The tombstone hadnât said âLu Yunâs Tombâ at first. Only after his fifty-sixth entry did the characters appear on the tombstone.
Plainly, the tomb owner was behind it.
Whatever level or kind of existence the dead might be, their greatest desire was to live again. Death was anguish and the only way to escape anguish was resurrection. Even a saint whoâd sacrificed themselves for the sake of others would want to live again after dying. Their desire would burn so fiercely that they would be willing to destroy anything if they could come back to life.
The same went for the owner of the tomb. Upon realizing that Lu Yun was undying with the power of reincarnation, it wanted the power for itself so it could resurrect.
However, the Tome of Life and Death was Lu Yunâs and the power of reincarnation was one with the young man. It wouldnât be so easy to seize it. Thus, the tomb owner changed tactics to burying Lu Yun. As for how itâd then seize the power of reincarnation, Lu Yun didnât know.
But there was one fact that always held true, and that the words of ghosts could not be trusted. Not a single word or even punctuation mark could be believed. It was impossible that the other wanted to send Lu Yun to reality on the other side.
âWhat a pity that I never remember anything that happened. Iâm brought back to the starting point after I die and need to start anew.â Lu Yun looked around, vexed.
If he could remember everything that took place before, he would make certain plans before entering the tomb and be able to take appropriate action. Death here signified the end and starting over from the beginning. He forgot everything on his current attemptâsuch was the law of reincarnation.
Starting over didnât mean retracing his steps from the moment of birth, but from the moment that he set foot on this path of death. Only when Lu Yun returned to the same place that heâd died nearly two thousand times could he discover some clues and regain his memories of everything thatâd taken place before.
The tomb owner was so unfathomably strong that Lu Yunâs power of reincarnation couldnât affect him. It was as if the two were two different planesâthe Land of Reincarnation and the chief worlds outside. The power of reincarnation circulated again and again inside the Land of Reincarnation without affecting the chief worlds.
âHow about I donât die this time?â Lu Yun swung his head around, but realized that he wouldnât find the path to resolving everything even if he didnât die.
The Dragonquake ScriptureâŠ
Heâd deployed it seventy-eight times in the tome and died to a mysterious power each time he did so. It could resolve the conundrum of the tomb, but Lu Yun caught only the backlash because he wasnât strong enough.
Or rather, the tomb owner killed Lu Yun the split second that danger descended.
There was no room for him to strike back in this locale. He could only continuously probe the premises and try to identify where the tomb ownerâs strength didnât reach. That would be the flaw in the tomb.
Nothing was perfect amongst creation; all things held their own weaknesses. The same applied to the tomb and the tomb owner, who seemed to be irritated that Lu Yun didnât respond. There was desire in its heart and Lu Yunâs repeated deaths tied it up in knots.
Such were the effects of reincarnation.
Reincarnation could destroy dead things and bring them back to life; it had an exceedingly powerful effect on the dead. Lu Yunâs continual usage of reincarnation to come back to life was also diminishing the tomb owner in the process. However, it was such a minute effect that neither Lu Yun nor the tomb owner realized it.
All the same, it subconsciously shifted the tomb ownerâs mentality. Granted, the dead had no mentality. They exploded with a touch.
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âYouâll make it through yourself? A pathetic ant like you?â the tomb owner snorted. It didnât give up tempting Lu Yun.
âMmhmm.â The young man inclined his head and ignored it, taking another step forward.
His body bloomed like a firework.
âHave you considered things further?â
âYou wonât get to take another step forward if you donât agree.â
âThen Iâll just stand still here.â
âHow about I send you to reality?â
âKid, why are you so stubborn?!â The tomb owner was on the verge of mental collapse after endless repeats and explosions. Meanwhile, the temple masters whoâd become one with the tomb were completely numb to things.
They were different from the Fire God and the other gods because the latter group was as if residents of the Land of Reincarnation. Thus, they would continuously loop with Lu Yun. The dead temple masters, however, were as if inhabitants of the chief worlds. They silently watched the Land of Reincarnation repeat itself.
âHuh?â Lu Yun looked at the tomb owner blankly. Heâd just set foot into the tomb and had yet to analyze himself and receive information from the past. Therefore, he didnât know what the stranger was talking about.
âHavenât you had enough yet?â Lu Yun was growing irritated as well and spoke before the tomb owner could. He hadnât taken a single step in all of these instances, much less search for the way out of the tomb.
âYouâll have to continuously repeat yourself here if you donât agree to being sent to reality on the other side.â Smugness tinged the tomb ownerâs voice.
âI know what you want to do, you just want to steal my power of reincarnation so you can come back to life.â Lu Yun looked wordlessly up at the sky. âYouâve lured me to the depths of the tomb but still canât claim the power. Youâre playing with fire.â
He opened his right hand and displayed the jumping flame of reincarnation.
âIâve transmuted the power into fire. If you bury me here, the best possible outcome for you is to be set ablaze by the fire of reincarnation and turn into nothing. The other possible outcome is a fate worse than death and endlessly cycling between life and death.â
After experiencing so many deathsâat least eight thousand, if not ten thousandâLu Yun had a decent grasp of what the tomb owner wanted. It wanted to bury Lu Yun here so the young man would become one with the tomb. The tomb owner would have procured a substitute and a stand-in for itself. After stealing the power of reincarnation, it would be able to slip away as Lu Yunâs replacement.
It would live in Lu Yunâs stead.
Every time Lu Yun deduced whatâd happened to him before, he would also follow his previous line of thinking and analyze what the tomb owner wished to accomplish.
There was great terror between life and death and also great nourishment. A tiny change occurred each time Lu Yun died. Heâd harvested that greatest nourishment when he first arrived in the world of immortalsâhis heart and mind underwent a metamorphosis that enabled his rapid rise and eventual establishment of his own territory in the world of immortals.
If it was the Lu Yun of EarthâŠ
Heâd just be a tomb raider for hire.
After repeated deaths and enlightenment, his mind was clear. His strength didnât change, but formula dao took a qualitative leap forward. Heâd deduced the tomb ownerâs plans and its ending.
Lu Yunâs own wasnât any better offâit would be a scheme that ended in grave casualties to both sides.