Teammates (Please Collect!!!)

"The Main God Hall has opened! Reincarnators, prepare yourselves!"

The mechanical, stiff, and vast voice still echoed when everything around Wu Ming went black. In an instant, he lost consciousness.

A terrifying sensation of falling swept over him. It was like being trapped in a nightmare, his whole body weightless, adrift with nothing to cling to. Wu Ming struggled to open his eyes, only to find that willing his body to move was incredibly difficult.

Boom!

Suddenly, it felt as though he had fallen from a great height and hit the ground. Wu Ming's whole body jolted, and his eyes flew open.

The mountains were lush and the waters clear, with cooking smoke curling upward. Not far away, there seemed to be a small village on the plains, but Wu Ming's pupils contracted slightly.

Because that wisp of smoke in the sky was utterly motionless!

Not just the smoke, but also the ancient trees nearby, the flowers and grass along the road, and the birds and beasts—all stood frozen. The world had stopped, like a lifelike specimen.

A ring of white light surrounded them. Several people were lying on the ground.

Wu Ming rolled his eyes. "The Stagnant World... So it really is the 'Main God'! Damn it! Why did I have to get handsy and pick up that piece of jade?"

This was the Main God Space! The Main God's world, rumored to be a hellish trial where people raised Gu and slaughtered one another. Fail a mission or fall short on points, and you were erased on the spot!

Heaven knew, Wu Ming had been quite satisfied with life in the Great Zhou World. He'd only wanted to search a corpse and see if there was anything worth picking up. He definitely hadn't wanted this!

With the foundation he had in the Great Zhou World, he could have kept a low profile and developed at his own pace.

He had the resources of a small Lineage and a sister who practiced Daoist arts. One day, coming into contact with Daoist Arts was no pipe dream!

Even if he turned out to be unsuited to Daoist cultivation, he could still practice martial arts, pursue Confucianism, or even take up witchcraft or become a Gu Master. There would always be a sliver of hope of attaining immortality!

But now, having fallen into the Main God Hall, it was a question whether he could even survive this mission!

"Damn it! Could this be Lin Qi's Golden Finger?"

Wu Ming instinctively felt his chest. The jade pendant that had gotten him into this mess was still there, but beyond that, he was empty-handed. Wu Ming's expression shifted slightly. He glanced at his unharmed right hand, his eyes narrowing further.

After all, he'd been wearing that Daoist Arts thumb ring earlier. He'd even burst with such overwhelming power for an instant that he'd burned his own hand.

But now, both the ring and the wound had vanished without a trace!

The implications gave Wu Ming a few ideas.

[Welcome, Reincarnators, to the Main God Hall!]

This time, an even more mysterious voice rang directly in Wu Ming's mind, mechanical and stiff, yet vast and boundless.

[Here is Heaven, here is Earth, here are the Six Paths of Reincarnation, and indeed, everything! Anything you desire can be found here! Any wish beyond your reach can be fulfilled here! So long as you complete the Main God Hall's missions, you can obtain an entire world!]

[Ding! Scanning Reincarnator, collecting information, assigning number...]

Before long, a screen of light appeared in front of Wu Ming, displaying ancient, mysterious characters that looked like seal script or inscriptions. Yet Wu Ming understood their meaning at a glance:

[Reincarnator Number: Gengshen 69!]

[Name: Wu Ming]

[Cultivation: Body Refinement Realm Fourth Layer Inner Strength]

[Equipment: Jade Pendant (Unknown Curio; return to the Main God Hall for appraisal)]

[Title: None]

[Your appearance and clothing have been subtly adjusted, and the language of the setting has been automatically installed, allowing you to communicate with its inhabitants without difficulty. This will disappear when the mission ends... Warning: Revealing information about the Main God Hall or the real world to the inhabitants of the setting is strictly forbidden. Violators will be erased!]

Wu Ming examined the screen of light from top to bottom, several times over. Especially the final two blood-red words, "erased"—they truly made his heart pound.

"It's just..."

Wu Ming looked at his attributes, nearly bursting with complaints. "Is that it? What about muscle strength? Reflexes? Even a simple list of strength and constitution would be more straightforward..."

"Ah!"

Just then, a woman's piercing scream rang out. Wu Ming turned around and saw the people who'd been lying down slowly getting to their feet. He couldn't help rolling his eyes again. Going by the rules of infinite-fiction stories, the stronger you are, the sooner you wake up. Doesn't that mean... they're even more useless than me?

His worries about whether they'd complete the mission and make it out alive grew even heavier.

"Young Master, may I ask where this place is?"

A woman in a pale yellow dress rose to her feet. She had a graceful figure, a beauty mark at the corner of her mouth, and a hint of the world of courtesans about her. She gave Wu Ming a delicate curtsy and asked softly.

Mm, at least she's keeping calm... Wu Ming nodded inwardly and was about to answer when the young man beside the woman in yellow also stood up, his face full of panic.

"Ah... What's going on? Wasn't I just enjoying myself in a tavern? How did I suddenly end up here? Who are you people? Kidnappers? My uncle is the County Lieutenant!"

Wu Ming ignored him and looked at the other two. One was a girl who looked only fifteen or sixteen, nervously twisting the hem of her clothes with both hands. The other was a sturdy, muscular man with a fierce face and the shifty, ruffian air of a street thug.

Including Wu Ming, there were three men and two women. At least the Main God Hall hadn't gone mad enough to drag in old people and children.

"Ahem..."

Wu Ming suddenly coughed, immediately drawing wary looks from the other four.

He gave a wry smile, shrugged, and spread his hands, doing his best to look innocent. "Actually... I came in with you. I'm just as confused as you are. This situation is strange. Shouldn't we join forces and get through it together? I can start by sharing a few things I've noticed. Think carefully and listen—some information seems to have already been engraved in our minds..."

As soon as Wu Ming finished speaking, the other four fell silent for a moment, then burst into cries of alarm, looking as if they'd seen a ghost.

"The Main God Hall? It can grant any wish, as long as you complete a mission? What a joke! It has to be a joke! Equipment? Titles? This is all just a bunch of tricks!"

The young man, whose hollow cheeks made him look drained by wine and women, put on a righteous expression. "We who study the sages' books must not be led astray by these strange and supernatural things!"

Wu Ming shot him a look of disdain. In this state? I bet your Righteous Qi is something you cultivated on a woman's belly.

"Actually... given who I am, I don't think anyone would go to such lengths just to play such a huge joke on me..."

The woman in the pale yellow dress gave a wry smile. "I'm from the East Sea Commandery. There isn't a plain this vast within a hundred li of home. It's as if I've crossed from south to north in the blink of an eye..."

"I'm from Qinbian Commandery! It's at the opposite end of the land from the East Sea Commandery. Even at full gallop, the journey would take several months!"

The man who looked like a gang enforcer grew even more grim.

"Well..."

The last girl, dressed in plain white, spoke timidly. "I... I heard... Father say that there are Grotto-Heaven Blessed Lands and hidden paradises in this world. Once you enter one, the seas may turn to mulberry fields, the ends of the earth may be just a step away, and the senses may be thrown into confusion. They can't be understood by ordinary reasoning. Could we have encountered something like that?"

"Oh?"

Wu Ming glanced at the girl in surprise. Her knowledge seemed to be a cut above that of the spoiled young master from before.

"All right! We're in a strange place. We should work together and weather this storm side by side. Why don't we introduce ourselves? Just our names, cultivation, and strengths will do!"

"I'm Huang Ying, from the Hundred Flowers Pavilion in the East Sea Commandery. As for my strengths... do music, chess, calligraphy, and painting count?"

Perhaps Wu Ming's actions earlier had put the others somewhat at ease. The woman named Huang Ying answered frankly, though she looked embarrassed when she got to her strengths.

"Do you have any martial arts or Daoist Arts cultivation?"

Wu Ming asked, clinging to his last hope.

Huang Ying shook her head slightly. "I fell into the world of courtesans and have made my living charming men for years. All I'm good at is welcoming guests and seeing them off. I know nothing of martial arts or Daoist Arts..."

Though this woman came from a lowly background, she'd spoken frankly without a change in expression, which made Wu Ming think more highly of her.

The young master's eyes lit up. "I never imagined there'd be such a beauty as you in the East Sea Commandery, Sister. I'll be sure to pay you a visit someday... This humble one is Kang Shou Li. My father is a wealthy man in Hedong City, and my second uncle is the County Lieutenant. My Kang family is fairly well known in Hedong City. When I was young, I hired a Martial Master and learned two layers of martial arts..."

"So you're Young Master Kang. Pleased to meet you!"

Huang Ying was worthy of her background as a courtesan. With a delicate smile, she had Kang Shou Li utterly lost in a blink, his expression entranced.

"Qin Hu! Third Layer of the Body Refinement Realm!"

The black-clad man was a man of few words, his eyes still darting around uneasily.

"I... I'm Xiao Yu. What about you, big brother?"

The last girl's voice was soft and sweet. Her bright, sparkling eyes turned toward Wu Ming.

"Not bad. We've all introduced ourselves, but you haven't said anything yet. There's nothing you can't tell people. Do you have some secret?"

Kang Shou Li's eyes shifted, and he spoke loudly.

"The world of martial artists is treacherous, so I never leave my name behind!"

A trace of a smile tugged at Wu Ming's lips. He thoughtfully glanced at the girl named Xiao Yu. "I have neither a name nor a surname. You can just call me Nameless!"

You've got to be kidding me!

The other four were instantly covered in black lines. Qin Hu, the most short-tempered of them, nearly rolled up his sleeves and started a fight.

"As for my cultivation, I've also reached the Third Layer of the Body Refinement Realm, with my sinews and bones ringing in unison!"

Wu Ming smiled as he flicked his right hand. His force surged through his body in successive waves, crackling like firecrackers.

"Force entering the bones—the peak of the third layer?"

Qin Hu's pupils contracted slightly, and he didn't step forward again. Wu Ming's martial cultivation was even a little higher than his own, though Qin Hu had only just entered the sinew-and-bone stage.

Qin Hu was confident he wouldn't necessarily lose, but after glancing at the people around them, he stopped.

"Hmph! A crude martial artist!"

Kang Shou Li snorted, looking as though he considered Wu Ming beneath him. Xiao Yu, meanwhile, gazed at Wu Ming with an innocent expression.

Just then, the Main God Hall's majestic voice rang directly in everyone's minds:

[All Reincarnators confirmed! Beginning this mission!]