Chapter 251 – Vow-Power Heart Lamp Advances: Overbearing Divine Intent

Mu Lin was unaware of the Savior Organization’s assessment of him.

Ever since emerging from the assessment, Mu Lin had been tirelessly focused on improving his strength.

Sealing the Hundred Ghosts and preparing for the Hundred Ghosts Night Parade was part of this.

Cultivation, cultivation, and relentless cultivation had become Mu Lin’s daily routine these days.

The Taiyin Life-Nurturing Scripture, Mindscape – City God – Sky Burial City, Blackwater Profound Serpent Mortal Shedding Art, Paper Figure Curse, Substitute Paper Figure, Soul Sealing Art, Vow-Power Heart Lamp, Calligraphy, Painting, Paper Folding, Talismans, Arrays…

With so many cultivation methods and countless techniques to master, even with the assistance of his Clone and the Time Realm, Mu Lin still found himself overwhelmed and scrambling to manage it all.

At this point, Mu Lin couldn’t help but appreciate Yan Yunyu’s role.

Her presence meant Mu Lin hardly had to worry about trivial matters or resources—he could simply focus on cultivation.

“She’s been a tremendous help.”

After a night of passion, the next morning, gazing at Yan Yunyu’s slightly alluring face, feeling her fair and smooth skin, and reflecting on all the assistance she had provided, Mu Lin couldn’t help but pull her into his embrace, tenderly caressing her.

Of course, Mu Lin’s indulgence didn’t last long. He was well aware that now was not the time for leisure.

Thus, he soon turned to serious matters.

“How is the spread of the Netherworld stories going?”

“Mm… very smoothly. After you gave the order, husband, I contacted over a hundred publishing houses and nearly ten thousand storytellers. Now, in county town taverns, tales of Hell and the Netherworld Palace are told daily.”

Nestled in Mu Lin’s arms, Yan Yunyu basked in a sense of security while recounting everything she had accomplished these past days.

“Oh, and there’s one more thing. The legends of ‘good deeds rewarded, evil deeds punished’ and reincarnation have gained significant recognition among the common folk. As a result, many of them have begun to regard Hell and the Netherworld Palace as objects of faith.”

“The Civil and Military Judges, Cui Yu, and Zhong Kui, whom you’ve been promoting, husband, are now worshipped as deities by many, with daily offerings made to them.”

“Others, such as Black and White Impermanence, Ox-Head and Horse-Face, Day and Night Patrol Gods, and even King Yama, have also gained acceptance.”

“However, it’s only the common people who embrace these beliefs. Most scions of noble families, martial artists, and Qi Refiners dismiss them with contempt.”

Hearing this, Mu Lin raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

No matter where you go, it is often the more ignorant and foolish who place greater faith and reverence in deities.

True wise individuals mostly question the existence of gods.

And those with the mindset of a true powerhouse would even aspire to replace the gods themselves.

This holds true for gods, and the same applies to reincarnation.

The strong never believe in reincarnation; they only acknowledge invincibility in the present life.

Only those burdened by the weight and suffering of reality turn to reincarnation as a form of spiritual solace.

Unfortunately, however, the world is predominantly populated by ordinary people and the impoverished.

Especially in this world, where social classes are rigidly defined, commoners are treated like cattle and horses, with no hope for the future.

Consequently, the concepts of Hell and reincarnation have spread widely and rapidly across this world.

In fact, Mu Lin believed that before long, even without his behind-the-scenes efforts, the people would begin spreading these ideas spontaneously.

And once the concepts of Hell, the Netherworld Palace, and figures like Cui Yu had spread to a sufficient extent, Mu Lin would be able to use Nether Communication – Heroic Soul Summoning to gather these concepts, pulling the legendary, fantastical characters into the mortal world as heroic souls.

“The mind possesses power, and not just mine—the minds of ordinary people are also a form of power. Although the mental strength of a single individual is extremely weak, when the minds of hundreds of millions converge, everything becomes different.”

Mu Lin’s act of spreading the myths of the Netherworld was akin to creating deities.

Of course, this also carried risks.

As the myths of Hell and the Netherworld Palace spread completely, it was possible for Evil Gods from Alien Realms or opportunistic humans to usurp the Divine Positions of the Netherworld deities.

However, as soon as this thought arose, Mu Lin shook his head and chuckled.

As the creator of this world’s myths of Hell and the Netherworld Palace, he held a high priority and had long reserved a position for himself—the Great Emperor of Lidu, Lord of Mount Tai.

These were the supreme deities of the Netherworld lineage.

If any Evil Gods did occupy the positions of Netherworld deities, it would only be a boon for Mu Lin.

When he truly grew strong enough, he could use the status of a Netherworld deity to completely absorb their power for himself.

“As the pioneer of these myths, I can suppress enemies of the same rank, and even command them from afar if they are a rank higher.”

“If they don’t enter the Hell Karma True Spirit Diagram, I might have no way to deal with them and would have to confront them as external foes. But once they enter the diagram, they are seeking their own doom!”

…

With the myths of the Netherworld spreading smoothly, Mu Lin felt one less worry on his mind.

Just as he was relaxing, Yan Yunyu hesitated for a moment before cautiously speaking up: “Brother Mu, you once asked me to request a trial position from the Demon Suppression Division for you. But with cults running rampant and anomalies everywhere outside, I think it’s better if we don’t go. The Tower of Illusory Heavens can serve as a substitute for training.”

Her words made sense, but after some thought, Mu Lin still rejected Yan Yunyu’s suggestion.

“No, I plan to go for the training. Help me request a position in Ping’an Ancient County from the Demon Suppression Division.”

“Ping’an Ancient County?” Yan Yunyu was not foolish, and she quickly grasped the key point in Mu Lin’s words. “Brother Mu, are you going there?”

“Yes, in a month and a half, a Secret Realm will open there. If I can secure a position in Ping’an Ancient County, I’ll gain a lot of support.”

In fact, Mu Lin even planned to go to Ping’an Ancient County ahead of time.

By doing so, he intended to establish his position as City God in Ping’an Ancient County.

This way, he could have his City God Domain envelop the entire city and mobilize all the Spirit Veins within it for battle, significantly boosting his combat power.

Moreover, he could covertly observe how many people had arrived in Ping’an Ancient County.

Additionally, after assuming the role of City God, he could establish a Netherworld administration on the reverse side of the world. Even if he were outmatched, Mu Lin would have a retreat.

Seeing Mu Lin’s unwavering determination, Yan Yunyu finally stopped trying to persuade him. Instead, she took his hand and said with concern, “Brother Mu, you must be careful.”

“Hahaha, don’t worry. I have no intention of dying, and I value my life greatly. Even if you hadn’t said anything, I would have made thorough preparations before going to Ping’an Ancient County.”

…

By thorough preparations, Mu Lin naturally meant the Substitute Paper Figure.

He planned to advance the Substitute Paper Figure to the Grandmaster level before taking up his position in the Demon Suppression Division.

At the same time, although Mu Lin’s Substitute Paper Figure had many uses and extremely useful characteristics, strictly speaking, as a derivative of the Taiyin Life-Nurturing Scripture, it was still an Earth Grade Supreme mystical art. Moreover, advancing its proficiency from the Fourth Realm Master to the Fifth Realm Grandmaster required only 42,000 points.

Well, 42,000 points was not a small amount, but by going all out and stacking it with the Tower of Time, Mu Lin could master it before taking office.

However, what Mu Lin did not expect was that after a period of arduous cultivation, it was not this spell that he completed first; instead, another cultivation method advanced ahead of it.

This cultivation method was called—Vow-Power Heart Lamp.

…

Recently, as Mu Lin’s strength grew increasingly powerful, his actions also became more and more high-profile, which from time to time gave rise to arrogance in his heart.

Whether it was the sudden idea of commanding a hundred anomalies, aiming to become an Orthodox God of the Nether Bureaucracy on the surface and a master of anomalies in the shadows, or treating various Evil Gods as nothing and attacking their Divine Servants, these were all manifestations of the arrogance overflowing from Mu Lin’s heart.

Such arrogance was naturally not a good thing.

However, misfortune is where fortune depends; fortune is where misfortune hides. For Mu Lin, the arrogance in his heart was not entirely a disadvantage.

His ever-increasing strength and the arrogance derived from it also made his Heart Lamp burn brighter and brighter.

Now, he was one hundred percent certain that in the future, he would inevitably become the Lord of Mount Tai, the Great Emperor of Lidu, commanding thousands of Orthodox Gods of the Nether Bureaucracy and suppressing billions of undead Malevolent Ghosts.

This confidence—a confidence backed by substantial progress (the spread of Netherworld myths, the manifestation of Zhong Kui’s Dharma Image, and the fusion of Death Divinity)—caused the flame of Mu Lin’s Vow-Power Heart Lamp to burn fiercely! Wildly! Explosively!

Finally, the blazing Heart Flame reached a limit and, after a slight contraction, violently erupted.

“Boom!”

The erupting flames were like the great sun, illuminating Mu Lin’s Mindscape brightly.

At the same time, the radiant Vow Power Heart Flame also plunged Mu Lin into a special state of enlightenment—his mystical art, Vow-Power Heart Lamp, had advanced.

It advanced from the Third Realm Expert to the Fourth Realm Master.

Yes, only now had the Vow-Power Heart Lamp officially reached the Fourth Realm.

Although its realm was low, the Vow-Power Heart Lamp was a Heaven-Rank Technique, which was why it required an extremely high proficiency—a full 88,000 points. This was also the reason why, despite his growing arrogance, Mu Lin had only advanced now.

Fortunately, although the advancement process was somewhat arduous, after advancing, Mu Lin’s gains were immense.

“Boom!”

The explosively burning Vow Power Heart Flame first acted like fuel, continuously boosting Mu Lin’s Divine Soul power.

Early Sha Refinement, Mid Sha Refinement, Late Sha Refinement, Peak Sha Refinement…

In an extremely short time, Mu Lin’s Divine Soul power crossed the accumulation of a long period, leaping directly from Early Sha Refinement to Peak Sha Refinement.

With just one more opportunity, Mu Lin’s Divine Soul power could reach the Gang Condensation Realm.

And it must be known that in Gang Condensation, Mu Lin could already merge his Divine Soul with Gang Qi.

Once his Divine Soul fused with Heavenly Gang Power, it would be perfected. At that point, it would no longer be a vague, intangible force but could use intent to stir the Spiritual Energy and laws between heaven and earth, even directly affecting enemies.

“Heart Flame explosive burning, Divine Soul growth… This step saved at least seven to ten years of effort for an ordinary person.”

Seven to ten years of arduous cultivation and the advancement of the Vow-Power Heart Lamp brought Mu Lin such an exaggerated enhancement.

Yet the growth of his Divine Soul power was only the foundation of his gains this time.

At this moment, in the midst of his enlightenment, countless sparks of inspiration were exploding in Mu Lin’s mind.

As these inspirations merged, a new characteristic would emerge from his consciousness.

“The fuel that drives the burning of the Vow-Power Heart Lamp is my arrogance and invincible emotions, and arrogance and invincibility—this is the essence of the Overlord…”

“If I deduce in this direction, I can derive the Overlord Divine Intent, and from it, develop the Overlord Fist or the Overlord Sword…”

The so-called Overlord Divine Intent meant that Mu Lin’s attacks would carry boundless oppressive might. If his enemies lacked firm willpower or were unable to withstand it, their strength could be reduced by thirty percent out of thin air—a person’s willpower greatly influences combat.

Beyond oppressing enemies and preventing them from unleashing their full strength, if an attack imbued with Mu Lin’s Overlord intent landed on an enemy, the wounds inflicted would no longer fade over time or heal gradually.

This divine intent would linger on the enemy’s wounds, even worsening their injuries.

Unless this divine intent was completely worn away, the enemy’s wounds could never recover.

This dominance, this tyranny—this was the Overlord Divine Intent.

…

(End of Chapter)