Rules of the Strange: I Became a God in a Bizarre World Through Taoist Arts

Why doesn't it count?

"Strange tales" interrupted, attempting to disrupt Shen Xingzhuo's coherent train of thought.

Unexpectedly, Shen Xingzhu nodded, then slowly shook his head.

"When Xi'er cried out, it was not only out of resistance, but also out of deep-seated fear."

Her gaze shifted to Pei Xi beside her, her eyes revealing a look of affection.

"Our Xuanmen school has a saying: Ghosts are harmful and treacherous beings with yin energy."

"To put it simply, it means that ghosts are formed from yin energy. Heaven and earth give birth to all things, and all things have fears."

Ghosts, being yin spirits, fear yang energy and righteous energy.

but……

Besides those, ghosts also fear malevolent energy.

Shen Xingzhu cast a magic seal.

A flow of Qi, a mixture of dark red and deep black, was then revealed on Liu Jin's body.

"Liu Jin not only uses evil magic to harm people, but he has also stained his skin with the blood of countless daughters of the Pei family."

He considered placenta a highly nourishing substance and personally killed his own flesh and blood relatives.

He was convicted of multiple crimes, and was already shrouded in malevolence.

As soon as he finished speaking, the two streams of Qi of different colors suddenly changed shape.

The pattern behind Liu Jin transformed into extremely fierce symbols, gradually enlarging until it completely obscured the view behind him.

Then, several hair-like lines emerged from the pattern.

It climbed onto Liu Jin's body and then subtly pierced into his facial features.

Shen Xingzhuo listened to Liu Jin's wails without blinking.

Pei Jinyu's hand trembled slightly, but a look of pleasure appeared on her face.

"A malevolent aura obscures the view." Shen Xingzhuo paused, then explained to those following the situation, "It is an omen of not entering the cycle of reincarnation."

"Liu Jin will surely suffer punishment in the underworld for the rest of his life, until his death."

Everyone who heard this shuddered.

Shen Xingzhuo has been a chosen one for quite some time now.

As people from the same country, they would naturally have some understanding of ancient civilizations.

Those who go to the underworld are ghosts, and their lives end only with death. This means that even when they are reduced to ashes, they will still die on the execution platform.

They were uncontrollably covered in goosebumps, and ultimately took Liu Jin's fate as a warning.

……

Shen Xingzhuo curled the corners of her lips.

"Actually, I'm very curious, what if Liu Jin is attacked by the evil energy and decides to take Xi'er's life without any regard for the consequences?"

What will you do then?

This question is both a question about ghost stories and a test.

The sounds of ghost stories rose in the sky, then fell silent again.

"Not answering is also an answer."

Shen Xingzhu rubbed his palm together, having made up his mind.

This question itself is a trap. Whether it says "yes" or "no," it will expose its own stance. Saying "yes" is equivalent to admitting that Liu Jin still has independent will, which would undermine its previous narrative of manipulating Liu Jin; saying "no" is equivalent to admitting that it is protecting Pei Xi, which would destroy its persona of "manipulating human nature."

Therefore, it can only remain silent.

Silence is its last fig leaf.

Shen Xingzhuo didn't press for an answer. She didn't need one. She asked the question not to hear what the ghost stories were about, but to let those outside the celestial canopy see that even ghost stories can be forced into silence.

Did you see that?

She was saying this to the sky.

"It's not a god. It's just a... self-righteous judge."

"A referee can blow a biased whistle, show favoritism, and change the rules. But he/she cannot step onto the field. Because the moment he/she leaves the field, he/she ceases to be a referee."

"It dares not touch Xi'er. Not out of kindness, but because it cannot. Xi'er is the core of the 'Endless Cycle' quest. If Xi'er dies, the quest ends. If the quest ends, this ghost story should end."