Chapter 450 - 400: Crisis of Heaven and Earth

"Something’s not right?"

A word of warning from Great Sun Purple Extreme made Qi Yun, who was looking up at the standoff between the True Monarchs in the celestial vault, frown slightly.

The frown was so slight it was almost imperceptible.

He remained standing with his hands clasped behind his back, his deep blue Daoist robe perfectly still. His gaze remained fixed on the host of True Monarchs looming in the celestial vault.

But in the next instant—

A Great Sun Dao Intent—warm, gentle, and radiant enough to illuminate all of creation—surged from the depths of his Purple Mansion.

It was the Daoist Intent of Great Sun Purple Extreme True Monarch, with whom he shared a common origin. It was the most direct perceptual link between this Dharma Body and his true self.

Within the Great Sun Dao Intent, there were no words, no images.

Only an indescribable sense of alarm.

Qi Yun’s faint frown abruptly hardened.

In the depths of his vast, cyan-gold eyes, his pupils abruptly contracted to the size of a pinprick!

An inexplicable chill, like a venomous viper of pure ice, exploded from his heart without warning. It spread through his limbs in an instant, making every hair on his body stand on end.

A moment of terrible clarity!

He finally understood what Great Sun Purple Extreme’s warning—"something’s not right"—truly meant.

Slowly, Qi Yun lifted his gaze, looking once more at the host of True Monarchs dominating the celestial vault.

True Monarch of No Dao Extreme Law stood with his hands clasped behind him, his aura as deep and still as an abyss. A near-maniacal light burned in his eyes, which seemed capable of freezing all of creation.

Qingyuan Dao Seeking True Monarch rested his right hand on his sword hilt, his Sword Intent soaring to the heavens. His eyes, once as clear as an infant’s, were now as cold as the Ancient Cold Abyss.

Nine Revolutions Undying True Monarch grinned broadly, the battle intent in his golden eyes so strong it was almost palpable.

Flickering light shone from the ghostly green eyes of Nine Nether Sun-devouring True Monarch. Black mist roiled around him, radiating a terrifying aura that threatened to devour everything.

Then there was Saint Wang, and the handful of other True Monarchs—

Each held their own ground, locked in a tense standoff.

The sheer might radiating from them—enough to make the void itself collapse—intertwined, clashed, and ground against itself in the space between them.

The celestial vault trembled, the earth quaked, and the very river of time began to boil.

It was as if at any moment, the Profound Yellow Origin Realm itself would be utterly annihilated in the battle between these supreme beings.

But as Qi Yun looked upon this scene now—

He felt a chill run down his spine.

’What kind of beings were True Monarchs?’

’They were Supreme Beings who understood Yin Yang, knew karma, grasped the workings of Heaven and Earth, and had clear insight into the Great Dao!’

’Which one of them hadn’t weathered countless tribulations, their minds as firm as bedrock?’

’Which one wasn’t a meticulous strategist, planning every move with utmost care?’

’Which one of them didn’t value their path to the Dao more than life itself?’

’How could a few simple words drive them to such a pointless, hot-headed conflict?’

’How could they act like common brutes, resorting to violence over a mere disagreement?’

’Even...’

’...go so far as to spout such reckless words as "sink the Profound Yellow Origin Realm"?’

’Sink the Profound Yellow Origin Realm?’

The hands hidden within Qi Yun’s wide sleeves abruptly clenched into fists!

’This is the place where True Monarchs attain their Dao!’

’It is where their Fruit Positions are anchored!’

’It is the sanctum of their True Spirits!’

’To sink the Profound Yellow Realm would be to take their own Dao Fruits down with them—an act of mutual destruction!’

’Wu Dao may be mad, but he is by no means stupid. Qingyuan True Monarch may be proud, but he is never reckless. Nine Revolutions Undying True Monarch may be warlike, but he is not suicidal!’

’For them to say such things, for them to fall into such a reckless, all-or-nothing state—’

’There is only one explanation!’

’Someone is pulling the strings from the shadows, influencing their temperaments and clouding their minds!’

’But...’

’But what kind of beings were True Monarchs?’

’They were Supreme Beings who had vested their True Spirits in their Fruit Positions, suspended high above the river of time to watch over the turning of epochs!’

’The only power capable of affecting their tempers, of swaying their very minds, could only be...’

Qi Yun’s pupils contracted violently once more.

’A being Above the True Monarch!’

’That legendary being, long rumored to have transcended this realm and risen above the river of time, an existence even True Monarchs must look up to—was orchestrating this from the shadows!’

’Pushing them toward this great war!’

The chill surrounding Qi Yun grew even more intense.

He lowered his gaze slightly, concealing the fleeting terror in his eyes, leaving only a placid, bottomless calm in its place.

But within his wide sleeves, his hands were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

’Above the True Monarch...’

’Above the True Monarch...’

...

Qi Yun’s thoughts spun frantically in the depths of his mind.

’I was able to notice this only because my true self, Great Sun Purple Extreme, is walking a new path to Dao attainment. He isn’t bound by a Dao Fruit, and was therefore spared the influence of that being from Above the True Monarch.’

’But even if I know all this, what can I do?’

Qi Yun’s eyes shifted as thoughts flashed through his mind like lightning.

’Should I speak up and warn them?’

’That being from Above the True Monarch can influence even the True Monarchs.’

’If I dared to speak out and break this deadlock, the moment the thought even formed, that mysterious existence would surely detect it. I would be instantly annihilated, wiped out so completely that not even my True Spirit could escape!’

’But if I just stand by and do nothing...’

’What would happen once the True Monarchs began their battle?’

’A clash between two True Monarchs is enough to turn thousands of miles of mountains and rivers to dust. A chaotic battle between a dozen of them? Forget the Foundation Establishment cultivators and Great Masters below—the Profound Yellow Origin Realm itself would be beaten back into primordial chaos!’

’At that point, all of my grand plans and meticulous schemes would be nothing more than an insignificant speck of dust in the ensuing chaos!’

’What can I do?’

’What can I do?!’

Qi Yun closed his eyes, his consciousness sinking into the deepest recesses of his Purple Mansion.

In his Daluo Heaven, countless streams of Dao Rhyme intertwined and collided, simulating every possible outcome!

He tried to grasp, from amidst the utterly chaotic fragments of the future, a single thread—

—a glimmer of light that could break the stalemate!

One breath.

Two breaths.

Three breaths.

There was no path to survival!

Not a shred of hope!

A fine sheen of cold sweat broke out on Qi Yun’s forehead.

But in that moment of near despair—

A single glimmer of light suddenly appeared in the endless chaos!

The light was so faint it was almost imperceptible, yet like a lone spark in the darkness, it instantly illuminated his entire mind!