Within the Scalegorge Waterscape, Bailu extended her hand toward the ancient seal. In that instant, her dragon transmutation powers enveloped the seal entirely.
Like Stelle and March 7th, Bailu held absolute trust in Pei Guang. Even though his words sotis sounded odd—or even filled with murderous intent—if he said sothing could be done, then it would be done.
Since Pei Guang said she could do it, she believed she could! Inspired by his words, Bailu began to form her understanding of the seal.
Using her comprehension of the power of the Path of Permanence, Bailu started constructing a new seal. By herself, she wouldn't have been able to accomplish it with her current abilities, but she used a clever workaround: leveraging the existing energy within the old seal as a foundation, she began constructing her envisioned seal.
Dan Heng watched quietly from the side.
When Bailu finally completed the new seal, Dan Heng let out a sigh of relief. "It worked…"
Bailu had succeeded, but her success ca at a heavy price for the traditionalists of the Vidyadhara. After she completed the reconstruction, the ancient dragon that had been part of the seal for millennia transford... into a glowing golden bunny.
Upon closer inspection, the bunny looked identical to the pink bunny from Bailu's gourd. Its adorable appearance was matched by an inexplicable air of mischief in its eyes.
"Done!"
With a triumphant shout, she activated the seal. The glowing golden bunny stood upright, but as it did, an unusual transformation occurred.
The bunny gradually turned pink, its adorable form radiating charm. Surrounding it, a small dragon began circling—the remnants of the original seal. Bailu hadn't destroyed the original dragon-based seal but had instead preserved part of its function.
Despite her young age, Bailu had proven herself exceptionally clever. Drawing inspiration from Pei Guang's tactics in battle, she devised a layered chanism for the seal: the bunny acted as the primary seal. If soone tampered with it, the dormant dragon seal would reactivate, creating a short but overwhelmingly powerful secondary seal.
Dan Heng observed this innovation in silence. Where once a majestic dragon had stood as the symbol of the seal, it had now been replaced by a pink bunny, with the dragon relegated to a supporting role.
At that mont, Dan Heng had a sinking feeling.
Dan Heng: "If the past generations of Imbibitor Lunae and High Elders saw this, they'd probably be quite proud. But if the other Preceptors saw this…"
Imagining the reaction of the Vidyadhara elders, Dan Heng couldn't help but smile. Although he had never interacted with them directly, reviewing their decisions in the inherited mories often left him feeling exasperated.
They always claid to act for the prosperity of the Vidyadhara, but in reality, most of them were driven by petty power struggles, rarely considering the well-being of their race, the Xianzhou Luofu, or even the greater Path of Permanence.
Pei Guang, observing the transformation, curiously asked Dan Heng, "What do you think the original creator of this seal would say if they saw this?"
Dan Heng thought for a mont. "They'd probably smile and complint Bailu for her creativity and talent. Sure, it might lack so of the gravitas of the original, but it reflects Bailu's free spirit. The power of Permanence... isn't about maintaining dignity or ceremony but rather…"
Pei Guang: "But rather what? Co on, spit it out!"
Dan Heng: "It's nothing. I believe you, Ah Guang, already understand what it truly ans. Inspired by you and the mories of the Imbibitor Lunae, I've co to my own understanding. On this Path… I've walked a little further. I can even understand now why the dragons of old disappeared."
Pei Guang: "?"
Pei Guang was confused. What had he supposedly understood? He didn't get anything! He was still waiting for the plot to explain everything. Back when he used to skip cutscenes and then review the story later, he'd often find out those skipped scenes were inconsequential. But now, even after following the narrative diligently—watching all the CGs and taking in every detail—Dan Heng suddenly turned into a cryptic riddler?
Pei Guang hated monts like these, when the story reached its climax and soone decided to drop vague hints instead of delivering answers. If Dan Heng weren't a comrade, he would've already grabbed him by the collar and demanded he spill the truth.
anwhile, Bailu had finished securing the seal. Breathing a sigh of relief, she inspected her handiwork and nodded in satisfaction.
"Looks like I have quite the talent after all! Ah Guang, what do you think of my seal?"
Pei Guang gave her an approving nod. "It's got a unique charm. That's how it should be! Sure, sothing grand and imposing can be impressive, but this adorable style? It's warm and comforting. Great work!"
Bailu bead with excitent. "Right? It's cute, isn't it? But I couldn't have done it without you and Dan Heng. Without this little bunny, I wouldn't have been able to pull it off! Oh, and Ah Guang, I've had so new insights this ti."
Sure, the seal's new form lacked the majestic gravitas of the original dragon, but she was thoroughly pleased with the result. As for other people's opinions? Who cared? If she ever decided she didn't like it, she could just change it later.
Bailu, ever forward-thinking, had even added a little feature to the Arbor's seal: the ability to freely modify its appearance. Any High Elder and Preceptor could customize it to their liking.
In simpler terms, Bailu had modded the Ambrosial Arbor's seal.
As the three exchanged thoughts on their achievents, Pei Guang began to sense sothing amiss.
"This feeling…"
It was the unmistakable sensation of being flanked in a first-person shooter.
For gars, the perception of being flanked often ant that enemies were simultaneously in both "there" and "not there" states, an uncanny phenonon. Experienced players knew to 'check their six' when this sensation hit, and so Pei Guang instinctively turned to glance behind him.
What he saw made his eyes narrow.
Shimring, almost transparent figures were creeping toward them, their movents faint but deliberate. There were many of them—at least two dozen, though he didn't bother to count precisely. He could see them well enough to know they were a threat, but their constant motion made them too tedious to tally.
The mont his gaze locked onto them, the figures froze, their confidence wavering. They were certain they could take out Bailu but had no assurance they could handle Dan Heng in a head-on confrontation.
They had, of course, entirely dismissed Pei Guang. Despite the widespread claims and official recognition of Pei Guang as the hero who defeated the Lord Ravager, they refused to believe it. In their minds, soone as obscure as him couldn't possibly have bested such a powerful foe. It must have been either Jing Yuan or Dan Feng who had taken down the Emanator.
Pei Guang's expression turned serious as he assessed the situation. "Dan Heng, protect Bailu. These guys are here for her."
Dan Heng nodded. "Understood."
Bailu blinked in confusion. "Wait, ? Why? What did I do to deserve this? Soone's trying to assassinate ? Could it be that… scumbag sent them? But their aura… it feels Vidyadhara-like…"
She looked genuinely puzzled. Sure, she'd occasionally sneaked out of the Xianzhou to indulge in snacks and treats, but other than eating and drinking, she'd never caused trouble.
The most recent event of note was her escapade with Pei Guang, running around the Luofu and helping take down a Lord Ravager. But that was a good thing! Why would anyone want to assassinate her for that?
As she mulled over her predicant, Dan Heng calmly added, "Yes, their power… it's Vidyadhara…"
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