"A god's death is different from yours," Ba Bi Q explained with a hint of struggle. "To be precise, gods are immortal and cannot be destroyed. Death for us means complete annihilation, ceasing to exist in the world. Your human death, however, is merely the demise of the physical body. Your souls enter the cycle of worldly laws, forgetting past lives and entering the world anew as newborns. This signifies the eternal survival of the soul."
"Is reincarnation truly real?" Wang Cao Tian asked, shocked.
Jiang Yue paused, her eyes widening slightly. "Do you mean we can meet again with those who have 'passed away'?"
Ba Bi Q tilted its head and hummed in affirmation. "How would I know? Reincarnation, judgment of karma, a human lifespan of a mere century... whether past connections can be rekindled depends entirely on the word 'fate'."
Jiang Yue lowered her gaze, remaining silent for a long time.
Lu Zhi unconsciously clenched his fists and asked, "If a god disappears, do they truly... cease to exist in the world?"
Ba Bi Q looked at Lu Zhi with an odd, nostalgic, and reverent expression. "I once believed that disappearance meant nothingness. But seeing you, I realize that is not the case, though I don't know how you managed it..."
"But I..." Ba Bi Q lowered its head, nuzzling Lu Zhi's face with a mixture of fondness and attachment. "I am so grateful for your return. I don't know what you've been through, why you've lost your memory, or why you went..."
Lu Zhi hadn't clearly heard the last two words, but he felt they referred to something incredibly important.
"Time is short, and you should leave the divine tower now." Ba Bi Q raised its head and addressed Wang Cao Tian and Jiang Yue. "You have both passed the divine tower trials. Now, I shall bestow rewards upon you."
Wang Cao Tian, eager, asked with excitement, "What are the rewards?"
Jiang Yue also looked on with anticipation.
Ba Bi Q haughtily tilted its head, first glancing at Lu Zhi from the corner of its eye, then solemnly introducing itself: "Firstly, I am a Horse God, one of the twelve zodiac signs. My name is Qian Zhi. Henceforth, you shall address me as Lord Qian Zhi."
Wang Cao Tian and Jiang Yue instinctively looked at Lu Zhi.
Lu Zhi: ...If you had told me your name earlier, I wouldn't have given you such a fashionable name, would I, Ba Bi Q.
"I am under the command of the main god to suppress the anomalies in this area using the divine tower, and I cannot leave freely. However, when anomalies breach boundaries and invade our world, disrupting rules and laws, I open the divine tower. Those who pass the trials can receive the blessing of my divine mark." Ba Bi Q, or rather, Lord Qian Zhi, lightly stepped onto the mirror surface with its four hooves.
A resplendent golden horseshoe imprint materialized before Wang Cao Tian and Jiang Yue, bathing them in a sacred and brilliant light.
Qian Zhi asked, "Our bestowed mark can ward off one fatal injury. You have steadfast characters, are not swayed by temptation or threats, and do not abandon your companions. Because of the Horse God's favor, you are permitted to summon and ride horse spirits."
As the words fell, a galloping colt condensed from the golden horseshoe imprint and instantly vanished into the backs of Wang Cao Tian and Jiang Yue's hands.
Wang Cao Tian's mark was a black tattoo, while Jiang Yue's was white.
"Thank you for your generosity," Jiang Yue and Wang Cao Tian expressed their sincere gratitude.
They had clearly understood the reason the Horse God could not leave, and they knew the divine tower was the Horse God's aid to humanity.
A defense that could withstand one fatal blow was equivalent to an extra life. And the ability to summon horse spirits, they surmised, was likely the ability to summon horses as mounts. While there were benefits, there were also drawbacks, and the time for using the horse spirits was probably limited, but they were still incredibly powerful allies.
*Clang—*
A sudden shattering sound caused all three of them to freeze.
Lu Zhi stared in surprise at the Horse God's mark bestowed by Qian Zhi. The moment it touched his skin, it was repelled by a powerful force within him, refusing any contact.
"Damnable mad dog!" Qian Zhi roared in anger. Its hooves stomped forcefully, causing the entire space to rumble with terrifying sounds.
The expressions of the three instantly turned subtle.
The fused Horse God, with just a furious, gentle stomp, unleashed a terrifying oppressive power far beyond its initial separated state.
Lu Zhi silently looked at the Death Scythe in his hand, calculating that it would automatically deactivate in about thirty seconds. Even if it didn't, with him only borrowing ten percent of Shen Qi's power, he estimated he'd be defeated within five moves by the fused Horse God.
"Why do you call him a mad dog?" Lu Zhi asked, genuinely curious.
Qian Zhi, the Horse God, cursed, "Pervert! I knew he had ill intentions towards you. He's always been trouble, but you refused to believe it!"
"Now, even when I want to bestow a protective mark upon you, he won't allow it, you mad dog!" Qian Zhi the Horse God's nose exhaled fire in its anger, real fire at that.
Lu Zhi instinctively took a step back, fearing collateral damage.
At that moment, the Death Scythe in his hand exceeded its usage time, transforming into a river of fragmented starlight that converged into the imprint, embedding itself once more at the position of Lu Zhi's heart meridian.
However, the next second, Lu Zhi's head split with pain, his body felt exhausted and weak, and he collapsed onto the ground uncontrollably. A stinging sensation swept through his entire body, as if countless needles and ants were gnawing at his limbs and meridians, turning his face incredibly pale.
"Junior Lu!" Jiang Yue and Wang Cao Tian exclaimed in alarm simultaneously.
Lu Zhi said, "Don't touch me!"
His muscles and skin were now abnormally sensitive. Even the breeze stirred by the two rushing over felt like a prickle against his cheek. If they touched him, wouldn't it be agonizing?
"You used divine power forcefully with a human body. It will be fine in a couple of days," Qian Zhi the Horse God tilted its head, staring at Lu Zhi as if deep in thought.
Lu Zhi, upon hearing this, breathed a sigh of relief.
He would have been truly worried if there were no backlash after over-exerting himself by using power that did not belong to him.
"Do you wish to know your past memories?" Qian Zhi suddenly asked. "Although I cannot help you recover them completely, I can help you regain some."
Lu Zhi fell silent for a moment, then asked, "Past memories, huh..."
Wang Cao Tian and Jiang Yue exchanged bewildered glances. The amount of information they had received in the past few days was so immense it was beyond their wildest imagination.
Even the Horse God was so respectful towards Lu Zhi. What kind of deity was Lu Zhi in the past?
"Alright, actually, I'm also very curious about what I was like before..." Lu Zhi lowered his gaze. If his past identity was indeed a deity, then where did this memory of transmigrating into a novel come from?
What was real?
What was false?
"Shall I begin?" Qian Zhi seemed delighted. She lowered her head and gently touched Lu Zhi's forehead, unleashing a burst of golden light.
The warm radiance, carrying a familiar aura, pulled Lu Zhi's consciousness into a darkness. Soon, the darkness receded. Under a blue sky and white clouds, Lu Zhi found himself standing on a lush green hillside, gazing in the direction of the light. A small figure was riding a horse and running towards him.
Lu Zhi's pupils slowly widened.
The next second, he involuntarily opened his arms, allowing the little boy to rush into his embrace and happily exclaim, "Daddy, I'm back."
Lu Zhi's body and mind jolted.
Holy crap!
Little Shen Qi called me Daddy!