142: Chapter 142 Reforging Reincarnation, I Am the New Order of the Underworld

The First Generation Underworld Lord's phantom of rules stood tall, his blurred face looking down at the Netherworld. His majesty, silent for eons, swept across the shattered battlefield like a tide. All remaining Netherworld rule chains hummed, like subjects bowing to their king!

"Impossible! You have fallen! Your soul is scattered! Your authority shattered! This is just... a remnant trace! A lingering obsession!" "Gui Yi," that wriggling mass of iridescent flesh, emitted sharp, chaotic waves of will, filled with unbelievable terror, but even more so with a fury provoked by a "fake." It no longer tried to flee; instead, it went completely mad. Iridescent light surged, transforming into countless wriggling tentacles. Each tentacle tip opened a sucker filled with sharp teeth, frantically biting and lashing at the rule barriers surrounding the First Generation Underworld Lord's phantom!

It was afraid, but even more so, it was enraged! A shadow left by a dead "predecessor" dared to block it, the "New Lord" about to ascend to the Heavenly Dao?!

The phantom remained silent, merely looking down at "Gui Yi" quietly. Those blurred eyes seemed to pierce through endless years, seeing the tragedy of the past betrayal, the ten-thousand-year decline of the Netherworld, and the monster before him, a deformed fusion of enemy fragments and his own authority.

Lin Chen stood beneath the phantom, holding the reincarnation seal fragment and the three keys. He could feel that what the phantom transmitted was not power, but a form of "recognition," an opening of "permissions," and... a heavy, unfinished "last will."

"Successor..." A thought, older and more weathered than Ao Jin's, yet carrying the same endless fatigue and a hint of relief, echoed directly in the depths of his soul. "You have done... better than I imagined."

It was the last consciousness of the First Generation Underworld Lord remaining within this core reincarnation seal fragment!

"The traitors are not cleared, the powerful enemies are not destroyed, and the Netherworld is about to collapse. How can you speak of 'better'?" Lin Chen responded in his heart, his tone calm.

"To clear traitors, one needs thunderous methods; you already possess them. To destroy powerful enemies..." The Lord of the Underworld's thought paused, looking at the frantically attacking "Gui Yi" with complex emotions. "This thing originates from the enemy, yet was born from me. It is a 'deformed fetus' born after the 'Void' polluted my authority and absorbed the stray rules of the Netherworld. Killing it is not easy, and it would severely damage the foundation of the Netherworld, as it is already deeply entangled with parts of the underlying rules."

Lin Chen's eyes narrowed. As expected, killing this thing would be a pyrrhic victory.

"Then what should be done?"

"Since it was born from my authority, it can... be reclaimed as mine." A hint of coldness and decisiveness seeped from the Lord of the Underworld's thought. "Strip away its 'Void' pollution core, purify the Netherworld rules it stole, and... 'recompose' it into a part of the Netherworld's Heavenly Dao. A more efficient, more ruthless, but absolutely loyal... 'Rule Enforcer'."

Lin Chen understood instantly. It wasn't about killing, but... formatting and reinstalling! Taking "Gui Yi," this "administrator account" infected with a virus and attempting to usurp power, forcibly kicking it offline, clearing the virus (Void pollution), retaining its useful "management skills" (the stolen rules), and then resetting permissions to turn it into his own "sub-program"!

"What do I need to do?" Lin Chen asked straightforwardly.

"The reincarnation seal fragment is the key and also the furnace. The three rule credentials are the fuel and also the blueprint." The Lord of the Underworld's thought guided him. "With the reincarnation seal fragment as the core and the three keys as the base, burn the [Supreme Soul Essence] in your hand to provide energy and construct the 'Heavenly Dao Recomposition Furnace.' Then... use the highest authority of your 'nether domain asset system' to initiate a special 'Merger and Acquisition Application' toward the underlying rules of the Netherworld."

"Merger and Acquisition Application? Who is the target?"

"Target: The illegal occupier of the current Netherworld Heavenly Dao management rights (in a fragmented state)—'Gui Yi'." The Lord of the Underworld's thought carried a hint of irony. "Reason for application: The original manager (referring to the First Generation Underworld Lord himself) left office for some reason, and his successor (Lin Chen) discovered that the current acting manager (Gui Yi) has committed serious violations (betrayal, pollution, attempted usurpation of power), requesting the removal of its acting authority, the liquidation and reorganization of its held assets (stolen rules), and their merger into the new management system."

Lin Chen's eyes lit up. This operation was right up his alley!

"Success rate?"

"You hold the orthodox bloodline, the core reincarnation seal fragment, the three rule credentials, a massive amount of soul essence, and my remaining rule imprint 'endorsing' you. As long as your 'system' authority is high enough to leverage the 'commercial laws' of the underlying rules, the success rate is... over seventy percent." The Lord of the Underworld's thought said candidly. "The remaining thirty percent risk lies in 'Gui Yi's' deathbed struggle, which might cause permanent damage to some rules and accelerate the collapse of the Well of Reincarnation."

Seventy percent was enough!

"Let's do it!" Lin Chen didn't hesitate.

He acted immediately. The reincarnation seal fragment floated before him, the three keys (Pain, Memory, and Soul Fragment) circled it in a triangle, and the [Supreme Soul Essence] was placed in the center.

"Using my bloodline as the guide, in the name of orthodoxy, reforge samsara and recreate order!"

Lin Chen shouted low, fully activating his Nether Lord Bloodline. The reincarnation seal fragment erupted with a dark light that pierced heaven and earth! The three keys resonated with it, turning into streams of red, silver, and dark gold light, pouring into the fragment! The [Supreme Soul Essence], like the most violent Energy Core, burned fiercely, releasing a brilliant soul light sufficient to illuminate the entire Netherworld!

A massive, illusory furnace composed of countless rotating rule runes, with the reincarnation seal fragment as its core, slowly took shape! Inside the furnace, it seemed as if a new Heavenly Dao was being gestated and forged!

"Gui Yi" felt a fatal threat! The aura of "recomposition" and "purification" emitted by the furnace made it instinctively feel fear and hatred! It stopped attacking the Lord of the Underworld's phantom; all iridescent tentacles turned around, frantically lashing and biting at Lin Chen and the forming furnace!

"Ant! How dare you covet the authority of the Heavenly Dao! Break for me!" it roared, mobilizing the part of the underlying Netherworld rules deeply entangled with it, turning them into invisible rule blades that slashed at the furnace's connection points!

The First Generation Underworld Lord's phantom slightly raised a hand, and a thin but tough rule barrier blocked the way in front of Lin Chen, struggling to withstand "Gui Yi's" frantic attacks. The phantom's light was rapidly dimming; after all, it was just a remnant trace.

"Quick! I can't hold on for long!" the Lord of the Underworld's thought urged.

Lin Chen closed his eyes, his entire mind sinking into the nether domain asset system, launching the highest-level Rule-Level Merger and Acquisition Application procedure.

An unprecedented, golden "Acquisition Offer," carrying Lin Chen's orthodox bloodline imprint, the reincarnation seal fragment's authority, the three keys' credential information, the massive soul essence energy proof, and the "guaranteed signature" of the First Generation Underworld Lord's rule imprint, pierced into the depths of the chaotic and turbulent ocean of the Netherworld's underlying rules like the sharpest javelin!

The content of the offer was clear and domineering:

Acquirer: Lin Chen (Orthodox successor of the First Generation Underworld Lord, holding the core reincarnation seal fragment)

Target: Current Netherworld Heavenly Dao management rights and all rule assets held by the acting manager "Gui Yi"

Acquisition Method: Forced merger, zero cost (as the target assets are essentially illegally stolen)

Post-Merger Arrangement: The consciousness of the target acting manager "Gui Yi" is to be erased. Its rule assets, after purification and reorganization, will be merged into the new Heavenly Dao system as the "Rule Execution Sub-brain."

Objection Period: None.

This offer was essentially exploiting the primitive laws regarding "authority inheritance" and "asset recovery" that might exist within the Netherworld's underlying rules, playing a game of legal gray areas with the rules!

The underlying rules of the Netherworld churned, collided, and evaluated violently!

"Gui Yi" roared and protested frantically, attempting to mobilize the portion of the rules it controlled for an "anti-takeover" defense.

For a moment, a silent but extremely perilous tug-of-war unfolded on the rule level!

Lin Chen felt as if his soul was being crushed between two giant wheels. The system's energy was being consumed frantically, and the [Supreme Soul Essence] in his hand shrank at a speed visible to the naked eye!

"Not enough! Its resistance is stronger than expected!" Lin Chen grit his teeth.

Just then—

"There's also us!"

Su Qingyu shouted clearly, pressing her hands to the ground. The light in the cracks on her neck flowed as she unreservedly poured the special power belonging to the Netherworld Saintess lineage—polluted yet containing a portion of the Netherworld's purification origin—into the formation beneath Lin Chen's feet!

Zhang Hao grit his teeth, his ghost body beginning to burn. "Boss! In my Mind Reading origin, there seems to be a shadow of the First Generation Netherworld's Oversight Power! Use it!" A faint but pure stream of silver light shot out from between his brows.

Lei Xiao (Original) knelt on one knee, forcing out all the thunder and fire power from Ao Jin's inheritance that he had just obtained and not yet stabilized, turning it into a golden thunder-fire that merged into the energy torrent. "My Lord! This sinful general is willing to contribute his meager strength!"

"And us!" From behind, eighty thousand underworld soldiers roared in unison. They turned their loyalty to Lin Chen, their desire for the Netherworld's future, and the last of the power in their soul bodies into specks of soul light, converging into a river that surged toward Lin Chen!

Little Red Clothes silently tore apart her Resentment Doll, took out the most core wisp of original resentment (partially purified), and threw it into the furnace. The doll instantly withered, but a smile appeared on her pale face.

Even among the former Thousand-Faced Cultists and low-level magical creatures who had just defected and signed "temporary worker contracts," some were affected and contributed their meager power.

Ten thousand hearts as one, a fortress built of many wills!

This torrent of power, gathering loyalty, faith, sacrifice, and hope, acted like the final weight, crashing into the "Acquisition Offer"!

The balance of the Netherworld's underlying rules was completely shattered!

"No—!! I am the Heavenly Dao! I am the ruler! You rebels! Ants!" "Gui Yi" let out a final, desperate, and unwilling shriek.

[Ding! Rule-Level Merger and Acquisition Application... Approved!]

[Beginning the execution of forced takeover, consciousness erasure, asset liquidation, and reorganization procedures for the target "Gui Yi"...]

In the Netherworld sky, countless rule chains suddenly tightened and then all turned, like countless whips, lashing fiercely at "Gui Yi's" mass of iridescent flesh!

"Aaaagh—!!!"

Amidst an invisible shriek of extreme agony, "Gui Yi's" chaotic consciousness was forcibly stripped, crushed, and annihilated! The Netherworld rules it had stolen were pulled away one by one, purified, and then, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, poured into the massive rule furnace before Lin Chen!

The furnace roared, radiating ten thousand beams of light!

The phantom of the Lord of the Underworld showed a relieved smile, nodded slightly to Lin Chen, and then, as if having completed his final mission, slowly dissipated into the world.

The reincarnation seal fragment light convergenceed as it flew back into Lin Chen's hand. The three keys disappeared; the rules they contained had merged into the new order.

Before Lin Chen floated a brand new, palm-sized core mark of the Netherworld's new Heavenly Dao (Elementary), with dark gold and iridescent lusters flowing through it, its structure complex and precise to the extreme!

He reached out and grasped this mark.

In an instant, he felt an unprecedentedly close connection with the entire Netherworld! He could "hear" the mournful cries of the collapsing Well of Reincarnation, "see" the chaos in every corner of the Netherworld, and "touch" the broken but slowly repairing rule network!

A surging sense of power, controlling all things and dominating samsara, filled his entire body!

He, Lin Chen, from this moment on, was the true new master of the Netherworld! The wielder of the new Heavenly Dao!

(Hook: Just as Lin Chen grasped the Heavenly Dao core mark and began attempting to mobilize power to repair the Well of Reincarnation, from deep within the mark, an extremely dangerous warning message suddenly fed back, originating from the lowest level of the Netherworld and sealed by successive Lords of the Underworld: [Warning! External trigger signal detected for the 'Era Reset' program! Signal source locked—'Void Devourer' main body (Awakened)! Estimated time of arrival at this Netherworld: 71 hours, 59 minutes, 58 seconds...] The time was actually perfectly synchronized with the countdown to the Well of Reincarnation's collapse!)