Chapter 300

"Huh? This setting's not bad." Tunyun nodded beside him. "Excellent, excellent—Senior Zhou clearly has deep insight into literary settings. Even though filming's finished, we can still add it in post-production."

"No, Master Tunyun, you don't understand the risks here." Song Shuhang shook his head in terror. "This could turn into a documentary!"

Not far away, Su Lin extinguished Kleine's avatar and plunged into the mist of history.

Kleine was dragged out of the mist of history, his mouth still moving as he stared at the crowd before him—all watching him with varied expressions.

"It's not that serious! You should believe in science, not this feudal superstition."

"Actually, I think we could add a setting: before the mystery of the womb is solved, they jointly establish a sect, training disciples as vanguards to devour countless worlds… mmmph!"

Su Lin shoved a thick, black lump of bread straight into Kleine's mouth to stop this talkative thing from uttering more terrifying stories that blurred fantasy with reality.

Brother, let's just scare people with our movie already—don't say stuff like this!

"I really think you should shut up," Lu Mingfei said with a strange expression, recalling past events. "I once believed in science too."

"Respected Mister Fool, until Su Lin's copyright infringer shows up, I always believed the world didn't have this many coincidences," Xiao Yan said with a toothache. "Your mouth—I advise you to think before you speak."

"No way! This idea is terrifying!" Yi Leina suddenly hugged her arms and shuddered. "If the witch obsessed with Su Lin in the setting is me, it's a nightmare!!"

Everyone turned their gaze toward Yi Leina. Wasn't she missing the point everyone else was worried about?

"You, a third-dimensional character detached from the paper doll, are saying something extremely rude. If I were my old otaku self, I'd be shattered," Su Lin roared at last. "Isn't devouring all realms and worlds far more terrifying than this?!"

Even Su Lin himself couldn't help breaking out in goosebumps at the thought of that possibility. Though everyone normally treated such talk as a joke, Su Lin had nearly developed PTSD from that damn mouth.

"Hmm." Zhongli placed his right hand above his lips and took a deep breath. "With this setting, it shouldn't come true."

Everyone present fell silent.

Probably. The script was already insane enough. Word was, during its writing, Su Lin had used the Path of the Audience to regularly provide psychological therapy for the writing team.

Creak—

Kleine ground his teeth, pulled a jar of honey from thin air, and spread it over the black bread.

'No way this could be real. I don't even get what these people are afraid of—he's not the real Azathoth, Su Lin isn't God, though there really is a Heaven Emperor and Yuan Shi Tianzun in the group.'

He chewed the black bread while his thoughts wandered.

'The Fool… the god of blind folly, hmm. Maybe in other worlds I should just use this title—but the reputation sounds bad.'

"I see." Li Huowang suddenly broke the silence, clapped his hands, as if awakening from confusion. "Could this be the true nature of the chat group?"

Boom—

In an instant, five beams of light shot from front, back, left, right, and above, sealing Li Huowang's mouth.

Li Huowang's heart leapt. Before he could react, Su Lin, Xiao Yan, Lu Mingfei, and others had surrounded him—especially the Purple Gold Divine Dragon, who wrapped his body around Li Huowang like a rope.

'Is this fake too?! They're trying to kill me!!!' Li Huowang's eyes widened, ready to activate the Great Thousand Record buried in the flesh of his back.

"Don't you dare take it seriously! Who even is in this group?! It's impossible to guard against!" Su Lin screamed.

"Huowang! I've never begged anyone before—but please, don't take this seriously!!!" Xiao Yan nearly wept. "I don't want to be the villain! Even Hun Tian Di isn't as terrifying as this world-devouring monster!"

"Aowu! You're seriously weird—don't you dare take this seriously!" The Purple Gold Divine Dragon had been yawning nearby, but now he was wide awake, jolted by Kleine and Li Huowang.

Li Huowang's Heart Element ability was too bizarre. Even if this power isn't strong now, what if he grows stronger later? Will I, the Dragon Elder, have to replace the Evil Heavenly Dao's position?!

And over there, Kleine—Su Lin keeps pulling out new trump cards no one can fathom, yet this guy forced him into eating mountains just through a bet. He's just as bizarre.

"Fake, got it?" Su Lin raised an eyebrow at Li Huowang.

Li Huowang: "..."

Fine, it's fake. But why are you all so worked up? You scared the hell out of me.

"Senior, should we still add this setting?" Tunyun asked, baffled.

"Add it," Su Lin paused, then told Tunyun. "Since it's already this way, please tell the post-production team."

"Got it." Tunyun nodded.

After the farce ended, Zhongli decided to return to his own world first.

Whether or not to merge the gathering, he needed to return to Liyue to handle matters concerning the Soul Passage's Lantern Festival. He was still a guest advisor of the Soul Passage, and even in the busiest times, he had to lend a hand.

They agreed to contact each other later in the group to plan the celebration banquet, then dispersed.

"Fake, fake, fake, fake, all fake..."

Only Li Huowang, who understood the full context, kept trying to cancel his previous words by reciting them a hundred times.

High-end luck often uses simple, unadorned methods.

Whether it's the blood of the Fate Serpent or the Dice of Probability, better not use these variables yet. Let's see if this luck, capable of crossing countless worlds, lets me hitch a ride.

Su Lin rubbed his hands excitedly in Wangshu Pavilion on Water Mirror Peak, putting the earlier events behind him.

He gently opened the system interface like buying a stock the night before and waking up too late the next day, gambling on whether tonight he'd eat meat or noodles.

"Huh?"

Su Lin had assumed he'd drawn only items—after closing the draw interface, he hadn't felt any new skills. But when he reopened it, three gray lights still floated in the system space.

Do I really have to watch the cutscene? Dammit, did my luck expire?

Two gray lights rippled through the void, crossed space, and plunged into Su Lin's mind. Then, one light dove into his system inventory.

Two skill-type ones?! That's not bad! Skills are way harder to draw than items—Su Lin had only gotten a handful so far.

Su Lin closed his eyes, sensing the information and power flowing into his mind.

The Formless Body of the Heavenly Buddha:

Effect: Condense the Buddha's Dharma Body (Those who cultivate this method must first cultivate their true self. All forms are illusory. If you see forms as non-forms, you see the Tathagata. —Heavenly Buddha)

Ultimate Ascension: All suppression, resentment, endurance, arduous cultivation, and plainness... all lead to this moment of ultimate ascension....

The rest of the skill description was too long to read—he already knew what it was: the infamous "Recycle Points King," a cheat skill with an overpowered clause.

"Got up too fast this morning—the side effects are only hitting now. Time to go back to sleep." Su Lin closed the system interface, plunged into the mist of history, found a random historical glow, and pulled the quilt over his head.

"Did you get dumped?" Kleine asked beside him.

Swish—

Su Lin opened his eyes and asked, "Why are you here?"

"Why did you come in?" Kleine countered, holding a chocolate ice cream. "Zero calories. Want some?"

"Sorry to disturb you." Su Lin tidied up, rolled his bedding, and walked out of this historical light spot.

Su Lin wandered aimlessly through those histories only he had experienced, when suddenly he saw his past self—the version who, during a treasure chest bursting with gold coins, had used every trick imaginable but failed to take anything from Su Tuoni.

The opponent had bundled up the treasure vault using shameless, vulgar, and ruthless thug tactics, left behind a large piece of Immortal Metal in a victor's magnanimous gesture, then walked away with a swagger that recognized no kin.

That scene was unforgettable. At the time, his past self had thought: if only he had that skill, he would have won everything and revived…

Revived a damn thing!

Su Lin shook his head violently, suddenly remembering something, threw down his bedding, and ran toward an earlier point in history.

He saw himself fail at forming a loving family, himself flying backward, cursing as he tried to acquire a Buddhist ability to suppress his two rebellious sons for five hundred years.

In an instant, Su Lin seemed to understand something.

A book, apparently a guide for using the gacha system, lay on the other shore, its first page flaring open toward him in dazzling fashion.

Within the chat group

Su Lin: "Shufang, is White Zunzhe cold? Hot? Hungry? I have a box of Wu Dao tea. Interested in trying some food from other worlds?"

Song Shufang: "Senior Su Lin… you're…"

Kleine: "I get it. You've awakened?"

Kleine: "Was your earlier depression and confusion all to make this decision?!"

Lu Mingfei: "Whoa! What's going on?"

Zhang Chu'an: "I must've seen a hallucination—I woke up too hard."

Song Shufang: "Snap out of it, Senior Su Lin! I know White Zunzhe is charming, but there are plenty of charming girls in this world!"

Song Shufang: "Even if there aren't any here, there are countless ones across the myriad realms! Let's broaden our horizons—look at the photos of those Immortal Maidens!"

Song Shufang: "If all else fails, even our group's few members are quite beautiful, though a bit hard to please!"

Xing: "?"

Hourai Mountain Kaguya: "?"

Yi Leina: "?"

Song Shufang: "."

Song Shufang: "Meng Qi, Senior, can you ask where the retract button is?"

Typing with thought is fast, but sometimes when excited, you send what's in your mind instantly, with no time to edit.

Damn it.

"Pfft!!!" Ye Fan spat tea straight at Duan De across from him.

The scalding tea instantly broke into droplets, shifting sideways just centimeters from Duan De's face—and splashed onto the Black Emperor's face.

"Woof!"

"Ahh!!!"

Pang Bo saw Ye Fan scramble to his feet and head toward the portal to his own world. "Ye Zi, what's wrong? Didn't we plan to drink beer and grill skewers tonight?"

"I'm going to kidnap a few enemy Holy Maidens and see if Su Lin can still be saved." Ye Fan's expression was also slipping.

Su Lin: "Sorry, I lost control for a moment. Don't misunderstand—I just experienced Chapter 672 of 'The Cultivation Chat Group.' Bai Qian helped me out."

"What's wrong, Ye Zi? Why aren't you moving?" Pang Bo stretched and caught up. "Kidnap the Yin-Yang Holy Sect or the Purple Mansion Holy Sect? What about the clans?"

"Looks like I don't need to anymore." Ye Fan exhaled in relief.

"Imperial Lord, what's wrong?" Jiang Zhiwei, transformed into human form, followed beside him and asked.

"Nothing. Just a trivial misunderstanding." Zhongli shook his head. "From what I know of Su Lin, he's probably more interested in the flat image of Yuheng Star."

"???" Jiang Zhiwei was utterly baffled—he couldn't fathom the Imperial Lord's thoughts now.

"Ahead lies Liyue. You don't need to accompany me. The performance is over. Morax has naturally returned to history." Zhongli spoke slowly. "Yituo, I advise you to return to the Simulation Universe and cultivate earnestly. Your wear and tear far exceeds others'."

"We have nothing better to do. Let's stroll through present-day Liyue with you." Yituo transformed into a mature, composed young man, wearing a gray-brown Liyue robe:

"Could you give them some feedback? I'm fine being a monster to fight cultivators, but can we stop having me recite the same lines every time I appear? And turn down the music—it's too loud during battles."

"I'll relay this issue." Zhongli nodded slightly.

"I heard the Imperial Lord plans to host guests from beyond the realms. Is there anything we can assist with?" Li Shui Die Shan Zhenjun asked.

Zhongli thought for a moment. "Do you have Mora? We might need quite a bit."

Originally, it was just to host the group's friends; his usual salary as a guest advisor was more than enough.

But if he were to rent out the entire Xin Yue Xuan or Liu Li Ge on the busiest night of the Lantern Festival, the expenses might exceed his budget.

With friends coming from afar, as host, he ought to let each guest experience Liyue's signature cuisine.

"We…"

The Immortals exchanged glances. Mora was like foreign currency to them. Some Immortals, disliking worldly troubles, secluded themselves in Shenshan. Others, fond of observing human life, dwelled in cities. But Mora…

"Isn't that Mr. Zhongli?" A slightly flippant voice rang out. "Long time no see. Heard you've been busy lately—just back from outside Liyue?"

Zhongli turned and smiled. "Young Master. Long time no see."

"Are these your friends? Pleased to meet you. I'm Dada Lia." Dada Lia flashed a sunny smile, though it clashed oddly with his hollow eyes.

"The Fatui" Xiao Yue Zhu Yang snorted.

"Hey, I may be Fatui, but I'm also Mr. Zhongli's good friend." Dada Lia didn't care—his identity wasn't a secret in Liyue. But from the subtle yet powerful aura radiating from these people, they were clearly Adepti.

Morax, who had already stepped down from the Rock Lord's position, had gathered so many Immortals—surely something major was afoot. If so, it was better to come forward and take a look.

Maybe there's useful intel to be had.

"Hmm, you came at the perfect time." Zhongli's lips curled into a faint smile. He recalled a funny nickname he'd seen online—originally coined because he never carried Mora. He felt slightly guilty giving it to Dada Lia, but now it could solve the problem perfectly.

"Oh? Is there something I can help with?" Dada Lia grinned.

"Do you wish to obtain greater power?" Zhongli asked.

Dada Lia blinked, then his eyes flashed with fervor; his blue eyes narrowed slightly as he asked with keen interest, "What is the price?"

(End of Chapter)