Chapter 351 – Mu Lin Attacks: Writing to Determine Life and Death

“Does breaking my basic attack really make you that happy?”

Upon grasping the meaning behind Mu Lin’s words, many people’s expressions changed drastically, unwilling to believe it.

The northern youth prodigy Zhuang Yuan, standing opposite Mu Lin, had an even more twisted expression.

Clearly, neither Mu Lin’s opponent nor the others could accept this fact.

“Impossible! You’ve only been cultivating for just over a year. No matter how talented you are, you couldn’t possibly have mastered multiple spells to the Grandmaster Realm!”

“Don’t try to bluff me!”

“That Substitute Death Counterattack must be your strongest ability!”

Unwilling—or perhaps afraid—to accept this reality, Zhuang Yuan loudly refuted.

In response, Mu Lin did not argue with him. Instead, he casually reached out and pulled a black, ancient, and heavy book from the void.

On the book were several block characters no one recognized. At this moment, Mu Lin held the book in one hand while flipping through its pages with the other.

Simultaneously, as he turned the pages, the aura around Mu Lin grew solemn and dignified.

“Huff…”

Pressed by Mu Lin’s imposing aura, Zhuang Yuan opposite him breathed heavily.

Of course, what unsettled him even more was the book itself.

Though it had yet to display its power, a sense of impending doom inexplicably surged in Zhuang Yuan’s heart, making his pulse race and his hair stand on end.

This feeling of being judged placed immense pressure on Zhuang Yuan.

In the past, faced with such a sensation, Zhuang Yuan would have immediately attacked, striking first to eliminate the threat before it could grow.

Failing that, he would have simply fled.

In any case, he would never have waited passively for doom.

Unfortunately, neither of these options was feasible for him now.

This was a duel, not a life-or-death battle. Fleeing would mean admitting defeat.

As for attacking first… the defeats of several friends before him had taught him through firsthand experience the dire consequences of striking first.

Unable to attack or escape, Zhuang Yuan could only wait anxiously for judgment to fall.

Of course, during this process, he couldn’t help but try to bolster his own courage.

“Huff, don’t be too nervous. This is likely just Mu Lin bluffing, trying to scare me into making the first move…”

“It’s fine. Mu Lin is so young. In such a short time, mastering one cultivation method to the Grandmaster Realm is already remarkable. Several at the Grandmaster Realm? That’s simply impossible…”

Such words… did not convince even Zhuang Yuan himself. As Mu Lin continued flipping through the book, his sense of crisis grew heavier and heavier, until finally, he felt as insignificant as an ant, while Mu Lin loomed like a towering mountain, seated in a majestic hall, gazing down upon him like a deity.

The book being perused by the solemn deity seemed to contain the entirety of his life. This feeling of having his secrets laid bare made Zhuang Yuan increasingly uneasy.

Now, he felt as though all his abilities had vanished, as if he were lying naked in a frozen wasteland, awaiting the deity’s final judgment.

Whether he should feel relieved or terrified… Mu Lin’s judgment did not keep him waiting long.

After a dozen breaths, Mu Lin’s imposing figure stopped flipping through the book and calmly recited Zhuang Yuan’s information.

“Commoner Zhuang Yuan, born in the 1793rd year of the Great Spirit Imperial Dynasty, from a military household…”

Regarding Mu Lin reciting his own information… Zhuang Yuan did not pay it much mind, nor was he overly surprised.

Since the North-South conflict began, the Southern Aristocracy had been gathering information about them, and Mu Lin was, after all, a member of the Southern Aristocracy. It was only natural for him to have his own sources.

What Zhuang Yuan did not understand was why Mu Lin was reciting his information aloud.

To dispel the fear and unease in his heart, he sneered coldly and said:

“Hmph, knowing these things won’t help you defeat me.”

“Is that so?”

Smiling faintly, Mu Lin remained unaffected and continued reciting:

“At the age of thirteen, you encountered a calamity. The village you were in was destroyed by an eerie and distant echo resonance. You were the sole survivor of the village, and that sound has remained in your mind ever since.”

“With this Forbidden Power, you can sense the reverberations of others’ Mystical Arts, inexplicably comprehend them, and gain some insights…”

“But the more you learn, the more frequently the echoing reverberations resound in your mind…”

By this point, Zhuang Yuan had clenched his fists, his expression tense.

“How do you know…”

He wanted to ask something, but before he could finish his words, Mu Lin’s voice continued.

And what he said next was something even Zhuang Yuan himself did not know, causing his eyes to widen in shock.

“Aware of the dangers of the echoing reverberations, you exercised extreme restraint in using this Forbidden Power. However, the echoes persisted, and even without using it, they would frequently erupt.”

“With your abilities, you ultimately withstood six eruptions of the echoing reverberations. During the seventh eruption, your consciousness completely dissipated at the age of… forty-one.”

“Nonsense!”

Zhuang Yuan was indifferent to Mu Lin revealing his past information, but predicting his future was something he could not ignore.

Thus, he angrily rebuked.

Mu Lin paid no heed to this.

After recounting Zhuang Yuan’s life, Mu Lin’s right hand, which had been flipping through the book, reached into the air once more. Soon, a Talisman Brush appeared in his hand.

Sensing the Magical Artifact-grade Talisman Brush, Mu Lin was somewhat dissatisfied.

“This quality doesn’t quite match the Book of Life and Death.”

Indeed, the Book of Life and Death—the book in Mu Lin’s hand was the Book of Life and Death he had forged using most of his abilities.

The Book of Life and Death could display a person’s life and death status, and now, taking out the brush, he naturally intended to…

“No, stop!”

At this moment, Zhuang Yuan also sensed the danger and immediately shouted out.

In fact, shocked and furious, he even showed signs of taking action.

However, the crushing defeat of his friend earlier had made him realize that once he acted, he would form a karmic connection with Mu Lin, causing all attacks to rebound onto himself.

This shameless ability made him too afraid to act.

Thus, he could only watch helplessly as the majestic Mu Lin, like a deity, took up the brush and rewrote his experiences in the Book of Life and Death.

“At the age of eighteen, during your battle with Mu Lin, due to fear and anger, a flaw appeared in your state of mind, which was detected by the Forbidden Power·Echoing Reverberation, triggering an additional eruption of the echoing reverberations.”

“?!?”

As he wrote, Mu Lin did not remain silent, so Zhuang Yuan clearly heard his… judgment upon himself.

Yes, Mu Lin’s current actions were completely a condescending judgment, not an attack.

This scene also made Zhuang Yuan’s heart tense.

No, it wasn’t just Zhuang Yuan whose heart was in his throat; the surrounding Cultivators watching the battle also looked at the book in Mu Lin’s hand with trepidation and awe, then turned their gaze to Zhuang Yuan, who was fully on guard.

“Hey, do you think the attack will actually come?”

“It shouldn’t… be possible, right? Mu Lin just recited someone else’s situation and scribbled randomly in a book. If that could take effect…”

“Goodness, this ability is even more exaggerated than the Substitute Death Counterattack from earlier.”

“Words Become Law—that’s a Divine Authority. Even though Mu Lin is exceptionally talented, he’s only a Gang Sha Sorcerer. I don’t believe he can possess such an ability.”

“To be honest, I don’t want to believe it either, but this is Mu Lin we’re talking about…”

The mention of “this is Mu Lin” left many people speechless.

Since beginning his cultivation, he had performed too many heaven-defying feats. An attack that could take effect just by scribbling randomly—others couldn’t do it, but Mu Lin… he really might be able to.

Just as some doubted and others believed, Zhuang Yuan, who was vigilantly watching Mu Lin, suddenly… his expression changed abruptly.

The Echoing Reverberation erupted in his mind exactly as Mu Lin had declared.

“Ah!!”

The erupting Echoing Reverberation made Zhuang Yuan clutch his head, howling in agony.

The surrounding Cultivators, witnessing this scene, gasped in shock and collectively leaned back.

—This ability to determine life and death with a stroke of the pen had thoroughly intimidated them as well.

(End of Chapter)