“I trouble both Emperor Lords to first take the Moon Star Lord back to rest in Fire Cloud Cave. I will fetch her later myself.”

Li Changshou spoke softly as Fu Xi and Divine Farmer behind him nodded gently, their forms merging into the chaos qi, slowly vanishing.

They didn’t say much, nor did they show much sorrow.

On the contrary, both Emperor Lords seemed to feel a sense of relief, as if completing some mission.

The Fire Emperor had lived too difficult a life, perhaps.

“Will Senior Brother come?”

Li Changshou asked softly as he slowly stood up, carefully placing those few ashes from his palm into a jade bottle and storing it deep within his treasure pouch.

Grand Master Mysterious Capital asked puzzledly: “Where are we going?”

Li Changshou looked up toward the palace ahead and said softly:

“Purple Jade Palace.”

“Does Brother need me to come along?”

“It’s up to Senior Brother’s wishes,” Li Changshou gave a bitter smile. “Senior Brother better not come, I need to…”

The Grand Master smiled: “Then I’ll come along.”

“Thank you, Senior Brother.”

The Grand Master raised his hand and patted Li Changshou’s shoulder, saying: “What you’re thinking in your heart now, Brother doesn’t know and doesn’t want to ask too much. Even if I asked, I might not understand, but you should try to let others share your burdens.”

Li Changshou smiled and nodded, glancing at where Elder Suiren had scattered, letting out a gentle breath before flying alongside the Grand Master toward the nearby Purple Jade Palace.

The Purple Jade Palace was quite peaceful now as if nothing had happened before.

The Dao Ancestor sat quietly in the deepest part of the great hall, auspicious qi floating around him, as if he had known Li Changshou would come and was quietly waiting here.

The Grand Master took half a step more, leading Li Changshou forward to bow, addressing him as Ancestral Master.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun smiled and nodded, his steady voice echoing throughout the hall:

“The Heavenly Dao birthed personal thoughts due to the human race’s desires, and the human race sealed these thoughts with human will, naturally containing cause and effect dao.”

Grand Master Mysterious Capital said: “Ancestral Master’s teachings are correct.”

“It’s fake, isn’t it?”

Li Changshou said calmly.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun’s brows furrowed slightly as the Grand Master turned his head to look at Li Changshou in some bewilderment.

The Grand Master’s expression was quite surprised as if studying whether Li Changshou had lost his soul.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun asked: “What is fake?”

“That Heavenly Dao will,” Li Changshou said calmly. “Ancestral Master once said there was a remnant Pangu will that needed this disciple’s help to suppress. Where is that Pangu will now?”

Dao Ancestor Hongjun fell silent.

Li Changshou stepped forward two paces, speaking word by word:

“Ancestral Master merged with the Heavenly Dao, becoming the Heavenly Dao, no longer a living being.”

“The Heavenly Dao is a gathering of rules, its own will not close to living beings. Living beings and the Heavenly Dao cannot understand each other because their ways of thinking have fundamental differences and their space-time dimensions differ. Thus for living beings, the Heavenly Dao never has will – the Heavenly Dao is natural.

After the Ancestral Master merged with the Heavenly Dao, the will born of the Heavenly Dao was only the Ancestral Master’s own will.”

“Ancestral Master, why did the demon race slaughter humans in ancient times? Why push the human race to the brink?

And from where did the human race get the Demon Ancestor’s remnant soul?

In the world, besides the two sages of the Western Teaching who went to repair the Western lands, only Ancestral Master had the Demon Ancestor’s remnant soul, right?”

“Ancestral Master, what do you want?”

“Is it because your position was not properly obtained, plucking the heaven-opening fruit left by the Pangu God, that you feel somewhat unsure in your heart, and thus need to control everything in your palm?”

Grand Master Mysterious Capital’s gaze was somewhat blank as he looked at his junior brother’s back, suddenly understanding why Li Changshou had shown slight hesitation before.

— Wanting his senior brother to accompany him as a witness, yet not wanting to drag him into the vortex.

Well then, this was coming to expose the Dao Ancestor’s background.

The Grand Master instantly reacted, seeing the Dao Ancestor’s somewhat helpless expression, immediately stepping forward half a step and hurriedly saying: “Ancestral Master, is what Changshou says… is it true?”

His demeanor was quite appropriate.

The Dao Ancestor sighed: “Changshou and this poor Dao seem to have quite deep misunderstandings.

The primitive world, this poor Dao could suppress with a wave of the hand, why would I need to spend so much thought?”

“Then let Ancestral Master suppress me.”

Li Changshou looked up at the Dao Ancestor: “I spoke disrespectfully, please punish me, Ancestral Master.”

“Changshou!” The Grand Master blocked in front of Li Changshou, saying softly, “Have you gone mad or lost your mind? Ancestral Master, please don’t blame him, my junior brother must have some dao heart imbalance due to Elder Suiren’s death in battle.”

“Please punish me, Ancestral Master!”

Li Changshou called out firmly, his gaze fixed on Dao Ancestor Hongjun.

Yet the Dao Ancestor merely sighed gently.

“Ancestral Master can’t do it, can you?”

Li Changshou raised his head and let out a gentle breath: “To kill that elder, Ancestral Master paid too great a price. Rather than saying the Ancestral Master joined forces with the Heavenly Dao, it would be better to say the Ancestral Master usurped the Heavenly Dao, using the primitive world to kill that elder.

If the Heavenly Dao is a great tree, the Six Sages’ power forms its foundation, but the Six Sages’ great dao is enough as a foundation.

The ancestral Master became the trunk and grew the Heavenly Court as the crown.

Ancestral Master can only use the Heavenly Dao’s power, having no dao realm or magical power of your own to speak of, thus, Ancestral Master cannot erase me, right?

Because the Heavenly Dao cannot erase an era’s greatest variable.

In the primitive world, the strongest living being is our teacher, so when Elder Suiren led the heroic spirits here, the Ancestral Master didn’t care, because the Heavenly Dao’s power could suppress them.

But when our teacher and two martial uncles came, Ancestral Master had to concede, bringing out the prepared Pangu God’s final will that was already infected by personal desire, to be suppressed by the human way.

From beginning to end.

The great calamity’s fate was Ancestral Master;

When my teacher Qiyuan was burned to death, when I was recovering in the Primordial Golden Dipper, the one who met my gaze was the Ancestral Master.

Arranging all this in the primitive world, coercing Holy Woman Nu Wa from behind, was also Ancestral Master.

The Heavenly Dao only has the will, Ancestral Master.”

A moment of silence fell in the Purple Jade Palace.

The Dao Ancestor said slowly: “You truly think this way?”

Li Changshou’s eyes were full of unwillingness as he stared at the Dao Ancestor.

The Dao Ancestor asked in return: “Why would you rather believe a wandering Daoist who stole people from the demon court than have more trust in this poor Dao?”

“I don’t trust any of you!”

Li Changshou gazed at the Dao Ancestor and sneered: “That elder bringing me to the primitive world, his purpose was self-evident.

Ancestral Master gave me many benefits, letting me sail smoothly within the Heavenly Dao’s order, your purpose was also not purely for all beings of heaven and earth.

You’re all calculating, surrounding the primitive world, for the Pangu God’s legacy.

This heaven and earth ultimately belong to all living beings. Whoever tries to control heaven and earth will become heaven and earth’s puppet.

Now I stand here – can Ancestral Master take back the Heavenly Dao sequence, take back my divine authority?”

“Why must it be so?”

The Dao Ancestor sighed softly: “Changshou, don’t be so obsessed.”

Li Changshou let out a gentle breath and lowered his head in a Daoist bow: “Today I still call Ancestral Master by that title, but Ancestral Master, today I make my bottom line clear.

The human race, friends and family, the Jade Emperor.

I will continue to preside over the great calamity, and continue to do what needs to be done.

When the Heavenly Dao’s desires don’t show, the Heavenly Court will naturally prosper.

The Heavenly Court’s order is a blueprint I drew with my own hands. If I oppose heaven, the primitive world will fall apart in an extremely short time, returning to chaos.

Disciple has said this much. If there were any offenses toward Ancestral Master today, please be magnanimous.”

After speaking, Li Changshou made another Daoist bow and turned toward the Purple Jade Palace’s great doors.

Grand Master Mysterious Capital hurriedly bowed to the Dao Ancestor: “Ancestral Master please don’t take it to heart, my junior brother is obsessed… obsessed.”

Then he quickly chased after Li Changshou.

What had happened to his junior brother?

Threatening the Dao Ancestor to his face – this was too unstable!

Was extreme stability getting carried away?

Leaving the Purple Jade Palace, the Grand Master grabbed Li Changshou’s arm and directly fled toward the Chaos Sea. The Taiji Chart’s dao rhythm wrapped around the two brothers as they left without stopping, rapidly moving away.

The Purple Jade Palace was wrapped in thunder, like heaven’s anger.

After flying beyond the Heavenly Dao’s range of influence, Grand Master Mysterious Capital activated the Taiji Chart’s power to wrap around them both, glaring at Li Changshou.

“Have you gone mad? What if Ancestral Master struck?”

But Li Changshou lowered his head and let out a breath, cold sweat beading on his back and forehead.

“Well, he didn’t strike, did he?”

Li Changshou muttered, lowering his head to look at his palm while calming his dao heart.

Success.

The Grand Master frowned as he looked Li Changshou up and down for a while, asking puzzledly: “What are you calculating?”

“The primitive world’s great destiny.”

Li Changshou smiled helplessly and made a welcoming gesture to the Grand Master, “We can’t stay in the Chaos Sea too long, or the Heavenly Dao will assume we’re evading the great calamity, and that would be real trouble.”

“What the three Human Emperors used all their strength to suppress – was it truly Pangu God’s final will?”

“No, there never was Pangu God’s final will. Pangu God’s final will was given to our teacher,” Li Changshou said. “Otherwise why would teachers need to stay confined in the primitive world? He would have left long ago.”

The Grand Master’s head was full of question marks as he asked puzzledly: “What exactly is going on?”

“This matter is a long story, starting from long ago.”

“Be concise and to the point,” the Grand Master hooked his left arm around Li Changshou’s neck. “If you don’t explain clearly, how could Brother let you leave today? What, you don’t trust even me?”

“How could I not trust you? My teacher and Senior Brother are among my few remaining supports, and everything I have today came from my Senior Brother giving me the opportunity.

Being able to speak to the Dao Ancestor like that was because the teacher gave me the confidence.”

Li Changshou sighed softly: “Senior Brother, do you remember when I first came to Purple Jade Palace and Ancestral Master kept me behind?”

“Mm…”

“Ancestral Master told me a story, about Pangu God’s final will.”

Li Changshou said: “Senior Brother, you can understand it as Ancestral Master gradually guiding me, constantly hinting, letting me formulate a series of plans, absorbing the variables of heaven and earth, forging me into the greatest variable.

I told the teacher about this too, but the teacher didn’t care about it, because this is the Heavenly Dao’s rule, not the teacher’s dao.”

The Grand Master smiled bitterly: “Our teacher doesn’t care about anything.”

“Because the teacher represents Pangu God’s carefree nature. Back then Pangu God could sacrifice himself to fulfill all things…”

“The Big Chart is listening, be careful what you say!”

The Grand Master squeezed Li Changshou hard: “Talk about the main point, what did the Dao Ancestor calculate?”

Li Changshou said: “The Dao Ancestor wants to prosper the Heavenly Court, strengthen the Heavenly Dao, suppress the Six Sages, and subdue the power of living beings.

The Holy Mother Temple matter was within his calculations from early on.

Also, Maitreya being unable to enter this world wasn’t my order, and the Jade Emperor couldn’t achieve such a thing. Under normal circumstances, when Maitreya enters the world, the Jade Emperor and I can decide to send down heavenly punishment, but cannot isolate him outside heaven and earth.

The whole process was our Ancestral Master’s calculation.”

“Why so?”

“I can’t tell Senior Brother the answer for now,” Li Changshou said seriously. “Because this needs to start from very basic concepts, and it wouldn’t benefit Senior Brother’s cultivation.”

“Oh? Tell me about it, Brother was among the smarter ones in the first batch of humans.”

“The Second Law of Thermodynamics: the entropy of an isolated system never decreases.”

The Grand Master: …

“Let’s talk about the calculations instead. Did the Dao Ancestor calculate against Fire Emperor Suiren?”

“Yes,” Li Changshou said. “The Dao Ancestor is maintaining a great calamity script. Why does he need to maintain this script?

There are two answers: first, this script itself matches the Dao Ancestor’s expectations; second, the Dao Ancestor has already made too many arrangements based on this script – pull one hair and the whole body moves.

Gathering the power of living beings should be what the Dao Ancestor has been doing since ancient times.”

Grand Master Mysterious Capital pondered for a moment and asked: “Why so?”

Li Changshou smiled: “That points to the most fundamental question – what exactly is the relationship between the Heavenly Dao and the Dao Ancestor.”

“What relationship?”

“I can’t say,” Li Changshou sighed. “Because I can’t be completely certain now, but what the Dao Ancestor wants me to believe about his relationship with the Heavenly Dao, I already said in Purple Jade Palace.

Elder Suiren understood this matter, so he chose to go to his death at the end, to lower the Dao Ancestor’s guard.

My actions just now in Purple Jade Palace were also to give value to Elder Suiren’s death.”

The Grand Master: …

“You’ve confused me.”

The Grand Master tried to organize his thoughts and said:

“So you mean, the Dao Ancestor used you to gather living beings’ power, had long prepared the Holy Mother Temple to directly interfere with the Human Emperor and insult the Holy Mother, and again used you to trigger the human race’s foundation, consuming that part of the foundation.

Then you and Fire Emperor Suiren put on a show, the Fire Emperor willingly going to his death, and you going to Purple Jade Palace to threaten the Dao Ancestor, thus making the Dao Ancestor think you’re nothing special? Thereby dispelling his wariness of you?”

“Part of his wariness,” Li Changshou said. “He and I are alike – we can never fully trust each other.

The great gift that the elder left me was letting the Dao Ancestor step into the Heavenly Dao trap, to the extent that I’ve now become a problem the Dao Ancestor cannot directly erase.

But the Dao Ancestor holds my weak points, so he feels confident of victory.

I have methods to break through, and several backup plans, but it’s too early to talk about the odds of success now.”

“Yunxiao and the others?”

“Not just them, Senior Brother, you too.”

Li Changshou took out a treasure pouch from his sleeve, smiling somewhat embarrassedly as he handed it to the Grand Master:

“Senior Brother, it’s not that your junior brother is overstepping, this…”

“An apocalypse pouch, Brother understands. I’ve seen you give one to Ao Yi before.”

The Grand Master calmly took the treasure pouch and smiled: “Then Brother will wait for your news in Mysterious Capital City… We’re almost at the edge of the Heavenly Dao.”

Li Changshou looked back at the Chaos Sea and said softly:

“From now on, this game is no longer about victory between me and the Dao Ancestor.”

“Oh? Then what is it about?”

“Living beings and heaven and earth.”

Li Changshou’s finger waved slightly as the Taiji Chart’s dao rhythm slowly dispersed, their forms returning toward heaven and earth.

Near the edge of heaven, as they parted, the two began showcasing their acting skills.

The Grand Master had to return to the Mysterious Capital City from the Chaos Sea to meet with Kong Xuan who had hidden earlier, and he very seriously advised Li Changshou:

“Junior Brother, you must learn to control your anger, control your emotions. How could you speak to Ancestral Master like that?

This is disrespecting propriety!”

Li Changshou’s expression was dark, but he only lowered his head without speaking, cupping his hands to the Grand Master before turning to fly into heaven and earth, not causing any abnormality.

The Grand Master shook his head and turned back to the Chaos Sea.

In Purple Jade Palace, that imposing old Daoist opened his eyes and suddenly said: “How much is true and false.”

Behind him, a grey figure slowly condensed and said: “Three parts false, three parts true, four parts impossible to determine, but the flame has reached him.”

“You shouldn’t have bowed to Suiren back then, allowing him the power of the flame.”

“The human race won heaven and earth. Rules restrict me, I must follow the rules,” that grey-robed old Daoist sighed softly. “In the end, that fellow left such a big problem.”

The Dao Ancestor said calmly: “It’s fine, Li Changgeng thinks he was brought here by him.

Let him leave the primitive world earlier, he’s already approaching uncontrollable.”

“The time isn’t right, the rules aren’t enough yet,” the grey-robed old Daoist shook his head. “I cannot continue to appear after this, heaven’s shackles ultimately restrict my will.

If he becomes suspicious again, you and I…”

“Opposition.”

In Purple Jade Palace, the Dao Ancestor and this old Daoist smiled at each other as the latter’s form gradually dispersed, leaving only the Dao Ancestor sitting there, quietly pondering something.

…

Half a day later.

At Little Qiong Peak, in the thatched cottage.

Li Changshou placed the carved wooden tablet he had made on the writing desk in his cottage, with “Suiren’s Honored Position” written on it and three sticks of pure incense burning before it.

Li Changshou first made a Daoist bow, then lifted the hem of his Daoist robe and kowtowed three times to the tablet, quietly remaining prostrate on the ground, unmoving.

Deep in his dao heart, beside Li Changshou’s primordial spirit, he slowly erased the character “one” carved on a stone tablet.

Sometimes, he couldn’t tell the truth to people he trusted.

It was like this with the teacher, and also with Senior Brother, because often his way of thinking differed from theirs and they couldn’t understand each other, which would create certain hidden dangers.

That wasn’t stable.

The teacher said to let oneself live toward death, gambling for a thread of life.

He had complete plans, not needing to place hope on rhetoric like “Ah, justice must triumph.”

His primordial spirit’s little figure picked up a brush and carved a new large character on the stone tablet.

“Four.”

Standing up, Li Changshou put his hands behind his back and gazed at Elder Suiren’s tablet.

When did he get involved in all these strange causes and effects?

It was inevitable, determined by the special nature of his foundation. When encountering heavenly tribulation and being discovered by the Dao Ancestor, there would be similar paths, and since he didn’t want to be manipulated by so-called fate, he would naturally make a series of reactions.

Just like the world – the initial perturbation determined what the world looked like at this moment.

But this wasn’t predestination.

So-called predestination was merely something the Heavenly Dao wanted living beings to believe.

The writing in that book of life and death changed every moment. Everything was just the increase and decrease of certainties and variables, ultimately all mathematical problems.

Li Changshou slowly clenched his left fist, standing there lost in thought.

How to continue improving the odds of success?

Indeed, the more one carried, the further one got from being carefree. Elder Suiren’s final entrustment was truly heavy.

But regardless, thank you.

Pioneer.

Since I am no longer in mortal danger, I will not fail the ancestors’ trust.