Chapter 1251: The Prophet

At this moment, Xu Que's heart grew heavy once more.

A large part of his previous ease came from the fact that he did not believe a mere illusion could possess such formidable strength!

Yet now, the Sword Spirit had revealed that it had been suppressed by that child, and the entire process had occurred without him noticing a thing—his Sword Spirit had been suppressed in total silence.

Such strength was simply too terrifying!

"Can you guess the meaning of his words? Why did he say I would definitely die in forty-nine days? No, wait, there are only forty-six days left now!" Xu Que's mind stirred as he questioned the Sword Spirit.

"It should be exactly as he said: when your time is up, you will die. There is no other meaning," the Sword Spirit replied calmly, its tone indifferent, as if the matter had nothing to do with it.

The corner of Xu Que's mouth twitched instantly.

At this moment, the Sword Spirit's voice came again: "However, its appearance is indeed very strange. I can vaguely feel that it seems to be something on your person that caught its attention, causing this illusion array, which has existed since the Divine Spirit era, to have a portion of its power awakened."

"Something on me?" Xu Que was puzzled. He looked down at his crotch, truly unable to think of anything that would attract someone's attention.

The only high-grade items he had were the Purple Gold King-Forcing Staff—after all, it was crafted entirely from Purple Void Geng Metal and was worth a fortune—or perhaps the Imperial Physician Heavenly Book, though he still hadn't figured out its purpose to this day.

"However, I can also see that he harbors no malice. The reason I was suppressed is due to a suppression of strength. No matter what kind of artifact spirit it is, it will be suppressed in the presence of a higher-level existence and be unable to show itself. If he truly harbored any malice, that sword strike earlier would not have pierced your glabella, but your cave mansion, which would have been enough to destroy me!" the Sword Spirit said indifferently.

After hearing this, Xu Que was so angry he nearly jumped up. He snapped, "Damn it, Sword Spirit, isn't that a bit excessive? So, if it wasn't targeting you, there's no malice? The point is, he was targeting me! If there was no malice, why did he come out just to cast this curse on me?"

"That was not a curse, but a prophecy!" the Sword Spirit suddenly stated, revealing the truth.

"What?" Xu Que was stunned for a moment. Not a curse, but a prophecy?

"In fact, I once heard that Immortal Emperor mention that during the Divine Spirit era, there existed a special kind of god with an extremely high status, known as Prophets! They could perceive the future and trace the past. You likely encountered a similar prophetic ability; he discovered a great catastrophe in your future and informed you in advance," the Sword Spirit said calmly, as if any major event in its eyes was merely trivial.

"A Prophet? Damn, this is heaven-defying!"

Xu Que was immediately horrified. Of course, he knew what the word "Prophet" implied. Being able to foresee the future and trace the past was indeed something only gods could do—a truly heaven-defying existence.

However...

"No, if it's just a prophecy, why would I feel danger?" Xu Que pointed out the crucial point.

If it were just a prophecy, he shouldn't have that ominous sense of crisis, as if he had truly been cursed.

The Sword Spirit replied indifferently, "That is normal. Him telling you the prophecy constitutes leaking heavenly secrets. Since you know about this matter in advance, the original cause and effect will deviate. That is why the sense of unease you would have felt before the danger arrived has been brought forward to the present!"

"Damn, Comrade Sword Spirit, you actually know so much! How high-end! Why didn't you tell me more before?" Xu Que's eyes lit up as if he had discovered a new continent. It turned out his Sword Spirit knew so much—it was much more awesome than that unreliable idiot Er Gou!

"You didn't ask!" the Sword Spirit replied again, indifferently.

This high-class tone made Xu Que feel it was truly extraordinary. This was a Sword Spirit with a story!

"Come, come, Comrade Sword Spirit, it seems we need to have a good chat. For instance, is there any way to break that prophecy?" Xu Que asked with a grin.

Previously, he had thought it was a curse, but now that he heard from the Sword Spirit that it was a prophecy, he felt relieved instead.

Since it was a prophecy, it could surely be changed; otherwise, what would be the point of a prophecy?

The Sword Spirit remained silent for a moment before saying, "My suggestion is... ignore everything. Even pretend nothing happened, stay ignorant, and let nature take its course."

"Damn, are you trying to get me killed?" Xu Que's face darkened.

"Not at all! Have you ever considered that perhaps it is precisely because you know the prophecy in advance, and then deliberately do something, that you ultimately cause the prophecy to come true?"

When the Sword Spirit said this, Xu Que fell silent.

His expression tightened as he grasped the deep meaning behind those words.

Having lived on Earth, he naturally understood what the Butterfly Effect was. Fate was a very eerie thing; perhaps everything was already arranged. For example, knowing about the prophecy might have been part of the arrangement, and his subsequent actions would ultimately lead to the prophecy coming true.

Of course, this was a special case. If the prophecy wasn't part of the arrangement and he did nothing, he might still head toward the result described in the prophecy.

So, in the final analysis, this was a multiple-choice question: either ignore everything, or intervene and try to change the result!

"Actually, I believe it is best if you ignore it. You can recall how many times you have faced life-and-death situations, and every time you managed to resolve them. Why, because of this prophecy, would you go and do things you wouldn't have done otherwise? The so-called cycle of cause and effect—the more you do, the more chaotic the cause and effect becomes, and the final result might actually be worse!" the Sword Spirit said calmly.

For so many years, it had followed by Xu Que's side. Although it was mostly just a bystander, it knew how powerful Xu Que was. It was precisely because of this that it was willing to remain by his side, witnessing him grow stronger.

"You're right. Sometimes, the more one does, the more superfluous it might be!" Xu Que nodded after a moment of silence.

But soon, his tone shifted, and the corner of his mouth curled up slightly. "However, I have never liked being passive. Since I know what will happen, I cannot sit and wait for death. Even if there are only forty-some days left, I will reverse that situation. Isn't that what a prophecy is for?"

"..." The Sword Spirit fell silent upon hearing this.

After a few breaths, it gave no further response and returned to the sword.

Clearly, it did not oppose Xu Que's decision. After all, it had said what needed to be said; as for how to choose, that was Xu Que's freedom!

If Xu Que truly died in the end, it would suffer no loss. At most, after recuperating, it would wait for the next master. This was the fate of all artifact spirits, and it was reality!

And at this moment, Xu Que's mindset had already changed!

Previously, he had been relaxed, but deep down, he had cared about this matter. Now, however, he no longer just cared—he had become serious!

Since he was serious, he would be earnest!

So what if it's a curse?

So what if it's a prophecy?

No matter what kind of death trap it is, what is there to fear?

Haven't I, Xu Que, reached this point precisely by living by the motto: "Treat life and death with indifference; if you're not convinced, just fight"?

Thinking of this, a confident smile bloomed on Xu Que's face.

He waved his hand and summoned the system: "System, is there any absolutely safe place where no person or power can approach, so I can hide for a while? I'm a little scared now, System Daddy. I'm so handsome, I don't want to die yet!"

【Countdown to six chapters, five chapters remaining!】 ===== CHAPTER 1252 =====