Chapter 576: Sharp-Eyed, Crazy Yakuza-Looking Highschooler
‘Alright, why is the gaze of this crazy high-schooler looking yakuza granny causing my intuition to go haywire like I’m standing next to a giant fire-breathing tiger…which I now I realize isn’t that dangerous in a world like this one…,’ Zhen Liu asked his brain trust of disembodied monster voices as he felt the burning gaze of the matriarch of the Zhen Clan trying to bore a hole through his head.
Out of the corner of his eyes, Zhen Liu could see how Zhen Xun Tian was not-so-subtly inspecting every last one of his family members like they were prize horses or gems waiting to be inspected. Alternatively, she was looking like a teacher picking out which grad students to be their protégé, an observation that made Zhen Liu inwardly chuckle due to how young she looked in comparison to his old looking uncles and father.
It wasn’t until she stopped looking over his cousins and directly at him though that Zhen Liu became a touch more…nervous.
‘Seriously, why does it feel like she’s trying to peer into my soul?’
While Zhen Liu was fairly certain that the structure of his face would not be a big issue to the Zhen clan’s matriarch, since she seems to be the type of person who cares more about what made up a warrior and not what they looked like. The fact that his cultivation was weird as hell however, would definitely draw her ire, or worst, her curiosity.
‘Hold up…’
The absolute worst thing that could occur though was if she knew exactly what Zhen Liu’s deal was.
The chances of that happening was relatively low, but the possibility still played out through Zhen Liu’s mind. Needless to say, it wasn’t a good scenario.
‘She’s that powerful?!’
=I mean…technically? None of the reasons for her power is too much for you and the kaijin to handle, provided that you all fight smart and together.=
‘I…I feel like that should go without saying…also I can’t tell if what you said is a good thing or a bad thing.’
<=Yes.=>
‘And the return of unhelpful answers…,’ Zhen Liu complained before moving on in an expedient fashion.
‘Alright, fine, what am I dealing with here?’
=Well if I were to hazard a guess, you are most likely feeling the immense power gap between you and Zhen Xun Tian. A Grandmaster is three stages below an Emperor, that is a difference many people can feel on their back like water pressure at the bottom of the ocean. Actually that’s an apt metaphor, I will have to get back to you on the exact pressure difference but for simplicity sake’s lets just say she can go deeper into the ocean of power than you can.=
‘That’s…alright.’
=That or the fact that every distinctive tattoo on her body are actually separate aether treasures of Silver grade minimum.=
‘Wait, what the fuck was that last bit?’
‘Wait, wait, hold the fuck up and back the fuck up,’ Zhen Liu interrupted, ‘the fuck you mean her body is covered in aether treasures?’
=Oh right, I should probably explain this more, if you look out of the corner of your eye, you’ll notice that her tattoos are subtly moving, yes?=
‘Uhh…’
‘…I am aware…,’ Zhen Liu lied with a face as straight as stone…or at least as straight as he could manage while talking to psychic spirits inside his head.
As quickly as he could, Zhen Liu flicked a gaze towards Zhen Xun Tian’s direction, all whilst maintaining his head low.
This would be the part where he would notice one of her tattoos, a snake shaped one that covered her arm, silently slithering across Zhen Xun Tian’s skin like it was a snake in a pond and then probably be told about something utterly baffling about her tattoos and how they could be used to manifest weapons or summons made of ink or something like that due to what these tattoos were made of.
(Un)fortunately, he was about to have an even bigger revelation dropped on his head like a ton of bricks and eggs.
‘Okay, I can see that her tattoos are indeed moving independently from her body, but what does that mean exactly?’
=Well, milord, the fact her tattoos are moving in such a way is a sign that those tattoos are made of spiritual essence extracted from-=
<
There was something about the man’s voice that seemed familiar to Zhen Liu, but he couldn’t quite pin it as to where or when he heard it. In short, he needed to look at the guy’s face.
Not exactly an easy task when one needs to maintain a pose to signify respect…
<
Then again, he could just be easily told who it was via the matriarch acting weird.
<
‘Alright, so you were saying about the tat-hold the fuck up, why am I sensing [Chaos]?’
<=Wait, what?=>
‘I said I’m detecting [Chaos]…and I think I can guess where it’s coming from…’
While still maintaining his bow, Zhen Liu did his best to angle his head in such a way that would allow him to stare in the direction of where the [Chaos] was coming from.
Once he found the source, he couldn’t tell if he was happy about it or absolutely terrified…because the source was none other than a certain old lady that had been trying to stare into his medical and personal history via boring a hole through the back of his head.
‘Of fucking course it’s coming from my Yakuza looking clan leader…but why didn’t detect I or you guys dectect anything until…guys?’
Much to Zhen Liu’s shock, but Logos and Pathos were stunned silent by the sudden revelation of this tattoo’s existence.
Not because of the fact this effectively meant that someone has gotten their hands on some piece of salvaged treasure of a prior lord, but because they knew exactly where that tattoo originated from.
=I know Pathos, I know. We were both there that fateful day.=
=Again, I know.=
‘Okay so ya both know something about this tattoo, cool,’ Zhen Liu interjected, ‘so mind explaining it to me?’
<=Well...=>
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Name: Spiritual Essence Tattoo.
Rarity:* to 10*
Material: a special ink made by infusing Rainbow Ink stone with the spiritual essence of high tier aether beasts or warriors.
Description: A special tattoo type aether treasure that has powers wholly unique per creative moment. No two tattoos are exactly the same after all, even if made from the same ink.
Notes:
Normally, an aether warrior can only handle about one of these things being applied to their bodies due to just how much aether can be densely packed into these things.
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Supposedly, even someone with zero aether flow like Zhen Liu could use one of these tattoos, provided he could find someone who could work the needle properly.
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A major reason why Logos and Pathos were freaking out about the tattoo on Zhen Xun Tian’s back is because it was made from the ink of a pair of oceanic kaijin that worked for the Invulnerable Storm Queen, aka, the predecessor who’s tomb Zhen Liu was going to raid while they were on Roaring Tide.
‘Oh….fuck.’
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<> Zhen Fei protested.
<
<
A part of Zhen Xun Tian was tempted to smack her disruptive subordinate for being so rude and loud, but another part of her…felt an opportunity for some amusement here.
‘Blood huh…oh that gives me an idea…’
