I Received Messages From Future Self!
Chapter 605 - 601 Ksitigarbha

Chapter 605: Chapter 601 Ksitigarbha

Crack, crack, crack—

Amidst the strange noises, Fang Xiaocao returned to King Qinguang’s great hall.

"Where are my four subordinates?"

Just as she set foot in King Qinguang’s hall, Fang Xiaocao froze in shock.

The entire hall was empty except for the scattered corpses of the bionic robots.

Taotie, Tom, Mantis, Unhappy—her four trusted champions were all gone.

"What’s going on?"

"Did I just get ditched like that?"

Fang Xiaocao was completely baffled.

She glanced around, her gaze suddenly sharpening.

On one of the walls, she saw some crooked, uneven writing.

Curious, Fang Xiaocao walked closer.

"Princess Your Highness, we have continued onward. If you return, you can come to find us."

The signature was unmistakably Tom’s.

Those twisted, appallingly ugly characters could only have been penned by Tom.

Perhaps this was the near-perfect Tom’s sole weak point.

After all, Tom was a foreigner—writing Chinese characters was already impressive. What more could you ask?

Now that Fang Xiaocao knew where Tom and the others had gone, she was no longer worried.

The setup of bionic robots in the Nine Hall Yama’s territory wasn’t as insane as those in King Qinguang’s hall.

With Taotie around, Fang Xiaocao didn’t need to fear them running into danger.

Fang Xiaocao pulled out her terminal for a quick check—still no signal.

She guessed it was likely due to a powerful signal jamming device placed within the Pawnshop’s base.

Fang Xiaocao picked up an alloy longsword from the ground, turned, and headed out of the Pawnshop base.

She first needed to get out and notify Thousand Faces for backup.

Have Thousand Faces send reinforcements, while also taking over the Pawnshop base.

As the headquarters of the Pawnshop organization, this base was exceptionally well-built.

Fang Xiaocao started entertaining the idea of usurping this base.

Though it didn’t sit within Tang City, it wasn’t far from it either.

It would serve as a better headquarters for her forces than the current Phoenix Nest.

Following the same path, she made her way back to the mountainous forest above ground.

Taking out her terminal once again, she confirmed her hunch—there was signal now.

Fang Xiaocao grinned, swiftly drafted her message, and hit send.

Watching the "sent successfully" prompt on the terminal screen, Fang Xiaocao stashed it away and returned to the Pawnshop’s underground base.

Back at King Qinguang’s hall, Fang Xiaocao hesitated for a moment before deciding not to pursue Tom and the others.

Instead, she opted to use King Qinguang’s hall as the battlefield for a final confrontation with the unseen Ksitigarbha.

Ksitigarbha, as a top-tier Hypnotist, possessed terrifying strength.

Once Fang Xiaocao encountered Ksitigarbha, an epic battle of spiritual power was inevitable.

The colossal clash of spiritual energies would create monumental waves of spiritual power.

Besides Taotie, Tom, and the other two wouldn’t even last a minute.

In under sixty seconds, they’d likely be mentally obliterated into vegetable-like states.

This was something Fang Xiaocao definitely didn’t want.

So, she resolved to face Ksitigarbha alone.

With the Blood Jade Ring in her possession, she wasn’t afraid to battle against a Hypnotist of her rank.

Even if her strength fell short, as long as she utilized the Blood Jade Ring, she could guarantee an unassailable defense.

There might even be an opportunity to counter-kill Ksitigarbha.

Fang Xiaocao sat cross-legged on the ground, closed her eyes, and began meditating.

With the battle looming ahead, she needed to seize every bit of time to improve herself.

Even last-minute preparations could make a difference.

Time ticked by second by second, and before she knew it, half an hour had passed.

Tap, tap, tap—

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed in Fang Xiaocao’s ears.

Frowning, Fang Xiaocao slowly opened her eyes.

She turned her gaze toward the direction of the footsteps.

What entered her vision was an elderly man with white hair and beard.

The old man wore a retro-style coarse linen robe, his figure gaunt and skin darkened.

With his closely cropped hair, he resembled something of an ascetic monk.

Without even asking, Fang Xiaocao knew this was Ksitigarbha—the one she had been waiting for.

The second-in-command of the Pawnshop, top-tier Hypnotist Ksitigarbha!

Ksitigarbha had a pair of bright eyes that didn’t seem to belong to someone at the twilight of his years.

His gaze was incredibly pure, like that of a newborn infant.

Catching sight of Ksitigarbha’s eyes, Fang Xiaocao instantly became guarded.

She focused her spiritual power, crafting a protective barrier over her brain.

As a fellow top-tier Hypnotist, Fang Xiaocao immediately discerned that Ksitigarbha’s eyes were his hypnosis medium.

While Fang Xiaocao sized up Ksitigarbha, he was also evaluating her.

"You’re Fang Xiaocao?"

After a long pause, Ksitigarbha finally spoke.

His hoarse voice carried intense charisma, tinged with a faint seductive quality.

Fang Xiaocao silently used her spiritual power to establish a second layer of protection within her ears.

"What a sly old fox. Using hypnotism even for a question," she inwardly cursed.

Rising to her feet, Fang Xiaocao nodded slightly.

"Yes, I’m Fang Xiaocao."

"You’re Ksitigarbha?"

She boldly confirmed her identity while throwing the question back at him.

To meet courtesy with courtesy was only polite.

As she spoke, Fang Xiaocao employed hypnotism herself.

When Hypnotists engage, battles are straightforward and stripped of flair.

No flashy moves, no shouting or bickering.

Each word and gesture could signal the start of combat.

Ksitigarbha nodded, smiling. "Correct, I am Ksitigarbha."

"Your spiritual power feels familiar, as if it stems from the same lineage as mine."

"The rumors outside must be true, your teacher is Gemini, isn’t it?"

Fang Xiaocao sighed inwardly—Ksitigarbha was truly the definition of an experienced top-tier Hypnotist.

He gracefully deflected her probing attempts, dissolving them into nothingness with ease.

Such calm composure was something even Fang Xiaocao struggled to replicate.

"You could say that."

"My hypnotism does indeed come from Gemini."

Fang Xiaocao made no effort to hide the truth—it was, after all, simply a fact.

Upon hearing this, a flicker of emotion broke through Ksitigarbha’s otherwise impassive demeanor.

"My disciple..."

"He... how is he?"

Ksitigarbha’s voice took on a tremor; his care for Gemini was evident in the tentative way he broached the question.

For the first time, his guarded demeanor softened.

Fang Xiaocao fell silent.

That moment had been the perfect chance to crush Ksitigarbha.

But Fang Xiaocao couldn’t be sure if this was the opening he wanted her to take—

A tempting bait leading straight into a lethal trap.

Besides, Fang Xiaocao had no interest in taking advantage of vulnerability.

"What has happened to my disciple?"

Seeing her silence, Ksitigarbha seemed to realize the truth.

"Gemini is dead."

Fang Xiaocao met his gaze and spoke solemnly.

"What..."

"Impossible..."

Ksitigarbha staggered backward, as if struck by lightning.

"You’re lying to me, aren’t you?"

"Gemini told you to say this, didn’t he?"

Ksitigarbha stared fiercely at Fang Xiaocao, his expression twisted with fury.

But Fang Xiaocao smirked coldly and cursed internally: "Old fox."

Just moments ago, she detected a subtle thread of spiritual power stealthily attempting to breach her protective barrier and invade her mind...