Chapter 52: Old Fogey's Advice
The old man waved his hand, and suddenly the time froze inside the room, leaving only the old man and Snowy unaffected. Snowy felt suffocated by the old man's power. She didn't expect to meet someone this unfathomable in the Eastern Region.
If the old man had a bad intention to her or Feng Xue, no matter if she were alone or joined hand with Feng Xue, they would be helpless to resist. In the end, she could only clench her fist and stare at the old man with vigilant eyes.
"You don't need to be so hostile to me. If I want to harm you, we won't have a chat like this right now. And who I am is not important. I'm just an old man that had long been forgotten, not worth mentioning. You can call me old man or old fogey like that rabbit lass or whatever," said the old man nonchalantly.
Then, he looked at Snowy with narrow eyes, "But you...you're far more interesting. Who are you, really? You shouldn't have existed, but yet here you are. And your soul also incomplete, unlike most living beings. Yet, you're obviously a human. How curious."
The old man fell quiet seemed to be deep in thought. He once again glanced at Snowy. After a moment, a small sigh came out from his mouth, "So you're that existence. You must be very important to her for her willingly paid such a price."
"Do...do you know my origin? What was my relationship with her?" Snowy choked back when she heard the word "her" came from the old man's mouth. She had a hunch that he must have known more about what had happened in the past. Her heart pounded wildly in expectation of uncovering some of the secrets of her origin. Alas, the old man's next word poured cold water over her.
"It's not my place to say. She must have her reason why she did this. You can only ask her directly to get an answer. Besides..." 'She will beat me like a dog if I reveal something to you and accidentally spoil her plan' The old man kept the continuation of his word to himself and shuddered as he imagined what will happen if she became furious.
"Besides what?" Snowy insisted on getting even the slightest clue about the goddess and her past.
"Besides, it's your business, not mine. I'm not that free to meddle with someone else problem, got it?" said the old man lazily while he rocked his chair and enjoyed the swing.
Snowy stared at him intensely, certainly won't give up easily. Feeling prickling sense on his skin, he heaved a deep sigh from the bottom of his heart before saying, "Go to the west. You'll find more clues about her. That's the only thing I can say about this matter, more than that won't be good for both of us..."
"Thank you..."
Snowy, actually still not satisfied by his answer but dropped her shoulder helplessly and let the matter rest. If the old man didn't want to speak anymore, she couldn't do anything to force him.
"What's your mission?" Asked the old man suddenly.
"Ascending to become a God," replied Snowy honestly.
"Why do you want to be a God? Is it only because of your mission?" The old man threw another question at Snowy.
" This...I..." Snowy stammered, not knowing how to answer the old man's question. If it were before, she would confidently give him a "yes." But, after experiencing her sealed memory, she becomes uncertain and doubtful.
Does she want to be a god?
The goddess told her that she deserved a happy life; wasn't her life blissful with Feng Xue and Feng Family now? Why didn't she just stay like this?
But, something deep inside her heart warned her if she didn't finish her mission, she would regret it for a whole life.
"It's a good thing that you feel doubt and questioning yourself. Just keep doing it until you got your answer." the old man nodded and continued, "You are indeed a miraculous existence. Once you complete your soul, nothing will bar your path to the apex of the mortal plane. However, ascending to a higher plane is a different matter altogether. You still lack something right now."
"I lack something?" said Snowy with a doubtful voice.
As far as she remembered, all of her previous hosts who had succeeded to become gods and goddesses only had to follow the quest and the mission provided by her. It didn't make sense that she was the only one who different.
"I know what you're thinking of. You shouldn't base your confidence on the fact that the others you have assisted had success before. Like I said before, you lack something that they have. Ponder it carefully. You'll get the answer eventually," said the old man as he dispelled his technique, and the time normally flew once again.
Snow didn't say anything and just nodded. Feng Xue, who didn't seem aware that Snowy and the old man had a private discussion before, felt a subtle change in the atmosphere between Snowy and the old man.
However, she decided not to pry further. She was confident that Snowy would tell her sooner or later.
"So you were that little bird yesterday? Quite a commotion you made," the old man chuckled as he looked at Feng Xue with a sentimental look, "It's very rare to see such a pure divine beast's bloodline nowadays. Consider this as your good fortune. I'll help you once; what you need from me?"
Although the old man was very amiable, Feng Xue felt that every word he uttered contained a powerful pressure as if it was a command. He felt like a primordial beast lording over myriad of divine beasts.
Feng Xue gulped several times and took a deep breath before she bowed and pleaded to the old man, "I need the Nine-Petal Lotus for my Father. Please, senior, I'll remember this debt forever."