Across the vast celestial kingdom, towering jade halls shimmered beneath shifting light, their polished white-gold floors reflecting the movement of countless immortals carrying scrolls, reports, decrees, and records through endless corridors. Massive pillars carved with divine inscriptions rose toward luminous ceilings where constellations moved like living scripture. Sacred bells chimed faintly in distant towers, marking spiritual fluctuations across mortal lands.
Immortal Officers moved quickly through the administrative wings some seated behind long celestial desks, brushes gliding across glowing parchment as they recorded births, deaths, altered fates, broken karmic threads, and disturbances below.Others transported sealed documents between departments.
Some monitored village prayers.Some trained beneath heavenly commanders.
Some simply ran because Heaven, despite all its power, was currently overwhelmed.
The reason were threads.At the center of the highest hall, the Grand Celestial Court stood open.A place where divine law, heavenly order, and fate itself were discussed beneath the gaze of the highest authority.And today
It was tense.At the summit of nine radiant steps sat the Heavenly Father.His presence commanded silence even before he spoke.
He wore layered robes of white and gold, constellations shifting subtly across celestial silk. His silver-dark hair fell like moonlit water behind his shoulders, and the ancient crown resting upon his head radiated neither vanity nor decoration only authority.He looked eternal, as he always had his presence vast, immeasurable, and steady enough to anchor realms.But today he also looked concerned.
Beside him stood Lady Su Lian, Immortal Officer of Spiritual Harmony graceful, poised, silver-robed, her sharp eyes missing little. Where Huo Zhen radiated force, she embodied precision.Near the archive division stood Elder Sima Ren, ancient and composed, his long robes lined with celestial script. As acting overseer of Fate's designated records division in Yan Luo's absence, his presence alone carried bureaucratic gravity.
And farther down, among the lower-ranked immortals, stood Zhao Ming.A recently ascended cultivator from the mortal realm.
Young by heavenly standards. Still learning.
Still carrying enough humanity that Heaven's tension felt heavier than perhaps it should have.Dressed in pale silver-blue trainee robes, scrolls tucked carefully in hand, Zhao Ming stood straight despite the unease in his chest. His eyes moved cautiously across the court, taking in every word, every expression, every shift in divine atmosphere.
And tension was everywhere." It is demonic interference," one Immortal Officer declared sharply from the eastern line."No," another countered immediately, voice clipped with irritation. "Demonic patterns do not align this cleanly.""Ghost residue, then."A third voice scoffed. "Ghosts do not distort memory architecture on this scale."
"Cursed ritual?" Immortal Qian Yu of the Northern Seal Division stepped forward first, his silver-edged sleeves sweeping sharply as his brows furrowed. "There are precedents. Large-scale distortion has historically followed ritual corruption." "Impossible," Lady Su Lian cut in immediately, her tone precise and unwavering. She did not raise her voice, yet the interruption carried enough authority to halt lesser whispers. "Ritual structures require anchor points, repetition, and residue. None have been detected."
Qian Yu's jaw tightened. "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."
"It is," Su Lian replied coldly, "when Heaven itself has searched."A murmur rippled.
From the western ranks, Immortal Bao Chen of Spectral Affairs lifted his scroll slightly. "Then forbidden mortal cultivation?" His voice held cautious urgency. "There are sects below that pursue memory manipulation through fragmented soul techniques."
"Insufficient," Elder Sima Ren answered before anyone else could. His aged voice was calm, but absolute. "Forbidden cultivation can destabilize individuals. It does not restructure communal memory architecture across multiple regions."
Bao Chen frowned. "Unless amplified."
"By what?" General Huo Zhen's voice struck across the chamber with open impatience. His crimson armor gave a low metallic shift as he stepped forward. "Name the force capable of amplification." Bao Chen hesitated. A hush spread not true silence, but something close enough to discomfort that Zhao Ming felt it in his spine.General Huo Zhen's voice finally cut through the chamber like steel striking stone."If villages are collapsing into memory confusion," he said coldly, "then force may be necessary."
His words echoed.Several lower immortals visibly stiffened.
Lady Su Lian's elegant brows furrowed immediately."Force against what?" she asked, her voice calm but edged.Huo Zhen did not hesitate."The source." "And if we do not know the source?"Huo Zhen's jaw tightened, his expression sharpening.
"Then we identify it faster."Lady Su Lian's tone cooled further. "Recklessness dressed as urgency is still recklessness, General."
A murmur rippled.Huo Zhen turned slightly toward her, crimson armor shifting with restrained force."And hesitation disguised as wisdom can become negligence."
Lady Su Lian's eyes narrowed not insulted, but displeased.Before the exchange could escalate, Elder Sima Ren unrolled a glowing scroll.The chamber dimmed slightly as celestial script illuminated the hall."Current reports," Elder Sima Ren announced, his voice measured and ancient, "indicate progressive memory fading, false recollection, dead recognition, and temporal inconsistency across multiple mortal settlements."A wave of unease spread instantly.Even seasoned officials shifted.
"Dead recognition…" one immortal whispered faintly.Another paled. "Temporal inconsistency?"
Elder Sima Ren continued, each phrase somehow worsening the room."Villagers forgetting blood relations." "Parents identifying deceased children as living."
"Conflicting memory loops." "Displacement of sequential days." A younger immortal near Zhao Ming swallowed visibly. " Two yesterdays," he whispered. The phrase spread like poison."Two yesterdays " "Impossible…"
"No…"
Zhao Ming's grip tightened around his scroll.
He had read the reports.He had studied them repeatedly.But hearing them spoken aloud inside Heaven itself made them feel worse.
His mind involuntarily returned to one report in particular: A mother prepared food for a son dead three winters.A village elder insisted a burned shrine had never existed.
A child remembered tomorrow.Zhao Ming's stomach turned.How do you fight something people cannot even remember correctly?
Another official stepped forward anxiously. "Could this be a collapse in Fate's thread?"
That question changed everything.The court stilled.Even General Huo Zhen stopped. Slowly, eyes turned toward Elder Sima Ren.
Because Fate's threads Those were not supposed to fail.Elder Sima Ren's silence lasted too long. Finally said "No confirmed severance." "Then what are we seeing?" Lady Su Lian pressed.Elder Sima Ren's fingers tightened slightly on the scroll.
" Interference." "From whom?" Huo Zhen demanded.This time even Elder Sima Ren did not answer immediately.
Instinctively, Zhao Ming's gaze moved across the hall once more. Rank after rank stood in flawless order officials, war divisions, fate scribes, spiritual envoys each in their designated place beneath Heaven's unyielding structure. But then his brow furrowed. Yan Luo…? He looked again, more carefully this time but he wasn't there.A strange unease stirred in Zhao Ming's chest. Why is he still not here? That wasn't like Yan Luo. Even among trainees, Yan Luo's reputation was unmistakable precise, disciplined, and never careless without reason.
Zhao Ming's thoughts sharpened uneasily. Did something happen in the villages? Or… did he find something he shouldn't have?
Before those thoughts could spiral further, Heavenly Father finally spoke.The entire hall fell silent instantly."We are beyond speculation."His voice was calm.Every immortal lowered their gaze respectfully, not from fear alone, but from the sheer weight of certainty in his tone."The Threads are spreading." No one dared interrupt."Mortal suffering is increasing."A pause followed, deliberate enough to let the words settle.
"Memory is failing." Another."Identity is destabilizing."
Even General Huo Zhen's stern expression hardened further, his jaw tightening beneath crimson armor. Across the hall, Zhao Ming felt the gravity of those words settle deep into his bones. This was no longer rumor, no longer fragmented reports or uncertain theory. This was crisis.Heavenly Father's gaze swept over the gathered court.
"We will not wait for Heaven to become reactive." That landed clearly.A subtle tension moved through the assembly.
"We act now." An immortal officer stepped forward carefully, his voice respectful but edged with concern. "Heavenly Father… how?"The answer came without hesitation.
"Investigation."A ripple spread through the hall."Selected officials will descend to affected villages."
General Huo Zhen bowed immediately, fist striking palm in sharp military salute. "My forces are ready." "Heavenly General Huo Zhen you will oversee military protection."
"It will be done.""Lady Su Lian you will examine spiritual imbalance."She bowed with fluid grace. "Yes, Heavenly Father."
"Elder Sima Ren you will monitor fate irregularities." "As commanded." Then
Heavenly Father spoke a single name.
"Yan Luo." Silence in hall.This time, nearly everyone noticed.Heads turned not openly enough to be disrespectful, but subtly enough that the absence became impossible to ignore.
Zhao Ming's unease sharpened instantly.
Heavenly Father's gaze lowered slightly.
" Where is Yan Luo?"One sect officer stepped forward nervously, shoulders tense beneath ceremonial robes. "He… has not attended several recent assemblies."A faint disturbance spread through the lower ranks small, controlled, but undeniable.General Huo Zhen frowned deeply."Absent?"The word carried sharp disapproval.Zhao Ming's pulse spiked.
He didn't fully think before moving.He simply stepped forward."Heavenly Father."His voice was respectful but clear enough to cut through the growing uncertainty.The hall's attention shifted immediately.Heavenly Father's gaze settled on him."Speak."
Zhao Ming bowed deeply, forcing steadiness into himself despite the pressure pressing from all sides."Immortal Yan Luo is already in the villages."A pause followed.Then Zhao Ming continued, firmer now despite his racing thoughts."He is investigating the Threads personally."That changed the room.Some immortals looked surprised.Others visibly approved.
A few seemed more concerned than before.
General Huo Zhen's eyes narrowed not displeased, but sharply assessing.Lady Su Lian's expression shifted slightly, as though reevaluating several assumptions at once.
Zhao Ming lowered his head further."He should return soon."The words felt heavier once spoken aloud.Heavenly Father studied him for one long, unreadable moment.
Zhao Ming felt that silence like judgment itself. Then he gave a small nod. "Good."
The single word released pressure from Zhao Ming's chest so suddenly he almost felt weak from it.
The Heavenly Father turned his attention back to the gathered assembly, and though his posture remained composed, something in his presence sharpened."Then while Yan Luo investigates directly."His voice did not rise."What are the rest of you planning?"
No one answered him.His gaze moved slowly across the ranks of Heaven's officers, and beneath it, even seasoned immortals seemed to feel the weight of their own stillness."People are suffering." No one spoke."Memories are collapsing."
The hall remained frozen."Children no longer recognize parents."Several immortals visibly lowered their heads.Not out of shame alone
but because some truths were unbearable when spoken plainly."Tell me," Heavenly Father said, quieter now yet somehow more severe because of it. "What exactly is Heaven doing?"The question struck harder than anger. It was disappointment.And disappointment, from Heaven itself, carried a sharper edge than wrath.
Lady Su Lian stepped forward first, graceful but immediate."We are increasing spiritual observation zones."General Huo Zhen followed without hesitation, his voice firm as steel."I will dispatch heavenly guards near major village borders."Elder Sima Ren inclined his head slightly."I am reviewing ancient records for similar anomalies."
Heavenly Father nodded but not with satisfaction only necessity.
Before any further response could form
The great celestial doors opened.Every eye in the chamber turned.Yan Luo entered.His dark blue robes, threaded with silver celestial patterns and subtle constellations, moved like controlled night beneath Heaven's golden light. Fate markings shimmered faintly across layered sleeves, while his black hair remained bound with flawless precision. His expression was calm, unreadable to most though to those who knew him well, the exhaustion beneath that calm was unmistakable.
Low-ranking immortals immediately bowed.
"Lord Yan Luo." "Immortal Yan Luo."Zhao Ming's shoulders loosened before he even realized it.Yan Luo moved through the hall with practiced grace, each step measured, each movement controlled. He stopped before the throne and bowed deeply."This one greets Heavenly Father."Heavenly Father's voice remained steady.
"Rise." Yan Luo obeyed.Then heavenly Father said "You are late."The words were not loud.But every immortal heard them.
Yan Luo lowered his gaze respectfully."I ask forgiveness." "Reason?" Heavenly Father asked.Yan Luo did not hesitate."I was investigating."That alone shifted several expressions throughout the hall.Heavenly Father's eyes narrowed slightly." Then tell me what have you found?" Now the room truly focused.Yan Luo's tone changed."In affected villages…"He paused carefully. "Memory degradation continues." The hall stilled.
"Some remember two yesterdays."A visible ripple spread through the chamber."Some lose recent identities."More tension followed.
"Some recognize the dead as living."
Even General Huo Zhen visibly disliked that.
His jaw hardened.Yan Luo continued. "Memory is not merely fading." His voice lowered slightly."It is being altered."
That sentence landed like falling stone.
Heavenly Father asked directly "Do you found its Cause?" No one moved.No one even breathed too loudly.Yan Luo was silent for one brief moment.Then he answered "Not yet confirmed."
The disappointment on every faces were immediate.One lower-ranked immortal whispered before he could stop himself:
"So even he doesn't know."Zhao Ming's jaw tightened.But before uncertainty could spread.Yan Luo continued."I am still investigating." Then more firmly he said.
"But it is not random."That changed the room again.Heavenly Father's gaze sharpened.
" Explain."Yan Luo answered with precise clarity. "The Threads respond."
Lady Su Lian frowned deeply. "To what?" she asked, her sharp voice cutting through the tension with controlled precision. Yan Luo's answer came quietly, yet somehow that softness made the silence around him feel even heavier. " That is what I intend to find." For a long moment, no one spoke. The weight of uncertainty settled over the Celestial Court like unseen pressure, pressing against every rank, every title, every divine certainty.
Then Heavenly Father nodded once. "Find out soon." There was no softness in his tone. No reassurance. Only command. "We cannot wait any longer." A pause followed, brief but severe. "It is getting worse." Yan Luo bowed deeply, his voice calm despite the burden beneath it. " Understood, Heavenly Father."
Then Heavenly Father rose."Dismissed."
The entire hall bowed instantly, movement sweeping through the court like a single breath shared by thousands. Yet even after Heavenly Father departed, his concern did not leave with him. It lingered pressed into the towering pillars of white jade, caught in the shifting celestial banners, and woven into the silence left between divine footsteps. For all Heaven's grandeur, something uneasy now moved beneath it.
Then Heaven resumed.Scrolls unfurled with glowing script. Orders were issued in measured voices. Messengers crossed luminous bridges. Divine formations shifted across vast celestial maps. Officials moved with renewed urgency, each carrying out their duties with sharpened purpose.But beneath all of it anxiety remained.
Zhao Ming exhaled quietly, steadying himself before stepping forward through the moving ranks. "Lord Yan Luo."Yan Luo glanced at him.The look was brief, but focused.Zhao Ming lowered his voice respectfully. "Heavenly Father instructed me to accompany you." For a moment, Yan Luo said nothing. He simply studied him.Then, at last he answered."I'll inform you when it's time." Zhao Ming blinked, caught slightly off guard by the response. It wasn't refusal. But it certainly wasn't invitation."Understood." he answered carefully.And just like that, Yan Luo walked past him.Zhao Ming remained where he was, watching him go.
The path into the demon clan began without ceremony. There were no gates, no guards and no declaration.There was only silence.
Qing Li followed half a step behind Wang Xio through the shadowed mountain pass, his boots crunching lightly over frost that had no business existing this far beneath demonic territory. The deeper they went, the colder it became not natural cold, but the kind that felt aware. It slipped through fabric, through skin, settling somewhere far more uncomfortable.
Qing Li finally broke the silence first "Why did you call me here?" His tone was sharp with irritation, though not entirely without curiosity. "Is there something important? Because I already have more than enough disasters to handle."Wang Xio did not even look at him.
"You'll know."Qing Li stared at the side of his face in disbelief."That's it?" he said flatly. "You drag me into demon territory, answer like a cursed prophecy, and expect me to just continue walking?" Wang Xio's gaze shifted slightly.He gave one look.Qing Li lifted both hands in surrender. "Right. Of course. Terrifying silence. Very effective." They continued.
For a while, only the sound of their footsteps remained.Then Qing Li spoke again, more thoughtfully this time."The one in the forest…" Wang Xio said nothing.Qing Li's eyes narrowed slightly."The one who helped Chen Yu."Qing Li tilted his head. "That was you, wasn't it?"Wang Xio did not deny it.
And somehow, that was answer enough.
Qing Li's expression sharpened with immediate interest."If you can control Threads," he said, "then why aren't you doing it now?" This time, Wang Xio answered."I can't control them for long."His voice was calm but edged. "If I force it…" A pause followed. "It gets worse."
His usual humor faded slightly. "So it's unstable." Wang Xio did not reply.Qing Li exhaled slowly, his thoughts shifting."Then it really is related to Xu Yang." Wang Xio's steps slowed almost imperceptibly. "The Threads react to him," Qing Li continued, watching carefully now. "Respond to him. Distort around him." His brow furrowed."I don't even want to know what kind of enemy he managed to make…" Silence between them.Wang Xio had gone very still.Qing Li noticed immediately. "What?" Wang xio didn't answer. And that, more than anything, unsettled him.Because Wang Xio was not surprised easily.Whatever that expression was It wasn't surprise.
Before Qing Li could push further the landscape changed.The narrow black path opened into something vast.Qing Li stopped cold. There was Snow everywhere.White, endless, and deathly still beneath a sky with no visible stars.But this was not mortal snow
each flake fell too slowly. Like ash pretending to be winter.Black flowers bloomed from frozen earth in scattered clusters petals dark as void, their surfaces gleaming faintly as though wet with oil or blood. Their stems were lined with tiny thorns that seemed to twitch when shadows passed over them.
Some flowers opened and closed without wind.Others whispered not words Just… whispers.
Qing Li's entire expression changed."Why are we here?" he asked, his voice lowering instinctively.He glanced around once, then again, visibly more uncomfortable."Wait."
His eyes widened slightly."Isn't this forbidden?" No answer from Wang xio.Qing Li stopped walking entirely."Absolutely not."
Wang Xio kept going.Qing Li pointed at him in immediate protest."No. No, no, no. What if someone sees us? What if something sees us? I'm not going further."He took one very deliberate step backward. "You go." Wang Xio turned.He said nothing but the glare
Qing Li immediately regretted every decision that led him here." Are you coming or not?"
Qing Li stared at him.Then at the endless snow then the black flowers.Then whatever cursed place this clearly was.
His inner thoughts became deeply offended.
Where exactly am I trapped? Outside? Demon King. Inside? Somehow worse than Demon King. I really should've stayed with Yan Luo.His soul felt personally betrayed.
"Okay," Qing Li muttered bitterly. "Okay, fine. I'm coming."He sighed dramatically."Not because this is a good idea."Another step.
"I just don't currently have better choices."
They moved deeper.The snow grew stranger.
Frozen statues lined the path demons caught mid-scream, preserved in black ice.Above them, shadow creatures moved beneath the frost like things swimming under a frozen lake.
At one point, Qing Li very deliberately chose not to acknowledge the tree made entirely of bones.Eventually, Wang Xio stopped before a structure half-buried beneath snow and obsidian roots. A hall.Its doors opened without touch.Inside hall there were books and records.Shelves stretching impossibly high, packed with scrolls, tablets, preserved horns, black flame lanterns, and relics humming with restrained malice.Qing Li blinked then blinked again."This is a library."
Wang Xio walked inside without comment.
Qing Li looked deeply betrayed."You brought me through forbidden death snow."He gestured wildly."For records?"Wang Xio was already searching.Qing Li stood there for a full five seconds.Then he said "I hate this."
After pretending to care for approximately three minutes, Qing Li's attention collapsed entirely. He got bored.He wandered past old weapons and past strange relics. "Interesting," he muttered, poking at absolutely nothing he should have touched.
Then it click. Qing Li froze. "No." The floor vanished beneath him. "What the hell?! "
He dropped in darkness. There was Fire.
He landed hard on black stone, immediately coughing as scorching air tore into his lungs.
Qing Li slowly lifted his head and stared. He saw Lava rivers , towering black pillars and Chains thicker than ancient trees.Fire fountains erupted violently from cracks in the ground.A colossal prison stretched before him, suspended over molten ruin.Its bars were not metal they were burning seals.Each one engraved with divine and demonic law.
Qing Li's jaw slowly dropped." What," he said breathlessly, "is this place?"He turned in a slow circle, equal parts horrified and impressed."I was just looking around…" Another pause."How did I end up here?!"
Then his gaze landed fully on the prison.
His expression changed instantly."No way."
He stared then, somehow laughed. "So this…" He stepped closer. "is the legendary prison."A strange grin spread despite every survival instinct he possessed."I've heard so much about this place."
He tilted his head, examining burning restraints."Very impressive."A beat.
"Excellent location." He took another step. "Perfect for demon traitors."Then, with deeply unnecessary confidence "Of course, not for me."He gave a strange, awkward laugh."Heh." Then from within the fire a low voice came." Little demon."Qing Li stopped breathing.Every muscle locked.He slowly
very, very slowly turned. His expression changed.He was genuinely afraid.