Chapter 133: After Darkness Falls

The frenzy of trade lasted until evening; as the sky turned dusky yellow, all the natives immediately stopped their stalls—even the man bargaining with Feng Xue swiftly packed his goods and turned to run toward his house.

Feng Xue frowned; though he didn't know if this was due to religious belief, he decisively turned and walked toward the house. Sara noticed Feng Xue's movement and immediately nudged Fina back.

Though Fina wanted to provoke danger, her mental imprint compelled her to avoid it the moment she recognized the threat.

At that moment, the old man Ku Na, who had left earlier, appeared again from nowhere; seeing the three already turning back, he stepped forward and said:

"I was worried the guests were here for the first time and didn't know the taboo, but it seems I overestimated the risk."

"We only followed others heading back, but we don't know what this taboo is," Feng Xue said politely, his eyes casually sweeping over the old man's tooth necklace—and indeed, he spotted one tooth with an odd perforation; yet soon his attention left the teeth, because…

"How did this old man regain the lifespan he just lost? Could the Moon God here really grant longevity (Note ①)?"

Though only one day was restored, negligible against lifespans of thousands or tens of thousands, Feng Xue lived by counting his days—this tiny change was monumental in his eyes!

At this moment, even Feng Xue's composure couldn't suppress his excitement, but Old Ku Na clearly didn't notice, smiling and saying:

"In our legends, you must never look directly at the moon when it rises, or it will summon the 'Moon Beasts.' So every dusk, everyone rushes home and doesn't step out again until total darkness. We've also developed the habit of eating at this time—I feared you guests hadn't prepared food, so I brought some over."

As he spoke, Old Ku Na handed Feng Xue a basket of fruit, then turned and walked away without looking back.

Feng Xue held the fruit basket and hurried back to the dwelling. He said nothing, but tapped his wristwatch lightly with his index finger and gave Sara a glance.

Xiao Lingdang and Sara simultaneously activated different techniques, scanning the house and the fruit, then responded in turn—

"No listening devices."

Feng Xue, using his Observing Aura technique, confirmed no divine energy residue remained on the fruit or the house, and only then exhaled in relief; yet he didn't touch the unfamiliar fruit, instead pulling out a Moon God Stone:

"You want this?"

"Yes. It contains power similar to lunar essence, though mixed with some votive energy—but with a little effort, it can be separated."

Liu Yunxi's voice emerged from the ring, tinged with delight. Feng Xue raised an eyebrow and pressed:

"How efficient? I mean, compared to your normal lunar essence collection."

"Filtering it is slower than direct collection, but the volume is far greater—and you can absorb it during daytime. A single stone holds roughly a month's worth of what I normally gather. Absorb these twelve, and I'll gain a hundred years of cultivation!"

Bai She's voice was cheerful, vibrating continuously; had she not been turned into a ring, she would surely have been dancing wildly.

But…

"How long will it take you to absorb them all?"

As soon as Feng Xue spoke, Bai She fell silent, thought for a moment, then replied:

"If you keep going day and night, maybe two years? Hmm, you've got to let me test one first!"

"We'll discuss it after we leave," Feng Xue rolled his eyes, wanting to glance upward with his over-the-shoulder view to check the sky—but feared triggering the "Bluebeard Effect" (Note ②), so he forced himself to hold back:

"Regardless of whether these natives are good or evil, we have no reason to care. Once total darkness falls, we leave immediately! Damn, I should've kept that octopus thing!"

"Keeping it wouldn't have helped—you have no nanite units, and we have no phantom beast compatible with the Mist Octopus to achieve perfect invisibility. But the votive-energy-dyed metal spheres could be used," Sara calmly doused his hopes. Feng Xue grimaced, then shook his head:

"The range's too small. Fine for ambushes or raids, but for fleeing? It's like telling enemies to surround that area. Only useful for interrupting enemy spells at critical moments."

As Feng Xue muttered, he lifted his robe hem and inserted three jade tablets—【Substitute】, 【Lightning Transformation】, 【Wind Travel】—into the slots.

Compared to the prototype, this belt looked far more refined: lines of magical gold and silver perfectly embedded into fabric woven from pre-civilization materials; jade fragments of varying sizes, like microchips, linked by golden threads—unlike the original burial-belt-like jade belt, the current 【Multi-Ritual Linked Spell Unit】 resembled a circuit board with a new color scheme.

Inserting the Five-Colored Jade Seal one by one into the side slots, Feng Xue glanced at Fina, then turned to Sara—

"Should I knock her out?"

"No…" Fina started to speak, then fainted.

"The danger hasn't happened yet—I can't take over her body!" Sara said, half a beat late, staring at the unconscious Fina.

"Because she looked like she was about to say 'no'… I figured if I waited for her to finish speaking, I'd lose the chance to knock her out," Feng Xue shrugged, placing Fina on the dog's back:

"No problem—just carry her. If danger strikes, just merge!"

"Alright, I must admit your choice is wise," Sara nodded, raising her fluffy tail to secure Fina more firmly.

The man and the dog silently counted time, but Xiao Lingdang, linked to the weather satellite, spoke first:

"Based on lunar orbit and planetary rotation, the sun's trace should now be invisible to the naked eye, matching the description of total darkness. However, given regional customs vary, I recommend waiting an additional ten to fifteen minutes."

Feng Xue naturally trusted Xiao Lingdang's judgment—but before the ten minutes passed, Sara suddenly raised her dog ears and spoke through the nanofilm on Feng Xue's body:

"Someone's approaching. Many of them. Those bastards are about to strike!"

"More impatient than I expected! Still, stay cautious—what if they're just here to sell goods?"

Feng Xue offered a reason he barely believed himself, then slightly lifted his over-the-shoulder view, piercing the not-so-tall ceiling to see outside.

The sky remained pitch black, but under 【Observing Heavenly Lifespan】, the natives' racial talent for blending into darkness had completely failed.

Seeing the numbers subtly surrounding the house, Feng Xue reached out and pulled the 【Command】 jade tablet, channeling his Qi, then pointed.

Seeing Mo Ying, already prepared, shot toward the door; the force of her magical collision easily flung it open—and the moment the crooked door swung open, a sharp *thwip-thwip-thwip* of piercing air exploded!

(End of Chapter)