"Plop!"
It sounded like some heavy object had fallen into the water.
In the blink of an eye, the sound of rippling water swiftly vanished, and Lin Shuguang's figure disappeared from this secluded residence in Nanshan Garden.
"You have connections here too?"
Who could have imagined that beneath the ancient well in this secluded residence lay another world entirely?
The instant Lin Shuguang passed through the ancient well, he arrived in a void. Not far ahead stood a man whose limbs were bound by the Chain of Karma.
It was precisely the mysterious man he had encountered in Central State before.
The radiance erupting from the Chain of Karma obscured the mysterious man's face. Just as last time, Lin Shuguang still couldn't make out his features.
The man spoke, his tone carrying a hint of ease. "Congratulations. You've finally reached this stage. I imagine your strength is no longer at the Core Realm you were in before. Not bad. Too much time has passed, and I can't clearly remember some things anymore. I suppose this should be about the right time."
The mysterious man looked at Lin Shuguang, and there was some confusion in his eyes as well.
In his memory, Lin Shuguang at this point shouldn't have possessed such deep blood qi. But the years he had experienced were simply too distant; how could he remember every detail clearly?
Still, it seemed about right. Some things matched up with what he remembered.
It was only the finer differences that he could no longer recall.
"I haven't asked yet—what should I call you?" Lin Shuguang asked from five meters away.
The mysterious man paused. The iron chains binding his arms rattled. After a moment, he chuckled softly. "I actually forgot. You may call me Demon Mountain."
"Demon Mountain? The Demon Mountain?" Lin Shuguang froze.
He thought of Demon Mountain, where he had gone during the State Selection in Central State.
If he remembered correctly, it seemed that after equipping the Beast God Soul at the time, he had unleashed a powerful ultimate move. That had caused Demon Mountain to quake, and in the end, an indescribable monster had descended. Crawling out from Demon Mountain, it had crushed Jade Void Palace—and even more than a dozen experts from the various major sects—with a single hand.
So were these two "Demon Mountains" one and the same?
Lin Shuguang sized up the body of the "Demon Mountain" before him. After a long hesitation, he asked, "What exactly is our relationship?"
"Demon Mountain" fell silent for a while. "Actually, none of that is important."
"Cut the crap." Lin Shuguang interrupted him without the slightest courtesy. "You inexplicably appeared before, then told me all those things, and those things have continued happening in reality. And you're telling me it isn't important? Damn it, if I weren't unable to beat you, I'd want to hack you apart right now."
Lin Shuguang's temper was laid bare.
The person across from him who called himself "Demon Mountain" didn't seem to mind. It was almost as though he was accustomed to it. After pondering Lin Shuguang's tirade for a while, he said, "In truth, it isn't that I don't want to tell you. Rather, the laws governing this world will automatically erase what I say. Lin Shuguang, although your cultivation isn't high, you should understand even better how powerful the force of rules is.
"You yourself don't belong to this world. You don't even belong to this spacetime..."
"Demon Mountain" suddenly fell silent midway through his sentence.
Lin Shuguang guessed that the force of rules had appeared and blocked out everything "Demon Mountain" had said afterward. He tried to read "Demon Mountain's" lips, but the radiance of the Chain of Karma had completely covered his entire face.
Lin Shuguang's blood qi surged. He tried to force his way forward and shake away that radiance, only to discover that his power couldn't provoke the slightest reaction from the Chain of Karma.
"Stop wasting your strength. This Chain of Karma comes from this world's Heavenly Dao. Unless your strength has surpassed the will of the Heavenly Dao here, all you can do is stare helplessly." The mysterious man, "Demon Mountain," spoke again. "You and I do indeed have some connection. But the specifics involve the karma of the Heavenly Dao. The will of the Heavenly Dao here regards our connection as something that violates the rules, so whatever I say will automatically be muted... That description is a little crude, but that's truly what happens."
Lin Shuguang ignored him and continued charging forward. His martial force struggled against the Chain of Karma, yet after more than ten seconds, he had moved no more than a centimeter.
"Demon Mountain" was so alarmed by Lin Shuguang's reckless ferocity that his brows twitched violently. He couldn't help urging him, "Lin Shuguang, don't act rashly. The more you provoke the Chain of Karma, the more I'll be the one to get hurt. Being lashed by the Chain of Karma really hurts."
"What does that have to do with me?" Lin Shuguang said coldly. His blood qi showed no sign of easing and instead surged wildly!
The surrounding void seemed to be crushed by some force, tearing the air apart again and again.
"Demon Mountain" felt his scalp go numb. "Lin Shuguang, Brother Lin, A-Lin, I'm begging you!"
Lin Shuguang finally stopped. He had originally wanted to approach that fellow, but the will of the Heavenly Dao in this place was simply too strong. He couldn't shake it at all.
In fact, during their exchange just now, he had already gleaned some useful information from that fellow's words.
The person calling himself "Demon Mountain" didn't possess accurate memories of certain matters. He had even thought that Lin Shuguang had truly gone to work nine to five every day as he had previously mentioned, and had even pursued the so-called opportunities.
This meant that Lin Shuguang's variable had truly emerged.
As long as his variable existed, it meant that his future actions wouldn't necessarily be discovered by existences like "Demon Mountain," and his trump cards wouldn't be exposed.
But at the same time, "Demon Mountain" could be regarded as a glimpse of the future. If he made proper use of him, he might be able to seize even more advantages for himself.
Thus, after pausing, he withdrew the blood qi throughout his body and asked calmly, "Tell me what comes next."
"Demon Mountain" let out a sigh of relief. "I told you before, I absolutely won't harm you. Harming you would be the same as harming myself. That's why I hope even more that you can grow stronger. Since you were able to trigger this temporal juncture, I imagine you've already met Ji Feng... Oh, right, you can make use of him. He's a little foolish, but the Ji family is powerful and wealthy. You can use him. In the future, the karma of the Heavenly Dao can be shifted onto the Ji family..."
"What will happen to the Ji family once the karma is shifted onto them?" Lin Shuguang asked casually.
"Demon Mountain" wore an indifferent expression. "Whatever happens has nothing to do with you, Lin Shuguang. You must always remember that you don't belong to this world. None of the people who appear here have anything to do with you..."
Lin Shuguang glanced over without revealing anything.
"Demon Mountain" seemed to sense it and slowly said, "I know saying this makes me sound cold-blooded, but this is the best way to protect you. You're incompatible with the Heavenly Dao here. When Eternal Night descends in the future, everything about you will be detected by the Heavenly Dao. By then, the truth that you came from a wayward will will be sensed by the Heavenly Dao here.
"The Heavenly Dao will that fled from its world won't help you. So you'll be isolated and helpless here. When that time comes, the Heavenly Dao here will have its countless carefully nurtured experts hunt you down, and the Ji family's experts will be no exception. At that point, you won't be able to trust anyone here. Thinking about it that way, do you still think the Ji family is innocent?"
Lin Shuguang fell silent. "Is there any way to break this? And what does Eternal Night mean?"
From "Demon Mountain's" words, it sounded as though Eternal Night would descend at some point, and when it did, the will of the Heavenly Dao here would hunt him down.
"Damn it, isn't this just asking me to die?"
"Demon Mountain" said calmly, "Eternal Night will be this world's darkest hour. The entire Totem Continent will plunge into chaos. Those fools have only the dynasty in their eyes, never realizing that the true age of turmoil will engulf the entire continent..."
"Wait." Lin Shuguang had suddenly heard an even deeper secret, and he immediately felt that things were going rather badly.
So after all his cultivation, he was still being forcibly driven into opposing the entire world.
Taking a deep breath, he said, "Damn it, I really want to hack you to death right now. Tell me, does that Guardian Supreme from the Baojian Sect have anything to do with you?"
"Guardian Supreme?" Demon Mountain's tone carried a trace of doubt. After a moment, as though he had remembered something, he said, "I do recall placing a pawn in the Baojian Sect back then. I suppose that must be the person you're talking about."
Lin Shuguang frowned. "So it was your idea to have me enter this world?"
"No, no, no. Lin Shuguang, you're making me out to be far too sinister." Demon Mountain denied it immediately. "In truth, none of this was my doing. It was karma. Lin Shuguang, you inherited karma and were born against fate. None of this can be resisted by the power of one person. I helped you only because I wanted you to seize a trace of opportunity as soon as possible amid this chaotic battle."
"Why help me? I want a real answer." Lin Shuguang was perfectly calm.
"If you don't die, I won't die."
Demon Mountain spoke slowly.
Lin Shuguang raised his brows. After a moment of silence, he asked the most practical question, "How long until Eternal Night descends?"
"One month at the soonest, three months at the latest. That's why I told you to hurry and grow stronger. Remember, on the seventh day of the tenth month, go to the Imperial Capital's treasury. Powerful experts will battle that day. Take advantage of the chaos to loot the Great Gan Dynasty's treasury. There are plenty of pills inside. Take them and leave quickly. Don't linger, and don't get greedy... You should know the Void Chaos Art by now, right? Use that thing to escape when the time comes. Once you reach the Nirvana Realm, you may still be able to seize a sliver of opportunity."
"Opportunity? You've fallen into this state, and you're sure that opportunity will be useful?" Lin Shuguang wasn't even mocking him. He plainly didn't believe it.
Demon Mountain froze on the spot, even becoming somewhat exasperated. "Easy for you to say. Do you know how many connections are involved in this matter? Pull one thread and the whole body moves. I had to tread on thin ice to deduce all of this!"
Lin Shuguang curled his lip. After a long pause, he said, "The seventh day of the tenth month? That's only a few days away. Are you telling me to leave the Black Prison?"
"There's nothing worth staying for in the Black Prison. Aside from Ji Wufeng, who's fairly decent and can be used, the others... Oh, right. Be careful around Sima Tingwei." Demon Mountain seemed to recall something, and his expression grew complicated.
"Sima Tingwei? Why do you say that?"
Before you continue