Chapter Fourteen: A World of Wonders

A familiar pillar of light, yet the scenery was different.

Sun Meng had already received the system prompt: “Identity: Shao Tan, formerly a disciple of Shaolin Temple, later expelled. Main Quest One: Defeat Abbot San Zang once; defeat Tang Xiaolong, Chen Xiaohu, and Hua Xiaolan together in direct combat once. Main Quest Two: Gain recognition from Abbot San Zang and return to Shaolin Temple. Time limit: one year.”

This identity seemed rather unfamiliar. But since Shaolin Temple existed, it was most likely a martial arts world.

Though Sun Meng felt somewhat disappointed, he was also grateful. Encountering a world he wasn’t familiar with as the third trial world, based on previous world-level experience, the limit here wouldn’t exceed the early third tier. From this, his current early innate strength should allow steady growth, as long as he didn’t actively provoke the top figures.

However, since the time flow matched both sides, if he failed to complete the main quest within a month, new main quests would stack until a year had passed, at which point a forced settlement would occur and the civilization assessment phase would begin.

Smiling at the screen, he said, “Looks like this is another martial arts civilization. I should be able to obtain plenty of advanced cultivation methods and system philosophies, which will greatly benefit Earth’s development. But it seems impossible to finish the quest within a month, so I’ll have to stay longer in this world.”

“No worries, streamer! Protect yourself!”

“Yes, yes! As long as you survive, there’s always a way to complete the quest.”

“With so many of us helping, you’re bound to succeed!”

The ordinary viewers’ attention was fixed on Sun Meng’s survival. If he died, not only would Earth suffer a disaster, but the next contestant’s chances would diminish, leading to a snowball effect that could doom Earth’s civilization before even the first assessment round.

Thus, the burden on Sun Meng’s shoulders grew heavier and heavier.

“All right, everyone, I’ll now begin to accept all information related to this identity.”

With that, Sun Meng closed his eyes, and the memories belonging to Shao Tan, including the martial arts he mastered, were all absorbed.

As expected, the martial arts development here surpassed that of the World’s Number One martial arts world. The innate level was already considered top-tier, with famous martial artists reaching at least the early innate stage. Beyond that were grandmasters with fully developed external qi abilities, and even greater grandmasters whose power resembled domains—though apparently no one had reached that stage yet.

He opened his eyes and rubbed his brow. Shao Tan’s previous life revolved around two things: training and making money.

“The Shadow Seizing Divine Skill—this technique is more than mere martial arts, isn’t it?”

Recalling the cultivation techniques of this body, the primary skill or secret art was called “Shadow Seizing Divine Skill.” Its greatest effect allowed one’s shadow to separate from the body within a certain range and inflict harm upon an enemy’s shadow, thus affecting the shadow’s owner to some extent. If a special secret method sealed the shadow, its owner would enter a suspended animation state, floating in midair. However, in that state, one could not eat or drink, so maintaining it for more than half a month would result in death.

He had intended to use this method to extort owners of small and medium businesses, though he hadn’t yet carried out the plan. Presently, he was in Kaifeng City. In this era, it was the Ming Dynasty, though the broader environment didn’t present much distinctive information; in over twenty years, he had never ventured beyond Kaifeng Prefecture or the area around Shaolin Temple.

“This world contains not only pure martial arts, but also some mysterious items,” Sun Meng found relevant memories in Shao Tan’s recollections. Though these were simply classified as mysterious artifacts with no corresponding system, they all possessed unique powers.

He knew relying solely on his strength might not be enough to complete the quest, so these strange items were essential.

He wandered through the streets of Kaifeng Prefecture, but found no useful information.

Feeling frustrated, he decided to explore toward Shaolin Temple. Leaving the city, he soon entered the woods. Leaping onto a branch, every push of his feet propelled him far ahead—even the slender, supple branches allowed him to borrow their force. On the move, he didn’t need to pay special attention to his footing; his instincts ensured safety.

After about an hour, he stopped—not from exhaustion, but because he detected something unusual.

Standing on a fairly robust branch, he listened intently.

“Crown Prince? Black Fox Gang? Is this a covert operation? I haven’t heard anything about the Crown Prince coming to Kaifeng.”

With these thoughts, he pulled out a simple oil lamp he had modified to focus the light more directly on himself.

Sitting cross-legged on the branch, he lit the lamp. Under its glow, his shadow appeared on the trunk.

He activated his skill; the shadow stood up by itself. Like a real person, it leapt down along the trunk and moved across the ground, approaching the group.

Because the woods were dim from the canopy and the group consisted of martial artists below the innate stage, none sensed the shadow watching and listening to their conversation. When they finally began to act, Sun Meng recalled his shadow.

His cultivation was not yet refined; otherwise, he could manipulate the shadow without needing to remain still, and the range would be much greater.

“Who would have expected such a harvest from a simple walk? The Crown Prince is coming to Kaifeng, and his route has been leaked. The Black Fox Gang clearly isn’t a legitimate force, and they don’t seem like an old established group either.”

As Sun Meng contemplated, the system notified him: “Trigger side quest—make contact with the real Crown Prince and ensure his safe arrival in Kaifeng. Reward: 1,000 points.”

Indeed, a more advanced world—so many points for a single side quest. Sun Meng would not miss this opportunity, and perhaps he could also learn more about the current situation of Shaolin Temple.

He followed the Black Fox Gang from a distance, leisurely trailing them, familiarizing himself with the body’s combat style and pondering the development direction of Earth’s cultivation system.

Not long after, the Black Fox Gang stopped, setting up an ambush.

Sun Meng hid in the distance and soon saw a speeding carriage approaching, driven by a Shaolin monk.

“Elder Xuan Feng! How is he connected to Shaolin Temple?” Recognizing the burly, bearded monk, Sun Meng recalled his identity from Shao Tan’s memories.

The Black Fox Gang had already laid a trip rope; the speeding carriage overturned, but Elder Xuan Feng immediately leapt up and attacked the Black Fox Gang members on both sides.

On their own, these men could never defeat him.

Yet in the next moment, a black whirlwind descended from the sky—a strange figure clothed entirely in black, including a mask covering his face. With a flick of his hand, he sent several eerie blue flames toward Elder Xuan Feng, who failed to dodge and was struck down by a palm at close range, injured and falling.

The Black Fox soldiers quickly tied Elder Xuan Feng up, and the person in the carriage was brought down as well.

The strange figure turned into a whirlwind and left, soon returning with another person. “The Crown Prince has been delivered.”

Though the figure maintained an air of superiority, he did not act out of line toward the newcomer, whose identity was not ordinary: it was Wu Lan, the Chancellor.

This mysterious figure could directly cooperate with the Chancellor!

Moreover, the strength he had just displayed was already at the grandmaster level, and in Shao Tan’s memories, no one exhibited similar skills.

“If Shaolin Temple is involved in protecting the Crown Prince, then Abbot San Zang is certainly here. His absence at this moment means things are not so simple.”

As a former disciple of San Zang, he knew the abbot’s character well.

Indeed, after Elder Zhao Zhen rushed in to rescue and failed, the mysterious leader took some men and swiftly departed in another direction.

“With only a bunch of small fry left, it’s the perfect time to strike!” Sun Meng thought, shouting loudly as he charged forward.