Chapter 1669
Chapter 1669. The Master Outline of Transcending the Taboo Secret Canon, the Scheme Set by the Eternal Primordial God
The figures of Ling Yuling and the Xiyuan Saintess appeared once more within the Yuxian Palace. Aside from them, no one knew what they had discussed inside.
For the next few days, the Yuxian Palace was bustling with activity.
Streaks of flowing light in the form of flying boats tore through the firmament and space-time, descending here. Many Dao-lineage forces that had received the news but had yet to arrive also sent important figures rushing over, to jointly discuss and draft the Xiyuan Covenant.
In addition, many previously unknown forbidden zones and hidden realms sent forth ripples and strange omens. Child attendants rode clouds and roseate mists, driving golden immortal oxen as they came to deliver messages on behalf of the masters behind them.
At the edge of the sky, rifts shattered open, and many beings draped in divine radiance descended one after another, hailing from the Divine Dao Civilization. This was an event that shook the entire Xiyuan Civilization. And it was not only the Xiyuan Civilization—many true realms and kingdoms were also closely watching, wanting to learn of the progress at the first possible moment.
Ling Yuling and the many elders of the Yuxian Palace continually conferred with everyone, repeatedly revising the clauses of the covenant. At the same time, they were deducing the future course of the Xiyuan Civilization’s destiny, further perfecting the pact.
Meanwhile, in a certain space-time graveyard somewhere within the vast and boundless expanse—Ancient and shattered stone steles were scattered throughout this stretch of space-time. All around, great swathes of nebulae had been broken apart, forming a chaotic mass grave.
Coffin after ancient, blood-tinged coffin could be seen lying across the pits. Some parts had already decayed and fallen to pieces, exuding a deathly aura that made one’s heart quail.
No one knew how many epochs these coffins had lain here. Some had already been opened, with nothing inside save for a few scraps of clothing that had long since weathered and rotted away.
At that moment, a peerlessly beautiful woman was frowning slightly, holding a piece of divine jade that shimmered with flowing, multicolored light, as she attempted to break through the layers of restrictions before her. She sat cross-legged there, with the power of space-time surging around her—exceedingly ethereal, like smoke, like mist.
With each breath she took, billions of strands of rosy cloud-qi intertwined and continuously rushed towards her, like a mythical ancient immortal who dined on mist and drank morning dew. Her face could not be seen clearly; it was entirely shrouded in smoke and glowing clouds, and only a pair of eyes, as bright and pure as the moon, could be discerned. She wore a long golden dress that flowed with golden radiance, swaying with the currents of rosy qi, like a sun goddess who had existed since time immemorial.
“The hidden trove left behind by the Eternal Primordial God should, in theory, be right here. So why has it gone wrong every time?”
“Could it be that even the key condensed from the five Eternal Divine Artifacts can be mistaken?”
Murmuring to herself, the peerless woman once again poured the many strands of divine power within her body into the piece of divine jade in her hand.
A terrifying, surging aura erupted from that divine jade, like endless rivers and oceans crashing forward, seeking to annihilate the layers of restrictions all around. Yet no matter how hard she tried, she still could not destroy the restrictions ahead.
On the contrary, a terrifying backlash force surged back at her, layer upon layer like overlapping great waves, making her qi and blood churn. The counterforce shook her body, left her unsteady on her feet, and golden blood trickled from the corner of her lips, strand after strand.
The vast power she had just poured in was also quickly squandered and scattered into nothing.
“I’ve drifted through all kinds of space-time graveyards and ancient ruins, and I’ve walked who-knows-how-many ferocious nests and desperate deadlands, but this is the first time I’ve ever encountered something like this…”
“Could it be that the Eternal Primordial God never actually died?”
The peerless woman furrowed her brows. As she healed her injuries, her gaze once again fell upon the layers of restrictions ahead. She was Luo Xiangjun, the one who had obtained the five Eternal Divine Artifacts from Gu Changge and refined them into the key to open the Eternal Primordial God’s hidden trove.
However, from the time she had refined the key and determined the location of that trove, to the time she arrived here and became trapped, nearly a thousand years had already passed.
Throughout these thousand years, she had been trying every possible method to open the restrictions here and enter the Eternal Primordial God’s hidden trove. Yet she had failed every time. She had even resorted to using the artifacts Gu Changge had given her in the end, but they still proved useless. And now, even freeing herself from this place has become a problem.
Before coming here, Luo Xiangjun had never imagined it would be this troublesome.
The Eternal Primordial God had clearly been dead for countless ages. Even the bloodline of the Eternal God Race was now exceedingly thin—only within the Immortal-Spirit Civilization did a small remnant of that race still exist.
So why was it that the restrictions left behind by the Eternal Primordial God could still possess such power after so many eras had passed? Even an ordinary being of the Ancestral Dao Realm would not even think of setting foot here.
Back then, she had confidently promised Gu Changge that she would soon open the trove left by the Eternal Primordial God and retrieve the many treasures and resources within. Yet now, even escaping from this place herself has become difficult.
Luo Xiangjun even began to worry that Gu Changge might mistakenly believe she had already taken the Eternal Hidden Trove, made off with all the treasures and resources, and vanished without a trace.
“According to the records I’ve obtained, the Eternal Primordial God was at least an existence who had survived nine Heavenly Decline Tribulations, close to the realm of Supreme Shattering…”
“If he didn’t actually die, then could that so-called Eternal Hidden Trove be nothing more than a rumor?”
“But the five Eternal Divine Artifacts do indeed exist, and I really did refine a key from them afterward.”
Luo Xiangjun’s willow brows knitted tightly; she could not figure it out no matter how she thought about it. If she had known it would turn out like this, then with her level of strength she would never have dared to set her sights on the Eternal Primordial God’s hidden trove. She let out a soft sigh, then rose and began to walk through this cluster of space-time graveyards, trying to think of another way.
It was impossible for her to remain trapped here forever. If Gu Changge truly misunderstood her, then things would become truly troublesome.
A gray-brown wind blew in from distant space-time, carrying with it the stench of decay, along with a bone-chilling cold and eerie aura.
This space-time graveyard did not exist at any fixed point in space or time; instead, it constantly shifted its position with the turbulence and changes of time and space. Even if Luo Xiangjun broke free right now, she would have no idea where she would end up.
Within the vast and boundless expanse, there were trillions of space-times and endless universes. No one knew whether there was an ultimate boundary. Perhaps by the time she escaped from this place, she would already be unimaginably far from the Immortal-Spirit Civilization. To see Gu Changge again might take several million years, or even longer.
“I’ve never once broken an oath. I just hope he doesn’t misunderstand me.”
Luo Xiangjun’s lotus-like steps moved lightly as she turned into a streak of golden light, roaming through this lifeless space-time graveyard, trying to find a way out.
From the records she had investigated, the Eternal Primordial God had fallen precisely because he once obtained a forbidden secret manual that should not exist in any of the worlds.
That forbidden secret manual was known to the world as the Outline of Transcendence.
Luo Xiangjun had been seeking the Eternal Primordial God’s hidden trove all this time precisely because of that Outline of Transcendence. She knew her own talent and capability. In this life, even with heaven-defying fortune, she would likely only be able to stop just short of the Ancestral Dao Realm, unable to advance even half a step beyond.
And that Outline of Transcendence was her final chance.
If she wanted to break free of her fate, she had to obtain the Outline of Transcendence.
Boom!
Suddenly, a terrifying boom erupted. Ahead of Luo Xiangjun, an unimaginably vast star exploded, turning into dust that filled the heavens.
A horrifying giant hand that blotted out space and time, festooned with stark white bones, thrust out from that rift. In an instant it plunged this stretch of spacetime into darkness, sweeping toward her to seize her in one grasp.
“Why is there still a living being here?”
Luo Xiangjun’s expression changed—she had never expected someone to strike at her at that moment. She had no time to react. Her body surged in size in an instant, and her arm shot out as well. Her snow-white palm, wreathed in terrifying laws of the Dao-domain, shattered space-time as it slapped forward with a muffled crack, colliding with that sky-covering skeletal palm.
A dreadful clash erupted here, as if countless stars and entire universes were being destroyed. The deluge of fearsome energy caused the surrounding spacetime to collapse and be annihilated.
With a muffled groan, Luo Xiangjun’s arm went numb. Blood seeped out, and her slender, fair fingers nearly shattered. She could hardly believe it. Her strength might not be unrivaled beneath the Ancestral Dao Realm, but it was close. Yet in that brief collision with the skeletal giant hand, she fell into disadvantage—she was no match for the opponent.
“How is this possible? For thousands of years I’ve felt no breath of life here. How could a being on par with the Ancestral Dao Realm suddenly appear?”
“Could it be that the Eternal Primordial God truly didn’t die?”
Luo Xiangjun’s figure streaked sideways at high speed, trying to evade, but that terrifying skeletal giant hand shadowed her every move, following like a specter.
No matter how she dodged—turning void to substance, substance to void—it was useless. It was as if it had locked onto her completely. It slammed down on her, knocking her from the sky. She crashed into the ground, shattering it into countless fissures.
“Pfft…”
Luo Xiangjun spat a mouthful of blood. Her aura dimmed slightly before she struggled to her feet. Her expression grew solemn. She gazed at the skeletal giant hand, apprehension in her heart.
“Who’s playing a ghost here?” Luo Xiangjun asked coldly.
“Hehe. I should thank you, little girl, for your offerings over these millennia. Thanks to them, I have awakened. No need to panic—this is merely power I’m borrowing for the moment.”
“The body I’m using now belonged to one of the enemies who besieged me and fell here back then. The remnants of its power are not much, but more than enough to deal with you. So put away any other thoughts.”
“You have done me a service in waking me. I won’t make things difficult for you.”
An ancient, timeworn voice suddenly reverberated through the cemetery of spacetime. All the stone steles trembled in response, as if echoing those words.
Seeing this, Luo Xiangjun, though she had long suspected as much, still felt shaken and incredulous.
“Who are you? Are you the Eternal Primordial God?” She asked in a deep voice.
“Hehe, clever girl—you even know of my existence.” The ancient voice sounded again, with a faint chuckle.
“So the Eternal Treasury never existed at all? It was a trap you set?”
Even a fool would see it now: there was no Eternal Treasury.
Those rumors had been deliberately spread by the Eternal Primordial God. He had likely foreseen this day and laid the snare early, waiting for those of later generations to revive him.
No wonder, when she had tried to dismantle those restrictions before, something always felt wrong. The power she poured in vanished like stones sinking into the sea, leaving no trace.
And now, the Eternal Primordial God’s deliberate confession—and the blow he struck to injure her—were surely to cow and intimidate her.
Because he had only just awakened, not yet restored to his peak. The power he could wield was limited. Or perhaps he had indeed been hunted down and slain back then, forced to set up contingencies to be revived in a later age.
The so-called Eternal Treasury was merely a grand scheme to select a suitable candidate to aid in his resurrection.
Having reasoned all this out, Luo Xiangjun’s face grew unsightly. She had pored over countless records, searched ancient ruins and lairs of horrors, and braved innumerable life-and-death trials—Only to discover it had all been a setup?
These shattered Supremes from the ancient eras—there really wasn’t a single one that was easy to deal with.
“Smart little girl. No wonder you were able to make it here and earn the acknowledgment of this Venerable One. To think you managed to figure all that out so quickly.”
“This Venerable One knows what you seek, and that thing is indeed in my hands. Back then, the reason I fell was indeed related to it.”
“If you want it, I can give it to you as well.”
“But before that, you must swear an oath to the Heavenly Dao for this Venerable One, and help this Venerable One handle a few matters.”
The words of the Eternal Primordial God once again echoed through this stretch of time and space. They were terribly direct, as if he’d seen straight through all that lay in Luo Xiangjun’s heart.
“Do I even have a choice at this point?” Luo Xiangjun said coldly.
Even if the other party could only exert strength at the Ancestral Dao Realm, that was more than enough to deal with her.
“Smart and sensible little thing. The restrictions in this place have already been undone. In a while, you will lead this Venerable One out of here, and you will help this Venerable One find a descendant who carries my bloodline. Aside from that, you are not to reveal the slightest thing about this Venerable One.”
“This Venerable One will slumber for a time. Once this Venerable One has recovered, I will naturally give you what you want.”
As that voice fell, it didn’t give Luo Xiangjun the slightest chance to hesitate.
A streak of dark-gold radiance shot out in an instant from the deepest part of this burial ground, flying straight toward the piece of divine jade in Luo Xiangjun’s hand.
Buzz!
In a flash, the divine jade erupted with a blinding brilliance; its already resplendent surface became even clearer and more crystalline. But very soon it dimmed again, as though all of its Dao charm and spiritual essence had been drained away.
Luo Xiangjun watched this scene with an icy gaze. She very much wanted to fling the divine jade from her hand, but in the end she forcibly held herself back.
This piece of divine jade was something she had obtained from an ancient tomb. It had been a burial accompaniment for a great figure, priceless, containing an incomparably vast and pure energy—enough to move even an existence at the Ancestral Dao Realm.
Yet now, the energy within had been completely absorbed by the Eternal Primordial God. Although he had fallen into slumber, he could still awaken at any moment.
She did not dare to act rashly, and as for what he had just said, she did not believe it at all.
The Eternal Primordial God had been besieged and fallen for defying the overarching laws of transcendence. Would he really hand over something this precious to her in accordance with their agreement?
“The bloodline of the Eternal God Race… Am I supposed to go to the Immortal Spirit Civilization?”
But right now, Luo Xiangjun couldn’t afford to think about that. Figuring out how to stay alive and rid herself of the current trouble was the most important thing. She had traveled through many civilizations and True Realms, and in the end had only discovered the bloodline of the Eternal God Race within the Immortal Spirit Civilization.
Now, it seemed she had no choice but to return to the Immortal Spirit Civilization. At the same time, within the Xiyuan Civilization, in a region where silver radiance billowed and the power of faith surged like a boundless sea—The Old Han Crow and the old Daoist, who hailed respectively from the Lesser Yin Aspect and the Heaven-Decline Aspect, were standing in awe before a Heaven-Smiting Shrine.
Gu Changge stood within the Heaven-Smiting Shrine with his back to them, eyes closed, silent and saying nothing. Countless strands, like lakes and seas, of the power of fortune gathered before him, weaving together into a vast net that encompassed all worlds, allowing him to hear and see the thoughts and ponderings, the feelings and perceptions, of all living beings in all realms.