Chapter 630: Old Sin City Rankings (Two-in-One)
Chapter 630: Old Sin City Rankings (Two-in-One)
Outside Old Sin City, the crowd hadn't yet recovered from the terrifying gale of that punch when they saw threads cascading down above Tang Chi's head. This time, someone finally recognized them.
“It's the scent of Fate.”
Someone spoke up, and a chorus of agreement immediately followed.
In truth, the Weird Energy of every pathway had subtle differences. But aside from a few uniquely distinct ones, these variations were simply too minute. Because most abilities were straightforward, people rarely bothered distinguishing pathways by their Weird Energy in everyday life.
Fate, however, happened to be one of those particularly unique types of Weird Energy.
Someone had once described the Weird Energy of this pathway like this:
It was as sticky as wet dough, radiating a deeply uncomfortable stench. Yet it offered no room for refusal, wrapping you tightly within it and forcing you to suck it in.
“Fate...”
Many people's eyes lit up as they realized the identity of the person employing this method.
The newly appointed master of the Path of Destiny.
It could only be him.
“The heroes of this world are truly like carps crossing the river...”
Someone murmured in awe.
“But who was the person before him?”
Another asked in confusion.
As soon as this was asked, a gradual silence fell over the surroundings.
The crowd frowned.
Indeed, they could trace the origins of the latter ability, but the earlier display of power had come from absolutely nowhere.
“It's... it's that man from Minhu...”
The frail-looking woman's eyes lit up, finally finding the opportunity to step forward.
Seeing everyone's gaze shift to her, she cleared her throat and said softly, “The man from Minhu who defeated me wasn't Luo Sheng. His name is Liu Fu.”
“He should be walking a pure Minhu path, likely a martial artist.”
Hearing her words, the crowd was utterly stunned.
Liu Fu...
How could another expert appear right on the heels of Luo Sheng?
Was Minhu about to recreate the glory of the Imperial Era?
To actually produce two Tenth Tier experts at the same time!
One had slaughtered Wu Qianli, the Exiled Immortal, while the other had beaten Deputy Train Conductor Tang Chi into fleeing, destroying his arm with a single punch.
“Years of accumulation finally erupting. The foundation of the Imperial Era...”
Someone couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
While the crowd marveled at the Imperial Era's enduring glory, things were far from pleasant for Tang Chi on the other side.
Staring at the threads cascading from the sky, his expression changed drastically. His Weird Energy erupted in full force, summoning patches of distorted space that absorbed all the threads.
However...
The very next second, several threads pierced right through that invisible spatial layer and stabbed directly into Tang Chi's chest.
Squelch!
Streams of blood spurted wildly from Tang Chi's chest.
His eyes instantly turned bloodshot, bulging as if they might tear at the corners.
It wasn't that he had failed to transfer the threads to another temporal plane. Rather, there were already threads waiting in that alternate plane.
The moment he opened the dimension to that alternate temporal plane, the threads there—as if having waited for a long time—instantly fell and struck him. A low hum vibrated through the air.
A chaotic light seemed to flicker in Tang Chi's eyes.
That was his Fate, and right now, it was being tampered with by those threads.
Naturally, he refused to surrender without a fight. Yet, after struggling against them, he despairingly realized that if he wanted to stop those golden threads from devouring his Fate, he only had one option left.
He had to let the threads directly damage his origin.
He could only choose one of the two...
To have his origin damaged right before Advent Day...
Tang Chi's eyes flooded entirely with blood. A surging wave of fury erupted from his chest, and he roared, “When I return! I will make all of you pay the price in blood!!!”
With those words, he turned and prepared to flee far away.
But right at that moment, he threw a terrified glance over his shoulder toward the distance.
The crowd didn't understand what was happening, but then they saw a crack appear across Tang Chi's neck.
And then...
It rapidly widened.
Spray!
Crimson blood gushed from Tang Chi's mouth. His neck seemed to split open, the massive wound spraying like a fountain.
Half of his entire head flopped backward, leaving only a bit of cartilage keeping it attached.
“Who attacked this time?!!”
The crowd watched in sheer horror. Had the normally low-profile Train really provoked this many people? Or was this a case of everyone pushing down a collapsing wall?
Rumble!
The sky suddenly darkened in an instant.
Bong—Bong, bong...
Three bell chimes that seemed to echo from ancient times reverberated through the air. Everyone's eyes went wide as involuntary shivers racked their bodies.
This wasn't the power of the Tenth Tier!
Absolutely not!!!
As the chimes faded, the blood spraying from Tang Chi—who looked no different from a corpse at this point—actually began to flow in reverse. At a visible speed, it retreated back into his body!
Not only that, but all the wounds across his body were healing, and his backward-lolling head slowly righted itself!
Just a few seconds later, a brand new Tang Chi appeared in everyone's line of sight.
The newly invigorated Tang Chi glared in the direction of Old Sin City. Finally, he gnashed his teeth, said nothing, and vanished from the crowd's view. The sky cleared up once again.
The distant chiming of the bell had long since faded.
It was as if that immense power had never appeared at all.
Yet, the backs of nearly everyone present were drenched in cold sweat.
That definitely wasn't a hallucination.
An expert in the Demigod Realm had made a move!
“Advent Day hasn't arrived yet. A Demigod taking action has to pay a massive price...”
“The Train ultimately couldn't accept a monster like Tang Chi dying prematurely before Advent Day, so they forcefully fished him out of the jaws of death.”
“That Demigod was already showing great restraint. They only altered the time around Tang Chi, ultimately confining him to a small area similar to a temporal domain. That's why Tang Chi couldn't continue fighting in the end. If he steps out of that temporal domain, he'll revert to his previous state in a short amount of time.” A person walking a Pathway related to time spoke up, pointing out the reason behind Tang Chi's final state.
In truth, he hadn't truly turned back his own time; there were still certain limitations.
“But it's already a miracle. As long as the time within that temporal domain is slowly calibrated with the time in the real world, it's equivalent to truly reversing time.”
Someone sighed in amazement. Who could have imagined that the mutation in Old Sin City would escalate to this extent?
It had actually forced out power belonging to the Demigod Realm.
“Who's even left inside Old Sin City now?”
The crowd broke into a lively discussion.
Soon, a Domain skilled at gathering information produced a list. It cataloged all the major powerhouses who had surfaced during this mutation, ranking them simply while providing corresponding justifications.
“First — Xue Family Heir. Confirmed battle record: Fought against five Mechanical Emperors of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom alone and successfully crushed them. Then, using highly similar methods, he slayed the Sea Saint of the Life Heavenly Kingdom.”
“Second — Immortal Slayer Luo Sheng. Confirmed battle record: Defeated the reincarnated Exiled Immortal of the Immortal Anomaly, a fact personally admitted by the Exiled Immortal. Since the Exiled Immortal once defeated the Sea Saint, logically speaking, Luo Sheng's battle record should be superior to the Xue Family Heir's. However, his identity has yet to be fully verified, so he must settle for second place.” “Third — Mysterious Human. Confirmed battle record: Defeated the Son of Chaos from Chaos. The strength of the Son of Chaos should also be slightly greater than the Sea Saint's. He's ranked third for similar reasons to Luo Sheng—his identity remains unverified. Furthermore, the Son of Chaos only recently came into the world and cannot be compared to the Exiled Immortal, so this person can only rank third.”
“Fourth — The Chen Family Monster. Confirmed battle record: Single-handedly defeated the eldest son and eldest daughter of the Chen Family, and used his remaining strength to force back the ninth Mechanical Emperor of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom. Because it was merely forcing him back and not an outright defeat, he can only be ranked fourth.”
“Fifth — Master of the Path of Destiny. Confirmed battle record: Teamed up with the mysterious Minhu elder to defeat the youngest Deputy Train Conductor in the history of the Train, forcing a Demigod to intervene. He's only ranked fifth because the two of them joined forces, meaning it likely wasn't a one-on-one duel.”
“Sixth — The Mysterious Minhu Elder, Liu Fu. Confirmed battle record: Same as above. Because his identity is considered inferior to the master of the Path of Destiny, he is placed at sixth.”
“Seventh — The Youngest Son of the Fear Family. Battle record: Traces of his power have suspectedly appeared multiple times since the mutation began, and he seems to have connections with many of the other figures.”
“Eighth — Earth Saint of the Life Heavenly Kingdom. He hasn't appeared again since entering Old Sin City. According to testimony from insiders of the Life Heavenly Kingdom, his strength is greater than the Sea Saint's.” “Ninth — The Ninth Mechanical Emperor. He hasn't appeared again after being forced back by the Chen Family monster. According to testimony from insiders of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom, his strength absolutely ranks near the very top of the Tenth Tier.”
The list quickly circulated among the various Domains. Looking at the names of these previously unheard-of existences, the crowd was filled with awe. With the approach of Advent Day, the Inner World had already undergone massive changes.
It was a period of a hundred flowers blooming, with many of these powerhouses being entirely unknown before this event.
Even the number-one ranked Xue Family Heir, who once enjoyed immense fame, had gone through an unimaginably low period.
“The world has changed. Nothing is certain anymore.”
“Indeed. It's hard to imagine what will happen when these existences actually run into each other. It will definitely be a storm of swords and a bloody slaughter.”
“That's a given. Existences like them all have their own pride and won't tolerate anyone who might threaten them. Even if they cooperate temporarily, the day will definitely come when they cross blows. We've seen far too many examples of this throughout history.”
“Yeah. Everything changes according to strength. That is the fundamental law of this world.”
“Let's get this straight first. Huzi, you're not allowed to use your abilities.”
The Old Man looked at Tiger with utmost seriousness, acting as if this were a matter of grave importance.
“I absolutely won't use any abilities.”
Tiger raised his fist above his head and swore solemnly.
The Old Man then turned to look at Yan Jing.
Yan Jing shrugged.
“I don't have any abilities to use anyway.”
“I can't exactly freeze the two of you and then swap my cards. That would be too obvious.”
“No way. You're the most cunning one here.” The Old Man relentlessly bit down on the issue and refused to let it go. Left with no choice, Yan Jing had to swear that he absolutely wouldn't use any abilities. “That settles it.”
The Old Man was satisfied.
But just as he reached out to draw a card, Yan Jing immediately called for a halt.
“Old Man, you haven't sworn yet, have you?”
“I can't use abilities either?” The Old Man's eyes widened.
“I'm an old man!”
“It doesn't matter even if you're the living dead.” Yan Jing sneered.
“This is Fight the Landlord. We aren't playing house with your usual shouting and killing. Here, the pursuit is fair competition.”
“What happens when you swap cards later and pull a whole pile of Twos out of your pocket?”
“Mr. Tiger surely thinks the same way, right?”
Yan Jing looked over at Tiger.
Tiger immediately nodded.
“Indeed, fair competition. Just accept it, Old Man.”
Out of options, the Old Man could only swear his oath.
Yes, the three of them were playing Fight the Landlord.
The Old Man and Tiger had come here this time specifically to find Yi Ji. Now that they had found
Outside Old Sin City, the crowd had not yet recovered from the shockwave of that punch when they saw threads cascading down above Tang Chi's head. This time, someone finally recognized them.
"It's the scent of Fate."
Someone spoke up, and a chorus of agreement immediately followed.
In truth, the weird energy of every Pathway had subtle differences. But aside from a few uniquely distinct ones, these variations were simply too minute. Coupled with the fact that most abilities were straightforward, people rarely bothered distinguishing Pathways by their weird energy in everyday life.
Fate, however, happened to be one of those particularly unique types of weird energy.
Someone had once described the weird energy of this Pathway like this:
It was as sticky as wet dough, radiating a deeply uncomfortable stench. Yet, it offered no room for refusal, wrapping you tightly within it and forcing you to swallow it down.
"Fate..."
Many people's eyes lit up as they realized the identity of the person employing this method.
The newly appointed master of the Path of Destiny.
It could only be him.
"The heroes of this world are truly like carps crossing the river..."
Someone murmured in awe.
"But who was the person before?"
Another asked in confusion.
As soon as this was asked, a gradual silence fell over the surroundings.
The crowd frowned.
Indeed, they could trace the origins of this latter ability, but that earlier display of power had come from absolutely nowhere.
"It's... it's that man from Minhu..."
The frail-looking woman's eyes lit up, finally finding the opportunity to step forward.
Seeing everyone's gaze shift to her, she cleared her throat and said softly, "The man from Minhu who defeated me wasn't Luo Sheng. His name is Liu Fu."
"He should be walking a pure Minhu path, likely a martial artist."
Hearing her words, the crowd was utterly stunned.
Liu Fu...
How could another one appear right on the heels of Luo Sheng?
Was Minhu about to recreate the glory of the Imperial Era?
To actually produce two Tenth Tier experts at the same time!
One had slaughtered Wu Qianli, the Exiled Immortal, while the other had beaten Deputy Train Conductor Tang Chi into fleeing, destroying his arm with a single punch.
"Years of accumulation finally erupting. The foundation of the Imperial Era..."
Someone could not help but sigh in admiration.
While the crowd marveled at the Imperial Era's enduring glory, things were far from pleasant for Tang Chi on the other side.
Staring at the threads cascading from the sky, his expression changed drastically. His weird energy erupted in full force, summoning patches of distorted space that absorbed all the threads.
However...
The very next second, several threads pierced right through that invisible spatial layer and stabbed directly into Tang Chi's chest.
Squelch!
Streams of blood spurted wildly from Tang Chi's chest.
His eyes instantly turned bloodshot, bulging as if they might tear at the corners.
It was not that he had failed to transfer the threads to another temporal plane. Rather, there were already threads waiting in that alternate plane.
The moment he opened the dimension to that alternate temporal plane, the threads there—as if having waited a long time—instantly fell and struck him. A low hum vibrated through the air.
A chaotic light seemed to flicker in Tang Chi's eyes.
That was his Fate, and right now, it was being tampered with by those threads.
Naturally, he refused to surrender without a fight. Yet, after struggling against them, he despairingly realized that if he wanted to stop those golden threads from devouring his Fate, he only had one option left.
He had to let the threads directly damage his origin.
He could only choose one of the two...
To have his origin damaged right before Advent Day...
Tang Chi's eyes flooded entirely with blood. A surging wave of fury erupted from his chest, and he roared, "When I return! I will make all of you pay the price in blood!!!"
With those words, he turned and prepared to flee far away.
But right at that moment, he threw a terrified glance over his shoulder toward the distance.
The crowd did not understand what was happening, but then they saw a crack appear across Tang Chi's neck.
And then...
It rapidly widened.
Spray!
Crimson blood gushed from Tang Chi's mouth. His neck seemed to split open, the massive wound spraying like a fountain.
Half of his entire head flopped backward, leaving only a bit of cartilage keeping it attached.
"Who attacked this time?!!"
The crowd watched in sheer horror. Had the normally low-profile Train really provoked this many people? Or was this a case of everyone pushing down a collapsing wall?
Rumble!
The sky suddenly darkened in an instant.
Bong—Bong, bong...
Three bell chimes that seemed to echo from ancient times reverberated through the air. Everyone's eyes went wide as involuntary shivers racked their bodies.
This was not the power of the Tenth Tier!
Absolutely not!!!
As the chimes faded, the blood spraying from Tang Chi—who looked no different from a corpse at this point—actually began to flow in reverse. At a visible speed, it retreated back into his body!
Not only that, but all the wounds across his body were healing, and his backward-lolling head slowly righted itself!
Just a few seconds later, a brand-new Tang Chi appeared in everyone's line of sight.
The newly invigorated Tang Chi glared in the direction of Old Sin City. Finally, he gnashed his teeth, said nothing, and vanished from the crowd's view. The sky cleared up once again.
The distant chiming of the bell had long since faded.
It was as if that immense power had never appeared at all.
Yet, the backs of nearly everyone present were drenched in cold sweat.
That definitely was not a hallucination.
An expert in the Demigod Realm had made a move!
"Advent Day hasn't arrived yet. A Demigod taking action has to pay a massive price..."
"The Train ultimately couldn't accept a monster like Tang Chi dying prematurely before Advent Day, so they forcefully fished him out of the jaws of death."
"That Demigod was already showing great restraint. They only altered the time around Tang Chi, ultimately confining him to a small area similar to a temporal domain. That's why Tang Chi couldn't continue fighting in the end. If he steps out of that temporal domain, he'll revert to his previous state in a short amount of time." A person walking a Pathway related to time spoke up, pointing out the reason behind Tang Chi's final state.
In truth, he hadn't truly turned back his own time; there were still certain limitations.
"But it's already a miracle. As long as the time within that temporal domain is slowly calibrated with the time in the real world, it's equivalent to truly reversing time."
Someone sighed in amazement. Who could have imagined that the Mutation in Old Sin City would escalate to this extent?
It had actually forced out power belonging to the Demigod Realm.
"Who's even left inside Old Sin City now?"
The crowd broke into a lively discussion.
Soon, a Domain skilled at gathering information produced a list. It cataloged all the major powerhouses who had surfaced during this Mutation, ranking them simply while providing corresponding justifications.
"First—Xue Family Heir. Confirmed battle record: Fought against five Mechanical Emperors of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom alone and successfully crushed them. Then, using highly similar methods, he slayed the Sea Saint of the Life Heavenly Kingdom."
"Second—Immortal Slayer Luo Sheng. Confirmed battle record: Defeated the reincarnated Exiled Immortal of the Immortal Anomaly, a fact personally admitted by the Exiled Immortal. Since the Exiled Immortal once defeated the Sea Saint, logically speaking, Luo Sheng's battle record should be superior to the Xue Family Heir. However, his identity has yet to be fully verified, so he must settle for second place." "Third—Mysterious Human. Confirmed battle record: Defeated the Son of Chaos from Chaos. The strength of the Son of Chaos should also be slightly greater than the Sea Saint. He is ranked third for similar reasons to Luo Sheng—his identity remains unverified. Furthermore, the Son of Chaos only recently came into the world and cannot be compared to the Exiled Immortal, so this person can only rank third."
"Fourth—The Chen Family Monster. Confirmed battle record: Single-handedly defeated the eldest son and eldest daughter of the Chen Family, and used his remaining strength to force back the ninth Mechanical Emperor of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom. Because it was merely forcing him back and not an outright defeat, he can only be ranked fourth."
"Fifth—Master of the Path of Destiny. Confirmed battle record: Teamed up with the mysterious Minhu elder to defeat the youngest Deputy Train Conductor in the history of the Train, forcing a Demigod to intervene. He is only ranked fifth because the two of them joined forces, meaning it likely wasn't a one-on-one duel."
"Sixth—The Mysterious Minhu Elder, Liu Fu. Confirmed battle record: Same as above. Because his identity is considered inferior to the master of the Path of Destiny, he is placed at sixth."
"Seventh—The Youngest Son of the Fear Family. Battle record: Traces of his power have suspectedly appeared multiple times since the Mutation began, and he seems to have connections with many of the other figures."
"Eighth—Earth Saint of the Life Heavenly Kingdom. He hasn't appeared again since entering Old Sin City. According to testimony from insiders of the Life Heavenly Kingdom, his strength is greater than the Sea Saint." "Ninth—The Ninth Mechanical Emperor. He hasn't appeared again after being forced back by the Chen Family monster. According to testimony from insiders of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom, his strength absolutely ranks near the very top of the Tenth Tier."
The list quickly circulated among the various Domains. Looking at the names of these previously unheard-of existences, the crowd was filled with awe. With the approach of Advent Day, the Inner World had already undergone massive changes.
It was a period of a hundred flowers blooming, with many of these powerhouses being entirely unknown before this event.
Even the number-one ranked Xue Family Heir, who once enjoyed immense fame, had gone through an unimaginably low period.
"The world has changed. Nothing is certain anymore."
"Indeed. It's hard to imagine what will happen when these existences actually run into each other. It will definitely be a storm of swords and a bloody slaughter."
"That's a given. Existences like them all have their own pride and won't tolerate anyone who might threaten them. Even if they cooperate temporarily, the day will definitely come when they cross blows. We've seen far too many examples of this throughout history."
"Yeah. Everything changes according to strength. That is the fundamental law of this world."
"Let's get this straight first. Huzi, you're not allowed to use your abilities."
The Old Man looked at Tiger with utmost seriousness, acting as if this were a matter of grave importance.
"I absolutely won't use any abilities."
Tiger raised his fist above his head and swore solemnly.
The Old Man then turned to look at Yan Jing.
Yan Jing shrugged.
"I don't have any abilities to use anyway."
"I can't exactly freeze the two of you and then swap my cards. That would be too obvious."
"No way. You're the most cunning one here." The Old Man relentlessly bit down on the issue and refused to let it go. Left with no choice, Yan Jing had to swear that he absolutely wouldn't use any abilities. "That settles it."
The Old Man was satisfied.
But just as he reached out to draw a card, Yan Jing immediately called for a halt.
"Old Man, you haven't sworn yet, have you?"
"I can't use abilities either?" The Old Man's eyes widened.
"I'm an old man!"
"It doesn't matter even if you're the living dead." Yan Jing sneered.
"This is Fight the Landlord. We aren't playing house with your usual shouting and killing. Here, the pursuit is fair competition."
"What happens when you swap cards later and pull a whole pile of Twos out of your pocket?"
"Mr. Tiger surely thinks the same way, right?"
Yan Jing looked over at Tiger.
Tiger immediately nodded.
"Indeed, fair competition. Just accept it, Old Man."
Out of options, the Old Man could only swear his oath.
Yes, the three of them were playing Fight the Landlord.
The Old Man and Tiger had come here this time specifically to find Yi Ji. Now that they had found him, they naturally had no intention of continuing any missions or clearing the Dungeon. "A pair of Fives."
The Old Man made his move with vicious intent. Playing as the player right before the landlord, he didn't start with a pair of Threes—the mark of a true expert at a glance.
Looking at the cards in his hand, Yan Jing felt a bit of pressure.
"A pair of Sixes."
This round was fine, but in the next round, this terrible old geezer would definitely block his cards and stop him from passing any small hands.
"Mr. Yi Ji, what are your thoughts on this Mutation in Old Sin City?"
Tiger was the only one among the three who still cared about the Mutation in Old Sin City. He asked this after passing a pair of Eights from his hand.
"Thoughts... what thoughts?" Yan Jing stared intently at Old Master Liu.
"I mean... your plans. Are you prepared to staunchly defend this place? The resistance looks a bit heavy."
Tiger lowered his voice.
"Given the current situation, everyone knows that there must be something hidden inside Old Sin City. If you ask me, you'd be better off finding an acquaintance, grabbing the item, and running. If you have someone you can trust in your organization, for example, you might want to consider it."
"A pair of Jacks!!!"
The Old Man slammed his cards down with massive momentum, creating a gust even stronger than the shockwave of his earlier punch.
Yan Jing looked at the pair of Tens in his hand and let out a helpless sigh.
He knew this old geezer wouldn't let him slip past a single card.
<
Outside Old Sin City, the crowd hadn't yet recovered from the terrifying wind of that punch when they saw threads cascading down above Tang Chi's head. This time, someone finally recognized them.
"It's the scent of Fate."
Someone spoke up, and a chorus of agreement immediately followed.
In truth, the weird energy of every Pathway had subtle differences. But aside from a few uniquely distinct ones, these variations were simply too minute. Coupled with the fact that most abilities were straightforward, people rarely bothered distinguishing Pathways by their weird energy in everyday life.
Fate, however, happened to be one of those particularly unique types of weird energy.
Someone had once described the weird energy of this Pathway like this:
It was as sticky as wet dough, radiating a deeply uncomfortable stench. Yet, it offered no room for refusal, wrapping you tightly within it and forcing you to drink it in.
"Fate..."
Many people's eyes lit up as they realized the identity of the person employing this method.
The newly appointed master of the Path of Destiny.
It could only be him.
"The heroes of this world are truly as numerous as carps crossing the river..."
Someone murmured with a sigh.
"But who was the person before?"
Another asked in confusion.
As soon as this was asked, a gradual silence fell over the crowd.
Everyone frowned.
Indeed, they could trace the origins of this latter ability, but that earlier display of power had come from absolutely nowhere.
"It's... it's that man from Minhu..."
The frail-looking woman's eyes lit up, finally finding the opportunity to step forward.
Seeing everyone's gaze shift to her, she cleared her throat and said softly, "The man from Minhu who defeated me wasn't Luo Sheng. His name is Liu Fu."
"He should be walking a pure Minhu path, likely a martial artist."
Hearing her words, the crowd was utterly stunned.
Liu Fu...
How could another one appear right on the heels of Luo Sheng?
Was Minhu about to recreate the glory of the Imperial Era?
To actually produce two Tenth Tier experts at the same time!
One had slaughtered the Exiled Immortal, Wu Qianli, while the other had beaten Deputy Train Conductor Tang Chi into fleeing, destroying his arm with a single punch.
"Years of accumulation finally erupting. The foundation of the Imperial Era..."
Someone couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
While the crowd marveled at the Imperial Era's enduring glory, things were far from pleasant for Tang Chi on the other side.
Staring at the threads cascading from the sky, his expression changed drastically. His weird energy erupted in full force, summoning patches of distorted space that absorbed all the threads.
However...
The very next second, several threads pierced right through that invisible spatial layer and stabbed directly into Tang Chi's chest.
Squelch!
Streams of blood spurted wildly from Tang Chi's chest.
His eyes instantly turned bloodshot, bulging as if they might tear at the corners.
It wasn't that he had failed to transfer the threads to another temporal plane. Rather, there were already threads waiting in that alternate plane.
The moment he opened the dimension to that alternate temporal plane, the threads there—as if having waited for a long time—instantly fell and struck him with a low hum.
A chaotic light seemed to flicker in Tang Chi's eyes.
That was his Fate, and right now, it was being tampered with by those threads.
Naturally, he refused to surrender without a fight. Yet, after struggling against them, he despairingly realized that if he wanted to stop those golden threads from devouring his Fate, he only had one option left.
He had to let the threads directly damage his origin.
He could only choose one of the two...
To have his origin damaged right before Advent Day...
Tang Chi's eyes flooded entirely with blood. A surging wave of fury erupted from his chest, and he roared, "When I return! I will make all of you pay the price in blood!!!"
With those words, he turned and prepared to flee far away.
But right at that moment, he threw a terrified glance over his shoulder toward the distance.
The crowd didn't understand what was happening, but then they saw a crack appear across Tang Chi's neck.
And then...
It rapidly widened.
Spurt!
Crimson blood gushed from Tang Chi's mouth. His neck seemed to split open, the massive wound spraying like a fountain.
Half of his entire head flopped backward, leaving only a bit of cartilage keeping it attached.
"Who attacked this time?!!"
The crowd watched in sheer horror. Had the normally low-profile Train really provoked this many people? Or was this a case of everyone pushing down a collapsing wall?
Rumble!
The sky suddenly darkened in an instant.
Bong—bong, bong...
Three bell chimes that seemed to echo from ancient times reverberated through the air. Everyone's eyes went wide as involuntary shivers racked their bodies.
This wasn't the power of the Tenth Tier!
Absolutely not!!!
As the chimes faded, the blood spraying from Tang Chi—who looked no different from a corpse at this point—actually began to flow in reverse. At a visible speed, it retreated back into his body!
Not only that, but all the wounds across his body were healing, and his backward-lolling head slowly righted itself!
Just a few seconds later, a brand new Tang Chi appeared in everyone's line of sight.
The newly invigorated Tang Chi glared in the direction of Old Sin City. Finally, he gnashed his teeth, said nothing, and vanished from the crowd's view. The sky cleared up once again.
The distant chiming of the bell had long since faded.
It was as if that immense power had never appeared at all.
Yet, the backs of nearly everyone present were drenched in cold sweat.
That definitely wasn't a hallucination.
A Demigod Realm expert had made a move!
"Advent Day hasn't arrived yet. For a Demigod Realm expert to take action, they have to pay a massive price..."
"The Train ultimately couldn't accept a monster like Tang Chi dying prematurely before Advent Day, so they forcefully fished him out of the jaws of death."
"That Demigod Realm expert was already showing great restraint. They only altered the time around Tang Chi, ultimately confining him to a small area similar to a temporal domain. That's why Tang Chi couldn't continue fighting in the end. If he steps out of that temporal domain, he'll revert to his previous state in a short amount of time." A person walking a Pathway related to time spoke up, pointing out the reason behind Tang Chi's final state.
In truth, he hadn't truly turned back his own time; there were still certain limitations.
"But it's already a miracle. As long as the time within that temporal domain is slowly calibrated with the time in the real world, it's equivalent to truly reversing time."
Someone sighed in amazement. Who could have imagined that the mutation in Old Sin City would escalate to this extent?
It had actually forced out power belonging to the Demigod Realm.
"Who's even left inside Old Sin City now?"
The crowd broke into a lively discussion.
Soon, a Domain skilled at gathering information produced a list. It cataloged all the major powerhouses who had surfaced during this mutation, ranking them simply while providing corresponding justifications.
"First — Xue Family Heir. Confirmed battle record: Fought against five Mechanical Emperors of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom alone and successfully crushed them. Then, using highly similar methods, he slayed the Sea Saint of the Life Heavenly Kingdom."
"Second — Immortal Slayer Luo Sheng. Confirmed battle record: Defeated the reincarnated Exiled Immortal of the Immortal Anomaly, a fact personally admitted by the Exiled Immortal. Since the Exiled Immortal once defeated the Sea Saint, logically speaking, Luo Sheng's battle record should be superior to the Xue Family Heir. However, his identity has yet to be fully verified, so he must settle for second place." "Third — Mysterious Human. Confirmed battle record: Defeated the Son of Chaos from Chaos. The strength of the Son of Chaos should also be slightly greater than the Sea Saint. He's ranked third for similar reasons to Luo Sheng—his identity remains unverified. Furthermore, the Son of Chaos only recently came into the world and cannot be compared to the Exiled Immortal, so this person can only rank third."
"Fourth — Chen Family Monster. Confirmed battle record: Single-handedly defeated the eldest son and eldest daughter of the Chen Family, and used his remaining strength to force back the ninth Mechanical Emperor of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom. Because it was merely forcing him back and not an outright defeat, he can only be ranked fourth."
"Fifth — Master of the Path of Destiny. Confirmed battle record: Teamed up with the mysterious Minhu elder to defeat the youngest Deputy Train Conductor in the history of the Train, forcing a Demigod Realm expert to intervene. He's only ranked fifth because the two of them joined forces, meaning it likely wasn't a one-on-one duel."
"Sixth — Mysterious Minhu Elder Liu Fu. Confirmed battle record: Same as above. Because his identity is considered inferior to the Master of the Path of Destiny, he is placed at sixth."
"Seventh — Youngest Son of the Fear Family. Battle record: Traces of his power are suspected to have appeared multiple times since the mutation began, and he seems to have connections with many of the other figures."
"Eighth — Earth Saint of the Life Heavenly Kingdom. He hasn't appeared again since entering Old Sin City. According to testimony from insiders of the Life Heavenly Kingdom, his strength is greater than the Sea Saint." "Ninth — Ninth Mechanical Emperor. He hasn't appeared again after being forced back by the Chen Family Monster. According to testimony from insiders of the Mechanical Heavenly Kingdom, his strength absolutely ranks near the very top of the Tenth Tier."
The list quickly circulated among the various Domains. Looking at the names of these previously unheard-of existences, the crowd was filled with awe. With the approach of Advent Day, the Inner World had already undergone massive changes.
It was an era of flourishing talent, with many of these powerhouses being entirely unknown before this event.
Even the number-one ranked Xue Family Heir, who once enjoyed immense fame, had gone through an unimaginably low period.
"The world has changed. Nothing is certain anymore."
"Indeed. It's hard to imagine what will happen when these existences actually run into each other. It will definitely be a clash of blades and a bloody struggle."
"That's a given. Existences like them all have their own pride and won't tolerate anyone who might threaten them. Even if they cooperate temporarily, the day will definitely come when they cross blows. We've seen far too many examples of this throughout history."
"Yeah. Everything changes according to strength. That is the fundamental law of this world."
"Let's get this straight first. Huzi, you're not allowed to use your abilities."
The Old Man looked at Tiger with utmost seriousness, acting as if this were a matter of grave importance.
"I absolutely won't use any abilities."
Tiger raised his fist above his head and swore solemnly.
The Old Man then turned to look at Yan Jing.
Yan Jing shrugged.
"I don't have any abilities to use anyway."
"I can't exactly freeze the two of you and then swap my cards. That would be too obvious."
"No way. You're the most cunning one here." The Old Man refused to drop the issue. Left with no choice, Yan Jing had to swear that he absolutely wouldn't use any abilities. "That settles it."
The Old Man was satisfied.
But just as he reached out to draw a card, Yan Jing immediately called for a halt.
"Old Man, you haven't sworn yet, have you?"
"I can't use abilities either?" The Old Man's eyes widened.
"I'm an old man!"
"It doesn't matter even if you're the living dead." Yan Jing sneered.
"This is Fight the Landlord. We aren't playing your usual murderous games of make-believe. Here, we pursue fair competition."
"What happens when you swap cards later and pull a whole pile of Twos out of your pocket?"
"Mr. Tiger surely thinks the same way, right?"
Yan Jing looked over at Tiger.
Tiger immediately nodded.
"Indeed, fair competition. Just accept it, Old Man."
Out of options, the Old Man could only swear his oath.
Yes, the three of them were playing Fight the Landlord.
The Old Man and Tiger had come here this time specifically to find Yi Ji. Now that they had found him, they naturally had no intention of doing any missions to clear the Dungeon. "A pair of Fives."
The Old Man made his move with vicious intent. Playing as the player right before the landlord, he didn't start with a pair of Threes—the mark of a true expert at a glance.
Looking at the cards in his hand, Yan Jing felt a bit of pressure.
"A pair of Sixes."
This round was fine, but in the next round, this terrible old geezer would definitely block his cards and stop him from passing any small hands.
"Mr. Yi Ji, what are your thoughts on this mutation in Old Sin City?"
Tiger was the only one among the three who still cared about the mutation in Old Sin City. He asked this after playing a pair of Eights.
"Thoughts... what thoughts?" Yan Jing stared intently at Old Master Liu.
"I mean... your plans. Are you prepared to staunchly defend this place? The resistance looks a bit heavy."
Tiger lowered his voice.
"Given the current situation, everyone knows that there must be something hidden inside Old Sin City. If you ask me, you'd be better off finding an acquaintance, grabbing the item, and running. If you have someone you can trust in your organization, for example, you might want to consider it."
"A pair of Jacks!!!"
The Old Man slammed his cards down with massive momentum, creating a breeze even stronger than the fist wind he had thrown earlier.
Yan Jing looked at the pair of Tens in his hand and let out a helpless sigh.
He knew this old geezer wouldn't let him slip past a single card.
Left with no choice, he had to pass.
"Pass."
Yan Jing announced, then looked toward Tiger.
"Mr. Tiger, your thoughts are pretty much the same as mine. But the critical issue is... I still haven't found exactly where the thing causing Old Sin City's mutation actually is."
Tiger froze upon hearing this.
"You haven't found it either?"
Yan Jing shook his head.
"That's the problem at hand. I've turned all of Old Sin City upside down and haven't found a single clue. That invisible power seems to be everywhere. Its concentration is evenly distributed across every area, making it absolutely impossible to trace its source."
"A pair of Queens to take it."
Tiger played his cards, and Old Master Liu cheered, pumping his fist excitedly next to him.
"Good play! Huzi!"
"A pair of Aces."
Yan Jing smiled coldly. This was Fight the Landlord; it wasn't as if he couldn't play after previously passing.
Even though he had skipped a rank, at least he had regained control of the board.
"A pair of Twos."
The Old Man sneered endlessly, then shot Yan Jing a smug waggle of his eyebrows.
Just as Yan Jing was sighing, the Old Man suddenly spoke up.
"Could that thing be outside the city?"
Outside the city...
Yan Jing shook his head.
"I've also searched the immediate surroundings outside the city. There are no clues."
"It could be a mirage, a projection." Tiger offered his own theory.
"If that's the case, then the actual location would be much farther away."
"Or maybe... it's in the same space, but a different temporal dimension?"
Tang Chi's battle just now had given him inspiration, prompting him to propose this possibility.
"But if that were true, it doesn't explain why this mutation appeared at this particular time."
Suddenly, a weak, hoarse voice rang out.
The Old Man and Tiger both froze, looking behind Yan Jing.
They saw a figure completely covered in bandages standing by a small door in the wall behind Yan Jing. The figure looked at the two of them and spoke slowly, "It's been a long time, Old Liu, Mr. Tiger."
"Chen boy!" "Mr. Chen!"