Chapter 994: Small Matters

Night…

From 'Night Watch' to 'Night'?

Although Night Watch's final words didn't carry far and seemed like a self-mutter, Xu Xiaoshou wasn't teleported away; he was thrown. At the last moment, 'Perception' still caught Night Watch's voice, brimming with murderous intent.

"He changed..." Xu Xiaoshou found it hard to describe the feeling.

It wasn't that Night Watch's appearance had transformed into that of a ghost beast host. Rather, it seemed his temperament had also shifted with his physical change, making him a completely different person.

It was like… Night Watch to Night, or Mu Zixi to Lei Xier. Both had undergone a complete transformation into different individuals after significant setbacks, yet they were still themselves.

Perhaps this description still missed the true essence of the "change." Xu Xiaoshou couldn't accept it, yet felt a different concept might be more accurate.

"After decades of innocence, when the beautiful facade of fantasy was shattered and brutal reality pressed in, a person would return to their true self."

It wasn't that Mu Zixi had become Lei Xier, nor that Night Watch had become Night. Instead, it should be… Mu Zixi had reverted to Lei Xier. Night Watch had reverted to Night.

"Fate, then…?"

With a heavy sigh, Xu Xiaoshou no longer wanted to dwell on the story behind it. Just as Night Watch had refused to directly answer his questions, Xu Xiaoshou felt there were some things he truly didn't need to understand so clearly. Because perhaps, in the end, he would be the one unable to accept it. Even now, he already had a terrifying inkling about Night Watch's transformation.

"He clearly possessed two layers of tribulation power..."

Shaking his head, Xu Xiaoshou cast everything aside, striving to bring his thoughts back on track. It seemed Night Watch's tribulation wouldn't have any further complications. While the process had been convoluted and bizarre, purely in terms of outcome, it was clearly better than being utterly annihilated.

Big Mouth was still waiting for his "Senior Water Ghost" in front of the ancient gate deep beneath the sea. Xu Xiaoshou wondered if he had encountered Rao Yaoyao by now.

Where had Night Owl, Teng Shanhai, and their ilk gone? Theoretically, with so many Dao Severance cultivators undergoing tribulations, even the Grand Void cultivators wouldn't dare trespass. Yet, he himself had recklessly charged into the heart of the tribulations during this time... It was indeed normal not to encounter them; encountering them would be utterly bizarre.

Too bad... Oh, Water Ghost had also mentioned hidden opportunities beneath the deep sea. It was unlikely he could have foretold something as outlandish as gaining cultivation by devouring the Nine Deaths Thunder Tribulation. Therefore, the opportunity he spoke of was most likely that ancient gate. Should he truly push it open?

His thoughts were a jumble...

Standing frozen in the deep sea, he let passive skills like 'Endless Life' repair his body, shattered by the thunder tribulation. He felt his Heavenly Manifestation late-stage cultivation stabilize after devouring the tribulation lightning.

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly felt a sense of bewilderment. The incident with Night Watch had shocked him profoundly. Even as he tried to move past it, he felt unsure which direction to take.

He looked up. With the Mimic, he was no longer restricted in the deep sea. The best course of action now was to escape the deep sea. He figured Water Ghost wouldn't still be foolishly sitting on Lonely Sound Cliff just to intercept him. And as long as he returned to the Yunlun Mountains to continue his training, he would surely escape the current storm's vortex. This was undoubtedly the safest choice.

But thoughts were just thoughts. Once his mind stirred, it was hard to settle down. Although Xu Xiaoshou didn't want to admit it, he still knew that the trials in the Yunlun Mountains were too childish for his current self. He could follow the routine and return to the trials. He figured that once ashore, he could still maintain his identity as Young Master Xu, lecture large groups of people, and incidentally collect passive points.

But would time permit it? It was as if an invisible hand of fate manipulated everything, allowing people no respite. Xu Xiaoshou knew that even if he returned to the Yunlun Mountains, once the deep-sea matters concluded, Rao Yaoyao, Night Owl, and the others would still relentlessly try to find him. Unless they died in the deep sea, but Grand Void cultivators were notoriously hard to kill. Even if they died, a second Rao Yaoyao, a second Night Owl, would emerge, seeking revenge, perhaps even more cunningly. By then, he would be in the open, and his enemies in the shadows. Even with the cover of Young Master Xu's identity, who knew when that disguise would be seen through.

Most importantly... "Where will this deep-sea situation lead?"

Xu Xiaoshou looked down again, but couldn't see the end of the deep sea. He didn't know if Water Ghost had drawn out the power of the Heavenly Tribulation, or if the situation here would quickly conclude. Nor did he know Water Ghost's true objective, but he figured it was unlikely to coincidentally align with his own goal of wanting Rao Yaoyao's and Night Owl's lives. Water Ghost's ambitions were likely much grander! And before achieving this grand objective, Rao Yaoyao and Night Owl might not be sacrificed so quickly, meaning that returning to the surface would actually put him in greater danger. Because the Yunlun Mountains had no forbidden spell barriers to weaken enemies. By then, a Sovereign fighting a Grand Void or a Sword Immortal... Xu Xiaoshou thought that perhaps he wouldn't even need Night Owl and Rao Yaoyao; just one Golden Foot or Little Ren could torment him to death.

"Strength."

Ultimately, it all came down to strength!

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly found his direction again. Currently, all his passive skills were maxed out, and he didn't have many other needs for different types of passive skills. Therefore, earning passive points had become secondary. Conversely, what always limited his combat power was his cultivation realm! Even though his breakthrough speed was already rapid, as long as his Dao foundation was stable, speed didn't really matter. Some people could even achieve Dao Severance overnight, starting as mere mortals!

"Old Man Sang is still waiting for me in the Dead Sea... My enemies, Dao Severance cultivators are mere trifles; they mostly start from Grand Void now... I can indeed use Young Master Xu's identity to bluff for a while, and use Mimic to copy the present situation, but fakes are still fakes. If someone acts unreasonably and directly attacks, I can only run, just like that fellow Night Watch... Therefore, I need to quickly break through to the Throne Realm! Only by reaching the Throne Realm can my passive skills potentially... reach Saint-level! I'm not sure if that's how it works..."

Xu Xiaoshou probed his Qi Sea. His Heavenly Manifestation late-stage realm had already somewhat stabilized. But there was still some distance to Grand Completion, and to breaking through to the Yin-Yang and Star Worship realms. For other Spirit Cultivators, these distances presented bottlenecks. But for Xu Xiaoshou, there were no obstacles at all! While other Sovereigns were still sensing the Heavenly Dao, Xu Xiaoshou was already comprehending, deciphering, and even participating in the Great Dao disputes. Even without his understanding of fire or spatial attributes, just using his comprehension of the Sword Dao to break through, his current insights were at least at the Throne Dao Realm level.

Thus, the quantity and quality of spiritual essence in his Qi Sea were limited purely because Xu Xiaoshou's cultivation time was too short. From his humble beginnings to his current state, it had been barely half a year. Of this, ninety percent of the time had been spent unwillingly involved in various conflicts. If not for passive cultivation and occasional fortuitous encounters, his current cultivation realm would likely be capped at Innate at best.

It was like filling a container with a water pipe, but the container wasn't a pond, but the ocean. They said it would naturally come to fruition, but the pipe was too thin. By the time the ocean was filled, it might already be three or five years later. The urgent task was to widen this water pipe, or even divert and channel flows, working on two fronts to break through the sole bottleneck of 'time'.

"Relying on passive cultivation for breakthroughs, while incredibly fast for ordinary people, is no longer enough for me. In extraordinary times, one must use extraordinary measures!"

Lately, Xu Xiaoshou had been so swamped with various affairs that he had almost neglected his own realm breakthroughs. But once he re-established his goal, he immediately found his direction again.

For instance... "Devour tribulation lightning!"

Looking up at the booming thunderbolts in the distance, Xu Xiaoshou now knew they were food. But after listening a bit longer, he shivered. The falling thunder had already changed in nature. Any tribulation-undergoers still persisting deep beneath the sea had, if not died, basically endured past the 108th bolt. Trying to consume the tribulation lightning now carried a risk of death...

"Then only one method remains." Xu Xiaoshou discarded the dangerous idea, and naturally, the fundamental reason for rapid cultivation progress in the White Cave came to mind—devouring treasures. For a Spirit Cultivator like him, who had no cultivation bottlenecks, consuming treasures containing tribulation power, such as the 'Primal Seed of Complete Illumination' or the 'Three-Day Frozen Tribulation,' was currently the only way to shorten his cultivation time.

In other words... Tribulation lightning was food, and treasures were food too. Only by eating more could his cultivation quickly reach the Throne Realm! And once at the Throne Realm, let alone seeking major revenge, at the very least, when facing a Grand Void cultivator alone, he would have the power to fight!

"Why do I feel like I should be called the God of Greed..."

Stirred by Night Watch's transformation, Xu Xiaoshou was pondering his future path when he suddenly felt some unusual movement in the water around him. Then, a slightly mocking voice came from behind his head.

"Lost in thought?"

Xu Xiaoshou swiftly turned his gaze, startled, almost activating his Vanishing Art. This was far too imperceptible, almost like a second Old Man Sang! Turning his head, he saw a familiar figure: wearing half a golden beast mask and wielding a Sea-Controlling Divine Halberd—it was Water Ghost!

Xu Xiaoshou shivered violently, remembering his "recklessness" beneath the deep sea, and instinctively wanted to retreat. But just as he barely moved, he remembered that his appearance had been blasted back to his original self, Xu Xiaoshou, due to the thunder tribulation.

Good thing... Good thing he hadn't changed back into his (Water Ghost's) appearance in time, otherwise, deep beneath the sea, 'Water Ghost' meeting 'Water Ghost' would truly lead to 'tears' in their eyes...

Xu Xiaoshou felt relieved, holding his twin swords protectively in front of his chest. He tried to speak calmly: "Water Ghost? What mischief are you planning now?"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk..." Water Ghost eyed the young man up and down, tutting, "So rude. By seniority, you should call me... Senior Water Ghost."

Goosebumps suddenly rose on Xu Xiaoshou's arms. That familiar 'Senior Water Ghost' made him think of Xiao Kongtong. Am I being too sensitive? He wouldn't possibly be tailing me secretly like some pervert, would he? Otherwise, when I mimicked him and made a favor deal with Xiao Kongtong, he would have killed me for intervening, right?

Xu Xiaoshou tried his best to dismiss this discomfort, and since he didn't detect any sarcastic undertones in Water Ghost's 'Senior Water Ghost,' he assumed Water Ghost still didn't know about all the trouble he had caused him in the deep sea.

"Senior Water Ghost?" Feeling reassured, Xu Xiaoshou sneered and directly pulled out Ba Zun'an's token, saying, "You still haven't settled the score for kicking me into the water! What's more, seeing the token is like seeing the person. By rights, you should be calling this token 'Chief' right now."

Water Ghost glanced at the token, a corner of his lips curling. "You're truly bold. Have you forgotten what I told you before, about how valuable your head is?"

"Uh!" Xu Xiaoshou's expression stiffened. He immediately withdrew the token and chuckled apologetically, "Heh heh, Senior Water Ghost, what can I do for you?"

His attitude changed so quickly it left Water Ghost momentarily speechless. However, he didn't dwell on the minor offense and went straight to his purpose.

"There's a small matter I need your help with."

"Small matter? How small?"

"A mere trifle."

"That small? Then why do you need me for? Senior Water Ghost can handle it himself! I have things to do, I'll be leaving now."

Xu Xiaoshou didn't want to engage at all. He turned elegantly and was about to stride away with a single step.

Thump!

Just then, his heart clenched, as if suddenly gripped, and his body froze on the spot.

"Cough, cough... cough! Heh heh, I-I was just kidding... Senior Wa-Water Ghost, don't take it seriously..."

Xu Xiaoshou's face instantly turned green, because he felt as if the blood in his body had truly transformed into a hand, gripping his heart. The sensation was so excruciating he almost suffocated.

"So rude. After all, I'm the Fifth Seat of the Holy Sinner. Can't you even give me the courtesy of a chat?" Water Ghost chided with a laugh, only then releasing his hold on Xu Xiaoshou. Clearing his throat, he asked again, "Now, can we talk?"

"Yes, absolutely yes!"

Xu Xiaoshou thought to himself, *Once I break through to the Throne Realm, if you're not yet a Half-Saint, I'll definitely let you taste what it's like to be suppressed by the Water Dao.* Previously, he might have only felt that time and spatial attributes were incredibly powerful and worthy of his time to comprehend. Now, it was different. Xu Xiaoshou believed the Mimic could help him achieve the mysteries of the Water element. For no other reason than to specifically use these mysteries against Water Ghost and Yu Lingdi later. Those two rascals were too infuriating!

"Let's put the main business aside for a moment. I have a question I want to ask first..." Gasping for breath, Xu Xiaoshou looked up, hopeful. "You're the Fifth Seat of the Holy Sinner; you wouldn't harm me, right? I'm a proper Holy Sinner member."

"Generally, yes," Water Ghost nodded.

"What about when it's not general?"

"Hard to say."

Xu Xiaoshou's face instantly went pale, and he felt the urge to turn and run again.

"So, the 'small matter' you mentioned shouldn't endanger my life, right?" He finally returned to the topic.

Water Ghost pondered for a moment, then smiled, "Also hard to say."

Xu Xiaoshou's heart immediately felt overwhelmed with dread, and his face turned frighteningly green.

"Just tell me, what is it? But let me make it clear, I have the right to refuse," Xu Xiaoshou said rapidly. "One should know one's own limits. My life is quite important, after all; I've only completed three of the seven tasks Ba Zun'an assigned me."

*Is 'one should know one's own limits' used like that...? And you're making things up as if they're true; your technique is quite skillful...*

Water Ghost cast him a smiling glance, not bothered by these petty tricks. He waved his hand and said, "Don't worry about Ba Zun'an's trivial matters. If what I ask is truly accomplished, you can even defect from the Holy Sinner afterward. If you ever need anything, just come to me; I'll protect you, at your beck and call."

Xu Xiaoshou: ???

*Damn it, just by that sentence, what you're asking for is clearly no 'small matter'! Oh, thank you so much! Just get lost, okay? Don't let me see your annoying face again!*