Chapter 9: Returning to the Present World

"This surprise is truly far beyond my expectations!"

The woman in the Fortune God mask whispered, her long, slender legs drawing slightly together, growing even more delighted.

She had witnessed the entire process: Jiang Yan, with his own intelligence and decisiveness, successfully trapping and killing ten Vajra Dakini cavalrymen.

For an ordinary person to achieve this much, they could already be called a genius!

But Jiang Yan did not stop at completing the survival mission; instead, he chose to use force against force, helping Regional Commander Lu kill the Rat Guard and resolve the hidden threat.

In the end, he even reverse-engineered information from the historical mission, using the tidal effects of the River of History to advance steadily, severing the arm of the peak-level Intermediate Extraordinary Regional Commander Lu and successfully seizing the Antler Dragon Flag.

He achieved maximum profit!

Especially Regional Commander Lu—this guy was hand-picked and nurtured by that person in the Corpse-Dissection Royal Court; his strength and intelligence were not to be underestimated.

Yet, he still suffered a setback at Jiang Yan's hands.

If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, who would believe that an hour ago, Jiang Yan was just an ordinary person who knew nothing of Extraordinary knowledge?

If this were told, it would likely leave many so-called "geniuses" dumbfounded.

Even she herself, under the same conditions, might not necessarily have done it so perfectly.

"However, what exactly is his historical gift?"

The woman looked curiously at Jiang Yan and the Spirit of the Burial Coffin behind him.

Although in terms of strength, this coffin spirit was far inferior to the Rat Guards she could grow with a wave of her hand, let alone high-level troops like the Copper-Flesh or Silver-Flesh Envoys.

But its intelligence was higher than that of typical pathological creatures transformed from humans, and she faintly sensed that the blood threads and bone spurs were not all there was to this coffin.

It seemed to hide abilities related to wealth and destiny.

Moreover, while spirit pets are born alongside their masters, they are essentially independent individuals.

Yet the coffin spirit’s aura was almost identical to Jiang Yan’s; a mysterious connection linked them together, forming a complete individual.

It was like countless roots spreading from a great tree, anchoring into the earth to draw nutrients to sustain the main body.

This is... All Things Returning to One?

Furthermore, she saw that after Jiang Yan received the historical gift, he clearly lost a massive amount of life force, yet he was still able to seize the Vajra Dakini Seal and utilize it.

The woman had seen many such methods of stealing an enemy's abilities—even the Rice God Church had similar arts—but they all required paying a significant price, and the stolen ability would never match the original owner's, relying entirely on brute force.

How could Jiang Yan just pick it up and use it, even becoming more proficient with it?

If everyone were like this, wouldn't the world have fallen into chaos long ago?

As for the dark tentacles spreading from the Demon God embryo, she did not see them.

"Could it be a sacrificial-type priest path, communicating directly with the gods to receive a blessing from the Vajra Dakini? But I didn't feel the aura of a divine blessing... Or perhaps the path of the Nether Overlord, killing to grow stronger and enslaving the slain for one's own use... It couldn't be that his comprehension is heaven-defying, could it..."

The woman muttered to herself, wanting to grab Jiang Yan by the shoulders and ask him properly; it had been a long time since she had seen someone so interesting.

It was just a pity...

There was no time left.

"The commotion here is too great; it has already alerted those from the History Correction Bureau."

The woman looked up, her gilded eyes beneath the Fortune God mask piercing through the sky of this gradually shattering boundary, seeing much further away.

Figures were rushing toward this place from every corner of Jiangnan Province, and among them were a few individuals that even she had to handle with caution.

She could manage to retreat unscathed, but taking Jiang Yan along was not a certainty.

Besides, she had more important matters to attend to.

Hum!

The woman opened her palm, upon which floated a large number of glowing rice grains. Looking closely, one would see they were actually Rat Guards, scaled down proportionally, holding jade ruyi and rice meat; they numbered in the hundreds and thousands, standing like mere minions.

Within them emerged more mysterious and terrifying rice-based lifeforms, surrounding and imprisoning a mysterious yellow light mass that struggled like a living creature, constantly battering the cage.

But no matter how hard it tried, it could not break the blockade and was soon suppressed.

This time, through a ritual, the woman had summoned the reconnaissance cavalry of the Corpse-Dissection Royal Court from the River of History and successfully intercepted this key clue.

Leaving Jiang Yan behind would also help divert the attention of the History Correction Bureau.

"Even rice ears must go through long years and absorb many nutrients before they can gestate delicious spirit rice."

The woman looked with a smile at the man surrounded by the gale, who, instead of hiding to the side to wait for the boundary to disintegrate, chose to close his eyes, face the storm, and enjoy the lingering rhythm of victory.

This spirit was not bad at all.

Hopefully, when she comes to harvest in a while, it will be laden with abundant fruit!

"Jiang Yan, I look forward to our next meeting."

…………

…………

"How long is this wind going to blow? I can't even open my eyes!"

At the center of the wind eye, Jiang Yan complained internally. It wasn't that he didn't want to speak, but every time he opened his mouth, it was forcibly stuffed with stones and dust, choking him uncomfortably.

But he was afraid that if he walked too far, he wouldn't be able to return to the present world, so he could only stay frozen in place.

Why not use the Vajra Dakini Seal to block the wind and sand?

Are you kidding? Using skills consumes life force and energy!

He had already sacrificed most of his blood to create the Spirit of the Burial Coffin, and on top of that, fighting the Vajra Dakini cavalry and resisting the sword Qi hidden in the Dragon Flag had left him in a deficit.

Even though his skill-spawned offspring had saved him a lot of effort, he was now starting to feel dizzy and lightheaded.

His calves were trembling as he walked.

If he didn't exercise restraint, becoming a "kidney-deficient young master" would be a minor issue; if he fainted, it would be real trouble.

The burial coffin at his side was practically begging him to lie inside, and Jiang Yan wasn't so delicate as to be superstitious about it being unlucky.

The main thing was...

There was still an undigested corpse of a Vajra Dakini cavalryman inside; it would definitely stink!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Whether it was the River of History hearing Jiang Yan's complaints or not, the sound of the wind in his ears faded, replaced by fragmented, chattering voices that grew closer.

Soon, a gentle breeze brushed his face, and when Jiang Yan opened his eyes again, he had returned to the old street.

Passersby came and went, laughing and playing, while merchants were busy shouting to do business.

However, seeing the houses that had been destroyed in the battle between Regional Commander Lu and the Rat Guard now perfectly intact made him feel as if everything he had just experienced was but a dream or an illusion.

For a moment, he couldn't tell the difference...

But the connection between him, the burial coffin, and the Vajra Dakini Seal quickly pulled him out of his confusion.

Because the burial coffin’s main body was composed of blood and white bone, it could expand and contract freely, shrinking to the size of a palm. Jiang Yan had told it in advance never to let ordinary people discover it, so the moment the boundary shattered, Grandpa Coffin shrank his size and hid in his backpack.

"The scene is exactly the same, but wouldn't the houses destroyed in the pathological world's history affect reality?"

Jiang Yan didn't dwell on this question, however, because from the moment he returned, he had been keeping a wary eye on his surroundings.

After waiting a few minutes and confirming he didn't see the mysterious woman from the Rice God Church, he finally let out a sigh of relief and slowly lowered his left hand, which had been forming the Vajra Dakini Seal.

The doll that woman had casually given away could fight Regional Commander Lu to a standstill.

She was definitely not someone simple.

Not knowing whether she was friend or foe, it was a good thing not to run into her.

For this reason, he had specifically chosen not to gestate Regional Commander Lu’s arm and the Dragon Flag into offspring, fearing it would expose his abilities.

"If only the burial coffin had storage space."

Jiang Yan was somewhat disappointed; why wasn't his first offspring of the spatial type?

He rested the flagpole against his right shoulder, felt its weight, and estimated, "This is at least over a hundred pounds."

Fortunately, it was antler, not iron or copper, otherwise, he would have to measure it in tons.

Even if he hadn't been drained of his life force, he was still just a mortal with a few skills, and since he didn't often do manual labor, carrying something this heavy for a distance would definitely leave him with a sore back the next day.

So, with a thought, a large amount of blood threads crawled quietly out of his backpack and pressed against the flagpole, looking just like a pattern on his clothes, and then he pushed his suitcase toward the exit of the old street.

Many passersby naturally saw Jiang Yan’s peculiar attire and looked curiously a few times, but they weren't afraid.

After all...

What human has such a large arm?

Plus, Jiang Yan was so handsome; in their eyes, he must be a coser attending a comic convention, currently playing a character from some manga or anime.

As for the blood and gore on the severed arm, and the torn tendons...

Isn't the main trend for young people these days all about realism?

After Jiang Yan left, the old street remained bustling with people coming and going.

And who knows when it started, but every tourist area began to feature the same iron-plate grilled squid, Changsha stinky tofu, wolf-tooth potatoes, and so on—all identical, and the taste was surprisingly...

Terrible!

They even ended up squeezing out restaurants with local specialties, so tourists who were slightly more "in the know" would go to eat at local farmhouses instead.

But one couldn't deny that they did make the tourist areas much livelier.

"What's that sound?"

The owner of one of the iron-plate squid stalls was busy sprinkling seasoning on the squid—which had been around since the Great Qing dynasty—preparing to shout for customers, when he suddenly heard a creaking sound from above. He instinctively looked up, and the next second, several roof tiles fell and smashed onto the iron plate, covering it completely.

"Damn it..."

The owner was also startled. He looked at the ceiling and found that the area where the tiles had fallen formed a straight line, similar to a blade-cut mark.

"This unscrupulous renovation company definitely cut corners!"

The owner cursed, and after confirming that the remaining tiles weren't loose and wouldn't continue to fall, he let out a sigh of relief. He could only accept his bad luck, clean up the debris, and start grilling a new batch of frozen squid while shouting for customers.

However, neither he nor the many tourists noticed that a large number of ants, insects, rats, and the like had begun to migrate outward in swarms.

(End of chapter)