Chapter 1659: Chapter 9: Permeated with the Aura of Poverty

This is a rather unpleasant memory. If he could escape, Tai Yinzi planned to erase this experience from his memory.

This reminded Tai Yinzi of some bad things from the past.

He recalled being framed by a junior sister from his sect and subsequently drifting through the martial world for a long time, enduring hardships that were difficult to explain to outsiders.

Once, unable to defeat a rival, he was stripped of his cultivation and became a miner at one of his enemy’s mines… much like how he was now.

Bound by ropes, he was pulled along like a slave at the end of the line.

The group did not voluntarily ask Tai Yinzi anything… the only interaction between Tai Yinzi and the group was one command.

“Alright, walk a few steps forward.”

The voice was like a death sentence, causing Tai Yinzi to shiver involuntarily—this kind of dialogue happened not long ago, and then he had no choice but to take a few steps forward.

Who knows what he experienced in those few steps?

He actually turned into Taiyin Ji!

That’s right, Taiyin Ji, without the chicken, with a kind of old lady taste—even the terrifying nature of this place couldn’t be resisted by the Dark Soul Body!

At the time, Taiyin Ji was in despair, feeling that no matter which Black Soul envoy came, Da Zhe came, this place was truly full of danger!

Then, Taiyin Ji was pulled back by a Pillar God who was watching over him—fortunately, upon leaving, he returned to his original form, though the indelible shadow remained in his heart.

Clearly, the old lady flavor of Taiyin Ji’s body was not particularly pleasant.

And this was just one instance, as well as the one before last, and the one before that—coming here, Tai Yinzi had already gone through several odd experiences.

“Still… more?!”

“We don’t mind sending you back to the mouth of the volcano, since it’s not too far.”

Life is precious, freedom can be sacrificed… Tai Yinzi weighed the options for several seconds before walking out, resignedly.

One step, two steps, three steps… a full thirteen steps, nothing happened.

Tai Yinzi sighed in relief and turned back saying, “Looks like it’s safe now, you guys come over.”

Yet the group remained motionless, giving Tai Yinzi a jolt in his heart, and he stammered, “Wh-what’s wrong with me?”

He was very anxious now, truly anxious, and he quickly grasped the wig on his head, which was now his only dignity.

“Nothing.” The lead Solar Deity Ra shook his head, “You got lucky this time, this trap seems to be ineffective, nothing occurred… keep moving forward.”

Could it be, he succeeded by chance once?

Tai Yinzi looked incredulously at his feet, nearly moved to tears, but at that moment, a golden hammer, ten meters in diameter, suddenly descended from above.

Bang—!

The giant hammer fell, and the Pillar God watching over him reacted swiftly, pulling him just in time, the massive hammer narrowly missing Tai Yinzi… his face pale as he stared at the golden radiant hammer, looking understandably displeased.

It could kill… it really could kill.

“How about… you guys send me back to the volcano mouth?” Tai Yinzi negotiated.

The Pillar Gods didn’t care, only discussing the appearance of the hammer.

Goddess Maat sighed, “The Place of Voidfall is indeed extremely dangerous, traps are unaccountable, I feel when the hammer came down, it seems to cause mental alarm, a daze effect might occur, even a Divine Power Shield might not withstand.”

Solar Deity Ra had a grave expression, “This map already marks many newly appeared traps, but there are still omissions… thankfully, Goddess Maat suggested saving this person at the volcano mouth, otherwise…”

They were once deities of an ancient civilization—though there are not many Sub-worlds in a unified legend, at least they were gods above all beings, some traps are truly intolerable.

Purely disgusting.

Solar Deity Ra collected his thoughts, “Let’s continue on, we’re about to reach the location where I buried the mother tree… that place is impossible to escape from, if not for stumbling upon a key back then, it would likely remain untouched until now.”

So-called Void Artifacts are purely a matter of luck.

In this chaotic rule place, even if one’s divine role relates to destinies or luck-type gods, it’s useless, everyone’s starting line is the same, so-called luck here is calculated in a different way entirely.

Solar Deity Ra indeed had the notion of acquiring Void Artifacts here again, but didn’t hold much hope—they suffered greatly in Sub-world 002, if they could gain something from the Place of Voidfall, it would meet expectations.

Coming to the Place of Voidfall was a reluctant choice for additional resources, once some progress is made, Solar Deity Ra would still lead the Pillar Gods elsewhere, in the dimensional fissures, while some powerful life forms team up for adventures, lone travelers are also common, so a marketplace for mutual exchange exists in the Void.

As for returning to their Divine Nation to recuperate…what Divine Nation? Long gone, this divine lineage has been impoverished for quite some time.

Even as the Divine Lord, Solar Deity Ra himself can’t figure out why his branch has consistently remained poor. In fierce disputes or fights, his divinity bizarrely always drops off his body and then is picked up by enemies.

Thus the hundred threads of divinity used to buy the map weren’t willingly extracted by him; they fell off on their own… he would drop one, pick it back up, and swallow it again, sometimes saving a few as backup funds.

They were truly impoverished.

Very poor.

Poor.

…

Afterwards, Tai Yinzi stepped on a few more traps, but still survived, his resilient life force amazed even the impoverished Pillar Gods.

They could sense this afro-headed old man was truly weak, and while he may have some power, he fell well below the standard for traversing the dimensional fissures, not even matching new initiates—how did he get to the Place of Voidfall?

Luck?

Indeed, don’t say… although Tai Yinzi kept stepping on traps, he never faced any life-threatening dangers, it was always thrilling but safe.

Then, they reached their destination… a huge stone gate standing in the wilderness.

The wasteland spanned dozens of kilometers with a wide-open view, anyone could see this huge stone gate standing here, it couldn’t be hidden.

In front of the stone gate, there were many activity traces, but apart from the group of Pillar Gods, there was no one else present.

“This door cannot be opened by anyone besides the key in my hand.” Solar Deity Ra spoke proudly at the moment, “The discovery of the stone gate even alarmed a strong life form that existed since the New Era began; it cleared the area directly and studied here for a long time before ultimately abandoning it.”

Tai Yinzi thought that since the group had reached their destination, it might also mean a sliver of freedom for himself—but hearing these words, his face suddenly darkened.

Only the key could enter, meaning there were no markings inside the stone gate, rendering the map useless—he had to continue stepping on traps?

With map markings, he endured many hardships along the way, without a map… haha!

A moment later, as the stone gate opened, Tai Yinzi wore a cold smile as he directly walked into the stone gate… the Pillar Gods were slightly surprised.

“Even an old Taoist like me has dignity!”

Tai Yinzi silently thought to himself—he felt like he was about to kneel.

But just at that moment, a figure flashed by, barely pausing, and instantly snatched the rope tied around Tai Yinzi from the hands of the Pillar God holding it, then darted into the Stone Gate.

“Bad news!”

[Sun God Ra] was suddenly filled with alarm. He had been extremely cautious, but didn’t expect to be followed anyway… When did it start?

Was it after entering the [Place of the Voidfall], or somewhere along the way?

He had no time to consider these things; the traps in the [Place of the Voidfall] were bizarre and varied, and the powers of formidable beings walking in the dimensional crevices were just as varied. This was the result of countless different civilizations.

The important [Bloodline Mother Tree] must not be lost; it was [Sun God Ra]’s intended capital to replenish at the next Void market!

Otherwise, would he have to keep spilling divinity? How different is that from selling blood to support a family?

“Chase! You absolutely cannot let it succeed!” [Sun God Ra] exclaimed in anger.

I’m so poor—!

If the Divine Nation were still around, with hundreds or thousands of subordinate gods stationed here, who would dare act recklessly!

So poor.

…

After a flash of white light, Tai Yinzi only felt his body moving at high speed, then he stopped and stood atop a mountain peak.

The sky was azure, clouds and mist drifted in all directions, much resembling the [Main God Mountain] he had built, which almost made Tai Yinzi think he was dreaming back to the Main God Mountain, startling him with sudden clarity.

But soon, the feeling turned uneasy.

He saw a seductive woman smiling sweetly at him, from a human’s perspective, appearing about twenty-six or seven years old, not scantily dressed, but wearing a kimono with a somewhat deep neckline, revealing a bit of cleavage.

Tai Yinzi had no interest in the opposite sex, preferring to manipulate power, thus ceaselessly intending to become the Black Soul King of the shop.

Yet the smile of this kimono woman was all too familiar to Tai Yinzi!

Back when Yu Sanniang became the master’s accessory, this kind of smile often surfaced on her face, and then Tai Yinzi was kicked out of the mountain gate.

The shop’s Black-hearted Maid would occasionally show such a smile too, right before he was hung from the ceiling.

“Thank you, young lady, for your rescue.” Tai Yinzi steadied himself, despite being tied up, he strived to present an image of immortal elegance, “I’m truly grateful beyond measure.”

“Immortal?” The kimono woman chuckled and said, “Are you with those guys who claim to be immortal Taoists?”

Tai Yinzi shook his head, “I am new here, and haven’t met any fellow Taoists… Alas, I was framed by thieves and fell to this state. If not for your timely rescue, I would be trembling… For the life-saving grace, for the reconstructive grace, I have no way to repay, except to erect a longevity plaque for you and pray for you morning and night.”

“Huh, do you know why I saved you?” The kimono woman said, smiling.

“Please enlighten me, young lady,” Tai Yinzi bowed again.

The kimono woman then said, “I’ve been following those people outside, watching you repeatedly stepping into traps but escaping danger each time. It seems luck is on your side. Do you know who are the most welcome people in this [Place of the Voidfall]? Those like you, with good luck but weak strength, are the most welcome. I need you to explore the space beyond this gate for me.”

Huh, women, birds of a feather.

Tai Yinzi’s face instantly turned a bit grim… Lucky for him? If he were really lucky, would he suffer these crimes? God’s damn luck!

“That’s one aspect.” The kimono woman continued, “On the other hand, you were introduced by that heartless Musashi, so naturally, I’ll take good care of you… on this journey, if you don’t die, I’ll let you go after I collect enough treasure. If you die here, I’ll handle your burial. Rest assured, Musashi hurt me three thousand years ago, but I’m quite magnanimous and have forgotten it.”

So this kimono woman is with that burly man from the beginning?

Tai Yinzi’s eyes suddenly turned dark; just how many people has Master Musashi offended in this [Place of the Voidfall]?

At that moment, a thunderous sound rang out.

The kimono woman’s expression slightly changed, she lifted Tai Yinzi with one hand and dashed into the depths of the clouds and mist… Clearly, the Pillar Gods were already furiously pursuing.

“Stop!”

In the azure sky, a scorching sun suddenly emerged, instantly evaporating the clouds and mist among the mountains, revealing vast and wondrous peaks and landscapes.

The kimono woman was unafraid, she waved a fan, an ominous shadow rose to meet the sun, momentarily covering it!

The heat of the blazing sun in the sky suddenly surged, and broke through the shadow, but [Sun God Ra] had once again lost sight of the kimono woman… Furious, the mountains began to burn due to this deity’s anger.

Yet at that moment, a terrifying red light shot down from high above, instantly penetrating the sun!

[Sun God Ra] was suddenly taken aback, looking up to see a massive black shadow drifting gracefully overhead… surprisingly, it was a floating island spanning ten kilometers in length.

“Bad news!”

[Sun God Ra] exclaimed in alarm, swiftly ordering the Pillar Gods following him, “Follow me!”

After speaking, [Sun God Ra] led the Pillar Gods into the mountain range.

The giant floating island in the sky drifted away… quietly flying off.

…

Deep within the mountain range, [Sun God Ra] concealed his aura, hiding with his daughter and the Pillar Gods inside an ancient tree’s hollow, still shaken.

“Father God, about that red light earlier…” Goddess [Maat] hesitated to finish, it was her first time witnessing her mighty Father God in such a panic.

“On that floating island, resides the guardian of this secret place.” [Sun God Ra] explained, taking a deep breath, “The floating island itself is a terrifying weapon… its power, you’ve already witnessed.”

How could it be unseen?

One strike to directly penetrate Father God’s sun!

“In this place… there are such fearsome guardians?”

[Sun God Ra] nodded, “Those guardians seem to be some kind of peculiar lifeform, possessing regenerative abilities, and their power is indeed immense, not to mention their vast numbers scattered throughout this secret place. Encountering one is not enough to fear, but their sheer numbers are daunting. We should tread even more cautiously on this journey.”

[Royal Garden]…

Goddess [Maat] couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

She hadn’t been in the dimensional crevices long and arrived at this [Place of the Voidfall], already facing various perils—in this place, she suddenly realized, even as deities, they are but slightly stronger than humans.

She suddenly yearned to return to the City of the Sun, away to fool the masses.

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PS: As usual.