Chapter 517: Restarting the Universe?

"Poor soul," the Boundless True God said with eyes full of pity, as if overflowing with compassion. "Since you have found your way back from error, tell me how you were deceived by the evil gods. I am willing to help you."

Zhao Xing cried bitterly: "They blocked my memories, moved me like cargo from one country to another, and even suppressed me under a mountain for five hundred years—"

"Some of them tricked me into learning flawed cultivation methods, which tore my soul and almost caused me to go berserk—"

"The cultivation methods they gave me could also devour each other. It was clear they wanted to fatten me up before slaughtering me—"

"Later, they made me, my relatives, and friends work day and night in the barren and desolate lands, opening ancient paths for them, and I almost got trapped and died in the ancient layers of the Void Path—"

"Someone also implanted a terrifying poison in me, called True Spirit Heavenly Poison."

"And then someone wanted to use me as an experimental subject, intending to refine me into a ruthless killing tool—"

"Later, I fortunately survived, but there were still people who wanted to seize the small achievements I had worked hard for in the barren lands..."

"Now they've sent me to a place like the Black Sky Barren Domain. True God, I'm suffering immensely—"

Zhao Xing recounted his past with vivid detail, truly breaking the hearts of listeners and bringing tears to their eyes.

His intense thoughts even influenced the Boundless True God's perception, making the deity genuinely believe in Zhao Xing's profound misery.

As for why Zhao Xing, despite such misery, could still reach the Demigod realm, the Boundless True God easily understood: the gods of this era intended to fatten him up before killing him.

In their own timeline, everyone did the same; the only difference was that some gods employed gentler methods, while others were more ruthless.

The Boundless True God discerned that every word Zhao Xing spoke was undeniably true.

He believed that Zhao Xing had been completely influenced by his divine power, seen through the truth of matters, and utterly hated the divine realm's high-ranking figures of this era.

"Looking at his aptitude, he's quite a promising talent. If I could take him, it would be a meritorious deed."

Zhao Xing spoke for a long time but saw no action from the Boundless True God, which made him feel a bit puzzled.

According to the normal procedure for encountering evil gods, since he had already expressed his faith, shouldn't this fellow offer some initial rewards?

And then ask him to do things in return?

Why was he just listening without offering any benefits? Was his story not moving enough?

After a long outpouring of grievances, the Boundless True God finally spoke: "I can bestow divine power upon you, but as you are currently a clone, you cannot withstand it. Your main body must come."

"Remember to keep this statue safe. When your main body arrives, you can carry it to the Black Sky Barren Domain, and it will guide your way."

So, after all that, this evil god statue only triggers benefits when held by the main body?

In his previous life, Zhao Xing had encountered such quests before and knew that these widely dispersed evil god statues had a specific preaching mode. Ordinary statues offered little to no significant gains.

The only benefits were certain pieces of information: like treasure locations, or some secret techniques, though most were fragmented.

Obtaining one of the scattered evil god statues was akin to starting a chain quest.

One had to complete it step by step to encounter powerful divine avatars or even the main deity.

He wondered which step Yun Tiandao had reached.

Seeing the evil god's image about to vanish, Zhao Xing was naturally unwilling to let that happen.

You want to order me around without giving anything first?

Something good had to be left behind:

"Divine Honored One, I am greatly perplexed by this world. Could you please enlighten me?"

The Boundless True God's image immediately flickered.

This statue of the Boundless True God had its own preaching mode, but it wasn't originally intended for a Demigod of Zhao Xing's level.

The highest level it was designed for was Lord-tier figures like Yun Tiandao and Immortal Ni Feng.

Originally, according to the procedure, he should have offered Zhao Xing some rewards, but Zhao Xing's strength exceeded the scope of his preaching mode.

So the evil god began to flicker as if stuck in a bug. Zhao Xing could tell that the Boundless True God had a preaching mode, but it wasn't quite suitable for his situation.

After flickering for a moment, the Boundless True God nodded: "Very well. Since you are sincerely seeking the Dao, I shall clarify a thing or two for you."

Clarify a thing or two? It seems this statue doesn't have much left in stock, Zhao Xing thought to himself.

He held complete initiative and could easily erase the imprint on the evil god statue, so he wasn't afraid at all.

Information too; in short, it couldn't be wasted.

"Divine Honored One, they say a group of gods fled into the past, unwilling to face a decaying future. They are cowardly and selfish evil gods who are stirring up trouble upstream in the River of Time, seeking to destroy the present era."

"Yet, the gods of this realm claim that they are righteous gods who uphold the present and save the future, and that the 'evil gods' from the past caused the emergence of the Barren Domain and the formation of chaotic spatiotemporal memories."

"Your followers wish to spread your glory, but they do not know how to refute the followers of these gods."

Zhao Xing had heard Bo Wei's explanation and Gu Luohe's explanation. Now, he wanted to hear the ideology of the evil god faction.

The divine realm wouldn't be able to rally a large number of people to flee into the past by sheer force alone; there must be a self-consistent logic to it.

Upon hearing this, the Boundless True God immediately began to refute. If Zhao Xing had asked him to impart a cultivation method, or reveal the secret entrance to a precious treasure, the statue might not have been able to provide it.

However, Zhao Xing's question pertained to the philosophy of their teachings, which was well within his answering capacity.

"This is the cunning of the evil gods. They twist black into white, attributing the formation of the Barren Domain to the righteous gods and beautifying their own cowardly and selfish actions." The Boundless True God immediately labeled the gods of the Barren Domain era as evil gods.

"Among many eras, the gods of the Barren Domain Era are the most selfish and cowardly; they are even more evil than the evil gods who only know how to plunder!"

Zhao Xing could clearly sense that the Boundless True God seemed to experience an emotional fluctuation when mentioning this point.

The Boundless True God coldly snorted: "Young man, you are also a Diviner who has cultivated to the Demigod realm. You must know about the four stages of the universe. Do you not even have such basic common sense?"

"Divine Honored One, I do not understand." This time, Zhao Xing was not feigning ignorance. Why was this being brought up out of nowhere?

"Primal, Origin, Myriad Phenomena, and Nirvana — these are the four great epochs of the universe." The Boundless True God stated coldly: "We, the righteous gods, have painstakingly traced back the River of Time to seek the Primal Epoch of the universe, to restart the universe and revitalize it with new life, rather than hiding in ancient times to live freely!"

"To save the universe and prevent the Great Annihilation, it is, of course, necessary to carry away vast amounts of matter."

"We are the true saviors!"

Zhao Xing was shaken.

The Boundless True God questioned: "I ask you, is it easier to treat a patient when their illness is terminal, or when they have just fallen ill?"

Zhao Xing instinctively replied, "Of course, it's easier to treat them when they have just fallen ill."

The Boundless True God sneered: "Then, is it easier to restart the universe during the Nirvana Epoch, or during the Myriad Phenomena Epoch, the Origin Epoch, or even the Primal Epoch?"

Zhao Xing was rendered speechless.

Restarting the universe—what a grand concept.

To allow the universe's origin to burst forth with new vitality seemed more reasonable than Gu Luohe's concept of the Eternal Realm.

"Divine Honored One, then how was the Barren Domain formed—?" Zhao Xing gathered his thoughts and continued to ask.

"It is, of course, the natural decay of the universe, just like mortals growing old and sick, their skin withering, flesh shrinking, and essence, qi, and spirit fading."

The Boundless True God continued: "As for the chaotic spatiotemporal memories—hmph, that is entirely the foolish act of these selfish, cowardly evil gods."

"It would have been fine if they just wanted to eke out an existence in the Barren Domain Era; we wouldn't force them. But they even built a Spacetime Great Wall, preventing the Grand Dao of Karma from flowing between the past and the present."

"But what about them? Afraid of death and unwilling to contribute, yet desiring eternal life, they thought of going to ancient times to steal matter."

At this point, the Boundless True God grew even angrier: "What a magnificent undertaking! With past spacetime as the front line, restarting the universe, divine soldiers and generals valiantly pushing forward, clearing away chaotic life. Yet, the present spacetime is dragging us back, even attempting to annihilate us in our nascent stages and the warriors on the front line."

"I do not deny that within the restart faction, there are some treacherous individuals who indeed came to the past to enjoy themselves and gain greater power."

"However, they are merely minor ailments; the evil gods of the Barren Domain Era are the true grave concern."

"This repetitive process constantly leads to the appearance of spacetime turbulence, severely hindering the restart plan."

"Don't you think they deserve to die?"

Zhao Xing was momentarily stunned.

The Daoist principles practiced by the evil god faction were indeed quite self-consistent.

According to the Boundless True God, the divine realm of the Barren Domain Era was indeed made up of heinous evil gods.

However, just as he didn't fully believe Bo Wei's or Gu Luohe's accounts, Zhao Xing only believed a third of the Boundless True God's words.

He seized the opportunity while the other party was animated and continued to ask: "Divine Honored One, they say the Five Emperors Era launched a divine war to pursue and kill the evil gods who fled into the past. The brutal war led to the fall of five Divine Emperors and the vast expansion of the Barren Domain—"

"Nonsense!" the Boundless True God coldly interrupted. "Three of the five Divine Emperors unleashed their full power, carrying matter as they ascended to the Primordial Era, to annihilate the dark source lifeforms of the Chaotic Era."

"And who said the Five Emperors fell?"

"The one I serve is..." The Boundless True God suddenly stopped there. "You will know in due time."

"Yes."

Although the other party didn't finish, Zhao Xing was truly shocked.

According to the Boundless True God, the five Divine Emperors were still alive, and at least three of them supported the 'restart the universe' plan.

In other words, there were disagreements among the five generations of Divine Emperors?

The Boundless True God's statement left Zhao Xing utterly unable to refute.

If the sole purpose was merely to subdue rebellious soldiers, then how did the five Divine Emperors fall, leaving not even a trace of their legacy, leading to a complete discontinuity?

At this moment, Zhao Xing suddenly recalled his experiences in the Profound Yellow Realm.

When he led Great Zhou to ascend, he took away much of the Profound Yellow Realm's matter, almost all of its top experts, and most of its divine artifacts.

Although many books and a few precious divine artifacts were left behind, the local Great Zhou was still many tiers weaker compared to the ascended Great Zhou.

Zhao Xing couldn't help but think of the story of the Witch and the Emperor. How incredibly similar!

The Five Emperors launched an expedition with the full might of their nations, taking matter with them. Great Zhou, upon ascending, also took away vast amounts of matter.

Neither Great Zhou nor the Five Emperors ever returned.

And how similar it was that the Five Emperors built a wall of spacetime, isolating themselves from the subtle broken illusions that appeared in the Profound Yellow Realm!

The difference was that Great Zhou's situation wasn't as severe, as they weren't affected by spacetime turbulence; at least their memories remained intact.

But what about the Primordial Era and Chaotic Era that the Boundless True God mentioned about ascending to?

Zhao Xing voiced his confusion, wanting to learn more truth, but the Boundless True God remained silent.

"You ask too many questions. If you are truly devoted to the Dao, one day I will naturally guide you."

"If you remain unawakened, then you can only decay along with this era!"

With that, the evil god's phantom retreated back into the statue.

Zhao Xing put away the evil god statue and then shook his head.

He felt himself somewhat convinced by the Boundless True God's words and quickly circulated his Profound Soul Dharma Power and Azure Sea Dharma Power to dispel those thoughts.

Ultimately, from an objective bystander's perspective, he preserved the words of Gu Luohe, Bo Wei, and the Boundless True God, without eradicating these thoughts, but merely examining them objectively.

After doing all this, Zhao Xing couldn't help but smile: "The words of these gods truly possess strong manipulative power."

"Well, whether they are evil gods or not, they might be wicked, but they are certainly not foolish."

"I won't think about it for now. Let's see how Yun Tiandao is doing."

As Yun Tiandao emerged from the ancient boat in the Black Sky Barren Domain, Zhao Xing's accompanying clone immediately seized him.

A colossal, ink-black Five-Fingered Mountain descended from the sky, pressing down firmly on Yun Tiandao.

"Who is it?!"

Yun Tiandao's vigilance was extremely high. Clouds formed under his feet, and the Star-Dipper Cloud technique was instantly activated, radiating like brilliant starlight. His figures appeared in all directions, making it difficult to discern the direction of his true body's escape.

"Hmm? Old Yun was a Lord-tier before he went in, and now he's a Three-Tribulation Emperor?" Zhao Xing was somewhat surprised.

Fortunately, the Primal Clone he sent, though not made of the most top-tier materials, had a sub-soul that was a True Spirit of Demigod level.

As the Great Five-Fingered Mountain descended, none of the cloud clones could escape, and Yun Tiandao was instantly pinned down on a barren star-land.

"Whoosh~"

Zhao Xing tore open a void passage, dragging both Yun Tiandao and the mountain into the second layer of the ancient Void Path.

"Where are you from, martial artist?! I, Yun Tiandao, don't know how I've offended you! Why did you hit me with a mountain? If you have the guts, show yourself! Why hide like a coward!" Yun Tiandao roared indignantly.

Zhao Xing was speechless. Did Yun Tiandao's impression of martial artists mean their ultimate move was always a sneak attack?

However, this stereotype did ring true. Zhao Xing himself had encountered the Lord of Calculus on Polar Star Island, who secretly used a mountain to attack people.

"Brother Yun, it's me."

Zhao Xing revealed himself after entering the ancient path layer.

"Zhao Xing, is that you?" Yun Tiandao was stunned. "You, how did you get here? Did you just hit me with a mountain?"

"Brother Yun, don't ask me questions first." Zhao Xing said with a serious expression, "Let me ask you, what are you doing in the Black Sky Barren Domain? And what have you done for that Boundless True God?"

Yun Tiandao's expression slowly calmed down: "You know everything? It seems you've been following me. So, you've already obtained the statue from Ni Feng."

"That's right." Zhao Xing nodded.

"So, are you here to capture me?" Yun Tiandao asked. "I can tell you, but Ni Feng has nothing to do with this. Let her go."

Zhao Xing sighed, "Brother Yun, when did we become so distant? I'm not here to capture you. I was just worried about your safety, so I immediately went to your wife to ask about your situation."

"Whoosh~"

Zhao Xing activated his spaceless teleportation, and another Primal Clone appeared. He then released Immortal Ni Feng from his spatial ring,

and simultaneously moved the great mountain, freeing Yun Tiandao.

"Brother Yun, I know you have a strong and stubborn personality."

"If you don't trust me, you can leave now." Zhao Xing then handed him a spatial ring. "As brothers, this is some travel money for you to escape."

Yun Tiandao was a very stubborn person. For nearly ten thousand years in the cosmos, he stubbornly refused any gifts from Great Zhou, always wanting to rely on himself. After rescuing his Dao companion and Emperor Xia, his goal changed: to heal them and help Emperor Xia restore his kingdom.

"Your actions will be discovered sooner or later. This spatial ring contains enough for your cultivation. You should ideally pass through the demon race territory and escape towards the Celestial Lake Star Domain." With that, Zhao Xing turned to leave.

Yun Tiandao's gaze was complex, while Immortal Ni Feng held her husband's hand.

Just before Zhao Xing was about to leave, Yun Tiandao finally spoke: "Brother Zhao, wait."

"It's not that I don't consider you a friend, nor that I don't trust you."

Zhao Xing turned around: "I need an explanation."

Yun Tiandao sighed: "You have a bright future, limitless prospects. I, Yun Tiandao, am a lone wolf, and what I must do is taboo. I kept silent only because I didn't want to implicate you."

"Since you already know, there's nothing I can't tell you."