The Divine Light has already proven through action that the power of Divine Seal Fragments cannot defeat the Master of Divine Seal. Since holding onto them only turns them into a weakness, Xuanming could only discard them all.

From the position of those challenging Xuanming, this is indeed a huge piece of good news. I also possess the power of Divine Seal Fragments, yet it has scarcely improved my own combat power; although I can enhance this through the blessing of Little Bowl, it merely results in a "when the enemy is killed, they die" dark humor effect. While it's very effective against enemies with an Undying Body and will certainly be a trump card for future battles with Ming Zhuo, it doesn't show its power in ordinary combat.

Little Bowl's hypothesis might also explain why Xuanming couldn't defeat Meng Zhang of Taoyuan Village—even though there's no concrete evidence, I believe Xuanming and Meng Zhang of Taoyuan Village are of a similar level. Xuanming had once intercepted and seized all the ownerless Divine Seal fragments left behind by the death of Divine Light, making him currently the character with the most Divine Seal fragments among all Void Envoys.

Even though Taoyuan Village Master possesses the unfinished "Paradise," in my mind, its external advantages couldn't possibly be stronger than Xuanming's.

However, regarding Little Bowl's judgment, I have a bit of doubt and thus directly brought it up: "Your reasoning process might be correct. To fight on equal terms with the Master of Divine Seal, Xuanming must relinquish the power of Divine Seal Fragments, but isn't this only a concern when the actual fight happens?

"Currently, Xuanming hasn't pinpointed the exact whereabouts of the Master of Divine Seal, and his enemies aren't limited to just the Master of Divine Seal. Putting aside Meng Zhang of Taoyuan Village and myself, even the other Impermanence of Luo Mountain could potentially clash with him. Abandoning all the power of Divine Seal Fragments so swiftly—might this be too hasty?"

Little Bowl also acknowledged: "Indeed, to maximize the value of Divine Seal Fragments, discarding the identity of a Void Apostle at this stage might truly be wasteful.

"But from Xuanming's perspective, it's a matter of urgency, requiring swift decisiveness—because he can't predict the Master of Divine Seal's time to restore the Void Realm with precision.

"We don't know how much intelligence Xuanming has on matters related to the Master of Divine Seal, but neither he nor the potential source of his information, the Evangelical Institute, is the true controller of the divine seal. They lack such a position and perspective, so naturally, they can't calculate the specific process of the Master of Divine Seal repairing the Void Realm.

"Once the Void Realm is restored, the Master of Divine Seal might summon Xuanming into the Void Realm through the connection with the fragments—summoning him onto his home ground. Last time, the prepared Xuanming caught the Master of Divine Seal off guard; and if positions were swapped, Xuanming might be killed easily like Divine Light without any chance to counterattack.

"He might not even need to wait for the Void Realm to be restored; the current Master of Divine Seal could already have the means to impact us Void Envoys, he just hasn't chosen to do so yet…"

At this point, maybe thinking I would worry about my own situation, she added, "Moreover, over these days, I've been weakening Brother Zhuang Cheng's connection depth with the Divine Seal Fragments. It is now reduced to the minimum extent, approximately the level when I first knew Brother Zhuang Cheng.

"This shouldn't impede Brother Zhuang Cheng's re-entry into the Void Realm in the future, and the identity of a Void Envoy remains intact. Of course, if Brother Zhuang Cheng wishes for further weakening, just let me know anytime, I'd be happy to assist."

The agreement to help me weaken the depth of connection with the Divine Seal Fragments was previously established, so I nodded in response, "I've already perceived that."

Currently, I'm actually incapable of independently exerting the power of the Divine Seal Fragments. However, as long as I have Little Bowl's blessing to supplement, I can still unleash the True Spirit Power that counters the Undying Body. After all, by independently using the power of Divine Seal Fragments, I could at most just alter the frequency of my mana fluctuations. It's really hard to imagine any future scenarios for its usage.

Out of curiosity, I asked another question, "Since you can weaken the connection with the Divine Seal Fragments, can you also deepen the connection with them?"

"Deepen?"

Little Bowl seemed not to have thought in this direction; after some serious pondering, she answered, "… It's possible. By deepening the connection, it might amplify the output of the power of Divine Seal Fragments... However, Brother Zhuang Cheng's compatibility with the Divine Seal Fragments is too poor, so amplifying it wouldn't make much of a difference compared to now.

"Although my compatibility is good, it's already in a sufficiently perfected state. The essence of the Power of Righteous Heavenly Phenomena isn't about being strong but about adaptability, emphasizing a balance, whereby further deepening might not be a good thing.

"And if the connection deepened to an extreme level…"

She seemed to be calculating something, staying silent for quite a while, prompting me to ask, "What would happen?"

"... In such a situation, the soul would be completely bound to the Divine Seal Fragments. As for what changes might occur, I can't predict." Little Bowl hesitantly said, "It might be similar to the current Master of Divine Seal... soul-possessed onto the Divine Seal Fragments, making it like the fragments have attained essence?"

Her words stimulated my imagination.

The Master of Divine Seal indeed isn't the essence of the Divine Seal but rather Tai Sui possessing the Divine Seal? Using the method Little Bowl suggested, deepening one's connection with the divine seal to the extreme?

As I pondered, I said, "If the Master of the Divine Seal indeed holds great authority over the Divine Seal Fragments, doing so could likely make you a tool of the Master of the Divine Seal."

Little Bowl nodded and then said, "For the past three days, I've also been contemplating whether it's possible to help Sister Mazao establish a connection with the Divine Seal Fragments, making her similar to a Void Apostle. That way, she could directly use the power of the Divine Seal Fragments and might even utilize the Naraku Gospel Power without any cost... It's just that it would form conditions for the Master of the Divine Seal to intervene, and I seemingly can't achieve such a degree at the moment."

"On that note, I thought you'd stop Mazao," I said.

"Stop—do you mean?" Little Bowl asked.

Over these three days, Mazao has been able to attempt converting a small amount of broom star power into her own strength.

To prevent any unexpected incidents, I was present as an observer during these attempts. It was a strengthening state similar to Fa Zheng's enhancement when using Human Dao Divine Weapon, instantly amplifying her mana two or threefold. Of course, this would put a heavy burden on the soul, forcing her to stop within a few seconds given her current state.

This power is based on self-harm; the longer it's used, the greater the harm, even threatening life. According to our calculations, if wielded to its full potential after the soul is completely repaired, reaching the level of Impermanence is undeniably possible. However, as soon as usage time crosses the red line, it would inevitably lead to destruction for both parties involved. Such practice is akin to evil path demon magic and taboo forbidden technique that shouldn't be touched.

If treating Mazao as someone to protect at all costs, I should completely stop her from trying such dangerous power, but...

"Brother Zhuang Cheng didn't stop Sister Mazao either, right?" Little Bowl said.

I couldn't deny it. Considering common sense, I shouldn't have done that, but when Mazao declared her unwavering resolve to stand by my side and fight alongside me, I found myself unable to voice words of dissuasion, with an uncontrollable feeling of anticipation burning within me.

Even from the beginning, when learning that Mazao's safe usage time for the Naraku Gospel Power was just one minute, I hadn't even considered advising Mazao further.

—Because I too wanted to fight alongside Mazao.

"If it were the past, I definitely would've advised against it for Sister Mazao," Little Bowl said, "But things are different now. Today's Sister Mazao would never fight to destroy herself. So I'm willing to trust her, believing she can wield this dangerous power well. Not for death, but for a better life.

"To me, Brother Zhuang Cheng, it's you I'm even more worried about. To protect me from Xuanming's threat, you plan to go to that Southern City for a decisive battle with Xuanming... You're enjoying this in your heart despite lacking a guaranteed victory, aren't you?"

"Yes. Aren't you going to try to stop me?" I asked.

Little Bowl made a small gesture to beckon me closer. As I leaned in, she tenderly embraced my head, the small, soft body pressing against my face.

"I may not know how to fight, but I understand one thing—for a warrior embarking on a journey with resolve, I shouldn't be shedding tears and pulling a sad face. So I won't stop Sister Mazao, nor will I stop you." Little Bowl said, "But, Brother Zhuang Cheng, you are fighting fiercely for my sake. So if you die later, I won't shamelessly live on without you. I hope you can remember this when you take risks."

I didn't expect Little Bowl to say something like this and couldn't help but voice my doubt: "Then what about your mission? Don't you want to see Mazao and Zhu Shi become happy? If you follow me to death, what would they think? Are you planning to abandon your mission?"

"The outcome indeed would be such. From the standpoint of the Dream Avatar, having something prioritized over the mission can only be seen as a fault." Little Bowl smiled, "But besides the obsession of a mother and the dream of a daughter, I also have my own independent self, as you, Brother Zhuang Cheng, recently told me, right? So I hope you consider this decision not as a mother, not as a daughter but from my independent self... As an arrangement from Little Bowl to you."