Chapter 1264
Chapter 1264: When You Are Still Weak, I stood at the end of all visible and invisible
Standing in a thick fog of time, a fearsome figure with golden pupils, flowing like molten lava and emitting a dazzling light, exuded a commanding presence. A sharp sword appeared in his eyes that seemed to pierce through the ages, attempting to tear apart the universe before him.
“Not necessarily… There’s no chance,”
The figure spoke after what felt like a moment and an eternity. His voice was extremely hoa.r.s.e, carrying the weight of ages and exhaustion. As he said, a vision more astonishing and terrifying than when the previous eight-headed emperor spoke manifested in the world.
Thick, blood-red thunder struck the entire universe, aiming directly at him. The sky and earth stretched apart, the universe torn asunder, creating an oppressive scene that made people tremble.
Instantly, the place transformed into a vast sea of thunder and lightning, as if any matter and existence would explode into endless powder under this fluctuating aura.
This was genuine destruction. Under this aura, the entire foreign universe became as fragile as a boat, torn and riddled with holes. Countless foreign creatures knelt on the ground, trembling incessantly, their souls on the brink of being crushed. This scene was more terrifying than Gu Changge’s recent battle against the Eight-headed Emperor; it was like facing extinction.
Even the foreign immortal kings felt their bones cracking. Unable to withstand the aftermath, their bodies fissured, and traces of blood flowed, a frightening sight. Hastily retreating, they evacuated several universes and appeared in the distance.
“Just speaking triggers such a terrible vision. Once they engage in battle, it’ll be even more unimaginable. I’m afraid this world will be destroyed, and chaos will reign again,” remarked the old Immortal King Gu Xuan.
Such a terrifying cause and effect—even the Immortal Emperor can’t bear it.
This Immortal Emperor was a true embodiment of timeless existence, not bound by the constraints of the current world. Any words or actions on his part carried significant consequences, capable of disrupting everything and reshuffling the established order.
In simple terms, if this Immortal Emperor were to make a move at this juncture, it could potentially dismantle the entire era, leaving an enduring impact on the future.
Of course, the forces within this realm had the inherent ability to counter and restrain the Immortal Emperor, preventing complete annihilation.
Despite the Immortal Emperor’s ability to traverse the long river of time effortlessly, viewing the span from one end to the other was a mere casual observation. Time was akin to a plaything in the hands of the Immortal Emperor. However, altering disturbances within the long river of time proved impossible even for the Immortal Emperor. Such interference easily reshuffled events, causing past occurrences to repeat and even plunging the world back into chaos.
Rumble!
Thousands of blood-red thunderbolts surged from the sky’s edge, resembling an enraged dragon’s roar, obscuring the sun. Amidst the thunderous display, ancient pavilions and palaces floated, with faint figures comparing heavenly soldiers and generals wielding celestial swords and divine weapons charging forth.
This extraordinary manifestation resulted from the profound cause and effect set in motion by the Immortal Emperor’s utterances. Burgeoning within the world’s depths, a formidable power akin to an explosive mill sought to erase him from existence. The Immortal Emperor from later generations had significantly disrupted the laws and order of this existence.
Yet, there he stood amidst endless fragments of time, his eyes as menacing as a heavenly sword, fixed unwaveringly on Gu Changge. He neither moved nor chose to depart, demonstrating an unwavering stance amid the turmoil he had set in motion.
Chi, Chi, Chi!
With a slight motion of his hand, an unimaginable power surge swiftly dissipated the sea of thunder emerging from the sky’s depths. All the laws crumbled, transformed into dust, and vanished into thin air. Thousands of laws refrained from touching his form, seemingly grounded in an unknown realm, even causing the Dao-building expert to rupture.
“There might not be a chance?” Gu Changge responded to the Immortal Emperor.
Yet, I discern despair in your eyes. You simply wish to end me, conclude an era, and settle everything.
Gu Changge repeated his words, but the faint smile on his lips remained undiminished.
Impossible.
The Immortal Emperor seemed to react suddenly, his eyes radiating terror akin to sword energy traversing the ages, illuminating the entire river of time, erasing the past and present. His figure trembled as if on the verge of instability, expressing disbelief.
Isn’t it hopeless?
Gu Changge’s gaze remained unwavering, attempting to pierce through the fog of time, veiling the Immortal Emperor and unveiling his origin.
“Who are you?”
The Immortal Emperor’s voice trembled uncontrollably, a realization dawning upon him. His golden pupils constricted, revealing various terrifying visions – universes collapsing and the long river of time annihilating.
“It doesn’t matter who I am; what matters is, I want to know who you are.” Gu Changge’s smile remained light.
“Why have you come to this world to end me?”
An Immortal Emperor traversing the long river of time from the future with the intent to kill him left Gu Changge contemplating the impending third calamity in the Mortal World of Mountains and Seas. The timing of the catastrophe remained unknown to him.
However, if the long river of time in the Mortal World of Mountains and Seas continued without collapse, it indicated that the Real World of Mountains and Seas would still exist in the future. If so, why would an Immortal Emperor from the future come to kill him?
What purpose did he serve?
Logically, considering the background of the Mortal World of Mountains and Seas, surviving the initial calamity was deemed impossible. Gu Changge, having transformed into a demon lord, led the Mortal World of Mountains and Seas to escape the catastrophe, acting as a former heaven-slayer.
This decision resulted in heavy losses and the demise of many peak powerhouses during the calamity. Some individuals entered a deep sleep, while others, using alternative methods, reshaped the cycle of reincarnation, antic.i.p.ating the future reemergence of the world.
The second calamity was strategically avoided through the ingenuity of Qing Yi and Gu Changge. Their clever design deceived the heavens, delaying the impending calamity measurement and allowing all beings and spirits in the Mortal World of Mountains and Seas to recuperate over an extended period.
The current third calamity measurement appeared to need more fortune than previous events, especially considering Gu Changge had other plans. The entire Mortal World of Mountains and Seas would face catastrophe once the third calamity arrived, foreseeing only three calamities. No one could escape this reckoning.
However, if the World of Mountains and Seas did not endure the third calamity, where did this Immortal Emperor originate from in the future? Was it from alternate timelines of other real worlds?
Intrigued, Gu Changge began to speculate along these lines. After all, the vast river of time extended across the boundless heavens and actual worlds, with the long river of time in the Real World of Mountains and Seas being merely one facet.
“Indeed, as you said, everything can only be pacified by killing you. There is no other choice,” the Immortal Emperor admitted.
“But… who are you? Why have you not been seen in the past and future?”
The Immortal Emperor’s demeanor swung wildly, evidently ensnared in the boundless fog of time. His face teetered on the verge of collapse and dispersal as if its existence in this world hung by a thread.
His utterances triggered substantial cause and effect, pushing his body to the brink of cracking and imminent explosion. The looming collapse left him feeling suffocated, incredulous, and even desperate.
In the present world, Gu Changge had yet to attain the Immortal Emperor’s level. He was still in a “weak” stage by comparison.
Curiously, within Gu Changge’s form, the Immortal Emperor couldn’t perceive other times and s.p.a.ces, alternate times’ aura, or the existence fluctuation. Gu Changge seemed to have gathered all the figures on the timeline, unifying endless time and s.p.a.ce – a singular ent.i.ty across all time.
As an Immortal Emperor, he comprehended this significance and found it difficult to believe, even plunging into despair. Though he stood tall in the current world, he couldn’t locate Gu Changge’s presence in the past.
Gu Changge appeared absent in the past and future, existing solely in the contemporary world. Consequently, the Immortal Emperor needed help to gain insight into Gu Changge’s past in the long river of time, discern his origin, foretell his future, or understand the nature of his existence. It was as if Gu Changge materialized out of thin air – a horrifying realization.
Traditionally, as an Immortal Emperor, the plan was to arrive from the future and confront Gu Changge during his “weak” phase. Despite the potential monstrous karma and the rewriting of future history, the Immortal Emperor deemed it the only chance and hope. However, upon reaching this world, he was disillusioned as everything unfolded differently from his expectations.
Gu Changge’s apparent “weakness” proved merely a facade, and the current Gu Changge might also be a deceptive guise. The Immortal Emperor harbored an even more chilling suspicion – that the genuine Gu Changge was not present before his eyes. It might be nothing more than a reflection body, a disturbing revelation.
Gu Changge had ascended to a level beyond the Immortal Emperor’s comprehension or antic.i.p.ation. After attaining the Immortal Emperor realm, he understood that a path called detachment existed in the subsequent stages.
Detachment was the key to true freedom and immortality, allowing one to condense the status of Great Luo. In this context, Great Luo signified immeasurability, boundlessness, and the capacity to accommodate all beings.
While Dao was boundless and Da Luo was limitless, there was still a limit. In a sense, Da Luo had transcended freedom and eternity, consolidating its own Dao and becoming the singular ent.i.ty throughout all heavens and ages, encompa.s.sing every timeline.
Regardless of the era, as long as there was a body, it represented the true self, unique and exclusive to that particular self.
Gu Changge had already shattered his detached body before the forbidden era. Otherwise, entering reincarnation and rebuilding would have been impossible. Without the destruction of the independent body, there would be no need for reconstruction. Every life embodied the true self, spanning past, future, and present.
Yet, the perplexing question lingered: why, in all ages, couldn’t the Immortal Emperor find Gu Changge’s figure?
Gu Changge before his eyes was not even an Immortal Emperor.
“It seems you truly understand me well, or you have meticulously studied me and arrived fully prepared,” Gu Changge remarked, smiling casually as he observed the immortal emperor’s changing expression.
“Have you been to this world before and gained insight into everything in advance?”
Gu Changge had a rough idea about the origin of this Immortal Emperor.
“I made a mistake. I didn’t antic.i.p.ate that the mastermind from ages ago had an origin beyond my imagination.”
A terrible chaotic light emanated from the immortal emperor’s eyes, and the time around his natural body began to distort, breaking apart and collapsing.
Uttering these words subjected him to overwhelming karma, causing bleeding from his mouth and nose.
He stood on the brink of collapse, about to dissipate in the current world, finding it difficult to sustain himself. At his level, every action could trigger remarkable changes. Considering he hailed from the future, every word he spoke had the potential to reset the world, reshuffling everything in the future.
“The big black hand from ages past? The great black hand from ten thousand ages ago?”
Gu Changge slightly smiled, dismissing the t.i.tle without concern. The existence of his true self had long been anch.o.r.ed at the culmination of all tangible and intangible things for the residents of the infinite heavens.
This endpoint symbolized the conclusion of the concept, akin to the end of the Dao-building expert itself. Alternatively, it could be interpreted that the idea of Dao originated from the existence of his true self.
The immortal emperor, however, stood silent, rejected by the entire world as his natural body crumbled. Despite veiling himself in thick fog, he couldn’t endure, and blood spewed from his mouth and nose.
The turbulent, long river of time witnessed his swift retreat until his figure vanished, and the overwhelming aura that had rendered the heavens silent receded like a retreating tide.
It was impossible, even if he desired to act now. Uttering those words had subjected him to a tremendous karmic backlash.
Gu Changge refrained from making a move, merely observing the Immortal Emperor’s disappearance. Although the shattered fragments of time seemed to linger, the actual body had long vanished.
The years to come?
Gu Changge’s eyes held a hint of depth. However, in the long river of time, he surveyed, no immortal emperor would be born in the future. The question lingered – from which time and s.p.a.ce did the Immortal Emperor, who had just appeared, originate?