Now that Zhou Mama's embezzled Holy Fire Sect assets were within Li Xuan's di hong bone ring, Li Xuan could only conclude that it was the Holy Fire Sect's destiny to suffer this calamity.
"Speaking of which, if it weren't for me, all these assets of the Holy Fire Sect would have been burned to ashes by Fang Muyang."
"It seems there's a destiny in the unseen; treasures belong to the virtuous."
Li Xuan shamelessly attributed his ill-gotten gains to fate.
Aymu and Xie Qingmo had never associated Li Xuan with the assets Zhou Mama had embezzled, so they didn't notice Li Xuan's inner thoughts.
After Li Xuan understood Aymu's trial mission, he became even more interested in other matters.
"Then what's the deal with Aymu calling me a Sacred Beast?"
Regarding this question, the two did not answer immediately, but first exchanged glances and nodded silently.
Xie Qingmo settled his qi in his dantian, slowly closed his eyes, and then uttered a single word:
"Open!"
The next moment, a semi-circular glass cover (barrier) covered their heads, isolating them from the outside world.
Li Xuan could sense that earth-attributed true qi filled the surroundings, so it was undoubtedly Xie Qingmo's doing.
"I didn't expect this guy's true qi attribute to be earth."
What caught Li Xuan's attention was that Xie Qingmo's qi manifestation was somewhat unusual.
The form he manifested was too real; it was almost as if matter had been created out of thin air.
"This seems different from the qi manifestation of ordinary Fifth Rank martial artists. Is his cultivation method special, or…?"
Li Xuan estimated that a Sect Elder couldn't possibly be only of the Fifth Rank.
This somewhat eerie special ability made him wonder if Xie Qingmo might be an expert of the Upper Three Ranks.
"If we look purely at its uniqueness, it's similar to the methods of Elder Ye and Chief Steward Shang."
Li Xuan observed the glass barrier, unable to resist looking at Xie Qingmo a few more times.
Only after the glass barrier was in place did Xie Qingmo continue:
"I have already isolated the inside and outside, Aymu, you can speak."
Inside the glass barrier, Xie Qingmo's voice sounded somewhat muffled.
Clearly, what they were about to tell Li Xuan was much more secretive than before.
Otherwise, when the two revealed their identities and origins, Xie Qingmo hadn't used such a method, but now he was.
Li Xuan couldn't help but wonder if he shouldn't listen to this matter about the "Sacred Beast."
But curiosity killed the cat, and Li Xuan couldn't control his curiosity now.
Besides, this matter seemed to concern himself.
At this moment, Aymu, with a serious expression, spoke to Li Xuan:
"An elder in the sect once obtained a prophecy at the cost of his life."
Then, Aymu solemnly repeated a passage in a Western Region language.
Of course, Li Xuan didn't understand a word of it.
After Aymu finished speaking, she began to translate the prophecy for Li Xuan:
"The general meaning of the prophecy is: A golden sun will rise from the darkness of the East, illuminating us in this world-destroying calamity, guiding us towards new miracles, and the World-Cleansing Blaze will burn forever in the world."
Aymu and Xie Qingmo's expressions were devout and serious. Li Xuan knew that they were not joking with him and were deeply convinced by this prophecy.
"Golden sun, darkness of the East, world-destroying calamity…"
Li Xuan extracted several keywords from the prophecy, and his small brows couldn't help but furrow.
"No matter how I listen, it doesn't sound like anything good is going to happen."
But after hearing this prophecy, Li Xuan also felt a bit confused, because no matter how he thought about it, he didn't feel that these words could be related to him.
When Li Xuan voiced his doubts, Aymu quickly explained:
"The elder who made the prophecy once clearly stated that what the prophecy corresponds to is not the human race, but the beast race."
At this, Li Xuan's heart stirred.
"Moreover, due to the Holy Fire Sect's uniqueness, we can clearly interpret the content of the last sentence."
"'The World-Cleansing Blaze will burn forever in the world'—this sentence should be related to our sect's inherited item, the World-Cleansing Blaze."
"The World-Cleansing Blaze is a powerful special flame that only the Saintess can control to some extent."
"According to the current interpretation of the prophecy within the sect, we need to find a beast race in the East that can control the World-Cleansing Blaze, which is the golden sun in the prophecy."
At this point, Aymu stared intently at Li Xuan, as if she had long ago concluded in her heart that Li Xuan was the golden sun in the prophecy.
But no matter how Li Xuan thought about it, the colors just didn't match up.
"But I'm Little Black Cat," Li Xuan thought helplessly.
If the colors were even slightly related, Li Xuan would have thought it was him, and then he would have let the Holy Fire Sect worship him properly, taking Princess Ankang and Yuer to the Western Regions to live in luxury and experience exotic customs.
But now, even with Li Xuan's thick skin, he felt it was a bit hard to connect himself with this prophecy.
"How can I make them believe that I am truly the Sacred Beast in the prophecy?"
Just as Li Xuan was deep in thought, Xie Qingmo, who was beside him, also spoke:
"This time, all the Saintess Candidates have a common mission, which is to welcome the Sacred Beast back to the Holy Fire Sect."
"Whoever can do it will directly become the next Saintess, without needing any further competition."
Li Xuan shook his head and smiled, immediately understanding why Aymu was so enthusiastic about this matter; it turned out to be related to her future.
But then, Xie Qingmo's tone shifted:
"However, if one chooses incorrectly, they will also be directly eliminated from the competition for Saintess, and Saintess Candidates who are eliminated have historically been required to sacrifice themselves to the Holy Fire."
Li Xuan stiffly turned his neck, looking at Xie Qingmo in shock.
"Sacrifice to the Holy Fire?" Li Xuan asked, tapping his tail lightly, in disbelief.
"As you imagined, Aymu has staked her life on you." Xie Qingmo confirmed Li Xuan's guess.
"Can't she change her choice?" Li Xuan gulped, swallowing his saliva.
Xie Qingmo gave a wry smile and shook his head.
At this, Li Xuan finally understood why Xie Qingmo had criticized Aymu so much earlier.
Even if it were Li Xuan himself, he would have given her a good scolding.
How could anyone treat their life so casually?
Moreover, from beginning to end, Li Xuan had no idea why or when Aymu had chosen him as the Sacred Beast in the prophecy.
"Girl, are you sick?" Li Xuan couldn't help but say to Aymu.
"No, I'm not sick!"
"Aymu is certain that Lord Li Xuan is the Sacred Beast in the prophecy!"
"My feelings can't be wrong!" Aymu said decisively, showing a different attitude in front of Li Xuan for the first time.
"The colors don't match at all, okay?"
"How exactly are you interpreting this prophecy?" Li Xuan asked speechlessly, feeling that Aymu's thought process was a bit too peculiar.
But Aymu didn't think so, and she firmly believed in her own judgment.
"Lord Li Xuan, don't worry."
"You are definitely the Sacred Beast, there's absolutely no mistake."
Li Xuan felt a sense of helplessness from being "fanatically believed" in.
Then, Aymu offered her interpretation of the prophecy.
"'A golden sun rises from the darkness of the East'—doesn't that mean that Lord Li Xuan, who is entirely black, will later become a savior like a golden sun, becoming the most dazzling existence?"
Li Xuan and Xie Qingmo were immediately stunned, and Xie Qingmo even carefully scrutinized Li Xuan.
"Indeed, he has entirely black fur, without a single stray color."
"Huh, and the base color of his pupils is golden. Could Aymu's interpretation be correct?"
Xie Qingmo broke out in a cold sweat, thinking belatedly.
Not to mention Xie Qingmo, even Li Xuan felt that Aymu had interpreted this prophecy too well.
"It seems to make some sense, oh."
That wasn't all; Aymu then pressed on while the iron was hot:
"Also, how could the Sacred Beast in the prophecy be ordinary? But is there any beast race in this world more extraordinary than Lord Li Xuan?"
"Not only can he write, but he is also considerate, gentle, kind, and adorable. When he encounters injustice in the world, he will bravely step forward."
"If Fang Muyang hadn't had your help, he would have only walked step by step towards a dead end, making Xixi, who is in the underworld, sad as well."
"Even I, when I felt troubled, it was Lord Li Xuan who thoughtfully took out the deeds to Hu Yu House to help me out."
"If such a Lord Li Xuan isn't the Sacred Beast, then who is!?"
Aymu spread her arms, displaying her frankness, and passionately questioned those present.
Li Xuan and Xie Qingmo both nodded repeatedly, almost clapping their hands.
Xie Qingmo, who had previously angrily accused Aymu of being irresponsible, now felt a pang of guilt, realizing that he had wronged her.
"The child has grown up and has her own ideas now," Xie Qingmo thought with satisfaction.
"Ah, I understand your thoughts now."
"But I still need to discuss this matter with your master."
Clearly, Xie Qingmo's tone was much better now than before.
Subtly, he also somewhat agreed with Aymu's choice.
But the most important thing was that the die was cast; they could only accept their fate now and hope that Aymu's judgment was correct.
Seeing these two talking to themselves and accepting the matter, Li Xuan was still a bit bewildered.
"Uncle, how did you get convinced so easily, hey!"
"I admit Aymu's interpretation has some merit, but it shouldn't be accepted so easily, right?"
Li Xuan felt that the Holy Fire Sect people weren't normal either.
"Meow!" Li Xuan cried out, attracting their attention, and then asked:
"You still haven't told me why the chosen Sacred Beast cannot be changed?"
"If Aymu encounters an existence that fits the prophecy better in the future, can she still not change her choice?"
Aymu said with some dissatisfaction:
"Lord Li Xuan, do you not trust Aymu's judgment that much?"
"Moreover, Aymu already gave you the World-Cleansing Blaze's seed earlier. This item is a token; once given, it cannot be taken back."
Aymu pouted, seemingly having seen through Li Xuan's intention to shirk responsibility.
"The World-Cleansing Blaze's seed?" Li Xuan was stunned for a moment, but then he thought of something.
He quickly rummaged through his di hong bone ring and soon found a flame-shaped crimson gem.
This gem was a gift Aymu had given him when they had made a transaction earlier.
He hadn't expected this thing to be the World-Cleansing Blaze's seed, and also the token by which a Saintess Candidate identifies the Sacred Beast.
Thinking about it now, Aymu had just given it to Li Xuan so carelessly back then, making Li Xuan completely unaware of its importance.
Moreover, for some unknown reason, the color of this gem had become somewhat duller than before, not as vibrant and dazzling as it used to be.
"That's right, Lord Li Xuan."
"This is the World-Cleansing Blaze's seed. Ever since I gave it to you…"
Aymu's voice gradually faded.
Xie Qingmo, however, narrowed his eyes, staring intently at the plain ring on Li Xuan's tail.
"A cat actually wearing a spatial artifact!"
"Oh, right, now that I think about it, when I first discovered him, I couldn't pull him in, which means he can resist my true qi."
"What is this cat's origin!?"
Xie Qingmo had been stunned by Aymu's kick earlier, and only now noticed these details.
The feeling in the unseen grew more and more intense.
Xie Qingmo knew he shouldn't think like this, but he just couldn't help it.
He didn't know when, but he had become increasingly inclined to Aymu's judgment, even believing it to be so-called destiny.
Aymu meeting Li Xuan was the beginning of the prophecy!
Deep down, Xie Qingmo knew he was rationalizing the current situation, but he couldn't deny that there was indeed a basis that allowed him to reasonably accept the facts.
And at this moment, a sudden clap of thunder echoed.
Aymu suddenly pounced in front of Li Xuan, tightly clutching the flame-shaped crimson gem wrapped around Li Xuan's tail, exclaiming:
"The seed has been absorbed!!!"
Upon hearing this, Xie Qingmo sprang from his chair, knocking over the chair beneath him, and hurriedly rushed forward as well.
"Aymu, are you sure?"
"The seed has really been absorbed?"
Xie Qingmo's breathing was rapid, and he could no longer maintain his composure.
"How could I remember that wrong?"
"The seed's color was richer before, and now it's faded. Besides being absorbed, what else could it be?"
Aymu gesticulated excitedly, almost jumping up and down.
"Lord Li Xuan, Aymu requests to give you a few big kisses!"
Saying this, Aymu was about to spread her arms and bring her sexy red lips closer.
Li Xuan unceremoniously extended a hind leg, pressing it against Aymu's cheek, causing one side of her face to be squeezed out of shape.
With Li Xuan's current cultivation, his strength was already astonishing. Aymu kept trying to get closer, but how could she approach even an inch?
Li Xuan pressed one leg against Aymu's face, then carefully observed the so-called World-Cleansing Blaze's seed.
In his impression, this gem had never been taken out since it was put into the di hong bone ring.
How did it inexplicably fade in color?
According to Aymu, this was a sign that the seed had been absorbed.
But Li Xuan had never felt any special power added to his body, had he?
"Could it be the di hong bone ring that absorbed it?"
"That's not very likely either, is it?"
"Could I have been cultivating in my sleep?"
Aymu and Xie Qingmo's reactions made Li Xuan feel a bit insecure.
These two guys were just too convinced.
At first, it was just Aymu, but now even Xie Qingmo was calling Li Xuan "Lord Sacred Beast."
"This is great, this is great!"
"We found Lord Sacred Beast!"
"Aymu, you don't have to be burned to death!"
"I don't have to suffer bad luck either!"
Aymu and Xie Qingmo, at some point, were holding hands and spinning in circles, celebrating with a dance.
Li Xuan saw that this simple dance was made beautiful by the two of them; indeed, the advantage of good looks cannot be ignored.
"Meow, they're quite good at singing and dancing!"
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