Chapter 114: My Lord Above!
In the dimly glowing tunnel, Yuan Zhu chose a forked uphill path and hurried along, going farther and farther, once again experiencing the oppressive feeling from the initial descent, with breathing becoming painful and difficult.
He understood that this mixture of various pollutions brought erosion and distortion. Even though his lungs had Holy Cough for filtering and purification, the dizzying sensation of breathing poisonous gas and oxygen deprivation poisoning was becoming more and more intense.
So he stopped and did not advance further. He maintained the fragile balance between Holy Cough and the external air pollution. Then, he began to perceive his own spiritual world.
In Tiger Demon Form, it was closely linked to the Shadow Dream Hole. Not only was there a projection in his brain that could observe the internal Shadow Space; he could also treat it as an external organ, opening and closing it at will, manipulating the pollution infiltration direction of the ‘walls’ inside the Shadow Space (filtering discharge, reverse absorption).
When he was in Human Stance, the Shadow Dream Hole still maintained its connection with him and had not disappeared. This was vastly different from the Shadow System’s Boss Template.
After he detached from the Tiger Demon, all Shadow System innate divine abilities entered a dormant state and could not be used, and the Ghost Companions were forcibly reclaimed by the shadow. He was just a pure and clean Holy Light System Human.
The only exception was when he relied on the Haunted House to confine the four Ghost Companions inside it. In that stance, it was equivalent to the Tiger Demon temporarily severing and abandoning the Ghost Companions, throwing them into the Haunted House to fend for themselves. The Haunted House was like a sealed fish tank, temporarily sustaining the Ghost Companions (goldfish).
Now, Yuan Zhu in Human Form had once again severed contact with the Tiger Demon. But the projection of the Shadow Dream Hole still existed in his brain and had not disappeared.
This confirmed that the Shadow Dream Hole was extremely closely linked to the Tiger Demon that created it, yet it did not belong to the Boss Template, but to the current Bubble World.
The Tiger Demon had merely participated in the creation of the Shadow Dream Hole, becoming its ‘creator + user + owner’. After the Tiger Demon logged off, the Shadow Dream Hole did not disappear and remained stored in his own shadow.
Yuan Zhu suddenly squatted down and tried to reach his hand into the shadow to contact the Shadow Dream Hole. But what he touched was an icy and hard muddy ground. His flesh hand could not touch the interior of the shadow.
It’s the Tiger Demon’s shadow—how could a mere Human like you touch it?
Clearly, his mental will could clearly perceive that the thing was in the shadow, but he, as the owner, could not touch or retrieve it: “Interesting.”
After a brief thought, his uniform entered Shadow Mode, wrapping his entire right arm and weaving a black racing glove for his five fingers. This time, he easily sank his right arm into the shadow and then pulled out a huge Black Disc from the ground, with a diameter of about 1.7 meters.
Through the Shadow Uniform, he clearly touched the Shadow Dream Hole, which felt like an extremely hard substance but had no thickness or weight. It felt like a thin layer in his hand, as if it had no thickness, but from any angle, it was perfectly round, yet it was definitely not a sphere.
A very contradictory sensation. His vision and touch produced a serious sense of disconnection, leaving his brain somewhat dazed.
The Shadow Dream Hole also had no weight and was easily lifted. As soon as he let go, the Black Disc would fix in that position, neither moving, shaking, nor sinking—quiet and stable. But as long as he held it with his hand, he could manipulate and move it freely.
“?”
At this moment, Yuan Zhu carefully perceived the Dream Hole in front of him and compared it to the usage sensation in Tiger Demon Stance. He reached a conclusion: the Shadow Dream Hole was similar to his Shadow Uniform but more advanced, with a deep connection to the current Bubble World.
Both were the type of personal limited items that remained even after detaching from the Boss Template and could still be used by him.
It was just that in Tiger Demon Form, he could precisely manipulate the Shadow Dream Hole with his will, like a magic treasure in a xianxia novel; in Human Form, he could only operate it manually, which was very inconvenient.
Little Spicy Stick suddenly spoke: “This is a good thing. Since the Shadow Dream Hole is not a product of the Boss Template, it can exist long-term and operate automatically. If it can truly be used as the foundation to construct the Mountain Lord’s Domain, then this domain can be automatically maintained for a long time without the Tiger Demon needing to divert attention to manage it, just like Running’s Disease Garden.”
Yuan Zhu also agreed with Little Spicy Stick’s idea: “Indeed, it’s good news.”
For the suddenly appearing Shadow Dream Hole, he had always harbored great vigilance in his heart. This thing was like a benefit given for free; getting such a great gift for no reason, he always felt there was an unknown price behind it.
After all, Du Ling’s various cultivation systems were each more treacherous than the last—he no longer believed there was any ‘bargain’ to be had in this world. If, as Little Spicy Stick said, he could truly use the Shadow Dream Hole to open the Mountain Lord’s Domain and nail it in place.
Even if hidden dangers arose in the future, at worst he could flee.
Leaving the real estate in the Bubble World—even if it turned into a timed bomb, it wouldn’t kill him. If this Shadow Dream Hole inexplicably became part of the Boss Template and couldn’t be shaken off, that would be truly terrifying.
…
He touched the smooth Black Disc with his finger, and Yuan Zhu in Human Stance muttered to himself: “Now, it’s time to deal with the hidden danger inside.”
He touched the Dream Hole with one finger, trying to transmit his thoughts and ideas into it, but was blocked. This function belonged to the Tiger Demon’s privilege—a mere human…
Then, he bent down and dug up a clump of mud, trying to transmit it into the Shadow Dream Hole.
Splatter! A clump of soil mixed with trace pollution was flung onto the face of the meditating cultivator.
“Hm?”
The cultivator, with severely depleted True Qi, warily opened his eyes and looked around. In the pitch-black Shadow Space, he saw no strangers. The oppressive feeling from outside the space (Nightmare) continued to envelop his heart, giving him a faint sense of unease.
He wiped the mud off his cheek, gently rubbed it, and sniffed it under his nose: No mistake, this was soil from the edge of the Pollution Layer! What exactly did the owner of this mysterious space want?
Outside, Little Spicy Stick asked curiously: “Boss, how do you plan to subdue this native? Want me to write a surrender letter in local insect script and send it in?”
“No need, I have a foolproof plan. First the troops, then the courtesy.”
He looked up at the deep and boundless underground passage, then moved the Shadow Dream Hole in front of himself as a shield for defense. Then, Yuan Zhu reached one hand around the Dream Hole, pointing alone at the pitch-black passage, and fully unleashed Holy Light.
A myriad-zhang radiance exploded in his palm, instantly illuminating this miasma-filled underground tunnel with Holy Light. The corrupt spiritual energy permeating the air, the Immortal Realm Tree root tendrils remaining in the soil, the slime mold moss clinging to the soil… all were ignited and charred, filling the tunnel with a scorched stench in an instant.
Then, like igniting a methane pool, it triggered more pollution to erupt in the passage, followed by a second round of harvesting and purification by the Holy Light. However, it was a drop in the bucket; more dormant ‘corrupt root tendrils’ were stimulated to erupt, even drilling out of the soil walls, frantically releasing corrupting miasma…
For a moment, the pollution index in the passage skyrocketed, gradually dominated by ‘corrupting miasma’, filling and pouring back into the underground passage, spreading and irrigating toward the lower levels.
Feeling the timing was about right, Yuan Zhu immediately switched to the Tiger Demon that came with it, held the Shadow Dream Hole in front of him to resist the oncoming spiritual energy pollution, and opened the Shadow Dream Hole to activate the powerful extraction function.
On the other side, the cultivator in the Shadow Space suddenly felt a palpitation, followed by a familiar sense of intimacy, as if his soul had returned home. But before he could rush out of the Shadow Dream Hole, he crashed into an invisible barrier.
Immediately, a continuous flood of massive ‘corrupt spiritual energy’ poured into this small space.
Under the Tiger Demon’s manipulation, the infiltration membrane of the Shadow Space continuously discharged air into the Nightmare Layer, retaining as much corrupt spiritual energy pollution as possible, so the ‘pollution concentration’ in the small space rapidly increased.
As for the exit from inside out (Shadow Dream Hole), it was blocked by a piece of ‘wall’ he had cut and moved, allowing external polluting energy to enter but preventing the internal cultivator from exiting.
Under the terrifying infiltration pressure from both realms, the polluting energy in the passage was rapidly sucked empty, the mushrooms and moss burned to death by Holy Light could no longer regenerate, and air quality rapidly declined. So the Tiger Demon once again dragged the closed Shadow Dream Hole and quickly returned the way it came.
Until reaching a section of passage with normal air, he stopped and once again focused on the cultivator inside the space.
The other party had suffered an undeserved calamity and had no chance to communicate with the space owner before being eroded and distorted by the high concentration of ‘corrupt spiritual energy’. He fully unleashed his body’s True Qi, weaving a True Qi Barrier around himself for self-preservation and resistance.
As the ‘polluting energy’ in the space slowly diluted and dissipated, his body’s True Qi also rapidly declined, and he was on the verge of collapse. If the space owner launched another wave, he would be toyed to death without any power to resist.
Unwilling to die so aggrieved, the cultivator couldn’t help shouting loudly: “Stop! I surrender! Don’t torment me anymore. I know you’re watching me. If you really wanted to kill me, I wouldn’t survive. Whatever your purpose, I agree! You sneaked into Cicada City before, so you must have your own goals, and I’m a high-level guard of Cicada City, knowing many secrets. Spare me, and I can tell you all! I can even help you with inside-outside coordination!”
Feeling the other party was sufficiently depleted, the Tiger Demon then activated the ventilation function, discharging all the polluting energy in the space into the Nightmare.
This cultivator also collapsed exhausted on the ground, gasping for air, feeling unprecedented weakness. Lacking spiritual energy to replenish True Qi, his mentality was on the brink of collapse. He had participated in various harsh battles, even encountering the ‘Iron Demonic Calamity’ on the surface, but none had left him as wretched as now—he couldn’t even refine True Qi.
Little Spicy Stick was very dissatisfied with the cultivator’s performance: “He knelt pretty quickly. Do you think he’s faking it?”
“Doesn’t seem like it. I feel he’s truly cowed.”
Little Spicy Stick: “This weakling with such unstable will—today he betrays Insect City and kneels to join you, tomorrow he can betray others to save his life. Better to refine him into a loyal Ghost Companion!”
Tiger Demon shook his head: “Ghost Companions have too low intelligence and are worthless. This high-end talent knows many Cicada City secrets—keeping his brain has higher value.”
Then, the Tiger Demon began to transmit sound. A stranger’s voice suddenly rang in the Shadow Space: “Want to die or live?”
The other party’s spirit shook—he had finally waited! So without thinking, he shouted: “Want to live!”
His every move, even his loud shout for survival, demonstrated an active surrendering attitude and strong desire for life. He didn’t even need Yuan Zhu to persuade him to surrender—he took the initiative.
“…”
The Tiger Demon was speechless and then threw in the Ghost Companion Set: “Open your mind and body, implant them into your body. Insert the fruit into the top of your head, let the root tendrils drill into your brain without resistance. Contact the Black Crystal Pillar with your mental will, open your mind, let it merge into your soul. Finally, let the root tendrils travel through your blood vessels and root throughout your body.”
“Got it, I’ll do it right now!”
The cultivator picked up the two Ghost Companion wetware pieces with strong ‘plant characteristics’, immediately associating them with the Reverse Life Immortal Sect—it must be some alienated immortal cultivator secretly probing Cicada City. But the opponent’s methods were brilliant, completely hiding spiritual energy fluctuations, using shadows to cover ears and eyes, creating smoke and mirrors.
Following the Immortal Sect was no worse than Insect City, even better prospects. No wonder the opponent’s Dream Hole was so special—it seemed the Immortal Sect was indeed infiltrating Insect City, even creating a Heterogeneous Dream Hole.
The cultivator, who had imagined a ton of plot, decisively inserted the Brain Eggplant into the top of his head, let the Shadow Eggplant parasitize his flesh, and finally absorbed the Shadow Memory Stick into his mental level… and gave an evaluation: Weak!
The intensity of these control methods was too low. If not for his body’s ‘True Qi’ being completely depleted now, he could even use ‘Qi Threads’ to traverse the whole heaven circuit and counter-kill by stripping the black leaf vein roots from his flesh.
After completing the Ghost Companion Set installation, the Tiger Demon relaxed a lot. Although he had no guarantee of fully controlling the other’s life and death now, in the True Qi depletion state, continuing to irrigate and nourish the set with ‘Shadow Pollution’ could further enhance the ‘set’s’ proportion in the other’s flesh and soul, making it impossible for him to escape.
So the Tiger Demon opened the Shadow Dream Hole again, escaped into it, then closed the door behind him, deactivated the Boss Template, and met the new employee as the boss.
Seeing Yuan Zhu in strange attire, extremely young in age, with no True Qi or magic power (Immortal Sect) fluctuations, giving a ‘very weak strength’ impression, the cultivator only felt the other was hiding deeply.
Someone who could freely manipulate the opening and closing of the Dream Hole was absolutely not weak! It only meant the opponent’s power had exceeded his own cognition, leaving him ignorant.
The cultivator stood up and saluted Yuan Zhu: “High-level Guard of Cicada City, Earth Rank Twelve Realms, Zuo Fan has seen the Immortal Master.”
Seeing the other’s attitude so compliant, Yuan Zhu was quite helpless and directly tore up the prepared script: “From now on, follow me. You’ll have your share of glory and wealth.”
“Zuo Fan thanks the Immortal Master for the boon. What do you want to know? I will tell you everything I know without reservation.” The other looked eagerly at Yuan Zhu, as if impatient to spill secrets.
He suddenly thought of the little girl who had eagerly surrendered and the shop owner Lu Yan who had been very compliant and accepted her fate. If not for hard nuts like Younger Brother, he would suspect all of Cicada City were discerning heroes.
“You surrendered so easily, without any integrity—aren’t you afraid I won’t trust you?”
Zuo Fan sighed: “Alas, Immortal Master, you may not know. We Earth Rank Twelve Realms cultivators have strength but low status and situation in Cicada City. The City Lord lineage monopolizes control of the Dream Holes and various cultivation resources, giving us no chance to cultivate and break through, instead endlessly exploiting and driving us like house slaves. I’ve long been dissatisfied! Now favored by the Immortal Master and easily subdued, I know I have no chance of turning the tables. Since that’s the case, better to wholeheartedly follow you, rebel against Cicada City—I’ve been unhappy with those insects for a long time! If lucky enough to gain the Immortal Master’s Dream Hole assistance, I can definitely break through to Heaven Rank and demonstrate greater value!”
Yuan Zhu quickly grasped the key point: “Earth Rank breaking through to Heaven Rank is related to the Dream Hole?”
Zuo Fan was stunned—you don’t even know this common sense?
“Earth Rank breakthrough requires opening the Heaven and Earth Bridge, absorbing a kind of ‘power from beyond the heavens’ and fusing it with True Qi to refine unique Innate Primordial Qi. The ‘heaven’ that can currently be broken in the Underground World is only the Nightmare World. And this Dream Hole is the Heaven and Earth Bridge.”
Yuan Zhu: “Earth Rank breakthrough requires opening the Heaven and Earth Bridge. But you can’t open the Dream Hole, so naturally you can’t break through.”
“Not exactly. The Heaven and Earth Bridge has two meanings. For Earth Rank cultivators like me, opening the Heaven and Earth Bridge means breaking through the Dream Hole with one’s own ‘True Qi’ into the Nightmare World beyond to obtain power from beyond the heavens. For Heavenly Rank Supreme Experts, punching through the weak spatial points of the Underground World, opening a Dream Hole and occupying it, is another way to connect heaven and earth.”
Yuan Zhu: “I saw Cicada City has over a dozen Dream Holes, so Cicada City has over a dozen Heaven Rank? With so many Dream Holes, none for you?”
Zuo Fan: “Exactly. Heaven Rank cultivators or Dream Holes are the most important foundation of every Insect City. Cicada City is a top-ranked major city in the Underground World precisely because of its many Heaven Ranks. However, though there are many Dream Holes, we have no qualification to access them because we are not of the City Lord lineage, untrusted, and the stronger we are, the greater the threat.”
Yuan Zhu: “Follow me, and I’ll give you a chance to use the Dream Hole. If using the Dream Hole as bait, can you pull in more people?”
Zuo Fan told the truth: “Worth a try, but Heavenly Rank experts lack control methods. Of the three techniques you used on me, only the soul-infusing restraint has some promise.”
Yuan Zhu: “…”
