The disturbance in the Azure Mist Realm was like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, stirring up huge waves in the All-Heavens Alliance Council.
When Xiao Yan and Elder Baixu returned to the All-Heavens Hub with samples of the Rotten Realm Spider's remains, the council hall was already filled with top experts from various worlds. The Grand Elder sat at the head of the table, his expression solemn, and on the stone table before him lay the long-sealed " All-Heavens Forbidden Archives."
The file was made of an unknown animal hide, its surface covered with the marks of time, exuding an ancient and oppressive aura. When the Grand Elder broke the seal on the file, a desolate wave spread out, causing everyone present to feel a chill.
"Gentlemen," the Grand Elder's voice was heavier than ever before, "The ' Rotten Realm Spider ' that young friend Xiao Yan encountered in the Azure Mist Realm did not appear out of thin air. According to the Forbidden Archives, they are remnants of the 'Rotten Era,' which once ruled this universe billions of years ago."
The archive slowly unfolded, revealing ancient runes that recorded the history of a decaying era.
At that time, the universe had not yet given birth to All Heavens and Myriad Realms; there was only a chaotic " Sea of Deathly Silence." The Rotten Realm Spider were the rulers of the Sea of Deathly Silence and Silence, and they used "entropy increase" as their law, accelerating the decay and annihilation of all things. Later, the first "Creators" were born. They used themselves as the foundation to create order and waged a protracted " War of Creation and Annihilation " against the Rotten Realm Spider.
In the end, the Creator paid a heavy price, sealing most of the Rotten Realm Spider deep within the Sea of Deathly Silence and using its own laws to construct the All Heavens and Myriad Realms, forming a barrier that barely contained the spread of decay. The scattered remnants of the Rotten Realm Spider' souls turned into cosmic dust, slumbering in various corners, awaiting their chance to revive.
"So, the Rotten Realm Spider of the Azure Mist Realm was awakened by some kind of power?" The Buddha of the Ten Thousand Buddhas Realm clasped his hands together, his brows furrowed.
"Very likely." The Grand Elder pointed to an illustration in the file, depicting a vortex composed of countless gray threads. "This is the ' Gate of Annihilation,' a legendary passage connecting the All Heavens and Myriad Realms to the Sea of Deathly Silence. The file records that when the Power of Order in the myriad realms weakens, the Gate of Annihilation will appear, awakening the slumbering Rotten Realm Spider."
" The Power of Order is weakening?" Xiao Yan's heart skipped a beat. "Could it be related to the previous great battle with the Shadow Clan?"
"It's not impossible," the white-bearded elder continued. "Although we won that great battle, we also consumed too much of our primal energy, and the barriers of law in each world have loosened to varying degrees. Perhaps it is this loosening that allowed the Gate of Annihilation to sense an opportunity."
Silence fell over the hall, a gloomy look clouding over everyone's face. The threat of the Shadow Clan had not yet completely dissipated, and now the even older and more terrifying Rotten Realm Spider had appeared. This was undoubtedly adding insult to injury for the realms that had just experienced a great war.
"Can we seal the Gate of Annihilation just as we sealed the Shadow Rift?" the Sword Domain Lord asked, a hint of hope in his voice.
The Grand Elder shook his head, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes. " The Gate of Annihilation is not a physical passage, but rather the critical point between order and annihilation. It is formless and intangible, and cannot be sealed by conventional means. The only way is to strengthen the Power of Order in the heavens, causing it to sink back into chaos."
"How can we enhance it?" Xiao Yan pressed.
"We need the ' Seed of Creation '." The Grand Elder's gaze fell on the last page of the archive, where a vague legend was recorded. "It is said that when the Creator created the heavens, he left behind three Seed of Creation, each containing one of the three primordial powers: 'Life,' 'Order,' and 'Balance.' If we can find these three seeds, we can nourish the Power of Order in the heavens and suppress the Gate of Annihilation."
Where is the Seed of Creation now?
"I don't know." The Grand Elder sighed. "For billions of years, no one has ever seen a trace of them. Some say they vanished with the fall of the Creator, while others say they transformed into the core laws of the heavens."
The council ultimately decided that each world would search separately for clues to the Seed of Creation, while simultaneously strengthening the repair of the barriers of the laws of the heavens to prevent more Rotten Realm Spider from being awakened. Xiao Yan was appointed as the " Annihilation Investigator," responsible for tracking the Rotten Realm Spider and exploring the truth behind the Gate of Annihilation.
"Young friend Xiao Yan, this is the ' Compass of Order '." The Grand Elder handed a bronze compass to Xiao Yan. The compass was engraved with complex runes, and the pointer in the center shimmered with a soft white light. "It can sense fluctuations in the Power of Order. If there is the aura of the Rotten Realm Spider or the Gate of Annihilation nearby, the pointer will point there and issue a warning."
Xiao Yan took the compass, feeling its cool touch against his fingertips. The runes on the compass seemed to resonate subtly with his Heart of the Flame Realm. "Please rest assured, Elder, this junior will not fail in my mission."
After leaving the council hall, Xiao Yan did not set off immediately, but went to the Hall of Ten Thousand Laws first. He remembered that there seemed to be a record about " the Power of Decay " in the fragments on the sixth floor, which might lead him to a way to restrain the Rotten Realm Spider.
On the sixth floor of the Hall of Ten Thousand Laws, Xiao Yan once again arrived at the stone chamber of the Old Ghost Heaven Burning. This time, he did not rush to comprehend the Law of Flame, but carefully examined the tattered jade slips in the corner of the stone chamber.
Persistence pays off; in a nearly weathered jade slip, he found a crucial record—
"The corrupt fear the ' Primordial Origin Fire.' The Primordial Fire is not Heavenly Flames, nor is it the origin; it is the beginning of creation, formed from a spark of spiritual light, hidden within the core of order..."
The Primordial Origin Fire?
Xiao Yan's heart stirred. Although this record was brief, it pointed out the nemesis of the Power of Decay —a power more fundamental than his Heavenly Flames and Origin Fire, originating from the same source as the Power of Order of the creator.
"It seems that the search for the Seed of Creation is not only to strengthen order, but also to find a way to restrain the Rotten Realm Spider." Xiao Yan carefully put away the jade slip, a hint of understanding flashing in his eyes.
Three days later, Xiao Yan, carrying the Compass of Order, embarked on his journey once again. This time, his destination was the " Abandoned Star Domain " recorded in the archives—one of the ancient battlefields of the War of Creation and Annihilation billions of years ago, where the most intense aura of decay and order remained, and where clues to the Seed of Creation were most likely to be found.
The Abandoned Star Domain was even more desolate than the Mist Star Domain. The sky was an eerie grayish-purple, the earth was covered with huge cracks, and countless fragments of broken laws floated in the air. As soon as Xiao Yan stepped into this place, the Compass of Order in his hand began to spin violently, its pointer pointing to the deepest part of the Star Domain and emitting a rapid buzzing sound.
"There's definitely something unusual." Xiao Yan gripped the Heaven Burning Sword tightly and cautiously moved in the direction the pointer indicated.
The deeper he went, the stronger the stench of decay became. He saw countless enormous bones scattered on the ground, some resembling the remains of Rotten Realm Spider, others the skeletons of unknown behemoths, all covered with a thick layer of grayish-black powder that would turn to dust at the slightest touch.
In the center of a vast basin, Xiao Yan finally spotted the source of the anomaly—
It was a giant tree that was entirely black, with a trunk so thick that it would take dozens of people to encircle it. There were no leaves on its branches, only countless gray-black vines. Hanging from the vines were fleshy growths that throbbed like hearts, emanating the same Power of Decay as the Rotten Realm Spider.
At the base of the giant tree, a faint gray vortex was slowly rotating—the very " Gate of Annihilation " recorded in the archives! A gray-black aura continuously seeped from the vortex, which was absorbed by the giant tree and nourished the fleshy tumors.
"This is... the ' Decay Origin Tree '?" Xiao Yan recalled the record in the jade slip. This was the mother nest of the Rotten Realm Spider, capable of nurturing new Rotten Realm Spider. Judging from the size of this tree, it had probably already bred quite a few spiderlings.
Just then, the vines of the Decay Origin Tree suddenly moved, coiling towards Xiao Yan like venomous snakes. The fleshy tumors burst open, and small Rotten Realm Spider, each the size of a palm, emerged from them. Although small in size, they also exuded Power of Decay, crawling densely towards Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan's eyes sharpened, and the Heaven Burning Sword was instantly drawn. " Heaven Burning Nine Forms - Sixth Form - Heaven Burning Spiral!"
Golden flames formed a massive vortex, engulfing the swarming vines and small Rotten Realm Spider. A wisp of white light from the Compass of Order was incorporated into the flames, and sure enough, the previously difficult-to-purify Power of Decay dissolved several times faster under the illumination of the white light.
"It seems the Power of Order can indeed suppress decay." Xiao Yan was overjoyed, and his attacks became even more ferocious.
However, the vitality of the Decay Origin Tree is exceptionally tenacious. As soon as a batch of vines is burned, new ones immediately grow out; small Rotten Realm Spider continuously emerge from the tumors, as if they cannot be killed off.
Xiao Yan gradually realized that in order to completely eliminate these threats, he had to first destroy the roots of the Decay Origin Tree and sever its connection with the Gate of Annihilation.
He took a deep breath and pushed the power of the Compass of Order to its limit. The white light at the center of the compass transformed into a thin line that wrapped around the Heaven Burning Sword.
" The Heaven Burning Nine Forms ·The Ninth Style-- Flame God Break!"
This time, the golden flames were interspersed with wisps of white light, like starlight in the night, carrying the Power of Order of creation, and fiercely slashed at the roots of the Decay Origin Tree.
"Sizzle--!"
The flames collided with the Power of Decay, producing a piercing sound. The Decay Origin Tree trembled violently, the bark at its roots rapidly carbonized, and the gray-black vines withered instantly.
"Roar--!"
An angry roar came from the Gate of Annihilation, and the vortex contracted violently, seemingly trying to retract the Power of Decay it was releasing. But it was too late; the flames of the Heaven Burning Sword had already spread along the roots, igniting the entire Decay Origin Tree.
In the raging flames, the body of the Decay Origin Tree gradually turned to ashes, the unhatched tumors burst open, and the little Rotten Realm Spider were also consumed by the flames.
As the last trace of decay dissipated, the pointer on the Compass of Order finally stopped spinning, but it still pointed to the slowly closing Gate of Annihilation, flickering with a faint light.
Xiao Yan stood in the center of the basin, watching the vortex gradually disappear, but he felt no relief whatsoever.
He knew that this was only a small Gate of Annihilation; the real threat lay hidden in the deeper chaos.
The clues to the Seed of Creation remain elusive.
He gripped the Compass of Order tightly, his gaze piercing deeper into the Abandoned Star Domain. There, the compass needle began to tremble slightly again, as if guiding him toward an even more ancient secret.