Rolling dust and smoke appeared on the horizon, shaking the ground beneath. Such a portent had long alerted the entire market. Amid the blare of horns, a Desolate Shaman clad in full heavy armor strode out of the market. Behind him stood dozens of fully armed guards along with hastily conscripted Shaman Hunters, all facing forward as if confronting a mortal foe.
From the dust surged a massive convoy, barreling ahead until it screeched to a halt right in front of the Desolate Shaman.
Seated cross-legged atop the lead carriage, a Desolate Shaman slowly opened seven eyes and locked gazes with the heavily armored Desolate Shaman guard captain. Both shuddered slightly, and a shockwave rippled outward like a sudden gale.
After testing each other, the two Desolate Shamans found they were evenly matched, and both reined in their auras.
A foul wind blew past as the Desolate Shaman from the rear of the convoy came forward as well. Sensing that numerous Desolate Shamans were concealed within the market, the two shamans exchanged a glance, abandoning the thought of forcing their way through. One of them asked, "Is there a divine physician here?"
"No!" the Desolate Shaman guard captain answered without hesitation.
"Then is there a doctor?"
"There's nothing of the sort here!" the guard captain barked belligerently.
The convoy's two Desolate Shamans looked at each other again. One of them asked, "Guess we have to fight?"
The other replied, "Fight!"
Instantly, the Desolate Shaman at the head of the convoy unfurled a primordial world where ancient trees pierced the heavens and ferocious winds howled. Not to be outdone, the Desolate Shaman captain unfolded a terrifying world of blazing sunlight and molten matter, clashing head-on with him. The two worlds ground against each other relentlessly, deadlocked with neither gaining the upper hand.
Several Desolate Shamans flew out from the market to watch in silence. Soon, Great Shamans bustled up to hawk snacks and refreshments, while pretty shamans offered leg and tail massages—the hospitality was nothing if not thorough.
Suddenly, a shaman in the convoy shouted, "Lord Tianyu is fading fast! Have you found the divine physician yet?!"
The two shamans from the convoy were jolted with alarm. The Desolate Shaman mid-fight called out, "We're done fighting, we've got real business!"
The guard captain retracted his mindscape world as well, saying enthusiastically, "If you need anything done around here, just say the word! I'll sort it out for you right away, and we can grab drinks together after!"
The convoy's Desolate Shaman said, "Drinks can wait. Business first—I'm serious. Do you have a divine physician here?"
The guard captain paused, taken aback. "Why would us Desolate Shamans need doctors? If you're hurt, you tough it out yourself. Tough it out long enough and you heal, right? We don't support idlers here—a doctor would starve to death."
"Fair point... What about any peculiar shamans?"
"Well, that we do have..."
Before he could finish, the roof of the luxurious carriage in the middle of the convoy suddenly blew off. Tianyu's colossal frame rose up. Pointing toward a certain direction in the market, he uttered just two words—"Over there"—before fainting once more.
Over a dozen Little Pretty Shamans paled in horror, more than a hundred arms hoisting upward together, just barely keeping themselves from being crushed to death under Tianyu's bulk.
Seeing this, the guard captain's jaw dropped in sheer awe, drool dripping down in streams.
The convoy's Desolate Shaman patted him on the shoulder and said with grave sincerity, "Wake up, brother! Little Pretty Shamans of that caliber aren't from our world. Even if you had a shot with one, it wouldn't be an opportunity—it'd just be a straight road to blowing your life savings. Once you run out of money, they'll fly right into the arms of the next shaman."
The guard captain sucked in a sharp breath. "That terrifying? But one of those Little Pretty Shamans clearly just winked at me!"
The convoy's Desolate Shaman said earnestly, "All an act. Don't fall for it. Don't believe a word they say. The story might start in a thousand different ways, but it always ends the same. Look at me—why do you think an old fellow like me ended up reduced to working as a bodyguard? To this day, I still owe money to over a dozen lending houses."
The guard captain was stunned. "That bad?"
"If you're not afraid of dying, go right ahead and try. Who knows, maybe you and I will end up as coworkers someday."
The guard captain no longer returned the flirtatious glances of the Little Pretty Shamans. He personally led the convoy into the market, heading in the direction Tianyu had pointed.
In a secret chamber, the market master stood before an altar, continuously channeling sacrificial power into it to sustain the projection shimmering above.
The projection showed a plump shamaness bearing an arrogant expression.
"...This spirit fish already carries a hint of the true intent of the Flame God, which is exceedingly rare. I have already dispatched people to deliver it to you. In addition, an amusing novelty has appeared here: sealed iron boxes, each containing a divine iron arrowhead, but with unknown spirituality, so any outcome is possible.
"The Flame Spirit Fish I acquired was opened from one of these iron boxes. I purchased a total of five boxes and had them all sent over to you. When you're bored, you can crack them open for fun and try your luck."
The plump shamaness said, "Sounds somewhat interesting. What else could be inside?"
"Your subordinate truly does not know."
After chatting for a few more moments, the plump shamaness suddenly remarked, "Oh, right. Lord Jiumu just issued a notice to search the entire realm for a human named Wei Yuan. He—"
At that moment, the projection flickered and blurred. The shamaness hurriedly said, "Let's leave it at that... Don't waste sacrificial power."
The projection was cut immediately; she was unwilling to keep it open for even another second. The market master knew that such ultra-long-distance communications were exorbitantly expensive and could only be activated once a month, reserved specifically for reporting major business matters.
The shamaness had given only a name—where was he supposed to look? Besides, it was a human. How could a human possibly appear in the Desolate Realm? Even if one did, he wouldn't survive a single day.
Furthermore, the Desolate Realm was vast, and his market sat in an outlying, perilous region. Even if a human happened to fly in, the odds of him dropping right on the market master's head were probably no higher than pulling Great Desolate Flame Divine Iron from every single box he opened.
The market master promptly cast the matter aside and walked out of the secret room. There had been some commotion in the market just moments ago, likely a fight between Desolate Shamans. But brawls broke out here almost daily, and he had long grown accustomed to it.
Bashing each other bloody one moment and calling each other brothers over drinks the next—that was everyday life for Desolate Shamans.
The market master paid it no mind, planning instead to pay another visit to the Craft God of the Great Desolation. Having heard that smaller iron boxes were now on offer, he intended to grab a few large and small ones to open for fun. After all, it wasn't a loss anyway.
In the courtyard by the cliffside, Wei Yuan emerged from the house with a darkened face. Seeing his gate being dismantled, he already held a spear in hand.
Yet the Power Shamans completely disregarded him, continuing to tear the gate wider. Then, ten Little Pretty Shamans filed in, laying down an expensive snow-white carpet across the yard. Next, dozens of shamans let out a synchronized roar as they carried in a mountain of flesh, gingerly setting it onto the carpet.
In an instant, Little Pretty Shamans of every charm and allure crawled all over the flesh mountain. Their display left the rustic local shamans of the market utterly agape, their blood boiling with envy—wishing desperately they could trade places with him and endure every bit of hardship in the Desolate Realm on this lordly flesh mountain's behalf.
Wei Yuan studied the figure for a long time, sweeping his divine sense over the body, yet still failed to recognize who this mountain of flesh was. However, the soul aura felt somewhat familiar, so Wei Yuan tentatively called out, "Tianyu?"
The mountain of flesh let out rumbling groans and slowly rose. One Little Pretty Shaman was left dangling midair until her arms gave out; with a gasp, she tumbled down. The grace of her fall was etched indelibly into the hearts of every onlooker.
Wei Yuan tilted his head back, staring at this mountain of flesh that reached a zhang and a half tall just sitting down, momentarily speechless.
Tianyu opened eight eyes. Upon clearly seeing the person before him, tears welled up in his eyes, and he cried out, "Divine physician! I've finally found you!"
Moments later, protective screens were erected around Wei Yuan's courtyard, topped with a massive tarp that turned the entire courtyard into an enclosed space. Two Desolate Shamans cast an incantation to seal the inside from the outside, leaving only Wei Yuan and Tianyu within.
The divine physician was about to treat Lord Tianyu. This was a matter of utmost gravity; no shaman was permitted near.
Back when Tianyu's bizarre illness suddenly broke out, countless renowned Desolate Shaman healers throughout the realm had been helpless. Fortunately, Tianyu had activated a life-saving ability at the critical moment, deducing the direction of the divine physician who could save his life. Thus, they had traveled day and night, actually managing to find the life-saving divine physician in this remote wilderness frontier.
From where Tianyu had fallen ill to here was a distance of hundreds of thousands of li! The shamans' admiration for Tianyu's innate divine ability had long overflowed like an endless torrent.
Inside the enclosed courtyard, Wei Yuan wore a puzzled expression. "My worship was measured, backed by karmic luck as a safety net. Logically, even worshiping a hundred times a day wouldn't kill anyone. Oh, and if you died, I'd know and could pull you back. How did you get injured like this?"
Tianyu looked as if he wished for death. "If only I could have died! Dying would just mean swapping bodies at worst. The terrifying part is that I couldn't even die! Next time, just worship once—no matter where I am in the world, I'll know!"
"Alright, alright, I get it. Just once."
Tianyu immediately backpedaled: "No, no, no, you'd better not worship at all! I can't take it!"
"Bear with it for a moment. I'll undo the curse first." Wei Yuan reached out toward Tianyu with an open hand, withdrawing all the remnants of karmic luck and sacrificial power associated with himself from Tianyu's body.
Instantly, Tianyu radiated vigor. His dharma body burst into blazing flames like a miniature sun, fire filling the entire enclosed space and even igniting the desolate iron!
Having endured endless torment, the sudden liberation unleashed the shamanic power within him like a howling tsunami. Surging boundlessly, his cultivation shattered straight through his bottleneck, soaring directly to the perfection of the dharma idol realm!
Looking at the bizarre images that suddenly materialized, Wei Yuan was at a loss for words. After a moment, he said, "These... are all from your mindscape world? You spend your free time thinking about this?"
Tianyu panicked, hastily reeling in his thoughts to banish the projections showing him chasing Wei Yuan across the world, bellowing invincible threats while Wei Yuan fled with his head in his hands.
Chapter 883