Chapter 1354: Beyond the Timescape

Ancient time flowed. Three hundred years passed in Revered Ancient.

During that time, things were peaceful. There was no mutagen in heaven and earth. When Xu Qing had returned three hundred years ago, most of the gods in Revered Ancient chose to leave. Only a few stayed behind. After the God Paragons disappeared from the Ninth Star Ring, the god cultivation system collapsed.

Only Eminent Desolation remained. Hē continued to loom over Revered Ancient, hīs face complete but hīs eyes closed.

In the three hundred years that passed, Xu Qing’s old friends had their own strokes of luck and good fortune. As for Master Seventh, because he practiced a unique type of cultivation, he eventually reached the end of his cultivation path, and made the same choice as always.... He entered the cycle of reincarnation. However, this time, he didn’t choose to be reincarnated in Revered Ancient. He went to Deep Earth to be reborn. That was his dao.

After making his decision, he explained it to Xu Qing. “We won’t meet again in the future.”

Of course, Xu Qing made no attempt to change his mind. He nodded quietly, then sent Master Seventh on his way to Deep Earth. As Master Seventh disappeared into Deep Earth, Xu Qing clasped hands and bowed deeply.

After, Xu Qing went to Brilliant Heaven. His Eldest Brother was still there, slumbering just as before. Given Xu Qing’s current cultivation base and experiences, he now had a fairly good idea of his Eldest Brother’s background.

Eldest Brother has no connection to the primeval motherworld. Instead... he’s connected to the Living God Umbilical Cord.

Eventually, he left Brilliant Heaven and went to Mount Daybreak. There, he continued to work on the cultivation progress he had been engaged in for the last 300 years. He had already reached the point of grasping at the Immortal Paragon level. His path to Immortal Paragon lay in fusing the binary planets. However, it was going to take a long time.

Xu Qing wasn’t anxious. In fact, he didn’t immerse himself completely in cultivation. His heart was calm as he experienced life. He spent time with Plumdark. Seasons passed. Years went by.

One day on Mount Daybreak, Xu Qing grinned as Plumdark talked about how they had met years ago. But then, something inside of him twitched, and he looked up at the dome of heaven.

An instant later, he remained on Mount Daybreak while another version of himself appeared in the sky, right in front of the looming face of Eminent Desolation. Looking at the closed eyes, he settled in place cross-legged and waited. After a few dozen breaths of time passed....

The eyes of Eminent Desolation, which had not even twitched for the last thousand years... slowly opened! They were no longer like they had been in the past, with one being crimson and the other empty. The eyes were clear as they looked at Xu Qing.

“You’re awake,” Xu Qing said calmly.

Eminent Desolation was quiet for a moment. And then, all of Revered Ancient filled with intense rumbling. If you could look at Revered Ancient from out in the starry sky, you would see Eminent Desolation’s spine, which looked like a giant centipede wrapping up Revered Ancient. But now, it was unwrapping! In an instant, it unfurled, and then began to shrink down.

So did Eminent Desolation’s complete face! In the briefest of moments, they both disappeared! All people in Revered Ancient felt their hearts racing. From generation to generation, that broken face had always hung above them, but now it was gone!

A figure appeared in front of Xu Qing. He wore a black robe and had black hair. He sat cross-legged in front of Xu Qing, then looked up. His face resembled Xu Qing’s.

“I showed up,” he said softly, “and for years, I caused a lot of trouble for you and your world. It was the flame of karma in my fate, and it will always exist like that. The day I achieved godly ascension, I swore a godly oath... that I would bring back all the people who died because of me, and make sure they share in my glory!”

Xu Qing looked long and hard at the person in front of him. “Should I call you Zi Qing? Or Eminent Desolation?”

“I don’t even know who I am. Maybe I’m Eminent Desolation, or maybe I’m Zi Qing. Maybe I’m a combination of them. But I do prefer the name Zi Qing.” Zi Qing looked at Xu Qing and smiled.

“So, are you finally going to tell me who I am?” Xu Qing asked calmly.

Zi Qing’s eyes flashed with a profound gleam. “Do you really want to know?”

Xu Qing nodded.

Zi Qing quietly looked off into the distance. When he spoke, it was as if his voice resounded from ancient times into Xu Qing’s ears.

“Your fusion is almost complete. You’re almost at the point of completing the final step possible in the higher star rings. Whether it’s God Paragon, or the path you chose, that of the Immortal Paragon, the reality is that there is no difference between previous and subsequent realms. It comes down to the strength of your enlightenment of authority. In fact, to some degree... once you’ve reached that level, you’ve reached it. That’s it. Those are the limitations of the higher star rings.

“But that’s not the limit for you and me, or the people who came before us. Given the earliest records of the Grue World, there is a higher level after that. In the Grue World, it’s called... the Living Grue. And in the higher star rings, it’s called Living God. In the future, you cultivators will come up with your own name for it. You’ll call it Ethereal Apex. It’s the true form of the dao itself.”[1]

With that, Zi Qing looked back at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing thought for a moment, then said, “Presumably, the only way to reach that level is to leave the higher star rings and walk the Living God Umbilical Cord!”

Zi Qing nodded. “The term Living God Umbilical Cord itself comes from the Grue World. Back when the Grue World ruled, they called it the Xeno-Grue Umbilical Cord. It’s the only way to leave the higher star rings. Walk that path, and you can pursue a higher level of cultivation.

“Years ago, I reached the depths of the Living God Umbilical Cord.... During the process, I got stronger. I guess you could say that anyone who walks the Living God Umbilical Cord will, the moment they enter it, begin to get stronger. Anyone who walks the entire length of it will become a Living God. Unfortunately, I failed to take the final step.” Zi Qing sighed.

“And that has something to do with me?” Xu Qing suddenly said.

The look in Zi Qing’s eyes grew more profound. He nodded slowly. “In the depths of the Living God Umbilical Cord I saw a tunnel full of doors. And every door represented a Living God or a Living Grue! Whenever a new one appears, a new door will show up in that tunnel.”

When Xu Qing heard that, his gaze hardened.

“Inscribe your name above that door,” Zi Qing continued softly, “then open it and walk through... and your breakthrough is complete. At the end of the tunnel is a chair. And on it... is a person. In his hand is a violet crystal. Next to him is the skeleton of a woman, as well as a shriveled blue worm. All have been dead for a very long time.

“He sat there alone, pulsing with ancientness. It seemed as if he was trying to find the Grue World.... I don’t know who he was, but the moment I saw him, a name appeared in my mind. Si Yu! He was nearing death. And to prevent me from reaching my peak, he stopped me from inscribing my name above the door. And then we fought a battle to the death![2]

“I lost. With my body mangled, I fled. However, he didn’t achieve a full victory.... And that is because he passed away into meditation there in the depths of the Living God Umbilical cord.

“But before he passed away, he borrowed the power of my escape to create a possibility. Thinking back now, I realize that he might have stopped me because, before I arrived, he had reached the end of the line. But then I showed up, and he suddenly had hope. That’s why he didn’t kill me when he won. He let me go on purpose... to make room for that possibility.

“That possibility, plus the possibility I created for myself, intersected. Both came to the primeval motherworld of Brilliant Heaven. And that led to you.”

Zi Qing looked at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing said nothing, though his heart was pounding. He thought about his violet crystal, and he thought about the tunnel in his soul, and the chair... Most importantly, he thought about the skeleton of the woman that Zi Qing had mentioned, and the blue worm....

Time passed....

Zi Qing rose. “Now that I’m awake, I’m going to walk the Living God Umbilical Cord again. This time, I don’t think someone will oppose me. And you... are going to let me go, right?”

Zi Qing smiled.

Xu Qing nodded.

***

The Living God Umbilical Cord existed everywhere in the higher star rings. However, opening it required the will of one of the higher star rings. Most of the time, such wills wouldn’t casually open the way.

For Zi Qing, though, that wasn’t a problem. Hē chose to walk the Living God Umbilical Cord in the Eighth Star Ring, and the will of that star ring opened the way without even being asked. A huge vortex appeared. It was the entrance to the Living God Umbilical Cord.

Zi Qing did not leave in secret. On the day of hīs departure... all of the God Paragons in all of the higher star rings came to bear witness. That included the giant beast and the black pagoda. Thēy knew that if Eminent Desolation wanted to kill thēm, it would happen whether thēy showed up or not. Therefore... it made more sense to show up calmly.

Also present was the Immortal Paragon of the Fifth Star Ring, and standing next to him was Grandmaster Bai. Just like all the God Paragons, they looked on attentively at Zi Qing and Xu Qing.

Zi Qing stood at the entrance of the Living God Umbilical Cord and looked back at all of thēm.

“Are any among you willing to travel with me?” hē asked.

Hīs word struck all of the God Paragons to the core. All of thēm knew exactly how dangerous the Living God Umbilical Cord was. But thēy also knew that it was the only way to reach a higher level. Anyone who could reach the level of God Paragon was obviously a person of daring who was capable of pursuing difficult goals. As long as there was a possibility of advancement, thēy wouldn’t just stop at thēir current level. And this was an opportunity!

In the end... some of the God Paragons made the decision to go with Zi Qing. Most did not. Like Xu Qing, thēy chose to simply see the others off.

It wasn’t until the Living God Umbilical Cord faded away that Xu Qing looked away from that spot. He did not see the tunnel Zi Qing had talked about.

The other paragons chose to leave. People who reached the level of a God Paragon or an Immortal Paragon didn’t casually go around fighting each other. Gods and immortals walked different paths, but compared to the Living God Umbilical Cord, they counted for little.

Before leaving, Grandmaster Bai and the Immortal Paragon of the Fifth Star Ring talked about old times. Then they went back to their respective star rings.

Xu Qing returned to Mount Daybreak, where he smiled as Plumdark continued to talk about how they had met.

***

Time flowed by ceaselessly. The story of the timescape went on. One story after another. One event after another. New cultivators rose to prominence. Old cultivators nursed lingering grudges. It was the same with the gods. Cycles returned to the beginning. It was as if nothing had ever changed, not for aeons.

As time passed, the Living God Umbilical Cord appeared on a few instances. Every time it did, God Paragons chose to leave and try to become Living Gods!

Nobody knew whether or not Zi Qing and those who left with hīm succeeded or not. Nobody knew whether subsequent God Paragons who left to follow thēm survived. It was as if it was impossible to look into what lay beyond the higher star rings, or beyond the timescape.

One year, in the third month, during Awakening of Insects, Erniu woke up. When he did, all of Brilliant Heaven shook as proud laughter echoed into Revered Ancient.

“Little Ah Qing! Your Eldest Brother is awake! And now, I’m even more amazing than before! I can finally help you take care of that, what’s his name? Zi Qing! And that broken face, well I’ll—”

Looking very haughty, Erniu strode out of Brilliant Heaven and into Revered Ancient. And when he looked up into the dome of heaven... he realized the broken face wasn’t there. His eyes widened, and his voice trailed off. He stared mutely up into the sky. Spinning around, he scanned the sky a few times....

“Uh... what’s going on? Where’s the broken face?”

“Eldest Brother....” Xu Qing said. Ripples flowed through the air as Xu Qing appeared. He was holding hands with Plumdark and smiling at Erniu.

Erniu stared at Xu Qing for a moment before inhaling sharply. He had just sensed an aura on Xu Qing that surpassed that of a God Lord. It was the aura of....

“God Paragon? Immortal Paragon? Wh-what... what’s going on here? I just went to sleep for a bit and everything changed.... The broken face is gone? Zi Qing is gone? Little Ah Qing somehow became a paragon?” Erniu was visibly stunned.

Xu Qing smiled warmly. “I’ve been waiting for you for a long time, Eldest Brother. I’m going to walk the Living God Umbilical Cord. Do you... want to join me?”

***

It was the seventh time that the Living God Umbilical Cord opened since Zi Qing left. This time, it opened in the Ninth Star Ring. The Immortal Paragon and Grandmaster Bai came to see them off, not join them. They would stay behind in their higher star ring.

When the vortex opened, Xu Qing stood in front of it with Plumdark and Erniu. He looked at the Immortal Paragon and Grandmaster Bai.

Grandmaster Bai nodded. “Remember what I told you back then. The world is a tavern for living beings. And the timescape is an old guest.... Back then, you saw me off. Now, I’ll see you off. As long as we don’t die, we’ll meet again.”

Xu Qing clasped hands and bowed deeply to Grandmaster Bai.

Then he turned to look at Revered Ancient. With the wave of his hand, he gathered up the spirits of all the people he cared about from his memories, including his father and mother.

Eyes filling with determination, he looked at Plumdark and Erniu. Plumdark nodded, and entered Xu Qing’s protection.

Erniu turned into a blue worm that hopped onto Xu Qing’s shoulder.

“Let’s go!” he barked. “It’s just some umbilical cord, right? Let’s go in and see what yummy stuff is inside!”

Xu Qing smiled. Then, without any hesitation, he approached the vortex and stepped inside. He began to walk the Living God Umbilical Cord. He was pursuing a higher level. The level of... the Ethereal Apex!

“I’m not sure how many times I’ve done this before, but this time, I’m definitely going to succeed!”

-----

The End.

1. The two characters here come from the Daodejing, where they are used to describe the dao as being formless and boundless. Combining them to make a cultivation level seems to convey a sense of infinite transcendence, ultimate enlightenment, etc. ☜

2. There does not seem to be any linguistic connection between the name Si Yu and Xu Qing. What's more, Si Yu does not appear in any of the author's other works, as far as I can tell. It seems to me that it's only relevant to this chapter, possibly as a hook or mystery box for a future novel. Or it might never be mentioned again. Also, it's always possible that I missed some connection. If you thought of something, feel free to explain in the comments section. ☜