Chapter 3240: Assimilation of the Unknown

"It's here, the spacetime is here."

Ye Chen's heart surged with emotion, his eyes gleaming brightly. The lost segment of spacetime, which he could only vaguely glimpse before, now appeared clearly—it was indeed the spacetime of the Zhutian, with every scene inside sharp and vivid. Because this segment was missing, the path to becoming a Huang Di was blocked for all.

Without hesitation, Ye Chen soared upward, intent on reclaiming the spacetime. However, he had underestimated the challenge. Though the spacetime was projected, it was illusory and impossible to touch, let alone seize. After over a hundred attempts, he failed each time. It seemed he only had the qualification to see it, not the ability to take it back. There must be a special method involved.

"Senior, do you know the method?"

Ye Chen turned his gaze toward the Xuanhuang Hua, hoping for an answer. The Xuanhuang Hua remained silent, merely trembling lightly, clearly indicating that it did not know. This made the situation awkward.

Ye Chen's face twisted in frustration. He had waited so long and finally found it, only for things to turn out this way—it was like facing one mountain after another blocking his path. Every step was a struggle. How could reclaiming the spacetime be so difficult?

"Damn it."

In the outside world, the Xuanhuang Demon was being pummeled relentlessly, suffering miserably. Already wounded, it now bore new injuries. Unable to match the child in combat, it fled into the Xuanhuang. Boom! Bang! Boom! The child pursued without mercy, launching devastating attacks whenever it caught up. The Xuanhuang Demon proved incredibly resilient, regenerating even after being shattered multiple times.

Ye Chen witnessed the entire scene. He had never seen anyone as tough as the Xuanhuang Demon. In terms of combat power and foundation, it far surpassed the four Tian Dao. It seemed nearly indestructible, no matter how hard it was hit. The rumbling eventually faded away. The Xuanhuang Demon barely escaped with its life, managing to evade the pursuit. Though not as formidable as the child, it was still a being beyond Huang Di level. When it focused solely on fleeing, the child could not stop it. The child was not at its peak, due to the seal on its brow—the character "Xing"—which not only erased memories but also suppressed its power. Without the seal, it would be invincible across the universe.

The battle ended. The child returned to its original form, and as it normalized, the black blankness turned back to white unknown. The projected spacetime vanished with it. Everything fell into silence.

Ye Chen's eyes were bloodshot. He could see it clearly but could not touch or reclaim it. Perhaps the child was tired, for it wandered off and soon fell into a deep sleep.

Ah!

Ye Chen sighed. Only when the child changed form could the spacetime be projected. Missing this opportunity, who knew when the next one would come—it might not happen until some distant year. By then, the Zhutian might already be destroyed by the Tian Dao. This was no exaggeration. The current Zhutian universe was indeed unstable. Due to the universe's flaws and the Tian Dao's interference, the solidification of the Tian Mo's Seven Sha was progressing faster than expected. Thunder rumbled daily, and omens of destruction manifested constantly.

Looking down upon the Zhutian now, it was a vastly different sight. Spiritual energy was dissipating, and living beings were withering. Ancient life stars, trees, and flowers were silently decaying. What was once a prosperous world now showed signs of decline. From this day on, in the Zhutian, not only was attaining the status of emperor impossible, but even advancing to a Sheng Ren was far more difficult than before. This was because civilization was heading toward decline, and the Tian Dao's laws and rules were sealing the world. The once abundant spiritual energy was now thin and weak, unrelated to the supreme marks—it was heaven's covert punishment.

Such scenes had been witnessed by the supreme beings of the previous era.

"At this rate, even Great Emperors might fall from their ranks."

Yan Di took a deep breath. Not just Great Emperors—even he, as a Tian Di, felt the strain. He sensed his imperial essence slipping away, as if being pulled into an endless abyss. Despite his profound emperor dao abilities, he could not halt it. The other emperors faced the same issue. Only beings at the level of Nü Di and Shen Zun could barely resist the heavens, but as time passed and the Tian Mo's Seven Sha formed, this resistance would become one-sided. Eventually, even Nü Di at eternal perfection and Shen Zun dominating heaven and earth would be like lambs to the slaughter.

"We need someone to hold the line."

Shen Zun murmured. If the Zhutian had another Huang Di, they would not be so passive. At the very least, it could restrain the enemy in the shadows. Though the will of the common people persisted, their collective fortune was being stripped away bit by bit by the Tian Dao. They were truly on the eve of the great decisive battle. Without a Huang Di among the common people, defeat was certain. Relying on their current forces, the enemy did not even need the Tian Dao to act—the outer domain's Huang Di alone could devastate the myriad domains.

"Ants, tremble!"

A Sheng Mo laughed wildly, embodying the Tian Dao's arrogance. After another era, it refused to believe it could not destroy the world.

"Ants, tremble!"

The two Tian E Huang Di laughed cruelly. Though they could not enter, their demonic echoes resounded through the Zhutian. The barriers were crumbling, and the common people had reached their limit.

"Hold steady."

Whether the Zhutian supreme beings or the heavenly court emperors, they all transmitted messages across the myriad domains. Then came the emperor dao heavenly sounds. Every emperor and supreme being activated their heavenly sounds, echoing infinitely through the Zhutian, to counter the outer domain Huang Di's disruptive curses. They had not lost yet. The final battle had not arrived—they had to maintain their morale. Their will could not be extinguished.

"Everyone is waiting for you."

Nü Di whispered softly. Even someone as peerless as she showed a touch of tenderness, her words full of hope, like a frail woman awaiting her husband from the battlefield.

"May you return."

"May you advance against the heavens."

"May you once again turn the tide."

Nü Di's hopes were also those of the common people—a roar from the soul.

"With just him alone, can he truly reverse the heavens?"

Meng Mo murmured. She seemed to hear the common people's calls. Among the masses, Ye Chen was not the only one, so could he bear the struggle against the heavens by himself?

"The universes are not the same."

Zizai Tian said calmly, seeing more clearly. Though this universe was damaged and smaller than theirs, it was far more complex. Ye Chen carried the fortune and will of the common people. In the war of annihilation, only by becoming a Huang Di could he turn the tide. This involved obsessions and beliefs. The struggle against the heavens was an obsession, and he had never disappointed the common people—that was the belief.

Meng Mo still frowned, only partially understanding.

"Though not a Huang Di, his prestige surpasses that of one."

"Do you know what path he walks?"

Zizai Tian spoke leisurely. Even Zeng Wei Tian Dao saw it more clearly, as if gazing into Ye Chen's entire life. Even the commander of the previous era's common people held firm beliefs in that young Sheng Ti, showing his significance.

Meng Mo fell silent, finally grasping it. It seemed the common people had planted their spark of hope in Ye Chen. His battle against the heavens was the common people's battle against the heavens.

In the unknown blankness, Ye Chen sat down like an eternal statue, motionless, meditating and contemplating. He lacked a method to separate the spacetime. Perhaps his cultivation was insufficient to comprehend the unknown fully. Maybe only by advancing to Huang Di would he qualify. Unfortunately, without reclaiming that segment of spacetime, he could not become a Huang Di. It was a vicious cycle.

"May you return."

"May you advance against the heavens."

"May you once again turn the tide."

He seemed to hear the common people's calls—this was a connection of wills.

Zheng!

Suddenly, a sound like a zither echoed, ancient and melodious. No, it was not a zither sound. It was a dao sound, like a piece of zither music or an immortal melody, ethereal, beautiful, and enchanting. Every vibrating note carried dao marks.

Ye Chen turned his gaze toward the Xuanhuang Hua. The dao sound originated from that flower, which was undergoing a transformation and rebirth. In the hazy visions, a graceful figure could be seen dancing under the moon, her elegance rivaling that of a peak Nü Di, beautiful as a dream.

When he looked away, he gazed into the vast expanse. The dao sound was profound, granting him occasional insights. He could clearly see the gate to Huang Di and almost touch it. But the gate was incomplete. Crossing the tribulation would mean death, all because of the lost spacetime. As an eternal being, he could forge his own path, like when he created the emperor dao gate in the past. However, the conditions and time did not allow it now. Compared to that, reclaiming the spacetime was more direct. As long as the spacetime returned, he could immediately attain the status of Huang Di. Everything was ready—only that segment of time was missing.

The sleeping child awoke again, yawning and stretching lazily. Unlike before, it did not dart around the Xuanhuang but looked at its own belly. It knew the Xuanhuang Hua was alive and Ye Chen was alive. Now, it stared at both the Xuanhuang Hua and Ye Chen, its large eyes flickering with confusion.

The Xuanhuang Hua remained silent, quietly transforming. Ye Chen also said nothing, meeting the child's gaze across the blankness. This was the first time he had looked directly at Xing since learning of its existence. Their eyes met, and it felt like spacetime, reincarnation, Xuanhuang, unknown, or even eternity—perhaps all of it—allowed them to see a story of blood and tears in each other's eyes. Strangely, part of that story overlapped. He was the commander of the common people, and it was the commander of humanity. Their paths might differ, but their purposes were the same: both had people waiting for them to return.

The child scratched its head and looked away, hopping off cheerfully. With its memory reset to a fresh start, everything seemed novel to it.

Ye Chen began to undergo a strange change. He was dissolving—his sacred blood and imperial body inching toward oblivion. More precisely, he was merging inch by inch into the unknown, transforming into blankness. It was not the child absorbing him; it was his voluntary dissolution, like when he had planted himself in the small universe in the past. He had found the method. This approach was still a gamble on his life. He needed to become the unknown, turn into blankness, and merge with the child to possibly separate that segment of spacetime. If he won the bet, it would be a perfect success. If he lost, his soul would be lost forever.

In just over a dozen instants, only his head remained, his floating white hair turning into unknown and blankness. The last flicker in his eyes held an unyielding obsession. He vanished, merging completely with the child. The child, due to this assimilation, stumbled and fell, sinking back into slumber. In its sleep, its tiny brows furrowed, occasionally letting out low roars of pain. The most striking was the "Xing" character on its brow, flickering with light as it erased memories and sealed its power.

"What great resolve."

In the unknown blankness, only the Xuanhuang Hua remained. Its petals trembled slightly, murmuring. It had underestimated the quasi-Huang Di and Ye Chen. He must have been driven to desperation, wagering his life on that slim hope.