Tianyan Progenitor
The moment the remnants of the four powerful figures completely vanished in the Cyan Flame, a crisp sound like shattering glass suddenly rang out in the starry sky of the Chaos Realm. That crisp sound carried a sharpness that pierced through Void, as if it were squeezed out from the cracks of the Principle. As soon as it appeared, it disrupted the surrounding energy flow, and even the most stable Dark Matter was rippled, like a stone being thrown into a calm lake.
The sound was initially as faint as the fluttering of a mosquito's wings, barely audible in the howling of the starlight, like the breath of some ancient being, each rise and fall resonating with the pulse of the Chaos Realm. In an instant, it transformed into a deafening roar, not merely a loud bang, but a resonance carrying the tremors of Principle, as if a million giant hammers were simultaneously striking the boundary barrier, their heads engraved with spacetime runes. Each impact caused the very foundation of the Chaos Realm to tremble slightly, even causing the Law Core Crystal buried deep within the earth to glow with a bluish light.
The entire void, purified by the Laws of Life and Death, cracked layer by layer like a mirror. Spiderweb-like cracks spread from the center outwards, each crack emitting Primordial Chaos energy. Upon landing, this Primordial Chaos energy transformed into various spiritual creatures, including winged stone lions and jade snakes with their tongues out. Wherever it passed, even light was refracted into scattered fragments. These fragments swirled in the air, transforming into miniature shooting stars, trailing seven-colored flames as they fell to the earth. Upon impact, they grew into crystal-clear crystals, sealing within them the trajectory of the falling light fragments.
Instead of the familiar Dark Energy seeping from the cracks, a hazy, stale mist emanated from them. This mist was as thick as glue, dimming the starlight upon contact with it, as if covering the surface of stars with an ancient layer of dust. Within the mist, the faint silhouettes of countless Stars' Life and Death could be seen—some stars completing their entire life cycle from birth to collapse in a fraction of a second, their core nuclear fusion exploding and extinguishing in a blinding flash, leaving behind a desolate White Dwarf Star remnant, still bearing the imprints of Star Orbit; others Planets condensing into blue oceans within the Primordial Chaos, in which one could even see primordial creatures swimming, their bodies transparent, their internal energy clearly visible, only to be shattered by meteorite impacts in the next instant, as if containing a microcosm of the entire Cosmic Reincarnation, where even the flow of time became blurred, one moment a night sky with orderly Star Orbit, the next a chaotic Primordial Chaos of Nebula, within which inverted Nebula Star Map could be seen.
"Presumptuous."
An aged voice came from the depths of the crack, unlike Ren Xiaoyao's previous thunderous voice, but it carried a weight that transcended time. Each syllable seemed to be polished from rocks that had been polished for billions of years. The cracks were also embedded with Star Fragments from the Primordial Era, as if they had existed since the beginning of the universe, witnessing the rise and fall of countless galaxies, and even the swallowing of Black Hole could not erase their marks.
Each word uttered caused the Principle of the Chaos Realm to tremble violently, and the Star Trails began to reverse: the flow of the Star River, originally from east to west, was completely reversed, and silvery stardust flowed upstream, drawing bright trails in the starry sky. These trails intertwined to form a huge Star Map, depicting the state of the Chaos Realm at its birth; even the nuclear fusion of nascent stars was being reversed, with Hydrogen Atom re-aggregating into primordial Nebula. The color of the Nebula changed from fiery orange-red to cold dark purple, and unignited stellar embryos could still be seen within the purple clouds, as if returning to the initial state after the Big Bang, with even the aftershocks of the singularity explosion clearly discernible.
As the sound grew louder, a figure in a gray robe slowly emerged from the center of the crack. The old man's body was hunched over like a withered tree that had weathered countless years of wind and frost. His skin was so dry that it clung to his bones, as if a gust of wind could blow him over. His skin was covered with deep wrinkles, each wrinkle flowing with the river of time. The curve of his back perfectly matched the curvature of the Chaos Realm, as if he were a part of this realm, a being that had grown naturally from Primordial Chaos, and even his breathing was synchronized with the energy cycle of the realm.
The cane he held seemed to be formed from the Star Fragments, its blade shimmering with a silvery sheen. Each fragment twinkled with a different constellation, sometimes transforming into the Big Dipper, its handle pointing to the North Pole of the Chaos Realm; sometimes into Hunter, the stars on his belt shining like a lighthouse. Within the deep blue gemstone inlaid at the head of the cane, the entire panorama of the Tianyan Continent flowed clearly—from the drifting of continental plates to the rise and fall of civilizations, from the roars of ancient behemoths to the establishment of human city-states, even the smallest ant carrying its nest was depicted with exquisite detail, as if the entire history of the continent was locked within this gemstone, each breath a performance of the continent's cycle, an exhale of the Ice River Age, an inhale of the golden age of civilization.
"Ren Xiaoyao, do you know your crime?"
The moment the old man raised his eyes, the Time Flow Rate in the Chaos Realm suddenly became extremely disordered—in the northeastern forest, the grass and trees transformed from new buds into withered vines with the breath of life, the annual rings on the bark receded layer by layer, revealing the tender green of newborn plants, and one could even see the moment when seeds broke through the soil, their shells still carrying the fragrance of earth; on the lakeside in the southwest corner, newly hatched chicks instantly became old women with shed feathers, the keratin layer on their beaks changed from hard to soft, the liveliness in their eyes was replaced by vicissitudes, and finally they turned into a handful of gray-white feathers, which took root and sprouted into shrubs with silver flowers; only within three feet of him, time continued to flow steadily like a babbling brook, even the movement of air maintained a constant rate, forming a Space-Time Bubble isolated from the world, on the bubble walls one could still see the disordered reflection of time outside.
He lightly tapped the void with the tip of his staff, and half a bone armor re-formed where the Black Prison War Lord had vanished. The Destruction Runes on the armor plate were repairing themselves at a visible speed, the runes shimmering with a dark light, like the howling of countless wronged souls; the black energy surging from the cracks caused the surrounding temperature to plummet, even freezing light into icicles within the black energy, the frozen light trapped within the icicles, refracting eerie colors; on the Black Soil transformed by the Star-Eating Witch Venerable, vines with fangs sprouted, each leaf of the vines resembling a miniature skull, the tips of the vines dripping black liquid that Corrosive Laws, scorching the newly grown moss with honeycomb-like holes, the holes emanating the acrid smell of withered grass and trees, the smell carrying the sour stench of the Principle being corroded, a smell that stung the very soul.
Ren Xiaoyao frowned slightly, the Cyan Flame at his fingertips subtly transforming into a lotus shape. Each petal carried a wisp of the Laws of Life and Death, its edges shimmering with golden patterns—the trajectory of the Principle's operation. As the petals opened and closed, tiny stars could be seen rising and falling within them. Some Star Birth, radiated golden light, from which tiny beings were born; others, upon destruction, transformed into black singularities, distorting the space around them as if to devour everything. "Who are Your Excellency? By what right do you interfere here, meddling in the workings of the Chaos Realm?"
"This old man?"
The old man slammed his cane on the ground, and the gem at the tip of the cane suddenly burst forth with dazzling light. That light pierced through the gray Gray Mist, illuminating the Chaos Realm as if it were daytime, even lighting up the darkest corners of the void, revealing the Miniature Black Hole hidden there. The mist gushing from the cracks suddenly transformed into Star Map, with the words "Progenitor" clearly engraved on the brightest star in the map. The characters were formed by pure Power of Principle, exuding an aura of majesty. As the starlight flowed, countless Law Runes fell from the Star Map, landing on the land of the Chaos Realm, transforming into newly sprouted grass and rivers. The grass and trees were lush and green, with dewdrops condensed from Principle rolling on their leaves; the rivers were crystal clear, and fish made of runes swam in the water, reflecting the shadow of the Star Map. As the fish swam, ripples of the Star Map appeared on the surface of the river.
"I am the original embodiment of the Principle of the Tianyan Continent, and have been in charge of the ' Tianyan Balance ' for countless eons."
You forcibly annihilated the remnant souls of four powerful figures, breaking the ironclad rule of ' Darkness Balancing Light '. This crime deserves death!
Before he finished speaking, he swept his cane horizontally, and countless gray chains suddenly flew out from the Star Map. The chains were not wrapped with ordinary runes, but with the rise and fall of the Tianyan Continent over billions of years—there were Blood-Colored Patterns formed from the cries of the people when dynasties fell, and within these patterns, one could see displaced refugees running through the flames of war, their faces filled with despair and fear, and even hear their faint cries for help; there were golden bands of light formed from the cheers of cultivators when sects rose, and within these bands, one could see the spiritual light of breakthroughs, and within that light, one could see the devout faces of the cultivators, their eyes filled with longing for the Great Dao; there were purple arcs of lightning struck by Heavenly Thunder when beings underwent tribulation, and within these arcs remained the struggles and indomitable spirit of those undergoing tribulation, a yearning for life, even the pulsation of the arcs was in sync with the heartbeat of those undergoing tribulation.
Before these chains, bearing the "Heavenly Dao Will," even approached, Ren Xiaoyao felt the Laws of Life and Death within his body begin to stagnate, as if an invisible hand was altering his Dao Path. That hand was covered with ancient scales, and fragments of time remained under its fingernails. The fragments of the Chaos Cauldron in his dantian were trembling slightly, the luster at the edges of the fragments flickering like candlelight swaying in the wind, ready to go out at any moment, or burst into an even stronger flame at any moment.
"Balance?"
Ren Xiaoyao suddenly burst into laughter, the sound causing the gray chains to tremble violently. The images of rise and fall on the chains distorted, intertwining the tragic destruction of dynasties with the flourishing of sects, forming a bizarre and grotesque scene. Scenes of widespread suffering flashed through the imagery. "Let the Black Prison War Lord's Destruction Axe hang over the heads of all living beings, let the Corrosion River of the Star-Eating Witch Venerable overflow the nascent continent, let the Void of Shadow Annihilation Shi Jie —is this the balance you speak of?"
He suddenly spread his palms wide, and the Laws of Life and Death of the Chaos Realm surged in from all directions like a tide, transforming into a giant Yin-Yang Fish Totem behind him. As the Totems rotated, white light emanated from the eyes of the black fish, and black dots condensed in the eyes of the white fish. The Black and White Qi intertwined and constantly transformed, radiating an aura of endless life. Within the energy waves, countless tiny Yin-Yang Fish could be seen swimming, each representing a small balancing system.
The stars that had been rotating in reverse returned to their normal course, the distorted Time Flow Rate gradually calmed down, the withered trees sprouted new branches, and the tender green leaves were still covered with crystal dewdrops. The dewdrops reflected the shadows of the stars, and in the shadows, one could see the future trajectories of the stars; the old woman transformed back into a fledgling bird with fluttering wings, her clear chirping echoing across the lakeside, stirring up ripples. Within the ripples, the fluctuations of the Laws of Life and Death rippled, and wherever the fluctuations passed, the silt at the bottom of the lake turned into golden Fertile Soil.
"Ignorant child!"
The Progenitor Staff slammed heavily on the ground, and a gray light shot out from the gem at its tip. The light contained the most primal balancing power of the Tianyan Continent. That power was ancient and heavy, as if it could crush all resistance. The space around the light was compressed and formed a light tunnel; it pierced straight into Ren Xiaoyao's brow. "Light and darkness are two sides of the same coin, inseparable!"
If you extinguish darkness today, an even more terrifying imbalance will be born tomorrow!
The Gods-and-Devils Calamity of gods and Tianyan Continent back then was caused by someone's attempt to completely eradicate the Devil Race —when light loses its balance, it will eventually transform into the Flame Sect that devours everything!
Wherever the gray light passed, the void began to collapse in reverse, even the light itself was sucked back, forming visible light trails. The trails bore the remnants of the swallowed starlight, and within the starlight, one could see frozen constellations; it was as if the entire starry sky was retreating, and distant Nebula were stretched into thin ribbons of light, exuding an eerie beauty, a beauty tinged with an aura of destruction. The ends of the light ribbons connected to an ever-expanding dark vortex.
Ren Xiaoyao neither dodged nor evaded. The ancient Life and Death Characters" on his palm suddenly lit up, enveloping him in a cyan-gold light. The light was pure and blazing, containing the power of creation and destruction. Within the light, one could see countless tiny processes of birth and death: a seed growing into a towering tree, then turning to ashes, and from the ashes, new life sprouting. At the moment of collision with the gray light, the entire Chaos Realm suddenly resounded with the Dragon's Roar and Phoenix's Cry —the roar of the Laws of Life and Death and Death clashing head-on with the Tianyan Balance. The energy ripples generated by the collision of the two supreme Principle caused the meteorites in the distant Nebula to spontaneously arrange themselves into Eight Trigrams Formation. The meteorite at the center of the formation was still slowly rotating, evolving the trajectory of Yin and Yang Mutual Generation. The patterns on the surface of the meteorite changed continuously with the rotation, forming dynamic Dao diagrams.
Just as the phantom of the Gods-and-Devils Calamity in the gray light was about to appear (revealing the horrific scene of the Divine Race slaughtering each other due to the imbalance of power after the Devil Race were wiped out, their holy wings stained with blood, the blood dripping onto the ground turning into Black Flames; the sacred palace turned into ruins, with broken statues remaining in the ruins, their eyes revealing despair), it was torn apart by the cyan-gold Power of Life and Death, turning into countless points of light that merged into the earth's veins in the Chaos Realm. The plants that had withered due to the disorder of time were reborn in the points of light, the golden patterns of the collision of Principle still remaining on their leaves, the patterns flowing with the rhythm of Life-Death Alternation, and touching the leaves one could feel the cycle of life.
"Your balance is an excuse to allow darkness to flourish!"
Ren Xiaoyao took a step forward, and the Laws of Life and Death condensed into a golden avenue beneath his feet. The Dao Patterns traced the trajectory of the birth Stars' Life and Death. Every star was undergoing a cycle of birth, growth, aging, destruction, and rebirth, containing endless vitality. On both sides of the avenue grew Rare Flowers and Exotic Herbs that represented birth and death. When the flowers bloomed, the place was full of vitality, and when the herbs withered, they turned into fertilizer to nourish the land.
With each step forward, the Progenitor's gray mist receded by a third, revealing a clear starry sky behind him. The stars in the sky seemed to bear witness to his words, their light alternating between brightness and darkness in sync with his words: "True balance is when light has the edge to protect, and darkness has the shackles to be revered!"
Instead of doing what you do, standing by and watching lives be lost in the name of so-called checks and balances!
He pointed his finger at the cane in the Progenitor's hand, "Your so-called Tianyan Balance is nothing but a cowardly act of not daring to face destruction, a false peace maintained by the blood of countless lives!"
For the first time, the Progenitor's expression changed. A hint of anger flashed in his previously calm eyes, which transformed into a tangible flame burning within them. The Star Fragments on his cane began to peel away, revealing a dark core of Principle within. Within this core, countless scenes of darkness brewing could be vaguely seen, scenes filled with slaughter and destruction: cities razed to the ground, and living beings devoured. "Insolence!"
I have witnessed three hundred cycles of continental rebirth and personally experienced ninety-nine catastrophes. How dare you, a mere brat, presume to speak ill of the Heavenly Dao!
He abruptly threw off his gray robe, revealing a scene of Beginning of Chaos within— Pure and Turbid Energies swirling within, the pure energy rising to become countless stars, the turbid energy sinking to become the earth and mountains; countless Law Runes colliding and evolving into rivers, birds, and beasts; dinosaurs roaming the continent, their roars shaking heaven and earth, each roar causing earthquakes; humans lighting the first flame in caves, the flames flickering with the light of hope, dispelling the darkness and illuminating the eyes of those seeking knowledge; cultivators comprehending the Heaven and Earth Laws on mountaintops, their eyes filled with piety, surrounded by halos formed by the Principle: "Today I will show you what true Tianyan Power is!"
As his voice surged, the starry sky outside the Chaos Realm suddenly reversed, with countless stars flowing backward like a tide. Their light dimmed as they flowed backward, as if dragging the entire realm into Space-time Turbulence. Even the boundary barrier of the Chaos Realm began to ripple and twist, the Law Runes on the barrier flickering as if they were about to collapse at any moment, revealing the raging Primordial Chaos outside, within Primordial Chaos countless shattered remnants of the realm could be seen.
Ren Xiaoyao suddenly laughed, his laughter carrying an all-knowing enlightenment. The previously shattered fragments of the Chaos Cauldron actually reformed above his head. The cracks in the cauldron's body were Law Restoration Life and Death, and the repaired areas shimmered with azure-gold light, exuding an ancient and majestic aura. It floated in mid-air and slowly rotated, the Primordial Chaos energy overflowing from the cauldron's mouth forming a huge vortex. Within the vortex, one could vaguely see the scene of the birth of the universe. The scene was magnificent and mysterious, showing the moment the singularity exploded, and countless Principle were born from Void.
"You have witnessed reincarnation, but you haven't seen through its true meaning."
He raised his hand and pressed down on the cauldron's handle. Suddenly, the Chaos Cauldron erupted with a light far exceeding its previous intensity, a golden pillar shooting straight into the heavens. Within the pillar were countless runes of the Laws of Life and Death, illuminating the Primordial Chaos scene within the Progenitor Robe with exquisite detail—within those seemingly natural Principle of evolution, there were countless subtle traces of interference. When a civilization was about to perish in darkness, inexplicable disasters would always strike, as if someone were secretly manipulating the rise and fall of civilizations. Behind those disasters, an invisible hand could be seen pushing things along. "The balance of the Tianyan Continent has never been maintained by letting darkness run rampant—"
"It's about having the courage to sever the imbalance!"
Before the words were even finished, the Chaos Cauldron, with the force to shatter mountains and split seas, crashed down on the Progenitor. The moment the cauldron collided with the cane, a deafening roar resounded throughout the universe. The roar transformed into sound waves that spread throughout the entire Chaos Realm, and wherever the sound waves passed, all the Principle resonated in response. The old man's gray robe instantly shattered inch by inch, revealing a body covered in spiderweb-like cracks. The body seemed to be carved from rotten wood, extremely fragile, with countless tiny holes visible in the cracks, as if it had been Insect Borer.
What seeped from those cracks was not energy, but the lamentations of countless lives—the final cries of children swallowed by darkness, their voices still carrying longing for their mothers, bringing tears to the eyes of all who heard them; tears that fell to the ground and turned into Ice Crystals, each Ice Crystals preserving the child's last smile; the dying roars of warriors protecting their homes, filled with resentment and determination, containing Unbending Will, the roar transforming into a wave of energy that crashed against the surrounding void; the sighs of wise men as civilizations crumbled, containing regret for the loss of knowledge, carrying endless sorrow, the sighs interspersed with Ancient Incantations, the final legacy of the wise men.
Those were the marks left by his own conscience as he watched darkness rage in order to maintain "balance." Each crack spoke of millions of years of struggle, as if his body had long been hollowed out by this endless pain, leaving only an empty shell, within which fragments of conscience still flickered with a faint light.
"Impossible..."
The Progenitor staggered backward, his eyes filled with disbelief, his pupils dilated in shock, reflecting his own cracked body. The sapphire at the head of his staff suddenly shattered, and the phantom of the Tianyan Continent within it trembled violently. Continental plates began to collide chaotically, the energy waves from the collisions tearing the phantom apart and then reforming it. Volcanoes erupted, lava flowing like rivers, turning everything in its path to ashes. A colossal tsunami swept across the land, its waters carrying countless corpses. Living beings wailed in the cataclysm, their cries coalescing into a torrent of despair that assaulted the Progenitor's soul. "I have protected the balance for billions of years, how could this...?"
He gazed at the unwavering sharpness in Ren Xiaoyao's eyes and suddenly recalled the young man who sacrificed himself to Protecting All Living Beings during his first reincarnation. The resolute determination of the young man as he burned his life was exactly the same as that of the man before him, even the starry sky reflected in his eyes was exactly the same. It was as if history was repeating itself at this moment, the long river of time was converging here, and the two figures overlapped in time and space. The light particles scattered when the young man sacrificed himself were actually from the same source as the Cyan Flame around Ren Xiaoyao.
How incredibly powerful that is!
Ren Xiaoyao did not pursue, but simply raised his hand to form a seal. The Laws of Life and Death of the Chaos Realm transformed into a ten-thousand-foot-long light curtain behind him, with Seven-Colored Rosy Clouds flowing around the edges of the light curtain, which were the colors of the fusion of Principle.