The Boomerang from Thousands of Years Ago

Zhou Yao had been transported here for two months. Before that, the original owner of this body hadn't actually been familiar with Liu Wenjun.

One was a top-five student in their year, a young lady from an exceptional family and an academic star. The other was a withdrawn orphan. Even as desk mates, they could only be called familiar strangers.

What had truly brought Zhou Yao and Liu Wenjun closer was something that had happened over a month ago.

At the time, Zhou Yao had been worried that the Mythic Invasion at Yin Mountain Metro might bring danger. But he was alone and had no channel through which to report it, so he could only start with Liu Wenjun.

Liu Wenjun came from an extraordinary background, and there were supposedly Mythic Walkers in her Lineage. If he could use her to spread the news, perhaps the Mythic Invasion at Yin Mountain Metro could be resolved.

So, for the first time, Zhou Yao had indirectly asked Liu Wenjun why Yin Mountain City would build a metro system. This academic-star young lady had unusually failed to answer the question, and unprecedented confusion had flashed across her delicate face.

After a string of incoherent replies, Liu Wenjun had ultimately left behind only one sentence.

"Go back and look it up."

Yet the next day, when Zhou Yao tried to bring up Yin Mountain Metro again, Liu Wenjun acted as though she had forgotten their conversation from the day before.

After several reminders in a row, Liu Wenjun had always repeated the same cycle from shock to forgetting. Each time, it was as though an invisible hand had pressed a reset button, dragging her memories back to their initial state.

Faced with this unsolvable problem, Zhou Yao had ultimately given up on using Liu Wenjun to report it. He realized this wasn't simple forgetfulness, but some kind of cognitive interference from a higher level.

Because of their frequent contact before, even though Liu Wenjun had lost the related memories, she had retained a trace of fondness for Zhou Yao emotionally. That was how the two had gradually become good friends.

Many of the shops and black markets Zhou Yao knew of that sold Mythic Materials had been learned from Liu Wenjun, as though she were a Mythic Walker Mini Encyclopedia.

Before today, Zhou Yao wouldn't have been overly proactive in asking about Mythic Walkers, lest Liu Wenjun notice something.

But now that he had successfully created the Yellow Wind Little Sage and come into contact with genuine Mythic Walkers and the Celestial Circuit Realm, Zhou Yao had far too many questions that needed answers.

And while the Yellow Wind Little Sage's potential was certainly extraordinary, Zhou Yao himself was still an ordinary person. He also urgently needed to find a way to become a Mythic Walker.

The Liu Wenjun before him had become the best person to answer Zhou Yao's doubts.

Thoughts flickering through his mind, Zhou Yao put on a curious expression and asked Liu Wenjun, "Miss Liu, if I don't go to university, what other ways are there to become a Mythic Walker?"

Liu Wenjun turned around and glanced at Zhou Yao, then let out a long sigh, looking as though she hated that iron hadn't become steel.

"A few days ago, you were asking how to enter the Celestial Circuit Realm. Now you want to know how to become a Mythic Walker. If you put the energy you spend asking questions all day into studying Mythology General Knowledge, you might've already had a shot at getting into a first-rate university. Then you'd naturally have a Mythic Walker slot."

Watching Liu Wenjun nag away like an old mother, Zhou Yao had long since grown used to it. The invisible Yellow Wind Little Sage on his shoulder even stretched out its tiny paws to plug its host's ears.

Only after a round of nagging and warnings did Liu Wenjun finally get to the point, her tone shifting into serious-explanation mode.

"If you possess a special talent, you can also choose not to take the college entrance examination route. Instead, you can directly join a research institute, a major corporate consortium, or some noble Federation family."

She paused, a glint of mockery flashing through her eyes.

"Of course, once you join such forces, you'll have to sign contracts with harsh terms. Even if you become a Mythic Walker, you'll need to serve them for centuries. It's comparable to a deed of sale from the old era—using your life in exchange for a single opportunity."

"In truth, whether you enter one of the Five Great Academies through the college entrance examination or join one of those various forces, there is only one essential way to become a Mythic Walker."

Liu Wenjun's expression became even more solemn as she spoke carefully, word by word.

"That is to conduct a ritual, incorporate the Mythic Trait within a certain Mythic Material into yourself, and make your body bear myth."

"Before accommodating a Mythic Trait, you need to continuously absorb Mythic Factors to strengthen your body. Then you select the Mythic Material that suits you best and study the relevant Mythic Lore, thereby reducing the rejection reaction of the Mythic Trait. Only then can you conduct the ritual and accommodate the myth. Every link in this entire process is interlocked; none can be omitted."

"Across the entire Human Federation, those capable of completing the full process are without exception major forces commanding immense wealth and power. Even some fallen Federation nobles cannot afford to complete an entire Ascension Ritual.

"Moreover, because the Mythic Traits possessed by different Mythic Materials vary, the ritual will change accordingly. There are considerable risks during the process of conducting an Ascension Ritual."

Her voice carried a trace of emotion. "Only the Five Great Academies possess the greatest number of the most stable Ascension Charts. That is why countless people dream of entering the Five Great Academies.

"If you set aside those major forces, for an ordinary person to ascend into a Mythic Walker is as difficult as climbing to the heavens."

At that point, Liu Wenjun paused. She subconsciously glanced at Zhou Yao before adding, "Of course, nothing is absolute. There really are some lucky people who accidentally become Mythic Walkers."

"For example, ten years ago, Luoshui City experienced a Mythic Invasion. A blood-red river pierced through the Celestial Circuit Realm and poured into the real world, leaving Luoshui City devastated and its people scattered in misery. It caused hundreds of thousands of casualties.

"Afterward, a very small number of ordinary people who had come into contact with that blood-red river survived, and some had even accidentally ascended into Mythic Walkers. But such an accident is difficult to replicate."

"After the Luoshui City Mythic Invasion Incident, the Mythology Investigation Bureau activated a secret treasure in an attempt to investigate the cause, but they obtained only one piece of information.

"The bloodline origins of everyone who died in the Mythic Invasion could all be traced back to a family named Sima.

"According to the History of Lost Civilizations, the Sima Family seemed to have been a vast imperial family. That Blood River was like a fated curse. Ordinary people who touched it could even hope to ascend into Mythic Walkers, but anyone carrying the Sima Family's bloodline would certainly die upon contact."

"Some people even took the opportunity to steal part of the Blood River's water and use it to assassinate those with Sima blood."

Liu Wenjun's expression gained a few shades of heaviness. "This is reality. Some find a chance at life through disaster, while others walk toward a dead end because of their bloodline."

The corner of Zhou Yao's mouth twitched imperceptibly. He tried his best to maintain a calm expression, but waves had already risen in his mind.

The moment he heard Luoshui City and the Sima Family, Zhou Yao understood exactly what had happened.

In history, Sima Yi had pointed to the Luoshui and sworn to grant Cao Shuang wealth and honor, deceiving Cao Shuang into surrendering military power. Yet after gaining control, Sima Yi had broken his oath and exterminated Cao Shuang's three clans. His descendants had even killed Prince of Gaogui in the street and usurped the throne, causing the Luoshui's reputation, passed down for millennia, to be ruined overnight.

And in this age where myths manifested, the Luoshui's revenge, delayed by thousands of years, had taken form as myth and ultimately descended upon the real world.

"The boomerang the Sima Family threw thousands of years ago had finally smashed into their own heads."