Chapter 1137: In the Fairy Tale

Chapter 1142: In a Fairy Tale

Wind, blowing from afar, stirred the mist formed by immortal energy, spreading it throughout the Immortal Palace. It eventually settled on the Immortal Reception Platform of the Immortal Palace.

Flowing around the cultivators gathered there, it was a massive black stone platform, its surface covered in moss, exuding an ancient aura and the sense of time's passage, as if standing there meant stepping into the flow of time itself. In its center stood a stone stele, inscribed with information about three paths, but the characters were blurred, seemingly due to the immense age.

At this moment, dozens of figures were present on the Immortal Reception Platform. All cultivators entering the Immortal Palace from the outside world would first appear here. Then, from here, they would choose their path.

As Xu Qing, Li Mengtu, and the Earth Spirit Ancestor also appeared, the cultivators already there transformed into streaks of rainbows, whistling towards the left. Upon approaching, they seemed to lose their ability to fly, landing one after another. Each was vigilant, maintaining some distance as they proceeded. The mist was not dense in the direction they headed, but the space seemed different; it was much dimmer there compared to the Immortal Reception Platform. Simultaneously, a soft drizzle was gently moistening everything. The ground, in particular, had become muddy. However, it was clear that many had walked there, as a small path was discernible. Quiet and dim, only the constant falling rain gradually enveloped all the cultivators who ventured down that path.

Gazing at this path, Xu Qing did not immediately move. Instead, he retracted his gaze and observed the other directions. First, he examined the stone platform, finding it to be tangibly real. The mist was similar, carrying a damp sensation that his skin could clearly perceive when it fell on him, forming tiny water droplets on his robes. The immortal energy was also real. Being there, Xu Qing could feel his cultivation significantly enhanced compared to the outside world. Moreover, faint strains of music drifted in. The direction was where he had previously seen, from outside, the Discourse Ground deep within the Immortal Palace. Xu Qing looked up. From his position on the Immortal Reception Platform, being inside this massive Immortal Palace, his gaze couldn't reach its end. He could only see dense mist obscuring the void ahead. Within the blur, a bridge seemed to exist. On the bridge, a person appeared to be walking forward through the dense fog.

“That’s Star Ring Son,” Li Mengtu said solemnly. “The moment he appeared, I saw him head towards that bridge.” At that moment, the Immortal Reception Platform was empty except for them; all other entrants had already chosen their paths into the Immortal Palace. “I wonder what Brother Xu will choose. If you pick the small path, we can go together.” As Li Mengtu finished, the Earth Spirit Ancestor immediately looked over with anticipation.

Xu Qing remained silent, watching the figure on the bridge in the dense fog walk further and further away. The Earth Spirit Ancestor's words about the three paths echoed in his mind. After a long moment, he slowly spoke. “I want to walk across that bridge.”

The Earth Spirit Ancestor was startled. Li Mengtu, however, showed little surprise. He simply gave Xu Qing a deep look, then bowed with clasped fists and walked towards the small path on the left. He sighed inwardly. He wasn't sighing for Xu Qing, but for himself. As a Star, he naturally wanted to go further, but he understood that even with the inherited Constitution, he wasn't confident he could emerge from that bridge alive. “Throughout history, those who could walk that path were rare. And those who survived all comprehended their own Constitution, rather than relying on inherited gifts from above.” Li Mengtu gradually walked away. The Earth Spirit Ancestor hesitated, then finally bowed and chose to enter the small path. Soon, both figures vanished.

On the Immortal Reception Platform, only Xu Qing remained. However, he didn't head towards the path ahead. Instead, he turned, a strange light flickering in his eyes, and looked towards the right!

To the right, the mist was incredibly dense, to its extreme. His gaze couldn't penetrate it; he couldn't see anything inside. All he saw was churning mist. And then, the sound of flowing water emanating from within that mist. The path on the right contained a black river. Entrants were said to have a ten-out-of-ten chance of death; no one survived. Although the inscriptions on the Immortal Reception Platform's stele were blurred by the passage of time, the information recorded there wouldn't dissipate with time. Passed down by word of mouth, it had become a crucial clue for the Aurora Immortal Palace. The Earth Spirit Ancestor knew this exact information.

“There, there’s the pull of a Constitution...” The moment he entered the Immortal Reception Platform, Xu Qing had already felt his own Time-Space Constitution resonate with the direction to his right. It was like a call. This resonance, this pull, this call, converged in Xu Qing's heart, giving him a profound sense of destiny. There, lay a path of the same origin as his own.

“This Immortal Fallen Land, from the very beginning, gave me the feeling of being outside of time and space.” “And after it opened, this feeling became even stronger.” “This place clearly contains a Time-Space Constitution identical to mine!” Xu Qing narrowed his eyes. Such a situation, if it occurred elsewhere, would be extremely perilous, because entities of the same origin rarely coexist harmoniously. It often involves one consuming the other based on strength. However, with the Aurora Immortal Lord already fallen, it was a different matter entirely.

“But his Constitution was clearly Aurora. Does the Time-Space Constitution, when deepened, become Aurora? Or did this Aurora Immortal Lord change his path?” Xu Qing pondered. Considering his perception that the Time-Space Constitution had no apparent origin, it was highly probable in his view that the Aurora Immortal Lord had changed his path. After a brief deliberation, Xu Qing's eyes showed resolve. To advance his own Time-Space Constitution further, he needed to comprehend all its intrinsic qualities. Self-enlightenment was one method, but observing the traces left by others on this path was also a method. Both were opportunities. Thus, in the next instant, Xu Qing's body swayed abruptly, and he stepped into the dense mist on the right. In the blink of an eye, he vanished within.

Only the mist continued to churn. It became everything before Xu Qing's eyes. It obscured his physical senses, including his cultivation perception. As Xu Qing advanced, even the sound of the river gradually faded. All he saw was pitch black. He couldn't distinguish if it was mist, nor could he feel if he had already stepped into the river. Everything, absolutely everything, was just pitch black. No danger appeared either. This blackness, however, was without beginning or end. Time also seemed to lose its meaning here. After an unknown duration, Xu Qing, maintaining his vigilance in the blackness, finally reached its end.

The end was still pitch black. The reason it was considered an end was due to an invisible barrier present within this darkness. It prevented further progress. Spells couldn't penetrate it. Divine abilities also struggled to break through. His physical body was completely isolated. At this end, before this invisible barrier, Xu Qing tried for a moment, then fell silent. The next instant, he closed his eyes, and his Eighth Extremity, the Time-Space State, suddenly activated. His consciousness elevated. It was as if he had transcended this blackness, stepping out of the painting, viewing his surroundings with this Time-Space Constitutional consciousness. Here, it was merely a black dot. Only, this dot was incredibly vast. And it wasn't just one. There were countless black dots. They were arranged together, forming a line. An invisible pull enveloped him, making Xu Qing realize that here, he could only move forward or backward, not left or right. And in Xu Qing's consciousness, he found that this line, composed of countless black dots, had no concept of height. The black dots themselves were the same. Furthermore, on either side of this line, there seemed to be no concept of void. It was as if the supreme rule here only permitted this line to exist. Therefore, if one forcibly looked to the sides, they would see distortion, and this distortion would affect oneself. Even Xu Qing, possessing the Time-Space Constitution, could discern some differences, such as countless fragments of time and space. But looking for too long would cause an increasingly strong discomfort in his consciousness. Only by perceiving forward and backward was everything normal. It was an incredibly strange yet extremely simple world.

After a long moment, Xu Qing's consciousness returned, and he opened his eyes within the black dot he occupied. “The Time-Space Constitutional consciousness can leave this black dot, but my physical body cannot.” Xu Qing pondered. His physical body, one could say, was his greatest weakness when in a Constitutional state. Based on this, he had a few plans. For instance, in brief battles, he could forcibly envelop himself, and while it caused decay, if the battle ended quickly, the impact was acceptable. But here, it was clear that exploration couldn't be completed in a short time. Therefore, after deliberation, Xu Qing chose to place his physical body inside the Star Pagoda and send it to a safe period of time. This method, in fact, also had drawbacks. For one, safety was relative, not absolute. For another, the duration couldn't be too long either. Otherwise, the decay would persist.

Moments later, having completed all this, Xu Qing's Time-Space Constitutional consciousness, now unburdened, lightly swayed towards the barrier at the end ahead. It instantly traversed. He reappeared in this peculiar world, and here, following that line, letting the world's power pull him, he continued forward endlessly. He intended to see the end of this place. And time, indeed, had no meaning here. Or more accurately, time didn't exist here. Space also became a thing of the past. Only continuous forward movement was the sole path here.

Fortunately, Xu Qing wasn't the only being of his kind here. Along the way, he saw a figure in a similar state to himself. It was a medicine pot with four limbs and a white beard. Its appearance was strange, like an oddity. It stood on the line, occasionally flying out some pills from its pot, which landed on the black dots forming the line, making their color even darker. Noticing Xu Qing, the medicine pot smiled gently and spoke softly. “Welcome to the fairy tale.” After speaking, it pointed into the distance and said no more.

Xu Qing gazed for a moment, then continued forward, soon seeing the second oddity. It was an octopus, with a different face on each of its eight tentacles, all cursing. After sensing Xu Qing, all the faces revealed strange expressions, gradually beginning to cry. Xu Qing remained silent, looking at the weeping octopus. He didn't understand, and could only leave.

Along the way, he also saw a finger with a lion's head. It called out to him. “Run, run...” There was also a frog that believed itself to be a fish, swimming back and forth. Upon encountering him, it began to tremble, unable to move. On this journey, Xu Qing encountered ten oddities, each reacting differently when it met him.

Finally, he saw the eleventh one. It was a black-clad old woman leaning on a cane, with a huge face, a tiny body and limbs, and a fierce expression. From time to time, she would grab a black dot, toss it into her mouth, and swallow it. When she saw Xu Qing, she grinned. “Die well, die well!” Xu Qing remained silent, departing after a long moment.

An unknown amount of time passed, and he saw no other oddities. Until finally, he saw a mirror. It was the end of the line. Countless small black dots lined up and walked into the mirror, disappearing from sight.

Gazing at the mirror, Xu Qing became contemplative. “A line composed of countless black dots, forming this first realm with only front and back. I think I might understand the nature of the Aurora Immortal Lord’s Time-Space Constitution.” “As for those eleven oddities...” The number eleven, combined with the identity of the Aurora Immortal Lord, made Xu Qing think of the current eleven Immortal Lords in this Fifth Star Ring. “This is highly likely to be formed from the Aurora Immortal Lord’s thoughts just before his death!” “As for why they are so bizarre...” Xu Qing didn't understand, but he recalled that the Aurora Immortal Lord had been suppressed and killed by an Immortal Venerable. “Is it possible it’s related to the Immortal Venerable’s Constitution?” “So, what is the Immortal Venerable’s Constitution...?”

Xu Qing suddenly recalled the words of the first oddity he encountered, the medicine pot. “A fairy tale?”