"No, that's impossible."
Lan Yin shook his head, looking at Entity 001. 001 held an irregular black stone in his hand, its surface clearly marked with concentric patterns.
"Ugh, this is pointless."
Entity 001 casually tossed the stone aside. Lan Yin frowned, while I watched from the side. Right now, Lan Yin was teaching Entity 001 how to channel the Forsaken's power into the Living World using the medium from Oath Island. To succeed, she had to transfer her own power into the stone, but Entity 001 hadn't managed it once; she still had no idea how to use her strength.
"Stop complaining and hurry up."
Lan Yin spoke as he picked up another black stone covered in patterns and handed it over. Entity 001 snatched it irritably, then immediately threw it at Lan Yin, hitting him square on the cheek. Lan Yin caught it with one hand, sighed, and Entity 001 burst out laughing.
"I can't do such dull, boring things."
"Whether you can or not doesn't matter. It took me a long time to get it right. Just hurry up."
001 stuck out her tongue at Lan Yin.
"So fierce, why are you like this? I'm about to go to sleep soon, let's talk tomorrow."
As she said that, Entity 001 ran over to me and hid behind my back. I smiled helplessly. Right now, I hope Entity 001 can master her power—transferring her strength from the Yang Realm to her true self in the Yin-Yang Realm. The Yang Realm is unstable now; if Entity 001 can harness this ability, at least she'll be able to protect herself.
"Stop messing around. Hurry up—this is about your own survival."
At my urging, Entity 001 reluctantly walked back, picked up a stone, and began practicing channeling her power.
Lan Yin walked over to my side. We picked up the nearby wine and started drinking.
"Are you worried? About the Yin-Yang Realm?"
I asked, and Lan Yin nodded.
"I feel worse and worse about it."
I looked at Lan Yin, puzzled, and asked.
"Can you sense what's happening in the Yin-Yang Realm?"
Lan Yin shook his head, pressing a hand to his forehead.
"I should be sleeping in the Lan Family Cemetery right now. Every member of the Lanworths, after death, ends up in that place."
I remember—long ago, I once saw the entrance to that cemetery. Back then, I hadn't yet separated from Zhang Qingyuan's body, or even regained consciousness.
With a soft thud, the stone in 001's hand fell to the ground. She had fallen into a deep sleep. Instantly, Lan Yin moved over and caught her in his arms, but both of us noticed the grave look on 001's face. While the consciousness of one's true self in the Yang Realm doesn't directly connect with the Forsaken, when asleep, it's the same. 001's expression was especially serious.
"Looks like I need to go back. Even if you can't return, I still can."
I nodded, looking at Lan Yin as I asked.
"Even if you do go back, maybe it won't change anything!"
Lan Yin shook his head, a faint smile appearing on his face.
"Back then, I won the duel against Hades."
I stared at Lan Yin in shock.
"It's true—I was killed by Hades at first. But on this island, as my consciousness faded, I realized I could be just as undying as they were. In the end, though, I was torn apart by a group of entities that emerged from even deeper layers of Hell."
I nodded. Lan Yin's gaze grew serious as he raised a clenched fist.
"My instinct can accomplish far too much—this instinct once resided with Martin Lane."
I stood up in shock. Lan Yin downed all his wine in one gulp and wiped his mouth.
"As the strongest in the Yang Realm, even now that I've been revived, nothing has changed, right?"
I nodded. I had always been puzzled by the number 0 on Lan Yin's cheek, but in this world, numbers determine the strength of each Forsaken.
"The things I once believed in have died twice."
I looked at Lan Yin, confused.
"The first time was in the past, when my wife and child died—everything I believed in vanished. The second time was when Rachel Lan died. The two of them saved me, and when I saw them, hope surged inside me. My Forsaken self even left this world for a while, but after Rachel Lan's death, I woke up in this world again. My number is 0."
I made a sound of acknowledgment, and Lan Yin continued.
"If we Forsaken truly inherited divine power, gaining strength from the corpses of dead gods, then I finally understand why this world uses numbers to determine our ranks."
"Why?"
Lan Yin smiled, picked up another jug of wine, gulped it down, then sat beside me and turned to look at me seriously.
"Because when the Yin-Yang Realm first opened, it started from 1. But what is 0? It's chaos. Do you know what my power really is?"
I shook my head. Back when Lan Yin tried to absorb everything in this world and end the tragic fate of the Hades Circle Born, the power he used was the Power of the Four Sacred Beasts.
Lan Yin clenched his fist and let out a cold laugh.
"I can sense it—someone has entered the Lan Family Cemetery."
I stared in astonishment, my eyes wide.
"My power can accomplish many things."
As he spoke, Lan Yin picked up a black stone from the ground and suddenly threw it. Instantly, I saw the stone slice through space, and I felt a very familiar presence. Looking over, I saw Isabelle Frost—her face deathly pale, her body already half transparent.
"I've found you, Lan Yin. Zhang Qingyuan needs your help."