Meeting

Reaching into the void, Zhang Yuanqing's uncle drew out a razor-sharp dagger and tossed it into his nephew's lap with an easygoing air that seemed to say, *Go ahead and disembowel yourself.* The dagger was a Scout class item. Peerlessly sharp, it lacked any bleeding effect, making it ideal for cutting through a Day Wanderer's tough skin without inflicting continuous damage. "Uncle, why don't you give me this dagger?" Zhang Yuanqing said, turning the Dominator-grade weapon over in his hands, unable to put it down. "If you're planning to give it to Fu Qingyang, he won't care for it. If you want to give it to Guan Ya, I'll give you something better once she reaches the Dominator stage. Right now, she can't afford the cost of using it." His uncle refused. "As for you, it's practically useless." *You have so many treasures on the Tree of Myriad Treasures, yet you're still this stingy!* Zhang Yuanqing grumbled internally. Gripping the dagger in a reverse hold against his chest, he drove it in with force, carving through flesh and muscle before scooping the blackened, pulsing heart—still connected by blood vessels—into his palm. Leaning forward, his uncle held a hand over the heart. Immediately, a tight lattice of Void runes surfaced across its black exterior. With a slight twist of the family disgrace's wrist, Zhang Yuanqing watched the runes disperse rapidly, shedding a thin layer. He promptly shoved the heart back into his chest cavity. The next second, an overwhelming surge of negative energy slammed into him like an overturning sea. Collapsing to the floor in agony, the sun sigil surfaced on his forehead, only to twist into a black hole sigil collapsing inward, which then shifted back into the sun sigil. The aura radiating from him alternated between vile, hollow emptiness and pure, righteous radiance. Back and forth it went until, after a long while, the divine power of the sun gained the upper hand. It suppressed the power of the Heart of the Illusion God, successfully taming it. Zhang Yuanqing lay sprawled on the floor, panting heavily and soaked in sweat. Compared to his initial fusion, when he had nearly lost control, the risk this time was vastly reduced. The overbearing divine power of the sun countered all forms of spiritual energy. From now on, so long as he unraveled the seal layer by layer, he wouldn't need to worry about the Heart of the Illusion God running amok. Once he became the Lord of the Sun, he would gain complete mastery over the heart and become a dual-class demigod. Still catching his breath on the floor, Zhang Yuanqing familiarized himself with his new skill—Nothingness! Nothingness was an Illusionist's core ability at the Dominator stage. A Level 7 Nullifier could nullify energy and spiritual power; a Level 8 Nullifier could nullify matter; and a Level 9 Nullifier could nullify rules. Upon reaching the demigod stage, the ability could reduce conceptual things to nothingness. Zhang Yuanqing's Nothingness skill corresponded to Level 7, but since the Heart of the Illusion God was an inherent demigod-tier item, it naturally possessed the property of nullifying rules. The rules he could nullify fell into two categories. The first were physical laws of reality: apples falling after ripening; fire burning matter; the sun rising in the east and setting in the west; human bowel movements snapping off. The second were rules within the Spirit Realm domain, referring to rule-based items and rule-based skills. At his current stage, Zhang Yuanqing could not nullify the foundational rules that kept the world turning, and the range of his domain was limited. Applied in combat, he could nullify the rule that high-speed collisions inevitably generated immense kinetic energy. In terms of demonstrated effects, it was somewhat similar to an Alcoholic. However, an Alcoholic's abilities revolved around distortion, chaos, reversal, and erasure, which were broader and more versatile in application. When confronting rule-based items and skills, he could nullify rules at or below Level 7. The limitation was that this specific rule-nullifying ability could only be used three times a day. If applied merely to nullify energy or spiritual power, there was no limit. *A Level 9 Nullifier can erase rules... Tsk, no wonder the boss's sense of urgency only grew after advancing to Dominator. Demigods aside, even peak Dominators can command and manipulate rules. Boss's 'Skill Approaching the Dao' was invincible during the Saint stage, but at the Dominator stage, it won't be as effective.* Zhang Yuanqing pulled himself up wearily, slumped onto the sofa, and said: "Uncle, toss me another Coke." His uncle reached into the void, produced an iced Coke, and threw it over. "Familiarize yourself well with your Dominator-stage powers, and return home as soon as possible to build your own faction. I need to head back to keep your aunt company. Oh, right—your mom is in New York, perfectly safe. Do you want to see her?" Zhang Yuanqing remained silent for a long moment before answering, "All right." *** "Huang Taiji?" The Sword Pavilion elder's eyes flickered. Turning toward Grand Elder Di Hong, he smiled and said, "It seems he successfully advanced to Dominator." A Saint had no right to participate in a council of this level. If there were crucial intelligence to deliver, the proper protocol for Huang Taiji would be to relay it through the conference secretary rather than request a direct video link. Requesting a direct link meant he now held the qualifications to report directly to the council. A faint smile appeared on Di Hong's stern face. "Let him in." The conference secretary immediately tapped away on a laptop. A projector on the ceiling cast a beam of azure light, in which Huang Taiji's figure materialized. Huang Taiji had just wrapped up the aftermath and returned home. Originally, he had planned to call his grandfather to report on Yuanshi Tianzun, only to be informed that Di Hong was in a meeting. He had simply requested the direct link instead. It was also a way to announce his ascension to the upper echelons of the Five Elements Alliance. Di Hong looked over his grandson with gratification, the haze in his heart lifting considerably. Smiling gently, he said, "You've arrived just in time. The alliance masters did not enter the Spirit Realm to spectate this killing scenario. Report the list of those who advanced to Dominator." Putting aside their shock over the Demon Lord's resurrection, the council members turned to Huang Taiji, waiting for him to announce the roster. Huang Taiji gave a slight nod. "Huang Taiji, Yin Ji, Jiang Ju, Xiaohou Aotian, Xiao Yuan..." "What are you talking about?" the Grand Elder of the Red Fire Gang interrupted in bewilderment. "Weren't there only three Dominator slots?!" The other elders wore equally perplexed expressions. Huang Taiji explained, "Because of Ling Tuo, the killing scenarios of the First and Second Districts merged, resulting in six slots." The ten powerhouses were startled before giving way to delight. "Six slots, and our Second District claimed four of them!" Ling Tuo stirring up trouble in the Spirit Realm had disrupted its operational mechanisms. The merger of the two districts' killing scenarios was merely an aftereffect of the incident and not worth dwelling on. By contrast, securing four Dominator slots in a single killing scenario brought these rulers genuine excitement and joy. *You're celebrating too early!* Fu Qingyang swept a glance across the nine elders, whose faces were alive with delight, and deliberately asked, "And the final slot?" Huang Taiji glanced at him, then spoke each word distinctly under the gaze of the Nine Elders: "Yuanshi Tianzun!" A bolt from the blue! The joy that had lit up the faces of the Nine Elders froze instantly. Their smiles stiffened. The Red Fire Gang elder shot to his feet, eyes wide as saucers. "Who did you say?!" His expression was even more astonished than when he had learned of the Demon Lord's revival. Scanning the flabbergasted expressions of the Nine Elders, Huang Taiji felt an odd sense of gratification. Maintaining a composed facade, he said, "Yuanshi Tianzun. He isn't dead. Our advancement to Dominator in this killing scenario was entirely thanks to him." He then relayed the events of the killing scenario in full detail. The conference room plunged into an eerie silence. An indescribably stiff atmosphere settled over the chamber as nine peak Dominators wielding supreme authority sat in strange, stunned silence. After what felt like an eternity, Elder Miao of Baihui looked toward Fu Qingyang and said in a heavy voice, "So Jumang in New York was him all along! You knew Yuanshi Tianzun wasn't dead from the beginning! How was he resurrected? The Mother Goddess's Womb?" Fu Qingyang's face remained cold, though his tone was distinctly pleased. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm just as surprised to hear Yuanshi is alive." He would never admit to joining forces with Demon Eye to revive Yuanshi Tianzun. Colluding with a heavenly king of the Soldier Master Sect, or resurrecting the culprit behind Elder Cai's death, would provide his political rivals with ample ammunition to attack him. The Nine Elders exchanged looks. Yuanshi Tianzun had survived, achieved the rank of Dominator, and helped the alliance's Saints advance in the killing scenario. Their feelings were a complex knot of regret and relief, wary dread and celebration. Fu Qingyang continued, "Rather than obsessing over Yuanshi Tianzun's survival, I am far more interested in what connection the Demon Lord's resurrection has to him." Shaking off their lingering disbelief that the brat was still alive, the Nine Elders turned their gazes back to Huang Taiji. Huang Taiji proceeded to recount Yuanshi Tianzun's abnormal behavior during the scenario. There was no need to hide these details, nor was it possible, given how many people had witnessed them. "The Demon Lord is like a dying centipede that still twitches?" Grand Elder Di Hong frowned in contemplation. "Yet if he hadn't died, his character card couldn't have been inherited by Yuanshi Tianzun." Elder Miao voiced her thoughts as well: "If the Demon Lord were alive, the Taiyi Sect Master's response wouldn't have been so muted, and the alliance masters would have informed us long ago... Since Yuanshi Tianzun isn't dead, we can simply ask him directly." At this, the group turned their eyes to Fu Qingyang. The Money Prince remarked indifferently, "He is no longer a member of the Five Elements Alliance." His words made it clear: they could no longer use rank or official duties to demand anything of him. To the ears of the Nine Elders, it sounded as if Fu Qingyang was leveraging the situation to demand power and an official post on Yuanshi Tianzun's behalf. The Grand Elder of the Red Fire Gang spoke up immediately: "Since he is alive, he should return to the Five Elements Alliance. We can use his prestige to boost morale. These recent consecutive Spirit Realm malfunctions have sown panic among the mid- and lower-tier members." The Grand Elder of Water God Palace said coldly, "Posts debating the Morality Points incident are flooding the forums. If they discover Yuanshi Tianzun was involved, his prestige will be unmatched. Have you forgotten how arrogant and self-important he became based on his past achievements? He was unruly as a Saint; how do you propose to rein him in now that he's a Dominator?" Elder Miao pondered for a moment before offering, "There are no vacancies for elders in Songhai. We could consider transferring him to an impoverished province. Young people need tempering. Once he's out there, he can do as he pleases." In terms of level and raw power, any one of the Nine Elders could crush Yuanshi Tianzun with a single hand. But as rulers of an official organization, they had to consider the bigger picture; they could not openly suppress a meritorious hero whose reputation burned so bright. It would be one thing if Yuanshi Tianzun possessed political tact, but he was notoriously prickly. The best solution was to pack him off to an impoverished province as a pioneer. With his intolerance for injustice, he could clean up the evil classes plaguing the frontier—killing two birds with one stone. The Nine Elders began deliberating among themselves, discussing what position to assign Yuanshi Tianzun and how to leverage his return to bolster the morale of official members. Before long, they reached a consensus: assign Yuanshi Tianzun to the Qinghe Branch to guard the border in Bagui Province. Di Hong looked at Fu Qingyang. "Elder Fu, if you have no objections, you will be responsible for contacting Yuanshi Tianzun." Fu Qingyang smiled faintly. "No problem." These old fossils were as arrogant as ever. *** In a villa tucked far away from the prime real estate of Queens, New York. Having just emerged from the basement, Chen Shu sat at the dining table, cutting into steak and pan-seared cod prepared by the chef. Outside the villa, lights blazed as police cruisers and ambulances drifted in and out of the neighborhood. The neighborhood's property management had contacted construction crews, who were busy repairing cracked roads and damaged public amenities. A few hours earlier, a band of evil classes had assaulted the neighborhood. A transport truck had smashed violently through the front gates, killing the guards and the property staff who tried to stop the rampage. The evil classes had then forced their way into villa after villa, looting safes, jewelry, cash, and antiques before piling everything into their trucks. Homeowners who resisted were slain on the spot, while attractive women were either raped where they stood or carted off alongside the loot. By fortunate coincidence, most residents had been away at work during the day, sparing them from the horror. After several hours of unrestrained frenzy, the evil classes had departed loaded with spoils, leaving devastation in their wake. Chen Shu had taken refuge in the basement early on, leaving only her personal bodyguard to watch over the villa. The guard was a member of the Relief Society, a Dominator-stage Wind Mage. Fortunately, the villa where Chen Shu stayed had escaped pillaging. Not knowing whether Morality Points would ever return, the Overlooker had refrained from intervening in the evil classes' spree from beginning to end. Had these affiliated evil classes perished here, it might have drawn Dominators from the evil faction. If a Dominator-level clash erupted in the villa, Chen Shu down in the basement would have stood no chance of surviving. Furthermore, dense purple mist had blanketed all of New York, and the shockwaves radiating from demigod battles had struck fear even into Dominators. Under such circumstances, lying low and staying hidden was the only way to survive. Swallowing a bite of steak, Chen Shu looked across the table at the Overlooker. "The President just sent a message. Morality Points will not disappear again—at least, not in the near future." The Overlooker was a Caucasian woman with chiseled, refined features. Her Spirit Realm ID was Sophia, named after a character from a well-known anime. Sophia had sharp brown eyes and flowing black hair. Dressed in a white business suit and black-framed glasses, she exuded the intellectual, restrained aura of a mature professional. As the bodyguard to the Relief Society's leader, she breathed a sigh of relief. Yet as a Spirit Realm walker, her heart remained heavy. "The evil faction's offensives are growing more frequent and intense. Meanwhile, the orthodox faction's gains so far are limited to the faction battle in New York, hunting down numerous Saints and a handful of Dominators. "Compared to official organizations, our Relief Society's influence is still far too weak. Confronted by the grand tide of events, we can only drift with the flow. This sense of powerlessness is deeply unsettling." Having spent considerable time around Chen Shu, she would occasionally slip Chinese idioms into her speech. Chen Shu spoke in an even tone: "We must wait. Once our Lord of the Sun grows into his power, everything will change, and the Relief Society will become a behemoth within the orthodox faction." A trace of curiosity crossed Sophia's refined features. "President, who exactly is the Lord of the Sun we are supporting?" Suddenly, Sophia's expression shifted. The flowing wind told her that someone had abruptly appeared in the courtyard. She shot to her feet. "Someone has breached the perimeter! A Spirit Realm walker!" No sooner had the words left her mouth than a burst of starlight flared within the spacious, brightly lit dining room. From the ascending starlight emerged a tall, handsome, expressionless young man.