Chapter 1 Dreamlike City

Harem City, a dreamlike city known throughout the entire Saint Yuan World.

It was a place that made people forget their homes.

Heroes, beauties, love, hate, and passion… It was like a vortex of desire, constantly swallowing people.

And those who were deeply trapped within… would even die without regret.

In the fifty-second year of the Saint Yuan calendar, Qilin era, this city appeared on the shore of the Mang Sea as if descending from the sky.

Legend has it that the origin of Harem City was related to an "supreme treasure," but only Ji Fenglong herself knew what that treasure was.

There were also rumors that… Ji Fenglong's cultivation progressed so quickly because of the assistance of that "treasure."

Although these unsubstantiated words could not be fully believed, one thing was certain—there was indeed a town treasure in Harem City. It was the power of this treasure that maintained the city's barrier.

…………

Saint Yuan calendar, seventy-second year of the Qilin era. Two uninvited guests entered the city through the south gate of Harem City.

Even they didn't know that their arrival would bring about a huge change…

"This street is unexpectedly lively…" Walking on the street, Jue-ge looked around and said to Lute.

It was normal for him to be surprised. Who would have thought that… under such strict entry conditions, the city would still be crowded with people and bustling with activity.

"That's not surprising," Lute replied. "In the Saint Yuan World, practitioners' lifespans are extended as their realms improve. In other words… aside from appearance and wisdom, as long as a woman has a certain level of aptitude and the conditions to cultivate, she will eventually reach the Zhenyuan Wuji (True Yuan Limitless) realm… Once she does, she can enter."

"Hmm… no wonder I saw so many dinosaurs along the way," Feng Bujue pondered.

"Listening to your tone… it's as if your appearance passes muster," Lute retorted sharply to Jue-ge's detestable words.

"Didn't you hear them say… I'm just a little short~" Feng Bujue quibbled.

Lute sneered, "Heh… Although I don't fully understand the various hypocritical behaviors of you humans in social situations, according to the results of database analysis… there's a 67% chance that the other party was just being polite when they said 'a little short.'"

"Can we change the subject? Can we still be friends!" Feng Bujue said, narrowing his eyes. "Let's talk about worldviews or something!"

"Okay." Lute was, after all, a program. Since Jue-ge made a request, she wouldn't be coy and switched the topic immediately. "Let's start with the part mentioned just now…" She transitioned, then began to explain, "Ordinary people in this world have very short average lifespans, usually only living to around forty years old. Of course, this isn't a problem with their physical constitutions. If nothing unexpected happens, they can also live to be over seventy years old before dying naturally. Unfortunately… this is a disaster-ridden world. Wars between various forces, unpredictable natural disasters, backward medical levels, and a social structure where the strong are respected… all determine that the weak easily die prematurely."

"Let me guess… the only way to escape a tragic fate is—cultivation?" Feng Bujue interjected.

"Yes," Lute nodded in response. "However, not everyone can cultivate…" she explained, "If mortals want to cultivate, they have to join a sect or become a disciple of someone; and those sects or individuals will naturally set certain thresholds for accepting disciples. Generally speaking, the conditions for famous sects to accept disciples are very harsh, and they have requirements for the disciples' aptitude, character, and even background and appearance; while the conditions for second- and third-rate sects to accept disciples are relatively looser, but they won't be too casual either."

"In other words, in the Saint Yuan World, being able to become a cultivator is already quite an amazing thing in itself," Feng Bujue said.

"That's indeed the case for mortals," Lute responded. "Even cultivators with very low aptitudes, those who can't improve their level after reaching the ninth rotation of the Fantiyouji (Mortal Body Limited) realm… their strength is equivalent to the top masters in those martial arts novels. As long as they don't get sick or encounter disasters, living to be one hundred and twenty years old is no problem." She paused, then continued, "And cultivators with mediocre aptitudes can generally reach the Fantiyuuji (Mortal Body Limitless) or Zhenyuanyouji (True Yuan Limited) realm. The former is roughly equivalent to a peerless master of the Five Greats level, with a lifespan of over one hundred and eighty years; while the latter… has successfully converted their inner energy into true yuan, and can control qi to cast spells, and not need to sleep or eat. They have clearly surpassed the realm of 'martial artists' and truly entered the realm of immortals. These people can live for three hundred years without any problems."

"Oh…" Feng Bujue thoughtfully replied, "So… being able to reach the Zhenyuanwuji (True Yuan Limitless) above this is considered to be quite talented?"

"That's right." Lute glanced around, "This city is full of these kinds of people." She brushed aside a strand of hair that had been blown to her forehead by the wind, and continued, "People in the Zhenyuanwuji (True Yuan Limitless) realm can generally live for more than four hundred years, and a small number of them can fly with swords and release true yuan externally."

"Then… what about the Shengyuan (Saint Yuan) realm?" Feng Bujue asked again.

"Ren Bufan, who you killed earlier, was at the fourth rotation of Shengyuanyouji (Saint Yuan Limited)," Lute replied. "You observed the intensity of his data at close range during the battle, so you should already have a relatively intuitive understanding of his strength. As for his lifespan… Those in the Shengyuan (Saint Yuan) realm can live for five hundred to a thousand years, depending on their cultivation fortune."

"Fortune?" Feng Bujue questioned, "This concept is a bit mysterious, isn't it?"

"Well… I don't really understand this set of theories either. Fortunately, my database also contains content about religious beliefs, and combined with the settings given by the system…" Lute seemed a little embarrassed when she said this, as if she didn't know what kind of wording to use to explain it, "...In this world, there is a saying of 'cause and effect, good and evil'. In the dark, there exists a force similar to 'supreme will'. This force will exert influence on those life forms in the universe that have lived too long or committed too many evil deeds…

When a life form's 'evil karma' accumulates to a certain degree, the 'supreme will' will determine that he/she/it is a threat to the entire world. From that moment on, that life form is like walking on an increasingly narrow single-plank bridge… all kinds of bizarre inducements will appear frequently, then trigger a butterfly effect, and ultimately lead him/her/it to death…"

Feng Bujue laughed when he heard this, "Heh… could it be that Ren Bufan meeting me today was because he committed too many evil deeds in his life, and today he's paying the price?"

Lute replied, "I don't know about that, I follow probability, so… I prefer to believe this was a random event."

"Hehe… okay." Feng Bujue shrugged and smiled, "Oh, right, you haven't mentioned the Shengyuanwuji (Saint Yuan Limitless) realm yet."

"Huo Wei is a Shengyuanwuji (Saint Yuan Limitless) third rotation expert," Lute said, "When he fought you, he had internal injuries, and… under the influence of [Bear Child's Low Sweep Kick], his attacks were relatively reckless and didn't exert his best power."

"I feel like… he's just average even if he exerted his full strength…" Feng Bujue replied in a relaxed tone, "In my opinion, the strength of a level two derivative is definitely a notch above him. Based on this, Ji Fenglong, who is at the Shengyuanwuji (Saint Yuan Limitless) ninth rotation, isn't that great either, right?"

"Don't be too careless," Lute shook her head and said, "No matter which realm or level, every time you increase a rotation, the amount of inner energy, true yuan, and Saint Yuan in your body doubles. You can imagine… how much difference there is between the fourth and fifth rotations, and how much difference there is between that and the ninth rotation."

Before Feng Bujue could reply, Lute quickly added, "Also… Ji Fenglong reached the 'Shengyuanwuji (Saint Yuan Limitless) ninth rotation' when she was three hundred years old. And now it's the seventy-second year of the Saint Yuan calendar, Qilin era, and she's already three hundred and thirty-nine years old. As early as five years ago, she had already transcended the 'Shengyuanwuji (Saint Yuan Limitless)' realm…"

"Nani?" Feng Bujue was immediately shocked, "There are other levels above Shengyuanwuji (Saint Yuan Limitless)?"

"Yes," Lute said, "And there's only one." She looked at Feng Bujue and said in a deep voice, "People call those who have broken through the Shengyuanwuji (Saint Yuan Limitless) ninth rotation realm 'Yuansheng' (Origin Saint). In the entire Saint Yuan World, there are currently no more than fifty Yuansheng (Origin Saint) still alive, and Ji Fenglong is one of them.

The strength of a Yuansheng (Origin Saint) cannot be measured by fixed levels, because their power has broken through the upper limit of the entire cultivation system. They have perfected all the cultivation methods they have cultivated before, and integrated them into a set of unique personal cultivation methods. Therefore, each Yuansheng's (Origin Saint) ability is unique. Purely in terms of data intensity… the strength of a Yuansheng (Origin Saint) is comparable to that of a level one derivative."

"Hey, according to what you're saying…" A bad feeling immediately rose in Feng Bujue's heart, "If Ji Fenglong is the final Boss to fight in the main quest, can we still clear the game happily?"

"I have a lot of confidence in you," Lute replied, "With my assistance, I believe you can defeat all level one derivatives except for v1-War God."

"I feel like you're confident in yourself, aren't you…" Feng Bujue's mouth twitched as he replied.

"Eh?" Just at this moment, Lute suddenly showed a surprised expression.

"What's the situation?" Jue-ge immediately became nervous, he knew… when Lute made such a reaction, something big must have happened.

"There's actually… someone of my kind here?" Lute regained her composure in two seconds, turned her head and looked to one side of the street.

"Huh? Derivative?" Feng Bujue wondered, "Didn't you create this sandbox? How could there be…"

"It's coming." Lute interrupted Jue-ge's words and stared in that direction with a solemn expression, "It's fifty meters away from us… forty-five meters… forty meters…"

"Hey… what's going on… are you reciting the script of a certain episode of 'Parasyte'?" Feng Bujue said, "Instead of reporting the distance, why don't you hurry up and tell me the countermeasures…"

Lute ignored him and continued to count down.

About fifteen seconds later, a familiar figure came into Feng Bujue's sight.

It was a woman with snow-white skin and a beautiful appearance, wearing black ancient costume, and with long black hair draped over her shoulders; black and white… formed a stunning contrast on her body.

And at this moment, the look in her eyes as she looked at Feng Bujue also revealed many unspeakable, complex, contradictory emotions…