformation Skill here. I traded for it from an old pine tree. Though it's not complete, it's more than enough to change your appearance. As for your aura, I can seal it for two hours. That way, we can leave," the black tower's Divine Thought transmitted, a hint of emotion in it for the first time.
"A Transformation Skill? Such a Cultivation Technique exists?" Su Qianqian was astonished. She felt that this black tower was too mysterious; it seemed to know a great many things.
"That's right. I will transmit it to you now."
Afterward, the black tower transmitted the Transformation Skill to Su Qianqian, sending it directly into the depths of her soul via thought.
As if she had been practicing it for many years, Su Qianqian grasped this Forbidden Skill almost instantly.
"Thank you. What should I call you?" Su Qianqian thanked the black tower.
"Just call me Black Tower," the black tower's Divine Thought replied, carrying a hint of pleasantness.
"Well, Black Tower, I don't know if I'm qualified to be your master. If you stay with me, I'm afraid we'll face many crises in the future. I might not even be able to protect you." Su Qianqian's spirits were low. She decided to be honest with this Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact and not hide anything.
"It doesn't matter. With me here, no one will be able to hunt you down. Once we leave this Small World, you can leave the rest to me," the black tower said.
"Are you reallyā¦ just a Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact?" Su Qianqian couldn't help but ask, genuinely shocked.
"Who told you I was a Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact?" The black tower's emotions seemed to fluctuate, its Divine Thought laced with a question.
"You did! You said you were willing to become my Lifebound Magical Artifactā¦" Su Qianqian was a bit speechless. 'You're the one who said it,' she thought. 'Besides, if you're not a Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact, what are you? A person?'
"Sighā¦ So much time has passed that I've nearly forgotten what I am. I've grown accustomed to existing in the form of a Magical Artifactā¦" The black tower's Divine Thought was suddenly filled with an emotion only humans possess, tinged with a deep sorrow.
Su Qianqian was utterly stunned, her voice trembling slightly. "You're not an Artifact Spiritā¦ You'reā¦"
"That's right. I am human. To be precise, I am a human soul!" The Divine Thought was suffused with bitterness and helplessness. It sounded extremely ancient, as if it had come from a distant past, filled with a desolate flavor.