The Marshal brought up the power of the Aeons in a tone as ordinary as if he were asking what to have for lunch.
Hearing his superior's casual tone, Marty almost didn't react at first. When he finally realized what the Marshal meant, his eyes immediately lit up.
Come on, this was an Aeon they were talking about. Ordinary people would never even see an Aeon, much less study one.
His scholarly curiosity drove him to agree right away.
Marty rubbed his hands together eagerly and asked, "Which Aeon is it?"
Zero paused, then used the name familiar to the people of the Xianzhou.
"It's the Lord of Joy."
He considered the power far too dangerous, so he decided to accompany SSR.
From past experience, Zero had drawn one conclusion, his body was incompatible with the energy system of this universe and could, to some extent, resist its damage.
For example, when Lan first ascended to godhood and hadn't yet learned to control her divine power, her strikes were wild and uncontrolled. He probably wanted to use his divine power to help Zero suppress his Mara-struck Body, right?
The power Lan released would have made any ordinary person's body explode instantly, but Zero had only coughed up a mouthful of blood.
As for a power that could destroy an entire galaxy... Zero figured it probably couldn't kill him, but it would definitely kill SSR.
Accompanying Marty was the safest choice.
Zero opened his backpack and pulled out the mask Aha had given him.
This time, the system description had changed.
[Aha's Mask]
[He generously split off one-tenth of His divine power]
[Upon contact, you may be assimilated and become one of Aha's avatars]
[The most likely outcome: The destruction of several galaxies]
It was Zero's second time checking the item's description, and it was completely different from before.
Originally, it had said that one-tenth of Aha's divine power could destroy a single galaxy.
Reading the new version, Zero felt no emotion at all.
He always assumed the worst when it came to Aha.
The Aeon of Elation delighted in twisting and rewriting the fates of others, toying with the joys and sorrows of sentient beings as if teasing a cat or dog.
In that high-level NPC's eyes, humans and bugs were no different.
If Aha could casually gift divine power to Zero on a whim, He could just as easily hand it to a bug.
To that high-level NPC, there was no real difference between Zero and an insect, the only distinction was that the bug was dead, and Zero was still alive.
Apparently, Aha really had meant to annihilate the Yaoqing people back then.
That power could destroy multiple galaxies...
How many habitable planets would that be? Tens of billions? Hundreds of billions of lives?
If not for his system, and his unique body, how many humans would have died that day?
As expected of a high-level NPC.
Come to think of it, had the Aeon's influence really left him untouched? Not entirely, it had affected his system briefly, only during initial contact.
Over a thousand years ago, when he'd first met Aha, Zero had trusted the wrong description. After retrieving the mask, he tossed the thing aside like trash, letting it gather dust in a corner.
If not for Lan and SSR, he probably would never have remembered it.
He had thought that piece of junk might finally be put to good use, but apparently not anytime soon.
After all, it was power capable of destroying several galaxies. For safety's sake, it was better not to let Marty touch it.
If his obedient SSR turned into a joker like Aha...
Just imagining it made Zero furious.
Even if he blew up the entire universe, it still wouldn't calm him down.
As for the mask... maybe it could serve as a one-time, heaven-burning weapon? He'd have to find a chance to use it soon.
He used to think he was ruthless enough, but compared to Aha, he was practically kind-hearted.
He destroyed bugs and machines, one planet at a time; Aha destroyed galaxies with a flick of His wrist.
By comparison, Zero really was a great philanthropist.
His humanity bursting forth, Zero made up his mind, he'd detonate the mask in some faraway, uninhabited galaxy.
Given his "Higher-Dimensional Invader" traits, the explosion should only wipe out one galaxy at most.
He'd take Aha down with him while he was at it.
He wasn't expecting to kill Aha with Aha's own power, he just wanted to use the chance to provoke Aha into attacking him.
Once Aha struck back, he'd automatically land on Lan's kill list.
If Lan couldn't destroy Aha, Zero would just take Aha away himself before he left.
But how exactly did one "take away" an Aeon? Where was an Aeon's weak point?
Zero had no idea.
Something about Aha just seemed... bottomless.
Even if he held a blade to Aha's neck, that guy would probably help by separating his own head from his body, then have it float in midair, laughing at him.
Thinking about it that way, Aha was basically the god who would poke wounds and mess with people's heads at a funeral.
He'd probably even gift the bereaved the deceased's severed limbs.
In short, Zero decided to return the mask to its rightful owner.
That way, he'd clear junk out of his backpack, Aha would get His fun, and Lan would gain strength. A true three-way win.
He really was a great philanthropist.
His mind racing ahead, Zero quickly changed his words before Marty could speak, "The Lord of Joy's power easily affects one's mental state. Go study the envoy of the Lord of Remembrance instead."
Marty scratched his head and automatically replaced the word "study" with "interview."
No wonder there were so many rumors about the Marshal... He really did talk in ways that were easy to misunderstand.
As for the Memokeepers Zero mentioned, they were the free workers he got after striking a deal with Fuli.
He'd only met them briefly once, checked their system panels to make sure there were no issues, then distributed them evenly among the Xianzhou.
Being subordinates of a high-level NPC, their stats were excellent, and they couldn't die, meaning they could work for the Xianzhou indefinitely.
And they didn't even need to be paid! A capitalist's dream, free labor.
Zero only gave them the most basic holiday benefits.
This group could also help handle issues related to the Mara-struck Body.
If a Xianzhou citizen ever wanted to erase their own memories, they'd call upon Fuli's followers.
Of course, Zero would never allow followers of another Aeon to tamper with the memories of his people unsupervised. The entire process had to be conducted under the Ten-Lords Commission's watch.
Because of that, these free laborers worked quite diligently.
As for why he wanted to study the Memokeepers of the "Garden of Recollection"...
Well, Zero was naturally suspicious and had a controlling personality. He could never tolerate the subordinates of an Aeon lingering within the Xianzhou.
No way would he allow spies to remain among them.
Fuli understood him well and surely anticipated this. After their deal, She must have told her followers something he wasn't privy to.
And any god who cared about their followers would have left them some kind of safeguard.
In other words, divine power.
Zero urged Marty to sit down and used his Jade Talisman to notify the direct superior of one of Fuli's followers.
Not long after, the person arrived.
It was his second time seeing a Memokeeper. The first had been during that initial brief meeting.
When the woman spoke, Zero realized that the Memokeepers of Yaoqing was female.
Her posture was tense. The instant their eyes met, she turned her head away.
All Memokeepers wore hoods and masks, so he couldn't see her expression.
Zero could only observe her body language, she seemed extremely nervous.
He smiled warmly, but that only made her more nervous.
'Ah, no way to get her to talk.' He'd just have to wait a little longer.
Keeping the same gentle smile, Zero urged her to sit.
Marty, who was practically vibrating with excitement beside him, stared at the Memokeepers with sparkling eyes. He had so many questions to ask.
Unable to hold back, Marty fired off his first question. The Memokeepers seemed to think for a moment before answering.
Zero stayed quiet, resting his chin on his hand, watching their expressions with interest.
He noticed that the Memokeepers kept sneaking glances at him, each time looking even more nervous than before.
As the conversation went on, she started stammering.
Before coming to Yaoqing, she had heard many stories about the Xianzhou Marshal...
And even more, things that no ordinary human could have known or imagined.
These were secrets known only to gods, things that had never happened. And the gods had told those forgotten histories to the Memokeepers.
In most of those tales, the Memokeepers never met the Marshal directly.
They only ever encountered his subordinates, who came to carry out his orders.
Even when they did meet the Marshal himself, he rarely spoke.
That man possessed a weapon capable of killing Aeons. Even if they had abandoned their bodies, they could still be slain.
Just by looking at his face, one would never imagine that he was the Marshal of the Xianzhou.
Only when he smiled could one truly feel the pressure of authority emanating from him.
Those lifeless, empty eyes would brighten the moment they fell upon a Memokeeper, like a clear lake shrouded in mist.
He didn't seem like a ruler at all, more like a pure-hearted young man.
Occasionally, he'd speak a few words to gods or Memokeepers.
When meeting one, he'd lean in with curiosity and feign confusion.
"You've said so much, but I didn't understand a word. Should I give you a credit chip?"
Then he'd hand over a credit chip that couldn't buy anything, adding with a smile, "Not that it's worth anything anyway..."
After that, he'd draw his sword and press it to the Memokeeper's shoulder.
Sometimes, emotionless Memokeepers who couldn't bear his words would try to fight back.
He would grab the blade with his bare hand, letting it cut into his palm, completely unfazed by the worsening wound as he held on tight.
He'd try to provoke the nearly-collapsing Memokeepers, smiling as he asked, "Why don't you strike?"
He didn't have to say anything more, just that one line was enough for the Memokeepers to drop their weapon, trembling all over.
During one assassination attempt, he hadn't even retaliated; instead, he'd worn an expression of realization.
"I see now." He smiled.
That face, when smiling, seemed approachable to the ignorant, but utterly terrifying to those who knew the truth.
He said, "It seems your god knows quite a few remarkable things."
Then, he formed a gun shape with his hand.
Bang!
He raised his hand, aimed at the Memokeeper's forehead, and mimed firing.
The Memokeeper shook violently as he stared at her for a moment longer, then smiled and told her to leave.
Later, the Aeon of Remembrance personally came to the Xianzhou.
But after listening to the god's words, that man slowly blinked, shook his head lightly, and said, "Didn't understand a word."
Then he smiled and raised his weapon toward the god.
"I hate riddlers the most."
That man's moods were unpredictable. He wouldn't listen to anything the Memokeepers said. Even when faced with a god, he showed not the slightest trace of reverence.
No one could read his true thoughts.
Even the Aeon of Erudition probably couldn't predict what he would do.
Fortunately, after that brief encounter, he had never appeared before them again.
During holidays, he even sent them generous welfare packages, like a kind and competent boss.
Hidden beneath her mask, the Memokeeper continued answering Marty's questions while subtly watching Zero.
Sensing something off, Zero lifted his gaze from the documents on his desk and gave her a small, pleasant smile.
...Which only made her more nervous.
He had wanted to keep teasing her a little, but then his Jade Talisman chimed with a new message.
He opened it, it was from the Patrolling Rangers.
The name sounded like some group of righteous vigilantes, but in truth, they had originally been scientific research ships from the Xianzhou fleet.
These research ships were tasked with surveying star systems and planets, and before the Xianzhou used a Giganticon, they were the ones who performed preliminary analysis.
After the long years of the Immortality Curse, Zero had temporarily lost interest in resource mining and set heavy restrictions on the Giganticons.
Those who had once devoted themselves to expanding territory instead began accompanying research ships, surveying star systems across the cosmos.
Soon, the research ships were no longer purely scientific, seventy percent of their crew were retired Cloud Knights, every one of them maxed out in combat ability.
Where research ships once fled at the first sign of danger, now they stood their ground and fought.
When Lan became an Aeon, Zero had wanted to test whether faith would strengthen him, so he instructed Xianzhou people traveling abroad to help spread his followers.
Thus, the combat-heavy research fleet evolved into the Patrolling Rangers.
They often stayed out for decades, even centuries, contributing immensely to the Xianzhou.
Thankfully, with so many allied worlds, they could always restock supplies wherever they went.
This time, the Patrolling Rangers brought Zero an unexpected surprise.
They had discovered an uninhabited star system and, while examining its planets one by one, detected an unknown, never-before-seen energy signature.
Naturally, their first thought was of the all-knowing, all-powerful Marshal, surely he would know what it was and what they should do next.
So, they sent him the system's coordinates.
The Rangers' role was much like that of shrines in a video game, you could open countless map markers, but if you wanted to know what those areas were really like, you still needed the research fleet to explore them.
Zero opened the system map, searched for a bit, and found the Rangers' location.
There he saw it, a high-level NPC, the Aeon of Erudition.
High-level NPCs only revealed their identity after being encountered once before.
In Zero's fragmented memories, he remembered meeting "Erudition" once.
Immediately, he thought of Aha's mask.
Should he... change targets and blow up "Erudition" instead? Leave Aha for later?
He tapped his Jade Talisman and ordered the research fleet to halt their investigation, stay in that star system for a few years' vacation, and then retreat. He also instructed them to inform all Xianzhou-affiliated ships to steer clear of that sector.
His subordinates would surely come up with a convincing excuse.
Zero felt delighted.
And conveniently enough, the star system where "Erudition" resided had no life forms.
'Wait...'
He couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
As expected of the Aeon of Erudition.
They'd instantly deduced what he was planning.
So... had "Erudition" realized he intended to blow Them up, and gone to that remote, lifeless star system on purpose?
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