Universes collapsed one after another, like sand sculptures on a beach, crumbling almost simultaneously under the force of a colossal wave. The entire real world turned into chaotic turmoil, and from the moment of creation in epochs past, the river of time began to contract.
States of convergence and diffusion overlapped, the extremes of yin and yang intertwined, past, future, and present merged, vibrant life and silent death coexisted. The timeline completely collapsed, all imprints returned to Gu Xiaosang, and the Golden Emperor, having achieved the Dao Fruit, was on the verge of transcendence, overlapping with the Lifeless Old Mother. This was the wonder of the end—all contradictions existed simultaneously, all were embraced, and all would converge into a single point, the grandest, smallest, most marvelous, and simplest of all.
The figure of Amitabha existed both at the dawn of creation and at the end of days, but suddenly it grew illusory, as if about to break free from the constraints of the current node, logic, and imagination, achieving true transcendence. However, weakened earlier by the Six Soul Banner, it lacked the final push. After flickering between illusion and reality, it ultimately failed to break free completely.
Gu Xiaosang became an Ancient One, and Amitabha’s “emptiness through subtraction” had also reached completion, awaiting only recovery to attain the Dao Fruit. Yet, this brief delay caused it to miss a crucial “step.” In its vision, the Daoist Deity, with whom it had been entangled, had vanished entirely!
Because Meng Qi had also manifested the Su Meng Heavenly Venerable, achieving the nascent form of the Dao Fruit and becoming an Ancient One!
Hadn’t the Daoist Deity also been weakened by the Six Soul Banner? Amitabha gathered its manifested, retributive, and dharma bodies into one, clasped its hands, and murmured, “Compassion, compassion.”
Then, the Western Pure Land flew forth, empowering the Ark of the Apocalypse to withstand the end calamity and usher in the next epoch.
In the struggle for the Dao Fruit, it had lost by the narrowest of margins and now rationally turned its thoughts to the “future.” If there truly was to be another epoch, the first Dao Fruit would only be contested by Nuwa and itself…
Gu Xiaosang stood in the chaotic, overlapping void of past and present, her expression complex, devoid of the satisfaction of slaying the “Golden Emperor.”
The Golden Emperor had known full well that upon reaching the far shore, she would suppress her own advancement, refusing to break through, even emulating her husband by shouldering countless karmic ties. Thus, she could only force herself to achieve the nascent form of the Dao Fruit through the most extreme and unimaginable means. Once she became an Ancient One, her “emptiness through subtraction” was complete, and no matter how Gu Xiaosang weakened herself, it would no longer affect her…
At the moment of the end, time overlapped, life and death intertwined, and all contradictory states coexisted—this was the perfect opportunity to make a grand move…
From the very beginning, she had been scheming for this. The true target of the Six Soul Banner was actually Amitabha and the Daoist Deity, aiming to weaken them at the critical moment, causing them to lag a “step” behind, thereby seizing the initiative!
The Buddha had once intervened, so it was only prudent to consider the possibility of his doing so again. Moreover, beneath the Bodhi Tree lay the Three Treasures Ruyi, a clear sign of his collusion with the Three Pure Ones!
Among the Ancient Ones now vying for the Dao Fruit, Amitabha and the Daoist Deity had been “delayed” by a step. The Three Pure Ones were one entity, and without the Daoist Deity, transcendence was impossible. Who else could stop the Golden Emperor from transcending?
A wave of sorrow washed over Gu Xiaosang. Had all her efforts to reach the far shore been merely to serve as a stepping stone for the Golden Emperor?
Had her entire life, her fate manipulated by her, not even allowed her to thwart one of her schemes?
Meng Qi shared her feelings. His nascent Dao Fruit transformed into a canopy of celebration, from which countless golden lanterns descended, illuminating the darkness and absorbing the surrounding essence of the end and chaos. He pondered how he might aid the Three Pure Ones and stop the Golden Emperor.
The Golden Emperor sought transcendence through the bizarre state of the end, but to do so, she had to remain utterly concealed beforehand. Were there still unresolved karmic ties? Could they be found, amplified, and used to slow her down?
Perhaps the Golden Emperor was even now seizing the chance to erase those insignificant karmic ties completely?
Meng Qi was never one to give up easily. The canopy above him shifted, revealing the Daoist Primordial Glass Lamp. The Cause of All Effects shone forth, clarifying the current chaotic and mad world of causality, instantly tracing back to its source, as if arriving at the moment causality first emerged.
In the dim and indistinct void, brilliant star lines intertwined, and within sat a Daoist figure, quietly watching Meng Qi’s “arrival.”
Before Meng Qi could react, the indescribable Daoist suddenly stood and spoke with a smile, “This humble one is the Primordial Heavenly Venerable.”
To reach the end and see the Primordial—who would have thought his first meeting with the true Primordial Heavenly Venerable would be at such a time… Meng Qi bowed with a salute. “Greetings, Primordial Teacher.”
Behind the Primordial Heavenly Venerable stood two other figures: one embodying the process from existence to nothingness, the other white-haired and ancient—the Daoist Deity. Yet their presence was exceedingly faint. The three were distinct yet seemed to share a single body, merely different manifestations at different times.
Seeing this, Meng Qi’s mind became as clear as a mirror. Smiling, he spoke again:
“Congratulations to the three teachers for attaining the Dao Fruit and achieving transcendence.”
The Primordial Heavenly Venerable smiled. “We also owe thanks to you for reaching the far shore. Otherwise, all would have been lost.”
Breaking free from the sea of suffering ultimately depends on oneself—external forces can hinder but not aid!
“And the Golden Emperor? Why did she fail?” Meng Qi couldn’t hide his confusion.
Had it really been resolved so simply?
The Primordial Heavenly Venerable said calmly, “Her method of seeking the Dao Fruit was a life-or-death gamble, cutting off all retreats to seize the slimmest chance of success. Once she failed, she naturally dissipated completely, with no chance of return.”
That made sense… Meng Qi nodded slightly. The Golden Emperor had used “death first” to make Gu Xiaosang an Ancient One, ensuring all imprints were absorbed by her and all karma borne by her. On the timeline, she had completely perished. “Later,” her “emptiness through subtraction” would be complete, granting her the qualifications to vie for the Dao Fruit. Logically, the “later” event should have been impossible, but in the process of the epoch’s end, all contradictions could overlap—not just the sequence of time, but also the sequence of logic. Since she had “perished,” she could no longer be weakened, leaving nothing to subtract.
If she could seize this chance to attain the Dao Fruit, its ineffable and unfathomable nature would render even the most unreasonable events valid. If she failed, this state of overlapping logical contradictions would not last, inevitably returning to the outcome of her complete demise.
But from all appearances, the Golden Emperor had delayed the Daoist Deity, dragging down the Three Pure Ones as a whole and gaining the upper hand. Why had she still failed to seize the chance for transcendence?
The Primordial Heavenly Venerable smiled faintly. “She should not have placed the Daoist Deity on the Six Soul Banner.”
“We waited until the end of the epoch to seek the Dao Fruit for two reasons: first, to give you more time to become an Ancient One; second, because only when the myriad worlds completely collapse and the foundation of existence is at its weakest can the Daoist Deity break free. By weakening the Daoist Deity with the Six Soul Banner, the Golden Mother only made him more damaged and fragile—bringing him closer to transcendence.”
“To learn is to accumulate; to practice the Dao is to diminish. Diminish and diminish again, until you reach non-action.”
“This truth was told to her long ago, but alas, blinded by the struggle for the Great Dao, she only sought to weaken her opponent and failed to see it. In the end, she fell a step behind.”
So the Golden Emperor’s use of the Six Soul Banner against the Daoist Deity had actually helped the Three Pure Ones transcend faster. As for targeting the Primordial Heavenly Venerable and the Numinous Treasure Heavenly Venerable, they were in a bizarre state where interference was difficult, and the Six Soul Banner was originally a treasure of the Numinous Treasure anyway… Meng Qi suddenly understood. After a moment’s thought, he asked, “If the Golden Mother had realized this and not written the Daoist Deity’s name on the Six Soul Banner?”
The Primordial Heavenly Venerable’s tone remained unchanged. “Then she would have had a twenty to thirty percent chance to contend with us for the Dao Fruit—no more than that, because you had long since replaced our imprints. By leaving it until the last moment, when Gu Xiaosang ‘absorbed’ everything, she was too rushed and burdened, falling a step behind.”
The Golden Emperor must have known this, which was why she took the risk of using the Six Soul Banner against the Daoist Deity… Meng Qi pondered further. “For the Golden Mother, the best course would have been to abandon this struggle and wait for the next epoch?”
“No, this was her only chance.” The Primordial Heavenly Venerable chuckled. “From the moment she began manipulating Gu Xiaosang’s fate and provoking you to strike that blow, she was destined to seize this opportunity alone. Once Gu Xiaosang reached the far shore, she would surely suppress her own advancement. With the three of you willing to let the Welcoming Fellow Daoist transcend, united and wielding the Great Dao Tree, she might not have lived to see the next epoch.”
“From the moment she began manipulating Gu Xiaosang’s fate and provoking you to strike that blow, she was destined to seize this opportunity alone…” These words echoed in Meng Qi’s heart, stirring indescribable emotions. The Golden Emperor had crafted such a terrifying, despair-inducing scheme, achieving great success, only to find herself trapped by it, forced to gamble on this perilous chance.
Truly, “the cleverest schemes often lead to one’s own downfall”!
At this thought, Meng Qi sighed. “What a pity… She was the most fearsome and formidable enemy I’ve ever encountered. Not being able to defeat her myself is truly regrettable.”
After this lament, he asked another question. “Primordial Teacher, can only one Dao Fruit be attained per epoch?”
The Three Pure Ones, being one entity, were a special case.
“Correct.” The Primordial Heavenly Venerable nodded. “Only the complete cycle of an epoch—from nothingness to existence, from vitality to prosperity, from prosperity to decline, and back to nothingness—can truly mature the nascent form of the Dao Fruit.”
“What about the Buddha?” Meng Qi asked, puzzled. The Dao Lord seemed to have truly transcended, though the remnants he left behind caused great trouble.
“He is in an incomplete, constrained state of the Dao Fruit, not truly transcended. His cooperation with us was in the hope that once we attained the Dao Fruit, we would strike him down from this state, freeing him from his constraints to begin anew.” The Primordial Heavenly Venerable smiled. “The end has come. It is time for you to open the next epoch.”
As he spoke, the Three Pure Ones vanished, as if they had never been there. Before Meng Qi was the rapidly contracting void and Gu Xiaosang, lost in thought.
“The Golden Mother is dead, and the Three Pure Ones have attained the Dao,” Meng Qi said simply, snapping Gu Xiaosang out of her reverie. Then, with a wave of his hand, he merged the remnants of the former Vacuous Pure Land and the Netherworld into the Ark of the Apocalypse, transferring all surviving beings inside.
A pale golden light blazed, and countless golden lotuses bloomed. The Ark of the Apocalypse was enveloped by endless nothingness, crushed by terrifying contraction.
Gu Xiaosang sighed softly, unsure whether it was relief or emptiness she felt. Hand in hand with Meng Qi, she extracted the wounded Fusang Ancient Tree and refined it into the ark before flying back to join the Demon Sage, the Green Emperor, the Ancient Buddha of the Bodhi Tree, and others.
Inside the ark, countless beings trembled in fear—all except Han Guang, who mingled among them with leisurely ease.
Suddenly, his face twisted, his eyes losing and regaining vitality, revealing a trace of majesty.
The myriad worlds were no more. The Ark of the Apocalypse sailed through the boundless “nothingness,” enduring the assimilation of chaos and the onslaught of various ends.
At that moment, a Buddha of purest radiance and a twisted, dark-red monstrosity surged toward the ark, seeking entry. Yet with a mere flick of his hand, Meng Qi conjured a veil of dim, eaves-like twilight, barring their path.
“No!”
The Supreme True Buddha and the Heavenly Dao Monster screamed as they plunged into absolute nothingness, vanishing without a trace.
No one knew how much time passed. Battered and scarred, the Ark of the Apocalypse finally weathered the end. Meng Qi stood at the prow, gripping the hilt of the Peerless Heavenly Blade, his nascent Dao Fruit transforming into the ancient and primordial Pangu Banner, merging with the tyrannical blade wreathed in purple lightning.
The creation of heaven and earth would happen now!
With a single slash, the darkness split—but quickly collapsed again, threatening to reunite, as if there would be no next epoch. At that moment, the verdant Great Dao Tree flew forth from the pure, circular halo behind Meng Qi’s head, propping up the fissure, its light flickering as it sprouted new branches and leaves.
Inside the ark, countless beings suddenly sensed true light—natural, boundless light—and heard a solemn proclamation in their ears:
“If I am to reign supreme over heaven and earth, then all things in this world shall have a sliver of hope!”
[The End]
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