Chapter 548
Seeing that Xia Er was unresponsive, Lucy immediately pulled out her second proposal. She looked at Xia Er and said, “If you’re not interested in that territory, the board has something else. I wonder if you might be interested?”
“Go on,” Xia Er nodded slightly.
“A piece of classified intelligence.” Lucy lowered her gaze slightly, as if aware that this information wasn’t exactly above board. She continued, “I apologize, but the board didn’t conduct any deliberate investigation. It’s just that Miss Aivina has recently started inquiring about something specific, which led us to wonder if it’s something you might need.”
Classified intelligence? Aivina is asking about it?
Could it be about that lost pathway?
Xia Er felt a strange emotion stirring within her. She suppressed the urge to frown and calmly asked, “If the information is indeed useful, I might consider agreeing to this.”
What’s going on?
From the moment she entered the simulation, Xia Er had felt an inexplicable oddness.
It was as if... whatever she wanted to do would succeed.
Everything was going smoothly; even when a problem arose, the next moment someone would knock on the door with information...
The last time she felt this way was when she was embedded with the “uniqueness” gears, under the overwhelming influence of the “Fate’s Betrayal Touch.”
It wasn’t that Xia Er was overly sensitive; it was just that... she truly found it hard to believe she could have so much good fortune.
Xia Er instinctively glanced around, not spotting anything like pink candles.
She turned her attention back to Lucy, deciding to hear what information Lucy had to offer before making a decision.
“This information is known only to the president,” Lucy shook her head and said, “It’s highly confidential. According to the president, it seems that anyone who verbally shares the information will forget it...”
Anyone who shares the information will forget it?
This pathway inherently requires “concealment”...?
This aligned perfectly with Xia Er’s previous deductions.
“The president told me that if you, Miss Xia Er, are interested in the second condition, you can find a time to discuss the specifics directly with her...” After finishing this sentence, Lucy fell silent, merely observing Xia Er’s expression and reaction.
If this was a condition set by the president from the start, Xia Er could only say that the other party had a keen grasp of her needs... so precise it felt a bit exaggerated.
It even gave Xia Er the impression that everything was being deliberately guided by the other side.
“Alright.” Xia Er nodded slowly and said, “If she’s free tonight, I’ll invite her here for dinner.”
Xia Er knew that if she went over, it could very well turn into a trap... it was better to have the other party come to her.
Even knowing the other party had ulterior motives, Xia Er had to probe—this simulation was meant to test dangers in advance.
“Understood! Miss Xia Er, I’ll report this to President Deyton right away.” Lucy stood up, bid farewell to Xia Er and the others, and quickly left the study, hurrying towards the Deyton Group in a carriage.
After Lucy left the villa, Aivina, who had been sitting in the study, turned to Xia Er and said slowly, “Isn’t this a bit risky? Xia Er? Perhaps we should discuss this with Charles first...”
From Aivina’s perspective, Xia Er’s actions seemed a bit reckless. It would be best to stall Lucy for now, then discuss the pros and cons with Charles before considering whether to agree to a meeting with the president.
But Xia Er had already invited the president to dinner tonight... this made her seem overly eager. Even if it was a negotiation, such eagerness would only put her at a disadvantage.
“It’s fine, I might not agree to them,” Xia Er shook her head and said, “Right now, I don’t have a strong need for that pathway.”
At this moment, Xia Er needed to confirm something.
She wanted to ask the Pure White Knight about the two prerequisite pathways for the “Crown Guardian.”
However, summoning the Pure White Knight directly would create too much noise and consume too many resources; Xia Er couldn’t easily gather several “Crown Guardian” corpses.
But she could summon Xiao Zuo directly and have him find that “Crown Guardian.”
With this thought in mind, Xia Er turned to Tara, who had been staring at her with her head down, and said, “Tara.”
“Uh? Huh? Oh, what is it, Lady Xia Er?” Tara seemed a bit dazed, having completely missed what Xia Er and the others were discussing. Upon hearing her name, she quickly snapped back to attention.
“I need a severed finger from an extraordinary being. Get it for me, the sooner the better.” Xia Er instructed Tara.
“Understood, Lady Xia Er.” Tara immediately pulled out her ritual knife, raising it to cut her own pinky finger, but before she could do so, Xia Er interrupted her.
“From a corpse, not yours.” Xia Er said, a bit helplessly, “It doesn’t need to be so ‘fresh.’”
“I’m so sorry, please wait a moment...” Realizing her blunder, Tara’s body transformed into a white shadow and vanished.
At that moment, Xia Er realized she had never used the [Spiritual Summoning] in front of Aivina.
She looked towards Aivina and said, “Aivina, I’m going to summon a... friend shortly. Don’t be afraid.”
“Summon?” Aivina’s expression showed a hint of worry.
Summoning wasn’t exactly a comforting term... especially in a world where extraordinary and mysterious beings truly existed.
However, she didn’t intend to interfere with what Xia Er wanted to do; she merely asked, “If the president agrees to dinner, should I call Charles over? He should be free.”
Aivina was a bit concerned, feeling that her presence wouldn’t help Xia Er and wouldn’t put any pressure on the other party.
“No need.” Xia Er shook her head and said, “I want to know what the other party intends to do.”
If too many Tier 4 extraordinary beings were present, some of the other party’s true intentions might be delayed. In the simulation, Xia Er only had 24 hours; she needed to test out any potential mistakes as quickly as possible.
“Do you need me there?” Aivina walked over to Xia Er’s side, looking down at her.
Xia Er slowly raised her hand, wrapping it around Aivina’s slender waist, and said, “Relax, it’s just dinner... I’ll come find you afterward, I promise.”
“Okay...” Aivina nodded, understanding that Xia Er preferred her not to be present.
Even after reaching Tier 3, Aivina felt the distance between herself and Xia Er growing wider... now Xia Er seemed to be the one secretly controlling everything, the person whom various organizations wanted to befriend. She no longer appeared to be just a beautiful girl shrouded in mystery.
But the strangest part was this... even though Xia Er’s identity had undergone so many transformations, she seemed unfazed, continuing to live an ordinary life as if she were just an average person.
If an extraordinary being who didn’t know Xia Er saw her, they would never guess that she was maneuvering and controlling so many extraordinary organizations behind the scenes...
After a brief moment of closeness with Xia Er, Aivina, having agreed to meet later that evening, left the villa before Tara returned. Meanwhile, Xia Er, after instructing the maid to prepare for dinner, began her “serious business.”
Tara returned with several severed fingers, all hastily purchased. These dried fingers had once been materials for certain potions, but to Xia Er, it made no difference; any extraordinary being’s finger would suffice.
Xia Er didn’t shy away from Tara; in the study, she directly used “Spiritual Summoning” in front of her.
Xia Er’s blood connected with the dried fingers, thin strands of blood pulling together in the air to form a crimson vortex...
Familiar markings, a familiar vortex... but wasn’t Xiao Zuo supposed to be larger? This vortex seemed a bit too small...
And why hadn’t Xiao Zuo appeared yet?
Just as Xia Er began to doubt the quality of the fingers Tara provided, a flicker of red light appeared in her mind.
This was the echo of the [All-Knowing], someone was “praying” to her.
Currently, the only one still holding a prayer pendant was Xiao Zuo.
Xia Er focused her mind on that point of red light, and a phantom white armor materialized within it, accompanied by a familiar ethereal voice echoing in her mind.
“Hello, haha...”
A series of meaningless greetings and awkward laughter left Xia Er unsure how to respond.
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