Chapter 288 - Xiaoyue Resurfacing (1/2)

“The Pond of Gods and Devils? What is it?”

Xiao Chen felt confused, although he could not shake off the strange sense of deja vu. He had heard Yi Tong mentioning this place once during the battle at the residence of Clan Zuoqiu, but that was all to it.

Zhiluan burst suddenly, after being forced to remain quiet for so long, “I’m sure you know nothing of this, boy! In the calamitous war in the previous epoch, all six domains nearly collapsed. Only they didn’t. But this does not mean that all was fine in the end. Breaches began to emerge between the domains, such as the places called the Deep Hatred Sky where Heaven meets the Mortal Realm, the Sea of Painful Sorrows where one can reach the realm of twilight, and the Pond of Gods and Devils where the link between here and the Domain of Evil exists….”

Zhiluan continued proudly, seeing as everyone was staring wondrously at it while feeling immensely pleased with itself, “Suffice it to say that it anything goes wrong with these places, this would mean that trouble is on the onset for the Six Realms. The worst that could happen is the collapse of all six domains.”

“Wow,” Zi Mo squinted his eyes at the cat and said, “To think that a little Immortal Lingzhi like you would know so much.” He reached for it but the frightened Zhiluan immediately ducked behind Xiao Chen. “WHAT ARE YOU UP TO! KEEP A DISTANCE! I’M THE HEAVENLY EMPEROR’S…”

But Xiao Chen was in deep thoughts of his own. The calamitous war that Zhiluan was just referring to could only be the war that took place seven thousand years ago when the Immortal Century reached its decline. On the other hand, the contents of Fengxi’s ancient scroll mentioned about the same war. Still, there was much he still did not know about the war and there were scarcely any more records or annals from that epoch.

But he needed to know what happened. He needed to know what took place during the fall of Immortals and Devils, and the whereabouts of his own teacher…

“So what do you think, Senior Zi Mo? What is wrong with the Pond now?”

Zi Mo stroked his beard wordlessly. After seconds of quiet pondering, he answered, “It could only be that other place…”

“What other place? Where is it? For Heaven’s sakes, just speak directly! There’s hardly any point by speaking in riddles!”

“D*mn your impertinence, boy.” Zi Mo glared indignantly. “The breaches between the Six Realms can bring about huge disasters. But why do you think the Realms have been stable for so long? Surely you don’t believe in the nonsense about divine intervention from Heaven?”

“Then what is the reason then?”

Zi Mo fell silent again. Ponderous seconds slowly ticked by as Xiao Chen waited until Zi Mo croaked, “It’s just a myth; I cannot be sure how much of it is true. But there was a legend that a person had used the powers of the Three Emperors to repair and maintain the breaches between the Six Realms. With troubles now surfacing from the Pond, I can only surmise that something is wrong with where he is now.”

The Three Emperors?

Xiao Chen swallowed. The final key in the ancient scroll belonging to Fengxi was precisely the phrase “the Three Emperors” and Xian’er could well be the spirit manifesting from the Three Emperors Grand Formation. “What was the role of the Three Emperors in this?”

“It’s not a myth,” Zhiluan said suddenly, “How else do you think the Six Realms can remain until today?”

“You know something do you, Leopard Cat Spirit??” Xiao Chen said grimly, “Spit it out.”

A dreadful horripilation tingled down his spine: there must still be secrets about his resurrection after thousands of years; secrets that could only be connected to everything happening now which were absolutely no coincidence! Be that as it may, he knew too little to reach any conclusions of his own.

“Humph. I’ve told you all that I know. The end of days is close, and all of you lot are only obsessed about some puny Immortal’s Sword Assembly… Come to think of it, this tournament of yours is fishy too…”

A voice rang from outside, interrupting them, “Big Brother Xiao Chen!”

Xiao Chen turned, gasping, “Xian’er…”

Murong Xian’er rushed in, almost falling, and dove into him. “I thought you’re not coming back anymore, Big Brother,” she wailed.

Xiao Chen stroked her hair, feeling it coursing between his fingers as a knot tightened in his gut. “It’s all fine now. Big Brother is back…”

“Boo hoo…”

No one spoke a word, until Zhiluan paced over slowly. “Li-little one?”

Murong Xian’er’s head rose up. Dewy drops of tears clung to her eyelashes and cheeks as she choked and gasped, “Who’s this weird and strange cat?”

Zhiluan untied the bundle hanging from its neck and rummaged inside for a dried fish jerky. “Do you love fish?”

Murong Xian’er covered her nose with a hand. “I don’t want it…”

A bright red patch blazed on Zhiluan’s face. “B-but… It’s the best jerky I’ve made…”