CHAPTER 42: THE PERSON WHO SHOULDERS THE COUNTLESS HEAVENS AND MYRIAD WORLDS

Wind Dragon followed Lu Chen into the world within the Twin-Fish Medallion.

He swept his gaze across the transformed realm, his voice trembling with disbelief. "This... this can't be. How could the world have changed so drastically? The spirit qi shouldn't be this dense..."

Based on the Twin-Fish Medallion's current absorption capacity, the spirit qi here should only be enough to sustain the core region, the herb fields, and the Beast King Manor.

Lu Chen carefully sensed the flow of spirit qi within his body and said, "Wind Dragon, I think I know why."

"Look at the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree. It's already linked my Heavenly Pool to the small world. I can feel it. As long as there's even a trace of spirit qi left in my Heavenly Pool, this small world will never run dry. And there's been some changes to my divine abilities as well."

As Lu Chen spoke, he waved his hand, and a stream of pure, greenish-blue spirit qi appeared, accompanied by a phantom image of the Green Sovereign Divine Tree in his palm.

Wind Dragon immediately identified it as the unique spirit qi of the small world.

Wind Dragon's voice trembled slightly with shock. "Little Lu... are you saying you can now draw on the spirit qi of the small world?"

"That's not all. Watch closely."

Lu Chen raised his other hand. A stream of fiery red spirit qi appeared alongside another Green Sovereign Divine Tree.

"Two? How can there be two Green Sovereign Divine Trees in your hands?"

Wind Dragon turned to glance at the core region. The Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree was still firmly rooted in place. His confusion only deepened. "Little Lu, what's going on? The Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree is obviously still there."[1]

"Hehe, I just discovered a neat little trick. Watch."

Lu Chen swung both arms. On his left, dozens of green vines burst forth into the air, whereas on his right, just as many red ones followed.

Wind Dragon watched the vines endlessly unfurl from Lu Chen's hands and was nearly driven to madness. "What? That's impossible! How can one person possess two types of vines?"

"We're not done yet. Keep watching."

He raised his left hand, commanding the green vines to twist and merge into a massive sword. With his right, he formed the red tendrils into a long spear.

"Go!"

With a loud cry, both weapons shot forward with explosive momentum.

Boom!

A massive boulder in the Wild Plains shattered into dust.

"There's more."

Lu Chen continued manipulating both kinds of Green Sovereign Divine Trees as effortlessly as he was moving his limbs, launching one attack after another at the boulders scattered across the plain.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

***

On the fourth floor of the Beast King Manor, the eighteen beast leaders had gathered.

They were deep in discussion, trying to figure out how to let the Spirit-Gathering Shell Beast approach Lu Chen under a different identity to avoid raising suspicion that it was all prearranged.

Just then, Kui Bull felt the tremors coming from the Wild Plan and said, "Something's happening out there. Should we check it out?"

The Golden Dragon paid no mind to the noise outside. "Maybe it's just some beasts fighting. It's not urgent. Let's focus on solving our issue first."

In his eyes, beast skirmishes were common occurrences within the Beast King Manor.

However, the rumbling from the Wild Plains only grew louder and more prolonged.

Eventually, the eighteen beast leaders could no longer ignore it. They flew out of the manor and arrived just in time to see Lu Chen wildly flinging tendrils with both hands.

Bai Ze led the beasts closer. He recognized that Lu Chen was using the Green Sovereign Divine Vines. "My king... are those... the Green Sovereign Divine Vines? Why are there two types of them?"

Like Wind Dragon, Bai Ze believed that one could only possess a single innate attribute for this divine ability.

Lu Chen replied casually while continuing his display, "Hehe, I'm just testing out my divine abilities."

He glanced up at the fragments of stone still falling from the sky and crossed his arms. "Looks like I've got the hang of it. Watch this! Hah!"

The vines of both colors wove together into a massive net that caught all the falling debris midair.

"Go! Deepwater bomb!"

With a playful tone, Lu Chen tossed the net toward the Frozen Hill and Deep Sea.

The net bounced across the water four times before plunging in with a loud splash.

"Hahaha! Four times! I'm the king of skipping stones!"

He looked at the ripples on the lake with visible delight, then casually dispersed the Green Sovereign Divine Trees in his palms.

Bai Ze stepped closer to Lu Chen as he stopped his divine ability and asked, "My king, what's going on?"

Lu Chen looked at the group and said, "Do you really want to know? Then come with me to the core region. I've discovered something."

The surrounding beasts could hardly contain their curiosity. "Tell us already, my king!"

They surrounded him and, with a flash, brought him to the base of the Green Sovereign Divine Tree.

Lu Chen pointed at the Innate Bagua Diagram beneath the tree and said, "Take a look at this."

Bai Ze stared at the diagram etched on the ground. "This is the Innate Bagua Diagram from the primeval era... but what does it have to do with your divine ability?"

As he spoke, his hands never stopped forming seals, trying to peer into the past and future surrounding this event.

Bai Ze suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood. "Pfft!"

He stared in shock at the direction Lu Chen had pointed. "This can't be... why can't I see anything at all?"

Lu Chen was just about to speak, pointing at the crack beside the Green Sovereign Divine Tree, but Bai Ze's outburst interrupted him. He quickly stepped forward to support him. "Bai Ze, what's wrong?"

"I'm fine."

Bai Ze stood up, fixed his gaze on the crack ahead, and began forming seals again. He spat a mouthful of blood essence onto the runes he had just conjured.

The Golden Dragon noticed Bai Ze's weak condition and rushed forward to stop him. "Your blood essence is already depleted. If you use that move again, it'll kill you. Bai Ze, are you out of your mind? This isn't like you at all!"

However, Bai Ze dodged aside, avoiding the Golden Dragon. He spat another mouthful of blood. The runes in front of him slowly began to take shape once more. "I'm staking the honor of the entire Bai Ze Clan just to see it one more time."

An illusory image slowly formed in front of him. The scene rotated and revealed a lone figure from behind. That figure held a massive sword and stood against a horde of enemies. Behind him floated several planets, and beneath his feet lay the corpses of countless beasts.

"I did it... I actually did it! Hahaha!"

Bai Ze broke into wild laughter, paying almost no attention to the contents of the image. The scene itself lasted only three seconds before shattering violently.

To Lu Chen, however, those three seconds struck like thunder on a clear day. The figure's face was identical to the one carved into the Green Sovereign Divine Tree, and its expression was filled with sorrow.

The planet above the figure's head... looked exactly like the small world within the medallion.

Lu Chen replayed the scene in his mind. He felt like he had just seen a terrible future. "Bai Ze, what was that?"

By now, Bai Ze had snapped out of his madness. He looked around at the others and explained, "Honestly, I don't know what came over me. It felt like some strange power was guiding my actions. I didn't even finish that last rune. If I had, I would've died from blood loss already."

Wind Dragon was half-convinced by Bai Ze's words. "You mean someone used you to deliver us a message?"

He had fought alongside Bai Ze for thousands of years and knew him well. Most people might think two steps ahead, but Bai Ze always planned a hundred. It wasn't like him to throw his life away so recklessly.

"That's right. But whether the message is good or bad, I can't tell with my current strength."

The Nine Cycles Heaven-Devouring Mouse recalled the scene just now and walked forward. "I think there's a good chance it's bad. The dead Heaven-Devouring Mouse in that scene was probably me."

"I am the only Nine Cycle Heaven-Devouring Mouse left in the entire Eastern Pole Continent. If that vision comes true, then the beasts around that figure must be all of us."

Everyone broke into a cold sweat at his words. The implications were chilling.

Kui Bull's face contorted in fear. "Could it be the next Dark Rebellion?"

He had clearly seen a horned beast like himself in the image. If the rebellion was really coming, then there would be no escaping for him.

Red Fox stepped forward, her voice cutting through the unease, "Everyone, stop speculating. Let's hear what the king has to say. If those beasts were us, then the person in the image must be the king. That giant sword looked almost exactly like the one he wields."

She had also seen a red fox in the image, one with only a single tail. She couldn't be sure if it was her or not.

Her words pulled the others back to clarity. One by one, they realized that the figure in that vision was none other than their new king.

Lu Chen, meanwhile, remained unaware of their calls. His mind was still caught in that familiar voice that had gifted him the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree. Back then, it had repeated the same words over and over, "I am you, and you are me."

Bai Ze stepped forward and pulled him back to the present. "My king, what are you thinking about?"

"Huh? Oh... it's nothing," Lu Chen replied, glancing around at the others. Their stares made him uneasy. "Why are you all looking at me like that? It's kind of... unsettling."

Bai Ze frowned. "My king, if I'm right, the Dark Rebellion is already near."

He dropped to his knees once more, his voice solemn. "Do you remember what I asked before? Are you willing to shoulder the fate of the entire beast race?"

To them, Lu Chen was their last hope.

Lu Chen looked at Bai Ze kneeling before him and murmured under his breath, "Shoulder it... what does it truly mean to shoulder something?"

Sensing his wavering emotions, the others behind Bai Ze also knelt.

Lu Chen looked up at them all, his heart heavy. He knew that if they hadn't been desperate, they never would have accepted him as their king.

Now, watching them kneel to him for a second time, he could feel the desperate will to survive rising from each of them.

1. Refer to C30: The Innate Bagua Diagram carried Lu Chen and Nantian Wan'er into the small world within the medallion, swiftly expanding and covering the entire space. The thick roots of the Green Sovereign Divine Tree within the Innate Bagua Diagram pierced through the ground of the medallion's world and extended into Lu Chen's Heavenly Pool. ☜