One-Eyed Monster

Everyone looked in that direction, showing no major surprise. For the monsters of Guru Mountain, such incidents seemed predictable. Estev’s expression, however, showed signs of unease, probably due to his identity as the Soul Guardian.

They quietly watched Xiso and the two wizards, a hint of pity in their eyes, though it was unclear for whom this pity was intended.

The two wizards were, naturally, Saint Robe Bigas and Gray Robe’s Biggs.

Igor grew curious upon seeing this. He had met Witch Biggs before, but her appearance had changed after her advancement, so he couldn’t recall who this familiar-looking wizard was.

Furthermore, he could tell there was a complicated history between Xiso and the other Saint Robe wizard. This observation ignited Igor’s love for stories, and the anticipation of hearing one always made him pause.

”What’s going on with them?” Igor asked curiously, very interested in the current scene.

”Heh heh, the story between those two would take quite some time to explain. You need to calm down to fully understand it,” Kevin said.

”Huh?” Igor was rather confused by Kevin’s words.

”What he means is that their story is very long and would take quite some time to tell,” Yuga explained.

”Oh.” Yuga’s explanation left Igor somewhat puzzled, though he seemed to have a guess about some of it.

It seemed these people were all quite complicated, beyond Igor’s understanding.

However, he wasn’t willing to leave the mountain with things so unclear, so he asked again, ”What kind of story is it?”

”Heh heh, if you wanted to hear their full story, I’m guessing you wouldn’t be able to leave the mountain today,” Kevin replied.

Igor wasn’t desperate to know, but hearing Kevin say this made him even more curious.

Just what kind of story is there between Xiso and this wizard? Igor’s curiosity was piqued, and his desire to hear the story intensified.

”Well, Qi Liu, do we need to wait for that wizard to descend the mountain together?” Igor was already trying to find ways to stay on the mountain to listen to the story.

As long as I hear the story, I can descend the mountain, he thought.

”She’s the Great Witch from below the mountain. She came up to search for you and the master, so she’ll definitely be descending!” Qi Liu said.

”The Great Witch from below the mountain?” Igor couldn’t believe his ears. He had met the Great Witch from the village below; she had even given him his Spirit Book. But the Great Witch he knew didn’t look anything like this one. The one from the village was... well, much older!

”Yes, she is the wizard from Guru Village. Her name is Biggs, I think!” Qi Liu added.

Igor furrowed his brows. This was a radical change. He thought the Great Witch from below the mountain was at least fifty years old. Her hunched body and wrinkled face were nothing like the youthful appearance of this wizard.

There has to be some mistake, Igor thought, scratching his head, puzzled.

”Um, she said she’s seen you. Don’t you recognize her?” Qi Liu asked curiously. He had apparently forgotten about the Great Witch’s advancement on the mountain.

”The wizard I met was not like this. The one I met wore black robes, and was … older…” Igor was about to say the wizard he met was older, but decided to change his words at the last moment.

”Oh, I forgot! The Great Witch advanced on this mountain to become a Gray Robe!” Qi Liu quickly said, worried that his small oversight would affect Igor’s judgment.

”Advanced?” Igor’s eyes widened. He couldn’t imagine that a person could change their appearance through advancement.

”A wizard’s advancement absorbs Natural Force, and some use this force to change their appearance. And this one,” Yuga, himself a wizard, speculated, ”I suppose her appearance was previously altered by Spellcraft theories...”

”Well, it seems like you lot won’t be leaving the mountain today either,” Kevin said. ”You might as well stay and see how our Guru Mountain’s strategist handles his own affairs.”

”I want to know,” Igor pointed towards them. ”What kind of story do they have?”

”Them? Well, their story is long indeed,” Kevin said with a giggle.

”Um...” Igor was already fed up with Kevin’s teasing, and he just couldn’t take it any longer. ”Could you please get to the point?”

”Ha, ha, ha, my friend Igor, don’t be fooled by Kevin’s nonsense. Xiso and Witch Bigas were just former lovers. Naturally, upon their reunion, they have a lot to say to each other,” the Great Mentor said gently.

The atmosphere on Guru Mountain became lighter. What had been a life-and-death battle had now turned into casual chat. This was indeed a drastic change.

The one who felt the most perplexed was Kadi. Initially, he was all geared up for a battle. However, Xiso’s analysis had rendered his plan useless. Now they didn’t even need to besiege Kuyi Tulan anymore, which left them idle instead.

But Kadi immediately perked up after hearing Xiso’s story was long and interesting. Anything related to Xiso now caught his interest. This way, he could privately laugh at Xiso’s expense, which would make him feel better.

This was entirely childish behavior, and Kadi was indeed like an immature child.

”They were lovers?” Igor looked at them incredulously.

”Do you have any doubts?” Kevin looked at Igor with contempt.

”This... the difference is rather significant!” Igor remarked.

Indeed, Bigas was stunningly beautiful, like an elf from another world, while Xiso… with his dry skin and ghastly pale face, was rather frightening.

”Heh heh, Xiso didn’t always look like this. The Xiso from before was considered quite a handsome man in the Kayne Empire,” Kevin continued.

Igor then remembered that these monsters weren’t originally like this; they had been transformed by Kuyi Tulan.

”I forgot about that, I’m sorry,” Igor hastily apologized. His reaction just now was obviously biased, judging others by their appearance.

”Heh heh, if I hadn’t spent some time with you, I would certainly have punched you already. But we have fought side by side before, so I know what kind of person you are. So, it’s okay,” Kevin said, laughing it off and taking the matter lightly.

”Heh heh...” Igor could only scratch his head and chuckle awkwardly.

”If it weren’t for this Bigas, I don’t think Xiso would have come to Guru Mountain with us,” Yuga said emotionally.

”Exactly,” Yuga continued, his voice tinged with emotion. ”Perhaps by now, he would have already become the chief of the Empire Council Hall.”