Lin stood across Vi as the back veil covered both of them.
"It seems...the situation is... worse than anticipated," Vi spoke to herself in a shocked manner.
She raised her stick lightly and smacked the ground. The stick disappeared in a hazy smoke.
During the height of war with the Demon Realm, Midnight Merchants made their appearance.
The legends and myths regarding their existence had always bothered Lin.
A group was older than the First Immortal.
Lin could feel the interconnected spiderwebs woven by an unseen entity when he stood at the top of the Realm.
What he considered his end goal was nothing but a concluded step from someone whose strength he couldn't even fathom.
He remembered seeing how thousands of creatures and humans were being decimated by these groups without discrimination.
Lin lost his left eye during one of the battles. A battle where the Third Elder of the Midnight Merchant participated.
He could still hear the mixed screams of beasts and humans as they were being slaughtered.
He remembered the feeling of insignificance despite achieving his goal of strength. He remembered her walking over a pile of flesh and blood in absolute ecstasy.
"Are you okay?" Vi asked timidly.
Her eyes were focused on Lin. They sparked with sincerity and worry.
Lin didn't answer.
He locked eyes with her. He was deliberating whether or not to start a fight here.
His disgust was overwhelming and so was his loathing.
Lin understood what kind of monster she was.
But it was hard for him to imagine this timid sweet little girl would walk across the battlefield covered in blood while laughing like a maniac.
Vi pulled her hat down under Lin's intense gaze.
'Why a regressor is so hostile towards us?'
She also saw Lin's ominous sword. Something she failed to recognize.
Lin finally took a deep breath and said,
"Who else from the Council is making move?"
Vi peeked had head from the hat.
She wasn't surprised, not in the slightest.
The boy in front of her is a regressor. It would be perplexing if he didn't know.
Vi thought for a moment before saying,
"Fifth Elder, Horus."
Lin was dumbfounded.
'Did she really answer my question? Why did she answer my question?'
According to Lin, she was supposed to be a brutal, violent and crazy being who slaughtered first and asked questions later.
From what he witnessed during the battle when he lost his left eye that Elora Vi Shadow by all means and purposes was a lunatic.
She dressed like a little child and acted cute and clumsy.
She is responsible for the fall of the Pheonix Continent and the annihilation of Yun Palace.
But looking at her confused fave with tilted head Lin was unsure if she was acting or not.
Being loss for words Lin blurted out what was on his mind,
"I wasn't expecting a straightforward answer."
"Why not?"
'Yes, why wouldn't she be straightforward.' Lin had no answer to that question.
Lin put a hand on his chin and acted like he was pondering something.
When Vi said,
"Um... Before we go any further, can...can you please return Timeless to us? It should be kept in the vault..." She spoke timidly as she gripped her staff.
Lin's face twitched a little and he said,
"Why do I have to return it?"
Vi was startled and said,
"Didn't anyone mention this when you regressed? You're supposed to talk to us first."
"What do you mean someone telling me when I regressed?"
Vi tilted her head at Lin's question.
"Didn't you regress using Timeless?"
"Yes, I did," Lin replied to her question.
"Then didn't anyone tell you what you should do after regressing?" Vi followed with another question.
"Who will tell me that?" Lin was suspecting they weren't in the same book let alone on a different page.
"Um...the first Elder?" She looked like she was about to cry.
"Why would first Elder give me tell me anything?" Lin had a feeling.
"Didn't he give you the Timeless?" Tears formed out of her eyes as she said that.
'What?'
"Why would they give he give me that? I got it from..." Lin trailed off.
"I got it from..." Lin said once again trying to finish the sentence.
'How did I get Timeless?' Lin widen his eyes as he became silent.
No matter how much he tried he couldn't recall any information about Timeless. It was just there with him.
"Do you...have the *hic* Timeless on you?" Lin looked at the crying Vi and doubted whether or not he travelled to the past or somewhere else.
"I don't have it. I exchanged it for a sword."
"..." The crying stopped as she stared at him with wide eyes.
"..." Lin also looked at her awkwardly.
"Waaaaa" Lin was scared shitless she broke down in full-blown crying.
Lin quickly went towards her trying to calm her down. But she started to hit him as she wail loudly.
'What is even happening?'
By the time she calmed down Lin's mind was shaken.
He can't link this crying Loli to the crazy mass murderer on the battlefield.
'Maybe I'm already dead and this is all in my head.'
A thought crossed Lin's mind several times.
"Why *sniff* who did you gave it to?" She was still crying be it less than before.
"One of your Merchants," Lin said as if trying to calm her down. She looked at Lin before crying out once again,
"You...you gave it to an intruder." He grabbed Lin by the collar and shake him back and forth.
'What intruder?' Lin was thoroughly confused.
At this point, he might as well give up thinking.
"Two intruders have entered the world. One of them is hidden from us. Other entered not too long ago. We have been tracking him for some time now."
She cleared her eyes and said in one breath. She still looked at Lin with glaring eyes.
Lin scratched his cheeks. How was he supposed to know about the intruder? None of this shit happened before he regressed.
"What now?" Lin at this point gave up. Things have clearly changed. He must find out by how much.
"We must take the Timeless. It is too dangerous in the hands of Intruders. As for you..."
She grabbed her staff and bonked Lin in the head.
"Idiot." She pouted and exited out of the veil.
She and the Masked Merchant teleported out of there.
Leaving Lin with some questioning gaze.