Di Jun's gaze seemed to pierce through the dome of the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, staring at the direction of the Hongmeng Zixiao Purple Cloud Palace in the darkness, as if he were retracing the tragic cycles of every Tribulation since the beginning of the Primordial Wilderness world.
After a long while, the fingers that had been gripping the Emperor's Seat runes slowly loosened, leaving several fine dents on the hard Star God Gold beneath the fingertips.
He slowly raised his eyes to look at Qing Huan, a desperate flame burning deep within them. His voice was low and heavy, each word carrying immense weight:
"Qing Huan... this strategy, though fraught with peril and like walking on the edge of an abyss, is also an unprecedented Thread of Life for our Heavenly Court, our Demon Race, and even the entire Primordial Wilderness!"
Di Jun paused for a moment; the hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, only the weight of his words echoed:
"Then... I'll trouble you, fellow Daoist, to set off immediately and personally go to the outside of the Purple Cloud Palace... to await the Dao Ancestor's decree! Success or failure, the fate of the Primordial Wilderness... rests on this one act!"
Qing Huan met Di Jun's resolute gaze and bowed deeply, the weight of the responsibility conveyed without words.
As he turned, his robes billowing with starlight, about to take that first step that would determine the fate of the Primordial Wilderness—
"Wait a minute."
Nuwa's voice rang out softly, like jade striking each other, clear and cool yet carrying a weariness and vicissitude that seemed to pierce through time and space.
She raised her eyes, and in the depths of her pupils, which held the secrets of creation and Creation, a faint yet unmistakable glimmer of compassion flashed:
"The path to inquire about Will of Heaven at the Purple Cloud Palace... is likely not an easy one. Heavenly Dao is impartial."
"Heavenly Venerate Qing Huan..."
Her gaze fell upon Qing Huan, carrying a strange penetrating power. Her tone was as heavy as a collapsing mountain, "Be cautious in all things..."
Qing Huan's steps stopped before the invisible starlight threshold at the palace entrance.
He didn't turn around, but his back seemed to straighten a little more.
Inside the hall, Di Jun's gaze remained fixed on the direction where Qing Huan had disappeared, as if trying to see through the surging sea of clouds and reach the gates of the Purple Cloud Palace.
The humming of the Chaos Bell in Eastern Emperor Taiyi's arms completely subsided, leaving only a cold, iron-like touch.
The illusory image of the Eight Trigrams beneath Fuxi's feet had long since dissipated. His eyes were lowered, and his fingertips unconsciously twirled a wisp of mysterious energy. His brows were furrowed like deep abysses.
The Power of the Stars flowed silently, weaving together magnificent and ever-changing Primordial Wilderness star maps above the empty dome of the Lingxiao Treasure Hall.
The cold starlight flowed down, illuminating the four silent and solemn faces in the hall.
Like four ancient, unmoving statues, frozen before the crossroads of Primordial Wilderness destiny, awaiting the Dao Sound of the Purple Cloud Palace that might shatter the eternal night or bring a glimmer of dawn.
Deep within the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, only starlight flowed, and all was silent, yet it seemed as if countless invisible threads of Karma were trembling and taut, extending into the unknowable depths of the Purple Heaven.
The Purple Cloud Palace stands outside the Thirty-three Heavens. Its gate is carved from a single piece of Chaos Jade, with dark golden Innate Dao Patterns flowing across its surface.
As Qing Huan shattered the void and arrived, the surging mist of the chaotic sea of clouds just happened to overflow the jade steps, making the Haotian Boy standing in front of the palace gate look like Immortal Boy had stepped out of an ink painting.
Millions of years of light lingered and converged on its Lapis Lazuli Tiles, then poured down, spreading out in front of the palace gate into a pool of seven-colored chaos.
Haotian Boy by the pond, the Jade Tablet in his hand as smooth as jade, yet flickering uncertainly in the ever-changing seven-colored halo, like a lone boat on the long river of fate, ready to capsize at any moment.
Wearing a plain white Daoist robe, with his black hair simply tied up, his once clear and innocent face was now etched with a heavy frost-like complexion that seemed incongruous with his age, as if he had already witnessed the Primordial Wilderness.
"Welcome, Heavenly Venerate Qing Huan."
Hao Tian held the Jade Tablet horizontally above his eyebrows, his voice clear and bright, yet like a taut zither string, concealing subtle cracks of tension.
"Master has already had two or three rounds of tea at the Jade Capital Platform."
Qing Huan arrived in mid-air, stepping on a silent blue lotus. With a slight tap of his fingertips, another blue lotus floated out, steadily supporting the Jade Tablet held high by Hao Tian.
The lotus petals gently brushed against the edge of the Jade Tablet, like a silent comfort.
The Universe in his sleeve trembled silently, and a wisp of memory from the past of the Purple Cloud Palace surfaced like smoke:
At that time, Hao Tian and Yao Chi were not bothered by any nonsense and were enjoying a moment of peace beside the throne of Dao Ancestor Hongjun. But who knows, they might end up standing at the center of this cosmic storm, bearing the crushing waves from the disciples of the Sage.
The weight of the celestial bodies pressing down heavily on these tender shoulders.
Because Qing Huan wasn't confident he could change the course of fate...
"Please trouble Xiao Hao Tian to lead the way."
His voice was gentle, but a hidden sharp glint flashed in his eyes—stirring up trouble in this stagnant pool.
Nine layers of white jade steps descend like Heavenly Ladder. The hem of the Qing Huan robe brushes against the ancient Circumference Star Chart engraved on the steps. Wherever a foot steps, the silent stars awaken instantly, and countless starlight, like disturbed fireflies, compete to shine and flow.
With each step, the scenery changes, the Universe shifts; a single step is like traversing a vast ocean of stars.
The palace doors swung open, and Chaos Qi rushed out like the breath of an ancient behemoth.
Seventy-two Coiled Dragon Purple Gold Pillars stand tall in the hall, with dragons coiling around them, and the Chaos Qi spewed from their mouths dyeing the space into a flowing ink painting.
The figure of Dao Ancestor Hongjun appeared and disappeared in the chaotic mist. The Jade Ruyi jade ruyi in his hand silently rolled across the void, turning the faint sounds of fierce arguing from afar into dust and scattering them into the invisible river of fate.
"Junior Qing Huan pays respects to the Dao Ancestor."
Qing Huan bowed in greeting, the tassels of the jade hairpin that bound her hair falling down struck the silent prayer mat with a clear and ethereal sound, like the first sound of the Great Dao.
The moment Hongjun's gaze fell upon the palace, the thousands of Innate Spiritual Treasure beads hanging from the ceiling suddenly stopped, frozen in the Chaos Qi.
In that instant, a faint, yet unmistakable, ripple of the Time Law spread Dao Ancestor Qing Huan, as if another version of him from another time and space were overlapping and appearing there.
A faint, obscure light swept past the illusory image of the Jade Plate of Creation in the Dao Ancestor's eyes.
"Please rise, young friend."
With a flick of his sleeve, Hongjun sent a beam of light into the hall, which transformed into a futon with a constantly flowing innate Taiji Yin-Yang Fish Diagram.
Qing Huan sat down gracefully, and the moment he sat down, he heard, as if by illusion, the sound of the surging, towering waves of the River of Destiny resounding in his ears—this was not an illusion, but a concrete manifestation of the resonance between his own Dao Fruit and the rules of Heavenly Dao.
"Dao Ancestor, for offering me a seat."
Qing Huan sat down as instructed and got straight to the point.
"The reason for my visit is surely already known to the Dao Ancestor."
The Witch-Demon War is raging. I have been pondering this. If we could directly Investiture of the Gods amidst the flames of war and draw their souls into the list, perhaps we could reduce the carnage and give both races Thread of Life ..."
Qing Huan spoke frankly, indicating that he believed his method was feasible.
Hongjun's gaze was profound, as if reflecting the endless galaxy in motion.
"Heaven and earth have their own order, and all things follow their own course. Even if external forces intervene, the final outcome is still subject to the predetermined Heavenly Mandate."
Hongjun paused, a knowing smile appearing on his face, which also revealed a hint of naivety.
"Rather than saying 'the way of Heavenly Dao cannot be defied,' it's more accurate to say that all living beings have their own destiny. Your persistence, young friend, is no different from that of those lost in the long river of fate."