Inside Fang Hau's Chamber, Zixin's figure appeared inside the throne room, from an eerie yellow light to a full-blown human.
He waved his hand, muttering, "Even though I've experienced this teleportation set-up dozens of times already, I still fail to understand its core principles. Sigh, when will I learn enough to deduce such details?"
A second later, he pinched his cheeks, returning his composure. He swept his gaze across the room but found no one.
Where would Fang Hau be at this time? I need to talk to him… Perhaps he's inside the Knowledge Observatory? Zixin thought, nodding as he walked down the long hallway.
Not long after, the sight of the grand rusty metallic door entered his view. Upon increasing his speed, Zixin walked forward, knocking on the door.
Knock.
A light sound echoed momentarily.
Zixin rubbed his chin whilst commenting, "Did he hear that? Or do I have to try harder?"
Zixin closed his eyes, splitting his mind and entering the White Palace. With his Body Enhancements, he knocked.
Knock!
The door trembled momentarily before it creaked open. Zixin left the White Palace right after.
He stepped into the dimly lit room, immediately being met with Fang Hau's outrageous laughter.
Zixin watched with a deadpan expression, his eyes fixed on the crazy man.
Fang Hau noticed Zixin at the corners of his vision and instantly stopped, laughing awkwardly and telling him, "Please, forget this 'hobby' of mine."
"Odd…" Zixin muttered unknowingly.
Fang Hau shook his head, inquiring, "Sigh, why did you even come searching for me? I presume you have a question."
"I must learn how to 'Lend' to complete the artifact," Zixin replied plainly.
Fang Hau remained silent for a couple of seconds as he stared blankly. He answered, waving his hand nonchalantly, "'Lending' in a way is a mutual agreement between the 'Lender' and the 'Lended', or as I call it, the 'Ally'. Once they have come to a mutual understanding, the 'Lender', which in this case would be you, would gain the ability to 'Lend' temporarily."
Fang Hau walked towards Zixin, smiling as he continued, "Scholars have wondered how one gains this temporary ability to 'Lend,' and the most agreed upon reason was this: the ability to 'Lend' was born from the power of the 'Lended' ability, or in otherwords…"
Fang Hau paused, waiting for Zixin to finish his words.
"The 'Lended' ability is used to create a Restriction, thus creating an imperfect Contract," Zixin muttered, a flash of light coming from his eyes.
"Good one. You understood this principle quite well. Truth be told, this Contract would be weaker due to its reliance on the 'Lended' ability since it's only able to form a Restriction due to the use of the 'Lended' ability's own strength." Fang Hau explained.
In other words, the Restriction is formed from a flawed power. After all, to create a Contract, one needs to use their ability's full power; however, this is only the case if the ability is not a Soul-based ability or an Order-based ability. Using a measly portion of a non-Order-based or a non-Soul-based to create a Restriction would only lead to an imperfect Contract. Zixin rubbed his chin as he thought, slowly comprehending the idea.
But it should take a while before I could even 'Lend', since even if I understand the principles, it doesn't mean that I could fully apply them. Zixin's gaze drifted across the room, his thoughts surfacing and sinking in rhythm.
Noticing Zixin's expression, Fang Hau spoke, "You should be more than capable enough of learning it; in fact, unlike most Holders, you are already threading the path of development."
"I suppose I could tell you the basic instructions or principles to 'Lend'."
…
Inside the cabin, in his bedroom, Zixin sat down on his bed, concentrating his mind and successfully entering the White Palace.
After splitting his mind, he stretched his hand, grabbing a sturdy glass cup.
He closed his eyes, muttering his idea, "I shall 'Lend' a portion of Snowdrop on the condition that it can't be used."
Suddenly, inside the White Palace, he felt an echo–a reverberation. Upon turning around, he saw a small grey sphere of light coming closer.
Zixin recalled Fang Hau's words, "In essence, everything in this world is 'alive'; however, some manage to be 'greater' than others when it comes to this aspect. For example, a human is 'greater' than a weed, but does that mean that the weed is 'lifeless'? No, because it has life essence, the symbol and mark of existence. As long as life essence naturally flows through an object, it shall be proclaimed as 'alive'. Although it may be 'lesser' than man in terms of intellect and strength, it is still 'alive'. It is important to note that life essence flows through all things, even inanimate ones, thus they can be called 'alive,' but in essence, they only have thoughts and will but no true power."
Even though I cannot sense life essence, it seems that even this cup has life. How interesting is that? A cup also has thoughts like mine. Zixin smiled lightly, standing still inside the White Palace, letting the grey sphere approach him.
A minute later, light burst forth, yet it was not destructive but pleasing, like the voice of chirping birds on a warm morning. Although it said nothing, Zixin managed to understand through the light that it erupted.
Did it understand my intentions from my terms and conditions? Sigh, I suppose I may have underestimated it… Zixin shook his head, learning a valuable lesson.
Right as his thoughts came to a halt, another burst of light shot across the White Palace. Upon understanding the meaning of it, Zixin's heart sank.
"You don't want to help because your will is lesser, huh? In other words, I must find an object with higher intelligence." Zixin scratched his head, losing hope.
"Either way, thank you. This has been a good learning experience." Zixin spoke, bowing with practiced ease.
…
On Mount Lorebale, Zixin began heading down the mountain whilst letting his thoughts wander: What object has a stronger will than a cup? Maybe a plant, but they're very odd. I mean, I even experienced what it felt like to be one because of Snowdrop, and they seem to think quite grandly of this world. I need something that isn't difficult to communicate with, perhaps something with decent intellect.
Crack
Sounds of branches breaking entered his ears, causing him to halt his tracks. Without a second thought, Zixin hid behind a tree, keeping his composure.
He peeked behind, shooting a glance at the group of three wolves. There were three weak wolves with injuries all over their bodies, with the most prominent being the wounds on their noses, greatly weakening their sense of smell.
The Wolf Lord isn't nearby; it would have attacked me by now. After all, we agreed that if we ever met again, it would kill me mercilessly. In that case… are these wolves not from its pack? Were they kicked out or did they leave on their own? Zixin paused, shaking his head and drawing back his gaze.
Whatever it is, these wolves are bad. If I make a move, they would most certainly attack, which would be terrible. Zixin shook his head, letting out a heavy sigh.
His gaze fell as he muttered, "I was just searching for an object to practice 'Lending' with, and now these three wolves appear out of nowhere? How unlucky is that? Wait."
A sudden realization struck him, and he continued, "Would a wolf corpse be considered as an inanimate object? Obviously! Once a wolf dies, the remaining life essence should, in theory, still linger, since, based on Fang Hau's words, everything has life essence, but some may just have too little that they become invisible. And a wolf corpse should have a stronger will than a cup because, unlike the cup, the corpse was once 'living'."
Zixin nodded, understanding the idea.
Even though this idea seems good, something tells me that it feels stupid. I wonder why… maybe asking for Hope's help or anything human's help would have been better, but 'Lending' to an Unchosen might cause them to awaken, creating a Singularity, and right now, I'm not fit to hold off such a disaster. Zixin laughed awkwardly to himself, having made his choice.