Apocalypse Forecast

"Of course, the number of Sublimators is ultimately scarce. As the fundamental basis of Genealogies, using them to clash head-on with others is indeed too extravagant. Besides, it's questionable whether a complete formation can even be assembled. Most of the Legions actually recruit Abyssal Creatures."

Raven explained, "Haven't you already encountered 'Long Bo Wei' in Jinling? That is Kua Fu's personal army, now one of Dongxia's top three most powerful Legions. All of its members are individuals from an Abyss Horde who naturally bear the Stigma 'Long Bo's People'."

The Stigma 'Long Bo's People' is itself a Third Stage Stigma in the Houtu lineage of the Dongxia Genealogy, and Kua Fu himself stands at the pinnacle of this path of sublimation. After Kua Fu single-handedly broke into an Abyssal ceremony and subdued them one by one in combat, this branch of Abyssal Tribes offered their loyalty to Kua Fu, venerating him as the master of all 'Long Bo's People'. Beyond being one of Dongxia's Fifth Stage Sublimators, he is a genuine 'Owner of the Great Mob' in Hell, receiving respectful treatment from the various overlords of Hell.

"To prevent large-scale Legion activities from disrupting the order within the Current Circumstances, the Astronomical Society even forbids undeclared Legions from entering. But how many Genealogies within the entire Current Circumstances are vast enough to forcibly encircle parts of the Abyss, blockade the border, and slowly gather Abyssal Tribes compatible with their own Genealogy? Hence, the circulation of alternatives like Legion Contracts.

"Whether through promises, trade, or even forceful suppression and enslavement, an Abyss Horde may, for various reasons, hand over their tribe's token, which serves as the vessel for the contract. As long as one holds a Legion Contract, a Sublimator can negotiate and communicate with the tribe represented by it. They can even forcibly command, coerce, recruit, or deceive the tribe into performing services for them. Some Abyss Hordes have even signed long-term mercenary contracts with Genealogies in the Current Circumstances, operating as mercenaries within the Abyss. Depending on the contract, the restrictions on time and number of uses vary… A Legion not aligned with one's own Genealogy is considered inferior."

This time, for the rookie competition, the Great Mob of Xiematai, under pressure from the Joyful Framework, handed over their contract. However, its duration probably won't be very long, and it most likely has a limited number of uses.

"What about this one?" Huai Shi lifted the Ring of Nibelungen and asked.

Upon bringing this up, Raven's gaze toward Huai Shi became strange, filled with sympathy and pity.

"This... that's a long story..." The original Legion Contract from Paradise was also the most powerful among the three. It's just a pity... the entity it was connected to had already been stealthily killed by Huai Shi. Yes, it was those seven princes! As long as he had the contract, within Xiematai, he could have ordered the seven princes to assist him unconditionally three times... If only the fool had known this earlier, he probably would never have taken Little Cat's mission, right? Now, he had killed all seven princes, and even their final obsession—the White Horse Prince. The spoils of war were securely bagged; there was nowhere left for regret.

"It's a long story." Raven coughed twice and said, "The Ring of Nibelungen, in fact, is a unique Legion Contract of the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy, and it perfectly corresponds to the advancement of Yin Souls—look how coincidental this is! It's a perfect match for you!"

"Is that so?" Huai Shi frowned, scrutinizing Raven intently, feeling something was off, until Raven awkwardly looked away. "There's just one trivial flaw..."

"Huh? I knew it was a piece of crap!" Huai Shi demanded furiously, "What's the flaw? Spit it out clearly!"

"Er, that is..." Raven coughed for quite a while before struggling to say, "As everyone knows, the Heavenly Kingdom fell long ago. Most of the Legions nurtured by Utopia were scattered and lost in the chaos. This, COUGH, COUGH, includes the Legion of Yin Souls… So, COUGH, COUGH, your Legion, you might have to assemble it yourself..."

Huai Shi was dumbstruck.

"So you mean, right now I'm a Legion commander in name only? Not only have all my troops run off, but I also have to go to who-knows-where to fetch them back?"

"...Right." Raven was also embarrassed.

Isn't this some kind of sick joke!

Enraged and helpless, Huai Shi now struggled to support even his one Mountain Ghost; where would he get the ability to find dozens of Yin Souls!

"The actual situation isn't that bad. After all, the Ring of Nibelungen was one of the Four Great Legions within the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy." The Raven on the page comforted him, saying, "You don't need to go looking. Just input your Source Substance into it, and it can produce subordinate Yin Souls according to your Stigma... Although they won't be very smart, they're still okay as disposable underlings!"

"Okay my ass!" Huai Shi no longer wanted to talk to her. They promised me a full Legion's establishment, but when I got here, it's just me, the commander. Forget about artillery; they didn't even provide me with a political officer! It's really just the *establishment* of a Legion, alright... I even have to make the troops myself! Besides coercing me to spend money, does the Heavenly Kingdom Genealogy have any other benefits!

"Anyway, keep it up, Huai Shi! Believe in yourself, you can do it!" Raven dropped a line of encouragement, then turned and fled back into her ink bottle, refusing to come out no matter how much Huai Shi urged.

And in the midst of silence, the taxi stopped by the side of the road.

"Passenger, we've arrived."

In the back seat, Yuan Zhao, hugging a Manure Fork, was still deep in sleep, blissfully unaware and even blowing snot bubbles in his dreams.

"HEH HEH HEH, get out. We're here." Huai Shi pulled out his Sword of Virtue and prodded him twice, then got up and exited the car.

After days of intense battles, the area around Ueno Park seemed devoid of even a ghost. It was quiet and still; in fact, the entire city was fairly quiet now. Only occasionally did the roar of gunfire echo in the distance before silence returned. Everyone moved like hunters, stealthily making their way through the urban jungle, searching for any trace of prey.

In Ueno Park, amidst the chaos left by successive battles, no trace of people remained. Only countless crows on the branches screeched, rising and falling like clouds. Hearing the car door open, they turned their heads under the gloomy sky to gaze at the two uninvited guests.

Being watched by countless pairs of crimson eyes, Yuan Zhao involuntarily shivered.

"As long as you don't do anything stupid to provoke them, they won't attack you. At most..." Huai Shi's words were cut off as bird droppings fell from the sky, landing on Yuan Zhao's meticulously styled hair.

Looking at the boy's convulsing face, Huai Shi nodded. "At most... it's just like this."

I must hold back. I can't get angry. I can't get angry... After comparing the potential enemy-to-self ratio of tens of thousands to one, Yuan Zhao's hand holding the Manure Fork trembled slightly. He gritted his teeth and found a water pipe to rinse the bird droppings from his head.

Meanwhile, Huai Shi had already started working.

To say he was working was really just a leisurely stroll. Huai Shi slung the Great Treasure Sword over his shoulder and walked with his hands in his pockets. He casually strolled around the vast park, occasionally turning back to point out the surroundings to Yuan Zhao.

This place was once home to many art galleries and museums, but after yesterday's brief work, they had closed down again today. The Sublimators who had completed their tasks had already left, leaving behind nothing but a mess, with cracks, deep holes, and scorch marks everywhere.

Huai Shi walked with great care, deliberately weaving through charred plants and broken branches. Following behind him, Yuan Zhao kept tripping over the haphazard clutter underfoot, getting his pants caught on bushes, or even stumbling and nearly falling into a pit. He looked up at the White-named face, who seemed to walk with such ease...

Soon, he noticed the faint green shoots of grass under Huai Shi's feet and the tiny buds regrowing on the burnt plant stumps. With each step Huai Shi took, it was as if countless plants rose and fell with him.

When Yuan Zhao frowned and closed his eyes, he heard the sound of the wind ahead. It seemed to coalesce into a rhythm: the sway of branches, the undulation of countless blades of grass, and the soft rustling as wind blew through the trees. Everything seemed to be caught in the rhythm of Huai Shi's footsteps, intertwining and connecting.

"What are you doing?" he suddenly realized. "Is this your Stigma?"

"Yes, Mountain Ghost," Huai Shi openly admitted. "I need this green space to help me replenish some vitality and, incidentally, to do some balancing and operational work. Call it repayment, perhaps?"

Mountain Ghost? Isn't that supposed to be a woman? Tsk, I knew he was effeminate... Yuan Zhao muttered to himself, watching Huai Shi touch things here and there. Each plant was drawn from only slightly, and his indecisive manner was maddening.

"Can't you draw more at once?"

"I could, but there's no need," Huai Shi said, walking ahead without turning back. "I only understood this last night. Human morality doesn't apply to plants, and what humans consider important doesn't align with what plants need. I could easily find an older tree and draw vigorously from it to fulfill my own needs. But for the Mountain Ghost Stigma, whether vitality is abundant or not is secondary. What's more important... is the cycle."

Huai Shi raised his hand. A grass seed flew from his palm, landed in Yuan Zhao's hair, and quickly grew into a lush green foxtail flower.

Yuan Zhao impatiently plucked the roots tangled in his hair and tossed them into the soil, following behind. "Can't you be more direct?"

"To put it simply, it's about the flow of life. It's about enabling a whole system's life force to move smoothly and form a healthy cycle. That's what the Mountain Ghost Stigma needs to do, kind of like this..." Huai Shi reached out and pulled a thread of vitality from an overly thick old vine on a withered tree. He then turned and infused it into a nearby charred tree trunk. With his footsteps, he guided this life force to spread underground, eventually merging into the upturned shrubs and grass on the ground, building bridges.