Guild Members Reunited

Fusing a demigod-tier item, and one from an evil profession at that... I really feel like I'm courting death. Mr. President, you'd better protect me. If anything goes wrong, I'll curse your whole bloodline... Zhang Yuanqing muttered uneasily to himself, but asked aloud, "How do I fuse it?" The President leaned lazily against the back of the chair. "Cut open your chest and bring it close to your heart." Zhang Yuanqing opened his inventory, pulled out the Purple Lightning Hammer, and pressed the sharp triangular spike on the butt of its handle against his chest. Just as he was about to thrust it into his chest cavity, he suddenly remembered something. "Wait, no. The triangular spike has armor-piercing and bleed effects. A Dominator-tier bleed would kill me. Mr. President, lend me a knife." The President shook his head. "You don't even have a low-level blade? That's impoverished beyond reason." With that, he reached into empty air and drew out a pitch-black combat knife. Scorned for his lack of gear, the supposed Supreme Deity of Items took the knife and sliced open his chest, revealing the beating heart inside the cavity. Warm blood soaked his clothes, and a rich, metallic stench filled the bedroom. Ignoring the agonizing pain of a cracked chest, Zhang Yuanqing gingerly cradled the dark brown heart in his hands and brought it to his chest. The dark brown heart in his palms instantly "melted" into a viscous black substance, enveloping his tender pink, pulsating heart. In an instant, Zhang Yuanqing's heart was stained pitch-black. Boom! His thoughts exploded; his emotions erupted. Scenes from the past half year surfaced one after another. The exhaustion and despair of navigating one grueling trial after another, the terror and agony of struggling on the brink of life and death—everything churned violently within him. Master Wuhen's death; the humiliation, regret, fury, and indignation of the motel crew who had died without ever seeing justice served; the desperate grief and rage of seeking mutual destruction at the tribunal... All those memories flooded his mind, coalescing into a torrential surge of negative emotions. Zhang Yuanqing's sanity crumbled beneath the onslaught, and his heart was consumed by an overwhelming impulse to destroy the world. Just then, the President's low voice came as a warning in his ear: "Circulate your Solar Divine Power." His chaotic mind acted on instinct. He channeled the divine power of the sun, awakening the golden light dormant within his body. Endowed with purifying properties, the Solar Divine Power greatly alleviated the chaotic negative energy, allowing Zhang Yuanqing to reclaim a shred of himself. He knelt on the floor, leaning slightly forward. Panting heavily, he looked down at his chest. The surface of his heart was completely wrapped in the pitch-black substance. The fluid mass shifted rapidly, drilling madly into the cardiac chambers. The black matter remained hyperactive, showing no signs of stabilizing, which meant the fusion had only just begun and was nowhere near complete. And this was merely a sealed Illusion God item. One could only imagine how terrifying the unsealed heart must have been. Master Wuhen had tempered his heart for twenty years; his willpower had long been forged into unyielding steel... Zhang Yuanqing marveled at the master's resolve while acutely feeling the immense gulf between himself and the true heavyweights. "You've passed the first phase. Stay focused," the President warned. The next wave of emotional backlash crashed down. Every sorrow and grievance he had ever suffered came rushing back: the loneliness of his childhood, his mother's coldness, the bullying by classmates, the unease of living under someone else's roof... Every tragic, bitter, and agonizing memory from his life churned without pause. Once again, the urge to destroy the world and obliterate himself welled up in Zhang Yuanqing's chest. "Urrgh... ahhh..." He let out a guttural roar of agony, his face twisting into a hideous grimace. Chaotic starlight flickered across the surface of his body, while a mystical, dreamy nebula emerged on his forehead. Immediately after, gray radiance seeped into the chaotic flickering starlight. Within the glow, phantom faces exhibiting joy, fury, sorrow, and delight faintly materialized—the manifestation of an Illusionist's spiritual energy. Even the nebula mark on his forehead was stained with that bleak, decaying gray light. The nebula gradually warped into a face blending a weep and a laugh. The thin trace of Solar Divine Power was suppressed deep within his body. This went on for over ten minutes. The starlight dimmed, and the nebula mark progressively transformed into a grimace torn between laughter and tears. He was being overtaken by the evil power. If this continued, his Night Wanderer character card would be converted into an Illusionist card. The President watched in silence. Zhang Yuanqing's consciousness slipped away piece by piece, his mind filled with hatred and negative emotions. Just as the conversion into an Illusionist was about to finalize, a chant of the Buddha's name suddenly echoed from within the blackened heart: "Life and death, an endless cycle; light and dark, intricately entwined. All things bear the dark and embrace the bright—this alone is the true way. Only after witnessing darkness should one turn one's heart toward the light. Remember this well. Amitabha..." The voice was gentle and low, yet it rang out like an evening drum and morning bell, striking straight through to his soul. Like a ray of dawn piercing the dark, it illuminated the truth and goodness within Zhang Yuanqing's humanity. The roiling negative emotions swiftly subsided, and reason returned. The visage on Zhang Yuanqing's forehead faded, and the gray energy on his skin flowed back into his heart. "Master Wuhen..." Zhang Yuanqing whispered, tears streaming down his face. Beside him, the President gave a slow, rhythmic round of applause. "Congratulations. The fusion is a success." Zhang Yuanqing looked down. The heart in his chest cavity had turned dark brown. The pitch-black substance had solidified and dimmed, losing its volatile activity. "I made it..." Zhang Yuanqing collapsed onto the bed, gasping for breath in utter exhaustion. At the same time, he sensed the powers belonging to the Illusionist profession, as though branded directly into his genes. First, he gained all skills spanning from Illusionist up to Dream Master, making him a genuine dual-profession practitioner who combined the abilities of two pinnacle professions: Illusionist and Night Wanderer. Second, he acquired one of the heart's (Illusion God's) great powers: modifying Spirit Realm IDs. Disguise was the core trick of an Illusionist—altering appearance, physique, and aura to a degree that even a Scout's Insight could hardly pierce, countered only by a Star Official's astromancy. At the demigod stage, this ability directly evolved into the power to modify a Spirit Realm ID. For now, he could only alter his own Spirit Realm ID, which seemed somewhat underwhelming. However, Zhang Yuanqing knew full well that this feature was still largely restricted by the seal; as the seal loosened, the ability would progressively strengthen. He had a faint premonition that within half a month, this power would fully awaken. The unique capabilities it would unlock were certainly worth looking forward to. It was worth noting that the heart's seal was continuously degrading. As it awakened, the corruption of its evil power would grow increasingly severe. Zhang Yuanqing had to become the Lord of the Sun within 180 days to suppress the Illusion God item, or figure out a way to extract it before the seal broke entirely. Otherwise, he would end up like Ling Tuo—a fallen Night Wanderer. "You truly have potential. My eye for people has never failed me." The President spoke in an easy tone. "The Illusion God item is awakening every second. You must become a Day Wanderer in the year-end killing trial. Otherwise, long before 180 days are up, it will completely invade your character card and convert you into an Illusionist." With that, he raised his hand, snapped his fingers with a crisp pop, and vanished from the room. Zhang Yuanqing stripped off his bloodstained clothes, deftly opened the wardrobe, and headed into the bathroom to wash up. It was already late at night, and his aunt and maternal grandparents were fast asleep. After getting cleaned up, he returned to the room and called Guan Ya and Fu Qingyang to let them know he was safe. He then gave Fu Qingyang a full account of fusing the Illusion God's heart and the investments from the Association of God of Beauty and the Merchant Guild. "For you, the timing of this item couldn't be better. You can disguise yourself as an Illusionist overseas. With the slippery and deceitful traits of an Illusionist, you'll be able to retreat smoothly even if you offend a Dominator. However..." "However what?" "However, you are tangled in an absurdly f*cking huge amount of karma." The Money Prince broke into rare profanity. Reviving him once had been hard enough. The Mother Goddess's Womb could only be used once; that was the absolute rule. If Yuanshi died again, not even a celestial could save him. The Money Prince was feeling rather tired. Sick of me already? So love really does fade, doesn't it... Zhang Yuanqing griped internally, but spoke tactfully: "Rest easy, Boss. I'll keep a very low profile. I definitely won't cause trouble overseas." "I certainly hope so! Going to wreak some havoc in the First District wouldn't be bad either." Fu Qingyang let out a light chuckle. "When are you leaving? The funds are already prepared—thirty million federal dollars. It's not much, so spend sparingly. If you run short, ask me for more." Converted to Chinese currency, that was two small goals of a hundred million? Zhang Yuanqing prostrated himself in spirit. "Thank you, Boss! I'll set out in three days." Ending the call, Zhang Yuanqing lay in bed and pondered the preparations before going abroad. There was no need to explain anything to his grandparents. In the family's eyes, Yuanzi had hooked up with a wealthy older girlfriend and turned into a kept boy who ate and slept on her dime, too happy to think of home. He had originally considered taking the whole family overseas, but on second thought, Yuanshi Tianzun had already returned to the Spirit Realm. Nobody would relentlessly dig into the civilian identity of a dead man. For his grandparents' household, staying put was better than making a move. As for the Five Elements Alliance and Taiyi Sect, because his resurrection could not be disclosed, there was no need for farewells either. "Right, I need to reclaim the items I gave the guild members. I'm not dead after all, so the legacy distribution is void—completely fair and reasonable. Guild members can't betray each other, but I should still borrow the Knight Badge from the Boss just to add an extra layer of insurance..." No sooner thought than done. Zhang Yuanqing opened the guild interface, selected the "Mohist Mechanism City" trial, and marked every Saint except Asano Ryo. *** In an apartment building in the capital. Inside a warm-toned bedroom, Sun Miaomiao curled up on her bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. Ever since Yuanshi Tianzun returned to the Spirit Realm, she had fallen into a deep slump. She couldn't even muster an interest in her beloved hobby of online flaming, sleeping fewer than three hours a day. Her grandfather said it was a sickness of the heart—emotional trauma that medication could not cure—and urged her to apply to the organization for an Illusionist item to smooth over the emotional scars. Sun Miaomiao refused. She was unwilling to erase the pain left by Yuanshi Tianzun's passing in such a manner; that felt like a form of betrayal. Just then, the Spirit Realm notification sounded in her ears: [Initiating guild dungeon...] [Designation: 039, Mohist Mechanism City.] [Difficulty Level: S] [Type: Multiplayer (Death-match category)] [Main Quest: Cleared.] [Remark: Non-Spirit Realm items cannot be brought inside.] Sun Miaomiao sprang bolt upright from the bed, dumbfounded. *** In an office of the Chaoyang District Security Bureau, Zhao Chenghuang was bent over his desk, handling the aftermath of the Soldier Master sect's raid on the capital. He was not as emotional as Sun Miaomiao. As a man who struggled to express his feelings, he buried his sorrow and regret deep in his heart, occasionally taking them out to savor and reminisce about an old friend. Most of the time, he did not let emotion rule him. Yet with a chime from the Spirit Realm, this emotionally reserved man froze dead at his desk: [Initiating guild dungeon...] [Designation: 039, Mohist Mechanism City.] *** In Songhai, at the Mechanist Arts Research Company. In the bathroom, Xiahou Aotian, dressed in pajamas and squatting on the toilet, suddenly froze before his face twisted into an expression of utter disbelief. "The—the guild realm is opening? Old man, old man, what's going on?" "How would I know? Didn't you say a guild dungeon can only be opened by the guild master?" "Yuanshi Tianzun, he..." Xiahou Aotian froze, a wild guess surging in his mind. The thought sent a jolt like an electric current running through his entire body. The old man in the ring fell silent for a moment before cautioning, "Never mind why the guild dungeon is opening—are you sure you want to enter the Spirit Realm in your current state?" In this state... Xiahou Aotian's complexion changed drastically, and he began ripping toilet paper off the roll at the fastest speed of his life. *** In Du. In the bedroom of a luxury residence, Brother Red Chicken was lying atop his girlfriend, engaged in intimacy to vent the gloom that had weighed on him for days, when he suddenly froze. The woman beneath him noticed he had halted before reaching the climax. She opened her eyes and asked in confusion, "What's wrong?" Brother Red Chicken leaped off the bed, his roaring dragon bared to the open air, as he frantically searched the floor: "Hold on, where are my boxers? Wait, where are my boxers..." *** In Crab City, inside a rented apartment. Xiao Yuan, struggling with insomnia, heard the Spirit Realm chime. She shot to her feet, staring blankly ahead, her breathing growing increasingly ragged as the mysterious man's words echoed in her mind: "Wait at home. Good news will come soon!" As if intuiting something, her eyes instantly welled with tears. "Yuanshi..." *** In Songhai. Inside a bedroom with tightly drawn curtains, the sleeping Tianxia Guihuo abruptly snapped his eyes open. His consistently calm, steady face was filled with shock and astonishment. Curled beside him was a fair-skinned woman with a graceful figure. As a mature man wielding real authority, he naturally wasn't single. It took Tianxia Guihuo a moment to grasp what the opening of the guild dungeon implied. Then he realized he didn't have enough time to put on clothes. Without the slightest hesitation, Tianxia Guihuo shoved the woman off the bed, grabbed the corner of the quilt, and rolled over, wrapping himself tightly in the blanket. *** Inside the Mohist Mechanism City, the sky was as clear as if freshly washed, with clouds frozen in place like cotton. Zhang Yuanqing stood on a narrow winding path. Before him lay a dense forest, and in the distance rose vast, rolling mountain ranges that resembled dragons. Behind him spread an undulating meadow of green grass, dotted with wild blossoms of vivid purple and crimson. After waiting in silence for a brief moment, he watched as the members of Return of the Dead materialized in his field of vision, one after another.