1 Protagonist’s Halo

At Mount God of Heaven, Yanzhou, Divine Ao Mainland.

It was in the afternoon. 

On the peak of the mountain, there was a shabby wooden house surrounded by weeds, and beside it stood a stunted tree.

Under the tree, an old man was lying on a rattan chair.

With dishevelled hair and ragged clothes, he massaged his potbelly with one hand and stared listlessly at the sky. 

In the wooden house opposite him, a young handsome man was leaning against the door and gazing at the old man with a reluctant smile. He was about to speak and then hesitated.

"Jiang Yun, go down the mountain to hunt rabbits. I want a roast!"

Suddenly, the old man's eyes rolled, stared at the young man and said.

"Master, didn't you tell me you were going to die? Why are you still eating?" The young man rubbed his brows.

Although he said so, Jiang Yun still obediently followed the winding stone pathway and walked down the mountain.

After taking a few steps, Jiang Yun seemed to be a little worried. He turned around and shouted to the direction of the tree, "Master, don't die. Wait for me to come back!"

"Hurry up!"

Hearing the old man's reply, Jiang Yun felt relieved and went down to catch a rabbit.

Although this master was very unreliable, he was a man of his word. Since he said that he wouldn't die, he wouldn't die so easily.

However, when he thought of his master was going to die, he felt lost and emptiness in his heart.

It had been a long time since he had come to this alien world called the Divine Ao Mainland.

When he first transmigrated here, he was quite lucky to meet this old man.

At first, he was quite excited, especially when he heard that this world had mysterious powers.

The master even told him that he was very powerful in the past. He took in a lot of disciples, and simply any one of them was a peerless expert in this world.

After that, he was taken in as a disciple in a daze.

However, a year had passed, he had never seen any other senior brothers or sisters.

"Hmm, I'm so lucky today."

Jiang Yun looked over carefully, and he saw a figure flash in the bushes.

Using a noose and a wooden cage he had made, he set a trap for the hare.

Of course, this was also taught by the old man.

When he saw an angry rabbit bite the old man's hand, he knew that these little creatures were not to be messed with.

"Bang!"

Hearing that the trap had been triggered, Jiang Yun was delighted. He took out a knife and ran quickly to check the trap.

"Pfft!"

After opening the cage, Jiang Yun skillfully cut open the hare's neck and ran up the mountain with the still warm hare in his hand.

Just as Jiang Yun reached the top of the mountain...

"Rumble!"

Suddenly, a loud boom came from the sky. Jiang Yun felt as if the whole mountain and the earth were shaking.

Turning his head and looking over, Jiang Yun immediately sensed that something was wrong with the old man. He threw the hare aside and strode off to the master.

"Master?" Jiang Yun called out softly.

Hearing no response, he was momentarily flustered.

"Jiang Yun..." the old man suddenly opened his eyes, and his gaze was gloomy.

As soon as he spoke, it was as if his life was gradually fading away along with his breathing.

"Tell me... Where did you come from? Why can't you cultivate..."

Seeing the old man's face turning more and more pale, Jiang Yun became anxious at an instant.

"Master, don't scare me. I'm just a muggle. I can't survive in this world!"

"Jiang Yun, everyone has their own path. You, from another world, have to find your own path."

"This is the end of my path..."

Feeling that his master's breathing was getting weaker and weaker, Jiang Yun understood the old man's decision. He gently closed his master's eyes.

"Wait!"

Just as Jiang Yun was about to let his master rest in peace, the master cried out suddenly..

Then, he saw a lively light flash in his master's eyes.

Jiang Yun was delighted, was his master not going to die?

"I like sunbathing. Pick a sunny tomb for me, preferably a place with abundant spiritual energy!"

After saying that, the old man closed his eyes and fell to the ground.

Jiang Yun, "Oh no, Master!"

Jiang Yun was completely dumbfounded.

Looking at the old man lying on the ground, Jiang Yun went closer to check his breath and then held the old man's hand.

There was no breath!

There was no warmth!

"Is he really dead?"

Jiang Yun sat on the ground in a daze.He opened and shut his mouth, unspeaking.

Although he had only been with his master for a year, he was grateful to his master's willingness to take in a fellow of unknown origin like him.

They quarreled occasionally, but they always got on well with each other.

If he had been living alone in this strange world, he might have committed suicide in depression and loneliness.

Going down the mountain? He didn't dare to.

The old man had said that this world was full of spiritual energy. Humans could absorb spiritual energy and gain great power through cultivation. Similarly, those demonic beasts could also absorb spiritual energy and advance, or even transform into human forms.

However, he had always been unable to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, so cultivation had nothing to do with him.

Jiang Yun looked at his master's calm expression with melancholy.

He dug a pit near the stunted tree, wrapped his master's body in a white cloth and buried it.

"Master, you can see the sunrise every day in this place. Moreover, this is the peak of the mountain, so we don't lack spiritual energy. You can rest in peace!"

Jiang Yun took out a basketball-sized stone tablet from a corner of the hut and placed it in front of the tomb.

Two words were carved on it: Great Void

After bowing three times, he subconsciously walked to the recliner that his master usually sat on.

Perhaps the impact of his master's death was too great.

Lying on the rattan chair, Jiang Yun drifted into a deep sleep.

...

The sun set in the west, and the night fell.

Three hours passed very quickly.

Suddenly, the sleeping Jiang Yun felt a chill on his back, as if something terrifying was coming.

It was like he had been awakened from a nightmare, Jiang Yun looked back immediately.

At some point in time, a translucent figure appeared behind him.

Under the moonlight, the figure's feet were suspended in the air, and her messy long hair covered her face.

Even so, Jiang Yun could clearly see the scarlet eyes hidden under her black hair.

"Blood... blood..."

She spoke faintly in a sinister voice, like a cry from hell.

The moment Jiang Yun looked into her eyes, it was as if he saw the world being dyed red.

Just as Jiang Yun was about to drown in the sea of blood and unable to breathe in the despair, a mechanical electronic voice suddenly appeared in his head.

"Ding! Detected host has encountered a ghost. Activate the protagonist's halo system or not?"

Protagonist's halo system?

Wasn't it the stand-alone system plugin I bought before I transmigrated?

Seeing that the ghost was about to catch him, Jiang Yun didn't have time to think and immediately activated the protagonist's halo.

"Ding, the protagonist's halo system has been activated."

"First halo: Absolute domain (in this halo range, the host is invincible and has absolute control over power)"

"Current halo range: A circular area of 10 feet radius centered on the host"