The God of Cataka

105

By morning, Shen Zhu had fallen asleep for a while when his shadow bodyguard returned and slipped into his room.

The shadow guard strangled stifledly to find a girl lying on one bed with Shen Zhu. He intended to turn around silently, but in shock, he nudged the tea table and tapped Shen Zhu.

Shen Zhu woke up and was aghast to find Xiao Mao hugging her in the form of a girl, then turned to the tea table and looked at her shadow bodyguard. He quickly pushed Xiao Mao's head into the blanket and turned him into a cat.

Xiao Mao flinched and woke up.

Shen Zhu sat down and greeted his shadow bodyguard misbehaving, "You're back?" tanyanya.

"Ah—haha!" The shadow guard laughed uneasily and turned to face Shen Zhu. "Sorry—" he stuttered. Then glanced behind Shen Zhu.

Xiao Mao's head emerged from behind Shen Zhu's waist in the form of a cat.

The shadow guard sighed silently and forced a smile. "Everything is according to Master's instructions" he said a little clumsy.

"Then you rest!" shen Zhu ordered as he unfolded his blanket and stepped down from his bed. "I want to take a walk," he said as he walked into the bath.

Xiao Mao jumped down from the bed and landed on the floor, then looked up at the bodyguard and tilted his head slightly.

"No need to worry!" shun Zhu shouted from the bath room. "Sleep in my bed!"

The shadow guard bowed to look at Xiao Mao in a wrong manner. The cat watched him with eyes that seemed to say, "Don't try to sleep on my bed!"

"I'll just sleep on the floor!" break the guard in stammer.

The sun had yet to appear when Shen Zhu stepped out of the inn, only a tinge of golden orange light shimmered at the foot of the sky.

The streets along the shopping center were crowded with merchants preparing to open their respective stalls.

Shen Zhu walked slowly through the traditional market while carrying Xiao Mao, entering a smaller street leading to a village.

"Shu Village!" Xiao Mao told through a voice in Shen Zhu's head. "Little sect of Taoist school!"

"Let's make a bit of a mess" Shen Zhu whispered with a slanted smile.

"Missiness? I like!" exclaimed Xiao Mao in a childish enthusiastic tone.

Soon, Shen Zhu was already in front of the gate of a martial academy.

Two guards in armor confronted Shen Zhu by crossing their spears against each other. "Without spell runes can't enter!"

"Mantra?" Shen Zhu responded with a cynical smile, then folded one of his hands back and puffed out his chest, "Then please choose yourself!" he said while activating the golden chain-shaped strand of letters that wrapped around his body like a neural network.

The two gate guards gasped and stammered. "How can a Tier Five— Knight" choked them together. But then it only budged to see the golden chain of light on Shen Zhu's body.

The gold chain strands made up of letters that formed word for word ran through the gate like a titi tada, then spread out into the college courtyard and slipped into each corner like smoke tendrils.

The whole college was suddenly thrown into an uproar.

The two gatekeepers sided and knelt to the left-right of the gate, "Elder!" salute them stammeringly, then let Shen Zhu in.

Shen Zhu stepped inside with a slanted smile. "It was unexpected that being an elder of the tao flow was so easy," he whispered in a sly tone.

Moments later, the college grounds were filled with many people. Everyone stared at Shen Zhu with a mixed expression of astonishment and alertness.

Shen Zhu did not reply, just standing leisurely as he rubbed Xiao Mao's head.

Two other elder monks joined the first elder, then glanced at each other with squinted eyes.

"Who are you really?" one of the elders rebuked Shen Zhu.

"I am me," Shen Zhu replied indifferently. Then raised his face and looked around expressionlessly.

The monks again exchanged looks with horrified expressions.

Who wouldn't be afraid to hear the phrase "I am me?" Every Spiritual Master who holds fast to the teachings of the gods believes the term to be the identity of the supreme single god.

The first thought that crosses everyone's mind when hearing the term is a messenger of god or a heretic.

Facing a Level Five Knight who had not even turned thirty made them doubtful, but seeing the book of life covering it made them not dare to act rashly.

"What do you want?" That frontal question finally came out of the mouth of one of the elders. Only the ultimate goal will prove whether he is the messenger of the god or the deceiver, he said in his heart.

"It's just a trivial thing," Shen Zhu replied no less frontally. "Ten quota of Knight Exams!"

"Please!" hardik monk elder earlier while knocking the tip of his stick to the stone floor that became the courtyard of the main building of the college.

A golden halo of light shimmered from the end of his staff throwing down dust and strong winds.

Shen Zhu's hair and robe whipped around his body, but his body was unshaken.

"How dare he blaspheme a god for the sake of politics!" another elder monk's hardik pointed his index finger at Shen Zhu.

Shen Zhu tilted his head slightly and smiled obliquely, instantly the entire place rippled by a mysterious gust of wind.

Everyone in the courtyard of the college building shuffled a step back.

"Speaking political interests.." Shen Zhu stepped slowly closer to the three elder monks with a calm expression, then stopped three steps ahead of them. "Register and fight for a position in the Knight Alliance, becoming a slave for generations, do you think...is it better than independence?"

"You want to rebel?" hiss one of the elders pitched sharply.

"Who are the higher-ups of the Knight Alliance compared to the gods?" clasped Shen Zhu expressionlessly.

"They are the owners of the five god pillars!" sergeant one of the elders. "Who are we compared to them?"

"The five god pillars in the Base City were built by seven empires" Shen Zhu said. "The knights were taken from all the sects. Without the seven empires and the knights, the Knight Alliance has nothing."

"Young Boy!" another elder monk interrupted Shen Zhu. "You're brave enough to think we won't complain to the Alliance!"

"Everyone is brave enough to say the same thing" Shen Zhu said. "But no one dared to say it so blatantly!"

"If you're so brave, just do it yourself!" hardik the first elder monk. "Don't involve our little sect!"

"Then hand the Shu Sect over to me!" pinta Shen Zhu was without a burden.

Everyone was muttering at the same time. "Daradly! Young people are crazy!"