Chapter 158: Pack Up the Furnace and the Person Together (A Transitional Chapter Under One Person)

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

Su Lin wore the Tianhe Battle Garments on his body, resisting the chaotic pollution coming from Old Lu's body—chaotic power that would cause the spirit and flesh to mutate and collapse the moment a mortal's gaze merely brushed against it.

Madness and chaos are the underlying logic of this power, a force that existed before the world was born.

Yet when this power touched the Tianhe Battle Garments, it was blocked outside, unable to overstep in the slightest.

"How many points did you spend to draw it?!"

No marked points—it must have been obtained through a lottery.

"Fifteen million!" The voice was almost a gnashing of teeth.

Su Lin was stunned for a moment, then said trembling, "Is this version of me invincible?!"

"Give it a rest. That thing doesn't accept external power to drive it, and the driving force is limited to immortal Dao magic power. You're a rookie Jin Dan, so if you can use it to materialize something at the Ruyi Zhenxian level, that already counts as you being a once-in-a-lifetime talent."

"The way you use it now, at most it's a turtle shell."

Su Lin didn't mind, nodding as he said, "That's pretty good too."

Two days later

The future Su Lin was released after serving his sentence, and was kicked off Water Mirror Peak by Su Lin.

"Just don't cause too much chaos in this world, and please take good care of Mom and Dad for me."

Luo Shengying sat on a chair in the room, saw the closed teleportation gate, and said teasingly, "Someone raided your entire family fortune?"

"Just one piece of clothing, and some cultivation arts." The future Su Lin wasn't annoyed either, plopping down on the bed: "Let them take it."

Clearly possessing a system yet never having experienced the power-fantasy route—this was also his regret.

Go on.

Stay alive, being happy is what matters most.

But speaking of which, I almost made another mistake just now. From now on I have to stay away from that guy called Old Lu. Way too weird.

On Water Mirror Peak

"Su Lin, I want to discuss something with you." Lu Mingfei walked over, rubbing the back of his head rather awkwardly.

"What is it?" Su Lin casually closed the teleportation gate and looked at Lu Mingfei.

Lu Mingfei said somewhat shyly: "It's just that, uh..."

"First of all, I'm not into that." Su Lin replied calmly: "Go find your senior brother."

"It's my senior brother, no! I'm not into that either!" Lu Mingfei raised his voice and shouted: "I have a girlfriend!"

"Oh." Su Lin nodded: "What is it?"

"It's just, look at the sect's contract, can you change my position a bit?" Lu Mingfei caught his breath. He still hadn't quite adapted to Su Lin's jumpy train of thought: "I can also serve as an elder or something now, right?"

"Why do you bring this up?" Su Lin was stunned for a moment. He hadn't expected Lu Mingfei to suddenly mention this today. He had almost forgotten about it himself, after all everyone's been pretty busy lately.

Some were busy saving the world, some were busy cultivating, some were busy refining pills, some were busy selling counterfeit goods, but everyone's realm wasn't that high. Apart from the suicidal Song in the group and Zhongli who had already made a name for himself, the others might still need some years before they could stand on their own.

Although the sect matters had been signed on the contract and would definitely be handled in the future, there was no exact number for how long this would be delayed. It was like when your boss tells you to go home and wait for news about a raise—it's definitely going to happen, right?

Su Lin had thought about it before. Since he had stumbled into creating a sect by accident, why not do it properly, and while he was at it, create some scripts for this world, let everyone accompany him in acting and farming points. But now...

"Look, I have a floating island now." Lu Mingfei counted on his fingers: "As for cultivation, I've reached mid-stage Jin Dan."

Su Lin's expression flickered. In a certain sense, this guy in the group currently had the fastest cultivation speed. Zhongli had years of accumulated foundation, and Song Shuhang was hacking his way through with his life.

"Whatever, it's fine, I have no objections." Su Lin waved his hand—it wasn't a big deal anyway. "Decide for yourself."

"Just put a stone mountain there."

"Hey hey!" Seeing Su Lin about to go somewhere else, Lu Mingfei hurriedly stepped forward and grabbed him, saying: "There's one more thing."

"What should we name the peak?"

Su Lin thought for a moment, then tossed the problem back to Lu Mingfei: "Look it up yourself."

Asking someone with naming difficulties to come up with a name—might as well call it Cuihua Peak.

Speaking of which, the name of this sect is also pretty weird, Tianyi Sect,

"One more thing!" Lu Mingfei tugged at Su Lin's sleeve.

Lu Mingfei said a bit coyly: "I've taken on a few disciples, can I bring them here to cultivate?"

Su Lin's expression froze, and he said: "You're kidding, right?!"

Everyone's busy striving in life, and you secretly took on disciples, starting the path of founding a sect, with disciples serving tea and water?!

"They're all people we know—Old Tang, senior brother, Hui Liyi."

One person attains the Dao, the whole family ascends?

"As long as you're happy." Su Lin glanced at Lu Mingfei and said: "Anyway, most of the cultivation arts came from your side anyway, you call the shots."

Su Lin suddenly thought of something, and said to Lu Mingfei whose face was showing joy: "The Su Zongzhu will be away traveling for a long time, so from now on you are the Daili Sect."

"Really?!"

Su Lin patted Lu Mingfei's shoulder and turned to leave.

"Keep it up."

Leaving the excited Lu Mingfei immersed in fantasy on the spot.

Silly kid, obviously never been out in the working world. Giving you a nominal title without a raise—what's there to be happy about.

——————————

One day later, just as Su Lin had finished preparing and was about to test his skills before heading to the Lord of the Mysteries world.

Zhang Chulan: "Old Ma's furnace has been modified~ and upgraded too. Any interested big shots can come over and try it out~."

Zhang Chulan: "Regarding Divine Machine Hundred Refinements, Old Ma also said before that as long as you have the talent, he can teach it."

According to the setup and Ma Xianhong's own description, this furnace can even enhance a cultivator's cultivation, so previous members of the group had expressed interest in it; thus, Zhang Chuyang would later ask the group members if they wanted to get involved.

In the distance, the village blazed with fire, illuminating the night sky red, and the smell of burning drifted through the wind to the forest where Zhang Chuyang stood.

The temporary workers of Nandatong and Old Wang had officially begun their operation as planned; at this point, Zhang Chuyang was supposed to start smashing the furnace.

But.

Ye Fan: "Zhang Chuyang, is it fine if I pack up both the man and the furnace together?"

Zhang Chuyang: "By the decree of Hun Tian Di!"

Ye Fan: "... I'm not used to that. Be normal."

Zhang Chuyang: "Take it away, no problem."

Ye Fan: "Someone like this should join my Ye Zhetian Corporation!"

Ye Fan: "I can already picture the Ye Zhetian Corporation growing strong and creating glory!"

Zhang Chuyang: "This intermediary fee..."

Ye Fan: "I'll deduct it from Ma Xianhong's salary after he's officially hired."

Who says we only sell fake goods! Train this kind of talent, mix it in, and sell it!

Zhang Chuyang: "Pleasure doing business, pleasure doing business! But what about Qu Tong?"

Ye Fan: "I know what you mean. Don't worry—I'll take care of that trouble for you."

Ma Xianhong's disappearance will inevitably draw Qu Tong's attention; if mishandled, it could implicate everyone involved in this incident.

Zhang Chuyang: "Brother Ye 666."

Zhang Chuyang naturally had no objections—what else was there to worry about besides Bao'er-jie and his own safety?

Since a higher-level force was willing to wade into this muddy water and stir up all the sludge, he was only too happy to see it happen.

Those hidden behind the scenes were too deep, too dangerous; the countless small and large factions were like ants, and this world even had extraterrestrials—what would happen if a third force emerged to crush all factions?

"Heh, the Wang family? The company? Yaoxing Society? Quanxing? All those foreign organizations—go screw yourselves!"

"Before these protagonists who can destroy stars and end worlds, what are you? It's possible fear will make you crave the Eight Marvelous Techniques even more—but then, will you still focus your main attention on a temporary worker?"

Most importantly, if any member of the chat group disliked someone or some faction and wanted to step in and deal with them, that would be perfect—absolutely no downside for Zhang Chuyang.

Zhang Chuyang: "Hey, all you big shots?"

Why no response?

On Shuijing Peak, Su Lin stared, bewildered, at the people arriving one by one in his world.

Han Li glanced at the others and said to Su Lin: "Save a cross-realm talisman."

Can you even use up that many?

As Zhang Chuyang felt awkward, a teleportation gate lit up before him; he grinned, pulled off his earpiece, crushed it, and turned off his phone.

"I'm your guide for this trip, Zhang Chuyang~." Zhang Chuyang spread his arms; Su Lin stepped out first from the gate, followed by Han Li, Zhongli, Lu Mingfei, and Ye Fan—all hitching a ride.

Watching the figures emerging one by one, Zhang Chuyang smiled broadly and said:

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Biyou Village~~~!"

More people arrived than predicted—apparently, it still had appeal.

"Something's wrong! Zhang Chuyang has lost contact!"

Erzhuang's voice crackled through the earpiece; the temporary workers attacking Ma Xianhong paused briefly, then resumed their assault.

Ma Xianhong, relying on his artifacts and his own power, continuously dodged the temporary workers, unleashing several sonic waves with his Kong Ku cry, blasting Wang Zhenqiu—who wore a divine mask—away, and sprinting toward the location of his furnace.

When he reached the wooden hut atop the stone steps before the Xiushen Furnace, he froze at the sight before him.

"No."

"Impossible."

Not only was the furnace gone—the entire hundred-square-meter hut had vanished, leaving only a massive crater in the ground.

Zhang Chuyang staggered out of the forest, clutching his neck, leaning against a tree trunk, gasping for breath: "I was knocked out—there's a third party!"

"What?!"

At his words, both Ma Xianhong and the temporary workers froze, stunned by this unexpected turn.

Though Ma Xianhong was filled with grief and rage, he knew Zhang Chuyang lacked the ability to do this—Zhang Chuyang would've been killed by the special automaton left inside the hut.

Judging by the reactions of the company people around him, they weren't lying—and at this point, they had no reason to deceive him.

"Damn it!" Ma Xianhong let out a deafening roar to the sky—this was his life's work! He had counted on this furnace to recover his memories!

Ma Xianhong's bloodshot eyes swept the surroundings; whoever did this, he would find them—and kill them.

"Forget it—first, take down Ma Xianhong!" Hei Guan immediately decided.

Everyone agreed with this course of action and charged at Ma Xianhong together, yet kept some vigilance to guard against a surprise attack from the third party Zhang Chuyang mentioned.

Grass and trees were severed, stones flew, the Great Compassion Palm descended from the heavens, the Ruyi Jingu Bang swung horizontally, spiritual energy clashed violently on weapons—a fierce battle erupted once more.

In the end, history unfolded as in a comic: Ma Xianhong was subdued, and the temporary workers gathered on the back hill.

"Old Ma, Uncle's found you a great path." Zhang Chuyang watched Ma Xianhong being taken away, thinking to himself: "Then... next is Chen Duo."

"I'll give you a chance too—after all, I'm not some evil person, and I don't need the temporary workers' sympathy anymore."

"Though... the outcome may be the same."

"What are you thinking about, Old Wang?" Zhang Chuyang noticed Wang Ye standing still beside him, not leaving with the others.

"I think the other faction I saw earlier might have been them," Wang Ye said to Zhang Chuyang: "Never mind, let's go."

When he had been attacked by the puppet "Ruhua," which was unaffected by Luan Jin Tuo, a glowing figure had struck it with a lightning-fast punch, sending it crashing to the ground.

Then he proceeded to beat the puppet black and blue, muttering as he did: "Such a weird little thing—I've wanted to beat you for a long time."

Finally, the mysterious figure disguised as Ruhua fled in panic—but didn't kill him.

Strange indeed.

The armored vehicle transporting Ma Xianhong to the hidden fortress was winding along a rugged mountain road.

Suddenly, the vehicle stopped, as someone blocked the path ahead; before anyone could get out to investigate, a landslide occurred behind them.

Ma Xianhong felt the vehicle halt and sighed inwardly—he had intended to confront those corporate executives, but never expected his sister had come to rescue him.

Before the vehicle, a man wrapped in a black coat watched the two men step out, a bloodthirsty smile spreading across his face.

Behind the vehicle, a woman clad head to toe in black clothing had short gray-pink hair and slender, sharp eyes; her vivid lips uttered cold, icy words that carried no warmth: "Only three of you? This will hurt a bit."

Three men stepped down from the transport vehicle: one with an utterly ordinary face, another tall and dignified, his golden-amber eyes calm as they surveyed the woman; and a boy of sixteen or seventeen, delicate and radiant, like a celestial immortal descended to earth.

Rare to see corporate employees with such strong psychological resilience—too bad, they'll all die here.

"You're Qu Tong," Ye Fan said coolly. "Sending Ma Xianhong by vehicle really saved you some effort."

"Heh." Qu Tong smiled. "So you're not from the company."

From the bushes beside the road, several figures emerged—employees of the Yào Xīng Society.

"Forget it. Leave one alive. Take the rest back." After Qu Tong gave the order, the surrounding alien beings launched their attack.

Zhong Li flicked his fingers lightly, and a glow of Jin Guang surrounded the three of them.

Han Li moved silently two steps back, retreating behind Zhong Li and Ye Fan. Ye Fan glanced at Han Li, sighed helplessly, then slapped an alien being who lunged straight for his eyes into the ground—dirt exploded outward.

"Long Hushan?!" Qu Tong narrowed her eyes. She had barely seen the man's movements; seeing the Jin Guang around them, she'd assumed Long Hushan had sent someone—but upon closer look, she realized it wasn't the Golden Light Spell.

Something was wrong. Qu Tong was about to observe from the side when her limbs suddenly grew heavy. She looked down—somehow, chains had erupted from the ground, binding her wrists and ankles; her Qi was being suppressed?!

When she looked up again, all the people she had brought were collapsed on the ground. The man with the ordinary face was sheathing a green flying sword.

In that moment, her limbs turned icy. She realized she had walked into the trap of a powerful hunter.

"We're very interested in your Shuang Quan Hand."

Shuang Quan Hand—"Shuang Quan" refers to the Daoist concept of "Xing-Ming Shuang Quan."

"Xing" refers to the physical body—or, for alien beings, the Qi they cultivate. "Ming" refers to control over the soul and memories.

The ability of Shuang Quan Hand should be absolute manipulation of both body and soul. This kind of modification is fascinating—it can heal or destroy, whether flesh or soul; altering someone's perception is merely one manifestation.

If they faced someone of righteous character, they wouldn't forcibly take it—but such an opportunity delivered to their door? How could they pass it up?

Thus, today they had collected both Shen Ji Bai Lian and Shuang Quan Hand from the Eight Wonders.

Su Lin: "Are you sure?"

Zhang Chuang: "Please, Administrator Senior!"

Su Lin had never seen anyone make such a request—trying to make others see his brilliance? Impressive. He'd originally planned to keep a low profile, but Zhang Chuang had spoken first.

Su Lin: "What's the purpose?"

Zhang Chuang: "I want you to stir up chaos, drawing attention from all sides for a long time. The bigger the commotion you cause, the more manpower and energy they'll need to clean it up. Of course, not too big—like, don't destroy the planet."

Zhang Chuang spoke honestly. When someone knows you inside and out, you either tell the whole truth or only nine truths with one lie.

In exchange, Zhang Chuang promised to help him collect cultivation techniques in the future.

Zhang Chuang: "Could you please help with Chen Duo? Give her another choice."

Su Lin: "I feel pity for her. Let's combine the two."

All this girl sought was the right to make her own choice.

Chen Duo was a sacred relic cultivated over years by the Yaoxian Society, a Gu Body Holy Child.

They believed the pinnacle of Gu art required humans to nurture Gu—and only newborn infants would do. From birth, this girl named Chen Duo was implanted with countless Gu to build her tolerance to poison, while brutal training suppressed her nature and instincts.

In the end, only she remained from the forty-nine infants.

Having never received normal human education since birth, her values differed from ordinary people's. At first, she had no common sense, no self-awareness, believing any unauthorized act would bring punishment—her nature was utterly suppressed. Later, with the help of her guardian Liao Zhong, she realized she was no longer under inhuman constraints and collapsed into tears; since then, she slowly learned ordinary human ways of life.

But sadly, she could never live like a normal person. In the end, Chen Duo chose to free herself.

A bustling commercial street

Zhang Chuang watched the group walking ahead. Chen Duo, surrounded by the temporary workers, wore a white dress, but her skin was already ravaged by Gu poison—once snow-white, it now showed open sores; her hair was beginning to fall out.

Bystanders wore expressions of fear and revulsion, avoiding her at all costs; only the temporary workers remained around her.

Zhang Chuang's original goal had been half-achieved: let them witness Chen Duo's passing, recognize their shared identity as temporary workers, and depart with the memory of fighting beside her and pity for her—this pity not condescending compassion from above, but an emotion born of shared position.

Originally, this could have been a factor—but now…

It doesn't matter.

That person has arrived.

Chen Duo staggered down the street, as if she might collapse at any moment; her skin was rotting more and more, and her head was beginning to ulcerate.

The colorful ice cream she held fell to the ground, yet even as she was supported, she still tried to move forward.

Pedestrians pulled out their phones to photograph her. Er Zhuang, the temporary workers' logistics officer, had intended to hack all phones and networks in the area—but discovered a terrifying truth: she possessed the ability to manipulate electromagnetic waves, and with Qi, she could merge her spirit into the network. Yet now, she found a colossal information giant in the digital world blocking her—her control over signals had failed.

Now she couldn't even warn others.

Pedestrians dared only to watch from the sides, never blocking the path of the six-person group—not just because of Chen Duo's horrifying appearance, but because of the "strange people" accompanying her.

Now, at the road's end, a slender man in a classical white robe appeared. His pupils were white-gold, his facial features sharply defined, calmly watching the approaching group.

This man also drew the attention of passersby's phone cameras.

The instant Chen Duo saw the man, she nearly collapsed—simultaneously, the man took one step, closing the distance instantly to stand before her.

Gasps erupted; several temporary workers' eyes blazed with murderous intent—no one could disturb this girl's final journey.

Yet—

A faint, illusory halo appeared behind the man's head. Infinite light surged from the earth, engulfing the entire city. A sacred, vast aura enveloped them, as if they floated in an ocean of radiance.

"I'll give you a choice," Su Lin spoke. A celestial hymn of praise echoed through the city.

At that moment, Chen Duo's original Gu poison ceased its erosion—her flesh and skin began faintly regenerating.

"Do you wish to live? To live like an ordinary person?"

Feathers of light descended from the sky. In Su Lin's left hand appeared a pure white orb, about the size of a ping-pong ball.

"Grip it, and your power will be erased, but from then on you may become an ordinary person."

"Shh! Let her choose herself." Su Lin glanced at the group over there; instantly, all five except Chen Duo fell silent.

Old Meng now clung to this last straw, gesturing for Chen Duo to choose life—no matter who Su Lin was, Chen Duo was already like this; better let her choose.

Feng Baobao ran over and touched the light sphere, but her touch had no effect, for the sphere was merely a cluster of pure light elements, merely a symbolic construct created by Su Lin.

She was likely the only one whose spirit remained untouched by the divine aura's overwhelming presence.

"Thank you."

Chen Duo forced a smile, though her skin was already ulcerated, making the smile ugly.

"But I just saw Uncle Liao—I want to find him."

Su Lin was not surprised, for Chen Duo's affliction was not merely a matter of gu poison.

Her spirit

"This world is beautiful; as an ordinary person, you might live very happily."

"But I can't handle it."

"Thank you for wanting to help me."

Chen Duo walked forward, exhausted—there was no need to demand more from someone scarred beyond repair.

If Old Liao were still alive, she might have tried to accept this complex world.

"Is that so." Su Lin stepped aside; a beam of light shot toward Chen Duo. "I respect your personal choice."

Her skin and hair began to regrow; within seconds, she returned to the beautiful girl she once was, yet her vital energy continued to fade, her body gradually turning ethereal.

Ahead, a faint, insubstantial figure appeared—a burly middle-aged man, terrifying in appearance, with a brown slicked-back hairstyle, two stitched scars across his nose bridge, and a scar over his right eye.

Chen Duo looked at her own hands, then at Old Liao before her; joy lit up her face.

"Thank you!"

She ran toward the distant figure, and as she embraced Old Liao, she turned transparent and vanished.

Su Lin waved his hand, lifting the restrictions on the others; souls existed in this world—he had located Old Liao's soul beforehand, ensuring Chen Duo could depart with dignity after making her choice.

A faint glimmer flew in from beyond the heavens and entered the karmic light wheel behind him.

"All conditioned things are impermanent; they are phenomena of arising and ceasing."

"When arising and ceasing cease, stillness and extinction bring bliss."

"When I attained the Dao, all beings in the Three Realms were ever attended by light, free from suffering."

Su Lin stepped through the air as if treading invisible stairs; amid gasps, the sky blazed with radiant light, filling every corner of the world. When color returned to the world, Su Lin had vanished—only Old Meng knelt on the ground weeping, Feng Baobao attempting to fly as Su Lin had, and the other three wore different expressions, yet all knew the deeds just performed by this man would stir a colossal upheaval in the Yiren world.

Of course, that power which had covered the entire city, and the aura upon his person—no doubt even the Company had no way to deal with him.

Xiao Zizai adjusted his glasses and spoke slowly: "Is there really a Buddha? Doesn't seem so."

Wang Zhenqiu joked: "He's probably some kind of immortal. Now someone's going to have a headache~ Hahaha, not my problem—I'm taking leave and heading home."

Xiao Zizai clasped his hands devoutly: "Yes, a good immortal. I hope he grants me a good meal."

End of chapter