Chapter 2264: Lost True Heart

Zu An was first startled, then overjoyed. He recalled how the Master of Myriad Transformations had once impersonated the Dragon King so perfectly that even Shang Hongyu admitted the resemblance was uncanny. If not for a few revealing words and actions from the real Dragon King, she would likely have been deceived.

At the time, he had been impressed by the Master of Myriad Transformations' incredibly potent ability, but unfortunately, events unfolded too quickly for him to learn it.

To his absolute surprise, that very skill was now recorded on this bead!

Thinking back, the Master of Myriad Transformations must have acquired and swallowed this bead during a fortuitous encounter years ago, thereby learning that heaven-defying ability.

How could he possibly pass up such an opportunity to learn it?

He hurriedly clicked "Yes," and then the skill system displayed another message: "To learn this skill, 10,000,000,000 Rage points are required."

Zu An: "???"

How much?

He rubbed his eyes, thinking he must have misread the number.

This skill's cost was astronomical!

He also understood that the skill system likely determined the cost based on rarity. Such an astronomical sum of Rage points proved that the "Myriad Transformations Art" was indeed an exceptionally rare ability.

He even considered swallowing the bead himself to see if he could learn the skill that way, just like the Master of Myriad Transformations.

But he wasn't a demon, so he figured the chances were slim.

Furthermore, he worried that swallowing such an item might transform his body, rendering him grotesque or even demonized.

As he hesitated, the Keyboard System suddenly displayed a message: "Detected that you possess the prerequisite skill for this ability – 'Thousand Faces' – as well as extensive foundational knowledge required for this skill. The required Rage points can be significantly reduced. Recalculating..."

Soon, another message appeared: "To learn this skill, 1,000,000 Rage points are required. Do you wish to pay?"

Zu An was overjoyed. He recalled that when he first awakened the skill system, it was mentioned that if he already possessed significant familiarity with a certain field, learning related skills would incur much less cost.

While one million Rage points was still a significant sum, it was well within his acceptable range.

He had just tallied the Rage points he'd accumulated recently and found he had a total of 3,050,030 points.

He secretly congratulated himself for not carelessly spending these Rage points. He had a vague feeling that as the Keyboard System opened up more and more functions, Rage points might be needed in various capacities, and simply using them for lottery draws would rely too much on luck.

"Pay!"

Soon, one million Rage points were deducted from his total. Immediately afterward, a stream of information seemed to flow from the bead directly into his mind.

He didn't know how much time had passed when Zu An suddenly opened his eyes and casually picked up a mirror.

Then his body began to blur, swiftly transforming into Zhao Hao, the Old Demon Emperor, the Dragon King, and others.

One by one, faces from his memory appeared in the mirror.

A thought suddenly struck him, and soon Chu Chuyan's image materialized in the mirror—a truly beautiful and aloof ice queen.

He watched as a trace of shock and bewilderment flashed across the beauty's face, her hands instinctively cupping her chest...

The next second, he reverted to his own form, his expression exceptionally peculiar.

"No, I can't just casually transform into a woman," he thought. "They say once you wear women's clothing, it's either once or countless times. After a while, it messes with your mindset."

After a moment, he suddenly thought of something else. His body blurred, and a striped tiger appeared in the mirror.

The tiger paced around the mirror, occasionally shaking its front paws, seemingly quite unaccustomed to its current form.

Immediately after, the tiger began to change again, its massive form transforming into a small bird.

The little bird flapped its wings, flying back and forth in front of the mirror, seemingly finding its new form exceptionally novel.

After a while, the little bird seemed to tire from flying, alighting on the mirror and vanishing from sight.

Only upon closer inspection would one discover that a tiny mosquito had appeared in its place.

He had transformed into all sorts of animals. Suddenly, a cloud of smoke dispersed, and Zu An's form reappeared in front of the mirror.

His expression was utterly peculiar. He had been so gleeful with his recent transformations that he had basically transformed into every animal he could remember.

In his excitement, he had almost transformed into a maggot...

Fortunately, he snapped out of it at the crucial moment.

This "Myriad Transformations Art" was indeed heaven-defying, even more formidable than Sun Wukong's Seventy-Two Transformations.

Sun Wukong's transformations had a flaw: no matter what he turned into, his monkey tail was difficult to conceal. But the "Myriad Transformations Art" had no such weakness.

He could transform into any living creature from any realm or world, making himself absolutely identical.

It wasn't merely a superficial illusion of appearance but a genuine transformation down to the physical structure and even genetic level.

He would even gain the innate abilities of their bloodline!

No wonder the Rage points required to learn this skill were an astronomical sum!

If he hadn't, by sheer chance, obtained "Thousand Faces" from the Keyboard System, he likely would never have been able to learn this skill in his lifetime.

Thinking about it now, his success in killing the Master of Myriad Transformations back then was truly a stroke of luck. Had he not caught the Master off guard and allowed him to unleash the full power of this art, the battle would have been incredibly difficult.

He suddenly had another thought: Could demons also transform?

Soon his form blurred, and a minotaur appeared in front of the mirror.

Zu An: "???"

"Why did I turn into this thing?"

He hurriedly activated the Myriad Transformations Art again, transforming into the Plague Demon Lord, and then into the Doomsday Specter.

The Fearful Shadow Demon, the Bloodthirsty Alligator Ancestor, and the Fiery Sea Demon – all previously encountered foes – successively appeared in the mirror.

"Demons can indeed transform..."

He was about to transform into the Lord of Slaughter whom he had encountered in the sealed land when a line of alarming numbers popped up from the system interface, making him hastily abandon the idea.

It seemed this skill wasn't entirely without its flaws. Transforming into weaker beings incurred virtually no cost.

The only exception was that using their inherent abilities would consume some Rage points.

However, transforming into more powerful beings demanded enormous amounts of Rage points.

Not only did the initial transformation require a hefty payment, but maintaining that form continuously demanded Rage points every single moment.

This made sense; otherwise, the "Myriad Transformations Art" would be utterly invincible.

There would be no need to learn any other skills; one could simply transform into the most powerful beings.

Furthermore, the "Myriad Transformations Art" had another flaw, seemingly a warning intentionally left by its creator.

As one transforms more and more frequently, they would gradually become lost in it, losing their true self, and might even forget their original appearance one day, in which case there would be no going back.

The thought of such a scenario sent a chill down Zu An's spine.

After transforming so much just now, he had felt a moment of disorientation, even needing to consciously recall the appearance of what he wanted to transform into before he could continue.

Countless faces would appear in his mind; if he wished, every identity could be his.

To constantly remember his original appearance amidst countless faces was indeed quite difficult.

No wonder the Master of Myriad Transformations' true form had been a faceless monster after he was killed.

It must have been that he had forgotten his original appearance amidst his many transformations.

Upon realizing this, his initial excitement faded, and he began to seclude himself to fortify his mind.

It wasn't until three days later that he fully emerged from that disorientation, having found a way to distinguish his true self amidst the confusion.

"This skill truly has a demonic allure," Zu An secretly warned himself. "In the future, I must use it cautiously and not abuse it."

When he emerged from the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Zhang Zitong's face lit up with excitement. "Lord... Your Highness, you're finally out!"

She had decided not to call him "Master" anymore, so as not to draw unwanted connections to the Embroidered Uniform Guard from those who might be listening. This was a secret only between the two of them, and it couldn't be known by others.

"What's wrong?" Zu An asked, taking a closer look at her. Her face, which had previously shown unconcealed worry, was now radiant with a brilliant smile. That sudden shift held a truly stunning beauty.

"Your Highness hadn't come out for so many days, of course I was worried about you..." Zhang Zitong's face flushed slightly as she hastily added, "The Empress, the Empress Dowager, and Princess Wu have all visited several times these past few days. However, upon learning you were in seclusion, they all left disappointed. Not long ago, the Empress came again, saying that once you emerge from seclusion, you should be informed to attend the Chu family heir's wedding."