Beyond the Timescape

Chapter 638: Everything That Exists Leaves Behind Evidence of Itself

At the edge of the shattered altar, Wu Jianwu was carefully studying his script. He intended to take everything he knew about Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity and make it a part of his performance. It wasn’t a very difficult task for him, nor was it his first time doing something like this. Back in the Dark Serenity Sect’s pocket dimension in the Eight Sect Coalition, he had done something similar to get a reaction from the demon snake skeleton. [1]

With the Heir Apparent directing, Ning Yan and Nethersprite essentially had to start from ground zero with their lines. It went without saying that the Heir Apparent was definitely a more suitable director for this play than Chen Erniu. With his insights, everyone was able to bring a higher level of realism to their roles.

Princess Brightblossom, Fifth Sister, and Eighth Sib sat next to the Heir Apparent watching the rehearsal and discussing it amongst themselves.

“That Wu Jianwu kid has some pizazz after all. Forget his cultivation base. His facial expressions and wording really do remind you a lot of the Ancient Emperor.”

“Ning Yan isn’t bad either. He’s at least channeling some of our father’s imperial majesty.”

“Comparatively speaking, though, the hatred in Nethersprite’s eyes is the most realistic. Probably the highlight of the performance.”

“The worst of the group is Chen Erniu. Why’s he just standing there stock still?”

As they chatted and nodded, they would occasionally look over at Xu Qing. The frown on Xu Qing’s face seemed to please the Heir Apparent.

“The boy looks like he’s having a rough time. The God Decapitation Altar is a manifestation of one of father’s divine abilities. It was a trump card that combined all of his experiences and his cultivation base power. Forget the kid. Not even I could learn that divine ability back in the day. Countless years have passed since then, and this place is in total ruins. I don’t care how he seeks enlightenment... there’s no way he’ll fully succeed.” The Heir Apparent shook his head. “Only Ninth Sib was able to continue that tradition....”

Thinking about his ninth brother made the Heir Apparent sigh.

Off to the side, Eighth Sib suddenly said, “Big Brother, I don’t really approve of this rubbernecking attitude of yours. You obviously know he can’t gain enlightenment here, so why are you having him try? It’s so unscrupulous! I mean, do you want him to get enlightenment or don’t you?”

The Heir Apparent’s expression darkened as he looked at Eighth Sib. Eighth Sib shrank back a bit. Realizing he’d said the wrong thing again, he smiled ingratiatingly.

“The Heir Apparent is worried that Xu Qing will get a big head because of his powers of understanding,” Princess Brightblossom said. “He wants Xu Qing to come to understand his limitations. That will give him the best foundation for future growth. Besides, with this experience, when Ninth Sib awakens in the future, he can pass on the God Decapitation Altar magic, and Xu Qing will be in a much better position to learn it.”

Fifth Sister nodded. By now, she fully approved of Xu Qing.

Eighth Sib hesitated. There were some more things he wanted to say, yet didn’t dare to. In the end, he just said, “Okay, but... what happens if he actually does gain enlightenment of the killing will? After all, father used to say everything that exists leaves behind evidence of itself.”

The Heir Apparent sat there quietly. Princess Brightblossom was similarly silent.

Fifth Sister looked at Xu Qing and quietly said, “That would prove that his powers of understanding actually surpass the shocking level of Ninth Sib. Remember, back then, he was said to have powers of understanding similar to father’s....”

***

Everything that exists leaves behind evidence of itself.

All things in heaven and earth were governed by that principle. People. Objects. Concepts. And also divine abilities. The wind had a memory. The land had a memory. The dome of heaven. All living things. No matter how many ages and eras passed, they could remember. Even heavenly daos had a memory. And if a heavenly dao forgot something, it was always possible that there was some higher will that existed above heavenly daos. If something like that existed, perhaps it would remember everything that had happened over the countless years of history.

That said, such ‘evidence’ was sometimes hard to spot, to the point where it would be logical to assume it had disappeared forever. But the reality was the opposite.

“Divine abilities are only constrained by your own imagination....”

Those words spoken by Princess Brightblossom had profoundly affected Xu Qing. It was as if they had opened a window that let him see all of heaven and earth. The image outside that window wasn’t fixed. It was determined by the limits of his imagination.

As Xu Qing sat on the broken stone remnants of the altar, he felt the wind. Because this world fragment was isolated from the outside world, the wind that blew here was from ancient times.

Xu Qing sat there quietly. He was thinking, not just about his actions, but his inner self, his physical body, his soul, and everything else that made him up. As the wind blew, all of those things became extremely calm. All outside sounds ceased. He wasn’t looking at anything. He felt utter tranquility covering him. His mind became blank. His thoughts were empty. He lacked intentions. He lacked will.

The only sensation he experienced was the wind. It didn’t stir his hair or garments, but it caused ripples in his sea of consciousness.

As the ripples spread, images appeared like ink on water. They were blurry, and didn’t have a fixed shape. They moved back and forth, merged and split apart, seemingly working hard to form a specific image. It was as if they wanted to take a memory and impart it to the outside world. Impart it to someone who existed now. Impart it to Xu Qing.

Unfortunately, perhaps the evidence that had existed since ancient times had grown so faint that the ripples created by the wind weren’t capable of making the image complete.

Xu Qing’s powers of understanding really did have a limit when it came to bringing the past to the present. As a result, he wasn’t really able to seek enlightenment from the ink on the water. The ink and water had lost their power, and were gradually going still. The water was the water. The ink was the ink. They no longer mixed together. They began to vanish.

However, at the exact moment in which the ink was about to vanish, the defiance that existed in Xu Qing’s heart caused his sea of consciousness to surge. Subconsciously, he knew that this was an amazing destined opportunity. And when destined opportunities came along... you only had one chance to succeed. If that ink vanished, then he would lose the chance for all eternity.

Thus, seven-colored daybreak light exploded in his sea of consciousness, casting radiance everywhere, seeking to extract, to imitate, and to comprehend the ink.

In the past, Xu Qing wouldn’t have been able to do this. But now, his enlightenment of daybreak light had reached the point where he could use it to imitate things. With that, just about everything was within the realm of possibility. The ink and water seethed as seven colors spread through them, causing the countless images on the water to turn into numerous projections. They were only imitations. However, there were far more of them than there were originals.

The images that formed were full of even more detail. People became visible within them. As the images collided and merged with each other, they started to form a larger, more complete image.

Within that image, it was just possible to make out two figures. One was in heaven, the other on earth. The figure in heaven extended its hands. The figure on the earth looked up. The moment it became clear, a will of intent flickered into being inside. It was killing intent.

The moment it appeared, Xu Qing’s sea of consciousness seethed as if it had been struck by lightning from the highest heavens. Wind, rain, thunder, and lightning seemed to coalesce. Suns, moons, stars, and heavenly bodies erupted into being in the killing intent. It was something that would strike fear into the hearts of other Imperial Sovereigns who faced it, and in fact, would even frighten gods. The moment the intent flickered into being, the image shattered and faded from view.

A tremor passed through Xu Qing, and his previously empty thoughts stirred again. All of a sudden, he was struck with the realization that he had just experienced the killing will the Heir Apparent had mentioned.

If I can find it and imitate it, then... perhaps I can turn the image I just saw into a reality.

From what Xu Qing could tell, gaining enlightenment of the killing will wasn’t important. That was just part of the process. The important part was the image. With that thought in mind, he sent seven-colored light sweeping through his sea of consciousness, both to search and to imitate. Instantly, the ink and the water seethed.

***

The rehearsal went on. As everyone got used to their roles, they started to gain more confidence. It was getting to the point where the actual performance could begin.

Ning Yan and Nethersprite had already changed into their costumes.

Before things got started, the Captain walked out, clasped hands to the Heir Apparent and his siblings, then cleared his throat.

“Everybody, just do your best job. Of course, I have multiple roles to play. For one thing, I’m going to use Little Roundy to film the show. The film will then be transmitted to Big Roundy. After being processed, it can then be broadcast out into the canopy of heaven.”

With a flourish, the Captain produced a glowing sphere, which he tossed up into the air.

But then the Heir Apparent waved his hand, sending Little Roundy right back to the Captain.

“There’s no need for all that! Your way isn’t exactly very convenient. For one thing, everyone will have to crane their necks to see. And that’s not to mention that there will be some places where people can’t see. You just concentrate on doing a good job as the godpriest. As for the filming, don’t even concern yourself with it.”

The Heir Apparent extended his right hand, and something crystalline shot out of his sleeve and up into the sky. High above, it stopped in place, revealing that it was actually a huge mirror fragment. It was fully 3,000 meters across and irregularly shaped. However, it emanated a majestic feeling. In fact, the Captain could clearly sense the aura of the Moonrebel Congregation in it. The Captain’s eyes gleamed, and everyone else was visibly surprised.

The huge mirror hovered in the air, slowly rotating and reflecting all of the surroundings. It also locked onto everyone present. The image it created was incredibly clear.

“This was a precious treasure that belonged to my father,” the Heir Apparent said. “Its name is Eye of Heaven. It can see to the highest of the nine heavens and to the lowest of the ten hells. Years ago, right before my father lost to Crimson Mother, the mirror shattered into numerous fragments that scattered into the surrounding lands. In the final moment, my father gave orders to the spirit automaton in the mirror to respect the will of the people.

“Later, as the spirit automaton absorbed the faith of the people, the Moonrebel Congregation came to be. What you’re looking at here is the largest of the mirror fragments that formed after the Eye of Heaven shattered. The images reflected in this mirror can be transmitted to the spirit automaton in the Moonrebel Congregation. And then, it can be sent directly into the minds of all the living beings in the Moonrite Region.

“We won’t have to worry about dealing with a recorded broadcast. It will happen live! And now....”

The Heir Apparent looked at the group.

The Captain was clearly excited. Ning Yan and the others were in very high spirits. At the same time, the realization that their performance was going to be broadcast live made them all feel more nervous than ever.

“Everybody to your places! Let the show begin!”

The giant mirror fragment glittered brightly. At the same time, in the secret location where the Moonrebel Congregation existed, everything started shaking. All of the temples suddenly shone with dazzling light. The numerous cultivators in the Moonrebel Congregation were stunned to the core as an image appeared in their minds. It wasn’t just them. The same thing was happening throughout the Moonrite Region. All mortals. All animals. All cultivators.... Even the members of the Red Moon Cathedral were seeing the same thing.

An amazing play was officially starting.

1. Wu Jianwu acted like Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity in the scene that started in chapter 289. ☜