Chapter 433 - 226: The Non-Human Path

Chapter 433: Chapter 226: The Non-Human Path

The Physique of [Post Station Huahua] has skyrocketed to "Boundless."

"A Winding Path Leads to Seclusion, Magnificent Halls, Boundless."

It seems to be a literal way of distinguishing "size."

To put it simply: Feng Bei expanded, the Monk broadened, and Yin Qingqing... was still small?

Zheng Xiu figured that was the correct interpretation.

It wasn’t hard to understand.

A thought crossed his mind, and Zheng Xiu’s expression turned odd as he reopened his eyes. In Yin Qingqing’s [Post Station] description, under the [Affinity] section, the two words "master-servant" convinced Zheng Xiu that she had accepted this role from the bottom of her heart. Feng Bei, unaware that Zheng Xiu had just secretly analyzed her "scale" again, kept her eyes on Yin Qingqing’s departing figure.

Outside the main hall, while waiting for Yin Qingqing to change her clothes, Qing Shisan was squatting on a wall. A whistle came from another part of the Zheng Residence—it was Ji Hong’ou. Qing Shisan’s ears perked up the moment he heard it.

Ji Hong’ou’s whistle first asked why Qing Shisan was taking a girl out. After Qing Shisan whistled back an explanation, Ji Hong’ou replied that she was requesting leave, saying the person in her home was unwell. Remembering Ji Hong’ou’s current circumstances, Qing Shisan felt a flicker of anxiety. He whistled a casual reply and fell silent.

"A word in private."

After Qing Shisan and Yin Qingqing left, Feng Bei pulled Zheng Xiu back into a room.

The others were long used to this sort of thing from the two of them. They snickered, but then felt a silent pang of sorrow. It was a sadness known as "The Master is being stolen away."

"Your ’Prisoner’ Path... could it be one that innately counters Mystics?"

Feng Bei’s eyes burned with an intensity she rarely showed in front of Zheng Xiu. "That would explain why you can touch my Omen, and why Yin Qingqing’s Mystic Technique had no effect on you."

Zheng Xiu shook his head. "Not completely ineffective." He touched the lump on his forehead, looking thoughtful. "My Deceitful Object stirred just now."

"You did that on purpose?" Feng Bei’s face filled with worry. "You have to be more careful. Don’t accidentally expose your true Path. Once Zhu finds out you can suppress Mystics, they might stop at nothing to kill you."

"I honestly didn’t realize it at first. So that’s the reason."

The Prisoner: imprisoning Deceitful Objects, Mystics, and the self. Zheng Xiu gently assured Feng Bei, "Worst case, I’ll just present myself with the Painter Path from now on. Who would ever guess a single person could possess multiple Path Mystic Skills?"

"Don’t forget the Monk." Ever since that incident, Feng Bei had started copying Zheng Xiu, familiarly referring to the Monk as just "the Monk."

"That’s right," Zheng Xiu said, pausing for a moment before smiling. "The Monk, too. Manifesting multiple Miracle Techniques all on his own... it’s quite amazing."

The two sat on the edge of the bed, chatting softly.

Feng Bei asked, "Why are you so interested in Mystics?"

Zheng Xiu raised a single index finger, a mysterious look on his face. "Guess."

Feng Bei thought for a moment, staring at the punchable face before her. It didn’t take long for her to figure it out. "Don’t tell me you want to... ’collect’ as many Mystics as possible before Zhu does?"

Feng Bei hesitated for a moment before using the word "collect."

Yes, she felt that right now, Zheng Xiu was indeed "collecting" Mystics.

"Follow me."

Zheng Xiu led Feng Bei by the hand to the study.

He shut the door tightly. Feng Bei’s gaze kept drifting to the covered "statue," and the more she glanced at it, the softer her expression became.

Zheng Xiu ignored Feng Bei, who was admiring the unfinished statue. He cleared the desk, spread out a sheet of white paper, and wrote down the word "[Prisoner]." Next to it, he noted "Jiazi."

He then drew forty-eight blank lines beneath the word Prisoner.

Zheng Xiu recalled the vision he’d had on the first day he became a [Prisoner]: a giant eyeball, like a Scorching Sun, that had exploded, releasing forty-nine rays of light.

There was a reason for everything.

"You were at Ye Weiyang for many years, so you must know many of the Paths. Try filling some of these in."

Feng Bei obediently took the pen from Zheng Xiu. She held it poised over the paper for a moment, but didn’t know where to begin.

"The order isn’t important. You can fill them in reverse order, according to the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches."

Feng Bei thought for a moment, then began to try. She started filling in the "Paths" on the paper from memory.

[Divine-Tuning Witch], [Orchid], [Thief Sect], [Thousand Gate General], [Time Demon]...

Zheng Xiu would occasionally add to the list based on his own experiences over the years. "The Executioner is Ding Wei, the Knife Seller is Yisi, the Ascetic Monk is Renchen, the Time Demon is Jiyou... Oh, right, the Painter is Wuzi."

"And there’s the Corpse Sewer, Skillful Hands, Wandering, Official, Actor, Official, Spirit Binder, Chess Master, Scholars..."

After Feng Bei had filled in a few, Zheng Xiu was struck by a burst of inspiration. A strange light gleamed in his eyes as he snatched the pen from her and began to fill in the blank spaces at random, muttering to himself as he wrote.

"Have you noticed? The emergence of the Paths isn’t so much about a rigid ’order’ as it is about human ’perception.’ The Upper, Middle, and Lower Nine Professions clearly correspond to the public’s perception—their impressions of these occupations."

As Zheng Xiu wrote, the paper gradually filled up, but many blank spaces still remained.

"And within each Path, there are countless hidden branches."

"Rather than being born as the Darkness approaches, I think the Paths are more like a manifestation of human ’wishes.’"

"The Darkness is what makes these ’wishes’ come true."

"It’s like a child’s dream of soaring through the sky—that kind of pure ’wish.’"

"I’d always been curious about which Path the ’Crow Fosterer’ belongs to."

"Then, in a flash of inspiration, I had a thought: Is it possible that the Crow Fosterer isn’t a Path that a ’Human’ can walk?"

Zheng Xiu stopped his pen. He pointed to a large blank area below [Prisoner] and beside [Painter], and drew a circle.

"This large blank area here... is it possible that Paths exist that are not for Humans to aspire to, not for them to walk?"

"For example... other beings?"

Feng Bei’s way of thinking was a product of her time; she could never have come up with such a bizarre idea on her own. But with Zheng Xiu’s explanation, she quickly grasped the crux of the matter.

"You mean..."

Feng Bei suddenly remembered something and grabbed Zheng Xiu’s arm in shock.

They looked at each other. After a moment of silence, their minds connected, and they both thought of the same thing.

They spoke a single word in unison:

"Cat!"