Chapter 709: Apocryphos Speaks Thus

One problem hasn’t settled before another arises. What a headache.

At the Hakurei Shrine, Yagami Shizu, fanning herself, unusually covered her forehead with both hands and groaned.

What is all this? Thank you.

Emiya Shirou, who had just brought tea and sweets, strongly agreed, and Lu Mingfei, who felt this day was utterly inauspicious, shared the same sentiment.

But from another perspective, they still have a chance to be revived.

Zhongli’s fingers brushed over Meng Qi’s List of the Gods, the authority of Eternity and Moment strengthening it: “Is the Fantasy Realm safe for now?”

. Yagami Shizu looked utterly defeated.

Within the gap, Laplace’s Demon’s eyes crossed time and space, revealing conditions across different Fantasy Realms—all the deceased transmigrants, rebirthers, transferers, and bizarre reincarnators had come back to life.

Logically, such a massive anomaly should have already triggered temporal ripples and irreversible butterfly effects.

“Some force has flattened all timelines into a single plane. Nothing’s happened yet, but after this resurrection tournament ends, who knows?”

“The Great Barrier hasn’t been affected—perhaps because all regions are isolated, or because those people haven’t truly revived yet.”

Yagami Shizu slumped onto the low table, voice weak:

“I admit I was scheming to borrow the foundations controlled by the Three Pure Ones and God, but I only meant to use them temporarily. But the Moon Princess wasn’t like this before…”

Too many unexpected events had occurred since Su Lin’s group arrived in the Fantasy Realm—their actions and abilities had surpassed all foreseeable possibilities.

Even Yagami Shizu now felt exhausted.

Reimu held the Yin-Yang Jade and spoke softly: “If you don’t explain clearly what’s going on with all those Hakurei Miko, I’ll exorcise you.”

Hearing this, Yagami Shizu turned and hugged Yagami Ran, burying her head into the nine-tailed spirit’s body.

“I can’t retain all my memories after too many Great Barrier restarts.”

The disturbances caused by Hōrai Mountain Kaguya in the past, the arrival of everyone in the Fantasy Realm, and the chaos brought by Lao Lu’s shady friends—all were instantly erased by Su Lin, who had returned to the Abyssal God’s throne.

But now, the resurrection tournament triggered by Kaguya’s death seems to have caused even greater turmoil.

Of course, as Yagami Shizu said, it’s still only turmoil for now.

Compared to this matter.

“Why are you all staring at me?” Ilena raised her hand.

Don’t just blurt it out, sis!

The group chat members were fine—they were used to it—but the demons of the Fantasy Realm and those nosy reporters trying to provoke trouble were staring at Ilena with the most bizarre expressions.

“Sister-in-law…”

“It’s Ilena.”

“Miss Ilena, when did you arrive?”

Meng Qi changed the subject, laughing awkwardly: “You saw it—they’re all alive. Winning the resurrection tournament is no problem.”

“Mm, I know. I came because I was worried after seeing Kaguya’s problem.”

Ilena nodded naturally: “I’ve established a Magic Network in this void—I can come over anytime.”

“Magic Network?” Li Changshou’s eyes lit up, his signal connection poor: “What’s that?”

“Back in the City of All Worlds, Bei Wu Zhenxian gave me a fragmentary copy of ‘Constructing the Void Magic Network.’ Now…” Ilena sensed the infinite magical power linking her to all her parallel selves:

“I can open dimensional gates directly at any location where the Magic Network has been established, using the signal from that guy.”

“If combined with the Ten Thousand Worlds Universal Symbol of the Cause of All Results… wouldn’t that let you reach any anchored void world? It’s almost like a cross-world talisman,” Li Changshou murmured.

Han Li and the others turned to look at Kleine, whose expression remained blank, his smile unchanged.

“All coincidences, friends.”

“If you don’t believe me, then I say it’s a coincidence—and it must be a coincidence.”

The Fool’s mouth…

Fortunately, everyone now has some resistance—whether swallowed or not doesn’t matter, as long as you’re not the one being swallowed.

. Yagami Eirin pushed the door open, holding a Ten Thousand Worlds Universal Symbol and a vial labeled [Kaguya Special]. She glanced at Ilena and silently sighed:

“You’re also a friend of Her Highness, aren’t you? Thank you for your concern.”

“Don’t mention it,” Ilena nodded lightly.

“She’s currently…” Yagami Eirin hesitated.

“I know. She’s chatting with me,” Ilena pretended to pick up the Ten Thousand Worlds Universal Symbol, actually looking at the group chat.

Hōrai Mountain Kaguya: [Image]

It showed Su Lin giving a peace sign with a smile to the Ten Thousand Worlds Universal Symbol.

[Ilena-chan, I’ve taken your boyfriend, okay?] Kaguya struck a photo pose beside it.

[Hehehe~] Ilena’s lips curved upward, her eyes narrowing.

Yagami Eirin felt something was off, yet she herself had just been using this Ten Thousand Worlds Universal Symbol to contact Kaguya and Su Lin, whose states were unknown.

Learning that there was still hope to reverse things—and that Su Lin, like Kaguya, had unhesitatingly abandoned Eternity—

“Sigh, you all…”

Just as Yagami Eirin was about to speak, commotion erupted outside the shrine.

“Uncle Yang! Doctor! Is there a doctor here?!” March 7 shouted.

“It’s fine… just a stomachache.”

Walter Yang, seeing Kleine appear, asked: “Did you bring medicine?”

Kleine looked up at the sky, silent, then pulled out medicine from the Heavenly Court Pharmacy and handed it over.

The ashes have reignited—the “List of the Heavenly Golden Ranks,” supposedly dealt with before the last Great Barrier restart, is now playing a sorrowful scene.

A long blade pierces the girl’s lower abdomen, blood trickling down, staining her shrine maiden robes.

Fuzuyama Miko, irritated, smoked in a corner of the shrine, glanced up, and frowned: “Isn’t that Kaguya, that dead woman?”

Her hair was dyed pink, and she wore red-and-white shrine maiden robes—but that face, too beautiful to imitate, was unmistakable to those who knew her.

【“Keh! Fool…” The cherry-haired shrine maiden spat blood, raising her hand as if to touch the golden-haired man’s cheek, but poison spread through her veins, black webbing crawling across her face: “How could I bear to see you hurt? You and Karin must be happy.”】

Miko: “?”

The scene shifted—the golden-haired man trudged through a blood-red desert, while fragments, edited like memories, flashed rapidly.

【Now imagine a tree—the Numeral Tree.】

The story and visuals unfolded in reverse order: a sun nearing extinction, black tides surging across the land, insectoid and dark beings enslaving and breeding humans to control city-states, while the last divine descendants, led by the current head of the Celestial Mandate Church, Otto Apocryphos, and the Holy Maiden Karin, waged a holy crusade for salvation.

His words were persuasive, his deeds always righteous—even during the interrogation of enemies.

【Kill me.】

【Alright.】

He killed captured enemies without hesitation, revived them, killed them again, revived them again, killed them again…

【Even if you lost your father, you still have me—I can be your guide, can’t I?】 he said to the female winged being.

“Uncle Yang?!” March 7 urged, seeing Walter leaning on his cane: “You know who he is.”

“That smell… identical!” Walter’s chest heaved: “Not acting.”

Kleine: “.”

Get used to it—be glad he’s just playing and hasn’t gone down the dark path. Being a hero doesn’t guarantee potential, but being a villain might.

Xing looked up, pulled out the Heaven’s Fire Sacred Judgment that Su Lin had given her, her eyes filled with regret—if only she’d been there then.

【Will Belobog fall?!】

【Lord Bishop! The Black Tide is coming!】

【We need a God of Light!】

Picking up the divine spark of the fallen god, that day, he ignited himself, becoming the sole sun upon the Tree of Gods as the Black Tide arrived.

Along the way, besides snow and wind, there were also tender moments.

【“Sorry, Otto, I’m in love with Yae Reimu now.”】 The girl with gray-white braided hair took the cherry-haired shrine maiden’s hand and walked away—this scene was captured by a patrolling soldier, the primary viewpoint.

【“If it’s really impossible, Karin can just practice monogamy—we can all be happy making dumplings together.”】 the shrine maiden suggested.

“?” Reimu, sipping tea, spat it all over Yagami Shizu’s face, eyes wide, staring at the image of Hōrai Mountain Kaguya calling herself Yae Reimu—her head seemed filled with countless question marks.

That girl with gray-white braids and sapphire eyes—why did she look familiar?

All the demon girls of the Fantasy Realm turned toward Ilena’s position—only to find it empty, leaving only Meng Qi beside them, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

He stared at the List of the Heavenly Golden Ranks above and muttered: “A real man.”

“That golden-haired man…” Yagami Eirin’s expression twisted: “Is that Su Lin?”

. Meng Qi fell silent for a moment, then thought, and suddenly smiled: “I didn’t say that.”

【To save them, you must create a new possibility in the past.】

The scene in the sky continued—the man’s happy memories seemed to end here. He halted his stumbling steps, raised the Divine Key, and charged toward the Numeral Tree.

Beside him, a shadow held a mask, monocle, dice, and manga, watching silently.

Change. Create. Reverse.

He led the divine descendants in charge after charge, seeking only the ending he desired.

—【Within the amber-like root system of the Numeral Tree, three figures wrapped in a single blanket drifted into sweet dreams.】

Finally, after countless eons of slumber, immeasurable despair shattered and ascended in an instant—the man became a flood of light, elevating philosophy, forging a Path. He was One and Ten Thousand, Beginning and End, He who Is, Was, and Will Always Be.

The Primordial God!

Dust settled. He created the future, awakening the two who slept entwined—Yae, Otto, and Karin walked forward, hands linked.

“This other future will be our moment.”

【Review complete.】

[Commentary: Otto Apocallis, again and again striking the Numeral Tree to alter the past for the sake of the Holy Maiden Karen and the Shrine Maiden Reimu, his true identity: the Hope Star God, the Primordial God, the Bishop most favored by Amun, the Joy Star God]

[Reward:]

“Why Reimu?” Reimu clutched her arm, terrified. “He’s not got some weird thing for me, right? Magica, you haven’t eaten any mating mushrooms, have you?”

“Huh?” Magica pointed at herself, bewildered.

Clearly, this black-and-white witch had been busy with other matters and rarely read the papers.

But right now, among those still able to make sounds, only Reimu—

Swish-swish-swish-swish—! Crackling! Snap-snap-snap!

The Wind Goddess girl’s hands moved like a gale; the cultivator Jiang Shan rode his key-flight talisman; the Flame-Slaying Dragon-Wielder was engulfed in fire.

The Multiverse Common Sense Forum, the Cultivator Daily, the Wind Extra, the Macro-World News—all hotly serialized.

“Ha”

Someone had started it—soon, the chat group erupted in frantic @s, finally easing the previously stifling atmosphere.

Of course, the cost was the social death of three group members.

“Several thousand years?” Kaguya Shizu tapped her brow lightly with her folding fan, thinking. “The Moon Princess’s appearance was abnormal—she hasn’t been gone from Gensokyo that long, has she?”

She gazed at the resurrection timeline, where a colossal dragon’s shadow exhaled nothingness, annihilating all, then shook her head and said to the others: “Ladies and gentlemen, please come in for a chat.”

“Hahaha,” Xiao Yan was just about to suppress his laughter.

[Heh~ Hehehehehe~]

From the Multiverse Golden List came a vaguely familiar laugh.

“The Infinite Fire Domain, obey!” A man in black robes and black hair opened the Strange Fire Crucible and ordered: “Use heaven and earth as the furnace, all living beings as herbs—refine the Primordial Soul-Recovery Pill!”

A colossal cauldron forged from flame appeared in the starry void; countless demon clans, humans, and gods were cast into it.

“Ha-jek-ga…” Xiao Yan froze, his throat like a duck with its neck wrung.

“You know,” Kleine murmured beside him, “every time we reach this part, I feel you’re the most evil one among us.”

“If you didn’t perform so brilliantly, maybe people would have less prejudice against us.”

Xiao Yan turned to Kaguya Shizu, only to see her glancing between his face and the man’s face on the screen, then smiling: “It’s fine.”

Xiao Yan: “.”

“I know Otto’s tree-striking—I suppose it’s possible Gensokyo has gathered data on other worlds too.”

Li Sheng cursed at the Multiverse Golden List: “Yae Reimu?! The Primordial God?! What kind of Gensokyo is this?!”

The Multiverse Golden List fell silent. After the review, rewards should have been issued as part of the transaction to seize the subject’s future fate and fortune—but now it was caught in unknown interference.

“Why didn’t you warn me after reviewing the video?!” Li Sheng grabbed his head in frenzy. “At least tell me to check what’s inside!”

[It was the host’s own choice to publish.] The Multiverse Golden List merely followed its preset pattern, avoiding entanglement with the subject’s karmic threads by extracting a fragment of spacetime from an observer’s perspective.

Choosing this person as the host was no accident.

“Just what is this Gensokyo?!”

Li Sheng recalled his previous ordeal and said, shuddering: “Give me the reward from the first review immediately.”

To survive, he must hide within the Multiverse Golden List until he matures enough to leave.

[Reward distribution in progress]

[Top 9 of Gensokyo’s Ten Great Anomalies: Reviewing host—Xiao Yan]

Seeing this prompt, Li Sheng’s unease lessened slightly.

Xiao Yan… well then?

“Xiao Yan?”

[Reward distributed: Copied one random ability from Otto Apocallis]

Before he could even marvel, joy surged—Li Sheng turned to the Multiverse Golden List, where rippling waves like water appeared.

“Apocallis said: ‘The world permits consciousness to match a vessel.’ What’s the next line?”

A deep-blue starry arm reached out and suddenly seized Li Sheng’s head; then, under his horrified gaze, a regal emperor with black hair, black eyes, and a crown emerged from the upper half of the rippling surface, grinning grotesquely:

“But it does not permit the vessel to gather scattered consciousness!”

Time twisted into chaos; a time-beetle, desperately fleeing, instantly turned to dust.

“This vessel is quite nice~.”