"All beings suffer misfortune; the sea of suffering is difficult to cross."
"Would you accept this crown of thorns, steer the vessel of salvation, and ferry the masses across the boundless sea of suffering?"
Lin Yi answered without hesitation.
"That is precisely what I wish."
Yaoshi gently waved Their hand.
The crown of thorns slowly floated down toward Lin Yi's head.
He did not dodge.
The crown settled firmly upon him.
Its roots sank into place.
It did not hurt.
Instead—
His senses sharpened.
His mind became extraordinarily clear.
Old inspirations that once felt dull suddenly awakened.
This was the miracle of life itself.
Lin Yi's dormant potential had been fully awakened.
The crown was rooted in his soul.
The thorns visible on the physical body were insignificant and could be removed at any time.
But the invisible crown embedded in his soul—
Could only be removed by Yaoshi or by Lin Yi himself.
This crown symbolized the authority of Abundance.
The power of an Emanator of Abundance.
Yaoshi had been generous.
The portion of the Path of Abundance that had expanded because of Lin Yi—
They condensed entirely into the crown and gifted it to him.
As repayment.
Although this Path power had been granted by Yaoshi—
It had been born because of Lin Yi.
Thus, controlling it felt as natural as moving his own limbs.
At this moment—
Lin Yi could probably be considered the fourth or fifth strongest Emanator in the universe.
Of course, some special cases had to be excluded.
First, the strongest Emanator of Elation: Akivili.
Second, the strongest Emanator of Trailblaze: Aha.
Those two ridiculous idiots who somehow served as each other's Emanators had to be removed from the rankings.
Then there were other anomalies:
the short-lived Elation insect
the still-unknown nuclear bomb known as Zhuxing
Lin Yi suddenly had a strange feeling.
Without relying on tricks or external help—
He might be able to fight head-on against the future Sunday, the Lord of Penacony.
That feeling was…
Like a philosophical embryo.
Vague.
Chaotic.
Difficult to explain.
But he could sense that he had stepped onto a road with an unknown destination.
A path filled with obstacles.
One that required him to cut through thorns, cross mountains and rivers, and build bridges along the way.
Since the feeling was impossible to explain—
Lin Yi simply dismissed the thought.
The proper path was to stay grounded.
He bowed once more.
"Praise be to Yaoshi the Glorious."
Yaoshi spoke again.
"There is a medicine."
"Its name is Ten Directions of Life and Death."
"Today, I grant it to you."
"When hardship arrives in the future…"
"It may become a small boat to ferry yourself across the sea."
Yaoshi lightly touched Lin Yi's forehead.
A flash of light appeared.
It was absorbed by the white flower blooming upon the crown of thorns.
Lin Yi didn't know what it was.
But he bowed again.
"Thank you, Yaoshi the Glorious."
"Your righteous act has not only ferried countless beings…"
"It has also aided me."
"Therefore."
"I grant you one promise."
"This promise need not be for the world."
"It may be for your own personal desire."
Lin Yi fell silent.
He truly didn't know what to wish for.
Even though Yaoshi said he could wish for anything—
Could it really be anything?
The wish obviously couldn't exceed Yaoshi's power.
For example:
"Destroy all other Aeons."
That was clearly impossible.
Nor could it be absurd.
For instance:
"Old man, give me your Aeon position so I can try being an Aeon myself."
That would obviously not work.
Lin Yi carefully thought about what he lacked.
What he truly wanted.
And whether it was something Yaoshi could actually accomplish.
After thinking for a long time—
He finally asked a question he had little hope of answering.
"I wish to ask…"
"Do you know where my hometown is?"
"How can I return home?"
"My parents must have been waiting for me for a long time."
Yaoshi gently shook Their head.
"I do not know."
"You are one who came from beyond this world."
"Since you were able to arrive, returning will not be impossible."
"One day, you will meet them again."
"Do not worry."
"However…"
"At the end of the Silver Rail, where Akivili vanished…"
"That is the place where you truly first arrived."
"Erudition brought you to Lindjano—the place where you first opened your eyes."
"If you have questions…"
"Ask Them."
"This is not the promise."
"You still have one wish remaining."
Yaoshi snapped off a branch and handed it to Lin Yi.
"I know you hesitate."
"Take this as a token."
"If you ever have a wish…"
"You may break the branch."
Lin Yi accepted it with great solemnity.
A token from an Aeon was no small thing.
"All beings suffer."
"The sea of suffering is difficult to cross."
"This crown of thorns is not merely authority."
"Cherish it well."
"Do not forget your original heart."
Yaoshi's figure slowly faded away.
Leaving behind a ground overflowing with flourishing plants.
Yet Lin Yi did not immediately exit the Path Interstice as he usually did.
Curious—
He began looking around.
The Path Interstice resembled a cosmic river of stars.
But it was not the same as ordinary galaxies.
It could also manifest scenes from the base universe.
Lin Yi had seen this scenery many times already.
Nothing new.
Suddenly—
Thunder echoed from the distance.
A streak of light approached, leaving behind a burning trail.
It was a majestic and heroic figure.
Holding a gigantic bow.
This was the embodiment of vengeance.
The conceptual manifestation of retribution.
Wherever injustice existed…
Wherever oppression existed…
Wherever a heart carried rebellion—
The bow would always exist.
Below the figure—
Iron hooves like a war chariot rose high.
Wheels dragged blazing karma-fire behind them.
Those flames were the sins of the past.
Guiding Lan toward the guilty.
The prey of the Hunt was never singular.
Yet even for such a great being—
Perhaps now all that remained was shooting arrows and hunting endlessly.
If one day the roots of Abundance were truly destroyed—
Where would his bow point next?
Would he break the bow and hide it away?
Would the Hunt collapse?
Or would a new prey appear?
Lan stopped.
His sharp eyes stared at Lin Yi for a long time.
Then—
He drew his bow.
Gravity twisted.
Light gathered.
An arrow of light was released.
Then vanished without a trace.
Lin Yi instinctively raised his guard.
But quickly realized—
The arrow was not aimed at him.
The Hunt does not always chase prey in the present.
That arrow might have been fired toward the past.
Or perhaps toward the future.
Lan's gaze was deep.
Perhaps he was seeing something other than the present moment.
Soon—
Lan disappeared as well.
Leaving behind a blazing trail.
The Aeon of the Hunt had arrived with overwhelming presence.
Without concealment.
Without words.
He shot one arrow—
And departed just as dramatically to begin a new hunt.
Finally—
Lin Yi left the Path Interstice.
But before leaving—
He collected a spark of karma-fire from Lan's burning trail.
Not only that—
He also recorded all the data related to:
the gravitational distortions
the light signal fluctuations
the arrow's formation process
Still—
Lin Yi was curious.
Why hadn't Aha appeared?
With his personality, he should never miss such an entertaining spectacle.
But his curiosity was quickly interrupted by another thought.
"Oh no…"
"Kakamu!"
The massive bombardment was still continuing.
Again and again.
Plowing the battlefield repeatedly.
But inside the attack zone—
There was no sign of Polka Kakamu.
Had she been completely vaporized?
Reduced to dust?
That possibility existed.
And it was actually quite high.
But there was another possibility—
One that was even more likely.
The biggest problem was this:
Yaoshi had just arrived.
If Qlipoth could casually build ships while repairing walls—
Then when Yaoshi came to grant blessings…
Would They casually throw in a healing spell as well?
Considering Yaoshi's saint-like personality—
That possibility was extremely high.
Lin Yi's mood became complicated.
No body.
No living person.
Yet the probability that Polka Kakamu was still alive…
Was terrifyingly high.
For Early Access of Chapters please visit patreon.com/UchihaAce