Chapter 60: Lingering Doubts in the Mind, The Reward of the First Check-in

Zhu Jinzhen swept his gaze across the surroundings: Jiayuguan Pass, the grasslands beyond the pass, the boundless desert, neighboring states such as Song, Liao, Northern Yuan, and Western Xia. Nothing out of the ordinary could be seen wherever his eyes passed.

Yet, this absence of anomalies was the greatest anomaly of all at this moment.

For the divine dragon could not have suddenly perished for no reason.

"Who attacked the divine dragon?"

"And what is this 'Heaven'?"

"Wangqing, keep a close watch on the Dragon Balls."

"Understood!"

Zhu Jinzhen soared nine hundred zhang straight up into the sky, gazing far into the distance and overlooking the vastness of the mortal world, trying to find the true culprit behind the divine dragon's sudden demise. Yet no matter how hard he searched, he found nothing.

He was a terrestrial celestial, the pinnacle of mortal strength.

Logically speaking, as long as one remained within the mortal realm, it should have been impossible for any existence to evade his senses.

Coupled with his sword technique "Immortal Kneeling," a rule-based sword art, even if there were beings far stronger than him moving in the shadows—such as deities and demons who had survived from the ancient era—he should have been able to perceive a trace of them.

Yet, he had gained nothing at all.

He neither detected the enemy's tracks, nor did the hidden enemy make a move against him.

"No, I must have overlooked something."

Zhu Jinzhen forced himself to calm down. Countless profound mysteries of the sword path flowed through his mind, smoothing away his fleeting panic and anger as he began to recall the events just before and after the divine dragon's violent death.

"The dragon's death must be related to that wish I made."

"But that shouldn't be the case!"

Confusion appeared on Zhu Jinzhen's face. The divine dragon could make him the emperor of the Great Ming, and the emperor of all nations across the world; that final wish, to become the sole emperor of all under heaven, should have been within the dragon's power to grant as well.

It was only during the process of fulfillment that something had gone awry.

"Could it be that this world does not permit the existence of a sole emperor?" A whimsical and absurd conjecture popped into Zhu Jinzhen's mind, though he immediately shook his head, dismissing it as absurd.

Whether it was the First Emperor of Qin or the twenty-seven emperors of the Han, they had all been emperors of a unified realm.

Moreover, if there were simply a problem with the wish to be the sole emperor, the divine dragon would not have specifically warned him right before its explosion: 'Beware, Heaven…'

"Wait, I've got it."

Zhu Jinzhen suddenly realized.

Though he could not detect the true culprit behind the dragon's explosion, there was still another way to find out what had happened.

The next moment, Zhu Jinzhen descended from the sky and landed before the seven Dragon Balls.

With a wave of his hand, he stored the Dragon Balls into the system space and chose to view their information.

[The Seven Dragon Balls: Miraculous objects originating from the Earth of the Dragon Ball universe. Gather the seven Dragon Balls and chant the incantation to summon the divine dragon, which will grant the wisher any wish whatsoever. Having been affected by irresistible universal laws during the process of granting the wish, it has fallen into a state of dormancy and must wait one year before it can be summoned again.]

"Irresistible force? Universal laws?"

Zhu Jinzhen's expression shifted through a myriad of emotions, a mixture of relief and concern. What relieved him was that although the divine dragon had blown up, the wish had simply been voided; it could be summoned again after a year, meaning it wasn't completely dead.

What concerned him was why that wish involving the divine dragon had triggered the influence of universal laws.

Or rather, was it a backlash?

Now, before Zhu Jinzhen lay a single solved puzzle that only gave rise to even more mysteries.

Furthermore, what on earth did the "Heaven" that the divine dragon had warned him to be wary of represent?

The laws of heaven and earth?

Or some specific living entity?

"Wait, Heaven??"

Zhu Jinzhen's eyelid suddenly twitched. An image surfaced in his mind of an existence from a certain domestic animated series who styled himself as "Heaven," and he couldn't help but swallow hard. "No, surely not? This world is already chaotic enough; if even Black Dragon Tian were to leap out, how is anyone supposed to play this game?"

He shook his head, casting this terrifying conjecture to the back of his mind.

After all, the stories that took place during the Shang Dynasty were already a distant antiquity to a world that had experienced the Spring and Autumn, Warring States, and the rise and fall of Qin and Han. Many tales and records had long been buried in the long river of history.

Even if one wished to trace them, there was no guarantee they could be found.

Yet, the seed of doubt had nonetheless been planted in Zhu Jinzhen's heart.

"Your Highness..."

Changsun Wangqing, Cao Xueyang, and the others approached with worried expressions.

Zhu Jinzhen took a deep breath, waved his hand, and said, "It's fine. That wish simply exceeded the divine dragon's limits; there are no enemies. Dismiss everyone."

Seeing that their Highness was reticent and shrouded in secrecy, Changsun Wangqing and the others felt a chill in their hearts and sensibly refrained from asking further.

...

The Tiance Mansion quickly lifted its state of alert.

The appearance of the divine dragon tonight was no secret to the people of Jiayuguan Pass, nor even to the various nations beyond the pass.

For a long time to come, martial arts experts and scouts from all factions across the world would likely pour in endlessly. Changsun Wangqing, Li Chengen, and the others clearly understood this and had already begun deploying countermeasures ahead of time through the night.

As for Zhu Jinzhen, he returned to his room alone.

After drinking a pot of tea continuously without being able to suppress the restless agitation in his heart, Zhu Jinzhen suddenly remembered that after the system's upgrade, the sign-in function had been restored, and his heart eased somewhat.

Although he still didn't understand what rules the divine dragon had touched to trigger the backlash,

nor what the dragon's warning was truly referring to,

none of that mattered.

He, Zhu Jinzhen, had a cheat system!

"System, sign in."

Ding—

[Host has successfully signed in.]

[Congratulations to the host for obtaining the sign-in reward: twenty portions of Teyvat Fried Eggs.]

"Pfft~!"

Zhu Jinzhen spat out a mouthful of tea, its lingering fragrance still on his lips. Without even bothering to wipe his face, he hurriedly checked the information regarding this sign-in reward.

[Teyvat Fried Eggs: A revival item originating from a certain gacha game world. Possessing this item allows the user to select a character who has been dead for no more than twenty-four hours, resurrecting them and restoring a small amount of health (status). Carrying Teyvat Fried Eggs allows for automatic resurrection upon falling in battle.]

"It actually turned out to be this??" The corners of Zhu Jinzhen's mouth curved wildly upward. A revival item from a game! Although it was just the most ordinary fried egg, it was essentially equivalent to an extra life.

The value of twenty portions of Teyvat Fried Eggs was immeasurable.

The next moment, as if thinking of something, Zhu Jinzhen waved his hand to extract the Dragon Balls from the system space. He decisively used one portion of the Teyvat Fried Eggs, targeting the Dragon Balls, intending to resurrect the divine dragon and ask what on earth had happened.

However, nothing stirred.

There was not the slightest anomaly, and not even the portion of Teyvat Fried Eggs he had attempted to use was consumed.

"Slap!"

Zhu Jinzhen slapped his own forehead. "Almost forgot, the dragon only blew up; it hasn't actually died."

Helplessly, he could only put the Dragon Balls away again.

"I'll wait, then. It's only a year; I can afford to wait."

The smile on Zhu Jinzhen's face did not diminish in the slightest. With the guarantee of twenty extra lives, even if he encountered some irresistible force, at least he wouldn't die in such an obscure and unclear manner as the divine dragon had.

If they really drove him to desperation, he would simply use an Infinite Instance Card on this world.

He wanted to see whether the backlash of those laws or the existence the dragon warned him about was stronger, or if the Infinite Instance Card provided by the system was even more invincible.