Zhang Yuanqing promptly approved the request, then dialed Deng Jingguo's number. An automated voice informed him that the call could not be connected.
Zhang Yuanqing frowned at once.
"What is it?" Observing his expression, Fu Qingyang noticed the confusion and gravity between his brows.
"Deng Jingguo requested to use the Dominator-grade item I left in the guild warehouse," Zhang Yuanqing explained. "He might be in danger."
With that, Zhang Yuanqing brought out the Daluo Astrolabe to perform daylight stargazing.
Deng Jingguo was his companion, and the Chaos Oil Painting was his item. Both held deep karmic entanglements with him, and there was no gap in level between them. Thus, even in broad daylight, he could deduce and observe part of Deng Jingguo's circumstances.
The Daluo Astrolabe lit up. The silver stars on its face formed a vortex in midair, streaming into Zhang Yuanqing's mind like a flow of information.
As the celestial patterns shifted and changed, Zhang Yuanqing caught a brief, hazy glimpse of a future scene.
—A collapsed row house, its ruins mottled with blood. Deng Jingguo's upper torso lay amidst the rubble, eyes wide, while his lower half was nowhere to be seen.
Outside the row houses, New York County police cruisers were parked along the curb, and a cordon had been strung up.
*Alliance Leader Deng kicked the bucket...* Zhang Yuanqing snapped his eyes open and said hurriedly, "I saw Deng Jingguo get attacked and killed."
Fu Qingyang remained calm and said immediately, "Don't go over there. Give him a few more items for self-defense, and call Winnie Berrent to ask her to head to Chinatown for a rescue."
*The boss is worried Deng Jingguo's attack is a plot by the evil faction to bait me out?* Dispelling the thought of using a teleportation jade talisman, Zhang Yuanqing deposited the Six Pure Roots Bamboo and the Body and Spirit Annihilation Blade from his inventory into the guild warehouse.
A Dominator-level companion was well worth paying a steep price to protect. More importantly, even if these two items were lost, it wouldn't hurt to the point of leaving him breathless.
The Six Pure Roots Bamboo was an Illusionist item, and he himself was already an enhanced Nihilist. The Body and Spirit Annihilation Blade was quite powerful, but he possessed multiple high-output offensive items anyway.
Within just a dozen seconds, another usage request from Deng Jingguo arrived as expected.
Approve!
After that, the two sat quietly in the study, waiting for news.
Roughly ten minutes later, Zhang Yuanqing heard the Spirit Realm notification chime in his ear—an alert that Deng Jingguo had deposited items back into the guild warehouse.
Only then did he heave a sigh of relief. His expression softened slightly as he remarked:
"Very good. Comrade Deng Jingguo's standing-room ticket to hell has been canceled."
He pulled out his phone and dialed Winnie Berrent's number.
Deng Jingguo's phone couldn't be reached, likely destroyed during the battle.
A cool, detached female voice came from the speaker. "He was ambushed by Dominators from the Nihility Sect and the Biological Alchemy Society—three Dominators in total. He turned the tables and killed one, while the other two had already fled to safety by the time I arrived."
Zhang Yuanqing asked, "Can he take a call?"
"His injuries are too severe. He can't," Winnie Berrent said flatly. "I wanted to inject him with Life Source Fluid, but he refused."
"Why?" Zhang Yuanqing asked in bewilderment.
"He said the wounds bring him pleasure and bliss, and dying from them would be his ideal resting place, so on no account should he be treated." Winnie's tone held a touch of oddness.
*What the heck? Deng Jingguo has that kind of quirk?* Zhang Yuanqing was startled at first, then came to a sudden realization.
It was the price of the Six Pure Roots Bamboo: the user developed masochistic tendencies.
He himself was a Day Wanderer—utmost yang and utmost unyielding—and his passive skills granted immunity to most negative effects. Coupled with the Artisan's Ring and Illusion God items, he had immense resistance and immunity to emotional drawbacks.
Consequently, the toll of the Six Pure Roots Bamboo affected him so minimally that he had almost forgotten about it entirely.
"Paralyze him and inject it by force," Zhang Yuanqing said.
Winnie Berrent gave an "Mm." The next second, Zhang Yuanqing heard Deng Jingguo groaning through the speaker—a sound laced with pain, yet tinged with a hint of pleasure.
Then Winnie hung up.
"Having too many items isn't always great either. Their costs are bizarre and varied. Not only do they backfire on you, but they can easily cause social death," Zhang Yuanqing said, putting down his phone and shrugging at Fu Qingyang.
Fu Qingyang's face was stern as he said:
"You must stay on high alert. Even if the assassination attempt on Deng Jingguo wasn't Ling Tuo's scheming, it's retaliation against you by the evil faction. Going forward, your companions, your relatives, and your friends will all become targets for the evil faction to hunt down.
"I've arranged for White Tiger Guards to move into your residential complex and replaced the property management staff with my own people, but Spirit Realm walkers have too many tricks. It's impossible to guard against everything, so you need to be especially vigilant on that front."
Zhang Yuanqing replied, "I know. I've left spirit servants at home to protect Grandpa, Grandma, and my aunt twenty-four hours a day."
Pausing, he added:
"Before entering Shushan Southern Courtyard, I had an idea. As it happens, the assassination attempt on Deng Jingguo makes me feel this idea can be put into practice ahead of schedule."
...
Songhai, Chaomen District.
In an old residential compound, two men wearing peaked caps and face masks entered a run-down, elevatorless apartment block. Walking up the stairs, they stopped outside the door of one of the flats.
One of the men looked up, revealing eyes brimmed with madness beneath his cap brim. Looking at his companion, he gave a sinister chuckle:
"This is the place. The homeowner is named Yao Yilin, a middle school teacher. I pried Yuanshi Tianzun's real-world identity from him—his name, home address, and so on. Unfortunately, I don't remember any of it.
"Now you've advanced to level 8, and I have recovered my Dominator status. We shouldn't be affected anymore."
The other man said coldly:
"I'm looking forward to Yuanshi Tianzun's true identity, and even more to his reaction when he finds out his family has been abducted by us."
The visitors were none other than Sect Master Chunyang and the Grand Protector of the Dark Night Rose.
Back then, through tireless effort, Sect Master Chunyang had finally uncovered Yuanshi Tianzun's real-world identity, only to fall into a strange loop. After the Grand Protector rescued him, the two sides reached an agreement: the Dark Night Rose would help Sect Master Chunyang restore his Dominator status, and the latter would share the intel on Yuanshi Tianzun with the Dark Night Rose.
Later, when the Leader launched the operation against the Wuhen Hotel, Yuanshi Tianzun flared with rage and perished alongside Cai Qinhe. Since the man was dead, who cared about his identity?
The matter was shelved.
It was only when the Killing Dungeon arrived and Yuanshi Tianzun made a formidable return as an advanced Day Wanderer that the matter was brought up once more.
Sect Master Chunyang licked his lips and broke into a ferocious grin:
"I can hardly wait."
The Grand Protector shook his head. "I will do the questioning this time while you keep watch outside. Although given my status, the probability of falling into a loop is slim, caution never hurts."
Sect Master Chunyang frowned.
The Grand Protector said coldly, "If I were you, I would calm my emotions. Madness rarely accomplishes anything."
"Are you lecturing me on how to do things?" Sect Master Chunyang scoffed. "Careful, or I'll devour you."
Despite his words, he did not insist.
The Grand Protector raised a hand and knocked on the peeling security door.
*Knock, knock!*
Shortly after, a white-haired elderly woman opened the door, eyeing Sect Master Chunyang and the Grand Protector warily—judging by their getup, they clearly didn't look like good people.
"Who are you looking for?" she asked.
"Is Yao Yilin here?" the Grand Protector asked. Deep vortexes surfaced in his pupils—swirls capable of entrancing one's soul.
The old woman's expression froze, her pupils glazing over. A few seconds later, she said woodenly:
"Come in."
Sect Master Chunyang watched as the Grand Protector entered the apartment holding Yuanshi Tianzun's photograph, then waited outside in high excitement.
Just thinking about capturing and torturing Yuanshi Tianzun's family made his heart race and his blood boil, filling him with an uncontrollable euphoria.
With the Lord of Taiyin's methods, once they controlled Yuanshi Tianzun's family, there would be a hundred ways to toy that brat to death.
Just as he was brimming with ambition and itching for bloodshed, Sect Master Chunyang suddenly heard the door open. Then, the Grand Protector walked out of the apartment.
He silently stood side by side with Sect Master Chunyang and said coldly:
"I'm looking forward to Yuanshi Tianzun's true identity, and even more to his reaction when he finds out his family has been abducted by us."
Sect Master Chunyang's expression and the madness in his eyes instantly froze.
...
Late at night.
Inside a European medieval-style meeting hall, figure after figure materialized before an archaic long table.
They were the Dominators of Return of the Dead, the Dominators of the Relief Society, and Deng Jingguo of the Anti-Black-and-White Alliance.
Half an hour earlier, everyone had received Yuanshi Tianzun's meeting invitation, only to find an extra teleportation jade talisman sitting on their bedroom desks.
Evidently, that President had acted as a courier to deliver the teleportation jade talismans into their hands. Even knowing that Yuanshi Tianzun was someone backed by the Merchant Guild and the Association of God of Beauty, no one—including Demon Eye and the others—could understand why the President doted on Yuanshi Tianzun to such an extent.
Not even a father spoiling his son would go this far.
At least, not a single one of their own fathers could ever do so.
Except Demon Eye.
Because he was an orphan.
Zhang Yuanqing looked around the table and said:
"This afternoon, Alliance Leader Deng was subjected to a joint assassination attempt by the Nihility Sect and the Biological Alchemy Society, nearly returning to the Spirit Realm."
Startled, everyone turned their eyes toward Deng Jingguo.
Looking stern and upright, Alliance Leader Deng nodded. "Thanks to the Guild Master's loyalty and righteousness, he provided me with three Dominator-grade items, allowing me to barely cling to life."
Zhang Yuanqing smiled. "You should thank Winnie Berrent. She arrived in time and forced the evil Dominators besieging you to beat a retreat in the face of difficulty."
The five Dominators of the Relief Society were initially surprised that Deng Jingguo had joined the Return of the Dead guild, then marveled inwardly at the Young Master's generosity.
Three Dominator-grade items, loaned out just like that without hesitation.
Even official organizations couldn't offer benefits like this.
Using Dominator-grade items normally required an application; unless prepared in advance, there was no time to do so when ambushed or attacked.
This gave them a sense of security and belonging, demonstrating the tremendous perks of the organization.
Siren Little Spider of the Relief Society slammed the table and rose violently: "Are we formulating a plan tonight to retaliate against the evil faction? Daring to attack one of ours—we really ought to let those scumbags see what Return of the Dead is capable of!"
"No!" Zhang Yuanqing shook his head. "We must put an end to all unnecessary battles. Charging blindly into combat will only lead everyone into an enemy trap. The purpose of gathering everyone tonight is to collect spirituality-rich blood from you all."
"Spirituality-rich blood?" Sophia frowned instantly.
In the world of Spirit Realm walkers, blood tissue was a very sensitive matter. Handing over spirituality-rich blood was equivalent to handing over half one's life.
The others felt the same resistance, their brows furrowing.
Only the Dominators of Return of the Dead remained composed.
They had gone through life and death alongside Yuanshi Tianzun too many times, and their trust in him had long reached the point where they could entrust their very lives to him.
Zhang Yuanqing explained:
"I will ask the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter to craft avatars from your blood. If anyone accidentally returns to the Spirit Realm in the future, the Womb of the Mother Goddess will be able to resurrect you once. Of course, the Womb of the Mother Goddess is at the headquarters of the Soldier Master sect, and given our organization's current strength, it's impossible to reach.
"However, leaving a fallback plan for resurrection is very necessary. What if we succeed down the road?"
Aside from the Dominators at the conference table, Zhang Yuanqing also intended to collect blood from everyone he knew and commission the Palace Master to make avatars using the Demon-Refining Pot.
The concentrated source fluid in the Demon-Refining Pot deposited into mud, which made the finest material for refining living bodies.
An avatar could serve as a sacrificial offering in place of offspring.
This way, both the "offspring" and the spirituality-rich blood would be accounted for. So long as they obtained the Womb of the Mother Goddess, resurrection would be possible.
Unfortunately, ordinary mortals could not use the Womb of the Mother Goddess because the condition for the item's use was "spirituality-rich" blood, limited strictly to Spirit Realm walkers.
Otherwise, Zhang Yuanqing would have collected blood from Chen Shu, his aunt, his cousin, and his grandparents as well.
Hearing of such an astounding boon, Deng Jingguo and the Relief Society Dominators no longer refused, even growing proactive.
After collecting everyone's blood in prepared clay jars and sealing them properly, Zhang Yuanqing said:
"Xiahou Aotian, stay behind. Everyone else can head back."
The Dominators around the conference table vanished one by one, returning to reality.
Zhang Yuanqing looked toward Xiahou Aotian. "Did you figure out a method for rapid advancement?"
Xiahou Aotian immediately crossed his legs and lifted his chin. "I only researched the materials for a single day to come up with a plan. If the finer details can be supplemented, shattering the Grand Marshal's myth won't be a problem."
Zhang Yuanqing's eyes lit up. "As expected of the protagonist!"
Chapter 892