Destined Death, Devouring Bodhi

An Zhiyuan had no mood to joke around with Bai Cangshu. His expression was as grave as if the end of the world were imminent, entirely unlike the negative, reclusive attitude he had always deliberately displayed.

Bai Cangshu could no longer be considered a lone wolf. Li Qingzi, Jin Yue’an, A Single Thought of Silk, Black Butler, and the others had effectively already fallen under his command. Naturally, even if he did not pay attention to much of the intelligence, someone would report it to him.

He naturally knew about the huge piece of news that had been spreading wildly among the Third Tier reincarnators before his return.

The King of Miracles would fall soon, and Azure Sky would collapse along with him.

As the three gatherings that effectively occupied the uppermost echelon of the Infinite Dimensional Space, the most powerful, the Throne of Illusion and Reality, spanned all four districts. Its number of elite and high-level reincarnators overwhelmingly surpassed that of any other gathering.

It also monopolized systems unique to the Bleach World, such as Death God Enhancement and Quincy Enhancement.

Destiny, which had gathered the vast majority of the Chosen under its banner, could be considered the most transcendent gathering in status. It likewise spanned all four districts and made enormous profits through all manner of items that only the Chosen could craft, as well as the information they acquired.

Its upper ranks were also extremely mysterious, and their strength unfathomable.

As for Azure Sky, despite being a small gathering with fewer than ten members, it was recognized as one of the strongest gatherings in the Infinite Dimensional Space, close to the former two. The reason was neither that every member was elite nor that such a small gathering had assembled several top-tier reincarnators.

There was only one reason Azure Sky could become a top-tier gathering, even intervening to mediate all kinds of disputes and preserving the final glory of the "Idealists" in the Infinite Dimensional Space—the King of Miracles was strong, unbelievably strong!

Whether it was personally forcing the conflict between the Great Sun of Finality and Life of Silence to end, or forcefully intervening after the three-way hunt for Mercenary Tao and forcing him into hiding for weeks, it was clear that Azure Sky’s mysterious leader completely surpassed Mercenary Tao and the Supreme Experts.

It was a strength on an entirely different level.

There were as many mysteries and legends surrounding him as ever, yet just when no one could figure out why he was so strong, every high-level reincarnator received special news: he was going to die!

Bai Cangshu leisurely browsed various trade listings as he conversed with Tian Ji Bian.

As a Supreme Expert specializing in divination and the Fate Aspect among mental attributes, he always possessed intelligence channels that others could not access at all.

"Your Excellency, is that person really going to die? Rumor has it that he was struck by some ability and is now doomed to die. Reincarnators at your level should possess some resurrection abilities and items, more or less…"

An Zhiyuan knew that Mercenary Tao was fishing for information, but he no longer had the heart to care about such details.

Cao Qi absolutely could not die. Once Cao Qi died, the balance among the Three Supreme Kings would collapse.

Aizen Sōsuke absolutely harbored no benevolent intentions toward the real world, while the King of Destiny, whose true identity remained unknown, would never confront Aizen Sōsuke head-on.

An Zhiyuan looked at the creation before him that likely belonged to Aizen Sōsuke and laughed at himself. The three Kings each had their own schemes, meddling in one another’s plans.

The three of them might have enjoyed their struggle, but would they truly still be of any use against the Great Calamity of the End?

An Zhiyuan was somewhat uncertain whether the Mad King who had died earlier was the person chosen by the King of Destiny. If so, one of the Three Supreme Kings’ methods of dealing with the Great Calamity of the End had already been lost.

The one Cao Qi had chosen…

An Zhiyuan’s gaze was complicated, as though he wanted to sigh. He did not understand why the woman whom both he and Cao Qi believed possessed the mindset of a Benevolent King most of all had ended up taking her current stance.

An Zhiyuan dared not imagine how much pain and despair Cao Qi must have been feeling right now. The person he had chosen, the person to whom he had wanted to entrust the world and its future, had actually betrayed him.

Nor did An Zhiyuan want to accept that he now had to place his hopes on the person chosen by Aizen Sōsuke—the aberration, the monster he had encountered in the Slum Area from the very beginning and never thought highly of in the slightest.

"With your current abilities, you should know that an ability’s priority is the most crucial factor. Since abilities that can resurrect people exist, there are naturally special abilities that prevent resurrection. When your authority and priority cannot compare, no matter how beloved you are by the world, resurrection will naturally remain impossible."

Bai Cangshu wondered what kind of person could possess an ability powerful enough to prevent even a reincarnator at the level of the Three Supreme Kings from resurrecting.

Was it a powerful Plot Character from some world, or… an expert from another space or faction within the Native World?

Something else also caught his attention. An Zhiyuan seemed to be emphasizing that the King of Miracles was someone beloved by the world…

"Do you think the Little Garden World contains an opportunity that could spare him from death?"

An Zhiyuan had already begun to grow impatient. He knew very well that Azure Sky had long prepared a remedy. They had obtained an opportunity to enter the Little Garden World, but that opportunity lacked the final critical link.

"Enough, Mercenary Tao. You do not need to beat around the bush. Yes! The Little Garden World contains the power you desire, and it also contains the power that can keep that man alive!"

"It’s a win-win situation!"

"No matter what conditions those two gave you, they cannot possibly be more important than the possibilities within the Little Garden World."

The half-black, half-white crown above An Zhiyuan’s head shone brilliantly. Bai Cangshu could not tell whether it was a disguise or whether the other man had divined this conclusion using the Crown of Supremacy’s power.

An Zhiyuan seemed to transform from a lifeless Salted Fish into an enraged beast as he picked up the three high-quality materials one by one.

"The core of the Monster Calamity God Slayer Fist—you should know which world produced it. Use this to appraise it, and you will most likely obtain a fist technique ability no lower than A-rank. Perhaps, if you make good use of your authority for a second chance, you might even obtain learning ability as abnormal as Garou’s!"

Seeing that Bai Cangshu had no intention of speaking, An Zhiyuan raised the Right Hand of Ideal Farewell again. Blood seemed to still linger on the arm.

Watching the frenzied An Zhiyuan, Bai Cangshu could not determine for the moment exactly how the other man had obtained this arm.

A Certain Magical Index World was actually far more dangerous than many imagined. To reincarnators, the existence of Magic Gods was like a bomb that could explode at any moment.

They were a group of ultimate monsters unconstrained by the plot, timelines, or worldlines, and… they were full of curiosity.

This arm was connected to the Magic Gods. Obtaining something like this…

"This arm isn’t as important as you imagine. Across the many worldlines, there are choices where Kamijou Touma disappoints the Magic Gods. Naturally, there are also possibilities where others are abandoned by the Magic Gods. As long as you can see through fate, many things can be obtained!"

An Zhiyuan’s words made Bai Cangshu realize the power of Fate Aspect reincarnators. This power did not manifest in battle but revealed itself beyond battle, in invisible ways.

"You should also know very well what can be obtained after appraising this arm. Even for you now, it would count as formidable combat power."

A smile played on Bai Cangshu’s lips as he admired An Zhiyuan’s rage and loss of reason over a friend.

This appearance of his was far more valuable than the unshaven man lying in the Slum Area pretending to be dead.

"As for the material, Nyarlathotep’s Thousand-Faced Visage… this thing…"

"It’s a counterfeit, isn’t it?"

Bai Cangshu calmly supplied the answer. He had long suspected it, because he had obtained counterfeit treasure arts on the level of the Ten Phoenix Nirvana Art, as well as a Mind Stone whose power fell vastly short of expectations.

Bai Cangshu had long known that worlds which were not powerful enough simply could not produce objects of that level.

In terms of the Infinite Dimensional Space’s Information Theory, a world simply could not produce materials of that level when its information density was insufficient.

Based on the highest-quality World’s Rare Treasure Bai Cangshu had seen so far, that was probably already the limit of information density for worlds beneath the Native World.

For material such as Nyarlathotep’s Thousand-Faced Visage, which involved a true Outer God, it was either a counterfeit or the result of condensed power.

For example, Nyarlathotep might have appeared in some Derivative World, or perhaps a projection of it had appeared, ultimately leaving behind this material.

An Zhiyuan did not hide it. He nodded in acknowledgment and explained,

"A Golden Plot Equipment of the same name once appeared in the North District. It was a powerful item that allowed its wearer to transform into various other beings and gain some of the transformed being’s abilities."

"If you are lucky enough, this material may also grant you a similar ability."

Although Bai Cangshu had never heard any news about the Thousand-Faced Visage item, he did not believe someone like An Zhiyuan would use such a crude lie to deceive him at a time like this.

He looked at the three items and ultimately pointed to two of them, leaving out only the arm.

"I want these two materials."

An Zhiyuan frowned. Not all three items belonged to him, and he was not wealthy enough to have stored up so many Red Quality materials.

He had obtained them from others only after selling quite a bit of his "old face" and intelligence.

Each one had cost him no small price.

Originally, he had only intended to offer one material in exchange for Mercenary Tao completing his Dragon species bloodline advancement as soon as possible and helping Azure Sky open the Little Garden World.

The corner of Bai Cangshu’s mouth lifted. He did not have to wait long before An Zhiyuan agreed to the trade. From Bai Cangshu’s stall, he likewise selected an unidentified Scarlet Drop Card as a token part of the transaction and drafted a contract.

Bai Cangshu had to obtain the identity of a Dragon species within three mission cycles and assist Azure Sky in opening the Little Garden World. Otherwise, he would have to pay an additional price of two S-rank Singularities.

Naturally, Bai Cangshu specifically stipulated in the contract that if the Little Garden World failed to open for reasons not caused by his side, then the contract would become void.

Seeing Bai Cangshu’s half-smiling expression, An Zhiyuan even wondered whether this man was planning to attack Azure Sky’s people if he could not fulfill the contract, using violence to render it void.

But now that Mercenary Tao wanted to establish a new faction, he presumably would no longer run rampant as recklessly as before.

An Zhiyuan relaxed slightly. He even voluntarily offered to find a way to obtain those two special vials of Dragon King Blood Marrow from Destiny and the Throne of Illusion and Reality.

Bai Cangshu neither agreed nor objected, allowing him to leave. This trade had earned him a fortune. Quite a few people remained to trade with him, but Mu Yu of The Heaven responded before them.

The woman brought Su Qingqiu and Su Enfei into Bai Cangshu’s Private Space and presented a new Bodhi.

Mu Yu hesitated for a moment before saying,

"Mr. Mercenary Tao, this Bodhi has actually already been purchased, but… I hope to use it to exchange for the vial of Titan Blood on your stall…"

Su Enfei’s eyes twitched in surprise. She did not understand why Sister Mu Yu, who had always acted prudently, was being so bold this time.

They had clearly agreed to come and make amends. She had even prepared what she would say about Destined Death.

Destined Death was frightening, but if she said she had been defeated and handed over to Mercenary Tao as compensation, those lunatics presumably would not dare cling to the matter.

Bai Cangshu calmly looked at the woman who had raised the price at the last minute. In the Private Space, he could not read minds, but judging solely from her expression, she seemed… not to be raising the price.

"Lord Mercenary Tao, the people of Destined Death are a group of lunatics. I do not want any complications before the new cycle begins. Once the new cycle begins, perhaps they will lose that title…"

Destined Death was also a small gathering of the Third Tier, but it was extremely famous. Similar to Bai Cangshu, it was formed by a group of ruthless individuals who specialized in taking commissions and trading in the slaughter of other reincarnators.

They had once invited Bai Cangshu to join them as well.

They also seemed to have obtained some special title in the Elden Ring World, granting them a certain ability to ignore immortality.

They were a group exceptionally skilled at killing reincarnators.

Bai Cangshu did not reject the woman’s self-righteous goodwill. He held out his hand.

You obtained Bodhi ×1

Bai Cangshu then directly swallowed the Bodhi hanging around his neck.

You consumed the item: Bodhi

An intense illusion swept over him. As Bai Cangshu opened and closed his eyes, he had already appeared beneath the Twin Sal Trees.

He looked at the leaves falling from the sky. The surroundings were tranquil and peaceful.

With a thought, Bai Cangshu began practicing martial arts beneath the trees.

Su Qingqiu frowned, realizing that Mercenary Tao had actually planned this all along. Because of Bodhi’s powerful effects, carrying it on one’s person could increase the cultivation and comprehension speed of other abilities.

But swallowing Bodhi could directly raise one proficiency level.

This Mercenary Tao was so greedy that, in order to possess both effects, he had actually demanded another new Bodhi.

At this moment, Su Qingqiu felt that Mu Yu’s goodwill had been entirely unnecessary. A greedy beast like this could never be fed, nor would he appreciate their kindness.

Mu Yu, however, calmly shook her head. She had neither special Mystic Eyes nor special prophecy abilities or sequences.

But she was exceptionally skilled at "judging people." Merely through interacting with this Mercenary Tao, she sensed a change. He differed from the previous Mercenary Tao, who made one feel chilled to the bone merely by approaching him.

The current Mercenary Tao faintly radiated an air of grandeur.

Boom!

Surging qi burst from his body. Before the three women’s eyes, Mercenary Tao opened his eyes, and the fierce qi shot out like a laser, piercing through the sofa opposite him.

Mercenary Tao spread open his hand, and qi seized the various sofas and furnishings in the Private Space, lifting them into the air like bolts of lightning.

"Is this Mercenary Tao’s… My Style Martial Arts?"