The male supporting character was actually myself.

The little white cat turned its head and saw its host coming over. It excitedly jumped up and pounced on him, rubbing and petting him until Jiang Chen's black fur was all messed up.

"Meow!" To avoid Lu Fan noticing anything amiss, Jiang Chen could only give a fierce warning.

The fluffy ball of fluff calmed down a bit and chuckled, "Host, the wild pseudo-chosen one is really too fragile. Even a cute and soft little kitten..."

Before it could finish speaking, it heard a whooshing sound and its fur stood on end in fright.

Jiang Chen reacted quickly, jumping up to dodge the attack, and immediately looked down at the tree with a long face.

"Ugh, what are you doing, you stupid cat, meowing like that!" Lu Fan was already annoyed that the ancient mirror hadn't worked when he heard a cat meowing above him, which brought back unpleasant memories of a certain demon cat in the demon realm. He got angry and grabbed a tile to smash it.

Unexpectedly, a black cat barely bigger than a fist managed to nimbly dodge the attack. He snorted coldly and cursed, "If you know what's good for you, get lost! How dare you dart around on my territory! Once I regain my strength, I will wipe out every cat in the city! Hmph! Being of the same kind as that guy Hesong is a cardinal sin!"

The little white cat immediately stood up straight, its fur bristling, and meowed angrily, "You wild thing, how dare you attack my host? You even dare to try and kill all the cute kittens? Die!"

Its furry little paws kicked down a branch from the treetop in a show of defiance.

Lu Fan stared at the black cat with a sinister expression, while resenting that the original plan had failed. Otherwise, he would have already taken the Liang family's daughter as a slave and used all the gold, silver and precious medicines of the Liang family for his own use!

Once the elixir is successfully refined and consumed, it will surely restore my useless body.

He's not even as good as an ordinary person; he couldn't even hit a cat with a tile!

"Meow~" Jiang Chen bristled and let out a fierce yet cute meow, then turned and jumped onto the wall, disappearing from Lu Fan's sight.

An ordinary kitten with no spiritual energy didn't attract his attention. Lu Fan looked away and started playing with the Illusion Mirror again, thinking about going out to try his luck and see if he could use it to control a few mortals.

At the very least, I need to get some money to buy a hearty meal to solve my current hunger problem.

"Little White, we'll have to rely on you to defeat this wild pseudo-master next." After listening to the fluffy dumpling's brief description, Jiang Chen smiled and shook his head, saying, "We'll find an opportunity to take that mirror away later. We'll slowly strip away his aura, but we can't just crush him."

A reborn demon king from the demon race, though utterly brainless and completely mismatched with his strength, still has an identity that can be better utilized.

"Okay, meow! Don't worry, host, I'll play him like a puppet!" The fluffy ball patted its chest and bounced around, then stared at Lu Fan again.

Judging from the storyline revealed in the Book of Prophecy and the opponent's current performance, he is nothing more than a pseudo-chosen one in the old-fashioned rebirth story. As long as the plot is reversed, he can be easily dealt with.

Perhaps if the little white cat takes away Lu Fan's ancient mirror, his treasure-hunting instincts will kick in and he'll get an even more direct and useful treasure.

On the contrary, we need to find out about the situation of the demon race as soon as possible.

Jiang Chen skipped and hopped through the streets and alleys towards the palace. He needed to send his soul weapon deep into the royal library to find information about the war between the two races.

Ever since the reborn demon king with the wild aura appeared, he had a bold guess.

The human world in which the protagonist currently lives, while capable of cultivation and possessing a strict hierarchy, does not allow for immortality. Most cultivators are merely slightly more powerful than those in martial arts worlds. Even those with magical abilities can only perform minor tricks like burrowing underground or briefly leviting, which require the use of talismans or external forces.

Judging from the old-fashioned rebirth storyline seen in the Book of Prophecy, the demon realm where the demon king lived before he was struck down does indeed perfectly fit the setting of fantasy or cultivation stories.

The power disparity between these two realms would be enormous.

What humans cannot do, wouldn't the powerful and versatile demon race be able to do easily?

For example, illusions!

I'd seen many horror stories before, and they all ended with either a mental breakdown or hypnosis—it was all a hallucination. But Lu Fan, in the midst of this, was completely unexpected and...

Could it be that Ling Qiye's public outburst of rage and killing was orchestrated by a demon with illusion magic or someone who controlled some kind of artifact, causing all the eyewitnesses in Qingyue Tower to fall into an illusion?

This would perfectly explain all of Ling Qiye's doubts.

He had clearly left long ago, but the dancer claimed to have seen with her own eyes that he had never left the Hibiscus Pavilion;

He awoke from a pool of blood, and everyone pointed the finger at him for killing Song Yubai.

This also explains why a dignified eighth-level grandmaster was quietly taken back to Qingyue Tower without Ling Qiye noticing—he himself was very likely also trapped in an illusion, and was controlled by the person behind the scenes from beginning to end.

To deduce clues that could be helpful to Ling Qiye, he needed to take a two-pronged approach: on the one hand, he needed to give Xiaobai the opportunity to take Lu Fan's ancient mirror; on the other hand, he needed to find concrete and compelling evidence to prove that the demon race possessed the ability of illusion.

Present the ancient mirror and written evidence, and report Lu Fan's whereabouts after the Demon King's rebirth. Unless the person in power is stupid, they will definitely stop pursuing Ling Qiye.

Conversely, with the reborn demon king's testimony confirming the threat posed by the demon race, both morally and logically, those in power must keep the protagonist, an eighth-level grandmaster, alive. They might even have him personally participate in the investigation, since Ling Qiye is the strongest investigator, even if he's just a tool.

"Hmm, judging from your luxurious clothes, you must be quite wealthy." Lu Fan walked down the street with a mirror in his hand. He glanced at a man dressed like a wealthy merchant and accompanied by two servants. He grinned and revealed a smug smile. "It is truly an honor for a mere mortal like you to be able to make some contribution for me."

He stopped and refracted the light from the ancient mirror in his hand onto the wealthy merchant's face. The merchant was instantly dazed, as if he saw a blooming peach garden, and not far away, a young girl stood under a tree, smiling shyly at him.

"Long time no see." The wealthy businessman walked up to Lu Fan with his eyes glazed over, his face beaming with an undisguised smile. He spoke softly, a beat slower than usual, "How have you been lately?"

Lu Fan saw the illusion reflected in the ancient mirror, realizing that the other person was mistaking him for the girl he secretly admired. He couldn't help but roll his eyes and said coldly, "Oh no, I don't even have money for food now. You must have brought a lot of money with you, right?"

Chapter Eight: Making Things Bigger!

"Oh ho, so this is the typical 'you're poor, so you're right' situation? Even a beggar has to smile and say nice things, and this is all you do?" The fluffy ball was stunned and speechless at the fake master's outrageous behavior.

However, the wealthy merchant, trapped in the illusion and enveloped by the halo, was clearly unaware of anything amiss. From his perspective, the girl under the peach tree was charming and shy, half-covering her face with a handkerchief and saying with a hint of resentment, "I'm not doing well. Can you...can you give me some help?"

Suddenly touched, the wealthy businessman hurriedly pulled out a money pouch from his pocket and handed it over, his voice full of tenderness, "I'm rich now, lots and lots of money. You'll never have to live a hard life again! All this money is for you!"

The exquisite money pouch, outlined in gold thread, was heavy. Lu Fan glanced at it and gave a faint smile.

Judging from the contents of this package, it must contain at least several dozen taels of silver. Although not a large sum, it's enough for him to have a hearty meal at a restaurant. What pleased him even more was that the Illusionary Mirror was working steadily, finally shaking off the previous setback and possessing the effects a divine artifact should have. This meant that its previous ineffectiveness against the Liang family's daughter was just an accident.

Given that the body he had possessed was utterly useless, Lu Fan couldn't figure out where things went wrong, so he had no choice but to put aside his doubts for the time being and seize this opportunity to fleece it!

Try to make as much money as possible, and after dinner, go to Langya to exchange for more.

"Hmm, not bad." Holding the heavy money pouch in his hand, Lu Fan weighed it in his hand and estimated it to be several dozen taels. He said coldly, "Do you have anything else you can exchange for money? I think your ring is quite nice, and the jade pendant at your waist..."

The wealthy merchant, deeply engrossed in his illusion, heard this and quickly began to remove his thumb ring and jade pendant, which immediately struck the two servants beside him as odd.

My master just arrived in Kyoto and has just finished eating. He's wandering around looking around. I haven't heard that he knows anyone here.

Why do you act like you've lost your soul when you meet a young man?

He was taking out money and removing his thumb ring. Other things were one thing, but that jade pendant was the master's beloved possession. How could he bear to give it away to someone else?

"Master? Are you sure you want to give away all the jade pendants?" One of the servants stepped forward and whispered, "Do you know this young master?"

The wealthy merchant stared blankly at the "beauty" and grinned foolishly, completely ignoring the servant's voice.

Seeing this, Lu Fan took the valuables and used the iridescent light refracted by the illusory mirror to dazzle the two servants. They immediately fell into a daze and forgot what they were going to say or do.

"Let's eat first, and then we'll test the artifact's effects later." Lu Fan was quite satisfied with this. He casually stuffed the money he had looted into his pocket, put away the ancient mirror, and prepared to leave.

Since the ancient mirror is 100% effective on mortals, one can easily make the restaurant owner believe they've already paid after a lavish meal; similarly, one can use any method to deceive others.

With this amazing artifact in hand, this little bit of silver is just for emergencies!

Lu Fan felt exhilarated. The mighty Demon King could finally rely on the divine artifact to roam the human world and return to his peak. He couldn't help but laugh loudly with his hands behind his back, then turned and left.

"Hey!" Seizing the opportunity, the little white cat swung its paw with all its might and slapped the rich merchant and his two servants hard across the face. "Wake up! You've been robbed!"

The Meow Meow Punch slammed down, shattering the aura surrounding them instantly.

The fluffy ball hurriedly scooped up a few glittering halos and draped them over its neck with its paws, preparing to turn around and add more bricks to its host's halo.

"Ouch!" The chubby businessman was engrossed in his rendezvous with the young girl when he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his face, as if he had been punched. He quickly covered his face and gasped for breath.

The other two servants also instantly regained their senses.

The servant, who had been asking questions earlier, turned around to see that the unfamiliar young man hadn't gone far, and asked again, "Master, who exactly is that young master? Why are you so generous to him? Giving him silver and a valuable thumb ring and your beloved jade pendant?"

Silver? A thumb ring? A jade pendant?

The wealthy merchant looked down at his empty hands, waist, and pockets, rubbed his face vigorously, glanced back, and realized, "Oh no! We've been tricked! Xiao Er, go report to the authorities immediately, saying that a superhuman is luring people in the street; Xiao San, you come with me and follow that guy to see where he goes!"

"An extraordinary being?" The two servants, who had followed their master on business trips all over the country for many years, immediately knew that their master's strange behavior was being controlled by someone. They immediately obeyed the order and split into two groups.

The little white cat hugged its short paws and nodded approvingly. "Not bad, not bad, you're teachable. At least I didn't waste all that effort I put into your meow punch. Don't worry, with my cute little white cat protecting you, you definitely won't get lost."

"I've long heard that Kyoto is a place where hidden talents reside, but seeing it today, I know it is indeed dangerous!" The wealthy merchant was filled with resentment and fear, but dared not utter a sound, and could only follow Lu Fan from a distance.

The thought of the scene he had just witnessed while in a hallucination fueled his anger. How dare that bastard use the girl he felt guilty towards to swindle money! He would make that bastard pay the price today!

The various government offices in Kyoto were very efficient. In particular, when they heard that someone with supernatural abilities was using his special powers to swindle money on the street, the government office quickly dispatched constables.

"Host, I'm going to make a big scene as you instructed!" The fluffy little dumpling squatted on the railing on the second floor of the restaurant, staring at Lu Fan. When it turned its head and saw its host passing by quickly from a distance, it stood up and greeted him.

Jiang Chen nimbly jumped to its side, glanced into the private room at the fake master who was happily eating and drinking, and nodded after listening to the little white cat's report: "Well done! Little White, you are really becoming more and more capable of handling things on your own."

"Now that the time is right, go and take away Lu Fan's trump card. This ancient mirror is indeed very powerful; we'll need it in the future."

"Okay, meow!" The fluffy ball of fur, which always obeyed its host's orders, didn't even ask why. It went up and snatched the Illusionary Mirror from Lu Fan's right-hand coat pocket with a "cat scooping the moon" move.

“I just went to the palace and found the library that Ling Qiye mentioned, but I searched it thoroughly and couldn’t find any secrets about the war between the two races.” Jiang Chen hid in a corner and lowered his voice amidst the noise of the restaurant. “I think you should submit an application to the main system and ask it to send over the script team’s settings for the demon race, and also give us permission to pass through the gate between the two worlds.”

The protagonist's plot armor is repeatedly thwarted, which likely indicates a problem on the demon side.

We need to find the root cause to better solve the problem; otherwise, it will only be a temporary fix.

Even if we kill this wild pseudo-chosen one, a new one might just be born. The halo is elusive and intangible; it dissipates every now and then, creating another wild pseudo-master. We'll be busy to death and still not be able to complete the mission.

Also, I need to get the main system to fix my human form issue as soon as possible; having only one cat form is really taking too long.

The little white cat petted him a couple more times before he happily agreed to immediately go and report.

Before long, several uniformed constables appeared downstairs at the bustling hotel, carrying knives and looking serious as they headed straight for the second floor.

"Sir, what is this...?" The hotel owner rushed forward to ask, but was blocked by the leader who said coldly, "On duty, ordered to apprehend suspects. All irrelevant people, step back and do not block the way!"

Having been a constable for so many years, this was the first time Zhang, the constable, had received a report from the people that a superhuman was swindling money on the street. He was furious and wanted to see if the other party was making a false accusation or if the superhuman was really so short-sighted that he would openly defy the rules for cultivators for a mere few dozen taels of silver. It was really beneath him!

If that merchant is making a false accusation, he must be made to know the severe punishment for defamation in Kyoto.

If there really are extraordinary individuals who shamelessly use their superhuman abilities—which are meant to protect ordinary people—to swindle money, then they should prepare to face a storm from the entire cultivator community in the capital!

The imperial court initially formulated the regulations for cultivators and strictly required them to abide by them in order to prevent anyone from using their power to affect the peaceful lives of ordinary people. Otherwise, if people were to develop fear or suspicion towards those with extraordinary abilities, the consequences would be severe.

Such a scoundrel has ruined everyone's reputation; he must be made to die a horrible death!

"Tell me your name!" Zhang, the head constable, kicked open the door to the hotel's private room and rushed in with several constables, asking coldly.

Lu Fan was enjoying the food of the human world while pouring himself a drink. He thought to himself that humans were indeed the most amazing people when it came to cooking. They could make such delicious dishes out of ordinary vegetables and meats using all sorts of methods.

Although he was already a demon king who could live on air and dew and did not eat human food, this useless body was too weak to achieve the effect of abstaining from grains through cultivation. Besides, it was still quite nice to occasionally satisfy his appetite...

"Who goes there?" His enjoyment of the food was interrupted, and Lu Fan's face fell as he glanced at the person with disdain.

The leader was only at level three, and the rest probably had no hope of ever advancing to level three in their lifetime. They were just a few pieces of trash, slightly stronger than a useless person, yet they dared to speak so arrogantly and rudely to a generation of demon king.

Ah, the disturbance you caused today will surely make you pay a hundredfold in the future!

"A constable from the Kyoto Prefectural Government has come to investigate a case. Someone has accused you of luring people in the street. Please come to the yamen for a confrontation in court." Constable Zhang coldly swept his eyes over the man, finding no trace of spiritual energy.

Either this is a mortal body that cannot cultivate;