Chapter 503

Chapter 503: The Heavenly Emperor’s Daughter

"So, did my ‘No Move No Thinking Skill’ succeed or fail?"

Sometimes, Qiao Mu would wonder about this question.

From the results, being able to remain clear-minded through fifty thousand years is surely a success.

However, the ‘No Move No Thinking Skill’ was created by following the ways of celestial cultivators who abandoned desires, and even he did not know if there was a fundamental difference between his True Immortal heart and that of Immortal Diyuan.

After dreaming of a long life for fifty thousand years, he only held onto two deep thoughts in his heart, relying on the Kuafu tribe’s Sun Chasing Cultivation Method.

One was to return to Jiu Province to see its ending; the other was to seek the Long Life Lock to understand the nature of his immortality and find his own conclusion.

The first thought was Qiao Mu’s obsession after fighting in the mortal world for more than eighteen thousand years. If he had died alongside the other founders of the Immortal Gate in the ruins of the Heavenly Palace, it would have been different.

But since he was immortal, he naturally held the thought of returning to Jiu Province.

"So, Immortal Diyuan, since you are so detached and desire so little, why have you come to this world? And why do you invite us onto this Sky Boat?" Qiao Mu asked.

"Don’t tell me you are here to save people? You don’t want to see us perish in the disaster of the collapsing world?"

At this moment, the sound of the waves outside was still roaring like thunder, but under the gentle glow of the Sky Boat, one could hardly feel the outside storms.

"A mortal’s life is their own; most immortals will not interfere or save them, nor will they kill without reason," Immortal Diyuan said.

"Of course, this was the way of True Immortals before the collapse of the immortal realm, but now it can no longer be counted on."

In the past, most True Immortals were very indifferent.

The wars with Ancient Gods and Demons, and the struggles against the demon tribes are all in the past. Now the immortal realm hangs above all worlds, and the way of immortals stands above all paths.

So, immortal beings with long and endless lives will not die as long as they do not act foolishly, living alongside the world without the threat of death or great enemies.

"The purpose of my coming to this world, and my invitation for you to board this Sky Boat, is of course connected; it is simply to seek a way to survive after this Great Collapse."

"Immortal Diyuan wondered, ‘Can I really save you?’ Qiao Mu felt a stir in his heart as he remembered the Nine Dead Demon Lord, who was captured by the other True Immortals."

"This realm is about to collapse, so I won’t beat around the bush: I am looking for the Heavenly Emperor’s daughter." Immortal Diyuan spoke directly.

"The Heavenly Emperor has proven that all laws are unbreakable. Even in death, he left behind a plan, and the Heavenly Emperor’s daughter, who knows the past and understands the future, is part of it."

"The Heavenly Emperor’s daughter, the Daughter of the Heavenly Emperor, knows the past and understands the future. Before the celestial realm falls apart, she has already been reincarnated and is cultivating again."

"I roughly understand," Qiao Mu said with an expressionless face.

"After the Heavenly Emperor died, the surviving immortals began to go wild."

"Some immortals used various methods to strengthen themselves, desperately trying to survive."

"And though you believe this path is blocked, with no other choice, you place your hopes on the backup plan left by the deceased Heavenly Emperor."

"The Heavenly Emperor’s daughter knows the past and understands the future. Since she is the Heavenly Emperor’s backup and has been reincarnated to cultivate again, it should not be without purpose."

"If I find the Heavenly Emperor’s daughter and board her ship, there might be a glimmer of hope to survive?"

Immortal Diyuan was silent for a long time.

Qiao Mu’s summary made her feel a long-lost sense of embarrassment, but it was indeed the truth.

She has been a True Immortal for thirty thousand years, which is a short time, and she knows she cannot survive on her own, so she places her hope for survival in stronger beings.

"Indeed." After a slight awkwardness, Immortal Diyuan admitted directly.

"The Heavenly Emperor’s daughter knows the past and sees the future; she is the best guide. Since the Heavenly Emperor arranged for her to be reborn, it must be to help her survive this Great Collapse."

"Later, a wise half-blood Di Ting told me that the person I was looking for was actually in the Jiu Province world."

At this point, Immortal Diyuan looked back and forth between Qiao Mu and the Sky Piercing Water Spirit several times before saying:

"I initially thought coming to this realm was due to a problem with this Sky Boat from the heavenly realm. Now it seems this is not a coincidence, but a certainty."

People who have come to this demon world include Immortal Diyuan, Qiao Mu, and Immortal Lord Qingxuan, who sacrifices living beings.

These people all left the great world of Jiu Province and tried to return but mistakenly ended up in this realm.

"Is this another seeming coincidence that is actually meant to be?" Qiao Mu squinted his eyes.

"How do you know?"

Immortal Diyuan explained.

"If what Di Ting said is true, and Empress Reincarnation is really hiding in the great world of Jiu Province, then before the time comes, she cannot allow beings from other realms to interfere and will not let them find her easily."

"Just like me, like Immortal Lord Qingxuan, and like the other True Immortals from the fairy realm, it is the same."

"I suppose this is the reason why we all seem to have coincidentally appeared in this realm together."

Just as Immortal Diyuan said this, the whole Sky Boat suddenly shook violently, and the intense turbulence nearly toppled the boat, causing the spiritual light surrounding it to flicker wildly and cracks to spread like a spider web.

From the crack, a faint gray mist seeped in from the outside, like fog and frost.

Several members of the Winged Demon Clan who followed Qiao Mu into the Sky Boat were hit by the gray frost, and in an instant, their bodies completely lost all life, dead and lifeless, collapsing to the ground.

"This is the aura of silence left behind by the destruction of the great world; touching it means death," Immortal Diyuan’s expression immediately became serious.

"It seems that all living beings in this realm have perished."

"That sounds somewhat familiar," Qiao Mu thought to himself.

The shadow beneath his feet twisted, and a fat cat came out, drawn by the smell, opening its large mouth to gulp down the gray frost mist.

Its belly quickly swelled up like a balloon, rolling around like a gray balloon on the deck.

"Can it really eat this?" Qiao Mu said with slight surprise.

Great Dao Sect Patriarch Lingyuan’s Grey Frost Divine Blade contained the aura of silence from the destruction of the small world, while this Demon Realm is a great world close to the Jiu Province, yet different.

He glanced sideways at Immortal Diyuan, only to discover that the other was even more surprised than he was.

"A strange beast that devours the energy of death can actually grow to the point of swallowing even the energy of cosmic extinction?"

The surprise that Immortal Diyuan saw with his own eyes was greater than the feelings he had when he first heard news from the Earth Origin Temple.

From the perspective of a True Immortal, strange beasts that consume the energy of death are rare, but not extraordinary.

After all, when looking at all the worlds, what kind of strange beings could truly move a True Immortal?

What moved her was not the beast that devours the energy of death, but the fact that such creatures could grow to this extent, being well-fed by Qiao Mu, healthy and with smooth fur.

"It’s true; only during this moment when the Great Collapse sweeps through all worlds is there hope for such strange beings to appear."

At this, Immortal Diyuan noticed that the gray mist on the Sky Boat had completely vanished, and a hint of joy appeared on his face.

"With its help, the chance of escaping this collapse of heaven and earth has increased by at least thirty percent."

The fat cat did not respond this time.

At this moment, its belly was slowly swelling, and it was becoming more and more relaxed, with a hint of dazedness in its eyes.

After several hours, the thick gray mist finally cleared away completely, and the fat cat lay limp on the ground, its eyes unfocused, looking completely dazed.

A faint light shimmered again, and as the entire Sky Boat shook, the surrounding scenery changed from a gray mist to a burst of purple starlight.

The starlight rippled with the movement of the Sky Boat, and countless stars sparkled in the near and far distance, as if one had stumbled into a sea of stars.

This familiar scene made the Sky Piercing Water Spirit’s heart tremble.

"Are we already in the Heavenly River?"

"Yes. The Demon Realm no longer exists," Immortal Diyuan sighed softly, gazing at the shining stars ahead.

In this vast starry river, a large group of stars twinkled, about to flicker out.

"Without this Sky Boat, you would likely meet your end in the collapse of the Demon Realm," said Immortal Diyuan.

"But if only I am on the Immortal Boat and you are not here to help, this damaged Immortal Boat would probably not be able to escape."

"Only by working together can we turn misfortune into good fortune."

The destruction of a great world is indeed a very dangerous matter; even for her, a True Immortal, having a Sky Boat from the Heavenly Court does not guarantee success.

"Water spirit, can you sense it? The location of the Sky Piercing River in the Jiu Province Great World?" Qiao Mu asked.

The latter hesitated, looking at the vast expanse of starlight, unsure.

The sea of starlight before them seemed to contain nearly a thousand stars; how could it make a decision like this…

"Returning to the Jiu Province Great World is probably not an easy task," Immortal Diyuan said lightly.

"The coordinates of the Jiu Province Great World are covered by the Heavenly Emperor’s power; until the right moment comes, it would be hard to enter Jiu Province again."

"Then tell me, when will the right moment come?" Qiao Mu furrowed his brow.

The Immortal Diyuan remained silent.

"Maybe… it depends on the Heavenly Emperor’s will."

She turned her head to look back and saw a corner of the Lingxiao Treasure Hall faintly emerging beyond the vast sea of clouds.

Further away, the sound of water roared, and another great world’s ruins fell into the Return Ruins, becoming part of the twisted ruins in the wilderness.

"Things are in our hands. With the Sky Boat, how can we just sit and wait?" Qiao Mu glanced at the Sky Piercing Water Spirit beside him.

"Don’t worry. If we make the wrong choice again, we can just break the barrier and choose once more."

"If one time doesn’t work, then try two times. If two times don’t work, then ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times."

"Using the simplest methods, trying one by one, is better than quietly waiting to die in the Return Ruins."

The Sky Piercing Water Spirit nodded and finally made a decision:

"Then, I will choose? In my sensing, it should be that star light ahead…."

The Sky Boat sailed gently in and was quickly caught by the invisible pull of the star light, disappearing into the River of Heaven.

The purple star light rippled like gentle water waves, then returned to its original state, with the star river flowing quietly as if unchanged for millions of years, with only the occasional twinkle of stars.

……………………………..

Fifteen years later.

Sixty-nine thousand-year-old Qiao Mu sat casually on the white cloud bridge above the River of Heaven, enjoying a bowl of long-life noodles.

A chubby cat lay on his lap, sleeping with its eyes closed, its round belly rising and falling gently.

"Happy sixty-nine thousand years birthday…" Qiao Mu murmured to himself.

The Sky Boat quietly floated in the purple galaxy, with countless cracks on its hull, soon to collapse like the palace in the Return Ruins.

On this boat, thousands of beings from various worlds had gathered.

Of the beings who survived the collapse of the demon realm, only the dozen or so winged demon creatures that Qiao Mu first encountered remained alive; the rest had perished.

The others were all survivors from different worlds, saved during the past fifteen years by this Sky Boat that sails through the heavens.

"Although I said you could give it a try, even the clumsiest method is better than doing nothing…"

"But you can’t actually use the enumeration method and try to reach the very last star, can you?" Qiao Mu said grumpily after finishing his noodles.

The Sky Piercing Water Spirit scratched his head, looking a bit silly.

"It’s not my fault; it must be the Heavenly Emperor’s backup plan. He hid it beforehand; how could I have guessed?"

In front of him, the bright starlight that was once over a thousand strong was now dim, leaving only a faint blue star still shining.

"This time, I won’t make a mistake!" The Sky Piercing Water Spirit patted its chest and made a promise.

"I hope so," said Immortal Diyuan, the spirit of the Sky Boat, as the light gathered softly.

Even after traveling through a thousand worlds, she had not successfully returned to the Jiu Province realm; to be honest, she did not have much hope in her heart.

Fifteen years meant the time they spent traveling through a thousand worlds.

The Return Ruins is the end of all worlds, still unchanged since the moment Qiao Mu left.

After Qiao Mu finished eating, he lifted the fat cat to board the ship but suddenly felt something and turned to look back.

He saw that in the vast sea of clouds, a figure had appeared in the ruins of Heaven, the long-missed Di Ting.

"After fifteen years, you suddenly show up today; it seems like there may be a turning point," Qiao Mu squinted.

"That last realm in the starlight must be the great world of Jiu Province, right?"

Di Ting did not answer directly, but spoke up:

"Fifteen years is the time you have spent wandering in the Heavenly River, but here in the Return Ruins, time has no meaning. What is the difference between fifteen years and fifteen days?"

"I don’t have time for your tricks," Qiao Mu said with a blank expression.

"You want to get on the boat, but you can’t say it, so you just talk nonsense?"

After listening, Di Ting slowly shook his head.

"I do have a request, but I don’t need you to take me away… Just help me deliver a message, and that will be enough."

"Just say…" Di Ting’s dog-like face showed a hint of sorrow as he spoke in a hoarse voice:

"No eggs remain unbroken under a collapsed nest. Only hearing the tide without being part of it ultimately cannot stand firm; in this world, is there any living being that can truly be outside of the great tide…"

Qiao Mu did not ask who the message was for; the answer was clear.

Just as he was about to nod in agreement, he saw Di Ting’s battered body quickly turn to dust before him, completely disappearing with the faint breeze, leaving no trace behind.

The only creature that lived to the end, the final king of demons in the human world, wandered in Return Ruins for a long time, ultimately turning to ash.

"Is your purpose in wandering through Return Ruins to ‘lead the way,’ to deliver the last words, or perhaps both?"

Qiao Mu pondered for a moment, then turned and stepped onto the cracked Sky Boat.