So... this is Lynelle?
While Lynelle was discreetly observing Tingyun, Tingyun—or rather, Phantylia—was also quietly watching Lynelle.
Before setting out this time, Phantylia had received a sort of directive from Nanook.
Though 'directive' might not be quite the right word, since Nanook rarely gave explicit orders.
But as an Emanator of Destruction, Phantylia liked to believe she understood his intentions well enough.
Nanook wanted her to plant a seed of destruction within a young girl named Lynelle.
Or, to put it in terms Phantylia was more adept with—he wanted Lynelle corrupted.
As a master of manipulating minds, Phantylia was intimately familiar with this kind of operation.
It was no exaggeration to say that the number of souls she'd led to ruin probably surpassed the number of comics most people read in their entire lives.
But she also knew corruption came in many forms. Rather than simply polluting Lynelle's body—just finding an opportunity to flood her with the power of Destruction—she preferred a more elegant approach.
To make Lynelle fall to Destruction in both body and spirit.
Only if that ultimately failed would she resort to such a crude method as infusing her with Path energy as a fallback.
After all, it had been a long time since their leader had given such a detailed and specific task.
Anyone who could capture Nanook's attention to this extent naturally piqued Phantylia's considerable curiosity.
If she could complete the mission and turn Lynelle into her personal plaything, she'd have a magnificent new trophy to boast about to the other Emanators.
However, after looking into Lynelle just a bit, Phantylia immediately sensed this wouldn't be straightforward.
First, it seemed this Lynelle already had an owner.
Not long ago, Herta had very publicly declared to the Intelligentsia Guild that Lynelle was her new lab assistant. It didn't take a genius to see that was basically a claim of ownership.
Messing with Lynelle meant messing with an Emanator of Erudition.
It wasn't that she was afraid of Herta, per se... but the genius was notoriously petty and vindictive. If she snatched Lynelle away, she'd inevitably face Herta's furious retaliation.
The second problem was one Phantylia had only just noticed.
It was only after Lynelle drew closer that she belatedly sensed it... this Lynelle seemed to harbor the power of another Emanator within her?
While it could still be Herta's doing, Phantylia had encountered Emanators of Erudition before, and she'd stake her reputation on this power having nothing to do with the Path of Erudition. It was far too subtle.
If not for her own mastery over spiritual essence and her incredibly fine-tuned perception, she might never have detected the anomaly within Lynelle at all.
How intriguing...
Phantylia continued her careful observation, and soon found a third peculiarity.
This Lynelle... her physical age seemed to be locked at a very young state.
Yes, locked. It wasn't that she was naturally a long-life species. In fact, there was a world of difference between the two.
The implications and sheer potency required for the former were on a completely different level from the latter.
This only confirmed Phantylia's earlier observations. This mysterious Miss Lynelle definitely possessed a wondrous power, one that even made Phantylia's mouth water.
Whether for Nanook's mission or her own private desires, she now found herself craving Lynelle's body in every sense of the word.
Phantylia unconsciously licked her lips.
"?!"
Yet, this instinctive gesture was precisely and accurately caught by Lynelle.
'Sweating buckets here, folks! Someone tell me what to do when you catch the attention of an Emanator-level Yandere! And one who wields both the power of Destruction and Abundance's blessing, no less! I think she wants to eat me!'
Screams were already echoing in the depths of Lynelle's heart.
If nothing else, in the hardcore realm of Abundance's blessings, it was literally possible to devour your peers to achieve a higher-level blessing.
Take the Foxians' Moon Rage as a prime example. Through cannibalizing lower-tier blessings of Abundance, accumulating them, they could eventually trigger a qualitative leap—a classic case of quantity transforming into quality.
By piling on resources like that, they could even produce a Moon Rage that approached the level of a high-tier Abundance blessing like the Ambrosial Arbor.
And the body Phantylia had crafted for herself... it could be called the ultimate fusion of the Path of Destruction and Abundance's blessing.
While she merely possessed the power of the blessing and hadn't truly embarked on the Path of Abundance, Lynelle had no doubt that after drawing power from the Ambrosial Arbor, Phantylia also possessed this same devouring ability.
'Decision made. Once we get through this unavoidable main storyline, I'm ditching this woman at the first chance and heading over to Dan Heng's plotline instead...'
Lynelle was already mapping out her escape route in her mind.
"My thanks to you all for rescuing me~"
After Lynelle and the others effortlessly cleared out the surrounding Mara-struck soldiers, Tingyun stepped forward, offering a soft, graceful bow.
"This one is named Tingyun, the Amicassador from the Sky-Faring Commission's Whistling Flames Merchant Guild. Might I be so bold as to ask for the names of my valiant saviors?"
"Valiant saviors? That's way too formal! I'm March 7th! This is Uncle Yang—oops, I mean Mr. Welt Yang—and..."
"And the Galactic Baseballer!"
Stelle struck a pose, hands on her hips, radiating an aura of 'Aren't I amazing?'
"My, what a unique name..."
Tingyun let out a light laugh, then turned her gaze to Lynelle. "Ah, that reminds me. I couldn't help but notice earlier..."
"That drone in your hand, esteemed benefactor, was the one that located our position, correct? For that, you have my sincere thanks. And... if I might be so presumptuous, could you perhaps be the new lab assistant recently announced by Madam Herta... Miss Lynelle?"
"I—"
Tingyun's question completely derailed Lynelle, who had been just about to offer a fake name like 'Otto Apocalypse' or something similar.
"My apologies, I didn't mean to pry into your affairs. It's just that, as a person in charge of a merchant guild, I have frequent dealings with the Intelligentsia Guild and thus come by certain internal news. I've simply been... yearning to meet you. I hope you won't take offense, esteemed benefactor."
"Wow, Lynelle," March whispered, gently poking Lynelle's slender waist. "Seems like she's a fan of yours?"
"Gulp..."
Lynelle covered her face. "Don't... don't say that, please, have mercy..."
"Aww, why so shy?" March teased with a giggle, mistaking Lynelle's expression for mere bashfulness.
"What, are you scared this might turn into some kind of 'fan meet-and-greet' gone wrong? Where an overly enthusiastic fan whisks you away and locks you in a tiny, dark room or something?"
Gasp!
To be honest, Lynelle hadn't been that scared initially. But now that March had put the idea out there, she was genuinely starting to feel a deep sense of dread.
Could it be... that this time, she'd really driven her cart into a ditch?
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.