Actually, halfway through their conversation, Texas wanted to slip away.
Only she and the boss were here today; Croissant was at her usual stall, and Sora had gone to record a song, so the pressure was hers alone to bear.
Just listen to this—what on earth were they talking about?
The conversation got more and more outrageous, jumping from the earth to the ocean, and then to some world-ending calamity. Was this something a former Mafia young mistress was supposed to hear?
Never mind having the word 'former' in her title; even if she didn't, secrets like these weren't something a Mafia family should be privy to, right?
Texas felt that the people sitting here properly discussing the future of the world should be big shots like the President of Columbia, the Ursus Emperor, or the Twin Empresses of Leithanien.
Not her current self, an ordinary courier.
Those secrets were being tossed out like they were free... and then there was Originium. Originium was actually man-made? Related to Prehistory?
What Texas didn't know was that this hypothesis had long been popular in academic circles, primarily because the physical properties and many characteristics of Originium behaved exactly like a standardized man-made object. It was just that she wasn't an academic, so she naturally didn't know this and felt she had stumbled upon a heaven-shattering secret.
She merely glanced at Exusiai, who was still in the middle of a Divine Descent.
Forget it.
Leaving like this would just make her feel uneasy.
Even though the boss was also here.
"It's like you're a piece of scrap metal without an Administrator, PCS System," Xia Yu raised an eyebrow and complained. "Show some subjective initiative, show some backbone!"
"Denial. The system does not require subjective initiative," the PCS System replied robotically. "This system exists only to fulfill missions."
"Fine, so rigid," Xia Yu shook her head. "Then give me the Sankta modification."
"Rejected—target does not appear in database," the PCS System replied. "Rash modification may carry unknown risks."
"Oh? Then tens of thousands of years ago, when those first Sarkaz found you," Xia Yu shot it a glance, "how come you transformed them into Sankta without a second word?"
Hearing this, Texas lowered her head.
Another world-shaking revelation: the two arch-rivals, the Sarkaz and the Sankta, actually shared the same origin?
"Sarkaz, indigenous biology," the PCS System replied. "Recorded in the database long ago."
"And as for me, you don't know the traits of the Vidyadhara," Xia Yu smiled. "Of course, the most critical point is that if an accident happens, there will be no one left to find an Administrator for you, right?"
"Affirmative," the PCS System replied. "Locating an Administrator is the primary objective."
If it hadn't known about the changes in the ocean, it would have continued to slack off in Laterano. But now that it knew—and since the information corresponded with the intelligence the Sankta had brought back from Iberia—the PCS System was starting to panic.
There must be an Administrator! Yes, just as there must always be a Lich King.
"Alright, let's leave it at that," Xia Yu waved her hand. "You can go. I'll go to Kazdel to find someone for you. By the way, don't take it upon yourself to let the Sankta handle this."
"Kazdel is Sarkaz territory. If you let the Sankta enter en masse... the situation will become very hard to control."
"Calculating... Calculation results indicate that it is inappropriate for too many Sankta to intervene with the Sarkaz," the PCS System nodded.
"Hmm? Now that you know, why haven't you left?" Xia Yu looked at the crown atop Exusiai's head.
"Inquiry—Outsider, why are you so familiar with the current state of Terra?" The PCS System controlled Exusiai's body to tilt its head; that expressionless face was actually somewhat cute.
Ah, you fellow...
"Know the stone tablets in the Mantle Laboratory?" Xia Yu smiled and began to bluff. "Prehistory was indeed advanced, but the universe is vast."
"Understood," the PCS System nodded. "If assistance is required, any terminal can contact the system directly."
After speaking, the crown atop Exusiai's head gradually turned back into a Halo.
"...Eh? Why are you all looking at me like that?" Exusiai shook her head, then realized the three people in front of her were looking at her with very strange expressions.
"Are you okay? How does your head feel?" Texas asked with concern. This was a Divine Descent, after all. A short duration was fine, but they had talked for so long this time...
"I'm fine, just a bit dizzy," Exusiai frowned. "So, the Lord really came?"
"He came and chatted with her for a full half-hour," Emperor put down his wine glass, feigning composure.
Heh, did only Texas feel that things had gotten out of hand?
No, Emperor felt the same.
He might be a Beast Lord, but compared to the secrets of Prehistory and the world-ending crisis brought by Aegir, a single Beast Lord still wasn't enough.
However, unlike the worried Texas, Emperor wasn't particularly concerned.
After all, he was immortal, so he naturally lived more freely than the latter.
"Half an hour!" Exusiai's eyes lit up. She crouched down and grabbed Xia Yu's sleeve. "Doctor Bailu, you know, the Sankta love sweets way too much!"
"Our people are plagued by the curse of a sweet tooth! Toothaches and high obesity rates from high calories are devastating all Sankta! So please, Laterano needs a great Doctor like you!"
"So I'm supposed to go home with you and perform a Divine Descent using you in front of everyone, right?" Xia Yu shot her a glance. "I can't believe you could say that. Forget toothaches, but obesity?"
"How many fat angels are there in the world? Isn't your love for sweets just because that lightbulb on your head needs a massive amount of energy to maintain? For a Sankta to eat themselves fat, heh, she'd probably have to keep her mouth moving twenty-four hours a day."
"The main thing is that the idea is really great," Exusiai wasn't embarrassed in the slightest about her lie being exposed. In her view, it wasn't a lie, just playing around.
"Do you know the most sensational thing I've done in my life? On graduation day, I hacked most of the automated confessional stalls in Laterano and used a grand performance as my graduation ceremony!"
"Seriously, I think everyone would love my idea!"
"No, I don't think so," Xia Yu shook her head. "Mainly because I don't have time."
"Ah? Haven't the patients in Lungmen basically all been cured?" Exusiai's eyes darted around. "Is the Doctor not planning to stay in Lungmen? How about making Laterano your next stop?"
"How do you know I'm not planning to stay in Lungmen?" Xia Yu looked at her with a half-smile.
"Does it even need to be said? Because Doctor Bailu, you're a messenger!" Exusiai puffed out her chest confidently. "We're more or less in the same trade; of course I can tell."
"Those newspapers are all just making stuff up. You aren't someone who would be bound by any single city."
"So I can go to Laterano and check on your sister while I'm at it, right?" Xia Yu looked at her with a smile.
"Please," hearing this, Exusiai clasped her hands together and said loudly, "As long as you're willing to help, I'll do anything!"
"But I really can't spare the time," Xia Yu shrugged. "I just made a promise to your Lord to go to Kazdel and find someone for him..."
"Ah?" Exusiai turned to look at Texas, who gave a silent nod.
"This..." Exusiai hesitated.
"But didn't I say it before?" Xia Yu stood up. "Your sister is fine; she just needs time to recover. She'll wake up soon."
And then become Laterano's number one wheelchair war god.
"Now, let's talk business," Xia Yu looked at Emperor. "I have a commission."
"Oh? A commission from you?" Emperor immediately put down his glass. "I'll have to take a good look at this."
"It's not a big deal," Xia Yu produced an address. "I rented a warehouse in the slums. I've placed some goods there."
"I commission you to deliver these goods to Dahuang City, to the Academy teacher, Miss Shu."
"She's a very famous agricultural Tianshi; she should be quite easy to find."
"Emmm..." Hearing the name, Emperor glanced at Xia Yu. "Do you mind if I know what's being sent?"
"Just some seeds," Xia Yu said frankly. "I hope they can be of some help to her career."
"Fine, Penguin Logistics takes this commission!" Emperor nodded, then looked at Xia Yu. "The commission fee..."
"How about this bottle of wine?" Xia Yu pulled out a bottle of Bluebridge Wind from behind her.
"It's a deal!" Emperor saw the wine and quickly took it, clutching it like a treasure.
"Then, I won't disturb you further," Xia Yu rose to leave. "We'll meet again if fate allows, everyone from Penguin Logistics."
"Goodbye, Doctor!" Exusiai shouted energetically. "If you go to Laterano, just give them my name!"
"I've got quite the pull back home!"
"Goodbye," Texas nodded to her reservedly.
Xia Yu was in an excellent mood. After leaving the bar, she saw Nian standing by the roadside, enthusiastically trying out street skewers.
"Yo," Nian saw her too. "Over here, over here!"
"Come, this skewer is on me," Nian warmly handed over a meat skewer. "Everything about these skewers is good except they aren't flavorful enough."
The stall owner in front of her looked at the skewer, which was already coated in a thick layer of chili powder, and opened his mouth to speak but stopped.
Seriously, sister, you...
But seeing the other party finish a skewer in one bite, without even a trace of an extra expression on her face despite the thick chili powder... the owner silently shut his mouth.
This was a tough one. The owner knew exactly how spicy his own chili powder was. Someone who didn't even frown after one bite—couldn't afford to provoke her, couldn't afford to provoke her...
"Is that even a skewer?" Xia Yu looked at the skewer in her hand, which was covered in so much chili powder that not even a trace of meat could be seen, and pushed it away in disgust.
She also liked spicy food, but she preferred the taste of the spiciness blended with the ingredients themselves.
"Boss, give me three skewers," Xia Yu emphasized her tone. "Normal spice!"
"You got it!" The boss didn't show any disdain because of her small size; after all, he had watched the little one walk out of the bar.
"Sigh, no appreciation for the finer things," Nian polished off the skewer. "I'm telling you, you don't understand what real..."
"Of course I don't," Xia Yu interrupted her directly. "Not everyone has such a high body temperature."
A temperature of 1400 degrees... normal spice for an ordinary person was probably indeed a bit bland for her.
"So, what are the traits of your Vidyadhara race?" Nian leaned in curiously. "Look, we clearly all look more or less the same, don't we? But even my brothers and sisters have different traits."
"The Vidyadhara?" Xia Yu smiled at her. "We are the descendants of the Dragon Ancestor of Permanence, born with the bloodline of permanence. Our traits can be summarized in two words."
"Reincarnation."
"Reincarnation?" Nian didn't quite understand.
"It means that when every member of the Vidyadhara reaches the end of their lifespan, they will undergo a cycle of molting and rebirth. Simply put, we shed our old form and are reborn."
"Oh, no wonder you look so tiny yet talk so maturely," Nian's eyes lit up. "So you're also long-lived."
"No, molting and rebirth isn't such a convenient thing," Xia Yu shook her head. "In every cycle, a Vidyadhara loses all memories of their past, starting anew like a fresh sheet of white paper."
"Uh... this..." Nian was stunned for a moment, then suddenly thought of something. "If that's the case..."
She leaned into Xia Yu's ear. "Then wouldn't everything be a mess? After a few cycles, a pair of devoted lovers might suddenly realize that in their previous lives, they were siblings or even..."
Nian winked, her meaning self-evident.
"That's why I said you don't understand the Vidyadhara," Xia Yu shook her head. She had no idea how the Vidyadhara solved such issues, so she could only make it up.
"The Vidyadhara are a race without a future," Xia Yu lowered her head. "Our population was destined from the very beginning."
"For tens of thousands of years, it has only decreased and never increased. Perhaps molting and rebirth is something other races long for but cannot obtain, but it also completely restricts the racial potential of the Vidyadhara."
"We cannot naturally increase our population. For every clansman that dies, there is one fewer. Molting and rebirth is very fragile; this means that if a clansman encounters a dangerous situation... they basically cannot sustain themselves through this method."
"This..." Nian didn't know what to say.
"And my precocity isn't because of any cycle; it's purely because I am the High Elder of the Luofu of this generation. As the High Elder, there are some things I must understand."
Xia Yu took the skewers from the owner and ate as she spoke. "That's why I came here. It is my responsibility as the Dragon Mascot."
"To find a future for my clansmen."
"Uh, does Yan have a way to let you guys, um, naturally reproduce?" Nian blinked.
"No," Xia Yu shot her a glance. "I'm just here to deliver a letter. The person I was originally looking for is in Kazdel."
"Soon, I'll be leaving this city. So, the person on the side, can you come out now?"
===
T/N: Before the Power Stone-Devouring Miracle Dragon takes their leaves, they have a word to say:
Shilling time! You can read ahead as a member of my p*treon(dot)com/quickinquickout