Chapter 1311
Chapter 1311:
Xiao Chen's heart sank. He knew that he was too late. He walked to the front and asked about the situation. Indeed, a group of mysterious people had snatched away the remaining half of the Sky Dome Heart.
"Not a Demon?"
"No. Although these people were masked, I am sure that they were not Demons. They did not give off the aura of a Demon." Old Yun explained the situation back then to Xiao Chen.
This group of masked people copied Xiao Chen's method—using the dragon soul in the sky to crash into the dragon on the ground to break the Sky Dome Dragon Formation—and stole the Sky Dome Heart.
Old Yun sighed, "This world is really in great chaos. I believe that this group of mysterious men will snatch the Demons' half of the Sky Dome Heart as well."
Xiao Chen's heart skipped a beat. It looked like Chu Chaoyun was extremely ambitious.
Without Xiao Chen realizing it, Chu Chaoyun had actually gathered such a strong force in the Sky Dome Realm. It looked like he could occupy the entire Sky Dome Realm at any time and was just waiting for the right time to take action, for the true great chaos to descend.
Old Yun continued, "Right now, the Martial God Palace is in a mess as well. Azure Dragon King, when you return to the Kunlun Realm, do be more careful."
Xiao Chen felt curious. He asked, "How is it so?"
Old Yun frowned and said, "The Martial God Palace is split into many factions and is in chaos now. I sent in several requests for reinforcements already, but they were ignored. From the looks of things, they intend to rebel against the Martial God Palace and elect a new Palace Master. They could not be bothered with this small matter at all.
"As I'm in the Sky Dome Realm, I can't get much news and don't really know what happened for things to become so chaotic so quickly."
Xiao Chen understood what happened. The Thunder Sovereign had vanished; no one knew whether the Thunder Sovereign was still alive or not. The three Holy Masters had already been unhappy with the Thunder Sovereign for a long time. It would be strange if matters did not devolve into chaos.
However, Xiao Chen could not bring himself to tell Old Yun. If he did, Old Yun would just become even more worried.
Xiao Chen consoled, "Since the Sky Dome Heart is gone already, I think there is no need to rebuild this Sky Dome Palace anymore. How about you come with me to the Xiao Clan? I laid a small Iron Defense Magic Formation there. It does not have a strong offense, but its defense is much stronger than even the Sky Dome Dragon Formation's."
"Really? In that case, I thank the Azure Dragon King." Old Yun smiled in joy.
Xiao Chen sighed. Great chaos was arriving, but he could not help much. This was all that he could do.
He really wanted to go to the Kunlun Realm to see what exactly had happened. However, he needed to work on his Taiji Dao, Flawless Saber Dao, and Saber Energy. He simply had no time to deal with this.
"One year. Just give me one more year, and that will be enough," Xiao Chen said sullenly.
The Sky Dome Heart falling into Chu Chaoyun's hands was something ironclad already; nothing would change it.
Xiao Chen did not care about what schemes Chu Chaoyun had or how strong his faction in the Sky Dome Realm was.
He only cared about the safety of his friends and family, as well as the disciples on Qingyun Peak.
After leaving the Sky Dome Palace, he arrived at Xiao Clan City and saw Yue Chenxi and the other two, who were about to depart, in the City Lord's Residence.
Right now, the Kunlun Realm was in great chaos. However, there would be great fortuitous encounters amid all that. To the three, it might not be a bad thing.
"Xiao Chen, when do you intend to return to the Kunlun Realm, and when will your Great Tribulation of wind and fire be?" Yue Chenxi asked out of concern.
Gong Yangyu and Xuanyuan Zhantian were extremely concerned about this as well.
Everyone knew that of the five years that Yue Bingyun estimated for Xiao Chen, only one and a half years were left. As the time drew closer, his good friends could not avoid worrying about him.
Xiao Chen smiled faintly. He did not avoid this question. "There is about one year left. I have managed to gain some accumulations in the Sky Dome Realm and need some time to digest them. As for the Great Tribulation of wind and fire, it can come at any time. I'll just go with the flow."
As Xiao Chen spoke, he gave off a sense of peace and serenity that allowed others to feel his tranquility.
Yue Chenxi and the others relaxed somewhat. They knew that Xiao Chen's attitude towards his problem was much better than theirs.
"This time, after going to the Kunlun Realm, there should be great fortuitous encounters for you. Grasp hold of them properly. It will be easy to profit. However, you must remember this: your life is what's most important."
Xuanyuan Zhantian and the others felt suspicious. It seemed like Xiao Chen knew something that he was keeping secret.
Xiao Chen had not left the Sky Dome Realm. How was he so clear about the situation in the Kunlun Realm?
"Xiao Chen, can you explain?"
Xiao Chen shook his head and said, "There is no need for me to say too much. You will understand when you get there."
"In that case, we will take our leave first."
"Right. Also, I'll leave these three juniors of my Xiao Clan to you."
Watching the three leave, Xiao Chen wished them well in his heart. He only hoped that his three friends would be able to find peace in this chaotic world.
Currently, Xiao Chen was like duckweed. If he was not careful, the winds and waves would scatter him. He could not do much.
If he could not clear the Great Tribulation of wind and fire, he would even find it hard to protect himself in this great chaos.
Shaking his head, Xiao Chen went to meet his father. After that, he started thinking about how to strengthen the small Iron Defense Magic Formation around the City Lord's Residence.
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Spring passed and autumn arrived. Xiao Chen mostly traveled between the Xiao Clan and Qingyun Peak. Occasionally, he went out to see the sights, enjoying the various scenes.
Although he did not have much time left, he did not close himself up in bitter cultivation. Instead, he roamed about leisurely, experiencing the Taiji Dao in mountains and rivers, tempering his mental state. He went with the flow, not harping on the details.
Seven Horn Mountain, White Water City, the Deep Sea…Xiao Chen traveled to all the places he had been to in the past, revisiting them.
Finally, he arrived at the most mysterious place of the Sky Dome Realm, the Ancient Desolate Tower.
It was back then, in the Ancient Desolate Tower, that Xiao Chen gained some fame as the White Robed Bladesman when fighting the outstanding talents of the various nations.
Now that he was back in Desolate City again, the bewildering formation that covered the Ancient Desolate Tower naturally could not stop him. He immediately saw that mysterious Ancient Desolate Tower with one glance.
The Ancient Desolate Tower was already around during the Tianwu Dynasty.
Now that Xiao Chen understood the strength of the first Tianwu Emperor, he even felt that the first Tianwu Emperor might have personally constructed this Ancient Desolate Tower for the sake of the royal clan disciples.
"Say, Ao Jiao, why did you get me to stop at the eighth floor and not go to the ninth floor back then? Surely you can tell me this secret now?" Xiao Chen asked casually as he recalled the matters of the past.
That year, Xiao Chen showed off his sharpness amid the outstanding talents of the various nations, clearing the different stages and charging to the eighth floor. Due to Ao Jiao's advice, he gave up on thoughts of entering the ninth floor. That could be considered a small regret of his.
Xiao Chen believed that now, Ao Jiao should not object to explaining it.
Who knew, Xiao Chen still did not get a response even after a long time passed. He could not help feeling curious.
Now, Xiao Chen possessed overwhelming strength equal to that of a Martial Emperor. Even Chu Chaoyun had to retreat before him, not daring to take on his full strength. Despite that, Ao Jiao still worried about this.
What exactly was in the Ancient Desolate Tower's ninth floor to make her so afraid?
Just as Xiao Chen was about to ask again, Ao Jiao flew out of the Immortal Spirit Ring and said, "There is a mirror inside known as the Three Life Mirror. It can show the future and the past. Those who enter the ninth floor can make one choice: to see the past or the future."
Xiao Chen revealed an interested expression. "Then?"
"Sang Mu chose to see the future. In the end, he saw his body shatter into pieces, the future of his fall. After that, it really came true. No matter how excellent he was in the Kunlun Realm, he could not change this future."
Xiao Chen's face froze. When he heard the sorrow in Ao Jiao's words, he said, "Sorry, I should not have asked."
He finally understood why she had been so reluctant for Xiao Chen go to the ninth floor. She had been afraid, afraid that Xiao Chen would follow in the Thunder Emperor Sang Mu's path—defeated by fate.
Ao Jiao smiled and said, "It's fine. There is nothing much to hide about this matter. Your choice depends on yourself."
Xiao Chen started thinking. It was fine in the past when he did not know. Now that he knew about the Three Life Mirror on the ninth floor, he definitely had to make a trip there.
With his current strength, the various restrictions of the Ancient Desolate Tower were naturally ineffective. If he wanted to go in, all he had to do was forcefully tear space.
However, Xiao Chen pondered on which to see, the past or the future?
The Thunder Emperor had felt that there was nothing to see in the past. So, he chose the future. In the end, he saw a dismal sight—an end where he died without an intact corpse—which later came true. When Xiao Chen thought about it, this was indeed hair-raising.
A single person's effort seemed incredibly insignificant before fate. No matter how hard one worked, one could not change it.
"Little Ao Jiao, just wait here for a while. I'll go in and take a look."
Without waiting for Ao Jiao's reply, Xiao Chen tore space open, broke the various restrictions from the void, and silently arrived at the Ancient Desolate Tower's ninth floor.
Indeed, it was as Ao Jiao said; there was only an upright mirror in the empty ninth floor. Aside from that, there was nothing at all.
The mirror was close to two meters tall, its surface smooth like still water. Xiao Chen's entry created a strong wind that even caused ripples to appear on the mirror.
A pretty and adorable girl appeared in the Three Life Mirror and stared at Xiao Chen. Baffled by his presence, she said, "Strange, you are already as strong as a half-step Martial Emperor. Wait, that's not right. You are even stronger than a regular Martial Emperor. How are you able to enter the Ancient Desolate Tower?"
Xiao Chen smiled and said, "You must be the Three Life Mirror's Item Spirit, right? Although I did not follow the rules and forcefully barged in, I did climb my way up, floor by floor, once. It was just that I gave up on the chance to come up here that year. Is it too late now?"
The pretty, little girl in the mirror giggled, "So that is what happened. You do have the aura of a person who cleared the earlier floors. Since that is the case, of course, it is not too late. If you did not have the mark of clearing the previous floors, even if you managed to barge in now, Little Three would not be able to show you anything."
Xiao Chen walked forward and looked at that lively Item Spirit. "Do you still remember the last person who came here?"
The pretty, little girl's eyes sparkled, smiling somewhat dazedly. "Of course, I remember. It was a very handsome fellow, even more handsome than you. However, he did not have the same kind of temperament as you. It would be difficult for me to choose between the two of you. Which to choose? Handsome and bright? Or delicate, peaceful, and quiet? How difficult! This is really difficult. How should I choose…"
The pretty, little girl in the mirror seemed to forget about Xiao Chen's presence. She tilted her head to the side and rubbed her chin, pondering heavily.
Cold sweat appeared on Xiao Chen's forehead. This Item Spirit must have been lonely for too long. After not speaking for several thousand years, she spoke so much in one go, even becoming lovestruck.
"He died."
"He really died?"
At first, this news stunned the pretty, little girl. Then, she smiled excitedly. "Little Three is indeed incredible. I got it right once again…"