"I don't understand. Why did you insist on having that pigman join the team?" Perched in a large tree near the camp, Clito watched the conflict between Ruby and Fela, unable to keep from frowning as he spoke to the invisible Sui Xiong beside him. "I really can't see why it's necessary."
"That fellow's luck is on the rise right now," Sui Xiong said. "Before long, it'll reach a peak."
"But what does that have to do with prospecting? He's not even a prospector."
"Having a lucky person on the team will always be helpful."
Clito shook his head, unconvinced.
Over the years, he had seen quite a few examples of "good luck," but he had never seen anyone accomplish something through luck alone.
If Fela had been a prospector, then perhaps his good fortune might have let him discover the main vein at a stroke, greatly reducing the workload and allowing the joint survey to be completed sooner. But he was a cook—Clito truly could not imagine how a cook's luck could affect the entire prospecting team.
Clito was an open-minded man. If he could not figure something out, he did not dwell on it. He sat back down, his eyes watching the camp while his mind gradually drifted into sleep.
This was a skill he had developed in recent years: he could sleep while remaining alert. Its origin lay in the monk practice known as "meditation." It was said that powerful monks could meditate while sitting amid flames, or upon the surface of water. They could sleep soundly while devoting part of their attention to keeping their bodies surrounded by "qi," becoming impervious to water and fire alike. Clito was not that formidable. He could only sleep and keep watch at the same time, without either interfering with