Chapter 149: Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Shu Li’s pupils contracted in disbelief.

Not only had the King deceived him, but he had bound their souls together?

How was that possible?

Yet the Fire God was a revered deity. He had no reason to toy with him.

“Oh, right—” As though Shu Li had not already suffered enough shocks, the Fire God continued, “If I remember correctly, Lainte originally created only the Elves. The Fairies didn’t exist. Then, several thousand years later, he suddenly took it into his head to create the Fairy Clan. Supposedly, Freyus suggested it. He wanted a new race of light to live alongside the Elves and join them in spreading the Light God’s glory across the Austin Continent.”

Shu Li’s mouth fell slightly open. His mind had stopped working altogether.

He had read in the ancient records that the Fairies had come into existence after the Elves, but he never could have imagined that the Elven King had been the one to suggest their creation to the Light God.

“I always wondered where Freyus got such a peculiar idea. It turns out he met you a long time ago.” Propping up his head, the Fire God examined the faintly luminescent wings on the Little Fairy’s back.

They truly were adorable and beautiful.

Who would have thought the stodgy Freyus had such unusual tastes?

Shu Li’s thoughts had turned to mush, trapping him in an endless chicken-or-egg loop.

The first time he entered an illusion had been while listening to the Song of Creation, when he saw the young Elven King playing the harp for the gods.

If that illusion had not been an illusion at all, but something that had truly happened, then had the Elven King seen him, discovered the existence of creatures like Fairies, and consequently asked the Light God to create the Fairy Clan?

If Shu Li had not traveled through time back then, would the Fairy Clan never have existed?

And strictly speaking, his soul came from another world. He was not a pure Fairy to begin with.

Shu Li tangled his fingers in his hair. When they brushed against the little flower crown, which had revealed its true form, he temporarily set aside the maddening paradox and looked toward the Fire God upon his throne. “Are you saying...that I possess the power to travel through time? Why me and not someone else?”

Although he called himself a hero, that was mostly to encourage himself to remain strong in this other world, grow more powerful, and find a way home.

He had never imagined that his bond with the Elven King ran so deep that even their souls were bound together.

Why...would the Elven King do that?

Shu Li grew increasingly restless. He wished he could return at once and demand answers from the King.

“Hmm. In a certain sense, you do not possess the power to travel through time,” the Fire God replied.

“I don’t?” Shu Li stared blankly at him.

But he had traveled through time right here and now!

The Fire God rose and walked unhurriedly over to the Little Fairy. He looked down at him, his fathomless golden eyes seeming capable of seeing through everything.

The scrutiny made Shu Li’s very soul tremble, but he stubbornly straightened his back and endured it.

“Your name is Sperien?”

“Y-Yes.”

“You said that after the War of the Gods, the gods succeeded in sealing away the God of Darkness but suffered terrible losses in the process. After returning to the Celestial Realm, they severed its passage to the Human World?” the Fire God asked gravely.

“Yes,” Shu Li answered with conviction.

The Fire God lifted his gaze past the window behind Shu Li and looked out at the darkening sky.

“You must understand that time cannot be reversed. Even now that I know the future, I fear I still cannot change the outcome. When the Mother Goddess Isfu created the world, its rules came into being naturally. No one can alter or defy them—not even the gods or the Elven King. Everything can proceed in only one direction. If one insists upon changing it, there are merely two choices.”

“What choices?” Shu Li could not help asking.

The Fire God looked back at the Little Fairy’s innocent face. “First, summon someone from outside the rules to change the outcome. Second, pay a devastating price to turn back time and begin everything anew.”

Shu Li’s hands clenched involuntarily, horror creeping into his heart.

Had the Fire God seen through the true nature of his soul?

Noticing the panic in the Little Fairy’s eyes, the Fire God lightly patted his slender shoulder and laughed. “Don’t be nervous. Your King surely wouldn’t be foolish enough to choose either course. Otherwise...”

Shu Li’s heart leaped into his throat.

“Otherwise, the price would simply be too great,” the Fire God murmured.

It would be no different from sacrificing one’s soul to a demon.

Shu Li exhaled softly.

Although his mind was still overflowing with questions, he felt that he had remained here too long. He had to return as soon as possible.

Apart from asking the Elven King for answers, he still needed to purify the mother tree and move Fruit Number Three.

Many things were waiting for him to accomplish them.

“Revered Fire God, thank you for answering my questions.” Forcing himself to calm down, Shu Li bowed to the towering red-haired god.

“You’re welcome.” The Fire God raised an eyebrow. It was bad enough that Freyus himself was so stuffy, but he had even taught the Little Fairy to behave with the same rigid formality.

Shu Li frowned slightly. “I want to return. Do you know how I can?”

Whenever he had traveled through time before, the Elven King had usually sent him back. This time the Elven King was not here, so how was Shu Li supposed to leave?

“Return the same way you came,” said the Fire God.

“Huh?” Shu Li was utterly baffled.

He had arrived through a teleportation array!

The Edas Temple was not underground yet, and there was no Maokat Array. What was he supposed to do?

Seeing the Little Fairy staring blankly, the Fire God’s lips curved upward. He snapped his fingers and said, “Come with me.”

“Yes...”

Shu Li followed him out of the hall and back into the plaza.

The fire dragon lizard, which had been dozing, lifted an eyelid and stared fixedly at the Little Fairy following behind the Fire God.

The Fire God found an open space. A ball of flame ignited at his fingertip, and he casually tossed it onto the ground. The flame immediately began tracing a magic array across the surface.

Shu Li watched in astonishment as the fire flickered several times. Delicate, intricate patterns appeared upon the ground, forming none other than the Maokat Array.

Was this the power of a god?

Even the Elven King probably could not reach such heights.

“Step inside and concentrate on the underground palace as it exists ten thousand years from now,” the Fire God instructed. “The Edas Temple is what it is called today. Ten thousand years from now, that palace buried underground will no longer deserve to be called a temple.”

Shu Li was stunned.

When he had entered the teleportation array, all he had been thinking about was the Edas Temple. Had using the wrong name triggered the conditions for time travel?

In other words, this entire journey through time had been a ridiculous accident. Yet it had allowed him to meet the Fire God and learn something utterly inconceivable from him.

The Fire God glanced up at the steadily darkening sky and urged, “Get inside. Stop standing there in a daze.”

The relentlessly persistent God of Darkness had returned.

Shu Li hurried into the teleportation array. Just as he was about to focus on the underground palace, he suddenly remembered that he still did not know where to find the Fire Spirit.

“Revered Fire God, may I ask where I should look for the Fire Spirit?”

The entire purpose of this journey had been to find the Fire Spirit. He truly did not want to give up.

“The Fire Spirit?” The Fire God turned to glance at the fire dragon lizard lying on the ground. The creature raised its head, its pupils narrowing into vertical slits.

“Yes. I want to earn the Fire Spirit’s recognition and learn to cast fire magic without speaking!” Shu Li declared earnestly.

The Fire God burst into laughter. “Little one, I have a use for the Fire Spirit at present, so I cannot give it to you yet. But—I can give you something else first.”

He flicked a finger, and a mass of flames abruptly engulfed Shu Li.

Seeing his entire body catch fire, Shu Li nearly jumped out of his skin. He was about to cast water magic when the Fire God’s voice reached his ears.

“Do not move or resist. Accept the baptism of flame.”

When Shu Li realized the flames were not burning him, he obediently remained still.

As the fire gradually died away, a golden flame sigil appeared on the back of his right hand. It flashed twice, then vanished.

“This is...” Shu Li stared at the unblemished back of his hand.

“The Fire God’s Mark,” the Fire God said. “With it, not only will you have nothing to fear from any flame, but you will also be able to command the Fire Spirit.”

Shu Li was confused. “But...I haven’t found the Fire Spirit yet. How am I supposed to command it?”

The Fire God did not answer. He leaped onto the fire dragon lizard’s back. The creature rose, spread its enormous wings, and launched itself into the air.

“Hurry home, little Sperien—”

The Fire God’s voice drifted down from the sky. The next instant, an opening appeared in the defensive barrier, and he charged through it astride the fire dragon lizard, racing to confront the terrifying darkness descending from above.

A great battle was about to erupt.

Shu Li dared not delay any longer. Standing at the center of the teleportation array, he focused on the underground palace ten thousand years in the future.

Brilliant light flooded the Maokat Array as its teleportation magic activated, and his body gradually blurred.

Shu Li braced himself for the return journey. His vision shifted, and a pitch-black passage appeared before him.

Was this a tunnel through time?

As he wondered, an icy aura suddenly emerged ahead. Before he could react, a pair of deathly pale hands reached out of the darkness and seized his wrists without warning.

“Ah—!”

The freezing touch made Shu Li’s skin crawl.

“Hee-hee, I caught you—”

An eerie, sinister, ice-cold voice whispered beside his ear. Shu Li’s breath seized, his heart nearly stopping as his entire body went rigid.

Who?

Who had grabbed him?

He struggled violently, but no matter what he did, he could not wrench himself free of those frigid hands. Darkness surged toward him from every direction as though intent on swallowing him whole.

“Heh-heh—a Little Fairy—”

The eerie voice sounded again. Then a man’s handsome yet menacing face emerged from the darkness. His bottomless black eyes watched Shu Li with chilling malice.

Shu Li’s breaths came short and fast. Sweat drenched his body, and every cell within him trembled. He felt like prey trapped beneath a venomous serpent’s gaze, seized by the terror of being devoured. His mind went completely blank. He even forgot that he knew magic and allowed the other man to manipulate him like a puppet.

Come on!

Move! Attack him with magic!

Just as panic consumed him, the little flower crown upon his head erupted in a blinding radiance.

The next instant, he fell into a warm embrace.

The Elven King appeared behind him, shielding Shu Li with his body. A sword flashed in his hand, severing the pair of pale hands in one clean stroke.