Yin Ren’s memories continued until the cliff was filled in.
Huang Jin let out an exhausted sigh, almost falling out of the range of the levitation spell.
Despite the twists and turns and the confusion of identities, with Yin Ren’s memories providing additional corrections, Shian and the others witnessed the birth of the Evil Spirit and the fall of Zhong Yi. Countless valuable pieces of information were now in their hands, awaiting further analysis.
As the memory world reached its end, regardless of any mistakes made, as long as everything was concluded, they would be able to leave normally.
Huang Jin was the first to close his eyes.
He never wanted to go through such misfortune in his life again. When he returned to reality… Wait, something’s not right?
The frigid air remained unchanged, and the scent of blood and carnage still surrounded Huang Jin. The presence of the other consciousness was still apparent, and the sense of strain on his body hadn’t disappeared. Unable to resist, Huang Jin opened his eyes, and if he had a mouth, he would have taken several deep breaths.
The illusion projected by Yin Ren came to an end, and the memory world returned to its previous state. Before him was the intact cliff, and the valley below was empty, with no trace of the darkness.
Everything had returned to how it was when they first arrived.
The memory world continued.
Although the protagonist, “Yin Ren,” was unexpectedly controlled by the flesh puppet and unable to progress through the logic of the memory world as intended, an end was still an end. The memory world could be rewritten, but it definitely had a fixed “apocalypse”.
“This doesn’t make sense,” Fu Tianyi muttered, swallowing a mouthful of saliva. “At this point… At this point, the Great Celestial Master should already be dead, right? At the very least, he should be sleeping underground.”
Why does the memory world still exist?
“I found it strange from the beginning,” Lu Xiaohe said in a deep voice. “Whether it’s the Great Celestial Master or the Evil Spirit in Yin Village, they definitely haven’t had any contact with Huajisi Headquarters, let alone seen Fu Shangliu and Li Heyan. But both the situation at the headquarters and our own appearances… they are extremely… realistic.”
“I…”
Ge Tingting timidly raised her hand.
“I was also wondering why we have a god’s-eye view instead of Yin Ren’s first-person perspective if these are Yin Ren’s memories. At first, I thought it was a completion of the memory spell, but now it seems that something is off everywhere…”
“Could it be that we really traveled back in time?!” Fu Tianyi’s voice trembled slightly.
“Impossible.”
Fu Xingchuan impatiently moved his paws.
“There’s no spell that can reverse time—that’s the basics of basics. The construction of the memory spell must have flaws, but could it be a problem with the Evil Force as the power source? Let me think.”
“If the path isn’t the problem, and neither is the direction, then there is only one possibility.”
The “flesh puppet” possessing the Great Celestial Master suddenly spoke up.
“The condition of the destination was different from what you all initially determined.”
Is this place really just a world composed of Yin Ren’s and the Evil Spirit’s memories?
“We shouldn’t stay here for long. Anyway, let’s…” Fu Xingchuan’s words were interrupted as his ears twitched.
It was the sound of footsteps.
Countless footsteps approached from all directions, accompanied by the clashing of weapons and the scraping of armor. Having just experienced the projection of the Yellow Millet projector, the sound was painfully familiar.
“Even though the Evil Spirit hasn’t manifested, why is the Gouluo Army still coming?” Lu Xiaohe’s hand holding the charcoal pencil trembled slightly.
They had sealed the Evil Spirit in Yin Village together, and the “Great Celestial Master” flesh puppet had only ever served as a power source, never forming an oath with the Evil Spirit possessed by the enemy. With no Evil Spirit present, the Gouluo Army had no reason to change course.
“Back to Huajisi Headquarters!” Fu Xingchuan made a quick decision. “We’re being followed!”
“You mean…”
“In Yin Ren’s memories, there were letters from the Gouluo people. Even without the Evil Spirit, if we send letters with the same content, we can still trick the Gouluo Army into coming.” Fu Xingchuan spoke rapidly. “The enemy is still nearby. We need to return to Huajisi Headquarters immediately!”
Fu Tianyi didn’t dare wait any longer. He immediately exerted his levitation spell. However, this time, someone stepped out of the spell’s range.
In the mountain breeze, a figure in red clothing and black hair swayed as the flesh puppet-controlled Great Celestial Master approached the edge of the cliff.
“Hey, we’re leaving!” Fu Tianyi shouted, “The Gouluo Army is coming, and we can’t handle the kind of array created by the Great Celestial Master. Run!”
At the edge of the cliff, the body of the Great Celestial Master turned around.
Bloodstains dotted the red robe, and the long hair was accentuated by the dark clouds, appearing so black it sent shivers down one’s spine. The crimson eyes narrowed, forming a small arc at the corners.
The flesh puppet was smiling.
The Gouluo Army had already begun rushing towards the cliff, and the golden light of their spells grew brighter. Everything in the illusion was about to replay, and Fu Tianyi’s heart raced to the point of chest pain.
“You…”
“Go.” Fu Xingchuan pondered for a moment. “Ignore it.”
“But—”
“That is not Yin Ren’s true body, and regardless of what this accursed place is, it is not the true reality.” Fu Xingchuan raised his head and looked at the “Great Celestial Master” with fluttering robes in the mountain breeze.
“This person is not your true comrade either.”
Time was running out as the Gouluo army’s encirclement rapidly closed in. Fu Tianyi clenched his teeth and led everyone to rush into the sky.
Zhong Chengshuo watched as the Shian members left.
In less than half a minute, the Gouluo Army’s group of cultivators reached the top of the cliff. They were shouting something, but Zhong Chengshuo didn’t bother to listen. Facing the imposing army, he took a step backward.
It was a step into the void.
In the oppressive gloom, accompanied by disordered rain threads, that crimson figure gracefully descended like a bird with broken wings.
Zhong Chengshuo fell backward, tumbling down the cliff into the darkness that only the “Great Celestial Master” could see.
“I’ve come to meet you, Yin Ren.”
He whispered silently.
The next moment, just as it was in Yin Ren’s memory, that darkness boiled over again.
Like pouring cold water into hot oil, the darkness erupted in an instant, splattering like blood and covering most of the valley. There were no spells or cages this time. The chaotic darkness splashed around, catching the colossal army that surrounded it off guard, drowning them completely.
Directly looking at that darkness would cause living beings to explode into bloody pulp. Coming into direct contact with that darkness, the hundreds of thousands of soldiers were like snowflakes in boiling water, leaving not even a trace of residue.
The mountains and rivers fell silent, and the withered grass swayed. There was no earthquake or collapse in sight.
Similar to Yin Ren’s memory, the dense aura of death permeated the entire Valley of Remains.
……
Time rewound by one second.
The moment the body of the Great Celestial Master touched the darkness, Zhong Chengshuo sent out his own thoughts—his actions were extremely proficient. After all, he had lived within that colossal body for an unknown period of time.
Yin Ren had yet to react when he was swept into the darkness.
Compared to emptiness, the darkness seemed particularly substantial. What was even better was that within this darkness, he finally obtained a relatively normal body—just slightly transparent, but that didn’t matter.
Because Zhong Chengshuo was standing right in front of him.
The two faced each other, suspended in the depths of darkness, and Zhong Chengshuo appeared as how Yin Ren was most familiar with him. He was wearing the loose linen clothes when they had first met, and his eyes behind the glasses remained dim.
In that moment, countless emotions surged up in Yin Ren’s heart. The bittersweet taste was difficult to describe, as they intertwined with each other, ultimately blending into a tinge of bitterness.
Yin Ren opened his mouth with countless questions he wanted to ask Zhong Chengshuo. He especially wanted to ask that person, “Who are you? Where do you come from? Where are you going?”—the ultimate questions in life.
But despite his desire, after the long period of emptiness, when he saw that innocent and handsome face, he found himself unable to ask.
He wasn’t sure if he would like the answer.
“…Where is this?” Finally, Lord Ghost King changed the subject.
“Segments of my memories,” Zhong Chengshuo softly replied.
“I have discovered your secret, and for a fair trade, I should give you a secret in return.”
Yin Ren froze. It was the familiar rhetoric, the familiar Zhong Chengshuo.
“I know you are the rabbit… No, I know you are the black lake,” Yin Ren subconsciously answered.
In the darkness, Zhong Chengshuo furrowed his brows slightly. “Mm, but your information is not complete. Speaking of which, this is a secret at the level of marriage. In addition to revealing your memories to Shian, you need to offer something extra.”
“I…”
“After we leave here, please tell me your bank card password,” Zhong Chengshuo solemnly requested.
Yin Ren: “…”
Yin Ren: “Deal.”
Once they were away from this place, he was determined to make this unlucky rabbit regret ever crossing paths with him.
Zhong Chengshuo took a breath and continued to explain, his tone reminiscent of a narration in a wildlife documentary. “What you’re seeing now is me attempting to grow eyes for the first time.”
Is this some kind of information that needs to be specifically added? Yin Ren’s mind was filled with confusion.
“Let me explain my viewpoint first,” Zhong Chengshuo said. “After your apparent death, me and you remained dormant deep underground. Until a certain point in time, I suddenly sensed a tremendous ripple—it was massive, yet its fluctuations were very weak, unlike in this world. It was probably trying to enter the human world, just like I did back then.”
“In simple terms, it was banging against a wall, and it woke me up.”
Yin Ren nodded. “But what does this have to do with you growing eyes?”
Zhong Chengshuo simply looked at him and slowly revealed a smile.
The next moment, Yin Ren was engulfed by memories that belonged to Zhong Chengshuo. Those sensations and thoughts flooded in instantly. They overwhelmed Yin Ren, and he struggled to arrange them in a coherent order.
First came the familiar void.
Zhong Chengshuo seemed to be sound asleep, with no thoughts circulating. Then, the massive ripple he mentioned suddenly struck. The vibrations traversed through space, abruptly awakening the slumbering Zhong Chengshuo.
He found himself blankly lying on a pile of bones, feeling the impact of the massive ripple “banging against a wall”. Around him, there were only faint ripples reflected by countless bones.
What was he supposed to do?
Oh right, peace, the apple… and going to the mortal world.
His power had been restored, so perhaps it was time. However, that person said he should protect himself. If he were caught by humans as soon as he appeared, he wouldn’t be able to explore the human world properly.
Zhong Chengshuo moved his colossal body and decided to find a human shell.
Fusing with a set of bones, carefully reading the details of the ripples within, and transforming into a human form… it should be feasible. After playing around with bones on the ground for a while, he ultimately gave up on those fragmented ripples.
They were underground, and he didn’t know how to leave this eerie place once he became human.
What if he chose the surface? He pondered slowly, almost wringing his brain dry.
Half a year had passed since he was awakened, and Zhong Chengshuo finally had an idea—he spread out his body, concentrated his consciousness, and began to perceive the prayers of people for the concept of “god”.
Countless thoughts rushed into his mind.
There were those who made wishes using “money”, a concept he couldn’t understand and had little interest in. There were also those who made wishes to “become a vegetarian next time” which Zhong Chengshuo couldn’t comprehend even more—those wish-makers didn’t even want to share any offerings.
Amidst the jumble of wishes, he suddenly sensed a prayer saturated with a strong scent of blood.
[Gaze upon me.]
The worshiper made a wish.
[Gaze upon me and grant us extraordinary power beyond the mundane world and bestow upon us supreme happiness.]
…I don’t understand what this means at all.
Unfortunately, at that time, Zhong Chengshuo clearly had no sense of reserve. He pondered in place for a while and decided to go and see first.
Because he was very curious about that offering.
The small offering carried the essence of blood and death, exuding a familiar aura. What was most marvelous was that he could discern that ripple—
It was the corpse of a human infant.
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