The man looked at her with a smile "I meant what I said. *Cough* I believe in you, Xiu Ying." Afterwards, He lost his consciousness.
Peering at his unconscious body, she fell in a daze. After a while, she closed her eyes.
Taking a deep breath, she relaxed herself. Ultimately the dense atmosphere gradually started to subside as serenity reverted back into the room.
The dark purple aura encircling her morphed into a golden one. Placing her hand above his head, Small thin golden thread-like strands fell upon him. Sweat began to trickle down her face as her hand was trembling non-stop.
*Huff Huff*
Unable to hold it any longer, she took back her hand. Gritting her teeth, she laid her hand over him once again. This time, she used thinner strands than before. She kept enduring persistently even after continuous fails.
***
Meanwhile:
Zhang Mansion;
Niao was pacing back and forth as time ticked by. It was already the day when Zhang Chen was supposed to die.
"Master told me that she had important matters to handle yesterday. She hasn't returned since. Until she does, I have to stay as Yuxi. But, Can I handle Grandpa's demise?" She mumbled, biting her lips.
*Knock Knock*
"Who is it?"
There was no response. Niao took a deep breath and opened the door.
"Grandpa?"
She saw Zhang Chen in his wheelchair alone. She looked around and noticed no one was around. Letting him in, She locked the doors, muttering to herself "Did the maid bring him here?"
Squatting in front of him, she asked "Grandpa, Did you want to see me?"
"Yes."
"I was about to come to yo-"
Niao froze. *Badum* *Badum*
Her heart began to thump rapidly as she heard a voice she had never heard before coming from him.
'I must be hallucinating since I have been stressing a lot about him. Grandpa is dumb; there is no way he can speak. But..' She shook her head.
"Niao, is it?"
*Thud*
Staggered, Niao fell to the floor. Covering her mouth in disbelief, Tears began to fall from her widened eyes.
Zhang Chen sighed before beginning to explain everything.
"So you could talk from the start but chose not to just because you were lazy? And here we all thought you became permanently dumb after that accident. Grandpa, now I see where my talent in acting originated from." voiced disheartened Niao.
"It's not like it was a complete lie. My speech was indeed gone but it returned back soon after few weeks. Let's not waste time talking about that I have important matters to discuss with you." He changed the topic.
Niao snickered softly "Waste time? Right, I also think it is...Since I was born, I never got to hear your voice. Even though I know now, what can I possibly do? It's definitely a waste of time as you are going to die-"
Clicking her tongue, She peered at him yet he looked aloof, totally unaffected like a different person.
"Did you calm down?"
"Yeah, You can tell me what were you gonna say."
Zhang Chen placed his hand on his chest as he mumbled something. A bright red light glistened, after a while, a shining crimson stone appeared on his hands.
Offering the stone to her, he clarified "This is our Zhang family's crest. Not the one you know, but the leader of 'God's Entourage Family', your ancestor."
"God's Entourage Family? Our Ancestor?"
"Listen carefully. As the name goes, it is like a community of families that are officially followers of gods. And as I told you, our forefather was the leader of them which led to special privilege which is this crest. That alone makes this crest exclusive." He grabbed her hands and passed them to her.
Staring at the normal looking crimson stone, Niao was stunned. "I still want to know how powerful it is. And are you giving me this because you are-"
"No." He directly denied it. "It's for temporary sake. Deity hasn't disclosed anything to you, so I won't do that as well. I can only tell you that you will have to return it eventually. As for its speciality, you can have the chance to speak as representative of Deity in front of gods when she is absent."
*Gasp*
Suddenly, she felt the stone getting heavier. Holding it more gently, she gulped in nervousness "Grandpa, I can't. I mean how can-"
"*Scoff* Isn't it disgraceful of you to speak like that? Quitting before trying, huh? How insolent. I am worried about how you will assist the deity while I am gone. " He harrumphed.
Never seeing her grandfather behave like that, Niao was both dumbfounded and frightened. She realized what was in front of her wasn't Old master of the Zhang Family but an Entourage (Follower) of the Supreme Deity who was entrusting his responsibilities to her.
Gritting her teeth, she shouted in determination "I am sorry for being impudent. I will take care of the crest while you are gone and return it after you arrive. If I feel like they need to use it, I will do it wisely and will never disappoint neither you nor our ancestors."
"I also swear to assist and protect master even at the expense of my life. Thank you for trusting in me. I, Niao, the descendent of leader of 'God's Entourage Family' vow to keep my words. If I can't, I shall be thrown in pits of hell."
After she was done speaking, the crest in her hand glowed bright red. It freed itself from her grasp, spinning momentarily; at last, it assimilated into her body.
As though getting a huge blow, Niao collapsed on the floor, transforming into a bird. Picking her up, He placed her on the bed. Caressing her tiny head, he chuckled in amusement. "Take care." After uttering those words, he left.