Chapter 42 - The Architect of Chaos
After Leng Jing led the Heavenly Emperor away, the remaining immortals within the palace were plunged into a state of absolute panic. For these survivors, the celestial halls had been their only sanctuary—and their prison—for fifty long years. The Heavenly Emperor was not merely their sovereign; he was the pillar of their sanity, the singular light in a world of encroaching shadows. Without him, they feared this final bastion of the Heavens would crumble into the void.
Fortunately, their terror was short-lived. A brilliant streak of white light lanced through the hall, and Leng Jing returned, unceremoniously dragging the Emperor by his collar and tossing him back onto the jade throne.
The Emperor’s complexion was a sickly, translucent grey. He collapsed onto the throne, his limbs trembling uncontrollably, his eyes wide with a primal, shuddering horror. He looked less like the ruler of the Three Realms and more like a child who had been brutally rebuked by a power he could not comprehend.
"This... this cannot be real... You used an illusion..." The Emperor’s fingers clawed at the hem of Leng Jing’s robes. He practically prostrated himself at the dragon’s feet, his voice a ragged plea. "It isn't real, is it? The world outside... it can't truly be like that?"
Leng Jing looked down at him, his expression cold and detached. At this moment, he was truly the one standing above all, both in physical stature and spiritual weight. "What do you think? Do you require another tour to confirm the reality of your ruin?"
"It isn't real..." The Emperor sobbed, clutching Leng Jing’s arm as if the sheer strength of the Dragon God could offer some modicum of protection for his shattered mind.
"Tell me the truth," Leng Jing commanded, his voice resonant and steady, carrying a natural authority that demanded trust. "Tell me the origin of the Rift. If you speak truly, I may yet find a way to restore the celestial realm."
"Primordial Dragon God..." The Emperor covered his face in agony. "I know I have been living a lie... but I am far past the point of redemption."
When he finally looked up, his face was a mask of tears and despair. "This catastrophe... it began one hundred and fifty years ago."
He began to recount the tragedy. A century and a half prior, the prophet of the Snake God Clan had committed ritual suicide upon the imperial steps, a final, desperate warning. That was the first time the Emperor had heard of the "Rift." He had ignored the warning until the borders of the Heavens began to teem with mutated abominations. It was then that he first made contact with the entity from the Rift.
"From that day forward..." the Emperor whispered, his voice barely a rasping breath, "everything I did... every decree, every atrocity... was at 'his' instruction. 'He' told me to punish the three who drew too close to the secret—Hua Yun, the Dragon Emperor, and Su Luo. 'He' commanded me to bring the power of the Rift into the palace, to distribute that 'miraculous' energy to all the celestials. 'He' forbade me from touching the core of that power myself, sealing the inner palace because he promised me something better... It was all him! Everything was his doing!"
The Emperor’s grip on Leng Jing’s sleeve tightened until his knuckles turned white. "It was him! He caused it all! But it is too late! I cannot escape him! I can never escape him!"
Leng Jing’s eyes narrowed. "Who is 'he'?"
The Emperor tore at his own hair, his spirit seemingly breaking apart. "'He'! 'He' is the Rift itself!"
"When I found him at the border, the sight was beyond imagination," the Emperor recalled, his voice trembling with a mix of awe and terror. "I have seen the most exquisite fairies of the Heavens, but they were not a thousandth as beautiful as he. I knew nothing of his origin, but I was instantly enslaved by his charm. He told me his body was the source of infinite power. He promised that if he stayed by my side, I would become a true 'Creator God'."
"A Creator God?" Leng Jing questioned. "Are you not already a god? Do you not sit upon the highest throne?"
"No! I am the Heavenly Emperor, but I am still merely a celestial being! My lifespan, though vast, is limited to sixteen hundred and sixty thousand years. One day, my life will extinguish just like a mortal's. My divine power is not infinite; though I may be the strongest in this realm, I cannot overturn the fundamental laws of existence. But 'he' told me that our world—the Heavens, the mortal realm, the entire universe—is nothing more than a tiny bubble floating in a boundless, dark sea of Chaos. Beyond our barrier lies an unimaginable, perfect power that can create an entire world in an instant. The Great Spirits who dwell in that Chaos are the only true gods. They create and destroy worlds at a whim. They are eternal. He promised me that power. He promised to make me a god who could transcend this fragile bubble!"
The Emperor’s voice cracked. "But I never imagined... I never thought the Heavens would become a living hell. And I... I hid here like a coward. I can no longer defy him."
"Where is he?"
"At the very peak of the palace... the Sky Garden," the Emperor said, casting his gaze upward. "Go to him. Perhaps he has manipulated me for so long simply to wait for your arrival. But I warn you... no one can resist his allure."
Leng Jing turned away from the broken sovereign and strode toward the exit. Just as he reached the doors, the Emperor called out one last time.
"'He' has a name... He is called... 'Qu Yue'..."
***
The "Rift" was not a literal tear in space, but a personified entity named Qu Yue. He was the architect of the mutation, a being of such terrifying beauty and charisma that he had driven the Heavenly Emperor to madness. He was the source of the rot, the final adversary Leng Jing had to face.
From the Emperor’s description, Leng Jing surmised that Qu Yue was a creature from an alien dimension. Was the world truly just a bubble? Leng Jing looked up at the leaden, oppressive clouds. Was there truly a boundless Chaos beyond the sky, teeming with infinite worlds? And what lay beyond that Chaos?
The fundamental nature of the universe was a dizzying thought. He had never imagined that his journey would lead him to a confrontation with a being that transcended the Three Realms—a monster named Qu Yue.
The highest level of the Heavenly Palace was an open-air garden, lush with vibrant, azure flowers. Leng Jing ascended effortlessly, finding himself in a sea of blue petals. There, resting upon a bed of blossoms, was a figure.
The youth wore robes of the same cerulean hue. His pale, slender wrists rested atop the flowers in a relaxed, graceful posture. From a distance, he appeared to be a delicate adolescent.
*This must be Qu Yue,* Leng Jing thought.
As Leng Jing approached, the youth turned his head and offered a gentle smile.
The effect was jarring. Qu Yue possessed a terrifying, uncanny allure. To Leng Jing’s eyes, the youth’s face was identical to Leng Qingqing’s—a perfect, flawless replica of the white snake demon who had raised him.
It made little sense that the Heavenly Emperor, who had seen countless beauties, would be captivated by Leng Qingqing’s specific appearance. The Emperor had described Qu Yue as "a thousand times more beautiful than the finest fairy." This suggested that Qu Yue’s true form was beyond comprehension, and what Leng Jing saw was merely a reflection.
Qu Yue was using a high-level illusion, shifting his appearance to match the deepest desires or most cherished images in the observer's heart. He became the person you loved most.
"Xiao Jing, you've finally arrived," Qu Yue said with a playful grin. Even his voice and cadence were a perfect mimicry of Leng Qingqing.
Leng Jing felt a flicker of disorientation. Even with his divine sight, he could not pierce the veil to see Qu Yue’s true form. He saw only his "father."
"How do you know my name?" Leng Jing asked, his voice laced with caution.
"I know everything," Qu Yue replied, propping his head up with his hands. "I know how you were taken from the forbidden grounds, how that white snake found you and raised you. I have watched every step you took in the mortal world."
"What is your purpose here? Why cause such devastation?"
Qu Yue tilted his head, looking almost adorable. Then, he spoke words that were chilling in their casualness. "Let me use an analogy. Your father loves to make you egg noodles, doesn't he? But how are they made? First, you knead the dough, then you boil the water, drop in the noodles, crack the egg, and add the seasoning. By the time the bowl is placed before you, it has gone through many steps. Do people find it troublesome? Of course not. As long as the result satisfies one's appetite, the effort is irrelevant. Similarly, I do not mind spending a little time to achieve my goal."
"And your goal is?"
"The same as yours, naturally—a delicious meal," Qu Yue said, yawning. "I leaked the power of Chaos into this world as my 'seasoning.' The creatures here, marinated in that power, become more flavorful. But they aren't the finest delicacy yet. I must wait for them to devour one another until only the strongest remains. That is when the feast truly begins."
It was the same principle as the "Gu" insects used by dark sects in the martial world—pitting venomous creatures against each other until one survivor emerged. Qu Yue had orchestrated the collapse of a civilization simply to satisfy a primordial hunger.
*Immortal beings from the void certainly have too much time on their hands,* Leng Jing thought, feeling a sudden, violent urge to strangle the youth.
"And why have you been watching me?" he asked, keeping his temper in check.
Qu Yue, still wearing Leng Qingqing’s face, pulled back his robes to reveal a pale shoulder and thigh, his movements becoming deliberately provocative. "Leng Jing, you are the greatest surprise of this journey. Don't you realize how much effort I've spent on you? I sent those monsters to the mortal realm specifically so you would encounter them and grow stronger. It was all for what we are about to do now!" He slowly let the silk slide further, his posture becoming an invitation.
"Come... don't you want to hold this body?" Qu Yue licked his lips. "I will give you pleasure beyond your imagination."
To see "Leng Qingqing" acting with such overt, cloying seduction was deeply unsettling. Leng Jing’s expression wavered. The heavy, sweet fragrance of the blue roses around them carried a potent aphrodisiac, causing Leng Jing’s heart to race and his skin to flush.
"You want to breed with me?" Leng Jing said, cutting straight through the artifice.
"You truly are the one I chose," Qu Yue laughed, maintaining his suggestive pose. "Is it so bad? To me, this world is as fragile as porcelain. I can give you the power to rule the Heavens and the Earth. I can make you a God-King... or, if you wish to see the Sea of Chaos, I can make you a sovereign there as well. Come to me... I need you... now..."
Qu Yue’s charm was almost irresistible. Though Leng Jing maintained a stern face, his cheeks were burning. He cleared his throat and said, "In the mortal world, we have a saying: 'Once fed and clothed, one thinks of carnal desires.' I suggest you finish your meal first. I imagine you haven't eaten in decades while waiting for your 'feast' to cook."
Qu Yue swallowed hard, his eyes gleaming with hunger. "You certainly understand me. Fine. I shall eat my fill, and then we shall attend to our business. The ingredients are almost finished devouring each other anyway. Don't think of playing tricks, Leng Jing. The entire Heavenly Realm is under my watch. If you care for that white snake of yours, you will wait here patiently."
As he spoke, the vines of the blue roses surged from the earth like living serpents, binding Leng Jing’s limbs tightly and dragging him into the depths of the floral sea.
***
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