Chapter 145: The Future Seven Deadly Sins—Lust

"Taoist Priest Xuanqing, what exactly is going on?" Sikong Zhen had lost his composure. He knew Taoist Priest Xuanqing's methods; though the man looked unreliable, anyone recognized by the Royal Family possessed genuine skill.

"Taoist Priest Xuanqing?!"

Taoist Priest Xuanqing didn't answer. He stared at the image in midair with a horrified expression, so frightened he collapsed onto his backside. "The end of the world... the end of the world... the world will be destroyed by the Seven Deadly Sins!!"

"What?!" Sikong Zhen and Mu Lingxi exclaimed in unison, their faces etched with disbelief. Never could they have imagined that a single divination would reveal such a horrifying future.

Amidst their shock, neither noticed Taoist Priest Xuanqing's unusual reaction. A closer look would have revealed that his gaze was locked dead onto one particular member of the Seven Deadly Sins: Lust!

The figure wore a Silver-White Mask curved into a lecherous smile that completely concealed their face. Their shoulder-length hair was tied back with a simple band, and a longsword was strapped to their back. Their entire form was heavily blurred, as if covered by a thick mosaic—so distorted that even their own mother would need an hour to recognize them.

Yet Taoist Priest Xuanqing seemed to recognize the figure, his eyes wide with unparalleled shock.

That unmistakable sleaziness... I can't be wrong. I absolutely can't be wrong.

My Celestial Sovereign, he lamented inwardly. My good Disciple, if I had known you would be this badass in the future, your Master never would have kicked your ass.

"Taoist Priest, are you saying the Seven Deadly Sins will destroy the entire world in the future?" Sikong Zhen demanded urgently. For the first time, a look of profound worry surfaced on the Gold expert's face.

"How should this poor Daoist know? The vision of the future is right in front of you. Look for yourselves."

Sikong Zhen's face darkened. While he desperately wanted to reject this reality, he trusted Taoist Priest Xuanqing's abilities. During the man's time in the Imperial Capital, his divinations had been flawless; he had never missed the mark even once.

"Taoist Priest, I remember you once saying that the future is not set in stone," Sikong Zhen said. "Quickly, divine the identities of the Seven Deadly Sins' members! Even if the world faces destruction, that is still in the future. If we uncover their true identities now, we might still be able to stop them!"

"There are seven of them in total. How could this poor Daoist possibly have enough lifespan to divine all seven at once?" Taoist Priest Xuanqing said, his eyes shifting evasively.

"Pride!" Mu Lingxi snapped coldly. "He is the Head of the Seven Deadly Sins. Figuring out his identity is enough!"

Taoist Priest Xuanqing gritted his teeth. He looked at the man in the vision who wore a black tailcoat, a top hat, and a Silver Smiling Mask, then silently formed a set of hand seals.

But right at that moment, a shocking change occurred. Pride slowly turned his head within the vision. That sneering silver mask met everyone's gaze, as if issuing a silent mockery.

Everyone jolted. In that instant, they were struck by the terrifying illusion that Pride was staring directly at them! His disdainful gaze seemed to pierce through the chasm of time, looking back from the future into the past.

Splurt!

Old Taoist Xuanqing suddenly sprayed a massive mouthful of blood. His face turned as pale as paper, his expression filled with absolute terror. "He... he found me!!"

"Heh..."

Pride's soft chuckle echoed from the vision. "Merely people of the old era, yet you dare to spy on a god of the new era?"

Bang!

The vision shattered. All sounds and phenomena came to an abrupt halt!

Deathly silence descended over the great hall. The three stared at each other in horror, the bizarre encounter sending chills down their spines. They had never imagined that someone in this world could speak to the past from the future.

"This is impossible!!" Taoist Priest Xuanqing suddenly roared, shattering the silence in the room. His expression twisted into something ferocious. "I borrowed the power of the Celestial Sovereign of Longevity to divine the future! How can he possibly see into the past from the future? Is he even stronger than the Celestial Sovereign of Longevity?!"

No one could answer his question.

"The Celestial Sovereign of Longevity is the greatest god! How could any existence in this world surpass the Celestial Sovereign of Longevity?!"

"Taoist Priest Xuanqing, can you divine the identities of the Seven Deadly Sins one more time? If Pride is impossible, what about the others? The Empire is willing to pay another hundred million," Sikong Zhen said in a heavy voice.

Hearing him ask about the others, Taoist Priest Xuanqing recovered a sliver of his calm and immediately refused. "This isn't about money. Do you think this poor Daoist is some street-corner charlatan who can divine fortunes on a whim? I suffered a backlash from this divination. I won't be able to perform another one anytime soon."

"I understand." Sikong Zhen nodded, slightly absentminded. Foregoing all pleasantries, he led Mu Lingxi out of the Longevity Daoist Temple.

"Lord Sikong, do you really believe the future that old charlatan divined? Not to mention this Celestial Sovereign of Longevity he worships. Where would gods ever come from in this world? I bet he just possesses some unknown Law." Mu Lingxi clearly harbored her doubts. She refused to believe that the power of a mere seven people could destroy the world.

It would be impossible even if all seven of them were Gold experts. There were seven empires in this world, after all. The Chiyan Empire was merely one of them, and it wasn't even ranked near the top.

Even so, seven Gold experts wouldn't even be enough to overthrow the Chiyan Empire, let alone destroy the entire world.

Sikong Zhen shook his head. "There truly are gods in this world."

Mu Lingxi froze. She never expected Sikong Zhen—a Gold expert himself—to say something like that. As far as she knew, so-called gods were nothing more than exceptionally powerful humans. Back in the era before information flowed freely, plenty of Gold experts had been mistaken for deities.

"You've seen a god, My Lord?"

"You misunderstand me. The gods I speak of are not the deities you're imagining. They are nightmare monsters."

Mu Lingxi caught on immediately, arriving at the answer in a flash. "Do you mean gods are also products of the Nightmare World?"

Sikong Zhen nodded. "If humans can dream of monsters, why couldn't they dream of gods? Fanatics worship their deities, so it's perfectly normal for them to dream of those gods at night.

"With so many fanatics dreaming of the exact same god, most of the gods in the Nightmare World have become unprecedentedly powerful, far surpassing your average nightmare monster."

Mu Lingxi grew thoughtful. "I see. In that case, the credibility of the future vision produced by this Celestial Sovereign of Longevity is doubtful."

"No." Sikong Zhen's expression gradually turned grave. "We cannot doubt it; in fact, its credibility is extremely high. Didn't I just say it? These so-called gods wield terrifying strength and possess all manner of miraculous abilities. In other words, the vision of the future divined by the Celestial Sovereign of Longevity is even more credible than the visions of Transcendents who possess Future Sight."

Mu Lingxi recoiled in shock, struggling to process the sudden news that the Seven Deadly Sins would destroy the world. "Then what do we do next?"

Sikong Zhen slowly lifted his gaze to the sky. "I need to return to the Imperial Capital," he said solemnly. "I must report this matter to the Royal Family. This organization known as the Seven Deadly Sins is likely far more powerful than we imagined. This is no longer a matter I can handle alone as a Gold Transcendent."