Summoning the Gods: Start by creating the Eternal Night.

Ye Junlin stood up solemnly and shouted into the void:

"Donghuang Taiyi".

No sooner had he finished speaking than a figure appeared out of thin air in the hall; it was none other than Donghuang Taiyi.

He bowed and greeted the emperor: "Your Majesty."

"Ah Qing just sensed that there's something wrong with the Heavenly Dao of this world."

Ye Junlin cut to the chase, "Do you have a way to find out the specific reason?"

Donghuang Taiyi looked up: "Your Majesty, I had already noticed the unusual celestial phenomena before I came here, and I was just preparing to make a divination when you summoned me."

"That's perfect, let's do a simulation now," Ye Junlin said.

"yes!"

Donghuang Taiyi responded and slowly retreated to an open space in the hall.

His robes fluttered even without wind, and his hands rapidly formed hand seals.

Intertwined, forming a myriad of yin and yang seals,

The fingertips tapped in succession in the five directions of the void: east, south, west, north, and center.

It draws upon the most fundamental Yin and Yang energies of heaven and earth.

Soon, the purple-gold and dark-black auras intertwined and rose, transforming into a yin-yang fish dharma image that floated in mid-air.

He closed his eyes, his aura completely merging with the heavens and earth, and shouted in a deep voice:

"In the name of the Eastern Emperor, I draw upon the Yin and Yang energies, borrow the trajectories of the stars, observe the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, and investigate the calamities of Heaven!"

"now!"

As the words fell, a curtain of water appeared out of thin air.

Within the water curtain, the scene of endless void was vividly reflected.

The black-robed man exuded a dark power that continuously devoured the celestial light.

Meanwhile, the Heavenly Light Orb was putting up a fierce resistance, its light flickering on and off.

"Just as Ah Qing said."

Ye Junlin stared at the water curtain with a solemn expression.

"If the Way of Heaven is truly devoured, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Donghuang Taiyi stared at the water curtain and suddenly spoke:

"Your Majesty, look at the shackles on the Heavenly Dao."

Ye Junlin looked closely and saw that although the shackles outside the Heavenly Dao light cluster were engraved with Dao inscriptions,

At this moment, it seems more like a tool to bind the Way of Heaven than a naturally formed constraint.

"These shackles... seem to be the Heavenly Dao shackles of the Tianyuan Continent."

Donghuang Taiyi looked thoughtful.

"Judging from the situation, it seems to be something that the black-robed man used to control the Heavenly Dao."

"Could it be that the so-called shackles of Heaven were not set by Heaven itself, but rather appeared after it was imprisoned?"

"That is why the spiritual energy in the Tianyuan Continent is thin and its laws are incomplete."

"Now that it has broken free of some of its shackles, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth can be restored?"

Ye Junlin nodded: "It seems so. This man in black robes clearly intends to take his place."

Aqing frowned, her eyes full of doubt. "But shouldn't a Heavenly Dao be this weak?"

Upon hearing this, Donghuang Taiyi activated his Sky-Gazing Technique to its fullest extent, making the scene in the water curtain even clearer.

Suddenly, his face turned pale, and the water curtain shattered with a "crack".

"Fellow Daoist Donghuang!"

Aqing quickly stepped forward, raised her hand, and transferred a gentle spiritual energy to stabilize his body.

Donghuang Taiyi's forehead was beaded with sweat as he took a breath.

"Something's not right... I just conducted an in-depth investigation into the trajectory of the Heavenly Dao, and the controlled Heavenly Dao light cluster doesn't seem to be complete."

"Incomplete?" Ye Junlin pressed, "What do you mean?"

"I can't explain it," Donghuang Taiyi shook his head, his tone puzzled.

"It felt strange, like something was missing."

"With my current cultivation level as a terrestrial immortal, I cannot ascertain the truth for the time being."

"But one thing is certain: I have calculated that the Tianyuan Continent will face a cataclysmic calamity in a year."

"Moreover, the speed at which the last Heavenly Dao shackle is being broken is accelerating. What was previously estimated to take three months now appears to be at most two months."

"Apocalyptic catastrophe..."

Ye Junlin repeated in a low voice, a complex look flashing in his eyes.

"It seems the peaceful days are truly coming to an end."

A thought flashed through his mind, and he called out in his heart:

"System, what is the great calamity that Donghuang Taiyi spoke of?"

"Did the laws of Heaven collapse after the black-robed man replaced it?"

[Ding! Deduct 10,000 energy points to obtain information?]

Ye Junlin's lips twitched: "Damn, they charge energy points for this too? Why don't you just rob them!"

[Host, just tell me if you want to know or not.]

"Yes, I do! Tell me!"

[Ding, 10,000 energy points deducted.]

"Damn it, you even deducted money from my pay list first!"

Ye Junlin cursed under his breath, "Fine, if they've already deducted the money, so be it. Just tell me!"

The so-called cataclysmic calamity is not the collapse of the laws after the Heavenly Dao is replaced.

The Tianyuan Continent is not as simple as it appears on the surface, and the Heavenly Dao here is not so easily replaced.

That great calamity was actually just people from the upper realm descending to the lower realm to search for the heart of the world.

But the world's core on the Tianyuan Continent is exceptionally different.

"The Heart of the World?" Ye Junlin asked curiously, intrigued.

"What is that? How is it different?"

The heart of the world refers to the world's fundamental energy, life force, and material foundation.

They come in various shapes, some are crystals, some are spheres of light, and some resemble a heart or a galaxy.

If we lose it, the world will wither, the spiritual energy will dry up, and heaven and earth will collapse.

If the host can possess it, they can control the power of the world and become the master of the world.

The heart of the ordinary world has no sentience, but the heart of the world on the Tianyuan Continent not only possesses sentience, but is also in the process of taking form.

Ye Junlin suddenly realized: "No wonder people from the Upper Realm also covet it..."

"This world heart, which possesses sentience and can take human form, must have a function that goes far beyond simply controlling a single world."

[Ding! Mission issued: Obtain the Heart of the World in Tianyuan Continent. Reward: Mysterious Gift Pack x1.]

"You're making me compete with people from the upper realms!"

Ye Junlin smiled, but a fighting spirit ignited in his eyes.

"However, I'm really curious about what the Heart of the World looks like."

"I'll accept this task. How do I find it?"

[It cannot be located at present; it is undergoing transformation.]

"Then what's the point of saying all this!" Ye Junlin rolled his eyes.

He suppressed his inner complaints and looked at Donghuang Taiyi and Aqing:

"We don't need to delve too deeply into matters of Heaven's will for now; the implications are far from simple."

"Our top priority is to quickly improve our cultivation in preparation for the great calamity that will occur in a year."

"Go down!"

"Yes!" the two replied in unison, then bowed and withdrew.

Only Ye Junlin remained in the hall. He leaned back on the throne and rubbed his temples.

"The Heart of the World... the Upper Realm... the current Eternal Night Heaven is still too weak!"

After a moment of silence, he summoned the system again:

"System, how many energy points do I have left?"

[One hundred thousand.]

"Forty spins of the lucky wheel. Try your luck!"

[Ding! 40,000 energy points deducted. Lottery draw begins!]

A giant virtual roulette wheel appeared out of thin air in front of Ye Junlin.

The turntable spun rapidly, and the afterimages of various items flashed past his eyes.

"Stop!" Ye Junlin shouted!

[Ding! Congratulations, host, you have obtained: 5 Early Celestial Realm Cultivation Infusion Cards, 10 Beers, 5 Moutai, 1 Special Summoning Card, 1 Case of Instant Noodles, 5 Zhonghua Five-Piece Beans, 1 Million Mid-Grade Spirit Stones...]

Ye Junlin looked at the reward, and his lips twitched.

The system's lottery draw is another bunch of useless prizes.

However, it's still worth it because I have five early-stage Celestial Realm cultivation infusion cards and one special summoning card!

[Early Celestial Realm Cultivation Transfer Card: Allows Nirvana Realm cultivators to enter the early Celestial Realm without any side effects. (Note: Only usable by summoned characters)]

Special Summon Card: ...