For Lin Luo, the most pressing matter was resolving the curse. With that thing hanging over him, everything he did felt restrained and highly inconvenient. Even if he could secure favorable outcomes later through various "gifts," that heart-stopping sensation was utterly unbearable—enough to induce a heart attack. () This book is from ⒗к.Яg

The second priority involved Reimu and Kaguya. Regardless of whether a contract was ultimately signed, he absolutely had to build a solid emotional foundation with them. He had originally planned to reside at the Hakurei Shrine and Eientei after dealing with the curse, cultivating affection while simultaneously analyzing the power of Wuzei, and taking time to visit the Scarlet Devil Mansion and the Netherworld to feed the elder sister, younger sister, and Youmu.

However, he felt the need to temporarily alter his course now.

His current strength had reached the Earth Rank. Creating Wuzei only unlocked one percent of its potential, but Lin Luo knew that even if he unlocked one hundred percent of the creation principles, he would still remain stuck at the low level of the Earth Rank. After reaching this rank, cultivation realm mattered far more than raw capacity.

One percent of rules versus one hundred percent of rules—even if their intensity differed, their essence was the same: creation. The difference was merely that the latter would allow him to exert his low-level Earth Rank power more perfectly, perhaps adding a bit of intensity and endurance, but it wouldn't lead to an advancement in realm.

Of course, if he possessed the Mind's Eye, things would be different. By using the Mind's Eye to understand his own limits, he could effectively trigger a qualitative change in his power, thereby achieving a breakthrough in his realm... but those without the Mind's Eye clearly couldn't reach that level.

Since the path of the Mind's Eye was blocked, he had to find another way out... and the Seventh Consciousness was precisely such a brilliant path.

The path that directly reached the Manas consciousness linked to the Root—a part of the source itself—might not be inferior to the Mind's Eye. Furthermore, the Seventh Consciousness had nothing to do with Rule Power; even if he traveled to other worlds, it wouldn't vanish. Conversely, Rule Power wasn't as crucial in this world. Therefore, mastering the Seventh Consciousness was far more important than analyzing the principles of Jingzei.

In this world, very few people could use the Seventh Consciousness. Even counting those who only had a slight connection to it, the total number would certainly not exceed five digits. Among them, Komeiji Koishi was undoubtedly a top contender. In the entirety of Gensokyo, whether human or youkai, she was the only one who could use the Seventh Consciousness and reach such a profound level. For Lin Luo, she was the most ideal master.

Although Koishi Komeiji’s innocent and naive nature meant she would absolutely not be a good teacher, Lin Luo believed that by understanding her, he could find the method to master the Seventh Consciousness.

Thus, when Komeiji Koishi proposed that request, Lin Luo agreed in less than ten seconds... After resolving the curse, he would go to the Palace of the Earth Spirits.

"Really? You're such a good person." Hearing Lin Luo agree so readily, Koishi was instantly overjoyed.

"Please don't call me a good person; I'm under a lot of pressure," Lin Luo mumbled, frustrated. What was happening lately? People kept giving him "good person cards." This wasn't how things should be played.

Koishi, lacking the deep otaku knowledge that Kaguya possessed, didn't grasp the meaning of the "good person card" and didn't dwell on it, cheerfully stating, "Then let's go find that girl who spins right now! Once we find her, we'll go to the Palace of the Earth Spirits, and I'll introduce you to my sister, A-Kong, and A-Rin."

"We'll have to wait on that. We need to make a trip to the Moriya Shrine first," Lin Luo shook his head. Since they were looking for Hatate Hime, the Luck Dragon Head must be brought along. Moreover, he needed to inform Sanae before leaving. It wouldn't be good to disappear without explanation and worry the little loli.

Koishi didn't object to this, so she followed behind Lin Luo toward the Moriya Shrine.

About ten minutes later, Lin Luo returned to the Moriya Shrine. As he expected, the scheming rabbit was still sound asleep, while Sanae was still burning the midnight oil, reading. Judging by her diligence, she seemed determined to master all operational methods of the giant robot overnight.

Bidding farewell to Sanae wasn't difficult. Although little Sanae was somewhat disappointed that Lin Luo, the "alien," was leaving the Moriya Shrine so soon, and was slightly surprised by Komeiji Koishi's appearance, she politely saw the two—or rather, three of them off, as Lin Luo was still cradling the soundly sleeping, scheming rabbit—out of the shrine.

Facing Sanae's "reluctance," Lin Luo also felt a twinge of regret. He could have seen Sanae in her married form that morning, but the trip to the Palace of the Earth Spirits meant he wouldn't be back for at least ten days to half a month... A pity.

"Well then, see you next time," Lin Luo said with a slight smile to little Sanae before turning to leave.

"Forget it, I should hurry up and study the manual," Sanae murmured after Lin Luo and Komeiji Koishi’s figures vanished before her eyes. She closed the shrine gate and returned to her room.

"I'll definitely be able to pilot that mecha tomorrow. Fantastic... Absolutely no room for error!"

If anyone had passed by the Moriya Shrine at that moment, they would have heard a little girl shouting with exaggerated zeal.

On the other side, under Koishi Komeiji's unconscious guidance, Lin Luo found himself darting left and weaving right all over Youkai Mountain, keeping him thoroughly occupied.

No one could detect the unconscious state. If judged by presence, this ability was less than zero; it could not only hide her tracks but even mask her aura. At times, as they walked, Lin Luo would momentarily lose sight of Koishi, as if she had vanished from his sight. Even the True Sight was useless at that moment... Seeing the essence through the phenomenon was impossible when she operated unconsciously.

Fortunately, Lin Luo could barely utilize the Seventh Consciousness himself. Granted, he used it haphazardly, or rather, he had no real idea how to use it, relying solely on intuition, but it was enough to follow Koishi and prevent himself from losing her trail.

Lin Luo didn't dislike this feeling; he simply treated it as a form of training for the Seventh Consciousness.

The two walked in the mountains for an unknown amount of time. Just as dawn began to faintly appear, a sensation suddenly rose in Lin Luo's heart—a deceptive feeling that was both dangerous and safe.

"Found her," At that moment, Koishi suddenly turned around and pointed in one direction, telling Lin Luo, "The girl who spins is found. She's not far ahead."

Looking in the direction she pointed, Lin Luo saw a narrow mountain path surrounded by thorny bushes and dense undergrowth. The terrain was extremely remote. Such a place was uninteresting even to youkai, let alone humans. It had to be said that Hatate Hime’s hermitage was perfectly hidden to the point of being impenetrable.

The faint, ominous aura emanating from the path made Lin Luo cautious. After all, Hatate Hime was a God of Misfortune, managing nearly all the bad luck in this world. Even with the Luck Dragon Head helping to suppress it, it was hard to guarantee there would be no danger.

"Be careful when we approach; getting tainted by misfortune could be very troublesome," Lin Luo said, his expression turning serious, reminding the girl beside him. It would be a terrible sin if Koishi were endangered because of him.

But Koishi shook her head, looking unconcerned. "I'm fine. As long as I manipulate the unconscious, misfortune won't affect me."

"Huh?" Lin Luo froze, asking blankly, "You mean misfortune can't detect you either?"

"Yes," Koishi nodded as a matter of course. "As long as I don't actively touch it, it won't touch me."

"...Fine." Lin Luo knew he was ignorant. Because Koishi didn't appear often in Gensokyo, and she was inherently solitary, rarely interacting with anyone, Lin Luo hadn't taken her abilities too seriously despite knowing their power.

After all, Koishi sealing her third eye was essentially an escape mechanism—an inability to accept the minds of others. A completely closed-off mind meant her state of being hadn't grown; she was essentially similar to Flandre, an incomplete Earth Rank existence.

However, based on their recent interactions, while Koishi's raw power wasn't overly monstrous, if she truly unleashed her full strength, she was a BUG-level character. Perhaps no one could subdue her except the shameless Reimu and those few at the high-level Earth Rank.

This discovery surprised Lin Luo while simultaneously raising his expectations. He was once again certain that if he could fully master the Seventh Consciousness, its effects would absolutely not be inferior to the Mind's Eye.

Koishi's immunity to misfortune put Lin Luo slightly at ease. Of course, he wouldn't be careless; he maintained full mental alertness, walking cautiously down the mountain path.

The further they went, the stronger the sense of foreboding became, as if an immensely terrifying creature were secretly staring at him, ready to launch its fiercest assault the moment he let his guard down.

Lin Luo knew some of this was psychological. It would probably be much easier if he could achieve an unconscious state like Koishi, but he knew that was impossible. Even if it was just psychological, he had to face it with his full attention.

After walking a short distance, cold sweat began to bead on Lin Luo's forehead. At this point, he could already see the palpable misfortune radiating faintly from the mountain path. As soon as it appeared, that aura of misfortune began to resonate with the misfortune already attached to him, causing the sense of danger to increase exponentially.

Boom!

Suddenly, a sharp warning flashed in Lin Luo’s mind. Before he could react, the ground beneath his feet softened abruptly. The entire section of earth vanished, revealing a pitch-black opening below. Simultaneously, countless spectral hands grabbed at his legs and pulled him down...

Lin Luo's expression changed drastically. This was no longer something that could be simply described as misfortune!

PS: This is the third update from yesterday, written after staying up all night. I still need to keep writing; I don't even have time to sleep. Given how hard I'm working, please support me with some monthly tickets. l;!--END--g;RH