“I think you must be the only Outsider.”
While Xia De’s mind wandered, the murmuring voice in his ear said softly.
“Why?”
“The arrival of an Outsider is a stroke of luck among luck; for one to appear is already a Miracle. There cannot be a second one.”
“Then why did the little match girl…”
“There are no coincidences in this world, only inevitabilities piled upon inevitabilities. Besides, haven’t you already guessed the reason?”
Xia De smiled. If there was no second Outsider, then the answer was indeed very clear.
Today was Wednesday; past midnight, exactly one week since he last used the time key:
“It seems I, this Outsider, am not entirely without resources.”
The woman’s pleasant laughter echoed in his ear once more.
“Xia De, did you hear me?”
Realizing that Louisa was speaking to him, Xia De looked up and said apologetically, “Sorry, I was thinking just now. What did you say?”
“I said, if you don’t control your cat, it’s going to jump out of the basket,” the blonde Writer said, touching her earlobe.
“Meow~”
Mia let out a “threatening” meow at Louisa; she was almost able to jump onto the dining table.
After dinner, Xia De bid farewell to Louisa. Before leaving, he also inquired about newspaper advertisements. Louisa directly pulled out a handful of business cards from her handbag and handed them to him; they were all newspapers Louisa had worked with:
“One of them is bound to suit you.”
Anticipating the events of the night, Xia De did not go anywhere else after bidding farewell to the Writer. Instead, he carried Mia directly back to Saint Delan Square. The time key could only be used after midnight, so from returning home at 6:30 PM until midnight, nearly six hours, Xia De still had to wait.
Of course, he did not waste time. He continued to help Louisa translate “The Four Elements of Pursuit: Wind and Fire” and even found time to continue reading “crazy light chaser.”
He calculated the time and, confirming that he could now use the time key, excitedly stood up from his study chair.
Mia had been sleeping on the desk, by Xia De’s hand. She was startled awake by Xia De’s movement, but the entire cat remained lazily sprawled on the desktop, only peeking at him with her eyes.
“Since the Divine Radiance has already lit up around me, it’s time to go and see the stories of the past.”
He thought excitedly, taking out the cracked key from the locked drawer.
He temporarily left all the relics he possessed on the table, closed the study door from the inside, then gripped the key and whispered, “May the World Tree bless me in time.”
The key was inserted into the lock, and with a twist, it made a clicking sound again. He pulled open the study door, and behind it was a misty door sealed by thick fog.
The orange cat watched this scene in astonishment, but before she could get up, Xia De had already stepped into the misty door:
“Mia, see you in three seconds.”
His foot landed, and he was surrounded by white mist.
The murmuring voice echoed in his ear. After preparing himself, “the other me” received information from the fallen Old God, Father of Infinite Trees:
“Outsider, you have entered the Time Corridor.”
“Message from the Old God ‘Father of Infinite Trees’:”
“fifth epoch 1068, Autumn, South Continent, Hope Town.”
“Event: Old God ‘Innocent Creator’ falls.”
“Duration 10 minutes (2/3).”
“You have gained additional information.”
“The figure of Father of Infinite Trees continues to observe you.”
“The Old God of Time’s test for you will continue.”
“Before the Old God ‘Innocent Creator’ falls, witness his last wish.”
“The Old God of Time will grant you rewards: Miracle - Chaotic Time Blade, Miracle Ling Rune - Echo.”
Aside from the addition of words like “continue” and “extend,” the only difference was the “two-thirds” hint after the duration, but it seemed the time limit for this instance was still ten minutes.
Since he was mentally prepared, Xia De didn’t ask any more questions. He couldn’t waste time here if he wanted to step from the white mist into Hope Town, but he didn’t expect the woman’s voice to continue:
“Manifest your Destiny Ring.”
“Why?”
Though he asked, he still complied. Bells chimed, and steam appeared accompanied by whistles.
A brass ring rotated behind him, and as his Destiny Ring manifested, Xia De surprisingly saw his skin crack inch by inch, with golden light shining beneath the fissures.
This was the physical state he had seen during the day, but during the day, it was because he was in a dream, and his mental and spiritual states were highlighted.
“Why does manifesting the Destiny Ring here also cause the Divine Radiance state to appear on my body?” he inquired.
“The Knowledge within the Divine Radiance tells me that the ‘Time Corridor’ you are currently in is a special space, and the power of the Divine Radiance is even more pronounced here,” the murmuring voice said. Xia De, meanwhile, held up his hand, looking incredulously at his almost shattered skin and the brilliant light beneath:
“How interesting. The spiritual body state can resist invasions from dreams, but what use is this state appearing on the physical body?”
“I think at least this time, you won’t need the protection of that Old God; you can face him directly.”
Withdrawing his Destiny Ring, he then took another step into the dense fog. The surrounding mist vanished, and Xia De returned to the street that resembled a backward medieval town.
Unlike last time, it was deep night this time, and the listless townspeople were nowhere to be seen on the street. Looking around, the entire town stood in the profound long night. Further in the distance seemed to be continuous mountains, like giant beasts crouching in the darkness.
The air still had a pungent smell, and aside from the toy store in front of him, no other house had its lights on.
He looked up at the sky, where dark clouds obscured the stars and moon, making it impossible to determine the exact location by remembering the constellations.
Xia De did not waste time and directly pushed open the door to the toy store.
The inside and outside of the store seemed like two different worlds. Nothing had changed here; the air was filled with the sweet smell of candy, and the shelves were packed with a dazzling array of toys. A young man wearing a ridiculous clown hat stood behind the counter, woken by the ringing of the bell as the door opened.
He looked up, intending to welcome a customer, but seeing it was the young Detective, he did not offer his usual spiel.
The Old God smiled and said, “It seems you truly have found the Divine Radiance?”
“Yes, it was truly not easy,” Xia De replied.
He didn’t believe any mortal other than him would have the opportunity to acquire the “Divine Radiance.” Completing the Old God’s task was indeed unimaginably difficult. Moreover, he even suspected that other investigators encountering the Father of Infinite Trees’s tasks would definitely not face such difficulties.
Xia De gazed at the young man. Although he still felt a great sense of discomfort, as long as he averted his gaze, maintaining normal activities would at least not be affected. The other party was right; without the Divine Radiance, he wouldn’t even have the qualifications to converse with a God for an extended period. The “Divine Radiance” was the first step in undertaking this task.
