Bodus reached out his hands to touch a symbol engraved into the front panel of the chest. He released his spiritual energy, and all the grooves inside the chest lit up simultaneously before transmitting the energy to each slip kept in their respective layers.
"Since you can already use your spiritual consciousness, you can just use that to read through the slips. Touch them to your forehead and release your consciousness and you'll be able to see the contents inside the slip."
Rihanna was shocked for a moment before remembering how the two of them had caught her spiritual consciousness wandering about outside of her body. Then....did they also guess that she could cultivate as well?! Smiling gratefully at Bodus, she lifted the stone pieces one by one to let her spirit sense go through them.
Basic knowledge of plants, flowers, fruits, roots and herbs; basic knowledge of alchemy techniques; basic knowledge of the differences of pill making and elixir making; basic knowledge of first and second grade pill and elixir making; basic knowledge of elemental control; basic knowledge of understanding and creating the souls Guiding Weapon; basic knowledge of needle techniques for healing and treatment purposes; basic understanding of poisonous substances and their mixing; basic knowledge of various antidotes for different poisons; basic difference between spirit stones and rune stones in inscription; basic knowledge of low grade inscriptions and their uses; basic understanding of calculations used for making an array; low grade array combinations; basic understanding of elements and their combinations; basics of cultivation; low grade attack skills; low grade defence skills; low grade protection arrays; low grade illusion techniques; low grade and mid grade foot works for enhancing speed...
Rihanna could feel her eyes circling around in their sockets after reading through all the contents of only half the slips. There were so many different fields.....and so many books to read to gain even the basic understanding of each! She felt like she was back in grade one, and she needed to study all over again to push through till university level. Problem was....this was a wholly different education system, with entirely new subjects and new syllabus! She really wanted to cry...but there were no tears.....
All her gratitude and enthusiasm had disappeared, and feeling like a punctured balloon she stared at the second chest she had not yet dared to touch. How was she supposed to filter through these piles of books and select only five?!
"You should know the basics of alchemy and be able to recognize the different plants and herbs as well. Knowledge of medicines will always come in handy. Also some understanding of arrays can help you - both for making arrays, and also for breaking them. Knowing some footsteps for enhancing speed is a good call in times of emergency, when you can't fight and need to make a fast escape. You might not be able to cultivate, but your body is special and can absorb energy. As such some basic ideas of the different elements and how they can be used might also be useful. At least you'll know what to expect when someone attacks."
Rihanna turned to stare at the man sitting behind the long desk across the room. This was the first time in so many days she heard him speak. Though his voice sounded cold and emotionless, she could feel the trace of warmth and patience through every word he spoke. Like an older brother guiding his younger sister...wait...what?! Since when did she develop a brother complex?! Who was her brother? She had always been a single child....and she had no interest in being attracted to someone she regarded as a brother!!....then....was she attracted to this ice-cold and dangerous man?!
Rihanna could feel herself going off into a trance once more and blinked her eyes rapidly, looking away from his face. His voice....!! it was so deep, and warm....and enigmatic.....and so, so familiar!! But why?! This was definitely the first time she was hearing him!
Nodding her head rapidly to gesture that she had understood his words and would pay heed to his advice...and also to dispel all weird notions crawling through her mind, she refocused her sight on the two chests, and sighed in dejection first, then took another deep breath and started going through the slips once more.....this time she had to filter through the entire pile to shortlist her required selections.
Slowly she forgot the people sitting and watching her fiddling around with the stone slips, forgot where she was and who she was supposed to be. Gone was Su Matsao from her brain, as Rihanna from earth took over. The one who had finished her doctorate in the shortest time of two years within her institution. She was scanning through each slip at the speed of a 1000 words a minute. Her continuous hard work on enhancing her spiritual consciousness and also developing her sensory perception had increased her speed of reading and power of comprehending what she read exponentially. Alongside, being a scholar of science for a large part of her life, analyzing through all details and concluding the desired requirements and outcomes were like a second nature to her.
The more she read, the more she became engrossed. It was like a fountain of new knowledge and techniques had suddenly sprouted before her, and the more she read, the fountain gushed stronger, slowly turning into a overflowing river. And she could feel herself merrily floating along the waves and tides of this river, excited and thrilled by the channels opening up before her.
After she had gone through each and every tablet in both the chests, and singled out her basic selection from the whole lot, she finally let out a very long, tired breath, falling back on her butts, cracking her neck to release the stiffness. And while moving her neck around, her eyes fell on four pairs of curious and expectant eyes staring at her, shining with a bright intensity. Ah.....it seems she had completely forgotten about these people here!!
Rihanna pulled her lips upwards into a smile as she raked through her memories of what she had been doing all this while.....did she do anything to make these people more suspicious than they already were?! Wetting her dry lips with the tip of her tongue, she gazed at the bunch of slips she had already pulled out, then glanced at the people around before turning back to the stone slips once more.
Whatever! She still needed to make her final selection. Since they had already been this understanding and benevolent....she might as well take her chance with them!
She pondered over the slips she had pulled out. After mulling over them for some time, she finally pulled out five slips, holding them tightly in her hand. Basic understanding of plants, fruits, flowers, roots and herbs and their uses in Alchemy; Basic knowledge of different footsteps to enhance speed, agility and flexibility; Basics understanding of Array - their calculation and combinations; Basic understanding of Elemental control - differences in techniques of each element and how to counter each type of attack.
The last one was not exactly a basic knowledge book. Rather it was an old stone slip she had found lodged within the gap at the bottom, below the lat layer of tray. It was a bit chipped, but the material inside was still intact and easily readable through spirit sense. It was a kind of diary and record combined, of somebody who had roamed around all the 5 lands and even beyond. Though this diary was old, since it dated back to over two hundred years ago, Rihanna still felt it was a very good and important find. Through this, not only could she grasp the geography, economics, politics and other necessary data of the different countries, she would also gain more information of the special areas in the different lands, the different kinds of beasts and plants and many other things she probably wouldn't find in one single book of the basic knowledge slips. This was a definite 'must-have' book to read!
Carefully placing back the rest of the stone slips in their designated space, Rihanna stood up and brushed off the dust covering her bottom. After such a long while of kneeling and sitting, her knees and bottom were seriously protesting against every step. She grimaced slightly, then wiped it off with a smile at once. This man had been very generous and kind to her, she couldn't possibly project a 'pampered princess' look for him to see and re-think his decision! Smiling even more brightly, she walked closer to the long desk, and bowed down low to express her gratitude.
"Master, this commoner servant will do her utmost to finish these books as quickly as possible. But at the same time I will also do my best to memorize every word written, and comprehend as much as I possibly can. I am extremely grateful for the benevolence and generosity of master. And I will do whatever is needed from me to express my gratitude. In all humbleness, I thank Master again for giving me this chance."
Rihanna was bent low at the waist, and she failed to notice the fingers which paused for a moment in the air. The ice around the edges of the glacial eyes seemed to thaw, and a brief yet intense emotion flickered in those cold deep eyes and vanished. The fingers returned back to their work as if everything was a mirage.
"Hmmm."
The deep resonance of the voice echoed through the walls of the chamber, ringing like melodious bells in her ears. Unknowingly, Rihanna sucked in a deep breath, then breathed out again to calm her nerves before raising her head again.
Blinking, she looked around at the others. These guys had been having quite some entertainment at her behalf! How terrible was life that she couldn't even curse when she wanted to!!
"Little girl....it seems you have made quite the catch! Don't worry....you will have enough time to read those slips as you follow along with us in the future!"
Rihanna looked at Wenzhaobei in surprise...she hadn't thought on this point at all!! If they were giving her so many books....obviously it meant that she was now expected to follow their orders and go where they went! But then...what would happen to young An and young Siyu, and Su Caiwei....and also Phantasm! Ever since that day, she had been unable to contact her again. Even though she could feel her life through the contract, she could still be in a dangerous situation!
In her past life on earth, she had never really been responsible for another person. At least not for their life and death. Being an only child, though she had not been pampered and spoiled rotten, she still had far less responsibilities, focusing only on her studies, doing what she liked, pursuing her dreams and ambitions.
In school she was intelligent in studies, but socially inept. In college, her social aptitude grew, but she was still known for having a screw loose, often mistaking chemical testing waters for tea, forgetting her meals and even once wandering all over the huge university campus because she couldn't find the canteen! And once she shifted to her current organization, working part-time alongside doing her doctorate, she became the baby of the tightly knit institute-family. No one expected her to remember dates and occasions, no one dared to give her any responsibilities outside her work, and there was always someone reminding her the mealtimes and regulation checks and physical check-up dates.
Coming to this world, she suddenly, by accident and by her own weird actions, came to find a whole lot of responsibilities on her head.....and she had even taken them on willingly! Even though she tended to be scatterbrained, she couldn't possibly let down so many people who were depending upon her return! How could she possibly forget them and follow these people?! She would never be able to face her conscience if anything happened to any one of them!!
Rihanna must have looked very perplexed and anxious as she looked around in bewilderment, unable to decide how to reply. Wenzhaobei felt her forehead creasing with every passing second. What was this girl thinking?! Did she really suppose that this was all a generous gift?! That she could take all that was offered, and happily leave through the door.....and that they would allow her to do that?! Did she think the Underworld Abyss was a charitable organization! Couldn't she fathom the darkness and bloodthirstiness hiding behind every door and crack here?! How dare a mere commoner think she can test the limits of the largest organization of all these lands?!
"Let her go. There is no need to return the books. Read them well, and they will serve you in all kinds of danger. You can leave after the auction for your flower ends tomorrow. And do not be afraid. No one from here will follow you."
Rihanna turned to look at the man still seated in his chair behind the table, her lips parted in surprise. She gazed at him for a long time, unable to understand what was going through this man's mind. Slowly releasing the breath she was holding back, she turned to look elsewhere, biting her lips in guilt and embarrassment. How did he read her mind? Why did he let her go? Why did he give so much and still let her go? Why did he....why did he not tell her to stay? Perhaps if he said it.....she would stay?....What was she thinking?!
Pursing her lips to stop her thoughts going awry, she abruptly turned and bowed again, then looked up to his deep and inscrutable eyes, before turning and slowly walking out of the chambers.
The cold eyes looked on till the little figure disappeared through the doors, then turned back to his work. The two women looked at each other with curiosity and the excitement of gossip all over their faces, then turned to raise an eyebrow at Wenzhaobei who was frowning in one corner, looking confused and slightly dejected. Only Bodus remained unmoved, his eyes glued to the table, following every detail as his Masters fingers moved the thin strands of golden light, embossing the complicated patterns of inscription on the crystallized slab of translucent red rock placed in the middle of the long table.