Zhong Shenxiu gazed at the Heavenly Show System and grasped one piece of information after another.
"Turns out the Gate of Ten Thousand Doors also needs a world as its foundation and coordinate—or rather... an anchor—before it can be opened!"
"At this moment, this world I'm in has already become the Gate of Ten Thousand Doors' greatest anchor!"
"Its opening doesn't mean I have to cross over immediately. It means a gate to a new world has been pushed open. I can enter and give it a try, or I can return..."
"So that's how it is. At the beginning, because my strength was insufficient, only my soul could cross over... In other words, only soul transmigration?"
"I'll have to plan this carefully. I'm extremely curious about a whole new world."
The first issue was time. He had to tell Huang Xie and the others, so they wouldn't worry.
He also had to go to Feng Xi'er and ask for an extended leave. After all, he still had duties to fulfill.
Aside from that, there was also the matter of safety.
Once his soul left his body, his physical body would be extremely vulnerable.
But Zhong Shenxiu wasn't worried about that. He had publicly announced that he was going into seclusion somewhere, but in reality, he could hide in an alternate dimension and order the Headless Count to guard him. It would be absolutely foolproof.
After considering everything, Zhong Shenxiu proceeded in an orderly fashion and went to request leave first.
Feng Xi'er waved her hand grandly and approved it on the spot. At the end, she seemed to have some deeper meaning as she said, "It's good for you to lie low for a while."
That immediately let Zhong Shenxiu know that some traces of the Lu Huolong incident had still reached the higher-ups.
After returning to the residence, he summoned Huang Xie and the others and told them his plans.
At the end, he also glanced at the two dogs.
Huang Xie and Er Ha had obtained Xiantian Qi Gong and trained painstakingly every day. Unfortunately, they had yet to enter the threshold and refine even a strand of Xiantian True Qi.
Returning Houtian to Xiantian was the first major hurdle in Martial Arts cultivation. It was far from easy.
As for Su Tang and Su Wei, the two of them had only barely replenished their depleted bodies and were just beginning to cultivate from scratch.
When Su Wei heard that Zhong Shenxiu was going into seclusion, her large, limpid eyes were filled with reluctance.
"I don't know how long this seclusion will last. If anything happens, Su Tang and Huang Xie should discuss it together."
Zhong Shenxiu stroked Su Wei's little head and smiled. "If I see that you've made progress when I return, I'll teach you a Daoist Art."
"Really?" Su Wei's eyes widened with excitement.
Even in the former Su Family, true inheritances belonged exclusively to the direct line. Some could only be practiced by the heir.
Those collateral branches had been coveting the might of Daoist Arts for more than a day or two.
"Of course. A gentleman's word is his bond."
Zhong Shenxiu had at least two inheritances in hand. Although both were severely incomplete, they were more than enough to give the others something to do.
After making all the arrangements, he entered the secret chamber on the surface, but in reality, his figure flashed and vanished from the residence.
A pitch-black space.
"Keep a close watch on my physical body."
Zhong Shenxiu summoned the Headless Count and issued the order. Then he sat cross-legged, gazed at the Heavenly Show System, and moved his mind. "Gate of Ten Thousand Doors, open!"
Boom!
His body trembled, then he entered a state of hibernation, as though he had died.
At the same time, Zhong Shenxiu's soul leaped violently, seemingly falling into a bottomless abyss.
His consciousness spread outward, and he seemed to see a speck of light.
Red, yellow, white...
They were countless multicolored spheres of light.
Some of their colors even surpassed the bounds of his imagination and concepts, impossible to describe in words.
The countless spheres of light suddenly merged with one another, forming a majestic gate filled with vast, surging power!
" The gate! "
Zhong Shenxiu's heart stirred. He knew that this was not merely the power of the system; it also had something to do with that existence.
"If this damn system deducted who-knows-how-many achievement points from me every time I crossed over, it's being pretty obedient now. Looks like beating it up every so often really is necessary!"
Zhong Shenxiu thought this with some amusement as he entered that indescribable gate.
His consciousness suddenly went black, and he fell into slumber.
"I must become the strongest Martial Artist!"
Zhong Shenxiu had no idea how long he had slept. He only awoke when a cry echoing beside his ear called him back to consciousness.
He struggled to open his eyelids and found the glare of fluorescent lights spilling down. A familiar—or rather, unfamiliar—ceiling hung overhead, while the familiar smell of disinfectant lingered at the tip of his nose.
This is... a world with technology resembling the modern era?
Zhong Shenxiu slowly sat halfway up and leaned against the pillow as he looked around.
He seemed to be in a hospital room. A television in front of him was broadcasting a mixed martial arts match.
On the screen, a young yellow-skinned man was locked in a struggle with a burly white man who looked like a beast.
Suddenly, the young yellow-skinned man stepped forward with a horse-like stance. His spine shuddered like a dragon pillar, and his right fist shot out like a cannon shell, striking the white giant squarely on the chin.
The man as massive as a polar bear collapsed, and the entire venue erupted in cheers.
"The seventeenth World No-Rules Fighting Championship has concluded! The winner is Martial Artist Mr. Shi Xiaolong from the Star Alliance! Let us cheer for him!"
Familiar yet strange words came from the television.
Zhong Shenxiu suddenly trembled as a flood of memories surfaced.
The Star Alliance, technology, Hua Wu, Martial Artists...
So this is a technologically advanced world, but not the one I crossed into... It's merely very similar.
In this world, Martial Arts existed in ancient times. Thus, despite the advanced technology, the martial spirit remained strong. Martial arts schools could be found everywhere, and all kinds of Martial Arts competitions emerged one after another...
It even gave birth to a specialized profession—the Martial Artist! They were an important bargaining chip in many commercial negotiations, interest negotiations, and even diplomatic mediation.
Why does this feel like an upgraded version of a gang's enforcer? Upgrade the gang into a company or even a nation, and the flavor is about the same.
The youth I possessed, named Hua Wu, had spent his entire life dreaming of becoming the strongest Martial Artist?
Zhong Shenxiu sensed a kind of obsession.
Through his connection with the Heavenly Show System, he knew that crossing over through the Gate of Ten Thousand Doors had this drawback.
He had to fulfill the host's obsession before he could return!
If he failed, he could only remain in this world forever.
"To be honest, staying in this technologically advanced world isn't bad. All sorts of comforts are nice enough. It's just that the lifespan is a little short—people can't live past a hundred... And they can only ever be ants, with a limit to their strength..."
Zhong Shenxiu thought, I'll return once I've had enough fun.
The only thing that reassured him was that, compared with this world, his anchor world had a much higher level of existence. Thus, the flow of time was also unbelievably faster.
Specifically, one day over there was equivalent to one year here!
"It really is the difference between Heaven and the mortal realm. Everyone says immortals are good, but only the mortal world is impossible to forget. Hahaha... Although I'm not an immortal, I can still secretly descend to the mortal realm. Not bad, not bad."
A smile appeared on Zhong Shenxiu's face.
"What are you grinning about?"
Smack!
The television was suddenly switched off.
Just as Zhong Shenxiu was staring blankly at the final speck of light fading from the screen, a gruff voice sounded from beside him. "A-Wu, you're still watching this kind of television? Dreaming, are you?"
"What era is this now? No matter how high your Martial Arts skill is, one shot will drop you. Apart from those top-tier Martial Artists, the rest of the martial practitioners can only work as security guards. If you can land a job as a fitness instructor, that's already considered good treatment!"
"Practice Martial Arts? What use is there in practicing Martial Arts? In the past, whoever was still standing won a fight. Now, whoever hits the ground first wins!"
Before you continue