Chapter 166: The Sealing Stone

"Bai Ku?"

Xu Xiaoshou and Mu Zixi exchanged glances, both seeing the embarrassment in each other's eyes.

Clearly, neither of them recognized this term.

Mo Mo explained helplessly, "Bai Ku is a large Yi Ci Yuan space located in Tian Sang Jun. It's the only place in the surrounding dozen or so counties where Gui Shou has ever appeared, which makes it even more notorious."

"Several years ago, during that space burst, Sheng Shen Dian Tang didn't arrive in time, so a lot of Yi Ci Yuan creatures escaped, resulting in heavy casualties."

"Later, they managed to stop the rampage and wipe out the Yi Ci Yuan creatures completely. They even declared that there were no lingering threats, but..."

She gave a bitter smile, leaving the rest unsaid.

Xu Xiaoshou fully understood and said, "So, you were nearby at the time?"

"I've always been there..." Mo Mo's eyes showed a faint trace of sadness, her expression filled with memories. "Not everyone is born into wealth. Some people..."

"Maybe that's just fate." She smiled resignedly and said no more.

"Near a Yi Ci Yuan space, people aren't supposed to live, but some... they really can't afford to live in the county cities."

"In the remote wilderness, with a thatched hut and a small half-acre of land, that's the world outside of the wealthy families—just barely scraping by."

"I wasn't just nearby at that time..." She looked at Xu Xiaoshou, her eyes now calm and still. "That place was my home."

Xu Xiaoshou fell silent for a moment.

He realized then that no matter the world, some people exhaust all their strength just to stay alive.

Ordinary people are like that, and so are Ling Lian Shi—what's the difference, really? Just the methods vary.

Mu Zixi listened with a pained expression on her pretty face. As she opened her mouth to speak, Mo Mo looked at her and said, "It's all in the past."

The two of them knew Mo Mo didn't want to dwell on her own history.

The fate of ordinary people attacked by Yi Ci Yuan creatures was all too obvious.

Xu Xiaoshou stood up and said solemnly, "I, Xu Xiaoshou, always keep my word—whatever I say is true!"

"What?"

Mo Mo looked up in surprise, unsure where his train of thought had jumped to.

Mu Zixi was equally baffled, staring at him as if he were a fool.

"I consider you a friend!" Xu Xiaoshou explained, pausing before adding, "If you need any help, just say the word."

"After all, I'm quite interested in Gui Shou..."

There was a sense of longing in Xu Xiaoshou's eyes.

Truth be told, it wasn't so much the Gui Shou that interested him as the seal power of the Hui Wu Ren.

From the start of his journey, the only thing that had posed a real threat to his passive skills was the "seal" attribute.

Even powerhouses like Sang Lao or the masked figures had to be cautious around his passive skills.

This sparked an idea in him: if he could find a way to counter the seal power—or even master it himself—wouldn't he become unbeatable?

Xu Xiaoshou thought of the red turntable. The draw rates were getting lower and lower, but every passive skill he got seemed to fit him perfectly.

Skills like "Sheng Sheng Bu Xi," "Chu Yi Jing Tong," "Min Jie"...

The sequence and timing of these passive skills appearing felt like they were tailored to his needs, filling in whatever he lacked.

Recalling the scene in Yuan Court where he blasted Cang Long with the red interface, Xu Xiaoshou became even more convinced that this system had some kind of intelligence.

It might be tricky at times, but it definitely understood what he needed.

Maybe, after being countered by the seal power this time, the next draw would bring something like "Feng Yin Jing Tong"?

Heh heh.

At the thought, Xu Xiaoshou couldn't help but laugh out loud. Realizing there were people around, he quickly covered his mouth.

The two women stared at him in shock.

Xu Xiaoshou quickly changed the subject, looking at Mo Mo with sincere eyes: "Believe me, if you have any needs, you have to tell me. We can keep in touch..."

He suddenly stopped. Keeping in touch would mean dealing with the Hui Wu Ren, right?

That would be suicide!

"Uh, no need for direct contact—we can use flying pigeons to send messages." Xu Xiaoshou nodded emphatically, thinking this was a great idea.

From behind, Mu Zixi snorted mockingly: "Xu Xiaoshou, didn't you just tell me that in this world, you can't trust anyone except yourself?"

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

Why are you holding a grudge like that?

Picking up bad habits and remembering useless stuff—what's the point?

"That was something your master taught, and I was just passing it along, but I don't agree with it." Xu Xiaoshou flicked his sleeve and said, "The most important thing in this world is friends. As the saying goes, no brothers, no Jiang Hu!"

Mu Zixi: "..."

Hmph, you say whatever suits you—how am I supposed to argue with that?

"Cursed, passive value +1."

"Oh, right, when will it wake up?" Xu Xiaoshou suddenly realized.

"I don't know, but it shouldn't be long." Mo Mo furrowed her brows slightly. "As short as three to five days, as long as a week."

A week? That's the long end?

Xu Xiaoshou's head started throbbing. Shouldn't "long" mean three to five years? That thing was totally wrecked!

Mo Mo said bitterly, "It recovers quickly. Even if its mobility isn't back to normal, its consciousness will wake up sooner than I expected."

"Maybe it's already awake..."

Xu Xiaoshou felt a shiver down his spine and instinctively stepped back a couple of paces.

This thing is seriously a monster—how does something so insane even exist in the world...

"Don't scare me like that!"

"I'm serious."

Mo Mo chuckled, as she was used to it.

In fact, after being possessed by the Hui Wu Ren, she hadn't completely lost consciousness. It was more like she was watching the fight as an observer.

Though the scenes were blurry and intermittent, she had a general idea of how Xu Xiaoshou lured the enemy in step by step, built up his momentum, and finally delivered a devastating counterattack.

That golden giant had left her in utter awe!

But now, out of battle, it was hard to imagine that this young man in front of her could be so timid...

"Is there any way to stop it from waking up?" Xu Xiaoshou asked urgently.

"Yes!"

Xu Xiaoshou hadn't expected a positive answer to his casual question and said in surprise, "What is it?"

Mo Mo took a white stone from her ring. It was about the size of a fist and emitted no Ling Qi fluctuations at all.

"This is the 'Feng Yin Zhi Shi.' It's one of the two tasks that called me here."

"The other one is the 'Sheng Ming Ling Yin' in your hands."

Xu Xiaoshou was stunned. He picked up the stone and examined it closely, but he couldn't see anything special about it.

However, when he infused it with Ling Yuan, familiar seal energy immediately appeared on it.

With a thought, Xu Xiaoshou directed the mist toward Mu Zixi. The girl went limp and nearly collapsed.

"Xu Xiaoshou! What are you doing?"

This sudden attack enraged Mu Zixi, and she threw a punch at him.

Xu Xiaoshou reacted quickly, grabbing her small fist and gently pushing it away, sending her stumbling back.

"Cursed, passive value +1."

"Heh, just testing—why get so worked up?"

Mu Zixi glared at him angrily.

"Cursed, passive value +1."

Xu Xiaoshou ignored her and turned back to the "Feng Yin Zhi Shi," his eyes burning with excitement.

This was a treasure!

He had just been thinking that mastering the seal power would make him unbeatable, and now this thing had practically fallen into his lap.

"Thank you." Xu Xiaoshou turned and cupped his fists toward Mo Mo.

Mo Mo was caught off guard for a moment.