“You… Exalted Deity!”
At first, Palace Clouds’ face showed delight, but then she seemed to recall something, and her expression turned somber again as she solemnly bowed.
“Exalted Deity, are you planning to stay here?”
With a hint of anxiety, she finally asked, immediately regretting her words the moment they left her mouth.
“This is not something you should ask. Your mission is completed, so leave now!”
Wu Ming waved his hand imperiously.
“As you command!”
Palace Clouds’ expression was complex as she raised three fingers, pointing to the sky in an oath: “I, Palace Clouds, swear upon my Dao heart that I will not reveal a single detail of this mission. If I break this oath, may my Dao heart shatter and heavenly punishment descend upon me!”
“What a clever woman!”
Wu Ming nodded slightly.
The higher one’s cultivation, the more binding such oaths became, and as a being like him, he inherently had the ability to witness oaths and deliver retribution.
A flash of white light, and Palace Clouds had already vanished.
Wu Ming gazed at this world, feeling an incomparable power, yet a trace of melancholy surfaced on his face.
“Should I stay?”
According to his perception, with his current strength and authority over the Temple, he had reached the point where he could forcibly remain.
However, doing so would mean abandoning everything in the Great Zhou and the Temple, permanently becoming a native of this world.
“Though the garden is beautiful, it is not my home…”
After a long silence, Wu Ming sighed with sadness.
In the Great Zhou, there were still people he could not bear to leave behind.
Moreover, the path of divinity was narrow, especially in this world of gods and ghosts, where the scope was too limited, completely restricting his future potential.
“Such immortality, is it truly what I desire? Besides, how can this small world compare to the myriad universes across the multiverse?”
Wu Ming’s eyes gleamed with determination as he declared, “Temple, return!”
[Ding! Mission completed, summoning initiated!]
The grand and majestic voice of the Temple resounded, and Wu Ming immediately felt a pulling force.
But with the movement of the Azure Divine Edict, immense heavenly power emerged, creating an invisible resistance.
[Ding! Detected the Ringer with ID Gengshen 69, respected Temple Envoy! You are carrying the power of this world’s laws, which cannot be taken out of the realm. Do you choose to detach?]
“Yes!”
As soon as Wu Ming spoke, he immediately felt an excruciating pain, as if his soul was being torn apart, emanating from the depths of his consciousness.
Under the mighty power of the Temple and his own resolve, an Azure Divine Edict separated from his body.
Peng!
Once the Divine Edict completely flew out, Wu Ming’s radiant flame receded, and his imperial robes vanished, reverting to his original Daoist form.
An overwhelming sense of weakness abruptly surfaced in his heart.
Yet Wu Ming knew it wasn’t due to his actual weakness, but rather because the power he previously wielded was too immense. Compared to the mere rank of a mage, it naturally created an illusion of weakness.
“One day, I will surely climb back to the peak with my own strength!”
Clutching his fist, Wu Ming pointed at the Divine Edict, saying, “Go!”
With the last trace of his divine consciousness withdrawn, the Divine Edict flickered, a flood of radiant light descending, transforming into a young emperor. His face bore a vague resemblance to Wu Ming’s, about seventy to eighty percent, and he nodded respectfully.
This was the innate deity born from the Divine Edict, influenced by Wu Ming’s soul essence.
Or perhaps more appropriately, Wu Ming’s son.
“After I leave, you shall be the Heavenly Emperor!”
Wu Ming smiled slightly, declaring.
Glancing at his own appearance, he felt a touch of bitterness: “Well, I guess I’m leaving with nothing now…”
Looking up at his head, he saw the blue-violet merit still there, which reassured him: “However, this merit of saving the world and establishing the Three Realms cannot be denied…”
Indeed, as this thought arose, the entire world of gods and ghosts began to resonate.
The young emperor’s expression shifted, as if communicating with the heavens, suddenly pointing at Wu Ming.
Boom!
Wu Ming’s expression changed as he saw the heavenly merit above his head rapidly condense, a massive surge of the world’s primal force descending, forming a pale blue jade pendant, with golden specks of light flickering within.
“Please accept this, Father Deity!”
The Eastern Peak Emperor bowed again, offering the item with both hands.
“This is…”
Wu Ming’s pupils contracted as he immediately thought of the emerald jade he had received when obtaining the Temple Envoy status years ago.
The two items were indeed very similar.
At the same time, he keenly noticed that the young emperor’s fortune had been reduced by two-tenths! Not just the emperor, but even this entire world had lost two-tenths of its primal force!
“Is this the truth behind the Temple’s authority?”
Wu Ming’s heart stirred, and a bitter smile appeared on his face: “Moreover, this world, unwilling to welcome me anymore, is willing to consume its primal force just to let me cash in my merit at once, even forming this jade pendant… the meaning behind it…”
The Temple needed to grow by plundering the primal force of worlds, naturally putting it at odds with the world, hence the rejection.
He had indeed done great deeds for the world, and if he had stayed, the position of Heavenly Emperor would have been his reward!
But if he chose to leave, he would not be welcomed back, and it would be a clean break.
“I understand!”
With a bitter smile, he accepted the jade pendant. Instantly, the Temple’s light enveloped Wu Ming, and in an instant, he vanished without a trace.
…
“Temple, heal me and settle the mission!”
A beam of white light descended, revealing Wu Ming’s form.
Then, gentle beams of light wrapped around him. Even though he was unharmed, activating free healing to replenish his energy and magic power was still beneficial.
Scene after scene of the mission unfolded before Wu Ming, finally freezing at the moment of his departure.
The Temple’s unique text appeared, forming a glowing curtain that descended:
[The world you have experienced this time is the world of gods and ghosts. Mission calculation in progress…]
[Main Quest: Redemption—Completed, earning 500 Major Merits!]
[Side Quest: Lost—Completed! Earning 200 Minor Merits!]
[Side Quest: The Culprit—Kill the Black Mountain King! Earning 100 Divine Merits! Killing the Black Mountain King’s subordinates, the eighteen mountain and river lords, completing the count: three! Earning 1,500 Minor Merits!]
[Side Quest: Battle—Completed! Earning 2,600 Minor Merits!]
[Total Merits Earned: 100 Divine Merits! 500 Major Merits! 4,300 Minor Merits!]
“Converted, that’s nearly 20,000 Minor Merits?”
Wu Ming nodded: “Didn’t expect even the Black Mountain King’s kill to be credited to me. But since I struck him down through reincarnation, it counts as a kill…”
The real bulk of the merits came from the Black Mountain King, but given its ferocity, it was worth the price.
What excited Wu Ming even more, however, was not just this.
“Temple, exercise the Temple Envoy privilege, double the rewards!”
[Ding! Request accepted, respected Temple Envoy. The merits you earned this time will be doubled!]
The Temple was merely a rigid program, immediately recalculating according to the privilege:
[The actual merits you have earned this time are: 200 Divine Merits! 1,000 Major Merits! 8,600 Minor Merits!]
“Awesome! No wonder Yu Shaojun was so rich before!”
Wu Ming nodded in satisfaction, feeling that his heart, which had been wounded by giving up his divinity, had finally been somewhat compensated.
“But… there’s also this…”
Wu Ming took out the pale blue jade pendant again.
It seemed like an illusion, but as the pendant was taken out, the entire Temple space seemed to vibrate slightly, and the golden specks within the pendant were swiftly moving, becoming even brighter.
“The crystallization of the world’s primal force! Truly a great treasure!”
Wu Ming gazed at it with a sigh: “Unfortunately… this item cannot be used until one reaches level five. Keeping it on me would only invite calamity, and since it cannot be quickly transformed into strength, what use is it… Temple, identify!”
A beam of light appeared, enveloping the jade pendant:
[??? : Possibly a primordial treasure of the world’s essence. Would you like to contribute it to the Temple?]
“Yes!”
His mind was already made up, and he immediately agreed.
As soon as the word was spoken, the jade pendant transformed into a streak of light, vanishing into the Temple above the primordial chaos.
Boom!
The entire Temple space shook violently, and amidst ten thousand rays of rosy light, scenes of infinite stars, seas, worlds, and universes emerged.
That profound and mysterious feeling was so captivating that one couldn’t help but be entranced.
At this moment, a streak of light descended, flying into Wu Ming’s body.
[Ding! Ringer ID Gengshen 69’s authority has been upgraded to the highest level of Envoy!]
“Envoy level, highest level?”
Wu Ming thoughtfully looked at his personal attributes:
[Ringer ID: Gengshen 69]
[Name: Wu Ming]
[Cultivation: Human Immortal Stage, Third Tier Mage; Physical Body Stage, Sixth Tier Innate]
[Equipment: Heavenly Craft Ring, Black Gold Ring, Five-colored Robe]
[Title: Temple Envoy]
[The authority of this Temple Envoy title has been upgraded to the highest level, granting the following privileges:
A. Learn about the details of the reincarnation mission three days in advance!
B. Receive a free treatment quota of 5,000 minor merits after each mission!
C. Gain true vision, exempt from the fee for exchanging merits!
D. For each reincarnation mission, gain the right to exempt punishment for failure or elimination!
E. For each mission, choose to reduce the difficulty by half or double the reward!
F. Exempt from fees for carrying in or out magical items and artifacts!]
“Hmm… an additional privilege, exempt from handling fees? It can save quite a few merits, and some trade ideas with the real world might now be feasible…”
Of course, what excited Wu Ming the most was not this.
He looked at item D, a genuine trace of joy appearing on his face.
“For each mission, exempt from punishment for mission failure or elimination, does this not mean I don’t have to go on missions anymore?”
Elimination—the Temple’s ultimate weapon to stimulate other ringers—had now completely lost its effect on Wu Ming.
“Exactly! Exactly!”
Wu Ming finally felt that his choice had been worthwhile: “I have always aspired to become the master of the Temple. How could I, like an ordinary ringer, be driven by the Temple’s missions and the threat of elimination? Now I finally have a bit of the master’s demeanor…”
“And… the Envoy authority has reached its limit?”
Wu Ming rubbed his chin: “Does that mean from now on… it won’t be at the Envoy level anymore?”
He had a premonition that if his authority ascended another level, he might come into contact with more secrets of the Temple, and perhaps, he would take a big step closer to completely mastering the Temple.
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