Shi Xiaobai came to a slight pause when he said that.
Dawn's eyebrows knitted together. What was up with the answer that sounded like the narration of a story? What did it have to do with her questions? It seemed like he was giving an irrelevant answer?
She could not help but urge him, "Continue?"
Shi Xiaobai nodded and continued, "From the little sword spirit, names of different sword techniques were known. This King remembers them clearly—Three Thousand Li Sword, Hundred-eighty Li Sword, Three Thousand Waters Sword, Wind Fire Thunder Divine Sword, Nine Heavens Thunderclap Sword, Great Sword of Light, Demon Slaying Holy Sword... Very coincidentally, these were the sword techniques you had previously used.”
"With this said, there is a need to thank Speechless, who is known to you as the Celestial King. It's all thanks to him going through the trouble of announcing every attack you used. Only then did This King know that every sword technique you used was identical to the sword technique that the little sword spirit subconsciously mentioned."
"This King had a thought back then that this was too much a coincidence. Anything strange must have something amiss about it. Back then, This King had a suspicion. The suspicion instantly made This King realize the existence of Lucifer's Sword."
"Therefore, This King was able to see the actual form of the nonexistent sword in your hand. This King was given a shock because the Lucifer's Sword in your hand, as well as the sword techniques the little sword spirit knew, seemed to imply that you, or the three-thousand-year-old figure you were moulded after, was the master of Lucifer's Sword."
"Therefore, This King thought of the scene that appeared when This King signed a pact with Lucifer's Sword. The woman in the scene was similar to you. She had blond hair that looked as resplendent as dawn. This King immediately had an unbelievable guess ‘Could the woman in that scene be the master of Lucifer's Sword and could she be that great figure from three thousand years ago?’"
"That guess seemed very ridiculous, because according to what This King knew, that great figure was a man. That was the understanding that both history and humans had. Furthermore, the woman in the scene and you, the imitation of that great person, looked completely different other than that resplendent blond hair. It was impossible that the two of you were the same person."
"However, things like guesses are usually irremediable once they are generated. This King could not help but ponder over the illogical guess before coming to a strange guess. This King thought that if the great person from three thousand years ago was a woman in disguise, and had lived her life after changing her appearance, she would not be discovered by anyone. Then, everything could be logically explained. He and she can then be reconciled as being the same person."
"Forgive This King for not being able to repress his desire to verify it. Although the guess was very ridiculous, This King still grabbed every chance to prove its veracity. And just perfectly, you were in front of me. Therefore, This King created a series of lies so as to verify whether you are a girl disguising as a male! That was the goal for This King's lies."
When Shi Xiaobai said up to that point, he said apologetically, "Sorry, This King's goal was very simple. The approach to accomplishing the goal was a bit complicated. If it created confusion in you, This King can only say 'sorry'. Just as you are suppressing your killing intent to get This King to answer your questions, This King had similarly done a willful act in order to answer his doubts."
"Willful?"
A smile suffused across Dawn's lips. "You can be willful, but I cannot forgive. You wasted a great deal of time to explain your goal, but you did not directly answer my questions. I believe them. I believe that you said so many lies in order to verify a doubt you had on a whim. Then, can you be more serious and answer my questions?"
When Shi Xiaobai heard that, he shook his head helplessly and said, "Aren't the answers you want to know already obvious? But since you aren't irked about This King being long-winded, This King will answer them one by one."
"Why does This King know of the ideal woman in your mind? Actually, This King did not know. However, This King used an assumption. This King assumed that his guess was correct, Since the appearance of the blond woman in This King's mind was your future appearance, it meant that you would dress up in that manner in the future. Then, that blond woman's appearance should be your ideal look."
"As one's ideal look isn't easily changed, This King only changed the way he said it. If you didn't strictly distinguish the ideal look from your ideal woman, you would subconsciously believe that This King had guessed your thoughts. That step was actually a bet because This King was only making an assumption as his premise, but fortunately, This King was right on his bet."
"How does This King know the name of Lucifer's Sword? Although the sword spirit said that she did not know anything about her previous master, she was unable to withstand This King's repeated questioning. She eventually muttered the name of the sword to This King, so this was information that This King already knew. It was just used in a reasonable fashion."
"Why does This King have a copy of Lucifer's Sword in his hand? There is probably no need to answer that."
"Why was This King able to so confidently reveal that you are a girl in disguise? On that point, it was just a matter of following on. This King had used two pieces of information to make you have the illusion that 'this lie seems real, but the flaw had already been exposed'. You believed that there was a flaw because you felt that if there was an existence of a flaw, then the lie This King said had to be fake.”
"When one hears this, it might seem like you would refuse to believe This King's lies, but that's not how logic works. And it's because you deeply believe the existence of the flaw that you reduced your doubts of the other lies. If This King suddenly told you that the flaw you knew was not a flaw, and explained the biggest doubt, the other doubts you subconsciously had would fall like a pile of dominoes."
"This King was not able to ascertain that you were a female disguised as a male, but since This King used an assumption, whatever This King did was firmly under the assumption's premise. Hence, This King was able to very confidently say the fact that you were a female disguised as a male. It was because it was the biggest flaw that it became the best evidence. It was also the final tactic!"
"That is the truth to the lie. Are you satisfied?"
Shi Xiaobai blinked his eyes like a playful child.
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Chapter433 Goodbye forever, Shi Xiaobai
Dawn's eyes lost its luster for a moment. Shi Xiaobai's explanation was reasonable, but it was too simple. How could a lie that could deceive her be so simple?
As Dawn continued thinking, she immediately thought of a critical problem. She hesitated for a moment before biting her lower lip and said, "Then, how do you explain the red mole under the armpit?"
Shi Xiaobai said, "That was just a stab in the dark. This King has obviously not seen what's under your right armpit, but have you really observed your right armpit before? A normal person would not do so, so you would not know if there is a red mole under your right armpit. Furthermore, it's impossible for you to take off your top in front of everybody and raise your right hand to verify if there was a red mole under your armpit. And the information This King said before that was a fact you knew. So you took it for granted that This King had said the truth, and that This King had really observed your right armpit. At the same time, you would lose your calm line of thought due to the flustered feelings of being peeped."
Shi Xiaobai could not help but laugh. He had learned this trick only recently and he had already used it. That was because not long ago, the Infernal Queen had used this trick to deceive him. For him to be fooled with his intelligence, there was no reason for Dawn to not fall for it either.
Shi Xiaobai noticed how Dawn's eyes were torpid as he chuckled, "Is the reveal of the riddles a bit disappointin
g? Do you feel that the answer is too simple and the methods are overly normal? After it loses the package of mystery, it becomes extremely meaningless?"
Typically, complicated magic would appear mysterious and profound to the audience that did not know the tricks. But once the tricks were revealed, they would realize that the principle behind it was very simple. It would result in people thinking that the magic was actually immature and meaningless.
Dawn's eyes seemed lost. She was indeed having such feelings.
But was this feeling really correct?
Was that complicated magic immature and meaningless?
Were the means of lying to her to deceive her simple?
Dawn fell silent as she thought deeply. A strange look suddenly flickered in her ice-blue eyes. She slowly looked up at Shi Xiaobai and an undetectable glint flashed faintly in her eyes.
"Simple? You are being humble."
Her lips that did not have any lipstick applied but remained clear and alluring suffused a faint smile for the first time. Dawn said with a smile, "Being overly humble is more hateful than arrogance. The methods you mention sound simple, but it's not as simple carrying it out."
"Everything relied on that ridiculous confession of yours from the beginning. That ten lifetime lie had perfectly explained the confession, and laid the foundations for the perfect lies that followed. To link the lies one after another, it is not something a typical youth can think of."
"You firmly used your assumption, and from that hypothesis, resolve your questions. Once you had doubts about your hypothesis, everything would fall apart, but you remained resolute. You were not gambling but playing a game of wits. Because although you are a gambler, you are certain that you would win. Your psyche far exceeds normal people."
"You proficiently used several psychological techniques, and the reasoning behind the lie was very simple. However, how it was used was crucial. And be it the way you used it or the timing when you used it was nearly perfect. This is not something you could do by following textbooks."
"You progressed one level after another and closed in on it. Unknowingly, you had weaved a web of lies, and at the final moment, you dealt the fatal strike. No girl can remain calm after knowing that they had been peeped and seen naked, to the point of knowing that a private spot under the armpit had been seen. I similarly couldn't do it. You realized such a simple reasoning and perfectly used it."
"Furthermore, it resonated with the ten lifetimes lie. The two lies proved each other, and two wrongs made it a right, causing it to turn into reality. And all of that stemmed from that confession. The first move you made laid the best foundation for the final move. To have thought so far with such tight logic, you are very impressive."
"You were able to fool me not out of coincidence or luck, but because you are smarter than others."
Shi Xiaobai was surprised when he heard her. He never expected to receive such compliments. He even felt a bit embarrassed as he involuntarily scratched his head and said with a silly laugh, "You are flattering This King. For you to be able to analyze This King's thought process in such a short period of time makes you quite an impressive person as well."
When the thirty-thousand-strong audience heard this conversation, other than having a blank mind, they had no other thought. They felt like their intelligence was fake, but when they heard the last statement, they could not help but curse—that was like shameless flattery between business partners!
The girl's faint smile was like an epiphyllum's fleeting bloom. It quickly disappeared. Her eyes turned calm once again as she said, "Let me ask you one last time. You went through so much thought, was it so as to verify that I'm a girl in disguise?"
When Shi Xiaobai heard this, he hesitated for a moment before saying with a nod, "That's because we are bound to fight a life-and-death battle immediately following this. If it's not you dying, it will be This King. But no matter who dies, This King will lose the chance to verify his doubt. This King does not want to leave behind any regrets or questions. On this point, This King believes that you who are suppressing your killing intent will understand the most."
Shi Xiaobai sighed in his heart. He said he would not lie, but at that moment, he had no choice but to lie. The reason why he did it was because of the Absolute Choice. It was the Absolute Choice that had forced him to make such a screwed up matter.
The confession was just too embarrassing no matter who it was said to.
But if he could turn the confession into a perfect lie, a simple scheme with a goal, it could verify the guess on his mind and also relieve the embarrassing situation. It could kill two birds with one stone, so why not?
That was the fifth path Shi Xiaobai chose. He changed the first impression of it being a 'crazy path' to a 'clever path'.
Dawn believed in Shi Xiaobai's explanation and did not probe any further. Instead, she slowly took a step forward, and said, "Then one last question, please tell me your name."
Shi Xiaobai was slightly taken aback as he suddenly felt a strange feeling of achievement. He grinned and said his name. "This King's name is Shi Xiaobai!"
"Shi Xiaobai."
Dawn said softly as she gave Shi Xiaobai a deep glance. Her lips trembled slightly as she said out words that seemed to come from beyond the heavens.
"Goodbye forever, Shi Xiaobai."
The voice that sounded like chiming heavenly bells resounded in the air.
The girl's figure had already transformed into a flash as she charged at Shi Xiaobai. The Lucifer's Sword in her hand was clenched tightly as it shimmered with a resplendent golden light.
It was as though the first light of dawn had torn through the night sky.
...
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Chapter434 The color in his eyes
"Goodbye forever, Shi Xiaobai."
The voice that sounded like heavenly bells chiming in the sky echoed. Dawn's figure had already transformed into a flash as she charged at Shi Xiaobai. The Lucifer's Sword in her hand was clenched tightly as it shimmered with a resplendent golden light.
It was as though the first light of dawn had torn through the night sky.
The killing intent that appeared made it a killing move the moment it was produced. The strike was as shockingly fast as before. Not long ago, the young girl, who had used unknown means to disguise herself as a blond youth, had used this strike to behead the giant.
The gigantic head that fell to the ground and the spewing of blood like an erupting volcano was still fresh on the minds of everyone. The thirty-thousand-strong audience felt that it stifling, as if their throats were being clenched. This time, the girl had said the farewell with the words, 'goodbye forever'. It could be considered a warning, but the instant she attacked still caught people off guard because it was too sudden and fast. The audience could not react in time, and their minds were blank.
Would the Infernal King be killed with a single strike like the newly ascended Transcendent King?
The answer was obviously no.
That was because when the girl tore through the darkness like the dawn, Shi Xiaobai had moved as well. He held the sword in his right hand. A pure blackness and flawless whiteness twirled around the blade. A faint blood-red color emerged that seemed like a blooming red lotus in the black and white world. Golden beads of light began to emerge from the ground that swirled around him, as he ran, like they were testy pixies.
Shi Xiaobai charged at the girl with sword in hand. He pushed Crab Steps at the Crest of Perfection level to its fullest and was in no way slower than her. The golden beads of light that came out of the ground augmented the sword and moved along with it. Looking from high up, it was like a shooting star that tore through the night sky.
The resplendent dawn and the shimmering stars did not do anything else but rush straight at each other. Finally, they encountered one another at a particular node of fate.
"Boom!"
This was the first time Lucifer's Sword and the black-and-white sword clashed. There were no sparks, but a clanging explosion.
This was the first time the young boy and girl looked at each other at such a close distance. At the moment that the swords collided, their figures came to an abrupt stop. They were only a meter apart.
At that instant, they spontaneously looked into each others eyes and took a step forward. It was not to send each other retreating at a faster speed, but to see their figures reflected in the respective black and ice-blue irises.
But that instant lasted only a fleeting moment. The clash of power did not reach a balanced standstill. In order to withstand the impact, they needed to once again separate from each other.
Shi Xiaobai retreated a kilometer before before he managed to stop the backwards momentum of that strike.
Dawn did not have that much of an advantage either. She similarly retreated eight hundred meters.
Sunless and company in the distance finally heaved a sigh of relief. Shi Xiaobai had not only withstood that strike which was like a sudden clap of thunder which left no time for one to cover one's ears, he was also able to strike back. Although the final outcome looked as though Dawn held the advantage, it was a negligible advantage.
Dawn quickly retreated before finally coming to a stable stop. For some reason, she had a baffling sense of loss. She suddenly felt that the instant of them looking into each other eyes seemed too short. She failed to see what color she was in his eyes.
She hurriedly puffed and exhaled the baffling feeling out of chest before she looked up to gaze at the black-haired youth eighteen hundred meters from her. At that very moment, golden light that seemed like pixies surrounded him and that black-and-white sword. Even in the day, he was still as blinding as ever.
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