"A stage-three Intent Seed?"
Bai Zhou blinked. "What's that?"
Crow remained silent, her gaze fixed intently on Bai Zhou.
Her eyes seemed to pierce straight through the black cat's body, looking directly at the slowly budding Intent Seed within.
"When did you comprehend 'Intent'?" Crow's voice carried a hint of uncertainty. "And it's already undergone two metamorphoses, hasn't it?"
Bai Zhou blinked innocently, then nodded. "Two metamorphoses... yes, indeed."
One birth, two metamorphoses—the most recent one having occurred just moments ago.
So this was... a stage-three Intent Seed?
"Advancing to Level 5 Extraordinary is an important dividing line in the modern era for whether one can be called a high-ranking Extraordinary. What it requires is slightly different from the previous advancements along the pathway."
Crow shook her head. "In the past, advancement was like following a map: as long as you systematically learned secret techniques, thoroughly mastered their knowledge, and branded them as secret art marks upon your Fate Principle, you could grasp the corresponding mysteries of 'Body,' 'Mind,' 'Qi,' and so forth.
"However, the 'Intent' required to advance to a Level 5 Extraordinary demands unique insights that belong solely to oneself.
"Because no matter what, 'Intent' is entirely your own. Even if the types are similar, every individual's Intent is unique.
"And the so-called Intent Seed is the crucial precursor to Intent. It represents an Extraordinary's summative insight drawn from past experiences, the deepest wish or obsession found through introspecting upon one's life—
"You cannot rely on anyone else for this; you can only depend on yourself. Once you understand it, you understand it. It cannot be mapped out, nor can it be taught."
Crow explained, "Only an Intent Seed that has undergone three metamorphoses and sprouted qualifies one to discuss the next step of advancement: combining it with secret techniques of the next stage, once again turning knowledge into secret art marks branded upon the Fate Principle, fusing them with the Intent Seed to nurture the sprout into a towering tree.
"Therefore, the threefold foundation of the Intent Seed and the secret techniques capable of guiding and nurturing 'Intent' are both indispensable; they must be cultivated separately.
"—And that is precisely what puzzles me."
Crow paused, her curious gaze meeting Bai Zhou's eyes. "To have an Intent Seed undergo multiple metamorphoses, the accumulation of life experience and personal insight is vital.
"For many Extraordinaries, this is precisely the critical threshold. Those who do not lack pathways or secret techniques can rely on study and the accumulation of time to advance methodically to Level 4—only to get stuck before Level 5.
"After all, learning and creating are two entirely different matters; this requires both talent and experience.
"Countless Extraordinaries despairingly refer to this stage as the Triple Chasm, or the Triple Dragon Gate!
"True to its name, it is exceedingly difficult to cross. But once crossed, one sheds mortality and leaps the Dragon Gate, creating an almost fundamental rift between oneself and ordinary Extraordinaries.
"—In Tinghai's top-tier official institutions, becoming a Level 5 Extraordinary is a strict prerequisite for holding a high position. Without it, no matter how outstanding your talents are, you cannot become part of upper management."
Crow's eyes half-closed as she said softly, "Even back then, after going through long, brutal slaughter, I spent over half a year solely introspecting, reading ancient histories and classics, and even pretending to be an ordinary person—farming in the countryside, delivering takeout in the city, running a shop, selling flowers... Only then did I obtain a stage-three Intent Seed.
"And yet, even so, the speed of my advancement shocked many people."
*Over half a year? That's remarkably short.*
Without a doubt, Crow had always been a genius among geniuses in Bai Zhou's heart; her experiences and background were certainly beyond anything he could imagine.
Yet compared to Crow, how many days had it been since Bai Zhou stepped into the mystical world? How long had it been since he advanced to Level 4?
And he had already completed the accumulation for a stage-three Intent Seed, laying the foundation and preparing to charge toward Level 5?
It was a bit outrageous.
If Bai Zhou hadn't achieved every single advancement under Crow's very eyes, if Crow hadn't personally watched him fight his way forward step by step, battered and bruised, to this day—she would definitely have thought that Bai Zhou was originally a high-ranking Extraordinary who had been concealing his strength all along, truly an unfathomable existence.
"Triple Chasm? Leaping the Dragon Gate?" Bai Zhou was speechless.
Only now did he understand Crow's confusion.
It seemed... apparently, without even realizing it, he had accomplished something quite extraordinary.
*What Triple Chasm? Wasn't it just natural, water flowing into a smooth channel...?*
It turned out that without him even knowing it, he had already crossed the so-called Triple Dragon Gate, outstripping most of his fellow Extraordinaries, and now truly stood before the threshold of a Level 5 Destined!
He was just one final step away!
And yet—
In Crow's eyes, Bai Zhou had only just advanced to Level 4!
How could someone who had just broken through to Level 4 suddenly possess a stage-three Intent Seed and leap over the Triple Chasm spanning Levels 4 and 5?
Bai Zhou had to admit that this sounded rather incredible; prior to this, he had possessed no awareness of it at all.
After all, Crow could never have guessed that Bai Zhou's Intent Seed had actually been born right after he advanced to Level 3.
Crow said that everyone's Intent was unique, tied to their own experiences and wishes. Bai Zhou agreed wholeheartedly with this, having experienced it deeply himself.
However, Crow also said that because of this, learning Intent couldn't follow a fixed template and couldn't be taught by others—which left Bai Zhou somewhat puzzled.
Bai Zhou was one hundred percent certain that his battle intent seed originated from within himself, a product of fusing his own experiences and insights. Yet the sprouting of this will had also been intentionally guided by the Wolf Knight statue.
If Bai Zhou's core disposition hadn't been battle intent but something else, perhaps what he had witnessed at the Wolf Knight wouldn't have been "battle intent," but some other kind of "Intent." But regardless of which it was, the Wolf Knight deserved immense credit! It had demonstrated the application of Intent before Bai Zhou, letting him—completely ignorant at the time—understand for the first time what this profound, indescribable concept called Intent actually was.
One had to realize that back then, Bai Zhou hadn't even grasped "Qi" yet, a hundred and eight thousand li away from Level 5!
Thus, before this, although Bai Zhou had known it was a great boon, he hadn't known just how "great" or how "immense" it truly was.
Yet it was precisely this early cultivation that gave Bai Zhou a shortcut. Even though he had only just reached Level 4, he could immediately charge toward Level 5 without stopping for breath!
So, did this mean...
Crow, and perhaps everyone she had ever met, seemed "ignorant" in this regard compared to the Wolf Knight?
Bai Zhou took a slow, deep breath, his heart thumping hard against his ribs.
At times, Bai Zhou truly felt that along his journey, he hadn't met many true enemies, but rather predecessors who were fine mentors.
Crow, Big Brother Liu Zhen, the Pale Giant, the Wolf Knight... Even the Major had taught Bai Zhou a great deal.
According to Crow, Bai Zhou had clearly completed the hardest part. All he needed to do now was systematically master secret techniques containing Intent to knock on the door of Level 5.
—Wasn't that convenient?
Of the middle three forms of the *Nine Basic Slashes*, Bai Zhou had yet to learn the fifth and sixth slashes!
What secret technique could be more suitable for charging toward a Level 5 Adventurer than the *Nine Basic Slashes*, handed down from the Sun Temple of the Troy Civilization?
—Praise the sun!
"Well... as you know, there are many powerful anomalies in Yuanmeng Middle School," the black cat finally meowed. "I reaped quite a harvest there—including this."
"Quite a harvest? That sounds rather astonishing..." Crow's tone was peculiar. "Though indeed, compared to the miracle of slaying a demon, this doesn't seem all that surprising.
"Still, perhaps you should have mentioned this to me sooner. I need to figure out how to teach you to utilize this stage-three Intent Seed. It can already be put to rudimentary use, and we can't let it go to waste!"
Solemn as she was, Crow's voice held a trace of wistful emotion. "My only regret is that my current state makes it inconvenient for me to enter the Reflected Ruin Realm. Otherwise, I would truly love to see what exactly you go through every night in that place!"
Every Extraordinary, upon stepping into the mystical world, was told by their forebears that the perilous Reflected Ruin Realm also harbored unimaginable opportunities. Anything was possible there, making it worth spending a lifetime exploring and excavating.
This was true.
Yet compared to Bai Zhou, who left Crow silent to the point of numbness after every single trip to the Reflected Ruin Realm, other Extraordinaries suddenly seemed like beggars squabbling over sacrificial offerings in a mass grave—pitifully shabby.
Just as ordinary Extraordinaries couldn't comprehend the world of the Destined favored by fate itself, Crow, as a Destined, felt she couldn't quite comprehend Bai Zhou's world either. Truth be told, as a proud darling of heaven who had always stood high above others, Miss Crow was experiencing for the first time the perspective others had when looking at her. She had never imagined such a day would come.
"It truly makes one curious..." Crow stared intensely at Bai Zhou, making him feel rather uncomfortable all over.
Crow knew that Bai Zhou must have secrets.
Or rather, from the very first time he entered the Ruin Realm, Bai Zhou had possessed secrets; otherwise, he wouldn't have returned with the rainbow tinder, *Holy Oath Slash*, and the mechanical spear-gun.
Since then, every time Bai Zhou visited the Reflected Ruin Realm, the mist shrouding him grew a bit thicker.
At first, Crow had worried whether these secrets brought danger, but with her watching over him, she was confident that nothing could possess Bai Zhou without her noticing.
—If there were truly any adverse effects, there was no reason they could escape her eyes!
As long as they were merely secrets, Crow had no intention of prying into Bai Zhou's affairs. Every accomplished Extraordinary had their own secrets in the Reflected Ruin Realm. From their very first lesson, Crow had taught Bai Zhou to keep his own secrets, even from her.
—After all, she herself harbored far too many secrets she had never shared with Bai Zhou.
Yet the sensation of curiosity and desire for exploration blazing fiercely in her chest with nowhere to vent made her restlessly agitated. Feeling her cheeks grow slightly warm, Miss Crow reached into her pocket with a rustle, pulled out two coffee beans, and popped them into her mouth to chew.
The bitter taste blossomed over her tongue, followed by a lingering sweetness that gradually calmed her down.
"So, what do you plan to do next now that you've grown stronger?"
Crow regained her composure and looked at Bai Zhou, asking about his next step. "The Yuanmeng Middle School incident in the Reflected Ruin Realm has come to an end. Have you thought about what you can do next?"
"Meow—"
The black cat's eyes flickered as he answered in a low mew.
"The school?" Crow frowned, thoughtful, as if turning over the intention behind Bai Zhou's plan.
Bai Zhou's answer was that he planned to make a stealthy trip to the Yuanmeng Middle School in reality.
Among the last words from the Ruin Realm, one part had caught Bai Zhou's attention deeply:
[Where is this place?! Wasn't I on my way home from school—]
[Red Spider! Their arms all seem to have red spider tattoos—]
[Why is Teacher Sun here too? He—]
These three fragmented last words had been constantly turning over in Bai Zhou's mind.
Teacher Sun...
Without question, as long as Bai Zhou could find this "Teacher Sun" at Yuanmeng Middle School, more of the truth would be laid bare before him without concealment.
This time, he was truly very, very close to the Major's industry chain and everything hidden behind the curtain—
"Kitty, kitty, I like you."
"Can we be friends? Meow, meow, meow!"
"If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes! Yay! Come on, shake a paw."
At that moment, the whisper in his ear snapped Bai Zhou back to reality.
Student Fang's patience was truly extraordinary. Faced with an aloof cat that ignored her, she could still babble away in whispered confidences for ages, as if she had bottled up her thoughts for goodness knows how long and was desperate for a friend to confide in.
Whenever Bai Zhou meowed a couple of times to respond to Crow outside the window, Fang Xiaoxia assumed he was meowing at her. Even though the little cat hadn't even looked in her direction, she would still chuckle happily to herself for a good while.
"Oh, right, kitty, kitty, did you know?"
Fang Xiaoxia leaned in close again, her bright, shining eyes blinking, reminding him of a Corgi sticking out its tongue, bearing an uncanny resemblance in spirit to the wide-mouthed silly monkey printed across her chest.
"I ran into a bear! A big bear, can you believe it?"
"It was terrifying! I almost died!"
Student Fang said with utter seriousness, "I saw some news earlier saying that on a big ship, nine entire superhumans were slapped flying by a bear, and it took two whole years before they reunited on the ship again!
"—Terrifying, right? Even they were completely powerless to fight back, let alone a little girl like me!"
*Superhumans? Nine of them?*
Bai Zhou froze for a second, looking at Fang Xiaoxia with a hint of inquiry.
*Isn't this girl an ordinary person? How could she see news about superhumans...? Come to think of it, what kind of superhumans are so pathetic that they'd be slapped away by a bear?*
*Could it be some formidable Black Bear Demon? Similar tales seem to be recorded in many folklore stories circulating around Wancheng...*
*Smack!*
Outside the window, Crow slapped her forehead after a brief moment of stunned disbelief.
She seemed to have figured something out, wearing an expression of helpless exasperation.
*Nine superhumans slapped flying by a bear—do your nine superhumans also dissolve in water or something?*
*Nine great pirates, huh?*
"Ignore her..." Crow's faint voice drifted in from outside the window, bringing Bai Zhou back to his senses.
Looking at the girl's earnest and lingeringly fearful expression, Crow suddenly felt that a girl who could seriously blather chuunibyou delusions to a cat, and a black cat boy who was equally fond of earnestly spouting Wancheng nonsense—one girl and one cat—made for an unexpectedly harmonious and fitting picture!
"Kitty, kitty, your eyes are so expressive! You almost look like a human... Are you puzzled? Wow, I can actually read your expression. Not bad!"
Fang Xiaoxia rested the black cat on her lap and murmured softly, like a child pouring her heart out to a doll, or playing house with a Barbie doll and Mr. Teddy Bear.
"Guess what happened in the end? Incredible! A Mr. Logger Vick showed up and saved me! Let us praise this True Lord of Bear-Banishing and Wood-Chopping!
"Speaking of which, his eyes looked quite a lot like yours... though I couldn't tell you exactly what makes them similar."
Her voice paused slightly. Fang Xiaoxia blinked twice, her head leaning slowly closer to the kitten, whose body had abruptly frozen stiff.
"And what's more, the alley where I found you again was right where Mr. Logger Vick disappeared.
"Even more coincidental: you were injured and unconscious right beneath the clothes he discarded."
Gazing straight at the black cat, Fang Xiaoxia slowly lifted him up, her sparkling big eyes level with Bai Zhou's.
"Kitty, kitty..."
She spoke words that caused Bai Zhou's heart to stop dead in its tracks:
"So, do you have any idea about all this?"
Chapter 158