Chapter 273

Chapter 273: You Tell the Tale, You Bring the Wine

"Let bygones disperse like smoke. There’s no need to bring it up again, Daoist friend."

A trace of melancholy flickered in Li Ruoyu’s eyes, a rare hint of despondency clinging to him.

Ye Xu almost imperceptibly furrowed his brow.

Approximately 60 million years had passed since the Primordial Era, with the Ancient Heavenly Court itself standing for over 30 to 40 million years. Throughout that immensely long span, Li Ruoyu had suppressed the Innate Divine Beings, forged the Immortal Realm, and established a unified order, dividing the realms of immortals and mortals.

By that time, Li Ruoyu had long attained the Three Yuan Proof, standing invincible in the world.

So, how did the Ancient Heavenly Court collapse?

Why did Li Ruoyu end up in the lower world?

The fall of the Ancient Heavenly Court involved far too many secrets, secrets that deeply intrigued even Ye Xu.

Because unraveling the mysteries of the Ancient Heavenly Court meant gaining a complete understanding of the cosmic development history.

"Taiyue, leave us for now," Li Ruoyu instructed.

"You too, leave us," Ye Xun, discerning Li Ruoyu’s intent, dismissed Su Mu and Li Ruoshui’s avatar.

A few breaths later, only Ye Xu and Li Ruoyu remained inside Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

"Master Pavilion, would you partake in some wine?"

Li Ruoyu sat on the ground, looking weary.

"Since you’re inclined, Daoist friend, I would certainly be all in," Ye Xu smiled.

Li Ruoyu channeled his magic power, conjuring two wine jars. Pulling out the stoppers, a rich, mellow fragrance immediately filled the air, mouth watering and eyes brightening.

The personal stores of the Heavenly Emperor were naturally exquisite.

Li Ruoyu handed one jar to Ye Xu and began drinking straight from his own.

System, how many heavenly secrets points would this jar of wine convert to? Ye Xu did not drink yet, asking silently within his mind instead.

[260 million.]

"…"

Ye Xu instantly lost all desire to drink. The jar, holding perhaps half a kilogram, meant a single sip would likely consume millions of heavenly secrets points – a sacrifice he was utterly unwilling to make.

"What a wastrel!" Ye Xu felt acute pain, as if suffering a loss himself.

"In my cultivation journey, spanning fifty-six million, four hundred and eighty thousand years now, I have witnessed the rise and fall of this universe," Li Ruoyu sighed with emotion. "Might I ask for how long you have cultivated, Master Pavilion?"

"Me?" Ye Xu blinked slightly, then replied with profound mystique, "Time holds no meaning for me. I have long forgotten."

"True enough."

Li Ruoyu nodded. "For transcendents, time has no significance. My outlook was too narrow."

He brought the jar to his lips. Gulp, gulp, gulp. Within moments, his jar was nearly drained.

Watching from the side, Ye Xu felt heartache. He raised his own jar, lightly touching it to his lips, barely tasting the wine, hardly drinking a drop.

"The fall of the Ancient Heavenly Court… was inevitable."

Suddenly, Li Ruoyu blurted out a sentence.

He looked at Ye Xu and said sorrowfully, "With my strength alone, even if I could suppress the Innate Divine Beings for a while, I could not suppress them for a lifetime."

"Moreover, there are countless vested interests who collude with the Innate Divine Beings, gnawing away at the Heavenly Court."

Ye Xu’s eyes flickered slightly; he did not fully believe Li Ruoyu’s words.

Any interest group would have intricate and complicated relations, but this was a fantasy world, where great power could be concentrated in one person.

In an era without transcendents, Li Ruoyu was an absolutely invincible being.

How could an invincible being ever fail?

"Everyone in the world knows I am invincible, and even I was blinded by it," Li Ruoyu said bitterly.

"I neglected my defenses, which allowed Emperor Yang to use devious means to place his primordial spirit in the Heavenly Dao, thus enabling him to grasp power comparable to mine in one fell swoop."

"Under the Heavenly Dao, as long as one cannot transcend, all beings are like ants."

"I was invincible all my life, yet in the end, I did not lose to the hands of the Innate Divine Beings or postnatal beings, but to the Heavenly Dao itself."

Li Ruoyu spoke of this matter without joy or sorrow, as if recounting someone else’s story.

More than ten million years ago, he was ambushed by Emperor Yang, suppressed by the Heavenly Dao, and Emperor Yang dismembered and refined his physical body, leaving only a heart that could not be refined.

Therefore, Emperor Yang suppressed his heart at Godfall Ridge, sealing it along with most of the territory of the ancestral home.

From that day on, the Ancient Heavenly Court perished, replaced by the Purple Star Heavenly Court.

The title of Heavenly Emperor also changed to Son of Heaven.

It symbolized the divine right conferred by heaven.

Thinking of this, Li Ruoyu’s eyes revealed a trace of disdain.

Although Emperor Yang cleverly placed his Dao fruit and primordial spirits in the Heavenly Dao, he willingly submitted to it and could never transcend the Heavenly Dao in his lifetime to attain true freedom.

Ye Xu showed a thoughtful expression.

The cosmic Heavenly Dao represented the strongest force in a universe.

Unless one transcended the cosmic Heavenly Dao, native beings would be confined by it; life and death were entirely in the grasp of the Heavenly Dao.

Of course, the Heavenly Dao had no consciousness.

But the Heavenly Dao of this universe was an exception.

Emperor Yang, like a parasite, was attached to the Heavenly Dao, causing confusion and disruption of order; the collapse of the Ancient Heavenly Court originated from this.

"Daoist friend, the Way of Heaven operates with constancy."

Ye Xu comforted him, saying, "Everything in the unseen world had long been predestined."

As a fortune-teller, Ye Xu felt it necessary to "bamboozle" the Heavenly Emperor.

After all, he himself did not believe it.

Li Ruoyu’s eyes showed confusion.

"If the Way of Heaven operates with constancy, and fate is predestined, then all our past efforts were destined to happen? Even without me, another Heavenly Emperor would appear?"

If that were truly the case, what meaning did all his efforts have?

"Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t." Ye Xu said.

He certainly couldn’t calculate the result, as he was just speaking nonsense.

Believing in fate meant resigning to it.

After all, if the outcome couldn’t be changed by your efforts, then what was the point of striving?

"Daoist friend, you place too much importance on the result. Life is about enjoying the process of effort itself. The significance of the result is far less important than the journey."

"Moreover, no one can see the end of fate at a glance."

Li Ruoyu seemed lost in thought.

Listening to it was like hearing nothing.

Ye Xu’s words sounded like vague and empty platitudes to Li Ruoyu, insufficient to change his mindset.

The path he would take had long been decided.

"The Heavenly Dao is disordered, and all natural laws have collapsed. The Immortal Realm is about to disintegrate." Li Ruoyu gazed at the void, where the scars of the heavens loomed ghastly and terrifying, like a cosmic gash stretching across the heavens and earth.

"When that moment comes, the ensuing catastrophe will be truly devastating."

Swish!

Ye Xu’s eyes turned sharp.

The Immortal Realm collapsing? Crashing down into the lower realms?

At the end of the Primordial Era, the Ancient Heavenly Court mobilized the entire realm to build the Immortal Realm, consuming vast quantities of Celestial gold and precious materials. They fashioned a separate world for immortals. Should the Immortal Realm fall, it would unleash an unimaginable calamity.

Nowhere across all realms could escape unscathed.

The moment the scars of the heavens appeared, Ye Xu had harbored suspicions, yet he hadn’t envisioned the consequences would be this dire.

"What will you do when it truly comes to pass, Daoist friend?"

Ye Xu fixed his gaze on Li Ruoyu.

Should the Immortal Realm crumble, Li Ruoyu possessed the power to avert disaster. Yet, the price required was something Ye Xu couldn’t fathom.

He hadn’t reached such a realm; his comprehension remained shallow.

Li Ruoyu turned, his eyes cold and detached.

"I cannot save the Immortal Realm."

Li Ruoyu stated indifferently, "Nor can I save all living beings."

"Just as you said, Master, the heavens follow a constant order. All things unfold according to predestined laws. Once, I forged the Immortal Realm. Today, I cannot prevent its fall."

"Only through great chaos can great order arise."

A profound chill spread through Ye Xu’s heart.

Li Ruoyu’s philosophy was ruthless. Yet, from his position, it wasn’t wrong.

If not for Emperor Yang’s usurpation of power, which disrupted the Heavenly Dao, the Immortal Realm wouldn’t be on the brink of collapse so swiftly, nor would it bring such devastation upon all life.

This cataclysm was not Li Ruoyu’s doing.

He owed no debt to sacrifice himself.

Li Ruoyu slowly rose to his feet. "Master, I devoted my former life to humans and postnatal beings. For my latter years, I must prioritize my own existence."

"I have been the Heavenly Emperor. Frankly, the role held little appeal."

"I seek transcendence alone."

Li Ruoyu looked intently at Ye Xu, his eyes blazing. "I ask for your guidance, Master."