Chapter 288: Fate and Great Terror

This was a new inn.

Xu Xiaoshou checked in again, this time careful not to cause trouble. That single explosion had cost him tens of thousands of spirit crystals, and that was even with the innkeeper knowing he had been assassinated and thus not daring to charge for barrier repairs. Honestly, when he heard that figure, Xu Xiaoshou somewhat regretted what he had preached about leading by example. But since he had already boasted, he naturally had to follow through. Otherwise, his tall and mighty image in his junior sister's eyes would surely be gone.

He had agreed with Mu Zixi to rest for two more days, using the opportunity to thoroughly practice alchemy before taking the badge examination. Xu Xiaoshou then returned to his room alone. Peace. How wonderful! He sighed with emotion. He didn't plan to use his remaining passive points recklessly. He'd save them for now, just in case an unexpected situation arose where they might be useful.

“Meow.”

The white cat was still at the foot of his bed, sniffing continuously with an expression of pure enjoyment, even though what lay directly ahead were Xu Xiaoshou's feet.

“Is your name Glutton God?” Xu Xiaoshou scrutinized it from head to paw but still couldn't discern anything special about it. Aside from its pair of purple eyes, the white cat really wasn't remarkable. Yet, deep down, he was perfectly aware. This was a Ghost Beast! A being similar to a Gray Fog Person! Although he didn't know why it was so weak, a Ghost Beast was still a Ghost Beast—the sole king that could possibly be born in an alternate dimension. How could it be ordinary?

“Meow,” the white cat looked up at him, calling out affectionately.

“Glutton God…”

“How wonderful,” Xu Xiaoshou murmured, envying such a carefree state. If someone provided him with vitality every day, ensuring he never worried about food or drink, and even had personal bodyguards protecting his life… This… was truly a life like a god! He couldn't even enjoy such a life, but a mere cat could? Xu Xiaoshou immediately gave it a kick. The white cat wasn't annoyed; knowing its owner hadn't used force, it rolled over and settled back onto Xu Xiaoshou's feet.

“Mama…”

The fellow at his chest was displeased. With a cry, two beams of red light shot out from its body. Xu Xiaoshou became alert. Killing intent? Glutton God's fur also bristled. It fluttered to the back of the bed, directly shrinking its body in mid-air.

“Quite sensitive, aren't you!” Xu Xiaoshou raised an eyebrow. Its reaction was almost as quick as his own. While patting the stone, A-Jie, in his arms, he explained, “Don't mess around. This is your younger brother; you can't kill it.”

“Hm? Younger brother?” Xu Xiaoshou beckoned, calling Glutton God over. He flipped it over for a look, and immediately corrected himself: “This is your younger sister. You'll need to take good care of her from now on!”

“Mama…”

“Meow!”

Xu Xiaoshou was amused. Stroking the cat with one hand and idly holding the stone with the other, he lay quietly on the bed, lost in thought.

“Ghost Beasts…” He thought of Mo Mo, the somewhat solitary and quiet woman, who felt completely different from Jiao Tangtang and Xin Gugu. They were all Ghost Beast hosts, yet one resisted, while the other gladly embraced it.

“Is this a power?” Xu Xiaoshou gazed at the white cat, his eyes narrowing. He had the clearest understanding of how strong the Gray Fog Person became after unleashing its power. If it weren't for the Heavenly Xuan Gate suppressing it, and the 'Berserk Giant' breaking the deadlock, he would have been utterly defeated. Such beings clearly weren't unique in the world. Compared to Jiao Tangtang and the other, Mo Mo and the Gray Fog Person seemed more like solitary figures developing on their own. But those two guys clearly weren't.

“So, there's an organization of pure Ghost Beasts… or rather, pure Ghost Beast hosts?” Xu Xiaoshou felt a chill in his heart. A single one of these beings possessed world-destroying power. What did these individuals aim to do by gathering together? He also recalled his last conversation with Elder Sang. It seemed the 'Holy Slaves'' target was also Mo Mo, who had become a Ghost Beast host.

“Power?” Xu Xiaoshou stroked the cat, which reveled in the attention, but his own expression was solemn. Even the masked man, with such shocking sword intent and a peerless expert like Cen Jiaofu under his command, still yearned for power. Even Ghost Beast hosts, with the most direct and purest source of power, still secretly formed an organization and even dared not reveal themselves at all.

“For what reason?” The more Xu Xiaoshou thought, the colder he felt. If these two extremely powerful and terrifying organizations had any particular commonality… Were they both suppressed by the Holy Divine Palace? However, one faced the 'White-Clothed,' specialized in apprehending and eliminating rebellious humans. The other faced the 'Red-Clothed,' a terrifying existence established purely for slaughtering Ghost Beasts.

“The Holy Divine Palace?” Besides the concepts of absolute justice and absolute order deeply ingrained in his mind, Xu Xiaoshou's impression of the continent's foremost organization was of people like Yu Zhiwen and Cheng Xingchu.

“Justice…”

“Perhaps, this is what the old man spoke of: the struggle of the Grand Dao!” Xu Xiaoshou hadn't believed it before. But as his strength increased and his knowledge broadened, he increasingly felt that the words spoken by the old man in the straw hat, who had been hiding in the Spirit Palace on the night of his apprenticeship, were making more and more sense. This was an extremely cruel reality. What it meant to be a chess master and what it meant to be a pawn, Xu Xiaoshou had a small taste of it within the Spirit Palace. It was frustrating, and frankly, very real. Currently, he was the pawn being manipulated, and his biggest chess master was Elder Sang!

On the night of his apprenticeship, no matter how unwilling he was, he didn't dare refuse. After becoming an apprentice, no matter how absurd, playful, or how much he wanted to deviate from the stable path the old man had planned for him, he always found that he couldn't escape his control. The anticipated deviation from the path did indeed happen due to his various attempts to break free, shifting slightly. But what happened after the deviation? Only after stepping off that particular path did he realize that Elder Sang had laid out thousands of other paths for him! How could he escape? Whether it was 'Cinder Skyflame' or the 'Heavenly Xuan Gate,' whether it was 'Dawn Arts' or 'Zhang Xin Xiong'… This old man seemed to have a perfectly precise grasp on both people and events. No matter how eccentric or off-track his journey became, the end result of each situation was exactly what the old man in the straw hat desired.

“Hah…” Xu Xiaoshou sighed softly. He was intelligent and saw everything clearly. But he was utterly powerless! Fortunately, despite Elder Sang's reclusive and eccentric personality, his actions certainly had a distinctive style. His unique fondness for Xu Xiaoshou was completely incomprehensible to others. Even Xu Xiaoshou himself couldn't understand it. This old man seemed to understand him better than he understood himself; it was truly frightening! Yet, even so, after becoming an apprentice, Xu Xiaoshou had asked a question, and Elder Sang had answered it very clearly. He had come to the Spirit Palace simply to avoid certain unnecessary great calamities! This old fox, possessing both strength and intelligence, with an incredibly frightening personality and way of acting, could only be his chess master… In the eyes of others, was he also a pawn?

“Hah!” Xu Xiaoshou sighed. Among the great factions, was everyone truly so terrifying? The Holy Divine Palace, the Holy Slaves, that Ghost Beast organization… And those terrifying entities he hadn't encountered yet but were also quietly operating within the world's order… Perhaps, as his own strength increased again, they would also, inexplicably, appear by his side, just like the white cat in his hand?

Xu Xiaoshou felt he had stepped into murky waters. But at that time, if he hadn't taken in Glutton God, could he have withstood Jiao Tangtang and Xin Gugu?

“Indeed, there's still a feeling of powerlessness…” This kind of powerlessness couldn't be dispelled by a mere 'Explosive State'. It originated from the world itself, like destiny, or perhaps, more like the relentless wheel of history. It rolled straight over, and no one could escape.

Xu Xiaoshou lowered his head, looking at Glutton God, who wore an expression of pure bliss. The creature was letting out soft purrs, completely enthralled in its nap, clearly enjoying itself immensely.

“The struggle of the Grand Dao, then?” The young man dared not think any further. He feared that if he thought too deeply, Elder Sang's nested doll worldview would truly replace his entire understanding of this world!