88: Chapter 89 The Bright Sword of the Heavenly Star

"Shuisheng! My name is Shuisheng!"

"My mother was afraid I'd be difficult to raise, so she gave me this name."

"I'm Tiezhu."

"My father is a cattle-puller; he hoped I'd be as honest and solid as an ox."

"My name is..."

"What strange names these are."

The Centurion held a porcelain bowl, writing the names of the soldiers on the city wall one by one.

The Qingming statue in the temple silently watched that flickering firelight until the distant dawn rose.

Four million years ago, in a capital city of the human world.

"Those Immortals were like destiny stars descending to the world, saving the suffering people from the depths of misery..."

By a thirty-foot white jade stele, a storyteller was narrating the tale of the twenty immortals who subdued demons, surrounded by hundreds of children.

"the twenty immortals who subdued demons? To hell with your Immortals!"

A vulgar shout interrupted the storyteller's solemn narration of the legendary tale.

Everyone turned around to see a lean young soldier pointing at the nearby white jade stele, shouting at the top of his lungs:

"What 'the twenty immortals who subdued demons'..."

"There were clearly two million of them!"

"Each and every one of them had a name and a surname!"

"They knew they didn't have the Divine Ability of the Immortals..."

"But they still gave their all to fight against the demons!"

"Even if they had to fill the gaps with their lives!"

...Shouldn't everyone have a name that symbolizes themselves?

Most Mortals are not Immortals who can move mountains and fill seas.

Nor can they refine the essence of the sun and moon like the Yao Race.

With a Mortal body in this Mountain and Sea, where should one go?

Two million, twenty million, twenty billion, two trillion... Such a vast number of Mortals are like weeds covering the mountains and fields.

Time is like heavenly fire, burning away the nameless grass.

Ashes are buried in the soil, and next year, flowers will bloom everywhere.

"I remember you all."

A man wearing an azure-colored mask stood suspended in mid-air.

He looked down at the land filled with the cries of the suffering, his eyes lowered.

"As long as I am still alive, you will not be mere dust in the passage of time."

The young girl in his arms gradually woke up, her large eyes looking at him, innocent and ignorant.

"What is your name?"

The man in the Qingming mask asked in a faint tone.

"Ooh, ooh..."

The girl gestured wildly.

Finally, she pointed toward the heavens.

The man looked up at what the world called the Nine Heavens and remained silent for a long time.

"Mortals are all foolish beings, hoping that by being good throughout their lives, their souls can ascend to the Nine Heavens after death and become stars."

"I will impart everything I have learned in my life to you. Before you achieve your Dao, I will protect your clansmen and keep them safe."

The man in the Qingming mask looked at the girl dressed in purple and spoke slowly:

"The stars encircle her, and purple Qi comes from the east."

"From now on, your name shall be..."

"Ziwei."

The girl nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Her eyes widened as the vast starry sky entered her pupils.

"Remember the first lesson I give you."

"Above the Nine Heavens."

"It is not that stars descend to become people."

"But rather, all sentient beings become the stars."

...Within the Sea of Consciousness space.

Luo Changting opened his eyes, looked at the stranger before him, and gave his answer:

"My name is Luo Changting."

In the dark depths of the sea, countless people like the stranger before him appeared by his side.

Their appearances...

...were ordinary and plain.

"My child, you must grow up safely."

"Father! I will definitely live up to everyone's expectations!"

"All lovers will eventually be united; how wonderful!"

"The rise and fall of the nation is the responsibility of every common man!"

"Do not underestimate the will of Mortals, you demons!"

"I am the hardest to kill among these weeds covering the mountains and fields."

"The disciples of the Jiang Family are willing to protect the Mountain and Sea with their flesh and blood!"

"I only want a place, a place where my father can grow old in peace, where we... don't have to live in fear and wander everywhere, where we can look up at the sky, even if it's a place without stars!"

"I am willing to give up everything I have to exchange for the peaceful years the Mountain and Sea once knew."

Reverse Sentient Beings Soul Transformation Array.

Luo Changting sank into the depths of the sea, merging with that vast sea of people.

Within the Sea of Consciousness space, a tiny glimmer bloomed amidst the darkness above the Nine Heavens.

That was the first star.

Then came the second, the third... a thousand, ten thousand, ten million, a hundred million, trillions upon trillions!

Infinite and boundless, the stars shone brilliantly, cleansing the dark night.

It is said that all things possess Dao Rhyme.

At this moment, the Dao Rhyme of trillions upon trillions of living beings converged here.

【The Great Dao is vast; all sentient beings hold it to live】

【The Nine Songs are long; all spirits persevere for success】

Small streams gather to form a sea,

And even mountain ranges can be toppled by them.

This is... the Mountain and Sea.

If one takes charge of the fate of all sentient beings...

Then that is the Mountain and Sea Fate Controller... "Damn it... the nascent soul dao fruit is out of control..."

The cracks on the chest of the Six Hells Demon Venerable became increasingly dense.

"Do you think you can resist this seat like this? Wishful thinking!"

Heavenly Hell: Burial of Sentient Beings!

The Six Hells Demon Venerable performed another great Divine Ability, and purple-black devilish flames burned across the Qingming mask, turning it into fly ash.

"Qingming, you are nothing more than a dead man now; stop coming out to cause trouble."

"Mere Mortals, ants are ultimately just ants; you overestimate yourselves."

"This seat was a Demon Venerable in life; the depth of my wondrous rhyme is beyond your imagination..."

Before his voice could fade, the Six Hells Demon Venerable's expression suddenly froze.

Because the crack in his chest had not healed in the slightest; on the contrary, the speed of its collapse had increased.

Then, brilliant radiance burst forth from the crack, was stripped from his body, and projected outward.

In Langya Prefecture, countless stars suddenly lit up in the endless darkness of the heavens.

The Star River was magnificent, and as the stars moved along their trajectories, they actually gathered into a hazy human figure.

The figure slowly reached out, and particles of light surged from all directions of heaven and earth like a vast Star River.

Azure and purple-gold colors intertwined, transforming into an ancient mask.

He slowly fitted the mask onto His face.

Within those compassionate eyes, divine radiance flowed... In the Langya Prefecture government, Luo Hanchán, who had fallen in the ruins, felt a sudden realization and opened her eyes.

She looked toward that brilliant river of light in the sky and saw that majestic figure.

"Brother?"

Luo Hanchán asked tremulously.

Suddenly, a profound vitality surged into her heart, and the wounds on her body caused by the demon wind healed instantly... "This wondrous rhyme aura... are you Qingming? Ziwei? No..."

Looking at the figure above the firmament, the Six Hells Demon Venerable's deep pupils shrank as if he were facing a great enemy.

He hurriedly grasped the heaven-slaying nether-illuminating sword in his hand, accumulating Devilish Qi as he opened his Heavenly Demon Eye.

"This wondrous rhyme... how is it possible? Who exactly are you!"

The Six Hells Demon Venerable was startled; his Heavenly Demon Eye could not see even a trace of His origins.

Because the face beneath that mask...

...could be anyone.

The starlight figure remained silent, His gaze sweeping across the devastated Langya Prefecture.

As His gaze descended, the vast seas receded, and the mountains and rivers reappeared.

Plants sprouted from the earth, and all things were revived.

The Cultivators who were resisting the floods were all startled by this miracle.

"Damn it! It's a Human Race Venerable!"

Before they could react, those man-eating Yao actually dissipated into clouds of dust.

Even the Mortals who were struggling in agony could feel their severe injuries and illnesses rapidly vanishing.

He slightly raised His hand, His fingers curling and extending.

【Sword, come!】

A gentle yet majestic voice echoed throughout heaven and earth, neither male nor female, sounding like the resonance of all things.

As the two words fell, a light sword forged from the stars came Shattering the Void.

The brilliance of the sword's body was restrained, reflecting the sun, moon, stars, the mountains and rivers of the state, and the life of the common people.

【heaven bearing star brilliance sword】

The moment the Six Hells Demon Venerable's eyes fell upon that sword, he naturally knew its name.

"The aura of the authority of the Fate Controller? Which Fate Controller of the ancient Mountain and Sea are you? Or..."

The starlight figure's eyes were brilliant.

He raised the sword above the Nine Heavens to face the enemy.

【I inherit the legacy of Qing and Zi, born from the starlight, awakened by the grand aspirations of all living beings】

【Today, I perform Inscription Dao in the Mountain and Sea, and establish the Heavenly Law】

【Henceforth, all sentient beings, whether Immortal or Mortal, regardless of race, may become fireflies, flames, light, and the stars in the sky, shining across the Great Thousand Realms】

【All spirits of the Great Thousand Mortals, if they encounter natural disasters or man-made calamities and seek a chance at life, may pray to my title—】

【Star River Brightening Fate Controller】!

The Dao Sound was majestic, echoing through the Nine Heavens.

The people on the ground looked up at the deity with compassionate eyes; their bodies felt warm, their vitality was restored, and they couldn't help but feel a sense of closeness.

"Fate Controller! It's the Mountain and Sea Fate Controller!"

"Have I returned to the ancient Mountain and Sea!"

The Cultivators who had been imprisoned by the Demon Venerable's chains all regained their freedom.

Gao Sheng looked at the Star River flowing through the Nine Heavens, momentarily shocked into silence.

"To be able to see this scene is truly the fortune of three lifetimes! Even if I die now, it'll be worth it, indeed!"

"In this situation, is this the reappearance of myth!"

"No! We are already within the myth!"

Looking at that magnificent existence, some people on the ground were flushed with excitement, while others burst into tears.

Above the Nine Heavens, the Star River flowed.

The Star River Brightening Fate Controller held the sword level.

The sword aura formed by the light of the Star River was aimed at the Demon Venerable standing atop the Mythical Tree.

【You! Shall be slain!】

"What arrogance!"

The Six Hells Demon Venerable finally snapped out of it, his face showing disdain.

"You are just a newborn Fate Controller, still at the threshold of the Great Dao, yet you dare to speak such nonsense? It's not as if this seat has never fought a Fate Controller before."

【You are welcome to come and try.】

The Dao Sound above the Nine Heavens vibrated through the Void Realm.

In response, the Six Hells Demon Venerable sneered and also gripped his sword, assuming a sword stance.

In an instant, space shattered, and the world lost its color.

One dark and one light, two incompatible forces clashed.

The heaven-slaying nether-illuminating sword was desolate as the eternal ages, as dim as a long night.

The heaven bearing star brilliance sword brightened all things, as bright as the Star River...