"Can't you do something about that personality of yours? You're already married, but you're nothing like Welt." March 7th sighed, then took out her camera to capture the scene before her.
"Dummy, do you think you can just take pictures of the Matrix of Prescience?" Zhang Xiu raised a hand to block March 7th's camera.
"Huh? I can't?" She blinked innocently, then looked at Qingque.
"Well, the Divination Commission does have rules against taking photos without permission, but you're the general's guests, and there are plenty of pictures of the Matrix of Prescience online. It's hardly a secret."
After hearing her explanation, Zhang Xiu awkwardly lowered his hand under March 7th's unwavering stare. His eyes involuntarily drifted toward the distant sky. "That sky sure is sky-like..."
"The Lord Diviner is just ahead. That's... huh? The general?" Seeing Fu Xuan speaking with Jing Yuan's projection, Qingque instinctively stopped.
But Zhang Xiu walked around her and headed forward, saying as he went, "Oh, even if we overhear some secret, so what? Let's go."
Coming to her senses, Qingque shook her head with an awkward laugh. "Heh, I was getting hung up on appearances. How could the Lord Diviner and the general possibly be so careless?"
Sure enough, as soon as they approached, Jing Yuan and Fu Xuan fell silent and turned to look at them.
"Look, our helping hands have arrived." Jing Yuan folded his arms across his chest, his expression mild.
"Lord Diviner, even though I didn't receive any orders from you, I brought your guests over anyway." Qingque's eyes gleamed shrewdly, and she gave Fu Xuan a meaningful look to indicate that she had acted on Jing Yuan's instructions.
Fu Xuan chuckled at that and glanced at Jing Yuan behind her. "...General, when it comes to putting people to work, you truly slip a needle into every crack without the slightest hesitation."
"Heh, since they're already here, we ought to make full use of everyone's talents." Jing Yuan pretended not to notice their little exchange, a catlike smile curling at his lips.
"What do you need us to do? Let me make this clear first: if I get carried away fighting, I'm not responsible for any damage." Zhang Xiu walked straight between them, looking first at the confident Fu Xuan, then at the wily, calculating Jing Yuan.
"Of course not. You've come from afar to help the Xianzhou. Everyone aboard owes you their deepest gratitude. How could we blame you over a little damage?" Jing Yuan nodded, signaling that Zhang Xiu could act without restraint.
"Seeing you here is an unexpected pleasure. Though Qingque usually seems unreliable, she does put in the effort when it matters." Fu Xuan stepped forward to greet Stelle and the other two.
"I thought you were going to shut us out."
"Ah, it was discourteous of me to keep my guests waiting. Sorry for the wait." Fu Xuan wanted to offer a few more pleasantries, but March 7th interrupted her:
"All right, all right, it's not like we didn't hear what the general said... If you need something done, just leave it to us." She patted her chest.
"Exactly. Give us our orders so we can finish early and get some rest." Zhang Xiu poked his head between them, then pulled it back.
Seeing that they were ready, Fu Xuan dispensed with further chatter. "The Divination Commission is short-handed. I need your help restarting the Array Foundations of the Matrix of Prescience Grand Array-and eliminating the Stellaron's evil creatures along the way."
"I'll have Qingque accompany you and handle restarting the Array Foundations. As for eliminating the evil creatures..."
Faced with yet another fight, March 7th couldn't help complaining. "Hey, Stelle, Zhang Xiu, I just told our fortunes, and it turns out all five of us are fated to toil our lives away."
"I actually quite like fighting. If you don't want to do it, just leave it to me." Zhang Xiu popped his head out again.
Stelle looked at Fu Xuan with a serious expression. "Say the magic word!"
"The magic word!" Yaoshi leaned over too, wagging her slender right index finger.
"...Wh-what? What magic word?" Fu Xuan's eyes widened slightly, unable to understand what she meant.
March 7th played along with impeccable timing. "Oh, just one simple word that works its magic in every corner of the world: please."
Fu Xuan stared blankly. Once she understood, a blush crept up her cheeks. "Uh... yes. Please. Please help!"
"Roger!" March 7th stood straight and saluted Fu Xuan, and Stelle copied her gesture.
When had Qingque ever seen Fu Xuan look like this? Her mouth fell open, and she blinked.
"Then let's get going~ Leave the evil creatures to me and my wife. Stelle, the rest of you just take Qingque along and repair the Array Foundations."
With that, Zhang Xiu lowered his body, tensed the muscles in his legs, and leaped toward the distant Mara-Struck Soldiers and the Malfunctioning Aurumaton!
The two of them became a streaking star, plunging straight onto a patch of open ground near the evil creatures.
Whether they were soldiers deep in the grip of mara or creations brought forth by the Stellaron, Zhang Xiu needed only one blow to knock them unconscious or kill them.
Before long, he had elbowed every evil creature around the entire Matrix of Prescience, while Yaoshi used her power to heal the Mara-Struck Soldiers.
Stelle's group had only repaired two Array Foundations, so Zhang Xiu simply returned to the main array.
At that moment, Fu Xuan was the only person beneath the formation. Jing Yuan's projection had vanished, and Phantylia was nowhere to be seen either.
He and Fu Xuan stared at each other through his mask, neither knowing how to start a conversation. In the end, Yaoshi stepped in and brewed a cup of tea for each of them and herself.
"Tea soothes the heart with its clarity, its lingering fragrance etched in memory. Nothing could be better for making new friends." She smiled with her lips pressed together and created a wooden table and chairs.
"I heard from Qingque that you shoulder everything in the Divination Commission yourself. That must be tiring, right?" Zhang Xiu slowly settled into a wooden chair, removed his mask, and took a sip of tea.
Naturally, Fu Xuan would not let the conversation fall flat. She sat opposite Zhang Xiu, accepted Yaoshi's tea with a word of thanks, and said:
"When it is for the sake of all the Xianzhou's people, how could I speak of being tired?" She too drank the tea, and the power within it eased the tension in her body.
"Good tea, good tea..."
"While touring the Xianzhou Luofu, we've often heard that you wish to succeed the general, Fu Xuan. But I do wonder-does someone like you desire nothing but a higher position?"
"How could a person be without the seven emotions and six desires? Naturally, I have other things I yearn for." Fu Xuan shook her head without elaborating.
Yaoshi quietly sat beside Zhang Xiu, sometimes looking at him and then at Fu Xuan, sometimes focusing on the tea in her hands.
Realizing that pressing further would be impolite, Zhang Xiu swallowed his words, quietly returned to drinking his tea, and exhaled a stale breath.
"Everyone can see Diviner Fu's sincere heart. What do you think of Skydeep, who recently joined the Xianzhou?"
"Skydeep... Most of them are willing to foster friendly relations with the Xianzhou, but a small number refuse to associate with anyone else. In my view, we must wait and see how things develop with time." Fu Xuan chose her words deftly, revealing no information at all.
"I'm also curious. Tell me, if Yaoshi restrained those Abominations of Abundance and stopped them from wreaking havoc upon the beings of the universe, what would the Xianzhou do?"
"In matters concerning Aeons, the Xianzhou can only change its course upon receiving orders from the Marshal and the Reignbow."
Seeing that she refused to reveal her own thoughts no matter what, Zhang Xiu instead looked perfectly at ease. After all, he was only doing this to pass the time.
Whatever Fu Xuan said made no difference to Zhang Xiu.
"Good tea, good tea..."
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