Chapter 263: True Law

As the Nine Ancestors invaded their minds, the player community also exploded into chaos.

……

"The Justice Sect's Nine Ancestors have invaded our consciousness?"

"What's going on? What kind of black technology is this again?"

"The Game Company can let our consciousness enter the bodies in the game, so it's normal for them to add something to our consciousness, right!"

"It's not normal at all. It's true that the bodies are provided by the Game Company, and I accept it when it occasionally strips us of control. But having our consciousness controlled is absurd. Our thoughts are our own; forcibly stuffing things into our brains is equivalent to r*ping our thoughts..."

"The moment we lie down in the Game Capsule, our bodies are no longer under our control. They don't need to r*pe our thoughts; if the Game Company puts some poison in the Nutrient Solution, we still won't survive."

"It's not a question of whether we survive or not; it's that the Game Company is violating our human rights..."

"You don't have to play. It's a free game account you can use to make money. I don't think there's anything wrong with throwing a few things into your thoughts to increase the game's fun..."

"This is what's called realistic. If immortal arts didn't work on players because of human rights and privacy, that would be what's unreasonable."

"You think it's trivial?"

"What's the difference between stuffing some images into your mind and what you hear or see yourself? Buddy, if you want to live a stable and happy life, you can't think too much. The Game Company's black technology isn't something we mere mortals can understand."

"In movies, they insert chips directly into the brain, and robots use the chips to control humans. That's even scarier..."

"If you want freedom and human rights, you should return to a primitive life. If that happens, when a shell hits, forget about freedom—you won't even have your life. I don't plan on resisting; whoever wants to protest, go ahead!"

"Speaking of which, have you noticed that the background of the Nine Ancestors is the universe? The map of this world is huge! Will we go on an expedition to space in the late game to fight alien civilizations?"

"Highly likely. Not just the universe, but the Immortal World too. In a world with such a grand background, it's normal to infringe on some privacy. After all, the Game Company only showed us some images and didn't modify our memories."

"The game just started, and we've already encountered the Great Vehicle Realm. I even thought there was nothing left to play in this game. I didn't expect it to be just the tip of the iceberg. This technology, this setting—it's top-notch."

"Perhaps it's the setting. The Justice Sect discovered a civilization similar to ours in the universe; that could explain the origin of Shopkeeper Lin's printing press and Recording Pen..."

"I don't know when we'll be able to truly enter the Justice Sect."

"Compared to entering the Justice Sect, I'm more concerned about whether the Fazhe Zhidao will be opened to players. 'Words follow the law' and Love Dao are too bugged. Many players have already given up on the Law of Cultivation. If we can only learn backward cultivation techniques, we won't be able to fight NPCs who have cultivated the law at all."

"Creating things out of thin air is the means of a creator. Today, Shopkeeper Lin can create a Heavenly River; tomorrow, he could create a river of magma. During a battle, if the geographical environment suddenly changes, you wouldn't even know how you died when fighting him."

"Don't measure Shopkeeper Lin's Skill with our current levels. The cultivation of a Mahayana can move mountains and fill seas. With enough resistance, you could bathe in a river of magma. Right now, Shopkeeper Lin clearly can't beat Zhou Zu. Besides, when players push a boss, their strategies are far richer than those of NPCs..."

……

He let the Nine Ancestors' posturing slowly ferment.

Lin Bai arrived in front of Zhou Zu.

At this moment, Zhou Zu looked like a Beggar; there wasn't a single thing on him that was intact. The destructive power of the Blacksmith Six-Piece Set was beyond doubt.

"Greetings, True Person Zhou." Lin Bai cupped his hands and bowed to Zhou Zu in a leisurely manner, then curiously reached his hand into the Heavenly River to test it. The water was ice-cold; he confirmed it was just ordinary water.

Zhou Zu floated in the middle of the water. He looked Lin Bai up and down and suddenly asked, "Lin Bai, are you not afraid that I might suddenly strike?"

"If we really were to fight, is there a difference between three meters and five miles?" Lin Bai asked with a smile.

Zhou Zu couldn't help but smile. He frowned in disgust, looked at Lin Bai, and said, "The Fazhe Zhidao is truly detestable."

"This is an unavoidable matter." Lin Bai shrugged his shoulders and put away his smile. "Empathy is a necessary process. Without empathy, how can one talk about merging the body with the Dao? True Person Zhou, join my Justice Alliance! The law is the future..."

Zhou Zu interrupted Lin Bai and said, "I have no interest in the law. Can this Heavenly River really sever the connection between me and Wuwang?"

"Just listening to me isn't enough; let me let you witness it for yourself." As he spoke, Lin Bai recalled Qingyu and Huaxi, whom he had sent to the sky earlier, back into their cards, and then released them both beside him.

The two looked at Zhou Zu in terror, then looked at each other, both wearing bitter expressions.

Qingyu gently patted Huaxi's hand, looked at Lin Bai, and pleaded, "Alliance Leader, if you need to use us to release Love Separation in the future, can you use just me? Huaxi is timid..."

Before.

He was the most powerful Puppet in Lin Bai's hands.

But later, Nascent Soul, Spirit Transformation—one powerful Puppet after another appeared. He and Huaxi were gradually no longer released by Lin Bai. When they finally came out once, they were even used as cannon fodder...

All that talk about letting them cultivate the Love Dao and giving them freedom in the future was all a lie.

This realization made Qingyu feel deeply sorrowful.

But in this world where strength is king, Lin Bai's opponents had already changed to the Great Vehicle Realm, which left him without the confidence to even speak to Lin Bai.

"Yulang, don't say any more. I cannot live alone if you die." Huaxi grabbed Qingyu's hand tightly, snuggled into his arms, and said miserably, "This is our fate..."

"Alright, stop showing off your affection in front of me." Lin Bai looked at them helplessly. "This time it was my operational error. I didn't expect the reaction of the Great Vehicle Realm to be so swift. In the future, I'll release you two separately from other cards; you won't be used as cannon fodder anymore. I won't forget what I promised you..."

Qingyu and Huaxi were overjoyed. They let go of each other and bowed to Lin Bai simultaneously: "Thank you, Alliance Leader."

Lin Bai's gaze shifted away from them and looked at Zhou Zu: "True Person Zhou, do you acknowledge their love?"

Zhou Zu distractedly shifted his gaze away from Qingyu and Huaxi and nodded blankly.

Qingyu and Huaxi's affection made him envious. He knew it was true love; he could feel that in the eyes of both Qingyu and Huaxi, there was only each other.

Zhou Zu couldn't help but project himself and Wuwang Chanshi into their place. If only he and Wuwang could be as affectionate as this couple before him...

"Heavenly River!"

Lin Bai waved his hand again.

The river reappeared, wrapped around Huaxi, and forcibly pulled her away from Zhou Zu's side.

"Yulang." Huaxi, in the middle of the Heavenly River, waved at Qingyu in a panic.

"Sister Hua, don't be afraid, I'm here." Qingyu hurriedly rushed toward Huaxi Furen, but just as he reached the side of the Heavenly River, that one-meter-wide river expanded rapidly as he approached. In a short while, it grew into a giant river a hundred meters wide, carrying Huaxi far away from his side.

"Yulang!"

"Sister Hua!"

The closer Qingyu moved toward Huaxi, the faster the river grew. In a short while, that river had actually grown to a thousand meters in width, separating the two far apart.

The two ran toward each other, but neither could reach the riverbank.

That river, less than half a foot deep, at this very moment, seemed to have become a chasm specifically targeting the two of them.

……

A river a thousand meters wide hung over Zhen City. Illuminated by the sunlight, it rippled and looked truly spectacular...

The heavens and the earth were silent, with only the voices of Qingyu and Huaxi calling out to each other remaining.

Lin Bai held his breath.

Holy crap!

This is a real Heavenly River, and it's even expanding on its own...

This is too unreasonable!

Had he known the effect would be this overbearing, he wouldn't have needed the Nine Ancestors to come out and act cool; he alone would have been enough, needlessly letting the Nine Ancestors steal his spotlight.

Zhou Zu's expression turned extremely ugly in an instant; he had once thought the Heavenly River was nothing more than a small circle, and that meeting Wuwang was merely a minor burden that wouldn't affect anything.

With a circle of river water surrounding them, he and Wuwang in the middle, there was even a hint of romance.

But.

Seeing the Heavenly River between Qingyu and Huaxi expanding rapidly, pushing the two further and further apart, he finally understood what Lin Bai meant by "never able to embrace or kiss."

"Is this the Fazhe Zhidao?"

Zhen City.

Ye Song and Feng Jing looked up at the river in the sky and the two people separated by it, both stunned at the same time.

The Heavenly River that Lin Bai drew with a casual wave was even more shocking to them than what the Nine Ancestors of the Justice Sect had brought.

This had already transcended the scope of what spells could explain.

Only the concept of rules could explain the miracle happening in the sky.

But this completely violated the laws of nature!

If "words become law" allowed one to set rules at will, wouldn't this world be in chaos?

"The world has changed." Ye Song looked at Lin Bai in the sky and murmured, "Once the Heavenly River appears, even if Lin Bai dies, the Fazhe Zhidao will gradually replace the path of cultivation..."

Xu Longyun stared blankly at the river spreading across the sky, her face flushed red; she couldn't help but swallow, her heart completely filled with Lin Bai's shadow.

This is the man she chose!

Father, do you see?

This is the man your daughter chose!!

"The Fazhe Zhidao is real, Old Wan, the Fazhe Zhidao is real, the Alliance Leader didn't lie." He Qin's lips trembled, tears streaming down his face; the timidity and panic in his heart vanished in an instant.

Once the Heavenly River appeared, the position of the Justice Alliance was completely solidified, and many people would surely join the Justice Alliance by reputation.

Because.

This is the holy land of the Fazhe Zhidao.

"Yes! The laws are actually real!" Wan Qifeng looked at the river in the sky, his face full of longing and hope, "The most correct thing this old man has ever done was joining the Justice Alliance."

"The future will surely belong to the laws." Long Lin murmured, his eyes filled with fanaticism, the resentment toward Lin Bai in his heart long since vanished; what was a Demon Beast being stripped from the Beast Taming Pavilion compared to the laws? It was nothing!

"Fazhe Zhidao, Fazhe Zhidao." Luo Xue looked at Lin Bai's back in the sky, her face glowing, just like a little fan girl looking at her idol.

"Lin Bai will surely win, the laws are king!"

"Lin Bai, you are too handsome, I love that Heavenly River..."

"I want to have your baby!"

"Ah, so beautiful, worthy of being the idol I chose."

After a brief moment of distraction,

The players of the Lin Bai Support Group came to their senses, one by one waving the light boards and dolls in their hands, acting as if they were crazy.

Screams rose one after another.

No one cared about discipline anymore; if it weren't for the fact that they couldn't fly, they would have already rushed to Lin Bai's side to do outrageous things to him.

"... It completely violates the laws of physics, what about the conservation of energy? Why would the river expand on its own? It makes no sense. If such disordered rules appear in the game, isn't the Game Company afraid the game will crash?"

"When the small Heavenly River appeared out of thin air, it already violated the rules! This is the Xianxia World, don't try to use our theories to explain it."

"Where are the people who just said Shopkeeper Lin's Fazhe Zhidao was nothing to worry about? What do you say now that you've encountered such an uncrossable river? If Shopkeeper Lin cultivates to a profound level, you probably won't even be able to walk to his side!"

"There must be a way to break it. I don't believe the Game Company would create a Skill that cannot be broken. Love Separation was also unsolvable before, but later its weakness was found..." The player who firmly believed the BOSS could be defeated stared at the Heavenly River in the sky, stubborn as a mule.

"Understand now?" Lin Bai looked at Zhou Zu and asked.

"Will Wuwang and I be like them?" Zhou Zu asked with a trembling voice.

"Yes, with the Heavenly River there, two people who love each other can never meet." Lin Bai nodded affirmatively, "This is a rule, unless another rule is used to abolish it. Otherwise, it will exist forever, independent of anyone's will..."

"If you die, will it not be canceled?" Zhou Zu's gaze suddenly turned sharp.

"Once a rule is created, it has nothing to do with me anymore; it will continue to operate independently between heaven and earth." Lin Bai didn't take his threat to heart at all, "Besides, if I die, unless a second person cultivates the path of 'words become law,' no one else will be able to remove the Heavenly River for you."

"I don't believe it." Zhou Zu glanced at Lin Bai and suddenly used an Escape Technique, appearing in the river between Qingyu and Huaxi.

The Heavenly River on his body and Huaxi's Heavenly River did not affect each other; the spot where Zhou Zu was located was even forced open by the Heavenly River to create a vacant space.

Zhou Zu used the Escape Technique again and arrived beside the despairing Huaxi.

Huaxi walked straight into his Heavenly River, and his Heavenly River did not change at all.

Huaxi looked like she had lost her soul, staring blankly at Qingyu on the other side of the river, indifferent to the things around her.

Zhou Zu flashed back.

"Tested it out, have you?" Lin Bai looked at him and smiled, "A rule is a rule. The Heavenly River separates those who love each other. You don't love Huaxi, nor do you love Qingyu, so you are not affected at all. But they love each other; even if you killed Huaxi, Qingyu would still be unable to approach her remains. This is the overbearing nature of the rules."

"Alliance Leader, please withdraw your divine ability." Qingyu came back to his senses and hurriedly shouted to Lin Bai, "Hua and I will never make any more requests of you."

Lin Bai waved his hand, and the thousand-meter-long river vanished from the sky, not even a single droplet of water remaining, as if it had never existed at all.

Hua Xi and Qingyu rushed toward each other, embraced tightly, and kissed without any hesitation; having experienced the despair of the Heavenly River, they realized the preciousness of one another even more.

The Heavenly River around Zhou Zu still remained.

"True Person Zhou, Palm Thunder is the first divine ability I defined, set for myself." Lin Bai looked at the pale-faced Zhou Zu and stood with his hands behind his back, "The Heavenly River is the second law I established after my cultivation achieved success, created to complement my Love Dao. The Love Dao can make two strangers fall in love rapidly, and the Heavenly River can keep them from ever meeting again. The two complement each other."

He glanced down at Xu Longyun, smiled slightly, and continued, "By mastering these two laws, I shall stand in an invincible position. For example, I could make you fall in love with me, and then use the Heavenly River to separate you and me forever. True Person Zhou, do you understand now why I am not afraid that you might hurt me?"

"What must I do for you to help me undo the Heavenly River law?" Zhou Zu looked at Lin Bai, his voice becoming hoarse in an instant; at the thought of never being able to see Wuwang Chanshi again, his heart felt as if it were being pricked by needles. He could not endure such a result; the events of today had been too great a shock to him.

Recalling the new mission of the Yuelao System, Lin Bai looked at Zhou Zu, shook his head, and said, "True Person Zhou, I have seen the affection with which you consider Wuwang in all things. But do you truly understand Wuwang's thoughts? Are you certain that he truly loves you?"

"I am cultivating the Love Dao, and what I love most is witnessing every passionate love in the human world reach its end, with lovers finally becoming spouses. Using your pure love to make things difficult for you would make me seem petty."

"I am not an evil person either. How about this: after Wuwang Chanshi arrives, I will set a difficult problem to test him. If he passes, it will prove that the two of you are true love. At that time, I will undo the Heavenly River for you and let you be together forever, how about that?"

"You must not make things difficult for him!" Zhou Zu was forced to reveal a smile and hurriedly said.

"Rest assured, it is just a small test." Lin Bai smiled, "True Person, do you not want to know how deep his love for you is?"

Zhou Zu shook his head and smiled miserably, "Rather than you testing him, I would prefer you make things difficult for me. For so many years, there are too many things I have done to wrong him..."

(End of this chapter)