Jin Buyi clutched Yuan Qi and the bronze bell, flying for two days before finally arriving where the sun lay. As a middle-aged to elderly golden crow, he was inevitably somewhat fatigued upon reaching this place.
"Huh, what did I come here for again?" Jin Buyi wondered aloud.
Hearing this, Yuan Qi and the bronze bell knew trouble was brewing. They hurriedly shouted, "Lord Jin! Lord Jin! Look here, look here! We plan to enter the Sun Divine Palace to investigate the haunting!"
Jin Buyi looked down, only to see one talon clutching a massive molting serpent and the other gripping a preposterously huge bronze bell. Understanding dawned on him at once, and he chuckled. "A little worm on the left, a big pot on the right, and the sun—this enormous stove—straight ahead... Ah, right! I came here to brew soup!"
Upon hearing this, Yuan Qi's soul was scared half out of his body. He cried out in terror, "Lord Jin! Friends! We're friends!"
Jin Buyi spewed a beam of golden light, sending the bronze bell spinning rapidly. It swelled larger and larger until it was propped atop the sun, and before long, the bell's walls were roasted blazing red.
He picked up Yuan Qi, about to dump him into the "pot," and muttered to himself, "Next, I'll scoop up some primordial magnetic magma from the sun. The original broth cooks the original food."
Yuan Qi screamed, "Lord Jin, the little notebook! Quickly look at your little notebook!"
"There's a recipe too?" Jin Buyi asked in astonishment.
Yuan Qi and the bronze bell said in a panic, "Yes, yes! It's a recipe! Turn to the newest page!"
Fearing Yuan Qi might escape, Jin Buyi raised his foot and pinned him down in the "pot" to sear him first and eliminate the fishy odor, scalding Yuan Qi half to death.
His Primordial Spirit flew out, flipped open the little notebook, turned to the newest page, and examined it closely. Sudden realization struck him, and he hurriedly scooped Yuan Qi out of the "pot."
With a sullen face, Yuan Qi shed his seared, yellowed snake skin and circulated his Mud Pill cave-heaven to heal his wounds.
Jin Buyi apologized profusely to him and the bronze bell. Amid constant bickering, the bird, the snake, and the bell entered the sun.
From time to time, Jin Buyi's Primordial Spirit kept his eyes glued to his little notebook, terrified that he might forget something else.
Inside the sun, the solar divine fire burned with scorching intensity. Various rays carried astonishing power, and the terrestrial geomagnetic primordial force was like a divine blade, capable of severing a cultivator's Primordial Spirit.
Fortunately, Jin Buyi was a three-legged golden crow capable of commanding the solar divine fire, so he could shelter the bronze bell and Yuan Qi. Before long, they spotted colossal vessels—exceedingly ancient multideck warships whose craftsmanship differed entirely from that of the present era. They resembled relics of a primeval age, their surfaces etched with numerous Dao patterns.
These warships bore scars left by fierce battles, and skeletal remains were strewn everywhere. Some bones had been refined away by the solar divine fire, while others had deteriorated under the destructive rays.
Within the sun, even the remains of immortals could scarcely endure, yet on these ancient multideck ships, numerous skeletons were preserved.
The corpses Jin Buyi had mentioned—the ones with their eyes open—were on these very vessels.
Jin Buyi hesitated and said, "Some of the corpses on the ships came back to life. I fear they won't be friendly to us."
"Lord Jin, let's go aboard and have a look," Yuan Qi said, his eyes gleaming.
The bronze bell chuckled. "Lord Seventh has the Diamond Bangle. Why fear mere zombies?"
Yuan Qi laughed. "If worst comes to worst, I'll pull out the Imperial Monarch's Purple Nether Blade and hand it to you to hack down the zombies."
Jin Buyi nodded repeatedly. Thus, the bird, the snake, and the bell landed on one of the flagships. Skeletal remains littered the vessel. Even after being dead for who knew how long, these skeletons still emanated an astonishing aura. The solar divine fire could not incinerate them, nor could the geomagnetic primordial force abrade their bones. Whenever a tempest of cosmic rays within the flames swept over, Dao patterns would surge around the skeletons, forming circular ripples.
Yet, tragically, they had been dead for countless ages. Some skeletons hung over the ship's railings, some were impaled to the deck by sharp weapons, and others had their heads severed from their bodies.
Some appeared to have perished within tactical formations, refined until only half of their torsos remained, with scorching marks still etched around their waists.
Others had been slammed into the ship's hull by tremendous force, their chests pierced by a dozen or more arrows—evidently embedded into the structure by a violent strike before being finished off with a volley of arrows.
Yuan Qi and the bronze bell watched with pounding hearts. Just as they were about to speak, a tall figure suddenly appeared behind them.
Yuan Qi and the bronze bell were startled. Without a second thought, Jin Buyi summoned his twin divine sabers and began to turn, but the tall figure pressed a hand against his body, subduing him completely in an instant.
The towering figure possessed the head of a bird and the body of a man. Leaping onto Jin Buyi's back, he mounted him. Shocked and enraged, Jin Buyi unleashed his dual blades to strike, but before the blades could descend, the tall figure snatched them out of the air.
"Soldiers, are you still there?"
A solemn, deep voice echoed from atop his back. Shocked and terrified, Yuan Qi and the bronze bell looked up to see a man clad entirely in golden armor, brandishing the dual blades with majestic might. Jin Buyi was an ancient primeval breed, the fiercest of three-legged golden crows, yet under the golden-armored divine man's mysterious command, he was utterly subdued. Golden light blazed across his body, radiating an incomparably terrifying aura!
Evidently, the golden-armored divine man possessed extraordinary means that could elevate a golden crow's aura to its absolute peak, achieving a state where man and bird became one! The bronze bell cried out in panic, "Lord Jin, how are you?"
Jin Buyi tried to struggle, yet felt reluctant to break free. He called out, "I don't know why, but being ridden by him actually feels wonderful! Whether it's my Primordial Spirit or my physical body, my vitality and blood are surging. I feel as though I'm completely unified with him!"
Whether the golden-armored divine man was dead or alive remained unknown. Blinding radiance burst from him, intertwined with Dao patterns. Raising a blade with one hand, he spoke in a low yet powerful voice that set Yuan Qi's chest buzzing and stirred resonant chimes from the bronze bell.
"Soldiers of the Eastern Emperor, it is time to awaken."
His voice sent a prickle through the scalp, stirring the blood in one's chest with impassioned fervor. "The mission the Great Emperor entrusted to you remains! The military orders remain! The enemies suppressed within the sun are not yet dead. Follow me into battle!"
Yuan Qi wanted to unleash the Diamond Bangle against him, yet did not dare. The aura emanating from the golden-armored divine man set his blood boiling, causing the primordial power slumbering within him to awaken continuously!
Over the past years, Yuan Qi had followed Xu Ying in cultivation. Xu Ying had never been stingy; whatever he learned and comprehended, he passed on to them. Yuan Qi had worked hard as well. Even when he could not grasp everything, he relied on his enormous belly to stow the knowledge away.
Because of this, he had awakened the ancient molting serpent bloodline early on, allowing his bloodline power to continually awaken until he reached full maturity. His current strength even surpassed that of an ordinary adult molting serpent!
He had assumed he had tapped every hidden reserve of strength within his bloodline, yet the aura pouring from the golden-armored divine man caused his latent power to surge anew! This was likely a secret art of the Monster Race from an ancient era, capable of drawing out a monster's bloodline strength to its absolute zenith!
While Yuan Qi was hesitating, another divine man in silver armor suddenly appeared, stepping onto Yuan Qi's brow and aligning their auras as one.
"Riding me?!"
Yuan Qi was furious. Yet in the very next instant, Dao patterns spilled from the silver-armored divine man, linking with his blood and vitality and bridging their Primordial Spirits, creating a profound sensation of flesh and soul merging as one.
Yuan Qi felt wonderfully comfortable. He stopped struggling, and the fury in his heart vanished.
This silver-armored divine man also bore a bird's head on a human body, fully clad in armor.
Yuan Qi said, "Lord Bell, stop messing around."
The bronze bell grew furious and shouted, "Lord Seventh, Lord Jin, I'm coming to save you!"
Jin Buyi's battle intent soared, and he yelled, "Lord Bell, we are eager to fight! We don't need your rescue!"
The bronze bell was both shocked and outraged. Suddenly, the silver-armored divine man reached out, grabbed the bell's suspension loop, and channeled magic power into it, sending Dao patterns and principles swirling around it.
Across the multideck warships, dried skeletons clambered to their feet one after another. The broken weapons impaled across the ships flew into the air, landing in their bony hands.
Countless skeletons fell into rank, standing in orderly formations like a battle-hardened army, solemn and imposing.
"Soldiers of the Eastern Emperor!"
The two divine men, golden-armored and silver-armored, bellowed in unison, "Follow me into battle to suppress the remnant rebels! Slay them in the sun, suppress them in the great solar furnace! The Eastern Emperor is with you! Yah—!"
A whip lashed across the backsides of Yuan Qi and Jin Buyi. Instantly, they soared into the air, flying toward the depths of the sun...
Chains rattled and clattered as skeletal great birds flapped their wings within the sun, towing those unfathomably ancient multideck warships as they charged toward the innermost core of the blazing sun!
Grandiose shouts erupted in the solar depths, converging into a torrent that surged toward an unknown seal.
The voices of countless ghosts and gods roared, "The Monster Race Immortal Court shall never surrender!"
Deep within the sun, ancient Great Daos of heaven and earth were reviving. The seal on a massive gateway was coming loose, and whatever was imprisoned within the depths of the sun was on the verge of bursting forth!
***
Wangxiang Platform, Xuandu Jade Capital Mountain.
The immortal insect's wings were pinned. It wanted to split its form and devour the person holding it, yet no matter how it shifted, it could not divide itself into avatars.
It was an immortal creature of extraordinary ferocity, capable of splitting into tens of thousands of microscopic insects to devour flesh, blood, Primordial Spirits, and even divine powers.
Although Xu Ying had awakened its sentience, its primal instincts remained. Its scissor-like jaws snapped open and shut with a frantic clicking sound.
The person holding it was a middle-aged man of transcendent bearing, wearing a Seven Stars Crown and a pearl-embroidered robe of shimmering woven brocade. He smiled and said, "How ferocious. Very well, I shall grant you a measure of fortune."
He plucked a leaf from a tree and set the insect upon it. The moment the leaf was plucked, a fresh green sprout emerged in its place.
Clutching the leaf, the immortal insect watched him warily. It hurriedly spread its wings and darted back to the Seven Treasures Palace in a flash, settling on Xu Ying's shoulder before nibbling slowly on the leaf.
By the time the middle-aged man stepped inside, the immortal insect had already devoured most of the leaf, growing noticeably larger. Still on high alert, it guarded Xu Ying and refused to relax its vigilance.
Suddenly, a crisp voice like that of a young woman came from the immortal insect's mouth: "Who are you?"
The moment it spoke human words, it startled itself, wondering how it had suddenly gained speech.
The middle-aged man smiled. "I am the Eastern Brightness High Void Sovereign Dao Lord, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Spirit of the Great Dao Lord. After the Great Dao Lord departed, I remained behind to guard this Dao field until the Great Dao crumbled and I fell into death."
Though the immortal insect could now speak, its mind was still rather dim, and it understood only half of what was said.
It took two more bites of the half-eaten leaf, feeling its senses sharpen and its mind become much clearer. It asked, "You died, and then came back to life?"
The Eastern Brightness Void Sovereign smiled. "I am the Great Dao of heaven and earth here. I shatter when the Great Dao shatters, and I revive when the Dao trees revive."
The immortal insect could not comprehend this either, so it buried its face in the leaf and took several vigorous bites.
Within Xuandu Jade Capital Mountain, radiant light surged. The other seven Dao trees were revitalized with fresh vigor, flourishing remarkably. Before long, they stood as tall as a man and continued to grow skyward.
This time, the Eastern Brightness Void Sovereign and Xu Ying had fulfilled each other.
Forty-eight thousand years ago, Xu Ying had forged a karmic bond here, helping the Eastern Brightness Void Sovereign revive a single Dao tree. Over forty-eight thousand years of growth, that Dao tree had gathered the scattered imprints of the shattered Great Dao throughout heaven and earth.
Returning to this old haunt, Xu Ying had received those Dao imprints from the tree, gaining countless insights. Through this, he had entered the Dao, assembling even more imprints of heaven and earth's Great Dao across Xuandu Jade Capital Mountain and prompting more Dao trees to revive.
A rumbling roar echoed across the land. Supported by the mighty Dao power of the trees, the massive mountain of Xuandu Jade Capital Mountain, which had once been severed in two, rose majestically into the air to reunite!
Across the fracture of the two halves, the Great Dao reconnected, forging the mountain into a single body and restoring it to its former glory!
This sight shook the ancient beings slumbering deep within Wangxiang Platform. Vast consciousnesses stirred, silently observing the scene.
Suddenly, a bronze bell came wobbling through the air, bathed in the luster of the immortal Dao. From afar, it shouted, "Ah-Ying, Ah-Ying! Lord Seventh and Lord Jin have been beaten up!"
The immortal insect fluttered up from Xu Ying's shoulder and hurried to intercept the bronze bell. "Keep your voice down! Master is meditating!"
The bronze bell was covered in dents and battered into a pitiful state, with several punctures piercing straight through its body. It had been reforged by Zhu Chanchan and possessed the ability to repair itself unless it suffered Dao injuries. This time, it had clearly sustained Dao injuries.
The bronze bell cried in surprise, "Lord Insect, you can speak?!"
The immortal insect replied displeasedly, "If a copper-skinned bell like you can talk, why can't I? And don't call me Lord Insect, call me Mother of Insects!"
The bronze bell urged hurriedly, "Quickly wake Ah-Ying so he can rescue Lord Seventh and Lord Jin! They were caught by a group of Solar Wardens from the Monster Race Immortal Court, ridden like beasts of burden, and taken to fight the demons suppressed in the Solar Pass! It took everything I had just to escape!"
The immortal insect said, "Master is cultivating and cannot be disturbed. How about I go with you?"
The bronze bell asked doubtfully, "Even Lord Seventh and Lord Jin were captured. Can you handle it? Besides, if you leave, who will protect Ah-Ying?"
Just then, the Eastern Brightness Void Sovereign smiled. "You two go on ahead. Leave this place to me." The bronze bell was still somewhat uneasy, so the Eastern Brightness Void Sovereign added with a smile, "I am the Primordial Spirit of this heaven and earth. I should be more than enough to ensure his safety."
Only then did the bronze bell feel reassured. Flying off with the immortal insect, it shouted, "Hurry, hurry! If we're too late, it's all over!"
Three days later, the sky above Wangxiang Platform suddenly churned. Clouds swirled violently across the firmament, and another Immortal Realm cave-heaven opened with a thundering roar!
Accompanied by flashes of lightning and rolls of thunder, the cave-heaven descended from the sky, connecting directly with Xu Ying.
The third Immortal Realm cave-heaven—the one corresponding to the Jade Capital secret depository—had opened naturally.
The growth of the eight Dao trees gradually slowed, and the consolidation of the Great Dao's imprints from heaven and earth decelerated as well. At this moment, Xu Ying slowly awakened, gazing across heaven and earth with surging emotions.
He had originally come to Wangxiang Platform to search for his father's whereabouts, never expecting that he would stumble into this place by chance and uncover traces of his past self.
Through this, he had also opened his third Immortal Realm cave-heaven, harmonizing the yin and yang energies within his body into a seamless whole, filling him with a sense of vibrant life force, ceaseless creation, and boundlessness.
Bridging yin and yang, living as long as heaven, enduring alongside the earth. It was roughly this very feeling.
He stood up, feeling a pang of melancholy. "Did my first life come here and fail to find Father? If Father were still on Wangxiang Platform back then, we should have recognized each other."
Even if they had not reunited in his first life, his arrival in this life had caused such a massive commotion that his father would certainly have noticed had he still been here.
Yet his father had not appeared, which suggested that after escaping Fang Songhuai's pursuit all those years ago, he had already departed Wangxiang Platform.
The Eastern Brightness Void Sovereign walked over and said with a smile, "Forty-eight thousand years ago, young friend, when you departed this place, I was still merely a small sapling."
Chapter 406