The Showdown

Although Jingxing had a premonition long ago that today's meeting would be different from the last time they had tea in the office.

But as soon as he stepped into the lobby of the Pearl Star Building, he immediately noticed something was wrong. The receptionist, who was usually a bit lazy, was sitting up straight, there were many more security guards at the turnstiles, and even the air in the lobby seemed colder.

Several uniformed employees carrying documents jogged across the lobby, their shoes clicking on the marble floor, moving as if they were running away.

Zhenzhu had only been back from Thousand Stars City for one night, but the entire building seemed to have been wound up again.

"Could it be that the Pearl Star Consortium's financial report was criticized by the company's senior management?" Jingxing muttered to himself.

He pulled his collar up a little and suddenly felt that coming to the Pearl Star Building this time was like walking into a bag that was being sealed shut.

The receptionist verified Jingxing's identity and led him to the elevator that led to the high-floor meeting room.

When the door opened, Zhenzhu, who was standing in front of the French windows, had her back to him and did not turn around.

Please have a seat.

Jingxing sat down on the sofa and quickly glanced at Zhenzhu: her uniform was still crisp and straight, and a pen was tucked behind her ear. When she turned her head, although she looked radiant, she couldn't hide the weariness in her eyes.

The reception room was so quiet that you could hear the clock ticking on the wall.

"I heard some news about you from Topaz in Thousand Stars City." Zhenzhu sat down opposite him. "The genius of Azure Star, the owner of the Herta Space Station, that Ms. Herta of the Genius Society holds a debt of 30 billion Credits owed to you."

"Jingxing, tell me, what happened between you and her?"

Jingxing wasn't too surprised that she found out about this. After a few seconds of silence, he said, "She treated my eyes."

"Treat his eyes?" Zhenzhu's gaze fell on his eyes, examining them carefully, but she couldn't discern anything special.

Jingxing raised his hand, touched the corner of his eye, carefully considered his words, and slowly began to speak, "My eyes had some problems before. I could clearly see the flow of Imaginary Energy, but the price was that whenever I opened my eyes, my eyeballs would be in excruciating pain."

He paused, then continued, "A generous senior recommended that I go to the Herta Space Station to see if there was a solution. Ms. Herta said my eyes weren't diseased, just a little unusual, so she made me a series of Curio to suppress their negative effects. Three hundred billion Credits —that's the price Ms. Herta paid for that Curio. Considering I couldn't pay it all at once, she allowed me to owe it temporarily. I've already repaid three hundred million so far."

"So she's not just your creditor, she's also your doctor," Zhenzhu concluded.

"She's also one of my customers," Jingxing said. "She bought and collected some of my paintings at a high price."

"She's certainly generous," Zhenzhu said, her tone unreadable. "What's that Curio called?"

"A pair of contact lenses." Jingxing pointed to his eyes. "She calls them 'Light-Severing Sea.' When I wear them, I can still see the flow of Imaginary Energy, but I don't need to fear the impact of this information on my eyes."

Zhenzhu didn't press further, but Jingxing continued, "You heard about this from Ms. Topaz, right?"

"Yes, she mentioned it briefly at the recent meeting of the Ten Stonehearts," Zhenzhu said. "She also said she wanted to help Herta collect debts so she could cultivate good relationships with them."

Jingxing smiled wryly, "So, does that mean I've been targeted by one of the Ten Stonehearts?"

"I've already smoothed things over with Topaz for you." Zhenzhu looked at him. "Getting back to the main point, do you know what kind of condition your eyes have?"

Jingxing shook his head.

With Zhenzhu expression and clenched fists, Zhenzhu continued, "Your eyes are very likely cursed by Path."

"A curse?" Jingxing suddenly remembered Murata Ryusuke had told him before—"Those who stray from their Path will be punished by the Aeon."

Is the curse of Path the essence of this punishment?

"Those who stray from their Path will be cursed by Path. Those who walk Path of Destruction and then turn away from it will be weathered into sand. This isn't a legend; it's a fact recorded in the company files. And your eyes—" Zhenzhu stared at him, "I suspect that you too are cursed by the Path you've truly chosen."

"Does the company have any records of a curse on Path? Who is it?"

"Murata Ryusuke's wife and daughter, as well as their Wuliangta Huishi Clan, all fell victim to this curse," Zhenzhu explained. "Murata Ryusuke's wife, as a member of the Eyo clan, was born Destruction Pathstrider, but her the Family turned away from Nanook, and thus contracted the Weathering Curse."

At this point, her voice lowered. "Even his daughter couldn't escape it later."

Jingxing's fingers slowly tightened on his knees. It turned out that the haggard dean had such a past behind him—the loss of his wife and daughter, and then spending so many years alone painting amidst the stardust.

But then he thought, after encountering such injustice, shouldn't Murata Ryusuke want to protect his wife and daughter's hometown even more? After all, it was Nanook, not Dual-Phase Paradise, that caused his family to suffer misfortune.

But then another thought caught up with him, sending a chill down Jingxing's spine: What if Ryusuke had already gone mad? His wife and daughters were destroyed by the curse of Path, so would he still have any goodwill towards Path or the Aeon?

When he predicted the Destruction the Dual-Phase Paradise, didn't he secretly harbor a sliver of hope that he would drag everyone down with him?

Jingxing dared not think any further and suppressed these thoughts deep in his heart.

"That's why I've wanted to ask you this for a long time." Zhenzhu looked at him, "Jingxing, what Path have you embarked on, and why have you turned away from Him?"

The meeting room fell silent again. Jingxing could feel his heart beating faster and faster, but he still shook his head. "I don't think so. I've never strayed from my Path."

He lowered his head, stared at his outstretched palm for a moment, and then continued, "But Ms. Herta said that my eyes are a blessing from the Aeon."

He paused, then continued, "However, the blessing of the Aeon is itself a form of torment for mortals."

"So which Aeon blessed you?" Zhenzhu pressed.

After meeting her gaze, Jingxing said frankly, "The Beauty goddess Idrila is unparalleled in beauty."

Zhenzhu was taken aback, and immediately connected the dots to the events surrounding the previous attack on the Robin.

Realizing Jingxing's special status, she, who worked in the Strategic Investment Department, suggested without hesitation, "I'll pay off those 30 billion Credits for you."

"No need," Jingxing refused quickly, almost without hesitation. "I don't want to owe the company money."

"I can do it in my personal capacity--"

"But to everyone else, you represent the company." Jingxing met her gaze. "Ms. Zhenzhu, you know better than anyone else—the money from the Strategic Investment Department isn't so easy to get."