Chapter 1579: Magical Return to the Void

Qin Mu plummeted, screaming, into the darkness. Gradually, a light appeared before his eyes, growing increasingly intense and piquing his curiosity.

From the outside, the Great Ruins Abyss was an indescribable darkness, utterly devoid of light. However, the deeper one went, the brighter it became. These two extremes shouldn't coexist in the same place, yet here they did.

Simultaneously, the primal magnetic divine power here grew stronger, binding all mass and energy together immovably. This created supreme thermal energy. The accumulated heat caused the Dao runes within his body to vibrate with increasing intensity. The Dao he had cultivated felt as if it were about to ignite!

"Wind of Heat Death!" A chill ran through him.

He had encountered the Wind of Heat Death before, in the Jade Capital City of the Ancestral Court. The Wind of Cold Death originated from the Ultimate Void; where it blew, everything would transform into the Ultimate Void, with the particles composing the human body becoming infinitely distant and sparse, devoid of any heat or energy. A single gust of cold wind would turn everything to dust, obliterating it. Matter ceased to exist, energy vanished. Even with profound Dao cultivation, if one hadn't attained true Daohood, they would perish.

The Wind of Heat Death, on the other hand, was the opposite extreme. When it swept through, it would melt even the most fundamental runes that formed the Great Dao, causing the Dao to completely dissipate. It would melt matter entirely, transforming it into a pure energy state, a chaotic state. Both the Wind of Heat Death and the Wind of Cold Death could be encountered in the Jade Capital City of the Ancestral Court. They were great terrors that emerged during the Catastrophe of Destruction.

Although he had comprehended the life and death of the Great Ruins and the cycle of creation and destruction, facing this situation was still extremely perilous. "Strange," he thought. "The Wind of Cold Death appears in the Ultimate Void, the place where enlightened beings imprint their Dao to form the Grand Overarching Heaven. Yet the Wind of Heat Death appears in the Great Ruins. Doesn't that mean the Great Ruins can be paralleled with the Ultimate Void?"

Although the Wind of Heat Death was terrifying, he had already comprehended the Dao of Creation and Destruction of the Great Ruins. He merged the two Dao arts, supplementing them with the Dao of Reincarnation, thus allowing for a continuous cycle of creation, destruction, and reincarnation. The Dao within his body continuously shattered and perished, yet constantly reformed and was reborn. The gravity of the Great Ruins Abyss spun him wildly, pulling him down at an alarming rate. He struggled to stabilize himself but found it impossible.

In the ever-brightening light, a colossal twin-lotus root stalk, covered in jagged thorns, flashed past him. "If I keep falling like this, when will it end?"

As this thought crossed his mind, he suddenly felt an incredibly intense aura of the Catastrophe of Destruction. His divine arts and Dao deteriorated rapidly, and his physical body withered and aged. Qin Mu was startled, regretting that he shouldn't have leaped into the Great Ruins Abyss. But it was too late for regrets; the deed was done. He tried to grasp the twin-lotus root stalk, his hands becoming bloody and mangled from its sharp thorns. Yet, he was still dragged by the gravity of the Great Ruins, constantly falling deeper.

This was a place even the Empress and her sister had never visited in their lives. He was the first to enter. Fear arose in Qin Mu's heart: "What if the Great Ruins has no bottom? Will I fall forever?"

After falling for an unknown duration, the aura of the Catastrophe of Destruction grew even stronger, and the light became even brighter. Suddenly, the light gradually became less dazzling, and his downward momentum began to slow. Qin Mu's heart stirred: "The Great Ruins Tide is about to erupt!"

The gravity within the abyss diminished, and his descent slowed further. Qin Mu knew this was a rare opportunity and immediately plunged downwards with a whoosh! Instead of riding the tide upwards to leave the abyss, he chose to rush towards its deepest point! His speed increased. The light ahead became gradually softer, yet within its softness was an extremely sharp edge, like blade light.

Qin Mu opened his vertical eye between his brows. He saw that within the sharp light seemed to be a strange place, like a swirling pool of light, but incredibly vast. And the twin lotuses were rooted precisely within that pool.

At this moment, the tide began. The light that had settled in the Great Ruins began to gush outwards, its speed rapidly increasing. Qin Mu fought against the tide, flying towards his destination. However, the impact of the light currents was like countless sharp blades, rotating and slicing him, leaving him bloody and mangled, and slowing his progress.

Qin Mu clung tightly to the twin-lotus root stalk, climbing down inch by inch. His body was constantly being torn apart, yet continuously reassembled by his divine abilities. He crawled for an unknown duration, finally unable to hold on any longer. Just as he was about to release his grip and let the tide sweep him away, a tremendous force suddenly enveloped him, resisting the current of light.

Qin Mu looked back and saw that the Empress Mother was behind him. The woman had grown four arms and four legs, also clinging to the twin-lotus root stalk, climbing down after him. In comparison, Qin Mu's magic power was far inferior to hers. And although he had comprehended his own Dao of Reincarnation and Dao of the Great Ruins, he was not as powerful as this integrated Great Ruins Goddess. The Great Ruins Goddess was an enlightened being, far stronger than him.

At this moment, the Empress Mother's face had two countenances, with four eyes intently staring at the pool. "Heavenly Venerate Mu, to think you could find such a place! Even I, the mistress of this realm, didn't know there was such a treasure hidden beneath the Great Ruins. You are truly remarkable," the Empress Mother's voice resonated.

"My lover," Yuan Mu chuckled, "I'll protect you. You can scout ahead."

Qin Mu snorted, knowing that both the Empress and Yuan Mu believed whatever was at the bottom of the Great Ruins was extremely dangerous. They wanted him to scout ahead, so if the danger was too great, he would be the one to die. "I intended to explore this place anyway," he thought. "With the help of the Great Ruins Goddess, I can save some effort."

He continued climbing down. The Great Ruins Tide grew increasingly violent, and even the Great Ruins Goddess found it difficult to withstand. She had to unleash all her magic power and strength to resist the current. The two struggled onward, crawling for an unknown distance, yet the pool remained far away.

The Great Ruins Goddess could no longer endure; her physical body disintegrated continuously, and her cultivation rapidly drained away. Yuan Mu exclaimed, "Stop! Let's wait until the tide passes, then we'll enter!"

Qin Mu halted. The tide surged with increasing ferocity, and both clung tightly to the lotus root stalk, resisting its immense power. Qin Mu silently counted, calculating the time until the tide receded. This tide seemed to be a grand tide, lasting longer and possessing greater power than any he had experienced before. He wondered what caused such a massive tide.

Finally, the force of the surging tide gradually diminished. Qin Mu's eyes gleamed. He immediately used all his limbs, scrambling rapidly towards the pool at the bottom of the great abyss.

"Heavenly Venerate Mu, you won't escape!" The Empress's voice rang out. With Yuan Mu, she used all her limbs like a giant eight-legged spider, whistling as they chased after him.

The tide began to recede, and Qin Mu immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He plunged frantically downwards along the root stalk. The pool appeared to be composed of pure energy, and the closer he got, the brighter its light became. Upon reaching it, he saw the pool expanding, no longer resembling a pond but a sea—a sea of pure energy.

Not only that, but he also saw something he hadn't noticed before! He arrived at lotus leaves. Leaf after leaf, they floated on the surface of the sea, right next to the twin lotuses.

Qin Mu continued to exert himself, rushing along the root stalk. At that moment, dazzling light surrounded him, and countless images flashed within it. Qin Mu paused, paying attention to the images. What he saw was the entire primeval universe! As he moved, the entire universe rapidly rewound!

He saw the Ancestral Court, witnessed the Celestial Heavens departing from above the Ancestral Court and returning above the Primordial Realm. He saw the Battle of Xuandu, where Heavenly Duke was resurrected and fought the Ten Heavenly Venerates. Within a few steps, he saw the Primordial Realm return to its sealed state. He then saw time rapidly rewinding further, the Great Ruins reappearing. Soon after, he saw the Founding Emperor's Celestial Heavens formed by thirty-three heavens, with countless celestial artisans forging it.

He continued forward, and the two-thousand-year span of the Founding Emperor era quickly reached its beginning. The Primordial Realm was desolate and dark, a ruin from the High Emperor era. Next, the glorious High Emperor era appeared. Heavenly Venerate Yue and Heavenly Venerate Ling slew the Earth Mother and felled the Primordial Tree. The Primordial Tree, which had been toppled, now stood tall. The Northern and Southern High Emperor Celestial Heavens waged war against each other, with demigods ruling the north and humans the south. The three-hundred-thousand-year High Emperor era flashed by.

The wild Crimson Light era emerged, with Emperor Ming conquering the extraterrestrial Celestial Heavens. The Celestial Heavens brought calamities upon the Crimson Light era, then Emperor Chi explored chaotic space, and Emperor Chi beheld and contemplated the statue of Heavenly Venerate Mu in the Primordial Realm. Following that was the Dragon Han era, with three Celestial Heavens warring amongst themselves. Time rewound faster and faster. In the Dragon Han era, spectacular scenes flashed by. Soon came the establishment of the Dragon Han Celestial Heavens, followed by the battle in the Blood Rust Zone, where Shu Jun led countless Creation Masters in resistance against the ancient gods and demigods, perishing in the starry sky.

Then came Heavenly Emperor Tai Chu killing Gong Jun. Gong Jun ambushed Emperor Tai, shattering the Primordial Stone in Emperor Tai's glabella. The war returned to the Ancestral Court, and then Emperor Tai massacred the Creation Masters in the Ancestral Court. Billions of years of time flowed rapidly backward. Soon, it reached the time when the Creation Masters excavated the Five Mines, and then when Bo Yang, the first Creation Master, lifted the first Primordial Divine Stone and embedded it in his glabella.

Finally, Qin Mu saw a great fire. Tai Yi set fire to the World Tree! The blazing flames illuminated the primordial form of the cosmic starry sky! Qin Mu then saw Tai Yi felling the tree. Further back, the Ancestral Court was desolate and silent, devoid of any life.

He finally reached the base of the twin-lotus root stalk. What his eyes beheld were the five evolutionary forms of the cosmos: Taiji, Taisu, Taishi, Taichu, and Taiyi. Qin Mu landed on a lotus leaf. The light beneath his feet was no longer dazzling; instead, it was a chaotic expanse. He looked around, seeing giant lotus leaves floating on this ocean. Incredibly thick and thorny lotus root stalks, of unknown length, rose from this ocean, standing tall in the darkness.

Qin Mu stared blankly, then shook his head.

"My little lover, try escaping now!" The Empress Mother also landed on a colossal lotus leaf. Yuan Mu exclaimed excitedly, "Now you have nowhere to run, do you? Hand over the Dao of Reincarnation..." Her voice gradually faded as she stared blankly upwards at the enormous lotus root stalks.

There were seventeen such lotus root stalks in total, each signifying a twin lotus. And every twin lotus signified a Great Ruins Abyss! In other words, this place connected to seventeen Great Ruins Abysses.