Having settled the issue of the Misaka clones, Lin Luo finally laid to rest a worry that had long weighed on his heart. He paid no mind to the three girls who were now thoroughly vomiting, and instead made another quiet visit to the world of A Certain Magical Index. He covertly observed Ains Sophisticated and Kazari Hyouka, living in the Academy City’s Imaginary Number District... He showed himself to no one, arriving and departing without a sound, and only left once he confirmed their lives were proceeding normally.

Next, Lin Luo returned to the Bright Realm, heading to the virtual city of Shanghai—a metropolis he had personally fabricated. Though it was merely a construct, the saying holds true: where truth reaches an extreme, falsehood can become truth, and vice versa. Everything possesses two sides, and limits can bring about transformation... Good and evil, black and white, and even the real and the false—where in this city now can anything be called truly illusory?

It was here that Lin Luo once again encountered that uniquely singular woman: someone who held both cunning darkness and natural simplicity, possessing both stunning beauty and chilling ruthlessness; one capable of acting adorable one moment and manipulative the next, committing good deeds while simultaneously doing ill. Her hair cascaded down to a length more than twice her own height—Lola Stuart.

After he had brought Lola over to the Bright Realm, Lin Luo had irresponsibly dumped her in this city, tasking her with serving as the Supreme Bishop to help gather faith. Initially, given Lola’s reluctant attitude at the time, Lin Luo hadn't expected her to be particularly diligent. But the results far surpassed his initial hopes; not only did she meet his baseline expectations, she exceeded them in ways he hadn't imagined.

Lola deserved immense credit for the way this virtual city managed to transition from the illusory to the concrete.

Of course, her methods remained unchanged: a constant balance of virtue and vice, doing good deeds while concurrently engaging in wickedness.

But in this world, is there ever truly a clear delineation between good and evil? To stubbornly insist on completely separating black from white, good from bad, is nothing more than juvenile posturing. At least, in Lin Luo’s estimation, as the head of a religious order, no one could find fault with Lola's conduct.

Even when Lin Luo attempted to nitpick, hoping to tease her a bit, his efforts came to nothing.

In truth, if one overlooked her calculating, unscrupulous side, all that remained of Lola was nobility and grace... naturally, coupled with moments of utter absurdity, which, in Lin Luo’s view, were quite charming.

Setting aside their respective statuses, and disguised as ordinary people, Lin Luo and Lola walked side-by-side down the bustling thoroughfare. They discussed topics utterly devoid of substance or consequence, and, at Lola’s request, he even washed her hair—hair long enough to measure four meters. Only as dusk settled did Lin Luo finally take his leave.

“This time, are you here to bid me a final farewell?” Lola suddenly asked just as Lin Luo was departing.

Lin Luo paused briefly, then burst into a hearty laugh. “You’re overthinking things.”

With that, without waiting for Lola’s response, he vanished from sight.

Lola was clever; Lin Luo had to admit that much. But he also knew all too well that smart women could often be troublesome.

“Were you waiting for me?” After bidding Lola farewell, Lin Luo soon encountered Lin Xiaoke. She stood quietly in the central atrium of the Sky City, resembling a statue of longing. He couldn’t help but ask, “Were you waiting for me?”

“Yes,” Lin Xiaoke replied without preamble. “This is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time but kept putting off. Since you seem quite free lately, I just waited here. What are your thoughts?”

Lin Luo certainly knew what she was referring to. He scratched his head, then replied calmly, “I have no objection. Today is as good as any other day. Let’s do it now.”

The way they spoke made it sound as if they were preparing to enter the bridal chamber. Any unwitting observer would likely assume this was the moment where a devoted maiden’s patience was rewarded, and the faithless man finally brought the sedan chair. In reality, however, the situation was quite different.

The Type-Moon world, the Isle of Britannia. This was territory belonging to Britain, yet it was simultaneously governed by a single great family: the Arthur family, whose lineage traced back to King Arthur. Whether in the mundane world or the hidden one, their influence was incomparably vast. To the average person, they might just seem like a wealthy noble family with a bit more money and a few estates. Moreover, whether commoner or supernatural being, few outside their immediate family knew the true origins of this clan, or the actual power they wielded.

This was not Lin Luo’s first visit to Britannia. In fact, during his initial entry into the Type-Moon world, when he was traveling globally to decode the world’s rules, he had visited once before. At that time, he was still very weak and had never made contact with this family. Now, guided by Lin Xiaoke, he was arriving at their core.

Passing through a gate nearly three meters high and over ten meters wide, greeted by a line of butlers in black suits to the left and maids in white dresses to the right, all bowing in unison, Lin Luo and Lin Xiaoke proceeded down an avenue over a thousand meters long, newly carpeted in crimson. Sculpted gardens and lush groves surrounded them, featuring various magnificent yet elegantly beautiful vistas. Further off loomed a structure as grand as a royal palace, leaving one breathless.

“I already said, such extravagance isn’t necessary,” Lin Luo remarked with a touch of helplessness, looking at the line of butlers and maids stretching out like the Great Wall, and the seemingly freshly installed decorations everywhere.

“I told you that beforehand, and telling me again does no good,” Lin Xiaoke stated flatly. “Besides, if I hadn’t mentioned it, what you’d be seeing right now would likely be an entire group kneeling before you.”

“...Fair enough.”

This time, Lin Luo was accompanying Lin Xiaoke in acknowledging his ancestral roots... No, that wasn't quite right. It was more accurate to say he was being recognized by his descendants.

Originally, following the ancestral mandate, the descendants who had searched for over a thousand years had finally found their ancestor. As great-grandchildren, it was only natural for the entire family to prepare for his arrival, waiting outside without food or drink for three days and nights, kneeling in obeisance the moment he appeared—that would have been the mildest form of greeting. They ought to have greeted him with welcoming ceremonies spanning three thousand li, right?

Alright, perhaps not quite that exaggerated, but based on a single dying wish, these people had managed to amass wealth and gather followers, developing a family of just a few members into the largest clan in the world. Lin Luo could pretty well guess the disposition of this family: even if not strictly traditional, they were certainly devoutly persistent.

Lin Luo found this level of formality hard to adjust to. Before coming here, he had asked Lin Xiaoke to keep the reception as low-key as possible... But judging by the current scene, achieving subtlety seemed unlikely.

Just as Lin Luo had anticipated, when he walked down the long avenue and entered the opulent, gilded mansion, the crowd inside—all dressed formally and seemingly waiting for a long time—immediately dropped to their knees, followed by a single, unified cry:

“We welcome the Old Ancestor!”

They were even using etiquette from the Great Celestial Dynasty. One had to admit, they had put real effort into it.

The only problem was the person being bowed to—Lin Luo—whose face was etched with pure embarrassment... From infants cradled in arms to centenarian grandfathers and grandmothers, having this many people simultaneously call you ‘Old Ancestor’ was profoundly jarring!

His own daughter hadn't even started elementary school yet!

“Rise, rise, everyone,” Lin Luo quickly gestured for them to stand, then asked, “Um... Who is the current family head?”

“That would be me, Old Ancestor,” a robust-looking middle-aged man immediately replied.

“Oh, what’s your name?”

“Replying to the Old Ancestor, my name isn't ‘What’s His Name,’ my name is Pangaea Arthur,” the man answered, then pointed to the golden-haired beautiful woman beside him. “This is my wife; her name is...”

“Huh?” Lin Luo froze, unable to comprehend... Or rather, incapable of processing the meaning.

Lin Luo soon understood, however. Pangaea Arthur’s wife wasn't named 'What's His Name'; her name was Sha Ming. The misunderstanding was largely due to accent, as no one knew for over a thousand years that the ancestor they sought hailed from the Celestial Dynasty, and the Celestial language was not the world language like Inglish, nor was it something everyone bothered to learn. Once Lin Xiaoke informed them of Lin Luo’s identity, they immediately procured a copy of the Xinhua Dictionary for everyone.

But one had to remember that the Chinese language is one of the most vast and profound languages in the world; a single phrase like cǎo ní mǎ can have numerous interpretations, far from something that can be learned easily. Consequently, most of them spoke Chinese with unclear articulation. For example, pronouncing Sha Ming as shá míng (what name)—they were all essentially super kong’er (people prone to auditory mishearing).

It was fortunate that the term ‘Old Ancestor’ had been practiced countless times; otherwise, Lin Luo might have heard it as ‘Catching a Pig.’

Lin Luo wasn't entirely comfortable with the accent of the male line, but the female line's pronunciation was much better, lending him a greater sense of familiar kinship since they all shared the surname Lin.

‘Ancestral Recognition’ was a notoriously troublesome affair for both parties, though the younger generations were delighted by the complication, as this was the fulfillment of a millennium-long wish. Lin Luo, however, was largely enduring the ordeal. After suffering through the fuss for a while, he could take no more. His eyes darted around, and he immediately pointed at a small girl in the crowd, changing the subject: “Ooh, this little lady looks so vibrant, and with such unique bone structure—she seems like a prime candidate to save the world. What’s her name?”

A beautiful young woman standing behind the girl quickly pushed her forward, smiling widely. “Replying to the Old Ancestor, this is my daughter; her name is Annie. Xiaoke taught her some skills before and praised how quickly she learned... Oh, and she has a nickname, which is Wu Yi.”

“Very cute,” Lin Luo nodded repeatedly, smiling at the little girl. “Wu Yi, how old are you this year?”

Wu Yi looked a bit introverted, seemingly disinclined to speak. After several significant glances from her mother, she finally said to Lin Luo, “Twelve.”

Lin Luo stepped forward, crouched down in front of the girl, and gently pinched her soft, rosy cheeks with his hands, saying warmly, “Twelve years old, a very promising development. Do you have a boyfriend yet?”

The moment Lin Luo uttered those words, the hall fell silent. Wu Yi’s eye twitched slightly before she replied, “No.”

“Not having a boyfriend is a good thing; you don't need to look so dejected, and you’re still young...” Lin Luo seemed oblivious to the dissatisfaction in the girl’s eyes and paid no mind to the petrified expressions of the onlookers, continuing nonchalantly, “Right, I’ve been thinking lately about taking on a final disciple, you know? I think you have the makings of one. Just a few years under my guidance—and I guarantee you’ll be the next God of Slaughter... Wu Yi, are you interested?”

Wu Yi... Please cast another monthly vote! RS