Myriad Realms Gatekeeper

Yunshan Port.

In front of the fountain at the center of the city square.

A beautiful young girl was admiring the stone sculpture in the pool.

A mature and handsome middle-aged man followed behind her, similar to a bodyguard, yet with more charm than any protector.

"This is a sculpture from over three hundred years ago. It is said that the Spring Water Goddess once descended to the world and left behind her true likeness."

The middle-aged man took on the role of a tour guide.

He bowed his back in a show of humility, yet he still appeared elegant and graceful.

This kind of posture only served to emphasize that the girl's identity was extraordinary.

"Artists of that era created many stone sculptures and oil paintings to record the various miracles of the goddess."

"What you see now is an episode where the goddess, holding a water jug during a great drought, released an entire river, reviving a kingdom."

The girl nodded slightly, her gaze locked onto the statue, reflecting a thoughtful look in her eyes.

Suddenly.

All around, pigeons took flight, scattering away from the fountain.

The girl had already noticed something.

She turned her head to look at the little girl who was running towards her.

"What's the matter?"

The girl asked.

"Big sister, you're so pretty," the little girl said sweetly, "I have a flower here, and I want to give it to you."

The girl glanced at the gorgeous rose, then observed the little girl, and said indifferently:

"So, what do you want from me in return?"

"I don't need anything, I just want to give it to you, sister." The little girl held up the stem, trying to hand her the flower.

But the girl did not take the flower.

After a moment of contemplation, she looked toward the sacred statue of the goddess in the fountain.

"Child, I want to ask you a question—"

"Do you think that the sacred statue of the goddess is beautiful, or am I more beautiful?"

The little girl looked at the statue, then back at the girl.

"Of course, you are more beautiful!"

She spoke with certainty.

Only then did the girl smile, turning to the man behind her:

"The most basic chip of a divine being is attraction—"

"All laws manifest in me are designed to make all beings bow in worship, containing a primordial beauty incomprehensible to ordinary people."

"This child has done well. That silent monster disguised as the Spring Water Goddess can only deceive dirty adults; it's useless against such an innocent child. She sees my beauty."

The man smiled and nodded, softly saying, "Praising a divine spirit is what she ought to do."

"No, in this world, there is nothing that others should do for you. Most mortals don't see this, and so they can never find peace."

The girl reached out her hand and took the rose from the little girl, bringing it to her nose for a delicate sniff.

"Thank you for the flower."

She held the flower with one hand, and with the other, she gently touched the little girl's head, saying softly:

"As a return gift, I curse you."

The little girl was stunned.

But the girl continued:

"You will experience a terror that ordinary people can't withstand. You'll fall from thousands of meters in the sky and then be drowned by the sea, feeling the agony of near death. You'll starve on a deserted island, be rescued by someone with ill-intentions, only for the ship to sink, and still, you will not be able to die."

"You can only endure the pain brought by these memories, grow older within this pain, bound by life, aging, sickness, and death, ruled by love and hatred, tossed about by the uncertainties of life. Those mortals who trouble you will find their end as if seeking death themselves, until the day you turn ninety-nine.

As you bask in the winter sun, feeling a false sense of peace from ignorance and stupidity, your soul may begin to break free from my curse."

"If you still remember me at that moment, I will come for you."

"If you have forgotten, then in this vast world, you are free—"

"You may go wherever you wish."

The little girl listened, somewhat comprehending, somewhat not.

As soon as the girl finished speaking, she ran off due to an inexplicable panic.

The girl did not look back; she simply walked slowly to the front of the fountain as if nothing had just happened.

She tore off the petals of the rose and began tossing them into the water one by one.

The rose petals floated and sank in the water.

Ultimately.

All the petals had sunk to the bottom.

The girl did not turn around but simply watched the bottom of the water, giggling to herself:

"Hehe... There are three hundred thousand souls on this Floating Island, truly a feast."

"Are you going to start your meal? May I serve you?" The man asked respectfully.

"No—"

The girl uttered a word and continued:

"When the symphony begins, I will leave, and you can't stay long either."

"As you command." The man said in a low voice.

"The altar of three hundred thousand souls is ready. I'll take a portion, leaving a divine power clone to fight in this body for a while. You should take this opportunity to absorb the rest of the soul power." The girl further explained.

"I will obey the divine will." The man knelt on the ground.

"The defenses of the Three Great High Schools are indeed strict; do not come looking for me for the time being unless you hear my call." The girl said.

"You—" The man bowed deeply, not daring to ask further.

The girl, however, spoke softly:

"The Three Great High Schools are indeed remarkable; they are the only recognized links to the Dharma Realm by the Dharma Realm."

"They connect the Dharma Realm of this world with reality, possessing channels approved by the Dharma Realm, which is why I must first conquer your Dharma Realm, and then utterly possess all the souls of this world!"

"You will stay here, absorbing and digesting the power of souls and flesh, preparing for my gamble."

"He is just a human; seven days are not enough, even if he enters the Dharma Aspect, his Strength will be limited. But you, with a hundred thousand souls for sacrifice, cannot be compared to him; take him down for me."

"Yes." The Skinner replied excitedly.

——Seven days, enough for me to fully absorb the power of a hundred thousand souls!

What can that kid use to fight me?

Zhao Yibing continued, "If you lose, I will torture your soul mercilessly."

"But if you win him for me—I will surely reward you well, something you have longed for in your dreams."

"Your subordinate understands! Your subordinate will definitely go all out to run errands for you and walk your path upon the earth," the man responded with unparalleled fervor.

The girl said nothing more, her body emitting wave after wave of invisible ripples.

After waiting for the ripples to disperse, the girl became completely still.

The man waited a few more breaths before taking out his mobile phone and rapidly tapping away, seemingly operating something.

"Kunlun? I knew you'd discovered my tracks, but it's too late—"

"This time I've brought some really powerful toys."

The man said proudly.

A virtual red button appeared on the phone screen.

The man raised his hand high and pressed the red button with a sense of ceremony.

A fierce flash soared into the clouds.

Not just one flash—

Over Yunshan Port, one flash after another arose, followed by earth-shattering explosion sounds.

The entire Floating Island shook violently.

The situation lasted only a few seconds.

Immediately after.

Even more violent flashes appeared.

They tore apart the entire island.

A scream rose, quickly drowned out by the successive explosions.

—That little girl who delivered flowers.

She was blown into the air by the strong wind—

Suddenly, a piece of sunshade fabric spiraled down onto her, neither too early nor too late, wrapping around her in a coincidence that formed a shape akin to a glider.

The little girl instantly flew far away, leaving the continually exploding Floating Island far behind.

The continual explosions didn't disturb the girl.

She still stood in front of the fountain, letting streaks of white light surge up and fall upon her.

Gradually.

Apart from the light from the explosions, human-shaped dark shadows began to fly in, entering her back.

Surrounding her, dim light formed into ring after ring, interlocking with each other to create an illusory altar of light.

Within this altar of dark light, the girl stood motionless.

A dense crowd of human shapes was forcibly gathered, their faces filled with terror, despair, pain, and hysteria.

The girl seemed like a human-shaped black hole.

These figures had no time to do anything before being sucked into her body.

The girl lowered her head, looking somewhat shy, yet as if pondering something.

In the sky, several figures flashed down and landed in the square.

"Catastrophe... you actually dare to destroy this place," an old man said with a defensive look.

"I am the Master of the Weeping Demon Prison, now I emerge in this corpse, to bear the sins and suffering for all of you," Zhao Yibing said gently.

"There are three hundred thousand people here! Stop now, don't destroy anymore!" a Female Professional pleaded loudly.

Zhao Yibing looked at the woman and responded with a pleasant smile, "All that is here is caused by humans, the action is taken by humans, and even this corpse I inhabit comes from the desires and conspiracies of your kind."

"Humans, instead of asking me to stop, you'd better reflect upon yourselves and ask why you created such sins."

The people looked at each other.

A strong sense of ominous premonition welled up in their hearts.

It's rare to encounter a Catastrophe that reasons, and the other party might even be a deity from the Otherworld.

How are we to fight this!

But—

There is no escape.

If we flee, wouldn't that leave the hundreds of thousands in Yunshan Port to be completely devoured by it?

"Go," the old man commanded in a low voice.

The Professionals immediately prepared to act.

Then they witnessed an unforgettable scene—

The scenery around the girl transformed rapidly.

First came fire.

Then came the dark metal city walls.

The walls stood towering in the sky like lofty mountains.

Unknown giant beasts lay coiled on the walls, their bodies emitting intense flames.

Before they could launch their attack—

Flames engulfed the entire Yunshan Port in a flash.

More cries of despair, screams, and moans filled the entire sky.

Kunlun's electronic voice echoed around:

"Warning! An S-level 'Anomaly' has descended!"

"Defeat the opponent immediately, or everyone will die!"

The crowd was terrified.

The Professionals rushed forward, but they were entangled by the unknown flame beasts.

In the midst of this chaos, the girl's gaze pierced through the space, looking into the distance.

She spoke leisurely:

"Humans, you always make choices based on pleasure, and only after paying the price do you remember that you are rational souls."

"This will never change."

She finally revealed a wicked smile:

"Come—"

"Just chant my name, and I shall be the Spring Water Goddess, capable of extinguishing the flames of desire within you."

"Beg me earnestly to escape from your suffering."

"Your fear allows you to be harvested, and I will give you the fall into a painless eternity."

...