Lord of Prayer

Li Xiye was completely stunned. ‘This is my Extraordinary Ability? It can be this powerful?’

“Mm… these electric arcs aren’t the Thunder Element. They’re a special kind of Biological Electricity produced by fusing Essence and Willpower. It possesses considerable offensive and Defense Power. I remember you can envelop your entire body in it to form armor. That’s a good derivative application.”

As Zhou Chen spoke, the cyan electric arcs on his body began to contract and solidify, forming a suit of Thunder Armor that looked as if it were forged from cyan-glazed glass, shimmering with a solemn brilliance.

Li Xiye watched with envy. She lacked that kind of Control Power and could only crudely cover her body with Biological Electricity. This wasted a lot of Essence, and the Defense Power was far inferior to Zhou Chen’s solidified version. It seemed she still had a long way to go.

“What’s the name of this ring?” she asked curiously, stroking the Golden Ring.

Having studied Extraordinary Knowledge for so long, Li Xiye could naturally tell that this pair of rings was incredibly valuable. They might even be Forbidden Objects.

“The Bonds Ring. After putting it on, it also randomly provides a bond-based buff. Did you feel anything?”

“A bond-based buff…” Li Xiye bounced around the basement, shadowboxing, then suddenly exclaimed in surprise, “My punching speed has increased!”

“That’s probably an Attack Speed buff. If you take it off and put it back on, the bond will refresh,” Zhou Chen said.

Li Xiye took the ring off and put it back on. When she threw a punch, it didn’t feel as swift and nimble as before. Instead, the Essence inside her had increased by about fifteen percent.

“This time, it must be a Mana Bar buff.”

“So amazing…” Li Xiye couldn’t help but praise. The Skills of this Extraordinary Artifact were so powerful; in terms of rarity, it was definitely comparable to a Forbidden Object!

“I need to run another experiment. Try to be more aware of your Sensing.”

“Okay.”

Zhou Chen took off the Bonds Ring and pulled Forbidden Object C-011: Emotional Outburst from his pocket, putting it on. He made a wish in his heart: ‘I wish that the Emotion Avatar summoned by Emotional Outburst this time will be “Anger”!’

He immediately activated Emotional Outburst, summoning a crimson, rage-filled Anger Avatar, and tossed the Bonds Ring to it.

The “Anger” Avatar put on the ring without hesitation. After gaining Li Xiye’s Extraordinary Ability, “Aspiration of the Blue Clouds,” it activated it with a surging, endless fury.

BOOM!

A dazzling cyan light erupted, illuminating the room as if it were broad daylight. The glare was so bright one couldn’t open their eyes. In terms of power, it was even a notch stronger than when Zhou Chen used the Ability himself.

“I’m… I’m… I’m on fire!” Li Xiye roared. Her short hair whipped about amidst wild cyan arcs of electricity. Influenced by the endless rage from the other end of the Bonds Ring, she felt a flame of anger ignite in her chest. Her Willpower skyrocketed, and with a loud WHOOSH, she too was enveloped in cyan light.

But the electric light she generated with her Willpower was much weaker than what the “Anger” Avatar produced. It was like a novice meeting a grandmaster.

Not until the “Anger” Avatar dissipated three minutes later did the dazzling cyan light finally fade. The Bonds Ring fell to the ground with a CLINK.

As the surging rage from the other end dissipated, Li Xiye’s emotions also gradually calmed, and she retracted her Ability.

Zhou Chen bent down to pick up the Bonds Ring, stroking his chin in thought. “So, the wearers of the Bonds Ring can influence each other’s emotions?”

“No, not under normal circumstances.”

Li Xiye straightened her short hair. “I could clearly feel the extreme Anger from the other side, but it was like there was a wall in the middle of my Soul. I wouldn’t have been affected at all unless I actively chose to accept it.

A moment ago, I just wanted to see what it was like, so I deliberately let the Anger in. It felt… not bad, actually. It gave me a huge boost, and I didn’t get so angry that I lost control.”

“I see… Then let’s test the Sensing range of the Bonds Ring next.” Zhou Chen thought for a moment. “I’ll go out for a walk. We can use that as the test.”

“In that case, could you help me buy two concert tickets?” Li Xiye spread her fingers, looking at the Golden Ring on her hand. “You gave me a ring, so I should give you a gift in return. Although… the prices don’t really compare…”

“Don’t worry about it, it’s the thought that counts… Whose concert is it?” Zhou Chen asked.

“Lin Yun. You don’t know her? She’s about to hold a concert in Hong City, and tickets go on sale this afternoon. I’ll try to get them online, and you can try to get them at the venue. That’ll give us a better chance. If we can’t get tickets… then I’ll treat you to a meal,” Li Xiye said.

“Lin Yun… Is she famous?”

“Of course she’s famous!”

Li Xiye explained, “She’s a famous musician, Painter, and calligrapher, a world-renowned fashion designer, stylist, film director, actor of the century, world-famous game producer, world-famous screenwriter… Anyway, she has a ton of incredible titles. She’s accomplished in all sorts of fields and has a deep understanding of art.”

Art…

The word made something click in Zhou Chen’s mind. Hearing that long string of titles in the Art Realm, he couldn’t help but form a strange suspicion. “Do you have a picture? Let me see.”

Li Xiye took out her phone, swiped a few times, and found Lin Yun’s most recent photo.

“Here.”

In the photo, Lin Yun had delicate features and a unique beauty that seemed to blend Eastern and Western art. Her hair cascaded like a black waterfall, her skin was fair, and she was dressed in casual clothes, dining at some unknown high-end restaurant. The lighting, composition, and everything else about the selfie were flawless. Even the food on the table looked delectable in the picture.

“She’s beautiful, right?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“…Why do I get the feeling you know her?” Li Xiye asked suspiciously, looking at Zhou Chen’s strange expression.

“I don’t. How could I? She’s just so beautiful. I’m admiring her beauty. She’s like a work of art, worthy of careful appreciation and repeated viewing. Look at these eyes, this nose, this mouth…”

Praising another woman’s beauty in front of a woman would inevitably lead to the classic, deadly question: “Who’s prettier, me or her?”

But Li Xiye couldn’t bring herself to ask. Everyone in the World acknowledged Lin Yun’s looks and aura. For many years, she had been considered the pinnacle of global beauty. You just couldn’t compare yourself to her; they weren’t in the same league.

“It’s true. Many people say she’s the personification of art… She’s so talented. Seven of the top ten movies on the World film charts were directed by her, she dominates the World pop music charts almost every year, and then there are her paintings and calligraphy. Even a book she writes casually becomes a worldwide bestseller… How can one person be so versatile?” Li Xiye could only admire such a genius. Countless classmates in her middle and high school had treated Lin Yun as their idol and goal.

“Yeah, yeah.”

Zhou Chen sighed in agreement.

A pioneer in the Art Realm, a trendsetter riding the crest of the wave…

‘Besides the King of Music, how many other people in the whole World could be such an all-powerful master?’

‘However, it’s currently the year 174 of the New Era. Sixty years in the past. At this time, the King of Music isn’t the King of Music yet; she hasn’t been crowned. But her power is not to be underestimated. She’s probably a Tier Four, approaching Tier Five.’

‘As for the King of Music’s exact age…’

‘Zhou Chen had heard from Hermes before that the King of Music was over a hundred years old. Let’s just say one hundred. If she’s one hundred in the year 234 of the New Era, then now, sixty years in the past, she would be forty. But the person in the photo looks like a mature older-sister type in her early twenties. Who knows how old she really is.’

‘Ah, whatever. There’s no point in getting hung up on the age of a master like her, especially a female one. For them, age is an absolute taboo.’

—’Who cares how old she is? She’s forever eighteen, and that’s that.’

‘The King of Music is holding a concert in Hong City at this point in time… Will we meet? Could it be that when she helps me in the future, it’s because we’ve already met?’ Zhou Chen couldn’t help but get lost in endless speculation.

After all, with something like time travel, you could never be sure.