This—
Was their true objective.
From the very beginning.
Uchiha Mo understood it clearly.
In this world, lineage was everything. Inheritance defined everything. Outsiders had no place—no roots, no background, no right to learn orthodox Daoist arts.
That path had been closed to them from the start.
Jiu Shu bringing them here was not acceptance.
It was caution.
Surveillance.
With—
A trace of compassion.
Nothing more.
Because of that, their goal had always been simple, direct, and practical.
They were never here for orthodoxy.
They came for—
The forbidden.
Heterodox techniques.
Rejected. Feared.
Yet powerful.
Immediate.
And among them—
One stood above all.
Corpse refinement.
Xiuren had already realized something fundamental.
Through the Sharingan, he had seen the difference clearly.
This world's humans were weaker—far weaker. Compared to the ninja world, their physical foundation was inferior by several times.
Three times. Five times.
Perhaps more.
Which meant—
If corpse refinement was applied to ninja bodies…
The result would be monstrous.
Ordinary corpses were already dangerous.
But ninja—
Would become something else entirely.
"That's right."
Mo spoke calmly.
"These techniques…"
"…are exactly what we came for."
Jiu Shu frowned.
"These methods harm both others and oneself. With your clan's strength… why choose this path?"
"Strength?" Mo smiled faintly.
"That only means…"
"…more eyes on us."
Xiuren continued calmly.
"We don't seek inheritance. Only methods."
"In exchange—we offer control, taijutsu, and our understanding of energy."
Silence followed.
Jiu Shu considered their words carefully.
They weren't lying.
Their urgency was real.
Their strength—
Undeniable.
There was value here.
Finally, he sighed.
"Very well."
"I have some manuals. Taken from evil cultivators."
"They are dangerous… and useless to me."
He opened a wooden chest.
Inside were ancient booklets, their pages darkened with age. Different origins. Different paths.
"Corpse refinement. Ghost manipulation."
"What you do with them…"
"…is your responsibility."
Mo accepted them without hesitation.
"Thank you, Daoist."
Days passed.
Two.
Quiet.
Mo explored the town, observing and waiting for the story to unfold.
Xiuren, meanwhile, never left.
He was completely immersed—studying, analyzing.
Feng shui. Puppets. Corpses. Souls.
Cruel. Strange.
Yet—
Brilliant.
A completely different path to power.
But there was a problem.
A fundamental one.
All these techniques relied on spiritual energy—external and unstable.
And he—
Didn't have it.
"Mo…"
Xiuren finally spoke.
"Can the Main God convert this?"
Mo flipped through a page lazily.
"It can. That's the benefit. Otherwise, traveling between worlds would be meaningless."
He paused briefly.
"But how much can be converted…"
"…that depends."
Xiuren frowned slightly.
The answer was vague.
But—
Acceptable.
These manuals were incomplete.
Fragments.
Research notes.
But that—
Was enough.
They didn't need the full system.
Only the principles.
With the Main God—
They would rebuild everything.
Using chakra.
Then—
The calm broke.
A servant arrived.
"Jiu Shu… our master invites you."
"Tea."
"And grave relocation."
Jiu Shu nodded.
"Wencai—prepare."
At that moment, Mo stood up with a faint smile.
"I'd like to go as well."
Jiu Shu paused, a thought forming in his mind.
"In that case… Wencai stays."
"I'll take you."
Wencai froze for a moment—
Then grinned.
"Understood!"
Mo turned toward Xiuren.
"Xiuren?"
No response.
He was still reading.
Without even looking up—
"You go. I'm not interested in tea."
Mo wasn't surprised.
And just like that—
He left.
Together with Jiu Shu.
Heading toward—
Renjia Town.
Where—
The real story—
Was about to begin.