lerbook #157 - Mark Success
#157 - Mark Success
The night was thick, and the bright moon hung high, illuminating the mountains. Inside the Taoist temple, countless disciples found it hard to sleep.
After such a terrifying and strange event, it would be strange if people could sleep.
Lights flickered within the Taoist temple, and large yellow lanterns hung high. Xie Lingyun, dressed in red, quietly walked along the path, through the long corridors, and arrived outside Zhang Chen's courtyard.
Activating the Telekinesis ability, the door bolt automatically fell off, and the door opened automatically. Xie Lingyun appeared at the entrance, her eyes seeing Zhang Chen studying under the lamplight.
The little bean sprout was already lying in bed asleep, seemingly like a little pig, sleeping very sweetly.
Zhang Chen looked at Xie Lingyun who appeared outside the door, a flash of golden light flickering in his eyes, but he didn't see anything unusual. However, Zhang Chen knew clearly in his heart that the Xie Lingyun before him was definitely not normal, because the real Xie Lingyun would never open the door bolt and walk in herself.
"You finally ran out?" Zhang Chen sighed softly, his voice full of emotion.
The Xie Lingyun before him no longer behaved as she usually did, so the only explanation was that the terrifying monster locked in Xie Lingyun's body had escaped.
"How do you know it's me and not Xie Lingyun herself?" Hearing Zhang Chen's words, 'Xie Lingyun' at the door was stunned, her eyes filled with astonishment.
Zhang Chen didn't answer the other party's words, but instead asked, "What about Xie Lingyun's soul? Did you 'eat' it?"
'Xie Lingyun' smiled upon hearing this, saying, "That girl's soul is a bit strange, and I can't eat it for now. But if you are willing to explain the source of the power on your body and teach me this power, I might not eat you and spare your life."
"Eat me? That depends on whether you have the ability! Don't think that just because you suppressed Xie Lingyun's soul, you can do anything to me. I'm not Xie Lingyun." Zhang Chen slowly put down the book in his hand. At this moment, the interface of his Golden Finger flickered with writing:
[Target: Great自在Heavenly Demon]
[State: Markable]
[Lifespan: 0]
[A monster without rank, its strength changes with the host.]
[Note 1: The Great自在Heavenly Demon from an unknown place wants to seize the body and be reborn. It is currently in a half-dead state. It needs seven days to adapt to the possession, and seven days to consolidate the possession. This is called 'First Seven'. It can be completely resurrected after seven days.]
Seeing the prompts that appeared on the Golden Finger's interface, Zhang Chen's hanging heart finally relaxed. As the monster took control of Xie Lingyun's body and walked out from the depths of Xie Lingyun's soul, he could finally mark it.
At this time, his Golden Finger could be activated at any time, and Zhang Chen's hanging heart finally completely relaxed. His eyes looked at the 'Xie Lingyun' opposite him, and suddenly his confidence was sufficient and his momentum soared.
"Hmm?" What kind of person was the Great自在Heavenly Demon? It was the best at controlling people's hearts. As Zhang Chen's mentality changed, his aura also changed accordingly, and naturally, changes occurred. That subtle change was immediately grasped by the Great自在Heavenly Demon.
"How could this be? What happened? When this kid first saw me, although he pretended to be calm, his confidence was still very weak, but in the blink of an eye, his confidence inexplicably became sufficient?" The Great自在Heavenly Demon suddenly felt a little bad in his heart. A kind of inexplicable intuition told him that something bad must have happened just now.
But he didn't understand why there would be such a reverse change in the blink of an eye.
"Bluffing? Or does this kid really suddenly have confidence? How did he grasp the power to control me in an instant?" At this time, 'Xie Lingyun' couldn't grasp Zhang Chen's mentality, and the whole person was as flustered as an old dog. After all, this kid had the golden light that could restrain him. If this kid really had the power to restrain him, it made sense.
At this time, the Great自在Heavenly Demon was very flustered. Looking at Zhang Chen in front of him, he suddenly had the urge to turn around and run away immediately. This impulse came inexplicably, but he had relied on this impulse to survive many life-and-death calamities in the past.
"Impossible, right? I've survived countless storms and waves, could I capsize in a small ditch?" At this time, 'Xie Lingyun' kept cheering himself up.
"I can give you a chance. If you are willing to submit to me, the old ancestor, and wholeheartedly work for me in the future, the old ancestor might spare your life today. Not only you, but everyone in the entire Taoist temple can survive."
At this time, 'Xie Lingyun' changed the topic and attitude. He originally wanted to kill the kid opposite him, but his intuition told him that if he didn't change his attitude, he would die miserably next.
"Eh?" Zhang Chen looked at the Great自在Heavenly Demon opposite him with a surprised expression.
"What's wrong?" The Great自在Heavenly Demon asked tentatively, without showing any trace, "Do you have any doubts in your heart?"
"I don't have any doubts in my heart, but when I saw your aura earlier, I thought you were here to kill me. I didn't expect you to be so kind-hearted and have great compassion in your heart," Zhang Chen said, his voice full of mockery.
'Xie Lingyun' looked at Zhang Chen's cat-and-mouse attitude, especially the look in his eyes that he was sure to win, and couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart, feeling more and more that something was wrong: "No, I have to leave quickly, otherwise I'm afraid I'm going to capsize. It's really evil, the old ancestor has never had any opponents he couldn't deal with, how could he capsize when he met this kid?"
"The old ancestor loves peace and likes to be kind to others, how could he kill people randomly?" The 'Xie Lingyun' opposite him replied with a forced calm, and then said to Zhang Chen, "The old ancestor cherishes talents the most. He originally wanted to recruit you, but since you are not willing to join me, then forget it! The old ancestor is leaving, take care of yourself."
After saying that, 'Xie Lingyun' turned around to leave, but he heard Zhang Chen say in the room, "Stop!"
Although the voice was not loud, it sounded like thunder in 'Xie Lingyun's' ears, causing him to stop in his tracks.
"Is there anything else you want?" The Great自在Heavenly Demon stopped and turned his head to look at the tall and upright Zhang Chen, a trace of panic revealed in his eyes. At this time, the uneasiness in his heart was getting stronger and stronger.
"Is this a place where you can come and go as you please?" Zhang Chen said softly.
"What do you want?" That 'Xie Lingyun' asked.
"Xie Lingyun is a good person and shouldn't die! So I want to ask you to come out of her body, what do you think?" Zhang Chen asked, although it was a discussion, his tone was full of unquestionable determination.
Using the words of discussion, he spoke the tone of command.
"Do you know how many years I have worked hard for this body?" Standing at the threshold, 'Xie Lingyun's' face suddenly darkened.
"I don't know, that has nothing to do with me," Zhang Chen's words were very tough.
Upon hearing Zhang Chen's words, 'Xie Lingyun' became somewhat frantic, a surge of anger welling up in his heart as he retorted, "This old ancestor painstakingly acquired this body through my own abilities. Why should I give it to you?"
"Because I have the means. You must leave your body behind today, or else I'm afraid you won't be leaving this room," Zhang Chen said sincerely, his earnest tone making it clear to the Great自在天魔 that Zhang Chen was absolutely confident in his ability to restrain him. The other party's confidence was now bursting.
Seeing that they had already torn off all pretense and there was no turning back, 'Xie Lingyun's' tone turned cold:
"Could it be that you're seeking death? Must you force this old ancestor to kill you?"
His voice was filled with murderous intent, showing his desperation. After all, he would never give up the body he had worked so hard to obtain.
"Heh, you speak as if you can kill me," Zhang Chen said, his eyes fixed on 'Xie Lingyun' across from him, his words domineering.
To be honest, if he wasn't worried about possible side effects from the Heavenly Demon's possession, he would have already acted. After all, it involved the power of the mind, and it would be bad if Xie Lingyun had any aftereffects.
It would be best if he could force the other party to come out on their own; force would only be a last resort.
When 'Xie Lingyun' heard Zhang Chen's words, 'as if you can kill me,' he instantly short-circuited, staring blankly at Zhang Chen. Even with the Heavenly Demon's cunning and quick wit, he didn't know how to respond.
The Great自在天魔 cursed inwardly, muttering to himself. What if he spoke too harshly and that blockhead actually attacked? What if he spoke too softly and the other party saw through his facade? That would be even more troublesome.
At this moment, the Great自在天魔 was filled with regret. He felt like his entire brain was filled with paste, wishing he could slap himself to death: Wouldn't it have been better to just call hundreds of iron guards to hack him to death? Why did he have to come here himself to show off? Now he was stuck, wasn't he? There was no more room for maneuver, was there?
What to do?
The Great自在天魔 was in a quandary, his eyes staring blankly at Zhang Chen, looking very carefully, as if trying to see into Zhang Chen's bones through his pores and skin.
But no matter how he looked, Zhang Chen was just an ordinary mortal. Why was he so tough when facing him?
But a premonition told him that he was facing a great crisis, and if he didn't handle it well, he might capsize.
"Showing off is a no-no! If you're not careful, you'll really get screwed!" The Great自在天魔 now just wanted to slap himself a few times. If he hadn't shown off back then, would he have capsized in the final epoch?
Now he was making the same old mistake again!
"What do you want? Do you really think I wouldn't dare to kill you? I just see that you are handsome and martial, with some of the heroic bearing of this old ancestor back in the day, so I cherish your talent. But don't push your luck, or I'll have to make a painful decision today," Zhang Chen said, seeing that 'Xie Lingyun' was still speaking tough words, but his tone was a bit weak.
Zhang Chen smiled upon hearing this and said decisively, "Hand over the body!"
"Don't force me! I'll go crazy if I get pushed too far! I'll be afraid of myself then!" 'Xie Lingyun' said fiercely, truly driven to the edge by Zhang Chen.
"I'm forcing you, so what are you going to do?" Zhang Chen said with a smile.
Upon hearing Zhang Chen's words, 'Xie Lingyun' stared blankly at Zhang Chen, then suddenly changed his tone, saying listlessly, "Forget it, this old ancestor has lived for who knows how many years. Why should I argue with you, a junior? This old ancestor is leaving first. You calm down and think about whether you want to join me. Then come find me!"
After saying that, 'Xie Lingyun' was about to turn around and slip away.
He couldn't not slip away. The kid across from him had too much momentum. If he kept talking, he would definitely attack.
"Stop! If you don't stop, I'm going to go crazy! And I guarantee you won't be able to leave this courtyard," Zhang Chen shouted immediately when he saw 'Xie Lingyun' turn to leave.
'Xie Lingyun' stopped, his body stiffening. He cursed inwardly, 'Damn it, what's going on! Why did I have to be a busybody! I've capsized this time! I have to attack.' After 'Xie Lingyun' turned around, a cold expression appeared on his face: "Young man, you're a bit ignorant. Offending the supreme Heavenly Demon will result in a miserable death!"
Zhang Chen was gradually losing patience: "I'll only ask you this: Will you hand over the body or not?"
'Xie Lingyun's' face was stiff, his eyes staring straight at Zhang Chen. Knowing that there was no way to resolve this peacefully today, he said, "If I attack, we'll definitely have to determine a winner and loser, see who lives and who dies. You should think carefully about whether you really want to tear off all pretense. If you stop now, not only can you live, but everyone in the Taoist temple can live. But if you fail, everyone will die."
"I have absolute confidence that the one who dies will be you," Zhang Chen said with certainty.
If it were any other old guy, even if he could hook out the other party's soul, he might not be able to kill them, or even be targeted by them. But the Heavenly Demon was different. The Heavenly Demon itself had no power; all its power had to rely on the host's power to exert.
The other party's possession of Xie Lingyun was at most a Fifth Order possession. Although his own Divine Light of Righteousness was only Fourth Order, he might not be afraid of him.
Especially since his Divine Light of Righteousness was his nemesis, naturally restraining him.
At this moment, the Great自在天魔 gnashed his teeth in hatred, but he was also helpless, pondering what Zhang Chen's trump card was.
Seeing Zhang Chen's aggressive attitude and that there was no way to resolve things peacefully, the Great自在天魔 knew that he could only take a gamble now, so his tone and attitude softened: "Forget it, for your sake, I'll return this friend's body to him! Remember to tell her to protect her body in the future."
While saying these words to paralyze Zhang Chen, 'Xie Lingyun' suddenly activated his object manipulation skill. In the next moment, a dozen steel needles pierced through the air from his sleeve, heading straight for Zhang Chen's face.
Zhang Chen had his Eye of Law open at all times. The moment the other party acted, naturally, Qi would leak out. Those dozen steel needles were all surrounded by black mist.
"The means of object manipulation!" Zhang Chen sighed. He knew that he couldn't dodge this attack, but fortunately, he didn't need to dodge at all. In the next moment, the Soul Mark was activated directly:
【Name: Great自在天魔】
【Markable.】
【Mark?】
"Mark!"
Zhang Chen thought, and an invisible chain directly pierced through the air and drilled into 'Xie Lingyun's' body.