Bathed in the orange-red glow of the rising sun, the enormous silver Dog Demon flew through the sky atop the cloud.
Seated on the dog's back, Luo Shu wore a deeply sceptical expression as he watched Kuesu Jingūji kneel before a spread of tarot cards.
After observing Kuesu fiddle with the cards for what felt like an eternity, Luo Shu finally couldn't hold back:
"Say, Miss Jingūji."
"Are you absolutely sure your divination isn't faulty?"
"Hmm?" Kuesu responded lightly, tilting her head to look at Luo Shu with mild curiosity. "What exactly are you implying?"
At this, Luo Shu sighed in exasperation:
"It's not about what I'm implying—I'm asking how your divination is progressing."
He couldn't help adding:
"We've spent the entire night following your lead, changing directions over a dozen times while flying around up here. So I've got to ask—have you actually divined So'unga's location yet?"
"Not yet. I still need more time." Kuesu stated matter-of-factly. "After all, divination isn't infallible."
"And you still had the nerve to say 'just follow me'?" Luo Shu's cheek twitched as he muttered helplessly.
When they'd set out last night, he'd genuinely believed Kuesu had concrete information about So'unga's whereabouts. Instead, they'd ended up wasting the night getting blasted by cold winds at high altitude.
'What a mess...'
Luo Shu sighed again before suggesting:
"What if we turned back to the Shrine to get a branch from the Tree of Ages, or some sand from the Bone-Eating Well where So'unga once rested? Wouldn't that make the divination more accurate?"
"That won't be necessary."
Kuesu's tone turned slightly frosty as she replied:
"Excessively precise divination might cost us the initiative."
"Oh?" Luo Shu raised an eyebrow, his expression inviting further explanation.
Seeing him like this, Kuesu Jingūji paused, realising she had no choice but to explain things to Luo Shu.
She took a slight breath before speaking:
"You've never received any education in divination, have you?"
"Then let me explain it in terms you might understand."
Hearing this, Luo Shu's eyelid twitched: 'Why does this feel like a top student looking down on a struggling one?'
At that moment, Kuesu Jingūji explained:
"Simply put, every living being and object in this world has a corresponding magnetic field."
"Whether through action or thought, all things interact with each other, eventually forming a unique magnetic field."
"Divination involves extracting a portion of this magnetic field and interpreting it to obtain desired information."
As she spoke, her pale purple eyes gleamed faintly, like fireflies dancing in a forest at night:
"Since magnetic fields are shared by all things, when a diviner reads someone else's field, that person can also inversely obtain information about you."
"A skilled diviner never gives precise readings, as that would only reveal their intentions to the enemy."
Hearing this, Luo Shu was somewhat surprised: "So your dozen detours last night were to mislead the other party?"
"Correct."
Kuesu Jingūji nodded, then gave a cold laugh:
"Though I don't understand how they receive information, five of last night's movement patterns were deciphered by the other side."
"And based on feedback, it was likely the Tree of Ages's spirit that cracked them. So'unga surprisingly lacked any countermeasures."
At this, Luo Shu suddenly understood:
"You're avoiding collecting what I just mentioned because you're worried the Tree of Ages' branches and soil from So'unga's sealed location might expose our information?"
"Expose mine," Kuesu Jingūji said calmly. "Hmm, perhaps the Dog Demon's too."
She glanced at Luo Shu and added nonchalantly:
"As for you?"
"I've never been able to sense your magnetic field, not even when you're right beside me."
Though Luo Shu's expression didn't change, his heart skipped a beat.
'This woman... Could it be that last night she was casually divining So'unga and the Tree of Ages while actually digging into my background?'
'Because of the system, she can't divine me, so she's been testing me all along?'
"No need to be so tense."
Kuesu Jingūji wore a smile, though to Luo Shu it resembled a tigress stalking prey:
"While I'm curious about your secrets, you are Meer's boyfriend after all. Out of respect for my friend, I won't do anything to you..."
She added:
"Provided you don't cheat."
Hearing this, Luo Shu's face fell, his earlier wariness instantly vanishing.
'How did we suddenly start talking about cheating?'
'Wait, if you're testing me with infidelity, doesn't that mean you expect me to fail?'
At that moment, Luo Shu looked at Kuesu Jingūji with an extremely peculiar expression, strongly suspecting she'd planned this whole thing to tease him.
At that moment, Kuesu Jingūji abruptly changed the subject:
"It's almost certain now."
"The person closely connected to So'unga and the Tree of Ages' spirit – someone vitally important to them – is in the village ahead."
"Oh?"
Though suspecting Kuesu Jingūji was diverting the conversation, Luo Shu found his attention drawn to this matter:
"You're saying you've identified the key figure to counter So'unga and the Tree of Ages, and they'll appear in the village ahead?"
"That's what the divination indicates."
Kuesu Jingūji neither confirmed nor denied this.
"And there isn't one target, but two... though according to the feedback, they might somehow become one?"
Kuesu Jingūji frowned at this point. Though she wanted to explain the full divination results to Luo Shu, she gave up, fearing he wouldn't understand:
"In short, the key lies with the people in that village."
"Why not just capture them all and interrogate them one by one?"
Hearing Kuesu Jingūji's violent suggestion, Luo Shu's lips twitched before he replied:
"I think we'd better not."
"After all, our informant has already arrived, hasn't she?"
Luo Shu gestured with his chin to the right, prompting Kuesu Jingūji to look in that direction.
Following his indication, Kuesu Jingūji immediately spotted the figure carrying a village girl on her shoulder.
Upon recognising Sun Seto engaged in human trafficking, surprise flashed across Kuesu Jingūji's face:
"The Seto Group's Dragon Maiden?"