After that battle, the Three Realms entered a period of undercurrents and turbulence. No one dared state their position openly anymore.
The Three Pure Ones had made their stance clear, and their intention to protect Zhuangzi could not have been more obvious. No one wished to crash headlong into the sharp edge of the Three Realms' most unshakable Daoist tradition.
Taiyin Star, Guanghan Palace.
Cold moonlight washed over the Jade Palace. Frosty mist hung like gauze, and all was silent.
Li Fan sat alone beneath the Moon Laurel Tree, his gaze piercing through the clouds of the nine heavens as he comprehended the origin of the Primordial World. He sank into prolonged thought over the three supreme Heavenly Daos: Heavenly Punishment, Heavenly Mandate, and Heavenly Balance.
Heavenly Punishment governed penalties and suppressed the sins of the Three Realms;
Heavenly Mandate governed order and determined the paths of all living beings;
Heavenly Balance governed equilibrium and upheld the fairness of the Great Dao.
The three Heavenly Daos had originally been the foundation of the Primordial World's operation. Yet now, they faintly showed signs of imbalance, as though an invisible hand had disturbed them and set them to independently deducing some unknown Change of Circumstances.
He lowered his eyes in silence, already understanding in his heart: this was the opportunity for the Ninth Saint of the Heavenly Dao, and also the beginning of the Immeasurable Kalpa. The true world-ending storm of the Primordial World was quietly brewing.
Dressed in plain robes whiter than snow, Goddess Wangshu softly sighed. "Heavenly Punishment has stirred, Heavenly Mandate has fallen into disorder, and Heavenly Balance has also shifted."
Nuwa spoke calmly. "An abnormal movement in the Heavenly Dao is a change in Heaven."
"The End of Dharma is causing the heavenly laws to lose balance. Looking