Chapter 128 Unsettling

“For some reason… I just feel like something’s not right.”

Tomorrow was the day the restart mission began.

But Gu Shen couldn't find peace in his heart. The pendant kept sending reminders…

Be cautious.

Be careful.

Even without the pendant's reminders, Gu Shen knew something was bound to happen on this trip to the Doru River.

But the pendant couldn't answer his questions, only provide a general premonition.

In the past few days, Gu Shen had been constantly attacking the golden circlet. The good news was that the indestructible and unbreakable golden circlet had finally loosened a bit. Breaking through was like an avalanche or tsunami, always starting with the first small wave, then growing more and more powerful, eventually becoming unstoppable.

This slight loosening at least gave Gu Shen hope for a "third breakthrough."

The bad news was that they were leaving early tomorrow morning, and there were less than ten hours of rest left tonight. There was no way a miracle like "sudden enlightenment" or "insight" could happen in that time. Gu Shen estimated he would have to wait until after the mission to complete his third breakthrough.

Only one night left.

Gu Shen didn't continue to bury himself in cultivation.

He knew a principle: an extraordinary person was like a bowstring, needing to be tight and loose in moderation, too rigid and it would break.

Since cultivation would be of little use, he might as well relax and wait for his "breakthrough opportunity."

After thinking it over, although the premonition from the pendant didn't point in any specific direction, Gu Shen felt that the ominous feeling constantly rising in his heart was inseparable from that "Duke Zhenyue."

Who else but that guy would cause trouble for him?

After careful consideration, Gu Shen took out a sealed black box.

With a solemn expression, Gu Shen opened the narrow box.

In the light, the inside of the box was pitch black.

The box was filled with dark silver—

A silver ruler was wrapped tightly and lying within. Gu Shen reached out his palm, penetrated the dark silver, and grasped it… The ruler was extremely cold, as if he were holding a block of ice. Without mental energy injected into it, the Ruler of Truth looked no different from an ordinary ruler.

But just a wisp of mental energy…

Could instantly melt this block of ice!

"Chi—"

Gu Shen poured a wisp of Blazing Fire into the ruler.

At that moment, the familiar agitation welled up in his heart.

The Blazing Fire, imprisoned in his mental sea by the golden circlet, burned fiercely.

The surrounding scenes changed rapidly, and he was no longer sitting at the desk.

Instead, he had arrived in the "inner space of the ruler"!

Large blocks of gloom and light intertwined, and the figure on the dark throne supported his chin, seemingly in a deep sleep. The whole world was silent.

His closed eyelids trembled slightly.

The wind came.

It was a great wind.

The great wind howled past.

Gu Shen had arrived in this world. He looked at the reflections of his Pure Land world projected in the mental space of the Ruler of Truth, with a calm expression and a slow, sweeping gaze. The previous times he had come in a hurry and had not had time to examine it carefully.

This devil lived here and had never changed?

Or… did the scenery here change with the changes in his mental space?

This was a question worth considering.

After all, the largest shadow behind the devil's throne, that rustling tree, was something that had just grown in his Pure Land world.

Before he could delve deeper into his thoughts.

The devil on the throne slowly opened his eyes.

"Gu Shen…"

A hoarse, angry voice rang out in the high heavens.

The one who spoke was sitting on the ground.

The sound of his voice descended from the firmament.

"How could you, do this to me?!"

The devil's body was covered in gloom, constantly emitting a sinister mist, but at this moment his eyes burst out with a brilliant light, making people afraid to look directly at him.

"Shhh…"

As far as Gu Shen was concerned, at this stage, there were a few things he dared not look directly at: the will of the God Seat in Light City, Mr. Gu Changzhi's sun in the Golden Divine Domain… and perhaps Chu Ling's face when she was angry.

But certainly not this one in front of him.

Gu Shen raised a finger and placed it in front of his lips, gently speaking, signaling the one on the throne to be quiet.

"I'm a coward."

Gu Shen said quietly, "If you scare me, I'll probably retreat from here at the speed of light and reseal the ruler… As for when you and I will meet again, who knows?"

"You…"

The devil's expression changed abruptly. He had originally wanted to stand up, but at this moment he was suddenly controlled, slowly and laboriously sitting back down.

It took a lot of effort to suppress the anger in his chest.

Sealed for many years.

He had finally seen the sun… He had clearly negotiated the conditions in the 【Old World】, but as soon as he returned to the Five Continents, he was immediately sealed!

This young man was simply insane. He actually dared to soak the ruler in dark silver?!

"Gu Shen, you and I made a deal…" The devil clenched his fists and asked in a low, hoarse voice, "What you're doing isn't appropriate, is it?"

Gu Shen smiled slightly.

In the distance, mist swirled around the dark throne.

Gu Shen didn't know the real identity of this guy, and he didn't want to know… But he could guess a rough idea, just by thinking about it. How could someone sitting on this kind of throne be an unknown person?

With the strength and status of this "devil," probably not many before him could make him speak so politely, right?

"What's inappropriate? I gave you a second chance for a transaction after returning to the Northern Continent, as agreed in the deal." Gu Shen strolled leisurely, only walking in the light. He looked at this world of mottled light and shadow, not even glancing at the black shadow on the throne. "It's just that… you didn't show me the respect I deserved, so the last transaction ended in failure."

The devil had learned to be smarter.

This time he didn't speak, just stared at Gu Shen with an uncertain expression.

Last time, Gu Shen asked him to apologize.

Of course, he refused.

So… the ruler was sealed with dark silver. This time they met, and he didn't mention what happened last time!

Unfortunately, the person he met was Gu Shen.

The matter of sealing the ruler was already in the past. Unsealing it this time probably meant a transaction was about to take place… Because the "dark silver" had such good sealing properties, the devil had no idea what had happened outside. Just as he was trying to adjust his mentality, preparing to restore the initial peaceful relationship with Gu Shen and resume negotiations…

Two cold words shattered his illusions.

"Apologize."

Gu Shen said, "The last matter… hasn't been settled yet. If you still refuse to apologize, we have nothing to talk about."

Devil: "???"

For a moment, he sat on the throne, not knowing what to say.

Was this guy's memory so good? Was his quality so poor?!

While the devil was stunned.

Gu Shen took a clear look at the inner world of the ruler.

He was now certain that this place was another silhouette version of "Pure Land." Perhaps this was the devil's ability… to replicate the mental domain in his mind.

This was a very important piece of information.

If this guy could copy the "mental domain" in his mind, would the "dark silver" seal affect him?

In recent days.

His "Pure Land" had been growing.

And this mental space didn't seem to have changed much.

Gu Shen noted this information.

Previously, Gu Shen had always avoided talking too much with the devil because he was completely at an intelligence disadvantage.

He had no way of distinguishing whether what the other party said was true or false, a correct answer or a wrong guide.

The reason why he named this black shadow "devil" was precisely because Gu Shen didn't believe a single word that came out of its mouth… Sealing the Ruler of Truth was only a temporary measure. He wanted to completely control this ruler, and he had to pry out the "truth" hidden behind the ruler, little by little, from this guy's mouth.

After Gu Shen finished speaking, the entire world within the ruler fell into absolute silence.

A long time passed.

The devil then uttered those stiff and difficult three words with difficulty.

"... I'm sorry."

"Didn't hear you. Speak louder, haven't you eaten?"

Gu Shen remained calm on the surface, but sneered in his heart.

This devil was indeed a villain.

But who said he wasn't?!

If it were someone else, if they refined the "Ruler of Truth" and saw the devil living deep within, they would probably have already indulged in the power gained from the transaction, gradually becoming a slave to this black shadow. How would they dare to force, suppress, and reward the great existence that had given them "power"?

The world had always been like this: those who had nothing to lose were not afraid of those who had something to lose. A villain still needed a villain to grind him down. After this devil's greatest weakness was exposed in the 【Old World】, Gu Shen became more and more unscrupulous.

He didn't care what the foreshadowing left by the former Underworld King meant…

At worst, he would just throw the ruler outside the Great Wall!

"Gu Shen!!!"

With a bang!

A dull thud echoed from the armrest of the throne!

Even though he warned himself not to get angry when dealing with this kind of madman, the devil almost lost his temper.

After the thud, he took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "... I was wrong."

This time, his voice didn't sound as difficult as before.

The devil kept reminding himself that when it was time to lower his head, he had to lower his head.

Moreover, there were only the two of them here at this moment.

These words of concession, once spoken, were spoken. No one else heard them, so it didn't matter.

The second apology sounded much better than the first. Gu Shen smiled and praised, "Your Excellency, some things become familiar with repetition… You'll become more and more proficient in the future."

In the future???

An ominous premonition vaguely emerged in the devil's heart.

"You didn't come to me just to say these things, did you?" The black shadow on the throne spoke through gritted teeth. He tried to maintain his demeanor and asked tentatively, "You went to so much trouble, said so many words, not just to… make me apologize, right?!"

Another important piece of information had been verified.

Dark silver could effectively seal the Ruler of Truth. This guy had no idea what he had been through during this period.

The stone hanging in his heart finally fell to the ground.

Gu Shen smiled and asked, "What do you think?"

"…"

After a brief silence, the devil opened his mouth in a hoarse voice, "You don't need a transaction, why did you come to me?!"

His voice sounded not only angry, but also somewhat broken.

But Gu Shen was satisfied.

The restart mission was about to begin. He had lifted the seal on the ruler tonight and met with this devil specifically, not because he wanted to chat and exchange pleasantries.

His interaction with the devil outside of transactions was like training a hawk, seeing who could endure longer.

Either he couldn't endure it.

Or the one on the throne couldn't endure it.

Gu Shen had never tried training a hawk, but he was very interested in trying to train a devil.

"No…"

Unexpectedly, after a brief pause.

The black shadow on the throne suddenly raised his head. He stared at Gu Shen's eyes and muttered, "You just don't need a transaction temporarily."

"Tomorrow you're going to carry out the mission… Doru River… With your current strength, going to that kind of place is a narrow escape from death…"

Speaking of which, the deathly devil regained his spirit, and he raised his head with a radiant look.

"Hey, why don't you consider…"

The moment the devil opened his mouth.

Gu Shen realized something was wrong…

Without waiting for the black shadow on the throne to finish speaking, he immediately withdrew from the mental space, returned to the real world, and re-immersed the Ruler of Truth in dark silver, sealing it up!

In the silent room, Gu Shen felt cold sweat seeping from his back, and he once again felt the discomfort of "being spied on."

How did this guy know about these things while being sealed in dark silver?

Could he read his memories as soon as the seal was lifted?