Chapter 3: Conning the Old Knight into a Fool, This Kind of Righteous Knight Is Easy to Fool
...
As Su Xiao pondered, he recalled the Seeker of Kings he had treated earlier. Before dying, the other had spoken a total of two sentences:
"Rosa... we found... the Dark Blood, must stop... the White King... and... the Knight."
"White King, you... cannot... slaughter... the Trace King, I saw... your... future."
Su Xiao had always taken the Seeker of Kings seriously. These cryptic fellows surely knew many secrets. From the other's prophecy, it seemed he and the old knight were allies? Ahem, "allies" didn't sound great, a bit like a criminal gang, so let's tentatively call them comrades.
If he and the old knight were comrades, the situation became quite interesting. Thinking this, Su Xiao took out two [Scroll Fragments] from his storage space.
"Deal."
Su Xiao tossed the two [Scroll Fragments] to the old knight, then caught the ring the other threw back.
[You have obtained an Iron Ring.]
[Iron Ring]
Origin: Main Painting World
Quality: White
Equipment Effect: None.
Rating: 10 points
Description: This is a ring of oath. Legend has it that the wearer of this ring can communicate with the Trace King. What an honor this is. Though they are kings, they use themselves as vessels awaiting death. They never crave death, yet they must exist toward it. Even if barely surviving, they must continue to exist. What... noble and unfortunate kings they are. Perhaps this is also why the Trace Kings yearn for darkness.
...
Su Xiao put away the [Iron Ring]. For now, it was hard to say whether he had gained or lost. If this had been during his lower ranks, he would have definitely stabbed the old knight and taken the reward. But after experiencing many worlds, he considered things more carefully, knowing to seek greater benefits. For example, how did the old knight go to the Nightmare World? And then come to the Sand World?
Clearly, the old knight was a very special existence. In the Seeker of Kings' prophecy, he and the old knight might be comrades. This was worth investing in, to see if it would bring unexpected gains later. Two [Scroll Fragments] were something he could afford. Not counting the four he had already submitted to the Young Miss, he still had thirty-four [Scroll Fragments] left.
"Thank you very much."
The old knight turned to leave, but then thought of something and stopped, saying, "Leave this inner painting world as soon as possible and return to the main painting world."
"Reason."
"I just went to the county capital ruins and saw the Sunbird Tahakaka circling in the sky. Look, over there. It actually left the Grand Cathedral, surprising. It might be going to clean up the excessive beast-transformers. No matter, the Sunbird Tahakaka isn't friendly to people, but it has no hostility either."
The old knight pointed to the horizon. Sure enough, even though it was night, the sky there was lit up by flames and sunlight.
Su Xiao estimated that there was a 50% chance the Sunbird Tahakaka was coming for him, and the other 50% was coming for Kaisa.
"Knight, let me ask you something."
"Please speak."
"If we suppose the Sunbird Tahakaka were to face off against the Flame Lord, what would happen?"
"The Flame Lord would be burned to death by Tahakaka's sunfire. Why would you think anyone in the Sand Painting World could deal with Tahakaka?"
The old knight looked at Su Xiao in confusion, but soon felt the surrounding heat increase. The sky was no longer dark. A being representing the sun flew in from afar. Its wingspan was over ten meters; the details were too unclear to see. The flames and sunlight around it were too bright, making it impossible to look directly at it.
Everyone looked up at the horizon. After the Flame Lord saw the Sunbird Tahakaka, he, who had been slaughtering wildly, turned and fled. He was especially fast, after all, having four legs. At this moment, the Flame Lord was like a wild donkey that had broken free.