Jing Yuan thought to himself, 'You're really looking for the "Reignbow Arbiter"!'
'Isn't it just a Heliobus? Is there really a need to mobilize this many Aeons?!'
Jing Yuan stepped forward. Seeing Akivili carrying a bag in hand, he thought for a moment and decided not to reach out to take it.
He led the Aeon inside.
He first had the attendants bring tea and snacks for three, then dismissed everyone.
After the last Cloud Knight left, Jing Yuan summoned the Lightning Lord.
A moment later, someone appeared out of thin air in the courtyard.
The figure was tall, with blue hair and black eyes. His face was cold, and the aura around him naturally inspired fear.
Jing Yuan bowed slightly and was about to salute when He pressed a hand onto his shoulder.
"No need for formalities."
The Aeon withdrew His hand and looked at Akivili.
He seemed to have expected the Aeon's return from death and said calmly, "Long time no see."
"Yeah. The last time we met... was at Xuling." Akivili sighed before setting the shopping bag on the table. He took over as the host instead and urged Jing Yuan and Lan, "Alright, sit down."
Jing Yuan was at a loss. He didn't know whether he should excuse himself or stay and listen to the conversation between the Aeons, so he could only look at Lan for guidance.
Lan said quietly, "Sit."
Jing Yuan nodded, his gaze falling on the tea set on the round table.
The two Aeons held exalted status, so naturally he should be the one to make the tea.
Just as he was about to step forward, Lan beat him to it and sat in the seat he had chosen.
Jing Yuan hesitated for a moment, changed direction, and sat in another seat.
Thousands of years ago, Lan had absorbed the knowledge of brewing all kinds of tea through constant exposure.
Now, touching the tea set again after all this time, He quickly recalled the steps.
Jing Yuan sat with his back straight, both hands clenched into fists and resting neatly on his thighs. His eyes stayed fixed on the "Reignbow Arbiter," wishing he could make the tea in the Aeon's place.
Watching Lan's increasingly practiced movements, Akivili suddenly remembered that back in Yaoqing, His best friend had once made tea for Him as well.
Just like a thousand years ago, He took out His jade abacus.
"He made tea for me too." The Aeon snapped a picture of those hands handling the tea set and shook His head with a sigh. "I'm done for. The 'Galaxy Rangers' are definitely going to hunt me down now..."
Akivili put away the jade abacus, rested His chin on one hand, tilted His head, and asked, "You don't seem surprised at all to see me..."
Lan's index finger held the lid firmly in place while His thumb and middle finger rested on the rim of the cup, gently swirling it.
"He wouldn't let you die."
"Yeah..." Akivili said with a troubled tone. "Only he would end up getting hurt."
His best friend didn't care whether he lived or died, but the moment someone else became involved, his attitude changed immediately.
He would believe that he was the one who had gotten Akivili killed.
Akivili didn't want His best friend to bear responsibility that wasn't his to bear.
So He avoided the subject in front of him and sought out the others who knew the truth.
The moment they returned to this world, Aha left the Luofu and vanished.
Akivili had many ways to contact Aha. The simplest was to recover His social account and send Aha a message.
Considering Aha's long record of past offenses, Akivili didn't bring the matter up and instead discussed the plan directly.
For some reason, Aha looked completely uninterested, as though ready to quit at any moment.
Only after Aha learned that Akivili would carry out the plan in Zero's place did He become interested.
After speaking with Aha, Akivili sought out the other person who knew the truth, Lan.
This Aeon was out in the sea of stars hunting abominations and might not notice messages on the account, so Akivili came to the Luofu General's residence and contacted Him through the Aeon's blessing.
Lan lowered His eyes and poured all the tea into the fairness pitcher.
He picked up the fairness pitcher and poured tea for Akivili first.
As if by habit, Akivili brought two fingers together and tapped the table three times.
This was the finger-tapping etiquette between equals.
Next came Jing Yuan.
Jing Yuan did his best to keep his voice steady.
"Thank you, Reignbow Arbiter..."
After thanking Him, he remembered the way juniors returned the gesture and hurriedly placed his right fist on the table, tapping it three times with his knuckles.
Akivili stared at the white steam rising from the teacup and said softly, "I think... it's because of that blade."
"It brought us back to life."
Lan neither agreed nor disagreed, only asked in return, "You came to see me just to discuss that blade?"
"Of course not."
Akivili had always wanted to meet Lan again.
Before dying, He had wanted to ask what had happened between Lan and His best friend at Xuling.
Why had His best friend's condition become even worse by the time He woke up?
Now, there was no need to ask anymore.
His best friend believed he owed Lan far too much, so he had been planning to broaden Lan's Path.
To draw enough hatred onto himself, he had spent hundreds of years living off others, and now he had handed the task to Akivili.
Akivili picked up the teacup and took a sip.
Compared to things like Paths or plans, the relationship between His best friend and Lan was far more important.
Unfortunately, His best friend couldn't bring himself to say anything gentle, and Lan... went without saying.
Expecting Lan to take the initiative would be easier than expecting Aha not to stir up trouble.
Among all the people and Aeons who knew the two of them, only Akivili could offer a few words of advice.
He tried to mend their relationship.
"Did you two have a fight? Have you made up now?"
Lan slowly shook His head.
"We didn't fight."
That man had simply attacked Him without warning and pinned the artery in His avatar's neck.
Akivili didn't believe Him, but still said, "As long as you didn't fight."
"Do you know about his plan on the Luofu?"
Lan looked at Jing Yuan.
Jing Yuan immediately put down his teacup and began explaining Zero's plan from the beginning.
Not hearing the familiar names, Lan asked, "Where are Daiyang and Chanzhen?"
'Why are they absent?'
"As for those two..." Jing Yuan pressed his lips together. "They work for the Ten-Lords Commission."
The Ten-Lords Commission was only deployed when capturing suspects or dealing with mara-struck individuals.
Lan asked again, "And the three people you mentioned?"
Jing Yuan thought to himself that they had tried and failed to bully Zero, then turned around and became his underlings.
The three of them respectively held important positions in the Sky-Faring Commission, the Realm-Keeping Commission, and the Cloud Knights.
Of course, Zero would never let the people of the Xianzhou take such risks.
He had learned the details in advance from the "Slave of Destiny," but he had no intention of following so-called fate.
Zero planned to have the avatars of the "Elation's Lord" make contact with the outside enemies.
The avatar playing a member of the Sky-Faring Commission would be responsible for bringing the enemy into the Luofu, while Zero and the other two avatars would cooperate with the enemy throughout the entire process.
Jing Yuan chose his words carefully.
"They're Zero's classmates."
Akivili clapped His hands.
"Lan, your and Aha's task is to replace those three."
Hearing this, Lan's expression became much more animated. He raised an eyebrow.
"He still dares to come?"
Akivili instantly remembered Aha's earlier attitude.
At first, Aha had resisted. But once He learned that His best friend wouldn't be present and that only Akivili would accompany Him on the mission, He agreed immediately.
Akivili couldn't help wondering if... He had chosen the wrong Aeon. Should He not have asked Aha to come to the Luofu?
He complained, "Is their relationship really that bad?"
Lan thought for a moment.
Across countless past cycles, one had repeatedly stabbed the other in the back, while the other had repeatedly stabbed back with a blade.
Even now, they still kept in touch...
Lan gave a fairly objective assessment.
"It's alright."
The corner of Akivili's mouth twitched. Picking up where Jing Yuan left off, He continued introducing the outside enemy to Lan.
Lan frowned slightly.
'Why did it have to be a Heliobus?'
Whenever a Heliobus encountered that person, it wished it could stay eight hundred meters away.
Seeing this, Jing Yuan immediately became alert.
This "Lord Ravager" seemed quite troublesome.
Akivili was puzzled and asked the very question that was on Jing Yuan's mind.
"What is it? Is there a problem?"
"Is this Heliobus... very powerful?"