Chapter 543: 悠悠 Five Thousand Years, Qing Yuzi's Wrong Contact

**Name:** Zhao Xing (Marquis Transformation State)**Soul:** First Tribulation Divine Sense**Divine Body:** Early-Stage Divine Weapon**Duration:** 31 Immeasurable Hours (Heavenly Transformation Divine Needle adds 30 Immeasurable Hours)**Innate Divine Skills:** Sky-Shattering Claw, World-Burning Divine Eye, Heavenly Ruin Five Viscera, Longevity Wheel, Myriad Tribulations Golden Marrow, Profound Nether Transformation, Underworld Divine Travel, Body of Thunder, Eternal Instant

When Zhao Xing entered the first divine-level Marquis Transformation, he became completely immersed in the sensation of immense power.

"This is truly powerful," he thought. "All divine skills are unlocked, and the feeling is completely different from when I was in the first eight layers."

In the divine-level Marquis Transformation state, the cosmic origin naturally gravitated towards him. The origins of metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, thunder, and space were completely under his control. With a single thought, he could gather terrifying origin energy for an attack.

If in his human state he could only induce the cosmic origin, in the Nine Marshes God state, he had complete control.

The powerful and fulfilling sensation even gave Zhao Xing an impulse to challenge Palace Lord Lu Ya.

However, seeing that his panel indicated only an early-stage divine weapon and a first tribulation divine sense, Zhao Xing abandoned the idea. Those who felt invincible had simply not yet encountered their nemesis. Palace Lord Lu Ya's true form was a Qu Ru Divine Duck, which could be said to be in conflict with him.

By the fifteenth immeasurable hour, Zhao Xing sensed Palace Lord Lu Ya's innate nature being unleashed, wanting to devour him. This made him even more alert, so Zhao Xing immediately spoke out, proving that his consciousness was clear and not assimilated by the Nine Marshes God's divine form.

"Zhao Xing, you actually learned a divine-level Marquis Transformation method! That's incredible!" Palace Lord Lu Ya praised him.

"It's all thanks to the Palace Lord and Senior Yan," Zhao Xing replied, expressing his gratitude.

"No need for thanks. Can you cut me two pieces of meat to eat?"

Zhao Xing was stunned. "I worked so hard to learn the Nine Marshes Divine Transformation, and it's for you to eat?" Palace Lord Lu Ya's request was too blunt.

"Lu Ya, he can't even maintain this state for long right now, so stop joking." Yan Ao reached out and caught the little yellow duck flying around above his head. Divine light flickered in his palm, suppressing Lu Ya's ferocious nature.

"Alright," the little yellow duck said, retracting the rows of formidable teeth in its mouth.

"Rumble~"

The Desolate Sea suddenly trembled violently. The previously still sand and sea boiled once more, as if a violent natural disaster had erupted.

"It's time to leave here," Lu Ya flew up again. "This place is about to turn violent."

"Mhm," Yan Ao nodded. As for Bo Wei, he returned to Zhao Xing's inner world, having no say in the matter.

Bo Wei was intentionally ignored by Yan Ao and Lu Ya, but Zhao Xing showed him respect. In his inner world, Zhao Xing's consciousness avatar bowed in gratitude to Bo Wei, saying, "Thank you, Elder, for bestowing the method upon me; only then was I able to refine the Nine Marshes God."

Bo Wei asked curiously, "Even with 'Golden Cicada True Form, Second Incarnation' that I taught you, it's very difficult to master a divine-level Marquis Transformation method. How did you manage to do it so quickly?"

Zhao Xing knew Bo Wei was asking about his experience during cultivation. "Elder, I have a divine-level cultivation method from the Heavenly Time Sect, called 'Great Sun Fiery Sea'. You taught me to use Mount Yuanji to suppress my true form. In reality, I also used 'Great Sun Boundless Sea' and my inner world to suppress it together. Therefore, when I attempted to break through, my true form was very stable, allowing me to repeatedly sever my second incarnation."

Bo Wei nodded. If the Second Incarnation cultivation method was effective, then re-condensing it would only require spending some qi and blood-type treasures for cohesion. Zhao Xing's inner world had an abundance of such supplements.

However, Bo Wei was still a bit puzzled: "Simply stabilizing your true form only increases your safety; it doesn't help your comprehension." No matter how safe, it only ensured safety, not improved comprehension.

"It was the Great Sun Sea," Zhao Xing said, "my Heavenly Time Sect cultivation method. Just before the aurora was about to dissipate, I thought of using the Great Sun Sea to absorb the aurora, and then reflect the Nine Marshes God's divine form."

Bo Wei suddenly understood: "I see. You directly absorbed the divine form into the Fiery Sea, and then when your Golden Cicada Outer Form activated the Marquis Transformation method, it naturally reduced one layer of obstruction." Before absorption, the Nine Marshes Divine Form was external. After absorption, it appeared directly inside his Saint Body. The difficulty of breaking through this barrier was reduced.

"Heavenly Time spells truly are more suitable when supported by Heavenly Time cultivation methods." Bo Wei understood that if Zhao Xing hadn't possessed the Great Sun Sea cultivation method, or if his Heavenly Time Sect method was slightly inferior, it would have been very difficult for him to master the Nine Marshes God Marquis Transformation method within the limited time.

Bo Wei did not know this cultivation method, nor was it present in the Profound Spirit Treasure Vault. Divine-level Heavenly Time cultivation methods were treasured collections of the Evil God faction's vault. Even powerful and influential figures like the Immeasurable True God obtained them unintentionally. They were not given to Zhao Xing from his own faction's treasury.

"How did you feel after the transformation?" Bo Wei continued to ask.

"Controlling the five-element origin and void origin before, compared to when I transformed, it's like heaven and earth!"

"Unfortunately, I can only maintain it for thirty-one immeasurable hours," Zhao Xing sighed. The time was too short, only thirty-one immeasurable hours.

"Thirty-one immeasurable hours? That's already quite long. At the divine realm level, it's enough for hundreds of moves," Bo Wei said.

Zhao Xing nodded, recalling, "After the transformation, there was a feeling of emptiness. Moreover, I noticed that activating this secret method also results in variations in strength depending on the environment and location. Why does internal cultivation of the Marquis Transformation method have this characteristic?"

"That's very normal," Bo Wei explained. "You don't possess divine power yourself, so activating the Marquis Transformation method means borrowing origin energy from the cosmos. If the cosmic origin naturally distributed in your environment is strong, your state will be more robust. If the origin is weak, your combat power and duration will also be weaker. You used it in the Desolate Sea, which is almost a barren domain. There isn't even a proper Yang Star, and the void origin is relatively weak, which is why you could only last thirty-one immeasurable hours. If you were to use it in a sacred land like the Primordial Hills, your combat power would be stronger, and the duration would also be longer. Of course, in the future, when you possess your own divine power origin, your transformed state will be even stronger, and you won't have this trouble anymore."

Zhao Xing understood. Since he didn't have his own divine power origin, activating the Marquis Transformation method required drawing origin energy from the cosmos: Yin-Yang twin stars, void origin, five-element origin, and even life origin, among others.

"Can the divine power conversion of the Primal Chaos Dao Pagoda support the activation of the Nine Marshes Divine Transformation?" Zhao Xing pondered inwardly. "The divine power condensed by the Primal Chaos Dao Pagoda is of the Ego Sect. Can it be applied to the Nine Marshes God transformation?"

Zhao Xing thought it was very likely, but he didn't try it immediately, as Lu Ya was currently taking him on their journey. Palace Lord Lu Ya's journeying—a single flap of his wings would draw upon spatial origin over vast distances. This utilization of spatial origin completely surpassed Zhao Xing's understanding. Even in his transformed state, he might not be able to compare to Lu Ya.

In just three breaths, Zhao Xing found himself at the second stop of his travel plan: a spiritual mountain within the Heavenly Demon Kingdom's territory, Mount Tianyu.

"The number one speed among Divine Generals truly lives up to its reputation. In three breaths, we crossed an entire territory. It would take me half a day with spatial teleportation, and I'd still need clones as transit points."

Mount Tianyu was ranked thirteenth among the Mountains of Knowledge. Zhao Xing's main task here was still to open the mountain for auspiciousness, capture mountain spirits, and name the sealed mountain. Accompanying him were Venerable Bo Meng of the Heavenly Demon Kingdom, the Heavenly Demon King, and several other Venerables from the Demon God Hall.

"Brother Zhao, thank you for your hard work in cleansing the marrow and purging the veins for the younger generation of our Heavenly Demon Kingdom." Venerable Bo Meng was very enthusiastic. Although not the king, he was from the Heavenly Demon Kingdom and had entered the Demon God Hall, making his status not much different from the king's.

"Brother Bo Meng, you're too kind. Which are the subordinates you've cultivated so diligently?" Zhao Xing had owed Bo Meng a favor back then and felt grateful towards him.

"Peng Yue, whom you've met, and over there, a pair of twin brothers from the Huka Clan. As for the others, feel free to choose," Bo Meng said with a slight smile.

"Alright." Zhao Xing made a mental note and, during the mountain opening, allocated a bit more luck to these three young demons.

The process of opening Mount Tianyu took eight realm-star years. After capturing the strongest mountain spirit, Zhao Xing sealed and named the mountain, maintaining Mount Tianyu's original evaluation and ranking. Because the last ranking of these great mountains was only ten epochs ago, it was impossible for there to be significant changes; maintaining their original ranking was the norm. Mount Six-Wings was originally part of the Unknowable Mountains, which is why it was unique.

After the mountain naming was complete, Zhao Xing chatted with Bo Meng for a long time.

"Brother Zhao, you don't know, but our Demon Kingdom experienced a more severe disaster from the History Bugs. In the past hundred years, I actually forgot who my teacher was."

"What?" Zhao Xing was surprised. "That serious?"

"Yes," Bo Meng said with a wry smile. "At first, I didn't notice anything unusual. After all, if you've forgotten, how would you feel something was wrong? My teacher is a Divine General, and he also had important matters to attend to, so it was quite normal not to contact him for over a hundred years."

Zhao Xing felt a surge of emotion. Indeed, memory deviations caused by the river of time made everything seem natural. Once forgotten, there would be no thought of correcting it.

"After forgetting my teacher, I always thought I had cultivated to my current level on my own, so I planned to seek a divine realm expert as my master," Bo Meng recalled. "But I never expected to become a disciple of an Evil God. That Evil God appeared at just the right time. The Heavenly Demon King, several Divine Envoys, and I all happened to be taken as his disciples at once. For seventy-three years, the entire Heavenly Demon Kingdom actually operated under the orders of that Evil God."

"Hiss," Zhao Xing couldn't help but gasp. This was indeed very serious.

"Then how did Brother Bo Meng recover later?"

"The Profound Spirit Historical Records," Bo Meng said. "Our demon race also manages a portion of the Profound Spirit Historical Records. It was that which reminded me and made me realize. That's how I had the opportunity to report the situation to the Divine Hall. Ultimately, a Divine General came and drove away that Demon Race Free God. Fortunately, during those seventy-three years, he didn't make us do anything outrageous, only took away many Sun Stars."

"That's a blessing in disguise," Zhao Xing couldn't help but say. For seventy-three years, the Evil Demon God ruled the Heavenly Demon Kingdom and controlled its demigod-level experts. It would have been extremely easy for him to do anything he wished.

"Yes, fortunately, this Evil God still had some scruples and feared being discovered, so he didn't dare to order us to do anything too outrageous. He just made a quick profit and then fled."

Zhao Xing also felt the danger in listening to this. Fortunately, the Profound Spirit Historical Records allowed Bo Meng to recover his normal memories, otherwise the loss would have been immense. And before these Evil Gods arrived, they were either in a semi-hidden divine state or completely hidden, using this disaster to infiltrate. It was indeed difficult to detect them in a short period.

"Seventy-three years," Zhao Xing mused. "If this Evil Demon God had been a bit more unrestrained, it would have been enough to devour a tenth of the Heavenly Demon Kingdom's demon race and refine their souls." He had now experienced the power of the divine realm. If he didn't consider the duration, he could, in his Nine Marshes God state, capture and plunder populations. In seventy-three years, he could even refine half of the Heavenly Demon Kingdom's population. After all, demigods like Bo Meng, who held secular power, could assist him.

After finishing his conversation with Bo Meng, Zhao Xing spoke with Bo Wei about the matter.

"In the past, there were many divine realm experts in their faction who were actually unrestrained and paid no heed to rules or morals." Bo Wei's expression grew much colder when he mentioned the Evil Gods. "As divine beings, they believed they should be free and unconstrained, having the power of life and death over other beings. Especially those Evil Gods whose divine tribulations couldn't be delayed for long; facing the pressure of tribulation, they became very frenzied. Plundering lives and plundering Yin-Yang twin stars is one of the fastest ways to nourish oneself by devouring origins. To do so, they had to break their divine concealment state. After breaking divine concealment, the divine tribulation descended faster, and they were forced to plunder even more origins. While plundering, they became entangled in karma, immersing themselves too deeply in the world, which again accelerated the divine tribulation's arrival—an unsolvable death cycle. The Five Abyss Thunder Divine Officer, the Bookless City, the Undying Underworld God, and the Lord of Cold Food are all somewhat orderly Evil God factions. However, there are also many solitary divine-level beings with no restraints. What are Free Gods? They are Evil Gods who act without scruple." When Bo Wei spoke of these, a sneer unconsciously appeared on his face.

The Great Dao Golden Hoop also stirred in response but quickly calmed down.

"It seems Bo Wei hasn't changed his views; he's just hidden his thoughts deeper," Zhao Xing mused. "I wonder if the unrestrained Evil Gods will cause any trouble now that Great Zhou has established its nation at the former site of Yuanhai."

Bo Meng's experience made Zhao Xing start worrying about the safety of Great Zhou. At the beginning of the Desolate Domain's Third Epoch, Great Zhou was preparing for its third migration. After the Epoch Bug and History Bug crises erupted, Great Zhou seized the opportunity to separate from the Scarlet Star Empire and moved its entire nation to the ancient kingdom of Yuanhai.

"The people of Great Zhou are not affected by spatiotemporal memories, and they have also joined the Desolate Domain Ancient Kingdoms Alliance. As long as Ji Che and important civil and military officials are not controlled, they can immediately seek help from the Divine-level experts of the alliance, or even from the Samsara Divine Hall." The former site of the ancient Yuanhai Kingdom was actually very well-located. It was adjacent to the ancient Tianyou Kingdom, within whose territory lay the super-power of the Samsara Divine Hall. With Great Zhou bordering the ancient Tianyou Kingdom, its safety was somewhat guaranteed.

Zhao Xing left two divine power artifacts for Emperor Wu Ji Che. Even if he encountered a completely reckless Free God, he would still have the ability to call for help.

"Once the mountain sealing process is complete, I can give this divine artifact to Ji Che," Zhao Xing murmured, caressing his palm. At this moment, his hand still wore the divine bone of Xue Rui's luck, and it was this divine luck bone that raised Zhao Xing's luck to rank thirty-one.

"If I seal all the top twenty spiritual mountains, my inherent luck level should increase significantly. Then I can consider giving the divine luck bone to Ji Che for research." If opening the mountains for auspiciousness could raise his inherent luck to rank thirty-one, then the presence of the divine luck bone would no longer matter.

"Opening mountains for auspiciousness increases permanent luck, while the divine luck bone provides an additional boost. As my inherent luck level rises, the divine luck bone's effect on me diminishes. It might be better to give it to Ji Che; perhaps he can research something remarkable with it."

In the 523rd realm-star year of the Desolate Domain's Third Epoch, Zhao Xing completed the auspicious sealing of Mount Tianyu.In the 983rd realm-star year, he completed the auspicious extraction and sealing of Mount Ziyou.In the 2nd solar year, 543rd realm-star year, he completed the auspicious extraction and sealing of Moonsea Mountain.The 3rd solar year...

Time flowed, and in the blink of an eye, it was the fifth solar year of the Desolate Domain's Third Epoch. Zhao Xing had traveled across various parts of the cosmos for nearly five thousand realm-star years.

Tianze Starfield, Crescent Moon Sea.

A black ocean with a bright moon hanging high. Zhao Xing sat cross-legged on a crescent moon, a Daoist scripture on his lap, and a moon tree behind him. The moon tree glowed brilliantly, making his skin shimmer like crystal, divine light flowing across his body.

"The nobility of moonlight lies not in its form, but in its heart—" A leisurely voice spread from beneath the moon tree. A page of the Daoist scripture turned, reflecting the ocean, the bright moon, and the young man upon the moon.

"The radius of the Lunar Star is less than three thousand feet, yet it can illuminate hundreds of millions of miles of sea and nurture an ocean of life. This marvel ranks among the top three I've seen over the years."

Zhao Xing closed the book, and then the entire ocean and miniature moon were enveloped in a shadow and moved into his inner world. The surroundings became empty and utterly dark, but Zhao Xing's vision was sharp enough to pierce the darkness.

"I've been observing mountains and seas for nearly five thousand years. The first thousand years were spent sealing and naming mountains; the subsequent three thousand-plus years were dedicated to exploring according to the 'Nine Heavens Ten Lands Map'. While perfecting my world theory, I didn't neglect my spells."

Zhao Xing sorted through his insights from over the years. Of his nearly five thousand years of travels, the first thousand were spent opening mountains for auspiciousness, increasing his luck. Zhao Xing had visited and gathered resources from each of the top 20 spiritual mountains in the Mountains of Knowledge. At this point, his inherent luck had reached rank thirty. Even with the divine luck bone, it was only rank thirty-one, which was already the limit below the divine level.

Zhao Xing had already removed the divine luck bone, freeing himself from its reliance, because the divine luck bone was ultimately an external attachment, not his inherent fortune. Moreover, it hindered his Saint Body cultivation; by constantly relying on Xue Rui's divine bone, his Qiankun Primal Chaos Saint Body would never fully mature.

Next was tribulation transcendence. With the strongest mountain spirits from the top twenty spiritual mountains extracted and assisting him, both Zhao Xing's main body and his soul clones successfully passed their eighteenth True Spirit Tribulation. Now, he had undergone the same number of tribulations as Bo Wei before he ascended to godhood, meaning their accumulated origin foundations were nearly identical.

The "Three Epochs Boundary Theory" had been significantly perfected, and Zhao Xing now had a clear direction for the third layer of the Stacked Realm Mountain, "Extreme Land Divine Mountain," which was part of the Heaven-Earth Dao-Attestation method.

Finally, and most significantly, the greatest cultivation achievement was the "Nine Marshes God" Marquis Transformation method. During his first Marquis Transformation, he only had a first tribulation divine sense, was in the early-stage divine weapon phase, and could maintain it for merely 31 immeasurable hours. Now, Zhao Xing had reached a third tribulation divine sense, was in the mid-stage divine weapon phase, and could maintain the transformation for three days.

"I've also mastered the third layer of the Primal Chaos Dao Pagoda's formation diagrams. My divine power has surpassed ten thousand, which is enough to support the five great Ego Sect divine methods and even be used for the Nine Marshes God Marquis Transformation. Next is the progress of the Heart Sealing Method; I now possess all seven colors of magical power."

Fan Qianrou's Heart Sealing Method's seven colors of magical power are: Azure Flower, Red Lotus, Azure Sea, Profound Soul, Rainbow Gold, Purple Heaven, and Illusory Moon.

"This has truly been a fruitful journey," Zhao Xing said, very pleased with the results of these years. Although the seven colors of magical power had not yet fused, he was already very satisfied with this progress.

"In this era, you can be called the strongest demigod," Bo Wei, standing nearby, couldn't help but praise Zhao Xing. And wasn't he the strongest demigod? Gu Luohue had already broken through to godhood, and Bo Wei had also become a divine realm expert. There might be other demigods who could pass eighteen True Spirit Tribulations, but none were as powerful as Zhao Xing. Just the Nine Marshes God Marquis Transformation method alone was enough to create a gap between Zhao Xing and other demigods, not to mention his five great Ego Sect divine methods, and his ability to use Primal Chaos Divine Power through the Dao Pagoda.

"Even if you encounter a late-stage divine weapon Free God, you'll have the power to fight," Bo Wei analyzed Zhao Xing's combat strength. He didn't mention Heaven-Earth Dao-Attesting Gods; they were stronger, a unique existence even at the same realm.

"Thank you, Elder, for protecting my path." His interactions with Bo Wei over these past few millennia had also been very pleasant, and Zhao Xing had learned a great deal from him. Most importantly, in nearly five thousand years, Bo Wei had not made a single abnormal move, so naturally, Zhao Xing hadn't needed to use the Great Dao Golden Hoop to restrain him. If the human upper echelons were to ask for a rating for his Dao protector, Zhao Xing would definitely give Bo Wei a five-star review. In Zhao Xing's view, Bo Wei's role was far greater than that of Yan Ao and Lu Ya.

"Judging by your appearance, are you planning to end your travels?" the little yellow duck had flown onto Zhao Xing's shoulder at some point.

"Yes, Senior, I plan to return," Zhao Xing said. He couldn't not return now. The three great Evil God factions had been chanting scriptures for five thousand years, attempting to influence him. But after five millennia, he had rarely communicated with them and had no actual contact. Gradually, the attitudes of the three Evil God factions had begun to change.

If the True Spirit Incense still hadn't heated up the stove after five thousand years, the Evil God factions would likely lose patience. "Once the Evil God factions' attitude changes, they will initiate the 'Pathbreaker Plan' against me." "I'm not too worried about myself, but Great Zhou will face danger," Zhao Xing mused.

The core of the Pathbreaker Plan: seize the Dao-attestation method, destroy the Dao-attestation ground, defeat its theory, and shatter its Dao Heart. How to seize the Dao-attestation method? It's nothing more than forcefully taking it by power, capturing Zhao Xing, killing him, or enslaving him—all are methods. If that fails, then destroy Zhao Xing's Dao-attestation ground. If even the Dao-attestation ground cannot be destroyed, then try to defeat his theories and shatter his Dao Heart. Destroying the Dao Heart can also be achieved by killing the target's close friends, family, or life-and-death companions—assuming the target cares about such things.

"Zhao Xing, if you're sure your travels are over, I'll take you back."

"Do you plan to return to the Empire, or go directly to the Samsara Divine Hall? Your contribution points are 150 million, which is enough to exchange for spatial-temporal travel to some uniquely blessed places in historical time to become a Free God," Palace Lord Lu Ya asked.

Previously, due to the Epoch Bug warning, Zhao Xing had received 150 million contribution points. These points had long been credited, but Zhao Xing had not yet exchanged them. Since safe spatial-temporal passages were located in the Samsara Divine Hall, spatial-temporal travel usually took place within the Samsara Divine Hall.

"I'll go back to the Empire first," Zhao Xing wasn't in a hurry. He still had many unresolved matters.

"Quack, time to fly!" Lu Ya flapped his wings, and the surrounding space-time immediately began to shift. The scenery rapidly rewound; soon, only abstract lines and membranous structures could be seen. Even from the Tianze Starfield, Lu Ya only took half a day to fly back via the Blue Butterfly Path.

"It's great that the Moon Overseer Desolate Domain is open. Before, it would take me years to fly across domains, but now it only takes half a day. Zhao Xing, you've reached Shenchen Pass." After speaking, Lu Ya jumped from his shoulder to Zhao Xing's head and lay down to sleep. As for Yan Ao, he remained silently invisible nearby.

Upon his return, the first thing Zhao Xing did was contact Ji Che.

"Big Brother, have you returned from your travels?"

"Yes, Fifth Brother. Come to Jiachen Pass in the Empire. I have a gift for you," Zhao Xing said.

"Alright." Ji Che hung up the call and immediately began traveling from Great Zhou to the Scarlet Star Empire via a teleportation array.

"Big Brother, what gift are you going to give me?" Ji Che asked curiously upon meeting him.

"Look." Zhao Xing took out the divine bone of Xue Rui, the God of Luck.

"Hmm?" Although Ji Che had never seen it, one glance made him feel its special nature. "Big Brother, is this a luck-type divine artifact?!"

"That's right," Zhao Xing nodded. "Che, your realm has been unable to break through for a long time. Both Ji Si and I are already demigods, yet you're still stuck at the Emperor-level. This isn't your fault, but rather a flaw in the luck cultivation system in this era. I'm giving you this gift; perhaps it can help you break through your bottleneck."

"Big Brother, this divine artifact is beneficial to you too; I can't accept it." Ji Che was deeply moved but still refused.

"After the mountain sealing and naming, my need for it isn't significant anymore." Zhao Xing pressed the item into Ji Che's hand. "Take it and comprehend it well. In the future, Ji Si and I may not have time to look after Great Zhou; everything will depend on you."

Ji Si was also traveling the world. His visible clone was leading the war in the Tianze Starfield, but Zhao Xing didn't know where he actually went. It was clear he was also overwhelmed. Great Zhou needed new powerful individuals. Among the candidates, only Liu Tianning and Ji Che remained. Although Yun Tiandao had become a demigod, he was not within Great Zhou's system, and he was currently on a mission assigned by Heavenly Concubine Thunder Mother, his whereabouts unknown. The last contact was two thousand years ago.

"Alright, Big Brother, I won't disappoint you." Ji Che tightly clutched the divine bone in his hand.

"Che, still be a bit low-key," Zhao Xing knew some of the things Ji Che had been doing over the years. "The current situation is volatile; stability should be your priority. You absolutely must not go too far. When you try to recruit people from the Evil God faction to expand your strength, you must uphold your bottom line and maintain proper boundaries. Otherwise, before you can rise, the Profound Spirit Gods will not tolerate you."

"Big Brother, I understand my limits," Ji Che nodded.

After seeing Ji Che off, the second thing Zhao Xing did was contact Gu Luohue. However, upon entering the Primordial Realm, he found the gates of Primordial City tightly shut, and Gu Luohue was not receiving visitors.

"Senior Gu has entered seclusion," Venerable Five Poisons quickly arrived. "Before entering seclusion, he instructed me that if you, my disciple, came to find him, I was to give you this box." Venerable Five Poisons handed Zhao Xing a square mechanical box with faint blue patterns.

"For me? Teacher, what's inside?" Zhao Xing asked.

"I don't know," Venerable Five Poisons shook his head.

"How do I open it?"

"Senior Gu didn't say; he only said that you would naturally know when it was time to open it." Zhao Xing recalled the questions Gu Luohue had once asked him and had some guesses. He carefully put the box away.

"Teacher, how is Senior Zuo?"

"Not doing very well. All of us old ones have become demigods because of you; even Old Bi, who was so weak, became a demigod. But Zuo Qiyu is still an Emperor. How happy do you think he can be? I hope your master can find a solution." Five Poisons shook his head and walked away.

Afterward, Zhao Xing reported his travel situation to Divine General Lanchuan of the Primordial Hills. Divine General Lanchuan routinely inquired about Zhao Xing's cultivation progress, then steered the conversation towards Bo Wei.

"He's been with you for five thousand years. How do you feel about him?" Zhao Xing knew Divine General Lanchuan was asking if Bo Wei could be trusted, which would determine whether Bo Wei remained confined or was granted a degree of freedom.

"I believe Elder Bo Wei can continue to accompany me. I have no intention of changing my Dao protector."

Just as Zhao Xing was conversing with Divine General Lanchuan, he suddenly felt a stir in his heart. He immediately dissolved his Earth Vein Dharma Body, ending the Earth Communication spell. Then, his main body at Jiachen Pass in the Empire activated the Ego Divine Sacrifice to carefully sense.

"Zhao Xing.""Zhao Xing."

He initially thought it was another group of followers, like He Chengzi, calling out to him. But soon, Zhao Xing felt something was amiss. Because this was newly generated incense. The voice was a bit old, unfamiliar yet somewhat familiar.

"Zhao Xing, Zhao Xing."

As Zhao Xing listened carefully, the voice became clearer. A moment later, a look of confusion appeared in Zhao Xing's eyes.

"This... is Old Qing's voice? Huh? He's offering True Spirit Incense to me?" But hadn't Old Qing already left this space-time? Zhao Xing was very puzzled. He began to suspect it was some Evil God's trick and immediately dispelled that thought, strictly refusing the offering of incense.

"Puff," the small flame immediately almost went out.

"Oh? Quite persistent," Zhao Xing continued to ward it off. However, this wisp of incense was like rootless water, not existing in the present; no matter how Zhao Xing blew, he couldn't extinguish it. Repeatedly extinguishing and rekindling, Zhao Xing became suspicious.

"If it were truly an Evil God, it wouldn't be this weak. Could it really be Old Qing? Is he contacting me because there's new information?"

To be cautious, Zhao Xing still didn't immediately accept this wisp of spatial-temporal incense. Instead, he released Bo Wei and then invited Yan Wu Shen onto the ship. He then made further arrangements, inserting the Heavenly Transformation Divine Needle into his body, ready to trigger the Marquis Transformation method at any time. Fully prepared, Zhao Xing finally accepted this wisp of True Spirit Incense.

"Wooosh~"

Within his Fate Palace, the incense materialized, appearing as an elm tree. "Rustle, rustle~" The elm tree swayed, emitting sounds.

"Zhao Xing, can you hear me? It's me, Qing Yuzi!"

Why this appearance? Zhao Xing found it somewhat novel. "I can hear you, Divine Venerable Qing Yu. Didn't you leave the Desolate Domain Epoch?"

The elm tree was clearly silent for a moment: "What happened here is a long story—I wasn't calling for you, but for you after you became a god—now the spatial-temporal incense technique has drifted to the wrong year. Ah, I'm done for. I shouldn't have taken this risk—" The elm tree's leaves all drooped, and its tone became somewhat desperate, as if on the verge of its last breath.

"Not calling for me, but for me after becoming a god?" Zhao Xing was taken aback, his mind momentarily unable to process it. "It sounds like there's a lot of history here. Did I meet Old Qing in the future? What exactly happened?" Zhao Xing couldn't help but press.

"What happened? I'm almost gone, that's what happened." The elm tree sighed.