The Descent into Chaos
Later, she came alone to find me. "I know you remain here. Show yourself."
I allowed her perception to find me once more. "Why have the others not accompanied you?"
"What reason would they have?" she replied simply.
"I thought that was their last request. Then why place a spiritual mark upon me?"
"Merely to facilitate a talk."
She began to address me casually, " Sister Tao" but she was interrupted. "Wait." I transformed back to my natural appearance, adjusting my concentric clothing accordingly. "No sister when we are alone. No need for that. I simply prefer that others not know my true identity directly."
"What transgression have you committed that requires such concealment from everyone?"
"No transgression at all. I merely hide abilities that defy easy explanation. The people here possess an inherent compulsion to uncover the root cause of every mystery."
"You realize my brother's perception encompasses every corner of the God Domain, including this very moment?"
"Is that truly so?" I knew his control over the God Domain could never penetrate my safety. After returning the will of God Domain, I didn't want to fulfill the curiosity of Luo Xiao Saint or his wife or worse yet her sister, who I had a one time with, appear infront of me to thank me, question me or whatever.
"You have means to hide that too. This intrigues me. What grounds do you have for such confidence?"
"This exemplifies precisely what I mentioned ~ everyone here possesses that inherent compulsion to know more." I continued: "I am departing the God Domain now. Will you accompany me?"
"Will I remain safe?"
"Let us find out"
I opened a portal at a point halfway from the sword clan's marketplace. After enveloping her in my protective shield, we stepped through into the realm beyond.
"Incredible ~ I feel no change whatsoever," she marveled.
"That's because your still within my cover. That is why you remain unharmed."
I gradually released the shield's protection, allowing the chaos to touch her directly. She experienced intense pain initially, but after enduring it for the duration of an incense stick's burning, even after withdrawing her bloodline power, she felt only a pricking sensation. Within an hour, even that discomfort had completely vanished.
"Why have we come to this place?" she asked.
"Look around you. Observe the clouds of primal chaos drifting through this space. Is there not beauty in such raw creation?"
She floated gracefully for several moments before turning back to me. "You can teleport directly through space outside as well?"
"I possess an artifact treasure that grants me this capability."
"Do not deceive me ~ I practice the true meaning of holy words."
"What a coincidence. I practice the same discipline. Now, stop speaking for the next hour."
In the profound peace of the outer chaos, I contemplated my own insignificance in the vast expanse. Somewhere within this infinite realm, my world existed. If I were to enter my world physically through spatial travel, am I my own internal being? Regardless, even within this chaos, none could penetrate my inner realm.
My dantian had been physically housed within me from the beginning, so when creation energy first enshrouded it, it had entered a state of complete defense. Even severing a portion of the cosmos would not expose it.
"Let me... speak... normally," she willed speech to appear beyond words after few moments has passed.
Her control of speech returned. "You villain, what troubles you? If you intended merely to stand here, why bring me along and stop me from speaking?"
" No I was just checking whether you could invoke saintly meaning words directly without speech, isn't it its most important vulnerability? Besides, you coming here was your own decision....."
Looking at her still angry expression, I continued" And do you not understand? Your brother would never permit you to take such risks, even with parental approval. Add to that he won't tolerate if he find out you are physically uncomfortable stepping into chaos. Now you have adapted. That is precisely why we are here."
"That assessment rings true. Have you ventured to the depths below before?"
"No, I have not."
I observed her brother emerging from the apex of his father's universe. I transformed back to my disguised appearance. "See how quickly he has followed us," I commented.
"Sister, why have you come here? Allow me to escort you back to safety. How can you possibly survive within the chaos?" Luo Zheng's voice carried deep concern.
"Brother, you have experienced countless adventures throughout the universe while I remained confined to the forest lands within the God Domain. I have envied you for so long. This will be our first adventure together. Besides, I have achieved True God in cultivation and can survive here, just as you have. You will protect me, will you not? Sister Xiao Tao'er can assist me as well?" She gazed at me with hopeful eyes.
"Who is younger between us? I have told you not to address me in that manner..."
After an emotional exchange between the siblings, Luo Yan eventually agreed to follow her brother's guidance and leadership. Since the chaos below stretched endlessly, we used spatial shift nearly ten times during our descent.
"Look at that skeleton ~ it dwarfs our entire God Domain," Luo Yan exclaimed in wonder looking at the remains of Chaos Ancient God.
The story behind this place is interesting. It is a temporary land of beginning life formed by the bones of the chaos ancient god "Ji 寂 (Silence)", after his defeat at the hands of the another primal chaos ancient god namely "Xu 墟 (Ruins)" who supported the Dao of Maintenance and fought Ji who supported Dao of End with the help of the ancient god of space called "Kong 空 (Emptiness)". This was about 80 billion years ago in the time of primal chaos world. Fuxi, the human emperor, unfortunately, ended up staying at Ji's tomb for about 300 million years in hopes of being able to comprehend his truth.
Whether by coincidence or design, I found no need to guide the siblings to the location of the warden clan's abandoned descendants. After five days of flight, they reached the vicinity of the village naturally.
I released my protective shield because I felt the curse chains continuously attempting to tear at its surface. The prolonged assault created noticeable energy signatures as the chains broke, and since my perception had returned to normal visibility, I preferred not to draw attention. Besides, I retained the ability to sever the chains whenever necessary.
"These must be the bones of higher beings," Luo Zheng observed. "Only they could endure for such extended periods in chaos."
"A village lies nearby. Let us observe before approaching," I suggested.
We flew above the settlement and heard the inhabitants speaking our language. When we descended and inquired about our location, one villager fled immediately to alert the settlement. Soon, we saw two siblings approaching from the villa's entrance. The elder one possessed unusual energy signatures.
"She radiates the same energy as those ancient bones," I noted.
Following the pattern of the original tale, after initial wariness, they discovered our complete ignorance regarding the prison island. Luo Zheng transmitted a message to us: maintain absolute silence about the God Domain, regardless of who inquires.
When she removed her outer garments and enlarged to enormous proportions, both siblings watched in amazement. I reflected on how the God Domain's fabrics, while extremely durable, lacked the stretchable properties of these materials.
"The majority of your people wear clothing that resembles rags. Are these garments you wear designed for desolate Gods, channeling the same energy and expanding accordingly?"
"Indeed, throughout these lands, due to the light of adjudication, we lack the usual beasts and plants that would provide resources, save for those dwelling in bone towers. These garments and rags are products of special refinement and runes using desolate bones or higher-tier materials, latter available only to core clan members."
"What exactly is this light of adjudication? Please tell us about the clans that inhabit this realm," Luo Zheng requested.
"Now I truly believe you are not natives of this place," she said confused, then proceeding to explain the bloodlines of Chi You, Nuwa, and Xuanyuan. This revelation excited the Luo siblings considerably.
I had collected several bones during our descent, and when the conversation turned to desolate God absorption methods in exchange for true essence cultivation techniques, I provided them with a complete, efficient cultivation system designed for rapid strength improvement.
Over the following days, we three searched different areas for desolate bones. Divine sense made identification simple, as they emanated unique energy signatures. I discovered two femur bones radiating Chi You bloodline aura approximately ten thousand miles away, along with twenty-five hundred normal desolate bones. Luo Yan found a hip bone exuding a different aura, while Luo Zheng obtained a skull with yet another distinct energy signature.
During our reunion, Luo Zheng attempted to absorb the Chi You bloodline bone with perfect success. Witnessing this bloodline talent, the siblings revealed their true history and their desire for vengeance against the warden clan. The boy named Fu Chu from warden clan even showed us the curse chains now attached to our forms.
"If you assist us in entering the bone tower and eventually achieving revenge against the conservative faction, we will help sever these chains," he promised.
With his sister Luo Yan also now affected by the curse, Luo Zheng showed greater willingness to help than he would have alone.
After discussion, Luo Zheng departed for the market to sell bones and gather information while Luo Yan and I remained to absorb the collected materials. I consumed all normal bones, increasing my height to three hundred feet. The transformation brought a different sensation of power, as if every aspect of my being had been amplified. When I attempted to absorb the Chi You bloodline bone copy, I found I could only process sixty percent of its power ~ the remainder was wasted.
Nearby, I watched Luo Yan expand until her dress began tearing at ten times normal size. "Don't look," she called out in embarrassment.
" You require new clothing, or at least use energy condensation to create one" I replied, attempting my own transformation. This time I reached three hundred and fifty feet in height, my concentric clothing adjusting perfectly to accommodate the desolate energy.
We encountered other desolate practitioners from local tribes threatening the villagers and eliminated them at request, as the villagers struggled to defend themselves adequately and even so did the warden clan siblings.
"We should relocate these bodies elsewhere," Fu Chu commented, surveying the giant corpses.
Two days later, Luo Zheng returned with extensive information. From the sale of bloodline bones, I received eighteen thousand, Luo Yan fourteen thousand six hundred, and he obtained nineteen thousand desolate bones. We shared several hundred among ourselves to the siblings. Luo Zheng announced it was time to visit the bone towers.
"Why not transport them to your internal world?" I suggested to Luo Zheng through qi transmission. "It would present no problems accommodating these people, even without high cultivation levels. We cannot predict what dangers they might face ~ attacks from other tribes or even the warden clan itself. If people from high cultivation came here later on your reveal, warden clan may notice early."
After convincing the siblings, both entered his inner world taking with some desolate bones together. The boy cultivated true essence. Our first destination was the Nine Li Sky Bone Tower, where conflicts between Xuanyuan and Nine Li occurred regularly.