****(POV)

"May you have a better life next time. I wish you not to meet anyone like me."

I wipe the soil off my hands. Before me lies a grave. Really, I shouldn't have come here in the first place. Most especially, I should definitely not have let him see my invisible killer. I don't want to let the secret of its existence out.

Well, there is that Sun Young Master that knows too, but I'm not sure what to think about that one. There is too much that is unknown. It's not like I could ever know about the inner politics of the Sun Sect. Even if I did, I can't do anything about it except hope for the best.

At least now, my secret should be safer. I head back to the hut. We can rest for the night and depart in the morning. As I open the door, I freeze.

What the hell?! In there is a man, right next is the invisible killer, a white berry in its mouth. It's not hiding at all! Why?! It's usually so obedient too. It gives me an apologetic look. How is it so calm? Wait, no. There is something very wrong here! How is the man so calm?!

There are two reactions to be expected once someone discovers a Gu User. Either profound fear or profound hate. Hell, even Gu trainers are wary of other Gu trainers! But he is just sitting there with a deadly Gu right next to him.

That's when he says he has a question. Could he be some powerful enemy that is here to interrogate me?! But then he asks about the Water sect. What?!

I blank for an instant. Why is the guy asking about that sect with a Gu only centimeters away from his hand?! Does he not fear death?

Then he says something about a friend. From what I understand, he's ready to fight an entire sect to rescue them. Then he says something about communicating with a god directly. Is he talking about making a deal with a deity?!

What kind of bigshot is this guy?! I can't sense any power from him, but I know not to judge too quickly. My invisible killer is literally the same. Ah, what's that about a tea party? For now, offer to guide him.

He proposes we leave right now, and I comply. Grabbing food and some clothes for him, we depart. During this journey, I'll have to figure out if I need to kill him or not. Chances are yes.

My invisible killer just rests on my shoulder as we get moving. Somehow this man doesn't say anything about the Gu in the room. This is so weird. In fact, I can't take it anymore.

"My fly hasn't inconvenienced you, right?"

[Inconvenienced, how? It's just been eating, haha. It reminds me of a friend, actually.]

I almost choke hearing that. Did the man just compare a literal Gu to a friend?!

"W-what kind of friend? If you don't mind me asking."

[It's fine. She's a cute wolf. She's amazing, smart, and a great companion.]

He's referring to a wolf with 'she'? Guess they are really close. His eyes even shine brightly as he talks about her.

"A wolf? Where did you meet?"

[Randomly, in the middle of the Archaic Savage Forest. We've spent a while traveling together. We've been separated recently. Ah, but apparently, it was over 2 years.]

What the fuck?! Middle of a disaster zone?! Actually, not any disaster zone. He's talking about the one that even the Moon Keep stays away from! Wait, he said smart, didn't he? He's not describing a wolf but a motherfucking beast king! What kind of lunatic did I randomly meet?!

[So yeah, I'll go beat up the dumbasses in charge of the Water sect and save my friend, then go find Wolfie.]

"Wolfie?"

Suddenly my beast king theory sounds so damn wrong. A creature so strong would never voluntarily adopt a name so cute.

[Yep, I named her. Pretty cool name, right? That's back when we used to play together in the forest. I'd be training and hunting random animals, but then most of them turned out to be capable of speech. In the end, we just talked and resolved our conflicts.]

Never mind! He talked it out with the animals in the forest?! Should I state the obvious?! Animals do not talk. Normal monsters do not talk either. Only beast kings are capable of speech!

Wait, there is something even crazier! He literally tamed a beast king and gave it such a cheesy name?! I feel like this man is not human. Also, what's with that low-key bragging?! He makes it sound like all of it is normal and boring.

I nervously awkwardly attempt to keep the conversation going. I need more information.

"How do you plan on dealing with the Water sect exactly?"

[Either hit and run beating them all up one after the other or straight up sneaking to the Aqua's statue, get to the god realm and tell her to do her goddamn fucking job before I whoop her ass. Something like that.]

"I-I see…"

Something like that, he says. One does not simply talk about whooping divine ass that casually! What is wrong with him?! At some point, we stop for a short rest. He sees how tired I am, not just physically but also mentally.

He seems to find my pace pretty slow, but he seems pretty insistent on the guide part. Is he perhaps directionally challenged? That is very possible. In fact, most of the young geniuses are.

They spend all their lives training inside their sect in seclusion. Then when they go out for the first time, they get lost easily. But one shouldn't underestimate them. These geniuses can destroy all on their passage.

In fact, even I spent a long time just training Gus in my courtyard. I lost pretty much all of them, but at least I know all the shortcuts there are to the profession.

I can't help but ponder about this man. What kind of being is he? Should I consider him an ally or an enemy? So far, he has only referred to my Gu with 'fly'.

I'm not even sure if he realizes this is supposed to be some kind of nightmarish monster. Seen up close, it has a stinger and a maw filled with sharp teeth, and yet…he doesn't seem to mind one bit. In fact, he's feeding it a wild berry he found randomly right now.

That's when he starts petting my invisible killer. Perhaps I am dreaming. It took me months of training before I had the guts to pat it myself. After all, one sting, and you are dead. Yet, there he is.

What the hell did I get myself into…