Chapter 446: Yun Qingzi's Scheme

Translucent, flowing illusory light drifted through the boundless void, like a curtain woven from crystalline matter. Within this strange spacetime constructed from the Star-Borne's "memories," Yu Sheng quietly pondered some questions.

Anka'ira, the Star-Borne… what would be next?

The Beauty Goddess, Heka's Star, the Tree Angel—what lay behind these known "Dark Angels"?

One after another, "Dark Angels" appeared in this world. Their very "arrival" seemed to herald certain things; at the edge of the known universe, certain "truths" appeared to be manifesting in unsettling forms.

Within this space governed by memory and consciousness, time seemed fluid. Yu Sheng didn't know how long he had been lost in thought, but when he came back to himself, Yun Qingzi was still standing quietly before him.

"For many years past, this seed has been seeking a place to take root," the old man said slowly. "I was devoured by it, but by a twist of fate, I gained Its memories. After repeatedly examining those memories, I reached only one conclusion—with mortal strength, one cannot resist this extraterrestrial evil."

Yu Sheng stroked his chin. "Extraterrestrial evil, huh…"

Yun Qingzi's expression was wooden. "From different standpoints, any enemy of humanity is an evil. No matter how pitiable or lamentable, it remains a catastrophe—It may only want to live, but for It to live, people in this world must die."

Yu Sheng raised an eyebrow. "So you really were trying to solve the Star-Borne problem?"

Yun Qingzi was silent for a few seconds, then spoke with a sigh. "I admit, in the last few hundred years… I have indeed begun to be influenced by the Star-Borne, and the influence has deepened day by day. So in the end, even I myself am not sure how much of those thoughts and methods came from my original intention. But at least one thing is correct—the Emperor's Legacy was the only possibility I could think of to solve the problem, based on my understanding back then."

Hearing that familiar term again, Yu Sheng couldn't help frowning. "What exactly is the Emperor's Legacy?"

Yun Qingzi did not speak. He simply turned and lightly waved his hand through the crystalline curtain.

The curtain quickly turned transparent. Within a few breaths, the crystalline illusory light seemed to dissipate entirely. Then he saw the vast, boundless space, where celestial ships of all sizes, orbital cannons, and synchronous orbit palaces serving as planetary defense nodes stood ready for battle. Behind those defensive lines, like an enemy looming, lay their vibrant, living home planet—Taixu Lingjiu.

Looking at that beautiful, cloud-wreathed planet in space, Yu Sheng was curious about Yun Qingzi's intention, but before he could ask, the other broke the silence—

"Fellow cultivator, do you know of the ancient 'Annihilation' catastrophe and the story of the Ancient Spirit's re-creation of heaven and earth?"

Yu Sheng thought for a moment, then nodded. "I know a little."

"Good, then many things don't need explanation," Yun Qingzi nodded slightly. "Then, fellow cultivator, do you know that according to the Ancient Spirit's original 'blueprint,' this re-created world should not have had 'Taixu Lingjiu,' nor even the entire 'Feiyu Star Domain'?"

Yu Sheng: "...?!"

"Many years ago, I hit a bottleneck in my pursuit of the Great Dao," Yun Qingzi seemed not to notice the shock on Yu Sheng's face, continuing unhurriedly. "Not to boast, but compared to others, I actually had some talent on the path of cultivation. So the 'bottleneck' I encountered was also more troublesome than usual."

"That difficult question was—where do heaven and earth come from? What lies beyond the cosmos?"

"To break this shackle, I searched far and wide until a thousand years ago, at Weishu-3, I encountered an opportunity."

"Opportunity?" Yu Sheng was stunned, then quickly realized. "Wait, you mean… that moment when the Star-Borne descended on Weishu-3?"

"Disaster is also opportunity," Yun Qingzi nodded lightly. "Everyone knows that a Dark Angel's descent momentarily pierces through the world. So is it possible—that this 'piercing' instant also grants us mortals a chance to glimpse 'beyond the cosmos,' to see the underlying structure of the world?"

Yu Sheng: "…"

Wait, are all you cultivation practitioners so bold and audacious?! The world gets a hole blown in it and your first reaction is to take a look?!

"In that battle, I truly exhausted myself but could not win. At the same time, I finally understood some things," Yun Qingzi didn't react to the odd look in Yu Sheng's eyes, continuing on his own. "In that brief rift that pierced the world, I saw glimpses beyond the river of time… they were the shadows cast on the world's 'boundary' when the Ancient Spirit re-created heaven and earth. In a sense, they are the initial 'blueprint' of our world."

Listening to Yun Qingzi's unhurried narration, Yu Sheng's heart stirred. He couldn't help recalling those things he had seen earlier during his hyperspace voyage through the 'perspective' of the 'Dimension Traveler'—

Those information megastructures beneath the observable universe, and those annotations that supported the world's operation.

At the time, he had only skimmed those lights and shadows, not having time to think carefully. But recalling now… those things, their deepest information—could they be the 'world's blueprint'?

Was that what Yun Qingzi saw in the moment of the angel's descent? Or at least something related?

Yun Qingzi's voice continued in his ears. "...I am but a mortal, unable to see through the exquisite Great Dao in those shadows, but with just a hurried glance, I also 'perceived' many things."

Yu Sheng did not interrupt, listening intently with a serious expression.

"...In that blueprint, the entire region labeled 'Feiyu Star Domain' was originally supposed to be uninhabited. There was no 'Taixu Civilization Sphere,' let alone 'Taixu Lingjiu.' Centered on the Taixu Star, the surrounding tens of thousands of light-years should have been barren, not even celestial bodies."

Yu Sheng finally couldn't help speaking up. "Not even celestial bodies?! Then why…"

"I thought about it for a long time. Even after being devoured by the Star-Borne, I kept pondering. Among thousands upon thousands of deductions, I suspect the truth might be related to an inconspicuous 'footnote' in that blueprint."

"Footnote?"

"In the blueprint, although Taixu Star was surrounded by nothingness, there was something labeled 'Emperor's Legacy.' It was not a celestial body, but rather some kind of 'object.' Though I don't know why, it occupied the 'position' of the planet Taixu Lingjiu itself."

Yu Sheng frowned deeply, thinking while listening to Yun Qingzi's account. He realized this matter might point to some of the deepest secrets at the birth of this universe. A jumble of conjectures even made his head spin. After a moment, he shook his head forcefully, temporarily setting aside those unfathomable things, and looked up at Yun Qingzi's eyes. "So, you're not sure what the 'Emperor's Legacy' really is, only that it's a somewhat 'anomalous' existence in the world's creation process? Then what does this have to do with the Star-Borne…"

"At first, I truly didn't think there could be any connection between the Emperor's Legacy and solving the Star-Borne problem," Yun Qingzi shook his head. "But in the many years since I was devoured and unable to move, I had nothing else to do but think. In those repeated thoughts, I suddenly thought of something—"

"Something?"

"Three thousand years ago, I joined hands with a few old friends to capture a demon called the 'Blight Comet' on Taixu Lingjiu," Yun Qingzi said unhurriedly. "That demon fed on devouring terrestrial veins and ran rampant among the stars, but when it came to Taixu Lingjiu… it was actually poisoned by Taixu's terrestrial veins."

Yu Sheng was startled at this, then his expression flickered a few times before he quickly understood.

The Blight Comet fed on 'terrestrial veins.' Though not as eerie and terrifying as the Star-Borne, it also possessed a certain parasitic, devouring property toward planets… Taixu Lingjiu didn't exist in the creation blueprint; the planet itself seemed to be an 'anomalous product'… Taixu Lingjiu was 'poisonous' to the Blight Comet, its terrestrial veins unable to provide any 'nourishment' for the latter…

Yun Qingzi looked into Yu Sheng's eyes, a faint smile gradually appearing on his face. "Fellow cultivator, it seems you've figured it out."

Yu Sheng: "But how can you be sure…"

"You should know that after the Star-Borne parasitized Shuji, people began to be influenced by It. Some of them indirectly became my 'eyes and ears.' Though these people were addled and unfit for important tasks, they were still somewhat useful. I sent these 'eyes and ears' to investigate many times. The most recent time, I used the Star-Borne's power to directly pry open the Suppression Tower of Thousand Peaks Spirit Mountain and found the place where the Blight Comet was imprisoned—this matter, fellow cultivator, you know."

"That's right, it was actually a 'test.'"

"However, at first I speculated that the 'Emperor's Legacy' might be some kind of 'ancient treasure,' hidden somewhere on Taixu Lingjiu, and it had resisted the Blight Comet's erosion by influencing the terrestrial veins. If I could find it and 'bring it back' to Shuji, perhaps it could solve the Star-Borne problem. Only recently did I realize that the so-called 'Emperor's Legacy' was the planet Taixu Lingjiu itself, so I had to change the plan accordingly…"

At last, Yu Sheng's mind was filled with clarity.

So that's it!

All the clues finally matched completely. The connections behind all events finally surfaced—first opening a rift at 'Taiyou' to try to locate the exact position of the 'Emperor's Legacy,' then opening a rift on Taixu Lingjiu, prying at the terrestrial vein layer beneath the Suppression Tower, using the Star-Borne's power to conduct a 'test contact' with Taixu Lingjiu, and finally influencing the Star-Borne, attempting to induce It to change its parasitization target…

All of this was to make It parasitize an 'anomalous planet' that didn't exist in the creation blueprint.

"I want to poison It," Yun Qingzi said calmly, looking into Yu Sheng's eyes. "My cultivation is limited. I truly don't have the boundless ability you have, fellow cultivator. Having fought the Star-Borne for a thousand years, I truly cannot find any other way to break the deadlock—this method may be reckless, may fail, may be self-defeating. But the Star-Borne is already prepared to 'ascend' again. I truly have no time, and no other choice."