Chapter 171: Chapter 160: This World Has No Place for Him

In the World of Suffering, high above the sky and beneath the river of stars, at what seemed to be the intersection of light and dark where the Starry Sky and the high heavens merged, a stone statue floated in silence.

The statue was seated cross-legged, its back to the Starry Sky and its face toward the earth.

It had the form of a young girl.

No one knew what it was carved from. It was as large as a mountain and seemed to be made of jade, yet also of withered wood, and even of clay. Its entire body was a dim, gray color.

A dark red light glowed at the center of its brow, pulsing as it brightened and dimmed.

’New Player, so arrogant you don’t know your place. You actually dare to look down on me! Heh heh heh... I’m quite petty, you know. You’re in big trouble now... This world can be cleared, but no one can clear it by destroying me. I told you I would hunt you down, heh heh heh...’

The stone statue remained motionless, but a bizarre voice emanated from the center of its brow.

Then, one by one, red specks of light flew from the statue’s brow, falling toward the earth below.

In the ruins of Yi City, at the center of relic B78, amidst giant, unknown vines, a massive Wood Knot was beating like a heart.

Light flowed across the surface of the Wood Knot.

This was the Earth Deity Iron Sword Immortal entering a state of Spirit Transformation.

The Iron Sword Immortal had already completed three Spirit Transformations, and his Ecological Tier was only one step below a King.

The World of Suffering had its own ecological Laws, and a single region could only have one King.

Originally, with Liu Nan’s existence, the ecological Laws would have suppressed him, making it impossible for the Iron Sword Immortal to become a King.

But now that Liu Nan had fallen, the Iron Sword Immortal had his chance to become a King. As long as he could complete this fourth Spirit Transformation, he would become the new King of this region.

Suddenly, a speck of red light seemed to pierce through the void. Like a drop of red blood, it quickly seeped into the Iron Sword Immortal’s transforming Wood Knot.

Following that, the Wood Knot swelled violently, and a blinding red light immediately flared across its surface.

Immediately after, a smaller Wood Knot slowly split off from it. This new knot carried away the red light and also seemed to take the energy of the original. It became brilliant itself, while the Wood Knot undergoing Spirit Transformation rapidly dimmed.

Soon, with a THUD, the smaller Wood Knot detached, rolled to the ground, and quickly split open. A figure in a gray robe slowly stood up from within.

This figure had three specks of light on its brow and stood there blankly, its expression filled with confusion and bewilderment.

If any Players were present, they would have been able to see his simple information, a string of text: [Xiang Tianchen · Incarnation Divine · Iron Sword Immortal]!

At this very moment, the consciousness controlling this body was none other than Xiang Tianchen’s. He even heard a system prompt: "DING! Interference from the Ecological Will. You have been transformed into an Incarnation Divine. You possess four skills: [Earth Magnetic Sword], [Grass and Wood as Swords], [Sword Shadow Clone], and [Eco-Concealment]. Combat power assessed as Sub-King level."

"DING! You have received a quest issued by the Eco-source Body: Hunt down Chaos Lord Wang Yi and prevent him from clearing the world. You are now connected to the Eco-network and can receive real-time information about the target."

"DING! This quest is a mandatory assignment and cannot be refused. The Incarnation Divine will exist for 365 days, after which it will dissipate. Killing the target, Wang Yi, or pulling him into the ecosystem before dissipation will complete the quest. Reward: The Incarnation Divine will become permanent."

Along with the system prompts, many images and fragmented pieces of information appeared in Xiang Tianchen’s consciousness. All of these images and fragments pointed to Wang Yi!

’An Incarnation Divine, a quest from the Source Body!’

Xiang Tianchen was stunned. He studied the information in his mind further and grew even more surprised. He murmured in a low voice, "Wang Yi... so his name wasn’t Wang Shanhe. His real name is Wang Yi! He’s wanted by the Eco-Dominator. This is a perfect opportunity. If I kill him or pull him into the ecosystem, I can occupy this Incarnation permanently? That’s basically the same as being resurrected! In that case..."

With a SCHWING, an Iron Sword appeared beneath Xiang Tianchen’s feet. He stepped onto the Iron Sword and went Flying in the Sky, leaving a trail of long laughter in his wake.

「At the same time.」

About 500 meters south of the old site of Kun City, a golden Steam Airship drifted slowly through the wilderness, a hundred meters above the ground.

Inside the Steam Airship sat two Adventurer Players, a man and a woman.

The male Player was tall and named Wei Shenming. His body was bizarre, as if it had turned to wood. His skin was covered in root-like nodules, his face was like a dried corpse, and his eyeballs bulged, giving him a ferocious and terrifying appearance.

"This is the consequence of devouring a Divine. In the future, you might be completely pulled into the ecosystem and become a part of this world. Your consciousness could be sealed away, and at that point, I can’t be sure if you’ll ever be able to return to your original world."

The woman sitting opposite Wei Shenming spoke calmly. She wore a white dress and gold-rimmed glasses, had a fair complexion, and a single-edged Longsword with a white hilt rested beside her.

Her name was Bai Xianyi.

"Kill... me...!"

Wei Shenming’s voice was low and raspy, like the sound of sawing wood. Speaking was already very difficult for him.

Bai Xianyi, holding an old, tattered book in her hands, shook her head and said, "That would be very difficult. In essence, you already count as a Divine—and a Spirit Transformation Deity who has completed one Spirit Transformation at that. Your life is connected to the ecosystem!"

"What... should... I... do?"

Wei Shenming asked.

Bai Xianyi flipped through the book in her hands and said slowly, "Based on the information I have now, there are at least two ways for you to escape your current predicament."

"The first method is Evolution. The development of the ecosystem is, in fact, a kind of evolution. The path from initial form to metamorphosis, from metamorphosis to Spirit Transformation, and from Spirit Transformation to King is the process of Evolution itself. During this process, there is a chance to awaken. When a Divine awakens, develops its own consciousness, and learns to think and question, it might be able to break free from the ecosystem’s control and become independent. This awakening is most likely to occur during the evolution into a King. Since you are a Player, if you can evolve into a King in your current state, there is an extremely high chance you will be able to break free from the ecosystem..."