Chapter 360

Chapter 360: The Lazy Slacker King

Yuan Qi furrowed his brow, instantly grasping the implications. If this continued, the cracks would keep expanding until the Six Realms tore apart completely, potentially disrupting the cycle of reincarnation.

"How could this happen?" The Nether King froze, guilt creeping into his voice. This was his Territory, yet he’d failed to notice these changes entirely.

"I sensed the cracks when I first woke up," You You explained, "which is why I inspected all Six Realms. At first, I thought the cracks formed because the realms weren’t interconnected anymore, combined with the seals weakening over time."

The three men immediately recalled the sealed Demon Realm, the closed Gate of the Divine Realm, and the Immortal Realm’s crossing thunder. Looking closer, they saw the widest cracks indeed bordered the Demon and Divine Realms. The Demon Realm’s crack, however, had been patched by a golden band of light – remnants of You You’s earlier sealing power.

"So you founded the Zhen Yan Sect to reunite the Six Realms?" Feng Rong connected her actions in the sect to her role as Realm Master. Even without her memories, she’d instinctively worked to maintain the world’s balance. Now the Mortal, Monster, and Immortal Realms were largely connected, their boundary cracks noticeably smaller.

"Truly worthy of the Realm Master!" The Nether King praised, eyes shining with admiration.

"Uh…" You You stiffened. She’d never planned to unite the Six Realms, though it somehow happened anyway.

"This is my fault." Yuan Qi’s voice dropped with remorse. "I was the one who sealed off the realms." As keeper of the Heavenly Dao’s rules, he’d let lingering resentment over You You’s injury by the Long Clan influence his judgment. After her Reincarnation, he’d imposed strict isolation between realms to prevent similar tragedies.

"No, Yuan Papa—" You You cut through the growing tension. "I’m not blaming the seals! That was just my initial theory. After examining the cracks, I realized they’re unrelated to your barriers."

"Then what’s causing them?" The trio blinked in unison.

"Honestly… I don’t know." You You’s frown deepened. "Your seals only govern Living Beings, not undead ones. The Six Realms might appear separate, but they’re all rooted in the origin. No seal should affect that fundamental connection."

She pointed skyward where cracks splintered through reality itself. "Look – it’s not just the realms splitting. The origin itself is fracturing, even the Forgetting River’s flow."

They now saw the damage extended beyond realm boundaries. The massive branching connections resembling towering trees showed stress fractures – the origin sustaining the world’s Reincarnation cycle. Normally, even after cataclysms like the World-destroying Calamity, the origin allowed life to regenerate.

"These cracks don’t originate from within our world." You You’s gaze turned grave. "I believe they’re coming from… outside."

"Outside?!" Three voices echoed in shock. Beyond their world?

"You You, have you sensed something?" Yuan Qi pressed.

"Not clearly." She shook her head. "Just hints from Sister Jing’s words. Nothing concrete."

Feng Rong slammed his fist into his palm. "Then let’s fix the cracks directly! Tell us how to seal them, You You. We’ll follow your lead!"

"Right! No use crying over spilled milk." The Nether King thumped his chest dramatically. "Just give the order, Realm Master! I’ll move mountains if needed!"

"Oh?" You You’s eyes narrowed as she sized him up. "There is one thing you can do."

"What?" He leaned forward eagerly.

"Your permanent vacation is canceled. No more extended leaves." Her smile turned razor-sharp. "You’ve slacked off long enough, don’t you think?"

Nether King: "……"

But we agreed never to mention that!

————————

The crack situation proved more stubborn than expected. Temporary patches helped, but You You knew they wouldn’t hold forever. With the origin’s connections still intact, she’d hoped the damage remained manageable.

This illusion shattered when the Nether King finally completed his backlogged reports. After six months of actual work, the data revealed an alarming truth – missing souls had been accumulating exponentially since the last Calamity of the World. Despite the Zhen Yan Sect promoting soul transcendence practices across Three Realms, recent century’s numbers showed no improvement.

You You nearly fired the Nether King on the spot.

Lazy officials ruined everything. Her thoughts drifted to another group of idlers. After discussing with Yuan Qi, a decree went out: Divine Realm’s True Gods would temporarily assist with soul guidance in the Nether Realm.

Everyone would work – no exceptions for heavenly bureaucrats.

Divine Realm’s response: "……"

Since when did True Gods become errand boys for the underworld?

MMP!

As for the cracks, You You kept patching them while dreading the inevitable – without identifying the root cause, her fixes were mere stopgaps.

Six months of constant crisis management left her exhausted. Running the Zhen Yan Sect had been simpler when only managing the Mortal Realm.

Her true status remained known only to Yuan Qi, Feng Rong, and the Nether King. To others, Yuan Qi had simply "updated a seal" at Heaven’s Sacred Mountain before returning with Sect Master You and the Demon God in tow.

While deities and immortals panicked about the Demon God’s presence, Zhen Yan Sect disciples remained unbothered.

Whatever the sect master allowed must be fine!

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