Chapter 2386 The Imperishable Lord's Persuasion Towards Kindness
"Now, what's happening in the illusory world is a reflection of past events in the artificial realm," explained Pavilion Master Chu.
She gazed up at the shattered 'eye' in the sky.
"What's going on?" Lady Onion clutched her green onion sprout with both hands, her voice filled with panic. The sight of the broken eye in the sky filled her with a profound sense of unease, as if something immensely important was on the brink of destruction, and the world itself was about to shatter. She had no place to hide.
"We just witnessed the Wielder of the Will disappearing. Such a projection will appear in all the worlds, even in some hidden places," Pavilion Master Chu explained while her voice wavered. Despite being an immortal, she was affected by the aura of destruction.
The 'eye' projected in the sky symbolized the Heavenly Dao that was about to be destroyed, specifically the Heavenly Dao corresponding to the Three-Eyed Sovereign. With the Heavenly Dao's disappearance, the Heavenly Dao laws crumbled and left the Immortal Throne vacant. It paved the way for supreme experts and secluded immortals from myriad worlds to emerge onto the stage.
"Combined with Shuhang suddenly sporting the 'Handsome Three-Eyed' appearance, it suggests that the ancient god of this artificial world is linked to the Heavenly Dao of the Three-Eyed Sovereign. This is a relic of the Heavenly Dao," remarked the sword.
"It's highly likely that the disappearance of the Wielder of the Will back then caused the ancient gods of this small world to go out of control and lead to the destruction of this artificial realm," continued Fellow Daoist Stone Tablet as he followed the group's speculation.
In addition to Song Shuhang, Fellow Daoist Stone Tablet felt that he and Fellow Daoist Scarlet Heaven Sword were growing closer. Perhaps in the future, they may merge as one.
As predicted by Fellow Daoist Stone Tablet and sword, after the 'eye projection' in the sky completely shattered, the ancient god 'Song Shuhang' seemed to lose control and went berserk.
Hundreds of calamities instantly befell the artificial world: massive tsunamis, countless volcanic eruptions, falling meteorites, and violent ground tremors.
There was no escape.
The plot advanced rapidly. It was akin to watching a movie on fast-forward. In the face of unstoppable disasters, almost all living beings in the entire artificial world faced extinction.
Just as the world teetered on the brink of collapse and despair, the ancient god Song Shuhang split apart and gave rise to another massive entity.
It resembled a glutinous rice ball that was covered in tentacles with a massive eye at its center. Despite its menacing appearance, this glutinous rice ball embodied a facet of the ancient god's benevolence.
It set out to quell the rampaging ancient god and urged it toward kindness to prevent the destruction of the artificial world. However, persuading a berserk and irrational ancient god was futile.
Thus, Glutinous Rice Ball resorted to force to bring the ancient god to reason. Its tentacles were exceptionally potent, and despite being a fragment separated from the ancient god's body, its combat capabilities matched those of an ancient god. Moreover, it possessed wisdom and retained its rationality.
After a battle lasting years, perhaps decades, Glutinous Rice Ball finally subjugated the ancient god after inflicting severe injuries upon it. Eventually, it sealed the ancient god within the core of the artificial world.
To secure the seal, Glutinous Rice Ball drew upon the power of all living beings in the world, be it deceased or surviving, as they willingly became part of the seal.
The plot within the illusory reality reached a temporary conclusion. With the rampaging ancient god quelled, the surviving inhabitants of the artificial world began to take root and thrive.
...
...
"This is thrilling. It's much more exciting than watching a movie," Lady Onion sighed.
No matter how realistic a movie might be, it couldn't compare to witnessing two world-destroying giants in action.
"Soft Feather, did you notice something?" Pavilion Master Chu inquired in a daze while observing the black-skinned Soft Feather being lost in thought.
Soft Feather nodded whimsically. "I find the tentacles on that ball very familiar. They resemble the tentacles of the Immortal Lord from the past, the ones Senior Song defeated."
Pavilion Master Chu was left bewildered.
The sword was speechless.
"Could it be a coincidence?" Fellow Daoist Stone Tablet pondered.
"I'm not entirely sure. It just seems that way," replied black-skinned Soft Feather.
As the 'plot' concluded, the entire illusory world entered a momentary state of tranquility.
"Strange. Since the tentacle sealed the rampaging ancient god in the plot, why is the seal currently dominated by 'Unknown White'?" the sword asked in puzzlement.
"There was a considerable amount of time between my master's Dao vindication and this eyeball's appearance. It's possible that after my master's Dao vindication, something unexpected occurred in this artificial world and caused the ancient gods to go out of control once more. My Lord then arrived and strengthened the seal of this artificial world," speculated Fellow Daoist Stone Tablet.
The Inner World had been borrowed by the Immortal Phoenix Fairy of the beast cultivation world before White of the Heavenly Dao vindicated his Dao, and it was placed in the restricted area of Jia'er's Holy Mountain. Consequently, Fellow Daoist Stone Tablet remained oblivious to events that transpired after White of the Heavenly Dao's Dao vindication.
"That might be the next arc. If Shuhang's 'illusory reality' continues, we might witness the appearance of White Heavenly Axiom," Pavilion Master Chu guessed.
As soon as she finished speaking, Song Shuhang, sealed within the nucleus, slowly opened his three eyes.
The illusory reality surrounding him dissipated completely.
"Argh... My muscles ache," Song Shuhang exclaimed.
He realized that he had been frozen in the posture of a white crane spreading its wings and a golden rooster standing alone and was unable to move.
"Has your seclusion ended?" the sword inquired.
It knew that Song Shuhang wouldn't remain secluded for too long.
"It's not over yet, but before I continue my seclusion, there's something I need to do," Song Shuhang replied.
"What is it?" asked black-skinned Soft Feather.
"Move this artificial world," Song Shuhang said with a smile as he reached out with his hands.
"The World Refining Holy Ape was created by him."
The holy apes surrounding the True Dragon emerged one by one and formed a circle as they held hands.
"Isn't this the sealed area of Unknown White? Will your World Refining Holy Ape be of any use here?" Pavilion Master Chu inquired.
"It doesn't matter. I have the authority now," Song Shuhang reassured while patting his lower abdomen.
Around his 8 Nascent Souls + Gold Core, he had 33 'ancient' energies left by Unknown White that granted him special privileges in this world.
The World Refining Holy Ape was activated, and a passage opened at the core of the artificial world. Simultaneously, Song Shuhang willed the Inner World to create an interface within this passage.