Cleansing the Dao Heart of Dust? Gu Xianer's Resolve
Cleansing the Dao Heart of Dust? Gu Xianer’s Resolve
A lineage that had been passed down for countless ages, that once controlled the Dark Empire, that had plunged countless forces and orthodoxies into terror and unease—Neraka—had finally been destroyed today.
Endless flames of war swept through, leaving devastation everywhere. Heaven and earth were shattered, and the entire world was collapsing and decaying.
Far too many cultivators and living beings had perished in this great battle, buried in this land, some even having their souls scattered and their forms and spirits utterly annihilated, leaving nothing behind.
All the palaces and halls had been razed, leaving only broken walls and ruins, without the slightest trace of any cultivator or living being.
The few remaining True Daoists of Neraka had also all fallen. Not a single one survived.
Above the sky, a sparse handful of Ancient Battleships hovered, their hulls stained with blood, incomparably battered.
The survivors watched all of this in silence, still gripped by lingering fear.
In their view, if the figure left behind by the Lord of Hell had not ultimately failed to hold on, everyone would likely have been buried here, perishing alongside Neraka.
The Palm of True World had shattered, and every force and orthodoxy had paid its due price.
The surviving cultivators all felt waves of lingering dread.
This battle had truly been too terrifying. The number of fallen True Daoists alone exceeded seven or eight.
And every one of them had been an ancestor-level figure of the various Cults of Immortality.
Although Neraka had been destroyed, the price paid was truly far too great.
Many orthodoxies that had not participated in this final battle felt considerably fortunate, having suffered no losses.
On the contrary, when they had earlier plundered the various realms of Neraka, they had found many precious treasures.
There were Daoist books, ancient scriptures, divine materials, Celestial Herbs... as well as the wealth Neraka had accumulated over the years.
Moreover, the ancient worlds Neraka had occupied were themselves an exceedingly rare fortune.
They were inscribed with the imperial Dao runes and emperor-realm Array Patterns that Neraka had accumulated over the years, possessing heaven-toppling offensive power, and could serve as mountain-protecting formations.
In the days that followed, many more orthodoxies came to scavenge, literally digging three feet into the ground across the ruins of Neraka, even excavating many of the foundations.
Some people recovered the remains of their ancestors from within, while others found buried broken weapons that carried the aura of their forebears.
In any case, this battle had finally come to an end, but the aftershocks it caused had yet to subside.
Over the following half month, large numbers of cultivators continued to appear outside the Battlefield of Hundred Worlds.
Ancient Battleships soared through the sky one after another, rumbling as they rolled over, not sparing a single corner of Neraka.
The details of this great battle were also rapidly spread amid the discussions of many cultivators.
They spread to every corner of the Beyond.
The destruction of Neraka was naturally a cause for universal celebration.
However, the various orthodoxies and forces were also given a stern warning by it.
In this battle, the influence Gu Changge had exerted was absolutely immeasurably far-reaching and terrifying.
If not for Gu Changge, it would have been absolutely impossible for the various forces to destroy Neraka.
Moreover, it seemed Gu Changge had long known that Neraka still had the trump card of the “Lord of Hell” that had never been used.
In the final battle, he withdrew early, and his losses were so small they could be called negligible.
Back then, it was Gu Changge who first discovered Neraka’s true world, and in the end, it was also he who left one step ahead of everyone else.
No one knew what Gu Changge’s reason for doing so was.
Could it be that he had planted spies within Neraka, and thus knew its every move?
Of course, because of this battle, many people also turned their attention to another assassin organization that had risen rapidly in recent years.
Many orthodoxies even felt that the Nephrite Breeze Pavilion actually had Gu Changge backing it from behind.
The Beyond, which had been calm for a long time, once again surged with undercurrents because of Neraka’s destruction.
Many of the older generation of cultivators even felt that in the near future, the Beyond would descend into complete chaos.
Endless blood and fire would come sweeping in.
Pagoda, another assassin organization with an equally ancient heritage, had also shown signs of activity during this period.
It could no longer remain at ease as it had before.
The various forces and orthodoxies were all searching for clues and traces related to Pagoda, intending to destroy it completely, just as Neraka had been destroyed.
As for the matter of Pagoda, Gu Changge did not concern himself with it much.
Because all of this was within his expectations and calculations.
After settling the matters on Neraka’s side, he returned to the Longevity Gu Family and began searching for suitable ancient worlds, casting his net in advance.
As for Neraka’s First Palace Lord Qing Luo and the Third Palace Lord, Gu Changge did not kill them.
After planting Slave Marks in them and taking control of their lives and deaths, he tossed all the various management affairs to Yin Mei and Bai Lian’er.
Gu Changge had not yet told anyone around him about the matters of the Dark Heaven.
But after experiencing the destruction of Neraka, the originally peaceful and stable environment of the Beyond underwent great changes, causing many cultivators and living beings to feel uneasy in their hearts, praying day and night.
Those with powerful cultivation could even better perceive the existence of the Dark Heaven.
Although they had not yet fully offered up their faith, the convictions in their hearts had already wavered.
In Gu Changge’s view, once the Beyond fell into great chaos, he would be all the more able to gather faith and amass believers.
Soon, half a month passed, and the date of his wedding with Yue Mingkong drew ever closer.
At this moment, Gu Changge’s usually tranquil state of mind, for some reason, could not help but ripple slightly.
He sighed softly, set down the Jade Tablet in his hand, and walked out of the palace, unknowingly arriving outside.
Looking out as far as the eye could see, the Longevity Gu Family held countless islands, Mystic Mountains and ancient peaks, a vast territory, with divine light shining brilliantly everywhere and immortal mist curling about—a scene of a true immortal paradise.
Standing at the pinnacle of the Beyond, overlooking billions upon billions of living beings, grasping life and death, enduring through the ages, eternal and indestructible.
And he had more or less reached this step himself—able to annihilate billions of miles of mountains and rivers with a single word.
Gu Changge’s thoughts were somewhat unsettled. His gaze gradually grew deep as he called out the System, which had not stirred for a long time.
It was not that he was worried something would go wrong with his wedding to Yue Mingkong.
Rather, he suddenly felt that all this time, though he appeared glorious and unrivaled on the surface, in reality, the amount of scheming he had to carry out in the shadows made it truly difficult to ever feel at peace.
He also knew that, as a transmigrator, he carried many world-shaking secrets upon himself.
Including the origins of this System and his identity as a Transmigrator—behind these layers of mist, there were actually far too many unanswered questions.
It was just that he rarely took the initiative to think about these things on ordinary days.
Now, with the wedding approaching, even Gu Changge felt great waves stirring in his heart, and he could not help but think of these things.
He had tasted all the splendor and glory, but he had also experienced lonely, sleepless nights.
Was this what they called cleansing the Dao Heart of dust?
Gu Changge laughed somewhat self-mockingly. When had his Dao Heart, all along his journey, ever relied on such things?
Then his gaze fell upon the familiar interface that appeared once more before his eyes.
The System’s origins had always been mysterious. He had once wondered whether it was the handiwork of the Demon Lord, but that idea was later rejected.
If there was anything about him connected to the Demon Lord, it was probably only his reincarnated body and the Demonic Heart.
The System, and his memories as a Transmigrator, on the other hand, seemed more like an Anomaly within the unseen workings of fate.
“It has been a long time since I encountered a Fortuitous One who could truly be of use to me, and even the System has not given any prompts for a long time.”
“What exactly is the connection between the Fortuitous Ones and the System?”
Gu Changge could not help but shake his head gently, thoughts tumbling through his mind.
But he had a feeling in his heart that one day, he would figure all of this out.
In the Sky Domain, something was surely waiting for him.
“In the end, after scheming all this way, I have grown somewhat weary.”
A faint smile appeared on Gu Changge’s face. It was not that he had any regrets about his actions.
He was merely surprised that even he could have such thoughts.
His comprehension of the Dao had already surpassed that of many True Daoists, but in the end, it had not yet reached the level of an Immortal.
Though even an Immortal would likely find it hard to escape such introspection.
Thinking this, he sighed softly and no longer restrained the thoughts in his heart. He closed his eyes slightly and quietly rested where he was.
Within the clan grounds of the Longevity Gu Family, he was not worried that any accident would occur.
Meanwhile, beyond the outer islands of the Longevity Gu Family.
A divine rainbow streaked across the sky, sweeping past island after island and mountain range, passing through the various teleportation arrays.
When many clan members saw the newcomer, their expressions could not help but change slightly.
Then they became incomparably respectful, all bowing in unison, not daring to show the slightest negligence.
This was the little princess of the Longevity Gu Family, possessing a status no one could compare to.
Whether in the outside world or within the clan, no one dared to slight or provoke her.
Moreover, because of certain secrets from back then, the current family head and many clan elders felt particular guilt toward her.
Of course, a large part of it was also that this little princess’s talent was truly terrifying.
Among her peers, she was second only to Young Master Changge.
Many of the old ancestors who had emerged into the world also paid her special attention, even personally instructing her.
Some time ago, this little princess had vanished without a trace, no one knew where she had gone, causing quite a few clan members to worry.
Now, seeing her return safe and sound, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
“Is Gu Changge within the clan?”
Gu Xianer’s figure was slender, her countenance pure and breathtakingly beautiful, her dark hair cascading like a waterfall, exuding a proud, cool aloofness.
Even the way she questioned the clan members carried a natural immortal grace.
She appeared extremely delicate and endearing before Gu Changge, but that did not mean she was foolish.
In terms of talent and comprehension alone, she absolutely surpassed the countless heaven’s pride daughters of her generation in the Beyond.
“The Young Master has been within the clan during this time.”
The reporting clan member’s heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly answered.
In the entire Longevity Gu Family, the one who dared to address Gu Changge directly by name was probably only this one person.
Nowadays, even those old ancestors who walked out from the depths of the clan grounds treated Gu Changge with great courtesy, not daring to regard him as a junior.
Gu Xianer nodded. A trace of pain and complexity flashed across her face, but she quickly regained her calm.
In fact, on her journey back to the Longevity Gu Family from the Godly Island in the outer domain, she had heard much news about Gu Changge.
Including the fact that he had set a wedding date with Yue Mingkong.
And then his journey to the Battlefield of Hundred Worlds, the destruction of Neraka—practically every single matter.
Originally, she had been very doubtful of the scenes she had seen within the Lake of Rebirth, even unable to believe them.
But along this journey, constantly connecting Gu Changge’s actions over all these years, she could not help but think in that direction.
In her heart, she was actually in great pain, unwilling to accept the scenes from the Lake of Rebirth.
But even Da Hong insisted with absolute certainty that the things reflected by a divine object of heaven and earth like the Lake of Rebirth could not be false.
Of course, it was also possible that they were merely a fragment of the future, or one possibility of the future.
In truth, within the Lake of Rebirth, the scenes she had witnessed did not involve her alone.
She had even seen others.
Gu Xianer had not only seen her own ending.
She had also seen the day Gu Changge and Yue Mingkong held their grand wedding—but on that night in the bridal chamber, blood splattered across the red wedding veil.
Gu Changge had personally killed his own wife, cold and merciless, as if without the slightest hesitation.
“None of this has happened yet. It can all still be changed. Gu Changge would not be like this. At that time, he must have been controlled by his Demonic Heart...”
“I knew it. All along, the problem of his Demonic Heart has never been resolved.”
Gu Xianer bit her silver teeth lightly, gazing at the distant islands and mountain ranges, her eyes growing all the more crystalline, as if glistening with watery light.