120: accept

As the other party's voice faded, an invisible power directly descended upon Xu Yan and the young man. In the unseen realm, an invisible restriction fell upon the young man.

Although Xu Yan had never encountered an experience where someone swore directly to Heaven and Earth, after that power descended, Xu Yan felt the strength of that power, possessing the characteristics of being impossible to replicate, disguise, or deceive.

Simultaneously, the oath the other party made, along with the punishment for violating that oath, all appeared in his mind.

After finishing this, the young man looked back at Xu Yan, handed the Golden Orb in his hand to Xu Yan, and said, “How about it? With the testimony of the Heaven and Earth Vow, it's naturally impossible for me to deceive you. Now, can you reconsider?

“Of course, before that, one thing I must remind you of is that while accepting this gift from me, you also need to shoulder the corresponding responsibility.”

“Responsibility?” Hearing the other party's words, Xu Yan's heart inexplicably conjured some unpleasant associations. Negative terms like compulsory missions, losing one's autonomy, and Heavenly Dao Puppet popped up in his mind one after another.

Seeing Xu Yan's expression change slightly after hearing the word “responsibility,” the young man continued:

“Don't worry, it's not the responsibility of being used as a puppet or anything like that. Heaven and Earth are quite generous to Their children.

“For those who receive Their gifts, the only requirement is not to actively engage in actions that could lead to the destruction of Heaven and Earth. Subjectively, you just need to stand on the same side as Heaven and Earth, or even remain neutral.”

“As for the rest, you can regard Them as an NPC in a game. They will periodically issue some missions, roughly involving things like clearing out XXX from XXX, or driving out invading external destroyers.”

“Of course, these missions are not compulsory; whether you accept them or not is entirely up to you.”

“After completing a mission, various resources, inheritances, relics, Spirit Beast clues, and more may be offered as rewards, and for a certain period, you will receive the favor and blessing of Heaven and Earth;

“Even if you fail to complete it, as long as you weren't intentionally sabotaging the mission, there will be no further punishment beyond the damage sustained during the mission. In fact, you might even receive compensation based on your performance.”

After getting past the initial wild speculation, Xu Yan realized that there was no such thing as a free lunch. Since he was taking something from someone else, he naturally had to pay a corresponding price; equivalent exchange was the standard.

Originally, Xu Yan thought that if the responsibility required after accepting that power was too outrageous, then no matter how much improvement that power could bring him, Xu Yan would not accept it.

However, the other party's words made Xu Yan feel increasingly unreliable the more he listened.

It wasn't that there was an obvious problem; rather, the responsibility described in the other party's words seemed too favorable and lenient, making Xu Yan feel increasingly like he was being tricked, suspecting there might be some huge trap he didn't know about.

Seeing the expression on Xu Yan's face—clearly distrustful and looking ready to run at any moment—the young man felt a bit helpless.

After his helplessness passed, the young man did not continue trying to persuade Xu Yan to trust him, but instead chose the simplest and most direct method again.

Swearing an oath.

“I, Xuan Niao, swear an oath to Heaven and Earth... may my soul be extinguished.”

As the words fell, a familiar power descended once again, settling upon both of them.

Seeing this scene, Xu Yan gained a little more trust in the other party's previous words. Perhaps what the other party said was true, and he wasn't deceiving him.

However, in this situation, it was better to be cautious.

Thinking this, after a moment of silence, Xu Yan spoke again to the young man: “I still don't completely trust you, so, may I inform my elders about this matter? To seek their opinion.”

Xu Yan's request did not surprise the other party. The young man nodded nonchalantly at Xu Yan and said, “The network signal here is full strength, and I haven't set up any interception methods or anything; you are free to do as you wish.”

After receiving the other party's affirmation, Xu Yan planned to call his elder again.

However, this time Xu Yan did not take out his phone to contact Mo Yi. Instead, following what Mo Yi had previously told him in a message, he looked up at the sky and softly called out, “Grandmaster.”

As his voice fell, Xu Yan could clearly feel a gaze carrying a hint of scrutiny, passing through layers of space, landing upon himself and the young man opposite him.

Following the gaze he felt, as soon as he looked up, he found that the space around him had changed. It was no longer the rustic courtyard from before, but a pitch-black space.

Directly in front of Xu Yan, a middle-aged man whose aura seemed somewhat distant stood there, calmly looking at him.

Seeing the man's face, which was identical to the photo Mo Yi had sent him earlier, Xu Yan immediately understood his identity. He respectfully bowed to the man and called out, “Hello, Grandmaster.”

As Xu Yan called out “Grandmaster,” the sense of distance on the man quickly faded away like melting snow, transforming into a feeling of satisfaction—loving the house and the crow on it—at seeing an outstanding junior.

The man awkwardly managed a smile toward Xu Yan and spoke in a somewhat cool tone: “I already know the general situation. What that Xuan Niao said and the oath he made are fine; there are no loopholes or conceptual shifts left behind.

“That power gifted by Heaven and Earth is indeed potent and can bring you considerable benefits. However, according to my calculations, similarly, once your strength reaches a certain level, this power will also become a restraint preventing you from advancing to higher levels.

“However, getting rid of this restraint is not overly difficult. The worst-case scenario is simply making the same choice that Xuan Niao made today.

“This is all I can tell you. Whether you accept it or not ultimately depends on your own choice.

“Remember one thing: standing behind you are your teacher, me, and even the entire Huaguo. No matter what choice you ultimately make, we will never allow you to suffer injustice.”

After he finished speaking, Xu Yan felt his vision blur, and the surrounding environment reverted to the rustic courtyard. The young man opposite him still maintained the posture he had when Xu Yan called out “Grandmaster,” but a hint of surprise had appeared in his eyes.

“I didn't expect that merely seeking a successor for this power would actually attract that person's attention. So, now that you've consulted your elder, what is your decision?”

In response to the other party's repeated inquiry, Xu Yan did not give a direct answer but threw out another question instead.

“I want to ask, can I outsource the missions you mentioned? If so, how should the rewards for outsourced missions be distributed?”

“Out... outsource?”

Xu Yan's question caused the young man opposite him to momentarily crash, and he looked at Xu Yan with an expression that said, “What nonsense are you talking about?”

In response, Xu Yan asked matter-of-factly, “The faction I belong to, the elders supporting me, and the helpers I can call upon—these are all part of my network, aren't they? Isn't that a part of my own strength?”

“Didn't you ever seek external help when completing those missions before? Does finding help reduce the rewards? Or did you choose to freeload and not give them any compensation?”

In response to Xu Yan's inquiry, the young man nodded and replied, “Connections are indeed part of one's strength, and I have indeed sought help from humans or members of my own race a few times.

“Mission rewards are fixed. As long as the mission is completed, the rewards will be issued normally and will not increase or decrease based on the number of participants. After they helped me complete the mission, I also gave them compensation, but...”

At this point, realizing something, the other party's words clearly paused.

After the other party's words stopped, Xu Yan's voice rang out again.

“Then that settles it. All Heaven and Earth want is to eliminate those existences that pose a threat to Them. I rely on my connections to find people capable of resolving these threats and have them deal with it. Isn't the final outcome exactly what They want?

“They issue the mission, I accept the mission, and then I outsource it, finding the appropriate people to complete it. Finally, the reward is split among those people based on their contribution, and I take a cut as an intermediary fee.

“In the end, They accomplish what They wanted to do, and we receive the corresponding benefits. Isn't this a win-win situation? What's the problem? It's not like I didn't put in any effort.”

After hearing Xu Yan's words, the young man opened his mouth, wanting to refute something, but upon careful consideration, what Xu Yan said seemed to make sense. Thinking this, he recalled the missions he had missed in the past that were clearly beyond his own capability, forcing him to give up those tempting rewards, and he began to feel self-doubt.

So, it's not that this method isn't allowed? Was it just that I hadn't thought of this approach before?

However, although he was somewhat convinced by the other party's words internally, the young man himself wasn't sure if this was actually the case.

Thinking this, the young man spoke again: “Regarding the outsourcing method you mentioned, I have never experimented with it, nor do I know if it will work, so I cannot give you a definitive answer.

“However, if you want to know, I can cooperate with you. You can directly use your Innate Talent to ask the question, and I will convey it to Heaven and Earth, achieving the effect of Consulting the Heavens.”

Hearing the other party's reply, Xu Yan nodded.

“Then, let's give it a try.”

Saying this, he raised his left hand and activated Heavens Mandate Guidance. The Golden Thread on his wrist began to burn rapidly.

Simultaneously, the young man opposite him waved his hand, and a streak of power flew out from the orb in his palm, landing on the burning Golden Thread on Xu Yan's wrist.

This time, by consuming only a single Golden Thread, Xu Yan received the answer he wanted, and a satisfied smile involuntarily appeared on his face.

Seeing the smile on Xu Yan's face, the young man had a certain guess in his heart. He couldn't help but recall the missions and rewards he had missed in the past—among those rewards were several types that even his current self found incredibly desirable.

However, no matter how much he guessed internally, the young man still held onto a glimmer of hope and made his final struggle toward Xu Yan: “How is it? What was the result? Will the outsourcing method you mentioned actually work?”

The two words, “It can,” spoken by Xu Yan, successfully shattered the other party's final illusion.

It turned out that those missions and rewards weren't just there to motivate him, but were truly obtainable, and the difficulty wasn't even that high; he simply hadn't thought of the method.

Looking at the other party's deeply struck appearance, Xu Yan continued to ask, “So, Senior, now that you know this result, what are your current thoughts?”

The other party did not hesitate much in response to Xu Yan's question and firmly replied, “What's missed is missed. For me now, the help this power provides is far less than the restraint it places upon me.

“I still hold the same view as before: I want to transfer this power to you, and I hope you will accept it.”

Hearing the other party's reply, Xu Yan smiled and bowed to him.

“Then, this junior, Xu Yan, thanks Senior for the gift.”

After receiving Xu Yan's affirmative answer, the young man took a deep breath, gathering the last trace of power within his body. This power was like a trickling stream, seemingly weak but containing endless essence and energy.

He carefully guided this power to his palm and then injected it into the orb. With the injection of this final surge of power, the light on the Golden Orb became even more dazzling.

The young man stared at the orb, a trace of reluctance flashing in his eyes, but then he tossed the orb without hesitation, sending it flying straight toward Xu Yan.

The moment the orb touched Xu Yan's body, a burst of golden light erupted suddenly. This light, like the first ray of sunshine in the morning, was warm and gentle, instantly enveloping Xu Yan.

The moment the orb touched Xu Yan's body, Xu Yan immediately entered a peculiar state. He felt as if he was in a strange world, where he merged with Heaven and Earth, becoming the most beloved child of this realm.

Various questions continuously surged into his mind, and the moment these questions arose, they were gently resolved as if by an invisible hand, the answers naturally surfacing in his heart.

Whatever he wanted to do, he could instantly find the optimal way and method. This feeling was both marvelous and intoxicating, as if he had grasped all the mysteries of the universe.

He didn't know how much time had passed before Xu Yan slowly recovered from that profound state. He blinked, feeling as though his consciousness had just undergone a long journey, leaving him slightly dazed and confused.

When his gaze returned to the stone table, he found that the young man who had been sitting opposite him was gone. Only two cups of steaming tea remained on the stone table, as if narrating that someone had just been there.