After completing the final ritual, Xing Yuan felt her body disintegrate like dust, and then her soul returned to the space.
Back in the space, Xing Yuan felt a tightness in her chest, the lingering emotions from the previous world swirling in her heart. She settled herself in the space for a while, ensuring the emotions would no longer affect her, before saying, "Continue!"
Tian Ling instantly perked up, "Okay, world selected, teleportation commencing!"
After a burst of swirling white light, Xing Yuan saw her new body and fell into a profound silence. In previous worlds, even if she was a child, she was at least human-shaped and had a decent appearance. In this world, she wasn't even human, but like a mass of black mist. Could this be intentional?
Without Xing Yuan needing to say anything, Tian Ling sensed the intense killing intent radiating from her.
With a strong survival instinct, Tian Ling quickly said, "Master, as you know, I have no control over the bodies we are assigned to. Do you want to… want to accept the original world's trajectory?"
Tian Ling's cowering demeanor significantly appeased Xing Yuan's anger.
"Yes!" Xing Yuan coldly agreed. If she found out who was playing tricks on her, she wouldn't leave them a whole corpse.
This world was peculiar. There was no underworld, and it was a world overrun by demons and monsters. Everyone who died could potentially transform into a "guiyi" (诡异), and the heavier their resentment in life, the stronger they would be in death.
To maintain a balance between the two, this world also granted some ordinary people the ability to see Yin and Yang or to slay demons and monsters. Initially, they fought alone. Later, the government discovered these individuals and recruited them, forming an organization called the "Mie Gui Si" (灭诡司).
As the name suggested, it was an organization dedicated to dealing with "guiyi."
Since the establishment of this organization, they had achieved considerable success in the early stages of the terror resurgence. However, as the resurgence progressed, the "guiyi" grew stronger. They were not benevolent beings; they devoured each other to augment their strength, and the original host was among the most formidable.
She didn't remember when she died, but both before and after her death, a great resentment had lingered in her chest. This resentment fueled her growing strength, eventually making her the final boss in the terror resurgence.
This world had protagonists. From their perspective, their lives were a continuous journey of leveling up and defeating monsters, ultimately sealing the boss and reaching the pinnacle of their lives.
The original host was also eventually "enlightened" by them. In terms of sheer power, the protagonists might not have been her match, but they appealed to her emotions and reason, helping her recover her lost memories and avenge past grievances.
Filled with gratitude, the original host willingly entered the seal, leading to a perfect ending. The world then entered an era of cultivation.
But if everything had gone smoothly, Xing Yuan wouldn't be here. In the chaotic timeline, the protagonists failed to awaken the remaining goodness in the original host's heart. Consequently, consumed by resentment and driven only by a desire for slaughter, the original host successfully brought about a grand, albeit tragic, conclusion to the world.
"Because the Heavenly Dao expended a great deal of energy to reverse time, it is currently very weak and cannot provide you with any assistance, Master. In this world, you simply need to find Yue Xian Jun and protect her! When the protagonists have sealed all the 'guiyi,' you can wait for Yue Xian Jun's earthly body to die and then take her remnant soul with you," Tian Ling suggested sincerely, even though it knew its master might not listen.
Xing Yuan felt no particular emotion. In her current form, so hideous, how could she possibly face her sister? Besides, she didn't need to ask; Tian Ling surely wouldn't know where her sister in this world was. Therefore, her most pressing task was to cultivate properly and regain a human form as soon as possible.
As for the world's mission, she was the ultimate boss, and her appearance was still some time away, so there was no need to rush.
However… the chains on her body were truly uncomfortable.
Xing Yuan struggled, but the chains remained stubbornly wrapped around her. Xing Yuan then dispersed her black mist, attracting nearby "guiyi" to approach.
Few could survive in this abyss.
Shortly after Xing Yuan dispersed the black mist around her body, a monster, entirely black and resembling both a fish and a turtle, crawled over. This creature was clearly not very intelligent, and seeing the black mist swirling around it, it couldn't resist chasing it, eventually reaching Xing Yuan.
The monster looked at the suddenly disappearing black mist, a clear expression of confusion on its face. It looked around, finally spotting the dark mass in front of it.
As the monster extended its claw to touch it, Xing Yuan repelled it with a shockwave.
"Crack, crackle," the monster let out a sharp cry, clearly angered.
"You can understand me, right? Either obey me from now on, or be trapped here," Xing Yuan threatened.
The monster clearly understood and became even more enraged, lunging towards Xing Yuan.
With a bang, the monster was thrown to the ground again, but it quickly got up and persistently continued its attacks. Xing Yuan lazily watched the monster's actions, as its attacks couldn't even break her outer shell.
Finally, the monster recognized the futility of its efforts and turned to leave. It was then intercepted by Xing Yuan's black mist again. The space was once again filled with the sounds of impact.
The monster slumped down, panting, appearing to have given up struggling. Xing Yuan made another move, giving the monster some black mist, her voice laced with enticement, "If you promise me, I'll give you more black mist to help you cultivate. And I'll also send you out of the abyss."
The monster, feeling the benefits of the black mist and hearing Xing Yuan's promise, seemed to be tempted.
It stood up like a human and spoke in a human voice, "Why don't you leave the abyss? If you can help me, and allow me to control my body freely, what's wrong with working for you?"
The monster then began to recount its story. Its name was Wen An, and it was originally a villager from a fishing village, but their village was very backward.
One year, a great flood struck the village. The villagers believed it was the sea god's wrath and sacrificed over a dozen youths, including Wen An, to the sea god. Wen An was fortunate to be saved by a Xuan Gui (玄龟, a mythical tortoise), and from then on, he lived with the Xuan Gui.
However, misfortune did not end there. One day, he and the Xuan Gui went to a beach near a human city to search for food. After years of living with the Xuan Gui, his body's habits had also changed significantly.
People on the shore saw them and mistook them for monsters, beating them to death with sticks.
"Actually, Ah Xuan could have escaped. It was killed by those people because it was protecting me," Wen An said, his face filled with pain as he recalled the past.
"When I woke up again, I was already living in this abyss in a daze. In fact, most of the time, it was Ah Xuan controlling this body, and I could only appear at very rare moments. So, I want you to help me. I want to be like I was before, even if I can't embrace it, I want to be able to talk to it."
Wen An's gaze was exceptionally firm. "So, can you help me?"