230: Cosmic Attraction

Li Dong gazed at the vast star map branded into the depths of his consciousness by the "True Lord."

Countless points of light, like cells riddled with terminal disease, were spread across the vast body of the Universe.

Each point of light represented a world currently being devoured and digested.

His Dao Heart had long been tempered into something indestructible through a hundred years of sinking and struggling.

Become a part of that thing? What a joke.

What he needed to be was a doctor, an executioner, and the cleaner of this Universe.

He would sever these parasitic sores and seek justice for those worlds that could not even let out a cry of agony.

He did not look back, nor did he need to.

He split off a wisp of his Divine Thought, crossing the endless Void Realm, and instantly descended upon his recovering homeland.

Before the ruins of the Demon Suppression Tower, three Grand Elders were directing the others to clear the battlefield, their expressions excited yet solemn.

A majestic and indifferent voice resonated within their minds.

"I entrust this world to you for protection. I have left pure Origin within the tower to assist your cultivation, along with the method to control the [Eternal Prison]; study it well. The external enemy has been eliminated, and internal threats must be cleared; do not disappoint me."

The three Elders stiffened, then bowed deeply toward the Void Realm, their expressions filled with the utmost reverence.

"Farewell, Commander!"

Deep within the imperial palace, the Empress Li Qingxuan was soothing the shaken royal clan members when that same voice resonated in her heart, though it carried a touch more gentleness.

"Qingxuan, in chaotic times, one must use strict Laws but also employ benevolence. The common people are entrusted to you. I have taken a portion of the items in the ring; the rest is enough for you to create an unprecedented golden age."

Li Qingxuan looked up abruptly toward the sky, her eyes filled with complex emotions, which eventually turned into an almost inaudible sigh and a glimmer of determination.

The final thought landed on the solitary figure atop the tower.

Lin Yue was gazing in the direction he had left, as if she had long anticipated everything.

"Your path lies beneath your feet. My path lies beyond the stars," Li Dong said without further ado.

"If there comes a day when we meet again, I hope to see someone capable of standing by my side, not just a follower who can only look up at me."

Lin Yue's delicate body trembled slightly, and she clenched her fists.

She did not reply, but a flame like never before ignited within her cold, clear eyes.

Commander, you have shouldered everything.

And I will guard these thousands of hearths for you. From this day forward, the Demon Suppression Division shall become a sharp sword hanging over this world, and I will never again let any shadow have the chance to taint this land.

Having done all this, Li Dong had no more worries.

He took a step forward, his figure not tearing through space as violently as it had in the past.

After ascending to the Peak of Mahayana, his understanding of the Law had undergone a complete transformation.

In his eyes, the Universe was no longer a dark and cold Void Realm, but was composed of countless shimmering, intertwined "lines" and "rivers."

These were world lines, rivers of Law, the veins of the Universe.

His body turned into a stream of light that could not be captured, lightly merging into one of these "rivers" and flowing downstream.

Each flicker traversed distances that no Mortal could imagine.

This was true interstellar travel.

As he traveled through the multiverse, the "Hunting List" in his mind became increasingly clear and three-dimensional.

It was no longer a flat display of light points, but a grand tapestry encompassing countless galaxies, magnificent nebulae, and unknown cosmic phenomena.

He could "see" pitch-black "tentacles," some thick and some thin, extending from an unknown Origin point and rooting themselves deeply into different worlds.

Interestingly, there were many blank areas on this huge web.

Those places seemed to be shrouded by some more primitive, purer Law, forming "forbidden zones" that even the "True Lord" could not easily touch.

"Quite the appetite, pity there are so many places suffering from indigestion," Li Dong muttered to himself.

Just then, he discovered something interesting.

Among those intersecting world lines, there remained some extremely faint "trajectories" that bore a slight resemblance to his own aura.

These were traces left behind by those Senior "Variables."

Some trajectories were like kites with broken strings, eventually dissipating into nothingness, representing a failed resistance.

Other trajectories were deeply embedded in the core of a world, like hibernating beasts, lying dormant.

There were even a few of the clearest and most resilient trajectories that acted like arrows, pointing straight toward the vague location of the "True Lord's" true body.

"Oh? Some stubborn ones went straight to cause trouble for the main culprit?"

Li Dong became interested.

He decided not to rush to hunt down the nearest "suckers" but instead followed one of the trajectories.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.

It would not hurt to see what these Seniors had experienced.

He chose the oldest and clearest-looking trajectory, flashed, and merged into the river of Law once again.

The journey was no longer boring.

He passed by a nebula composed entirely of pure light, where there was no life, yet it was filled with warm and primitive creative energy, standing in stark contrast to the rotten, greedy aura of the "True Lord."

He also saw a "Clock Star" formed entirely from the Law of Time.

Every "tick" of that unimaginably huge crystalline planet caused the flow of time in the surrounding Star Domain to change strangely, sometimes fast-forwarding, sometimes rewinding.

The Universe is vast, and there is nothing it does not contain.

These wonders further solidified Li Dong's conviction.

Why should such a magnificent world become food on some monster's dinner plate?

He did not know how long he had traveled, but the "Variable" trajectory he was following finally led him to a destination.

It was a vibrant world full of life.

Even from a great distance, Li Dong could feel the surging aura of life within it.

But when he approached, his brows furrowed slightly.

This world had not been directly parasitized by the "boss's" ugly tumors.

Instead, it was being subjected to a more subtle and insidious erosion.

The "True Lord's" power, like a silent plague, was insidiously twisting the essence of this world from the very foundation of its Law, causing the living beings within to become violent, greedy, and desperate without their knowledge.

It was "farming" negative emotions.

What surprised Li Dong even more was that he keenly sensed another force of extreme power existing within this world.

This power was completely different from the "True Lord's," filled with destruction, purification, and a kind of... indiscriminate fury.

It was also resisting the "True Lord's" erosion.

But its method was like choosing to blow up the entire house, foundation and all, just to kill a few flies inside.

"Fighting poison with poison?"

Li Dong stopped, hovering in the Void Realm outside this world, not entering rashly.

The situation seemed to be more complex than he had imagined.

It seemed that what he was about to face was not just the "True Lord's" lackeys, but also... a madman whose allegiance he could not determine.