“This should be the first time we meet, right?”

Sitting on that high roof ridge, where even a single tile beneath her feet was larger than her entire person, Luyue Laozu smiled at Jian Chou who still stood before her after the mirror surface shattered, saying with a gentle smile.

Jian Chou had expected to be seen through, but hadn’t expected the other party to see through her at first glance.

Truly worthy of someone who had comprehended the Nine Bends River Map in just half a day.

She smiled in return and walked over, sitting beside Luyue Laozu, gazing out at this boundless nation of ruins, saying: “This kind of feeling is quite wonderful. When people live in the world, they may be hypocritical when awake, but once night falls and they close their eyes, all those things suppressed, hidden, and unknown during the day appear in dreams. Sometimes very directly, sometimes only symbolically. So thinking about it now, I feel this Dream Tianmo is truly brilliant. Looking at people from their dreams, perhaps one can see what they need.”

“But going to find each person like this, while peering into their dreams, will also let others peer into your dreams.”

Luyue Laozu’s fingers traced over the massive patterns on the roof ridge.

She raised her head to look at the snow-white sky and the pitch-black sun, saying: “Are you not worried at all?”

“With a life lived openly, what is there to fear from others seeing?” Jian Chou didn’t care at all, her gaze revealing a distant quality. “Moreover, only by doing this can I know who among our forty people is Dream Tianmo. Anyone I cannot find, or who I find but shows me no dreams, would be highly suspect.”

“It’s a clever method.”

But only one Jian Chou would dare use such a method, or rather, would have the ability to employ such means.

Luyue Laozu suddenly became curious: “What did you see in my dream just now?”

Jian Chou was silent for a moment but didn’t hide it, truthfully saying: “I saw a scene from when you were in Mingri Xinghai, casually throwing down the Nine Bends River Map.”

“But you don’t ask me why I stood by and watched when I clearly knew it was Buyu’s heart demon that ascended to the Upper Ruins.” Luyue Laozu observed her.

Jian Chou said lightly: “There may be many people in the world who would like you, but you don’t necessarily have to like many people. Their emotions and feelings have nothing to do with you. And in this world, there are many coincidences and many inevitabilities. Everything we do causes changes to the world and to others. If one’s position is high enough and power strong enough, even if she doesn’t want to change the world, she ultimately cannot avoid it. Her very existence is change.”

So what need did Luyue Laozu have to pursue the heart demon?

These words really hit the mark, expressing what no one had said before, striking right to the heart.

Hearing this, Luyue Laozu remained silent for a long time.

Perhaps she was seriously contemplating her current state of mind?

After a while, she smiled: “Though you say this, I sometimes wonder if I hadn’t casually thrown the river map to others back then, would the later events not have happened? It shows that people are not omniscient and omnipotent, and there will be some confusion about past actions, even unavoidable regrets. What about you now? All fate is in your hands for you to manipulate. If you could return to the past, would you want to change anything?”

“I don’t want to change my past.”

She cultivated the “Way of Self.” Every past version of herself was the best version of herself at that time. She felt there were no regrets in the world that needed to be remedied, nor any choices she was unwilling to make.

Jian Chou’s expression appeared very peaceful.

The black sun on the horizon fell into her eyes, becoming just a small black dot floating in the warm white reflection.

“But if I were to say something to my past self, perhaps…”

She blinked, thinking of that female cultivator who had torn her wings at the Left Three Thousand One Person Platform gathering that year, and lightly curved her lips, murmuring: “I will have something better…”

Ten thousand waterfalls crashed down, people on boats, drifting like leaves. When falling from heights, people mistakenly think they’re flying.

But the next moment brings intense pain.

The dream before his eyes seemed to explode in the depths of his mind. Xie Buchen held the ink ruler, his other hand involuntarily rising to press against his wildly beating temple. The dark depths of his eyes were like a winter lake surface, frozen by ice and snow.

When he focused again, all the magnificent and terrifying scenes from before had disappeared. The ruins where he now stood were empty, but the exaggeratedly large scars covered the ground.

The entire city seemed to have been completely destroyed.

Everywhere he looked, there was hardly a single intact brick or tile.

He naturally thought of the giants he had seen before, especially the axe-wielding giant surrounded in the center…

The Upper Ruins immortal realm had never had such massive buildings, nor had such enormous giants ever been seen in this universe.

Had he become smaller, or had the world become larger?

In Xie Buchen’s mind, various possibilities emerged one after another, but when he raised his gaze and saw Jian Chou, all these possibilities were extinguished, replaced by intense vigilance and wariness.

She walked over from beside a broken white tile, the blackened sunlight falling on her, making the flowing patterns on her mountain and river robe appear much deeper and darker.

The sword was in her hand, but without that fragrant scent.

Jian Chou seemed to know he was here, or had come specifically for him. When she saw him, there was no surprise in her gaze.

The ink ruler flipped between his fingers, and Xie Buchen had already gripped it tightly.

Jian Chou approached and smiled at him: “You and I are already acquainted, and we’ve been in more dangerous situations than this several times. Why is Fellow Daoist Xie still so tense when he sees me?”

She was relaxed, with her palm only loosely resting on Yixiantian.

But Xie Buchen didn’t trust her at all: “During the past forty-four years, Xie has also wondered whether Fellow Daoist Jian Chou’s words back then were true or false, since they sounded extremely genuine. But now it seems that your claim that the one who will kill me is not you is quite debatable. You don’t necessarily have to kill me directly; you could also set up a scheme for me to jump into.”

Jian Chou had long guessed he would think of this, but since he still ascended to the Upper Ruins after forty-four years, it proved he didn’t know where the most crucial point was.

Because she had erased the last two lines of the river map.

She stopped near Xie Buchen and looked around, saying: “You’ve also seen the river map. I imagine what you and I see now is Pangu’s former kingdom?”

In all past legends, Pangu Dazun was called the “Ancestor of Humanity,” saying He led the human race to migrate to this realm, and in battles with deities protected the human race, allowing them to preserve their spark through the long night. When the long night ended, this universe became the current universe.

But not a single word mentioned Pangu’s past.

Where did He come from? Why did the human race migrate? And what kind of person was hidden beneath the simple, rigid words “Ancestor of Humanity”?

Everything was a mystery.

Even the river map contained no mention of it.

During the past forty-four years, Xie Buchen had read everything readable in the entire Primordial Realm, so he had naturally pondered this question that was destined to leave people without clues. If it were an appropriate time, he felt Jian Chou would definitely be a suitable confidant to discuss this matter.

But now, he didn’t even want to listen.

He could clearly judge that at least his entry into the desolate domain had fallen into Jian Chou’s scheme.

Seeing he had no intention of responding, Jian Chou couldn’t help but sigh inwardly at his vigilance and perceptiveness, feeling somewhat worried about whether she could obtain what she wanted on this trip.

But she had to try.

So at this moment, she was too lazy to keep talking and actually reached out directly, pointing with her finger!

The distance between her and Xie Buchen rapidly shortened at her fingertip!

Just an instant!

Before Xie Buchen could understand the meaning of her action, a “ding” sound was heard in the void. When the distance shortened to a certain limit, a silver mirror surface suddenly flashed, and Jian Chou’s fingertip happened to touch it!

Like touching a lake surface, ripples spread outward.

Xie Buchen’s figure on the opposite side was soon covered by the mirror surface.

Jian Chou finally saw—

Xie Buchen’s dream!

It was empty mountains after rain, the new grave from that year.

After writing “Tomb of My Wife, Xie Clan’s Jian Chou” on the tombstone, he sat cross-legged before the grave with that black-sheathed long sword laid across his legs.

He was heard vaguely murmuring: “Good soul, evil spirit…”

In the blink of an eye, the rain grew heavy.

Everything in the world became blurred.

When it cleared again, he was in the back mountains of Kunwu.

The room was filled with the scent of books and ink, with ten thousand volumes stored within. He sat behind the hanging curtain of the wooden house, reading and listening to the rain.

At this moment, there was a momentary disturbance in heaven and earth.

The endless falling raindrops in the sky all stopped, and something pierced through from deep underground, but at the moment it burst through the surface, its original form was finally worn away completely.

When Xie Buchen looked up, he only saw a wisp of ink-like vapor that faded from thick to thin.

He closed the book in deep thought.

Looking down again, only a narrow opening about an inch long remained on the ground.

But all of this wasn’t what Jian Chou wanted to see.

She frowned slightly, almost thinking there was nothing she wanted in his dream.

Fortunately, the next moment, the rain in the mirror stopped.

Still in Kunwu.

This time, Xie Buchen had changed into the robes of Kunwu’s head, coming down from the Hall of All Heavens and returning to this wooden house where he had lived for years.

He opened that copper lock and pushed open the door.

On the left wall, that long sword hidden in its black sheath was hanging prominently!

Jian Chou couldn’t help but hold her breath.

She saw him walk in, open that scroll of the Nine Bends River Map from the desk, look at it for a long time, as if making some decision.

The river map was rolled up, and he rose from behind the desk.

Finally, he walked to the wall, took down that common sword, then spread open his palm.

In his palm, a golden talisman instantly lit up!

The wall disappeared, the wooden house disappeared.

Where Xie Buchen stood had already become the hidden realm of Qingfeng Hermitage!

The giant Buddha was still there, its fingers scattered like lotus petals.

He raised his hand and gently placed this sword into the Buddha’s palm.

At the moment that light “snap” sound came, Jian Chou finally smiled: “So it’s here…”