It wasn't exactly that they would clash head-on, but rather that they were so distinct—so fundamentally different—that when paired together, they actually created a "one plus one is less than two" situation.
This left 'Cipher', who had initially expected a smooth collaboration to yield a pleasant surprise, looking utterly perplexed.
At first, she thought it was an issue with the Saint Graph.
She tried replacing the power of Propagation with Abundance.
The result was a stable relationship between Permanence and Abundance, a stark contrast to the way Propagation and Permanence seemed to trip over each other's feet.
This left 'Cipher' a bit lost in thought.
Theoretically speaking, Permanence had lost the ability to propagate, while Propagation focused solely on that very concept.
Even if there was no inherent schism between the two, they should, in principle, be complementary.
Why had it turned out like this? Where exactly did it go wrong?
'Cipher' tried to think it through and analyze the data. But the Saint Graph was a lifeless object; without the will of an individual to drive it, the power of the Path was like a pool of stagnant water.
She couldn't observe any clearer intelligence from it.
So, to solve this mystery, she decided it was time for some biological experimentation.
Of course, for an experiment that was destined to yield no grand results—and might even be a bit messy—she couldn't use a subject with a high degree of intelligence.
'Cipher' opted to pick a bug for the job.
As for a specimen of Propagation, she didn't even need to specially breed one.
She simply reached into the Swarm she led and had the Swarm King produce a mindless drone on the spot—an individual driven by nothing but biological instinct.
Since it possessed only instinct, it wouldn't matter if it was used for experimentation. And as for the Swarm King, it wouldn't spare a thought for a single, un-awakened little bug.
And so, a bug specifically manufactured for the experiment was placed within the manor where 'Cipher' resided.
"…Madam Bai Ming, do you always carry that Swarm with you?"
Xuanquan knew 'Cipher' could control the Swarm, but her heart still skipped a beat when she saw her pull a bug seemingly out of thin air.
What did this mean?
It meant that right now, on the Xianzhou Fanghu, there was a powerful Swarm led by a Swarm King!
If 'Cipher' willed it, every corner of the Fanghu would be filled with hundreds of millions of insects in an instant.
'Cipher' nodded at the question.
She watched Ruan Mei attempt to fuse the bug with the Saint Graph of Permanence and spoke up:
"Yes. After all, they are my Swarm. As long as I'm around, they stay well-behaved. It would actually be more dangerous if I didn't keep them close."
"..."
That made far too much sense. Xuanquan found she couldn't argue with that logic.
"But you don't need to worry too much. Look on the bright side: the reproductive ability the Vidyadhara lost might just find its solution within the Path of Propagation."
"Is that really possible? Truthfully, the Vidyadhara have tried in the past, but without exception, every attempt ended in failure."
As part of the Vidyadhara leadership, Xuanquan was well aware of how many attempts the Scions of Long had made to regain their ability to reproduce.
They had, of course, tried to study the Swarm of Propagation.
It had even drawn the Swarm to them once, leading to a violent conflict.
However, Xuanquan wasn't entirely sure what the specific findings were; those records seemed to have been destroyed to prevent any corruption by Propagation. And the Vidyadhara weren't the only ones—other, more powerful scions of Long had tried as well.
The results were plain to see: no one had succeeded.
'Cipher' was briefly surprised but quickly realized the Vidyadhara weren't fools.
Propagation was an answer written right on the face of the riddle; how could they not try it?
Besides, the Swarm was a universal enemy; no one would complain if you grabbed a few for research.
That meant simply throwing the powers of Permanence and Propagation together wouldn't produce results.
It wasn't like Abundance and Permanence, where a simple pairing could suppress the runaway immortality of Abundance.
Unfortunately, Abundance didn't involve the concept of reproduction.
Otherwise, the Vidyadhara would have solved their problem long ago.
That said, 'Cipher' couldn't just admit that. She needed Xuanquan to trust them further—to believe they could actually solve this.
"I've noticed the strange conflict between Permanence and Propagation as well. But look at it this way: the fact that the Paths clash proves one thing—the two are conceptually linked."
This argument held water.
A conceptual conflict would manifest directly through the power of the Paths.
If the Paths were truly unrelated, they would simply exist side-by-side, each doing its own thing without interference.
Whether it was Permanence mitigating the side effects of Abundance or the friction between Permanence and Propagation, it all served as indirect proof of a deep connection.
She just didn't know why it played nice with Abundance but tripped over Propagation.
Hearing 'Cipher's' explanation, General Xuanquan nodded subconsciously.
Somehow, it sounded quite reasonable.
'Cipher' nodded in satisfaction.
For a lie to become reality, people had to believe it. But compared to her previous lies, 'Cipher' couldn't just say she could do it and expect Xuanquan to believe her immediately.
Before, it was because 'Cipher' could produce proof that would convince a genius.
But now, 'Cipher' had merely used the Saint Graph to create a Draconic Chimera.
It wasn't enough to fully convince Xuanquan. Xuanquan wasn't a scholar; if she couldn't understand an equation, she saw it as perfectly normal.
Thus, the methods used on Screwllum and Zandar wouldn't work on her.
There needed to be more direct information to make Xuanquan—and the rest of the Vidyadhara—believe, so the lie could take root.
While 'Cipher' and Xuanquan were talking, Ruan Mei had already integrated the Saint Graph into the bug's body.
At first, there was no change at all. The addition of the power of Permanence didn't seem to alter the bug's state.
But soon, the two forces began to clash violently within its tiny frame.
Under Ruan Mei's observation, the bug's initial reaction was a sudden weakening of its presence.
Then, the mandibles on its head fell away, replaced by something resembling dragon horns.
Traits belonging to the Coleoptera order seemed to be giving way to draconic features.
During this process, however, the bug's life force plummeted into a near-death state, as if it were exhausting its very existence to complete this metamorphosis.
But shortly after, a state similar to the Vidyadhara's "molting" began to manifest. One could even faintly see a scale-covered egg beginning to form.
Yet, in the middle of this formation, the dying bug suddenly surged with energy again.
The power of Propagation erupted, and the near-death body physically shattered. The fragmented limbs seemed to want to transform into several more cocoons within that single egg.
Unfortunately, this strange evolution came to a screeching halt. The nested egg and cocoons collapsed on the spot, and the creature lost all signs of life.
The bug hadn't even survived for three minutes.
General Xuanquan, witnessing the whole thing, was full of questions.
Just now, she had seen a bug attempting to molt and reborn, and even trying to split from one bug into several during the process.
As a Vidyadhara who had molted more times than she could count, she couldn't help but feel a bit nauseated. But more than disgust, the series of changes she'd just seen left her bewildered and shaken.
Had the Vidyadhara really studied such macabre things in the past?
And… if instead of giving a bug the power of Permanence, they had tried to let the Vidyadhara be tainted by the power of Propagation… Xuanquan didn't even want to imagine that scene.
No wonder the records were destroyed. Even if such a thing spread, you wouldn't know if they were Vidyadhara or the Swarm. It truly shouldn't exist.
"That was… so strange."
"It is a bit macabre. But it's clear that to transform into a Scion of Permanence, one must be reborn at least once. For some reason, this bug turned into this mess during the process."
'Cipher' wasn't a Vidyadhara, so she and Ruan Mei didn't have such a strong visceral reaction.
They were simply recording every bit of data and analyzing every possible issue. Hearing Xuanquan's lament, 'Cipher' quickly picked up the thread.
"Perhaps we could try adding a bit of Abundance? To pull the bug back from the brink of death and trigger the molting mechanism of Permanence?"
She thought of Yingxing's situation. Though she hadn't seen it herself, she knew from the others' descriptions that the deceased Yingxing had relied on the power of Abundance to complete his rebirth.
Maybe this process just lacked a bit of vitality to keep the subject breathing.
However… the creature's demise looked more like a sudden cessation of life rather than a natural death. It didn't look like it was just one drop of Abundance away from success.
To find the answer, 'Cipher' and Ruan Mei began further research. They approached it from the physical side, trying to manually control certain processes and interfere with the molting.
From the perspective of the Paths, they also tried to gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between these two powers.
Regarding Permanence—though its meaning implied existence—from the Vidyadhara's perspective, it was less about eternal life and more about a recurring cycle.
It was what the draconic legends called "Ouroboros."
Permanence wasn't about being immortal and unchanging; it was about constant rotation, a cycle that drew one circle after another rather than an endless line.
Propagation was different. It was an extreme form of "living." Born from loneliness and a craving for continuation, its concept was purely about expansion and survival. I must expand, I must live.
Such an extreme concept, when scrutinized, clearly clashed with the philosophy of Permanence.
Perhaps when Propagation split from Permanence, other concepts were added, making the two ultimately incompatible.
If that was the case… the Saint Graph she had given to Reveria—using Elation instead of Permanence—might have actually been the right choice.
Using Permanence might have just made things more complicated.
But this presented a problem. She couldn't exactly tear the Path of Propagation apart and only use bits of it. She wasn't an Aeon; how could she possibly do that?
Wait…
'Cipher' thought about her current abilities. While she didn't know her upper limits, extracting concepts from a Path was likely impossible.
She also couldn't think of a lie that would make the whole world believe she had achieved such a feat. She couldn't exactly livestream her ascension to Aeonhood.
But she could find a way to make others believe something else: "She could suppress the conflict between Paths, allowing certain concepts of Propagation to function."
She only needed to make Xuanquan believe it, and then let Xuanquan spread the word.
The lie would then take hold. It wouldn't need to shake the Paths themselves; it only needed to suppress the conflict. The difficulty was much lower. 'Cipher' felt that with enough effort and the wisdom of a genius, it might even be possible to actually do it.
As for how to make General Xuanquan believe…
If 'Cipher' were bold enough, she could directly use the power of Remembrance to alter Xuanquan's perception.
As long as Xuanquan believed, 'Cipher' could forge a bit of evidence, and the General would carry that belief to the rest of the Vidyadhara on the Fanghu.
Then, the lie would be established. Surely the power of a ruse could be triggered then.
However, that move felt a bit too "brute force" and lacked any real finesse.
Since it wasn't an urgent matter, 'Cipher' kept that plan as a backup. She'd study it more first; maybe she'd actually discover something real.
Watching 'Cipher' and Ruan Mei immediately reflect and dive back into their research, Xuanquan felt completely at ease. She chose to trust these two and solidified her resolve to stay on their good side.
This time, there really was hope for a Vidyadhara renaissance!
And… she looked at the Vidyadhara egg sitting on the table. Truth be told, Xuanquan quite liked the little thing.
Since it had inherited the power of her own flesh and blood, she felt a natural kinship with it. It wasn't right to leave the little molting fellow sitting here. Maybe she should go soak it in the sea?
With that thought, Xuanquan suddenly asked, "What do you plan to do with this little one?"
'Cipher' was still deep in thought.
Hearing the question, she looked up at the egg, then at Xuanquan, and said casually, "I was just going to find a random spot to raise it. Did you have something in mind, General?"
"I was thinking… I could help settle this egg in a place more suited for hatching. For instance, the ancestral lands of the Vidyadhara on the Fanghu."
Seeing Xuanquan be so proactive, 'Cipher' nodded. She figured it was a Scion of Permanence after all; hatching it in a proper environment wasn't a bad idea.
Who knows, maybe it would want to stay there after it broke the shell.
As for the risk of the Fanghu Vidyadhara discovering they had created a new dragon-kin, 'Cipher' didn't care. In fact, she welcomed it.
She had been wondering how to weave her lie, and now she wouldn't even have to.
"Very well. I'll leave it to you then, General. But once it hatches, we will still need to perform a thorough examination."
"I understand. I shall take my leave for now. And as a gesture of my sincerity, please take this General's Token. With this, the two of you may travel freely anywhere on the Fanghu."
Xuanquan knew 'Cipher' was tacitly agreeing to her ulterior motives. In return, she gave them her symbol of authority.
With this token, the two of them would face virtually no obstacles across the entire ship.
"Understood. Please, suit yourself."
After 'Cipher' replied, Xuanquan cradled the Vidyadhara egg and left the manor.
Just as 'Cipher' was about to dive back into her thoughts, Ruan Mei picked up the token engraved with the name "Xuanquan" and looked it over with a smile.
"You don't mind General Xuanquan taking that little guy out?"
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL