Within the Tuwu Great Realm.
A voice drifted into Bai Xiaosheng's ears.
"Dao God Youqian, watch yourself. Out of respect for Dao God Baitang, we of the Nine Heavens Divine Palace have already shown ample sincerity."
Bai Xiaosheng's expression remained placid; he offered no reply.
After the Nine Heavens Divine Palace discovered Tianqian Valley, numerous Dao Gods descended upon the Tuwu Great Realm to press down upon it.
The Tuwu Great Realm had become a place one could enter, but never leave.
With Bai Xiaosheng's strength, he could have slipped away through the Dark Void, and the Nine Heavens Divine Palace would have found it difficult to catch him anytime soon.
Yet if he left, what would become of the Tuwu Great Realm?
Moreover, he was born from the spirit of an innate divine treasure and bound to the realm itself. If the Nine Heavens Divine Palace seized the Tuwu Great Realm and took the time to refine it, dealing with him would become child's play.
"Ten thousand years is more than enough for you to sever your karmic ties with the Tuwu Great Realm. Though your power will diminish considerably because of it, isn't that far better than dying right now?" the voice continued.
Out of consideration for Dao God Baitang, the Nine Heavens Divine Palace had refrained from launching an outright assault on the Tuwu Great Realm.
Instead, they gave Dao God Youqian a chance.
So long as Dao God Youqian truly severed himself from the Tuwu Great Realm and handed control of it over to the Nine Heavens Divine Palace, they would spare him.
Hearing this, Bai Xiaosheng cast his gaze outward. The mountains and rivers, the sun, moon, and stars, the wind and falling leaves of the Tuwu Great Realm all reflected in his eyes.
"I will not abandon the Tuwu Great Realm," Dao God Youqian replied.
He had been born in the Tuwu Great Realm; it was, in essence, his mother.
The living beings of the realm revered him as their master.
How could he ever abandon the Tuwu Great Realm to be enslaved by the Nine Heavens Divine Palace?
"Dao God Youqian... our patience has its limits. You have one hundred years to think it through carefully. Choose whether you want death, or severance from the Tuwu Great Realm."
The voice vanished without a trace.
In the vast palace, only Dao God Youqian remained alone.
"Cough, cough..."
He coughed lightly, golden blood spilling from the corner of his lips.
Though protected by Dao God Baitang's prestige, keeping the people of the Nine Heavens Divine Palace from doing their worst, blows had still been exchanged.
"The gap between them and me... is simply too vast."
Aside from possessing a first-rate ability to flee, he was utterly mediocre in every other respect.
And facing the siege of the Nine Heavens Divine Palace, he could not even run.
Otherwise, the Nine Heavens Divine Palace would seize the opportunity to occupy and refine Tianqian Valley.
Subsequently, the Tuwu Great Realm would become their base of operations, and he would never be able to return even if he wanted to.
"A hundred years..." Bai Xiaosheng murmured, his eyes heavy with worry.
He had precious little time left.
If he failed to provide the Nine Heavens Divine Palace with the answer they desired within a century, his chances of perishing were exceedingly high.
"Aside from the method Dao Lord Black Crow mentioned, is there any other way to eliminate a node?"
Bai Xiaosheng's face was etched with anxiety.
As things stood, standing against the Nine Heavens Divine Palace was virtually impossible.
The only viable path was to completely erase the node.
If that happened, the Tuwu Great Realm would be useless to the Nine Heavens Divine Palace.
Though they might vent their anger on him, the situation would de-escalate considerably once the node was gone.
"According to Black Crow, one must find the Dao Lord of the Devouring Dao... Could it be Wu Shi?"
Vanishingly few Dao Lords attained the Dao within the Rebirth Realm.
Such powerhouses generally possessed staggering innate talent and were guided up into the Yang Realm.
Meanwhile, the Dao Lord who had attained the Dao through Devouring was already dead.
Add to that the fact that the Nine Heavens Divine Palace was actively searching for Wu Shi, and it became highly probable that she was intimately connected to that Devouring Dao Lord.
"No. If the Nine Heavens Divine Palace discovers her presence, she will certainly die."
Hence, Bai Xiaosheng had never chosen to seek her out.
Though Wu Shi had now reached the God Lord realm, regaining her former Dao Lord cultivation would be a monumental task. Even if she was a Dao Lord's true spirit or an awakened Dao fruit, it would demand an astronomical amount of time, and the odds of success were far from guaranteed.
And the Nine Heavens Divine Palace was not giving him much time.
Casting aside these thoughts, Bai Xiaosheng arrived at Tianqian Valley.
This was not his first visit.
Ever since he learned that Tianqian Valley served as a node, he had frequently come here in search of a way to close it.
"How... can the properties of the node be ground away?"
He gazed at the dazzling array of coins hanging from the money trees ahead, his eyes filled with distress.
"Apart from devouring, what other method... can erase a node?"
Even though Bai Xiaosheng was a Dao God of vast knowledge and erudition, he remained utterly powerless before the node.
"The ultimate fire of the world? Intense light? A transfer technique? The Dao of Yin and Yang?"
He muttered to himself, pondering every possibility.
Time flowed by. Bai Xiaosheng sat withered in Tianqian Valley until several strands of silver crept into his originally black hair.
"I am... too weak."
"If I were as powerful as Dao God Baitang, even if I couldn't erase the node, the Nine Heavens Divine Palace would never dare treat me like this!"
"If I reigned supreme over all the heavens and stood mightier than Heavenly God, so what if the Nine Heavens Divine Palace learned that Wu Shi was my disciple? What could they possibly do?"
Dao God Youqian loathed his own weakness once more.
So what if he was a Dao God? Life could still be worse than death.
Every living creature under heaven bore its own suffering—even, perhaps, a pebble on the ground.
"Master..." A familiar voice called out just then. "I knew you'd be here."
Bai Xiaosheng turned his head.
Beneath a money tree laden with golden coins stood a masked young woman, a glittering golden sword slung across her back.
"Why... did you come back?"
A trace of reproach tinged Bai Xiaosheng's tone, yet an inexplicable warmth surged in his heart.
"You're getting bullied here. If your disciple didn't return, those fox priestesses would talk behind my back and poke holes in my spine if they ever found out!"
"Besides... your disciple is broke and wants Master to pop out some gold coins."
Hearing Wu Shi's airy, lighthearted tone, Bai Xiaosheng cracked a smile, though it was steeped in bitterness. "The Nine Heavens Divine Palace has only given me a hundred years... When the time is up, you must leave. When your cultivation bears fruit and you become a Dao Lord in the future, you can avenge your master."
Bai Xiaosheng was trying to give her a purpose so she would not choose to die alongside him.
"Ptui, ptui, ptui! What are you talking about dying for?!"
"Master, you're a Dao God! Your Dao is equal to the heavens!"
"Stop overthinking it, Master. I came back this time specifically to help you overcome this tribulation," Wu Shi declared, her snow-fair face betraying not the slightest hint of dismay.
Bai Xiaosheng looked at her and drew a deep breath. "You have a good heart."
"Master, you're not even that old, so don't act like such an old fogey," Wu Shi retorted with a mild pout.
As she spoke, she drew closer to Bai Xiaosheng. Glancing at the dusty ground, she gave the hem of his robe a tug to spread it across the earth before plopping down on top of it.
Once seated, she shot him a smug, self-satisfied look. "Your disciple came to rescue you this time, so this is only my due."
"Rescue me? How?"
"I have a plan," Wu Shi said, her tone turning solemn.
"What plan?"
"Master, haven't I been searching for a sword all this time?"
"Yes."
"As long as I find that sword, I can regain the combat power of a Dao Lord. With me guarding the Tuwu Great Realm and allied with the Cosmic Alliance, the Nine Heavens Divine Palace... probably couldn't conquer this place even in a few million years. By then, we can figure out another way."
Wu Shi gave a concise explanation.
As for why finding the sword would grant her the battle prowess of a Dao Lord, she didn't elaborate. After all, those words had come from the dark shadow, and explaining it would be awkward. Instead, she simply recounted the encounter with the shadow to Bai Xiaosheng.
Sure enough, hearing this, Bai Xiaosheng's expression flickered slightly, though he quickly regained his composure. "This will drag you into the mud."
"Master, if the Nine Heavens Divine Palace wanted to kill me, would you save me?" Wu Shi asked.
"I would."
"Then stop being so wishy-washy and come with me to Mount Wangzhou to find the sword! As long as we find it, everything will turn out fine. There will be hope for the Tuwu Great Realm too."
Bai Xiaosheng contemplated for a moment before finally nodding. "All right."
...
Bai Xiaosheng slipped out of the Tuwu Great Realm in secret, departing alongside Wu Shi.
A brief absence would pose no harm. Moreover, the Nine Heavens Divine Palace had granted him a century to consider his decision, so no hostilities would erupt for the time being.
"Master, the Zhoushan Great Realm is so enormous. Where on earth are the ruins of Mount Wangzhou?"
Amidst the mountains and rivers, the silhouettes of a man and a woman emerged.
The man possessed handsome features, though a faint cloud of worry perpetually clung to his brow.
The woman, on the other hand, was all smiles, giggling no matter what she encountered, as if grief and heartache had no place in her life.
"Master, to be honest, you kind of give off the vibe of a melancholic heartthrob right now."
"Sigh, I really have such a wicked heart, hee-hee!"
Wu Shi chattered heedlessly.
Her supposed "wicked heart" meant that instead of consoling her master in his melancholy, she merely thought he looked better that way.
"Master, we've been out for three months already. Tell me, where could Mount Wangzhou possibly be?"
"I don't know."
"I've been to Mingrixue several times myself, yet... I never caught sight of any Mount Wangzhou," Wu Shi said.
At this moment, amidst a boundless blizzard, she and Bai Xiaosheng stood side by side.
This was Mingrixue—the very place she had first met her master.
In the beginning, she had wondered whether Mingrixue itself might be Mount Wangzhou. But after searching for so long, she had failed to find a single trace of Mount Wangzhou, let alone the sword.
The snow upon the Mingrixue mountains fell heavily, drifting like swirling willow catkins.
Wu Shi channeled no Dao arts, letting the snow settle freely upon her head and shoulders.
Snow gathered across Bai Xiaosheng's shoulders as well.
"Master, do you remember? When you first ran into me here, I followed you relentlessly. My feet froze raw before you finally agreed to take me as your disciple!" A look of reminiscing showed in Wu Shi's eyes.
The scene from back then remained vivid in her mind.
She had been an orphan on the snowy mountains of Mingrixue, clad in rags, shivering and starving. When Bai Xiaosheng appeared, she felt as if she had seen the light.
With her tiny frame, she trailed behind him for four days and four nights before finally softening his heart.
A nostalgic warmth entered Bai Xiaosheng's eyes as well. "Time truly flies."
"It really does." Wu Shi's eyes held a momentary daze.
Happy days were always fleeting.
She did not know how much longer these days of staying together with her master could last.
She had always wanted to find Mount Wangzhou, yet... she also felt a sliver of resistance. What if that entity awakened and seized control of her consciousness? What would she do then?
Now, with the threat of the Nine Heavens Divine Palace looming overhead, she had no choice but to cast those fears aside.
"Mount Wangzhou..." Wu Shi murmured.
Years flowed on; half of the century had already slipped away.
"Sigh, if we hadn't spent all this time looking for Mount Wangzhou, our kid would probably know how to fly by now," Wu Shi remarked with an offhand shrug.
Bai Xiaosheng rolled his eyes at her.
Over the past fifty years, the two of them had traversed almost every corner of the Zhoushan Realm. They had beheld countless grand mountains, witnessed breathtaking scenery, and listened to the most peculiar sounds under heaven. Yet they had found no clues whatsoever regarding Mount Wangzhou's whereabouts.
"Mount Wangzhou... In forty more years, if we still haven't found it, I will have to return to the Tuwu Great Realm," Bai Xiaosheng said.
He needed to reserve some time to confront the Nine Heavens Divine Palace.
Hearing this, the smile on Wu Shi's face stiffened slightly. "Don't worry, Master. We'll definitely find Mount Wangzhou... Your disciple will become a Dao Lord and have your back."
"I hope so," Bai Xiaosheng sighed.
His spirits were somewhat dampened. Even with Wu Shi acting like a cheerful snow sprite, it was hard for him to truly feel happy.
Right at that moment, however, Bai Xiaosheng's expression suddenly altered.
"This is... Not good."
He peered toward the sky, his entire body trembling at that very instant.
Even when facing the siege of the Nine Heavens Divine Palace, he had never trembled like this.
The smile on Wu Shi's face froze entirely. "The Curse of Sinking from the Abandoned Land... is spreading."
"At this rate... in under a thousand years, it will... reach the Tuwu Great Realm..." Bai Xiaosheng's voice was laden with profound despair. "First the Nine Heavens Divine Palace, and now the Abandoned Land. Does heaven truly wish to destroy the Tuwu Great Realm?"
The Abandoned Land had been expanding continuously.
When it came to the Abandoned Land, even Dao Gods spoke of it with utmost dread.
It was a cursed realm. Any world dragged in by the Abandoned Land's Curse of Sinking would become part of it.
Within the Abandoned Land, all things perished.
Even an immortal, indestructible Dao God would dissolve if they remained within it for too long, and that dissolution was irreversible.
Hence, the Abandoned Land was also known as the Land of the End for all things.
Now, it was expanding toward the Tuwu Great Realm...
Once the Tuwu Great Realm was dragged into the Abandoned Land, it would perish without the Nine Heavens Divine Palace ever having to lift a finger.
Even a mighty True God who had survived the Three Calamities and Three Tribulations would be powerless to stop it.
Worry flooded Wu Shi's face, her previous levity vanishing entirely.
"How could this be..." She turned toward Bai Xiaosheng, tenderness and sorrow flashing in her eyes. Taking hold of her master's hand, she offered gentle comfort. "There will be a way. There's bound to be a way. Once your disciple becomes a Dao Lord, maybe I can halt the expansion of the Abandoned Land."
Bai Xiaosheng's silhouette looked desolate, but feeling the warmth of her palm, his heart gradually settled.
Panicking served no purpose.
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed sharply. "That is... Mount Wangzhou!"
He looked up toward the region where the Curse of Sinking was encroaching.
A shattered mountain range had emerged within his field of vision.
It appeared as though this mountain range had been dragged forth by the pull of the Curse of Sinking.
A delighted surprise bloomed in Wu Shi's eyes. "Blessing rides on the back of misfortune! Master... we've finally found Mount Wangzhou!"
She looked at Bai Xiaosheng, and he looked back at her.
Without the slightest hesitation, she took his hand, and together they stepped into Mount Wangzhou.
"Hope lies right ahead. As long as we find that sword, the Nine Heavens Divine Palace won't be able to do anything to us for quite a while."
"And as for the Curse of Sinking, there's bound to be a solution."
Wu Shi spoke, unsure whether she was comforting Bai Xiaosheng or reassuring herself.
"The wind and snow here are rather fierce. Be careful."
Bai Xiaosheng reached out and pulled Wu Shi into his embrace, shielding her from the squall.
The gale and snow here were no ordinary elements; they possessed the power to injure even a Dao God. He had to keep Wu Shi protected.
Wu Shi nestled obediently against his chest, watching the raging blizzard outside with focused attention.
"Master... be careful."
Seeing her master sustain injuries from the scouring snow, she merely clutched his sleeve tightly, refraining from any melodramatic words.
"Don't worry. A scratch like this is nothing," Bai Xiaosheng said with a smile.
Shielding Wu Shi, he pushed through the wind and snow, pressing toward the ruined peak.
"Who carved these steps anyway? Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine steps—what an ordeal!" Wu Shi grumbled.
Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine steps were extraordinarily long.
Holding Wu Shi, Bai Xiaosheng walked for a full nine hundred days.
Throughout that time, the two never separated, climbing the stairway one step at a time.
"Master, when I become a Dao Lord, I'll definitely protect you!" Seeing the wounds covering her master's body, Wu Shi felt a pang of heartache.
The summit was now visible to the naked eye, right before them.
Seeing success within reach, a smile appeared in Bai Xiaosheng's eyes, even as frost glazed his brows. "All right."
For Wu Shi, the climb felt both endlessly long and fleetingly short.
Long, because her master was braving the wind and snow for her sake.
Short, because she would soon lay eyes on that sword.
Another dozen or so days slipped by.
The snow fell furiously, crashing down like a cascading waterfall in a torrential tempest that stirred the soul.
At last, the final step lay beneath their feet. Wu Shi gripped Bai Xiaosheng's hand tightly. "Master, if the lives of all beings were written into a book, we'd definitely be the hero and heroine. Look at us... after braving all these trials and tribulations, we've finally made it!"
As the words fell, Bai Xiaosheng held Wu Shi and crested the final step.
They stood abruptly atop Mount Wangzhou—which was also the summit of Yunmeng Mountain.
Whoosh!
A violent gale swept across the peak, the icy wind cutting like a blade, pruning the mortal realm as though all living beings were mere timber.
"We're here," Wu Shi murmured, exhaling a large plume of white vapor. Her face shone with eager anticipation as she looked ahead.
Yet the very next moment, the color drained from her face.
"Where is the sword?"
"Where did it go?"
Her expression was filled with bewildered helplessness and terror for the future.
There was no sword here.
Only a completely empty sword sheath stone.
If the sword was not here, then every shred of hope... would be extinguished.
Bai Xiaosheng scanned their surroundings, yet he too failed to sense even a wisp of a sword's aura.
Then, suddenly, he seemed to notice something, and a peculiar look entered his eyes.
"Wu Shi... place the sword I gave you into the sword sheath stone."
Whether by mere coincidence or something more, he suddenly felt that the sword sheath stone was a perfect match for the blade he had forged for her.
An inexplicable sensation welled up in his heart.
Chapter 617