He turned around, his face already transformed into Mark Shepherd's.
"It's you!"
Flame-Venerable's expression changed dramatically. Quinn Shepherd seized the chance, pushing off with his toes and leaping backward into the Gate of Bearing Heaven, his body falling toward the darkness.
Flame-Venerable's power erupted, his five fingers splayed. Just as Quinn was about to fall into Youdu, he felt an immense, unfathomable force pinning him in place!
Looking outward, Quinn saw Flame-Venerable standing beyond the Gate of Bearing Heaven—like a god towering between heaven and earth, wreathed in fire that twisted the space around him.
"Shepherd Venerable, it truly has been a long time."
His voice seemed to come from another world, and the vast power was unimaginable. Even separated by worlds, he could easily control Quinn Shepherd's life and death.
"Do you still remember the Jade Pool Grand Assembly back then?"
"It's been a million years, hasn't it? What amuses me is that after all this time, you haven't made any progress—you're still as weak as ever."
Quinn Shepherd's distance from him was closing rapidly—he was about to return to the Heavenly Court.
Just then, a Paper Soul-Ferry Boat appeared in Flame-Venerable's vision. An old Underworld Courier stood at the prow, holding a lantern.
Suddenly, Flame-Venerable felt his power cut off. He stopped immediately, locking eyes with the distant old Underworld Courier on the paper boat.
One stood atop the Grand Archive Tower in the Heavenly Court, surrounded by light; the other stood in Youdu, shrouded in darkness.
"Nether-Venerable." Flame-Venerable's eye twitched as he spoke softly.
"Flame-Venerable." The old man in the darkness replied calmly.
Flame-Venerable's gaze grew complicated, his voice low: "Back then, we were both among the Seven Heavenly Venerables, close comrades. Why have things come to this opposition? Nether-Venerable, ever since Heaven-Guide Venerable died, you fell into darkness. You shouldn't have gone to Youdu. After that, your nature grew strange and withdrawn, and you finally walked the wrong path. I still remember, when Heaven-Guide Venerable died, you wore a ghost-face mask and wept bitterly. You were sincere and pure then. Though your ways annoyed me, I didn't dislike you."
"You cried too, when Heaven-Guide Venerable died."
The Underworld Courier on the paper boat showed no emotion, replying calmly: "But afterward, you fell too. You also walked the wrong path. The righteous Flame-Venerable died with Heaven-Guide Venerable. From the darkness, I look at you now and can't recognize you."
Flame-Venerable's pupils contracted sharply.
At that moment, an elderly voice sounded behind him, rushing toward the top floor of the Grand Archive Tower: "Is there an intruder in the Archive? Impossible—this is a sealed space, deep in the heart of the Heavenly Court, a forbidden ground within a forbidden ground..."
In the darkness, the Underworld Courier's paper boat ferried Quinn Shepherd away.
Flame-Venerable's expression returned to normal. He waved gently, as if bidding them farewell. Raising his palm, he erased Quinn Shepherd's Gate of Bearing Heaven completely, leaving no trace behind.
Behind him, a white-haired old Daoist climbed to the top floor, looked around, but saw no one, his face puzzled. "No intruders?" he asked.
Flame-Venerable replied calmly, "My senses must have been mistaken. No one has come here. Why isn't Dao Ancestor here?"
The old Daoist laughed, "Dao Ancestor hasn't returned for over a century. He comes and goes like a dragon—never showing his full self. I have no idea when he'll be back."
Flame-Venerable nodded slightly. "Dao Lord, activate the Grand Archive Tower, imprint the runes, and send them to the Creation Divine Wheel. I'll go ahead."
The old Daoist quickly channeled his power. All the jade slips in the Grand Archive Tower flew toward the central jade pillar, and a beam of light rose from bottom to top, shining on the phantom of Heaven-Guide Venerable at the summit.
"Fix!" The old Daoist shouted, stabilizing the beams of light.
The old Daoist called out, fixing the light. Then he drew his sword and sliced out the phantom of Heaven-Guide Venerable from the jade pillar.
Strangely enough, after he sliced off a large chunk of the jade pillar, it began to regrow, soon returning to its original state.
Within that piece of jade, the image of Heaven-Guide Venerable and the rune imprints remained, clear and distinct. The old Daoist used his power to imprint the runes into the flawless jade.
If Quinn Shepherd, Lucas Lin, and the others were still here, they'd be left speechless, stomping their feet in frustration.
They only thought about how to memorize these rune Daos. Quinn Shepherd even forged a special mirror, painstakingly crafting an inner space over a long time, just to create a treasure capable of imprinting the rune Daos.
Yet, even for such brilliant minds, none imagined that the method to imprint the rune Daos was right at the top floor—and so simple!
All you needed to do was imprint the rune Daos, slice off the piece, and take it away. That way, you'd obtain all the rune Daos from the Grand Archive Tower, without leaving a trace.
But the smarter someone is, the more likely they are to overthink things.
Flame-Venerable walked downstairs, soon arriving outside the Grand Archive Tower.
He hesitated, not heading toward the High Heaven Hall, and silently thought: 'Shepherd Venerable, you've appeared again. Is this truly you this time? In the dark years past, you showed up many times, but I knew those weren't really you.'
He looked toward the distant High Heaven Hall, his expression shifting. 'Though you struck me, you investigated Heaven-Guide Venerable's murder and avenged him. I bear no hatred toward you—only respect. But why have you come this time? Don't you realize this isn't a million years ago? Now, you're far too weak...'
He withdrew his gaze and walked in the opposite direction from the High Heaven Hall.
In Youdu, Quinn Shepherd stood on the boat, looking around, searching for Lucas Lin, Sterling Xiao, and Scarlett Redshaw. "I pushed them into Youdu; they should have landed nearby," he said.
The Underworld Courier elder hung a lantern on the bow. "Youdu is vast. They're neither native spirits nor divine heirs of Youdu, nor are they Nether Kings. Here, they can't use divine arts or fly, so they'll keep falling—just like you did back then. If they're not gods, they'll likely fall for centuries and die of old age, or possibly suffocate. In the darkness, there's no air—they can't breathe."
Quinn Shepherd glared at him. "If you could catch me, you can catch them too."
The Underworld Courier elder said coolly, "I've entrusted Heaven-Guide Venerable to you. Where is he?"
Quinn Shepherd, feeling guilty, replied, "He's doing great, living happily—happier than I am! He's with one of my elders, the one who raised and taught me. He's a model citizen of Everpeace, honest and upright!"
The Underworld Courier elder's expression shifted, and he snorted. "Anyone who raised you can't be a good person! I can't trust you with Heaven-Guide Venerable!"
Quinn Shepherd retorted angrily, "What's wrong with me? I'm a Venerable too, famous throughout history! Of course my teacher is a paragon of virtue!"
The Underworld Courier elder said coolly, "I'll follow you to Everpeace and meet this paragon of virtue."
Quinn Shepherd hurriedly replied, "You're so ghostly—if you go to the living world, you'll scare people to death! Don't worry, I'll treat Heaven-Guide Venerable well. Just hurry and save my three friends, or they'll suffocate!"
Ahead, three more paper boats flew over, each with an Underworld Courier elder at the bow. Onboard were Lucas Lin and the others.
Quinn Shepherd relaxed and laughed, "You're all bark and no bite—I knew you'd save them. Just drop us off at the Yong River bank..."
The Underworld Courier elder sneered, "Only you think I'm a good person. Look at those three boats—who doesn't turn pale at the sight of me?"
Quinn Shepherd looked at the three boats and saw Lucas Lin, Sterling Xiao, and Scarlett Redshaw pale-faced, huddled in the corners, terrified.
"Why did you go to the Heavenly Court?"
The Underworld Courier elder softened his tone, "The Heavenly Court isn't a place you should be. If I hadn't sensed you opening the Gate of Bearing Heaven again, you'd have died here! Reckless and bold—I regret entrusting Heaven-Guide Venerable to you!"
Quinn Shepherd smiled, "But you showed up right away and saved me. I know you care about me."
The Underworld Courier elder shook his head, "I'm only worried Heaven-Guide Venerable might end up in the Heavenly Court with you. If I knew it was just you, I wouldn't have come."
Quinn Shepherd's face darkened and he sneered, "Take Heaven-Guide Venerable back, then—I'd like to see how well you can teach him."
The Underworld Courier elder's face darkened too. After a moment, he muttered, "I don't know anyone else—better you teach him. If you teach him yourself, I can't trust those who raised you... Flame-Venerable is dangerous; stay away from him."
Quinn Shepherd's heart stirred. "When Heaven-Guide Venerable died, you and Flame-Venerable were the most heartbroken—I could see it. You both truly respected him. Maybe Flame-Venerable was deceived; maybe we could bring him to our side..."
The Underworld Courier elder cut him off. "People change!"
Quinn Shepherd was stunned. "Why did Flame-Venerable change? What has he gone through all these years? When I exposed the murderers—Vast-Sky Venerable, Yin Prince, and the Heavenly Emperor's schemes—even if he wasn't the sharpest, he could see the truth! Why did he stay in the Heavenly Court?"
"People change."
The Underworld Courier elder repeated, then suddenly said, "You've reached the living world. Time to get off the boat. Don't go to the Heavenly Court again, and don't trust Flame-Venerable—you'll die."
Quinn Shepherd suppressed his doubts and jumped off the boat. The Underworld Courier tossed Lucas Lin and the others off as well.
Below the boat was darkness, but the next moment, brilliant light flooded in. The four landed on solid ground and saw the rushing river and towering mountains nearby—their ordeal felt like a dream.
Quinn Shepherd turned to look, but the Underworld Courier elder had already vanished.
"Flame-Venerable, have you really changed?" Quinn Shepherd wondered, lost in thought.
"Cult Master Quinn! Cult Master Quinn!"
Lucas Lin roused him. "We should return to Azurecloud Heaven and take care of the aftermath."
Quinn Shepherd snapped out of it, nodded, and looked at Sterling Xiao and Scarlett Redshaw. "After all this, what are your plans?"
Sterling Xiao hesitated. "I was born in the Dao Gate of the Heavenly Court, sharing the same lineage as Lucas Lin. I'll go to the Yan Kang Dao Gate first, then work my way up and make something of myself."
Scarlett Redshaw thought for a moment. "I'll go to Dao Gate too, but I won't be a Daoist nun."
Quinn Shepherd's eyes lit up. "Scarlett, have you heard of the Cult of the Heavenly Saint? We're a righteous sect..."