The living surged towards the Qianyun Marsh, despair pressing down upon them like a mountain, heavy upon every soul.
Xue Cuo stood upon the clouds. After a moment, he raised his hand and cast out a talisman.
Xuan Zhao’s expression changed at once. He sprang up and clung to Xue Cuo’s arm, crying out, “Xue Cuo! That is a heavenly plague. A heavenly plague cannot be cured. To oppose it is to stand against the Great Dao!”
Xue Cuo’s expression did not shift. He continued to cast his talismans. “Master Xuan, the Dao of this world is already in disorder.”
With a flick of his hand, a golden talisman flew into the Qiankun Bowl. In that instant, the barrier dissolved. Xuan Zhao dropped heavily to the ground.
Ren Shu let out a quiet sigh, turned, and patted Xue Cuo on the shoulder. “I will stand with you.”
The plague-stricken lifted their heads, and before their eyes the vast green marsh suddenly unfolded. Boundless waters stretched from heaven to earth, and at their farthest reach, peaks of strange beauty appeared and vanished like a mirage.
The sky was clear, the clouds radiant.
It was a world brimming with life, like an oasis in the desert, drawing those already entwined with death.
The birds sensed the spiritual energy first. They burst from their nests in a flurry, stumbling through the air as they flew towards the marsh.
“Go, quickly!”
“But Grandfather, what place is that?”
“A place to live. Go, do not stop.”
Above them, a crimson cloud slowly gathered, condensing into a red-robed Daoist. Holding a golden bowl, he laughed aloud. “You have finally shown yourself, wicked spawn of a deviant path. I have waited long.”
Xue Cuo smiled faintly. With a sweep of his sleeve, he stepped forward without fear. “Who are you?”
The red-robed Daoist stroked his beard, displeasure crossing his face. Golden decrees formed one after another, his expression thunderous, his voice blazing with fury. “Who am I? Ignorant child. You dare obstruct the heavenly plague. You do not even know the height of the heavens. I am the Great Plague Star Lord, acting under Heaven’s command to chastise the world. Kneel.”
Xue Cuo summoned the lotus Dao resonance. The silver brush moved through empty air, inscribing talismans in swift succession, striking down each heavenly decree in turn.
The Great Plague Star Lord staggered back half a step, astonishment flashing across his face. “You!”
Xue Cuo smiled. “Since you have descended into the mortal world, you must abide by its rules.”
The red-robed Daoist raised the golden bowl. “Outrageous. Receive Heaven’s punishment.”
The bowl swelled to immense size. Terrifying heavenly might gathered within it, condensing into a crimson calamity, a plague so dire that even immortals dreaded it.
A heavenly plague, beyond the reach of any mortal. Yet when it struck, it met a single golden talisman. A resounding clang split the air. The shockwave scattered the clouds overhead.
The red-robed Daoist would not yield. Raising the bowl high, he shouted, “Mortal, kneel and submit, and I may spare your life.”
“But for every moment you hinder me, I will kill three thousand. For two moments, I will slaughter every living thing in this marsh and level the sacred mountain. The lives and deaths of all here rest upon you. Do not act in stubborn pride. Think of all living beings.”
“Think of all living beings?”
Xue Cuo’s hair lifted in the wind, his brush moving as his heart willed. His laughter was low. “You speak to me of all living beings.”
His arm moved slowly. The silver brush spun lightly in his hand as he completed the final stroke of a summoning talisman. “Then I shall let you see the god of all living beings here.”
Golden sand-like sigils flowed together, forming a vast character, sealing the four directions.
A faint smile touched Xue Cuo’s lips as he lowered the brush. His calm, water-like gaze rested upon the Great Plague Star Lord, effortless and unrestrained.
At the moment the talisman was completed, the sound of water surged forth. The sky darkened. Sheets of joss paper drifted down, mournful and desolate, like offerings for the dead, like falling snow.
The Great Plague Star Lord’s hand trembled. His beard quivered as he beheld the vast phantom rising behind Xue Cuo, spanning heaven and earth. Lotus blooms filled the sky, and a golden lake shimmered with rippling light.
A figure, ethereal and pure, approached in measured steps. She was draped in radiant clouds, a wheel of law turning behind her head. Mountains formed her raiment, lakes her flowing skirts. Three thousand waterways and the four great marshes gathered within her golden gaze. Boundless Dao resonance rose from her like an endless mountain.
In a single breath, the mountains and seas came to rest before him.
The Great Plague Star Lord stared, rigid as though struck lifeless. The young man’s voice rang in his ears, almost like a spell. “Star Lord, do you see?”
The golden bowl slipped from his grasp. His voice trembled. “I see… I see…”
The goddess raised her gaze.
The bowl shattered into dust. With a cry, the Great Plague Star Lord fell straight from the clouds. The heavenly decrees upon him broke apart, scattering into the mortal soil among the gaunt and starving victims.
“Xue Cuo.” The goddess’s voice sounded.
Xue Cuo immediately wiped the smile from his face and grew solemn, offering incense. “I beg Your Ladyship, have mercy.”
She did not answer. Her form dissolved into a clear wind, yet a single message remained. “The Demon Sage aids me. I have awakened. There is no need for concern.”
Xue Cuo lowered his eyes.
The waters of the loch, deep beyond measure, began to glow faintly blue. In their depths, layers of Dao chains shattered one after another. The heavy clay shell upon the goddess’s statue cracked, revealing the true form of the deity within.
The Great Dao of Heaven and Earth stirred at the awakening of an ancient god. The shattered Xianghuo Divine Dao gathered once more, illuminating the stars across the sky.
Where once there had been only a single moon, now countless points of light emerged. These were the newly awakened Xianghuo deities of the Divine Lands.
Some were spirits of the mountains, others of the rivers. As the Great Dao coalesced, they were granted opportunity and awoke in dim awareness. Within their minds arose a vague understanding: to gather incense and the power of faith, and cultivate thereby.
“Who am I?”
A newborn mountain spirit skipped through the forest. Seeing the calamities that plagued the land, it began to weep. Yet what was this that flowed from its eyes?
It did not know, and still it followed its instinct to save the living. “Qianyun Marsh.”
A river spirit leapt from its worshipped statue, its slender, serpent-like tail swaying. It was radiant beyond compare, yet pure to the core. Thinking of the river’s source, it set out to pay homage to its mother.
“The Loch. The Goddess of the Loch.”
“And Eldest Shixiong.”
Carrying offerings, it travelled far. When it encountered others of its kind, it drew upon tree bark the image of a youth holding a lotus, sharing it with the newly awakened river spirits.
Swinging its legs, it said, “My origin is the same as my mother’s. This is what I saw. Will you go to find him as well?”
“Yes, let us go together.”
At the Demon Court, within the Six Saints Temple, all the elders of the demon race sat cross-legged, watching as the clay effigy wrought by human hands cracked apart piece by piece.
High above, the Peacock King held the Purifying Wheel. Its clear radiance burned like a blazing sun, and within that light, all things seemed to find their final resting place.
The light grew ever stronger. Under its radiance, many of the demon race wept uncontrollably.
“Better to return.”
“Better to return…”
“When Heaven and Earth unite, chaos returns to its source. The Divine Lands were always one.”
The thought arose without warning and could not be suppressed. Those whose Dao hearts were not firm enough took their own lives under the influence of the Purifying Wheel, while many elders stood resolute, resisting its pull.
Among them, the Peacock King ought to have been most affected, yet he remained unchanged. His trailing robes stirred in the wind. His long dark hair flowed, revealing a face both delicate and androgynous, exquisitely beautiful. His expression was utterly cold, like ice.
Kong Yun raised the Purifying Wheel. His power poured forth without cease, the radiance intensifying.
At last, the clay effigy shattered with a thunderous crash. The Demon Court trembled violently, as though some dreadful presence had torn its way into being.
The restraints of the Six Saints Temple could not contain the raging force. Stone statues shattered, swept into the air and ground to dust.
Kong Yun was driven back step by step, his expression hardening further. Blood traced the corner of his lips, yet he pressed forward, refusing to yield.
“Great Sage!”
“It is the Great Sage of the Southern Peacock!”
The Purifying Wheel flickered, then suddenly shone with a warm, gentle light. It condensed into a single point and fell into a pair of hands of incomparable beauty.
Kong Yun narrowed his eyes, lifted his robes, and bowed deeply. “Great Sage.”
A soft laugh followed. A hand brushed lightly over his head.
“I have returned. The stars of the demon race shall rise like the sun in the east.”
…
The constellations shifted once more.
Stars that had long lain dim suddenly flared into brightness. The Great Dao rejoiced. The Dao of the demon race, shattered to the brink of annihilation, gathered again and split into two. One was new, the other old; one weak, the other strong. From their divergence, countless demon paths were born.
“Oh?”
The Southern Sovereign gave an amused smile. “A path such as this has never existed before. It is as though Heaven and Earth have only just come into being.”
At the same moment, within the mortal capital of Tiandu, Yin Feixue felt the subtle change within his sight. A thousand insights surged into his mind. Most immediate of all was the sense that the barrier which had long obstructed his breakthrough had suddenly opened. His cultivation rose like a swelling tide, climbing to a level that inspired even himself with unease.
The Great Dao trembled in the heavens, and the stars glittered. In one region, they linked together, forming the shape of a city.
…
In the mortal realm, Qingzhou.
The Goddess of the Nine-Bend Yellow River lifted her gaze and laughed aloud. “Great Loch, you have finally made your move. How could I miss such a spectacle?”
Her divine power surged. The stars that had lain dormant shone once more, radiant in the night sky. Another stroke was added to Xianghuo Divine Dao.
Then more stars ignited. Those belonging to the Western Spirit Mountain lit up as well, joining together into the form of a seated Buddha.
Within Wendao Palace, Sword Immortal held a single flower, his expression utterly indifferent. What he had been waiting for was drawing near.
The Dao bell tolled again and again. The great cultivators of the human race were left reeling by this sudden celestial upheaval. Unwilling to fall behind, they began invoking deities and offering sacrifices to Heaven, striving to commune with the Great Dao, hoping to kindle the stars of humanity.
That resonance reached Liuyun Peak.
Seated beneath a flowering tree, the woman heard it as well. She lifted her hand, poured a cup of tea, and gently set it forward. The black-clad swordsman seated before her shifted uneasily. After a moment’s hesitation, he took the cup and drank, stiff and distracted.
Gu Ruhui had yet to tell his shimu that he knew Xue Cuo’s whereabouts. This cup of tea was difficult to swallow. His face remained rigid. “Shimu, you summoned me today… is it…”
Xue Zhenzhen did not answer. She merely said, “Look at the sky.”
Gu Ruhui lifted his eyes. The moon hung high, the stars scattered across the firmament. Xue Zhenzhen gestured towards Wendao Palace. “They are trying to kindle the cultivators’ path.”
Gu Ruhui could not discern anything clearly, yet it was the first time he had truly looked upon the stars, and he found himself momentarily dazed.
“It is a pity,” Xue Zhenzhen said calmly. “They cannot kindle it.”
Gu Ruhui held his cup, curiosity stirring faintly. “Shimu, why?”
“The moon alone has shone for ten thousand years,” she replied. “That is the path of unified cultivation.”
Gu Ruhui’s expression shifted in surprise. “The path of unified cultivation?”
Xue Zhenzhen lowered her gaze, her expression cool and distant. “Yet no flower blooms forever. When all things reach their peak, they must decline. This is the natural law.”
Gu Ruhui sighed, struggling to take it in. Then she spoke again. “Ruhui, tell me. If Xue Cuo were still alive, would he spend every day hating me?”
Gu Ruhui faltered. Half the tea in his cup spilled. Startled, he looked up, meeting a pair of eyes as still and reflective as mirrors. He fell silent. After a long pause, he lowered his head. “Shimu, I…”
The rustling of blossoms and the whisper of the wind swallowed his words. No one heard what was spoken above.
A clear breeze swept across the earth, dispersing the great fog that had shrouded it for ten thousand years. Stars once more shone across the night sky of the southeastern Divine Lands, their radiance almost eclipsing the moon.
The spiritual energy of the mortal world awakened. Ancient battlefields long buried rose again, and countless hidden realms emerged into being.
It was within one such realm that Kong Yun and Yin Feixue met again for the first time since parting in the Demon Court.
Clad in resplendent robes and emerald plumage, the Peacock King regarded Yin Feixue with cold eyes, killing intent laid bare. Opposite him, the Lord of Tiandu, in white robes and dark armour, spoke with an easy smile, entirely unyielding.
