The next morning, when Feng Qi saw Lin Ran again, he immediately noticed the difference.
Lin Ran's hair and eyes had turned purple.
Even though Feng Qi already knew that Mist Lord had taken over Lin Ran's body the previous night, looking at Lin Ran's familiar face now, he couldn't suppress the pain in his heart.
After a brief moment of silence, he pushed down the emotions surging within him and stepped forward, embracing Mist Lord, patting him on the back.
Right now, the only thing he could do was ensure that Lin Ran's sacrifice was not in vain.
He had to stay resolute, continue to stay hidden by Mist Lord's side, and gather as much critical intelligence as possible.
When they separated, Feng Qi forced a smile and said:
"Do you want me to help dye your hair back? You're a little too eye-catching like this."
Mist Lord smirked, completely indifferent.
"Why bother? I'm now the actual ruler of Tiger Soul Research Institute. What does it matter if my hair changes color?"
But after a brief pause, he seemed to reconsider.
"Then again… maybe you're right. I am a public figure now, and I'll be in the public eye more often."
"Let's find another place to talk." Feng Qi turned and walked toward his room.
Mist Lord followed.
Once inside, Feng Qi locked the door, then sat down on the edge of the bed while Mist Lord settled onto the sofa.
He stared at Mist Lord, then asked in a calm voice:
"How much of Lin Ran's memory did you obtain?"
"Not much. A lot of it is missing. Maybe I was too hasty during the possession," Mist Lord replied nonchalantly.
He never really cared about Lin Ran's memories.
What he truly valued was Lin Ran's influence.
However, there was something that puzzled him.
Normally, when he took over a body, he could absorb about 70% of its memories.
It was like watching a heavily edited video—some sections were skipped, but the general story remained clear.
But with Lin Ran…
He could only access about 30% of his memories.
Especially the memories from the past year—they were completely blank.
This confused him, but he didn't overthink it.
He simply assumed he had made a mistake during the process of possession.
What Mist Lord didn't know was—
Lin Ran's memories had already been wiped away by the Memory-Erasure Liquid.
The Memory-Erasure Liquid came with a detailed instruction manual explaining its effects.
Every milligram erased approximately 20 hours of memories.
The vial that Wei Wei had sent contained 500 milligrams—enough to erase about 10,000 hours of memories.
That was roughly 416 days worth of memories.
By drinking the entire bottle, Lin Ran had erased everything from the past year.
But the Memory-Erasure Liquid's effects weren't just about deletion.
It worked similar to anesthesia.
When Lin Ran consumed it, his entire memory was put into a dormant state.
It was like undergoing a full-body anesthetic before surgery—where the effect would eventually wear off.
Memory erasure worked the same way.
At first, all memories were suppressed, which was why Lin Ran couldn't recall anything after drinking it.
This effect lasted for several hours, after which his memories would slowly return—except for the designated erased period.
But Mist Lord had begun the possession process while Lin Ran's memories were still suppressed.
Because of this, Lin Ran's memory recovery was forcefully interrupted, and only 30% of his memories were retained.
Otherwise, even if some memories had been deleted, the rest of his past would have remained intact.
Lin Ran had read the manual and understood the risks.
But for him, it didn't matter how much memory was erased.
—
Feng Qi observed Mist Lord, who still seemed puzzled by the missing memories, then asked:
"What's your next move?"
Hearing the question, Mist Lord's lips curved into a smile.
"First, I need to solidify my control over Tiger Soul Research Institute. While I've already completely enslaved the remaining members of the Night Shadow Clan, I still haven't fully taken over Tiger Soul's subsidiary military squads.
"My next step is to use the Night Shadow Clan's mental control abilities to dominate the leaders of these military squads…."
As Mist Lord laid out his plans, Feng Qi nodded in response, memorizing every detail.
At this moment, Mist Lord changed the topic slightly:
"By the way, I've also thought of a way for you to grow stronger. The path to the top will only become more treacherous, and I want you to have the ability to protect yourself. So, your strength-enhancement plan needs to begin as soon as possible."
Feng Qi was intrigued. "Tell me the details."
"Now that you have the Miracle Bracelet, you already possess a shortcut to power. I believe you can establish your own divine image within human civilization, gather followers, and use their collective faith to rapidly enhance your strength."
"The execution isn't difficult. I will use your name to promote Flesh Sacrifice, and once it gains traction, your status in human society will rise significantly. When the time is right, I will use public opinion to build statues in your honor, encouraging the masses to worship you."
Hearing this, Feng Qi was momentarily stunned.
He had considered various ways to gather faith, but this method had never crossed his mind.
However, from his perspective, this approach was completely inappropriate.
Historically, many figures had been deified after their deaths—the most famous being Guan Yu, who was posthumously worshipped as the God of War and Wealth.
But these figures were only deified after death. In life, no one enjoyed such treatment.
Mist Lord seemed to read his thoughts and calmly explained:
"In this era, people revere heroes the most. Turning a hero into a deity is just a gradual process."
"Don't forget, your public persona was built long ago. Back when you were in Star City Academy, you were known as the 'Rising Star of Cultivation Studies.' Using your devotion to research as a pretext to introduce Flesh Sacrifice is completely justifiable."
"The only thing you lack is an opportunity. In the past, no one was deified while alive, but that doesn't mean it's impossible now. I will use Lin Ran's influence to assist you. As long as I continuously praise Flesh Sacrifice, it will spread like wildfire…"
Hearing this, Feng Qi finally understood Mist Lord's plan.
This was nothing less than a "God-Making Project."
Flesh Sacrifice now had two purposes:
The hidden purpose—just like in previous timelines, it would be used to plant seeds within human civilization and weaker domain races, turning them into potential sacrifices for future harvesting when Mist Lord activated the switch.
The public purpose—this time, Flesh Sacrifice would also serve to deceive all of humanity, paving the way for his "divine persona", allowing him to grow stronger by harnessing human faith.
From spiritual control to physical domination, Mist Lord clearly intended to consume everything.
He saw all of humanity as mere cattle—stepping stones for his own ascension.
Feng Qi couldn't reject this plan outright.
He had no choice but to play along.
Thinking it through, he looked at Mist Lord and said:
"I understand your idea. Let's wait until you're ready to promote Flesh Sacrifice, then we can begin the experiment."
Mist Lord nodded in satisfaction. He then turned his gaze to Feng Qi, curiosity gleaming in his eyes.
"You've lived among humans for so many years—can you explain to me why humans believe in gods?"
Mist Lord's tone carried genuine confusion.
"I've always wondered: Why do humans worship so-called gods? Even if gods exist, they have never provided any tangible benefits. What's the point of faith?"
Feng Qi fell silent at the question.
After a moment of thought, he looked at Mist Lord and asked:
"Do the Mist Tribe have gods they worship?"
"No. We only believe in power and the ability to change fate."
Feng Qi wasn't surprised by the response.
He continued his line of questioning:
"Do you believe in fate?"
"I do not." Mist Lord sneered.
"To me, fate is an excuse for the weak. Losers blame their failures on 'destiny.' The ridiculous part is that these same weaklings also believe that the success of the strong is predetermined by fate."
Feng Qi found himself partially agreeing with Mist Lord.
But not entirely.
His experiences across multiple timelines had proven that fate did exist.
Some historical events were seemingly inevitable—destined to happen no matter how the timeline changed.
However, he himself was an anomaly.
Like a butterfly fluttering through history, his actions continuously altered the course of fate.
So he believed in fate—but not in its immutability.
Yes, destiny was real, but it could be changed.
His countless struggles across different timelines had all been about defying fate.
Mist Lord remained unconvinced.
"You think human faith is linked to fate?" he asked curiously.
"Yes. Most believers are also believers in fate. They believe faith in gods can change their predestined path and lead them toward a better future. Some even believe in divine judgment after death."
"Utter foolishness." Mist Lord scoffed.
"I actually have high hopes for the human race," Mist Lord remarked with an air of contemplation. "They possess a stronger mentality, and their only shortcoming is that they have had far too little time to adapt to spiritual energy. However, there's no denying their potential for exponential growth—if they can develop stably. The only problem is that many of their behaviors are outdated and should have been discarded long ago."
Hearing this, Feng Qi couldn't help but shake his head.
"You think faith is useless simply because it doesn't bring immediate tangible benefits, but the truth is, while believers may not receive direct feedback from their gods, they draw strength from within themselves."
"In moments of absolute despair, faith can sometimes unleash unimaginable potential."
"Beyond that, faith has played a vital role in maintaining social order."
Seeing the confusion in Mist Lord's expression, Feng Qi decided to illustrate his point with an example.
"Let me tell you a real case. Years ago, in Old Day City, something major happened by the coastline. A group of fishermen, driven by greed, stole an entire shipment of resources that a combat squad was escorting and hid them under the sea. The combat squad in charge of the delivery faced not only mission failure but also the risk of severe financial penalties."
"When confronted, the fishermen adamantly denied everything. The combat squad was powerless—after all, one of their core rules is that they cannot act against civilians, and the fishermen refused to admit their crime."
"So what did the squad leader do?"
"He took them to the Dragon King Temple by the shore and made them swear before the Dragon King statue that they had not hidden any supplies."
"At first, they remained stubborn, unwilling to confess. But when forced to swear in front of the god they worshipped, they finally wavered. In the end, they broke down and admitted everything. That's the power of faith—a force that maintains social order and integrity."
Mist Lord fell silent, seemingly lost in thought.
Feng Qi could see the lingering doubt on Mist Lord's face, and he simply shook his head.
He understood—this was something Mist Lord needed time to process and comprehend.
Even though Mist Lord had changed multiple human bodies and absorbed countless human memories,
The way he processed these memories was no different from watching fragmented scenes of a movie—there was no emotional connection.
Mist Lord could learn about human habits through memory absorption, but he could never truly understand their essence.
Take faith, for example.
Mist Lord grew up in the brutal domain world, where the strong ruled and the weak perished. He believed in the law of the jungle, not in some unseen god's protection.
But humans had lived in eras of peace. Their pursuit was spiritual transcendence.
However, after the domain invasion, the number of people worshipping gods decreased drastically.
Faced with a hostile and chaotic environment, people stopped believing in deities. Instead, they started idolizing human heroes—real figures whose strength they could see.
It was exactly as Mist Lord had described—humanity had abandoned blind faith in gods and had started seeking something tangible instead.
The difference in beliefs was purely shaped by environment.
After a long discussion, they temporarily set aside the godhood project.
At that moment, Feng Qi turned to Mist Lord and asked:
"When do you plan to begin promoting Flesh Sacrifice?"
"This cannot be rushed," Mist Lord replied. "I need to lay the groundwork first. Tomorrow, I will transfer you to the Cultivation Techniques Research Team and assign a group of researchers controlled by the Night Shadow Clan to assist you."
"Meanwhile, we will leak information to the public to generate anticipation—we'll let the world know that Feng Qi is working on something revolutionary."
"Then, as public curiosity builds, I will use Lin Ran's influence to help promote you. Once the anticipation reaches its peak, we will officially unveil Flesh Sacrifice."
"At that point, countless cultivators will rush to adopt it."
Mist Lord paused for a moment, then continued:
"As for Flesh Sacrifice's capabilities, there is nothing in human cultivation research that can compare to it. If I had to use an analogy, I'd say it's like a steel factory among wooden huts—there's simply no competition."
Feng Qi watched as Mist Lord's face lit up with confidence and nodded. Then, he asked:
"What about the Institute of Technological Research? What's your plan for them?"
Mist Lord responded without hesitation:
"I've already thought about that. The Institute of Technological Research may seem unrelated to us now, but in the future, they will be a direct competitor. We need to figure out what their 'Black Reaper Project' truly is."
"So, what's your strategy?"
"I plan to train a few researchers as spies and have them infiltrate the Institute of Technological Research's inner circle. Once inside, they will gather intelligence on their classified projects."
Hearing this, Feng Qi realized that history was once again following its original trajectory.
In the original timeline, Mist Lord's spies successfully infiltrated the technological institute.
Most importantly, one of them managed to reach the highest level—gaining access to the Institute's core research team.
In fact, that particular spy had gotten so deep that if Feng Qi hadn't intervened and redirected the Institute's suspicions elsewhere,
That spy would have remained undetected until death.