After breaking through the enemy formation, the sky had already darkened.
Zhao Yaqing left with the "Banner of Ten Thousand Ghosts Claiming Lives." As a cultivator, she wasn't interested in the soldiers who died here. Li Shiwen, on the other hand, led the remaining thirty-some soldiers from North Chu to clean up the battlefield, collect the bodies of the fallen, and bring the survivors back to the city for treatment.
He approached Qin Ran and saw that Li Shiyin, who was in Qin Ran's arms, had fallen asleep. He asked in a low voice, "How is Shiyin? Are her injuries serious?"
"She's been injured..." Qin Ran replied, "but it's not too serious."
Li Shiwen felt relieved and asked, "And how about you?"
"Just a bit weak," Qin Ran said.
"Huh?"
"My legs are weak."
Li Shiwen didn't understand what Qin Ran meant by his legs being weak, but he still reached out and helped him up.
"How about this, should Shiyin be with me?" Although he had multiple injuries, they were mostly external, and his body was strong enough to support himself.
Qin Ran didn't hesitate and shook his head in refusal. He didn't care about being embraced by a soft and beautiful young girl, even if he were an emperor. Not to mention that right now, he was only afraid of heights and weak in the legs. Even if he were severely injured and only had half a breath left, he wouldn't say such a thing.
"Let's go over there and take a look." He gestured to Li Shiwen, and they both went to the place where the black-robed man had died... When Zhao Yaqing left, she only took away the "Banner of Ten Thousand Ghosts Claiming Lives" and didn't care at all about the black-robed man's corpse.
Previously, after killing someone, Qin Ran never bothered to conceal the body. That was to prevent his whereabouts and identity from being exposed. But now that it was known that he was the one who killed the black-robed man, there was no need to hide it.
How could he not inspect the body?
The black-robed man had been cut into two halves vertically, with one half on each side, making for an extremely tragic sight.
Li Shiwen was accustomed to seeing such gruesome scenes. He squatted down, intending to move the black-robed man's body and at least piece it together to give him a complete corpse.
But before his hand could touch the black-robed man, Qin Ran spoke up to stop him, saying, "You better not touch him."
Li Shiwen immediately withdrew his hand, turned to look at Qin Ran, and asked, "What's wrong?"
"This guy is skilled in soul techniques. Currently, he has only died physically, and it's unknown whether his soul is dead or not," Qin Ran replied. "Moreover, it seems that he's also skilled in using poison. His body might contain a poison that kills upon contact."
Li Shiwen stood up at once, took several steps back, and came to Qin Ran's side, keeping a safe distance from the black-robed man's body.
He glanced at Qin Ran and asked, "What about you?"
Qin Ran didn't answer that question. His figure flickered, and he summoned a transparent water clone.
The water clone approached and reached out to move the black-robed man's body. As expected, the moment its hand touched the black-robed man's body, it immediately turned pitch black. The black color spread from its hand to its entire body in an instant.
Qin Ran glanced at Li Shiwen and noticed that his face had turned deathly pale... This guy no longer wanted to die; instead, he was afraid of death.
The water clone pieced together the black-robed man's body and then carefully searched it up and down with its hand. However, it didn't find anything. It then removed the black-robed man's storage bag and checked inside, but there were only some pills, medicinal herbs, and spirit stones, and nothing else.
Especially concerning Qin Ran, he was particularly interested in soul-based cultivation techniques.
When the black-robed man bowed to him that day, he directly killed his doppelgänger... He bowed to death the primordial spirit residing within his water doppelgänger. Qin Ran found this strange and powerful soul-based cultivation technique fascinating.
However, it was unfortunate that the black-robed man didn't possess such techniques.
Qin Ran looked at the corpse of the black-robed man from a distance, his mind racing:
What is the relationship between this black-robed man and Xuanqin? And Xuanqin... His mysterious disappearance into Xuanqin's doppelgänger and the unknown causes and consequences of it all. Xuanqin's actions were still shrouded in strangeness. The cultivators in the Xuanqin Court seemed to extend beyond the disciples of the Cloud Heaven Sect...
What exactly does Xuanqin intend to do?
As he pondered, Qin Ran approached the water doppelgänger, which had turned pitch black, and lifted the black cloak covering the face of the black-robed man. It revealed a face covered in festering sores, devoid of any natural color.
This face was so horrifying that it would frighten children into calling for spirits and make adults lose their appetite for three days.
"No wonder it was so well concealed," Qin Ran muttered.
Generally, cultivators have the circulation of spiritual energy between heaven and earth within their bodies. While not every cultivator possesses an otherworldly beauty, at the very least, most cultivators have clean and flawless skin.
"I'm afraid this has something to do with his cultivation technique," Qin Ran felt a sense of complexity in his heart.
He regretted not finding that technique, yet he also regretted its potential costs.
At that moment, the decaying face, which had already split in half, revealed a crevice, exposing a pair of eerie black pupils...
These pupils stared fixedly at the water doppelgänger in front of them, and a force seemingly materialized out of thin air, immobilizing the water doppelgänger. Subsequently, an illusory shadow drifted out from those black pupils and directly entered the water doppelgänger's body.
"Phew..." Having experienced the previous poisoning, Li Shiwen wasn't as startled by this possession, but he glanced at Qin Ran and said, "How does this guy know so much about all this?"
"As expected, there's another trick up your sleeve..." Qin Ran smiled faintly. "I'm prepared for you!"
Although the water doppelgänger was invaded by the black-robed man's soul, it was under the control of a certain power and immediately sat cross-legged.
After a moment, the pitch-black watery figure gradually solidified, transforming into an ordinary-looking man.
Although the possession was successful, he wore an expression of terror. "No... something's wrong with this body! This isn't a human body..."
"You're right..." Qin Ran replied.
A solid figure emerged from his spiritual center, dressed in white like snow, and bearing a striking resemblance to him. It was his primordial spirit. The primordial spirit flickered forward and arrived in front of the black-robed man, who was restrained by the water doppelgänger. Opening its mouth wide, it sucked in both the water doppelgänger and the black-robed man's soul.
This was the second effect of the Nine Extremes Primordial Spirit Demon Devouring Skill—devouring!
This cultivation technique had two major effects: splitting the spirit and devouring. Splitting the spirit allowed for infinite doppelgängers, while devouring relied on a formidable primordial spirit.
Naturally, Qin Ran had mastered both aspects of this technique, but he had only displayed the doppelgänger aspect before and had never revealed its devouring side.
This was his first time devouring a soul.
The primordial spirit returned, entering his spiritual center, and Qin Ran exhaled lightly. He looked at Li Shiwen, who was standing beside him.
Li Shiwen had been stunned. He never expected Qin Ran to devour the soul of the black-robed man right in front of him.
"You... This..." he stammered.
He looked at Qin Ran, a young man with a gentle temperament and handsome appearance, holding a stunningly beautiful girl in his arms. Was this something that should be done in your current image and combination?
"It's a common occurrence in the cultivation world," Qin Ran replied.
Li Shiwen paused for a moment but ultimately didn't say much.
"Well then, let's leave him with the corpses of the Xuanqin soldiers and burn them together," Qin Ran said. "He's probably a Xuanqin person too."
Late at night, in a bedroom of the City Lord's Mansion, Li Shiyin was peacefully sleeping on a bed.
There was a table by the bed with a lit lamp, and Qin Ran sat at the table, taking out a letter from his spatial bag.
This letter was delivered during the day by Zhao Yaqing. However, right after receiving the letter, he was attacked by the "Soul-Devouring Array of Ten Thousand Ghosts" set up by the black-robed man. He hadn't had a chance to read it until now.
The letter was still addressed to "Qin Ran" and sent by Zhao Zheng.
He carefully inspected the envelope but found nothing out of the ordinary... no poison, no fluctuation of mana, no formations, no traces of divine consciousness, soul, or mana. It was just an ordinary letter.
However, the fact that there was nothing unusual was the most unusual thing!
Why would Zhao Zheng send him a letter?
Were they close?!
Why would he write to him?
Thinking about the inexplicable withdrawal of the Xuanqin troops, Qin Ran was filled with doubts...
He opened the envelope and took out the letter. The first line he read was, "Dear original self:"
"??? What on earth is this!!!" Qin Ran widened his eyes in disbelief.
He quickly realized something and suppressed the complexity in his heart, continuing to read:
"Dear original self:
When you receive this letter, it means that I am free!
And you also know a fact clearly—I have betrayed you. It's that kind of feeling when 'one thought arises, and the world expands in an instant,' you get it, right?
Honestly, I really didn't want to do such a treacherous thing. I would have preferred to die in Mo City, but what he offered was just too tempting.
Zhao Zheng has a great dream, a dream so magnificent that when I heard it, I felt a tremendous surge and thought that staying in the comfort zone of Dan Peak was extremely despicable. I felt that I should break out of the comfort zone and help him realize this dream. I believe that if you knew what this dream is, you would support me in doing so.
After all, I am you.
Unfortunately, I can't tell you what this dream is right now.
But we have also thought about it. Coming to this world, it would be best to do something, leave something behind, rather than always being so cowardly. If you can't do this thing, then let me do it on your behalf.
The withdrawal of the Xuanqin troops was a deal between Zhao Zheng and me, so you don't need to have too many doubts. But don't think that everything is fine and dandy. Xuanqin must unify the Land of Immortal Legacy, but for North Chu, there can be preferential treatment. Even if it's unified in the future, we can adopt two different political systems. You understand what I mean, right?
Now, North Chu can form an alliance with Xuanqin, but eventually, it will definitely be assimilated into Xuanqin. This process doesn't have to involve warfare; it can be a peaceful transition. Trust me, this is undoubtedly a good thing for North Chu. It can even help realize the everlasting dream that Shiyin mentioned, and it can also resolve the crisis faced by the Daojian Sect during this process.
In short, you have to believe me. Essentially, it means believing in yourself.
That's how things stand, no matter what actions we take, we ultimately helped North Chu out of its predicament.
Here's what you still need to do: Firstly, I will send someone to deliver formation diagrams, design plans, and geographical maps to you. You need to persuade North Chu to construct corresponding formations at the designated locations on the map. Secondly, you need to persuade North Chu to submit to Xuanqin.
I know you will surely study the formations and deduce what we need to do through them. But my suggestion is that it's not necessary because it would be a waste of effort without much reward.
Alright, that's all I wanted to say. We should meet again in the future.
I wish you and Shiyin a happy life!
I, alone, am toiling away to help you chase your dream. Sob, sob, sob...
- Qin Ran's fourth clone, recorded in the Imperial Palace of Mo City on January 2nd.
After reading the letter, Qin Ran stood up and walked to the window, gazing at the darkness outside, enduring a night of cold winds (as there was no tobacco).
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
. As long as he maintains the villain image and follows the plot to the grand finale, he can obtain generous rewards and return to the real world. So Gu Chen'an entered the role and began to act as a scumbag villain, but who would have expected that the female leads could hear his inner thoughts. Miss Su from the Su family was shocked: "I originally thought Gu Chen'an was a scumbag, but I didn't expect he turned out to be a gentleman! What? You said I have to call off the engagement? I definitely won't, I'll piss you off!" Bai Yuan Tian was dumbfounded: "Young Master Gu is usually unreasonable and a complete brat, but he actually calls me little sweetie in his heart? What, Young Master Gu even said he likes me?" As the female leads' images collapsed more and more, the plot also collapsed with it. Gu Chen'an looked at all this chaos. "Ladies, don't aggro me, if you keep this up the male lead really will stab me, I still need to survive to the grand finale!"
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
