They were all those who mended the firmament.

The cultivator from a thousand years ago used his own body to mend the firmament, but ultimately, it was not a lasting solution.

Time gradually passed, countless sects appeared and disappeared, innumerable geniuses were born and fell, and the Duzhou continent experienced the four seasons and winter and summer in endless rotation.

The filled cracks began to gradually become empty again.

The legs of the divine turtle supporting the four poles also could not withstand the ravages of wind and frost.

Spiritual energy gradually thinned, and rain often fell. It wasn’t that there were no cultivators whose cultivation reached the pinnacle of the great Way, who then arrived here and saw this treacherous, broken game under the Heavenly Way.

Only one step away from ascension.

Success or failure would be decided in this moment.

Should they disregard the countless living beings of this continent and step into the nine heavens above? Or become an insignificant chess piece on this giant board, become that tiny mayfly shaking the tree?

The smiling small statues in the squares left their answer.

The stone tablet of the Immortal Ascension Platform was empty, without a single name. Because not one cultivator chose to ascend alone.

They stood in the Golden Gate Ruins, the place closest to the heavenly realm, and wagered one final chess game with the immortals in the nine heavens above.

The Heavenly Way was treacherous, fate merciless. Making deals with immortals was never a profitable affair. For mortals to defy heaven, to contend with heavenly fate, they had to give their all and offer their lives as the price to qualify to step onto that chessboard and become one piece in the game.

The first cultivator to find this place stood under the starry sky, facing the vast chess game, gazing toward the void in the clouds.

As if giant eyes lurked hidden in the depths, contemptuously watching this insignificant mortal.

One small chess piece in the game did not influence the overall situation. Changing the momentary circumstances could not change the destined outcome.

He could not save Duzhou—saving it temporarily could not save it forever. Sooner or later, the towering floods would return, drowning all these pitiful ants.

“How about we wager a game?” That cultivator spoke with a smile.

His body gradually transformed into countless scattered rays of light, flying toward that empty vortex in the starry sky.

“Let’s wager that Duzhou will never disappear, that in the future, there will still be people like me who give up ascension to support Duzhou’s four poles.”

“Mortals will not submit to the manipulation of heavenly fate.”

“I wager that you will never win this chess game.”

Countless vast stars rose, countless brilliant stars fell.

On the Immortal Ascension Platform, the great masters whose cultivation had reached its peak stopped here, using their lifelong cultivation to support these divine pillars about to collapse, preventing the destruction of heaven and earth.

Shaoyang Zhenren’s gaze fell upon the small statue at the very front.

The old man on this statue had kind features, completely white hair and beard, holding a whisk, bearing an extraordinary resemblance to the statue enshrined in the main hall of Taiyan Sect.

If there was a difference, it was that the smile on his face was more brilliant, brighter, more carefree.

Shaoyang Zhenren gently waved his sleeve, and gradually, a line of golden text floated up from Yushan Shengren’s small statue. This handwriting was crooked and twisted, truly not very attractive. At first glance, it looked like the casual writing of a child just learning to write.

“Who among mortals does not die? What matters is dying for a worthy cause. Free and unfettered between heaven and earth, the heart’s intention is hard to obtain on its own. Smiling as I return to the great void, I complete my duty within. The great Way originally has no birth; I view life like worn-out shoes. The Way is great, heaven is great, earth is great, and humans are also great. Reversing heaven and earth, spirit roaming through heaven and earth—today I can be without shame.”

This was Yushan Shengren’s final words.

“The Saint did not ascend that year.” Shaoyang Zhenren gazed at the golden characters in the void, as if recalling distant scenes. His voice was light and distant, as if about to vanish in mid-air.

“He told me to leave hope for the cultivators of the world.”

Those renowned cultivators of the Duzhou continent gradually disappeared from everyone’s sight, whether ascending or perishing, no one received news. Only Yushan Shengren ascended to immortality. That year, strange phenomena suddenly appeared on Gufeng Mountain, witnessed by all.

But actually, only Shaoyang Zhenren knew that it was merely an illusion.

Yushan Shengren’s cultivation was only one step away from ascension. To deceive the world with illusion techniques was truly an easy matter.

He created the appearance of ascension, making everyone in Duzhou believe he had successfully ascended, leaving behind a distant, magnificent, and beautiful hope.

Countless cultivators followed one after another, dedicating themselves to cultivation, all for that hope of ascending to the nine heavens above.

With hope, everything was possible.

The Heavenly Way entrenched itself above the firmament, watching all living beings struggle within their destined fate. But heavenly fate was not impossible to modify. Perhaps one day, some warrior would gain great fortune and great destiny, whom heaven could not control, gods could not stop, and fate could not manipulate. He could walk to this place, reverse the chess game, transform from chess piece to chess player, changing Duzhou’s destined ending.

The small statues in the squares—their bodies had already dispersed. Their final divine consciousness condensed into small statues, becoming traces of their existence.

Kongtan Laojun, Soul Dream Master Zhuang Shengdie, War Emperor Wu Lie, Imperial Spirit Fairy, Venerable Qingyuan, Yushan Shengren… and that first one who didn’t even leave behind a name or small statue.

There were no names on the Immortal Ascension Platform, and the people of Duzhou had no way of knowing what they had done. Only in the depths of this broken hall, these glowing small statues had once remembered their merits.

Silence surrounded them.

From the end of the vast sky, falling water tides splashed with sounds like thunder exploding beside their ears.

Bujiang’s red robe was stained by a drop of water, creating a blurred mark. She looked toward Shaoyang Zhenren and spoke calmly: “Then what does this have to do with Zanxing?”

Shaoyang Zhenren looked at her in silence. After a long while, he said in a low voice, “She is the chosen one. The Xiaoyuan Pearl chose her. She is the last and only chess piece to mend the cracked firmament.”

Yushan Shengren’s group that year did not obtain the Xiaoyuan Pearl, so they could only sacrifice themselves to the Way, delaying Duzhou’s collapse. But the flaws in this chess game would eventually be impossible to conceal one day.

Like this moment.

“Master,” Gu Baiying stared at Shaoyang Zhenren with a pale face, saying coldly, “Zanxing is not a chess piece.”

In the great hall, Bujiang’s laughter suddenly rang out. This laughter was clear and pleasant, as if she had heard the most ridiculous thing in the world. She stared coldly at Shaoyang Zhenren, her gaze suddenly sharp: “The Xiaoyuan Pearl is a stone for mending heaven? Do you think this palace would believe such deceptive nonsense? When the Demon Lord obtained this demon pearl, he never refined it. Although the pearl caused him to fall into madness, it also greatly increased his cultivation. Now you say this pearl is a stone for mending heaven, and whoever has this pearl must go to their death? Shaoyang Zhenren, do you take all the demon clan of our Heishi City for fools, to be deceived by you?”

“The people of sects are always full of schemes. Could it be that even at this point, you still want this palace’s daughter to die for you!”

“The Demon Lord picked up the Xiaoyuan Pearl at the bottom of the Golden Gate, but he never truly refined the Xiaoyuan Pearl.” Shaoyang Zhenren was not angry; his expression remained calm. His snow-white long hair hung straight to his waist, making him appear even more cold and indifferent. He said, “The Xiaoyuan Pearl cannot be refined by anyone. It only assimilates people.”

“Yang Zanxing—she is the stone for mending heaven, and she is also the Xiaoyuan Pearl.”

“To save the hundreds of millions of living beings in Duzhou, one must use one’s own body to mend the firmament. Only then will the water disaster be resolved.”

He raised his head, looking toward the young woman shrouded in radiance at the center, and spoke indifferently: “You’ve known this all along, haven’t you?”