Chapter 2505: Tian Qiyuan’s World |
Shortly after arriving at the Apocalyptic Chasm, Zi Xuan suddenly came to a stop above a massive lake of azure-colored lava.
"We’re here," Zi Xuan said with a smile on her face.
An immense surge of excitement stirred within her soul, as it had been countless years since she had last returned to this place.
Yuan followed her gaze toward the surface below, and in the next moment, memories suddenly began surfacing within his mind—memories belonging to Tian Qiyuan.
"I remember now," he muttered with a dazed look on his face.
"A little too late if you ask me," Zi Xuan shook her head.
"Anyway, I’ll go remove the seal."
Without offering any explanation, Zi Xuan suddenly reverted to her sword form before diving straight into the lava below, its temperature nearly comparable to True Primordial Fire.
Several minutes later, the surface of the lava lake suddenly began to tremble, and the molten lava started swirling as though a massive vortex had formed beneath it.
"I am already on the other side," Zi Xuan’s voice resounded in Yuan’s head.
Yuan turned to look at Mu Xuelian and said, "Follow closely."
Then, the two of them flew directly into the portal, vanishing from the Primordial Chaos.
Upon stepping through the portal, Yuan and Mu Xuelian were instantly teleported to a floating island suspended within a boundless sky, almost as if they’d returned to the Nine Heavens.
"Welcome back home, my dear." Zi Xuan appeared before Yuan in her spirit form and greeted him with a beautiful smile on her face.
Yuan returned the smile and said, "I’m home."
Mu Xuelian surveyed her surroundings with awe written all over her face.
Although she was neither a blacksmith nor particularly knowledgeable about materials, even she could tell that everything in this place was priceless.
From the golden trees surrounding the shimmering golden lake to the multi-colored crystal mountains standing majestically, the entire scene felt almost surreal. Hell, when examined closely, even the clouds themselves were treasures.
Amidst all of those priceless treasures stood a simple wooden house.
Compared to the extravagant surroundings, the humble structure looked completely out of place, almost absurdly ordinary within a world overflowing with immeasurable wealth.
"You can look around if you’d like," Yuan suddenly said to Mu Xuelian. "There’s something I need to do, so I will be gone for a bit."
"Alright," she nodded.
While Mu Xuelian wandered around the world, curiously examining the various materials scattered throughout the area, Yuan flew away from the island and disappeared into the distant horizon.
A few minutes later, he came to a stop after arriving before a certain hovering object.
A smile slowly appeared on his face as he gazed at the massive floating gates connected to a flight of stairs that seemed to be made for giants.
It was the Stairway to Heaven.
He placed his hand on the door and whispered to it, "You could’ve hidden anywhere in this world, but you decided to return home..."
Suddenly, the doors creaked open.
Without a word, Yuan entered the Stairway to Heaven.
"Master..."
A familiar voice echoed in the darkness, and before long, Tian’er appeared before Yuan like a ghost.
"Are you okay?" Yuan asked.
"Yes," she calmly nodded. "That level of attack can’t harm me."
"Then do you know who attacked you?"
She shook her head.
After a brief pause, Tian’er continued, "Those people were using an energy that felt similar to Eternal Essence."
"You mentioned that before. Can you elaborate?" he asked, prompting her to elaborate further.
"It’s hard to describe. It feels like Eternal Essence, but not at the same time."
Yuan pondered for a moment before muttering, "It sounds like fake Eternal Essence, but I can’t be certain unless I see it for myself."
"In that case..." Tian’er suddenly made a grasping motion with her hand, summoning a wisp of mysterious energy before him.
"This is..." Yuan’s eyes widened.
"I collected it when I was attacked," she said.
Yuan examined the Eternal Essence with a slight frown on his face.
"As I thought, it’s similar to the energy Supreme Ruler Grant was using, though there are some noticeable differences," Yuan remarked.
Compared to Supreme Ruler Grant’s Eternal Essence, this energy felt less refined—but not in the same manner as Supreme Ruler Dena’s imitation Eternal Essence.
Supreme Ruler Grant’s energy had felt complete and refined, whereas Supreme Ruler Dena’s was incomplete and simplistic.
This energy, however, existed somewhere in between. It was complete, yet lacking refinement.
’If Supreme Ruler Grant acquired his ability from Deemo, it’s very likely that these attackers were granted similar powers by another Eternal.’ Yuan thought, quickly putting the pieces together.
’But why would an Eternal attack the Stairway to Heaven?’
He could not comprehend why an Eternal would take interest in the Stairway to Heaven, a treasure that primarily served as a convenience for the inhabitants of the Nine Heavens.
Although it also functioned as a storage treasure, nobody besides Yuan should know about that secret.
’Even if this Eternal somehow discovered it, there’s no way they would be interested in a mortal treasure...’
The more he thought about it, the more incomprehensible the Eternal’s actions became.
However, Yuan wasn’t concerned about the Eternal’s motives.
’If I put the Stairway to Heaven into commission again, it would only be attacked again...’
After some thought, he reached a conclusion.
"Sorry, but it looks like you’ll have to hide a little longer—at least until I figure out why you’re being attacked and deal with it," he said to Tian’er a moment later.
"Then what about the Nine Heavens? Without me, the people there won’t be able to travel between the realms," Tian’er said with a perplexed expression.
After serving in such a role for countless years, she had long since come to view assisting the people of the Nine Heavens as her responsibility.
"I’ll just make another treasure with the same function," Yuan calmly said, leaving Tian’er speechless.
Comments 1