The portable grandfathers that appear are all problematic.

After the old ghost and the female pope left Xue's house, Fafnir immediately followed, seemingly to see them off, but more like to show off in front of this "formidable enemy".

It's like a cat thinking it chased away an enemy because of its own hiss.

"You like Xue's Law?" Alora suddenly asked.

In that instant, Fafnir's cheeks flushed red, but she gritted her teeth and said, "Yes, what's wrong? I'm already living with my teacher!"

"Tsk..." Alora and the old ghost clicked their tongues at the same time. Fafnir was very annoyed by this teasing attitude towards the brat.

"She really is just a brat." Old Barak seemed to smile with relief, and even tried to reach out to pat Fafnir's head, but she nimbly dodged him.

“Yes, it’s too naive and too easy to understand.” Alora chuckled.

Fafnir stomped her foot in anger, preparing to jump up and kick old Barak in the knee, but the old undead easily dodged it, while also mocking her further.

"Your physical skills have a bit of an Imperial swordsmanship feel to them. Do you know any Holy Light?" the old undead asked Fafnir with the same joking tone he used to tease a silly child.

"Yes, my teacher taught me that! Wait, how did you know I know Imperial Swordsmanship and Holy Light?" Fafnir asked suspiciously.

"Hehe, I taught Xue boy his swordsmanship and holy light. A few months ago, he was just a useless high school student. I honed him into what he is today!" The old undead shamelessly took all the credit for himself.

Fafnir didn't believe it, but after the old undead conjured up a holy light to use as a flashlight, she immediately began to believe it.

"According to the way things are said in this world, little girl, you should call me Grandmaster!" the old undead continued to tease Fafnir. "Call me Grandmaster, or even Grandmaster-Grandmaster."

"do not want!"

"Alright, alright, Grandpa, you should say less." Alora covered her forehead, feeling a bit fed up with her grandfather.

“Actually, you don’t need to be so hostile towards me.” She looked at Fafnir and said very seriously, “Do you think Xue Lude is the kind of boy who can’t see through other people’s thoughts and is very oblivious?”

“Isn’t that right?” Fafnir replied.

She had actually hinted at it many times, but the teacher never responded. She always thought that her hints were too subtle, or that the teacher was too slow to understand.

Just like the male protagonists in the story.

“No, you’re wrong. Xue’s Law knows everything; he’s just rejecting you,” Alora said directly.

"What are you saying!" Fafnir instantly bristled, immediately adopting a round-headed, hunched-back, airplane-eared posture.

“There’s no need to be angry, because I’m just like you, someone who was explicitly rejected.” Alora smiled, revealing her maternal side, and reached out to pat Fafnir’s head.

Fafnir was about to attack, but suddenly she felt a stinging sensation in her nose and stopped making any further moves.

"Actually, I don't care at all how many lovers Xue has, how many women he's been with, or even whether he has me in his heart. My mindset is very simple; I'm just here to repay a debt of gratitude." Arora patted her head, revealing her purpose without any concern.

"Ok?"

"I even hope that Xue Dinglu can have more lovers, or that he still has beautiful fantasies about girls. This at least shows that he still has humanity."

"But as you see now, Xue Dinglu doesn't seem to have any extra sexual interest. He seems to be constantly running, never stopping, as if he would die if he stopped. He can only keep running, like a taut spring, without any moment of relaxation..."

"When I saw his appearance, I suddenly felt a little sorry for this child. He was just like before, never changed. I really hope that a girl can enter his heart, let him stop running, take a good rest, and stop being so tense."

Alora silently spoke her heart.

But Fafnir fell silent. She wanted to stubbornly claim that she was the one who had entered the teacher's heart, but the moment she opened her mouth, she dared not speak, no longer wanting to deceive herself with her stubbornness.

Did she really do it?

The teacher knew her feelings, but the teacher seemed completely indifferent...

The teacher only felt affection for him, the same affection one would have for the daughter of a deceased close friend, without any intention of crossing any boundaries.

"So, you don't need to be hostile towards me at all. I even really hope you can pry open Xue Dinglu's heart and teach that child what love is, but obviously, you're not qualified."

“Nonsense! That’s not true!” Fafnir continued to retort.

"Because you still don't understand that what Xue's Law needs is not a pretty face who admires him, but a true comrade-in-arms who can share his burdens and fight alongside him," Arora bluntly stated.

Fafnir was like a deflated balloon; she seemed paralyzed on the spot, having lost all her strength.

"Keep up the good work, girl. Actually, you don't understand who your enemy is yet. In fact, all the kids who like Xue Law are your teammates. And all of you have only one enemy: Xue Law himself."

"He has lost 'love' because of being tense for too long, and has become a 'machine' that wants to protect everything."

"If you can't figure this out, then you'll only ever be a little niece for the rest of your life, and you'll never be able to escape that identity. That's all."

The pope waved her hand and left Xuejiaqiao Village without looking back, preparing to return to the house they had rented near the guesthouse.

Fafnir stared blankly at the brightly lit street outside the village, watching the man she considered her enemy slowly walk away. For some reason, a sense of powerlessness and frustration quickly crept over her.

In fact, she had already realized that her teacher was so smart that he knew her feelings all along. Before, she had just been deceiving herself by thinking that her teacher might be a little slow on the uptake.

The teacher knew everything, but in fact, the teacher had already refused; it was just that the teacher shamelessly clung to her.

Fafnir felt disheartened in an instant. She was confident she could defeat any rival in love, but if the enemy was her teacher himself, she felt like an ordinary person facing an evil god.

There's no way I can win...

……

After leaving Xuejiaqiao Village, Old Barak was actually quite frustrated.

“Grandpa, just ask whatever you want to ask,” Alora said.

"Sigh, Xue boy, how did he become like this... I even suspect that my spell to turn him from an undead back into a human failed, and he is still an undead... Sigh..." Old Deng looked at the moon and sighed deeply.

"Yes, I originally thought I would be very excited to see the person I had missed for months, but now I only feel a little heartache."

She looked up at the sky and said quietly, "What kind of hardships did he go through to make his heart so broken? He was clearly just a passionate and somewhat immature kid."

"Sigh..." Old Barak also sighed.

He actually hoped that by being silly and playing the clown, he could make Xue Dinglu smile and relax a little. But what they saw now was not a vibrant child, but more like an old man who was on his deathbed.

His maturity beyond his years, his sophisticated way of handling things, and his meticulous mindset—this maturity far beyond his years is what worries them the most.

He should have been a passionate, idealistic teenager, forever young, forever energetic, and forever moved to tears.

But the reality is quite the opposite.

"So, that's why I wanted to save this child. Maybe it's maternal love, or maybe it's just a simple desire to repay a debt of gratitude. I don't think he should be like this."

The two stopped and looked at the bustling metropolis. For some reason, they suddenly felt a sense of unreality.

"Alora, I feel like we're all the same, we're all losing some beautiful things, happiness, joy, the future... these beautiful essences that belong to us seem to be slowly fading away..." The old undead looked up at the sky, and he suddenly felt lost as well.

"Perhaps." She silently looked at the beautiful world and closed her eyes. "I will help him, no matter what the cost. Perhaps what I need to do is not to cause him trouble, but simply to accompany him."

"Let him know that even in the most difficult times, he has someone to confide in and rely on. Companionship is the most enduring expression of love."

The old ghost could only respond silently.

The two walked further and further away, disappearing into the bustling metropolis.

……

When Fafnir returned home, she found that Xue Lude was no longer in the living room. She silently went to his room, which was separated from Xue Lude's room by a second-floor living room.

Fafnir turned the doorknob and found that Xue Dinglu had locked the door, and there was no light inside.

But then, as if she had made a decision, she took out a key from her pocket—a key she had secretly made—and silently pried open Xue Dinglu's door, tiptoeing inside...

Chapter 372 Authority and the Fruit of the Divine Tree

Fafnir always felt that her teacher was like a source of light in the sky.

He brought warmth to everyone and pulled himself out of that dark and cold hell, even giving himself light and heat with all his might.

This warmth was something she had never experienced before, so she regarded this light as everything to her. However, when she really wanted to chase the light, she found that the source of the light was hundreds of millions of kilometers away from her.

In fact, the light treats almost everyone equally; the warmth it gives is for everyone, and it is not special to itself.

So she had already given up a long time ago. She really couldn't imagine that her teacher would genuinely like someone. What he loved was too grand, as grand as a light source hanging high in the sky.

What I really want isn't much; it's just a little bit of warmth that's spread over me, and that small room will do.

If one were to actually try to bring that light source into their small room, what awaits them might not be a bright future, but rather themselves turning to ashes in that firelight.

She actually knew a long time ago, but...

I'm not reconciled...

So she also had some dark thoughts; she thought about secretly getting the key to the teacher's room and then finding an opportunity to get in...

The room was dark, with no lights on and no other light source. She crept up to the bed and moved toward the middle of the bed.

She was only wearing a nightgown, with pure white stockings on her slippers, making a slight squeaking sound.

However, when Fafnir crawled into bed, she paused for a moment.

The bed was completely cold, as if no one had ever been inside.

She turned on the light, but there was no one in the room. She froze for a moment. She had seen Xue Luding enter the room, and she had even seen the light turn off through the crack in the door. But now, where was the teacher?

……

At this time, in a region of the universe unknown to anyone, was the meeting place of the Apostles—the Mist Council.

After Xue arrived, Number 10, who was standing next to him, suddenly said, "These days, you've finally started to show some of the apostle's aura."

"Hmm?" Xue Dinglu responded with a puzzled tone.

"You've begun to grasp the power of authority, haven't you? Even if your grasp is still very superficial, you should already realize how powerful this force is, right?" Number 10's voice seemed to belong to a clear-headed young girl.

Her figure was actually not clearly visible in the mist. She was not tall, and he had hardly ever interacted with her before. Xue Dinglu had always thought she was some kind of dwarf.

Whether intentionally or wanting to explain things properly to the new apostle Xue Dinglu in the manner of a senior, she said: "Authority is the most fundamental power to transcend the norm, that is, to get rid of one's original weak body and completely transform into a concept-like life. This is the true power of the apostles."

"Before, you didn't deserve to be called an apostle; at most, you were just a slightly stronger human. Now that you've gradually gained control over your own authority, you seem to have some merit."

Her tone was arrogant and disdainful, and coupled with her short stature and girlish voice, she seemed like a little devil.

However, Xue Luding would never believe that this was her true form. After all, he himself was able to enter the Mist Council through disguise, and the other apostles would only be disguised even more thoroughly, or perhaps the Sixth Apostle was so powerful that he didn't need to disguise himself at all.

“However, based on my understanding, the power of authority is generally only held by planetary consciousness. So, those of us who hold the corresponding authority are just moving planetary consciousness. What is the fundamental difference?” Xue Dinglu said casually.

He was actually testing the waters. So far, apart from planetary consciousness, Xue Law could only think of the Evil Eye and the Mimic King as those who could wield power.

Even if the Apostles are beings who wield authority, they are essentially just moving planetary consciousness. Are they really that much stronger than a regular Tier 5?

Xue Luding suddenly thought of the death of the Ninth Apostle. He was killed by the siege of several Tier 5 members of the Star Squadron, the suppression of the world consciousness of the Super Iron Curtain, and Xue Luding's sneak attack with a spatial slash.

It can be said that even the Ninth Apostle, who is considered the weakest in the council, still has a combat power several times higher than that of a regular 5th-tier apostle.

Does this involve the power of authority?

"Heh, far from it." Number 10 said, but didn't explain his thoughts further to Xue Law, as if he just wanted to show off in front of Xue Law.

This made Xue Dinglu frown. Were they trying to pique his interest and then play riddles?

Riddler, get out of Parliament!

At the same time, through this information, Xue's Law could know that each of the Apostles was no longer an ordinary enemy. At the very least, they were all human beings who held a portion of power, just like himself now, or the demons of hell.

No, the apostles are more like the final form of demons, demons that can break free from their original concepts and transcend.

It is likely that the previous civilization of Hell created "artificial gods" because they had angered other apostles and their followers, and then they analyzed the apostles' plans. Therefore, the essence of artificial gods is actually another kind of apostle, namely, humans who hold power.

However, whether the civilization of Hell went astray or failed, the artificial gods ultimately did not become apostles, but demons.

Could the difference be due to the fruit of the divine tree?

Or perhaps it's the spiritual energy absorbed by the sacred tree?

So, is the reason why the demons of hell are desperately trying to capture humans, essentially to address their spiritual problems?

After all, humans are essentially descendants of the King, and all humans in the universe have evolved in a similar way under the influence of the King. So-called spirituality is the pursuit of the King's original power.

Therefore, Xue's Law may have discovered the essential source of power for the Apostles.

But he just asked quietly, "However, my friend told me not to use this forbidden power, saying that it would make me lose myself."

"Hmph, that's true. As a newcomer, you don't have any prepared fruits, so it's understandable that you'd have such questions. Once you've acquired enough fruits, you won't ask such foolish questions anymore." A mocking voice, like that of a little devil, rang out.

But Xue's pupils suddenly contracted.

In that instant, it was as if all the intelligence and information were connected. Why were the apostles desperately seeking the fruit? Why did even the top apostles who wanted to advance to the sixth-order true god, and even the true master of the Mist Council, treat the fruit as hard currency for trade?

Even an apostle's lifespan would be hundreds of millions of years, spent exploring the cosmos to find more farms to cultivate the divine tree...

By wielding the power of authority, and gradually purifying oneself, one draws ever closer to the power of the King…

Until he becomes an alternative kind of Supreme King, that is, Rank 6!