Chapter 7
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Chapter 7: Red Dust, Bai Lian, and the Blank Tao
It is already difficult to find creatures in the Land of Immortals who can compete with Bai Lian and not be defeated.
At least these demonic beasts that emerge from the small world cannot do so.
Their strength is actually inferior to the Demons of the Outer Realm, only because the Demon Emperor’s true body is trapped in the Void Domain, making them a greater pressure for the cultivators of the East Divine Land and the North Luzhou.
As soon as Bai Lian arrives, the originally dominant demonic beasts are immediately scattered.
However, dealing with the vast number of these demonic beasts is not easy.
It is expected that there will be a long period of chaos caused by scattered demonic beasts across the land, but as long as necessary precautions are taken, the disaster can be contained.
"There are still great disasters to come, such as the collapse of the Tianji and the resurrection of ancient demonic souls, which is the true danger…"
However,
Bai Lian looked down at the towering Mount Sanwei and shook her head.
There’s only so much she can do to alert others about such matters, as she doesn’t have the time to personally solve them.
She swooped down and helped Qing Luan kill the demonic beasts causing chaos on Mount Sanwei.
Mount Sanwei had suffered from the disaster, but thanks to Qing Luan’s timely return, not many demonic beasts died in the calamity.
Can this be considered a good outcome?
"I really am not fit to be the leader of Mount Sanwei."
Qing Luan silently watched the demonic beasts walking on the streets from the top of the towering tree.
"The heavenly laws are cyclical and calamities are endless. Separation and parting are always unavoidable," comforted Bai Lian.
Qing Luan nodded, "Yes, I understand. But it is hard to avoid feeling emotional."
She stared at the ground for a long time.
She spoke again until the lights under her feet became brighter, "Elder Martial Sister Bai Lian, can you walk with me?"
"Of course."
Bai Lian nodded with a smile.
That night, they didn’thing but walk along the various paths on Mount Sanwei, wherever they went.
They looked at the sea, the tomb of the mythical creatures at Mount Sanwei, and the cavern filled with blooming starry silver flowers.
Bai Lian also listened to Qing Luan’s childhood stories.
Even without the strenuous cultivation, the young girl still longed for her carefree childhood life.
Finally, Bai Lian escorted the drowsy Qing Luan back to her room.
Qing Luan, lying in bed, was not behaving herself. She held onto Bai Lian’s hand tightly, and rubbed her chest against it.
Bai Lian reached out and lightly touched her forehead.
Qing Luan immediately became docile.
Bai Lian sat by the bed and quietly watched the peaceful face of the sleeping young girl.
Qing Luan’s most beautiful feature, apart from her small belly, was her splendid and starry eyes.
After a long time, Bai Lian stood up.
"Next time for sure."
She slipped a letter into Qing Luan’s embrace and then slowly left the room.
As she emerged, she caught sight of Qing Luan’s subordinate, Niyaka, standing obediently by the pillar, her tiger-like ears twitching cutely.
"Good evening, Miss Bai Lian."
Bai Lian nodded with a smile, "Qing Luan is feeling a little off today and went to bed early."
Niyaka understood and replied, "I will be here guarding the lord until her awakening."
Bai Lian said, "Thank you."
After some hesitation, Niyaka asked, "Miss Bai Lian, where are you in a hurry to go to?"
Bai Lian answered, "Home."
Niyaka asked, "Are you going back to the Duxian sect?"
Bai Lian remained silent and waved her hand. "I have left a letter for Qing Luan. She will understand the situation once she wakes up and reads the letter."
Niyaka nodded obediently and watched as Bai Lian flew away under the moonlight.
Midnight had passed.
It was the dawn of a new day.
Bai Lian flew towards the deserted sea until she could no longer see the colossal Mount Sanwei behind her.
It’s about time.
Actually, when she was strolling with Qing Luan, her chest felt as if there was a fiery stick, scorching hot.
She could sense that it was the key transformed by the Future Mirror that was at work.
The key is the one that opens the Monument of the Next World.
Now that the key has reacted, it must be that there has finally been a change over at the Monument of the Next World.
Bai Lian didn’t guess incorrectly.
When she examined her body, the key had already disappeared, and a dim light appeared in the middle of her chest.
She inserted her hand along the light.
A few seconds later, she took out a small thumb-sized stone from the light.
The unremarkable stone was engraved with some ancient inscriptions that are difficult for modern people to understand, but Bai Lian immediately recognized the words written on it as "the Monument of the Next World".
"Puff~"
Bai Lian first took a deep breath, and then slowly exhaled.
Her cognition was indeed correct, after taking out the Monument of the Next World, the system that had been present in her consciousness disappeared without a trace.
The good news is that her strength didn’t change.
The next step is to analyze this Monument of the Next World!
Bai Lian was still very nervous when it came down to it.
She knew that if she took just one step forward at this moment, there was a high probability of falling into the abyss.
However, for the sake of her master and the people she cares about, she must take this step!
If she refuses to confront the situation, she will never have the chance to overcome Red Dust Heavenly Lord and resolve the crisis.
There can be no hesitation. Indecision is only going to make herself withdraw.
"Let’s begin."
Bai Lian extended her right hand, her finger tapping lightly on the Monument of the Next World.
In that instant, the radiance was dazzling.
A gentle white light enveloped her like flowing water.
It was as if Bai Lian had traveled through ancient times, and found her consciousness falling into a river of indeterminate width.
She floated and sank in the river, completely devoid of control over her own body.
She looked up to the "sky" and saw not a sparkling starry sky, but rather another river, another version of herself.
Looking down towards her submerged chest, the things that flooded her were not river water, but all events throughout history, stretching forward, even touching upon the future with great difficulty.
Actually, these things had no tangible form, but Bai Lian felt like she could perceive them.
Could it be a dream?
Is this not a dream?
Bai Lian held a bundle of memories in her hands.
Countless blue and purple fragments of stars suddenly scattered around her body like fluttering willow catkins.
She began to see a series of coherent scenes before her eyes.
In an era that existed even before ancient times, approximately twelve million years ago.
The Land of Immortals was ravaged by a great calamity.
It was a place stained with the Qi of divine robbery, a void where nothing can be found.
The Void Domain!
It must be noted that even the Heavenly Dao cannot taint this place.
It is precisely in this utmost pure and immaculate place that the Blank Tao, which gives birth to every great cycle, is conceived.
It is an intangible spirit, aimlessly drifting in the Void Domain, waiting for the moment to break free from its cocoon!
The image finally disappears.
Bai Lian opened her eyes and asked, "Is everything that I’ve been pursuing contained within this?"
It was then that she realized each and every thing in this long river was her own personal experience.
Once upon a time, she intercepted the flow of time and encapsulated her past, present, and future within the Monument of the Next World.
The Monument of the Next World is an integral part of Sansheng Stele, a divine object born in the cycle of reincarnation, and one of the foremost articles of its kind in the world. By parasitizing in the Monument of the Next World, she had temporarily escaped the endless cycle of the vast world in a sense.
However, this was not without a price.
Bai Lian once again held a piece of her own history in her hands.
What is the meaning of "True Secret of 500 Million Dharma Bodies"?
The True Secret of this world is to transcend.
At that time, she divided herself into more than five hundred million pieces. Every time she abandoned a piece, she could deduce the future with the power of the Monument of the Next World.
A deduction is a dream.
The world is a fleeting dream, and life has experienced countless autumns.
"So, how many deductions have I been through?"
Bai Lian recalled the content exhibited in "The Battle of the Gods" and now she could boldly infer that it was all events that had "occurred" in the past.
The only thing she lacked was evidence.
And the evidence was exactly hidden in the river she was caught in!
With that in mind, Bai Lian released her Divine Sense directly. There were too many past events stored here that it would take thousands of years to look at them if she were to do them one by one.
Suddenly, a massive amount of memories flooded into her mind.
Gradually, she remembered the ancient "Battle of the Gods" that took place for the purpose of contesting her, who had not yet been transformed into human form.
The battle was far more terrible than she had imagined.
Once the Land of Immortals had an area comparable to a great domain in the Immortal World, but after the battle, space shattered, the earth was destroyed, and the Dao was incomplete. Its area was reduced to an unknown degree. Even the divine tree Jianmu that propped up the sky were affected by the flames of war, eventually becoming withered trees that filled the boundless sea.
Humans, demons, monsters, and spirits…
All kinds of creatures participated in this battle.
Not only Immortal Emperors and the supremely powerful human race, but also many Celestial Immortals, Demigods, and Star Lords who were tempted and blinded by their desires.
They knew their strength was insufficient to join this battle that affects all realms, yet their greed and a trace of luck overshadowed their fear in their hearts.
At that time, Bai Lian resided in the Void Domain, and even if the outside world was torn apart, it had nothing to do with her.
She shouldn’t have known any details related to this battle until one day an accident pierced through this barrier!
A Demigod accidentally entered the Void Domain through a door.
She was the first to come into contact with the Blank Tao in that great war!
However…
"I am about to die."
Sensing the Blank Tao fluttering around her body like cheerful pixies, the Demigod almost crumbled.
She was severely wounded and her soul was on the brink of shattering. Even with elixirs at hand, there was no saving her.
She lay in the black water, allowing her own blood to dye the clear stream red.
In truth, she had already accepted death calmly.
It was all due to greed, and now that she was dead, who could be blamed?
Unexpectedly, she fell into the Void Domain simply because she wanted to have a sip of water before she died.
Is it luck or misfortune?
The Demigod saw hope in despair, but fell into deeper despair because she could not touch the hope.
"Why?!"
"Could it be that the heavens are against me?!"
"How unfair!"
Her face twisted into a fierce expression, like a roaring wild beast, exhaling heavily as the scars on her body burst open completely.
The naïve and ignorant Blank Tao appeared to have been frightened, hastily retreating a great distance, but ultimately driven by curiosity, she ventured back.
Perhaps this small gesture of closeness prevented the Demigod from going completely insane.
She floated in the void, appearing wild as she recounted her past to the Blank Tao.
"I was born in a remote mountain village…"
Having endured various hardships since leaving the mountain village, it was not until she was over twenty years old and had acquired only superficial skills that she joined a sect in the mortal martial world.
She never imagined herself entering the cultivation world, but only sought to live a more respectable life.
However, one day, the leader of the martial arts sect provoked an Immortal, and the sect was destroyed. She was captured and used as a test subject for medicine.
Since that day, her life has completely changed.
"Do you know what price I paid to reach where I am today? My talent was poor, others could establish their foundation in several years, but I almost died nine times and it took me thirty years to succeed in establishing my foundation."
The Demigod cried and laughed at the same time.
Life is not only about pain. Looking back, there are still many peers.
They had beautiful pasts too, but that beauty was eventually defeated by time and stronger enemies.
"I am unwilling, why can’t I break the barrier between humans and gods?"
The demigod roared in anger.
However, no matter how she spoke, the Blank Tao didn’t take any further action.
Her eyes were covered with a layer of black mist.
Amidst hearty laughter, she began to narrate the great war that had taken place outside to the Blank Tao. She used all the vocabulary she had ever learned to describe the brutality and bloodshed of the war, and told the Blank Tao how many lives had been lost.
"It’s all because of you, it’s all your fault!"
"Without you, how could things have come to this!"
"Why haven’t you disappeared yet!"
"Why did I die instead of you!"
Despite the cursed roar, The Blank Tao still had no response.
She seemed to have adapted to all of this, still lightly flying around.
Perhaps she really couldn’t understand.
Bai Lian could not look back at her past self with her present perspective. She understood the emotions of that demigod. However, if that demigod appeared before her, she would certainly strike her with her sword.
What are you babbling about?
Due to the shattered soul, that demigod eventually died, and her body and broken soul dissolved in the Void Domain, leaving no trace behind.
But in reality, she left something behind.
In the Blank Tao’s consciousness, she left a seed.
This seed is the source of everything!
With the spread of the war, the Land of Immortals had collapsed, and many natives perished, plunging the world into darkness. As time passed, more and more Immortal Emperors and Heavenly Lords also met their demise.
They were buried in a foreign land, and everything they had once possessed vanished like sand slipping through their fingers.
As the battle advanced to its later stages, even the human race was divided into several factions.
Some still wanted to seize the Blank Tao and pursue the legend of the Other Shore.
Others aimed to entirely erase the Blank Tao, ending the rampant warfare.
There were also those who believed that the Blank Tao itself was innocent, and it was the world that was wrong. Destroying the Blank Tao was meaningless, and what truly needed to be done was to end this cycle of reincarnation.
The Lord of Reincarnation belongs to the third category of beings.
He traveled through numerous worlds to reach the Land of Immortals. Initially, he only wished to obtain the Blank Tao to cure his ailing wife.
At that time, he was full of vitality.
In the Immortal World, he was the supreme Heavenly Lord, and even enjoyed the title of being the highest among all human beings.
He believed that he could easily get hold of the Blank Tao.
Only after truly arriving at the Land of Immortals did he realize that the world in his perception was too small.
Beyond the Three Thousand Realms, there exist beings whose strength is not inferior to his own. Even if some are not as strong as him, once they join forces, he becomes helpless.
Not only that, but there were cultivators of Immortal Emperor level in the Land of Immortals. How can they tolerate their place of residence being struck by such disaster?
The Lord of Reincarnation struggles with every step, enduring numerous setbacks.
Witnessing the death of friends he had grown close to, and the Immortal Emperors of the Land of Immortals shedding blood over their homeland’s protection, he became lost in confusion.
What exactly is he pursuing?
During this period, he encountered numerous life-threatening situations and nearly perished. In the face of death, he underwent a transformation in his beliefs.
Immortality is unattainable.
Separation is also inevitable.
They fought for years, has anyone ever truly obtained the Blank Tao?
Several times someone acquired the Blank Tao, but before they could integrate it, they were beaten to death.
Such battles make the future invisible, all that is ever seen is death and destruction.
Instead of continuing like this, it is better to find a way to break free from the cage.
The Lord of Reincarnation wanted to put an end to all of this, and there were many who shared his beliefs —
Only by understanding what the Blank Tao is, can one put an end to this cycle!
So they gathered together and faced attacks from all sides, trying every possible means to protect the Blank Tao.
Some were injured, some died.
Gradually, there were fewer and fewer people standing together.
The sky in the Land of Immortals is still dark, but the disasters brought by the battles have finally decreased.
It was not because those who attempted to seize the Blank Tao suddenly became benevolent, but rather because there were few Immortal Emperors and Heavenly Lords left alive.
Finally, besides the scene where she was chased around, Bai Lian only remembered the words spoken to her by the Lord of Reincarnation and others before they died.
By the bonfire, a group of Immortal Emperors and Heavenly Lords sat indistinctively on the ground.
They were discussing the battle of the next day.
In the end of the discussion, the Lord of Reincarnation suddenly turned around and said to the Blank Tao floating in the cave, "After tomorrow, we may never have to meet again."
The Blank Tao didn’t understand.
She was older than many present but had always lived in the Void Domain until she was taken out for the first time as the war was nearing its end.
After the bonfire had died out, the Lord of Reincarnation asked the Blank Tao again in the dark of the night, "Wouldn’t things be different if you had even the slightest bit of human emotion?"
The Blank Tao still could not understand.
What is human emotion?
The Lord of Reincarnation gave a bitter laugh, feeling as if he was letting his mind rust by speaking these words to the Blank Tao.
He murmured, "Even if we cannot end this first-order catastrophe, we must end this war by tomorrow at the latest. The Land of Immortals can no longer withstand such devastation!"
The following day.
As a bystander, Bai Lian watched the entire battle.
The Lord of Reincarnation and others were much weaker than the Demons of the Outer Realm who wanted to seize the Blank Tao, as well as those who wanted to destroy it.
However, they still protected the Blank Tao in their desperate situation.
They sacrificed everything they had, and offered it to the Nine Ghostly Prisons to completely kill the True Emperor of Demons.
At the brink of desperation, the Lord of Reincarnation and his companions summoned the willpower to seal the remaining Demon Emperor within the Void Domain, whilst also sealing the Blank Tao in the midst of the void.
With his gradually dissipating hands, the Lord of Reincarnation relentlessly added sealing incantations and chuckled, "Next time, don’t let others find you again."
The final sight seen by the Blank Tao was of a eerie green giant hand emerging from nothingness, forcefully dragging the Lord of Reincarnation into the path of the underworld!
In countless years to come, Blank Tao saw nothing but a narrow darkness.
Finally, one day, cracks appeared on the seal under the erosion of the void.
Because she remembered the Lord of Reincarnation’s words, the Blank Tao didn’t take the opportunity to slip away.
She continued to wait, waited until the seal was completely broken, and the darkness could no longer offer her shelter. She flew out of the place, which had already become an ice cave, in a daze.
Looking at the flood that drowned the farmland and houses below her, Bai Lian suddenly woke up from her memories.
Wasn’t the era that Blank Tao came out, the era when sea monsters were rampant in the beginning of this world?
How long did she stay in that darkness?
It’s impossible to tell.
Ah.
It’s fortunate that she didn’t feel lonely at that time.
But now is not the time to focus on such matters, Bai Lian suddenly noticed something more important.
During one of the looting, the Blank Tao was attacked, and a small piece of it flew out, but no one ever noticed it.
Many years later, that piece would continue to wander in the dilapidated Land of Immortals.
Although no one fought over her, carrying the curse of the Demigod, she drifted around and witnessed even more unspeakable things.
After countless years, that strand of debris finally gave birth to its own consciousness.
She left the Land of Immortals and ventured out into the world.
Finally, after countless reincarnations, she met An Lan.
From that moment on, she had her own name –
Red Dust!
