Chapter 558: Past and Present Lives

The layout of the Imperial Mausoleum, the method to imprison the Jiuzhou Spirit Heart, the construction of the burial chamber, and the selection of the Yunyang Imperial Coffin—all of it came from Li Huiran.

But the one who truly implemented all of this was Chen Dong. He slaughtered millions of spirits to suppress the Realm Spirit Heart, shaking a great nation to its foundations for the sake of a single person!

It seemed their fortune ran out then. The Fuyuan Country perished after a single generation. With the Realm Spirit Heart lost, the Jiuzhou Realm fell back into chaos.

The tide of memories receded, and a new wave of images rushed in.

“You sacrificed the Six Dao for me, so I will never leave you. I will be your wife for eternity, life after life…”

In a magnificent Immortal Palace, a deathly pale Li Huiran lay on a bed, speaking to Chen Dong.

At this moment, Chen Dong understood the full story.

Hundreds of thousands of years ago, he had been the Domain Lord of the Jiuzhou Realm. He and Li Huiran had met, come to know one another, and become companions. However, destiny is a winding path; even for those who reach the Immortal Realm, the end of their lifespan will eventually come. But as Domain Lord, he was sustained by the spiritual energy of the entire Jiuzhou Realm, granting him immense longevity. As long as the realm did not perish, neither would he.

Li Huiran’s lifespan was at its end. Her cultivation had reached the Immortal Realm, and her soul was no longer within the Six Dao. This final death would mean the true dissipation of her spirit.

Once the Realm Spirit Heart was refined, it bound itself to one’s soul, making it impossible to remove and give to another. Chen Dong had no choice but to sacrifice the Six Dao he cultivated to protect Li Huiran’s soul, giving her a chance to reincarnate.

Li Huiran also knew that even for him, the Domain Lord, losing his cultivation was equivalent to death. That was why she made that eternal vow before she died.

Countless beings coveted the Realm Spirit Heart. With his wife gone, even an eternal life was meaningless. Not long after, Chen Dong also threw himself into the cycle of reincarnation.

Through several reincarnations, whether he was a farmer or a scholar, a king or a thief, Li Huiran always found him and came to his side.

This continued until his life as Li Xu, when he once again obtained the Jiuzhou Realm’s Spirit Heart. Originally, Chen Dong could have used the Jiuzhou Spirit Heart to walk the Immortal Dao with Li Huiran again, but he refused.

He chose to give the Jiuzhou Spirit Heart to Li Wang, shouldering the sin himself. With his sins so great, walking the Immortal Path had become a foolish dream.

Li Huiran returned the Six Dao that had protected her soul to Chen Dong. Only in this way, burdened by countless sins, could Chen Dong have a slim chance of reincarnating.

At this moment of forming a Nascent Soul from his Golden Core, Chen Dong officially stepped onto the Immortal Path. The Nascent Soul he condensed was an Immortal Infant. The Great Dao is endless, and the Nascent Soul was only the first step.

And it was only then that the memories of all his lives returned to Chen Dong.

For a moment, he was overcome with emotion. Everything felt as if it had happened only yesterday.

The Dao Essence had already condensed between his brows. He now knew Li Wang’s current state. For her to switch from the Path of Reverse Order to the path of direct order, she would have to completely refine the Jiuzhou Spirit Heart. Otherwise, any contact with the path of direct order would become an obstacle for her—especially a special person like Chen Dong.

Having figured this out, Chen Dong looked toward a mysterious, ghostly figure. He hadn’t noticed when Liu Ling had manifested and was now standing a short distance away. Zisang Jin’s aura was no longer in the Divine Palace.

The ghostly figure was even more transparent now. Before Chen Dong had even reached the Nascent Soul Stage, the figure had brought out the Dao Essence. This directly interfered with the laws of the path of direct order, causing him to become even more ethereal.

Seeing that Chen Dong’s refinement was complete, the figure said slowly, “The Floating Shadow Realm’s Spirit Heart is in the Demon Realm. I can’t say more. The rest is up to you!”

Chen Dong nodded. Now that he finally had the cultivation of the Nascent Soul Stage and possessed the Dao Essence, he could be considered to have the power to protect himself in the Floating Shadow Realm.

Liu Ling seemed to have already discussed things with the figure. She said directly to Chen Dong, “Stop looking. Your refinement and breakthrough took forty days. That girl was sent back long ago; he had a mission for her. We’re leaving too. We’re going to the Yao Realm now!”

‘I thought we were going to the Demon Realm… why the Yao Realm?’

Before he could voice his question, Liu Ling grabbed his clothes. A flash of bright light later, they vanished from the Divine Palace.

When the light flashed again, a magnificent white jade palace appeared in Chen Dong’s view. It towered into the sky, obscuring the sun, seeming to hold the stars and moon, and stretched for thousands of acres. What a spectacular sight.

However, his Divine Sense couldn’t penetrate the palace at all. It was another ancient Divine Palace.

“There’s a Divine Palace like this in the Yao Realm?” Chen Dong asked.

However, Liu Ling had once again transformed into the Jade Pendant and sent a voice transmission: “I’ll tell you what to do. There’s a Divinity Transformation Stage expert inside, so I can’t say much!”

Chen Dong froze. ‘Divinity Transformation Stage? We didn’t go to the Demon Race, but came to the Yao Race instead… Could this Divine Palace have been occupied by Xuehou?’

Suddenly, a vast, demonic aura erupted from the Divine Palace, and a silver-white figure emerged, treading on snow.

Chen Dong was stunned. ‘Yun Mengshang??? What is she doing here?’

Her azure eyes looked at Chen Dong as if he were a complete stranger.

“You’re the one from the Yao Race sent to assist me?” Yun Mengshang said coolly. “Nascent Soul Stage. Not bad. You’re not entirely detestable.”

The way she looked him over told Chen Dong that Yun Mengshang had truly forgotten him.

They say that the Frost Foxes must cast off all emotion and achieve the Realm of Emotionlessness to break through to Divinity Transformation. This familiar demonic aura, this stunning face—it was undoubtedly Yun Mengshang, not some sister from her clan.

The spiritual pressure, unique to the Divinity Transformation Stage, was a clear sign that Yun Mengshang had reached that level. But for her to forget him so completely… those passionate days and nights felt like only yesterday…

Sigh! Chen Dong lamented in his heart.

Those eyes, as pure as the finest Spirit Crystal, were so full of unfamiliarity it made Chen Dong’s heart ache.

‘What on earth are they plotting? And why do I feel a strange sense of familiarity with this Divine Palace? Could it be… Li Wang’s Divine Palace?’

While his mind was filled with questions, Yun Mengshang spoke coolly, “Let’s go. Persuading Xuehou won’t be easy. I hope you can be of some use.”