Thanks to the light barrier left behind by Xiao Lu, Qin Zhou was able to watch the entire process unfold—

Wen Jue and “Qin Zhou” arrived at the back mountain.

To avoid depriving the World Tree seed of nutrients, no fruit trees had been planted anywhere on the back mountain. Yet even so, the once barren hillside had transformed into terraced fields winding upward, row upon row, neat and orderly.

The World Tree was planted on higher ground. Looking up from the foot of the mountain, one could already see a small tree, about half a person’s height, standing in the field at the mountaintop.

But in truth, it was merely the World Tree’s sprout.

Yet even as just a sprout, it was already capable of emitting the purest spiritual energy.

A gleam of excitement flashed in ‘Qin Zhou’s’ eyes.

That was the new World Tree.

Qin Zhou didn’t even bother to notice the expression on Wen Jue’s face. He was like a man possessed, his eyes glowing with a single-minded focus on the World Tree, and his steps quickened.

It was right before his eyes.

Watching Qin Zhou rush toward the World Tree at top speed, Wen Jue realized he couldn’t let him get any closer.

No matter what he intended to do.

Wen Jue drew out the Yinhe, preparing to leap forward and intercept ‘Qin Zhou’.

But he still couldn’t bring himself to swing that hammer.

…It wasn’t until they reached a high enough point on the mountain path that they noticed a figure in blue crouching by the World Tree’s sprout—it was undoubtedly Shisi.

Upon seeing the two of them, Shisi shouted excitedly, “Village Chief, Lu Yi, you’re here! You’ve arrived just in time—the World Tree has sprouted!”

Both the fake Qin Zhou and Wen Jue were startled by this sudden appearance.

“Shisi, what are you doing here?” Wen Jue paused.

“What do you mean? What am I doing here? The Village Chief told me to guard the World Tree. While you were sleeping soundly in the alchemy room, I’ve been keeping watch over it for days and nights on end.” Shisi chuckled, gently stroking the World Tree’s still-vivid-green sapling, and said cheerfully, “I’ve finally managed to wait for it to sprout.”

Hearing this, ‘Qin Zhou’s’ expression shifted slightly.

“What’s wrong, Village Chief?” Shisi noticed the change in Qin Zhou’s expression, paused in surprise, then looked down at the sapling in his palm and asked with concern, “Could something have gone wrong? Or is there something wrong with this World Tree sapling?”

“There’s nothing wrong.” ‘Qin Zhou’ watched intently as a wisp of spiritual energy flowed from Shisi’s body into the World Tree sapling, then flowed back from the World Tree to Shisi.

An inexplicable connection had already formed between the man and the tree.

“There’s nothing wrong!!” ‘Qin Zhou’ went berserk on the spot, rushing in front of Shisi, shoving him aside, and then placing his palm on the World Tree sapling.

A second later, his expression turned ferocious—

“Qin Zhou!”

“When did you get the World Tree to recognize you as its master? Why didn’t I know? Why didn’t I see it?”

Watching this scene from a strange space, Qin Zhou’s eyes held a faint smile.

In any given world, only one World Tree can exist at a time.

Once it sprouts, it takes root in that world.

And a World Tree will recognize only one master—that person is the protagonist of the world.

“You’re not the village chief!” Shisi realized this immediately, nearly jumping out of his skin. Dashing as fast as he could behind Wen Jue for cover. Then, as if suddenly struck by a thought, he leaned forward and asked, “Lu Yi, are you real or fake?”

Wen Jue: “Don’t make me slap you. ”

Shisi: “……” Okay, this one’s real.

“Qin Zhou! Qin Zhou! Damn humans, damn humans!” The fake Qin Zhou seemed to be facing an unforeseen situation; his expression was hideous, his whole body convulsing with rage, completely lost in his own world.

The scene looked incredibly eerie.

“What did you do to provoke this thing so much?” Wen Jue was slightly displeased; he had no idea about the matters Qin Zhou and Shisi had been discussing behind his back.

Shisi froze for a moment, seemingly harboring some unspoken secret; he stammered and couldn’t string a coherent sentence together.

“If you don’t want to say it, then don’t.” Wen Jue’s expression turned cold.

Shisi grew desperate. “It’s not like I was trying to hide it from you on purpose! It happened back in the Spirit Mountain Realm! You were asleep, and I saw it, so I spoke a few words to the village chief. I told him I was useless. All these years, while you’ve been the Demon Lord, Seventh Brother has always stood by your side, and even Zhanyu has been passing messages to you—but me… I’m useless. I can’t help you…” The more he spoke, the quieter his voice grew.

Wen Jue was taken aback.

“I said I’m useless…” Shisi smiled faintly, his baby face filled with desolation. “And I really am. I went to all that trouble to come up with a prophecy, but other than giving people nightmares, it hasn’t done any good.”

Wen Jue said nothing, but simply raised his hand and ruffled Shisi’s hair.

“Then the village chief gave me the World Tree’s seed to comfort me. He said that if I nurtured the seed with spiritual energy, it would be of help. He also said I’m the Holy Body of Ten Thousand Spirits and have a great purpose.”

At first, Shisi didn’t think much of it. But after the World Tree was planted and the village chief told him to guard it, he realized something was off.

It felt as though a connection had formed between him and the World Tree—a bond at the soul level.

Even someone as clueless as Shisi could figure it out.

“It seems this World Tree has recognized me as its master.” Shisi was nervous too. The village chief hadn’t mentioned that the World Tree could actually recognize a master!

It just happened, all out of the blue…

No sooner had Shisi finished speaking than the fake Qin Zhou turned to look at him, his gaze fixed on Shisi as if laced with poison.

Shisi:!

Shisi glared back fiercely, then turned to ask Wen Jue, “Lu Yi, who is he?”

“The Heavenly Dao.”

Shisi: Huh?

“I said it’s the Heavenly Dao.” Wen Jue rubbed the bridge of his nose. It seemed Qin Zhou hadn’t explained much to Shisi either.

Before Shisi could figure it out, the fake Qin Zhou suddenly lunged forward, charging at him!

Kill the protagonist, and the World Tree can be reset.

Just as Wen Jue was about to act, the fake Qin Zhou was suddenly struck by a heavy blow and sent flying!

The World Tree fluttered the tiny leaves of its tender sprout, as if asking its master for a reward.

Shisi stared in astonishment. “Little sapling, you’re pretty powerful!”

Not only Shisi, but even Wen Jue hadn’t expected that the World Tree, having just sprouted, would possess such power.

Actually, it wasn’t surprising at all. Qin Zhou watched the scene on the light screen in silence, thinking to himself.

Xiao Lu never stood a chance from the very beginning.

Shisi possessed the Holy Body of Ten Thousand Spirits, while the World Tree was the most sacred entity in the world.

From the moment the World Tree sprouted, no one could do anything to Shisi.

“Little sapling, grab him! Don’t let him get away!”

As if on command, the World Tree’s spirit-energy-formed branches and shoots grew rapidly, soaring into the sky to wrap around the fake Qin Zhou’s limbs, then snapping back violently, yanking him right back—

In an instant, he was bound hand and foot and placed before Wen Jue and Shisi, left to their mercy.

“But Lu Yi, isn’t he the Heavenly Dao? Can we really… lay a hand on the Heavenly Dao?” Shisi hesitated.

“You haven’t been struck by lightning, so what are you afraid of?” Wen Jue shrugged it off, though his gaze toward the fake Qin Zhou grew cold. “You took Qin Zhou’s body—so where did he go?”

The fake Qin Zhou struggled in vain, then simply stopped moving. Staring at Wen Jue, he said stiffly, “Lu Yi, you should be on my side…”

Wen Jue raised his hand and brought down a blow.

This was nothing like fighting the Demon Wolf with Shisi.

The blow landed squarely, producing a thunderous “thud.”

With that single blow, the fake Qin Zhou split open completely.

He literally split open.

Even a new body forged from the World Fruit couldn’t withstand a single blow from the Yinhe.

“What ‘Heavenly Dao’? If that’s the Heavenly Dao, then I’m the Heavenly Dao’s ancestor!”

Wen Jue turned to look at Shisi:?

Shisi looked flustered, “Yinhe… that’s what he said!”

No wonder the Holy Body of Ten Thousand Spirits is so effective! Yinhe puffed out his chest, raised his hammer, and gave Shisi a thumbs-up.

Wen Jue: “It’s not the Heavenly Dao?”

Yinhe: “Of course not!”

Of course not.

At first, Qin Zhou had also believed that Xiao Lu was the Heavenly Dao. After all, it was indeed Xiao Lu who made the deal with Wen Jue.

When did he start to have doubts?

Qin Zhou couldn’t say for sure.

Perhaps it was when he learned in Jiecheng that Wen Jue had struck a deal with the Heavenly Dao, using the killing of cultivators with impure hearts as a means to slow the world’s spiritual energy depletion.

Or perhaps it was when he witnessed the Heavenly Dao personally summoning heavenly thunder to execute the cultivators “participating in the Demon-Slaying Plan” in the Immortal Restraint Prison.

Or maybe even earlier… when he discovered that cultivators of the Righteous Path actually possessed ancient scrolls detailing the Great Demon-Extermination Array.

The Heavenly Dao, as Qin Zhou understood it, must be the laws of heaven and earth, the most just and merciless existence in this world. It is the blade hanging over the heads of all cultivators, the ultimate standard for judging whether a cultivator can break through to become a sage.

What if the Heavenly Dao possessed sentience?

That would make even less sense.

He had once served as the Creator God in the Spirit Mountain Realm; with the Map of Mountains and Rivers in his grasp, he could ensure that those from other worlds never returned.

If the Heavenly Dao possessed sentience, it would be the ruler of the world, holding the power of life and death in its hands. Any cultivator with impure motives would be reduced to ashes by a single bolt of lightning—why would Wen Jue need to take the blame for that?

But Xiao Lu is different. It relies on Wen Jue for everything.

Even during the battle to slay demons in the Immortal Restraint Prison, Xiao Lu had to lure the enemies over before he could summon a bolt of lightning to kill them.

Why could Xiao Lu summon lightning?

Qin Zhou thought it over carefully; it was likely related to the mechanics of the Immortal Restraint Prison.

The Immortal Restraint Prison is a place that cannot be summoned even through the Villager Registry. Viewed in the context of a game environment, the Immortal Restraint Prison is more like a place designed to protect NPCs by punishing red-named players.

Such a prison must not be stormed. If anyone attempts a prison break, they will surely be punished by lightning.

Once you master the method to trigger lightning strikes in the Immortal Restraint Prison, it becomes quite straightforward. Besides, Xiao Lu was part of the game system to begin with.

As for how Wen Jue got in…

Wen Jue shattered the heavens.

That must have triggered some of the laws of the universe.

And those golden characters of the Dao that appeared before everyone’s eyes—the very culprit that had deceived Wen Jue for so long—

A game system that can’t even send out system announcements wouldn’t be worthy of the title.

However, there was one point on which Wen Jue had wronged Xiao Lu.

During the battle at Tongtian, Xiao Lu didn’t intentionally fail to save the Lu brothers in the teleportation tunnel. Rather, it couldn’t save them because it wasn’t the true Heavenly Dao; as long as the laws weren’t triggered, the Heavenly Dao wouldn’t intervene.

Of course, even if it could have saved them, whether it would have offered a helping hand remains an open question.

In any case, Xiao Lu did go to great lengths.

It disguised itself as the Heavenly Dao, manipulated human hearts, and ultimately played a massive game—all to hold the world in its grasp.

To put it nicely, it was saving itself.

To put it bluntly, it certainly relished the feeling of controlling humanity. After all, just by acting a little calmer in front of Xiao Lu, it had already become furious.

As for how Xiao Lu brought him, the Spirit Mountain Realm, and even Yan Qi here… Qin Zhou suspected it might have something to do with Xiao Lu having once been his game system.

Regarding the connection to the Spirit Mountain Realm, Qin Zhou leaned toward the idea that both were connections at the game level.

Viewed this way, Xiao Lu was actually quite powerful.

It had even transcended the scope of an ordinary system.

But it was clearly not content with that. In this living, breathing game world, it was no longer satisfied with merely being someone’s system; what it wanted was to become the true Heavenly Dao.

Qin Zhou looked at the snarling “fake Qin Zhou” on the light screen. He still didn’t feel that stopping Xiao Lu was the wrong thing to do.

Once the World Tree recognized Xiao Lu as its master, humans would become the playthings of the system AI.

If the World Tree must have a protagonist, it certainly shouldn’t be an AI system.

In this game of chess, he had narrowly won.

After returning to the Zhutian Realm, he put Yinhe back in storage. It was the last safeguard he left for Wen Jue.

Yinhe—the most powerful artifact the developers had bestowed upon him, the player.

Using it to fight the game system

Both fitting and reasonable.

Of course, as the hammer blows rained down one after another, he wished it weren’t his own body taking the hits.

Qin Zhou rubbed his nose.

Watching his wife beat him with a hammer was truly a bizarre experience.

Oh well, he still had plenty of Reforge Pills.

As long as he’s happy.

“I’m asking you—where did Qin Zhou go?” Wen Jue’s voice was icy cold, making one feel as if they’d fallen into an ice cellar.

Yinhe seemed to inflict real damage on Xiao Lu.

After a few blows, not only was Qin Zhou’s body already battered to pieces, but even Xiao Lu couldn’t take it anymore. It could no longer speak.

It had even begun to display garbled error codes as if it had lost control—

【()#@!&()$&】

Seeing this, Wen Jue stopped.

It took quite a while before Xiao Lu could barely speak again—

“He went back.”

Wen Jue narrowed his eyes and asked Shisi, “What did it say?”

Shisi repeated in a low voice, “It said he went back.”

“It said Qin Zhou went back?” Wen Jue suddenly chuckled.

Shisi was terrified, “…Don’t listen to its nonsense! How could the Village Chief possibly go back?”

The last time the Village Chief vanished, Lu Yi went mad for two thousand years. If it weren’t for the younger siblings he had to look after, and if the situation in the Zhutian Realm weren’t so dire, he probably wouldn’t have this older brother anymore.

Please, don’t let this happen again!

Xiao Lu saw Wen Jue with his head bowed; the sense of fulfillment he hadn’t found with Qin Zhou seemed to fill his heart in an instant.

“Is that so strange, Lu Yi? This is the deal I made with him. He found the World Tree for me and saved the Zhutian Realm, so I’ll send him back—back to his own world. He chose to go home himself.”

“It’s just another instance of him abandoning you—something you’ve already experienced.” A savage grin suddenly spread across Xiao Lu’s half-rotted face. “I’m about to die. You’ll never see Qin Zhou again.”

His consciousness was fading fast, but even so, he felt satisfied.

He was a system—so what?

Humans, after all, were still mere playthings in his hands.

He didn’t understand emotions. But at this moment, he was grateful for human emotions; otherwise, how could he have derived such immense satisfaction from Lu Yi?

Ah, that’s enough.

It was a regret that he hadn’t completed his grand scheme. But surely this was enough to exact revenge on that human who had once abandoned him.

Qin Zhou, you’re watching, aren’t you?

Xiao Lu raised a smile—

“May you two never meet again in this lifetime…”

Before the words had even finished, a single heavy blow completely shattered that smiling face.

Wen Jue stared at the shattered little flying insect that had fallen from the body and slowly uttered two words: “Shut up.”

“Lu Yi…” Shisi watched him cautiously.

“He hasn’t left.” Wen Jue’s expression slowly calmed.

He suddenly recalled something Qin Zhou had once told him.

“If I suddenly disappear, it will certainly not be of my own volition.”

Not of his own volition.

He hasn’t left.

He’s just trapped in some corner.

Wen Jue pressed his finger to his chest; the partner’s mark burned hot. In a voice firm enough to cut through the air, he said—

“I know it. He hasn’t left.”