Chapter 64: The Publicly Recognized First Beauty of the East

Crossover Big Female Lead: “The NEET girl is gone—she became the Nine Heavens Dawn Penglai Emperor? How could I have dreamed this?”

Luo Qianqiu found it hard to imagine that the NEET girl, whom he remembered as a tantrum-throwing gamer who cooked stews with Fujiwara no Mokou, had become in this world the Nine Heavens Dawn Penglai Emperor, who crushed all eight directions and stood supreme in the Emperor Dao!

Looking at this version of Penglai Mountain·Hibiki, Luo Qianqiu felt as if he had seen Yagami Taichi from the Chat Group.

So the Penglai Mountain·Hibiki has a super-powered version too?

The Wisdom of Kaitaku: “Why not? Some people, after living a few centuries, transform from those who wished to save all beings and eradicate all evil into beings who have forgotten their original intent and become pure incarnations of evil desire.”

The Wisdom of Kaitaku: “But what of Penglai Mountain·Hibiki? The one who manipulates time is constantly washed by the torrent of time—yet this Moon Princess has not turned into the evil of the world; instead, her Dao heart grows ever more brilliant and flawless.”

The Wisdom of Kaitaku: “Itachi’ve been blinded by anime and game plots. Penglai Mountain·Hibiki is, in this world, nearly the only peerless beauty—her soul is as flawless as her appearance.”

Or rather.

Pure physical beauty alone could never be recognized as the First Beauty of the East.

Hermes replied calmly: Luo Qianqiu was a classic case of a transmigrator’s cognitive bias.

This is exactly what they mean by a single leaf blocking the view of Mount Tai.

Crossover Big Female Lead: “...I know what Itachi’re saying, Hermes, makes sense—but the Nine Heavens Dawn Penglai Emperor and the NEET girl are too vastly different!”

Crossover Big Female Lead: "Still, it’s true—Machiri Zolgen was once a young man determined to become a savior, yet after only a few centuries, he became the evil of this world, rivaling Shindai Danzō."

Crossover Big Female Lead: "Hibiki-hime, unshaken by the tide of time, truly deserves the title of First Beauty of the East."

After arranging this world with perfect clarity, in the Maple Village, [Kikyo]’s sacred golden eyes finally turned their gaze back upon the eight-clad Zi before her.

“The Boundary Demon...”

“Interesting!”

With no concealment, [Kikyo] carefully examined this one and only Boundary Demon of heaven and earth.

The more she looked, the more fascinating it became.

Of course, this was also because the eight-clad Zi before her was not a man-eating demon.

As a being born from the conceptual essence of heaven and earth, her life form leaned more toward a celestial spirit.

It was only because she was born in this age of demons that she became the famed Boundary Demon.

Had she been born in the previous age, she would have been a perfectly orthodox deity.

Otherwise, no matter how stunning her appearance or how valuable her research potential, Hermes would have unhesitatingly eliminated her!

And what about sparing her because, in her past life, she was his paper wife?

Ridiculous!

Would he, having transmigrated into the Tokyo Ghoul universe, go searching for Yumeko Jibril, the man-eating ghoul, just because she was a so-called paper wife?

Is it because she’s what they call a “paper-thin wife”?

If Hermes truly had such a fragile mindset, even with the most astonishing divine system, his flawed mentality would have long since left him dead in the Bengtie universe.

He would never have lived to see his rise.

“Your humble servant unintentionally offended the Great Celestial Emperor; I beg Your Majesty’s forgiveness.”

Beneath that gaze as substantial as solid matter, Yatsukai Zi no longer retained her former composure and mysterious allure; her face paled slightly.

She made no attempt to flee.

As the master of Boundary power, Yatsukai Zi understood better than anyone that the primordial Great Celestial Emperor before her was an entity of unimaginable terror.

Although.

What appeared before her was merely a negligible fragment of thought.

“Her ability is not mere spatial manipulation—it directly intervenes in boundaries, the foundational logic of existence itself...”

The more he studied, the more fascinating Hermes found Yatsukai Zi’s Boundary Power.

But unfortunately.

Even though Yatsukai Zi herself was already at the Demon King level—a power capable of annihilating a nation—

she was still an immense distance away from unleashing the near-world-origin power of her Boundary ability.

Hermes recalled that in the Box World, there was also a Halloween Queen who wielded Boundary power.

Yet their achievements were worlds apart.

But this did not mean Yatsukai Zi’s Boundary ability was weak.

She was simply too young, lacking sufficient time to grow.

On the other hand, it was also due to environmental limitations.

The world Kikyo inhabited, though grander than the simple Inuyasha universe, still fell far short of the Box World’s multiverse.

“Serve under Kikyo for a hundred years, and Itachi may leave freely.”

After observing for a long while, Hermes noted that while Yatsukai Zi was not a vicious demon, she was equally far from benevolence—calling her cunning and treacherous was already generous.

But this was a problem of the era’s environment, not Yatsukai Zi’s fault.

As long as she was not a man-eating demon, given her rarity as a research subject, Hermes felt he could afford to show leniency.

In the end.

Hermes issued his decree: he ultimately could not bring himself to crush such a rare Boundary Demon.

Assigning her as a capable subordinate and bodyguard to Kikyo was punishment enough.

“Yes, Great Celestial Emperor!”

Without hesitation, Yatsukai Zi nodded eagerly, delighted.

A hundred years?

It’ll pass in the blink of an eye!

“Kikyo, if Itachi ever have trouble, don’t hesitate—just dump it all on Yatsukai Zi, understood?”

Hermes withdrew his will from the divine descent state, returning control of the body to Kikyo, and gently advised.

Kikyo watched the figure before her gradually blur, saying nothing, silently storing her gratitude deep within her heart.

Finally.

After exchanging a few words with Kikyo and Penglai Mountain·Hibiki, and resolving matters in that world, Hermes’ consciousness returned to itself.

Of course, the avatar he shaped in this world—the Primordial Great Celestial Emperor—had become a world-origin entity and could not possibly leave with him.

Though he greatly admired both Kikyo and Penglai Mountain·Hibiki, it was merely the appreciation of a beautiful thing.

It did not mean Hermes would stay to form emotional bonds with them.

Having transmigrated through the Bengtie universe for so many years, Hermes was no longer the naive man who, upon first arriving, believed himself the protagonist of the world.

He would not assume that, upon encountering a past anime heroine, he must fall in love with each one and go to any lengths to possess them.

Otherwise,

In the Chat Group, Flos, Kage, and Li Hanyi—all were past paper wives, weren’t they?

And yet, had Hermes ever shown them any particular fervor?

When encountering girls of unique charm, Hermes would admire them—but only as pure admiration, appreciation of beauty, nothing more.

To have seen them, to have admired them—that was enough.