“Betray Guang Ming? No chance!”

Shadow roared.

He charged toward Gu Shen—

Because he had retained his self-awareness, he could still be considered a “free” soul.

All souls within the Pure Land were subject to the suppression of the world's consciousness!

But at this moment, Shadow was actually resisting the suppression, committing the act of "attacking" the master of the world.

It wasn't because he was truly powerful—

But simply because everything in this world was under Gu Shen's control.

Therefore…

Everything that happened in the Pure Land was within Gu Shen's permitted and controllable range.

"Slap!"

Ideals were beautiful, but reality was cruel.

Shadow rushed over and was slapped away.

Gu Shen delivered a huge slap to his soul cheek, sending him spiraling away to crash into the thick, solid trunk of the Susu Xuan tree. This slap didn't contain any killing intent; otherwise, with Gu Shen's authority as the master of the Pure Land, it would have been enough to wipe him out completely!

"Buzz buzz buzz."

Shadow's mind was ringing.

"Who am I? Where am I?"

It took Shadow a long time to come to his senses. A dark shadow gradually approached and crouched down.

"Have you ever considered that you have already betrayed Guang Ming…"

Gu Shen said calmly, "This is the world of the 'Plutonian.'"

Shadow's lips were dry, and his face was bloodless.

He thought of what Gu Shen had said earlier—

Here, seeking death was impossible.

After his consciousness was erased, he would become the Plutonian's pawn, eventually launching an assault on Guang Ming City.

"Please, kill me."

He lost his fighting spirit and lunged forward, trying to hug Gu Shen, but the latter's body transformed into a biting cold wind, scattering in an instant and reassembling several meters away.

"Kill you? There's no such good fortune…"

Gu Shen looked at Shadow, who was now prostrate and begging for mercy, and found it all very ironic.

He said calmly, "You must have heard those words a lot before, right? Those people begged you to kill them… Did you kill them?"

"Those people before?!"

Shadow was stunned.

A thunderbolt flashed through his mind.

"Those 'Neutralists'… are they also your people?"

The shock of the stolen Holy Book was so great that he had almost forgotten that the Neutralists in the prison had also been taken away!

Gu Shen coldly watched Shadow, standing with his hands behind his back.

"Heh…"

Shadow chuckled softly.

At that moment, he understood many things.

He no longer struggled or begged for mercy, but sat down against the Susu Xuan tree. He said softly, "Plutonian… what a Plutonian…"

"I'm afraid no one in the Five Continents would have guessed that the Plutonian from twenty years ago is dead, and the real Plutonian is you, Gu Shen."

"But…"

He asked slowly, with a mocking smile on his face, "You are the Plutonian, so what can you do?"

"You can't revive those 'Neutralists.' Their consciousness has already collapsed. You don't know how many times they begged me for death…"

Shadow seemed to be recalling the scene in the prison.

A look of satisfaction appeared on his face.

"These people begged me to kill them…"

"First, I gouged out their eyes, leaving them unable to see…"

"Then, I cut off their kneecaps…"

A thunderous sound exploded above the Pure Land.

"Enough!"

Gu Shen waved his sleeve, and a great snowstorm erupted. Shadow flew out again, this time flung far away, crashing heavily to the ground.

"You're saying all this just to provoke me… to make me kill you."

Although Gu Shen's voice contained anger, his eyes were incredibly calm.

He stared at Shadow coldly.

"Rest assured, you will 'live' well here."

Earlier… he hadn't revived those Neutralists like Wu Shu in the Pure Land because their "wills" had already collapsed.

They were single-mindedly seeking death.

Resurrection in the Pure Land…

Meant the death of the physical body and the rebirth of the spirit.

Gu Shen could certainly bring their souls here… but for those superhumans whose "wills had collapsed," this kind of rebirth was a form of torture.

Therefore…

Like Mr. Yan of Jingshan.

The ultimate fate of these people was to die and usher in "the end."

This was a sign of respect for them.

"Kill me! Come on! Come—"

Shadow's voice was shrill, but the next moment, he realized he had lost his "voice."

Gu Shen raised two fingers and slowly traced them through the void. He was the master of the entire Pure Land, the supreme god here. The course of this world was based on the transcendent source substance he provided.

Therefore, the rules of this world were written by him.

"Silence."

Gu Shen said calmly to Shadow, "We have plenty of time… believe me, it won't be long before you spit out the secrets of the 'Holy Book' yourself."

Shadow's expression was intense. Just as he was about to stand up, a shadow fell over his head.

Boom boom boom!

Gu Shen waved his hand casually, raising and shaking two fingers in the void, horizontally and vertically a few times, and a patch of black swept over—

He personally created a "spiritual black room"!

The greatest torture in this world was to imprison a person with "spiritual immortality" in a dark and lightless cage.

With the black room completed, tranquility returned beneath the Susu Xuan tree.

"Swish—"

Before long, beside Gu Shen, a burst of code flowed. Chu Ling's spirit transferred from Zero Zero One, arriving in the Pure Land, standing shoulder to shoulder with Gu Shen.

"I checked the data in the database and found nothing."

Chu Ling said softly, "This page of remnant paper hasn't appeared in the Five Continents in recent years. This level of sealed object… doesn't seem like it was artificially made."

"So… is this a product of the 'Old World'?"

Gu Shen looked toward the old house.

The Holy Book, carefully protected by Guang Ming City, was currently undergoing the frenzied burning of his "Blazing Fire"!

He didn't care what kind of treasure it was.

Since it was plundered from Guang Ming City, if it couldn't be used for his own purposes, it was better to destroy it!

"However, I am a little curious."

Gu Shen frowned slightly. "If this page of remnant paper is a product of the 'Old World'… then how did Guang Ming City use it?"

The sealed objects of the "Old World" wouldn't have any faith residue.

In other words… the initial attribute of this page of remnant paper wouldn't be to transform superhumans with faith into "Guang Ming Faith."

"There must be corresponding 'ancient texts' that can be used to control it!"

Gu Shen's eyes suddenly lit up.

This page of remnant paper was quite strange…

It was a divine artifact specifically designed to restrain places of faith. Whether it was the Storm Church or the Guang Ming Church, both needed the "Holy Book," on the one hand, to enhance their own strength, and on the other hand, to plunder the other's followers!

If he could master the power of the Holy Book, wouldn't that mean… those Saint Judges who were extremely loyal to Guang Ming would become the most loyal and fanatical subordinates of the Pure Land?

……

……

In the northern ring of the West Grotto, two figures were chasing each other at high speed!

"Escape!"

"Run!"

Zhu Que roared in his heart. His speed had reached its limit, creating countless scarlet phantoms, but no matter how he escaped, someone was always chasing closely behind!

Jia Wei, wearing heavy armor, was basically invincible in both attack and defense.

If he had a major weakness, it would be his movement speed—

But even so.

Zhu Que still couldn't shake him off. The distance between them wasn't shrinking, but it wasn't widening either.

"Red Dragon… there's been an accident."

Zhu Que's expression was gloomy. He waved his hand to summon the [Cloud Mirror]. Amidst the swirling clouds, the mirror reflected a calm and indifferent face.

"I'm being chased by Jia Wei."

Zhu Que was forced to send out a call for help. "Can you come over?"

"Do you need me to come?"

Red Dragon's voice was like a cold and emotionless machine, saying, "Logically speaking, Jia Wei's speed can't match yours. After you comprehend two Domains, you should be able to escape."

"I need you to come!"

Zhu Que was furious. "Logically speaking, logically speaking… my soul is about to be beaten out of me, and you're still asking if I need support?!"

"Okay, I'll set off now." Red Dragon's expression still didn't change much. "Escape toward the core area of [Tanya]. If Jia Wei continues to chase, I'll make a move."

Hearing these words, Zhu Que breathed a sigh of relief.

Among the Four Divine Envoys, Red Dragon was the strongest and most mysterious!

Master Tianshui was as good as his word, and he never miscalculated. The fact that he could confidently send them four south on this mission… meant that the Source Tower wasn't worried that existences like "Fourth Order Transcendent Realm" would disrupt the original plan!

In other words, Red Dragon had the ability to fight against Jia Wei!

"If I can escape to [Tanya]… then I'll be safe?" A hint of madness flashed in Zhu Que's expression. The more top-tier a superhuman was, the more they cherished their lives. He dared to come to the West Grotto to burn the city alone because he had a foolproof plan for escape.

But after fighting with Jia Wei, he realized that the power of a Fourth Order Transcendent Realm exceeded the scope of what he could handle!

The [Cloud Mirror] conversation ended, and Zhu Que's speed increased again!

……

……

This life-and-death chase across the South Grotto wasn't as silent and quiet as it appeared on the surface.

Hidden killing intent, thunderous force.

While Zhu Que was using the [Cloud Mirror] to contact Red Dragon for help, Jia Wei, as the pursuer, was also conducting a mental conversation.

"Mr. Jia Wei, this is Su Ye."

The voice of the Favored Son echoed in Jia Wei's heart.

"……"

The moment Jia Wei heard the voice in his heart, he vaguely felt an ominous premonition.

"Are you currently pursuing 'Zhu Que'?" Su Ye asked.

"Yes."

Jia Wei glanced up at the figure in front of him and said in a deep voice, "Is there an emergency?"

"We need you to come back."

Su Ye lowered his voice and said, "Something happened in W4 District. I can't contact 'Shadow.'"

Jia Wei narrowed his eyes. He carefully stared at the red figure in front of him… The previous two city burnings should have been designed by the Source Tower, but the current Zhu Que was truly running for his life!

His appearance had disrupted the Source Tower's original plan—

And now, he was about to catch up!

Go back at this time?

"I know this is sudden, and I know you're chasing 'Zhu Que'… but after all, it involves the 'Holy Book,' and it's a matter of great importance!"

Su Ye said, "The 'Holy Book' cannot be lost in this southern mission. You are currently the closest to W4 District, and this is our only remaining chance to 'seal the scene.'"

"You mean… the Source Tower's real purpose isn't to burn the city."

Jia Wei said coldly, "Is it to steal the Holy Book?"

"……"

Su Ye said helplessly, "That might be the case."

"How would they know about the existence of the 'Holy Book'?!"

Jia Wei frowned. He couldn't understand. "The 'Holy Book' plan is only known to me, you, and those dark pawns who are high enough in rank…"

"The sky [Cloud Mirror] can窥伺 everything."

Su Ye reminded, "In short, the only thing we can do now is 'cut our losses.'"

Jia Wei took a deep breath.

He stared at Zhu Que, whose speed was increasing in front of him, weighed the two outcomes of continuing the pursuit and giving up, and finally suppressed his killing intent.

"Boom!"

He stepped heavily on the ground, his feet creating a deep pit in the earth, and then immediately spun around, like a cannonball, and swept back toward the West Grotto position—

……

……

A moment later.

Jia Wei returned to W4 District, and he felt that something was wrong from several miles away.

W4 District was deathly silent, cold and desolate. The aura of Guang Ming City's believers was very weak, almost imperceptible…

The entire city, although there were no "battle scars," was already a dead city!

He kicked open the high wall.

Entering the mansion.

What came into view… was a pile of corpses strewn everywhere. Those were all the "extremists" transformed by the Holy Book, and they were now deader than dead. The souls of these people had been shattered.

Someone had really invaded, and without anyone noticing.

He had previously returned to the cave to block and kill Zhu Que, and he hadn't even felt the "abnormality" here. The invader's mental skills were very high, and his concealment techniques were unpredictable.

As for the "barrier" formed by Guang Ming City, it had been completely destroyed.

Jia Wei slowly entered the deepest part of the mansion.

He stood silently in front of the courtyard, looking at the devastation.

After a while, a commotion came from outside the mansion. Su Ye and Di Rang had returned!

Archbishop Di Rang, who had returned to the city with Su Ye, was very polite. He didn't enter the mansion occupied by the Guang Ming City believers, but waited obediently outside.

Su Ye flew toward the mansion on a flying carpet.

Before he arrived, his voice came first.

"Mr. Jia Wei! What is the condition of the 'Holy Book'—"

Jia Wei was silent.

And when Su Ye returned to the mansion, the entire mansion became even more silent.

The two stood in front of the broken courtyard gate, looking at the shattered "Neutralist" prison… The Neutralists captured in the West Grotto had all disappeared.

In addition to that.

The courtyard that sealed the Holy Book had been completely emptied!

"The Holy Book, along with the barrier… are all gone…"

Su Ye's expression was pale.

His fingers trembled with anger!

"Shadow is dead, killed in battle."

Jia Wei looked down at the ground… The only place in the entire mansion that could be considered to have any battle scars was the courtyard where the Holy Book was located. There had been a fairly fierce battle.

Su Ye came back to his senses, and he murmured softly, "Shadow has completely disappeared… his body was destroyed…"

"Yes."

Jia Wei lowered his head, squatted down silently, and dipped his steel fingers into the dust and powder on the ground. "Shadow was defeated, and the murderer 'ground his bones to ashes'… There are no effective clues left here."

Su Ye was stunned when he heard this.

"Does it remind you of the death of the previous Favored Son?"

Jia Wei's tone was tinged with a faint sarcasm. "Meng Xiao back then was also like this, disappearing without a trace, as if he had evaporated into thin air… I searched the Doru River for a long time and couldn't even find a grain of ash."

"You mean, this matter is also related to Gu Shen?" Su Ye narrowed his eyes. "The Source Tower and Gu Shen working together? How is that possible?"

"I don't know what the truth is."

Jia Wei stood up again. "I only know that the Saint Judges follow the guidance of Guang Ming and exercise the judgment of justice… From the first moment I saw 'Gu Shen,' I was certain that he was related to Meng Xiao's disappearance."

"Although there is no evidence, I am sure that this kid is an enemy of Guang Ming Faith."