Chapter 1174: I Miss Someone

Love always moves hearts and enthralls people.

Countless men and women dream of meeting the right person and walking hand in hand through every stage of life. As ancient marriage vows proclaim: "Like phoenixes singing in harmony, forever united in heart, growing old together, sharing life and death."

But in this world, some connections are bound by fate, where grand vows remain yet no message can be sent. Some people are destined to lament missed opportunities for a lifetime.

Thus, some ferry souls across the divine River of Blood, their wedding attire fading over millennia.

And so, some go mad in solitude, masking inner bitterness with scornful laughter, becoming petty figures who wield swords. Divine couples, after all, are but a rarity.

The vast majority of loves are a struggle, caught in a whirlwind of difficulties.

The regrets of unrequited love are like unreachable stars—they shone brightly but ultimately faded away. One can only dwell within the celestial palace of time, seeing the windows and curtains unchanged, murmuring that someone is missing from the hall.

Recalling last year, this very day, at this gate, a face as fair as peach blossoms glowed red... a soft sigh for the one I yearn for, separated by distant lands.

Bitterness, what I feel, is deeply knotted within. This person, this matter, is self-evident.

Indeed, the east wind is fierce, our joy is thin, a heart full of sorrow, years of separation. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

Peach blossoms fall, idle pavilions by the pond, though vows remain, no message can be sent. No, no, no.

Yet... the River of Time has two ends, and the path of reincarnation has its cycle. What is never forgotten will eventually find its echo.

The words spoken on the River of Blood stirred ripples. "You are back."

The human face is nowhere to be seen, yet the peach blossoms still smile in the spring breeze.

Though things have changed and people are gone, with the spring breeze also comes the figure from memory. Millions of years of waiting finally lead to a reunion beyond time.

The connection severed at the other end of time is today, by Xu Qing, who walks at this end of time, reconnected for them.

"Over the years, I've often thought... to meet someone who truly moves your heart is destiny, and even more so, a great fortune," Immortal Phoenix murmured, gazing at the Young Master.

The winds of time formed a storm outside, transforming into a vortex. Inside... they lifted Immortal Phoenix's dark hair, strand by strand, each telling of yearning. Brilliant sands of time also fell, encircling both Aurora Young Master and Immortal Phoenix.

From afar, amidst these vast ripples, the scene appeared dreamlike and ethereal.

"That time, we didn't complete the wedding ceremony... During the catastrophe, my father came here to take you and me away."

"You refused to leave with my father, citing that we hadn't completed the ceremony or become husband and wife, and that I hadn't yet signed the marriage scroll. I knew you didn't want to burden me." "So you chose... to stay here and repay your father's debt."

"I chose... to punish myself in the River of Blood, to atone for you."

"So today, does this count as our wedding ceremony? Does my name on the marriage scroll count as etched in?" Immortal Phoenix murmured softly.

"The debt is repaid, the sin atoned for... Can we go home now?" Aurora Young Master remained silent.

At this moment, the ripples of time and space grew stronger, forming a deafening vortex within the celestial palace. The sands of time and space, carried by it, increased, circling the two of them, gradually converging to form an hourglass beyond time once more.

It was not merely for the duration of an incense stick.

The amount of sand could last for... an hour. This was the limit this mirrored spacetime could achieve. Yet, Aurora Young Master ultimately did not answer Immortal Phoenix's question.

He lifted his head and looked towards... his father, where the Aurora Immortal Lord resided.

The moment his gaze settled, the incense stick's duration that Xu Qing had extended for them came to an end.

Heaven and earth roared, and the eight directions trembled. All things and beings that had been frozen instantly returned to normal. Cheers reappeared, and laughter resumed.

It was as if no one had noticed that time had been extended by the duration of an incense stick.

The ripples in the sky were likewise intense; the sun and moon were dimming at this moment. The chaos in the cosmic order had reached its peak, signaling a turning point from extreme adversity to prosperity!

Until a streak of white light, capable of illuminating the entire Fifth Star Ring, blossomed in the sky. Like an ocean, it swept across everything!

The Aurora Epoch arrived, delayed by the duration of an incense stick.

Infinite power converged at this moment, pouring into the Aurora Immortal Lord's life, forming an imperial robe around his body. Countless perceptions, in this instant, imprinted the name Aurora, becoming his imperial crown.

The Aurora Immortal Lord ascended to the throne!

For this epoch thereafter, he would preside, becoming the Lord of the Fifth Star Ring! And the sun and moon, amidst their extreme dimness, suddenly shone brilliantly. Sun and moon shone together, their radiance endless.

Consequently, the Aurora Immortal Lord's gaze swept across the world, finally resting upon his offspring, his eyes filled with tenderness, blessings, and... farewell. Then, he lifted his foot and, in one step, ascended to the heavens.

Walking across the firmament, preceding the sun and moon, at the moment he succeeded as the Lord of the Star Ring, at the instant infinite power converged, his hand became immeasurably vast. It covered the sky, traversed the nine heavens, and appeared above the sun and moon.

With a gentle wave.

It seemed to pierce through a bubble-like barrier, taking out the sun and moon from within!

Heaven and earth instantly plunged into darkness at this moment; the sun and moon vanished from the sky, and Aurora's own light became darkness. Thus, the entire Fifth Star Ring was left without light!

Only in the Aurora Immortal Lord's palm did the sun and moon reside. With a press, they were inexplicably sent into his son's body! Everything proceeded seamlessly; the integration of the sun and moon met no resistance, as if it were destined.

This was because, at the very first sign of chaos in the cosmic order, he had removed the names of the sun and moon, making all beings unconsciously forget them. He then concealed the names of the sun and moon within his son's name.

Mi Ming. Mi Ming.

To seek (觅) means *Mi*; sun and moon (日月) together make *Ming* (明). This is *Mi Ming*!

"Henceforth, you shall be the sun and moon of the Fifth Star Ring, your heart possessing boundless light, untainted in the slightest, with a divine will guiding you forward. From now on, divine calamities shall be banished from you!" "Ming'er, this is your father's... wedding gift to you."

"Go live the life... you wished for."

The Aurora Immortal Lord spoke softly, then raised his head, looking at the darkened heaven and earth. The dark energy within his body erupted at that instant, spreading thunderously in all directions. Simultaneously, his voice echoed throughout the entire Fifth Star Ring.

"The world has seven colors; I take red!" "I merge it within my aurora, transforming it into a scarlet glow!"

"With this... I forge my divine path, altering the constitution into a new order!"

His voice resonated in the ears of all beings, exploding in countless minds, forming an overwhelming sound. Then... endless red was plucked by him, appearing in the sky, merging with his light.

Forming... a crimson aurora!

That aurora, overwhelming and irresistible, instantly covered the sky, enveloping the heads of all beings... it changed the very heavens!

Making the crimson aurora the only celestial light that the beings of the Fifth Star Ring would see when they looked up in the future!

What was strange was that such a drastic change, unprecedented in the Fifth Star Ring since it became a land of cultivators, should have affected all beings. Yet, everyone within the celestial palace, including the Fourth True Monarch, was smiling at this moment.

Songs and dances continued, blessings remained, and joyful laughter did not cease for an instant.

It was as if no one had noticed the changes outside.

This scene created a strong sense of dissonance with the changes in the sky.

All of this registered in Xu Qing's perception. Gazing at the familiar crimson celestial light, his mind was deeply shaken. "Is this the truth?"

"But why did the Immortal Lord do this? Why are the people around like this?" "And Aurora Young Master... what was his ultimate goal?"

Xu Qing's mind reeled, and vaguely, an answer began to form.

Almost the moment this answer surfaced, the Aurora Immortal Lord's voice echoed from the sky once more. This time, it was even more commanding than before!

"Immortal Venerable, do you hear me!"

As the thunderous voice spread across the crimson sky, an ancient sigh emerged from the firmament, from the earth, from the void, from all things, from all beings, from every corner of the entire Fifth Star Ring...

...it emanated.

Converging, it transformed into a sound of eternal vicissitude.

As this sound echoed, the sky warped, the red light was driven away, revealing the vast, star-filled cosmos. And the starry sky, too, was twisting.

In this distortion, countless stars astonishingly transformed into bubbles of varying sizes. Their colors differed, yet red was conspicuously absent.

These bubbles were innumerable.

And within each bubble, there existed a scene.

If all the scenes within these bubbles were pieced together, they would form... the complete panorama of the entire Fifth Star Ring!

At this moment, an ancient hand, accompanying the sigh, appeared in the starry sky. It raised two fingers and gently pinched one of the bubbles. With a pop, the bubble shattered.

Instantly, the entire celestial palace, like that bubble, shattered. All things and beings turned to dust and vanished.

Regardless of cultivation level, it seemed none could resist, dissolving into the vastness.

Neither the Fourth True Monarch nor the Grand Elder, nor almost everyone else, including the cultivators serving as hosts for outsiders, were exceptions. Only Aurora Young Master and Immortal Phoenix survived in the ruins formed by the endless ashes.

It was as if they were always the living ones!

And in the sky, the Aurora Immortal Lord's figure was also dissipating, but it was filled by endless crimson light, converging on his body, using this power to break through the sky. He appeared in the starry cosmos, manifesting above the countless bubbles, fighting... with that ancient hand.

Below, in the shattered ruins, the Young Master remained silent.

He gazed at the figure in the starry sky, wanting to take a step, wanting to make that move. And he had believed he could do it.

After all, this was the opportunity he had planned for millennia, the closest he had ever come to what he desired throughout his countless years. He had believed he could make a firm choice.

Only... his gaze couldn't help but turn to Immortal Phoenix beside him. Their clasped hands were held very tightly by her. He knew she was waiting for an answer.

An answer she had waited for for millennia.

Vaguely, he seemed to see the dilapidated boat on the divine River of Blood, the ancient figure wearing a straw cloak, and beneath that cloak, the old wedding attire. Wind and rain drifted, years flowed by, year after year...

Compared to this, a myriad of reasons seemed impossible to voice. Even his resolute steps lacked the strength to move forward.

He knew he already owed her too much, far too much...

So, after his long silence, he exhaled deeply, painstakingly suppressing his millennia-long obsession. He raised his hand and gently tucked the strands of Immortal Phoenix's hair from her forehead behind her ear.

He whispered.

"Let's go home..."

Immortal Phoenix had waited countless years for these words.

And now, she finally received them.

She stared blankly at the figure before her, a figure so familiar from memory, impossible to forget in the slightest.

Tears streamed down.

The clasped hands tightened even more.

Finally, she spoke softly.

"I know you can never truly let go, nor understand, nor forgive the Immortal Venerable... I know you wish to uncover the true secrets and karmic ties that unfolded here. I also know that everything you've done was an attempt to save... your father."

"This entire scheme, your original goal, was not me..."

"It was this hourglass, this hour beyond time."

"You wanted to use it to go to the true history, not merely this mirror image."

"You wanted to go there and try to change things!"

"And now, you've given up for me, so..."

Immortal Phoenix looked into her beloved's eyes, raised her jade hand, grabbed the hourglass floating nearby, and with a squeeze, the hourglass shattered with a pop.

Countless grains of time sand suddenly swirled around, forming... a spacetime gate leading to true history!

Aurora Young Master's mind was stirred.

And before the gate, Immortal Phoenix whispered gently.

"I'll go with you. We shall... share life and death."