Chapter 1 Yuan Shuocheng

Yuan Shuocheng was a dog, a running dog.

He could betray East Continent for profit, and he could betray the Church for profit…

When Gu Shen's sword hung over his head, he was willing to say anything.

“……”

Gu Shen watched silently as Archbishop Yuan kowtowed like a pecking chicken. Over a hundred iron scale flying swords slowly gathered, and the phantom disappeared.

“Look up!”

The cold voice echoed inside the shattered source energy艇.

Yuan Shuocheng raised his head in terror. He saw a palm burning with fire, reaching towards him.

“Didn't you say you would spare me?!”

He screamed shrilly, trying to retreat. Gu Shen’s eyebrows shot up, he snorted coldly, and dozens of iron lights burst open in the void. The iron scales reappeared, cutting through and shattering his blue robe. These flying swords did not unleash killing intent, but merely grazed the surface of his skin—

“Shut up. If you make another sound, I’ll kill you.”

Accompanied by a sound like tearing paper.

A faint bloody smell permeated the source energy艇.

Yuan Shuocheng swallowed his wails, tears almost falling from the pain.

At that moment, Gu Shen's palm pressed on the man's forehead.

A wisp of blazing fire crashed into the latter's mind.

The fierce shadow of the blazing fire spread in Yuan Shuocheng's eyes.

“What did you do to me?”

The Archbishop's body trembled. His voice was hoarse, and a deep resentment hid in his eyes.

“Nothing, just planted a mental seed.”

Of course, Gu Shen saw that resentment.

He released his palm and said calmly, “Now you can talk… If you lie, my ‘seed’ will sense it. Believe me, there are things in this world more terrifying than death.”

Yuan Shuocheng was utterly desperate.

He touched his forehead, mobilizing all his mental power to search for the scattered wisp of blazing fire in his mind… But ultimately, he found nothing. His mental strength was far too different from Gu Shen's. Only a higher-level mental系 (xi)超凡者 (chao fan zhe) (extraordinary one) could remove the “seed.”

The only one with a higher mental realm than Gu Shen, and a guaranteed way to remove it, would be a mental系 (xi)封号 (feng hao) (title).

His initial pleas for mercy were just a ploy to delay.

But now, he truly knew that he had nowhere to run.

“Gu Shen…”

“Do the people of East Continent know that the S-class they support is so dirty, despicable, vile, and disgusting in reality?!”

A person driven to the extreme of despair often cannot calm down immediately.

Yuan Shuocheng cursed loudly.

“You son of a bitch!”

“I curse you, in the name of the storm, I curse you…”

But these words had no impact. Gu Shen didn't bother to pay attention.

“I don't have time to waste with you. You better hurry up and tell me while I still have patience.”

Gu Shen glanced at the time and said coldly, “If I don't hear any useful information, you'll be meeting ‘Pluto’ very soon.”

His killing intent spread again, and the 【净土】 (Jing Tu) (Pure Land) domain covered the area.

Ka ka ka!

Yuan Shuocheng felt his whole body become numb. He lowered his head and, within a few seconds, solid ice broke through the ground, freezing his calf… He felt a sense of fear and bewilderment. Ordinary Tier 4超凡者 (chao fan zhe) (extraordinary ones) should develop domains based on similar abilities. Why did Gu Shen possess two completely opposite超凡 (chao fan) (extraordinary) domains at the same time?

One was fire, and the other was ice!

That wisp of fire had eroded his soul.

And the solid ice was now eroding his body!

Although his attitude was fierce, Yuan Shuocheng confessed quickly. He saw the ice shards and hesitated for almost no time, “Saint Jiate is searching for the ‘Holy Book’ of West Continent. The Holy City hasn’t acted all this time because it's waiting for the Guang Ming Bi Lei's final move! The saints want to take advantage of the situation and bring the Guang Ming Bi Lei’s ‘Holy Book,’ and all of the Sang Continent’s超凡者 (chao fan zhe) (extraordinary ones), under the banner of the Storm Faith!”

“……”

Gu Shen fell silent after hearing this.

He frowned and asked, “How did the Holy City know about the ‘Holy Book’ hidden in West Continent?”

“Spies… We planted spies…” Yuan Shuocheng said through gritted teeth, “Any church power built on the foundation of faith will cultivate ‘spies.’ Guang Ming Bi Lei has spies, and of course the Storm Holy City has them too. Although we don’t have as many spies, they played a key role, because they learned about the ‘Holy Book,’ the saints were willing to quickly compromise at the World Conference.”

“Continue.”

“The saints want the Four Continents to head south. They don’t care whether this small island exists in the end… As long as the tens of thousands of超凡者 (chao fan zhe) (extraordinary ones) here can believe in the Storm, even if there aren't that many, half would be a sufficient gain.”

“These people already believe in the Storm.”

“That was before… After the Awakening Experiment, this small island became different.”

Yuan Shuocheng said, “Because the Guang Ming Bi Lei will definitely head south, after learning about the existence of the ‘Holy Book,’ the Holy City formulated the current plan. Once Guang Ming Bi Lei starts to act, the Church’s actions will also begin…”

“The Church’s actions?”

Gu Shen found things were becoming interesting.

“【昙曜】 (Tan Yao) mountain ash can block 【深海】 (Shen Hai) (Deep Sea) perception. The Church has decided to forcibly seize the ‘Holy Book’ and create a false image—”

“Saint Jiate’s arrangement of the 【潮汐】 (Chao Xi) (Tide) authority is not just for monitoring, but to ensure the complete destruction of Sang Continent after the 【昙曜】 (Tan Yao) eruption, no matter what. All the evidence will be turned to dust!”

After Yuan Shuocheng finished speaking, Gu Shen fell into thought.

This plan was indeed breathtaking.

No wonder South Continent didn’t care that the 【潮汐】 (Chao Xi) (Tide) authority’s perception was being blocked.

Because that wasn’t important. The true purpose of this authority was to surround the icy sea around Sang Continent and push the tides to further destroy Sang Continent.

“After the 【潮汐】 (Chao Xi) (Tide) is activated, this small island will be pushed into the icy sea…”

Yuan Shuocheng gritted his teeth and said, “The source energy in the icy sea is very chaotic. Although the Divine Seat explored the extreme south ruins, the authority left behind is enough to stir up a huge ‘storm’… In the end, this island will disappear from the maps of the Five Continents, and the超凡者 (chao fan zhe) (extraordinary ones) cultivated by the Awakening Experiment and the Holy Book excavated by West Continent will disappear together.”

“But in reality, they will become part of the Storm Church.”

Gu Shen smiled, “What a great plan. But I'm very curious… How did you know this level of information?”

“I…”

Yuan Shuocheng hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice, “This was told to me by ‘Saint Chunli.’ He wanted me to supervise ‘Saint Jiate’ in Sang Continent and collect useful information within the island.”

“Saint Chunli doesn't trust Jiate… So the internal struggles of the saints within the Holy City are still continuing?”

Gu Shen sneered, “Truly worthy of being South Continent. The Fa Hong War ended almost twenty years ago, and you're still fighting internally. But what's most amazing is you, truly a running dog among running dogs.”

“……”

Yuan Shuocheng had nothing to say. He raised his head and pleaded, “Gu Shen! I've said everything I know! Can you let me go now?”

Gu Shen looked down at the pitiful man kneeling on the ground like an old dog.

His tattered blue robe was stained with blood, hanging on his wrinkled, fleshy body.

“What do you think?”

He asked seriously.

With just these words, Yuan Shuocheng's face turned ashen.

“You really deserve to die…”

Gu Shen raised his hand and brought it down. Iron scales flew past, a head flying high into the air, followed by countless iron wire storms exploding in mid-air.

A low rumble reverberated in the enclosed space.

Gu Shen's clothes remained clean.

Because the splattered blood was blocked by a wall of blazing fire that appeared out of nowhere before it could splatter, and the high temperature burned the blood, completely burning Yuan Archbishop's robes, flesh, and everything related to him in this world.

In the end, the space inside the shattered source energy艇 became silent.

Many people died here.

Gu Shen released the blazing fire, feasting in the airship… The souls of these fanatics were absorbed by Gu Shen, stripped of their consciousness, and thrown into the Pure Land.

The devout believers of the Storm Church were actually good “materials.”

He had stolen the Holy Book of West Continent and was short of souls to experiment on!

These people could just be used as experimental subjects…

Aside from that, these souls were also excellent “laborers.”

Instead of giving their lives to the Storm, they could give their lives to him.

……

……

After finishing all of this, Gu Shen stepped on his iron sword and left the source energy艇. With a wave of his hand, countless blazing fires exploded over the already old and damaged source energy艇, blasting it to pieces, scattering debris everywhere.

Flames burned in the air.

The law enforcers watching from the S12 district's high walls all saw this scene.

“See, I told you Yuan Shuocheng was no match for Gu Shen.”

Su Cha muttered to himself, “All these people combined aren't enough for Gu Shen to kill… Lao Qi, did you see what happened over there?”

“No, didn’t see clearly.”

Qi Lu grumbled, “After Gu Shen and Yuan Shuocheng started fighting, my 【鹰眼】 (Ying Yan) (Eagle Eye) seemed to malfunction. The scene inside the source energy艇 was covered by a green and bright light… Like some kind of超凡 (chao fan) (extraordinary) array pattern?”

“It's an ancient text barrier.”

Wu Yong warned in a low voice, “Don't forget that Gu Shen is a disciple of Master Chizuka Chino. It seems the scene just now should not be spread…”

As they spoke, an iron sword slowly landed on the wall.

“Little Gu, sir.”

The Great Sincerity Society law enforcer in charge of patrolling respectfully addressed him.

“Mm.”

Gu Shen nodded.

He looked in the direction of Su Cha and the others.

From beginning to end, Gu Shen knew that Qi Lu's 【鹰眼】 (Ying Yan) (Eagle Eye) was watching him. Throwing out the barrier at the end was actually to safely allow the blazing fire to devour these souls.

Gu Shen transmitted his voice, “You know what to say about Yuan Shuocheng's matter, right?”

“Archbishop Yuan strayed and knew to return, leading five hundred followers to intercept the beast tide, sacrificing themselves for righteousness.”

Qi Lu reacted quickly and answered earnestly, “The above is what my 【鹰眼】 (Ying Yan) (Eagle Eye) saw and heard, without any falsehood!”

“???”

Su Cha and Wu Yong were silent.

“……Very good.”

Gu Shen didn't expect this guy to be so on the ball. He paused for a moment and slowly said, “But remember to revise the statement: This guy is really a running dog among running dogs. If Saint Jiate comes to ask about his whereabouts, you say Yuan Shuocheng was too unlucky, the source energy艇 crashed, and then he was drowned by the beast tide… He can't do things like straying and knowing to return, resisting to the death.”

“I see.”

Qi Lu nodded solemnly.

Gu Shen walked down the city wall alone.

He had just wreaked havoc in the source energy艇, and there was still a lot of bloodlust remaining on him, making his black clothes even more sinister… This caused many law enforcers to dare not look him in the eye.

He was the future Pluto. Even if he was usually kind and amiable, once he started killing, the “Yin冥之气 (Yin Ming Zhi Qi)” on his body would inevitably emerge.

“Little Gu, sir…”

At the city gate, Zhuang Su was waiting.

Seeing Gu Shen at this moment, Mr. Zhuang couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart!

He didn't know why.

He felt that the Little Gu, sir in front of him was completely different from when they first met…

Zhuang Su had briefly fought Gu Shen once. Although that time was just a friendly exchange, he didn't think how powerful this ancient text 【钥匙】 (Yao Shi) (key) that had been waiting for twenty years was.

At that time, Zhuang Su attributed this to Gu Shen's short cultivation time.

But now he knew he was wrong.

This time, Gu Shen, though smiling and friendly, harbored a strong death aura, making him afraid to even meet his eyes.

“Mr. Zhuang, sorry to keep you waiting. I had some trivial matters to attend to just now.”

Gu Shen smiled softly and looked at Adam, who was covered in bandages, beside Zhuang Su, “You've been waiting for a long time too.”

Adam was wearing the mechanical eye and stretching his muscles.

He looked at Gu Shen and muttered, complaining, “What were you busy with for so long?”

Zhuang Su sighed helplessly. Adam, who had removed the Eye of Destiny, had a low超凡 (chao fan) (extraordinary) realm and couldn't see this death aura. It was understandable that he didn't know how terrifying Gu Shen was.

“I've already introduced Adam to you before. Now I'll tell you about the usage of the ‘Winged Iron.’”

Mr. Zhuang quickly stood up and introduced, “The environment is harsh now. The icy sea's strong winds are landing from the South Cave coast, and mountain ash is spreading. To step into the 【昙曜】 (Tan Yao) core area, you need some preparation. Considering that Adam is not a high-level超凡者 (chao fan zhe) (extraordinary one), with this item's help, your speed will be faster, and you can save your own 'source energy'.”

“……You don't need to introduce these things.”

Gu Shen didn't have much patience. He interrupted, “It's enough if he knows how to use it. I don't need it.”

With the Ruler of Truth and the 【铁王座】 (Tie Wang Zuo) (Iron Throne), he could freely fly in the air.

“Okay, there's one more thing…”

Mr. Zhuang took off a basket from his back. Inside the basket was a well-made small nutrient cabin, and inside the cabin was the taciturn Divine Infant.

He said seriously, “This time, delving into 【昙曜】 (Tan Yao) is to investigate how the ‘Child of the Divine Scroll’ controls the power of the volcano… Mr. Qi Mo has arranged for the Divine Infant to be placed here. This device can guarantee twenty-four hours of life energy and sufficient oxygen.”

“Tsk, truly well-prepared.”

Adam grinned.

Just as Mr. Zhuang was about to hand over the basket, a faint voice sounded.

“This is unnecessary.”

Gu Shen looked at the baby in the nutrient cabin and said calmly, “The Divine Infant doesn't need to come. Mr. Zhuang, please hand the Divine Infant over to Chen Li… Let him keep it close and take it back to Nagano with the North Continent source energy艇.”

“Ah…”

Zhuang Su was stunned for a second.

The old gentleman hesitated, “Without the ‘Divine Infant,’ will the research into 【昙曜】 (Tan Yao) be affected?”

“Will it?”

Gu Shen looked at Adam.

Adam was speechless, not knowing how to answer.

“Didn't the 'Eye of Destiny' see the future of 【昙曜】 (Tan Yao)? The Child of the Divine Scroll will appear at the volcano crater.” Gu Shen said with a smile, “If what the 'Eye of Destiny' sees will definitely happen, then does it matter whether we bring the Divine Infant or not? Everything that happens in the world is an arrangement of fate, including this moment.”

“If we don’t bring the Divine Infant… Are you saying that the Child of the Divine Scroll in the fate divination might be someone else?” Zhuang Su had a headache, his thoughts confused for a moment.

“Just do as I say.”

Gu Shen slowly turned his head and asked seriously, “Mr. Adam, what do you think?”

“……I’m fine with anything.”

Adam smiled helplessly, “It's fine to bring it, and it's fine not to bring it.”

Gu Shen nodded and said, “Then it's settled. Let's set off for the 【昙曜】 (Tan Yao) core area now… Just you and me, without the Divine Infant.”