Chapter 534 - 470: Mountain and River Cauldron

The Profound Yellow grand cauldron was suspended in the void. Nine divine dragons coiled around its body, breathing the purest Profound Yellow Qi.

At the bottom of the cauldron, the miniaturized *Vast Divine Land Mountains and Rivers Map* slowly circulated. The ten thousand miles of picturesque mountains and rivers within the map, the distinctly marked cities and field paths, and even the pedestrians and carriages traversing the marketplaces and streets were depicted in minute detail. It was as if the vitality and destiny of an entire prosperous dynasty had been completely sealed within this single cauldron.

Qi Yun’s gaze fell upon the grand cauldron. As his Primordial Daoist Intent circulated, he carefully savored the absolute will contained within it: "Wherever I am, there is an unbreakable fortress."

After a moment, he spoke slowly. "The Mountains and Rivers Cauldron... truly lives up to its reputation."

Cai Shen, having long been unable to restrain himself, transformed into a streak of golden light and circled the grand cauldron three times before landing back beside Qi Yun. His face was filled with excitement and deep emotion.

"Fourteenth Brother! Fourteenth Brother!" he called out twice, his voice trembling slightly. "It’s me! Old Eighteenth! Are... are you alright?"

The Mountains and Rivers Cauldron remained completely motionless. The nine Profound Yellow divine dragons coiling around its body maintained their posture of breathing in the cosmos, and the map at the bottom of the cauldron continued to circulate endlessly, yet no response came. The entire grand cauldron was like a dead object, its silence anxiety-inducing.

The excitement on Cai Shen’s face gradually froze. He opened his mouth and called out a few more times, but his words still sank like stones in the ocean.

"Fourteenth Brother..." His voice lowered, revealing an indescribable bitterness. "Can you... not hear me?"

Qi Yun watched this scene quietly, the colorful light in his eyes condensing slightly. He raised his hand and lightly pressed down his five fingers. A gentle yet irresistible Primordial Power, like an invisible hand, softly covered the body of the Mountains and Rivers Cauldron.

HUMMMM.

The grand cauldron trembled slightly. The nine coiled divine dragons raised their heads simultaneously, a flash of light seemingly darting through their dragon eyes. But immediately after, the vibration subsided, and the grand cauldron returned to silence, as if that momentary response had merely been an illusion.

Qi Yun frowned slightly. He could clearly sense that the interior of the Mountains and Rivers Cauldron contained a majestic power beyond imagination. That power slumbered extremely deeply and heavily, like an immemorial volcano frozen under countless layers of Profound Ice. Although it showed signs of surging magma, it was firmly suppressed and unable to erupt.

"It isn’t that it can’t hear you," Qi Yun said, slowly withdrawing his hand, his gaze profound. "It’s that... it can’t wake up."

Hearing this, Cai Shen’s expression shifted slightly. He hurriedly extended his Divine Sense to carefully perceive the state of the Mountains and Rivers Cauldron. A moment later, his face grew even uglier, and his voice went dry. "This... this is..."

"It has been sealed for too long." Qi Yun’s voice was calm, yet it carried a trace of coldness that saw through to the essence. "The forbidden seals of over a hundred True Monarchs, layered one upon another, have not only sealed its movements but also its spiritual nature. Over the years, its spiritual nature fell into a deep slumber, resulting in its current state."

"Then... what do we do?" Cai Shen grew anxious. "Fourteenth Brother, it..."

"Why panic?" Qi Yun interrupted him, his tone as flat as ever. "Since it could be sealed, it can naturally be unsealed. It will just take some time."

He raised his right hand, palm facing upwards. A wisp of chaotic colorful intent flowed from his palm. Initially as thin as a gossamer thread, it rapidly expanded and spread out, transforming into a hazy, colorful light that shrouded the entire Mountains and Rivers Cauldron.

HUMMMM.

The grand cauldron trembled once again, this time much more violently than before. On the cauldron’s body, the originally silent Profound Yellow Qi began to circulate slowly. The light in the eyes of the nine divine dragons flickered erratically. Some long-slumbering will was having its door gently knocked upon by this wisp of Primordial Power.

"Step back," Qi Yun told Cai Shen.

Cai Shen did not dare delay. He hurriedly turned into a streak of golden light and retreated to the edge of the Grand Array, watching from afar.

Qi Yun said no more. He sat cross-legged in the void and formed a profound and unfathomable Seal Technique before his chest. The chaotic colorful intent shrouding the Mountains and Rivers Cauldron suddenly thickened. Like invisible tentacles, it carefully probed into the interior of the cauldron and began to smooth out the spiritual nature’s meridians, which had been thrown into utter disarray by the Sealing Power.

This was an extremely delicate process. The Mountains and Rivers Cauldron had slumbered for an unknown number of tens of thousands of years, and its spiritual nature had long been suppressed by the seals of over a hundred True Monarchs to the point of near depletion. To awaken it, one could not attack forcefully with brute strength; otherwise, not only would it be ineffective, but it might also damage its foundation. Only by using the Primordial Dao’s characteristic of Commanding All Skills could he smooth it out, nourish it, and activate it bit by bit.

Time slowly slipped away in the silence.

Within the Grand Array, only that mass of chaotic colorful intent circulated quietly. It occasionally flickered, swelling and shrinking like some ancient and mysterious breathing.

An unknown amount of time passed.

HUMMMM.

The Mountains and Rivers Cauldron trembled once again.

This tremor was completely different from the previous ones. On the cauldron’s body, the nine coiled divine dragons raised their heads and let out a long roar. Though the dragon roar was weak, it carried an unyielding, high-spirited will that had endured through the ages, causing the surrounding void to ripple slightly.

The *Vast Divine Land Mountains and Rivers Map* at the bottom of the cauldron—its originally static cities, mountains, rivers, and pedestrians—slowly began to "come alive"!

In the cities, merchants came and went, children played, and officials patrolled the streets. Among the mountains and rivers, woodcutters chopped wood, hunters chased deer, and hermits played the zither. On the rivers, fishing boats sang in the evening, merchant ships set sail, and white egrets skimmed the water... A picture scroll of a prosperous era slowly unfurled at the bottom of the cauldron, vivid and lifelike, capturing all the earthly life from the peak of the Golden Tang Dynasty within this small cauldron.

"Fourteenth Brother!" Cai Shen was so agitated that his voice changed pitch. "You... you’re awake?!"

The grand cauldron gave no response. However, the light within the eyes of the nine divine dragons had stabilized and no longer flickered erratically. On the cauldron’s body, the originally dim defensive Dao Patterns also began to circulate slowly, emitting a warm and resolute glow.

Qi Yun slowly withdrew his hands, the colorful intent in his eyes receding slightly.

"Its spiritual nature has awakened, but it is still too weak. It needs time to recover slowly. During this period, let it stay by my side to be nourished by Primordial Power. Given time, it will naturally be restored."

Hearing this, Cai Shen nodded hastily and gave a deep bow toward the Mountains and Rivers Cauldron. "Fourteenth Brother, rest and recuperate in peace. With Qi the Kid here, he will definitely keep you safe."

The Mountains and Rivers Cauldron remained silent. However, among the nine divine dragons, the one positioned right at the front of the cauldron with the most proudly raised head, ever so slightly, as if using all its strength, dipped its head toward Qi Yun.

This movement was extremely subtle—so subtle it was almost imperceptible. But Qi Yun saw it.

A faint curve lifted the corners of his mouth. Without another word, he waved his large sleeve, and the Mountains and Rivers Cauldron transformed into a streak of Profound Yellow Flowing Light, vanishing into his sleeve.

Silence returned to the Grand Array. Cai Shen let out a long breath. The intertwined excitement and lingering fear on his face gradually smoothed out, transforming into the relief of surviving a disaster.

"Qi the Kid," he said, turning his head to look at Qi Yun, his voice solemn. "No words of thanks can repay such a great favor. You saved Fourteenth Brother’s life. In the future, whenever you have need of us two brothers, just ask."

"There’s no need." Qi Yun waved his hand, his expression calm. "Between you and me, there is no need to be so polite." He paused, his gaze growing profound. "Besides... this Mountains and Rivers Cauldron might be of great use to me in the future."

Hearing this, Cai Shen’s expression turned stern as he instantly understood the meaning behind Qi Yun’s words.

The Dao Kings’ schemes, True Monarch Shen Yi’s calculations, the approach of the great tide of time... All of this was like a massive invisible net that was slowly tightening. And Qi Yun was right at the very center of this net. The Mountains and Rivers Cauldron specialized in defense and suppression, making it exactly the kind of assistance Qi Yun needed most right now.

"Let’s go," Qi Yun said, not elaborating further as he flicked his sleeve and stood up. "It’s time to head back."

He raised his hand and gave a light wave toward the Primordial Isolation Grand Array enveloping this star region.

HUMMMM.

The Grand Array’s light barrier dissipated in response, turning into a sky full of chaotic colorful intent that surged back into Qi Yun’s body like a receding tide. The dead void and distant starlight from the outside world once again entered their view.

Qi Yun identified their direction. A Nine-Colored Auspicious Cloud naturally manifested beneath his feet, lifting him and Cai Shen as they prepared to fly toward the Profound Yellow Origin Realm.

However, at the exact moment he was about to move—

"Hmm?"

Qi Yun’s brows furrowed slightly, and his gaze suddenly sharpened. He lowered his head and looked at his waist. There, an ancient Token, its entire body circulating with a faint chaotic colorful intent, was warming up slightly.

This Token was the very keepsake gifted to him by True Monarch Shen Yi. By holding it, one could sense the direction of the Longevity Immortal Island and travel there without hindrance.

At this moment, the chaotic colorful intent on the Token’s surface was flickering at a bizarre frequency, as if something from the great beyond, from the direction of the Longevity Immortal Island, was transmitting something to him.

Qi Yun’s gaze focused slightly, and he immersed his Heart and Spirit into the Token.

In the next instant—

A blurry, intermittent thought, like a whisper that had traversed eternal ages, faintly echoed deep within his Heart and Spirit:

"The flower... is about to bloom...

"The fruit... is about to fall...

"Are you... ready?"

The voice was very soft. It was as soft as the wind, as a sigh, as an insignificant wave in the long river of time. Yet, falling into Qi Yun’s ears, it exploded with a deafening boom like millions of tons of thunder!

His hand, gripping the Token, involuntarily tightened slightly.

This voice... belonged to True Monarch Shen Yi! But the meaning behind these words... The flower was about to bloom? The fruit was about to fall? What flower? What fruit?

The colorful intent in Qi Yun’s eyes circulated intensely as he pushed his Primordial Dao to the limit, attempting to capture more information from that blurry thought. However, the voice only sounded once before completely falling silent, with no further echo. The chaotic colorful intent on the Token’s surface also regained its calm, as if everything just now had been merely a hallucination.

"What’s wrong?" Cai Shen asked, unable to hold back upon noticing Qi Yun’s abnormality.

Qi Yun did not reply. He stood quietly in the void, holding the slightly warm Token in his hand. His gaze pierced through the endless darkness and starlight, looking toward the great beyond, toward the deepest depths of the long river of time.

A long time passed.

The corners of his mouth slowly curled into a very faint curve. Within that smile lay coldness, fighting intent, and even a trace of... eager anticipation.

"It’s nothing," he said flatly, storing the Token away in his sleeve. "It’s just that someone... can’t wait any longer."

"Can’t wait any longer?" Cai Shen blanked. "Can’t wait for what?"

Qi Yun did not answer. The Nine-Colored Auspicious Cloud beneath his feet suddenly accelerated, turning into a streak of Flowing Light that tore through the void. Carrying him and Cai Shen, it sped rapidly in the direction of the Profound Yellow Origin Realm.

Behind them, that dead void returned to darkness. Only the faint Profound Yellow Qi, left behind when the Mountains and Rivers Cauldron had appeared earlier, still slowly drifted about like some sort of silent declaration.

Meanwhile, deep within the unknowable river of time, upon that transcendent Longevity Immortal Island.

Before the thatched cottage.

True Monarch Shen Yi stood by the riverbank with his hands behind his back. As he gazed at the ripples that had completely settled, the unfathomable smile on his lips slowly widened.

"It’s almost time..." he muttered to himself. His voice was soft, yet it revealed a chilling certainty. "Almost time."

Behind him, True Monarch Feng Xi still sat quietly on her Meditation Mat. The Cyan Gold grass vine in her hands had been woven into a lifelike butterfly. Its wings quivered slightly, as if it would fly away at any moment.

She raised her eyes and cast a faint glance at True Monarch Shen Yi’s back. Her gaze was cold and clear, and she offered not a single word. Only a very soft, nearly inaudible sigh slipped past her lips, scattering with the wind into the eternal river of time.

...