323 Now, I am a qualified delusional patient
. In the depths of a magnificent mansion in Blackrock City, the Hiro Empire,
a purple-robed nobleman was waiting—waiting for his subordinates, sent to hunt down "Lucus," to bring him good news.
However, as dusk fell and the pure white sun dipped below the horizon, the hunting party still hadn't returned.
"Did they get lost in the Sunset Mountains, or were they held up by something?" The purple-robed nobleman frowned.
But he wasn't surprised at all; in fact, it was exactly what he expected that his subordinates wouldn't return to the city on time that night.
However, he wasn't worried at all whether the hunting party chasing the remnant would fail. That remnant of the Noranus family, the young man named Lukus, was ultimately no match for him; under the pursuit of a team led by
a second-life [Trialist] , he would have no chance of survival. In fact, given this team's equipment and lineup, even against a three-life forger, if the opponent wasn't a chosen one and didn't possess a spirit-named treasure, they were fully capable of annihilating him! Let alone—a mere nobody who wasn't even a forger? Using a sledgehammer to crack a nut was the greatest respect he could show to the remnants of the Nolanus family, and it also conveniently fulfilled the wish of his subordinate who had always harbored a grudge against the Nolanus family. However, the Sunset Mountains were ultimately a notorious graveyard of civilizations; how many heroes had fallen there, how many figures had perished there? He had ways to ensure this team kept pace with Lukus, but he couldn't guarantee their safe return after Lukus's death. After all, if they couldn't leave the Sunset Mountains before nightfall and couldn't find suitable shelter within— … a place teeming with monstrous creatures and rampant with misfortune, what chance did the living have of surviving if they strayed into the depths of death? "They must have been delayed on their way back—" " But, as long as the mission is accomplished, death is death." The purple-robed nobleman shook his head. Although losing a newly acquired and capable subordinate was a pity, there was nothing he could do. It just so happened—this subordinate's selfishness during the day had caused him some dissatisfaction. Whether a disposable rag is washed and reused or thrown directly into the trash can—essentially, it all depends on the owner's mood.
In any case, the Noranus family had been largely wiped out here, and no trace of the Trojan city-state's treasure had been found. It was time for him to prepare to set off for his next target city.
But before that, out of his usual caution, he still needed to confirm something.
As for the method of confirmation—"Buzz—Clang!"
The purple-robed nobleman waved his hand, and the pouch at his waist, which resembled a wallet, absorbed spiritual energy, then flashed and "spit out" a huge machine taller than a person. It wobbled and clanged as it landed on the ground.
In the dimly lit meeting room, the dim candlelight illuminated the machine. It was supported by three thick marble pillars, the pillars of which were covered with twisted reliefs. Countless faces were screaming and howling on them, each with a different expression—some laughing, some crying—and each face was connected by spun threads.
Between the three pillars stood a hand-cranked mechanical roulette wheel, above which were three rows of ancient bronze rollers, each engraved with five symbols: a skull, a rose, a dagger, a chalice, and a pale eye.
If Bai Zhou were here, he would immediately recognize it as a lottery machine, and marvel at how worthy this place was of the Hiro Empire.
Yes, a lottery machine, and a hand-cranked one at that.
Below the hand-cranked wheel was an ancient altar, its surface faded and mottled, with faint traces of blood visible on it.
"A divination lottery machine, this is my treasure."
Standing before the altar, in the dim candlelight, the tall, purple-robed nobleman chuckled lightly, speaking in a low voice to the "maid" standing not far away: "An ancient relic of a pre-civilization—I mean, a pre-civilization older than three hundred city-states—it belongs to the legendary [Diviner] path, it's true divination, its effects far surpassing those clumsy divination crystal balls."
Emphasizing its distinction from ordinary divination, the purple-robed nobleman seemed to be boasting to the lifeless "maid": "Nobles like you would probably never have encountered it in your entire lives, or even heard of it."
He said, "But before, it was with this—that I found the weakness of your manor, and without anyone noticing, I took over the entire manor in one fell swoop!"
The original owner of this manor was a walking corpse of a noblewoman, her eyes devoid of any living spirit, standing stiffly and blankly in place, her pale face appearing eerily sinister in the candlelight, clearly a living corpse.
"Buzz!" The cloth bag hanging at the waist made a sound again, and a white dove fluttering and struggling appeared in the hands of the purple-robed nobleman.
The white dove was pressed onto the altar beneath the lottery machine. Before the dove could react, the disc sank slightly, emitting a dull "click."
A crack appeared in the center of the altar, like a gaping maw, slowly swallowing the dove.
"Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!"
The jagged cracks, like sharp teeth, chewed the dove to pieces. The dove's screams quickly ceased, leaving only the grating sounds of bones and feathers being slowly chewed and swallowed, echoing eerily in the deathly silent room.
The blood of the sacrificial offering flowed and swirled on the altar. Then, the man took out several gold coins and placed them on top of the blood.
"Clang—"
The blood-soaked Hero gold coins began to melt, flowing into the crack in the altar along with the blood.
From the depths of the closed crack, a faint golden light gradually emerged, then transformed into a golden thread, traveling upwards along the lottery machine, pulsating like a vein on the surface of the three marble pillars.
At this moment, the purple-robed nobleman chanted extremely obscure cryptic incantations and simultaneously began shaking the roulette wheel.
Then, the distorted faces on the three pillars, illuminated by golden threads, simultaneously opened their eyes.
Three rows of bronze wheels began to spin.
"Clatter-clatter-clatter,"
the lottery machine began to spin wildly, and the tense and exciting lottery began.
When three identical patterns converged, the purple-robed nobleman would have the opportunity to ask the lottery machine a divination question.
However—
"Clang—clang—clang."
The three rows of bronze wheels stopped at an eye, a holy grail, and a dagger, respectively.
Completely different.
The lottery failed; the lottery machine accepted the man's offering without giving any feedback.
Of course, this was normal for a lottery machine, so much so that the purple-robed nobleman showed no surprise whatsoever.
He simply repeated his previous actions.
A live white dove, followed by a stack of gold coins.
Offering the sacrifice, chanting the incantation, and then shaking the wheel.
Once, twice, three times—
heaven knows why he put so many live white doves in his storage bag—or perhaps he was preparing them for the lottery machine.
"Clatter-clatter—clatter-clatter—clatter-clatter—"
The lottery machine shook, as if a thousand horses were galloping across it, the frantically spinning bronze wheels reflected in the vacant, lifeless eyes of the "maid" not far away through the flickering candlelight.
After twenty tries, the purple-robed man's hand ached from shaking it.
But he still hadn't won.
"Something's not right—what's going on today?"
Facing this relentless lottery machine, the purple-robed man gradually lost patience, veins bulging on his forehead.
The white doves aside, the meaningless consumption of those Hiro coins in such a short time was something even he couldn't ignore.
Although the maid's eyes were completely devoid of emotion, he inexplicably felt he was being mocked—
"Clang!"
Unable to resist, the man raised his foot and kicked the lottery machine from the side.
"I know you're listening—win!"
"Otherwise, I'll make you vomit up everything you've eaten!"
the man sneered, offering another sacrifice and repeating his previous actions.
As the roulette wheel spun, under the man's icy gaze, the bronze wheel gradually came to a stop.
Perhaps the previous threat had actually worked; this time, when the pattern on the bronze wheel settled, three cold, seemingly sacred chalice symbols were lined up on the three rows of wheels. "
Three chalices, you can draw a prize."
The lottery machine shook twice, as if waiting for something.
Seeing this, the purple-robed man breathed a sigh of relief and asked the divination lottery machine a question.
"Lottery machine, lottery machine, tell me—"
the man whispered, "Is my hunting party celebrating their victory somewhere?"
"Ding!"
Another mechanical echo rang out, as if a spring had suddenly sprung open deep within the lottery machine. The machine emitted a melodious, organ-like low hum, then slowly ejected a piece of parchment from a gap beneath the altar.
"Tear—"
The edges of the parchment were charred gray-black, the words written in the burning flames still flickering slightly, possessing a mystical quality in the dim light.
At this moment, the purple-robed man's mood lightened again.
After all, as he had said before, he couldn't fathom why such a formidable hunting party could fail at hunting a mere Lucus.
Thinking this, the purple-robed man picked up the parchment with its burning ink, turned, and left the lottery machine, glancing at its contents as he walked.
Then—
the man's steps suddenly stopped.
On the charred edges of the parchment, written in the form of burning flames, were these words:
[The Lioness thanks you for the extra meal you sent her and hopes to include rosemary and cumin powder next time.]
[—Undoubtedly, your objective was not achieved.]
What the hell—what the hell does "The Lioness thanks him for the extra meal" mean?
The man was dumbfounded, staring at the parchment in his hand, thinking he was seeing things.
He had clearly given those people the most thorough arrangements; the incense burner would allow them to avoid the monstrous creatures and wild beasts to the greatest extent possible. As long as they followed Lucus, they could easily ambush and kill him, making it appear as if he was killed by monstrous creatures in the graveyard.
How could this be—
why wasn't the objective achieved?!
What else had happened that he didn't know about?
With the incense burner in hand, and the hunting team being an experienced group, there was absolutely no way they would have actively provoked the monstrous creatures or wild beasts in the Sunset Mountains.
It couldn't possibly be that kid named Lucus has some kind of lion hidden inside him, ready to roar and leap out to devour all these pursuers in a moment of crisis, could it?
A mysterious man—with a lioness hiding behind him?
Is there such a special figure hidden among the remnants of the Noranus family?
The purple-robed nobleman was filled with doubt and suspicion. At this moment, in the dimly lit and quiet conference room, a very faint, almost mocking laugh
could be heard from the lottery machine behind the man . "Pfft."
This was definitely not a hallucination, the purple-robed man was certain.
He'd been mocked.
Mocked by a lottery machine older than his great-grandfather—?!
With the appearance of Blue Star, Bai Zhou's vision returned, meeting the strange gazes of Ya and Fang Xiaoxia. He realized he had escaped the terrifying avalanche's pursuit and could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
"I, I'm back."
He coughed lightly and dismounted.
At the same time, he immediately activated Thousand Faces Moon, using the transformation of [Fallen Saint Physician] to repeatedly cover his appearance.
As a cold, languid feeling enveloped him, he looked around and realized he was home.
From the perilous and teeming world of the Juraji, he had returned to this small home where someone was waiting for him.
Then, under Fang Xiaoxia's shocked gaze, Bai Zhou transformed his magnificent, spirited celestial horse back into a wobbly, toy-like little wooden horse and tucked it into his arms.
It was just a toy, wasn't it?
So the white horse ridden by the prince who descended from the sky was actually a toy in disguise? It sounded like her piggy bank would turn into a magical flying pig, carrying her to a distant magical kingdom to spend the winter.
—Dreamy
and unbelievable.
Fang Xiaoxia even suddenly felt that Blood Shadow should sing a poem here.
In fact, Fang Xiaoxia had felt this before. Whether it was the Special Administration or the Blood Cult, the people and things in these mysterious worlds were always cold and cruel. Perhaps this was the reality of the world. The seemingly powerful chosen ones were actually pitiful worms walking in the shadows of the world, unable to see the light.
But Bai Zhou was different — he was truly different.
His adventures in the mysterious world were always tinged with a magnificent color, like this pure white horse that fell from the sky on a rainbow. Wherever Bai Zhou was, things would always have a touch of fairy tale.
The world was cold, but standing next to Bai Zhou was warm.
This was Fang Xiaoxia's feeling.
However, maintaining this warmth must always be hard work. Seeing Bai Zhou's disheveled appearance and hurried expression, Fang Xiaoxia deeply understood this.
At the same time, she felt a chill in her heart and realized that she absolutely could not relax.
Forget about being a destined demon hunter—if she truly wanted to stand by Bai Zhou's side, she knew she had a long way to go and would have to put in far more effort than she could imagine.
But she was already aware of this.
Having even one chance to try was already a stroke of luck.
In the past, as a loser in life, that pathetic girl had countless times never even had a chance to try; everything she did was futile—through that experience, she understood this principle.
She cherished every second she stood behind Bai Zhou and constantly strived towards the goal of "turning behind him into beside him."
These were secrets Fang Xiaoxia would never tell anyone, hidden deep in her heart—
"Bai Zhou, you—"
Ya looked at Bai Zhou, her gaze somewhat suspicious.
Unlike Fang Xiaoxia, the girl in the trench coat had exceptional insight and superior knowledge, immediately recognizing the extraordinary nature of Bai Zhou's life.
Compared to Bai Zhou, who hadn't even set foot in the Void Realm a minute ago, Bai Zhou now appeared exhausted and disheveled. Yet, it was as if he had transformed from iron ore into refined steel, from a cat and mouse into a tiger and wolf; his life level had undergone a profound and imperceptible qualitative change.
Powerful, dangerous, reserved, and seemingly isolated from the world, he possessed the unique detachment and loneliness of someone in a high position.
Deep within this otherworldly aura, however, lay a mysteriously hidden nobility, pride, and a bone-chilling coldness, like that of an ancient snow-capped mountain.
"This is—?"
Crow's gaze was filled with doubt and uncertainty.
This dramatic change in life level and aura, coupled with the almost overwhelming, restless spiritual energy in the surrounding air, all pointed to a certain truth—
but that truth was too incredible, causing Crow to stare intently into Bai Zhou's eyes, seeking a definite answer.
"Hmm—"
Naturally, with their mutual understanding, Bai Zhou knew what Crow wanted to ask with just a glance.
After a moment's hesitation, Bai Zhou nodded.
At this moment, he thought of the "mad words" he had prepared to forge his destiny before going to the Void Realm, and also of the interesting descriptions about destiny forgers that Crow had told him before his departure.
[If we follow the modern definition of mental illness, every chosen one of us is a complete sufferer of hyperthymesia, Cottal syndrome, phantom limb syndrome, Alice in Wonderland syndrome, Lesch-Nyhan syndrome, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, and delusional disorder—]
[If people define delusional disorder as "characterized by persistent delusions as the core symptom, long-term holding of morbid beliefs detached from reality, and incorrigible through objective evidence"—]
[Then, every chosen one walking in the mysterious world is undoubtedly a delusional patient obsessed to the point of death.]
Delusional patient
Bai Zhou found Crow's description perfectly to his liking; for a destiny forger possessing a personal destiny, Crow's description couldn't be more accurate.
It effectively helped Bai Zhou understand the meaning of a destiny forger, and also instilled in him 300% "arrogance" and determination when forging his personal destiny.
"Believe it, as long as you believe, you can do it. They're the most insane delusional patients, after all.
" It was with this kind of delusion that Bai Zhou was able to pass both trials in one go, forging his personal destiny in one fell swoop, achieving the "Forging Destiny Success" feat. "Before I left, I said—I would succeed."
"So, Black Eyes and all that are no longer a big deal."
Facing the strange, rapidly flashing gaze of Crow, Bai Zhou, through a ritual of telepathy, slowly gave a definite answer in his heart.
Although, in this world, perhaps only Crow could understand this answer.
He said, "Yes, now—" "
I am now a qualified delusional patient."
Delusional patient—
taking a deep breath, Crow immediately understood Bai Zhou's meaning.
A chill ran through him as his gaze swept up and down, taking in Bai Zhou's disheveled clothes and the boy's numerous wounds.
Although he had many questions in his mind, at this moment, Crow suppressed them, brushed his long hair behind his ear, and nodded thoughtfully. "
You forged your destiny?" How did you forge your destiny? What exactly did you go through to achieve it? Did you face death at
every turn? What earth-shattering secret do you hide in the Void Realm? Surely the Void Realm isn't your personal property, where you treat knowledge like ore, ready to be mined at any time?
The Demon Assembly was imminent. The Holy Son looked down, the Seven Sins surrounded him, and the Five-Colored Eyes Clan eyed him covetously—what expressions would those people have if they knew your current strength?
And so on and so forth, these kinds of questions piled up in Crow's already calm chest like snow on the snowy mountain of Zhuluoji.
Yet, at this moment,
looking at the wounded yet spirited young man, she simply sighed softly.
With complex emotions swirling in her heart, she spoke softly, her voice slightly hoarse: "You've worked hard."
Putting aside her many doubts, Crow's first response was to the first words Bai Zhou had spoken when he dismounted: "I'm back."
She simply said, "Welcome back, Bai Zhou.
"