Saat Lex mengikuti Vera, dia tidak bisa menahan pikirannya agar tidak melayang. Terasa seperti sangat lama sejak dia melihat antarmuka itu. Dia baru saja melangkah pertama ke dunia kultivasi, dan kelima item yang dia lihat di depannya semuanya membingungkan dan menakjubkannya. Tidak satupun dari mereka yang remot pun murah. Atau lebih tepatnya, bahkan menyebut mereka sangat langka mungkin masih kurang.
Alam Midnight sangat berharga, mengandung bahan-bahan langka dalam skala universal, apalagi mengandung bahan tingkat Dao seperti Getah. Tapi, mengabaikan Getah, seluruh alam itu kurang berharga dari sekadar Gelang Narn.
Dua teknik kultivasi itu unik di seluruh semesta, Lubang Cacing Esensi adalah entitas aneh yang tidak bisa dia penilai sampai sekarang, dan Napas Elizabeth begitu luar biasa sehingga bahkan Sistem tidak bisa mengidentifikasi fungsinya.
Masing-masing item itu unik, dan meskipun seharusnya mereka unik di seluruh semesta, entah bagaimana dia sudah menemukan begitu banyak dari mereka lewat alam Asal. Artinya either mereka semuanya terletak di alam Asal, atau ada sesuatu di alam itu yang spesifik.
Lagi pula, satu-satunya alasan dia bertemu Celestial yang memiliki Berkah Mo adalah karena Sistem. Mungkin semua item ini berkaitan dengan sistem.
Dia tidak tahu, dan tidak masuk akal merenungkannya karena dia tidak bisa menemukan satupun dari mereka saat ini, apalagi membutuhkannya. Tentu, akan bagus kalau dia bisa mendapat Gelang Narn, tapi dia ragu itu akan mudah, apalagi gelang itu bisa dideteksi oleh Dao Lord.
Meski begitu, curiga bahwa dia bertemu banyak item langka yang seharusnya unik di seluruh semesta. Dia bertanya-tanya apakah dia akan pernah bertemu Napas Elizabeth, dan mengetahui apa sebenarnya itu. Sesuatu yang bahkan Sistem tidak bisa menilai… itu harta yang masih bisa menggoda dia pada titik ini.
Sayangnya, mendapatkannya juga akan menarik murka Elizabeth, kelihatannya. Dia tidak begitu yakin ingin melakukannya.
"Jadi, masalah apa yang kau hadapi sekarang?" tanya Vera setelah beberapa saat diam. Kelihatannya dia bosan.
"Nggak terlalu menarik kali ini," jawab Lex. "Cuma mencari kuil hilang di ladang asteroid untuk menemukan hologram hidup. Aku ingin mengundang mereka jadi tamu di Inn — bukan berbahaya."
"Membosankan," kata Vera, menoleh. Dia berharap belajar sesuatu yang bisa mengalihkan perhatiannya dari masalahnya sendiri. Tapi tanpa gangguan, dia justru mempercepat langkah dan membawa Lex ke salah satu kota baru yang dibangun di dalam Inn.
Untuk tepatnya, dia membawa Lex ke taman vertikal raksasa yang didesain Lex untuk binatang lebih dari manusia. Ini mengejutkan Lex, dan dia cepat mengingat nama semua tamu di dalam taman itu, tapi tidak bisa nebak siapa yang akan mereka temui. Tidak satupun dari mereka menunjukkan tanda-tanda jadi oracle.
Jarang Lex kaget di dalam Inn lagi, itulah kenapa saat mereka berhenti di depan panda besar yang tidur, Lex sangat kaget.
"Ini oraclenya?" tanya Lex. Panda itu tidak做别的 selain tidur sejak datang ke Inn! Bukan berarti Lex menghakimi atau apa, tapi tetap!
"Jangan menilai buku dari sampulnya. Master Bobo adalah oracle tingkat sangat tinggi. Sampai aku pulihkan kemampuanku, kau bisa mengandalkannya. Tapi jangan ganggu dia kecuali kau siap bayar mahal — dia tidak murah."
Sambil bilang itu, dia menjulurkan tangan membangunkan panda yang tidur, perutnya naik sekitar 30 kaki (9,1 meter) ke udara. Lex memperkirakan panda itu selebar 11,3 juta kentang yang ditumpuk jadi gunungan.
"Master Bobo, tolong bangun. Aku nemuin orang yang mau traktir kau makan siang."
Lex merasa tanah bergemuruh di bawah kakinya, meski lewat koneksinya ke Inn dia tahu tidak ada gempa. Sebaliknya, panda yang tidur itu bergidik, dan itu saja bikin tanah bergetar.
"Makan siang?" Lex mendengar suara cekikikan manis dari sisi lain panda, di mana kepalanya. "Syukurlah sudah waktunya makan siang. Aku sudah kehilangan banyak berat badan."
"Jangan ambil semua sekalinya. Ini klien berulang, dengerin? Master Bobo, klien berulang hanya bisa berulang kalau kau tidak makan habis dompetnya!" Vera memarahi panda itu, seolah dia punya dendam lama padanya.
"Kau bicara ke master begitu?" tanya Lex padanya lewat indra spirit.
"Hei, aku bantu kau kan. Kalau kau nggak mau, bilang aja."
Lex mengangkat tangan, seolah mundur biarkan dia sesukanya. Vera terus meyakinkan panda keras agar tidak makan kenyang, sementara panda raksasa itu berusaha bangun.
Saat panda akhirnya bangun, Lex lihat tidak ada apa pun yang luar biasa dari panda itu kecuali ukurannya. Bahkan kultivasinya baru alam Nascent. Dia tidak mau curiga Vera tapi…
"Kalau kau beri aku 13 juta ton Bambu Rose diasin, aku kasih tau lokasi pasti kuil yang kau cari," kata Master Bobo, mencoba memperdalam suaranya.
"Deal!" jawab Lex, sebelum panda sempat berubah pikiran.
"Bentar, aku kembali sebentar," kata Lex, sebelum teleport pergi ke Emporium. Dia kenal Bambu Rose, dan meski tanaman itu berharga, di mata Lex harganya nggak terlalu tinggi.
Master Bobo menatap Vera dengan sedikit bersalah. Dia pikir mereka akan lewat beberapa ronde negosiasi. Siapa sangka Lex setuju dalam satu detik?
Vera menghela napas. Kasihan sekali Lex. Hal yang tidak boleh dia lakukan adalah biarkan Master Bobo tahu betapa kaya dia. Insting Lex juga tidak memperingatkan dia karena tindakan ini tidak akan membahayakan nyawanya. Tapi lebih dari sekali dia akan menyesal, dan pertama kali dia merasakan penyesalan itu beberapa menit kemudian saat dia muncul kembali di Inn.
"Baiklah, jadi aku tidak tahu Bambu Rose diasin begitu mahal," kata Lex sambil mengerutkan kening. "Rasanya kau baru saja mencuri uangku."
"Ini transaksi adil di mana kau tukar uang untuk menghemat waktu. Di masa depan, kau bisa datang padaku untuk apa pun yang kau butuhkan. Satu-satunya hal yang tidak bisa aku ramal berkaitan dengan uang dan kekayaan."
Lex menyerahkan cincin spasial ke panda, masih ragu soal fakta dia sudah keluar 300 juta MP nilai barang untuk tukar bambu diasin! Sial, meski dia kaya itu tidak berarti dia tidak merasa sakit kehilangan uang.
Panda itu, sebagai gantinya, mencabut sehelai bulu putih dari tubuhnya, dan memberikannya ke Lex.
"Salurkan energi ke bulu itu saat kau sampai di sistem bintang kuil yang kau cari. Bulu itu akan berfungsi sebagai kompas."
Lex menggerutu sambil mengambil kompas termahal yang pernah dibeli, lalu teleport pergi. Lain kali, dia tidak akan lupa negosiasi, apalagi dia tidak tahu nilai pasti barangnya! Buat jelas, Bambu Rose yang tidak diasin bahkan tidak sepadan 1 juta MP!
Menggelengkan kepalanya, dia hanya memberi Vera nodak pengakuan sebelum teleport kembali ke apartemennya. Dari sana, dia sobek tiket yang akan bawa dia ke sistem bintang Vino. Dia memanggil Silent Wanderer dari wadah spasialnya, lalu duduk di kursi pilot sebelum fokus pada sehelai bulu panda itu.
Bulu itu mulai menunjuk ke arah tertentu, dan Lex mulai terbangkan kapalnya. Karena destinasi spesifik tidak diketahui, dia tidak bisa pakai autopilot, juga tidak bisa terbang kecepatan penuh.
Meski refleksnya cukup cepat, kapal tidak bisa bereaksi cukup cepat kalau menghadapi rintangan saat terbang cepat. Jadi, setelah beberapa jam terbang dan lompatan teleport kecil, Lex sampai di ladang asteroid yang dicari, dan memperlambat lebih jauh.
Sambil mengikuti bulu panda menuju kuil, Lex mulai memikirkan apakah harus mengasah kemampuan ramalnya sendiri.
Dia bisa melakukannya, dan bahkan sudah latihan sedikit, tapi ini salah satu bidang langka di mana dia tidak langsung jago. Meski teknik kultivasinya meningkatkan pemahaman, beberapa hal bukan soal pemahaman semata. Soal bakat alami.
Meski Lex sepertinya punya sedikit bakat, itu jauh dari cukup buat berguna dalam usahanya sendiri. Sekarang, dia mulai bertanya-tanya apakah dia menyerah terlalu cepat. Pasti lebih baik mencoba sendiri daripada bergantung pada panda lagi.
As Lex followed Vera, he couldn't help but let his thoughts wander. It felt like so long ago that he saw that interface. He was taking his first steps into the world of cultivation, and the five items he saw before him all bewildered and amazed him. Not a single one of them was even remotely cheap. Or rather, even calling them exceptionally rare might be inadequate.
The Midnight Realm was exceptionally valuable, containing countless materials that were rare on a universal scale, not to mention it contained Dao level ingredients such as the Resin. But, ignoring the Resin, the entire realm was less valuable than just the Bangle of Narn.
The two cultivation techniques were unique in the entire universe, the Essence Wormhole was a bizarre entity that he could not judge even to date, and the Breath of Elizabeth was so extraordinary that even the System could not identify its purpose.
Each of these were unique items, and though they were supposed to be unique across the entire universe, somehow he had encountered so many of them through the Origin realm. That meant either they were all located within the Origin realm, or there was something in that realm that was special.
Then again, the only reason he encountered that Celestial who had Mo's Blessing was because of the system. Maybe all of these items were related to systems.
He didn't know, and it didn't make sense to ponder over it since he couldn't find any of them right now, nor did he need them. Sure, it would be nice to get his hands on the Bangle of Narn, but he doubted it would be so easy, not to mention that the bangle could be detected by Dao Lords.
Nevertheless, it was curious that he was encountering so many of those rare items that were supposed to be unique in the entire universe. He wondered if he would ever encounter the Breath of Elizabeth, and learn what it truly was. Something that even the system could not evaluate… now that was a treasure that could still entice him at this point.
Unfortunately, getting his hands on would also attract Elizabeth's ire, apparently. He wasn't so sure he wanted to do that.
"So what trouble are you in now?" Vera asked after a few moments of silence. It seemed like she was bored.
"Nothing too interesting this time," Lex said. "Just looking for a lost temple in an asteroid field to find some living holograms. I want to invite them to be guests at the Inn - it's nothing dangerous."
"Boring," Vera said, turning away. She was hoping to learn something that would distract her from her own predicament. But with nothing to distract her, she instead hurried up and brought Lex to one of the new cities that had been built inside the Inn.
To be more specific, she brought Lex to a giant vertical garden that Lex had designed for beasts more than humans. This was surprising to Lex, and he quickly went through the names of all the guests inside the garden inside his mind, but couldn't think of who exactly they were going to meet. None of them seemed to have shown signs of being an oracle before.
It was rare for Lex to be surprised within the Inn anymore, which is why when they stopped in front of a large, sleeping panda Lex was extremely surprised.
"This is the oracle?" Lex asked. The panda had done nothing but sleep since he came to the Inn! Not that Lex was judging or anything, but still!
"Don't judge a book by its cover. Master Bobo is a very high level oracle. Until I recover my abilities, you can rely on him. But don't disturb him unless you're ready to pay the price - he's not cheap."
Even as she said that, she reached out to wake the sleeping panda, whose stomach rose about 30 feet (9.1 meters) into the air. Lex approximated that the panda was as large as 11.3 million potatoes stacked into a mound.
"Master Bobo, please wake up. I have found someone who wants to treat you to lunch."
Lex felt the ground quake beneath his feet, though through his connection to the Inn he knew there had been no earthquake. Instead, the sleeping panda had shivered, and that alone caused the ground to tremble.
"Lunch?" Lex heard a cute, squeaky voice coming from the other side of the panda, where its head was. "Thank goodness it's lunch time. I've lost so much weight."
"Don't gain it all back in one go. This is a repeat client, you hear? Master Bobo, a repeat client can only be repeated if you don't eat through his wallet!" Vera scolded the panda, as if she bore some kind of old grudge against him.
"Is that how you talk to a master?" Lex asked her using her spirit sense.
"Hey, I'm doing you a favor here. If you don't want it, just say so."
Lex raised his hands, as if stepping back to let her do as she wished. Vera continued to strongly convince the panda not to eat its fill, while the large panda itself struggled to get up.
When the panda finally got up, Lex saw that there was absolutely nothing extraordinary about the panda except its size. Even its cultivation was merely in the Nascent realm. He didn't want to doubt Vera but…
"If you give me 13 million tonnes of pickled Rose Bamboo, I'll tell you the exact location of the temple you seek," Master Bobo said, trying to make his voice deeper.
"Deal!" said Lex, before the panda could change its mind.
"Give me a few minutes, I'll be right back" said Lex, before teleporting away to the Emporium. He was familiar with Rose Bamboo, and though it was a valuable plant, it was hardly worth much in Lex's eyes.
Master Bobo looked back at Vera feeling a little guilty. He thought they would go through a few rounds of negotiation. Who knew Lex would agree in a heartbeat?
Vera sighed. Poor, poor Lex. The thing he should have never done was let Master Bobo understand how rich he was. Lex's instincts, as well, did not warn him since this action would not endanger his life whatsoever. But more than once he would regret his actions, and the first time he felt that regret was a few minutes later when he reappeared at the Inn.
"Alright, so I didn't know that pickling Rose Bamboo was so expensive," Lex said with a grimace. "I think you just ripped me off."
"It is a fair deal where you trade money in exchange for saving time. In the future, you can come find me for anything you need. The only thing I cannot divine is related to money and wealth."
Lex handed a spatial ring to the panda, still reluctant about the fact that he had spent 300 million MP's worth of items to trade for pickled bamboo! Dammit, even if he was rich that did not mean he didn't feel the pinch of losing money.
The panda, in exchange for the ring, plucked a single white hair from its body, and handed it to Lex.
"Channel energy into that hair once you reach the star system of the temple you are looking for. The hair will act as a compass."
Lex grumbled as he grabbed the most expensive compass he had ever bought, and then teleported away. Nex time, he would not forget to negotiate, especially when he didn't know the exact worth of the items! To be clear, unpicked Rose Bamboo would not even be worth 1 million MP!
Shaking his head, he simply gave Vera an acknowledging nod before teleporting back to his apartment. From there, he tore the ticket that would bring him to the Vino star system. He summoned the Silent Wanderer from its spatial container, and then sat in the pilot's seat before focusing on the single panda hair.
The hair started pointing in a certain direction, and Lex started to fly his ship. Since a specific destination was unknown, he could not put the ship on auto pilot, nor could he fly it at its fastest speed.
Although his reflexes were fast enough, the ship could not react fast enough if it encountered an obstacle while flying fast. Thus, several hours of flying and small teleportation jumps later, Lex arrived at the asteroid field he was looking for, and slowed down even further.
As he followed the panda hair towards the temple, Lex began to ponder if he should work on his own divination ability.
He could do it, and had even practiced a bit of it, but it was one of the rare fields where he did not immediately excel. Even though his cultivation technique increased his comprehension, some things were not a matter of mere comprehension. It was a matter of innate talent.
While Lex seemed to have some talent, it was hardly enough to be useful in his own endeavors. Now, though, he began wondering if he gave up too soon. Surely it would be better to try by himself than rely on the panda again.
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