Chapter 769: Final Calamity |
Bidding farewell to the High Council, Ming Yue turned and left. The stone doors opened before her, allowing her to leave the High Council's Castle. Once she was the gone, the castle was quiet once more. There was only the quiet hum of energy flowing through its walls as the castle edged closer toward the crack in the sky.
"How much time is left?" one of them asked.
"It's difficult to know, no less than ten years no more than a hundred. Or perhaps, it may happen sooner than that", another answered.
"That child... Did you really reveal such a place to her?"
"And let it go to waste? Why not? Who else is going to use that doesn't already know of it? If anything, the Immortal of Crows has taken an interest in her."
"True, but it is questionable as to whether she will be able to use this opportunity."
"Questionable or not, we will need all the help possible. Consider her one of our other safeguards. After all, this is the ninth one."
"The Final Calamity."
The High Council suddenly turned their heads, looking at the empty throne.
"If Dai Mian had not tried to force it, we would not be in such a predicament. Be it a curse or a blessing in disguise, we should be ready at any moment."
This was their duty, their lifelong purpose.
And for Ming Yue, who was nothing but a small piece of it all, she made her way back to the house. Carrying the slip of paper in her hand, she didn't open it until after she made sure that nothing had gone wrong while she was gone.
It had grown dark by now.
Instead of waiting, Hongyu was already in the middle of making dinner. Rice was being made in a pot hanging over the fire while everything else was cooked at the side of the flames.
"Welcome back."
Greeting Ming Yue, the girl handed over a bowl full of rice and laid out the roasted meat and vegetables on a separate dish.
"Did anything happen?" Ming Yue asked.
The girl shook her head, making portions for Xiao Yin and the others. Dinner was underway as the duo and the three beasts ate their fill. It was a quiet meal as Ming Yue was lost in thought. Of the things she was told, her mind lingered on the true nature of the crack in the sky. And then she looked at the folded slip of paper that the High Council gave to her.
"An opportunity to reach the Heaven Realm..."
Not delaying any longer, she placed her half-eaten dinner down and opened it to read.
There was a single line there, just a few words.
"The Mansion of Earth, The Palace of Jade."
She furrowed her brows at this, not knowing what this line meant.
"I've never heard of such a place", she thought, "Where could this be?"
Folding the paper back up, Ming Yue stored it in her spatial ring. She couldn't help but ponder as to where that place was, practically forgetting about her half-eaten meal. She had the bowl in one hand and the chopsticks in the other but neither one moved. It wasm't until Hongyu was standing in front of her that she snapped out of it.
"Ah, Hongyu..."
The girl looked at her curiously and just a tad concerned. However, that concern was gone when Ming Yue finally looked at her.
"I didn't realize how full I was", she said to her, "We can save this for tomorrow."
But the little girl shook her head at this.
"Aren't we supposed to see Uncle Fei and Aunt Cui?" she reminded.
"It was tomorrow? I didn't realize, in that case..."
Ming Yue turned to the three beasts holding out her bowl.
"Do any of you want to finish this?" she asked them.
And of the three, It was Liang Wei that stepped up to it. Although this cat-like beast was small right now, its true form was huge and such a small bowl of rice was no more than a bite of food.
The cleaning was soon done and a quick bath was taken before everyone entered the house together. In bed, neither Ming Yue nor Hongyu could go to sleep and for different reasons. The former was troubled by the information she was given the latter was excited to go out tomorrow. But that excitement would soon subside as the girl fell asleep and Ming Yue was the only one awake.
"To think that the Calamity is the time where worlds meet on the same plane and that energy us the cause of the destruction. Then, what are the Heavens exactly, is Quintessence energy really from our world or is it from another world? The Mansion of Earth, the Palace of Jade, is that where I'll find my answers?"
Then she suddenly thought of something, looking over at the Black Blade.
"Senior Zhen? Senior Zhen, are you awake?"
She called out to the Sword Spirit through her mind and those calls were soon answered.
"Hm, girl? Is there something wrong? Why did you call me from my slumber?"
Senior Zhen spoke out somewhat groggily.
"I wanted to ask you about something, it's about the Calamities."
"What is it?"
"Do you have any idea as to what the cause of the Calamity is?" she asked, "As in, its true nature?"
There was a slight pause before Senior Zhen spoke.
"This... I don't know quite know how to answer this."
"What do you mean?"
Senior Zhen seemingly materialized before her, taking the form of an elderly man with a long beard and flowing hair. His face was conflicted and filled with some shame.
"It is hard to put it in words but what causes the Calamity... that is something that many have been trying to find out. In the end, all that has been found is that it is an otherworldly phenomenon. Having been chained up and afflicted with such energy for so many years, I know better than anyone that it is foreign and dangerous. It bites away at the mind, corroding oneself, its like a relentless disease that corrupts. Of course, power is still power and should one be able to tame it, that energy will become theirs. But this is the Calamity, it comes like a massive wave, overflowing the land. Its effects are unknown as I'm sure that you know."
Ming Yue seemed to understand, thinking back to the state of the three Continents.
"The Demon Continent was practically devoid of life, the Beast Continent seemed to be overflowing with so much power that even the weakest of beasts had become dangerous monsters. And the Human Continent, the land collapsed on itself and everything had to be rebuilt from the beginning", she thought.
"Indeed, and while the world has managed to survive each coming Calamity, things get worse with each one."
"That's why... no one has reached the Immortal Realm yet. We grow weaker each time then... the next one could be the last. And if not this one, then the next one..."
Senior Zhen nodded when she came to this realization.
"It's a cycle and that cycle may be coming to an end."
Suddenly, Ming Yue felt a sense of dread overcome her body, a wave of chills that made her uneasy. Now, she understood why the High Council chose to only tell her parts. It wasn't some disaster that needed to be overcome but truly the end of the world.
Everything felt still at this moment.
Her mind raced against the fear of such an end and the thought of losing everything. She wasn't alone in this fight but knowing that everything would be lost was something she needed time to accept.
