Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1080: How Could There Be a Path to Immortality in This World? (88) – Ingrained Flaws

Luo Qiu knew that everything in front of him wasn't physical, but that didn’t hinder his communication with Cicero... or rather, even if it were physical, it might not feel as real as this—purely in terms of sensation.

In the courtyard, a small blue bird suddenly spread its wings and flew to the veranda, landing on Cicero's shoulder as if looking for food.

Cicero smiled faintly. The little bird on his shoulder, startled, immediately took off—then in the next moment, it flew to Luo Qiu. Luo Qiu raised his finger, and the bird perched on his knuckle.

He could feel its weight on his finger.

"This bird is called the Tilanyan," Cicero said with a smile. "In our culture, it symbolizes exploration and forward momentum."

Luo Qiu glanced at Cicero and noticed the same bird, wings outstretched, embroidered in blue thread on his robe.

"Consider it a mark of the academy we come from," Cicero said casually, noticing Luo Qiu’s gaze.

Luo Qiu nodded. From the moment they met, Cicero had given him the impression of being deeply knowledgeable… “Scholar” was indeed a fitting title.

"Mr. Cicero," Luo Qiu said, slightly tilting his finger as the blue bird flew away. Watching it flutter into the air, he added, "You seem to have known I would come?"

"Rather than knowing you’d come," Cicero replied with a smile, "it’s more accurate to say that only certain individuals can arrive. Others may have means to predict their future paths, but you... I doubt that’s possible.""You said, 'certain individuals'?" Luo Qiu tilted his head, looking into Cicero’s eyes.

Even if this was only a remnant consciousness, Luo Qiu believed it had genuine emotion—after all, it could construct such a realistic courtyard. It wasn’t just preserved memory; it could think on its own.

"As the sole orthodox agent of the Root, you should know more than I do—or rather, I should be the one asking you questions," Cicero said, gazing straight into Luo Qiu’s eyes.

Luo Qiu simply shook his head.

Cicero opened his mouth slightly in surprise. He paused, visibly puzzled, then slowly said, "The Root is singular, but the paths to reach it are not. However, regardless of the path taken, there is always a transitional zone before reaching the Root. Let’s call this place the Zero Point Field."

"Zero point?"

"Yes, zero point," Cicero nodded. "It’s the balance between positive and negative, the place where opposites coexist—the final step before reaching the Root. Anyone who reaches the Zero Point Field becomes a candidate agent of the Root and gains partial authority over it... What? Is there something you don’t understand?"

To Cicero’s observation, Luo Qiu appeared calm.

Luo Qiu shook his head and said, "I understand many things. Before entering the Penglai Treasure Vault, I knew nothing of this. But the longer I stayed, the clearer it became. After reaching the Penglai Palace, I realized the connection between us… Though I can’t yet articulate it clearly, perhaps you can think of it as: ‘Once a new concept appears, it automatically fills a gap in my knowledge, allowing me to understand it instantly.’ What I don’t yet comprehend is the state itself—or more precisely, its essence."

"How enviable," Cicero sighed. "Don’t be confused—this is a power bestowed upon you by the Root. In future Main Worlds, many theological doctrines will claim gods are omniscient and omnipotent—but those claims are flawed. Their concept of a god never truly reached that level. Once you’ve entered the Zero Point Field, you’ll know—true omniscience and omnipotence belong only to the Root. Your confusion about this state is because you haven’t been its agent for long... your biological intellect hasn’t yet adapted. But with time, you will... though once you do, that may not be a good thing."

At this point, he looked seriously at Luo Qiu and said,

"When your vision holds only black and white, when everything becomes simple, when every mystery is solved—everything becomes blank to you, and you lose all sense of purpose. Because from the beginning, you were the richest at the origin and end of time and space… yet also the most devoid of everything."

Luo Qiu couldn’t help but smile.

Cicero looked curious.

Luo Qiu said with a self-deprecating chuckle, "We have a saying: ‘It’s easy to talk big when you’re not the one struggling.’ Anyone who’s ever struggled probably dreams of reaching our level. And yet, we—who’ve already reached it—are here discussing how dull and empty it is."

"That’s perfectly normal," Cicero replied. "Misunderstanding, imposing one’s will, or inserting emotion—that’s human nature. Even I couldn’t avoid jealousy. I wanted to go further and see what being the true agent would be like... But in truth, compared to us who labored so hard to reach the Zero Point Field—what did you do? Were you just incredibly lucky?"

Luo Qiu said calmly, "The Boss before me clearly intended for me to take up the mantle. But why me? I suppose that’s something I’ll have to figure out going forward."

"You coming here won’t answer all your questions," Cicero shook his head. "In the Zero Point Field’s contest, I clearly lost. I had no choice but to hide in this half-abandoned early Main World. I was even betrayed by a former student—now, all that remains of me is this lingering consciousness."

"Do you resent your student?" Luo Qiu asked curiously—he knew this student was the creator of the current Penglai Treasure Vault.

Cicero replied, "Drekeya wasn’t among my most brilliant students. In fact, you could call him mediocre… yet he stayed by my side the longest. Can you guess why?"

Luo Qiu was reminded of two types of graduate students that stayed with professors—those with enough talent, and those who lacked it but made up for it with diligence.

"I suppose your student was the hardworking type?"

Cicero nodded. "Indeed. No matter how tedious or avoided the task, he was always the first to step up and never asked for anything in return. I wouldn’t say he had a noble character—he simply understood me very well. Don’t be surprised—before I reached the Zero Point Field, I was just another ordinary being, filled with the same ingrained flaws as everyone else. I liked obedient people too."

"Sometimes, so do I."

They exchanged a glance, then smiled at each other.

"Even when I failed in the struggle and was at the end of my life, Drekeya still stayed by my side," Cicero said with a smile, as if telling someone else’s story. "I knew very well he only stayed for my legacy… but in the end, I became curious—how far could he go? If he reached my expectations, I even considered passing everything I had to him."

"Did he succeed?" Luo Qiu asked.

"No," Cicero shook his head. "Because part of me didn’t want him to be the lucky one… Why should I give away what I fought so hard for to someone who stayed beside me just for that purpose?"

"Ingrained flaws?" Luo Qiu asked.

“We all have some, more or less,” Cicero nodded. “Maybe that’s exactly why we’ve never been able to break through the ‘Zero Point Field’ and go further. In truth… how could I not have wanted to be like Drekeya? If I could have served alongside the orthodox proxy, until the day he chose to pass everything down to me… Only at the end of my life did I realize that I was, in essence, the same as Drekeya. And because of that self-loathing, I rejected him—cruelly. The result was obvious—he became the one who ended my life… in boundless rage.”

“He’s already awakened,” Luo Qiu suddenly said.

“He should be awakening by now,” Cicero replied. “Even though my true self couldn’t bring itself to pass everything on to him, if he were to go through some trials—if his journey to obtain it were more difficult—then I might’ve been able to accept it. But what I didn’t expect… was that the orthodox successor had actually changed. And not just once.”

Not just once?

Luo Qiu was surprised, mouth slightly open… So there was someone even before the previous one?

“Can I ask you,” Cicero said with curiosity, “the name of the orthodox proxy you know?”

“As the current official proxy, shouldn’t I already know that?” Luo Qiu replied frankly. “But maybe it’s that flaw you talked about—if I can save effort, I will. If there’s an advantage to gain, I won’t say no.”

Cicero stared deeply at Luo Qiu for a long time before slowly saying,

“Karla Fal… once the Emperor of the Eternal Kingdom.”

...

...

A massive falling sphere slammed into a spinning metallic pillar below, its impact altering its descent trajectory.

Count Drekeya's eyes flashed with irritation. Missing it when it was within reach was deeply frustrating. But he swiftly changed direction.

What he hadn’t noticed—or paid any attention to—was that the Constructed Body pinned by the prototype Gaia suddenly shattered!

It fragmented into shards of light, like a broken mirror...

At that moment, as Count Drekeya was just about to reach the falling sphere, strands of golden light materialized beside him, then coalesced... forming a new Constructed Body!

“What?!” Count Drekeya exclaimed in shock!

The Constructed Body let out a furious roar and, with a sudden motion, broke through Drekeya’s barrier and grabbed his neck!

“You…” Count Drekeya felt an unprecedented pain.

“Die!”

The Constructed Body clenched Drekeya’s neck and smashed him viciously into a nearby metal wall!

It then slammed Drekeya’s body along the wall, dragging it across forcefully.

“Damn it, damn it, damn it!! You damn Dragonkind!!! AHHH—!!!”

“Sick of it! ‘Dragonkind’ this, ‘Dragonkind’ that!!” The Constructed Body’s golden light flared.

“Stop acting like you’re some big deal, spouting nonsense no one understands, you lunatic! If you’re gonna self-obsess, at least have some limits!!!”

“Dragonkind!!!” Count Drekeya roared.

In the blink of an eye, his body vaporized into black smoke, slipping from the Constructed Body’s grasp—this eerie power reminded it… reminded Long Xiruo of the club’s Black Soul Envoy!

So close… just a little more and the outsider could’ve been killed!

“Gaia! Level-2 restriction release!” Count Drekeya roared.

“No one can stop me! Even if you’re Cicero’s legacy… you can’t!!!”

AAAHHH—!!!

Suddenly, a shrill, ear-piercing scream echoed, sending shivers down spines… All around, above and below, the entire space transformed into a thunder zone!

Violent lightning lashed out in all directions, as if trying to obliterate everything—

And its source… was the prototype Gaia!

The prototype Gaia was clutching its head in agony, clearly in immense pain—

The scream was coming from it!

Under the terrifying lightning bursts, the Constructed Body of the True Dragon of Divine Land was instantly struck down—

It was far beyond what it could endure!

As the prototype Gaia spiraled into madness, attacking indiscriminately, Count Drekeya finally reached the massive sphere!

The sphere, after falling, was lodged onto a platform!

But to Count Drekeya’s horror, the prototype Gaia’s attacks weren’t distinguishing friend from foe—

A massive bolt of lightning traveled down a metallic wall…

And struck the sphere directly!

BOOM—!!!

The massive sphere exploded on impact!!

“No—!!!” Count Drekeya cried out in furious despair!

From the debris, a golden orb the size of a fist shot out!

“The Book of Alaya!”

Count Drekeya lunged for the orb without hesitation.

Bang—!!!

Just then, the metal wall beside him exploded—

A small figure stepped out from the breach!

The golden orb flung from the shattered sphere landed right in front of her…

And she instinctively caught it.

It was—Su Zijun, who had charged in all the way here!

She still held the battered remains of a Combat-Type Gaia in one hand.

“Whoa… so lively in here?” Su Zijun glanced around.

Then raised the glowing orb now in her hand and frowned,

“What the heck is this thing?”

(End of Chapter)