"This is... the past?"
Were it not for the small, cool hand in his palm, Li Mo would have almost lost all sense of his own existence. The Jade Phoenix Deity—a remnant from a bygone era lost to the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths—had been stirred by countless phenomena, some still lingering in the world, others long vanished into the river of time, unleashing an endless surge of spiritual essence.
And with it came a sealed fragment of the past.
Li Mo watched as the coalescing energy took the form of a figure.
She appeared no different from an ordinary mortal, clad in robes woven from clouds and mist, her face obscured by an indistinct haze. Yet her gaze, filled with compassion, was unmistakable.
Before her lay a ravaged land, and a sun so dim it seemed on the verge of extinguishing.
As the sun faltered, chaos erupted across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, as if the world would plunge into eternal silence after one final frenzy.
"This is no natural calamity, but man-made ruin."
Her voice was gentle, yet beneath its calm surface lurked a quiet fury.
"The Nine Heavens and Ten Earths cannot be without a sun."
"I am willing to forsake my chance at ascension to illuminate all living beings."
From atop a divine tree that reached into the heavens came the sigh of a man.
A three-legged divine bird—swifter than his words—had already taken flight, soaring toward the dying sun before his voice even faded.
But how could its power sustain the eternal sun?
And so, Li Mo witnessed a scene he had once glimpsed in an ancient scripture.
Countless golden crows surged forth from the divine tree, streaking across the twilight sky in dazzling arcs, each one hurling itself toward death to reignite the sun.
Across the vast expanse of time.
The divine essence Li Mo had never truly comprehended now enveloped him, immersing him in its presence.
And he learned the reason for the sun’s sudden dimming.
A mighty being from the myriad races, upon ascending to immortality, had stolen the Dao of the Sun—the very essence it was meant to safeguard.
It was not the only one. Many who sought immortality had plundered the world that nurtured them before departing the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.
The Dao would slowly replenish itself; the world would gradually heal.
But it could never keep pace with the rate of theft.
And when a Dao was lost, all beings connected to it would fade, some swiftly, others over time.
The woman led her people across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, witnessing countless lands and races perish before her eyes.
One by one, she preserved their true spirits like seeds, etching them into her own divinity. Over time, her soul grew crystalline, like flawless jade.
At some point, she gazed at the moon, and Li Mo could almost see her gentle smile.
She spoke in syllables long forgotten, yet their meaning rang clear:
"Beings of the future."
"Are the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths... safe and sound?"
After whispering to the moon, she resumed her journey, her figure growing distant until it faded entirely from sight.
The vision withdrew from Li Mo’s eyes, leaving only an inexplicable emotion stirring in his heart.
He lifted his gaze slightly.
Before him hovered a radiant jade light—the source of all those phenomena—the Jade Phoenix Deity.
"The Nine-Colored Primordial Phoenix..."
"Did she leave behind everything she had before ascending to immortality?"
Li Mo couldn’t help but ponder.
Or perhaps... she had never left the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths at all.
Wait, so the sun wasn’t formed from golden crows?
Back then, there was only one sun.
Then why do the historical records say the Great Yu Emperor transformed into the sun?
Little Li suddenly realized he had too many questions.
Was this something he should even be worrying about right now?
Shaking his head, he glanced beside him. The ice block (Ying Bing) was still lost in thought, clearly having seen the same vision.
Hmm.
Ying Bing was indeed struggling to snap out of it.
She had never witnessed these scenes from the Jade Phoenix Deity before. The only difference this time was...
Her gaze darkened as she turned toward the figure beside her.
Him.
......
While Little Li and a certain ice block were engrossed in their ancient movie, the outside world remained oblivious to their experience.
The gathered demons, unable to see anything, had been left staring blankly for ages. Eventually, they decided to speculate on the outcome.
"Let’s analyze this rationally."
A Great Roc of the Bi Fang Clan declared:
"Luan Bing is incredibly fast, and her combat skills surpass even ours. I’d say her chances are high."
"Exactly. If she drags Wu Mo into the sky and drops him, he’s going to have a very bad time."
"But Wu Mo has immense strength and defense. Did you see him clash head-on with the Rift-Sea Dragon Whale?"
Manbo scoffed. No matter how skilled you were, it meant nothing if you couldn’t land a hit.
By sheer durability, Wu Mo was the undisputed Legendary Fall King.
The Giant Whale Clan nodded in agreement. They never relied on fancy techniques, sticking to pure, unrefined power—yet they still ruled the Southern Seas.
The Bi Fang elder fell silent, then turned and barked:
"Are all us avian clans just a bunch of amateurs now?"
"Water Tribe fourth and fifth tiers, step forward!"
Wu Qing refused to back down.
"If he summons storms, how will any bird stay airborne?"
"I’ve seen her pierce the heavens, leaving trails of frost in her wake. If she uses that move, how will Wu Mo counter?"
"True Dragon bloodline lets him ride clouds and mist—his speed isn’t lacking!"
"He’s never once used that! Are you just making things up now?"
"Mastering frost isn’t something even the Qingluan Clan—let alone True Phoenix bloodlines—can do. Where’d you hear this nonsense?"
"I saw it with my own eyes!"
"Your beady eyes must be blind."
"Gah! Clan Leader Shang, say something!"
The avian clans turned their aggrieved stares toward a certain Qingluan leader.
"Hmm..."
Shang Qinqing spat out a melon seed and mused:
"I suspect our Qingluan Goddess might end up with Wu Mo grabbing her by the foot."
"Eh?"
Why are you undermining your own side?
When a bird gets its foot caught by a snake, the outcome is usually... well, predictable. Even for demons.
But before the aquatic clans could laugh, she added:
"Then again, if she’s determined enough, she might just grab Wu Mo by the head and shake him left and right."
Which head, exactly, remained unspecified.
But the avian clans nodded sagely.
Shaking left and right?
Primitive as it sounded, it was a solid way to break free.
Despite Clan Leader Shang’s habit of snacking and speaking in riddles, she was, after all, an old bird—her combat experience was vast.
"But after hearing Clan Leader Shang’s analysis... it’s still hard to tell who’ll win."
"If they fight like that... yikes. It’s going to be brutal."
"No kidding!"
The more the demons discussed, the more uneasy they grew, their hearts creeping into their throats.
Shang Qinqing smiled knowingly, as if holding all the answers.
Though her grin was more than a little ridiculous.
......
Within the Jade Phoenix Deity.
After the vision faded, the artifact—imbued with countless true spirits—remained suspended in silence. Yet its significance had irrevocably changed.
Did it feel... heavier now?
"You—" ×2
"You first—" ×2
Their eyes met.
The two of them fell into silence once again.
Each waiting for the other to speak first.
.....
PS: Dear esteemed audience, your patronage is humbly requested. Another day, another longing to be "charged" by your support—ehe~
g Yu was preparing for retirement when her organization decided to eliminate her. She transmigrated to a zombie apocalypse world. However, a tiny unexpected situation occurred: She somehow transformed into an adorable little girl?!
for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
