Buzhou Mountain and Jin'ao Island

Inside the small inn, chaos and deathly silence coexisted.

Yuanshi Tianzun's gaze, seemingly capable of piercing through the ages, retracted from the direction of the rental house and refocused on the amnesiac old gravekeeper leaning against the dilapidated wall, his aura weak but still desperately protecting the three damaged magic artifacts. The residual Dao rhythm of order in the air and the scorched feeling after the annihilation of that filthy demonic Qi had not completely dissipated, adding to the atmosphere of grimness.

"Do you know the origin of that thing just now?" Yuanshi Tianzun spoke again, his voice steady, without the slightest hint of interrogation, yet possessing an irresistible majesty.

The amnesiac old man coughed violently, dark golden blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, staining the cotton-padded jacket on his chest. He raised his turbid eyes, which held lingering fear and determination, and looked at Yuanshi, his voice hoarse like a broken gong: "Foul... it came for the 'key'... they have been... searching..."

His words were fragmented and illogical, but the keywords "key" and "they" caused Yuanshi's gaze to narrow slightly.

"Key? Do you mean this?" Yuanshi's gaze fell on the Cracked Wooden Tablet floating in front of the old man, its cracks seeming to have increased slightly. The faint spatial Dao patterns flowing on it did indeed vaguely point to the concept of a "portal" or "coordinates."

The old man nodded with difficulty, then shook his head, a deep sense of confusion reappearing in his eyes: "Yes... and no... there is more than one 'key'... they are 'doors'... and 'locks'... guarding... must guard..."

His words were disjointed and full of mysteries. But Yuanshi was not impatient. He could sense that deep within the old man's chaotic memories, important information was sealed. Forcibly searching his soul would likely backfire, and might even trigger some kind of restriction, causing his true spirit to dissipate.

"What is your identity? What does the 'gravekeeper' lineage refer to?" Yuanshi changed the question, quoting the title mentioned by the demonic creature earlier.

"Gravekeeper..." the old man repeated these three words, a glimmer of light flashing in his cloudy eyes, a responsibility and honor imprinted deep in his soul, not forgotten even with blurred memories. "Guarding... guarding the Primordial Era's tomb... guarding... the seed of hope..."

The Primordial Era's tomb? The seed of hope?

Yuanshi Tianzun's heart stirred. The Primordial Era was shattered, turning into countless fragments scattered in the endless void. Could this world be one of the larger "tombs"? And what about the so-called "seed of hope"? Does it refer to the Primordial Era beings who have fallen here (like the three of them), or something else? Is this old man a member of a lineage among the native creatures of this world who have inherited the duty of guarding? Or... like them, is he a remnant from the Primordial Era?

Too little information to judge.

"That foul creature just now said you were indulging in the delusion of recreating the Primordial Era. What does this mean?" Yuanshi continued to guide.

"Recreate... the Primordial Era?" The old man's face showed an extremely complex expression, a mixture of longing, pain, and deep helplessness. "No... not recreate... it's... continuation... the spark... cannot be extinguished... but 'they'... will not allow it... 'they' want to devour everything... return to nothingness..."

The old man's emotions became agitated, the Qi around him unstable again, and the three damaged magic artifacts buzzed and trembled accordingly.

Seeing this, Yuanshi knew that asking further would likely yield no more gains, and might even worsen his injuries. He raised his hand and gently pressed down, a gentle but irresistible force of order enveloping him, not suppressing, but smoothing his agitated aura and stabilizing his collapsing mind.

"Jingxin." Yuanshi's voice carried the power to calm the soul. "This place is not suitable for a long stay. Although that demonic creature has been banished, it may have accomplices behind it, who may come again at any time."

Under his comfort, the old man's aura stabilized slightly, but the vigilance in his eyes did not completely disappear. He clutched the three damaged magic artifacts tightly, as if holding onto his last lifeline.

Yuanshi pondered for a moment. This old man's identity was mysterious and of great importance, and he possessed a "key" that might be closely related to the Primordial Era. He must not fall into the hands of that foul creature, nor could he be left to fend for himself. Taking him back to the rental house was the only option for now, even though it was already crowded enough, and there was Tong Tian, who could explode at any moment.

"Follow me." Yuanshi said no more. With a flick of his sleeve, an invisible force lifted the old man and his three damaged magic artifacts. He once again used the method of merging with the rules, his figure gradually fading, taking the old man with him and disappearing from this chaotic battlefield.

Less than a moment after they left, the piercing sound of sirens grew closer, indicating that the abnormal activity at the hotel had finally attracted the attention of the authorities. However, they were destined to face an empty room filled with chaos, unable to find any reasonable explanation.

Inside the rental house.

The atmosphere was still so heavy that it felt like it could drip water.

Master Tongtian had forcibly suppressed the uncontrolled sword intent that was escaping from his body, but the ice in his eyes and the blood surging deep within them were even more intense than before. He sat cross-legged on the yoga mat, like a volcano suppressing endless lava, silent but dangerous.

Goddess Nüwa looked at him worriedly, then looked out the window, and said softly, "Since Yuanshi-shixiong has already taken action, it should be fine. But I wonder about that old man..."

Before she could finish speaking, the space in the room rippled imperceptibly, like water waves. The next moment, Yuanshi Tianzun's figure materialized from nothing, appearing silently. He did not support him with his hands, but the amnesiac old man and the three floating damaged magic artifacts seemed to be lifted by an invisible force, following him into this small space.

The appearance of the old man, especially the three damaged magic artifacts that still exuded a unique and ancient Dao rhythm despite their dim light, instantly attracted everyone's attention.

Lin Fan's eyes widened as he looked at Yuanshi, who had returned, and the old man he had brought back, whose condition seemed even worse. While he was relieved, he also felt a new sense of tension—there were now four "abnormal" existences in this room! And looking at Senior Tong Tian's face...

Nüwa stepped forward, her gaze sweeping over the old man, a trace of pity flashing in her eyes. She raised her hand and released a gentle Creation Qi, like sweet rain, merging into the old man's body and nourishing his almost dried-up life force. The old man groaned, his face improving slightly, but his eyes were still confused and wary, clutching the damaged magic artifacts tightly, shrinking into a corner, like a frightened trapped beast.

Tong Tian merely glanced coldly at the old man and Yuanshi, letting out an ambiguous snort, then closed his eyes again, but everyone could feel the cold aura around him that kept people at a distance.

Yuanshi seemed to be used to Tong Tian's attitude and didn't care. He placed the old man in another empty corner of the room (there really wasn't a good spot), then looked at Nüwa and nodded slightly: "Thank you, shimei, for taking care of him. This old man's identity is strange and of great importance. He will be temporarily placed here."

Nüwa nodded and said softly to the old man, "Old man, this place is temporarily safe, please rest assured and recuperate." Her voice had a natural affinity, slightly relaxing the old man's tense nerves, but he still clutched the damaged magic artifacts tightly, not letting go.

Only then did Yuanshi turn his gaze to Tong Tian, his tone calm and unwavering, as if nothing had happened just now: "That demonic creature's aura was filthy, full of the desire to devour and destroy. It is definitely not native to this world, nor is it an ordinary Extraterrestrial Demon. Its goal is clear, it came for this 'key'." He pointed to the Cracked Wooden Tablet in the old man's arms.

Tong Tian didn't even lift his eyelids, and said coldly, "What does it have to do with me?"

Yuanshi was not angry, and continued: "This demonic creature was able to accurately find this place, and was able to trigger spatial ripples to track it here. There must be a basis behind it, or it is proficient in the loopholes in this world's rules. Moreover, its words mentioned 'gravekeeper', 'recreating the Primordial Era', and 'seed of hope', all pointing to the old events of the Primordial Era. I suspect that the secret of the shattering of the Primordial Era may be related to this kind of evil."

These words finally made Tong Tian open his eyes, the bloody sword shadow in his eyes flashing and disappearing. He could ignore Yuanshi, but he could not ignore the clues that might be related to the shattering of the Primordial Era and the root cause of the destruction of the Jie Sect.

"Continue," Tong Tian's voice was still cold.

"The old man's memory has been sealed, and his words are vague. But the 'key' he guards contains spatial Dao patterns, which may be related to the coordinates of the Primordial Era fragments, and even... the path of return." Yuanshi stated his speculation, "And that demonic creature wants to seize this 'key', its purpose is definitely not benevolent."

The path of return!

These four words, like thunder, exploded in the hearts of Tong Tian, Nüwa, and even Lin Fan, who was listening with his ears perked up!

They were stranded in this world, their magic power lost, like duckweed without roots. If they could find the path back to the Primordial Era (even if it was a fragmented Primordial Era), it would undoubtedly be the greatest dawn in the darkness!

Tong Tian's eyes finally changed, no longer pure coldness and hatred, but a bit more sharp inquiry. He looked at the old man curled up in the corner, and the three dilapidated magic artifacts in his arms, his gaze becoming deep.

"Return..." Nüwa murmured to herself, her eyes also bursting with unprecedented brilliance, but then dimmed again, gently shaking her head, "How easy is it to talk about... Even if there are coordinates, what kind of great power is needed to traverse the endless nothingness? Moreover, it is not yet known whether there are still complete fragments of the Primordial Era..."

Yuanshi nodded: "It is indeed not an easy task. However, this 'key' is a glimmer of hope. We need to find a way to unlock the old man's memory seal, or completely analyze the secrets of these three damaged magic artifacts."

Scene 1: Mount Buzhou Collapses

It was no longer the small rental house. A terrifying scene of fragmentation and upside-down heaven and earth seemed to appear in everyone's "eyes" (spiritual perception)!

That was the northwest extremity of the Primordial Era. Mount Buzhou, which once stood tall and connected heaven and earth, exuding a vast and boundless aura, was now broken in the middle! The upper half of the mountain was slowly collapsing with an unparalleled momentum! Countless huge rocks smashed towards the earth like meteor fire rain, causing continuous explosions and earthquakes!

The sky had a huge hole! Turbid and violent Heavenly River water, like a silver dragon bursting its banks, poured down from the hole, devouring everything in its path! On the earth, floods raged, rivers flowed backwards, and countless creatures struggled and wailed in the floods, instantly swallowed, their true spirits annihilated!

While at the shattered remains of Mount Buzhou, an enormous giant covered in blue scales, with a human body and a snake tail (the true form phantom of Gong Gong), was roaring towards the sky, filled with unwillingness, anger, and endless regret! His head was cracked, and blue divine blood flowed like a waterfall. The laws of myriad waters surrounding him went out of control and rampaged, mixing with the pouring water of the Milky Way, exacerbating the catastrophe.

Around him were the incomplete, sorrowful, or lifeless massive figures (phantoms) of the other Ancestral Witches... Zhurong's flames had been extinguished, and Dijiang's spatial power was chaotic and fragmented... The Witch Clan's luck, like a candle in the wind, crumbled at that moment with the collapse of Mount Buzhou!

Scene Two: Elegy of Golden Turtle Island

The scene suddenly shifted.

It was no longer a macro-disaster of heaven and earth collapsing, but an overseas immortal island filled with immortal energy, yet shrouded in endless baleful aura and murderous tribulation—Golden Turtle Island, Biyou Palace!

This was Master Tongtian's Daoist sanctum, the place where the myriad immortals of the Jie Sect came to pay homage! Yet at this moment, the immortal palace was shattered, the spiritual veins were broken, and the once auspicious island had been reduced to a scorched hell!

Countless Jie Sect disciples were fighting bloody battles, clashing with the disciples of the Chan Sect and the members of the Western Sect. The light of magical treasures and the roar of divine powers intertwined, and figures fell every moment, their true spirits forced to fly towards the Investiture of the Gods.

Master Tongtian (phantom) stood above the ruins of Biyou Palace, holding the Qingping Sword, watching all of this with eyes about to burst. He saw Zhao Gongming assassinated by the Seven Arrows Book with Nailhead, falling miserably; saw the Three Xiao Goddesses set up the Nine Bends Yellow River Formation, only to end up with two dead and one suppressed; saw the Seven Immortal Attendants either captured or slaughtered; saw countless registered and outer disciples harvested like weeds!

The Ten Thousand Immortals Formation was broken! Four swords were taken from the Immortal Slaughtering Sword Formation!

He saw Yuanshi Tianzun (phantom) holding the Pangu Banner, joining hands with Lao Tzu, Jie Yin, and Zhun Ti, expressionlessly suppressing all resistance; saw Guang Chengzi, Chi Jingzi, and other Chan Sect Golden Immortals mercilessly slaughtering Jie Sect disciples; saw the Western Two Sages' seemingly compassionate, but actually greedy conversion and plunder!

"You... are going too far!!!" Master Tongtian (phantom) let out a heart-rending roar, the hatred and despair contained in that voice echoing faintly with Gong Gong's wail, transcending their different races!

Both were failures! Both were remnants of the old era! One broke the pillar of heaven, causing a physical Primordial Era cataclysm; the other was betrayed by his brothers and outsiders, almost wiping out his Daoist lineage, leading to a complete upheaval of the power structure!

Mount Buzhou and Golden Turtle Island, the Witch Clan and the Intercept Sect, Gong Gong and Tong Tian, at this moment, because of the same painful failure and destruction, their spiritual imprints produced a strange synchronization and resonance!

Scene End

The intense spiritual impact caused everyone to groan, especially Lin Fan, who felt like his head was about to explode. Countless chaotic, tragic, and desperate fragments of images collided in his mind, almost causing him to faint. Fortunately, Nüwa passed over a stream of pure Creation Qi in time, protecting his mind.

The scene dissipated, and silence returned to the room. Only Gong Gong's suppressed wails, like those of a wounded beast, continued intermittently.

Master Tongtian stood in place, his body trembling slightly. The scene of Golden Turtle Island's destruction just now, like the sharpest knife, had once again ripped open the bloody scars in his heart. He looked at Gong Gong, who was also immersed in endless pain, and the soaring anger and hatred strangely subsided a little, replaced by a kind of cold sorrow of shared suffering.

Yuanshi Tianzun was silent. His cold and ruthless demeanor in the scene just now contrasted with his solemn expression in reality. The old events of the Investiture of the Gods were what he believed to be "obeying the will of heaven and responding to humanity," but seeing that tragic scene again with his own eyes, especially through Tong Tian's desperate perspective, was his Dao heart truly without any ripples? No one knew.

Goddess Nüwa had tears in her eyes. Whether it was the collapse of heaven and earth in Gong Gong's memory, or the extinction of the Daoist lineage in Tong Tian's memory, both were tragedies she did not want to see. She was the master of creation, the mother of all living beings, and her heart was filled with endless sorrow at seeing so many living beings suffer.

"Mount Buzhou... Golden Turtle Island..." Lin Fan gasped for breath, leaning against the wall, muttering to himself. As an outsider, an observer, he now truly and directly felt that the word "Primordial Era" contained not only great divine powers and eternal life, but also endless murderous tribulations, tragic struggles, and bone-piercing pain. The grievances of history were so heavy that they made it difficult to breathe.

After a long time, Tong Tian slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, and the boiling sword intent finally subsided completely, but his eyes became even deeper, like an ancient cold pool. He no longer looked at Gong Gong, but turned around, walked back to his yoga mat, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes, as if everything just now had never happened.

But his clenched fist, with its knuckles turning white, exposed that his heart was far from as calm as it appeared.

Yuanshi looked at Tong Tian's back, and then at the gravekeeper, who was gradually stopping his wails under Nüwa's comfort and falling back into a state of dazedness. He said in a deep voice, "The gravekeeper has fallen here, his memory is sealed, his state is strange, and he carries the 'key', which is related to the secret of the Primordial Era's shattering and that evil demonic creature. His safety is of utmost importance."

These words were addressed to both Nüwa and Tong Tian. It meant that no matter what the past grievances were, the gravekeeper must be protected at this moment.

Nüwa nodded, her gaze towards the gravekeeper filled with complex pity. She gently sang an ancient and soothing ballad, a song that seemed to contain the initial tranquility and warmth of life, like a mother's murmur, slowly comforting the gravekeeper's traumatized soul.

In the sound of the ballad, the gravekeeper's tense body gradually relaxed. He hugged the broken artifact, curled up in a corner, and fell into a deep sleep, but his brows were still tightly furrowed, as if he was still fighting the nightmare of broken mountains and floods in his dreams.

Yuanshi turned his gaze to the window. The night was deep, and the city lights were like stars. "The matter of finding a new base needs to be accelerated. This place is becoming increasingly unsafe." He paused and added, "Not only is there official surveillance, but now there is also the threat of that mysterious demonic creature and the forces behind it."

Lin Fan took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the shock and lingering fear in his heart, and nodded: "I understand, I will take care of it as soon as possible."

He knew that from the moment the gravekeeper's identity was revealed, the situation they faced had become more complex and dangerous. The grievances of history and the crises of reality were intertwined, pushing them all towards a more unpredictable future.

The echoes of Mount Buzhou and Golden鳌 Island seemed to foreshadow that beneath this seemingly ordinary modern city, a storm sweeping through the past and present was quietly brewing. And they were at the center of this storm.