CHAPTER 371: INFERNAL AFFAIRS 371

An instinctive response? That’s enough!

Lin Bai liked to be prepared for any eventuality. Even if not strictly necessary, he always ensured he had countermeasures. He had learned his lesson from the last time he was caught in the Heavenly Tribulation, where he had been on the defensive throughout.

Cheng Xunyun was thrilled that they had managed to extract the player without damaging the game pod. This meant their chances against the players had increased slightly.

Similar to Lin Bai’s situation, the real world was also fraught with instability, with enemies lurking everywhere. At the highest level were the game company and Lin Bai. Below them were the players, other dimensions, and their age-old nemeses from the Western Continent...

Among these enemies, the game company and Lin Bai were far too powerful, beyond their reach, leaving them no choice but to compromise and submit.

Lin Bai’s contact with the Western Continent had come too late. Besides, the Western Continent’s attention was currently absorbed by the Continent of Gods and Demons. They might even become bogged down in the Continent of Gods and Demons due to rash advancements, making them a negligible concern for the time being.

Therefore, the players were effectively the only ones who could truly harm the real world. Cracking the game pod meant they had a more profound way to deal with the players.

Cheng Xunyun looked at everyone in the lab and warned, "Everyone must sign a confidentiality agreement regarding the Alliance Hierarch’s cracking of the game pod."

"Yes," everyone eagerly agreed.

"Lie back down. I want to conduct another experiment," Lin Bai said, glancing at Cheng Xunyun without stopping him.

At this stage, he and Cheng Xunyun’s group were in a perfect honeymoon phase. These vested interests at the apex of society were unwilling to lose their positions and thus had no choice but to cooperate with him.

However, their cooperation could fracture at any moment.

The potential disruption lay not in the people of the real world constantly wanting to eliminate him and regain control of their destinies, but in a shift in their allegiances.

If the game company distributed game pods to the high-ranking officials of real-world countries, granting them lucky accounts and Undying Bodies; or if everyone in the real world possessed a game pod and the entire nation entered the game world, then people like Cheng Xunyun would likely not want Lin Bai to be able to destroy their physical bodies in reality.

There was no doubt the game company was capable of such actions.

This was also why Lin Bai wanted to study the game pods through Cheng Xunyun. He needed to use this as leverage to intimidate them...

「...」

The player, still traumatized by his ordeal with Bind the Immortal, looked at Lin Bai with lingering fear, gritted his teeth, and lay back down inside the game pod.

Rush Moon.

The moment he entered the game, his body inside the game pod was forcibly contorted into the Rush Moon posture, causing him to collide with the pod’s ceiling.

Since the Rush Moon technique couldn’t overcome the pod door’s constraints, the player was jolted awake.

It was unavoidable. Rush Moon forcefully propelled him against Earth’s gravity, but the pod door blocked his ascent. The player’s fragile body couldn’t withstand these opposing forces; he would have been crushed into a meat patty if he hadn’t pushed the door open.

The moment he pushed the door open, the player involuntarily assumed the Rush Moon posture. He let out a pained cry, his face a mask of terror and his posture strangely graceful as he shot towards the ceiling.

Seeing his face about to make intimate contact with the ceiling, he shouted in horror, "Alliance Hierarch, save me!"

Lin Bai flashed to his side, grabbed him, smashed through the ceiling, and forcibly flew with him to the apex of Rush Moon before quickly descending.

The instant he was returned to the ground, the player collapsed. He gave the game pod a look of utter revulsion and refused to get back in, no matter what.

However, Lin Bai had already obtained the results he wanted and couldn’t be bothered to continue experimenting. He bid farewell to Cheng Xunyun and returned to the Immortal World.

Watching Lin Bai depart via the Magpie Bridge, Cheng Xunyun licked his lips enviously, a somewhat dejected look on his face. This is what a higher-dimensional civilization is like! Their individual combat strength is terrifying!

「...」

"What happened?"

Outside Pine Stone City, Nan Lingtian was released again, his voice tinged with dissatisfaction. After all, he was a dignified Platinum Realm Celestial Being, a City Lord, yet he had been reduced to a puppet and was now even denied the right to know what was happening.

This made him doubt Lin Bai’s promise to give him a Holy Artifact of Law after conquering the other Heavenly Kings.

"There’s been a surge of new Celestial Beings," the Body of the War God said, activating its Enlightenment Skill. "Lin Bai has gone to deal with the new Celestial Beings. We need to accelerate our plans."

"A surge?" Nan Lingtian didn’t quite understand the term.

"The new Mothers simultaneously birthed tens of millions of new Celestial Beings, creating chaos and causing the Mortal World to lose control," the Body of the War God said, glancing at Nan Lingtian. "Lin Bai didn’t want you to know what was happening in the Mortal World, so he put you away. He’s tied up for the moment and was worried that if too much time passed, trouble might brew in Pine Stone City. Therefore, he asked me to accompany you to Pine Stone City and continue with the original plan."

"..." Nan Lingtian looked at the Body of the War God and, after a moment of silence, said, "Brother, judging by your tone, you seem to harbor some resentment towards Lin Bai."

"If he turned you into a puppet, would you be happy?" the Body of the War God said coldly. "I was tricked by him, lost the Holy Artifact of Law that was rightfully mine, and am still under his control. Isn’t it perfectly normal to resent his actions?"

"But you cooperated with him against me before, tricking me out of Pine Stone City," Nan Lingtian said, looking at the Body of the War God hesitantly. "And your cooperation with him was seamless..."

"At that time, you were my enemy, and you treated me insincerely. If you had been honest with me then, I would have told you everything about the Mother. We could have even plotted against Lin Bai together to seize the Holy Artifact of Law from his hands. After all, we are of the same kind; I’m different from those new Celestial Beings," the Body of the War God said lightly. "But your actions truly chilled me to the bone—you were even worse than Lin Bai..."

[Received resentment from Nan Lingtian; +1+1+1...]

Nan Lingtian opened his mouth, paused for a moment, then looked at the Body of the War God and asked, "Why are you revealing your true feelings to me now?"

"Firstly, you’ve also become a puppet, identical to my status, so we share a common enemy. Secondly, Lin Bai’s actions have also disappointed me," the Body of the War God sighed.

"Oh?" Nan Lingtian’s interest was piqued. "How has he disappointed you?"

"The promise he made to you, he once made to me as well," said the Body of the War God. "From that moment, I knew he was just placating us, treating us both as mere tools. Since that’s the case, why should I continue to slave away for him! Now that he’s busy dealing with the new Celestial Beings and isn’t near either of us, it’s the perfect opportunity to devise our own plans."

"What do you intend to do?" Nan Lingtian asked, his interest thoroughly aroused.

"We feign obedience to Lin Bai, while secretly cultivating our own forces and plotting against him in the shadows. If we can manage to acquire one or two Holy Artifacts of Law before he does, we can use their power to completely break free from his control," said the Body of the War God.

"Can Holy Artifacts of Law really allow us to escape Lin Bai’s control?" Nan Lingtian’s eyes lit up.

"I don’t know, but only law can counter law. This plan of mine is a gamble, true, but it’s far better than remaining Lin Bai’s puppet for a lifetime," the Body of the War God said, looking at Nan Lingtian. "Brother Nan, we have no other path left."

"You’re right, we have no other path. Could anything be worse than being a manipulated puppet for a lifetime?" Nan Lingtian’s eyes gradually hardened, and he laughed heartily. "Lin Bai would never dream that the two of us would join forces to plot against him."

「Inside the Guiding Pool.」

Lin Bai stuffed Spirit Fruits into his mouth, honing his ability to precisely control each puppet.

He couldn’t control a person’s thoughts, not even those of puppets who had consumed an Enlightenment Pill. Otherwise, puppets like Daoist Master Li, who opposed him constantly, wouldn’t exist.

Pine Stone City was Celestial Being territory. Nan Lingtian was the bait; if he harbored dissatisfaction and let slip a few ill-chosen words, all of Lin Bai’s meticulously laid plans would be ruined.

To ensure Nan Lingtian followed the plan obediently, he had to make Nan Lingtian believe he was acting for his own benefit, not for Lin Bai.

And if, in acting for himself, he could also create trouble for his great enemy Lin Bai, he would undoubtedly be even more motivated.

Hence.

The Body of the War God resolutely betrayed Lin Bai, directing a new charade.

Two puppets, united by their shared tragic plight, joining forces to rebel—this struck Nan Lingtian’s core vulnerability, instantly evoking a powerful sense of camaraderie within him.

Thus, the naive Star of Platinum was baited once again.

「...」

"What are your current plans?" Nan Lingtian asked. He glanced at the top of the Body of the War God’s head, then suddenly shook his own. "It’s rather inconvenient to keep calling you ’you’. Why don’t you give yourself a name?"

"Xingtian," the Body of the War God uttered the two words without a moment’s hesitation.

"Xingtian?" Nan Lingtian murmured, repeating the name. "Does it have any special meaning?"

"Lin Bai aims to be the sole Heavenly King. I shall bring punishment upon this Heavenly King, shattering his dream. Thus, I am Xingtian," the Body of the War God explained.

"Excellent!" Nan Lingtian exclaimed, all doubts about the Body of the War God vanishing. He looked at it with fervor. "Xingtian, a fine name. You are Xingtian, and I am Lingtian, which also implies surpassing the Heavenly Kings. Let us brothers join hands and shatter Lin Bai’s beautiful dream of becoming a Heavenly King."

"Indeed, we should," War God Xingtian replied.

"You’re newly born, and your cultivation is lower than mine, so I’ll take the liberty of calling you younger brother," Nan Lingtian said, looking at the Body of the War God and feeling an increasing sense of closeness. "Younger brother, what are your plans?"

"Lin Bai’s plan is my plan," the Body of the War God stated. "First, we’ll go to the Prosperous World Academy to find your teacher and bolster our strength."

"Still going to find my teacher?" Nan Lingtian asked, puzzled.

"Yes, that way Lin Bai won’t suspect us," the Body of the War God said. "However, we need to alter the plan slightly. Previously, the Mother in the Mortal World suddenly birthed tens of millions of new, undying Celestial Beings, plunging the Mortal World into chaos.

Lin Bai’s intention is to send the newly born Celestial Beings into the Fairy World to first restore order in the Mortal World. Tomorrow or the day after, a large number of new Celestial Beings will enter the Fairy World. We can use this as a pretext. We’ll tell your teacher about the new Mother and the Holy Artifact of Law of the Tenth Heavenly King, luring him to confront Lin Bai and seize the Holy Artifact of Law. Surely, no Celestial Being would remain unmoved when faced with a Holy Artifact of Law, right?"

"But that’s Lin Bai’s plan. What does it have to do with us?" Nan Lingtian frowned. "If things go wrong, it might even increase Lin Bai’s strength..."

"Of course, it’s different," the Body of the War God interrupted. "To be your teacher and teach at the Prosperous World Academy, his cultivation must be very high, correct?"

"Mm," Nan Lingtian nodded. "My teacher’s cultivation is a realm higher than mine. He has already reached the peak of Star Diamond and could break through to Starlight at any moment. Ten thousand of me would be no match for my teacher."

"Brother Nan, I was the first Celestial Being birthed by the Mother, and a Holy Artifact of Law was originally in my hands. If Lin Bai hadn’t tricked me when I was newly born, I wouldn’t have given the Holy Artifact of Law to him," the Body of the War God said through gritted teeth. "However, I once possessed a Holy Artifact of Law, so I am very familiar with the laws of control.

It’s safe to say, I know everything Lin Bai knows about it, and even things he doesn’t. When we fought you back then, it took both of us using all our tricks to finally capture you. Imagine how much more formidable your teacher must be.

Imagine this: if, while your teacher and Lin Bai are locked in fierce combat, I subtly hold back, allowing both of them to be severely injured. At that moment, we can strike, ambush them both, and reclaim the Holy Artifact of Law. Wouldn’t that be perfect?"

"Isn’t that a bit too risky?" Nan Lingtian asked.

"How could it be risky? Anyone can be careless. After all, we’re the ones leading your teacher to him. Even if there’s a mishap, Lin Bai won’t blame us," Xingtian said with a smile.

"My concern is, what if Lin Bai is killed by my teacher? Wouldn’t the Holy Artifact of Law fall into my teacher’s hands then?" Nan Lingtian forced a smile.

"That’s the beauty of my plan," Xingtian said. "In your teacher’s eyes, we’re merely guiding him to seize the Holy Artifact of Law. If Lin Bai is killed and the Holy Artifact of Law falls into his hands, he still won’t suspect us..."

"What I mean is, what if our teacher gets the Holy Artifact of Law and decides to eliminate us as well?" Nan Lingtian frowned. "Younger brother Xingtian, you might be underestimating the significance of a Holy Artifact of Law. Once word gets out, everyone will scramble for it. If I were your teacher and obtained a Holy Artifact of Law, I would definitely kill any witnesses to keep it secret, then dedicate myself to cultivating the Dao of Cultivation Law and make a spectacular return."

"Brother Nan, it’s called a plan precisely because unforeseen changes can occur; nothing can be entirely foolproof," the Body of the War God said, looking at Nan Lingtian impatiently. "You’re afraid of wolves in front and tigers behind. Brother Nan, if you’re truly that worried, then just obediently remain Lin Bai’s puppet and pretend I said nothing today. Then I was blind to trust you. But if you dare report this to Lin Bai, I will deny ever saying these words to you today..."

"..." Nan Lingtian was taken aback, feeling that the Body of the War God made him look indecisive. He gave a sheepish smile. "Younger brother Xingtian, I was overthinking. Let’s do as you say. After all, Lin Bai also wants us to scheme against my teacher..."

Still has some backbone, Xingtian thought, then smiled and gave Nan Lingtian an appreciative glance. He led him towards Pine Stone City, asking as they flew, "Brother Nan, the Mother birthing ten million new Celestial Beings at once has left Lin Bai overwhelmed. I wonder, roughly how many Celestial Beings are there in the Fairy World?"

"The number of Celestial Beings is probably over a billion!" Nan Lingtian chuckled. "I’ve never heard of the Mother birthing ten million Celestial Beings at once. But Lin Bai has miscalculated. The Celestial Being population numbers in the billions. A mere ten million new Celestial Beings, even with their Undying Bodies, wouldn’t cause so much as a ripple in the Fairy World before being suppressed."

"And what kind of place is the Prosperous World Academy?" Xingtian asked. "Are there many experts like your teacher there?"

With a new goal, Nan Lingtian was in high spirits and answered patiently, "The Prosperous World Academy isn’t particularly famous; it ranks among the top thirty academies within the Territory of Thunder and Lightning Heavenly King. There are about twenty-odd experts like my teacher in the academy, which isn’t many. The academy’s dean is a Starlight-level expert. He has no ambition to become a Heavenly King and usually doesn’t meddle much in the academy’s affairs. He spends his time cultivating and handling affairs under the Thunder Heavenly King..."