Chapter 68: There Are No Limits to Courting Disaster

When Ling Mo agreed, his eyes shone with excitement. This was the little sister of a Sage of the Arcane! In the magical world, a Sage of the Arcane was the ultimate existence, often called a walking weapon of mass destruction, with a status that was almost above all others and a social influence beyond compare. Now, she herself was setting an example by having her own sister practice martial arts—how could martial arts be a sham? How could its future not be bright? If he could guide Weiss’s sister to tangible results, countless people who had hesitated before would let go of their doubts and embrace the path of martial arts. By then, wouldn't completing this main quest two be a breeze?

Seeing how readily Ling Mo agreed, Weiss quickly added, "Mr. Ling, what I mean is, please don't mention anything related to the 'Original Sin Incident.' It’s not just about the 'Crystal Spider of Original Sin.'"

"I understand, I understand!" Ling Mo promised readily. "Don’t worry, I won’t talk about those old cult matters during the stream. If you’re still uneasy, just have your sister come over as soon as possible—she can supervise me in person, right?"

"That makes sense. I’ll send my sister to you soon, I’ll notify her right away and tell her her own sister has sold her out." Under Catherine’s gaze, an underhanded deal was thus struck. After Ling Mo agreed, Weiss, the Water Bearer Sage, visibly relaxed. With a faint smile, she said, "Sorry to disturb you both. I’ll immediately grant Miss Catherine access to the Skynet system. All right, it'll be ready in another minute, and the stream will be back online. Before that, I have a small question—Mr. Ling, do you perhaps know my father?"

"It’s not a 'perhaps.' I not only know your father, but I know you as well. In fact, you and your father should both recognize me," Ling Mo replied, gazing at Weiss through the holographic screen with a hint of reminiscence. "But you were just a little girl back then. It’s only natural you don’t remember now that you’re older. Think back—on the Desolation Plains, your father brought you along with a whole crowd of colleagues, and they all tried to surround me."

"I'm not old at all!" Weiss instinctively retorted, then looked a little puzzled. "Mr. Ling, perhaps you’ve mistaken me for someone else. My father is a truly good person. Under his influence, even after becoming a Sage, I have never done anything outside the bounds of the law, nor have I ever harmed anyone since birth, much less tried to besiege you. And as for the event on the Desolation Plains, I remember I was just accompanying my father on a magical survey…"

Weiss suddenly stopped. She sprang up from her bed, shock written all over her face. She pointed a trembling finger at Ling Mo, her voice full of disbelief: "You… you are…!!"

Seeing Ling Mo’s faintly amused expression, and the way he nodded slowly, Weiss looked up at the ceiling, took a long, deep breath, exhaled forcefully, and when she lowered her head, her face was once again calm. She looked at Ling Mo with great seriousness, her tone tinged with something complex. "So… martial arts is actually that! Very well, Mr. Ling… I understand. I will send my sister to you as soon as possible."

With that, she ended the communication. The image on the Arcane Eye shrank away with a whoosh, the warning light ceased flashing, and everything returned to normal. A dozen seconds later, the screen began to flicker, and then the live broadcast resumed.

"I told you this stream couldn’t possibly survive for long—wait, why is it back on?"

"I can see it too!"

"It’s alive! The streamer’s back!"

"What happened just now when the stream suddenly went down?"

"That’s three interruptions in just three days!"

"An average of once per day! This stream really is something!"

"Broken stream, I give it maybe another day before it’s dead!"

"Let’s just appreciate it while it lasts!"

"Didn’t Professor Ling mention that spider just now? I think it was called the ‘Crystal Spider of Original Sin’? What happened next?"

"Silly child, what ‘next’? The rest was cut off!"

"What taboo did he touch this time?"

"Let me tell you something scary—did you notice? When the stream cut off just now, the screen didn’t say ‘The streamer is on the way,’ it said ‘This user does not exist.’ The more you think about it, the scarier it gets!"

"Supreme VIP ‘Curiosity is the Ladder of Human Progress’ tips the streamer a Meteor Firestorm! Comment: Streamer, I’m suddenly not curious anymore. After that incident just now, I realize my life is more important than any secret!"

"Supreme VIP ‘The Magnificent Number Two’ tips the streamer a Chaos Meteorite! Comment: Streamer, in the future just stick to biological knowledge and avoid taboos in all fields! Don’t wake up one morning to find your stream has been snipped by the River Crab’s pincers!"

And so on…

Catherine paid no attention to the chat. She was silent, mulling over the conversation between Weiss and Ling Mo. She felt that by choosing to study martial arts, she had fallen into a deep pit and become entangled in something far beyond her understanding. But at this point, having boarded the pirate ship, there was no getting off. Though uneasy, she forced herself to focus and asked Ling Mo, "Master, what should we do next?"

"We make haste," Ling Mo replied, glancing at her. "I know what’s on your mind, but there are secrets I can only tell you once you’re strong enough. Otherwise, knowing them will do you no good."

Catherine shook her head. "I’m not that interested in secrets. I was just a humble high-level mage before, with no great ambitions. If I can learn, fine; if not, it’s no big loss."

"That’s a good mindset. How much longer can you keep running?"

"About an hour, I think."

"Good. Follow me, full speed ahead."

With that, Ling Mo set off at a brisk pace toward the southeast. Catherine did a few warm-up stretches and quickly followed. At first, she slipped and stumbled in the snow, falling further and further behind. But after observing the way Ling Mo placed his toes with each step, within a minute, she too was gliding effortlessly over the snow.

The two ran in tandem. At the start, Catherine focused all her attention on her breathing and pacing. After a while, as she adjusted to the rhythm, she found herself able to observe her surroundings and soon noticed something strange.

They encountered all sorts of magical beasts as they crossed the snowy landscape—giant-antlered charging reindeer, saber-toothed white tigers with fangs a foot long, packs of hunting gray wolves, and towering, majestic tawny mammoths. The creatures, seizing the opportunity presented by the rare good weather, were all fiercely engaged in their daily struggle for survival. Yet not a single one of them paid the slightest attention to Ling Mo or Catherine as they ran past!

It was as if the two of them were entirely invisible—not just unseen, but unsmelled and unheard as well. Even when Catherine stepped right over the head of a timid willow-thunderbird intent on pecking at nuts, it didn’t so much as pause. Even when snow kicked up by her run struck a wolf in the face, it merely snorted, never taking its eyes off its prey.

What kind of technique was this? How did Master do it?

Catherine was instantly intrigued. She mischievously hopped in front of a white bear, making faces and baring her teeth and claws at it. Her provocations were so outrageous, yet the bear’s eyes were filled with nothing but confusion, as if she were just a common stone on the ground.

The sensation was remarkably similar to the sixth-level psychic spell "Perceptual Block," which prevents targets from correctly perceiving things before them. But in truth, the bear’s reaction was less "can’t perceive" and more "utter indifference."

How incredible! She was so close she could almost touch noses, yet still, there was no reaction! Just how far could this power of being ignored go? Her curiosity piqued, Catherine’s reckless side took over.

"Hey! Hey, hey!" She called softly to the bear. No reaction.

This is getting interesting…

"Rawr! Rawr!" She roared at the bear. It twitched its ears—still nothing.

How entertaining!

She blew into the bear’s nostrils—whoosh, whoosh! The bear sniffed, but again, no reaction.

Amazing!

Then, with a smack, she swung her arm and slapped the bear’s face—once, twice! The bear shook its head, still no…

But then, enough was enough! The bear rose onto its hind legs, let out an enraged roar, its beady eyes locked furiously onto Catherine, and it lifted a massive paw, aiming right for her head!

Catherine, caught up in her play, never expected this turn. Completely off guard! In truth, even if she had been ready, it would have made no difference. Not just because she was exhausted, but even at her peak, provoking a level-five magical white bear at such close range was certain death.

She watched helplessly as the bear’s giant paw descended, growing larger and larger in her vision. She tried to dodge, but her body simply wouldn’t respond in time. In that brief instant, her life flashed before her eyes like a revolving lantern, and then, suddenly, the bear was gone.

Heart pounding with fright, Catherine barely had time to wipe the cold sweat from her brow before she began apologizing frantically, "Master, I was wrong! I really know I was wrong this time!"

Ling Mo waved his hand wearily. "Forget it. I’ve given up hope for your brain. Let’s keep moving."

"Okay…"

The rest of the journey, Catherine was much more subdued, and their pace improved markedly. Soon, they had crossed four or five small hills. After nearly forty minutes of running, Catherine wrinkled her nose, catching a sharp, acrid scent. Five minutes later, after surmounting another hill, the scenery before them changed abruptly.

Most striking of all, the snow falling from the sky had truly turned black.