"Ugh, this old man was too hasty. Everyone, shall we rest for a bit before setting off?" Master Gongshu's old face flushed red, and he spoke with some embarrassment.
Upon hearing this, March 7th and Stelle nodded eagerly like chicks pecking at rice. Then, out of nowhere, they pulled out a picnic cloth and immediately began tackling their lunch.
Seeing this scene, Welt shook his head with a wry smile before sitting cross-legged on the ground like the two of them.
"Master Gongshu, come sit with us!"
March 7th waved at the hesitant Master Gongshu. After a moment of hesitation, the latter sat down with some embarrassment.
"Ahem, thank you all for the invitation."
Master Gongshu cupped his hands toward the group, his eyes falling on the dazzling array of ingredients spread out on the cloth. Even this seasoned elder, who prided himself on his vast experience, couldn't help but be astonished.
"These foods… this old man has never seen them before. What star system do these ingredients come from?"
Hearing Master Gongshu's words, March 7th and Stelle, who were busy devouring their meal, paused their actions and began pointing at the food on the cloth to introduce it.
"This is Rock-Roasted Cave Salamander, a specialty from a planet called Jarilo-VI. And this is Sun Pancake…"
"Jarilo-VI? This old man seems to have heard that name somewhere…"
Upon hearing the name Jarilo-VI, Master Gongshu's brows furrowed slightly. The name felt inexplicably familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recall where.
"Huh? Master, you know about Jarilo-VI?" This time, it was March 7th's turn to be surprised. After all, Jarilo-VI had been cut off from the outside world for centuries. Moreover, the planet was remote and economically backward. It was odd for someone to know of its existence, wasn't it?
"Master Gongshu, where did you hear about it? Jarilo-VI only recently resolved its Stellaron crisis…"
"Stellaron?" March 7th's words seemed to unlock a door in Master Gongshu's mind. The old man slapped his thigh, nearly jumping up from the ground.
"This old man remembers now! A while back, the Interastral Peace Corporation announced a list of strategic partners, and Jarilo-VI was among them."
"Out of curiosity, this old man looked into the planet, and the findings were quite shocking."
"Like Pier Point, the stronghold of the Preservation 'Company,' or the Xianzhou, the base of the Hunt 'Alliance,' or Penacony, the home of the Harmony 'Family,' Jarilo-VI is developing toward becoming the main hub of the 'Path of Causality.'"
"The Path of Causality?!" March 7th and Stelle exchanged glances, both seeing disbelief on each other's faces.
As Trailblazers who had helped Jarilo-VI resolve its crisis, how could they not know about this? Could it be… Yun Fan's doing? But when did this happen? They had no idea at all.
As March 7th and Stelle pondered quietly, Master Gongshu spoke again.
"Speaking of the Aeon of Causality, 'Lord of Samsara,' there's a rumor about them on the Luofu."
At these words, March 7th and Stelle perked up their ears, and even Welt, who had been silent nearby, showed an interested expression.
Seeing everyone's attention on him, Master Gongshu spoke slowly and deliberately.
"According to the rumor, this 'Lord of Samsara' is said to be…"
— — — —
"What did you say? Say that again! Those Dragon Masters actually said they're handing over the rights of the Vidyadhara to me? Have they lost their minds?"
At the Vidyadhara's residence, Bailu listened to her handmaid Huanxi's report while glancing at the already deserted Dragon Master residence. She was plunged into deep self-doubt.
"Ahem, yes, Lady Bailu. After all, no matter how you look at it, you are the current Dragon Sovereign. In the past, it might have been different, but now that you've grown up, it's only natural for the Dragon Masters to return the authority to you," Huanxi said with an awkward cough, forcing herself to explain despite the embarrassment.
"Hmph! Do those Dragon Masters really think I'm an idiot? They clearly saw the Xianzhou facing a crisis and decided to run away together! Do they think I'm that gullible?"
"When those Dragon Masters come back, I'll call my godfather over and have him slap each of those old fogeys so hard their own parents won't recognize them!"
The furious Bailu lashed out at the absent Dragon Masters, leaving Huanxi standing awkwardly to the side.
But when Bailu mentioned the word "godfather," Huanxi's expression suddenly turned wary.
"Lady Bailu, what did you just say? You want your 'godfather' to beat up the Dragon Masters? Since when do you have a godfather?"
Huanxi was utterly baffled. While she wasn't entirely devoted, she had been by Bailu's side for quite a while. Apart from some particularly private matters, Bailu had no secrets from her. So how had she never heard about Bailu having a godfather?
Could it be that someone was trying to take advantage of Lady Bailu's beauty and deliberately got close to her? Sure, Bailu was hundreds of years old, but from her appearance, she still looked like a child!
"Huh? Oh, that? I acknowledged him as my godfather a while ago," Bailu said, slightly taken aback by Huanxi's question. She waved it off casually, as if it were no big deal.
"Right! Why don't I just go find my godfather now?" Bailu smacked her forehead, suddenly enlightened. She remembered Yun Fan once telling her that he was an Emanator. On the vast Xianzhou Luofu, aside from General Jing Yuan, there shouldn't be anyone who could stand up to him.
If she asked him to back her up now, then once the Xianzhou's crisis was over, those Dragon Masters wouldn't dare try to take back the Vidyadhara's authority from her!
"Huanxi, wait here. I'm going to find A-Fan right now!"
"Wait, Lady Bailu, hold on—"
Before Huanxi could finish, Bailu activated the spatial relic Yun Fan had given her. In the blink of an eye, the Dragon Girl vanished from Huanxi's sight.
Staring at the now-empty room, Huanxi muttered to herself, "This is going to be trouble…"