Sylvia gripped her sword, attempting to channel more of the Path of Permanence's power into it.
But the blade, already partially eroded by Nihility, was damaged beyond repair.
If Sylvia couldn't weave a better structure with the Permanence's power to fill in the missing parts, simply pouring energy into it might cause the sword to shatter completely.
She stopped, letting out another long sigh as she realized the truth.
She'd have to go back to using that embarrassingly oversized greatsword again.
With deep regret, she stroked the longsword that had met its end after just a single day. She hadn't even had time to give it a name.
Although she had tried to dispel the Nihility from the blade using the Permanence's power, she still didn't dare let just anyone touch it.
After all, she hadn't walked very far on the Path of Permanence and couldn't swear her judgment was absolutely correct.
Not to mention, she herself had some resistance to Nihility—she might have overlooked some lingering traces because of it.
So she couldn't just discard the sword carelessly; it needed proper handling.
The best method would naturally be to ask Jing Yuan for help in destroying it completely, but Sylvia couldn't quite bring herself to do it.
This was the first proper sword she'd ever obtained—to just destroy it felt wrong.
"Ah... I'll just keep it for now."
Just as she was about to store the pale gray sword away, her phone chimed with a notification.
Pulling it out, she saw it was a message from Tingyun, whom she hadn't seen in days.
The little fox had been buried in overtime lately, too swamped to even chat much on her phone.
That she had time to message today was surprising—given the incident in the Exalting Sanctum yesterday, all six commissions of the Xianzhou should have been incredibly busy today.
[Tingyun: Is the Benefactor feeling well? This humble one only heard about yesterday's events from Lady Yukong this morning. It truly frightened me—that Phantylia is utterly despicable.]
[Tingyun: It's just a shame that due to Phantylia's attack, there's even more official business today. This humble one cannot get away, so I could only send some gifts via a Cycrane. I hope the Benefactor won't find them unsatisfactory.]
"..."
Well, how to put it?
While all of this was undoubtedly Phantylia's fault, seeing the Sky-Faring Commission buried under yet more overtime because of yesterday's events made Sylvia feel oddly guilty.
"Ahem... Why should I feel guilty? It's clearly all Phantylia's fault! My house on the Xianzhou got blown up too..."
After a bit of self-reassurance, she finally replied:
[Sylvia: Thanks to the Healer Lady's prescription, I'm much better today. And thank you for the gifts—I'm really not badly hurt. If you have time in a couple of days, I'll come see you.]
The message showed as read almost immediately, and Tingyun's reply came swiftly.
[Tingyun: Hehe~ The Benefactor should worry more about herself. No injury heals in just a day.]
[Tingyun: Please rest well. This humble one will visit in a couple of days to help tidy up your new place.]
Not long after Tingyun's message arrived, the sound of a Cycrane came from outside the door.
After quickly letting Tingyun know, Sylvia went to open the door and check the delivery.
The residence Fu Xuan had arranged for her came fully furnished, but it lacked some convenient little items and small tools.
Tingyun's care package happened to fill those gaps—along with some of Sylvia's favorite snacks and treats.
In the smallest box inside was a scented sachet. Sylvia sniffed it; the fragrance was quite similar to the one Tingyun wore.
After temporarily stacking everything in the living room, before she could even ask, Tingyun had already sent another message:
[Tingyun: Did the Benefactor see the scented sachet this humble one prepared? It can soothe the mind and bring calm. I wonder if the Benefactor likes it?]
[Sylvia: I do like it. It smells a lot like the scent on you—I almost thought you'd given me one of your spare sachets.]
[Tingyun: The Benefactor really says such embarrassing things sometimes. We were talking about the sachet, but you've made this humble one misinterpret…]
[Sylvia: What I meant was, this sachet reminds me of you, Tingyun. It feels like a fragrance that really suits your style.]
Over at the Sky-Faring Commission, Tingyun sat at her desk, head bowed and neck faintly flushed with shyness.
Behind her, her fluffy tail swayed restlessly, betraying her unsettled mood.
"The Benefactor, really... Why talk about the sachet and then leave that part out?"
Just then, a voice called for her help in the distance.
Knowing more work had arrived, Tingyun covered her face and gave it a firm rub.
After composing herself at her desk for a moment, she sent a quick message to Sylvia, then stood up and left in noticeably brighter spirits.
Seeing that Tingyun was now temporarily offline, Sylvia set her phone aside and tucked the scented sachet into her coat pocket. She sat there for a while with her eyes half-closed.
Then, another visitor arrived.
Sylvia rose to open the door. Standing outside was Robin, who didn't look very energetic.
Robin gazed at Sylvia with concern and spoke first. "Sylvia, are you feeling better? When I asked the physician yesterday, she said your condition was quite serious."
"Much better. My body recovers quickly, and with the medicine, I can move around without much issue." Sylvia flexed her arm to demonstrate.
Aside from not being able to fight freely, ordinary movement really wasn't a problem—something Robin couldn't tell just from appearances.
Seeing Sylvia recover so swiftly, Robin felt both surprised and relieved. "That's good."
"Come in and sit for a bit."
As soon as Robin entered, she caught the strong scent of medicinal herbs.
After ushering her to the sofa, Sylvia took the initiative this time.
"How did you rest yesterday? Were you hurt? Getting caught up in that chaos out of nowhere—you could demand some serious compensation from the Xianzhou."
Robin covered her mouth, laughing softly as she shook her head.
"Miss Qingzu from the Seat of Divine Foresight contacted me yesterday. When she apologized, she said something similar."
But Robin hadn't asked for anything outrageous.
For one, she wasn't really injured.
For another, the Xianzhou's attitude was very sincere.
Plus, preventing the infiltration of a Lord Ravager like that was always going to be a tall order—it was hardly fair to blame the Xianzhou for inadequate security.
"Didn't seize the chance to ask for something? Like having them help promote your albums across the Xianzhou or something."
Sylvia looked at Robin curiously, but Robin just smiled and shook her head again.
"Alright then." Sylvia clicked her tongue lightly and dropped the topic.
Instead, with a flip of her hand, she produced yesterday's tarot cards again. "Well then, Miss Robin, would you like to draw another card today?"
Placing the tarot deck back on the table, Sylvia looked at Robin and extended the invitation.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.