12dz Chapter 146 The Old Order Begins to Bit Each Other
Chapter 146 The Old Order Begins to Bit Each Other
The golden light still lingered in the entrance hall of the Heavenly Throne Hall, but it had lost its former majesty. The former officials sat around a silver rattan table, their faces somber.
The tower gate was locked by powerful runes, which shimmered with light.
Chen Fan waved his hand, and the Golden Cudgel transformed into a blade of light, cleaving open a crack.
"Open it!" he shouted, and Fei Anjun immediately rushed in.
Inside the tower, light and shadow intertwine, and gemstones glitter.
A loud crash came from the bottom of the warehouse, like a huge rock falling.
Everyone stopped in their tracks, their eyes fixed on the source of the sound.
A cold glint flashed in Chen Fan's eyes as he muttered to himself, "Someone beat me to it."
Before the war drums of the disbanded army have even sounded, a new crisis is already looming.
Chen Fan sat at the bottom of the pool, his hands waving in the air, his mind a whirlpool.
His "moral system" had, after numerous attempts, successfully deviated from its original meaning.
His eyes scanned incessantly, his fingers traced the empty air, trying to grasp that last vestige of memory.
"What... what's going on?" His voice hummed in the silence, as if tearing open the canvas of the world.
In the midst of this tranquility, the sky suddenly darkened, and red light surged in from all directions.
His body twisted violently, and a streak of light shot through the air, as if a headless horse had suddenly charged into the world.
He felt a blinding chill spreading outwards from both sides of his arms, a sensation like being pierced by ice blades.
He clenched his fists, his heart pounding, but he had no time to lament.
"Why not again?" He took a breath, a glint of lightning flashing in his eyes.
Some force suddenly inspired him, as if the whole world was responding to his indomitable will.
In the darkness, a figure emerged—an elder dressed in red, with piercing eyes, standing on the horizon.
"You've crossed the line," the man said in a low voice. "This system... you're not the first person whose fate has been altered."
Chen Fan instantly realized that he wasn't just passively waiting for something. His resolve was set, and the path ahead lay before him.
**Chapter 402 There's also a small stove**
Burning Lamp stood atop the ruins of the abandoned army's remains, his brow furrowed. Behind him rose the blood-stained rocks, and before him stood an ancient recycling furnace. The furnace was dark red, its surface covered in runes, emitting a low hum.
"This furnace can forge the souls of the dead into new recruits," Chen Xuance said softly, holding a piece of broken copper in his hand. "It can also rewrite character files into the system."
Chen Fan stood beside the furnace, a calculating glint in his eyes. "Randeng, you want to repackage yourself and your remnants as orthodox." He reached into the furnace opening, his fingertips lightly touching the metal. "I can help you modify it, turning it into a secondary furnace according to the rules of Huaguo Mountain."
The old throne of the Burning Lamp turned around, his eyes filled with mockery. "Don't think you can manipulate all the mechanisms. My former throne is a discarded throne of the Heavenly Court, enough to tear this situation apart."
Before the words were even finished, scorching flames suddenly erupted from the dark red furnace core. The runes on the furnace walls writhed as if alive, emitting a piercing metallic clang.
"Charge!" Chen Fan gave the order, and the remnants of the abandoned army rushed towards the furnace opening. In mid-air, a huge metal fragment fell from the sky and smashed directly onto the furnace lid.
The fragments shattered, and flames instantly spread. The light inside the furnace surged like waves, illuminating everyone's faces. The old man with the burning lamp roared, raising his golden cudgel and pointing it directly at Chen Fan.
"You think you can control everything just by modifying it?" The voice of the lamp-burning torch echoed like thunder through the valley. "I'll let this furnace devour your hopes!"
Chen Fan remained calm, swiftly drawing a streak of light with his hand. The streak sliced through the furnace wall, revealing the core gears inside. The gears turned, emitting a low, grinding sound, like the heartbeat of a machine.
"Quickly, activate the secondary furnace!" Chen Xuance shouted, pointing to another set of runes beside the furnace. The runes instantly lit up, with blue and red lights intertwining.
The two beams of light met in the furnace, creating a powerful shockwave. The shockwave blew the golden staff of the old lamp stand away, sending it crashing into the rock wall and shattering into several pieces.
Ran Deng's expression changed drastically, and his brows furrowed. "Impossible!" He retreated rapidly, but was swept up by the scorching air rushing out of the furnace, slipped, and fell to the ground.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Chen Fan stepped forward and kicked away Randeng's golden staff. The staff tumbled in the air and smashed directly into Randeng's chest. Randeng cried out in pain and fell to the ground, blood spurting from his chest.
The remaining soldiers and remnants of the disbanded army retreated in terror, their eyes filled with shock. Someone exclaimed, "We actually smashed the old seat!" Another whispered, "What on earth can this furnace be used for?"
Chen Xuance raised an eyebrow, walked to the furnace, and whispered an ancient incantation. The runes on the furnace body flickered again, this time the light turning into a soft golden hue.
"I've modified this furnace into a standard auxiliary furnace, capable of rapid recycling and remanufacturing," Chen Fan said, his voice calm yet carrying an undeniable authority.
The old lamp-bearer struggled to his feet, a lingering rage flashing in his eyes. "You think you can drive me to the brink by modifying me?" He raised his remaining half-body, a dark red flame coalescing in his palm.
Dark red flames shot towards the furnace opening, instantly igniting the runes on the furnace walls. The runes burst into flames, the fire reaching the sky. The entire recycling furnace emitted a piercing cracking sound, as if it were about to collapse.
Chen Fan's eyes sharpened, and he quickly pulled out the silver key he always carried, inserting it into the core lock of the furnace. The key turned, and the lock made a crisp click.
"Start!" he shouted.
The gears inside the furnace began to spin at high speed, drawing in metal shavings with a piercing shriek. Half of the old lamp holder's body was lifted up by the violent airflow, its entire body emitting an incandescent white light.
The lamp-lighter cried out in terror, "No!" but his voice was drowned out by the roar from inside the furnace.
He threw half his body toward the furnace opening, tumbling through the air before being sucked in. The flames instantly engulfed his form, and the light from the furnace core intensified.
The onlookers took a few steps back, their eyes filled with disbelief. Half of the lamp's body disappeared into the furnace, leaving only the lingering heat.
Chen Fan stood by the stove, his brows furrowed. The firelight reflected on his face, making him appear exceptionally stern.
"This furnace has been activated," Chen Xuance said in a low voice, tapping the runes on the furnace body with his fingers. "We now have two choices."
Chen Fan nodded calmly. "Let's turn this furnace into our resource first, and then reap the benefits of the Heavenly Court's repercussions."
The starlight flickered, and a deafening roar came from the distant heavens, as if a tremendous force was approaching.
Chen Fan raised his hand and pointed into the distance. "Prepare for battle," he said, his voice filled with unwavering determination.
Chapter 403 You Still Dare to Jump into the Furnace
The stove exploded.
This was not a metaphor. The runes on the furnace walls lit up instantly, crimson cracks spreading across the surface, emitting a sickening groan. The half-charred body of the old lamp-bearer sprang violently in the fire, golden light surging from beneath his tattered robes, rapidly reforming itself from the ashes. In less than three breaths, a translucent body, imbued with the golden patterns of ancient Buddhism, hovered in the heart of the flames, its eyes clear, showing not a trace of pain.
"Chen Fan," the Dharma Body spoke, its voice like a bronze bell piercing through the clouds, "You destroyed your old body, but I borrowed every seal and every path within this furnace."
Instead of lunging out, he opened his arms, and all the runes inside the furnace—whether modified by Chen Fan or left behind by the Heavenly Court—trembled and converged into his palms. The entire furnace became his amplifier.
"This furnace is the core of the Buddhist sanctuary," the golden light from the old lamp seat swept over Chen Fan, carrying a cold sense of superiority. "Now, it recognizes me as its master. The right to interpret the new order is not in your hands."
When Tang Sanzang arrived, he happened to hear this.
He stood five zhang outside the furnace, a corner of his plain white kasaya billowing in the hot wind. His staff remained motionless, but his eyes were colder than the furnace fire. "Burning Lamp," he said, his voice low, drowning out the crackling of the runes, "and you're still fighting over the shell."
The Dharma body of the Burning Lamp slightly solidified. Golden light flashed twice.
"Shell?" Tang Sanzang took a step forward, the scorched earth cracking inch by inch. "Are you cultivating your heart, or the arrangement of this pile of iron and runes? The relic can hold 108,000 scriptures, but it can't hold a single word—'Let'."
The temperature inside the furnace suddenly soared, as if it were angry. But Tang Sanzang simply looked at the ever-changing golden light as if it were an old, dusty object.
"Go," Chen Fan suddenly said. Without looking at Tang Seng, he pointed his finger at a flashing node on the furnace wall.
Tang Sanzang paused.
"Leave this round to me." Chen Fan finally turned his head, his eyes shining like molten gold. "You go and stabilize the outer perimeter. The 'aftershocks' of the Heavenly Court may not be just one wave."
Tang Sanzang gave him a deep look, said nothing more, and turned to leave. His robes brushed against the scorched earth, raising a wisp of smoke. He wasn't retreating; he was tacitly relinquishing the core battlefield. The remaining divine souls of the Heavenly Court, drawn in by the anomalies in the furnace, still wandering about, needed a living Buddha to subdue them.
"They're quite united." The Dharma Body of Dipankara sneered, the golden light in his hand already condensing into a floating precept knife. "That's even better. Let's take them all in and make them the first batch of golden-bodied Arhats of my new Buddhist sect."
"Take your father's back." Chen Fan cursed, then took a deep breath.
He wasn't trying to forcefully destroy all the runes within the furnace. The "shell" that the lamp borrowed was the data and loops of the old system. To break it, he had to fundamentally change its "purpose."
As the word "match" faded, a muffled thud resounded from the depths of the furnace, like a giant drum being shattered from within. All the runes converging towards the lamp abruptly stopped, and a third of them abruptly turned, pouring into the third-layer node that Chen Fan had pre-set!
boom--!
The furnace shook violently, but didn't explode. Instead, a strange, gear-like clicking sound emanated from within. Part of the loop patterns that originally represented "extraction" began to dissolve and recombine, emitting a faint blue glow—that was the code Chen Fan had implanted, belonging to the "Ninth Experimental Field Sovereign Agreement."
The golden light of Dipankara's Dharma Body dimmed for a moment, then its reconstruction slowed slightly. For the first time, shock and anger flashed in his eyes: "What did you change?!"
"I've changed your definition of 'field'." Chen Fan wiped a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth. Forcibly guiding the restructuring would come at a price, but his face only showed cold, hard focus. "What you're borrowing now is the old shell. And I've put new 'rules' into this shell."
Outside the furnace, several explosions rang out in succession. Sun Wukong's golden cudgel whirled through the air, smashing the remains of three "Guardian Generals" who had spontaneously coalesced due to the strange activity within the furnace into a shower of light. These generals, who were supposed to be the furnace's guardians, were now berserk due to the chaotic internal order.
"Old Sun, hang in there!" Chen Fan shouted without turning around.
"Get back to work!" Sun Wukong replied, spinning his staff and sweeping away two more bodies. He was covered in blood, clearly at his limit, but his grin revealed a set of gleaming white teeth. "This staff can shatter six heavens!"
Inside the furnace, the Dipankara Dharma Body finally completed its final condensation, growing to a height of three zhang. Amidst the flowing golden light, the divine patterns that distinguished the ancient Lingshan from the Daoist sects faintly appeared. He raised his hand, and the entire furnace chamber closed with his palm, the pressure as overwhelming as a mountain, threatening to crush Chen Fan directly into the bottom of the furnace and melt him into ashes.
"The right to define has always belonged only to those who can control the 'field'," the lamp whispered, like a judgment.
Instead of retreating, Chen Fan advanced, facing the pressure of the collapsing palm, and crashed headfirst into a node on the furnace wall that was flashing violently and where the conflict between old and new energies was most intense—a "contradiction point" that he had deliberately left.
The instant he collided with it, he bit his tongue, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the point.
"Ninth Experimental Field Sovereignty—Second Authority: Override! Override all conflicting logic! Override—!"
He wasn't trying to immediately regain control of the furnace. He knew he couldn't compete with the lamplighter's familiarity with the old system. What he wanted was to make the furnace "shut down" for a moment, rendering it ownerless. Then, he could redefine it.
The instant the blood-red light exploded, all the light inside the furnace—gold, crimson, and dark blue—extinguished simultaneously.
Absolute darkness, deathly silence.
Even the golden body maintained by the Dharmakaya of Dipankara was frozen, its golden light like a flickering candle in the wind.
Just this one moment.
Chen Fan's fingertip touched the only thing still slightly warm in the darkness—the deepest part of the furnace core, the **original core panel** that had never been touched by anyone and was not even recorded by the system panel.
His fingers pierced through nothingness.
The panel was cold. Only one line of ancient text, twisting and contorting as if on the verge of collapse, was barely visible in the blood-red light.
He didn't have time to see the details. He only saw a line of small text struggling to emerge from the gibberish at the very bottom:
Chen Fan fell from the center of the furnace and was caught by Sun Wukong. His face was ashen, but the deep blue in his eyes had not completely faded.
"All done?" Sun Wukong stared at the furnace, which had returned to calm, still carrying his staff on his shoulder, panting heavily.
Chen Fan didn't answer. He stared intently at the panel deep within the furnace, which had reappeared after the light faded.
On the panel, all residual information about the lamp had been cleared, leaving only two lines of text, one above the other, cold and hard as iron:
Current main reactor: Ninth Experimental Field Sovereign Core (Access: Chen Fan)
【whether】
Starlight pierced through the clouds once more, shining on the furnace. The colossal furnace that had once forged the old gods and nearly devoured the new master now sat quietly in the scorched earth, like a ferocious beast feigning sleep after a hearty meal.
Meanwhile, the selection button at the heart of the furnace kept flashing in Chen Fan's eyes.
【whether】
A new, muffled rumble of thunder came from the distant horizon. It was more oppressive, more distant, and yet... closer than all the previous roars.
Sun Wukong followed his gaze, scratched his head, and said, "Hey, this isn't over yet?"
Chen Fan slowly spat out a mouthful of blood foam, which contained a sliver of golden light. He raised his hand, but did not immediately select the option.
Instead, it provocatively uttered three words, facing the stove and the newly arrived thunder:
Come on.
Chapter 404 Cut, cut it for me!
"Everyone, take your positions." Chen Xuance's voice echoed through the mountains like a drumbeat.
He gripped the Blu-ray disc tightly on his wrist. The Blu-ray disc flashed three times, and the system interface popped up.
"Execution permission + write permission verification." A green checkmark pops up on the screen.
"Approved." Chen Fan nodded and tapped the confirmation button.
Before the furnace door, the remains of the old lamp stand still trembled in the dim light.
"Cut it and recycle it." Chen Xuance gave the order, and the golden cudgel transformed into a blade, slicing diagonally into the furnace.
The blade sliced through the metal, and a burst of scorching air shot out. The furnace core cracked instantly, and the internal light patterns collapsed abruptly.
"Recovery successful!" a monkey soldier shouted.
The shape of the old lamp holder tumbled in the furnace, and its light suddenly went out.
Its arm twitched in the air before turning into black smoke and dissipating.
"This time it didn't even reconstruct one thing." Chen Fan sneered.
Tang Sanzang stood to one side, holding a black leather book in his hand.
"Lock the seal." He chanted a spell in a low voice, and the black leather book turned the pages, revealing the sealing symbols.
The symbol was instantly affixed to the furnace body, and the metal surface emitted a low hum.
"The Buddhist gate has been sealed," Tang Sanzang said, his brows furrowed.
The remains of the old lamp seat were suppressed by locks and could no longer be moved.
"A complete defeat." Chen Xuance raised his hand to signal, and everyone cheered in unison.
The valley echoed with the sound of fists.
"Keep cutting." Chen Fan turned to another stove.
At this moment, the lights of the core equipment of Huaguo Mountain turned on.
"The secondary furnace has been activated." The system notification flashed before my eyes.
The outer shell of the auxiliary furnace is smooth, while the internal flame patterns seem to pulsate with new life.
"This is the second core device." Chen Xuance squinted as he examined it.
"All resources will converge here," he said, pointing to the energy flow in the secondary furnace.
The monkey soldiers gathered around and began to put in the ores, spiritual herbs, and blood crystals they had collected on the battlefield.
The ore collided, and the fire pattern spread instantly.
The blood crystal shattered, and the light scattered in all directions.
The energy pillars of Huaguo Mountain shot straight into the sky, reflecting a golden image.
"The archives of the General Treasury have all been transferred." Tang Sanzang raised his hand to indicate that ancient scrolls were falling from the pillar of light.
The ancient scrolls unfolded on the ground, their text shimmering.
"Now we have all the rules and regulations." Chen Fan reached out and stroked the beginning of the book.
He turned to the last page, the paper trembling slightly.
The back of the paper is printed with ancient marks, like a seal.
"There's another hidden document here," he whispered.
The crowd gathered around, their eyes focused.
Chen Fan gently pressed the mark, and the page turned open by itself.
The title, written in ancient seal script, reads "Application for Re-evaluation of the Ninth Experimental Field Phase".
He raised an eyebrow slightly, but no words were seen.
"Why was this document sealed?" Tang Sanzang asked.
Chen Xuance frowned, a calculating glint in his eyes.
"Perhaps it was an ancient experiment," he replied.
The monkey next to him muttered, "Should we open it?"
Chen Fan did not answer immediately, but tapped the system lightly with his finger.
System notification: "Unlocking requires core energy."
He looked up at the burning auxiliary furnace.
"It can't be opened yet," Chen Fan said coldly.
"Let's first solidify the rules and regulations on the mountain."
Everyone nodded and returned to their respective posts.
As night fell, the firelight on the mountaintop still flickered.
The wind blew by, bringing with it the low rumble of thunder from the distant heavens.
The thunder was deeper and more muffled than usual, as if a tremendous force was brewing within it.
Chen Fan stood beside the furnace, his gaze piercing through the darkness.
"Be prepared, the next storm could come at any moment," he muttered to himself.
At the same time, a flash of red light appeared in the distant Milky Way.
That was a reconnaissance aircraft from Heaven, approaching Flower Fruit Mountain.
Chen Xuance raised his hand, and a golden light condensed in his palm.
"Welcome them!" he roared, his voice echoing through the valley.
The monkey soldiers were fully armed and ready to go, their swords and spears gleaming coldly.
Tang Sanzang tucked the black leather book into his sleeve, his eyes resolute.
The ashes of the old lampstand have turned to dust and can no longer be moved.
The rules of Huaguo Mountain are being rewritten at this moment.
Just then, the light pattern of the auxiliary furnace suddenly changed, and a dark red crack appeared.
A faint purple wisp of smoke seeped from the crack and slowly rose.
Chen Fan frowned, sensing an unusual fluctuation.
"What is this?" one of the monkey soldiers exclaimed.
The purple smoke condensed into a blurry shadow, resembling an ancient golden crow.
The shadow emitted a low hum, as if in provocation.
"Don't move!" Chen Xuance rushed forward, his golden cudgel instantly transforming into a silver cone, piercing straight into the core of the shadow.
The silver cone struck the shadow, producing a piercing cracking sound.
The shadow trembled violently, and purple smoke scattered.
"It's a remnant guardian of the 'Ninth Experimental Field'!" Chen Fan explained in a low voice.
"We just triggered its alarm," Tang Seng added.
"It must be sealed immediately, or the consequences will be unpredictable." Chen Xuance gripped the silver cone tightly.
He inserted the silver cone into the core gap of the auxiliary furnace, and the beam of light instantly converged.
The beams of light intersected, forming a golden barrier.
The purple smoke was forcibly suppressed in front of the barrier and gradually dissipated.
The barrier stabilized, and the light patterns in the secondary furnace returned to normal.
"This time we truly have the dual power of cutting and continuing the story," Chen Fan patted his chest.
The surrounding monkey soldiers cheered in unison.
But just as they were celebrating, the light patterns inside the auxiliary furnace flickered again, and new symbols appeared.
The symbols resemble unknown coordinates, pointing to an ancient cave deep within the mountains.
"This cave has never been recorded before," Tang Sanzang exclaimed in surprise.
Chen Xuance narrowed his eyes, his brows furrowed.
"There seems to be an even deeper secret," he said.
The group exchanged glances, a subtle sense of urgency spreading through them.
The night wind rustled through the forest, making the leaves whisper in the breeze.
Chen Fan took a deep breath, turned around and said to everyone:
"We have the collected files. Next, we need to thoroughly investigate this cave."
Before he could finish speaking, a series of rapid knocking sounds came from the hilltop.
The source of the strike was unknown, yet it had a metallic, harsh sound.
"Is someone digging a hole at the foot of the mountain?" one of the monkey soldiers asked.
A cold glint flashed in Chen Xuance's eyes, and the golden cudgel in his hand transformed into a blade once more.
"Everyone, follow me!" He rushed toward the source of the voice.
On the mountain path, the flickering light of torches cast shadows on the figures of the crowd.
They rushed to the foot of the mountain and saw that a huge rock had been turned over, revealing a hidden passage.
A worn-out plaque hung at the entrance of the secret passage, which read "Entrance to the Ninth Experimental Field".
Chen Fan reached out and touched the plaque, feeling the cool metallic pulse.
"This is the entrance we've been looking for," he said softly.
Just then, a low laugh came from the depths of the secret passage, as if someone was observing from the shadows.
The laughter was mocking, like a taunt that hadn't been interrupted for years.
"The show is about to begin." The voice echoed.
Chen Xuance turned around abruptly, his eyes like knives.
"Don't let them cause trouble," he roared.
The flames on Huaguo Mountain shone even brighter in the night.
The group stepped into the dark passage, their blades pointing towards the unknown.
At the end of the dark passage, a pale blue beam of light shot straight into the sky.
Within the beam of light, there was a vaguely visible huge metal frame, resembling an ancient experimental device.
"This is the core of the Ninth Experimental Field," Chen Fan murmured.
Just as he approached, a red badge suddenly appeared in the beam of light and slowly descended.
The badge fell to the ground with a crisp metallic sound.
"What is this?" Tang Sanzang asked in surprise.
The badge is engraved with ancient patterns, and at the center of the patterns is a blood-red eye.
His eyes gleamed, as if he were staring into the soul of every person who entered.
Chen Xuance reached out to take it, but was stopped by an invisible force.
The force was like an undercurrent, pressing down on one's chest and making one feel suffocated.
"Don't move." A deep command came from the badge.
"Who's directing things from behind the scenes?" Chen Fan glared angrily.
The badge's light suddenly spread, filling the entire dark passage with red light.
A tall, dark figure emerged from the red light, resembling a giant monster, wielding a massive axe.
The troll's eyes burned with rage, its voice booming like thunder: "How dare you trespass into my experimental field?"
Chen Xuance drew his golden cudgel, its blade slicing through the red light.
The blade was aimed directly at the Kraken's chest.
The giant monster let out a low laugh and smashed its giant axe toward the golden cudgel.
Knives and clubs clashed, sparks flying everywhere.
"Do you think you can control everything by taking my furnace?" the troll sneered.
A fighting spirit ignited in Chen Fan's eyes, and a contemptuous smile appeared on his lips.
"We've cut off your core," he said, his voice cold.
The golden cudgel and the giant axe clashed, and cracks appeared in the giant monster's armor.
Black blood mist flowed from the crack and spread rapidly.
"That's not enough!" the giant monster roared, its entire humanoid form swelling up to become even larger.
The surrounding red light was suppressed by the giant monster's rage, and the air inside the secret passage began to tremble.
Chen Xuance struck the giant demon's chest with a palm, and golden light instantly condensed into a fist.
The fist struck the giant monster, which staggered back several steps in pain, and its giant axe fell to the ground.
"Now!" Chen Fan shouted, his golden cudgel drawing an arc as it pointed directly at the giant demon's eyes.
The golden light pierced through, instantly sealing the giant monster's eyes, and the red light vanished.
The giant monster let out a miserable wail, and its body began to crumble.
The fragments turned into black ash and scattered in the dark passage.
The red light faded, and the secret passage returned to silence.
"Cutting complete." Chen Xuance checked the badge and found it to be completely shattered.
He put the fragments into his backpack.
"We have regained the right to cut, and we have also regained the right to continue writing," Tang Sanzang said, his voice filled with comfort.
Chen Fan nodded, his gaze fixed on the pillar of light deep within.
The beam of light was still trembling slightly, as if it were breathing.
"There must be an even bigger secret behind this beam of light," he said.
At that moment, the light pattern at the center of the beam suddenly accelerated and contracted, forming a vortex.
An ancient key emerged from the vortex, gleaming with a faint silver light.
The key is engraved with the words "Ninth Experimental Field".
"Take it a step further," Chen Xuance whispered.
As everyone reached for the key, the vortex suddenly erupted the moment their fingertips touched it.
A beam of light shot out, heading straight for the mountaintop.
The beam of light was instantly swallowed up, and the metallic echo reverberated deep within the dark passage.
In the direction where the beam of light disappeared, a new passage appeared, its entrance filled with starlight.
"It seems our next target has been revealed." Chen Fan stood at the entrance of the passage, his eyes blazing with fury.
He turned to the crowd and said:
"Get ready, the next challenge is just beginning."
The crowd responded in unison, and the glint of swords clashed in the starlight.
The moment they stepped into the new passage, a faint mechanical hum came from the other side of the hillside.
The humming grew stronger, as if dozens of ancient devices were being activated.
On the distant horizon, a dark red beam of light shattered, turning into countless tiny specks of light that rapidly approached Flower Fruit Mountain.
The points of light gathered in the air, forming a blurry outline.
That is……
Chapter 405 Reassessment Application
The light was still gathering in mid-air, and Chen Fan could only glimpse a distorted crimson, like uncongealed blood.
"Who goes there?" Sun Wukong's throat tightened, and he spun his golden cudgel in his palm, the tip of the cudgel pointing directly at the light and shadow.
Pigsy peeked out from behind Chen Fan, wrinkling his nose: "This smell... no, it's not the incense smell of the heavenly soldiers."
Before the words were even finished, the entire mountain passage fell into a sudden silence. Even the faint sound of thunder in the distance seemed to have been absorbed, leaving only a high-frequency, almost inaudible buzzing that seemed to seep from the very marrow of one's bones. Then, without warning, a curtain of light cleaved open the rock wall in front of them, like a silver knife cutting through black cloth, perfectly smooth and without a trace of smoke or fire.
On the light screen, lines of incomprehensible runes scrolled wildly, so fast they were dizzying. Three seconds later, the runes froze, recombine, and transformed into a line of extremely simple yet instantly understandable ancient seal script:
[Application for Re-evaluation of the Ninth Experimental Field - Supplementary Observational Conclusions Pending]
Chen Fan's heart stopped for a moment.
Experimental field?
ninth?
Reassessment?
The fragmented knowledge he had about "systems" suddenly activated in his mind. The amoral system claimed to be opposed to the "Journey to the West System," so could the Journey to the West System be... a tool for "maintaining stability"? And was the Journey to the West world they inhabited an "experimental field" that needed to be "evaluated"?
"Brother, what's this?" Pigsy leaned closer, his paw almost poking the light screen, then pulled back. "It looks a bit like a talisman issued by Heaven, but the color is wrong..."
"Shut up," Chen Fan hissed, his eyes fixed on the bottom of the light screen, where two lines of small text read "Synopsis":
**Evaluation Level:**
Recyclable (Original judgment: it is recommended to immediately terminate the narrative and recycle resources).
It can be continued (a strong counter-argument is required to prove that the path is worth continuing).
Upgradable (extreme case, requires verification of cross-platform influence)
Current status: Application accepted (submitted by monitor "Qingluan"). Countdown: Conclusion must be submitted within 15 narrative chapters (or equivalent event units). Failure to submit by the deadline will trigger the "Recall Agreement" by default.
Sun Wukong leaped to the side of the light screen, peering at it from a different angle: "I recognize the words, but I don't understand them when they're put together! Who wants to take back me, Old Sun? Who wants to continue writing? And what kind of upgrade is this?"
Chen Fan didn't answer. He traced the edge of the light screen with his finger, the three words "recyclable" feeling like a red-hot iron, burning his palm.
A hundred years of feeding the fruit, a hundred years of plotting to escape, a hundred years of striving for Sun Wukong's "true freedom"... In the end, from a higher perspective, they were just a piece of failed code that could be "immediately terminated"?
"Brother Chen, is it... bad news?" Pigsy's voice was weak.
Chen Fan ignored him. He needed information. Besides these, the screen displayed a tiny line of guidance: [Core Indicator of Reverse Conclusion: Unreplicable Dramatic Tension. Not power, not loyalty, not win rate. Rather, it's an increase in the possibility of new character choices and relationships outside the old order's logical chain.]
Dramatic tension? Possibility?
He suddenly looked up at Sun Wukong, who was still warily looking around, at Zhu Bajie, who was nervously rubbing his hands with a pig face, and at the old, weak, and disabled soldiers of Huaguo Mountain in the distance, who were restless because of the light screen, yet also had a hint of barely perceptible excitement.
This isn't about making them prove "we're stronger." The Heavenly Court's soldiers and generals, and countless gods and Buddhas, in terms of raw power, they might not even be able to get past the Four Heavenly Kings right now.
This is to let them prove that "we are different, and that this difference is worth seeing."
"Interesting..." Chen Fan's throat went dry, but he laughed out loud. The life-or-death crisis was not over yet, but a new chessboard had already been laid out, and the rules were even more bizarre and absurd.
"Sun Wukong." He turned around, his voice low but clear, "Capture all the Heavenly spies you didn't clean up earlier, alive. Don't kill them, but make sure they see it with their own eyes."
"Huh?" Sun Wukong was taken aback. "Not chasing the beam of light anymore?"
"That thing," Chen Fan glanced at the light screen—the blurry crimson outline had now solidified into a huge, illusory bronze eye, coldly surveying everything—"is the assessor's eye. Capturing people is our first 'observation conclusion.'"
Beside the light screen, the giant bronze eye blinked. It showed no emotion, only a programmed, scanning motion as it swept over Sun Wukong.
Pigsy suddenly cried out in a strange voice, "My two masters! Heaven... Heaven is speaking!"
A clear, majestic, and ethereal voice pierced through the mountain's rock layers, directly reaching everyone's ears:
"The demons of Flower Fruit Mountain have disturbed the monitoring of the upper realm without cause, thus violating the Heavenly Laws. The Ninth Experimental Field originally determined that they were 'recoverable,' so you should reflect on your actions. If you surrender now, you may be spared the pain of annihilation. Resisting to the end will only hasten the execution of the 'recovery agreement.'"
He was a confidant of the Jade Emperor. Chen Fan was all too familiar with the pseudo-gentle tone of Venus, one of the Nine Luminaries.
This old man not only came to intimidate us, but also wanted to submit a "negative assessment report" to the Heavenly Court first!
The crisis erupted faster than expected.
As soon as the message was transmitted, the entrance to the mountain passage exploded with a deafening roar, sending rubble raining down. Four streaks of light entered, revealing figures—the Three Luminaries Star Officials and a Celestial Official sent by the Heavenly Court. Leading them was Venus, whose white robes were as white as snow, and whose beard and hair were all silver. He held a jade ruyi in his hand, his face full of compassion, but his eyes were as cold as the ice of the deepest hell.
"Chen Fan," Venus's gaze swept over Chen Fan, then landed on the demons standing guard behind him, and he slowly shook his head, "If only you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place? Did you think that by breaking the Five Elements Mountain and inciting the demon monkey, you had broken free from the Heavenly Dao? How can a frog in a well know the depth of the sea? The narrative of this world has its own set of rules. You who go against the current are nothing more than a few specks of dust in the waves, and you will soon be crushed and smoothed over."
He raised his hand and pointed at the floating light screen: "Do you see the words 'recyclable'? That is the consensus of all the gods and Buddhas. Not only do you have no merit in the pilgrimage, but you are also going against the grain and confusing people's minds. What use are such 'erroneous variables'? You should end your own lives as soon as possible, so as to preserve some dignity of the Heavenly Court."
Fear spread like a plague among the demons.
Chen Fan didn't move. He stared at Taibai Jinxing, waiting for the other to finish his sarcastic remarks. Only when he saw the certainty in the other's eyes that said, "As expected, these monsters will only be scared out of their wits," did he slowly raise his hand.
"Old Venus," his voice was calm, even somewhat languid, "you say we've 'undermined the foundation of the plot' and shaken the law of causality.' Where's the evidence?"
Venus was taken aback, clearly not expecting this chaotic demon to dare to retort.
"You call us the 'faulty variable,' then please tell me," Chen Fan took half a step forward, blocking the light screen, and pointed at the giant bronze eye, "what is the judgment logic of this 'evaluation system'? Is it based on who has the stronger fist? Or on who can act better?"
He turned abruptly to face the demons of Flower Fruit Mountain, his voice rising sharply and echoing in every corner:
"Brothers! Have we ever been afraid?! Five hundred years ago, when the Great Sage was imprisoned under the Five Fingers Mountain, were we afraid? No! A hundred years ago, when we were trapped in this godforsaken mountain corner, were we afraid? No! Now, the gods in heaven say we are a 'mistake,' and we're afraid?!"
He turned around abruptly to face Venus again, his face showing no anger, only a calm madness.
"Venus, you submitted a negative report on behalf of Heaven, saying we are worthless and only cause destruction. Well then, I'll show you with your own eyes the 'new value' we create!"
He stopped wasting words and directly shouted at the light screen: "Requesting supplementary observation conclusions. Conclusion 1: The Flower Fruit Mountain faction maintains its own will, with no system-mandated contracts (compared to the Golden Hoop constraint of the Journey to the West team). Conclusion 2: Core relationships restructured—Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, voluntarily chose to form an equal alliance with Chen Fan, breaking through the traditional 'Journey to the West tool' limit (please review his recent combat data). Conclusion 3: Value system innovation—Tang Xuanzang's faith has been restructured, and his 'New Buddhism' concept has been recorded, with the number of believers increasing rapidly…"
He spoke at an extremely fast pace, listing each point in detail. With each point he mentioned, a new line of data appeared on the screen, at a speed far exceeding what Venus could comprehend.
Venus's expression changed. He had originally thought these demons were only capable of fighting and killing, and could be intimidated by a few words. He never expected Chen Fan to completely disregard the argument that "we are not sabotage," and instead directly present a "new value paradigm" they had never seen before, yet which was logically flawless!
"You...you're making this up!" Venus waved his jade ruyi, and a beam of golden light shot toward the light screen, but it was deflected by an invisible force field.
"Whether it's fabricated or not, you 'monitors' will judge for yourselves," Chen Fan sneered. "But you 'maintainers' are so eager for us to 'take back' you because... you're afraid, aren't you? Afraid that this 'difference' will actually be recognized, afraid that your 'orbiting' will no longer be able to bind the heart that wants to fly."
As he finished speaking, the pupil of the giant bronze eye beside the light screen seemed to dilate or contract slightly.
Before Venus could say anything more, Sun Wukong strode forward, his copper bell eyes glaring, and slammed his golden cudgel into the ground, causing the entire passage to vibrate.
"Old man, shut up. If you want to fight, I, Old Sun, am ready! If you want to comment, my brother decides! Get lost!"
The word "Get out!" was accompanied by a powerful burst of demonic energy. Taibai Jinxing and the other two retreated three steps, their faces turning red and white. The celestial officials they brought frantically tried to use their magical weapons, but Sun Wukong flashed in and closed in, the tip of his staff touching their throats, scaring them out of their wits.
"Get out!" Sun Wukong shouted again, his teeth grinding together.
Venus gave Chen Fan a deep look, his gaze finally devoid of pity, replaced by apprehension and even a hint of surprise. He dared not linger any longer, flicking his sleeve to sweep up the two celestial officials, transforming into a rainbow that soared into the sky and disappeared beyond the breach at the entrance of the passage.
The passageway was deathly silent.
The only sound was the occasional rustling of pebbles rolling down.
Pigsy slowly exhaled a long breath and wiped his sweat: "My goodness... I was terrified just now. That old man, did he really want to wipe us all out?"
Chen Fan didn't answer. He stared at the light screen, where the three conclusions he had submitted were being rapidly read and analyzed, with the progress bar slowly climbing. The label next to it, "Observational Conflict: The Heavenly Court has submitted rebuttal arguments (counter-arguments)," was constantly updating with new entries.
[Counterargument 1: Xuanzang's reconstruction of faith was actually an invasion of inner demons, not the propagation of orthodox Buddhism.]
[Counterargument 2: Sun Wukong's choice was due to the weakening of the golden headband (a technical defect), and was not voluntary.]
[Counterargument 3: The recent increase in Huaguo Mountain's combat power stems from the relic 'Old Seat' of the Ancient Buddha Dipankara (an external resource), not from its original evolution in this battle.]
The Heavenly Court's bullets are coming. And every sentence is crucial, attempting to interpret Chen Fan's listed "new value" as "system loopholes" or "external interference," ultimately meaning—you didn't create anything new, you just broke the rules and reaped the benefits.
Chen Fan felt a chill run down his spine. The Heavenly Court's evidence was partially true (such as the old seat of the Burning Lamp). He needed to find a more powerful, purely dramatic tension within Flower Fruit Mountain itself.
He turned sharply to look at the old, weak, and crippled demons who had just lifted their heads from fear and whose eyes had regained a glimmer of fire. There was a wolf spirit missing half an ear, a monkey soldier with a broken tail, and an old earth god with a limp... They had no heavenly treasures, no Buddhist blessings, and many of them could barely even transform into human form.
But they are still here.
They believed in Chen Fan, the one who led them to defeat the heavenly army, distributed grain and provided disaster relief, and said, "We will take charge of our own affairs."
"Brother, what do we do?" Pigsy leaned closer, a rare look of anxiety on the fat man's face. "The 'counterargument' they've found seems pretty solid..."
Chen Fan closed his eyes.
Then, he did something that surprised everyone.
He walked to the light screen, his finger hovering in the air. Instead of selecting any options, he pointed at the cold, bronze giant eye and said calmly:
"Observers, you need 'unrepeatable dramatic tension'."
"Alright. I'll give you the logic that defies all scripts."
He turned around and walked step by step toward the group of defeated soldiers, his gaze sweeping over each rough, tired, but no longer numb face.
"Listen carefully." His voice wasn't loud, but it drowned out all the noise. "We at Flower Fruit Mountain have never survived by relying on 'protagonist halo' or 'villains' being stupid."
"What we rely on is that **even peasants can have their own ideas**."
"For five hundred years, the Great Sage was under the Five Elements Mountain, and no one asked him if he wanted to be the 'Victorious Fighting Buddha.' We asked him, and he chose 'to be himself.' Wouldn't you call that 'tension'?"
"The journey of Tang Sanzang to the West should have been a tale of four people of one mind. But we created a Tang Sanzang ourselves, making him believe that 'all sentient beings can become Buddhas,' instead of only believing in the Western Paradise. Isn't that a kind of 'tension'?"
"The Heavenly Court says 'a demon is a demon,' and Buddhism says 'a devil is a devil.' But here, the Bull Demon King's son, Red Boy, calls the Great Sage 'Uncle'; the bear from Black Wind Mountain burned the buttocks of heavenly generals with us; even the mountain spirit we captured five hundred years ago is now helping to make new arrows! Doesn't that count as 'tension'?"
Chen Fan spoke faster and faster, his voice resolute:
"We didn't hide our strength, we didn't play dumb to fool others, and we didn't suddenly become invincible by finding some magical artifact. We're just a bunch of scum who were trampled into the mud, but with a brute force of 'I refuse to accept my fate,' we pulled each other up to where we are today!"
"Is this what you call 'tension'? No, this is called 'a way of life'!"
"What you 'recyclable' are those puppets who follow the rules, never make mistakes, and have no emotions! But we—"
He suddenly pointed at the light screen, his fingertip almost touching the cold interface:
"—It's that 'accident'! That 'emotion'! That imperfect, inelegant, but warm, down-to-earth way of life that brings the story to life!"
The passageway was deathly silent.
Then, someone let out a sob. Then came a second, and a third.
There were no slogans shouted, no shouts in unison.
But on those faces, something glistened in the dim light of the rock wall. Sun Wukong stood beside Chen Fan, his copper-bell eyes fixed on the light screen, his Adam's apple bobbing. He didn't speak, but gripped his golden cudgel tighter, his knuckles white. Zhu Bajie wiped his face, the fat man's shoulders trembled, and he muttered, "Damn..."
Then, he straightened his back, stood on the other side of Chen Fan, and placed his fat hand on the handle of the nine-toothed rake.
Sha Wujing emerged from the shadows and silently stood behind Zhu Bajie, slamming his demon-subduing staff on the ground with a muffled thud.
The Earth God shakily squeezed through the crowd, tugged at Chen Fan's sleeve, and whispered, "Little...Little Fan, we, we're from Townfold..."
Chen Fan didn't turn around. He stared at the light screen, at the unprecedented data stream refreshing on it.
The Heavenly Court's counterarguments were still escalating, but its three conclusions were rapidly overlapping and forming a new, muddy chain of logic at an almost tyrannical pace.
[Core Observational Conclusions (Submitted by Huaguoshan)]
Case study of narrative entropy increase.
Variable attributes: native (no external cheating), unpredictable (decision tree divergence), strong emotional binding (risk of high loyalty among all members).
It meets the definition of 'dramatic tension' and possesses potential for cross-'experimental field' contagion (Recommendation: Use 'recovery' with caution, upgrade to observation, cost: higher maintenance resources required).
The progress bar has finally reached **100%**.
On the light screen, the status bar for "Observational conclusions to be supplemented" flashed three times.
Then, all the text disappeared.
The light barrier slowly contracted, condensing into a golden stream of light that entered Chen Fan's brow. There was no system notification sound, only a line of words directly imprinted into his consciousness:
But the phrase "to be evaluated in the next cycle" made Chen Fan realize that they had moved from the list of items to be "immediately destroyed" to the list of items that "can be observed further".
We won the first game.
But the price they paid was that they were completely exposed to "higher scrutiny".
At the very moment the light screen disappeared—
"boom!!!"
The entire Flower Fruit Mountain, including the mountainside they were in, suddenly sank downwards! It was as if an invisible giant foot had stomped down. The rock walls cracked, and rubble cascaded down like a waterfall. The ceiling collapsed, and dust filled the air.
"An earthquake?!" Pigsy exclaimed in shock.
No. It wasn't an ordinary earthquake.
Chen Fan looked up and, through the spatial rift that had just appeared from the giant eye, saw—
A crack appeared in the sky.
It wasn't the clouds that cracked open. It was the "sky" itself, the thin membrane that envelops this world, that was torn open!
Beyond the opening was not the starry sky, but a gigantic, indistinct... the mouth of a colossal beast.
Dark red, viscous, with inhuman fleshy textures writhing along its edges.
An indescribable stench, a mixture of sulfur, rust, and rotting flesh, poured in through the crack!
"What...what is that?!" Sun Wukong's voice carried a rare hint of fear for the first time.
Chen Fan dug his fingers into the cracks in the rock face, his nails splitting and bleeding. A sudden, overwhelming feeling washed over him—
The cost of upgrading?
No.
This is not a "cost" at all.
A 15-day window?
No.
From this moment on, every second is a countdown.
Because what is attracted may not only be the claws of the Heavenly Court, but also... the real, predatory predators "outside".
Chen Fan suddenly turned his head, looking at the place where the light screen disappeared, then at the ever-growing giant mouth above his head, and finally at the faces around him covered in dust but with burning eyes.
He grinned, revealing a smile more painful than a grimace, with blood and foam still clinging to his teeth:
"Damn... this right to continue writing is earned with your life."
The rock strata cracked during the massive earthquake.
In the distance, the muffled sound of heavenly soldiers regrouping their war drums could be heard.
Nearby, from deep within the giant beast's maw, came a low, menacing sound that eclipsed the sun and moon...
Buzz.