After the Decay Origin Tree was burned, the air in the Abandoned Star Domain seemed to be a bit fresher. Xiao Yan put away the Heaven Burning Sword and stroked the Compass of Order with his fingertips. Although the compass needle no longer trembled violently, it was still slightly tilted towards the depths of the Star Domain, where there must still be clues related to the Gate of Annihilation or the Seed of Creation.
He didn't rush on his way, but instead sat cross-legged on the edge of the basin, circulating his spiritual energy to regulate his internal energy. Although the fierce battle with the Decay Origin Tree hadn't injured him, it had consumed a lot of the Law of Flame that had merged with the Power of Order, and he needed to recuperate properly.
As night fell, a strange sight appeared in the sky above the Abandoned Star Domain —countless fragments of shattered stars floated like fireflies, emitting a dim light that illuminated the earth like a dream. Xiao Yan looked up and could vaguely see some huge runes mixed in with the star fragments. These runes were similar to the patterns on the Compass of Order, but they were much older and more complex.
"This is... the mark of the Creator's laws?" Xiao Yan's heart stirred, and he got up and flew towards the nearest piece of star debris.
The wreckage was the size of a mountain, its surface riddled with ravines, from which faint golden light lingered – the traces of those ancient runes. Xiao Yan reached out and touched the runes, feeling a warm sensation at his fingertips. The Compass of Order suddenly heated up slightly, and the runes on its surface resonated with the markings on the wreckage, emitting a soft glow.
"Buzz--"
Amidst the light, a blurry scene flooded Xiao Yan's consciousness: countless figures clad in armor, wielding spears, battled against the overwhelming Rotten Realm Spider of Corruption Spiders. In the sky, three Creators with wings of light on their backs were jointly activating a golden seed, the light emanating from which was purifying vast swathes of Power of Decay...
The scene abruptly ended, and Xiao Yan suddenly opened his eyes, his heart pounding like a drum.
"The scene just now... was it the War of Creation and Annihilation?" he murmured, his gaze fixed on the golden seed in the image. "Could that be... the Seed of Creation?"
The light of the Compass of Order gradually faded, but the direction its pointer pointed became clearer, seemingly guided by the resonance from before. Xiao Yan gripped the compass tightly, hope igniting in his heart. "It seems there really are clues to the Seed of Creation here."
He continued deeper into the Abandoned Star Domain following the direction of the pointer. The deeper he went, the more stellar debris he encountered, and the clearer the imprints of laws on them became. Sometimes, touching the imprints, he could feel a faint Power of Order. Although this power was thin, it could nourish the Law of Flame within his body, making the Power of Order integrated into the flames even purer.
Three days later, he arrived at a vast plain. There were no star debris on the plain, only a huge altar made of piled bones. The style of the altar was somewhat similar to the Gate of Annihilation at the roots of the Decay Origin Tree, but it also had obvious characteristics of order—a few blades of grass emitting a faint light grew in the gaps between the bones, which looked particularly abrupt in this desolate Star Domain.
"This is... the Creator's altar?" Xiao Yan stepped forward and discovered that the white bones in the center of the altar were engraved with the same runes as the previous star fragments, only more complete.
As his palm touched the runes, the entire altar suddenly lit up, and the runes on the bones seemed to come alive, flowing into his body through his arm. The Compass of Order burst forth with dazzling light, and a complete star map appeared on its surface, with three points flashing with different lights at the center.
"This is... the location of the three Seed of Creation?" Xiao Yan looked at the star map, his heart trembling.
On the star map, the light representing the seed of "life" is located in the " Sea of Life "—the oldest source of life in All Heavens and Myriad Realms, said to have been formed from the blood of the creator; the light representing the seed of "order" is located in the " Ruins of Laws "—the birthplace of laws, chaotic and dangerous; while the light representing the seed of "balance" is located at the very core of the Abandoned Star Domain, which is where he is currently!
"The seed of 'Heng' is right here on this plain?" Xiao Yan looked around. Apart from the altar, there was only endless wasteland. Where was there any trace of the seed?
He activated the Compass of Order once more, attempting to sense the seed's presence. The compass needle spun wildly, eventually pointing to the ground beneath the altar.
"Underground?"
Xiao Yan summoned the Heaven Burning Sword, and flames flowed from the sword tip into the ground. The golden flames intertwined with the Power of Order, burning a hole about ten feet wide in the hard ground. Below the hole was a deep passage, its walls covered with runes of order, emitting a faint glow.
He walked down the passage, which led to a huge stone chamber. On a stone platform in the center of the chamber, a gray crystal the size of a fist floated, with yin and yang energies seemingly flowing within it, emanating a balanced and stable aura.
"Is this the Seed of 'Balance'?" Xiao Yan stepped forward and could feel the immense Power of Order contained within the crystal. This power was impartial, capable of both suppressing decay and harmonizing creation, perfectly matching the characteristics of "Balance" recorded in the archives.
Just as he reached out to take the crystal, the stone chamber suddenly trembled violently, and the entrance to the passage was instantly blocked by falling boulders. Countless gray-black patterns appeared on the walls on both sides of the stone chamber. These patterns quickly converged and eventually formed a monster ten times larger than the Rotten Realm Spider he had encountered in the Azure Mist Realm!
This Rotten Realm Spider no longer had a pouch on its back; instead, it had a thick carapace covered with runes of annihilation, radiating Power of Decay a hundred times more terrifying than before. Its head still lacked facial features, but it had a blood-red eye between its brows, staring intently at Xiao Yan with eyes full of resentment.
"The guardian of the Rotten Realm Spider?" Xiao Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he gripped the Heaven Burning Sword tightly. The aura of this Rotten Realm Spider had actually reached the Middle Stage of the Supreme Realm, even stronger than the previous Shadow Priest!
"Roar--!"
The guardian roared, and dozens of claws slammed out simultaneously, forming a massive shockwave of gray-black Power of Decay that crushed towards Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan dared not be negligent, memorizing the aura of the "Heng" Seed. He then retreated rapidly, the flames on the Heaven Burning Sword perfectly merging with the Power of Order: " Heaven Burning Nine Forms - Seventh Form - Heaven Burning Explosion!"
The compressed flames, imbued with the Power of Order, formed a miniature singularity in front of him. The singularity collided with the shockwave, producing a muffled boom. The shockwave was forcefully blocked, but the singularity dissipated in the process.
"Such powerful strength!" Xiao Yan exclaimed inwardly. This guardian's Power of Decay was not only domineering, but also carried a kind of balanced resilience. No wonder it could protect the Seed of Balance for so long.
Seeing its attack blocked, the guardian roared again, and a beam of red light shot out from the blood-red eye between its brows. The red light landed on the floor of the stone chamber and instantly corroded a bottomless black hole. Countless tiny Rotten Realm Spider poured out of the black hole and surged towards Xiao Yan like a tide.
"It seems we can't delay any longer." Xiao Yan's eyes sharpened. He knew he had to finish this quickly, otherwise, if he got entangled by these little Rotten Realm Spider, the consequences would be unimaginable.
He took a deep breath and completely merged the Law of Flame, the Power of Order, and the power of the Heart-Clearing Jade within his body. The illusory image of the flame mountain in the small world of his sea of consciousness intertwined with the order runes, forming a brand new law imprint.
"This sword technique is named ' Balance Flame '!"
Xiao Yan let out a low shout, Heaven Burning Sword unleashed a gray-gold sword light. Within the sword light, the Power of Order flowed like Yin Yang Twin Fish, possessing both the destructive power to burn everything and the inclusive power of harmony and balance.
As the sword light swept past, the swarming Lesser Rotten Realm Spider were instantly purified, leaving not even a trace of ash behind. The sword light continued its momentum, striking the Guardian's carapace fiercely.
"Clang!"
With a loud crash, a clear crack appeared on the guardian's carapace, from which grayish-black blood seeped. It let out a painful roar, clearly indicating that the sword strike had caused it considerable damage.
"Now!" Xiao Yan seized the opportunity, his figure moving like lightning, bypassing the guardian's attack, and rushing straight for the "Heng" Seed on the stone platform.
Seeing this, the guardian frantically waved its claws to stop it, but Xiao Yan was extremely fast and grabbed the gray crystal before its claws could fall.
"Buzz--!"
The moment the Seed of Balance was obtained, it burst forth with dazzling light. Within the light, a powerful Power of Balance surged into Xiao Yan's body, causing his Heart of the Flame Realm to pound violently. Under the harmonization of this force, the Law of Flame and the Power of Order became even more harmonious and perfect.
At the same time, the guardian let out a shrill scream. Under the light of the "Balance" Seed, its body melted away like ice and snow, eventually turning into a wisp of green smoke and disappearing completely.
With the guardian's demise, the boulder blocking the passage moved away automatically, revealing the starry sky outside.
Xiao Yan gripped the Seed of Balance tightly in his hand, feeling the Power of Balance contained within it, his heart filled with excitement. This was the first Seed of Creation he had found; with it, the Power of Order in the heavens could be initially enhanced.
He looked up at the positions of the "Seed of Life" and the "Seed of Order" on the star chart, a determined light flashing in his eyes.
The journey to find the Seed of Creation has only just begun. But he knows that as long as he holds this Power of Balance in his hands, he can overcome any difficulties and obstacles ahead.
Because he did not only protect the heavens, but also sought the true meaning of creation and order.