The Mist Lord stared at Feng Qi, utterly astounded.
In his memory, Feng Qi had been reduced to nothing but a severed head. Without the sustaining power of his vital energy, his consciousness should have long faded into oblivion. The possibility of survival was inconceivable.
While he had been grateful for Feng Qi's self-sacrificing rescue, the gratitude had only gone so far. To commemorate the perilous experience of obtaining the Bloodstone—and out of appreciation for Feng Qi—he had often visited Feng Qi's gravesite. There, he would reflect on the past and ponder the future. Following his own people's customs, he would also eat the offerings left at the grave as a form of remembrance. Over time, this had become a habit.
For this reason, the Mist Lord had an indelible impression of Feng Qi.
Now, 1500 years later, seeing Feng Qi again filled him with confusion.
However, Feng Qi paid no attention to the Mist Lord's shock and shouted in a low, commanding voice, "Lin Ran, come out!"
Hearing the shout, the face of mist began to distort and shift. Lin Ran's consciousness, long dormant, was roused and launched into a struggle against the Mist Lord.
The Mist Lord, sensing the unusual turbulence, asked with growing suspicion, "What have you done to me?"
Watching the twisting visage of the Mist Lord, Feng Qi smirked. "When I saved you all those years ago, it wasn't out of the goodness of my heart. It was for this day, 1500 years later. Did you really think I risked my life just because I found you agreeable?"
The distorted face momentarily revealed an expression of rage. "Feng Qi, I've visited your grave countless times and even eaten your offerings. And now you're telling me you used me?"
Feng Qi froze for a moment. Huh… ate my offerings?
["Well, well, the shameless thief who's been eating your grave goods has finally been caught! It's this guy, without a doubt. Demand compensation!"]
As the Mist Lord's face contorted, his voice grew more desperate. "Your body and spirit were completely destroyed! You only barely survived with a fragment of life. Without my vital energy sustaining your consciousness, you should have perished long ago. How are you still alive?"
["Tell him you couldn't get a decent meal in the underworld, so you bribed the King of Hell to come back and catch the thief. It's karma, baby!"]
Feng Qi: …
Ignoring the narrator's nonsense, Feng Qi fixed his gaze on the Mist Lord.
"So, you think it's fine for you to lay plans for the future, but I'm not allowed to make you part of mine?"
Realizing he had indeed been manipulated as a pawn, the Mist Lord roared with anger.
In that instant, he also understood why his spiritual strength had always grown so slowly. It turned out that a "parasite" had been hidden within his spiritual sea for 1500 years, siphoning away his energy bit by bit.
Within the Mist Lord's spiritual sea, a fierce battle raged. A gray spiritual consciousness clashed relentlessly with a blue one.
This time, unlike in previous timelines, Lin Ran's attacks were far more ferocious. However, the Mist Lord was no weakling either. Desperate to eliminate Lin Ran's consciousness, he launched an all-out offensive.
For now, the two spiritual forces were evenly matched.
Standing outside the mist, Feng Qi silently cheered for Lin Ran, hoping he would prevail. This was the third time Feng Qi had orchestrated events to help Lin Ran seize control of the Mist Lord's body.
Learning from the failures of the previous timelines, Lin Ran had mastered a devastating spiritual assault technique for this attempt. Feng Qi had personally experienced the overwhelming power of this technique.
Even though Lin Ran had likely removed the more "extreme" aspects of the Eternal Spirit technique in later iterations, the refined version still carried unparalleled strength.
At its peak, the Eternal Spirit technique was most effective in spiritual form—exactly the state Lin Ran was in now.
Watching the Mist Lord's face distort, occasionally shatter, and reform, Feng Qi chose not to interfere directly. Instead, he occasionally glanced toward the eastern horizon.
If Lin Ran succeeded in this dream realm timeline, not only would his presence in this realm be significantly extended, but capturing the Three-Tailed Beast would also become an achievable goal.
With these thoughts in mind, Feng Qi shouted toward the mist, "Lin Ran! How confident are you?"
"Fifty percent," came Lin Ran's hoarse yet familiar reply.
"Good! Give it all you've got and crush him!"
Lin Ran didn't respond, but the mist began to twist even more violently.
The ebb and flow of the mist's expansion and contraction made it clear that the struggle for control was reaching a critical stage. Sometimes the Mist Lord dominated, and at other times, Lin Ran did.
After some time, Lin Ran's voice echoed again: "Qi-ge, I'm almost there."
Hearing this, Feng Qi clenched his fist in excitement.
["The kid's finally making progress! All our hard work across multiple timelines is paying off. The Right Guardian is about to be reinstated, and with it, I'll gain a major power boost. Isn't that right, 'Thrower?'"]
Feng Qi rolled his eyes and mentally flipped off the narrator. What 'Thrower'? Your whole family are Throwers!
Inside the Mist Lord's spiritual sea, Lin Ran had gained a clear advantage.
Though the gray spiritual force of the Mist Lord initially held a slight edge in raw strength, Lin Ran's mastery of his devastating spiritual assault technique turned the tide.
As the two spiritual forces clashed, Lin Ran inflicted far more damage than he sustained. Over time, he had gained an overwhelming advantage.
The Mist Lord, sensing his impending doom, let out a roar of frustration.
For 1500 years, he had plotted and waited.
He had led his kin on an arduous journey, sacrificing countless lives to pave the way. In the end, he stood alone, with the corpses of his comrades marking the road behind him.
Looking back, he couldn't help but regret choosing this path of no return.
If he could, the Mist Lord would have abandoned his ambitions long ago, trading them all just to resurrect his sister and his people.
But now, as his spiritual body crumbled into fragments, he let out an unwilling roar from the depths of his soul.
"I will not fall... I swore I would bring them back!"
As death drew near, images of his people's faces flashed through his mind. He remembered the day he had stepped onto the path of no return, vowing through clenched teeth to this new world: One day, he would become a Pillar God, and he would resurrect all the fallen warriors of his race.
Then, something strange happened.
The Mist Lord's shattered spiritual body began to coalesce once more, slowly regaining form.
Outside, Feng Qi suddenly heard the narrator's voice echo in his mind.
["Qi-ge, there's a unique energy awakening inside the Mist Lord. I've never seen anything like this before. It seems to be empowering him—something's changing!"]
Feng Qi's previously relaxed smile froze in an instant.
"An ultimate reversal? What kind of protagonist template is this?"
["Could it be that the Mist Lord also has a Miracle Item within him?"]
Feng Qi paused, stunned by the possibility. Thinking it through, it seemed plausible. After 1500 years of development, the Mist Lord might well have discovered and fused with another Miracle Item, gaining its abilities.
As Feng Qi mulled this over, the Mist Lord's face of mist suddenly froze. Then, to Feng Qi's surprise, it shifted into a smiling expression.
"Qi-ge, I'm back!"
Hearing those words, Feng Qi didn't lower his guard. Instead, he immediately shouted in his mind.
"Scan him, Narrator!"
["Checked. The body is indeed now occupied by Lin Ran's blue spiritual consciousness. However, the Mist Lord's consciousness hasn't been destroyed. It still lingers in the spiritual sea, waiting for a chance to strike again!"]
"Persistent as ever."
Feng Qi turned back to the Mist Lord's face, now inhabited by Lin Ran.
"How are you feeling now, Lin Ran?"
Without replying, Lin Ran began retracting the mist. Soon, it condensed into the figure of a young boy with violet hair and matching violet eyes. Smiling brightly, he stepped forward toward Feng Qi.
"Qi-ge, I finally understand why you made me study spiritual countermeasures all those years ago. I… I'm back. Give me a hug!"
Watching Lin Ran approach, Feng Qi's face twisted with mock disgust.
"Cut the theatrics. What's your current situation?"
"I feel better than I ever have before," Lin Ran replied. "But I couldn't kill it. The Mist Lord's consciousness is still there, lurking in the spiritual sea."
"Why didn't you finish it off?"
"I can't. It's being protected by some unknown power. I can't damage it any further."
Feng Qi felt a twinge of regret at this revelation. Still, considering the overall progress of this timeline—managing to subdue the Mist Lord was already a significant victory—he allowed himself a small smile.
At least things were moving in a positive direction.
["There's no enemy that a single timeline can't handle. And if there is, well, two timelines, three timelines—endless timelines will do the job! How does that poem go again? 'Green jade drapes high, a thousand branches…' or something about smashing enemies with ten thousand lines of time. Yeah, that's it!"]
Feng Qi couldn't help but break into a cold sweat at the Narrator's nonsense.
If he wasn't mistaken, the line should be: "The jade-green branches hang down, ten thousand threads of silk swaying." It had absolutely nothing to do with enemies or timelines.
"Qi-ge, tell me—how did you know I'd face a possession attempt like this?" Lin Ran asked, grinning as he walked closer.
Feng Qi was about to answer when the Narrator's voice cut in.
["Attention! A new challenger is entering the battlefield. After extensive deliberation, I've decided to deploy the latest weapon in our arsenal. This round, we play my trump card: Mist-Dyed Lin Ran! Let's go!"]
Feng Qi: …
Suppressing his urge to throttle the Narrator, Feng Qi glanced eastward. Sure enough, a dense black mist was racing along the ground toward them.
Everything in its path—whether undead or distorted plants—was devoured by the swarm of psionic nanobots within the mist.
Seeing this, Feng Qi swiftly turned to Lin Ran and clapped a hand on his shoulder.
"Good brother, I need a favor."
Lin Ran didn't hesitate. "Qi-ge, say the word. Whatever I can do, I'll do it without question."
"How about risking life and limb for me this once?" Feng Qi asked.
"Of course!"
Though Lin Ran agreed readily, a flicker of confusion crossed his face, clearly uncertain why Feng Qi was asking.
Feng Qi pressed on, eyes narrowing.
"Would you take a knife to the ribs for your brother?"
"Without question!" Lin Ran nodded again, his confusion deepening.
"Then, would you sacrifice yourself for your brother?"
This time, Lin Ran paused briefly, but his response was as firm as ever.
"Qi-ge, you're my closest brother. Naturally, I would."
Hearing this, Feng Qi smiled brightly.
But just as he was about to assign Lin Ran the task of confronting the black mist, the Narrator's voice chimed in again.
["Push his limits! Ask him if he'd let a brother sleep with his wife!"]
Feng Qi: …
In his mind, Feng Qi raised a middle finger at the Narrator.
What kind of lunatic are you? No one's testing loyalty like that!