The next few days passed in the blink of an eye.
After Huo Yutong woke up, she awakened the Eye of Destiny just as she had in the original story, gaining a certain degree of control over the power of destiny.
When the Three-Eyed Golden Lion found out, she fell silent for a long while. In the end, after who knew what inner journey, she actually volunteered to teach Huo Yutong how to use that power better.
Honestly, this truly exceeded Lin Xi's expectations.
After all, the awakening of the Eye of Destiny in the original story had also involved the Blade of Life's Watch. Having it awaken this early was already an unexpected windfall.
Let alone receiving guidance from the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. As the only currently known being whose primary attribute was destiny, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion was undoubtedly the best teacher on the Douluo Continent when it came to teaching someone how to better control the Eye of Destiny.
Under her guidance, Huo Yutong soon learned how to interfere with the luck of others. However, because she was far too weak, it currently only worked on ants, making it practically useless.
All in all, sharing memories had a far greater effect than Lin Xi had imagined. At the very least, it had greatly closed the distance between Huo Yutong and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.
In just a few days, the two had become very close.
Yet conversely, as her relationship with Huo Yutong grew closer, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion became more distant from him.
Previously, she could still talk to him normally. Now, she was barely willing to speak to him.
He kept feeling as though she was avoiding him.
Thinking about it, that was only natural. Whatever else might be said, Lin Xi had screwed her over pretty badly. Being disliked was only to be expected; he had that much self-awareness.
He did not particularly mind. He sympathized with Qiu'er from the original story, but that did not mean he had to simp for her.
Rather, with the Three-Eyed Golden Lion avoiding him, he was happy to have an easier time of things.
So far, Huo Yutong was the only native of Douluo he cared about.
Especially at this critical juncture in changing Huo Yutong's destiny, he wanted to concentrate and avoid too many distractions.
Soon, the moment that would change Huo Yutong's destiny arrived.
"I've finally met a human with the Mental Attribute! Too bad your big brother can't cry, or I'd be shedding a whole faceful of tears!"
Tian Meng appeared before Huo Yutong right on schedule.
If I brought the Three-Eyed Golden Lion before him right now, how would he react?
In a nearby cave, Lin Xi thought with amusement as he ate some fruit.
That would certainly be an entertaining sight.
Despite the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm being a Million-Year Soul Beast, the original story had explicitly stated that his combat strength fell short of even a combat-oriented Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast. Meanwhile, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion was a mental-type Soul Beast with multiple Ultimate Attributes. If the two truly fought, it was hard to say who would bring down the deer.
Taking into account the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's timid, trouble-averse personality and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's status as the Emperor Auspicious Beast, Lin Xi would concede defeat if he actually ran into her without being scared into pissing and shitting himself.
Thus, to prevent Tian Meng from being too intimidated by the Three-Eyed Golden Lion to emerge, he and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion had deliberately kept their distance from Huo Yutong since two days ago.
With the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's deterrence, there was no need to worry about Soul Beasts in the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest attacking Huo Yutong anyway. She was perfectly safe.
"That damned bug..." The Three-Eyed Golden Lion gritted her teeth as she used her spiritual power to sense the situation around Huo Yutong from afar. "He really did manage to escape! He's certainly full of petty tricks!"
Although she had already learned from Lin Xi that the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm would escape, and believed he had not lied to her, seeing it happen herself still displeased her greatly.
She had not even enjoyed him yet, and he had already escaped!
It felt rather like being a child whose parents had falsely promised to buy them a computer if they came first in their exams.
Lin Xi spread his hands and smiled. "He's a Million-Year Soul Beast, after all. He has to have a few tricks up his sleeve."
He was in an excellent mood now.
Having information from the original story was one thing; whether events would actually unfold that way was another.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's early appearance was the best proof of that.
The effects of the butterfly effect were difficult to gauge, and even Lin Xi could not guarantee that the cheats would arrive.
Thus, when he saw events unfolding just as he had anticipated, even someone as consistently composed as him could not help feeling elated.
"Hmm?" The Three-Eyed Golden Lion suddenly sounded puzzled. "What's that gray thing?"
Hearing the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, Lin Xi let out a satisfied breath.
Good. The second cheat has arrived too.
"Let's go. We'll pick up Yutong."
He had never told Huo Yutong about Electrolux.
After all, unlike the native Soul Beast, the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, Electrolux had drifted here through a rift in spacetime. Lin Xi could not be certain whether they could draw him here as in the original story.
Fortunately, events had not strayed from his expectations.
Both major cheats had arrived safely. His investment was finally about to flower and bear fruit.
However, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion did not move.
"Three-Eyed Golden Lion?" Lin Xi called in confusion.
"Tch! Idiot, run!" Only then did the Three-Eyed Golden Lion snap out of it. "That gray thing is coming!"
"Huh?"
Lin Xi instinctively responded with a question.
The next second, a mass of gray gas rushed toward him at an unimaginable speed.
"Lin Xi, watch out!"
Artoria and Melusine instantly materialized in front of him, trying to stop it.
It was useless, however. The gas was far faster than they were. With a slight flicker, it swept past the two Servants, reached Lin Xi, and burrowed into his head.
Vaguely, he seemed to hear an aged voice laughing.
"With sun and moon in my grasp, I pluck the stars; none in this world is my equal! To think this world has another transmigrator like this old man. Interesting, interesting! Child, let me borrow your body. This old man needs somewhere to recuperate."
Then, the gray stream gathered into a ball within his Sea of Consciousness, becoming a bead.
"...Seriously?"
The unexpected turn of events left Lin Xi dumbfounded.
He had always assumed that Tian Meng and Electrolux came as a package, and only the person who obtained Tian Meng could win Electrolux's favor.
That was why, after repeated consideration, he had decided to give up on Electrolux.
So that wasn't how it worked at all!
As soon as the gray stream vanished, the two Heroic Spirits and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion hurried over.
The presence that mass of gas had emitted just now was far too terrifying. They had been utterly unable to stop it.
It could be said that if that presence had wanted to kill Lin Xi, there would have been nothing they could do.
"Lin Xi, are you all right?"
"Lin Xi, does anything feel wrong with your body?"
"Human, what exactly is going on?"
"Easy, easy." Lin Xi reassured them with a wry smile. "That gas isn't harmful. Quite the opposite-it's a great opportunity. I originally planned to give it to Yutong, but I never expected him to come looking for me himself."
Only after hearing him say that did the three women breathe a sigh of relief.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion teased, "Heh, you can't even give an opportunity away when you want to. What a luxurious problem to have."
"Tell me about it." Lin Xi let out a long breath.
Looks like I'll have to make some slight adjustments to the plans ahead.
At the very least, I'll have to keep the Blade of Life's Watch in my own hands.
That's an important item for restoring Electrolux's power.