Abnormal Moon

Before they had taken two steps, the white light in front of them dissipated.

Before them was the second-floor room, and behind them was the outer first-floor room.

The second room then began to rotate, and a room stopped in front of the two of them. They entered again... This was repeated more than ten times until the two of them finally arrived at the roots of the towering tree.

Looking closely, there was an iron curtain door on the ground at the base of the tree.

Once you open that iron curtain door, you can enter the interior of the giant tree, which is like a room built inside.

"Blood! There's blood here!"

Just as Roy was gazing at the iron curtain gate at the tree roots not far away, he suddenly heard Pochi-chan's exclamation.

His gaze sharpened, thinking that an enemy had infiltrated. He turned to look, but all he saw on the ground was a bloodstain that had long since solidified and even dried, like a lacquer stain on the stone slab. He had no idea how long it had been there.

Suddenly, a light bulb flashed on Boqi-chan's forehead.

"Something's definitely not right here! I'm outta here!"

She feigned panic, as if she were absolutely certain that her guess was correct, and turned to run outside.

Roy didn't even bother to expose her, and grabbed her head.

But the next moment, Boqi's body suddenly stretched like a noodle, his head was grabbed by Roy, and his body below the neck darted into the room behind him without stopping.

Roy rolled his eyes.

Again!

Pochi's technique is extremely powerful, comparable to, or even surpassing, Gojo Satoru in Roy's opinion. The power to transform into a comedic manga character is something that even Roy finds terrifying.

The only problem is that Pochi can't control this power.

This power changes constantly with Pochi-chan's own mood, and there is no fixed pattern at all. As long as the atmosphere is right, Pochi-chan can transform into all sorts of strange and wonderful shapes.

She acted as if the laws of the world were all on her side!

However, this technique also has a very hidden weakness.

Roy sighed deeply, then put on a look of utter astonishment.

"Poch-chan, your body doesn't look human anymore! What happened? Change back quickly!"

"Oh, really?"

Boqi-chan shifted her gaze downwards.

He was immediately terrified by his body stretching out like a noodle.

Then, as if a time-reversal spell had been cast on her body, it quickly rewound to its original state, a jaw-dropping transformation that left onlookers both amused and bewildered.

The only drawback of Pochi-chan's technique is that she cannot be aware of her own comical and bizarre transformations.

Once she realizes she's a comedic character, her magic spell immediately breaks down.

In other words, her techniques are only suitable for her own use.

Anyone with even a modicum of self-awareness would be unable to unleash the full power of this technique.

"Waaah, teacher, please, please let me out! I really don't want to be here!"

When one plan failed, Boqi Jiang came up with another. She suddenly grabbed Roy's hand, which was pinching her head, and burst into tears, trying to gain his sympathy with her tearful and pitiful appearance.

Why don't you want to go in?

"This... I don't want to talk about it..."

Boqi blinked.

She pouted, trying to get away with being cute.

Roy grabbed her and leaped toward the iron curtain gate in the distance.

"No! Nooooooo!!"

The iron curtain door opened automatically.

Then a vast, boundless, pure white space appeared.

At first glance, it is as boundless as the universe, with everything as white as snow, without a single other color.

If it weren't for the iron gate behind you, you might even doubt whether this is a pure white universe without a single beacon. If you were in this world, you would probably start to panic and go crazy in no time.

"Welcome to the main hall of the Red Star Palace."

After Roy led Pochi-chan into this pure white space, a figure gradually appeared like a mirage, transforming from illusory to real, and eventually forming a human figure.

It was a figure about the same height as an average person, dressed in a white robe, with an elegant and transcendent air, like an immortal who did not tread on the mortal world.

But upon closer inspection, her appearance is quite strange. Her head is like a wooden stake, and she has four pure white eyes on her face, two on each side like buttons.

Despite his extraordinary demeanor, his appearance was utterly grotesque, sending chills down one's spine.

"Monster!"

Pochi-chan shuddered and instinctively hid behind Roy.

Tianyuan: "..."

Roy gave a soft hum.

He didn't correct Boqi-chan's statement, nor did he pay attention to Tianyuan's reaction. He simply asked his question calmly.

"You must be Tengen. Why did you ask Yagami Seido to call me and Pochi-chan here?"

Tengen's gaze lingered on Pochi-chan for quite a while.

His strangely shaped face seemed to hold a deeper meaning.

Then, she shifted her gaze to Roy, looking him up and down for a moment.

“This is our first meeting, you sorcerer from out of town. As you said, I am Tianyuan.”

She waved her hand gently, and a coffee table and three cushions appeared in front of her.

There were also three teacups and a teapot steaming on the table.

"Please sit down, what I have to say is a little long."

After she finished speaking, she sat down at the coffee table and poured hot tea into three teacups.

Seeing this, Roy didn't stand on ceremony with her, went up to her, and sat down at the table.

Boqi quickly caught up and sat down next to Roy, keeping a considerable distance from Tengen.

"Then please get to the point."

"This should be our first meeting, right? But why do you seem to have a problem with me? Is it just my imagination?"

A hint of doubt appeared on Tian Yuan's face, and his tone was hesitant.

"call……"

Roy let out a soft sigh of relief and glanced at Tengen with a subtle expression.

"Haven't you been treated as an equal in a long time?"

"What do you mean by this?"

Upon hearing this, Tianyuan took the initiative to ask for guidance.

"I have no problem with you, I wouldn't say I'm hostile, but I don't have any respect for you either."

Roy picked up the hot tea on the table and gently blew on it.

"Others may respect you because you are the builder and maintainer of the main barrier in Japan, protecting the lives of countless people in Japan, but I have no such intention. To me, you are just a passerby, and I have no interest in you whatsoever."

"Have you forgotten how passersby perceive you because you've been respected for too long, coveted by enemies for too long, or haven't been out and about for too long? Don't be too self-conscious."

“…Perhaps you are right.”

Upon hearing this, Tianyuan paused for a moment, then nodded with a wry smile.

"Having stayed here for so long, I've almost forgotten what it was like to walk in front of ordinary people outside."

Tianyuan has been here for over a thousand years.

It's a stroke of luck that she didn't lose herself over the long years and become a paranoid monster.

Even among humans, people of different races and eras cannot understand each other. Expecting her to have the same values ​​as ordinary people outside is undoubtedly a very foolish thing.

"Just tell us straight, what do you want with us?"

Roy didn't want to argue with her; just as he said, he had absolutely no interest in Tianyuan.

Even though she was a master of barrier magic, having built and maintained more than a dozen enormous barriers throughout Japan, Roy had absolutely no interest in her and had no intention of learning her barrier magic.

"Alright, then I'll get straight to the point."

Tianyuan had no intention of arguing with him, so he decided to go along with his wishes.

"You're probably familiar with my technique, 'Immortality.' This technique allows me to break through the limits of human lifespan, granting me a long lifespan. However, immortality doesn't mean aginglessness. After accumulating a certain amount of aging, my body will automatically undergo uncontrollable changes, gradually merging me with the world itself. Even my self will disappear, transforming me into an existence in a different dimension..."

The only way to stop this change is to assimilate with a type of human that possesses a substance called astral bodies.

To put it nicely, it's called assimilation.

To put it bluntly, it's possession!