Gates of the Myriad Realms Chapter 664

Chapter 647: Youhuang!

Let’s rewind time a little.

Star-Moon City.

Surface city.

On a certain street.

Inside a very ordinary merchandise store.

An incredible thing happened in a way that attracted no attention at all.

“Mr. Cade, please tally the bill.”

“Okay, let me see.”

A robotic arm descended from the ceiling, rummaging through the shopping list.

“WeChat processor model 9557, secondhand;”

“Five alloy bolts;”

“Brainwave sensor,tsk, these are obsolete items, sometimes they can cause epilepsy, so I’ll give you a discount;”

“And a—duck? Alive? Ah, are you sure you want this duck?”

While asking, the old man behind the counter poked his head out and glanced at the duck.

A duck.

Where did this duck come from?

The girl’s calm voice rang out:

“I heard ducks are good food—people in ancient times ate these creatures, so I wanted to buy one to try a fresh taste.”

“Mr. Cade, please tally the bill.”

The old man immediately set aside his doubts.

It didn’t matter whose bizarre hobby it was, to use genetic technology to create a duck.

Nor did it matter who left it here.

In any case—

“Hmm… Originally, you would have to pay three alloy chips, but this duck—well, I’ll give you a discount on the duck too, you just need to give me 4 chips.”

The old man said.

“Deal,” the girl said.

As soon as the words fell.

A line of small text suddenly appeared above the duck’s head:

“I’ve been sold, quack!”

Of course.

This line of text disappeared the moment it appeared.

Neither the shop owner nor the girl noticed this extremely important event.

Instead, the duck itself, quite interested, raised its head and looked at the lines of text floating in the void:

“Sacred Inscription.”

“Description: God has hidden your tracks, and you have come here following His guidance, wanting to see what God is up to.”

“—Every move of the Lord holds profound meaning.”

The girl took various items, cradling the duck, and walked out of the store.

She ducked into a small alley, turning left and right until no one could be seen anymore.

Thump, thump, thump.

The girl knocked on the wall.

A secret compartment opened.

The girl followed the steps downwards into a basement.

“You’re back?”

A man, whose entire body was covered in metal save for his head which was still flesh and blood, said.

“Dad, look, what’s this!”

Excitedly, the girl held up the duck for the man to see.

“A goose? No, perhaps a duck?”

“Yes, I bought it from Cade for one chip.”

“Too expensive. Those things are long extinct. Who would waste time genetically modifying something like that? It’s useless—”

“That’s a waste of money, it doesn’t align with your basic principles for future survival!”

After saying this, the man gasped for a few breaths with effort.

The girl softly said:

“Dad, I remember your dying wish was to stop eating nutrient fluid.”

“I’ll find an ancient recipe and make you an ancient meal with duck, how about it?”

The man stared at the duck, his expression becoming complicated.

“A living creature… look, it’s staring back at me…”

He continued in a low voice:

“I can’t believe it.”

“Now I actually feel that eating that disgusting nutrient fluid is normal; I can’t eat something that has a mind.”

The girl deflated, “I spent a chip, and now you’ve changed your mind again?”

“…Bring the duck over, let me see it,” the man said.

The duck was brought before the man.

The man stared at the duck.

The duck’s eyes were wide, but it was staring at the girl, looking somewhat terrified.

—Because the girl unscrewed the metal cover on her chest, revealing the interface inside, and then picked up something that looked like a power bank from the table, plugging it into the interface.

A gentle voice rang out:

“Beep, beep, beep!”

“Charging your prosthetic body.”

Charging!

Damn it, it was all wrong.

He shouldn’t have opened that divine breakfast shop.

These guys’ bodies rely on charging, or nutrient solution!

—Modern humans no longer eat!

No wonder when the divine restaurant opened, he felt the pedestrians on the street had strange and curious looks in their eyes.

But no one came in to eat.

Eating was already an ancient ritual!

“Tomorrow, the strange monsters will attack the city, Dad, if you can’t, then escape.”

The girl said casually, lying on the sofa.

“Hmph, having been a sentinel all my life, it’s normal to die at my post,” the man said calmly.

“I heard some people escaped into the wilderness and lived a long time,” the girl probed.

“Don’t listen to that gossip. No one can escape the pursuit of the Outer Gods; they are all dead.”

“That’s not true, I heard—”

“Enough!”

The man’s voice suddenly grew louder, but when the girl fell into a long silence, he sighed and said in a low voice:

“My body of metal has reached its limit. It’s better to die on the battlefield; at least you can get a pension.”

The girl remained silent for a long while, then reached up to wipe her eyes.

But the next moment.

“Quack!”

The duck cried out loudly, startling both the father and daughter.

Immediately after.

The man’s body emitted a series of mechanical grinding sounds.

The girl no longer cared about her emotions, jumping up from the sofa and exclaiming in panic:

“Dad—”

She looked at her father’s appearance and suddenly froze.

The old and damaged steel body of her father had completely changed.

Every single part.

Every metal surface.

All became sparkling new.

The girl rushed over in a few steps, pressed her hand on her father, and shouted:

“Check parameters, report performance!”

Beep, beep, beep—

Flashing curves and soaring attribute values appeared in her eyes.

“Detection complete. All current equipment is in ‘factory default’ state, performance is good, and estimated service life is twenty years.”

—Her father’s steel body had actually become brand new!

Why?

How could this be?

Father and daughter exchanged glances.

—What did you do?

—I didn’t do anything.

The two grew more puzzled, then suddenly remembered something and looked at the duck together.

The duck pursed its beak, looking at the two cutely.

The inscription “Behind-the-scenes manipulator” activated.

Adding the prefix “freshly manufactured” to an old sentinel’s steel body.

It’s that effective.

—So God sent him to save people?

The duck thought silently.

“That’s great, you must be a magical—”

The girl said joyfully, opening her arms, wanting to grab the duck, but was stopped by her father’s stern look.

The father coughed lightly, and as if no one else was present, said to his daughter:

“I’m still in good shape. I’ll still participate in tomorrow’s battle, so that’s final.”

“—While there’s still time, I need to tell you some final arrangements. If I’m gone, you must remember.”

The daughter was stunned, somewhat confused.

The duck’s eyes darted around, and soon showed approval.

This man knows what’s up!

Truly an old soldier.

Moreover, having served many years on the front lines, he should know a lot of information that civilians don’t.

So God sent him to gather intelligence!

The man thought for a moment, then said seriously:

“The sequences control everything in the city.”

“It’s the sequences that determine the lifespan of various prosthetic bodies; everything is decided during their manufacture.”

“Like an old soldier such as myself.”

“—The lifespan of all my parts and equipment determines how long I can live.”

“In fact, I will die in exactly twenty-seven minutes and eighteen seconds.”

“If I don’t die at that moment—”

“The sequence will send strong individuals to kill me, reclaim my soul and everything, for its own use.”

“What I’m saying now will have a consequence.”

“I will die prematurely.”

“—This proves that the sequence monitors my every move.”

“Humans are under surveillance and control from birth to death, with no way out.”

“Unless it’s an existence like yourself.”

“閣下 ah!”

“Everything I know I have already told you. I only have one wish, please protect my—”

Suddenly.

A muffled explosion echoed within the man’s body.

He swayed twice, fell to his knees, and insisted on saying:

“Daughter… daughter.” Outside the basement, a shrill howl echoed.

Ear-piercing alarms blared simultaneously.

The girl began to cry and scream.

The duck quietly watched the scene, looking at the basement which resembled a rat’s nest.

It seemed to fall into deep thought.

At the same time.

On the other side.

Outside the Divine Restaurant.

In mid-air.

The hundred-meter-tall giant behind Xu Xingke slowly stood up, letting out a silent roar.

World-Spirit Marionette!

It swung its fist and unleashed it towards the Outer God Nyarlathotep—

The Outer God stared at the giant unmoving.

Streaks of flowing light and spells emerged from the void, piercing through the giant’s form, causing its black stone body to continuously crumble.

“To strike at me is to disrespect a god. Your fate is already sealed!”

The voice of the Outer God Nyarlathotep echoed through the night sky.

Xu Xingke, however, showed no fear, holding a spell seal with both hands, continuously activating the descending Dharma Body.

He glanced at Shen Ye in surprise.

—That instant was a good opportunity for a joint attack.

Shen Ye drew his sword.

But then—

He had made his move, but Shen Ye had not.

What was going on?

“Shen Ye.”

Xu Xingke called out.

Shen Ye then snapped out of it, shook his head, and said:

“Sorry, I was distracted just now.”

He hovered in mid-air, gazing at the city.

The night was deep.

But this sleepless city, shimmering with various lights, was like human destiny bound by intertwining sequences.

Glimmering flying vehicles soared towards the city’s outskirts.

That was the front line against the strange creatures.

On various streets, crowds bustled, armed with various modern weapons, constantly ready to support the city wall.

But all of this was under the rule of the sequences.

Tsk.

From the moment of birth, everything about humans was predetermined by the sequences.

It was truly terribly uninteresting.

Such a life was not even as good as the Myriad Realms.

Shen Ye thought silently, but then lines of faint glowing characters appeared before his eyes:

“—You are the pioneer holding the torch, illuminating the darkness.”

“You have insight into the fate of the current historical fragment and have thought accordingly.”

“The eternal poem of humanity has resonated.”

“The third mission is about to be activated.”

“This mission is to be decided by you.”

“Please choose from the aspects of human ethnic development, confronting artificial sequences, and surviving amidst bizarre events and the apocalypse.”

“Currently offering three options:”

“1. Lead a revolution; you will become a leader, guiding all survivors to load the classical natural sequence, developing and growing step by step under the cover of God, without being detected by artificial sequences;”

“2. Form an alliance: Traverse the incredibly dangerous void alone to the extremely distant Time Ring, and in that closed, complete historical segment, seek out the Lord of the Apocalypse, persuading him to help you defeat various artificial sequences at this moment;”

“3. Under God’s witness, declare your mission.”

Shen Ye read it at a glance and immediately made a decision.

“Choose 3.”

“Why not 2? I thought you would choose 2,” God’s majestic voice echoed in the void.

“How can I always trouble others? They don’t owe me anything.”

“If I get the chance, I plan to thank them specially.”

“As for now—”

Shen Ye stared at the Outer God Nyarlathotep in mid-air, and continued:

“I am a gold-medal salesperson, accustomed to cooperating with people, often making compromises for benefits.”

“So this time, I clearly know that humanity has no retreat.”

“Plus, I personally don’t like procrastination—”

“Neither option 1 nor option 2 can achieve my current goal.”

He made a spell seal with one hand.

Dharma Body Descent: Yin-Yang Fate Master!

In the darkness.

Streaks of sunlight descended from the sky, illuminating this human city.

Even the shattered basement was bathed in faint light.

Some people began to revive.

More received the command from the “Blood Burning Prosthetic” sequence and looked towards Shen Ye.

“That’s a grotesque creature that infiltrated Star-Moon City!”

The crowd clamored, facing a formidable enemy.

The battle formation rapidly assembled.

The humans of the surface city began preparing for a fight with Shen Ye.

Humans.

Are about to fully confront Shen Ye!

Shen Ye looked at this scene indifferently, with no trace of emotion in his eyes.

“Many things are troublesome to prove.”

The long blade was raised.

“But I believe in one thing—”

“The weapon of criticism cannot replace the criticism of weapons.”

“And I absolutely do not want to wait any longer.”

“I want to take out those sequences and Outer Gods, fighting until they are completely annihilated.”

“—Then the world will be clean.”

As Shen Ye spoke, the faint glowing characters in the void froze.

“You raise the eternal torch, and under the witness of an omniscient and omnipotent Lord, you have guided the human race’s third mission:”

“Slay all enemy demons.”

“Description: You desire to make everything fall into place (in a physical sense).”

“From now on, all tasks issued by your sequence will revolve around this core mission.”

“—From this moment on!”

Night and day intertwined.

Under this magnificent and illusory scene, Shen Ye watched as the giant Dharma Body behind Xu Xingke began to sway and retreat.

—After all, Xu Xingke had only just reached the Other Shore.

He still needed some time to acquire enough bizarre power, upgrade his sequence, and enhance his strength.

Therefore—

In an instant.

Something seemed to have happened.

In mid-air.

The Outer God Nyarlathotep retreated repeatedly, covered in wounds large and small, bleeding profusely.

Xu Xingke’s giant Dharma Body, however, suddenly stabilized.

—Inverted Sun Shadow!

This was Shen Ye’s innate bizarre skill.

“No…”

Outer God Nyarlathotep, ignoring its injuries, suddenly looked at Shen Ye, its tone changed:

“You truly are a monstrous entity!”

Shen Ye smiled, shaking his head:

“Just now you said I was strange, and now that I’ve acted, you’re surprised again.”

“A load of crap, “God”.”

“However, this is not a ‘bizarre’ power, but the power of the ‘God Slayer’ sequence.”

Along with his words, waves of sacred light enveloped him.

—As if he had just activated a divine skill.

Everything appeared so real.

God had intervened.

“Impossible… I’ve never heard of any sequence possessing power comparable to a Bizarre.”

The Outer God Nyarlathotep suddenly roared:

“Spirit-Yoke Corrupt-Desire, stop playing dead and come aid me!”

Its voice echoed throughout the city.

The ground vibrated slightly.

Something seemed to be about to emerge.

At this moment.

Shen Ye suddenly withdrew his two clones, elevating his strength to its true potential.

Then—

“You activated ‘Sacred Hymn Weaver’, elevating all your skills and abilities by two ranks.”

Faint small characters flickered and then quickly disappeared.

Wind.

The wind howled like ghosts, weaving through the darkness.

—It was his turn to act.

Shen Ye raised the Youhuang Blade high, forming a spell seal with one hand.

The Dharma Body: Yin-Yang Fate Master gradually faded into nothingness.

Boom—

Black and white lightning descended from the void, twining around the Youhuang Blade.

Special Dharma Body: Lord of Reincarnation.

This was a Dharma Body enhanced by two ranks, more powerful than the Yin-Yang Fate Master!

“Youhuang,” Shen Ye whispered, “I remember you can take away everything from the enemy. Now, follow me and—”

“Take everything from them with all our might.”

(End of chapter)