Godslayer: Aizen Template, I will stand in the heavens!

Zhao Kongcheng suddenly snapped out of his daze, paused for half a second, then jumped up and quickly looked around...

They couldn't find Lin Qiye at all!

Zhao Kongcheng stared wide-eyed at the empty street, not even flinching when Li Lian took one of his cigarettes, unable to believe his eyes.

Li Lian, with a cigarette he'd taken from Zhao Kongcheng dangling from his mouth, gathered spiritual energy in his right index finger, and a small flame appeared on it. After using his Zanpakuto, Li Lian had inexperienced in some simple uses of spiritual energy. He couldn't handle anything too complicated, but using it as a lighter was no problem.

Li Lian: §≡=(′0｀)y━?~~

Before transmigrating, Li Lian was a heavy smoker. After a day without smoking, he felt quite out of sorts. This puff of cigarette really refreshed him.

"Snap out of it! I already told you Lin Qiye is home. Don't just stand there like an idiot. I'm still here, aren't I?"

"Do you know who that kid is?"

"A long-term patient at Cangnan City Mental Hospital, the kind who is still regularly checked by the attending physician."

"...You brat, who told you to steal my cigarettes!"

……

A tall building in Cangnan City.

Li Lian sat on a small stool, eating a bowl of fried rice with eggs. Around him sat six people, including Zhao Kongcheng, who looked at him with strange expressions. They were members of the 136th Night Watchman Squad of Cangnan City. Except for the captain, Chen Muye, all the members were present.

Zhao Kongcheng was a little embarrassed after Lin Qiye sneaked away. He originally thought he could just find a quiet place to chat with Li Lian, but Li Lian disagreed no matter what, saying that the masked man was too disgusting, he even vomited bile, and he fought a monster on an empty stomach, so he was starving and had to get him a midnight snack while they ate and talked.

There was no other way but to take Li Lian to their Night Watch squad's temporary gathering point. When they opened the door, they found that apart from the captain, the entire Night Watch 136 squad was there, some cleaning their guns, some sharpening their knives, and some resting.

Hearing the door open, they all stared at Zhao Kongcheng and Li Lian as they entered, casting curious glances their way.

"Nice to meet you all, my name is Li Lian." Li Lian was incredibly confident and not at all nervous. "I know you're all curious about me, but I'm absolutely starving. Could someone please get me something to eat?"

Everyone: (* ￣︿￣)￣︿￣)￣︿￣)

Zhao Kongcheng noticed the atmosphere had become awkward again, and chuckled, "Don't mind him, that's just his personality. Tonight was definitely not easy for him. Um, Hongying, is there anything else to eat?"

There are still some leftover rice and eggs in the refrigerator.

"Then I'll go make him some fried rice, you two chat first."

As Zhao Kongcheng walked into the kitchen, he thought to himself: "Making fried rice in the middle of the night, what kind of mess is this? These two are no pushovers. One talked a good game but then sneaked off; the other's a social terrorist, acting like he's no stranger to the group. Why are gods choosing their agents like this now? Don't they want anyone without something special?"

While Zhao Kongcheng was frying rice and muttering to himself, Li Lian had already introduced himself to the members of Squad 136.

The man with his hands tucked into his cloak spoke first: "I am Wu Xiangnan, the deputy captain of the 136th squad of the Night Watch in Cangnan City. You can also introduce yourselves."

"My name is Hongying, and I'm a frontal combatant in Squad 136." The beautiful woman, who was wiping a long spear, stopped what she was doing and revealed a pair of bright eyes.

The man who had just been sharpening his knife spoke up, "Head-to-head combat power: Wen Qimo."

"Combat support and part-time medic, Si Xiaonan," a young girl said, tilting her head and looking at Li Lian curiously. "Did you create those two beams of light just now?"

"Night Watch Squad 136, long-range fire support, Leng Xuan." This is a cool and handsome guy holding a sniper rifle.

Great, they're all familiar names.

Li Lian said to Si Xiaonan, "This pretty young lady, can I rest for a bit? Your captain isn't here either, so let's talk about the details once everyone's here."

After saying that, he looked towards the kitchen and shouted in a strong voice:

"Old Zhao! Can you hurry up? I'm starving!"

The clattering of pots and pans in the kitchen suddenly stopped, and then a cigarette was tossed out.

"What's the rush? Have a smoke first!"

Li Lian took the cigarette, put it in his mouth, and with a flick of his right hand, a small flame appeared between his fingers, lighting the cigarette. Then he flicked his finger again, and the flame disappeared. Now, Li Lian's movements of lighting a fire with spiritual power were becoming more and more elegant; there was no other reason than practice makes perfect.

The members of Squad 136 exchanged glances, noticing Li Lian's practiced cigarette-lighting gesture and his school uniform. They then spoke in unison to Li Lian:

"Minors are not allowed to smoke!"

……

On the way, Li Lian sorted out his gains. After the battle, he had leveled up from level 0 to level 3 and unlocked two skills: [Instant Step] and [White Strike: One Bone].

The upgrade process wasn't as painful as I had imagined. Instead, I was enveloped in a warm current, like soaking in a hot spring. My body felt warm and comfortable, and my physical fitness improved, as did my spiritual power. It was comparable to taking a sauna.

The [Instant Step] is very practical, but it also consumes a lot of spiritual energy. The first time I used [Instant Step], I used up more than half of my spiritual energy in a distance of less than 10 meters. If it weren't for the spiritual energy recovery brought by leveling up, I probably wouldn't have been able to use Instant Step to dodge the second masked man.

[Instant Step] will likely be Li Lian's primary skill for a long time. It's also important to clarify the specific cost of this skill, ideally quantified. Otherwise, if he uses [Instant Step] to approach an enemy and then becomes exhausted, that would be a huge problem!

There's no other reason; what martial arts masters must master when they first enter the world of martial arts is lightness skill, so as to avoid the awkward situation of not being able to catch up when they win, or not being able to escape when they lose.

As for [White-Handed: One Bone], I haven't used it myself and don't know its specific power and energy consumption, so that won't work. It's like taking an iron pipe to the battlefield and using it as a rocket launcher; it turns out to be an explosive device, and you'll inevitably blow yourself up.

I must find an opportunity to practice with the people in Squad 136. I need to have a clear understanding of my own abilities.

Zhao Kongcheng is about to encounter the Ghost-Faced King. He definitely has to save him, but he can't afford to get himself involved. Getting familiar with his abilities as soon as possible is of utmost importance.

This is what they mean by "better safe than sorry".

……

"Hmm, I'm done eating. Old Zhao, your cooking is pretty good. Next time, just use less salt and it will be perfect." Li Lian wiped his mouth with his hand and casually handed the empty bowl to Zhao Kongcheng.

"You're being picky! You should be grateful to have anything to eat at all."

At that moment, the door to the room was opened from the outside, and a figure wearing a dark red cloak appeared in the doorway. There were several fresh bloodstains on the cloak, and even his face had bloodstains.

"team leader!"

"Captain, are you okay?"

The newcomer was Chen Muye, the captain of the 136th squad of the Night Watch. He nodded, took off his blood-stained cloak, and casually put it aside.

"I'm fine, it's just that Ghost-Faced King got away. And who is this young man?"

"Hello, Captain! My name is Li Lian, and Old Zhao brought me here!" Li Lian stood up abruptly, very quickly! His main characteristic was his hospitality... well, now that he's a guest, it doesn't matter who's hospitable.

"I am Chen Muye." Chen Muye turned to look at Zhao Kongcheng. "Is this Michael's divine representative?"

“No.” Zhao Kongcheng scratched his head. “I lost Michael’s divine representative. Li Lian is the one who created the red pillar of light. He came back with me on his own initiative and said he wanted to join our Night’s Watch.”

Chen Muye: (?_?)

Leaving aside the kid who came back on his own initiative, Old Zhao, you're an old watchman, how did you lose such a big representative of the gods?

"Old Zhao, what exactly is the situation with the Seraph's agent? Was the 'Klein' level of fluctuation we're sensing caused by him?"

"He's just an ordinary high school student. The power fluctuations at the 'Klein' level are probably residual power left by the Seraph. He himself is a newcomer who has just reached the 'Zhan' realm."

"So you lost him?"

“He tricked me into going to get my schoolbag, and then ran away while I was distracted.”

Everyone: (?_?)

"It's alright, Captain! I know the guy who ran away!" Li Lian raised his hand and said, "But I feel like I'm being treated differently! I'm right in front of you, why don't you care about me first?"

"You, your name is Li Lian, right?"

"Yes!"

"Did you create that crimson flame?"

"That's right!"

"Then who are you acting as an agent for?"

Chen Muye felt that the commotion this kid made when he awakened the Forbidden Ruins was quite significant, comparable to the Seraphim, and he might be a promising talent.

"grim Reaper!"

"Which Grim Reaper? Hela from Northern Europe or Thanatos from Greece?"

"Japanese!"

"The Japanese Grim Reaper? Izanami?"

"No! It's an old man with a white beard named Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni!"

……

Chen Muyi rubbed his temples. So much had happened today, he was really tired.

The Demon King ran away, and the Seraph's agent ran away too. This kid in front of me didn't run away, but he claims to be an agent of Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni. Which remote corner of Japan's Grim Reaper is he?

Never heard of it!

However, even gods who have never been heard of before can be absorbed into the Night Watch's ranks by using the Divine Ruins as their agents, as long as they are not evil gods.

"Looks like you know what a divine agent is now? What task has your god given you?"

"Bury away all evil."

Li Lian had already prepared his plan on the way here. The Night Watchmen were an organization that controlled any threatening agents of the gods within the Great Xia territory. If he wanted to join the Night Watchmen, he would have to stand on the same side as them.

My goal is to participate in as many battles as possible, and since I am not a true agent of the gods, I can just fabricate a mission that serves the interests of the Night's Watch.

As for whether the Night's Watch will believe it...

I was born to be on your side! Why don't you recruit me?!