No matter how long Aedric waited — even after Yi Dachuan had reverently lifted the bronze box from the earth and a group of starry-eyed archaeologists had gathered around to admire it — no one came rushing in to steal it.
"That's weird… where is everyone?" Aedric muttered, frowning. Then a thought struck him: "Wait — could it be because I didn't bring Gao Yao along? So there's no eunuch Zhao Gao in this timeline… which means history itself might've changed?"
But that didn't make sense either. "No — Yi Xiaochuan learned from history that Zhao Gao definitely existed. 'Calling a deer a horse' and all that really happened. So if Gao Yao isn't here, where does that Zhao Gao come from?"
Something felt off. A butterfly effect far beyond his expectations was already unfolding.
Not wanting to risk it any further, Aedric immediately pulled out a bottle of top-grade knockout gas with an ultra-wide range and knocked everyone at the excavation site unconscious — including the sneaky Gao Yao who'd been spying on him from the kitchen.
Glancing at his unconscious father and brother, Aedric sighed and murmured an apology. Then he took out a signal jammer from the previous world and disrupted all surveillance systems, ensuring no footage would be left behind to give his family awkward questions later.
After that, he picked up the bronze box, stored it in his space inventory, and with a light tap of his feet vanished into the distance.
The jeep? Too big to fit in the inventory. Forget it.
After sprinting a few hundred meters and confirming no one else was around, Aedric took out the bronze box and the tiger-shaped pendant from his spatial storage. Aligning the pendant with the tiger-shaped indentation on the lid, he pressed down.
"Majestic Great Qin, here I come."
The box and pendant merged, and just like in the TV drama, a cascade of shifting lights erupted. Space around him twisted and rippled as though he were being pulled into a tunnel of warped time.
Unlike Yi Xiaochuan and Gao Yao, who'd both fainted upon entering the tunnel, Aedric remained conscious — a little dizzy, perhaps, but otherwise clear-headed.
Clearly, this kind of time travel was nowhere near the level of the System's world-jumping. That one had knocked him out cold.
This was just a localized temporal transfer within a single plane. The System, however, could cross entire universes — a completely different league.
It was Aedric's first time awake during such a transition, and instead of fear, curiosity filled him. He watched the multicolored tunnel swirl around him until finally, the distortion subsided and the world stabilized again.
And then, to his shock — he realized he might've ended up in the wrong place.
Yes, it was an execution ground, just like in The Myth.
But instead of a few scruffy middle-aged men awaiting their fate, there were two children, a teenage girl, and a refined middle-aged man.
What the hell? Which world was this? Did I walk onto the wrong set?!
As he appeared out of thin air, everyone around froze in shock.
A moment later, a regal woman with an ornate scepter stepped forward, glaring at him coldly.
"Outsider! Who are you? Have you also come to claim the War God's Demon Armor?"
"War God's Demon Armor…" Aedric's mind spun rapidly. His eyes turned toward the composed, sword-bearing man beside the kids.
"Wait… are you— Sword Sage, Gai Nie?"
The man's eyes narrowed slightly. "And who might you be?"
Aedric didn't answer immediately. He pointed at the three children one by one, naming them: Jing Tianming, Xiang Shaoyu, and Gao Yue.
Each responded exactly as expected.
And just like that, Aedric understood — this wasn't The Myth.
It was Qin, yes, but this was The Legend of Qin — Qin Shi Ming Yue — a world where martial prowess bordered on the superhuman.
"Oh for f**k's sake!" Aedric nearly swore aloud. "Just because I didn't bring Gao Yao, the System threw me into this world? Are you kidding me? This place is crawling with monsters!"
Maybe… maybe he could go back, grab Gao Yao, and try again? "I was supposed to go to The Myth, not The Legend of Qin!"
Then a cold thought hit him — his mission.
"Oh no… my objectives! This world doesn't even have Yu Shu or Lü Su!"
Panicking, he contacted the System, which calmly informed him that while the fourth task was already marked "complete," the first three were still active — no sign of failure.
Understanding dawned.
This wasn't a replacement — it was a fusion world, a hybrid of The Myth and The Legend of Qin.
Characters from both timelines existed here. Yu Shu and Lü Su would still appear, but now he'd also have to deal with Qin Shi Ming Yue's superpowered figures.
That meant… the "Qin Emperor's Palace" in Xianyang was almost certainly guarded by a terrifying entity — the most mysterious being in The Legend of Qin lore:
Donghuang Taiyi, leader of the Yin-Yang Clan.
In other words, the mission difficulty had just skyrocketed to nightmare level.
Well, he had no one to blame but himself for trying to cut corners.
If he'd brought Gao Yao along, The Myth's Zhao Gao would've existed, and this fusion wouldn't have been necessary.
But since Zhao Gao was a "must-have" character for history, the system had simply merged in another universe that contained him — The Legend of Qin.
Aedric couldn't decide whether to curse or laugh.
At least he should be grateful it was Qin Shi Ming Yue and not Legend of the Son of Heaven III (Tian Zi Chuan Qi 3), where Zhao Gao could literally summon spirits from the underworld.
Taking a deep breath, he looked around at the increasingly tense scene. Unlike Gai Nie, Aedric had no patience for diplomatic nonsense. He drew the True Martial Sword, releasing an overwhelming burst of chilling blue energy that turned the air to frost.
Cold mist billowed outward as he glared icily at the encircling Loulan warriors.
"This sword…" Gai Nie murmured, eyes narrowing. "Its craftsmanship rivals even the Mo family's Water Cold Sword."
Before they could exchange another word, shouts and clashing steel echoed from nearby.
A troop of black-armored Qin soldiers stormed in, catching the Loulan warriors completely off guard.
"The Qin army's here!"
From their vantage atop the statue's palm, Aedric and Gai Nie looked up — and there, standing on the goddess statue's shoulder, was a domineering figure with silver hair and crimson eyes:
Wei Zhuang, the other disciple of the Ghost Valley sect, leader of "Flowing Sands."
Wei Zhuang looked down, his gaze briefly locking on Aedric. Then he leaped high, landing atop the statue's head. Drawing his wicked blade, Shark Teeth, he drove it down into the stone.
"Stop him! He's trying to seize the Dragon Soul!"
The high priestess of Loulan screamed in alarm, summoning her warriors to charge.
But the Qin soldiers had already reached the platform. These hardened veterans — conquerors of six kingdoms — cut through the Loulan defenders like wheat before a scythe.
And then, with a thunderous boom, the statue's head exploded into rubble.
"What a monster," Aedric muttered in awe. "That strike wasn't far from the Night King's level of power… and I'm not even sure Wei Zhuang used his full strength."
As the head crumbled, the Loulan warriors lost their footing and fell like rain.
One of them landed on the statue's palm — and by some twist of fate, that warrior happened to be carrying Gai Nie's lost sword, the legendary Yuan Hong.
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