Ignoring Hui as he bowed, Yunxu waved his hand. An enormous spell array appeared in the air above him, red threads twisting together into an ornate formula. The sky blackened, and a faint scent of blood swirled in the air. The red threads began to glow. As the darkness grew deeper, so too did the formula grow brighter. Powerful emanations beat at the air, battering Hui’s body. Yunxu and Hui’s hair and robes whipped around them, the emanations creating a fierce wind that whirled left and right, torn in both directions at once.

Hui put a hand to his neck to protect Zhubi, only to remember that Zhubi wasn’t with him. Hui sighed in relief. Good. I wouldn’t want to hurt Zhubi.

Yunxu stared at the sky, licking his lips in anticipation. “Come. Come to me!”

All at once, the center of the array opened up. Pitch black hung in the sky, surrounded by brilliant red. A pulse of red energy flew through the void. It flew up, up, up, appearing smaller and smaller as it flew, until it thumped into the sky high above. Red energy rolled out from the strike, spreading out over the ceiling of the sky. A gold net appeared where the red energy touched. It shimmered, and the red light dissipated. When the red light vanished, so too did the gold net fade away.

Hui raised his eyebrows. The Heavenly Net! So it is real in this world, a real physical net to separate the mortal and immortal realms. I wonder if I could fly up and touch it? Ah, not that this small cultivator would dare. I’m not eager to seek my death!

The spell pulsed again. Another blast of red energy flew up into the sky, smashing into the net. Again, the net dispelled it, but it took longer. Faint streaks of red appeared on the gold threads directly contacting the red energy.

Hui touched the bird charm on his belt and nodded. Ah, if there’s such a powerful net separating the realms, no wonder Master hasn’t stepped in to help me. He must be trapped on the far side, the same as I’m trapped on this side. After all, if I think about it, even a Wandering Immortal like Han Qin, one who failed to ascend to Heaven and failed to become a true immortal, must sacrifice much in order to interfere in this world in his true form. For True Immortals to intervene in this world… how much must they sacrifice?

Contacting the Immortal realm alone takes so many resources. This spell is incredible. I don’t like the scent of blood, but putting aside his usage of blood qi, Yunxu must be depleting his sect’s resources to contact the Immortal. No wonder he didn’t do it before he was absolutely sure! The Immortal realm is difficult for everyone, huh?

Another pulse of red struck the golden net, then another. As the fourth pulse struck, the entire visible net trembled, then began to droop as something pushed into it from the other side.

“Come! Descend! I’ve brought him here. Take us both to the Heavens!” Yunxu shouted, eyes glittering with obsession.

“Eh, Senior, could it be? Is this small cultivator your shortcut? Your isekai cheat?” Hui asked. He shook his head at the Heavens, disappointed in them. Usually, the person who enters the other world is the one who gets a cheat. How come I got iseaki’d, only to end up as someone else’s cheat? That doesn’t seem fair!

“What’s an isekai?” Yunxu asked.

“Isekai is when people travel to other worlds,” Hui explained.

“Then… I will isekai myself into your world!” Yunxu declared boldly, clenching his fist.

Hui coughed. I don’t see any trucks around… anyways. “Ah, Senior, you may not want to speak like that. They’ll mistake you for an edgy eighth-grader.”

“Let them mistake me for an eighth-realm cultivator! I will conquer your world!” Yunxu howled.

Was I afraid of this man? Was I really afraid of him? Hui wondered, shaking his head at Yunxu. He opened his mouth, then shut it again. You know what? I’ll let him have this one. There’s no need to burst his bubble.

Although… I wonder. If Yunxu ended up in my world… well, I didn’t notice any qi. It’s possible I just didn’t notice it, but…

In any case, isn’t it impossible to enter my world? Yunxu had to cast an elaborate spell to bring me over, but he called me to this world from this world. No one can cast spells in my world, so no one could possibly call him over from that world. Hui considered, then shrugged. Well, that’s for people who have to obey this world’s rules. Immortal-level existences can probably do what ever they want. Thus, I shouldn’t laugh at Yunxu! After all, my world really could be under threat!

Not that I’m particularly attached to it, but I don’t think it deserves to be captured by these dangerous cultivators, either. They’d make my world dangerous, far too dangerous! My world doesn’t deserve to end up in a situation like this world, where might makes right and justice is in the hands of whoever chooses to mete it out. Although my world is far from perfect, at least one doesn’t have to be a godly talent with a sword in order to live a comfortable and worry-free life.

And it seems… this small cultivator is somehow the key to them invading my world! Ha. But what if that key dies? Rather than wait for that hand to descend, shouldn’t I take the initiative and remove myself from the equation?

After all, I’m only a clone. I… I don’t want to die, but I’ll die rather than put my world at risk! Hui reached to his hip, toward his sword.

A hand as strong as steel closed around his wrist. Yunxu appeared in his face, eyes pure black. He scowled at Hui. “You dare?”

“This small cultivator always dares,” Hui replied. He suppressed his life qi and circulated his death qi through his body, letting it corrupt his qi and flesh.

Yunxu released his wrist and caught him by the forehead instead. A powerful energy paralyzed Hui. He continued to circulate his death qi, smiling blithely at Yunxu. There’s nothing you can do. It’s too late.

A fist slammed into his dantian. Already weakened by Hui’s own death qi, it burst, shattering inside Hui’s body. Hui coughed, spitting up blood. His entire body weakened as his qi stopped flowing, and he felt his cultivation plunging. Fourth realm, third, second… all the way down to a mere mortal. Yunxu’s hands felt like diamond, unbreakable. His struggling became less than a mouse’s fart, unable to move a single pinky of Yunxu’s hand.

Life qi forced its way into his body, negating the death qi. Yunxu glared at Hui, his eyes slits. “Why? You could have entered the Heavens a cultivator and climbed to the heights of an Immortal. You could have conquered two worlds, two entire realms. Instead, you attempt to kill yourself?”

Hui laughed in his face, unintimidated. The worst has already come to pass. My cultivation is gone, an Immortal-level existence is descending, and my death is sure. Even if I ascended to the Heavens and survived, I would truly become a bug, a being as trapped under the immortals’ thumb as I was as a debtor trapped by the loan sharks. I refuse to return to that lifestyle!

All I can do now is protest the inevitable. I cannot escape, I cannot survive, but I can still foil their plans. Even if it’s impossible, I’ll still overturn the Heavens, if only by dying!

He shook his head. “Senior, this small cultivator has already died thrice. I truly do not fear the reaper.”

“Fine. Then enter Heaven a helpless cripple, unable to control your own fate!” Yunxu snarled. He tensed his hand. More qi flowed into Hui, utterly immobilizing him.

Overhead, the Heavenly Net snapped. A huge golden hand, larger than Han Qin’s by an order of magnitude, reached through the hole. It spread wide, blocking the Heavenly Net from view. The fingers were so huge that Hui couldn’t see their ends, and the palm covered the entire sky. Yunxu flew toward it, his eyes and hair wild. “Today, we ascend!”

Too bad Zhubi isn’t here. I could have him bite me. Ah, but no. I’m glad Zhubi’s safe, Hui thought to himself.

His mind raced, full of ways to kill himself. My talismans… my talismans! Right! All I need is for Yunxu to be distracted for long enough to burn myself to death, and then—!

At Hui’s waist, the jade bird snapped. Hui glanced down, then laughed again. I guess even Master can’t help me. That means I’ll have to figure out a distraction on my own.

He cleared his throat. “Yunxu…”

As the gold hand descended, the small scrap of the Heavenly Net visible between the gap in the second and third fingers trembled. It, too, bent downward, then snapped. A human-sized figure in white, so small as to be no more than a spark, zoomed down toward the hand.

Hui squinted. Is that… could it be…?

The white figure drew back its leg and released a kick. Though it appeared to Hui to be an ordinary kick, the golden hand shattered. Gold pieces rained down on Hui and Yunxu.

Yunxu halted in midair. His jaw hung open, and his eyes opened wide. “Wh…what?”

Overhead, Weiheng Wu crossed his arms. He gazed down on Hui and shook his head silently.

“Master!” Hui shouted, delighted. He came!

But wait, how? The jade bird surely wasn’t enough to call him from the far side of the Heavenly Net.

Hui shook his head. No, no, don’t use normal logic! It’s Master. Master probably just comprehended the Heavenly Net so deeply that crossing it became trivial! Yes, that… that sounds disgustingly likely!

Yunxu released him, charging after Weiheng Wu. “You! What have you done?”

Weiheng Wu flicked his finger. Hui didn’t see any qi or energy, not even a bolt of light, but Yunxu stopped dead, then flew backward, plummeting toward earth like a falling star. Blood streamed out of his seven apertures, his form limp and lifeless.

Weiheng Wu turned back to Hui. His mouth moved, and as if he stood beside Hui, Hui heard his voice.

“There are forces in this world even I have not yet fully comprehended. Quickly, destroy this clone while you have the chance. He is coming.”

He is coming? Hui wondered.

Overhead, a horrible scream rang out. The Heavenly Net ripped apart like wrapping paper. A second hand, this one as white as jade, reached for Weiheng Wu.

Weiheng Wu charged at the hand. The two battled. Waves of pressure ripped over the sky and earth. In a breath’s span, every hut flattened, every tree fell, and the ground was wiped smooth. Hui’s almost-mortal body was battered back and forth in midair. His organs shattered, and blood poured out of every pore.

Quickly. Quickly! Not just to die, but to completely eradicate myself! Hui drew out his fire talismans and pasted them all over his body, then set them alight. Flames burst up all over his body.

Through the flames, he watched his Master battle the hand. Spell formations appeared all over the arm, launching attacks at his Master, but Weiheng Wu swished a sleeve, and they all fell apart into their component pieces. He dashed at the arm, transforming into a beam of light, and the arm rushed to meet him. The two clashed, sending shockwaves through the air.

Below them, Hui tore open his own core, exposing it to the flames. I can’t risk it with a faked death. This has to be a true death. Immortals have many ways of sensing things, beyond what this small cultivator can comprehend. If I don’t die, he’ll have some way of snatching me away!

His body withered up. He felt himself dying, felt his core snap and burn, and then the world turned monochrome.

A woman in white carrying a long sword sat over him, head in her hand. Although she watched Weiheng Wu clash with the hand, she looked utterly bored. As Hui appeared, she stood upright and walked over to him. “Coming?”

“Please, Elder Sister!” Hui said, running to her side.

She laughed lightly, lifting the sword. “I think that’s the first time I’ve ever had someone ask politely.”

Silver flashed. Hui’s vision faded. Even as he died, a triumphant smile spread over his face.

Take that. This small Hui might not be able to forthrightly contest the Heavens, but that doesn’t mean I can’t ruin your plans anyways!

Ah, but my apologies, Master. It looks like this poor disciple… died again, today.

END VOLUME 4.