Chapter 60 Shackled

"I've agreed, just get on with it. I suspect that heretic god hasn't gone far," Zhang Kai urged.

Madam Willow took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and in the next moment, a beam of green light shot out from her true form, piercing the sky.

Instantly, the green light hovered above, gazing down upon the land, then transformed into the likeness of Madam Willow herself.

At this moment, Madam Willow radiated a pure, brilliant glow, awe-inspiring and majestic—this was the radiance of a true deity.

"Dao! Dao! Dao!"

Suddenly, Madam Willow began to chant, her voice rising into song.

"Heaven's Dao, Earth's Dao, the Great Dao united."

"The myriad beings find their paths; I shall set the Dao."

She paused, then exhaled a single breath.

"The gods have their Dao, the buddhas theirs, demons and monsters each their own, ghosts and humans as well—each returns to their destined path."

As her words fell, they became invisible forces, spreading across the world, filling every corner of the heavens and earth.

Under this power, countless hidden gods, buddhas, demons, and monsters all looked up at the sky, their eyes filled with confusion and astonishment.

But in the very next instant, they were all stunned.

"Now I enter the Dao myself, drawing the circle that binds."

With these final words, Madam Willow's divine soul shattered in an instant, merging with the world, becoming law itself.

All gods, buddhas, demons, and monsters under the influence of this unseen power felt an invisible shackle suddenly placed upon them. In that moment, they understood—and they were furious.

This was a chain, a yoke.

For exalted beings such as gods and buddhas to be so bound—this was an unheard-of humiliation, a blasphemy against the divine!

Yet, rules are rules.

In that moment, disaster struck the gods, buddhas, demons, and monsters alike.

Those in their own sanctuaries, in self-created paradises, fared better. But those who had disguised themselves and were walking among mortals were left utterly bewildered.

A deity fishing in the Northern Sea found the very spot where he cast his line had become his prison.

A buddha hiding within a mountain temple's stone statue found the temple itself had become his shackle.

An immortal disguised as a bridge discovered the bridge was now his cage.

And in the hospital, the old janitor, who had intended to leave, turned pale, his eyes vacant.

He could no longer leave.

If he left the hospital, his already weakened divine power would diminish further, and he risked complete annihilation.

Who was responsible for this? There was truly no way out now.

On the fifth floor, Zhang Kai looked at Madam Willow.

She remained motionless for quite some time before finally speaking, "Darling, this time I've really lost a lot. Ten thousand years of my demon soul, gone in an instant. If you don't treat me well, you truly have no conscience."

"Is it done?" Zhang Kai asked urgently.

Madam Willow looked at him with wounded eyes.

Typical man—never a word of concern for her.

"It's done. My demon soul is now part of the rules. Now, anyone with any real power is limited by these laws. Heh, honestly, I could boast of this for a lifetime. Tell me, who else in all creation has ever sealed the heavens and the earth alone? Damn, I'm amazing," she said, a note of pride creeping into her voice.

Zhang Kai said, "Is this limitation secure? There won't be any problems, right?"

Madam Willow replied, "There could be. I have to become stronger—only if I grow more powerful will the rules strengthen too. Otherwise, if any god, buddha, demon, or monster surpasses my strength, they could break free. So, darling, you have to take good care of me."

Zhang Kai reassured her, "Don't worry, you gave a lot, so you'll get your reward. Here, have some fruit to recover."

He took out several Blood Bodhi fruits.

Madam Willow's eyes sparkled. She snatched them with a vine and shoved them under her roots, her face blooming with satisfaction. "Not bad, these are spirit fruits infused with Kirin blood. They're a bit wild, but they'll do. Get me a few hundred tons and I might just recover."

Zhang Kai grimaced.

A few hundred tons? How many phones would I have to plunder to gather that much? Even if I dragged the Fire Kirin out of the world of Wind and Cloud and bled him every day, who knows how long it would take to harvest so many?

"Dream on. That's all there is for now. When I get more, I'll bring them to you. For now, let's go find that old wretch, the heretic god. I want to see where he thinks he can run," Zhang Kai said with a cold sneer.

Madam Willow pursed her lips, cursing him for his fickleness—using her and then turning his face.

Once outside the fifth floor, Zhang Kai asked, "Madam Willow, can you sense where that heretic god is?"

She rolled her eyes. "Brother, I just used my divine soul. Right now, I'm at my most basic state—can't even manifest. Can't you be a bit more considerate?"

Zhang Kai chuckled awkwardly. "Alright, you rest."

With that, he began searching the area himself, trying to sense any disturbances.

He activated his true energy.

Zhang Kai soon noticed that the sinister energy throughout the hospital was greatly diminished—several levels lower than before; the oppressive evil had vanished.

Clearly, the key was the maternity bed. Now that it was dealt with, the hospital was back to normal.

But the true culprit was still the heretic god.

If he wasn’t dealt with, trouble would return to the hospital sooner or later.

So he wandered the halls, tracking the movements of the evil aura.

Soon, Zhang Kai found himself in one of the rear wards.

There, the old janitor was squatting on the ground, smoking a cigarette, his face lined with worry. Sensing something, he looked up and met Zhang Kai’s gaze.

It was as if fate itself had arranged this meeting.

"Ahem, what are you doing here?" the old man stood up abruptly, his voice tinged with confusion.

Zhang Kai grinned. "Keep pretending."

"Pretending? Young man, I—Whoa, look, a beautiful woman!" the old man suddenly exclaimed.

Zhang Kai remained unmoved.

The old man chuckled nervously. "Brother, can't we just talk? I actually have a story."

"And do you need a story to justify harming people?" Zhang Kai replied.

"Now, now, that's not fair. I was giving countless vengeful infants a chance. Those babies are pitiful, and as they say—helping others is the greatest joy... Alright, maybe I was wrong. But what choice did I have? I, the Honored Lord of Spiritual Insight, once protected a whole region—a proper god, mind you. What evil intentions could I possibly have? Yet why is fate so unfair, leaving me to such ruin and hardship? I’m just trying to survive, that’s all," the janitor lamented, his face a picture of grievance.

Zhang Kai sneered, "Don't reach into your pants while you talk, or I might almost believe you."

The old janitor bared his teeth. "Can't be helped, you’re a bit too strong, I have to be cautious. If you leave now, I promise never to do this again. I'll retire here, turn over a new leaf, and be a proper god. But if you push me, well..."

He pulled a black, cone-shaped object from his pants, holding it up solemnly. "I’m not helpless, you know. This Wraith-Piercing Demon Spike could easily take us both down."

Zhang Kai eyed the spike, thick with resentment, then looked at the old man and scoffed, "And you call yourself a righteous god?"

The old janitor glared. "What do you know? If I hadn’t used this spike to collect all sorts of resentments from humanity, countless people would have lost their minds and done stupid things. My merit is immeasurable!"

"In that case, hand it over and I’ll believe you," Zhang Kai said.

The janitor laughed. "Hand you what? Dream on."