The Biyou Heart Question (Part 1)

"You, are you the anomaly Cheng Xi?"

The voice of the Daoist in the green robe was calm and gentle, like a clear spring flowing over smooth pebbles in a mountain stream. It carried no trace of worldly dust, yet it clearly echoed in every corner of the silent stone cave. The voice was not loud, but it seemed to contain a rhythm of spoken words becoming reality, directly imprinted on the depths of the soul.

The two words, "anomaly," struck Cheng Xi's heart like invisible heavy hammers!

The System within his body instantly fell silent to an extreme. All scanning and deduction functions seemed to encounter absolute zero and were completely frozen! [Encountered absolute high-dimensional suppression! Core functions forcibly dormant! Passive perception module operating at its limit...] The cold prompt carried unprecedented reverence and fear. The person before him was absolutely not an ordinary immortal!

A vast and boundless pressure, like an invisible firmament, gently but irresistibly closed in. Cheng Xi felt as if his soul had been cast into transparent amber, his thoughts becoming sluggish. Every inch of flesh and blood, every wisp of breath, even the nascent Break Delusion Sword Intent in his sea of consciousness, was laid bare under the other's indifferent gaze. This was not killing intent, but an absolute suppression originating from the level of life itself, from the origin of the Great Dao! It was like an ant looking up at the galaxy, only feeling insignificance and shock.

Yan Lingji let out a muffled groan, her face instantly turning as pale as paper. The violent heat within her, which had finally been calmed by the Jianmu Vitality, became like a provoked ferocious beast under this supreme pressure, raging wildly again! The dark gold patterns beneath her skin flashed intensely like red-hot branding irons, almost bursting through her body! She bit her lip tightly, her flame-like eyes filled with pain and instinctive terror, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Cheng Xi forced himself to endure the trembling of his soul and the stiffness of his body, and with difficulty, he raised his head, looking directly at the green figure on the lotus platform. The other's gaze was as still as an ancient well, as profound as if it contained the entire sea of stars. He felt as if all his secrets—his reborn soul, the Chaos System, the Xirang Crystal, the Jianmu Fragment, and even the secret of his trip to Mount Li—were all revealed in this gaze, analyzed with absolute clarity.

"Junior... Cheng Xi." His voice was dry and hoarse, each word heavier than a thousand pounds. "May I ask... your esteemed title, Immortal Elder?" He asked a question he already knew the answer to, but had to ask. Facing such an existence, any cleverness seemed pale and ridiculous.

The Daoist in the green robe did not answer. His gaze swept over the Qingping Sword Sheath in Cheng Xi's arms, which was still humming slightly, then fell upon Yan Lingji, pausing for a moment on the intensely flashing dark gold patterns beneath her skin. In those ancient well-like eyes, a very subtle ripple finally appeared, carrying a hint of... understanding? And a trace of indescribable complexity?

"Qingping has a spirit and seeks its own master. Amidst the tribulation, a thread of life is seized." The Daoist spoke slowly, his voice still peaceful, yet seeming to contain the ultimate principles of the Heavenly Dao. "You carry the variable of Chaos, possess the Jianmu Vitality, and have even ignited my Sword Intent Imprint, breaking through the River God's Water Tribulation to find this place... this is no accident, nor is it luck."

He paused, his gaze returning to Cheng Xi. The invisible pressure seemed to subtly recede a little, allowing Cheng Xi to breathe.

"My Daoist title is Tongtian."

BOOM!

The two words, like the first thunderclap at the beginning of Chaos, exploded in the sea of consciousness of Cheng Xi and Yan Lingji!

Tongtian! Lord Tongtian! One of the Six Sages of the Primordial Era, the master of the Intercepting Sect! The supreme being who had once cut off the demonic claw in the mountain from afar with a single sword, his sword mark startling Mars! He was actually right before them! Appearing in this blessed land in such an ordinary manner!

The terror in Yan Lingji's eyes was instantly replaced by disbelief and shock. Even the restless bloodline within her seemed to be awed by this supreme title, temporarily calming down a bit.

Cheng Xi's heart churned like a stormy sea! Although he had suspected it, hearing it with his own ears and seeing the person in person was still an unparalleled impact! He took a deep breath, suppressing the turbulent emotions, and bowed deeply: "Junior Cheng Xi (Yan Lingji), pays respects to Sage Tongtian!" Yan Lingji also struggled to bow along.

Lord Tongtian nodded slightly, acknowledging the bow. His gaze swept over Yan Lingji again, with a hint of scrutiny: "Witch Clan remnant? Fire Witch Origin? A pity... your bloodline is mixed, with deeply ingrained malevolence, and furthermore... signs of external demon erosion." His voice was plain, yet he pinpointed Yan Lingji's deepest hidden danger with a single sentence.

Yan Lingji trembled all over, her face turning even paler. Her lips moved, but she didn't know how to respond. The so-called "external demon erosion" clearly referred to the chaotic power from the dark gold giant claw in the stone cave that had corrupted her bloodline.

Lord Tongtian's gaze returned to Cheng Xi. His plain eyes seemed to pierce through his skin, looking directly at the nascent Chaos imprint of his rebirth deep within his soul. "As for you... a soul from another world, carrying a 'Chaos Artifact' (referring to the System), stirring the karma of this realm. With a mortal body, you perform heaven-defying acts... the Mount Li Demonic Lair, the Secluded Valley Corpse, the Xianyang Undercurrents... all your actions are within the tribulation."

Cheng Xi's heart was greatly shaken! Lord Tongtian not only saw through his origin and the System (though he didn't explicitly state it, he clearly knew of its existence), but he even knew all his secret experiences like the back of his hand! In the eyes of a Sage, there were indeed no secrets!

"May I ask, Sage," Cheng Xi suppressed his shock, his voice carrying a hint of determination, "What is tribulation? What is defying heaven? What I do is merely to survive, to seek a thread of transcendence! Lu Buwei colludes with demonic evils, breeds demonic creatures, and wishes to overthrow Great Qin and plague the common people! Are such actions what the Heavenly Dao permits? Is this 'following Heaven'?"

He had thrown caution to the wind! Facing a Sage, any explanation or concealment was futile, so it was better to speak his mind directly! He recalled the System's prompt of "Heavenly Dao's gaze is faint," the Ancestor Dragon dormant within Ying Zheng, and the shackles of the Earthly Dao and Human Dao that were imprisoned!

Upon hearing this, Lord Tongtian's ancient well-like face showed, for the first time, a very subtle... change? It was not anger, but like a stone dropped into ice that had been silent for eternity, causing a ripple. His gaze seemed to penetrate the stone walls of the cave, looking towards the depths of the boundless and distant Primordial heavens. In the depths of his eyes, a trace of extremely complex and unreadable meaning flashed—the desolation of old grudges from the Investiture of the Gods, doubt towards the Heavenly Dao's injustice, and even a... deeply hidden arrogance!

"Heavenly Dao?" Lord Tongtian's voice was still calm, yet it seemed to carry an eternal chill. "Beneath the Heavenly Dao, all things are dogs of heaven. Those who follow prosper? Those who rebel perish? Heh..." A faint, almost imperceptible snort, carrying eternal mockery and unwillingness.

He did not directly answer Cheng Xi's question, but instead changed the subject: "You speak of seeking life, seeking transcendence. Do you know this path is fraught with thorns, with a nine-death, no-life outcome? Do you know that for my Intercepting Sect to seize a thread of life is to act against heaven? The Investiture of the Gods Tribulation, the Myriad Immortals Formation broken, serves as a lesson from the past!" When he mentioned the past events of the Investiture of the Gods, beneath the calm tone lay overwhelming rage and bone-deep desolation capable of incinerating star rivers!

The wrath of a Sage, even if only a trace of it was held back, was enough to cause the spiritual energy within the cave to instantly congeal! Yan Lingji let out a muffled groan, almost falling to her knees. Cheng Xi felt as if his soul were being pierced by billions of ice needles, and the nascent Break Delusion Sword Intent vibrated wildly, almost shattering!

"Disciple... has no regrets!" Cheng Xi suddenly looked up, his eyes bursting with unprecedented brilliance! He endured the terrifying pressure of the Sage, word by word, as if squeezed from the depths of his soul, "If the Heavenly Dao is unjust, treating all living beings as pawns! If Immortals and Gods have no Way, treating mortals as dogs of heaven! Then this 'defying heaven,' this disciple is willing to do! This 'thread of life,' this disciple is willing to seize! Even if I am shattered to pieces, my soul scattered, I will not regret today's resolve!"

"I am willing to use my mortal body to shake the Heavenly Dao! I am willing to use my own heart to prove the Chaos!"

His voice seemed so weak under the Sage's might, yet it carried a resolute, desperate determination! This was not boastful talk, but a cry and realization from the deepest part of his soul, at the edge of life and death, under the Sage's scrutiny! The existence of the Chaos System, his reborn experience, and his struggles for survival all along had made him unable to be content with being a mere pawn!

BOOM!