The storm raged, with lightning flashing and thunder roaring.
Unsure of what had happened, the mobile phone had no signal at all.
So there was no way to order takeout.
The martial arts school.
A low wooden table held three bowls of noodles.
The noodles had been simply boiled in water, sprinkled with a bit of salt, and nothing else.
"Is this what you all eat for lunch?"
Wu Xiaode sat on a small stool, looking at the large bowl in front of him.
"No, today you’re here, so we specially added an egg," Qian Kuiming said, using his chopsticks to part the noodles, revealing the poached egg underneath.
Little Shi stared at the steaming egg, swallowing his saliva.
"Nothing else?" Wu Xiaode asked.
Qian Mingkui placed a jar of shrimp paste on the table and said, "Vegetable."
"Alright then..."
Let’s eat.
Wu Xiaode picked up a bowl of noodles, selected a few strands, and slowly slurped them into his mouth.
"Hmm, Little Shi cooked it well," he praised.
Little Shi smiled back at him.
"Eat it while it’s hot; it’ll dry up soon," Qian Kuiming said.
He began devouring his noodles.
Little Shi ate even more, completely silent as he did so.
Wu Xiaode glanced at the torrential rain outside, his gaze flashing as it fell upon the Book of the Dead.
He saw lines of ice crystal letters floating motionlessly:
"The Ancestor Spirit borrowed your body to perform the first move of ’Lone Journey Amidst Wind and Snow,’ ’Noble Bones Buried Beneath Earth Dissolve.’
"Your understanding of sword skill has deepened."
"Special Reminder:"
"Performing ’Noble Bones Buried Beneath Earth Dissolve’ requires at least 15 points of Soul Power, and the second move ’I Wander the Human Realm with Snow Upon My Head’ requires 30 points of Soul Power."
Wu Xiaode withdrew his gaze.
points of Soul Power!
The current limit of a person’s Soul Power is 10 points.
One would need at least three tis the Soul Power to execute such a move!
There was no point in thinking about it for the ti being.
Be down-to-earth, make good use of the remaining six days, and hurry to improve your Soul Power.
Besides, there was another extrely important matter.
Posting a commission!
As Wu Xiaode’s thought erged, the thick book with a black cover quietly opened, revealing a line of ice crystal letters:
"Please find a quiet, unoccupied place to facilitate the posting of commissions on the wish wall in this book."
Wu Xiaode quickly finished his noodles, put down the bowl, and asked, "Elder Qian, is my room ready?"
"Ah, it’s ready," Qian Kuiming hastily replied.
"That fast?"
"It was already vacant, just needed the bed and bedding set up. It was an ex-student’s room—the appliances will have to wait until the weather clears to buy."
"Give the key to the room; I’m going to rest a bit."
"Alright."
Wu Xiaode took the key and opened the door to the room.
Inside the room.
Wu Xiaode felt the blanket on the bed.
The duvet was new, carrying the scent of sunshine.
The room was clean.
This was the result of Little Shi’s hard work.
Wu Xiaode was very satisfied, so he simply stood there and said, "This will do, let’s begin here."
The Book of the Dead, floating in mid-air, trembled slightly.
Waves of hazy white mist emanated from the mysterious book with the black cover.
Soon, the entire room was enveloped in mist, obfuscating everything.
The world seed to disappear.
Wu Xiaode turned slightly, looking towards the distance.
Seemingly out of nowhere, a dilapidated giant wall quietly appeared in his view.
The wall was plastered with various slips of paper, each radiating a completely different, bizarre fluctuation.
The Wish Wall!
Wu Xiaode looked at the wall and saw that in the center, there was a blank piece of paper.
That was the opportunity he’d earned to post a commission after completing one himself.
"Co!"
He whispered.
The blank slip of paper truly detached itself from the wall, gently floating down into his hand.
Yesterday, due to the urgency to find Xia Huilan, he had found the Crow Spirit.
Today’s commission must be aid at finding a way to save himself.
"I am in the mouth of the One-eyed Giant—it’s about to eat . Who can help out and allow to escape from the fate of death?"
"As for the reward—"
"I can offer eight points of Soul Power."
Along with Wu Xiaode’s thoughts, the paper slowly revealed lines of text.
Wu Xiaode read it over and, finding no issue, reattached the paper to the Wish Wall.
He waited a few monts.
The paper remained still.
Wu Xiaode, not giving up, continued to wait.
Ti slowly passed.
After a full ten minutes, the paper remained motionless, but the Book of the Dead spread open, revealing lines of ice crystal letters:
"The One-eyed Giant is a monster from myth, and no spirit is willing to offend it for a re eight points of Soul Power, not to ntion putting themselves in danger."
"You need to change the content of your commission."
"Limited to one more attempt."
"If the commission content you change to still garners no acceptance from spirits, today’s commission will be voided."
The paper filled with text fluttered down from the Wish Wall and fell back into Wu Xiaode’s hands.
It turned blank again.
Wu Xiaode looked at the blank piece of paper and fell into deep thought.
Yes.
Within that Death Demon Cave, the One-eyed Giant itself once said a sentence:
"For countless years, you lower species have done nothing but run away, and barely any of you dare to fight . Even if you do fight, you can’t withstand a single blow from , let alone strike . Ants, you really are as insignificant and ridiculous as dust."
—No one is its match!
And yet, I actually entertain the thought of escaping from its grasp?
Wu Xiaode closed his eyes, gently massaged his temples, and strived to keep his emotions calm.
Yes.
Indeed, no-one is its match, but didn’t I also slap it?
It is not without vulnerabilities.
The Book of the Dead also ntioned that a re eight points of Soul Power really isn’t enough to tempt anyone.
Unfortunately...
I don’t have anything substantial that I can offer as a reward for the commission.
Wait a minute!
Wu Xiaode suddenly rembered sothing.
"Let’s take a look at my current status," he said.
Instantly, rows of ice crystal characters erged on the Book of the Dead:
"Ability Master: Wu Xiaode."
"Soul Power: 8/8."
"rit: 1."
"Ancient Martial School: Iron Wire Fist."
"Knowledge: ’Model 92025 High-level Humanoid Combat Machine Curved Surface Bearing Design Styles - Modified, No. 92025 Culture Dish Operation Guide, Basic Knowledge of Type 92025 Humanoid Combat Machines.’
"Saber Skill: Loneso Snowstorm (When you wield a saber in battle, this saber skill will continuously improve your swordsmanship.)"
rit!
Wu Xiaode’s eyes caught sight of the word "rit."
I rember when I earned this one point of rit, the Book of the Dead made a special explanation:
"rit is an extrely rare intangible force; it can’t drive techniques like Soul Power does, but it acts as a threshold for many things."
"You will be able to use it when you issue commissions in the future."
Rare!
What does rare an?
Valuable!
Invigorated, Wu Xiaode paced back and forth in the mist, holding the slip of paper, until he had thought things through, then he spoke:
"I am currently in the mouth of the One-eyed Giant. Given my current conditions and state, how can I possibly escape unscathed?"
"Reward: Eight points of Soul Power, one point of rit."
As Wu Xiaode spoke, lines of characters stealthily appeared on the paper.
Done!
Wu Xiaode stuck it back on the Wish Wall, took a few steps back, and quietly waited.
—This ti, I did not have the spirits co out to help.
And I only asked a question.
That can’t be too much to ask.
Just answer my question, and you can take away one point of rit!
Putting oneself in soone else’s shoes, if I were so great figure who, upon gazing down upon the world, discovered that just by speaking, I could earn rit.
Why would I refuse such an offer!
There are two key points here. One is that rit is truly as precious as the Book of the Dead claims it to be.
The second is...
"Book of the Dead, surely no one would lie to cheat their way to gaining rit?" Wu Xiaode worriedly asked.
A line of ice crystal characters quietly surfaced on the Book of the Dead:
"Commissions on the Wish Wall follow the Law of Causality. Should there be any deception, the causality wouldn’t hold true, and rit cannot be gained."
Wu Xiaode felt relieved.
He wasn’t too concerned about the possibility that no one would accept the commission.
It’s just how the situation is.
I don’t have anything more to offer anyway.
If this can’t attract powerful spirits to answer the question, then I’ll just have to accept my fate.
"Co on... who will help out of this dire situation..."
Wu Xiaode whispered softly.
He stared at the slip of paper on the Wish Wall.
One breath.
Two breaths.
Three breaths.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew by.
The slip of paper was whisked away by the wind, quickly flying off the wall and disappearing from sight.
Rows of ice crystal characters appeared on the Book of the Dead:
"Commission accepted."
"Please wait."
It’s accepted!
Wu Xiaode’s heart jolted.
With my insignificant ant-like form, facing that One-eyed Giant, almost certainly spells certain death.
Not to ntion I’m still in its mouth.
—And yet, there really is soone who knows how to deal with it!
In the next mont, the Book of the Dead abruptly revealed a line of characters:
"Incoming!"
Amidst the infinite mist, a suprely holy light suddenly descended from heaven, crashing down upon Wu Xiaode.
Under the illumination of the Holy Light, Wu Xiaode felt as if his body had beco transparent, laid bare to the scrutiny of so existence deep in the sky.
A voice suddenly rang in his ears:
"Difficult indeed... With your Power, contending against that entity from the legends of the Divine Demon is nearly impossible..."
"Who dares ddle with fate lightly? Who dares declare a solution for you?"
"It is I, who once had so grievances with it, and moreover, there is sothing very interesting about this affair."
"I might as well tell you."
"Listen carefully, I’ll say it only once:"
"You must think carefully about why you could evade the death that was ant for you, and then find that deepest thought in your heart."
"Retrieve that thought, and your destiny will start to change!"
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