Cangnan City.
Swelteringly unbearable August.
SCREECH!!!
A bus hurtling across the road slams on its brakes, stopping a mere 0.01 centimeters from Gu Tianchen, who has inexplicably appeared in the middle of the street.
"Damn it! Walking without checking the traffic light? Looking to die?!"
The driver, drenched in cold sweat, hurls curses at the stunned Gu Tianchen.
A handsome high schooler, blindfolded with black satin and carrying a bucket of peanut oil with a guide cane, sets down his grocery bag. As if he can see, he pulls Gu Tianchen back to the sidewalk.
Glancing at his surroundings, Gu Tianchen scratches his head and mutters, "Holy hell, where did I end up?"
The blindfolded, handsome high schooler chuckles, "You okay?"
Staring at the少年's distinctive appearance, Gu Tianchen feels a spark of recognition, as if he's seen him somewhere before…
Wait a second!
Isn't this the iconic look of Lin Qiye, the protagonist of the hit Slay the Gods?!
I've transmigrated into the Slay the Gods universe?!
To confirm his suspicion, Gu Tianchen extends a hand. "Thanks for earlier. I'm Gu Tianchen. What's your name, classmate?"
"Lin Qiye."
Well, well, well!
So that's how we're playing this?!
Just because he was rereading Slay the Gods after getting frustrated with the slow updates of Three Nine God Games, he's been whisked into this world like some fresh-off-the-vine fruit?!
Out of courtesy, Lin Qiye grips Gu Tianchen's hand, and a terrifying surge of energy ripples outward.
In the boundless chaos, an immense ancient temple radiates an aura of divine terror, materializing before Gu Tianchen.
Atop the temple, four grand characters exude an ancient, mysterious air: Pangu Temple.
Within the vast Pangu Temple stand twelve colossal gray-cyan stone statues, their forms bizarre and towering majestically.
Standing atop the temple's grand hall, Gu Tianchen gazes upward, feeling like an ant staring up at human giants, unable to grasp their full enormity.
The twelve massive statues are arranged in two rows of six, flanking a towering dark-gold altar on a raised platform. The altar's solemn majesty compels reverence, as if it were an offering to some supreme existence…
As a student who sne瑰德安林 who sneaks novels during class, Gu Tianchen naturally knows of the Twelve Ancestral Witches.
Legend holds that the Twelve Ancestral Witches were born from the blood essence of Pangu, the Great God (though, with all the systems draining Pangu's blood over the years, who knows if there's any left…). They are the Witch Clan's mightiest ancient deities, wielding divine powers capable of annihilating heaven and earth.
In the Witch-Demon War, the Twelve Ancestral Witches perished alongside the Demon Clan, with only Houtu transforming into the Six Paths of Reincarnation to establish the Underworld.
In the Slay the Gods universe, the gods of Great Xia shattered their celestial origin to fend off the Mist's invasion, forming nine divine steles to safeguard Great Xia's peace.
The Twelve Ancestral Witches, however, had vanished long before Great Xia's Celestial Court was established.
Now that he's transmigrated into the Slay the Gods world, if Gu Tianchen could revive the Twelve Ancestral Witches within the Pangu Temple, wouldn't that be a tremendous boon for Great Xia, now facing invasions from Outer Gods?
The problem is, these Twelve Ancestral Witches are currently just statues. How is he supposed to revive them?
He can't exactly lug these statues around to smash the invading Outer Gods to death, can he?
Besides, they're bigger than mountains—there's no way he could carry them…
As Gu Tianchen grapples with this dilemma, a golden light slowly materializes before him, coalescing into ancient script radiating a mysterious aura.
This… is this the legendary golden finger?
Gu Tianchen squints at it for ages but can't make heads or tails of it. It's all in traditional Chinese characters, and with his limited nine years of compulsory education, he can only guess at a few meanings.
Good news: The golden finger has arrived!
Bad news: It came without a manual!!
Damn it, to think his dream of saving the world would shatter like a ripe fruit just because of his lack of education?
As if sensing his plight, the golden light shifts, transforming into modern Chinese characters that Gu Tianchen can read.
"Nine… Revolutions… Mysterious… Art?!"
Gu Tianchen slowly reads the four prominent characters, his eyes widening like bronze bells!
Holy crap! The Witch Clan's body-refining divine technique—the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art!
Legend has it this is the body-refining technique Pangu passed down to the Witch Clan, with its highest realm allowing one to achieve sainthood through physical prowess alone!
However, this technique is notoriously difficult to cultivate. Even the Twelve Ancestral Witches of old never fully mastered it.
Even so, the Ancestral Witches' physical strength reached terrifying heights, forcing even the mighty Demon Emperors Jun and Taiyi to self-detonate to take them down.
The Eight-Nine Mysterious Art, practiced by the Clear Source Wondrous Way True Lord Erlang Shen (Yang Jian), was an improved version of the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art, developed by the Three Pure Ones. It allows dual cultivation of the primordial spirit and body, reducing the difficulty. While it can also lead to physical sainthood, its combat power is slightly inferior to the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art.
Even so, among the gods of Great Xia's Celestial Court, only Erlang Shen Yang Jian successfully cultivated it, underscoring the immense difficulty of the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art.
Surveying the Pangu Temple, Gu Tianchen sees nothing but the Twelve Ancestral Witch statues and the floating Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art.
Looks like his only option is to cultivate the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art. Who knows, maybe he's the once-in-a-century martial genius Stephen Chow talked about?
Buzz!
A dark-gold radiance ripples outward, and Gu Tianchen reappears before Lin Qiye.
They're still clasping hands, full of bromantic vibes.
"Ahem… so, where's your place? Point me in the direction."
Lin Qiye "glances" at Franz warily.
"To show my gratitude, let me walk you home. It's inconvenient carrying all that stuff alone," Gu Tianchen says with a smile.
Looking at the handsome guy his age, Lin Qiye hands over his grocery bag.
"Thanks."
Carrying the grocery bag and peanut oil, Gu Tianchen arrives at the foot of Lin Qiye's apartment building.
"We're here. Thanks. Wanna come up? My aunt's cooking is pretty good," Lin Qiye says with a smile.
Gu Tianchen knows that besides Lin Qiye's aunt, his household includes his cousin Yang Jin, the reincarnation of Erlang Shen Yang Jian, and Xiao Heilai, the current incarnation of the Howling Celestial Dog.
If Yang Jian could offer pointers on cultivating the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art, it'd surely make things easier.
But there's someone else in Lin Qiye's house right now.
He doesn't fancy being carted off as a mental patient, so a visit can wait.
"No thanks, I've got stuff to do." Gu Tianchen hands the items back to Lin Qiye and turns to leave.
After a few steps, Gu Tianchen suddenly feels the surroundings growing eerily familiar. A flood of memories not his own surfaces in his mind…
Two and a half years ago, his parents went missing during a Mist exploration mission, leaving behind an old house in the city's old district and a government Update: Slay the Gods novel, Chapter 260 mentions that Cangnan's residents can leave, bearing the imprint of the [Mortal Realm]. Borrowing Hongying's backstory here—don't ask, it's just easier to write with dead parents, doge.
He's also named Gu Tianchen, a sophomore in Class 2 at Canghai City Second High School. His class monitor is Jiang Qian, and his best buddy is Li Yifei…
These are… his predecessor's memories?
And ten years ago, when Cangnan City was erased by [Shiva's Grudge], he was there too…
Which means, if Lin Qiye's [Mortal Realm] collapses, he'll die too?!
***
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