Chapter 140 - 139: [The Door Chose You]

Chapter 140: Chapter 139: [The Door Chose You]

Back in the day, a muscle-bound brute, a bearer of the Bronze Sect, had beaten him to his knees and forced him to humiliatingly accept the task of being the Gatekeeper.

So how come, all this time later, another big muscle hunk shows up and beats him to his knees, forcing him to call him daddy?

’The script was supposed to be him teaching this big muscle hunk a lesson, making him submit obediently like a good little son!’

"Daddy."

"Heh, good boy. I’ll buy you some candy later." He Xiaotian patted Mr. Men’s head, acting every bit the father. He completely ignored the flames of fury spitting from the man’s eyes. "Son, your daddy’s going to teach you something."

"?"

"There’s an old saying: when you’re under someone else’s roof, you have to bow your head. And the look in your eyes is really pissing your daddy off."

"Wait, I wasn’t glaring at you—"

Before he could finish, He Xiaotian kicked out.

He sent Mr. Men sprawling to the ground and planted a foot on his back.

’I’m angry at the Gluttonous King!’

’How can you be so unreasonable?!’

"Tell me why you suddenly decided against killing me yourself. And don’t give me any crap. If this was just a test, those black shadows would have been enough. There was no need to send four Martial Artists to surround and kill me.

I hope you answer carefully. If I even suspect you’re lying, I won’t hesitate to use these hammers to give you a taste of what a shattered backside feels like."

After speaking, He Xiaotian dangled the two large iron hammers in front of Mr. Men’s eyes. The warning was unmistakable.

"The Bronze Sect chose you, so I had to change my mind at the last minute. The so-called test was its test, not mine. I don’t want to give up the month-long King’s Banquet. I can find a successor anytime during my long life.

But under the constraints of the Bronze Sect, I couldn’t kill you myself, which is why I dispatched four of my subordinates. It’s just that your strength is truly too great. Those four were the most I could muster. I thought that they, along with the Abyssal Submariners, would be enough to wear you down until you were completely spent.

Unfortunately, it turns out I was wrong. I underestimated your potential. In such a short time, your power has skyrocketed once again. There’s a reason the Bronze Sect chose you as its next successor."

He Xiaotian stroked his chin. ’Completely spent?’

’If it were one of those Martial Artists from a few hundred years ago, they would indeed be in the awkward position of having no Inner Strength left after several consecutive battles.’

’But he was basically a walking cheat code, okay? He had centuries of Inner Strength at his disposal.’

"You keep reminding me the Bronze Sect is dangerous. What’s actually inside it?"

"I don’t dare go inside," Mr. Men said, shaking his head without the slightest bit of embarrassment. "Although I’ve never entered, my intuition tells me that if I were to walk in, I would die a horrible death."

GULP!

He Xiaotian swallowed hard. Don’t be fooled by the fact that he had Mr. Men pinned to the ground, beating him senseless and forcing him to call him daddy.

In reality, it was all due to restrictions. His true power was being suppressed.

That was the only reason he’d gotten so lucky, getting to thrash a super-boss on the same level as the Gluttonous King.

If they were in the Netherworld, Mr. Men’s power would undoubtedly be immense.

If even an old monster like him, who’d lived for who knows how many years, felt he couldn’t handle it, one could only imagine how terrifying it was inside the Bronze Sect.

"Don’t worry. The existence of the Bronze Sect greatly weakens the power of the unknown thing inside. If the thing inside wants to come out, the Bronze Sect will alert you immediately.

When that time comes, you just need to find a hidden place to hide and wait to be drawn into this space. Then, close the door. As long as the power behind the door vanishes, you’ll be fine.

I trust a simple task like that won’t be too hard for you. The Bronze Sect won’t make you handle the real trouble. Once your strength reaches my level, you will inherit this door."

’Hold on, who said anything about inheriting this bizarre Bronze Sect?’

’I’d have to be out of my mind to jump into this fire pit.’

Sensing He Xiaotian’s reluctance, Mr. Men quickly explained.

"It has nothing to do with me who the Bronze Sect chooses. Ever since that guy who pushed the door open and went in all those years ago, I lost the right to choose a successor. So, it wasn’t me who made you the Gatekeeper—it was the Bronze Sect."

Hearing this, He Xiaotian sighed.

’From what Mr. Men is saying, it sounds like my life will just be a bit more troublesome in the future, but not in any mortal danger.’

’Looked at that way, it’s not so bad... not so bad, my ass!’

’I was doing just fine, and now I’m suddenly saddled with the duty of closing a door.’

’Can’t you just let me hammer ghosts in peace and quiet?’

"You passed the test, and you even pinned me, the current Gatekeeper, to the ground and beat me senseless. If the Bronze Sect had a satisfaction meter, to use a term from your world, it’d be completely off the charts right now."

’What the F—’

’Beating you up made this stupid door happy?’

HISS!

A searing heat suddenly flared up on his chest.

It was a pain that even his 93-point Hardness stat couldn’t block.

A bone-deep agony seared his mind.

He was sure that if it weren’t for his Pain Resistance -5, he’d be on his knees right now, tearing at his clothes and screaming his lungs out.

After a long moment, He Xiaotian felt as if he’d just been drenched in a cold shower.

His clothes were completely soaked with sweat, and a large puddle had formed on the floor.

At this moment, He Xiaotian had no strength left to continue the beating.

He tremblingly reached out and tore open the front of his shirt.

A three-dimensional tattoo of a bronze door appeared on his skin.

"Just as I thought. The Bronze Sect is very pleased with you, its next successor. It actually gave you the tattoo already. Congratulations. Whenever the thing inside wants to push the door open and come out, the tattoo on your chest will heat up to warn you.

Within one minute, you need to find a hidden location to enter the space. Of course, if you don’t mind disappearing in front of everyone, you don’t have to. Alright, now let’s talk about the benefits for you.

Every time you successfully guard the door, you’ll receive a reward and your strength will increase. But don’t get your hopes up; it won’t let you reach the heavens in a single step. Over time, however, even if you do nothing but eat, drink, and play all day...

if you keep at it for a few hundred years, you’ll still become a powerhouse who can dominate both the Netherworld and the mortal world."

He Xiaotian: "..."

He flipped Mr. Men over, set down his hammers, and rewarded his ’gentle and amiable’ face with a flurry of punches.

"Happy, are we? I’ll give the Bronze Sect something to be *really* happy about today."

「An hour later.」

He Xiaotian rose to his feet, feeling refreshed. He had finally figured it out—he couldn’t kill this guy.

At most, he could just loosen his bones a bit.

’But that’s fine. Whenever I’m in a bad mood, I’ll just use you as my personal punching bag.’

’I bet this kind of punishment is even harder for Mr. Men to accept than just killing him outright.’

"Anything else you haven’t told me? Spit it all out. Unless you want to get beaten up a few more times."

"Because you’ve become the Gatekeeper, the lifespan of an ordinary person no longer applies to you. As long as you don’t die, you will continue to exist. Until... the day the door is opened."

Mr. Men didn’t hide anything, knowing He Xiaotian would find this out sooner or later. Better to be upfront now than to hide it and wait for the inevitable revenge.

?!

’I’m immortal now?’

He Xiaotian felt a little dizzy, as if he’d been smacked by a pie filled with a lead ball.

’I haven’t even done anything, and I’ve already become an immortal?’

"That’s right. You’ve now achieved the immortality that everyone craves. But don’t celebrate too soon. It’s less of a reward and more of a curse," Mr. Men said with a sigh, his words heavy with meaning.

"Are there any more doors like this? I’d like to guard a few more," He Xiaotian said, his eyes narrowing into a smile.

"..."

’I never want to talk to this lunatic again.’

’Not only is he hot-tempered, he’s also fucking delusional.’

"So I’m immortal just like that? No, wait. You said ’until the day the door is opened.’ That means if the door gets opened, I die. The problem is, who knows when this bronze door will be pushed open from the inside? What if it happens tomorrow? Wouldn’t I be getting totally screwed?"

What could Mr. Men do in the face of He Xiaotian’s question? He was in despair too, okay?

Sigh!

’So much for my dream of eating, drinking, and playing for a few hundred years to become a powerhouse who dominates both the Netherworld and the mortal world.’

’I’ll have to keep hammering ghosts and practicing my martial arts.’

’What if one day this "son" of mine can’t hold on? I can’t just stand by and wait to die.’

’No, wait! Why am I so unambitious? Just hold the door? Screw that! One day, I’m going to barge right in there and see who the hell keeps pushing the damn door for fun. I’ll hammer them to death. That way, I’ll have no more troubles, and I’ll still get to be immortal!’

In that moment, He Xiaotian suddenly had a new goal.

He would continuously increase his strength until he reached the pinnacle, then he would enter the Bronze Sect and hammer to death whatever nuisance was causing him all this trouble!!

Mr. Men rolled his eyes. ’Has the Bronze Sect lost its mind?’

’Why else would it choose He Xiaotian as its successor?’

’He’s actually resolved to hammer to death the thing behind the door.’

’If you’re so badass, why don’t you just fly up to the sky and hang out with the sun?’