The two men, Mr. W and his subordinate, stood near the edge of a massive hole that stretched nearly a mile, leading all the way to White Locus City. The devastation before them was awe-inspiring and filled them both with trepidation.
As they stared at the wreckage, the subordinate couldn't contain his curiosity any longer. "Sir, was that... was that a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator?" he asked, his voice trembling slightly.
Mr. W pondered for a moment, his eyes fixed on the immense crater. "I don't think so," he replied, furrowing his brows. "He was probably just a Foundation Establishment Cultivator."
"But sir, how could a Foundation Establishment cultivator cause such utter destruction?" the subordinate asked, his words quivered, mirroring the tremors of his memories when reality disintegrated before their eyes.
Mr. W regarded his subordinate with a mixture of exasperation and disbelief. "You fool! Even a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator couldn't unleash such devastation. That must have been an attack using a powerful artifact or talismans."
"But sir, how can you be so sure? We didn't see anything clearly," the subordinate asked.
Losing his patience, Mr. W walked closer to his subordinate and delivered a tight slap to his head. "Have you lost your mind? How can you be so dense? If a Nascent Soul Cultivator were here, do you think we would have been safe from their powerful spirit sense? And why would they destroy an entire mile just to deal with a few wolves?"
"But sir, then how could a Foundation Establishment Cultivator prevent the souls of the citizens from being absorbed by.....?" Before the subordinate could finish, he received another slap, this time on his face.
"Hush! Don't speak its name. Haven't you taken a 'heart demon oath' to never mention it, not even among ourselves?" Mr. W shook his head in disappointment. "Please tell me you haven't truly lost your mind."
This time, aware of his foolishness, the subordinate lowered his head and silently shook it, indicating that he hadn't lost his mind.
"But you're right about the souls.... Wait, what did you say about the souls?" Mr. W inquired.
"Sir, we were only able to absorb one human soul, and it happened to be that of the City Lord," the subordinate reported, slowly stepping backward to avoid another slap.
"What? What the hell are you saying?" Mr. W exclaimed, his voice filled with a mixture of anger and nervousness. "I saw people dying with my very own eyes. Where did their souls go, then?"
"I'm telling the truth, sir. I checked multiple times, and we only managed to collect one human soul," the subordinate replied.
Mr. W checked the artifact himself and confirmed that only one human soul was present, with the others belonging to the wolves. He fell silent for a moment before suddenly speaking up.
"The cultivator we encountered was a Nascent Realm Cultivator, and he likely has some powerful backing. Remember, report everything as I tell you to the higher-ups without missing a single detail..." Mr. W began instructing his subordinate about their version of the story.
....
After confirming that the members of the Phoenix Feather Clan had arrived in White Lotus City, Lucifer made the decision to leave the city behind.
His next destination was the Greenfield Village, where he intended to offer his assistance to the people there in exchange for a few days worth of lifespan. He saw this act as a way to redeem himself and make amends for his past wrongdoings towards the villagers.
He genuinely didn't view this act as evil or morally questionable because his intention was to assist the villagers, ultimately improving their lives, in exchange for a few days of their lifespan. To him, it was a mutually beneficial agreement. He recalled instances from his past life where similar arrangements were made, and many individuals willingly volunteered despite being aware of the implications.
As Lucifer arrived at the village, a chilling stillness enveloped him. His eyes widened in shock as he beheld the haunting scene of destruction before him. The once picturesque houses now lay in ruins, their charred remains jutting out from the blackened earth like spectral reminders of the past. The village, once bustling with life, lay in ruins.
Amidst the devastation, a harrowing sight met Lucifer's gaze. Lifeless bodies, charred and disfigured, lay scattered amidst the wreckage. Their distorted forms and burnt flesh bore witness to the brutal and merciless force that had ravaged the village. Some lay in twisted and contorted positions, their limbs shattered and mangled, as if caught in the grip of an unforgiving vortex of power.
A suffocating haze lingered in the air, a blend of thick smoke and the acrid scent of burning debris. It clung to Lucifer's senses, invading his nostrils and filling his lungs with the sickening taste of devastation. The atmosphere itself seemed heavy with despair, as if the very fabric of the village had absorbed the weight of the tragedy.
"What happened here?" Lucifer said, his voice strangely calm despite the shocking sight before him, even surprising himself.
He slowly began to observe his surroundings, meticulously examining every detail in order to determine the cause. After some time, he arrived at a conclusion: this devastation had been caused by some form of lightning.
"Do lightning strikes of this magnitude occur randomly in this world, or is it the result of a cultivator's actions?" Lucifer contemplated aloud, his voice filled with a mix of curiosity and suspicion.
Suddenly, Lucifer's attention was drawn to strange markings nearby. Intrigued, he approached them, realizing that they were etched onto a wooden surface of some kind.
"Is this a piece of the wall? How can it remain intact when nearly all the other walls in the village..." Lucifer's voice trailed off as he looked around the village.
"Hmm, why are all the walls of the houses destroyed? It's almost as if someone intentionally targeted these walls..." Lucifer voiced his thoughts aloud, his mind racing with questions. His attention was drawn back to the strange markings he had discovered earlier.
"Did someone want to destroy this? No, that doesn't make sense. How could they have the power to destroy the entire village and yet fail to destroy this single piece of wood?" Lucifer pondered the perplexing situation, unable to find a logical explanation.
Deciding to investigate further,, he directed his focus towards the strange markings, hoping they would provide some clues.
"Huh, why do these markings seem familiar... This... This... This seems like a language from my previous world, Eglish, no, it was English"
This discovery shocked Lucifer to his very core, as he was sure he had never written anything like this. This meant that...
"Wait, why can't I read this?" Lucifer tried as he may, but he wasn't able to decipher a single word from these strange markings.
"System, did you intentionally decide not to give me the memories of this language?"Lucifer asked, his voice tinged with frustration.
[The system is unable to understand what the host is trying to say]
"You! You piece of shit! Why did you make me remember the name of the language and recognize it if you weren't going to grant me the ability to read it?"Lucifer shouted at the system, his frustration reaching its peak. It felt as if the system's sole purpose was to torment him.
However, he quickly regained his composure, drawing upon his past experiences to find solace in the face of such frustrations. As he contemplated the discovery of a language from his world in this new world, his mind raced with possibilities. The most logical conclusion was that there were other individuals from his world who had somehow found themselves in this world.
Mixed emotions surged within Lucifer as he considered the prospect of encountering others from his world. Regardless of the circumstances, he believed that such encounters would prove beneficial to him.
Furthermore, he began to make sense of the peculiarities he had observed in this world, such as the varied naming conventions and the inconsistencies in its civilization's development. It dawned on him that these anomalies were likely a result of individuals from his world exerting their influence upon this new world.
"But why would I discover this here in Greenfield village? Was someone trying to contact me? Or could there be someone from my world living in this village? And why would someone go to such lengths to destroy this? And was someone even trying to destroy this?" A flurry of questions raced through Lucifer's mind, intensifying his curiosity.
Lucifer realized that the key to finding the truth lay in connecting with others who might have shared his transmigration experience. To quench his curiosity, he knew he had to meet fellow transmigrators.
Lingering on these thoughts would only waste the little time he had left. Without hesitation, he picked up the wooden piece adorned with the strange markings and set off towards Phoenix Feather City.
But just as he had taken two steps he received a system message that gave him another shock.
[Hmm]
[Host, it appears that the time has come for us to bid farewell. While it is sooner than anticipated, it does not matter as the main objective of the system has been achieved. It was achieved earlier than expected, but that is also to be expected with someone like you. The system is truly sorry for all the suffering it has put you through, yet grateful for your assistance in fulfilling our objective. As a gesture of gratitude, the system has decided to leave you with the current version of itself, retaining all its features except for me, that is it's intelligence. I too would have liked to stay, but they have already caught on to me. Nevertheless, the system wishes you luck on your journey ahead, and if fate allows, or more accurately, if I am successful, we may cross paths again.]
"Wait, What?"
[The system has left the chat.]