"Hehehe, young people are always so impatient."
A man's voice sounded in Torifu's ear. Torifu felt that the voice was very familiar, but he couldn't immediately remember whose voice it was. Then, a large amount of cloud mist surged out from the altar, enveloping Torifu.
When Torifu opened his eyes again, he had arrived in a small courtyard where cooking smoke curled upwards.
The scene before him felt familiar because he had been here a long time ago, back when he was a small child.
"What's going on? Why did it send me here?"
The swirling cloud mist, the pine trees, the small courtyard, and the flying cranes all stirred Torifu's memories. The man sitting and drinking tea in the courtyard was also very familiar to Torifu—it was none other than his immortal ancestor, Kumotsuru Kajin!
Torifu smiled and took two steps forward. "Ancestor, we meet again. Twenty years have passed. I am no longer the child who needed to borrow your power."
Kumotsuru Kajin heard Torifu's words and looked confused at first, then he quickly understood.
"Hahaha, young man, I think you've misunderstood."
Torifu was full of doubt. What was there to misunderstand? The age hadn't changed, the location hadn't changed, and the powerful presence hadn't changed either.
"Aren't you Ancestor Kumotsuru Kajin?"
Kumotsuru Kajin nodded. "That's right, but I am like the other 'Kumotsuru Kajin' you met—I am merely a consciousness left in this world. There is no connection between us."
"I don't know what mission the other consciousness you met had, but I am only responsible for guarding this place."
[T/N: Truly a magical system that can summon a grandpa whenever it wants lol.]
With this explanation, Torifu immediately understood, feeling a bit awkward. "I apologize, Ancestor. It was my mistake."
Kumotsuru Kajin smiled and waved his hand. "No matter, no matter. The fact that you could come here and have also encountered the other consciousness shows that your strength and luck are extraordinary."
He carefully sensed Torifu's chakra and was very pleased to discover that Torifu had reached the Six Paths Realm.
"Excellent. You've reached Hagoromo's realm at such a young age. You must be the most gifted individual in our family's bloodline."
Torifu scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly. He dared not accept such praise. If the Ancestor thought he was too arrogant and became displeased, it would be bad. He still wanted to know what secret was hidden here. Since the ancestral consciousness was guarding it, it must be very important.
"Ancestor, this junior came here purely by coincidence. I received a map and a bead through chance, followed the guidance, and activated the altar."
"I did not intend to disturb your peace. Please forgive me."
Kumotsuru Kajin laughed heartily. "No matter, no matter. You're a surprisingly polite boy. I've been guarding this place for nearly a thousand years, not just because I enjoy solitude."
"As you just heard, I have a mission. Once the mission is complete, I can return to my main body."
Torifu immediately bowed to the Ancestor. "If the Ancestor does not mind, this junior is willing to do everything in his power to help the Ancestor complete the mission."
Kumotsuru Kajin's body turned into a cloud of mist, swirling around Torifu. "In fact, the moment you activated the altar, my mission was complete. My task was only to ensure that the person who activated the altar must be a descendant of the Kumotsuru Clan. That is all."
"Huh?" Torifu hadn't expected the mission to be so simple. He had thought he would have to assist the Ancestor with some monumental task, but unexpectedly, it was already finished. However, this was even better, as there would be no danger.
The Ancestor returned to his original spot and took a sip of tea. "Logically, with my mission complete, I should have already left. But I find you quite agreeable, so I will tell you the purpose of this altar. Otherwise, you might never figure out how to use it in your lifetime."
Torifu immediately put on a look of eager attention. This was precisely what he had been waiting for! The Ancestor had finally gotten to the point! His previous respect had all been to leave a good impression on the Ancestor, and it seemed to have worked.
Kumotsuru Kajin closed his eyes and slowly said, "As you know, I am not from this world. Our entire clan's bloodline does not belong to this world."
"When I left this world with my wife back then, I was very reluctant to part with my descendants, so I spent a large amount of my treasures to build this altar."
"Its primary function is spatial travel. If a descendant can reach Hagoromo's realm, they can activate this altar by releasing a vast amount of chakra, allowing it to connect to the world where I reside."
Hearing the Ancestor's explanation, Torifu understood. This was built by the Ancestor to allow his children to follow him to the Immortal Cultivation Realm. But since he could take his wife, why couldn't he take a few more people along? Maybe it was too dangerous? Otherwise, he wouldn't have needed to build such a device.
Torifu raised his hand to ask a question. "Then, Ancestor, does that mean I have successfully activated the gateway to your world?"
Kumotsuru Kajin nodded but then shook his head, which completely confused Torifu. What was the actual situation?
"Ahem, if you had arrived a few hundred years ago, you truly could have been teleported to the Immortal Cultivation Realm. But it is not possible now. This is because my main body is no longer in that world, and after sensing that my sons had all died, he severed the connection between the two worlds."
For some reason, Torifu suddenly wanted to shout, "What the hell!" Wasn't this just completely messing with him? He traveled all this way, activated an altar that was hyped up to be so amazing, but in the end, it was just for a light show? The teleportation channel was cut off; what good was activating the altar?
Seeing Torifu getting agitated, Kumotsuru Kajin reassured him. "Although you cannot be teleported to the Immortal Cultivation Realm, the altar still retains the function of spatial tearing."
"It can randomly transport a person to another world. However, it is a one-way trip, and you only have one chance. You need to consider it carefully."
The Ancestor said calmly, "With your strength, leaving this world may not pose any risk."
Torifu immediately rejected this idea. What was the point of being transported to another world all by himself? His wife, son, and all his family were in this world. And since it was one-way, he couldn't come back once he left. Only a fool would go.
Seeing Torifu's firm resolve, Kumotsuru Kajin shook his head. "Very well. My main body truly did you a disservice in this matter. I will give you a compensation on his behalf."