Zero looked at Lan, silent for a long time.
One man and one god fell into silence.
Lan knew that the other party found it hard to refuse goodwill. Hearing those words, he would only feel at a loss, either desperately trying to change the subject, or twisting the true meaning of what Lan had said.
Sure enough, Zero suddenly let out a sigh, "You didn't refute the fact that you were sent by an Aeon."
Lan, "..."
Lan was used to Zero's overly jumpy way of thinking and had expected this, but after hearing his words, only one thought remained in his mind, 'Is that really the point?'
Zero spoke with certainty, "You didn't cooperate with Fuli. The Aeon who truly reached a cooperation with you is 'Nous.'"
Lan, "..."
He knew it.
Compared to the truth told by others, the other party was more willing to believe the conclusions he had drawn himself.
Lan said calmly, "I did not cooperate with any Aeon."
Facing Lan, Zero still wore that friendly, approachable smile.
When dealing with Xianzhou affairs, however, he was a completely different person, expressionless, eyes utterly lifeless.
Impossible to read joy or anger, impossible to guess his true thoughts.
Only in front of others would he show that affable smile, quickly closing the distance with people while keeping his real emotions unreadable.
Lan knew Zero might not believe him, so he brought up the contract between them.
"You and I once made a contract. As long as the Xianzhou needs it, I will do it."
Zero nodded and asked, "Speaking of which, how did you find me through the contract?"
After making contracts with Lan and the Vidyadhara Dragon Lords, he hadn't felt anything at all. He could only judge whether the contracts had taken effect through item text.
Lan quickly gave an answer.
"By using divine power to sense it, one can perceive the existence of that contract."
Zero had no divine power. He simply gave an "oh" and didn't dwell on the matter.
He seemed to recall something and chuckled softly, "You said it was to let me stay alive… how interesting."
Zero feigned surprise, "Lan, that really doesn't sound like something you'd say. It sounds more like something Aha would say to me."
Zero quickly thought of what Hua had told him.
He had once blessed Aha, wishing Him eternal travel upon the Path of 'Elation.'
It was laughable. How could he possibly have blessed Aha?
Aha must have deliberately tried to annoy him in retaliation.
What Zero hadn't expected was that one day, he would hear such words come from Lan's mouth.
Was this really that tight-lipped gourd?
Zero teased Lan in a light tone, "What? Did you learn bad habits from Aha too?"
Without waiting for Lan to respond, his gaze drifted lightly to the ice lotus, and he continued, "Best friends, honestly… with our relationship, why would you need to act on his behalf? Why didn't Fuli come to the Luofu to see me personally?"
Zero sighed.
Was that really necessary? Avoiding him like the plague, as if he would suddenly snap and kill Fuli.
Yes, he was a 'high-dimensional invader' and did indeed have the ability to kill an Aeon, but that didn't mean he could just kill one whenever he wanted.
Only under an extremely harsh prerequisite could Zero truly kill an Aeon.
He had to make contact with the Aeon's true body.
Taking a step back, even if Zero killed one of Fuli's avatars, it wouldn't cause that Aeon any real loss, nor would it bring him any benefit.
This whole posture… made him seem like some kind of indiscriminate killer.
Lan hesitated to speak, glanced at Zero, and then fell silent.
Whenever Zero mentioned Fuli, he couldn't help but recall the scene where, with incomplete memories, he had apologized to Him.
He had always dared to act and take responsibility, never regretting what he had said.
Since things had come to this, then he might as well offend one more god.
Zero said helplessly, "Honestly… I already apologized to Fuli. Why can't He just let go of it and turn the page completely?"
Lan slowly raised his head to meet his gaze, "…You apologized to Fuli?"
Zero returned a smile. "Yes. I told Him I was really sorry for being offensive before."
Lan's expression went blank.
Zero appreciated Lan's expression for a moment, then continued, "But it's fine. I've forgiven Him. After all, He's my closest friend. He really went to great lengths for my sake…"
"Calling us life-and-death friends wouldn't be an exaggeration."
With a near-sigh, he said wistfully, "Just how many cycles of reincarnation has Fuli gone through for me?"
Lan fell silent for a moment.
It was true that the Aeon of 'Remembrance' had gone to great lengths.
As for the two of them being life-and-death friends… He made no judgment on that.
The last sentence, Fuli reincarnating for the other party, didn't sound wrong at first glance, but somehow it felt strange when you really listened to it.
In a stiff tone, He asked, "Why did you seek me out today?"
Zero stopped messing with divine psychology and said directly, "I asked you here just to ask about what happens after I die."
Zero only considered women's feelings.
There were some questions he couldn't ask Hua or Daiyang, so he had no choice but to ask Lan.
And besides, Lan was an Aeon and had completely lost his humanity, so there was even less need to care about His feelings.
Zero asked, "After I die, how does Hua get along with the other generals?"
Lan said, "They get along very well."
Zero thought about it and felt that made sense.
How could his subordinates possibly disobey his orders?
As for Matthias… he might be a special case.
Given Zero's mental state in his previous life… he wouldn't have been able to raise Hua by himself.
He would most likely have his subordinates help out. Among them, Marty, who focused on research, definitely wouldn't have much time to help raise a child.
After sorting out his thoughts, Zero turned to another question, "Do you still remember Daiyang? Back in Yaoqing, she worked with you for a time. After you became an Aeon, she was your Emanator, and she was also the longest-serving general of the Luofu."
Lan closed his eyes briefly and replied, "I remember. She was best at close combat and had the most military achievements. Back then, very few could match her."
Zero asked, "Daiyang has a very good temper. How did you manage to offend her?"
Lan looked at Zero.
After repeatedly confirming that the other party wasn't joking, He felt utterly confused. 'In your heart, what exactly are your subordinates like?'
He said, "You spoil them too much."
Zero automatically ignored that remark and repeated the question, "How did you offend her?"
Lan originally wanted to say that he hadn't offended Daiyang.
In the end, He only said, "There's no need to worry. This time, it won't happen again."
Zero didn't deliberately pry into his subordinates' privacy. Hearing this, he simply assumed Lan would resolve the conflict between a god and a human, and didn't continue asking.
He voiced the doubt in his heart, "These past half a month, I've been searching through the Luofu archives, but I can't find any records on Daiyang, Chan Zhen, or Marty…"
Lan knew very well that a ruler accustomed to weighing gains and losses could not deduce the truth.
Some things, the other party would do himself, but wouldn't necessarily allow his subordinates to do.
Lan chose his words carefully and said, "You underestimate yourself and overestimate your subordinates."
He watched as the person opposite him seemed to realize something, the smile on his face vanishing in an instant.
Zero's face was expressionless. "What do you mean?"
Lan looked back at Zero and said, "They simply made the same choice as you."