Mazao didn't seem like she was solely waiting for the opportunity for her soul to fully recover. To better familiarize herself with using her perception and strength in a blessed state, she also planned to imitate Zhu Shi's seclusion training.
"Perhaps in the near future, I can fight alongside you. I must prepare for that moment," she said with determination.
All along, when it came to actual battles, it was usually me charging into the front lines solo, while Mazao would retreat to a safer position.
She was not content staying in the safety of the rear. Occasionally, she would show dissatisfaction with herself, feeling guilty for leaving me alone on the front lines.
"I'm looking forward to that day," I said.
Mazao nodded expectantly, then left first.
"If only I could fight too," Little Bowl sighed once again.
"Though you're not a direct combat force, your role on the battlefield is irreplaceably important," I said sincerely, "Zhu Shi was able to quickly master the power of the Yama Sword thanks to you. Mazao becoming a Great Impermanence level force in the near future is something she couldn't achieve without you. The same goes for me; without you, how could I possibly exert power beyond the veteran Great Impermanence level now?"
As I said this, I remembered the method to save her that I learned in a conversation with Gua Tianshi, and I shared it as well.
Like the method to help Mazao attain Great Impermanence level strength, this was another piece of information that, due to the current lack of practical conditions, was of little use even when spoken. However, I knew very well that Little Bowl always helped Mazao and Zhu Shi achieve happiness, assuming she would disappear eventually. While I respected her resolve to sacrifice, I wished she would think more about her own future.
I hoped she could also have a happy future and wanted her to have healthy expectations for it.
This is truly a paradoxical thought. If Doomsday were to come, no one would have a future, and the same goes for Little Bowl. Since I'm the one hoping for Doomsday, what ground do I have to wish others a happy future? Nevertheless, I clung to this thought and said what I wanted to Little Bowl.
"I see... So, I have my own independent components?" Little Bowl murmured to herself.
The biggest difference between the soul of the living and the dead is whether or not they have self-awareness. Little Bowl once described herself as "a phenomenon," because the Dream Avatar, as an embodiment of dream persistence, is essentially like a ghost, lacking true self-awareness, only mimicking the presence of it.
Of course, as the saying goes, "I think, therefore I am," Little Bowl, as the party concerned, is most aware of whether she has a true self. However, she would likely suspect that this is because she is not purely a Dream Avatar but a combination of the soul of the living, Zhu Jiu, and the dream persistence of the childhood Zhu Shi, thus this self might heavily rely on Zhu Jiu.
In reality, she is a new self that emerged and grew from the foundation of being the Dream Avatar after experiencing a series of events. Therefore, correctly speaking, she should also be considered Zhu Jiu's daughter.
"So... am I actually the child between Zhu Jiu and Zhu Shi? Zhu Shi obviously wants to call me mom, but I'm actually the daughter born between her and her own mom?"
After a moment of pondering, Little Bowl suddenly burst out with an incredible statement, "Moreover, since I will be reborn using the body made by Brother Zhuang Cheng in the future, wouldn't that make me his daughter too?"
"Since it's my independent component along with the flame of Brother Zhuang Cheng that creates the new soul... so, it's like Brother Zhuang Cheng and I gave birth to me?"
"Wait, wait, wait..." I was shocked, "Isn't your line of thinking a little..."
Little Bowl smiled and said, "I just didn't know how to react, so I made a joke."
I knew it was a joke, but something about this logic seemed oddly persuasive, making it hard to dismiss as just a joke.
"Can I continue to live on... can I continue to watch you all live happily together even after Brother Zhuang Cheng, Sister Mazao, and Zhu Shi find happiness?" Little Bowl said dreamily.
"Not just watching, you can live happily too," I said.
"Does Brother Zhuang Cheng mean that marrying just Sister Mazao and Zhu Shi isn't enough, and you want to marry me, Little Bowl, too?" Little Bowl smiled.
"That's not what I mean..."
That being said, I thought about it and decided to face my heart and speak honestly: "No, you can understand it that way too. Maybe it's too early now, but as long as you don't change your mind in the future, I want to stay with you until the end."
Little Bowl was slightly taken aback, then lamented, "That's what makes you the most infuriating, Brother Zhuang Cheng. If you keep responding to me so honestly, it might be hard for me to keep teasing you in the future."
In the end, she still didn't directly respond to me.
Though saying this might make me seem narcissistic or evoke suspicion of the so-called "three great illusions of life," I believe Little Bowl might genuinely like me.
As long as she is still the Dream Avatar pursuing romance dreams, and I remain the one she wholeheartedly trusts without reservation, her liking me is only natural; and for the same reason, once she responds to my feelings, she would fall into a state of completing her mission ahead of Zhu Shi. I also don't want her to disappear prematurely, and with this in mind, my earlier confession may have indeed been rash.
Another three days passed.
Not only Zhu Shi and Mazao were fully dedicated to their training, but I was also honing my understanding of mana.
Thanks to the powerful blessings from Little Bowl, I was absorbing the experience of the Catastrophe Demon's power at a rapid pace. In just this short period, I had fully digested this experience. Now, even without the blessing state and without relying on the Ash Weapon, I could exert the proper combat power of a veteran Great Impermanence level.
As for the Ash Weapon, I seriously pondered how to further develop it, but I still couldn't find opportunities for improvement in such a short time.
In the past, when my power density was insufficient, the Ash Weapon was a tool I used for crudely compressing flames; now that my density problem is solved, the Ash Weapon can still serve as a container for carrying the Flame Power, assisting me in further compressing the flames. Due to the overly straightforward method of operation, there is no room for further optimization. I often feel that the Ash Weapon from the start had no room for improvement, and that this simple and crude usage is its perfect form.
Apart from studying to become stronger, I often thought about the origins of the ancient civilization and the post-mortem world that Gua Tianshi mentioned.
The ancient civilization born unknown ages ago, ultimately destroyed at the end of the Cretaceous period 66 million years ago—though I only know bits and pieces, that's more than enough to pique my endless imagination and interest. And unfortunately, Gua Tianshi may be right—that may indeed be just a background without necessity for exploration for those of us living in the present.
No matter how much I want to explore detailed information, everything about the ancient civilization has been destroyed. Beyond imagination, there is no way to touch that ancient darkness. Sometimes, I even suspect this ancient civilization might be Gua Tianshi's own fabrication or that Gua Tianshi might have some misunderstandings, and such a civilization never truly existed.
Rather than those far-off concepts, perhaps I should first focus on what's in front of me and seriously consider how to fight against Xuanming soon.
Purely in terms of power, I believe I wouldn't lag behind Xuanming now, but as for battlefield combat experience, that's another matter. I already have a solution for this; the issue is that I previously only calculated Xuanming's inherent power, and haven't factored in the Power of Divine Seal Fragments that Xuanming possesses.
When I attempted to seek wisdom from Little Bowl, however, she gave a negative view.
"I think that Xuanming probably won't use the power of Divine Seal Fragments," she said.
"Why?" I asked, puzzled.
"Currently, Xuanming is likely no longer a Void Envoy," Little Bowl said, "There are only two methods to directly use the power of Divine Seal Fragments with one's body: one is to bind the Fragment as a Void Envoy, and the other is through Ying Lingyun's technology to implant the Fragment power directly into oneself.
Xuanming doesn't possess the latter technology, so if he's no longer a Void Envoy, he can't apply the power of the Divine Seal Fragments to himself," Little Bowl said, "If Xuanming is to defeat the Master of Divine Seal by his own body, first he must completely abandon all his Power of Divine Seal Fragments."