Ruofeng Lin Appears, Emperor!

Special Reincarnator EX051, you have survived in this world for over 24 hours and obtained D-rank Anomaly Point ×1.

Bai Cangshu listened to the incessant cries of wolves, tigers, leopards, and other beasts amid the mountains when a reward notification suddenly refreshed before his eyes.

Since they already knew that this world truly contained a Journey to the West-related worldline, Bai Cangshu and Life of Silence did not rashly use their flying abilities to make a flamboyant direct assault on the royal capital of the Great Gan Dynasty.

Under any version of the Journey to the West worldview, there were clearly mighty beings beyond their current ability to resist. Moreover, its various unimaginable magical treasures were deeply intimidating.

Even a weak little demon, if it obtained a suitable magical treasure, could pose an enormous threat to higher-level beings. That was one particularly unusual aspect of the Journey to the West worldview.

Life of Silence and Bai Cangshu were both proud yet calm individuals. Their martial arts and swordsmanship had both entered the realm of their own paths and returned to simplicity. Without using their abilities, they were no different from ordinary people.

Thus, traveling by ordinary means made them exceptionally discreet.

Suddenly, both of them stopped and looked in another direction. There, a group of people was likewise hurrying through the mountains.

"Master, weren’t we heading to the capital? Why did we suddenly change course?"

The delicate-featured young monk wore a gray monk’s robe and carried a white cloth bundle on his back as he followed behind an old monk whose eyebrows had already turned snow-white.

Though the old monk’s skin had completely sagged, his eyes still shone with spirit. He kept fingering the Buddhist beads in his hand and muttering under his breath. Hearing his disciple’s question, he merely said—

"There is a problem with Lanruo City’s seal. I fear a great calamity is coming. Your master must go and find a way to deliver those departed souls."

"Deliver them… Master, didn’t you say the Heavenly Dao does not permit departed souls to be delivered?"

The old monk was about to explain when he suddenly jolted. Turning around, he saw only a man and a woman standing on a tree less than ten zhang away. The two seemed weightless; the crooked-necked tree, no thicker than an arm, showed no sign of breaking.

"Ah!"

At that moment, Shifang, the young monk who had followed his master’s gaze, saw the sight as well. He cried out instinctively and nearly threw away the Golden Buddha cradled in his hands.

Fortunately, Zen Master Baiyun reacted quickly and pressed one hand over the Golden Buddha.

"May I ask who you two benefactors are…"

Tap.

As Zen Master Baiyun spoke, he saw the man and young woman drift down from the tree. Then they took a step, crossing several zhang like phantoms, and with another step, arrived before him.

The several hunters accompanying the two monks were so frightened that they collapsed to the ground, scrambling backward and crying that they had encountered demons.

The smile on Bai Cangshu’s face remained unchanged as his gaze inconspicuously shifted away from the Golden Buddha. This thing was most likely a magical artifact of some value.

"Two Zen Masters, pardon me. I accidentally heard your disciple say that the Heavenly Dao does not allow departed souls to be delivered. I would like to know what that means."

He had no intention of explaining the origins of himself and Life of Silence. He naturally exuded the commanding bearing of one of the higher-ups.

Zen Master Baiyun recited a Buddhist invocation. Just from the Shrinking Ground into Inches technique they had displayed, he knew these two were no ordinary people.

Furthermore, although the two had concealed themselves well, he could sense the terrifying karmic burden tangled around them like a mass of thread.

These two… calling them living Asuras would not be an exaggeration!

Although Zen Master Baiyun had already cultivated a golden body, at a time like this, without spiritual essence to nourish it, he could not transcend himself at all. Instead, he could only forge his golden body into the Golden Buddha and use it as external power.

He waved his hand, helped his disciple up, and signaled to the hunters that they were safe. As they continued on their way, he explained.

"In this world, departed souls cannot be delivered. This is the Heavenly Dao. If you ask why, then this poor monk cannot answer either."

Bai Cangshu already had an answer in his heart. Where these different worldviews intersected, there had to be certain traces. This rule forbidding the deliverance of departed souls was likely tied to the circulation of spiritual essence in the Black Myth worldline.

Under the Black Myth worldview, the entire world was like a massive cauldron. After spiritual essence was produced, it was absorbed by the spiritual plants and wild beasts of mountains, rivers, lakes, and seas. Humans and demons then harvested and consumed them respectively, demons ate humans, and in the end, cultivators refined great demons into pills.

The spiritual essence would ultimately be obtained by the Immortals and Buddhas at the very top.

The entire world was a rigidly stratified food chain, with everything arranged in grim order. So-called sentient beings were born with their own foundations and ranked in order of superiority and inferiority; this order could not be disturbed.

Humans, mountain spirits, and wild beasts were all like livestock, used to raise demons. Yet demons, too, were raised between heaven and earth in another form, merely waiting for harvest time, when a great reaping would begin.

Under such an order, wandering ghosts and departed souls naturally could not be delivered at will. They had to wait until they became demons so they could become medicinal ingredients for refinement.

Bai Cangshu raised his head to look at the sky. This world was called the Nine Realms. He did not know whether all nine realms followed such rules, or whether the Dark Journey to the West worldview affected only this one world.

But from this perspective, Bai Cangshu could also glimpse a little of this world’s vastness and terror. It was fundamentally beyond comparison with any Secondary World.

This single layer of the world alone had likely gathered the scale of several Secondary Worlds. And this was merely one corner glimpsed by Bai Cangshu, Life of Silence, and the others.

According to Dong Xuri’s intelligence, at the very least within this layer, he had heard of fanatics overseas who called themselves Moon Worshipers. They sought to prove that the idea of a round heaven and square earth was nothing but falsehood, and thus sailed out to sea alone.

In other words, this realm at minimum also contained the worldview of Chinese Paladin, meaning places such as the Heavenly Court and Demon Realm existed as well.

"Who is the current emperor of the Great Gan Dynasty?"

Life of Silence—Qiqi suddenly spoke, her voice calm and cold. Monk Shifang answered instinctively.

"Of course, it is the new emperor, Ruofeng Lin, who rules separately from the Yin Moon Dynasty."

As though it were the most natural thing in the world.

Qiqi still had doubts over whether Ruofeng Lin had truly gone all the way down the path of strengthening himself with the Lord of Mysteries potion system.

One cycle ago, Ruofeng Lin had only been a Sequence Five Teacher of Chaos. Moreover, that man had always been cunning; no one could see through his thoughts.

If he had not ultimately acted to trap and kill everyone on the team, she probably would have continued to see him as that good old fellow~

The smile on Qiqi’s face was faint, but young monk Shifang’s heart tightened. For no reason at all, he felt something terrifying.

Seeing this, Bai Cangshu left with Qiqi, once again giving up the questline that would most likely have been triggered before them.

Zen Master Baiyun and Monk Shifang also came from the A Chinese Ghost Story worldline. After Lanruo Ghost City disappeared, the two would likely seek out matters related to the Temple of Lanruo.

Bai Cangshu and Life of Silence turned and continued toward the royal capital. They had to kill Ruofeng Lin first within the seven-day limit, then consider everything else.

Bai Cangshu felt some regret as well. This world was simply too dangerous. Otherwise, he could have revived White Face early with Black Mud and sent her to handle these questlines. That woman would surely have been very interested in uncovering this world’s complicated background.

The royal capital of the Great Gan Dynasty lay upon an enormous plain. Once one emerged from the layered mountain ranges, the vast cluster of buildings could be seen from afar.

At that moment, Bai Cangshu and Qiqi stood atop a mountain and looked down at the immense plain. The capital was arranged in a distinctly irregular pattern, and even its city walls had been deliberately warped.

Everything seemed to fulfill the Black Emperor’s advancement ritual of establishing a strict and complicated set of rules that nevertheless violated normal conditions. From this architectural style to the Daoists scattered throughout the world using Buddhist techniques to exorcise demons, Ruofeng Lin had done a decent job.

Qiqi also saw a mausoleum under construction not far to the right of the Imperial City. This, too, was a design that defied normal conventions.

She began to suspect that Ruofeng Lin had truly reached the point in the potion system where he could consider advancing to Sequence Zero.

Under the Mysterious World worldview, the potion system was rather weak for Reincarnators in its early stages, but its advantages were equally obvious: advancement was incredibly fast.

With the space’s assistance, and with their clear understanding of the Acting Method, they could advance quickly in the Cultivation Institute.

Even things like mental strength and willpower could be supplemented through other items and abilities.

In other words, given sufficient resources, a Reincarnator could possibly become a demigod or even a higher-stage Transcendent from an ordinary person in an extremely short time.

And someone as meticulous as Ruofeng Lin, after betraying the team and seizing its resources, could indeed have achieved that if he wanted to.

With that thought, Life of Silence was already somewhat inclined to believe that Ruofeng Lin was a high-ranking saint of the Black Emperor sequence.

Yet through the perception of his Mantra, Bai Cangshu saw that the vast capital was filled everywhere with laughter and cheer. Restaurants blazed with lights and wine, while merchants and travelers passed through in an endless stream.

This was utterly different from the desolation of Lanruo Ghost City and the towns and villages they had passed along the way.

It was as though this nation’s prosperity had all been concentrated in its capital.

The soldiers atop the city walls wore gleaming armor, and crossbows and similar weapons had been positioned at every corner of the walls.

This Imperial City radiated intense "human vitality," completely different from the rumors they had heard before.

With a thought from Bai Cangshu, several pitch-black Yin Ghosts emerged from his body once more. He intended to send them in for a look, but the instant they appeared, several streaks of Buddhist light lit up atop the city walls.

"Impudent! How dare Yin Ghosts show themselves upon the land of the dynasty’s dragon vein!"

Amid the righteous roar, white clouds gathered in the sky. In the next moment, Buddhist light burst forth, and an enormous Buddha appeared.

A terrifying pressure instantly descended. Qiqi and Bai Cangshu exchanged a glance, their bodies twisting as they vanished.

Bai Cangshu watched as the golden Buddha’s eyes half-opened in the sky and struck at him with one palm from nearly ten thousand meters away.

He clenched his fist as well. The Kirin Armor appeared in an instant. Taking one step forward, he threw a punch through the air.

Boom!

His force became a white smoke dragon that tore through the air, but boundless Buddhist light flared up in midair. Bai Cangshu felt as though countless needles had stabbed into his entire body, and his force shattered before it could travel any farther.

With a thought, he flew backward, his aura once more becoming utterly empty.

Within the intense Buddhist light, Bai Cangshu was swept up by the shockwave and sent flying once again into the dense forest filled with miasma.

Rumble!

As the mountain shook, neither wolves, tigers, leopards, nor demons made a sound. Only then did the enormous Buddha statue in the sky slowly fade away.

Bai Cangshu pulled himself out of the mountainside. He had deliberately refrained from using Musō Tensei, taking the blow head-on with his own defense and Force Dissipation techniques. He found that this strike from the Golden Buddha was probably close to Fierce-tier.

Its momentum was immense, but it carried no other special effects.

The giant Golden Buddha’s eyes opened in the sky, seemingly scanning the mountains, yet it found no trace of Bai Cangshu.

Bai Cangshu patted himself down, thinking that Life of Silence had likely taken the chance to slip in alone already. He only needed to wait a little while, then enter the city from another direction.

He possessed the trait of the unnameable. Fate Aspect abilities such as divination and prophecy could not capture any trace of him.

Thus, even in this world, he could come and go like the wind, difficult to lock onto.

Just as Bai Cangshu was about to take a step, he suddenly heard a voice beside his ear.

"Qiqi really did find herself a powerful companion."

"Mercenary Tao… Even we Nirvana Holders have heard your name. Your name is being sung across multiple worlds~"

The man’s voice was gentle, carrying the calm assurance of someone who held everything in his grasp.

Bai Cangshu turned around and, as expected, saw a black-haired man in dragon robes standing behind him. His body was concealed by the miasma, which easily interfered with Bai Cangshu’s Mantra.

"Are you surprised? I am now the ruler of a nation. Since you have set foot on my royal soil, naturally I can accomplish certain special things upon this land."

Seeing Bai Cangshu’s apparent confusion, Ruofeng Lin deliberately explained.

He had indeed heard Mercenary Tao’s name, though all he had heard were tales of brutal ferocity.

Bai Cangshu shook his head. The corner of his mouth twitched before slowly curling upward.

"You misunderstand. I was wondering what has been wrong with people lately. Why are they all so eager to jump out in front of me…"

"That sort of behavior is very dangerous, haha~"