276: Chapter 276 The Mist of the Fifth District

The spacetime flying boat sailed through the sea of stars for a full twenty days.

After returning to Yongning City from the Sixth District, Shen Nian only rested for three days before embarking on his journey once more.

Yue Li stood beside him, holding the black token in her hand. The samsara lotus on the token glowed faintly under the reflection of the starlight outside the porthole.

Her complexion was even paler than when they set off, and her eyes carried an indescribable fatigue—not physical fatigue, but a weariness deep within the Soul.

"Senior, how much farther is the Fifth District?"

Shen Nian's voice rang out in the quiet cabin.

Yue Li did not turn back, only looking at the endless sea of stars outside the porthole.

"Almost there. At this speed, we will arrive tomorrow."

She paused and added,

"But the Fifth District is different from the other districts. There are no living beings there, only a palace. The Guardian... may no longer be there."

Shen Nian's hand paused slightly.

"No longer there? What do you mean?"

Yue Li finally turned around and looked at him.

"This deity cannot explain it clearly either. This deity simply cannot perceive any aura of Life in the Fifth District. Perhaps the Guardian is still alive and merely slumbering. Perhaps... they have already dissipated."

Shen Nian fell silent for a moment.

"No matter what, this Disciple must go and take a look."

Yue Li nodded and said nothing more.

The flying boat continued to sail through the sea of stars, the stars outside the porthole flashing past one by one.

Shen Nian sat cross-legged, laid the qinglian sword across his knees, and closed his eyes.

He was comprehending the five types of Legacy power within the qinglian sword—Pangu's power of opening the heavens, God Yi's archery power, Nong's Life Power, Kashyapa's Karma Power, and the former Hall Master's Power of Space-Time.

The five powers intertwined within his body, merging with the Green Lotus Sword Intent and resonating with the Power of Dao Protection.

His cultivation had already stabilized at the Mid Stage of Integration, only a step away from the Peak of the Middle Stage.

But he was not in a rush.

Because he knew that power was not forged in a single day.

The Dao Heart was the most important thing.

Yue Li sat by the porthole, looking at the sea of stars outside, remaining silent.

In her hand, that black token was glowing faintly, as if recounting something.

Early the next morning, the flying boat arrived at the Fifth District.

Shen Nian opened his eyes, walked to the porthole, and gazed at the stars ahead.

That was a star shrouded in gray mist, smaller than the previous four districts.

The mist was so thick that even his Divine Sense could not penetrate it.

Within the mist, a massive palace could be faintly seen floating in the Void Realm. The entire palace was constructed from grayish-white spar, with no runes on its surface, yet it emitted a heart-palpitating fluctuation of Karma Power.

That fluctuation was so strong that even his qinglian sword was trembling slightly.

"This is the Fifth District?"

Shen Nian's voice was very soft.

Yue Li nodded, her expression solemn.

"This deity cannot perceive any aura of living beings inside the palace. The Guardian... may truly no longer be here."

Shen Nian took a deep breath.

"This Disciple will go in and take a look. Senior, please wait outside for this Disciple."

Yue Li shook her head.

"This deity will go in with you. Two people are always better than one."

Shen Nian wanted to refuse, but Yue Li's gaze left him speechless.

That gaze was calm and firm, carrying an unquestionable power.

He nodded.

The flying boat landed in the Void Realm in front of the palace. Shen Nian stepped out of the cabin door, with Yue Li following closely behind.

The Void Realm beneath their feet felt very soft, as if stepping on cotton, but Shen Nian paid it no mind.

He raised his head and looked at the massive palace.

The palace stood a thousand zhang tall, constructed entirely from grayish-white spar. There were no decorations on its surface, only countless intricate patterns flowing within the spar.

Those patterns were so faint they were nearly invisible, but Shen Nian could feel them—they were patterns of Karma Power, the traces left behind by Souls harvested over countless years.

"Let's go."

Yue Li took the lead and walked toward the palace entrance.

Shen Nian followed behind, the qinglian sword swaying gently at his waist, the green lotus patterns on the sword body radiating a faint cyan light amidst the grayish-white glow.

The entrance of the palace was a massive stone door. The stone door was tightly closed, with no runes or decorations on it, only a bare stone surface.

But Shen Nian could feel that that door contained extremely powerful Karma Power—stronger than any power he had felt before the Monument of Heroes.

Yue Li walked up to the stone door and gently touched it with her hand.

The stone door did not react.

She injected a trace of Reincarnation power into it, but the stone door still did not react.

Her brows furrowed.

"It won't open. This door requires a special power to open."

Shen Nian stepped forward and pressed his hand against the stone door.

He did not inject Spiritual Qi or Power of Dao Protection, simply feeling the temperature of that door and its breath in silence.

The door was very cold, as cold as millennia-old glacial ice.

Yet beneath this chill, he felt a trace of warmth—that was the aura of the Guardian, the aura of countless years of waiting.

He closed his eyes, sinking his mind into the qinglian sword.

The progenitor's Origin imprint was slumbering within the sword, and he needed to awaken it.

"Progenitor, this Disciple needs your power."

Light flared.

The Origin imprint within the qinglian sword began to pulse, growing brighter and brighter.

A mighty power surged out from the sword, pouring into Shen Nian's body.

His cultivation climbed, from the Mid Stage of Integration to the Peak of the Middle Stage, and then to the Later Stage of Integration.

He opened his eyes, fourteen-color light flashing across them and vanishing.

He pressed his hand against the stone door, and the Fourteen-Color Power surged from his palm, pouring into the stone door.

The stone door lit up for a moment, then slowly opened.

Behind the door was a long passageway.

The passageway was very narrow, wide enough for only one person to pass through. The walls on both sides were made of grayish-white spar, within which countless intricate Karma patterns flowed.

Those patterns glowed faintly in the darkness, illuminating the path ahead.

Shen Nian stepped into the passageway first, with Yue Li following closely behind.

The passageway was very long; the deeper they walked, the stronger the fluctuation of Karma Power became.

Shen Nian could feel that those Karma patterns contained the memories of countless people—their laughter, their tears, their hopes, and their despair.

Every single pattern was a lifetime.

Every single speck of light was a Soul.

Yue Li's voice came from behind, carrying a trace of trembling.

"These... are the Karma records of the harvested Souls."

Shen Nian nodded.

"This Disciple knows. This Disciple can feel their emotions. Some are crying, some are laughing, some are silent. They are all waiting, waiting for someone to come and save them."

Yue Li fell silent.

She thought of her Master, thought of the Souls sealed within the ruins of the Reincarnation Hall, and thought of her waiting over countless years.

She was also waiting, waiting for someone to come and save her Master.

Now, that person had come.

Although he was no longer around, his Disciple was still here.

Perhaps this was Karma.

After walking for about a quarter of an hour, a door of light appeared ahead.

The door of light was grayish-white, interwoven from countless intricate Karma patterns, exuding a heart-palpitating pressure.

Shen Nian walked up to the door of light and gently touched it with his hand.

The door of light did not react.

He injected a trace of Power of Dao Protection into it, but the door of light still did not react.

Yue Li stepped forward and pressed the token against the door of light.

The token lit up, its dark red glow intertwining with the grayish-white Karma patterns. A crack split open on the door of light, just wide enough for one person to pass through.

Shen Nian turned sideways and squeezed through the door of light.

The world behind the door was completely different from what he had imagined.

That was a massive space, a full hundred zhang in radius.

Countless specks of light floated within the space, each speck slowly rotating and emitting a faint glow.

Those specks of light were the Karma records of all the Souls harvested in the fifth cycle.

Shen Nian floated within the space, looking at those specks of light as an indescribable emotion surged in his heart.

He thought of what his uncle Shen Yuan had said— "They are all there, in the heavens, in the sea of stars, in every place that needs protection."

Now, he believed it.

Because they were truly here, within these specks of light.

Yue Li walked to his side, looking at those specks of light, her eyes turning red.

"These people... are the Guardians of the fifth cycle. They used their lives to protect the sea of stars."

Shen Nian nodded.

"This Disciple knows. This Disciple sees it. Seeing the way they fought, seeing the way they sacrificed themselves, seeing the way they were still smiling when they fell."

He raised his hand and gently touched the nearest speck of light.

The speck of light lit up for a moment, then burst apart, turning into countless tiny specks of light that poured into his Sea of Consciousness.

A massive amount of information exploded in his mind—that was the memories of the Guardians of the fifth cycle, their entire lives.

He "saw" Ling Shuang in her youth, saw Zhou Zhiting's decisive and heroic posture on the battlefield, and saw Song Xinghe's sleepless figure on the tower of the Investigation Department.

He "saw" the back of Guardian Lin Jingyun eternally suppressing the abyss, saw Path Guardian Ancestor Qin Hao's resolute determination in using his body as an array, and saw Shen Yuan's white hair before the Monument of Heroes.

He "saw" countless Guardians rushing forward one after another to their deaths, protecting the sea of stars with their lives.

He "saw" Bai Yunzhou standing before the door, with countless heroes' Souls behind him, softly saying— "Latercomer, you are not alone."

Tears streamed from Shen Nian's eyes.

He did not wipe them away, simply letting them flow.

Yue Li stood beside him without speaking, quietly watching him.

She knew what he was experiencing.

Because she had experienced it back then as well—at the very moment her Master stepped into the magic array, she had been just like this, watching her Master's back, bathed in tears.

After an unknown amount of time, Shen Nian opened his eyes.

His eyes were bloodshot, and his complexion was as pale as paper, but his gaze was even firmer than before.

"This Disciple has seen them. Seeing the way they fought, seeing the way they sacrificed themselves. This Disciple will not let them die in vain."

Yue Li nodded.

"You won't. You have already done a lot."

Shen Nian wiped away his tears and continued walking forward.

Deepest within the space floated a massive crystal core.

The crystal core was a full ten zhang in diameter, grayish-white throughout, containing endless Karma Power within.

The crystal core was pulsing slowly, like a heartbeat.

Sitting cross-legged around the crystal core was a person.

That was a woman with an exquisitely beautiful face, but her eyes were tightly closed and her complexion was as pale as paper.

Her hair was grayish-white, draped over her shoulders, and she wore a grayish-white robe devoid of any decorations.

Her hands rested on her knees, palms facing upward, holding a dark red crystal core in her hands—the fifth demon god origin.

The Guardian of the Fifth District.

Shen Nian walked up to her, knelt down, and kowtowed deeply.

"Disciple Shen Nian, a Disciple of the Guardian Academy, seeks an audience with Senior."

The woman did not react.

She still kept her eyes closed and remained completely motionless, as if slumbering.

Shen Nian called out once more.

"Senior, Disciple Shen Nian seeks an audience with Senior."

Still there was no reaction.

Yue Li's brows furrowed.

"She... she seems to truly be slumbering. This deity cannot perceive her consciousness."

Shen Nian fell silent for a moment.

Then, he stood up, walked in front of the woman, and gently touched the center of her brows with his hand.

At the very instant his fingertip touched the center of her brows—

An aged and weary voice rang out in his mind.

"Latercomer, you have finally come."

Shen Nian's hand paused slightly and he withdrew it.

"Senior, have you awakened?"

That voice laughed, the laughter very soft, as light as the wind blowing past withered branches.

"This deity did not sleep. This deity was merely waiting. Waiting for someone who could pass the test. In the past six cycles, many people have come here. None of them passed. You are different; you possess the power of five Legacies on your body, as well as your Master's Origin imprint. You are qualified to accept this deity's test."

Shen Nian knelt on the ground and kowtowed deeply.

"This Disciple is willing to accept the test."

The voice fell silent for a moment.

"This deity's test is not about combat, nor brute force. It is about assumption. You need to enter the Karma projection and personally experience the scene when the fifth cycle was harvested. It is not to cause you pain, but to make you understand 'the price of protection'. Can you withstand it?"

Shen Nian did not hesitate.

"This Disciple can."

The voice laughed once more.

"Good, very good. This deity has waited for this day for countless years."

As the voice fell, the dark red crystal core in the woman's hand suddenly flared with light.

Grayish-white light surged out from the crystal core, enveloping Shen Nian entirely.

He only felt his vision go dark as he lost consciousness.