Little Garden Opens, Halloween Queen

[The End and The Beginning · EX051, you are applying to enter the public space of the gathering · Azure Sky (Level 9)]

[Application approved]

[Please note: the laws within this space have been partially distorted]

Bai Cangshu looked at the prompt before him. He rarely entered the spaces of other gatherings, but this unusual label still made him sense Azure Sky’s uniqueness.

Buzz~

Bai Cangshu turned into a streak of white light. The next moment, he felt himself pass through a massive curtain, and then the sea breeze rushed toward him as seabirds flapped overhead.

He appeared on a golden beach. From the white jade manor in the distance radiated two overwhelmingly powerful auras.

An Illusory Gate flickered in and out of view above the white jade manor.

The gate was circular, its intricate patterns linked to the surrounding sky.

Bai Cangshu guessed that it was probably a Special Creation, much like the Gantz he had obtained and the Eldorado he had seen in the One Piece World. Ownership could be acquired after occupying such things for a long time.

With a light tap of his feet, Bai Cangshu shot into the air and landed inside the white jade manor the next instant.

Everyone’s gaze immediately converged on Bai Cangshu.

The professor watched Mercenary Tao remain utterly unfazed under the scrutiny of Azure Sky’s top Reincarnators, even finding the leisure to flash him a smile of unclear meaning.

He keenly felt the fundamental gap between himself and the other man.

Sometimes, strength and weakness could be completely seen from one’s bearing alone. He lacked the poise of someone born powerful. Even though he was now a hundred times stronger than an ordinary person, mentally, he still regarded himself as one.

Mercenary Tao, meanwhile, was probably the type who had already completely separated himself from the masses before ever entering the Space.

"Your Excellency, let’s begin~"

Reinhardt stepped aside, revealing the two enormous marks on the ground behind him.

Those were left behind when he and Cao Qi had opened the gate.

Cao Qi was merely seated beside the round table, appraising Bai Cangshu with his eyes as if trying to find something he had previously overlooked.

There were two more people at the round table. One wore a full suit of heavy black armor, completely concealing the figure inside. A red slit had been left in the visor, seemingly where the eyes were.

The other was a woman in white robes. In Bai Cangshu’s perception, her Soul Power was immensely powerful. Apart from himself, she was nearly the Reincarnator with the strongest Soul Power he had ever seen.

Moreover… many spirit bodies surrounded her.

The corners of Bai Cangshu’s lips curved slightly, as though he were committing the woman’s appearance to memory.

That expression caused Sen Xia, who leaned against the opposite wall in a dark blue sailor uniform, to open her eyes. Her narrow gaze was filled with chilling intent.

She still held that demonic blade with the trait of [Slaying Aberrations].

Only after examining everyone from Azure Sky did Bai Cangshu smile and step forward.

"Azure Sky truly has no shortage of talent. I’m quite envious."

As Bai Cangshu approached the gate, the blood within his body seemed to answer some kind of summons. He raised a hand, and his pupils immediately turned into golden vertical slits. Black scales emerged across his body, and even something seemed about to bulge from the top of his head.

Boom!

An intense draconic might burst from his body. The next moment, it transformed into a golden dragon and plunged into the gate.

The ground beneath Bai Cangshu’s feet lit up as well. Intricate patterns illuminated from the void one by one, gradually connecting to the gate.

[You have come into contact with the Special Creation · Queen’s Boundary Gate]

[Warning: you are attempting to activate a restricted creation. This action will trigger unforeseeable consequences]

A scarlet prompt appeared, but neither the Azure Sky group nor Bai Cangshu showed any intention of stopping.

The light beneath Bai Cangshu’s feet finally connected fully with the circular Illusory Gate.

The patterns around the gate lit up completely in an instant and flowed in all directions like lightning before vanishing into the void.

Buzz~

In an instant, changes began occurring in the sky above Azure Sky’s unusual gathering space.

The sky first dimmed, as though night had fallen in a single moment.

Then countless Jack-o’-lanterns began appearing in the sky. They drifted through the air, and more floated in from the sea.

Even Sen Xia frowned at the sight.

"That ocean… should be an illusion, right…" the professor stammered. Azure Sky’s Private Space was large, but the sea was merely an illusion, a kind of visual trick created by the space.

In reality, the boundary of this gathering space lay not far beyond the beach. Only the nearest waves were real.

Yet now, those pumpkin lanterns truly emerged from the illusory sea, crossing the boundary between illusion and reality as they floated onto the beach.

Jingle, jingle~

An inexplicably cheerful ringing began echoing from the void, as though it were some kind of summons.

The massive circular gate slowly began to open, revealing the black void behind it.

Bai Cangshu watched this scene, and the smile on his face deepened.

As expected of the Little Garden World, a place truly said to be one where Saints were everywhere and gods and Buddhas were beneath notice…

This display of power had instantly surpassed the highest levels of power in the vast majority of world settings.

"You’re still surprised by something like this at this point? Are you really ready, Ye Kai?"

Cao Qi rose to his feet. He looked up at the Illusory Gate and the space that had suddenly become like Halloween night, his smile as bold as ever.

"The Halloween Queen, ruler of the Boundary, doing something like this—isn’t that only natural?"

Cao Qi then turned toward everyone and began to speak.

But Bai Cangshu frowned. He realized it was as though someone had pressed a mute button on him. He could not hear a single word Cao Qi said.

He could not even make out any meaning from his lip movements.

This was probably another kind of authority. As a Reincarnator on the level of The Three Supreme Kings, whether in accumulated resources or what he could obtain, Cao Qi far exceeded Bai Cangshu’s imagination.

Bai Cangshu himself had actually already acquired several authorities at his current stage.

Thus, after realizing that Cao Qi was saying something to his subordinates that he did not want Bai Cangshu to hear, Bai Cangshu did not care.

He felt no discomfort at being excluded. Instead, he watched the changing expressions of the Azure Sky group with a teasing look.

The professor’s stunned expression and the tears glistening in the gentle woman in white’s eyes both indicated that Cao Qi was probably delivering some kind of final farewell.

"Heh, what a melodramatic scene…"

No one paid attention to Bai Cangshu’s jab. As Cao Qi finished his final arrangements, the Azure Sky group’s auras began rising bit by bit.

Illusory fluctuations emerged behind each of them. To Bai Cangshu, the sight was an absolute spectacle.

He licked his lips with some envy.

Bai Cangshu had not merely been polite earlier. Azure Sky’s Reincarnators truly were talented.

Aside from being somewhat overly idealistic, each of them was outstanding purely from the perspective of a Reincarnator.

They almost gave Bai Cangshu the illusion of seeing a group of Mad Kings gathered together.

In Bai Cangshu’s eyes, the Mad King was also an Idealist.

"Move out!"

Cao Qi grabbed the professor by the neck, and the two were the first to step forward. The Illusory Gate seemed to possess a suction force that directly pulled them inside.

Then Loman and Brunhilde entered together. Sen Xia glanced at Mercenary Tao before stepping in alone.

"Let’s go, Your Excellency. As thanks for helping us open this gate, you should naturally have a share in this journey through Little Garden."

Reinhardt still wore his signature flawless smile as he extended a hand, inviting Bai Cangshu to enter first.

The curve of Bai Cangshu’s lips became more pronounced. Looking at this powerful Reincarnator who most likely possessed divine blood, he said,

"It seems An Zhiyuan managed to persuade a few people after all."

Reinhardt’s smile remained unchanged, and he did not deny it.

Bai Cangshu knew that Reinhardt actually feared most that he would give up this chance to enter Little Garden.

But even knowing that, how could Bai Cangshu possibly give up the opportunity to enter Little Garden?

To him, that sort of place was simply the most wonderful stage.

Bai Cangshu stepped toward the Illusory Gate, and then something strange happened.

He felt as though he were walking along an illusory passage in empty space. Earlier, he had seen Cao Qi and the others get sucked in instantly, but when he stepped onto it, the ground felt solid beneath his feet, as though he were truly walking through some kind of passage.

The next moment, he entered the Illusory Gate. The dark passage around him resembled the starry cosmos, with countless stars glittering.

He followed the passage forward, the jingling sound constantly echoing in his ears.

After walking for an unknown length of time, a glow appeared before Bai Cangshu. He stepped forward, and boundless light instantly swallowed him.

This was probably Bai Cangshu’s first time entering another world without the Space’s deployment, and without taking the form of an information stream.

The experience was incredibly novel.

Wind blew against him, and the light naturally dispersed. The air carried the sweet scent of candy.

This was a place resembling a massive plaza.

All around were various toys, Pumpkin Men, lanterns, and similar things.

They made the Halloween Queen theme unmistakably obvious.

So obvious, in fact, that Bai Cangshu began wondering whether the owner of this item and power truly was one of the three great problem children of the Little Garden World, the Halloween Queen.

In the Little Garden setting, there was a special measure of strength.

[Digit Count].

The level of one’s Digit Count could basically represent one’s tier of power.

Little Garden was a special world capable of housing gods, Buddhas, and Demon Kings from countless heavens and worlds, all walking the earth together. It was divided into many layers from the inside out.

The closer one was to the inner layers, the more terrifying the level of power.

At Little Garden’s center lay connections to countless parallel worlds.

The seven layers divided from the inside out accommodated beings of different levels.

They were mainly divided into the Outer Gates of the fifth, sixth, and seventh levels, and the Inner Gates of the first, second, third, and fourth levels.

The Inner Gates were true divine realms that mortals could hardly set foot in.

Even the Outer Gates, however, were terrifying enough to Reincarnators and figures from other worlds.

Yet Bai Cangshu saw nothing else unusual in this massive plaza.

Beyond this place was nothing but mist.

Rustle!

Suddenly, countless crows took flight, and large numbers of Jack-o’-lanterns rose into the air. A group of figures wearing black robes and pumpkin heads appeared out of thin air in the plaza.

Their feet did not touch the ground, yet they moved with astonishing speed, instantly appearing before Bai Cangshu and the other members of Azure Sky who had arrived here.

Bai Cangshu’s pupils changed as he revealed his Byakugan. He stared intently, only to discover that beneath those pumpkin heads was nothing but emptiness. These were not humans in disguise, but genuine monsters.

The pumpkin monsters raised both hands, and a parchment scroll appeared before Bai Cangshu.

[Queen’s Invitation Letter]

[Quality: Special]

[Description: an invitation letter created by a great existence from a certain world. It possesses special power]

[Effect: accept the invitation to enter the Queen’s Gift Game]

The professor looked at the parchment before him as the Space’s information appeared. He hesitated over whether to accept it, instinctively looking toward the others.

Then he saw that Mercenary Tao had already signed his name on the parchment before him.

It was not just Mercenary Tao. Sen Xia, Reinhardt, and the others were all signing as well.

Smack!

Cao Qi lightly slapped the back of the professor’s head. Compared with his older sister, Ye Kai was far too hesitant in his actions.

After Ye Kai signed his name as well, all the parchments began to burn.

The next moment, the Pumpkin Men gathered together, and their bodies exploded with a bang. From the smoke emerged a massive Pumpkin Man.

"Oh my, oh my, we have quite a few rare guests. A Dragon Species, a God Species, a Star Spirit… what a nostalgic combination. To welcome you all, I’ve decided to hold a little Halloween party ahead of schedule! Come now, children. Show me your stories and entertain me!"

The enormous voice came from the Pumpkin Man’s mouth, but its tone was utterly free-spirited, unlike that of a monster.

Judging from the manner of speaking, it was clearly the Queen herself talking.

Moreover, she seemed to have already seen through the special identities among those present.

Bai Cangshu stood where he was. Even the so-called The Three Supreme Kings seemed to receive no special treatment, merely waiting for the Queen’s Gift Game to begin.

He had already realized that the Little Garden World was special enough.

They had not arrived here through the Space’s teleportation.

In other words, this journey to Little Garden was fundamentally not a deployment mission.

And… the Little Garden World had rules of its own!

Rather than summoning them directly to the outer districts, the Halloween Queen had drawn them here and imposed this special Gift Game.

It was most likely an insurance measure allowing them to move normally through Little Garden, something akin to registration.

Therefore, neither the Azure Sky group nor Bai Cangshu refused.

In truth, they had no right to refuse.

After the massive Pumpkin Man spoke, it opened its enormous mouth and bit down fiercely toward them.

Bai Cangshu crossed his arms and was instantly swallowed.

The scene before his eyes shifted, and the next moment he was already in a vast forest.

No one else was around.

A parchment appeared before Bai Cangshu again, with the following written clearly upon it.

[Queen’s Gift Game]

[Organizer: Halloween Queen]

[Rules: leave the forest alive]

[Reward: obtain a Gift Card]