Secular world: My destiny has no taboos

Chapter 588-598: Waiting for the Spring Peach Blossoms to Bloom
"Chenlong is betting his future on creating a unique you."

"Unfortunately, it seems he failed in the end!"

The old man with the deep gaze tried to see through Lin Beixuan, but found that he couldn't.

Lin Beixuan stared at the old man Kongyun, his pupils filled with coldness. The eye between his brows was now open, dark and desolate, influenced by his emotions.

The old man Kongyun stared at Lin Beixuan's eyes between his brows for a long time before silently withdrawing his gaze and finally saying in a low voice, "You are different from others."

"I will find the answer to this question myself, but before that, I need to tell you the purpose of my trip." Lin Beixuan's voice was indifferent as he steered the conversation to himself.

At this point, his first impression of Old Man Kongyun was not good.
Old Man Kongyun sighed: "I know what you're here for. I already know about the gate. I'll do what needs to be done."

"In that case, I'll take my leave."

Lin Beixuan turned his head and walked away without a trace of lingering affection.

His divine power swirled around him, and the killing seal between his brows continuously emanated a terrifyingly tangible killing intent.

This murderous intent seemed completely unaffected by the old man Kongyun's spatial and temporal influences, yet it stirred up tremendous waves in the long river of time.

Countless scenes were torn apart, and the lives of various people in the long river were pierced by endless killing intent, which could not be stopped or weakened by the erosion of time.

This terrifying killing intent is like a series of long swords piercing through reality and illusion, which neither time nor space can bind.

Lin Beixuan stood on the long river of time, neither sinking nor rising.

The killing seal shot out a black line, cutting open the space in front of it, revealing a corner of the desolate mountain temple behind it.

Lin Beixuan strode out through the crack and disappeared into the space of time.

As the old man Kongyun watched Lin Beixuan's departing figure, he narrowed his eyes, a hint of shock showing in his half-closed pupils.

"It can even tear apart my domain, what kind of monster has Chenlong created?!"

"What will happen when he reaches the Great Luo level, or even higher?"

"From this perspective, Chenlong's plan seems to have been correct again."

After a long silence, the old man Kongyun suddenly grinned.

His back wasn't straight, yet it seemed to support the entire river of time.

The turbulent waves stirred up by murderous intent seemed to have been erased by a giant hand, returning to their original state.

……

Inside the Kongyun Temple, after Lin Beixuan appeared, the previously frozen time began to flow normally. The five rats, who were engaged in fierce battle, acted as if nothing had happened and continued to fight against the long-eared giant rat.

They suddenly noticed Lin Beixuan's gaze, so they slowed down their fighting movements and finally stopped and stood still.

Seeing this, the long-eared giant rat couldn't help but sneer: "Hmph, do you think you can suppress me with this little bit of strength?"

As it spoke, the long-eared giant rat leaped up, gathering power from all directions around its body, and attacked the five rats.

But just as his power reached the Five Rats, he suddenly felt an extremely terrifying killing intent lock onto him, so he immediately withdrew his power to protect his entire body.

Even so, the terrifying killing intent did not disappear. Its sharp edge was like a guillotine hanging over its head, as if it could fall at any moment.

Its body trembled uncontrollably, and under the immense pressure, it finally knelt on the ground.

The long-eared giant rat suddenly looked in one direction and saw Lin Beixuan staring at it coldly, his eyes like an ancient iceberg.

Then he obeyed the other party and said, "Even Old Man Kongyun didn't care, so what are you yelling about?"

The long-eared giant rat had a gloomy face and tried desperately to struggle to get up. However, no matter what he did, the more he struggled, the greater the pressure became, and eventually it was almost beyond his capacity.

"Old Chu, there's no need to be so persistent."

Just then, the voice of the old man Kongyun reached everyone's ears.

The long-eared giant rat was now so overwhelmed by Lin Beixuan's killing intent that its eyes were bloodshot and its blood vessels seemed about to burst. It was struggling to hold on and didn't even dare to speak.

Only after the old man Kongyun finished speaking did the pressure on him disappear.

However, the brief suppression just now gave Lao Chu a profound understanding of his own and Lin Beixuan's strength.

It was like heaven and earth, an insurmountable chasm, giving him a double blow to both his body and mind.

"But..." Old Chu wanted to say something more, but the words just wouldn't come out.

"Put it down!" Old Man Kongyun said calmly, as if he had already guessed that Lin Beixuan was nearby.

Old Chu had no choice but to accept Kongyun's explanation in the end.

The five rats were overjoyed to see that even the old man Kongyun didn't want to make things difficult for them. The more lively Wealth-Welcoming Rat even felt the faint mark in its body slowly disappearing.

"Really...gone?" The magpie jumped up and scratched its body with its claws for a long time.

Although the mark of the old man Kongyun was once covered by the mark of Lin Beixuan, it has never truly disappeared.

But now it's different; the Five Rats are truly feeling the changes happening inside their own bodies.

As the mark of the old man Kongyun disappeared, their aura rose steadily, continuing until they reached the peak of the Divine Invocation Realm before slowly receding.

The praying rats crawled on the ground, constantly kowtowing to the statues of gods inside the hall.

The other mice followed suit and kowtowed to the statue of the god.

"Thank you very much, Your Excellency!!"

The old man's voice echoed in the void: "You've found a good master."

After saying that, the Five Rats heard nothing more.

They looked up and saw that Lin Beixuan was no longer inside the temple, but had left the temple and was standing on the ground covered with fallen leaves.

They hurriedly chased after him, jumping one by one onto Lin Beixuan's shoulders.

"Master, shall we go back now?"

"Ah."

"How about we go explore the Ten Thousand Mountains? There are lots of interesting and fun things to see there."

"No!" Lin Beixuan shook his head gently, his gaze fixed on the distant, rolling mountains. "If I have the chance in the future, I will come here."

Thus, with the cooperation of the five rats, the spatial passage opened once again.

However, this time he did not return to Luozhou, but instead had Jiangxishu set the location in Qingzhou.

Lin Beixuan was born in a small village in Qingzhou.

Lin Beixuan felt a unique mix of emotions as he stepped back onto his homeland.

At this time, Huangshi Village was sparsely populated. In the distance, only a wisp of smoke rose from the chimney, making it appear particularly lonely on the desolate winter land.

When the Evil Spirit Lord and the Goddess Zigu invaded Qingzhou, they caused considerable damage. In addition, a group of mortal princes escorted the villagers to Luozhou, resulting in 90% of the villagers fleeing.

If it weren't for the fact that people from Wumeng Mountain temporarily settled here for a period of time, allowing some of the escaped people to return, Huangshi Village would probably have become an isolated village.

No... there should be another village guardian.

Qingzhou has a relatively warm climate, so the snow melts into water before it even hits the ground. A thin mist hangs in the air, and the country roads are muddy, with footprints visible on the puddles from time to time.

During the most chaotic period, Qingzhou was completely neglected, as if it had been forgotten by everyone, so much so that there seemed to be few traces of the war. Although it had been occupied by the Evil Spirit Lord and the Purple Maiden Goddess in half, after Lin Beixuan became the Lord of the Northern Underworld and took away everyone in Anle County, the Evil Spirit Lord and the Purple Maiden Goddess also withdrew from Qingzhou one after another.

This place is like a corner nestled between several large mountains; it may seem dangerous, but it is actually quite safe.

Lin Beixuan stood on the street of Huangshi Village, and scenes from the past flashed before his eyes like a slideshow.

The Ruan family, the village chief, the village guardian... Although he hadn't been here for long, it was the foundation upon which he grew up.

Suddenly, a gaunt figure appeared unsteadily at the end of the street, standing opposite Lin Beixuan.

"Old beggar." Lin Beixuan recognized him at a glance.

The old beggar looked even more hunched over at this moment, wearing a cotton-padded coat covered in patches, with holes all over it, offering no protection from the wind.

His exposed wrists were as thin as withered twigs, his hair was gray and disheveled, and his eyes were cloudy, like a lost soul wandering the world.

He stared at Lin Beixuan for a long time before slowly approaching and stopping right in front of him.

As they got closer, Lin Beixuan could smell the various stench emanating from the old beggar, the strongest of which was the putrid stench emanating from his body.

"You're going to die!"

Lin Beixuan looked at the old beggar. His eyes, which could remain calm even in front of the mortal master, became dazed at this moment.

The old beggar's drooping lips slowly curled up, and his cloudy eyes seemed to brighten for a moment, as if stars had fallen into them.

"You, you, you..." The old beggar's voice was terribly hoarse, like a bamboo tube that had been sanded by sandpaper.

Lin Beixuan nodded, staring into the other person's eyes, and was momentarily speechless, not knowing what to say.

He could clearly see that the old beggar wouldn't live much longer.

The other person was like a rotten, decaying body, devoid of any vitality. It was hard to believe how he could even stand up.

Theoretically speaking, the other party should have died long ago, but his spirit has kept him from completely dying.

"Who are you waiting for?" Lin Beixuan opened his mouth, and for some reason, he felt his throat was a little hoarse.

The old beggar was the first person he encountered in this mortal world who could be considered a 'human being'.

He and the other person weren't exactly friends, but strangely, seeing the other person like this gave him a weird feeling.

Madness, helplessness, melancholy, reality... these are all the impressions the old beggar left on him.

Even though he was incredibly weak, he still stood up to protect the village when it was in the most danger, showing far more courage than ordinary people.

He was like a broken piece of porcelain, constantly trying to piece himself back together while standing in front of a pile of intact porcelain to withstand the chaotic impact.

Hearing Lin Beixuan's voice, the old beggar burst into laughter. He had no teeth, and his laughter sounded like a bellows being pulled, causing his body to tremble violently with each sound.

He raised his hand and tightly wrapped a small brick with his withered, twig-like fingers.

He struggled to lift it up, intending to smash it on Lin Beixuan's forehead, but his arm swung in mid-air for a long time without managing to bring it down.

"Evil...evil spirits..."

Upon hearing those two words, Lin Beixuan suddenly laughed. He didn't know why he was laughing, but he couldn't stop.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

The old beggar looked at Lin Beixuan's laughing face, and his eyes suddenly became confused again.

He stood there, stunned, as the stone in his hand fell and hit his own shoulder, making a clear cracking sound. But he seemed to feel no pain. He stared at Lin Beixuan for a long time, then burst into laughter.

His laughter sounded like a broken bellows being pulled, each sound causing his whole body to tremble.

His eyes slanted as he laughed, and the corner of his mouth was pulled to one side due to twitching, drooling, making him look extremely ugly.

"You, him, go back..."

The old beggar stammered as he spoke, as if he recognized Lin Beixuan. This time, he finally stopped seeing Lin Beixuan as an evil spirit.

"You're back!"

After struggling to utter a few words, tears of joy welled up in the old beggar's eyes.

After that, he spoke intermittently, while Lin Beixuan stood beside him listening attentively without interrupting or using any of his power to help the old beggar recover.

He just stared at the other person quietly, stammering out a single word, struggling to piece it together into a sentence.

The Five Rats stood not far from the two, looking at Lin Beixuan with some surprise.

In their memory, Lin Beixuan had never listened to people so quietly and patiently as he did now. In front of that decaying old man, he seemed to have shed his murderous and cold aura and returned to his original self.

The old beggar said there was less smoke rising from the village chimneys, that the wild peach trees on the back hill hadn't borne fruit again this year, and that he'd met a woman fleeing famine with a baby who had taken a bowl of rice gruel from him, but then disappeared without a trace...

As he spoke these words, his withered fingers would unconsciously rub the holes in his cotton-padded jacket, as if counting the tiny traces of time.

"In the end, no one came back. Everyone left. It's dangerous outside. I hope they can come back."

“I’ve cleared a piece of land over there and planted crops, so I don’t have to worry about not having food when I come back.”

Are they... still alive?

The old beggar's voice grew softer and softer; once he finally spoke the words that had been weighing on his heart, it was as if he had exhausted all the strength in his body.

Finally, he simply plopped down on the ground and leaned against Lin Beixuan's legs.

"It's so good to have you back!"

The old beggar reached into his robes with trembling hands and rummaged around for a while before pulling out something wrapped in a handkerchief.

The handkerchief was black and smelly. He carefully peeled it open, revealing a palm-sized wooden carving inside.

The face of the statue is very blurry; the only distinguishable feature is the two bull horns on the wooden head.

"By worshipping...the gods, one can obtain precious skills."

In the old beggar's memory, Lin Beixuan seemed to still be the same as he was at the beginning, constantly clamoring for him to teach him the magic technique.

Lin Beixuan glanced at the wood carving. There was indeed a faint spiritual aura on the wood carving, but with his current strength, he no longer needed any magical techniques.

However, he eventually accepted the wood carving.

"I've taken over... Huangshi Village is now in your hands!" The old beggar's voice began to waver, and he seemed to have regained some clarity.

He stared into Lin Beixuan's eyes, seemingly considering whether his request was too much. After hesitating for a while, he continued.

"No need to protect it for too long... wait until spring... when the peach blossoms bloom... there should be someone there."

The old beggar suddenly coughed violently, spitting out pools of black blood on the ground, emitting a strong stench of decay.

He became dazed, his hands waving in the air as if trying to grab something.

“Ah Juan…”

He called out softly, his movements gradually slowing down, his eyes drooping slightly as if he were asleep.

The five rats huddled together, barely daring to breathe. The Wealth-Welcoming Rat couldn't help but whisper, "Master, he..."

"She's just asleep," Lin Beixuan said softly, his gaze sweeping over her.

(End of this chapter)