Three Days Later

Three days flashed by.

"Let's begin!"

At midnight, within the Main God Space, a dizzying sensation of the world spinning struck without warning as Wu Ming let out a low call.

Boom!

In an instant, heaven and earth shifted.

Wu Ming forced down his dizziness and looked around. The place where he had landed seemed to be some small mountain village. The scenery around him was hazy, and it was nighttime.

"But... this moonlight... It's so bright!"

He looked up, then couldn't help drawing in a sharp breath.

Countless stars blazed across the sky, shining brilliantly. A full silver moon hung at their center, tinged with wisps of purple.

"What a huge moon! And the stars are so bright!"

Every star in this sky was as large as a peck measure, its light blazing fiercely. The night was so bright that visibility was excellent, though there were few stars—only a little over three thousand, it seemed.

The stars surrounded the moon, with the lunar orb enthroned at the center, like a ruler seated in the Royal Court.

"Phew..."

Wu Ming exhaled and secretly contacted the Main God Hall. The first thing that appeared was his personal status:

[Reincarnator Number: Gengshen 69]

[Name: Wu Ming]

[Cultivation: Body Refinement Realm Sixfold, Innate; Human Immortal Second Layer, Refining Master]

[Equipment: Black Gold Ring, Dustless Robe, Yin Gathering Banner]

[Title: Main God Apostle]

[Your appearance and clothing have been slightly adjusted. The language of the setting has been automatically provided, allowing you to communicate freely with its inhabitants. This will disappear once 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!]

"Ah... Where is this?"

As several newcomers woke up, prompts from the Main God Hall continued to appear:

[All Reincarnators confirmed. Mission begins!]

[Setting Introduction: Star Yuan Continent, Qian Yuan Year 9. The Son of Heaven has lost virtue, and the land of China is in turmoil. In Caozhou, a man surnamed Li has risen up, seized Nine Mountains, and amassed an army of over ten thousand. He appointed an unusual man as his Military Advisor and routed the Official Army. Caozhou has fallen into chaos!]

[Side Quest: Join!]

[Mission Objective: Within ten days, earn their trust and join the Nine Mountains Army! Success: Reward of one hundred Great Merit. Failure: Erasure!]

[Main Quest: Establish a Kingdom! Within three months, help Li Rubi ascend the throne as king! If Li Rubi is defeated and killed, the mission will be considered a failure, and you will be erased! Complete the Main Quest to receive two hundred Great Merit!]

[Mission Setting: Medium! Mission Difficulty: Flood!]

"Three months... Not bad. That gives us a little more time to cultivate than we had in the Great Zhou World..."

As Wu Ming read the prompt, a faint smile appeared in his eyes.

"Damn it! The Main God Hall is messing with us again. Ever since the last mission, the setting's name hasn't changed, but the difficulty has gotten ridiculous. This time, we're supposed to support some Grass-head King?"

A handsome, tall young man in black groaned, "Is this still a Flood-level mission? Back in the day, this would've been at least a Universe- or Cosmic-level mission... At least there's a Great Merit reward to soothe my wounded heart..."

Seeing the newcomers still dazed, the young man shouted, "Stop standing there, rookies! Get a grip... One last reminder: this is a completely real world. If you die, you're really dead. Good luck!"

Then he muttered under his breath, "Newcomers on a Flood-level mission... The Main God Hall really outdid itself this time..."

He looked expectantly at Wu Ming and another person, then clasped his hands in greeting.

"I'm Xiao Jidu. A pleasure to meet you both. We'll have to rely on the three of us for this mission!"

Naturally outgoing, he spoke in a carefree manner. "First, let me introduce myself. I specialize in leg techniques, and I redeemed the Wind God Leg Technique from the Main God Hall..."

Wind God Leg Technique? Why not just call yourself Nie Feng?

Wu Ming rolled his eyes. But Xiao Jidu's Qi and Blood were condensed, and his legs were long and powerful. The man even gave him a sense of danger, and Wu Ming's heart tightened. His martial arts are even better than Feng Han's!

He returned the greeting. "I'm Nameless. I'm a martial artist too, at the Innate Sixth Layer."

"Nameless? You don't have a name?" Xiao Jidu looked awkward for a moment, then turned expectantly toward the last person.

There are only three veterans this time?

Wu Ming was curious about the last person too, and couldn't help studying him.

The man wore a brocade robe and a jade crown. His swordlike brows swept toward his temples, and his face was as lovely as jade from Mount Jing. A faint air of arrogance surrounded him. In his right hand, he held a fist-sized precious pearl that radiated dazzling light in five colors.

"Hmph! I'm Yu Shaojun. Let me make this clear in advance: don't cause me any trouble this time. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to take care of you both as well!"

When Yu Shaojun noticed Xiao Jidu and Wu Ming looking at him, he merely snorted, his expression scornful.

"You!"

Anger showed on Xiao Jidu's face.

Anyone who had survived a few missions in the Main God Hall had their own pride. Though this man looked carefree, seeing Yu Shaojun act this way still made him seethe.

He's acting like this because he's either an idiot—or he has something to rely on!

Wu Ming's thoughts stirred as he carefully sized up Yu Shaojun, who seemed to have fate itself on his side.

Hmm... The robe he's wearing is actually a magical garment!

Wu Ming's gaze settled on the man's gold-threaded brocade robe, and his expression shifted. The other man had a magical artifact and wore it openly. Wu Ming, by contrast, had deliberately worn another layer over his Dustless Robe.

The luminous pearl in his hand was clearly a powerful magical artifact too. It even gave Wu Ming a sense of danger.

But the person who drew Wu Ming's attention most was Yu Shaojun himself!

Why does this man give me such a... Wu Ming licked his lips and calmed the heat in his blood.

"Heh... This mission means facing an army of thousands, Young Master. Your supernatural abilities are impressive, but how much will you have left beneath the army's killing intent? And even if you manage to keep them, how many can you kill?"

Xiao Jidu fired back without hesitation.

"You can try..."

Yu Shaojun lowered his eyelids, danger glinting in his eyes. He took a few steps, realized he couldn't leave the area, and spat in annoyance. "The mission hasn't started yet. The restrictions are still in place..."

Seeing that Yu Shaojun was determined to go it alone, Xiao Jidu could only shrug at Wu Ming helplessly. "We've already lost an arm. We can only hope one of the newcomers turns out to be a promising talent..."

Wu Ming held back from telling Xiao Jidu that he was a lone wolf too.

"How is this possible?"

"No! I want to go back!"

"Haha... It's a hallucination. It has to be!"

"It's fake! None of this is real!"

By now, the newcomers seemed to have finally absorbed the information. Every one of them looked unable to accept it.

"I believe them. This place really isn't the same world as the Great Zhou!"

Another voice rang out, clear as an oriole's song. A woman in a white palace gown stepped forward, her skin glistening like jade and her features quite beautiful. She pointed up at the sky. "The evidence is that starry sky!"

"The starry sky?"

The newcomers all looked up. A moment later, every one of them stood with their mouths agape.

"With star power so abundant, and a pattern entirely different from the Great Zhou's Three Enclosures, Four Symbols, and Twenty-Eight Mansions, how could the Celestial Star Palace have overlooked this place if it were still the same world?"

The woman smiled lightly. Seeing the baffled looks around her, she couldn't help showing a helpless expression.

"Hm?"

When Wu Ming saw the woman, something suddenly stirred in him.

The shape of her face, and those bright, clever, watery eyes, gave him a familiar feeling.

It's Xiao Yu!

He immediately thought of the woman he had met on his first mission. She reminded him very much of Xiao Yu.

"Young Master, it seems you recognize this humble girl? My name is Xiao Di. Have we met before?"

Xiao Di approached him, asking with a faint, teasing smile.

"No! I just mistook you for someone else."

Wu Ming's thoughts stirred. He opened his spiritual eye and saw red Qi swirling around the woman, with a layer of clear light protecting her. It was even thicker than his own. He immediately realized that her Daoist arts might be a step above his.

The others were much the same, except for Xiao Jidu, whose red Qi billowed like a fiery cloud.

None of them had a natal destiny, which confirmed Wu Ming's suspicion that it was because of the Main God Hall.

When he looked at Yu Shaojun again, the corner of his eye twitched.

In Wu Ming's sight, golden-red Qi gathered above Yu Shaojun's head, with what seemed to be a hidden core at its center. Yu Shaojun's brows knitted after just one glance, as if he sensed something. The pearl in his hand glimmered faintly, and Wu Ming didn't dare look again.

This man's fortune is only slightly inferior to Sister Wu Qing's, and it seems he's hiding some enormous secret...

Wu Ming mused, Of course... Everyone's fortune has one thing in common: it's muddled with Calamity Qi. Outside, the dark Qi is even heavier. Is this a sign that disaster is coming?

[Mission begins!]

The vast, mechanical voice of the Main God Hall rang out. The air around them began to flow, and all the restrictions vanished.

Clip-clop!

Five or six cavalrymen galloped along the official road. Every one of them was strong and fierce, wearing leather armor, long swords at their waists, and quivers hanging from their saddles.

"Everyone in the village up ahead, listen! We are the Nine Mountains Army of General Li. We've been ordered to requisition grain and laborers. All of you, get out here!"

One of the cavalrymen looked toward Wu Ming and his companions. He gave a startled "Huh?" then burst into loud laughter and charged over like a gust of wind, drawing his saber with a murderous look. His target was none other than Yu Shaojun!

The soldiers and officers of Nine Mountains were unruly. Killing and looting were everyday affairs. With Yu Shaojun dressed so flamboyantly, he had only brought trouble upon himself.

"Hmph!"

Yu Shaojun had been about to step forward and ask for directions when he heard that they were soldiers from Nine Mountains. But now he changed his mind completely. The pearl in his hand flashed red. "Heaven and earth, lend me your fire! Obey my command—bind!"

Whoosh!

A burst of flame shot out in a cone toward the cavalryman.

"Hm? Daoist arts?"

To everyone's surprise, the cavalryman was nimble enough to leap aside and dodge the flames. His warhorse screamed and went up in flames, while he rolled several times across the ground before scrambling to his feet and shouting in alarm.

"Hm?"

The leader of the soldiers approached. When he saw Yu Shaojun and Xiao Di, he sneered. "They're all demons! Kill the men, but leave the woman!"

In an instant, all five or six mounted soldiers roared together and charged as one. They came at the group like an army of thousands, thundering forward!