Ding Zhongchen immediately took out a tattered banner, puzzled, “Could this be the Heaven-Opening Banner?”
“Yes, that’s the Heaven-Opening Banner. As long as you have the blessing of opening the heavens, you will instinctively be guided to find the vast universe capable of creating a new world,” Cong Ang hurriedly replied.
“But this is just a broken banner, without even a pole,” Ding Zhongchen said, even more confused.
Cong Ang pointed at the giant axe in Mo Wuji’s hand, “That axe may not be much, but its handle is the pole of the Heaven-Opening Banner.”
Mo Wuji had always thought the axe he snatched from Cong Ang might be the Pangu Axe or something related to it. How else could it carry the aura of world creation? He never imagined the true value lay not in the axe but in its handle.
“This axe was given to me by Huan. He told me that once I reach the primordial chaos zone, combining the banner and pole of the Heaven-Opening Banner would form the complete Heaven-Opening Banner. It would then point to a space in the chaos zone where a great universe might form,” Cong Ang, desperate for reincarnation, now spoke freely.
Lan Xiaobu was puzzled, “If that’s the case, why not combine the banner and pole earlier? Waiting until you find the chaos zone, isn’t that just making things harder?”
With Cong Ang’s strength, taking the Heaven-Opening Banner from Ding Zhongchen would be effortless.
Cong Ang quickly explained, “Once the Heaven-Opening Banner is fused, it will gradually dissolve into the vastness, and this process won’t take long. So, the banner and pole must not only be kept apart but cannot even be held by the same person. If, in the chaos zone, the complete banner dissipates before finding a great universe space, it means no habitable great world exists in the chaos.”
Hearing this, Ding Zhongchen hurriedly handed the Heaven-Opening Banner to Lan Xiaobu, “Friend Lan, this is too important. You should keep it.”
For anything else, Lan Xiaobu might have declined, but since the Heaven-Opening Banner could point to a potential great universe space in the chaos, he couldn’t refuse. He took it and said, “Alright, I’ll hold it for now. We’ll use it to find the new universe anyway.”
Once a new universe is found, it will be a place for everyone to survive. The banner wasn’t for his personal use.
“How did you know all this?” Lan Xiaobu asked.
“Huan told me. He also said the Heaven-Opening Banner was given to Ding Zhongchen by Hongjun, specifically for him to find a new universe,” Cong Ang answered.
Ding Zhongchen quickly added, “When Senior Hongjun saved me, he gave me this Heaven-Opening Banner, saying I might need it. I thought it wasn’t much of a treasure, especially since it was so damaged and lacked any refining restrictions, so I didn’t pay it much mind. Who knew it was a treasure for finding a habitable universe in the chaos? Thankfully, I kept it.”
“Where is Huan hiding? And do you know about Hui Zhi?” Mo Wuji asked again.
Cong Ang replied, “Huan never tells anyone where his dojo is. As for Hui Zhi, he and Huan aren’t on good terms, and I don’t know much about him.”
“If you’re killed, will Huan know?” Mo Wuji pressed further.
Cong Ang’s primordial spirit trembled. If he could curse, he would have. Asking everything, even whether someone would know if he was killed, was utterly humiliating. Yet, he had to answer, “If you preserve a trace of my soul for reincarnation, it will carry Huan’s imprint. If you destroy my soul completely, Huan will definitely know.”
“Very well,” Mo Wuji said, then slapped out with his palm.
Cong Ang’s primordial spirit shattered instantly, though Mo Wuji left a trace of his soul for reincarnation, stripping it of all memories. How could someone who cultivated the great universe technique be allowed to retain memories in reincarnation?
“Wuji, could this Heaven-Opening Banner be Hongjun’s Pangu Banner?” Lan Xiaobu asked.
He didn’t dare take out the banner. If Cong Ang was right, once it fused with the pole, it would start dissolving moment by moment.
Mo Wuji put away the giant axe, pondered for a moment, and said, “I suspect it might be. The Pangu Banner is also a treasure for creating worlds, though its grade might be a bit low.”
In Chinese legend, the Pangu Banner is Yuanshi’s treasure, but whether it was the Heaven-Opening Banner they held was unclear.
Ding Zhongchen cautiously approached, “Friend Lan, Friend Mo, Friend Ju, with the four of us, there are now 820 people on the Seven Realms Stone. Should we continue searching for the chaos at the other end of the great universe or return to it?”
Though Ju Mang hadn’t acted yet, Ding Zhongchen had seen Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji in action and believed Ju Mang wouldn’t be weak.
“Wuji, what do you think?” Lan Xiaobu didn’t answer directly. After hearing Huan’s plan, he vaguely felt they shouldn’t cross the great universe to find a new great world in the chaos. Sometimes, the rules of heaven and earth are profound and tied to cause and effect. If they crossed the great universe and found a new great world, would its rules still derive from the great universe’s? Or, when the new world’s rules formed, would they be treated as part of the Tianmeng Clan?
After all, the great universe was now the origin universe of the Tianmeng Clan, not the human race. Leaving from the Tianmeng Clan’s origin to find a new universe posed a problem.
Mo Wuji was silent for a long time before saying slowly, “Xiaobu, I always feel taking shortcuts isn’t wise. When the Tianmeng Clan found the great universe in the chaos, they must have wandered the vastness for ages, searching tirelessly, a form of effort. If we now use their great universe to find ours, we’re standing on their foundation. We lack the strength to understand or control the subtleties of how heavenly rules form. If we tread their path and get ensnared by the new universe’s rules, wouldn’t we be paving the way for others?”
“Exactly, that’s what I think. Where are all these shortcuts in the world? Like that shattered universe world we saw before. The one who derived it thought like we did, taking a shortcut by deriving a universe through their own path, and we all saw the result,” Lan Xiaobu said.
“Alright, then we’ll follow Friend Ding’s route and move forward. We’ll talk again once we’ve created the new great universe world,” Mo Wuji declared.
“Friend Ding, I’d like you to help me with something,” Lan Xiaobu said, turning to Ding Zhongchen.
Ding Zhongchen immediately replied, “Brother Lan, just say it. If I can do it, I’ll make it happen.”
“We’re heading out, and who knows how many years it’ll take to find the primordial chaos beyond the great universe. But I have friends still in the great universe, and I must get word to them to leave. Lan Xiaobu said.
Qi Manwei and others were cultivating in the Kusheng chaos zone, so logically, Lan Xiaobu shouldn’t worry. But he knew that once he and Mo Wuji left, the Tianmeng Clan might soon launch a counterattack. Without their help, the great universe’s ten realms could quickly fall to the Tianmeng Clan.
Originally, he and Mo Wuji planned to head to the Great Desolate World to find Patriarch Hongjun and join forces against the Tianmeng Clan. But a teleportation mishap delayed them, and even if they wanted to return to help, it was too late.
Even with the Seven Realms Stone’s speed, returning to the great universe would likely take centuries at best, or millennia at worst.
The Tianmeng Clan had already swept through most of the Jicheng World. Once it fell, the other realms wouldn’t hold out long.
“Xiaobu, I’m afraid there’s no time,” Mo Wuji said gravely.
Even with Ding Zhongchen’s precise void coordinate jade slip, returning to the great universe from here would take hundreds or thousands of years.
Lan Xiaobu fell silent. After a long pause, he said slowly, “Wuji, I have to go back. I promised Qi Manwei. I have a feeling this journey to find a new great world might take centuries. In the great universe, they’d be slaughtered by the Tianmeng Clan for sure.”
Lan Xiaobu knew the Tianmeng Clan’s strength in the great universe. Even if Qi Manwei reached the eighth step of the great path, she wouldn’t stand a chance. Qizhutian, cultivating his own path, might be stronger in combat, but Lan Xiaobu doubted he could reach the eighth step.
The Kusheng chaos zone was safe for now, but once the Tianmeng Clan swept through the ten realms, nowhere would be.
