Chapter 2618: Beloved's Deep Affection, How to Repay

"If you truly wish to thank me, then present me with more grand and interesting spectacles. It would be best if you could completely alter history beyond recognition." The twinkling starlight seemed very much to anticipate this outcome.

Zu'an's expression was odd. He thought to himself, "Are you truly the God of Chaos and Mystery, or merely a god of amusement?"

Fearing the entity's mind-reading ability, he immediately stopped that line of thought and instead inquired about Jiang Luofu's whereabouts: "Great True God, a companion of mine also seems to have been summoned by a True God. May I know which True God it was?"

"Oh, so even your peripheral world can be noticed by others?" Mili was rather surprised.

Zu'an then described the strange phenomena that had occurred before Jiang Luofu's disappearance.

The starlight flickered, seemingly calculating and reviewing something. After a moment, the voice spoke again: "I know."

Zu'an was delighted. "May I ask who summoned her?"

"You will know when it is time for you to know," Mili replied.

Zu'an nearly choked. He thought, "This truly is the progenitor of all riddle-speakers." He then asked, "Then, when exactly is it time for me to know?"

"A statement you just made resonated deeply with me," the voice from all directions seemed to grow cold. "The relationship between master and servant must not be inverted. I have just bestowed upon you a magical artifact, granted you abilities, and now I am to help you find someone. Are you the god, or am I?"

"Of course, you are!" Zu'an secretly wiped cold sweat from his brow. These gods were truly temperamental.

"Good that you know. Once you have sufficiently altered history in a spectacular way and presented me with a grand feat that satisfies me, I can then consider telling you," Mili said indifferently.

"Yes!" Zu'an then tentatively asked, "Do you happen to possess any artifacts capable of time travel? That would make altering history much more convenient for me."

He thought that if he could obtain such an item from the entity, he could return to the past and reunite with the Mermaid Queen and the Wushan goddesses. Recalling Shang Hongyu's previous resentful look, he quietly added in his mind, "And Xihe..."

"You're quite adept at using official business for personal gain," Mili scoffed. "I don't care if you wish to mate with various females. As long as you can present me with gifts magnificent enough to satisfy me, then I can bring you beautiful females from all the heavens and myriad worlds for breeding."

Zu'an immediately broke into a cold sweat. He had almost forgotten that the entity could hear his inner thoughts.

This was completely impossible to guard against. His mind was naturally free-associating, and thoughts often sprang up uncontrollably.

And why did the entity's words sound so strange, as if it were talking about raising pets?

"Time-traveling artifacts are very special. I don't get along with that Time fellow... Hmph, there are many things you don't need to know. You only need to understand that you don't require time travel to change history. Every single event you undertake now has the potential to alter history. This 'Land of Dreams' is an excellent opportunity. You must go, and you must present me with a grand feat, otherwise, you will be of no use to me." The voice seemed to fade away.

Zu'an had just blinked when the starlight vanished, and his surroundings returned to the ocean. Shang Hongyu was anxiously shaking his arm. "Ah Zu, Ah Zu?"

"What is it?" Zu'an regained his senses.

"I should be asking you that. You suddenly seemed dazed just now," Shang Hongyu retorted impatiently.

Zu'an's heart stirred. "How long was I dazed for?"

"Not very long, only about two or three breaths. But if we encountered an enemy, that brief moment would be enough for danger to arise," Shang Hongyu replied with concern.

"It's nothing, I was just summoned by a True God," Zu'an said. He thought to himself, "It seems the True God summoned only my consciousness. But why wasn't there a time-stop effect? Others nearby could still perceive the passage of time."

"What if, during a life-or-death battle with an enemy in the future, it suddenly summons me? Wouldn't that be dangerous?"

He resolved to ask the entity about handling such situations next time.

"Ah?" Shang Hongyu, standing nearby, was stunned. She had no idea he would casually drop such explosive news.

"What exactly happened?"

"Let's explain it all after we find Liuyu."

When the two found Shang Liuyu, she was still a bit shy from their previous encounter and initially didn't want to see them. However, upon hearing that the matter involved extraterrestrial beings and True Gods, she quickly opened the door.

Zu'an then recounted how he had just met the Mirror Scribe and inadvertently attracted the True God's summons.

The two women were filled with apprehension upon hearing this. "It seems we truly shouldn't mention those gods in the future; it really will attract their gaze."

Zu'an smiled, taking out the Spring and Autumn Brush and the Records of Time. "You could say it was a blessing in disguise."

When they learned the details of the "Existence" skill, both women were astonished on the spot. This skill truly exceeded the limits of their world.

Zu'an pondered whether he should seize the opportunity to write about the two sisters together in the Records of Time...

However, the thought was extinguished as soon as it arose. He already had the chance to do so, so why resort to cheating with this?

Furthermore, writing such frivolous things in the Records of Time, he wasn't sure if it counted as blasphemy, and if it angered Mili, it would be troublesome.

"Although becoming a divine envoy currently appears beneficial, getting involved in the disputes among various True Gods will likely bring more danger," Shang Liuyu warned. "Ah Zu, I know you must go to that Land of Dreams to rescue someone, but you absolutely must not be too ostentatious because of your status as a divine envoy. After all, we know nothing about other worlds, and we don't even know what enemies the God of Chaos and Mystery might have."

Zu'an also calmed down from his earlier excitement. "Thank you for the reminder, Sister Shang. I was indeed a bit blindly optimistic before."

The two women discussed with him the various situations and dangers he might encounter in the Land of Dreams. Unfortunately, with too little information, their options were limited. They could only prepare various magical artifacts and elixirs from the Dragon Palace for him.

A few days later, Zu'an was to depart. Since he didn't know when the Land of Dreams would open, he had to arrange many things before then.

On the eve of his departure, Shang Liuyu presented Zu'an with a soft armor. "Ah Zu, this is something my sister and I wove during this time using the mermaid clan's most precious heart-scales. We had the idea when you went to the Demon World last time, and it's finally finished now."

Zu'an took the soft armor. Faint, colorful light shimmered across it, making it exceptionally beautiful.

The entire armor was as thin as a layer of silk. When worn, it felt completely unburdening, with no stiffness from the scales.

"It smells wonderful," Zu'an said, deliberately bringing it to his nose for a sniff, which made both sisters blush deeply.

Shang Hongyu lightly punched him with her delicate fist. "Don't talk nonsense. This isn't just made from our sisters' heart-scales; it also incorporates precious scales preserved by generations of Mermaid Queens. You're blaspheming our ancestors."

Zu'an quickly dropped his smile and repeatedly apologized to the two women.

He had once received a precious scale from a former Mermaid Queen, which could ward off a single fatal attack. Now, this soft armor, woven entirely from the most precious scales of successive Mermaid Queens, offered unimaginable defensive power.

Thinking of how long the sisters had prepared this, exhausting the Mermaid clan's entire legacy, a tender feeling arose in his heart.

Such deep affection from the beautiful women; how could he repay it?

Unfortunately, he had too many responsibilities, destined to spend more time apart than together.

He embraced the two women tightly. They, too, knew that this farewell might mean uncertain prospects of reunion, and each held him back just as tightly.