Chapter 1177: Yu Xiang

The historical scene was turbulent, tinged with a bloody hue.

Countless grains of sand shimmered and flowed, casting brilliant, ethereal light amidst the undercurrents of the long river of time. Beyond this glow, Young Lord Aurora gazed intently at everything unfolding before him.

The words he had been unable to hear back then, due to his consciousness being isolated, now resounded clearly as the historical scene flickered. He finally understood: everything in the Immortal Palace of his childhood had indeed been a fabrication.

His father's rebellion, he realized, was a desperate plea for death.

And the consequence of that plea for death, he now understood, was an act of protection for him.

His body trembled, tears streaming down his face as he watched his father charge towards the Immortal Venerable in the vision.

He had once struggled to comprehend his father's actions and found it even harder to forgive the Immortal Venerable, his grandfather. But now, confronted with the truth, only a profound bitterness remained within him.

Beside him, Immortal Maiden Linghuang sighed softly, her hand still firmly grasping his. Meanwhile, Xu Qing, as an observer, also felt a surge of emotion within him.

In this historical truth, it seemed no one was truly at fault.

Was the Immortal Lord mistaken? No. To prevent the continuation of suffering, he chose to defy the Dao and seek death, intending to sever the Divine Calamity within himself so that his descendants would not endure the same pain he did. This was an act of profound paternal love, rendering him blameless.

And was the Immortal Venerable at fault? No. For the sake of the entire Fifth Star Ring, he sacrificed his own bloodline, forsaking his personal interests to protect the greater good. This, too, was blameless. Moreover, the historical vision revealed that the Immortal Venerable, with his immense power, had long been aware of the solution proposed by Young Lord Aurora.

He knew that a single strike, personally delivered at the opportune moment to slay Young Lord Aurora, could resolve everything, eliminating the need for a gradual generational attrition. Furthermore, with his capabilities, he could have naturally expedited this moment, rather than waiting until now.

Yet, despite dedicating almost everything to the Fifth Star Ring, he chose to disregard this direct solution. The emotion embedded within this decision was, likewise, paternal love.

Thus, even though a simpler, more direct method had long been available, he had opted instead for the slow, generational attrition. At least, by continuing that path, Young Lord Aurora's life would still endure.

‘He loved his son, unable to bring himself to kill him; and his son, in turn, loved his son, preferring his own demise over the continuation of suffering,’ Xu Qing murmured to himself.

At this moment, the historical vision continued to unfold.

The Immortal Venerable, vast and boundless like the cosmos, spoke only that initial sentence from beginning to end. Thereafter, he remained in silence.

Even as Young Lord Aurora radiated crimson light, drawing closer to his desired death, the Immortal Venerable remained silent.

Even as the light pulsed and a resounding roar echoed, with the very constitution of Young Lord Aurora corroding everything, he chose to remain silent, allowing the Immortal Lord to proceed.

Until Young Lord Aurora’s white hair gradually turned black. Until his white robes slowly transformed into black ones.

Until the aura of a divine being began to erupt from Young Lord Aurora… The maniacal laughter grew ever louder, and hysterical roars reverberated, shaking the heavens.

Those repeated cries of 'kill me' agitated the historical scene, distorting everything until it blurred. The Divine Venerable appeared to be on the verge of returning through Young Lord Aurora!

Only then did the Immortal Venerable close his eyes. Slowly, gently, he raised his hand and let it fall.

Just as he had once done in the minor world, stroking his beloved son’s head and smilingly promising, 'When you grow up, I’ll take you to see the starry sky beyond.' He had fulfilled that promise.

With a thunderous roar, as his palm descended, Young Lord Aurora's body gradually dissipated like ash, dissolving into crimson light particles that merged with the vast auroras filling the sky. He vanished, gone without a trace.

His divine form utterly annihilated. From that moment, he would cease to exist in the cycles of reincarnation.

Amidst the light, the Immortal Venerable's eyes remained closed.

He stood there in silence, his figure appearing desolate.

After a long silence, he turned and walked into the distance.

That solitary figure, whose posture had always been upright, appeared to bend significantly as he departed. In that moment, he no longer seemed to be the Immortal Venerable of the Fifth Star Ring.

He was merely a lonely old man, bereft of his beloved son and steeped in bitterness. He gradually faded, finally merging into the starry sky.

Then, a low murmur echoed through the starry expanse.

‘Aurora, he did it to… provide you, the Immortal Venerable, and all living beings with a justifiable reason for the Immortal Venerable to kill him. Through this act, he freed himself… he freed you… and he freed the Immortal Venerable as well.’ ‘He completed everyone’s destiny.’

As the voice drifted, fine threads appeared within the historical vision. These threads flowed among the grains of sand, representing the hidden truths of history.

They slowly converged, forming a figure that materialized within the historical scene, appearing before… Young Lord Aurora and Immortal Maiden Linghuang. It was Immortal Lord Jiu’an.

Young Lord Aurora remained silent, and Linghuang lowered her head. “And this period of history…”

Jiu’an shook his head.

“This history, below the level of an Immortal Lord, must neither be seen nor known. For even though the Divine Calamity has been severed, if it becomes known to anyone, there remains a possibility of establishing karma with it, leaving a trace.”

“At the Immortal Lord level, it can still be avoided, but for anyone below, the risk is immense.” “This is also why your father and I kept you isolated,” Jiu’an spoke softly.

“And now, you have seen and you know. Therefore, for the Immortal Venerable, erasing you would actually have been the best and safest choice for the future of the Fifth Star Ring.”

“But on one hand, one of you is my daughter, and his grandson’s wife.”

“The other is his grandson, and the undying sun and moon that manifest with the destiny of cultivation within him, at the moment the Fifth Star Ring became a cultivators’ land, cannot be destroyed.” “And there is another reason, which is…”

Immortal Lord Jiu’an paused. “He softened his heart.”

“This old man, who could abandon everything for the Fifth Star Ring, ultimately softened his heart.” “He chose to personally bear the karma of both of you.”

“Now, depart.”

Jiu’an raised his hand and gently waved it forward.

Instantly, the waves of history surged, and the long river of time swelled with foam. An irresistible force swept forth, poised to transport Young Lord Aurora and Immortal Maiden Linghuang out of this realm. Meanwhile, Jiu’an’s own figure turned and walked towards the starry sky, everything behind him blurring into obscurity.

As everything was about to dissipate.

Suddenly, Young Lord Aurora raised his head.

“The Immortal Venerable bore the karma for Linghuang and me regarding this matter, but there is still a wisp of consciousness within me, belonging to my benefactor. He…” “He is fine,” the departing Immortal Lord Jiu’an stated calmly.

“The Immortal Venerable cannot bear the karma upon him; as for the Divine Calamity… it would not dare.”

As his words reverberated, a great wave rose from the long river of time, submerging everything. It also swept the grains of sand that did not belong there out of the river’s surface, depositing them into a mirror resting upon the water. Then, the mirror dissipated.

When everything became clear once more, the Immortal Palace appeared before their eyes.

It was not the ruins they had departed from; everything was as it had been, preserved at the moment of the grand wedding.

Only, there were no longer any boisterous crowds.

Instead, there were only the figures of Young Lord Aurora and Immortal Maiden Linghuang, alongside… a faint, indistinct form wrought from consciousness.

That was Xu Qing.

Upon his return, he had detached from Young Lord Aurora’s body and now floated in mid-air, observing the Immortal Palace, Young Lord Aurora, and Immortal Maiden Linghuang.

What had transpired here felt akin to a dream.

And everything within the long river of time felt even more so.

Now, the dream was about to end.

Yet for Xu Qing, the gains were immense.

His Temporal Constitution, having witnessed all this, had absorbed nearly a complete understanding.

He could sense that he was but one direction away from a breakthrough.

This direction required his choice.

The moment he settled upon it would be the instant it broke open.

As for the truth revealed in the dream, and the karma it entailed, Xu Qing was unconcerned.

Even if Immortal Lord Jiu’an had not uttered those words, Xu Qing would have remained unconcerned.

For the karma of the Divine Remnant Face was sufficient to suppress all others.

If that Divine Calamity were truly to seek him out, intending to use him as a conduit for the Divine Venerable’s return, then… Xu Qing suspected the desolate Remnant Face might even be pleased.

However, the surge of emotions that the historical truth had awakened within him continued to spread.

Thus, Xu Qing looked towards Young Lord Aurora and Immortal Maiden Linghuang.

The two remained silent.

After a moment, Young Lord Aurora raised his hand, and with a wave, a flurry of temporal sand materialized, coalescing into an hourglass before Xu Qing.

The sand within it surpassed its previous volume.

It was no longer an hour, but a full day.

“Young friend, for this journey… thank you.”

Young Lord Aurora looked at Xu Qing and spoke softly.

“I have no regrets now. From this point forward, I will choose to depart and live my own life, as my father wished…”

As he spoke, he looked towards Immortal Maiden Linghuang, who stood beside him.

Linghuang’s gaze was gentle, and she nodded softly.

A smile then graced Young Lord Aurora’s face, one that held both a lingering melancholy for the past and a profound sense of release.

Subsequently, they stepped forward, ascending into the sky and then into the void.

And the entire world, with their departure, began to blur, as if millions of years of time were flowing through this place at that very moment, weathering everything away.

Xu Qing looked up, watching the two figures ascend into the firmament, as a voice from the celestial curtain echoed in his ears.

“Young friend, I cannot, in truth, offer much assistance with your Temporal Constitution.”

“But I recall my father once saying, 'Beyond time and space…'”

‘…lies Parallelism!’”

The instant these words reached Xu Qing’s consciousness, it was as if countless bolts of thunder roared within him, causing his eyes to flare with intense light. He had gained enlightenment!

It was a profound revelation.

And the celestial voice continued to echo.

“I bestow upon you the ownership of the Immortal Palace, leaving everything here for your keeping.”

“With your current understanding of time and space, you should be able to comprehend it.”

“After this… may we meet again if fate permits.”

“Young friend, thank you for all your help to me and my husband. Afterwards, you may visit the Divine Blood River; I have left a gift for you there…”

The final sentence was spoken by Immortal Maiden Linghuang.

As their words resonated and their figures receded into the distance, the erosion of the entire Immortal Palace accelerated dramatically.

Within mere breaths, as Xu Qing’s mind grasped its direction, this place experienced millions of years of passage.

All structures, ultimately along with the world itself, turned to dust and scattered.

The temporal ripples from this fourth-layer world also dissipated accordingly.

However, within Xu Qing’s heart, the river formed by his Temporal Constitution had already transformed from a mere trickle into a magnificent, surging current.