Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Li Nianfan felt like his mind started to race at the sudden overlapping coincidences.
However, it was not the time to think about that because the Black and White Impermanence walked over.
The two famous death knights. He would be lying if he said he was not nervous.
Li Nianfan hurriedly composed himself while observing the two Impermanence Sires.
They were highly similar to what he imagined the Black and White Impermanence would look like. The two of them were black and white. They both had high hats and mourning staff. However, they did not have a long bloody tongue that could touch the ground when rolled out.
Black Impermanence had a black birthmark in between his eyes. White Impermanence was unusually pale with a white birthmark in between his eyes. They were not horrifying but they were prestigious.
Black Impermanence frowned and asked, “Why is there an ordinary man here?”
Bing San replied, “Sire, this is Mr. Li. He is my friend.”
Li Nianfan hurriedly saluted, “My name is Li Nianfan. Greetings to the Black and White Impermanence Sires.”
White Impermanence said, “This area belongs to the ghosts now. It is temporarily not safe for ordinary people. It will be better if you leave.”
Bing San softly told the Black and White Impermanence, “Sires, Mr. Li knew a lot of Immortals as friends. Last time, his friends helped me to take down the Ghost King. Otherwise, my army would have lost.”
“Really?”
The Black and White Impermanence instantly looked at Li Nianfan in a different light. They said, “If that’s the case, welcome. You’re a guest of the Underworld.”
Li Nianfan was relieved. He said humbly, “I befriended those Immortals by luck.”
Black Impermanence smiled and said, “No need to be humble, Mr. Li. I think you must be extraordinary. The Underworld would not mistreat you.”
White Impermanence said, “Bing San, take Mr. Li to the lobby for a proper welcome. We are handling some things here, we’ll be there later.”
“Yes, sires!”
Bing San immediately took Li Nianfan to the lobby. He waved and beautiful ghosts flew out to serve tea for everyone.
According to Bing San, the tea was made from local tea leaves growing next to the Acheron. It was watered by Acheron water daily and had no sort of pollution. It was a rare quality tea.
Li Nianfan was interested in drinking it at first. However, after what Bing San said, he immediately did not want to taste it.
Li Nianfan asked out of curiosity, “Mr. Bing, do you mind if I ask? Can you tell me why the eighteen levels of Hell were corrupted?”
Bing San sighed and answered, “Sigh, not only the eighteenth levels of Hell collapsed, the entire Underworld was in crumbles. The realm was unpeaceful for too long. Every once in a while, there would be a huge tribulation. The Underworld was destroyed by the big tribulation.”
“Big tribulation?” Li Nianfan arched his eyebrow.
It was unimaginable that a tribulation could collapse the Underworld. He continued to ask, “Then, does the Underworld have…Yama?”
Bing San said, “Of course. The Underworld is ruled by Lord Yama. Too bad Lord Yama also vanished after the big tribulation.”
Li Nianfan felt his heart rate start to increase. He continued to ask, “What about Meng Po, Higan Flowers, and the Naihe Bridge?”
Bing San nodded, “Yes. Mr. Li is quite familiar with our Underworld.”
‘I’m not ‘quite familiar’, I’m super familiar with it!’
Li Nianfan felt dizzy. Something incredible happened!
It could be considered a coincidence for one or two things. However, it was not a coincidence when all of the things were the same.
The Immortal Realm had an exact replica of the Underworld. He transmigrated to…a legendary mythical realm.
‘Journey to the West? Investitures of the Gods?
‘It seemed unlikely.
‘The fighters were weaker here.’
He had too little information. He could not rush to conclusions, he had to figure it out slowly.
Li Nianfan took a deep breath. His voice was slightly coarse, he probed, “Mr. Bing, have you heard of…Wukong?”
“Wukong?” Bing San frowned. It seemed like he had not heard of it.
However, they heard a voice from outside, “Mr. Li is talking about that monkey, right? Tell me about it.”
The Black and White Impermanence walked in at the same time.
Li Nianfan immediately stood up. “Impermanence Sires, you heard of Wukong?”
White Impermanence sighed. He shook his head and said, “Not only have we heard of Wukong, but we also fought with that monkey. We have an alright relationship, too bad he sacrificed himself from what we last heard.”
‘This…is the sequel to Journey to the West?!’
Li Nianfan pursed his lips. He stood in place dumbfounded. His emotions were riled up and he felt extremely disturbed.
His mind was filled with excitement, nervousness, confusion, and thrills. He had goosebumps from that.
He thought he came to an ordinary Immortal Realm. In the end, he realized he was living in the legendary realm. Anyone would freak out.
Since Wukong had already sacrificed himself, he must be living in the post-Journey to the West time period.
No stories were recorded about that time period. Li Nianfan called it the blank story time period.
It was just an instant, but he already pieced a lot of the information together.
After Journey to the West ended, there was a big tribulation. It caused the Heavenly Palace to be gone, the Underworld had collapsed, Buddhism was destroyed. The rising Demons were highly likely the Demons of that Lawless!
It also explained why the Immortal Realm was so weak.
No wonder those Immortals were so serious when he told the stories.
He be telling stories to the same people in those stories.
For the cultivators, those stories were not stories. They were history!
‘I became a History teacher for the Immortals.’
“Mr. Li,” White Impermanence pulled Li Nianfan back to reality, “Perhaps Mr. Li knew that monkey?”
“Cough. I heard of him. I heard of him.” Li Nianfan softly coughed and hurriedly brushed it off.
He felt more excited after the huge shock.
After all, he was a huge fan of the mythical realm from a young age. Anyone would be excited. He got the chance to experience the world in his stories. At that moment, his unfamiliarity with the Immortal Realm vanished for good. He felt good about it, maybe he would run into famous characters.
‘Too bad I did not transmigrate to earlier periods. Maybe I could have run into the famous Wukong. Sigh, what a waste.’
“Speaking of that monkey, he was quite respectable,” sighed the Black Impermanence.
White Impermanence also said, “After that monkey died, the big tribulation came after thousands of years. I still feel anxious thinking about that day, my Underworld… Sigh, forget it.”
Li Nianfan asked, “Was it that serious?”
White Impermanence forced a smile and said, “You didn’t know, Mr. Li. There are way too many ghosts that escaped. Most of them are hiding in discreet places. They are causing a lot of harm. On the other hand, Onis are getting lesser in the Underworld. We are not capable of controlling the situation at all!”
Li Nianfan had an idea. He felt like it was a good opportunity. He said, “I have an idea.”
“Oh?” The Black and White Impermanence felt their hearts raced. They hurriedly said, “Please tell us, Mr. Li.”
Li Nianfan smiled and said, “The Underworld can set up a spot at the Immortal Realm, name it as the City Castle. It can protect the people, manage the ghosts, court cases, bless the people, and more.”
“A spot at the Immortal Realm? City Castle?” The Black and White Impermanence had sparkles in their eyes the more they thought about it.
Black Impermanence said, “This might work! Why didn’t we think of setting up a spot at the Immortal Realm before?”
White Impermanence slapped his thigh. “Nice, it’s a nice idea!”
“If so, we not only fixed the understaffing issue, we can also bond with the people of the Immortal Realm. It improves our dealings with emergencies too. It has a lot of benefits!”
They underestimated the benefits.
The City Castle would let the people think highly of the Underworld. They could be powerful again.
Even the pale White Impermanence was flushed from excitement. He said sincerely, “Mr. Li, you are truly talented. Just with this plan alone, you are now the VIP of the Underworld!”
Li Nianfan secretly felt good. He acted like it was no big deal. “Hey, it was just a casual idea, don’t mind it.”
Black Impermanence said, “Mr. Li, in your opinion, who should run the City Castle?”
“Should be run by locals. Someone who is powerful and approved by the people. That way they can truly work for the people and protect the people with sincerity.”
Li Nianfan paused and gave an example, “Like that male ghost from last time that Mr. Bing brought back. He’s suitable to play the role.”
The Black and White Impermanence nodded understandingly.
They were thinking about all the possibilities of the plan. Finally, they found out that the plan was invincible. It was considered the best blessing of the Underworld!
If they did that earlier, the Underworld would not end up so tragic even after the big tribulation.
‘Is this the power of a Saint? He simply thought of a plan that could create a new era!’
‘So exceedingly powerful!’
Li Nianfan smirked. The creation of the City Castle was beneficial to him too.
He was a VIP of the Underworld. When he dies, he could ask for a job at the City Castle. The Underworld would naturally agree to give him a job, right?
Therefore, he made a nice career path for his future.
Black Impermanence saluted and said, “Mr. Li, do you have any more suggestions for the City Castle?”
Li Nianfan groaned for a moment and spoke, “I think that the City Castle can be an office at the Immortal Realm. Responsible for managing ordinary people or the recently dead. As for the evil ghosts cases, set up the City Castle Deity, the Soulbringer, the God of Daywalkers, and the God of Nightwalkers at the bottom of the City Castle. They should come with their decisions and report the cases in detail to the Underworld. The Underworld will take it from there.”
“Nice. That is quite nice!” The Black and White Impermanence nodded with excitement. They could picture it.
‘Awesome. The future is bright.’
‘And with that, the job description is clear, everything is in order, everyone will have easier tasks, and we will no longer be understaffed. It’s all good. Absolutely perfect.’
They would have bowed at Li Nianfan if they forgot about the role that he was cosplaying. After all…it was the advice of a Saint!
Black Impermanence said with a straight face, “Your words are our breakthroughs, Mr. Li. If you ever need anything, the Underworld will be glad to help!”
Li Nianfan hesitated and said, “I do have something to ask.”
White Impermanence gestured with a wave and said generously, “Feel free to ask, Mr. Li.”
Mr. Li asked, “If an ordinary man has no Spiritual Root, are there any methods to cultivate? Can he cultivate with his soul?”
“This…” Black Impermanence was stumped. He shook his head and said, “Men are different from ghosts. Soul cultivation is another variation of reincarnation. The purpose is to gain new flesh. Ordinary people cannot cultivate with their souls.”
“Oh.” Li Nianfan disappointingly shook his head.
He could not kill himself to cultivate as a ghost. Wait, actually, he could, but…never mind.
Suddenly, White Impermanence said, “Mr. Li, there is a way. You can cultivate with your flesh.”
Li Nianfan jolted!
‘Why didn’t I think of something so simple?’
White Impermanence noticed that Li Nianfan looked happy, he hurriedly added, “The Underworld has a flesh cultivation method. I’ll go get it for you, Mr. Li.”
“Really? Thanks!” Li Nianfan did not reject his offer. He could not wait.
Black and White Impermanence looked at each other. They did not dare to delay. They immediately said, “Yeah. Please wait for a while, Mr. Li. We’ll be back as soon as we can.”
Then, they flew out.
Dragin asked curiously, “Brother, you don’t want to be an ordinary man anymore?”
Li Nianfan replied, “Being an ordinary man is indeed nice, but it is inconvenient. I don’t wish for much, I don’t need to be all that, I don’t need to be powerful. I want to fly and be able to protect myself so I don’t be a burden for others.”
He was surrounded by Immortals while he was just an ordinary man. Although they did not mind it, Li Nianfan secretly did. He did not show it but he cared. Especially when Daji went off to cultivate.
Blackie nodded and noted that. It seemed like his Master was tired of playing the ordinary man, he was ready to switch it up.
At the Underworld, the Black and White Impermanence were rushing.
Usually, they would not simply trespass the area of the Houtu Empress. However, the Houtu Empress once said that anything related to the expert, even the small details, could be reported anytime.
Especially when the incident was…way important!
“Black and White Impermanence request to meet Popo!”
“Back? How’s everything?”
The hunched Meng Po slowly stirred a pot of hot soup.
Black Impermanence immediately replied, “Popo, we got into trouble this time. Thankfully, the expert helped us to get through it.”
Meng Po stopped stirring. She asked in a shocked voice, “The expert is involved?”
White Impermanence said, “Not only that. The expert also gave us advice. We can change the fate of the Underworld!”
Meng Po was intrigued. She could not wait to hear it, “Really? Tell me.”
Black Impermanence said, “It’s a long story. We don’t have time to explain. The expert wants to learn flesh cultivation. We are here to ask for it.”
“Flesh cultivation? Why would the expert want that?”
Meng Po frowned and asked, “He wants to cultivate flesh at his level?”
She shook her head and said without hesitation, “But since it’s what the expert wishes, we should not delay it. Go immediately.”
She took out a small cowhide brochure. It looked extremely antique as it gleamed.
“Father’s mastery. It’s our greatest gift for him.”
Black Impermanence very carefully accepted the brochure from Meng Po. “I shall give the mastery to the expert. White, stay here and tell Popo what happened.”
White Impermanence nodded. “Okay!”
Black Impermanence took the brochure and flew back to Sapphire City as fast as he could. He appeared in the lobby again. “Mr. Li, here’s the mastery.”
“Thank you so much.”
Li Nianfan felt his heart thumping. He took the brochure and immediately read it.
He was electrified. His heart was thumping.
The answer for cultivation was right in front of him.
Too many things happened that day. Firstly, he re-evaluated the era he was in. He was living in the realm of the post-Journey to the West world. The Immortal Realm was going downhill. However, finding out where he was at was precisely why he wanted to be a cultivator more than ever.
After all, he was living in a fantasy realm. Since he was already here, why would he not try the legendary experiences?
Moreover, he seemed to have found a way to be a cultivator!
Blackie slowly stood up while Li Nianfan was reading. Its fur stopped flowing in the wind. It looked serious.
Dragin and Nanan also looked at Li Nianfan with seriousness.
Black Impermanence and the nearby Onis all jolted. They kept getting uncontrollable goosebumps.
They all had a feeling that later…something bad would happen!
Then, the sky suddenly turned gloomy. It was as if everything stopped in place.
Streaks of golden light shined from all directions. It was an ocean of golden light in the blink of an eye.
Everyone drowned in the golden light. They felt like they could not breathe. They could not move at all. The blinding golden light hurt their eyes.
“Deluxe Merit. That is the Deluxe Merit!”
Black Impermanence almost popped his eyes out of his skull. He stared dead at Li Nianfan while he screamed internally.
“How much Deluxe Merit did he have?! Did he attract all the Deluxe Merit of the entire realm?!”
He could not believe his eyes. He could not accept the truth.
‘That was the Deluxe Merit. Even Saints cared about Deluxe Merit!’
He could tell the Deluxe Merit was not given. It was forcefully taken by Li Nianfan. It was crazy!
It was incredible, unimaginable!
The Deluxe Merit circled Li Nianfan like rivers returning to the ocean. They merged with his body and wrapped him up. His Deluxe Merit was too much. It was overflowing.
A sea of golden light was formed with Li Nianfan as the center. It was infinitely powerful.
Blackie looked like it realized something. It used telepathy to communicate with the horrified Black Impermanence, “My Master said that he did not need to be powerful. He only wants to fly and be able to protect himself.”
Black Impermanence trembled hard. He almost passed away on the spot.
‘True. Deluxe Merit was indeed not harmful, it has no attack properties. However, you call that ability for self-defense?’
‘But of course. So much Deluxe Merit wrapped him up. No one in the realm could hurt the expert.’
Even Saints would respectfully call him the Lord of Deluxe Merit. Nobody would dare to talk behind his back.
Li Nianfan thought it was odd.
The mastery had nine levels. He initially wanted to try it. He wanted to see if he could achieve it.
Then, something weird happened… First level, second level, third level…
He somehow finished the nine levels.
‘Maybe it’s a fake mastery?’
‘Or is my golden touch activated?’
