A journey of survival starting from Zhetian

Chapter 728 The Mystery of Being Awakened
The raging flames burned like a blooming flower, its shape resembling the side of the "Tao," dazzling and magnificent.

Amid Wu Fan's relief and enlightenment, amidst Chaos's panic and fear, and under the watchful eyes of several almost delirious masters of creation, a magnificent rainbow bridge rose from within the flower's heart, spanning the [Real World], connecting heaven and earth, and linking with the boundless cosmic light.

Everything fell silent.

When a gentle breeze blows across Mount Xian, the "pure land of creation" that was once rife with plague, disease, and miasma has vanished.

One could see wisps of emerald-green vitality and the righteous energy of the three heavens swirling around, a faint aura of blessing swirling around, and leisurely white clouds floating by, reflecting the verdant trees that formed forests in the mountains, as well as the rivers and lakes between the mountains, all resonating with the essence of Tao.

In a trance, one can vaguely see a white deer carrying a lingzhi mushroom, a colorful phoenix leading a dance, and a blue crane perched on a pine tree. Then there are unicorns swimming in the trees, divine turtles lining the mountains, and mirage dragons spitting out mist. All sorts of special auspicious and blessed meanings flow among the mountains and rush along the streams to distant places.

Shaoxian Mountain has truly transformed into a blessed land of immortals.

On the starry river of the Real World, the Taoist with his hair tied up with a wooden fork softly praised, "The present Shaoxian can be called the abode of the gods. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would hardly have imagined that there would be such a creation that would make even us, who have great supernatural powers, marvel."

Within the Taiyin Guanghan, the goddess's gaze also showed obvious fluctuations. "The laws of Shaoxian Mountain have been completely transformed, as if it were ordained by Heaven. There is unpredictable fate, mysterious cause and effect, and the wonder of creation may be close to the Dao."

A powerful being of great creation, carrying a wooden box on his back and dressed in tattered clothes, looked at Shao Xian and shook his head. "Shao Xian may have become the second [Nanshan]. Unfortunately, the laws within it involve the path of fortune and misfortune, which I have never been involved in, nor have I been able to extract this illusory path from my cultivation and learning."

More than one person with great magical powers shook their head and sighed in regret.

If a powerful being who cultivates the Way of Fortune and Misfortune could reside in Shao Xian at this moment, perhaps with the blessing of this abode of the gods, he could cultivate this illusory Great Way to perfection in a very short time, and possess it exclusively, turning it into his own symbol, just like the "Kitchen God" and the Way of the Stove.

"However, on another note, what about the authority that demon who called himself 'Chaos' and the human Wu Fan should have retained?"

“Their traces have now dissipated throughout the myriad realms, and even their projections have vanished completely, utterly perishing beneath that slowly blooming flower of the Path of Approach. But no matter how you look at it, there shouldn’t be nothing left but Shaoxian Mountain, a chicken rib that’s tasteless to eat but a pity to throw away.”

A powerful being with extraordinary abilities, wearing a tall white hat, surveyed Mount Shaoxian, examining the laws of heaven and earth, but could not find the authority of fortune and misfortune that should have appeared, nor the extraordinary creation that should have remained. A trace of doubt rose on his face.

Beside him, another powerful being of great creation, wearing a tall black hat, also glanced at the laws of heaven and earth, then said indifferently, "All things have spirits; they are probably seeking a kindred spirit that matches their destiny, according to fate's arrangement. Anyway, it doesn't concern our future, so why bother with so much?"

"Our two paths complement each other, and we must seize this rare opportunity. If we wait for those pseudo-other shores who have reached the pinnacle of their realms to return, there will inevitably be unexpected twists and turns, and we will be restricted again."

“If we cannot achieve perfect creation in time, His Majesty the Earth Emperor will not be able to protect us amidst the many false other shores.”
-
In a certain ancient universe.

In a castle shrouded in gray mist, reflecting some eerie outlines, and inscribed with translucent three-dimensional runes.

A male figure, sitting on a high-backed stone chair, wearing a mask and monocle, holding a cane, seemed to be asleep. Suddenly awakened, he subconsciously looked at the river of fate flowing forward.

"what happened?"

"The beacon of destiny I placed for the future... has it disappeared?"

"Could it be another of Amon's pranks, stealing my beacon of destiny? But that shouldn't be the case, since I became a true pillar of the universe, this guy left Earth and went deep into space."

Zhou Mingrui rubbed his temples, which felt heavy, and tried his best to concentrate on the initial ramblings that echoed in his mind.

The next moment, He grasped the power of deception, reached out and gave a sharp jerk to the depths of His own soul, temporarily distorting His original connection with His past and grafting it onto His history, creating a fragile, recurring cycle.

His power was diminished, and his connection with the universe was slightly strained, but in return, his condition improved. The delirium that had been constantly echoing in his mind had become so faint as to be almost negligible.

"After sleeping for so long, there is finally a sign that it has completely digested the 'legacy' left by that guy."

Zhou Mingrui slowly breathed a sigh of relief on the stone chair.

Back then, some damned Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerable dragged his "future" self from the "past" to the present, and then had himself occupy His "position," shouting the words from the Tao Te Ching, "In learning, one gains daily; in practicing the Tao, one loses daily. Losing and losing again, until one reaches non-action." He then ran off to some unknown place, leaving Him with a huge mess.

Not only must he keep an eye on the Mother Goddess, but he must also keep an eye on God, and keep an eye on those half-mad old days, suppressing these pillars and old days in their greatly damaged state, and protecting his own little family amidst numerous crises. This has tormented the current "Fool" quite a bit.

If Amanises hadn't arrived in time to play a "lullaby" and hadn't asked Adam, who had become a "writer," to provide several "psychological interventions," giving Him the opportunity to slowly adjust the madness hidden deep within His spiritual nature, He might already be half-mad.

After readjusting his state to ensure he wouldn't lose control, Zhou Mingrui tossed out a coin that was dark yellow, shimmering with a copper luster, with Huang Tao's head wearing a crown engraved on the front and the number "1" surrounded by ears of wheat on the back.

"The signpost I placed for my future destiny has not encountered any unexpected problems."

"The signpost I placed for my future destiny has not encountered any unexpected problems."

"The signpost I placed for my future destiny has not encountered any unexpected problems."

"."

Zhou Mingrui muttered to himself seven times in a row, indirectly manipulating the power of fate to try and find the reason for awakening himself from his slumber.

Over the years, He has suffered far too much at the hands of God, the Mother Goddess, and the many half-mad beings of the Old Day. If He is not careful, He will step into the pits dug by these pillars and the Old Day, and be covered in mud.

Fortunately, these pillars and the old seem to be quite wary of the "former Lord of Mysteries" who has already fled, and they are hostile to each other. The "current Lord of Mysteries" is in a much better state than them.

Otherwise, Zhou Mingrui couldn't even imagine how he managed to persevere and successfully save the Earth.

"Ding!"

The penny with a face value of "1" landed upright on the antique long table in front of Zhou Mingrui. It remained straight, neither tilted nor tilted, maintaining a strange and meaningful posture.

"Heads represent certainty, tails represent negation, and vertical... my divination has been interfered with?!"

Zhou Mingrui's expression changed, and his eyes became somewhat dazed.

It's important to understand that within the universe, His state is arguably the best among all the pillars and the Old Ones. Even God and the Mother Goddess would need to cooperate to have any chance of successfully interfering with His divination or its outcome, and even then, the probability is quite low.

This situation is extremely rare.

He has never encountered one since becoming the "Lord of Mysteries".
"No, it's not that I've never had a failed divination."

Zhou Mingrui's expression turned solemn as he muttered to himself, "When I tried to divine the whereabouts of the Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerable who has already fled, I was unable to obtain any useful information. It was as if He were an unknown being who had lost all information, completely nameless, and utterly unknowable."

With a sense of anticipation, He glanced at the Amons deep in the starry sky, then at the Ring of Destiny, which He had nearly driven to madness by His own deception, and then at the ancient beings beyond the galaxy, whose symbols of destiny He had torn apart in small parts. "Hmm, I can confirm that the ancient beings are not going mad again, gathering together once more to attack Earth."

He raised his head slightly and looked at the Mother Goddess, who was still sleeping in a certain cosmic void, and God, who was very inactive in the Chaos Sea.

"It's pretty much certain that it's not these two pillars trying to mess with me again."

Therefore, after eliminating all possibilities, it can only be that some Xuanhuang Tianzun who has already fled is preparing to entangle himself with him again.

No, it should be said that it has already become entangled with me.

Zhou Mingrui sensed the beacon of destiny reappearing in his perception, looked at the past history in the long river of time, and felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

"The beacon of destiny, originally placed for the future, has been moved to a certain historical point in the past."

Zhou Mingrui shook his head, stood up, waved his cane, and using the obviously problematic beacon of fate as his reference, stepped into the past.

In an instant, countless scenes were reversed like a kaleidoscope, and the past seemed to rewind like a photo album. All the scenery and all the movements receded before His eyes.

Until, one morning, with great ease, He returned to the street corner on Earth and saw a bookstore that was already open.
-
[Bear Family Bookstore]
Bathed in the soft sunlight, this street corner "in my memory" evoked a warm feeling deep within Zhou Mingrui's heart.

Even though He knew it was fake, and most likely an influence exerted on Him by some cunning celestial being, looking at the familiar houses around Him and smelling the familiar aroma of meat buns, He still couldn't suppress the reverie in His heart.

This is a past that even as the "Lord of Mysteries," one of the three pillars of the universe, he could not undo.

Zhou Mingrui looked at the middle-aged figure behind the bookstore counter, sighed, and walked into the bookstore.

"Want a newly arrived book?" Xiong Mo took out a thick "brick" with the word "fortune and misfortune" written in large characters from under the counter, placed it on the counter, and winked at Zhou Mingrui. "I guarantee you won't regret reading it. If you buy it, I guarantee you won't regret it either."

Looking at Boss Xiong, who seemed just like yesterday, Zhou Mingrui's lips twitched.

You won't regret buying it?
maybe.

But the price He would have to pay must have been extremely high.

There is no necessary connection between not having regrets and paying a high price.

As the "Lord of Mysteries" who holds the power over most of the universe's destiny, He is extremely sensitive to matters of fate.

Subconsciously, Zhou Mingrui wanted to refuse, so he immediately left [Xiong Family Bookstore], returned to the present time, found his friends, and confronted this "former Lord of Mysteries".

But since the Celestial Venerable has already come knocking on His door, can He still refuse?

Is there still a chance to refuse?
"crash"

Zhou Mingrui, wearing a mask and a monocle, and with his clenched hand, vanished silently into a dreamlike illusion, while his clothing transformed into a shirt and shorts that fit the era.

Everything is as it was yesterday.

Zhou Mingrui walked to the counter, reached out and touched the book engraved with "fortune and misfortune," stroking its texture.

He glanced at Boss Xiong, who was still smiling, and then began to peruse the "brick" in front of him.

"crash"

There wasn't much text on it, only a series of pictures resembling the beasts recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas. But the faint ancient charm emanating from it gave it a sense of witnessing real history.

A kind of "history" that is clearly not on Earth, yet resembles various ancient myths of Earth.

Upon flipping to the end, an indescribable figure, much like those half-mad figures of the past, appeared in the contents of this "brick," causing Zhou Mingrui, the "current Lord of Mysteries," to feel a chill run down his spine.

"Chaos. Evil?"

"And there's also a human witch, Wu Fan?"

"To ward off evil, bring good fortune, pray for blessings, and spread pestilence."

"[The Real World], Fragments of Cosmic Light, The Ancient Universe, Projection of Other Self."

"Inner Landscape, Outer Landscape, Dharmakaya, Legend, Creation, Other Shore. The End of the Era"

Zhou Mingrui looked up at Xiong Mo behind the counter, whose figure was already somewhat blurry. Xiong Mo's face was pale and he seemed a little dazed, but his eyes held a knowing look.

"Xuanhuang Heavenly Venerable, is this what you saw after you got rid of the 'Lord of Mysteries' position?"

There was no response; the figure behind the counter simply turned its gaze to the "current Lord of Mysteries," as if entrusting everything to Him.

"Boss Xiong, please tell me, what do I need to give in return?"

The blurry figure seemed to laugh. He reached out and placed the "brick" with the words "fortune and misfortune" written on it on the counter into Zhou Mingrui's hand, and handed him an invitation.

"You don't need to give up much, just yourself, that's all."

As soon as the words were spoken, everything in heaven and earth trembled, shook, and disappeared bit by bit.

Zhou Mingrui had no power to resist, as if this "Lord of Mysteries" was a fake. He could only watch helplessly as everything familiar, including himself, turned into a dreamlike illusion.
-
Yuanbao.

The current Lord of Mysteries, Zhou Mingrui, who was sleeping on the stone chair, was awakened.

He saw on the long table the "brick" inscribed with "fortune and misfortune".

And an invitation.

(End of this chapter)