In a corner of the villa, Zhao Dezhu sat hunched over with his neck drawn in, unable to make sense of what was happening.

He had barely flown any distance when Wang Sheng swooped in, dragged him back, and tossed him into this corner like an eagle snatching a chick.

Then came Xi Lian, the Daoist master whose beauty almost seemed unreal, the legendary Mu Wanxuan, and Mu Wanxuan's junior sister.

They all gathered around him.

What exactly is going on...

People could normally only dream of so many graceful immortals surrounding them. Their bearing alone set them far above ordinary girls.

But right now, Zhao Dezhu felt like a frog about to be dissected—the kind that could not even struggle anymore.

Nearby, Fei Yu was discussing something with a figure dressed in a blood-red robe. One glance at the man made Zhao Dezhu feel as if he were staring at death itself.

"How can we confirm it, Your Imperial Majesty?"

"Just pull out his soul and take a look."

"Would that have any effect..."

"He is only a mortal. Even if he dies, I can bring him back."

Zhao Dezhu shuddered. From their conversation, he could not sense the slightest hint of "kindness."

So this is what the upper circle of cultivators on Earth is like? They're terrifying!

A few minutes later, Wang Sheng cleared his throat and walked over. Mu Wanxuan, Xi Lian, Lin Feiyao, and Qinglin, who had been watching the suspected Human King, all stepped aside and made way for him.

Wang Sheng cupped his hands. "Brother Zhao, I will be direct. I think there is something unusual about you."

"I think so too... Wait, no." Zhao Dezhu trembled twice. "Senior, what exactly is going on? Just give it to me straight."

Smiling gently, Wang Sheng patted Zhao Dezhu's shoulder. "You might be the real big shot here."

Zhao Dezhu did not know whether to laugh or cry.

My luck must have completely maxed out by now, huh.

"Brother Zhao, I will ask you a few questions. I hope you will answer truthfully."

"I will! I swear I will!"

Wang Sheng nodded, casually drew a chair over, and sat down in front of him.

Off to the side, Xi Lian called out, "Let's not disturb them while they handle serious matters. Bu Yu and Fairy Feiyao, shall we go upstairs to the study room and play some board games?"

Lin Feiyao blinked. "What are board games?"

Mu Wanxuan gave a thumbs up. "Fun!"

Lin Feiyao immediately nodded in agreement.

When the three women left, the living room seemingly lost some of its brightness and grew noticeably more serious.

Qinghua stood before the floor-to-ceiling window with his back turned, while Qinglin stood at the doorway with his arms crossed, like a guard.

Zhao Dezhu glanced left, then right, his throat bobbing slightly. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

"Brother Zhao, since childhood, have you ever felt different from others in any way?" Wang Sheng asked.

"Different... from others?"

"Do not be nervous." Wang Sheng smiled. "We kept you here because we sensed something unusual about your soul. We have no intention of harming you."

"Unusual?" Zhao Dezhu shook his head. "I feel pretty normal..."

Wang Sheng pondered for a moment. "Do you have any special hobbies? Preferences count too. This question might be a bit personal, but I hope you understand."

"Of course I do," Zhao Dezhu replied quickly.

He thought carefully, cold sweat forming on his forehead. He was too nervous to think of anything right away. After holding it in for a long while, his face turned red.

He muttered, "Well... I am particularly strong in that area. Does that count?"

Wang Sheng blinked. "Which area?"

"You know... between men and women..."

The sword cultivator immediately looked as though he had come to a realization. Stroking his chin, he pondered.

At the side, Qinglin said, "That would make some sense. That role does require the continuation of bloodlines."

Wang Sheng nodded reluctantly. "True."

Still, that alone was far from enough to prove Zhao Dezhu's identity.

Although Qinghua was likely correct, his claim still had to be verified.

Wang Sheng asked, "Aside from that, do you have any other traits, Brother Zhao? For example... Are you particularly lucky?"

"My luck only turned around after I met you, Senior."

Zhao Dezhu sighed and spoke in a low voice.

"I was a sickly child. Had I not met my master, I might not have lived past my twenties. Moreover, when I started cultivating with him, I progressed slowly. He said I was lacking from birth, and only after a lot of effort did he help me form a Golden Core. To be honest, I barely succeeded in dating before. The one time it finally worked out, she asked me how much I was going to pay her afterward..."

Slowly, Zhao Dezhu told his story. Anyone who heard it would feel both sorrowful and sympathetic.

Wang Sheng nodded along in sympathy, but he was thinking the entire time.

The part about being sickly from birth matches. His luck only changing after meeting me does not quite add up, though...

Before long, Zhao Dezhu finished speaking. Wang Sheng sat in the chair, deep in thought.

Daoist Master Qinglin mentioned before that my identity as the reincarnation of the sacred spirit could influence the fate of the Human King, drawing that person to me. Could this junior I have met by chance in a cultivator detention center truly be the Human King, though?

"Brother Zhao, let's discuss this for a bit. Do not be nervous. We absolutely will not harm you."

"Alright, I will cooperate fully," Zhao Dezhu said, making his stance clear. He forced out an awkward smile at Wang Sheng.

Then, Wang Sheng discussed matters with Qinghua and Qinglin.

No one cared about seniority or differences in cultivation. They only had a handful of people they could truly trust. One more person meant one more perspective.

Very soon, Qinglin proposed, "Someone out there does not want the Human King to leave this place. If so, why don't we take him to the entrance of the Realm of Exiled Immortals, or try flying out of Earth? If he really is under a restriction, it should be triggered."

"I will go test it myself," Qinghua said.

Wang Sheng quickly added, "Your Imperial Majesty, no matter what happens, please make sure he's unharmed."

Qinghua smiled faintly. "Of course."

He used immortal power to wrap Zhao Dezhu in a qi bubble.

Zhao Dezhu blinked as he slowly floated up inside it. Before he could even react, everything went dark.

A blue planet appeared before his eyes, and beside it stretched the vast emptiness of space.

He left Earth in an instant?

At that very moment, Qinghua frowned slightly. Carrying Zhao Dezhu, he tried to fly forward, but nine beams of light shot out from different regions beyond the Hua Republic. The chains then formed massive chains in front of the two, intertwining and turning into a huge disk that pressed downward.

Chain imprints appeared on Zhao Dezhu's forehead and limbs. They wrapped around him in an instant, binding him tightly and forcing him back toward the ground.

At that moment, Zhao Dezhu's eyes widened with fury. He seemed like a different person. His cultivation was still shallow, yet he radiated an indescribable authority.

"Haotian! You cannot imprison me!"

Qinghua frowned slightly. He considered breaking the chains, but he hesitated.

With a light tap of his finger, strands of black qi coiled around Zhao Dezhu. Right after, the two reappeared above the villa.

The chains around Zhao Dezhu and those in the sky vanished as if they had never existed.

Nothing unusual appeared on Earth either. The Hua Republic's global monitoring department only detected intense fluctuations of primal qi.

Zhao Dezhu tried to speak again, but his eyelids grew heavy. He fell asleep inside the bubble.

***

Back in the villa, everyone gathered again.

"So it really is the cliché of searching everywhere only to find it right before us," Wang Sheng slowly commented.

All the doubts he had earlier had now been verified. If Qinghua had not been here, he might have required decades to uncover the truth.

Only once Zhao Dezhu had cultivated to a certain level and tried to leave Earth would this phenomenon naturally happen.

Xi Lian shrugged and asked softly, "We have found him, but what now? We are not even immortals yet."

Qinglin smiled. "A being like this will rise swiftly once freed."

Mu Wanxuan typed a few lines on her phone.

If we remove his seal, will it alert the opposing side? Master said earlier that lifting the seal will be easy. The real problem is how to conceal this matter.

Wang Sheng thought for a moment. "We sought the Human King for that share of heavenly fate. Strength is not the key issue. Even if we find a complete Great Dao for Brother Zhao to accept, it would take tens of thousands of years for him to fully integrate it. And where would we even find such a Great Dao?

"Now that we have confirmed his identity, our main problem is already solved. From here on, we have to protect him properly. Once I've gotten the Dao of Creation, I will find a way to remove his seal."

"For now, that's all we can do," Qinghua said with thoughtful eyes. "What exactly is the Immortal Emperor trying to do? If he tried to kill the sacred spirit to seize fate and destiny, then why did he seal the Human King?"

Qinglin answered, "Maybe to secure his position as the ruler of the Three Realms?"

Qinghua and Wang Sheng shook their heads slightly, which made Qinglin look a little embarrassed. He simply was not viewing the matter from the same point of view as Wang Sheng.

Soon, Wang Sheng and Qinghua exchanged a glance. They had both reached the same conclusion.

The Immortal Emperor could have begun laying out a grand scheme from the moment he targeted the sacred spirit. The Human King was an unstable factor, or perhaps a threat to that plan.

The group fell silent and looked at Zhao Dezhu, who was sleeping soundly on the remaining half of the sofa.

Wang Sheng said, "I will notify the authorities first. Your Imperial Majesty, please stay on Earth for a while. I will spend some time with my senior sister..."

Qinghua smiled faintly. "That is fine. I will wait inside the great Buddha statue. This is a good chance to stabilize the somewhat unstable foundation of my Great Dao."

Smiling, Wang Sheng nodded.

Just like that, the number of Earth's powerful guardians increased from two to three. With their lineup, any invader would likely be terrified to even make a move.

Qinghua did not linger on Earth for long. Just as Wang Sheng had worried, his Dao of Death was not entirely stable.

For now, he concealed himself from heavenly fate. Chun Yangzi had also carefully prepared the great Buddha statue. It served as an excellent hiding place.

On the second day after learning that Zhao Dezhu was the reincarnation of the Human King, Chi Ling personally came to the villa. After speaking with Wang Sheng, she took Zhao Dezhu away under official protection.

When the man left, he was still somewhat dazed, though he had begun to understand a little.

Wang Sheng encouraged him, gave him some cultivation manuals and spiritual pills, and then patted his shoulder.

He earnestly said, "Young man, the greater your strength, the greater your responsibility[1]. If the day comes when I can no longer protect Earth, that responsibility may fall on you."

Zhao Dezhu's legs nearly gave out. "S-Senior, is this really that serious?"

"We're counting on you."

"Senior, I really am not reliable..."

Wang Sheng smiled at him slightly and gave him an encouraging look. "Think about your name, young man."

1. Legally distinct Uncle Ben/Aunt May's advice. ☜