Before I learned about the existence of the Great Wuchang, I always believed that I had the power to take on the entire world by myself.

  Even if I couldn’t defeat my opponents, I wouldn’t be easily defeated by them either.

  Although I never had the ambition to go against the entire world, I had the confidence—or perhaps arrogance—to believe in my own strength.

  However, Zhu Shi once told me that the Great Wuchang of Mount Luo could manipute energy on the scale of massive natural disasters, equivalent to the explosion of hundreds or even thousands of nuclear bombs.

  Compared to such inconceivable powerhouses, I was clearly far inferior, and from then on, I no longer entertained the thought of comparing myself to the entire world.

  Given that the Great Demons of the apocalypse era were fallen Great Wuchang-level powerhouses, my earlier assumption that the Disaster Demon might be my future self was clearly an overestimation.

  This kind of specution was something I could never say out loud; it sounded like the delusions of a middle school boy imagining that he would become some formidable vilin after "turning dark." If I heard someone else say such things, I would definitely ugh at them in my mind.

  However, my specution wasn’t entirely baseless.

  Even if I'm far from the level of the Great Wuchang now, my power is still growing.

  Who knows—maybe in the future, I could reach their level and then fall into corruption to become a Great Demon?

  Of course, it’s better not to fall if I can avoid it.

  Though I do enjoy the idea of a story where "my future self is a notorious supervilin," I have to admit...

  Upon careful thought, there really isn’t a strong "but" here.

  Since I won't tell anyone else, I might as well admit it to myself—I am indeed an immature person, secretly looking forward to such a scenario.

  As for the question I asked earlier, Ma Zao gave me a negative answer—she couldn’t remember if she had ever seen Zhu Shi in the apocalypse era.

  Due to the influence of the apocalyptic madness, aside from Number Two Xiao Wan, with whom she lived day and night, Ma Zao could no longer recall the faces of many people.

  If she had the chance to meet them again, she might recognize them.

  Or perhaps she just felt that they looked familiar—this was what she told me.

  Ma Zao gradually calmed down, and it seemed like she was starting to notice things she had overlooked in her earlier panic.

  "Zhuang Cheng, can you let me take another look at your Divine Seal fragment?" she asked.

  I had no reason to refuse, so I took out the Divine Seal fragment again and handed it to her without hesitation.

  She only examined it for a few moments before returning it to me, her expression filled with confusion.

  "Is there something unusual about this fragment?" I asked curiously.

  "Rather than saying there's something unusual about this fragment..." she said with a perplexed expression, "I’d say that the existence of this fragment itself is an anomaly. The Divine Seal I was looking for shouldn’t be like this..."

  "This isn’t the Divine Seal fragment you were looking for?" I asked in surprise.

  "I did say I was looking for the Divine Seal, but I never said I was searching for it in pieces," she replied, still puzzled.

  "According to the records from the apocalypse era, the Divine Seal only shattered after the apocalypse descended. In other words, in this era, the Divine Seal should still be intact."

  Intact?

  I immediately grasped the implication.

  Right, the reason the Divine Seal is closely tied to the coming of the apocalypse is because of its world-altering power.

  If that's the case, then the Divine Seal of this era must still be whole.

  Only a complete Divine Seal would possess the power to reshape the world.

  Then how should I expin the Divine Seal fragment in my hand?

  I obtained this fragment from the basement of the fifteenth-floor room.

  Could it be that the basement of the fifteenth-floor room is actually connected to the future after the apocalypse has descended?

  That kind of specution seems too far-fetched.

  And even if that were the case, putting aside No. 2 Xiao Wan, how did No. 1 and No. 4 Xuan Ming obtain their Divine Seal fragments?

  After thinking it over, I proposed a hypothesis: "Could it be that the Divine Seal in this era was already fragmented from the very beginning, but was ter collected and reassembled? Then when the apocalypse struck, it shattered once again?"

  "…According to the information I’ve come across, the Divine Seal should have only shattered once—when the apocalypse descended. There shouldn’t have been an earlier instance of it breaking..."

  Ma Zao fell into deep thought and confusion.

  After a long while, we finally arrived at my home, and she seemed to temporarily pull herself out of her thoughts.

  I opened the door and welcomed her into the entrance hall, turning on the lights.

  Since she had only been away for three days, everything in the living room remained rgely the same.

  She took off her cat-whisker mask and, upon seeing the familiar living room, showed a hint of nostalgia.

  "Welcome back," I tried to create a homely atmosphere.

  "Do you want to eat first or take a bath?"

  "No need for a bath. Zhu Shi should have expined my abilities to you, right? I can use my powers to clean both my body and clothes," she said.

  "As for eating, I don’t really need to eat either. I can use my ability to reset my hunger. However..."

  As she spoke, she seemed a little tempted after all.

  She probably hadn't eaten anything in the past three days.

  Before she could say, "Forget it," I quickly said, "I'll cook for you right now."

  "Mm..." she nodded shyly.

  I took ingredients from the fridge, put on an apron, and started cooking for Ma Zao just like I used to.

  As I went through these familiar steps, I couldn't help but feel as if a runaway train had finally returned to its tracks, and the heavy stone in my heart finally settled.

  Ma Zao is finally back...

  I unconsciously let my whole body rex, and the tension that had been weighing on me loosened up.

  Whether it’s the impending apocalypse that feels like a colpsing building, or the unfathomable Mount Luo, neither is as important to me as Ma Zao, who has truly changed my life.

  I had actually considered the possibility—if the apocalypse was destined to come, I could simply sit at home and wait for the grand adventure to begin.

  But is the future really set in stone?

  What if the apocalypse doesn’t happen?

  What if, while I sit at home foolishly waiting, Ma Zao or someone else ends up stopping it?

  The apocalypse, after all, is a thing of the future—uncertain and unpredictable.

  To me, it’s no different from an empty promise.

  Even though I now believe in the existence of the apocalypse and can seriously analyze its details, I still can't fully devote myself to anticipating it.

  I can't compare it to Ma Zao, who is real and tangible, someone I can reach out and touch with my own hands.

  The same applies to Mount Luo.

  Zhu Shi once told me that unless I could figure out the reason for my rejection of the supernatural, I wouldn't be able to truly connect with it, even if I became a member of Mount Luo.

  Although I've now discovered the reason, I still haven't found a way to resolve it.

  Honestly, I am curious about how things will develop.

  Now that I've established connections with Zhu Shi and Patrol Lu, and even become an External Wuchang of Mount Luo, how will the rejection effect push me out of the supernatural world?

  That should be impossible.

  However, I wouldn't go so far as to impulsively explore this mystery through personal experience.

  As the saying goes, I know the difference between a single full meal and being well-fed every day.

  I can't accept solving this rather unimpressive mystery at the cost of giving up my future return to an ordinary life.

  At most, it's just something to think about.

  In my worst imaginings, if I were never able to find Ma Zao, perhaps the world around me would return to normal once more.

  "Demon Hunter Zhu Shi" would disappear, and the only version of her that would appear before me would be "College Student Zhu Shi."

  The Zhu family would no longer be a family of demon hunters but merely a wealthy and influential local family.

  Characters like Patrol Lu would fade into obscurity, never to appear in my life again.

  I understand that such a change defies common sense.

  However, if my inability to connect with the supernatural is itself a form of anomaly, then expecting it to operate by normal logic is nothing but wishful thinking.

  Even a less dire outcome—such as what happened when I investigated the abandoned construction site with Agent Kong—would be unacceptable to me.

  Back then, we even used soul-attracting talismans, yet the evil spirit never appeared.

  If that were to happen again, it would mean that no matter where I go, everything would remain stagnant.

  Even being around people who should encounter the supernatural wouldn't make a difference.

  Come to think of it, when I was with Agent Kong, I should have still been under Ma Zao's "jinx" effect... So does that mean there really were no evil spirits at that pce after all?

  Just then, my phone rang.

  Since I was in the middle of simmering the meat, I had a moment to spare, so I took out my phone and looked down at the screen.

  It was Zhu Shi calling.

  I stepped out into the hallway before answering the call.

  Her voice came through from the other end, saying that she had already handed over the severed hand to Patrol Lu.

  "What did Patrol Lu say?" I asked.

  "It’s not going well for him," she sighed.

  "That Oddities really does have an anti-divination ability. Lu Chan and I analyzed it and think the issue probably lies with that 'Shadow Swap' ability.

  "Unlike the previous target, who could only transfer damage elsewhere, this time the target can passively transfer all causal effects applied to him to another location. Divination magic is likely being affected by this ability’s properties, which is why the previous attempt was misdirected to the st target.

  "In any case, we can't rely on Lu Chan this time. Didn't Ma Zao mention before that she could use her ability to track targets? Could you ask her about it ter?"

  "Sure, I'll ask her," I said.

  "Also, don't forget to remind her to be careful of being discovered by Transcendentalist faction," she said seriously.

  "It's best not to let Lu Chan know that we've already found her."

  "Got it," I replied. "By the way, I have a very important question to ask you."

  "What question?" she asked curiously.

  "You once told me that the reason I can't encounter supernatural beings is because my power is too strong, and that the Great Wuchang face the same issue, right?" I asked.

  "Yes, to be precise, aside from the Great Wuchang, there are also a handful of exceptionally powerful Demon Hunters who experience the same problem," she answered.

  "Then, how did they solve this problem?" I asked.

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