Night in the Sea of Consciousness was naturally the time for Lin Nuo and his beloved subjects to hold a meeting..
Only, at this moment, aside from Lin Nuo, there were just four others in the Sea of Consciousness: Lin Xiu, Lin Fan, Lin Tian, and Lin Yan.
"Where's Lin Rui?" Lin Nuo asked curiously, looking over at Lin Fan, who was studying the Soul Tool blueprints Lin Xiu had given him. Lin Fan heard him.
He looked up and said, "Probably... almost starved to death in the streets."
The other four: "..."
Feeling the four of them silently staring at him, Lin Fan said helplessly, "I tried sending people to the Heaven Dou Empire to find him, but they couldn't locate that guy at all. From what I've heard, he's wandering around and even eating without paying, but he's tough as nails and can't be beaten to death."
Lin Nuo's mouth twitched. "Good grief, Lin Rui's spawn point was even worse than mine!"
At that, Lin Xiu chimed in, "Seems like he had the worst spawn point among us. An orphan, no home, no money, forced to wander. And he seems to represent the Life Attribute. If he doesn't eat..."
"Does that mean he might actually starve to death?" Lin Tian couldn't help asking.
Lin Nuo gave no immediate answer. His gaze fell on the Throne of Life, but he didn't sense anything wrong with it. Coming back to himself, he gave his answer: "He probably hasn't starved to death."
"Then Lin Fan, I'll have to trouble you to spend some time looking for him when the time comes," Lin Xiu added. He hadn't even gotten the chance to serve the main body yet, and he'd starved to death. Just how bad could this guy's luck be?
Lin Fan nodded in agreement. He wasn't about to stand by and watch his companion starve to death.
"Then let's get into today's meeting." Lin Nuo spoke slowly, turning to the discussion. "My Martial Soul is a Body Martial Soul with the Time Attribute. What about yours?"
"Mine is a non-attribute Body Martial Soul, with an added Dark Attribute." As Lin Xiu spoke, he raised his hand, and a mass of pitch-black matter appeared in his palm.
Lin Fan seemed to notice something and leaned over to take a closer look. After a moment, he asked, "If I remember right, you said you were going to infiltrate Shrek Academy, right?"
"Yeah. What about it?" Lin Xiu nodded, unsure why Lin Fan had brought that up.
Lin Fan rubbed his chin and thought for a few seconds before saying slowly, "Your Martial Soul's like a Humanoid God-Slaying Cannonball. It's perfect for the job."
Hearing that, Lin Xiu immediately understood what Lin Fan meant. "My ability could certainly make those brainwashed fools see right from wrong in an instant, but it'd consume a massive amount of Soul Power. Unless absolutely necessary, I really don't like using it."
"That's true." Lin Fan nodded in agreement. "But it's only a suggestion. If you can..." He let his gaze settle slowly on Lin Nuo and said, each word deliberate, "You could try setting things up in your timeline for the boss to use later."
"I've thought about that. I even think it'd be perfect."
"So what's your plan?" Lin Fan grew interested, and the other two looked toward Lin Xiu as well. Only Lin Nuo knew what this guy was about to say.
Under their curious gazes, Lin Xiu said slowly, "I'll have the Ghost Emperor act as Ano's bodyguard when the time comes."
The moment he said that, the atmosphere fell into a strange silence. Aside from Lin Nuo, the other three stared fixedly at Lin Xiu. Having the Ghost Emperor act as Lin Nuo's bodyguard—what kind of person would come up with that?
Lin Tian was the first to lose patience. His brows knitted together as he warned, "You'd better be careful. Don't end up failing to protect Ano and instead push him into becoming the Holy Spirit Cult's Holy Son!"
If the Ghost Emperor protected the boss, the higher-ups of the Sun Moon Federation would notice. Wouldn't Lin Nuo be done for? It was unbelievable that this guy had come up with such an idea.
Lin Xiu, however, didn't look worried in the slightest. He'd clearly thought it through already. He raised his eyes and said with certainty, "You don't need to worry about that. I have my own arrangements."
Besides, Ano, you'll definitely like this 'Present' I picked out for you.
Watching Lin Xiu's confident expression, Lin Nuo helplessly rubbed his forehead. His tone was full of resignation. "Don't make things needlessly complicated. Just keep it normal."
"OK."
Just then, Lin Yan, who had been silently listening, finally spoke. His voice held a hint of helplessness as he pulled the conversation back on track. "I have to ask, haven't we gotten completely off topic?"
They'd been discussing Martial Souls, and somehow ended up talking about having the Ghost Emperor serve as the boss's bodyguard. The conversation had taken a ridiculous leap.
Before long, Lin Nuo realized that all their Martial Souls were Body Martial Souls, though they'd each inherited the power of a Throne's Authority. It was really interesting.
Only, one of them was especially unusual. Lin Nuo looked at Lin Tian. "You've got a weapon as well?"
"More or less, boss." Lin Tian answered casually. With a slight movement of his fingers, a flash of light passed, and a longbow of blue and white appeared out of thin air.
A faint glow flowed along the bow's body. Its clean lines fit perfectly with his bearing, suiting him especially well.
"Heh. Your Martial Soul's so lousy, you can only make up the numbers with a weapon." Lin Yan snickered from the side, unable to hold back a jab.
Lin Tian's brows immediately furrowed. His gaze darkened as he glared at Lin Yan, discontent coloring his voice. "What's that supposed to mean, Lin Yan? You want to fight me or what?"
"Bring it on! Like I'm scared!" Lin Yan retorted, his neck stiffening. Long-suppressed anger roiled in his eyes. In front of outsiders, he could at least save some face for this smug, self-absorbed guy. But here, he didn't want to Endure any longer. He just wanted to let it all out.
Seeing the two about to come to blows, Lin Fan moved to break them up, but Lin Nuo stopped him. "Let them go. They can't get killed here anyway."
Lin Fan had no choice but to nod, then started discussing Lin Nuo's Time Martial Soul.
"Silver Dragon King Na'er appearing by your side means that our future fusion was also brought about by the real you," Lin Fan offered. "Time is just that much of a bug. Nobody can resist its wear and tear on all things and living beings."
Lin Nuo nodded. "That's what I thought, too."
Time was so vast. To put it simply, it represented the future, the present, and the past. The present represented him, the past represented the other five, and the future was me after we fused.
Just then, the Throne of Life began to glow. Everyone's attention was drawn to it at once, and they understood that Lin Rui hadn't actually starved to death.
During the Peerless Tang Sect era, in a certain forest, a young man leaned against a tree, muttering again and again, "I'm so hungry~ I want something to eat so badly. Somebody, please save me!"
Lin Rui hadn't eaten for three days and three nights. He'd eaten without paying, then gotten beaten up to settle the debt.
He was the most miserable fragment of a soul, with the worst background and not a single coin to his name. He'd almost starved to death in the streets... ┭┮﹏┭┮!
Suddenly, a delicious aroma from somewhere in the forest caught his attention. Lin Rui sniffed the air. He could smell food!
He immediately tracked the scent of the food. Sure enough, Heaven hadn't abandoned him.
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