Above the elevated platform, Shichen stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze piercing layer upon layer of the Chaos Void and reaching toward the unknowable depths of chaos.
After a long while, he withdrew his gaze and said in a low voice, "It's time."
He took one step forward, and his figure vanished.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a space unlike anything he had ever seen before.
This was the Land of Great Dao Origin.
Looking around, he saw that the origin qi was so dense that it had transformed into milky-white mist, thick and viscous.
At the very center of the mist floated a perfectly round Dao Pearl. Mysterious light from the birth of chaos flowed across its entire surface, while countless chains extended from the pearl and sank into the void in every direction, as if they had bound the foundation of the entire chaos.
Even from far away, that supreme pressure bore down on his true spirit like something tangible, making it difficult to breathe.
Shichen stopped, his blue robe fluttering faintly in the mist.
He looked up at the Dao Pearl and spoke in an even voice:
"Great Dao, I wish to make a deal with you."
There was no response.
The pearl continued to rotate slowly, and the chains continued to circle it in silence, as though they had not heard him at all.
Shichen did not grow impatient. He simply waited in silence.
After a long time, the pearl's rotation seemed to quicken slightly.
Shichen knew that the Great Dao was listening.
He drew a deep breath and slowly stated the purpose of his visit:
"Cancel the Heaven-Opening Calamity, and I will find origin for you."
The instant his words fell,
BOOM!!!
A terrifying pressure beyond description suddenly erupted from the pearl!
The force far exceeded Shichen's expectations.
He felt as if an invisible divine mountain of chaos had crashed down upon him. His body involuntarily sank, slamming heavily into the void. He could not even lift a single finger.
Shichen lay prone there, a storm raging in his heart.
Was this... the true power of the Great Dao?
He had already reached the third heaven of the Chaos Realm. Throughout the Chaos World, Pangu was the only one who could fight him; he had no other opponents. Yet before the Great Dao, he could not resist even a trace of its pressure.
The gap was so vast that it was despairing.
Just then, a grand and indifferent voice rang out through the space:
"Creation of Heaven must proceed."
Shichen lay on the ground and struggled to raise his head, yet the corners of his mouth pulled into a faint smile.
"Aren't you doing this because your origin has declined and you need to stabilize the Chaos World?"
The pressure remained heavy, but Shichen's voice grew steadier and steadier:
"Creation of Heaven must proceed. I do not oppose that. But the Demon Gods do not need to transform into the Dao."
He paused, then revealed the plan he had prepared for a long time:
"We can use Dao bodies instead. Let the Dao bodies carry the laws, and let their laws enter the world after Creation of Heaven. The result will be the same."
As soon as he finished speaking, the terrifying pressure suddenly stopped for an instant.
Then it slowly dispersed.
Shichen felt the pressure on his body lessen. He slowly pushed himself up, half-kneeling in the void as he looked at the pearl.
The pearl continued to rotate, but its speed had clearly slowed. He knew that the Great Dao was weighing the matter.
Time passed second by second. No one knew how long it had been.
The pearl never responded.
Shichen drew a deep breath. When he spoke again, his tone carried a hint of desperate resolve:
"Great Dao."
"All you want is for the Chaos World to continue existing. We Demon Gods also hope that the Chaos World can continue to exist. On that point, we have no disagreement."
"If you agree, we Demon Gods will search for other worlds, fuse their origins into chaos, and nourish chaos in return."
"But if you refuse!"
He paused. The Heart of Time Origin within him suddenly began to beat violently!
A raging aura spread from his body!
"Then I will self-detonate the Origin Heart of the Dao of Time and directly restart the entire Chaos World!"
His voice exploded through the Origin Space like thunder!
The pearl suddenly stopped rotating.
At the same time, within the Chaos World.
Yang Mei stood beneath the Willow Tree. The hand holding his wine cup suddenly stopped.
He raised his head and gazed toward the depths of chaos. His eyes pierced through layer upon layer of void, as if he could see everything happening in the Land of Great Dao Origin.
He sensed that the Dao of Time was running wild.
Yang Mei's fingers tightened slightly around the wine cup as he murmured:
"Has it begun... Shichen?"
His voice carried a prayer that only he himself could understand:
"You have to succeed."
Within chaos, several other supreme Demon Gods also sensed the disturbance in the Dao of Time one after another.
Pangu opened his eyes from his cultivation, his brows tightly furrowed. He gripped the Pangu Axe, ready to charge toward the depths of chaos at any moment.
The Fate Demon God stood beside the River of Fate, his expression solemn as he watched the waves surging across its waters.
All the Demon Gods who knew the truth were waiting.
The Land of Origin.
The Origin Core within Shichen's body was beating at an ever-increasing frequency.
Every beat caused the Dao of Time throughout the entire Chaos World to tremble along with it. The violent aura grew denser and denser, and it could erupt completely at any moment.
Shichen looked at the pearl with a calm gaze, without the slightest retreat.
He was gambling.
He was gambling that the Great Dao would make the right choice.
At this moment, time seemed to stretch countless times longer.
Finally,
the motionless pearl slowly rotated once.
Immediately afterward, that grand and indifferent voice rang out again:
"Agreed."
"I only require chaos to continue."
That brief sentence caused the huge stone that had hung over Shichen's heart for so long to crash to the ground.
He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air. His tense body finally relaxed, and a smile rose at the corners of his mouth.
As expected... stating conditions that were absolutely impossible to accept at first, then pretending to lower them, makes it easier for the other party to agree.
He stood up and straightened his robes.
"Deal. The Chaos World is also the home of us Demon Gods. Protecting it is simply our duty."
The Dao Pearl gave no further response. It merely began rotating slowly again, and the chains of law returned to their calm state.
Shichen gave the pearl a deep look, then turned around without lingering. With one step, he vanished from the space.
The void of the Time Domain rippled faintly, and Shichen's figure reappeared.
He stood there with his eyes closed and remained silent for a long time.
Then he opened his eyes, a relieved smile appearing at the corners of his mouth.
He had succeeded.
Within chaos, the Demon Gods who had been watching the movements of the Dao of Time all sensed the turbulent Law of Time gradually settling down.
Yang Mei raised his wine cup and drained the last of the wine. A smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.
Pangu set down the Pangu Axe and closed his eyes again, a broad grin spreading across his face.
The Fate Demon God watched the surface of the River of Fate return to tranquility and gently let out a sigh of relief.
The Fate Demon God was about to return to the Domain of Dao to condense his Dao body when he felt a familiar fluctuation behind him.
Without turning his head, he said irritably, "Yin the Fifth, what are you here for again?"
The Karma Demon God emerged from the void with a beaming smile. "I'm just checking on the situation. Did Shichen succeed?"
"He did." The Fate Demon God snorted. "Why else do you think the Dao of Time has settled down?"
"That's good, that's good." The Karma Demon God rubbed his hands. "So, does that mean we don't have to transform into the Dao?"
"No, we don't."
"Then do we still need to condense Dao bodies?"
"We do." The Fate Demon God shot him a glance. "Creation of Heaven still has to proceed. Dao bodies are necessary."
"Fine, fine, we'll condense them." The Karma Demon God waved his hand, then moved a little closer. "By the way, how do you think Shichen convinced the Great Dao?"
The Fate Demon God was silent for a moment, then shook his head.
"I don't know. But it definitely wasn't easy."
"To make the Great Dao change its mind, the price paid could not have been small."
The Karma Demon God rarely put away his playful smile. He fell silent for a moment, then nodded.
"Indeed... How could it have been easy to make the Great Dao yield?"
The two of them were silent for a while.
Then the Fate Demon God waved his hand.
"All right, Yin the Fifth. Hurry back and condense your Dao body. Stop getting in the way here."
"Hey, you're crossing the river and tearing down the bridge, aren't you?" the Karma Demon God shouted unhappily. "Am I not just concerned about the greater situation?"
"You've finished being concerned. You can leave now."
"Hmph, I'll leave, then." The Karma Demon God turned around angrily and walked a few steps before turning back. "Oh, right. Next time we spar, I'll let you have one hand."
The Fate Demon God froze for a moment. After a brief silence, he also turned around and returned to the Domain of Dao.
Within chaos, everything returned to tranquility.
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