Bang!

A palm strike shattered the round table in the small wooden hut.

Wang Sheng had thought that the strategy he had just come up with on the spot—ahem, after some thorough thinking, had dissatisfied the people around him.

Their actual reactions far surpassed his expectations.

Qinghua sighed deeply toward the sky, then remained silent for a long time. His eyes were filled with approval. That was still understandable.

Meanwhile, a trace of pain showed in Wang Shan's eyes. He stood up and gave Wang Sheng a Daoist salute, then sat back down and sighed softly. That was already rather puzzling.

The most exaggerated reaction came from Xu Zhongliang. In one strike, he smashed the round table in front of him, causing the teacups and teapot to clatter to the ground. His eyes shone as he stared at Wang Sheng.

"What a broad vision! What a bold spirit!" he shouted in excitement. He held his hips as he burst into laughter. "Contrary to my expectations, we all underestimated you. You do not desire the position of Immortal Emperor. You only wish to sweep away the chaos of heaven and earth, then break your sword and withdraw! Wonderful! Truly wonderful!"

Wang Shan smiled bitterly. Calmly, he commented, "Aiyh. Long ago, when I followed His Immortal Majesty, he once said he would divide the Three Realms and protect those who were born unable to cultivate.

"He would use the Great Dao to uphold order, to prevent powerful beings from abusing their divine abilities, and to ensure all things returned to their proper end. He accomplished the hardest step and unified the Three Realms, but before he could carry out those promises, he died under the Great Dao. Aiyh..."

Wu Tianshou gave Wang Sheng a thumbs-up. That gesture said everything.

Qinghua smiled. "Fei Yu, I now finally understand why I was able to comprehend the Dao of Death. The interwoven Great Dao, causality, and fate itself were all prepared for you to command."

Wang Sheng forced out a smile. At the side, Mu Wanxuan looked at Wang Sheng with shining eyes.

Only Yaoyun had a somewhat strange expression. She softly said, "I will go back and rest first."

She turned into strands of immortal light and returned to Wang Sheng's Qiankun Ring.

There was no helping it. Since she was mentally connected to Wang Sheng, she knew exactly how he had come up with that speech. She could only hide in a corner of the Qiankun Ring and laugh under the covers.

Even so, Qinghua still advised, "Fei Yu, what you said just now may have hurt Her Highness. Remember to comfort her later."

"Yes, Your Imperial Majesty," Wang Sheng replied honestly.

He withdrew his Myriad-Slaying Sword Intent and shifted the topic to how they should proceed with their plans.

Before he could continue, Xu Zhongliang said, "Fei Yu, we already know of your intentions. On my way here, I already prepared a way out for you. I also know that the power of the Heavenly Court and of Earth's cultivation world, which you hold hope for, has not yet developed. This is not the time to rise. Earlier, I was only testing your resolve. Now that I no longer have doubts, I'd like to ask for your understanding if I offended you before."

Wang Sheng quickly said that it was nothing.

The Star Deity seemed able to see through people's thoughts. His eyes were simply too bright.

Xu Zhongliang continued, "I will discuss matters with the others. Once we come up with a concrete plan, we will go over it with you. Now, spend some time with your senior sister. It is rare to have a moment like this. You may become very busy soon."

Qinghua suddenly asked, "Did Chun Yangzi pass on his unique dual cultivation technique to you?"

Mu Wanxuan's face flushed red at once, while Wang Sheng calmly nodded.

Qinghua coughed lightly and said in a serious tone, "Focus on your cultivation. I will arrange everything as best as I can. For now, you two should head to the palace. There is more vitality there, and I have already asked Fei Yao to attend to you."

"Thank you, Your Imperial Majesty."

The others immediately discussed how to arrange Wang Sheng's fake death and escape.

Wang Sheng grabbed his senior sister and fled in a hurry, flying out over the sea. This was a reunion sweeter than a honeymoon for them. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

With their feelings deep and tender, they found a quiet and secluded place. Instead of rushing to cultivate, they leaned against each other and fell asleep, enjoying each other's warmth.

Meanwhile, the others gathered more experts skilled in planning and carefully refined the plan that Xu Zhongliang had proposed.

The forefather of the Shu Sword Sect had a habit of giving his strategies grand names. He had given the plan to have Wang Sheng fake his death and escape an especially domineering title: God-Slaying.

No one knew what deeper meaning it carried.

***

Fengmo.

"Ah... I wonder how my brother is doing now."

Bored, the mid-length-haired Wang Xiaomiao lay sprawled over the edge of a long conference table. She was dressed in a short skirt and a top.

A Spirit Stone generator hummed softly in the room. On the projected screen, rows of dense reports slowly scrolled past.

The routine meeting for the cultivators Earth had sent out had just ended. Xiaomiao, who had been busy for several days and nights, lay unwilling to move.

She had now officially become the second-in-command of this "extraterrestrial base." The position of first-in-command remained vacant, reserved for the collective will of the Hua Republic's people.

Zhang Zikuang had proposed a large-scale migration of Earth's cultivation world. Batch by batch, cultivators would be sent from the Realm of Exiled Immortals to Fengmo, where they would train and quickly build combat strength.

This proposal was actually very simple, but getting the official seal of approval stamped was extremely troublesome.

First, a thorough and detailed investigation of the environment here had to be carried out. Several analytical reports had to be produced, covering Fengmo, the solar systems around the ancient battlefield, and even the conditions of the nearby galaxies. All of it required complex intelligence gathering.

Next came the evaluation of risks and benefits. There were also additional concerns, such as whether Earth's people would create additional resistance, who the primary candidates for the outbound cultivators should be, and whether the efficiency of their departure could be improved.

There were many other similar issues.

Although many people were helping with the discussion, Xiaomiao spoke as her brother's representative. Her words carried considerable weight. Every sentence had to be carefully considered.

After going through the complicated steps and long discussions, the conclusion turned out to be the same as her first reaction when she saw the proposal.

"Stupid brother, dumping everything on your still-growing little sister," Xiaomiao muttered with a blank expression. She yawned. "I should find somewhere to sleep. I'm exhausted."

Whoosh—smack!

Xiaomiao was about to react, but she realized the source was already right in front of her before the sound even reached her ears. It was a transmission jade talisman, covered in dense layers of restrictions. At its center was a relief carving of two mandarin ducks playing with wings spread.

Xiaomiao's spirits lifted. She took the jade pendant, infused her spiritual perception into it, and then breathed out deeply.

Big Brother is alive and well. If the information that Hostess Su has sent is accurate, then he has already reunited with Senior Sister and is currently living a carefree and happy life.

Xiaomiao chuckled and stored the jade pendant in a special storage artifact. There were already seven or eight similar jade pendants inside.

After thinking it over, she chose not to share this news with the other cultivators from Earth. With her hands behind her back, she returned to her residence. She then activated the array, took a hot bath, changed into her cartoon pajamas, and lay comfortably on the bed to sleep.

"Please don't let me dream about my stupid, heartless brother."

She snorted softly and slowly closed her eyes.

In recent years, Xiaomiao rarely slept unless she had mentally over-exhausted herself. Only then would she lie down for a few hours.

After all, she was also a cultivator, and her cultivation was no longer shallow.

Yet today, she dreamed. She found herself standing within a vast sea of stars, with her brother nowhere to be seen.

Strange. Why am I seeing something like this in my dream? Isn't there a saying that dreams reflect what one thinks about during the day?

Gentle singing reached her ears from the starry expanse ahead, drawing her forward. She unconsciously took just one step toward it, yet that was enough to make the stars before her streak past.

A massive spiral galaxy flashed by. The familiar Milky Way rapidly drew closer, and Earth appeared before her.

However, it seemed somewhat dissimilar from how she remembered it. No, it would be more accurate to say it was completely different.

The planet was being held within a pair of semi-transparent arms. They were so beautiful that words could not describe them. Every inch of skin emitted a soft radiance.

Xiaomiao followed the arms upward, finding a beautiful immortal maiden behind the blue planet.

She held the planet in her embrace. Her face could be described with every word for beauty in the mortal world combined, yet they still would not be able to capture even a fraction of her beauty.

With a tender and affectionate expression, she gazed quietly at the planet.

Xiaomiao felt that the woman was guiding her toward something. She instinctively looked at the planet. The atmosphere and crust of Earth suddenly turned transparent, allowing her to see strands of gentle light flowing within the planetary core.

Confusion rose in her heart. What does this mean?

Within the core, a strand of light slowly rose. It gathered at a point on the surface and turned into a statue.

"Bring him here."

The words echoed in her mind. Xiaomiao froze for a moment, and the dream faded away.

When she opened her eyes, she saw the familiar poster of her brother. The young Daoist stood proudly on a mountain peak with a sword on his back, faint light surrounding him.

She turned, rushed to her desk, pulled out a map of her hometown from the drawer, and marked a location based on her fading memory.

"Bring my brother there? What does that mean?"

While rubbing her brow, Xiaomiao came up with an idea. She slipped into her slippers and ran out.

"Telegram! Instructor Zhang! Help me send a telegram back home! Hurry!"

A corner of the base quickly became busy. Linyuan, who had been responsible for transporting cultivators from Earth, was soon called over.

Zhang Zikuang took an encrypted document and headed toward the area near the great Buddha statue.

Half a month later, a reply arrived from Earth.

After a detailed exploration, they had excavated a hundred-meter-tall statue from deep underground in the region that Xiaomiao had marked.

It was a statue of Nuwa.

Ma Zibin, who was in charge of the excavation, stated that the material of the statue could not be identified, and the surrounding geological layers could be traced back to an extremely ancient era.