Processes are always in flux, yet the ending is eerily similar each time. Different people, viewing this illusory world from their own vantage, experience unique sorrows and joys—each with their own blend of happiness, anger, grief, and pleasure.
Heaven’s canopy has already fallen; in Tusita Palace, the powder from the shattered Heavenly Dao Stone continues to drift down, never ceasing.
In the vast, empty hall, Lord Lao watched with a blank expression, long since having lost any intention to intervene.
The Heavenly Dao Stone has been shattered; Lord Lao’s doctrine of 'Non-Action' now seems as hollow as a mirage. The Three Realms have lost a barrier.
Yet behind it all, the true forces of Heaven and Earth are fermenting. Even with Lord Lao’s supreme cultivation, he cannot escape their grip—the true, formless 'Heavenly Dao.'
Perhaps, in the end, all paths converge on a single point.
...
South Heaven Gate.
Lord Skygate appeared, shoulders slumped, his robes disheveled, startling the assembled celestial soldiers and cultivators into silence.
Lord Genesis, who had been waiting, hurried up to greet him, asking quietly, "Are you alright?"
"No harm done." Lord Skygate waved his hand dismissively and sighed, "A pity about my four swords—even the array diagram ended up in the hands of that demon monkey."
Lord Genesis gave a faint smile and replied, "Just make sure to hold onto your life."
At that, Lord Skygate managed a brief laugh.
After living tens of thousands of years between Heaven and Earth—even during the Investiture War—he’d never been driven to such desperation. Who could have imagined that today he’d be pushed so far by a mere demon monkey?
In the end, it was all a gamble.
If not for the endless scheming and calculations among the powers, none of them would have given that monkey a chance. But precisely because they all plotted and maneuvered, each with their own agenda, it led to the rise of such a world-shaking demon.
Gazing north toward the distant stars, Lord Skygate’s face was full of helplessness.
...
Above the North Sea, Monkey remained trapped within the enigmatic Slaying Immortals Sword Array.
Below, the sea formed swirling eddies; above, the clouds gathered in rolling waves—both moving, both silent.
Monkey reached out, only to find that not even the fur on his own arms and back stirred in the slightest.
This array seemed able to suppress everything—even the air itself was utterly still. Yet at the same time, the heavens spun and the earth shifted.
It wasn’t Monkey who was moving, but the world itself before his eyes.
"What is going on here?"
He froze, abruptly alert.
Suspended above one of the array’s four nodes, a Slaying Immortals Sword glimmered with red light; streaks of white lightning danced slowly along its blade, crackling.
At this moment, it was the only sound in all of Heaven and Earth.
Monkey narrowed his eyes, focusing intently on the sword, and cautiously reached forward.
Just then, the Slaying Immortals Sword shot through the air, unleashing a streak of sword-qi.
Immediately, something bizarre happened.
That sword-qi wasn’t aimed directly at Monkey at all; in fact, from start to finish, it never targeted him, nor did it follow any straight path.
Or rather, it had no trajectory at all—no direction. Instead, it flickered through midair, teleporting unpredictably, so fast that even Monkey’s eyes struggled to keep up.
Before he could recover, a stabbing pain shot through his back; fresh blood spattered everywhere.
The sword-qi had landed with perfect precision, slicing a deep wound across his back—blood streaming down.
"What is this? How did it hit me?" Monkey twisted around violently.
But in that instant, he realized something even more terrifying: the entire world was turning with him.
Yes—no matter how he moved, he could only face one direction, because Heaven and Earth themselves were spinning!
The other three swords slowly lit up with red glow. In the next moment, three more sword-qi streaks flew out together.
Again, their paths defied all logic, flickering unpredictably through the air, before striking Monkey squarely.
Three more wounds appeared on his body, blood pouring out.