Bai Zhou held his breath.
Heavenly Spider Totem and Golden Spider Gu?
He had only wanted to mimic the small Red Spider totem; just how far back had this traced its origins?
"[Sketch Paintbrush - Earth]—" Bai Zhou took a deep breath.
[Taking all phenomena as a guide, heaven and earth bear witness.]
[Mankind imitates all creation under heaven and earth to become the foremost among all living spirits; the sages imitate the spiritual essence of the cosmos to leap above mortal beings—sketching from life is the imitation and restoration of all things.]
What a phrase: "Taking all phenomena as a guide, heaven and earth bear witness."
What a line: "Sketching from life is the imitation and restoration of all things"—
So imitation was one thing, and restoration was an entirely different matter—
No wonder the required materials were "at least 5 cinders," and no wonder it said "the more the better."
Did the outcome differ depending on how much remuneration was provided?
In that brief span just now, Bai Zhou had already spent at least two hundred cinders.
A sum of cinders like that was enough to purchase a remarkably fine piece of Extraordinary equipment at an auction in the ghost market.
Just as when the Major had bid on the Vial of Regret back then, it had only taken two hundred cinders.
Without question, this was a gold-devouring beast.
"The paintbrush eats cinders, and the more the merrier..."
Bai Zhou suddenly recalled an old tale circulating in Wancheng.
The Black Robe Second Elder was checking through the roster and asked the secretary beside him, "How many qualified sacrifices do we have?"
The secretary answered, "According to the criteria, only thirty percent qualify—"
"Foolish!" The Second Elder slammed the table. "The gods manifested last night and gave me a dream—sacrifices, the more the merrier!"
Then—the Great Elder learned of the matter and summoned the Second Elder for an audience.
The moment they met, a burlap sack was thrown over the Second Elder's head. A throng of attendants emerged, beating him into meat paste with heavy clubs.
"Sacrifices... indeed, the more the merrier," the Great Elder chuckled. "You, too, are one."
Without question, Article Seven of the doctrine clearly stated that only the supreme, glorious Great Elder could be visited by the gods in a manifestation or dream to convey divine oracles.
The Second Elder receiving a dream from the gods? Daydreaming nonsense! At first glance, he had obviously been bewitched by a forbidden item.
The lesson and moral this story imparted to the people was that the Black Robes were ever just and selfless.
Even an eminent figure like the Second Elder, second only to one and above tens of thousands, would be dealt with immediately once bewitched by a forbidden item—so what more of ordinary mortals?
The Black Robe Great Elder, radiant as the sun, was truly just and selfless!
Snapping back to reality, Bai Zhou immediately set about studying the two puzzle pieces.
The so-called Heavenly Spider Totem was actually just a corner of a spider leg. Bai Zhou roughly estimated that it was likely merely a fragment from one corner of a massive totem.
He was not entirely sure whether this was the paintbrush's limit, or if the person who had originally created the small Red Spider totem had likewise derived it from such a fragmentary corner.
Even so, this segment of a spider leg possessed countless exquisite details. In the turns and twists of the strokes, even a single cilium on the spider leg contained numerous minute variations.
As a ritualist, Bai Zhou had a hunch—
Even if it was just a segment of a spider leg, once brought into the world, it was bound to possess extraordinary utility.
If one day he could formally paint this spider leg, perhaps the "quasi" could be removed from his title of "quasi-Rank 1 ritualist."
—This was tantamount to finding a clear roadmap to advancement.
Even right now, looking at the Heavenly Spider Totem deep in his mind and comparing it with the small Red Spider totem before him—
After cross-referencing the two, Bai Zhou suddenly felt that the "Red Spider," which had previously been difficult to decipher, became extraordinarily elementary. Many details he had struggled to understand instantly made sense.
It was like studying for an Olympiad math competition: even if one failed to achieve a stellar competition score, turning back to answer middle and high school problems opened up one's mind entirely, effortlessly bringing to mind solutions beyond the scope of secondary textbooks.
As for [Golden Spider Gu - Fragment]?
The information was too fragmented for Bai Zhou to glimpse the whole picture. He could only glean from scattered words and phrases that this was a method of breeding Gu insects with the aid of rituals.
This was an Extraordinary entity, and apparently of an extremely high caliber.
Amid the fragmented information, there was only a single sentence describing its power once fully matured:
"A peerless ferocious beast, to assassinate saints and slay kings!"
Bai Zhou did not know what "saints" or "kings" were, but a Gu insect hailed as a "peerless ferocious beast" was bound to be extraordinary.
If he truly could cultivate it successfully in this era, his future would be so bright he wouldn't be able to keep his eyes open—
It was just a pity that the information remained far too broken, nowhere near enough to breed this "Golden Spider Gu."
So, what era did these two actually hail from?
Bai Zhou could not help harboring doubts.
He could tell that the small Red Spider totem contained elements of "Gu" and "totem rituals," but he hadn't expected the paintbrush to trace straight back to the ancestor of the Red Spider's ancestors.
Chances were that even the ritualist who drew the small Red Spider totem might not know this.
Bai Zhou narrowed his eyes.
Thinking of a certain possibility, his heart thumped.
A mere spider leg on a security guard had yielded such gains—though both the totem and the Gu cultivation method were fragmented, they had opened up the path to becoming a Rank 1 ritualist for him.
In that case, as the object of allegiance for numerous "Red Spiders," could the Major, the Spider Queen, lack the Red Spider totem tattoo?
Could the Sketch Paintbrush trace even more information from the Major to complete the broken puzzle pieces?
Taking it a step further, if that mysterious ritualist lurking under the Major truly existed, did they possess even more things Bai Zhou needed?
Behind every ritualist were teachers and schools of thought. Following the vines to track down the melons and collecting all along the way—
Perhaps one day in the future, Bai Zhou truly would have the chance to complete both traced legacies, stripping away the "Fragment" tag and allowing the Heavenly Spider Totem and Golden Spider Gu to re-emerge in this era!
"A peerless ferocious beast, to assassinate saints and slay kings!"
—This was a perfectly conceivable, reasonable ambition.
Yet it was extraordinarily thrilling.
Bai Zhou couldn't help recalling the primeval vision he had glimpsed earlier.
Colossal beasts and giant insects vied for supremacy, countless spirits strove to cross, a hundred races struggled for dominance, and mountains and rivers were severed at a moment's notice—
Bai Zhou did not yearn for such an era in the slightest, yet he felt that anything plucked from that time and brought to the modern world would be a terrifying existence akin to a dimensional strike.
No wonder the Extraordinaries were so fond of venturing into the Reflected Ruin Realm to excavate relics of preceding civilizations...
*Hum—*
Having finished its work, the paintbrush's glow gradually dimmed, and the rainbow bridge connecting the brush tip to the small Red Spider totem vanished.
Before stowing the paintbrush away, Bai Zhou lowered his head and scrutinized it for a few moments.
Only today did he learn what this Extraordinary paintbrush's true purpose was.
"A sketch paintbrush adept at imitation and tracing origins..."
"[Sketch Paintbrush - Earth]?"
Bai Zhou blinked a couple of times, as if realizing something.
"What is this suffix 'Earth'?"
"Do the other two paintbrushes in the Painter pathway correspond to 'Heaven' and 'Man' respectively?" That was Bai Zhou's first reaction.
"If 'Earth' corresponds to sketching from life, what are the other two brushes? What special functions do each of them have?"
Bai Zhou pursed his lips in thought, then gritted his teeth:
"—Why is this Fine Arts Society so wicked? Why hog my other two paintbrushes and refuse to let the family of three reunite?"
Courting death!
Bai Zhou was a collector with obsessive-compulsive tendencies; he could not bear having only one brush from a set in his hands.
He had to reunite the torn-apart paintbrush family—as for how the brushes had been separated in the first place, that was another question entirely.
"Forget me."
Having asked enough questions and reaped enough rewards, Bai Zhou gave his command to the security guard. "Work hard, then get a good night's sleep—you will forget everything that happened here, remembering only that your patrol went smoothly, business as usual."
"Of course..." Bai Zhou's Mind's Eye swept over the guard's body one last time. "We will meet again."
"Very soon."
Having wrapped up all his work, Bai Zhou prepared to withdraw.
Or rather—
Head home.
Even if it was only a temporary home.
As the veil of moonlight fell, Bai Zhou noticed that inside this night-veiled school, even the moonlight seemed somewhat richer.
It illuminated the road home for Bai Zhou.
The black cat swished his tail, slipping through hidden corners.
*Pitter, patter—* His paws stepped forward, his body swaying.
On the way home, Bai Zhou also made a detour to Teacher Sun's home.
According to Bai Zhou's expectations, a brief skirmish would ensue—after all, he suspected this Teacher Sun might be an Extraordinary.
Yet Bai Zhou came up empty.
Teacher Sun wasn't home at all; the two-bedroom apartment was completely vacant.
In the dead of night, instead of staying home, where had he gone?
This Teacher Sun was up to no good...
He couldn't have gone on a business trip, could he?
Carefully returning everything to its original state, Bai Zhou left through the window just as he had entered.
"I'll come check again tomorrow..."
Bai Zhou felt a twinge of regret, but fortunately, his gains tonight were already substantial.
With the black ribbon bow atop his head swaying in the breeze, Bai Zhou returned to Fang Xiaoxia's home.
Silently opening the window, a gust of wind swirled into the room. A black silhouette darted past, arriving at the bedside.
Fang Xiaoxia was still sleeping there. Her small, curled-up figure clutched a body pillow, pressed tightly against the wall. Her loose pajamas revealed a glimpse of skin as fair as congealed fat under the moonlight, and her pale, rosy toes were curled tight, as if she were having some nightmare.
"A familiar sleeping posture..." Bai Zhou glanced at Fang Xiaoxia's posture and blinked.
He had been the same way in Wancheng, accustomed to curling up with his blanket against the wall.
Because it offered more of a sense of security.
The more one lacked something, the more one sought it out.
For some reason, Bai Zhou could always find glimpses of his past self in Fang Xiaoxia.
That youth who had always scored full marks in the class on "Accepting Mediocrity and Abandoning Illusions" had only picked up his childhood dreams again because of Crow's arrival.
Because the mediocre daily routine was shattered by a blade, a formidable young woman riding a donkey and brandishing a saber asked if you wanted to come with her. In reality, she gave the boy no second choice, yanking him onto the donkey before spurring it on, leaving only rapid clattering hoofbeats and the donkey's braying.
Sitting on the donkey's back, all Bai Zhou could hear was the howling wind rushing into his ears. And so, gradually taking the wind as wings and dreams as steeds, he embarked on his high-spirited Extraordinary career.
Some said people do not live a lifetime, but merely live for a precious few moments.
Bai Zhou's rebirth and the start of his second life came on the day Crow descended like a shooting star with a blade of flowing fire.
This reborn youth had fled in exile to Tinghai, drawn his bow like a full moon, and struck down even a demon before the gaze of the entire city.
Yet—Fang Xiaoxia had no such moments.
She hadn't had them before, and wouldn't have them in the future; as an ignorant mortal, she wouldn't even know of the existence of the Destined and Extraordinaries.
Thus, she was a "Bai Zhou" who had never met Crow, yet far happier than Bai Zhou.
Bai Zhou didn't know what kind of worries an adolescent girl might harbor, but at least she had both parents, food and drink, and plenty of pillows to hug.
Fang Xiaoyan had experienced the splendor of the Extraordinary world in her stead, yet she had also fallen in that world.
If Bai Zhou had been born as an ordinary person in Tinghai and given a chance to start over, he didn't know whether he would still want to set foot in the mystical world.
Although Extraordinaries often enjoyed extended lifespans, Bai Zhou had hardly heard of any Extraordinary dying of old age in bed to this day; he hadn't even met many who reached near-retirement age—
Still, Bai Zhou didn't overly romanticize the road untaken—he simply felt Fang Xiaoxia's daily life was pretty good, and at least it shouldn't be disrupted by him.
So, once his injuries healed and he confirmed there was nothing amiss with Fang Xiaoxia, Bai Zhou would depart once more.
Though this home was warm, it could only be temporary.
The outdoor air-conditioner unit in the bleak wind and bitter rain was his everlasting home.
However, before that...
Bai Zhou blinked.
Looking at Fang Xiaoxia, who seemed to be having a nightmare, a crouching figure appeared on the windowsill.
—If Fang Xiaoxia woke up right now, she would surely faint from fright.
Like a master burglar breaking into a residence under the moonlight's witness, the youth carefully produced a bag. From its dark silhouette, it looked like a burlap sack, its gaping mouth positioned right above the sleeping girl.
The black-clad burglar—or even hardened bandit—toting a burlap sack squatted right above the sleeping girl's head, watching hungrily, and even slowly widened a grin, his pearly white teeth gleaming with an eerie glint in the moonlight.
*Absorb—* Bai Zhou uttered softly in his heart.
On the backpack in his hand, the Totoro pattern faintly glowed under the moonlight.
A translucent, murky stream of light emerged from Fang Xiaoxia's head, drawn into the Totoro backpack and then enveloped within fantastical, multicolored bubbles.
When Bai Zhou zipped the backpack shut, he could faintly see the dense mass of crimson last words floating exquisitely among a cluster of multicolored bubbles inside.
[Slumbering Totoro Backpack]
[Shh—do not wake this Totoro. It is having a wonderful dream, and it is willing to take in all your worries.]
Absorbing worries was merely this Totoro backpack's most basic ability.
As repayment for saving his life, Bai Zhou drew away the troubled emotions of the girl's nightmare.
Over the next few days, the girl's mood would likely be quite good—at the very least, she would no longer be plagued by nightmares tonight.
*Sweet dreams,* Bai Zhou murmured silently in his heart as he quietly put away the backpack, tucking it once more into the shrunken Trojan Horse.
Everything was conducted in utter silence, unbeknownst to anyone.
Only the moonlight bore witness as the "Worry Bandit," who had toted a burlap sack and stolen away nightmares, vanished after doing his good deed.
Contented, Bai Zhou shifted back into a cat.
Then.
With a gentle *flop*, the little cat collapsed onto all fours on the warm, spacious bed, causing the soft mattress to sway slightly.
The little cat lay near the head of the bed where the moonlight shone brightest. The moonbeams seemed drawn to him, light swirling over Bai Zhou's body and making every strand of the little cat's fur faintly glow, like an elf beneath the moon.
A cool sensation coursed through his entire body, drawing away Bai Zhou's fatigue as his internal injuries slowly healed.
Everything was tranquil, save for the girl beside him unconsciously smacking her lips a couple of times.
A milky fragrance swirled past his nose. Everything was serene, and who knew what Fang Xiaoxia was dreaming about now, but even the corners of her lips curled upward.
Presumably, her dream right now was just like the scent she carried—sweet.
Basking in the extra measure of peace while lying on the bed under the moonlight, Bai Zhou felt little sleepiness in his mind.
The bow atop his head swayed slightly. The black cat closed his eyes, focusing his mind with a serious expression.
*Hum—*
After a while, Bai Zhou opened his eyes.
Following half a day of contemplation—
The small Red Spider totem was fully deciphered.
Without even needing the paintbrush, he simply swiped his cat paws lightly across his body, carving out faint bloody streaks.
A faint, nearly imperceptible Red Spider mark emerged on his arm.
It was similar to the totem tattoo on the security guard, yet only a ritualist could discern that beneath the surface lay immense, subtle differences!
An extraordinarily subtle connection surfaced in Bai Zhou's heart.
He sensed a vast web—a network filled with nodes everywhere. He hovered outside the network, ready at any moment to impersonate a certain node and slip into the web the instant he made his choice.
Having undergone special improvements derived from Bai Zhou's dimensional reduction of the [Heavenly Spider Totem - Fragment], this node was obviously not in the rank of ordinary nodes.
He could impersonate, infiltrate, and even replace!
Even...
If he took out the Major, Bai Zhou might even have the chance to replace the Major's position in the network nodes.
To become the new "Queen"!
—With this, preparations were complete.
Everything was in place.
Bai Zhou turned his head, gazing at the moonlight and stars outside the window.
Tonight, winds surged and clouds gathered, yet they could never blot out the moonlight.
Inside the dim bedroom, his eerie green pupils burned with determination.
To complete the Heavenly Spider Totem and the Gu breeding method, and for the sake of the Major's Human Material supply chain—
The final vengeance was at last right before his eyes.
Though weak, Bai Zhou was brimming with drive at this moment.
"Major, I'm coming in~"
Chapter 166