The Wicked System: Path of the Devourer Chapter 4 The Devil's Inheritance

Upon waking, Zhang Wenbin was so terrified his face was drained of all color, pale as a sheet.

The small, nameless temple had completely collapsed into a scattered ruin of shattered tiles and broken bricks. Even the sacrificial altar was splintered into pieces, and the idol that sat atop it had vanished without a trace.

With a slight movement, a wave of profound soreness radiated through his body. It felt as though his entire skeletal structure had been crushed to dust and haphazardly reassembled; an unnatural and deeply unsettling sensation of being a stranger in his own flesh.

"What is that stench?"

He reached up to touch his face, his fingers coming away coated in a sticky, pitch-black sludge. A closer inspection revealed that his entire body was covered in this same foul, viscous substance. The odor radiating from it was uniquely putrid and nauseating.

Zhang Wenbin struggled to sit up. Glancing at the sky, he realized night had fallen.

He clearly remembered lying inside the small temple. Why was it that the temple had collapsed, yet he remained miraculously unharmed? Moreover, why had he blacked out the moment he touched the idol, and what in the world was this viscous black slime coating him?

Thick, oppressive clouds blotted out the moonlight. The midnight mountain winds howled like wailing ghosts, and a sudden, biting chill swept over Zhang Wenbin, causing him to shiver uncontrollably.

He scrambled out of the ruins of the temple. The sheer terror of the unknown left his scalp tingling in dread. He hurriedly spun around, dropped to his knees, and began bowing frantically toward the debris, muttering in panic:

"Godfather, I know you've manifested your spirit! But if you want to harm someone, harm someone else! I'm your godson, we're on the same side! Please, don't scare me like this."

No one knew who this decrepit wild temple, built in some forgotten era, was originally meant to enshrine. It had seen little incense or offerings throughout history and was completely abandoned. The locals from the nearby villages all claimed the place was ineffective for prayers and altogether wicked, but no one could properly articulate exactly what made it so wicked.

[The Wicked System: "Godson?? Godfather... this is one of your human familial relationships, correct?"]

An icy, mechanical voice suddenly echoed directly within his mind. Zhang Wenbin's pale face grew even whiter. He knocked his head against the ground even harder, crying out, "That's right, Godfather, I am your son! Have you forgotten? When I was little, I specifically came here to pay my respects to you!"

[The Wicked System: "I remember it quite clearly. An extreme Pure Yang astrological birth chart is exceedingly difficult to find. Ten-odd years ago, you were far too young and fragile to endure the System's possession. But now, your vessel has grown sufficiently robust."]

"System??"

Zhang Wenbin froze. He had assumed he was dealing with some terrifying ghost or monster, so how did an entirely out-of-place science-fiction term like 'System' suddenly pop up?

[The Wicked System: "The Wicked System!"]

The voice in his mind asserted with absolute certainty: [The Wicked System: "We have now merged into one. Close your eyes if you wish to understand everything."]

Zhang Wenbin instinctively squeezed his eyes shut and sat cross-legged. As his mind quieted, a torrential flood of information surged into his consciousness. In an instant of absolute mental clarity, he comprehended the very existence of The Wicked System.

In the orthodox lineage of Daoism, Mount Longhu had its Celestial Masters, Mount Wudang had its Perfected Ones, and the secluded grottos of the Immortal Sects had their venerable Daoist leaders. To achieve enlightenment, these great masters were required to purge their earthly desires and sever their inner demons. Over aeons, these discarded inner demons accumulated and coalesced within the fabric of heaven and earth, eventually taking form as this very System.

Furthermore, whenever these righteous masters executed justice on behalf of the heavens, the lingering, unyielding resentment of the slaughtered demonic cultivators, heretics, and vile practitioners was absorbed as well. It wasn't just their grudges; all their bizarre, forbidden arts and miraculous artifacts that defied scientific explanation were drawn into this very nexus.

These disparate elements, wandering untethered through the cosmos, had only managed to congregate because of the single ring currently worn on his hand.

This ring... is your main body? Zhang Wenbin thought, astonishingly perplexed. He couldn't even recall when the ring had been placed on his finger.

Touching it felt profoundly bizarre. The ring seemed utterly impervious to his body heat; it was icy to the touch, biting with a bone-deep coldness. Neither its weight nor its texture resembled jade, emerald, or any conventional stone.

[The Wicked System: "No. You are my main body now. Only an individual possessing an extreme Pure Yang birth chart holds the qualifications to let this ring assimilate into their physical vessel."]

As the icy voice spoke, the ring on his finger suddenly began to warp and ripple, gradually melting into his own flesh until it vanished entirely.

Zhang Wenbin was gripped by terror. "What... what the hell is this ring?!"

[The Wicked System: "An artifact of antiquity. By all rights, it should not exist in the mortal realm. Legend states that during the Primordial Era, when the Wu Clan achieved a great victory, they severed the head of a Heavenly Demon. This artifact was forged from its skull. It represents the pinnacle of Yin and absolute Malice. Only an object of such nature could devour the remnants of those from the vile paths after their deaths."]

[The Wicked System: "Through the accumulation of pure malice, the artifact was sealed here. However, it fostered its own sapient consciousness. That is me."]

Hearing all this made Zhang Wenbin's head spin. Swaying as he stood up, he said, "I don't understand all that complex stuff! I just want to know how this affects me."

[The Wicked System: "By acquiring the System, you have entered the Qi Condensation stage of cultivation. Your marrow has been cleansed, your entire being reborn and remolded. There are many cultivators who fail to reach such a realm in their entire lifetimes."]

[The Wicked System: "Only a mortal vessel with a Pure Yang destiny can withstand an artifact of absolute Yin and absolute Malice,"] the System stated coldly. ["As my host, you are granted access to all the malefic spells and vile arts left behind by those fallen heretics. Coupled with a fraction of the ancient Heavenly Demon's power, helping you become a paragon among men will be effortless. However... if you fail to complete your assigned tasks and are unable to placate the myriad of vengeful souls trapped within the System, the resulting backlash will be more than you can endure."]

"Backlash? What happens if I fail?" Zhang Wenbin jumped, startled.

[The Wicked System: "It depends on the circumstances. In the most severe cases, your body will spectacularly detonate, and your soul will be obliterated without a trace."]

Zhang Wenbin gulped hard, wanting to cry but lacking the tears. "And the... light cases?"

[The Wicked System: "In the lighter scenarios, total bodily paralysis. Or eternal impotence, forever losing the majesty of manhood. Or perhaps suffering the unending torment of debilitating illness for the rest of your natural life."]

Fuck, you call that light?! That's literally a fate worse than death! That's way more punishing than having my soul obliterated!

Just as Zhang Wenbin was viciously cursing in his mind, the System's icy voice spoke again: [The Wicked System: "I have only just awakened. My divine power is severely depleted, and I am about to enter hibernation. The System will now issue your very first task. Upon completion, you will officially cross the threshold into the Qi Condensation stage."]

A second, utterly emotionless voice chimed in: [The Wicked System: "Today, the Host harbored thoughts of lust, and is now entangled by the desire of the flesh. Task Requirement: Purge this accumulated lust before the break of dawn."]

[The Wicked System: "Task Success: Officially enter the early stage of Qi Condensation. Acquire the supreme cultivation method generated by the System, allowing the absorption of heaven and earth's spiritual energy."]

[The Wicked System: "Task Failure: Severe and irreversible impotence for the duration of your life."]

"Fuck! That's too venomous!" Zhang Wenbin cursed out loud.

A massive, glowing word for 'Lust' physically manifested in his mind's eye. At that moment, the System's icy voice weakened, offering a final whisper: [The Wicked System: "A friendly warning to the Host: the purging of lust does not strictly necessitate copulation. You currently possess a Pure Yang destiny and remain a virgin vessel. Your spirit is whole and your primal essence is brimming. Until you locate a suitable Cauldron, it is highly advised that you do not break your chastity."]

"What sort of Cauldron is suitable?!"

[The Wicked System: "A female with an anomalous Extreme Yin birth chart. One eternally plagued by malefic filth, constantly hovering between life and death, having already lost half of her three hun and seven po souls. Such a woman serves as the most exquisite Cauldron for a man of absolute Yang."]

[The Wicked System: "Remember: Do not carelessly surrender your virginity. Especially not to a female who is not a virgin herself! Doing so will result in the leaking of your divine spirit and primal essence, rendering you incapable of bearing the divine power of the ancient Heavenly Demon."]

With that final warning, the System vanished.

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