Chapter 192: Growth and Power

The boy's reaction did not exceed Xia De's expectations. If someone could calmly accept that they were about to drink "The Price of Growth," that would make Xia De feel surprised.

"What kind of growth do you want?"

Xia De asked. The boy who used the toy sword to protect himself was not stumped by this question. He looked up at Xia De:

"It is to be carefree, to be free, not to be bound by adults, to do whatever I want, it is..."

Xia De did not continue to listen, but shook his head at the saint. This was not growth. He didn't even understand what he wanted himself.

God maintained that smile:

"When you told this gentleman your wish, what you were thirsty for was indeed to become an adult."

The voice was still so gentle, but Xia De felt subconsciously that His tone seemed to be different:

"Lying and denying your past is not something a good child should do."

God said softly, picking up the teacup and shaking it slightly. Xia De was so scared that he almost dodged.

"Child, I want to tell you a truth: when you make a request and a kind person satisfies you, even if you are not satisfied, you should not criticize them."

Xia De inexplicably thought of the story of the witch princess who was thirsty for eternal life that God talked about when they first met. So he understood that the boy probably had no other choice.

The young man wearing a ridiculous clown hat carried the teacup and walked out of the counter, bent over and handed the teacup to the boy. He didn't say anything, just looked at him with a smile. The boy bit his lip and was very unconvinced. He turned to look at the other two children, and then raised his head and said:

"This is nothing to be afraid of."

He took the teacup and drank the liquid inside with his head tilted. But after only one sip, the teacup fell to the ground, and the boy retched violently while holding the floor.

He retched more and more severely, and finally the whole person fell on the floor of the toy shop. Groans of pain came from his mouth, his body twitched and convulsed uncontrollably, but his height and body shape changed rapidly.

Thirty seconds later, in the stains on the floor, the young man wearing adult clothes opened his eyes. He climbed up blankly and looked at everything in the toy shop:

"I grew up?"

He touched his face incredibly. Xia De was surprised by the peculiar effect of the magic potion. Seeing God return to the counter and stop speaking, he took the initiative to say:

"So how do you feel now?"

"I feel like I see higher, have more power..."

He touched his body, and then looked at Xia De gratefully:

"Sir, I really grew up!"

Children are children. Not long ago, he was still hostile to Xia De, but now his eyes looking at Xia De were completely different:

"I really grew up!"

He waved his hands happily:

"That's great, I can finally not be scolded by my father!"

"No, as long as that is still your father, he can always scold you."

Xia De reminded. He understood a little bit what he needed to do to fulfill this second wish.

"Is that so?"

The grown-up boy looked at him suspiciously, but soon became happy again:

"I can finally go out to find friends to play at night at will."

"No, you probably can't. You grew up, but your friends are still very young."

The grown-up boy was stunned again, and then said cautiously:

"I finally don't have to follow the family tutor to learn..."

"No, you must learn. Growing up means you have to move out, you have to earn money yourself. If you don't learn, where are you going to work? Digging mines or being a coolie?"

The boy looked at Xia De with his mouth open.

Xia De also looked at him, stating a basic fact:

"You don't think that after you grow up, you will still live under the protection of others like before, right? Then, why do you want to grow up?"

"I..."

The grown-up boy pointed to himself, and then suddenly picked up the wooden toy sword and held it in his arms:

"I don't want to grow up."

"Look, this is a child."

The young man lay on the edge of the counter and said to Xia De. The effect of the magic potion was disappearing, and the boy was changing back to his original appearance (Note). As for the clothes on his body, like just now, under the power of the saint, of course, they changed with the body.

"Does this count as me fulfilling his wish?"

"Of course."

The saint nodded.

"But he didn't get growth, he changed back again."

Xia De pointed out this fact.

"But he did gain growth, look."

The young man wearing a clown hat pointed to the boy, who looked at his hands and found that he had changed back to his original appearance, and smiled happily.

"At least he understood what the price of growth is. This can also be considered a very good growth. After all, it is really difficult to let children understand this."

"Do you always use similar methods to reason with children?"

Xia De asked curiously.

"No, the situation of different children is different. Actually, I prefer to be gentler."

The saint smiled and shook his head. Xia De did not comment on this.

After fulfilling the wish about growth, it proceeded to the final wish about "power."

Xia De looked at the girl who walked out from between the shelves again. The latter stopped immediately and looked at Xia De very vigilantly:

"I don't want to drink strange magic potions."

"Don't worry, I don't have magic potions that allow ordinary people to possess power."

Only then did the girl feel relieved and came to the counter, but still didn't dare to approach him.

Xia De had ideas before this, but before really starting, he still asked a question:

"Cough cough, it's like this. Before fulfilling your wish, can you tell me how you understand the word 'power'?"

"Can protect myself, can protect what I want to protect."

The girl said, and the other two children also nodded.

"That's good, next question, do you think, besides the power that can split stones and move mountains, is wisdom considered power?"

Xia De pointed to his head again.

"Of course it counts!"

The boy thirsty for stories and the boy thirsty for growth said together, but the girl hesitated. She understood what kind of power Xia De wanted to give her.

"To be honest, wisdom is of course power, but sir, what I thirst for is my own... is being able to realize... is..."

She hesitated to express her thoughts, but was troubled because she couldn't find suitable vocabulary to express it for a while.

Xia De understood her meaning. The girl agreed with the power of wisdom, but what she wanted was more realistic power.

"Why not, listen to me, and then think about what kind of power you really want."

Xia De proposed, so the girl nodded:

"No problem, sir."

The saint behind the counter watched this scene with a smile. He didn't mean to interrupt.

"Have you seen boiling water?"

"Yes, sir."

"Have you seen hot air lift the lid of a pot?"

"Of course, sir."

"Then, have you thought about whether this kind of power could be used in other aspects?"

The girl tilted her head to look at him, while the other two boys looked a little confused.

"Only she can understand your words now. This is her wish."

God reminded. Xia De nodded and gave another example:

"The hot air produced by a small kettle can lift the lid; then, what can the hot air produced by a huge kettle lift?"

"This..."

Judging from her exquisite little dress and shiny black little leather shoes, the girl should have a very high background, and her level of education should not be low. But this question was still too difficult for a child.

Xia De wanted to change the way of saying it, or let the saint produce some small parts for him to demonstrate, but he did not expect the girl's eyes to light up and say something that surprised Xia De:

"Are you trying to tell me that using the method of converting heat into power to manufacture machines that ordinary people can also use?"

Her eyes were shining, and it was not an exaggerated metaphor. Those agile eyes were really glowing slightly.

Xia De moved to the side vigilantly:

"What's the situation?"

【This is not the power of the Ring Mage system, it's not even a relic. I have felt similar power in that Miss Miss Jia Lin Na.】

"That's about what I mean."

Xia De agreed with the girl's point of view in his mouth, looking at the saint from the corner of his eye, who was listening to the conversation between the two and didn't want to say anything.

"But this is just a tool, sir. I can manufacture similar tools, but others can also manufacture and use similar tools. Such power is not eternally used by me."

The girl looked at Xia De. This was the look of thirsting for an answer.

"This is just technology, you also need a system."

"System?"

"Except for God, humans and other creatures walking in the material world inevitably need the help of their kind. You have technology, so you must use a system to manage people, use a system to distribute your harvest, and to share your losses. Although you are only one person, a system can make you a hundred people, a thousand people. Technology and systems can make you stronger."

The light in the girl's eyes became brighter. Seeing this scene, the boy holding the toy sword didn't know what he thought of, and his face was terrified as he pulled the youngest boy and hid in the shelves.

"But sir, even if I construct a perfect system, the system will eventually decay, because people will change."

The girl asked.

"You need culture."

"Culture?"

Her eyes were close to the condition of Mia the cat in the dark environment at night. The girl herself began to glow at this time, and some wind was circling her. If it weren't for the fact that this was the saint's shop and all supernatural powers would be suppressed, Xia De believed that this anomaly would become more obvious.

Unusual ideas seemed to give her some inspiration, but the girl herself did not notice her condition.

"You need people to identify with you, be convinced by you, and adapt to the system you constructed, the technology you created, so you need culture to assimilate them. Festivals, characters, accents, common stories, similar behaviors."

"Technology, system, culture..."

The girl was lost in thought, and then suddenly looked up at Xia De:

"Sir, is this the power you mentioned?"

"Yes, are you satisfied with this power?"

Xia De actually said it very superficially, or didn't say any actual content. These words were actually a train of thought. He was prepared for the girl not to accept it, and intended to talk about basic physics, but the girl nodded:

"I am very satisfied. Wisdom is indeed the greatest wealth of mankind. It seems that even men are not completely useless." ===== CHAPTER 193 =====