Wait, How Did My Digital Girlfriend Become a Sword Immortal? Chapter 856.1: Robbing Peter to Pay Paul

Chapter 856.1: Robbing Peter to Pay Paul

...

This was not some demonic beast possessed of the Taotie bloodline.

It was the genuine Beast King, Taotie!

Renshou stood frozen in shock, staring at the massive creature as it bared a terrifying set of fangs. Deep within the recesses of its maw, a vortex of swirling chaos churned, visible even through the abyssal opening of its mouth.

The secret behind Taotie’s legendary ability to consume all things was tied directly to that very vortex.

It functioned as Taotie’s stomach—a void capable of grinding everything down into nothingness, leaving behind naught but raw, primal energy.

Renshou’s knees grew unsteady. Edging closer to Chen Huaian, he whispered, "Chen Sword Master, you... you possess a real Taotie..."

Chen Huaian responded with a serene nod. "That is correct."

"Then... why keep that a secret until now?"

"You never inquired about it~"

Renshou: "..."

Muscle Tyrant cast a curious gaze toward the elderly cultivator standing beside Chen Huaian. Since Chen Huaian had claimed he went to secure a treasure for it, the beast wondered if this cultivator was meant to be its meal. However, it had been a very long time since it had last consumed a cultivator.

Even so, the old man carried a certain aura, a subtle, enticing fragrance that piqued the beast's interest.

"Boss, is this a snack you’ve prepared for me?"

Muscle Tyrant extended a claw, gesturing toward Renshou. A single fingernail of the beast spanned nearly as long as Renshou’s entire body.

"In a manner of speaking, though he is not the snack," Chen Huaian remarked, causing Renshou’s heart to skip a beat. "Elder Ren, this is the true Taotie. I wonder, can your Meridian Refining Technique still perform its function here?"

Renshou peered at the savage-looking Taotie, his mind caught in a web of confusion.

Why... why would a Taotie surface in this separate world?

The Cangyun Realm was considered a Great Thousand World...

Could it be that the realm Chen Sword Master had brought him to was once a lost piece of the Cangyun Realm itself?

The more he dwelled on the possibility, the more logical it appeared to Renshou. Ancient texts hinted that the primordial Cangyun Realm was vast, only shattering into countless fragments following a monumental war between Gods and Immortals. The current Cangyun Realm was merely the largest remaining piece; the others had either become smaller worlds orbiting it or had vanished into the unknown. Because historical records from that era were nearly non-existent for Cangyun cultivators, this theory seemed plausible.

Perhaps this world was indeed a primordial fragment. If Taotie’s soul had remained anchored to this shard, it would explain how Chen Sword Master found a living, breathing specimen.

Renshou felt as if he had uncovered a profound mystery. Glancing around, the mountains and landscape seemed to take on a strange, newfound sense of familiarity.

Chen Sword Master must have pieced this together long ago, he reasoned. He decided to watch his tongue, fearing that bringing it up would paint him as an incessant babbler in front of his master.

"Reporting to the Sword Master, in theory, the Meridian Refining Technique is designed to bolster the purity of a demonic beast’s lineage. Its impact on the true form of a Taotie should be minimal, but..." Renshou sensed the creature’s pressure and chose his words carefully. "I notice that Senior Taotie has not reached its zenith. Is my assessment correct?"

Chen Huaian nodded silent confirmation. Before he could speak, Muscle Tyrant shook its head irritably. "So what if I am not at my peak? I can still crush those countless fake Immortals until their teeth scatter! This Young Master has simply been eroded by these relentless cycles! Do you recall how majestic I was during the old days? Even the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors hesitated when they laid eyes on me!"

Muscle Tyrant was not exaggerating. In terms of sheer destructive power, it certainly ranked among the elite of the primordial era. The Yellow Emperor had even severed its head and displayed its image on a cauldron as a warning against greed, but that had done little to stop it. Decapitation was a trivial setback for such a creature; it would merely sprout a new head.

"Chen Sword Master, this junior is unfamiliar with the local affairs. May I ask what Senior Taotie implies by 'endless cycles'?"

Renshou still needed clarity on the situation before he could determine if the Meridian Refining Technique would suffice.

"There is no harm in explaining," Chen Huaian said, his brow creased. "This world is known as Earth Star, a place steeped in ancient myths. Yet, for an unknown duration, it has been locked in eternal loops controlled by a faction of higher-dimensional entities called the Celestial God Clan. Whether human, demon, or divinity, no living entity can escape this fate. Whenever the cultivation civilization of Earth Star reaches a specific peak, the Celestial God Clan triggers a reset."

"Those Immortals and Gods who align with the Celestial God Clan seemingly evade the worst of these cycles through dormancy, while a privileged few retain fragments of their memories, gaining strength with every restart. As for those who refuse to submit, their souls and bodies are wiped, then cast back into the past by the rules of karma. This marks a single cycle. Earth Star has suffered 137 such cycles; we are currently in the 138th. I do not know when the end will come, but I have found myself entangled in this karmic net. I am fighting with everything I possess to shatter this cycle once and for all."

"I understand now." Despite not being part of the karmic loop, Renshou felt a chill run down his spine just hearing the tale. What manner of beings had the power to manipulate time and space across an entire world, overriding the cosmic rules of reality? Such a feat transcended the domain of Immortals. Hearing Chen Huaian’s own involvement deepened his sense of worry. As a member of the Moon Shadow Sect, he fervently prayed for Chen Huaian’s continued survival.

"This junior understands," Renshou stated, bowing respectfully as he analyzed the situation through his craft. "Those higher-dimensional entities do not bear the cost of these cycles alone. They force the world's Destiny Energy to be shared among all inhabitants caught in the loop. Senior Taotie, having endured 138 cycles, is likely weakened because your Divine Soul and Destiny Energy have been harvested as fuel for these resets."

Taotie paused, reflecting. Its memories were hazy, but that explanation rang true. It wasn't just the beast; even the myriad fake Immortals and Buddhas were visibly declining each time, which was the only reason it could still dominate them. To a powerhouse like Chen Huaian, who brought cultivation traditions from another world, the disparity was crystal clear.

"You speak the truth. Do you have a remedy? I recall the boss mentioning your Meridian Refining Technique..." Muscle Tyrant urged, claws scraping the ground with excitement.

Renshou smiled confidently. "Senior Taotie, fret not. The Meridian Refining Technique restores bloodline purity and replenishes the very Destiny Energy that ordinary demonic beasts find impossible to reclaim. Since your bloodline remains untainted, the technique can assist you in recovering to your glory days!"

"But I have always understood the Destiny Energy of heaven and earth to be finite," Chen Huaian countered, frowning. "If Taotie’s energy was siphoned, it was likely consumed by the Celestial God Clan or others. Can you actually snatch that energy back from such supreme beings?"

"How could a junior like me possess such might?" Renshou laughed bitterly, then reminded him, "Chen Sword Master, have you forgotten? The raw materials for my technique were always drawn from other demonic beasts within the Cangyun Realm!"

Chen Huaian was struck by sudden, brilliant clarity. He stood stock-still for a moment.

Good heavens!

He was essentially robbing Peter to pay Paul.

But then again, robbing a useless wall to patch a critical one—that exchange was more than worth the effort.

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