Cunning by nature, treacherous, vicious, and greedy—he would stop at nothing to achieve his ends.
Because Roxie Vale hadn't posted his memory replica in the chat group, he had no idea how he would fail. Since that was the case, he couldn't be bothered with futile resistance. He would wait until Jackie and the others finished gathering the Talismans and then sweep them all up in one go.
Before that, he could even take the initiative and cooperate with Jackie and the others in collecting the Talismans.
Brandon White withdrew his gaze. With his right hand he gently stroked the empty air, and twelve Talismans with a faint lustrous sheen appeared before him.
Since in this world he retained power no weaker than in his own, gathering the Talismans was extremely simple for him—something that could be done at the speed of a thought.
Meanwhile, in Section 13, the facility dedicated to protecting the Talismans, not a single person had yet noticed their disappearance.
"Bang!"
He took a step, and in an instant Brandon crossed into another space. What filled his vision now was a coiling dragon-shaped statue, a faint red light flickering in its eyes.
"A pleasure to meet you, Shendu."
Brandon looked at the statue in front of him and spoke with a light laugh.
"A pleasure to meet you, Brandon White."
Shendu's voice came through the statue.
"When are you planning to make your move?"
"It's already done."
Brandon spoke mildly, then—under Shendu's bewildered stare—took the Twelve Talismans out of his spatial ring. The instant he saw the Talismans, the petrified Shendu shuddered violently. The crimson glow in his eyes flared brighter; it was obvious just how excited he was.
"Pleasure doing business."
As he spoke, the Twelve Talismans began to turn slowly, then merged into Shendu's statue one by one.
"Boom!"
"Roooar!!!"
With a bellow tinged with exhilaration and delight, a massive figure appeared before Brandon.
A human body with a dragon's head, eight horns crowning its skull—like a fusion of a Western dragon and an Eastern dragon—its skin shimmered with a faint luster.
"Hahahahaha! I, Shendu, have returned at last!"
"This world has once again welcomed its master!"
Shendu laughed, his voice full of release and joy. That feeling of being born anew—of tasting freedom again—he had not felt it in a very long time.
But before anything else, Shendu's scarlet gaze swung toward Brandon.
Brandon, for his part, watched the resurrected Shendu with keen interest. Noticing that look, he chuckled and said:
"Shendu, you haven't forgotten our deal, have you?"
He would not forget who and what Shendu was. Breaking his word and going back on agreements was practically instinct for him. Long before they struck their bargain, Brandon had prepared for Shendu to renege—and he was even a little eager to see it happen.
Having weathered a second spiritual-energy tide, his [Authority of Nature] had swelled in power. He did not believe he would lose to Shendu.
Not even to a Shendu who had assembled the Twelve Talismans.
And even if he could not win, walking away would be easy.
What's more, he had already confirmed that his power hadn't been weakened by being in another world. Nature's blessing upon him remained. Given that, what exactly was there for him to fear?
"Of course."
Red light flickered in Shendu's eyes. After a long silence, he spoke slowly.
It wasn't that he lacked the desire to go back on the deal. Nor did he worry about any consequences for breaking it—after all, it was only a verbal agreement. He had already received his benefit; whether he would pay his side of the bargain was a question to be put to his conscience.
Would a demon have something like a conscience?
Of course not.
It was only because he sensed a threat from Brandon!
A dense, overwhelming threat!
The moment he entertained ill intent toward Brandon, he felt malice from Heaven and Earth themselves.
As though the instant he struck, his power would peel away from him for all sorts of reasons, and he would once again fall into a state of being sealed.
[Authority of Nature]
Brandon had never hidden his ability in the chat group. In his own world it was essentially a bug—he was the world's favored son, a child of fortune more terrifying than any protagonist.
Anyone who targeted him would be subjected to malice from the world.
What he hadn't expected was that, in his own world, Brandon's ability would still take effect.
Because this was Earth as well?
Or…was this power not limited to his native world?
Though all of this was only his intuition, after being sealed for so many years and only just now resurrected, he didn't have the guts to gamble on that possibility.
It was only the Book of Ages. So what if he had to hand over some points?
There was no shortage of ways for him to earn points.
No need to fall out with Brandon.
Brandon said nothing—he only looked at Shendu, long and hard.
"This is your world. What you do with it has nothing to do with us."
"But when it comes to your attitude toward China, you would do well to show some restraint."
Leaving those words, Brandon paid no heed to the change in Shendu's expression. His figure vanished into the air.
"That much, you needn't say."
Having already come to view his brothers and sisters as prey, he was no longer bound by any concept of territory.
The Earth was vast—its lands immense.
There was no need for him to fixate on China.
Never mind the goodwill of the group owner in the chat group, or Brandon's notice—what if two more figures like Lü Dongbin suddenly popped up?
Get sealed again?
He would not allow such a thing to happen ever again!
Every possibility had to be cut off at the root!
Uncle's Antique Shop!
Invisible, Shendu stared at Jackie, Uncle, and the others bustling about inside the store, a hint of killing intent in his eyes.
It was them—those who had repeatedly foiled his plans for resurrection—and in the future, even after he revived, would seal him yet again.
If he killed them now…
The thought occurred—but in the end, Shendu did not strike.
"For their sakes, I'll let you go."
"Heroes, huh! Hmph!"
There are only heroes who belong to a nation—not heroes who belong to the world.
You would do well to remember that.
Otherwise—Shendu's crimson eyes flared brighter.
"Now then, I should hurry and grow stronger."
"Angels, god-slayers, gods—the strong ones in the chat group are multiplying."
Shendu turned away, and his body swiftly disappeared.
He planned to head to his secret cache and convert all of his treasures into points.
Compared to those trinkets, points were clearly more important to him.
With enough power, what treasure couldn't he obtain?
After Shendu's form departed, Uncle gazed thoughtfully in the direction he had vanished, then sighed.
"The world is going to change."
With that, he went back to sweeping the floor, while Jackie looked on, baffled.
The land of kangaroos.
Brandon looked up at the barren hills before him. He could feel a mysterious force—profound, ancient.
"Rumble!"
A portal that ought to have required an incantation to appear manifested directly in front of Brandon. In the unseen depths, he even sensed a tugging force, as if something were guiding him to enter.
(End of this chapter)