“I’m afraid even you, my esteemed elder, would have been unable to sever that sort of bond.” Yuhua truthfully explained.
The elder was perplexed. He furrowed his brows. “Are you saying that even I will be unable to break the heart imprint Xia Fei formed with the Shatterstar beast? Is it truly so amazing?”
Yuhua replied, “Respected ancestor, I wouldn’t dare lie right to your face. Such an ancient heart imprint is indeed very binding. I could feel a very powerful backlash from just my light probe. Besides, the imprint they share is one of life and death. Even if there’s someone proficient enough to sever it, the Shatterstar beast will certainly lose its life as a result, making the loss outweigh any potential benefit.”
The old man was even more perplexed, “Given that Xia Fei’s cultivation, he shouldn’t have been able to impose such a powerful imprint. Just how did this life-and-death contract come to be?”
There was no way for him to know that Xia Fei had cultivated the ancient techniques from the Beast Spirit Codex and had even used the remnant mental energy from an insectoid cerebrum to make a one shot breakthrough to the sixth stage. This was why he was stumped by how an insignificant individual, who had just reached Legendary rank, had managed to impose such a fully binding contract.
Yuhua shook his head to express his cluelessness as well.
“Could there be some mysterious master behind his back—one who helped him establish the contract?”
Yuhua rejected this notion. “I don’t think so. Think about it; just what grade is the holy beast Shatterstar at? Besides, though Xia Fei’s mental domain has a record of having cleared Heritage Planet, it does not bear any brand left by a master, so it can be seen that Xia Fei has yet to recognize anyone as his master, so he may have just gotten lucky in obtaining that holy beast.”
The elder was silent for a good while. He then picked up the fish pole and gave it a light toss, throwing it into the small stream.
“What a pity that the amazing Shatterstar beast ended up in the hands of a cripple.”
Yuhua’s eyes flickered. “Esteemed ancestor, do you not wish to accept Xia Fei into the family? He’s without a master right now.”
The elder found the suggestion both funny and somewhat annoying as he sighed again. “What’s the use of taking in a cripple? While my Yu family cherishes talented individuals, we can’t possibly just let anyone in.”
Yuhua chucked. “Xia Fei might be a cripple, but that Shatterstar beast he has with him is good. Even if we have no use for Xia Fei, we may find a use for the holy beast.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Since Xia Fei’s seventh brain region is severely damaged, I’m sure he knows it himself. If you were to give him the chance to step into our circle, casually teach him a little something, then assign him some trivial position, he would likely be moved to tears and stake his life for the family. Think about it; wouldn’t getting Xia Fei work hard for the family be the same as acquiring a Shatterstar beast for the family?”
The elder’s eyes sparkled. Yuhua’s idea was not bad at all. Personally promoting Xia Fei and demonstrating some minor grace and favor to have him work hard for the family, as long as he had the Shatterstar beast in his control, why should he care if the young man was a cripple? Besides, what the family lacked was the Shatterstar beast, not Xia Fei.
“When the time comes and if you help use some of the family resources and properly condition the Shatterstar beast, it will surely be a great help to you once it reaches adulthood.”
The elder burst out laughing. He stood up and patted Yuhua on his back. “You sure have plenty of ideas, rascal. Not bad. Getting the aid of the holy beast Shatterstar, our Yu family will really become even more powerful. As for that Xia Fei fellow, let him continue being the cripple that he is; who needs him, anyway?
“Let’s go. We’ll go meet the young man. I am very interested in knowing just how he managed to tame the Shatterstar beast.”
*Whoosh!*
A light door suddenly opened upon that pier, and the elder and Yuhua both stepped through it. The moment the two men disappeared, that doorway also shut itself, instantly gone without a trace.
…
Xia Fei had had no lack of trouble his entire life.
After successfully completing this transaction with Yuhua, Xia Fei did not even hesitate for a moment and left the planet. Intuition was something impossible to be explained, and he was presently getting this extremely uneasy feeling once more. He had just spoiled his Bloodthirsty Ice God combat suit, and he had gotten a set of even more perfect Purple Eyes. Everything was going too smoothly, so this made Xia Fei feel terrible. He could just vaguely sense that some trouble was coming his way very soon.
“Begin calculating our position and prepare to jump,” Xia Fei stood on the command deck and gravely gave the command.
…
Phantom asked, “Why are you in such a hurry to leave? Let’s talk about the Purple Eyes combat suit first; just what’s so good about it?”
Once Xia Fei had the destination set, he got back to his seat. He took out the purple metal box from his bosom and looked at it for a long time. The two eyes on the box seemed to be staring at him avidly as if they were real.
Reaching in, Xia Fei took out that combat suit and saw that it came with boots. In fact, the suit itself came with a headgear, gloves, goggles, air filter, and over a dozen other equipment. There were plenty of intricate accessories that Phantom had never seen before, all boasting impeccable design and workmanship. There was even this air of mystery that permeated from this faint purple colored suit.
“This is an ancient civilization product; it’s full name is Bevin Incorporated’s model X7 combat suit. The image of this pair of eyes on its box is the Bevin Incorporated’s logo. Because the box it comes with is purple, so it’s called Purple Eyes.”
Phantom curiously asked, “A product from the ancient civilization? No wonder the box appears to be rather old, though the suit itself looks new as if it has never been used before. Just what special feature does this combat suit have that got you so excited?”
Xia Fei smiled. “It’s not exactly a very powerful feature, but it’s a special feature that I will currently find very useful.”
“What exactly is it? Explain it to me.”
Xia Fei replied, “I remember reading an introductory description of this combat suit in the library. Such suits were made with a special synthetic material that can heighten the users’ awareness.”
“Awareness? You’ve already got a very strong awareness; why do you need to improve it?” Phantom asked. “If I were in your shoes, I’d rather get a combat suit that could increase my speed or something for defense. That’d be far more worth it in my opinion.”
Reality had already proven that Xia Fei indeed had a very keen awareness. Xia Fei had this inexplicable sensitivity toward danger, and Phantom already knew this well after hanging around him all these years.
Xia Fei shook his head. “Times have changed. Now that we’re in the insectoid territory, trouble can come knocking in unexpected ways any time, which is why it’s beneficial for me to improve my awareness toward anticipating danger. On that uninhabited planet from before, if not for Yuhua being friendly to us, who knows how I would die?”
Phantom was stunned. Xia Fei was not wrong; here in the insectoid territory, the levels of danger he was facing were greater than before. Being able to have heightened awareness and having the ability to anticipate trouble were critical.
“So that’s what you’re considering… Because of the change in your current environment, your focus shifts as well. Instead, I’m the one who has overlooked this fact. You’re right; there’s nothing of greater importance than being able to anticipate a crisis occurring in advance. You’ve made the right choice. Very smart.”
Xia Fei nodded and began putting on the Purple Eyes combat suit. Although it was of this strange purple color, it actually had a type of cloaking effect. Its light purple hue could change along with its immediate surroundings, so while it was still far from an actual concealment ability, it was at least able to make him appear inconspicuous no matter where he was.
Even more amazing was this feeling of clarity that he got in his mind. It was as if he had eaten a refreshing mint, giving him this great awareness of everything in his surroundings.
“Not bad. Not bad at all,” Xia Fei could not help but praise. “My perception range has increased by at least fifty percent from before, and my sensitivity has also heightened by a lot.”
…
Three consecutive jumps later.
Xia Fei suddenly felt a strange energy fluctuation in the command deck, just as a burst of light appeared, opening into a light door.
“Brother Xia Fei, how are you finding that combat suit?”
Yuhua and an elderly man walked out from the light door, smiling. Xia Fei was completely flabbergasted. Just what technique did the two men on board his warship now use to have been able to appear before him with such grandiosity? Could the reason be because of their mastery of the Law of Space?
His heart was thumping, though he did not show it on his face.
“Of course, what you gave me is great, Grandmaster Yu. There’s not even a hint of doubt in that fact,” replied Xia Fei with a smile.
“This elder here is my family patriarch, Yujiang. He has some things that he wants to ask you today.” Yuhua introduced the one beside him.
Xia Fei did his best to remain calm as he approached the newcomer with a respectful bow. “Well met, elder.”
…
Xia Fei had no clue just how much higher this silver-haired elder was, but he reckoned that, given Yuhua himself was already at this demonic level of having mastered the Law of Space, Yujiang should be even higher on the charts.
Yujiang was not in the least bit courteous, taking the captain’s seat as his own while Xia Fei hurriedly called Pod to serve tea, all along carefully observing Yujiang’s every movement.
‘Today is truly cursed; all these old monsters appearing one after another—just what exactly is the reason?’ Xia Fei wondered to himself.
Even in his wildest dream, Xia Fei could not have possibly guessed that neither of these men had come for him, but for Furball. Xia Fei had already been deemed as a useless cripple by Yujiang, and were it not for Furball’s existence, Xia Fei would never have the opportunity to meet someone like Yujiang, whose existence was an entire plane above Xia Fei’s own.
Furball was hanging off Xia Fei’s shoulder, lacksadiscally glancing at Yuhua and Yujiang before burying its head to resume its sleep as if they were nothing.
Yujiang was thrilled when he saw its detached behavior, which held contempt for everything around it.
‘Yes, that’s indeed a holy beast Shatterstar; to actually dismiss this old man after a mere glance, such arrogance is worthy of this hegemon in the universe!’ Yujiang thought to himself excitedly.
Intentionally coughing twice, Yujiang spoke. “Xia Fei, I heard from Yuhua that you had inadvertently sensed the existence of the Law of Space while you were promoting your rank. Is that true?”
Xia Fei replied with respect, “This young one indeed momentarily felt a magical realm, but only once, and according to what Grandmaster Yuhua said, it’s a peek at the Laws of Space.”
What Xia Fei responded with did not miss a single fact, expressing that he had indeed felt something magical, but as for whether it was the Law of Space or not, that was merely Yuhua’s analysis.
Yujiang nodded his head slightly, asking Xia Fei what he felt when it happened, as well as other trivial matters. Xia Fei answered them all evenly, neither overbearing nor subservient, perfectly phrased in both words and tone.
Yujiang was satisfied with Xia Fei’s attitude and answers, thinking to himself, ‘This young man speaks with caution and has a decent attitude. It’s too bad that his seventh brain region is so badly damaged, making him a cripple. Otherwise, he would have been a promising talent to have had such insight at his current age.”
Yujiang, who had originally come for Furball, was just casually probing Xia Fei. He did not care to ask any more questions after understanding Xia Fei’s personality and character. After all, his requirements for Xia Fei were low; all he needed was for him to be a functional being, only needing him to be obedient.
The more useless Xia Fei was, the more useful he would be. This way, Xia Fei would be more than willing to rely on him completely and listen to his every word.
After meeting the person, Yujiang was prepared to discuss the matter of bringing him and Furball away from here.
That was when the Impaler’s radar system flashed its red alert.
An abrupt disruption here in the peace of space.
