Chapter 565

Chapter 565: On the Brink of Falling

When Lu Chao Chao arrived in the Netherworld, the Great Emperor Feng Du was already waiting, his face twisted in irritation.

Seeing her approach from afar, intact and unscathed, he merely snorted through his nose.

“Rebelling without inviting me, yet you remember me when dealing with the aftermath?”

“My tens of thousands of ghostly soldiers were standing by, yet you left me out! Such a grand event, and you didn’t call for me!” The Great Emperor Feng Du wore a dignified expression, but his tone carried a hint of grievance.

“You took only a little black dragon and a red-furred dog to rebel! What use are those two? Can they fight better than me? Do they have more underlings than I do?”

“Are you saying I’m inferior to them?”

Zhu Mo’s eyes widened instantly. “You can complain, but don’t make it personal!”

The Great Emperor Feng Du cast him a disdainful glance. “A wildflower-loving little black dragon, heh… Sooner or later, the Phoenix Clan will strip even your dragon tendons.”

Zhu Mo, both furious and aggrieved, had no way to fight back. He could only glare resentfully.

Lu Chao Chao quickly stepped forward to mediate. “How could I ever look down on you? You are my most important ally. With you here, I could ascend without worries.”

“Only you can properly shelter my disciples.”

The Great Emperor Feng Du nodded proudly. “That’s true. Only my Netherworld can hide them away.”

“At least you have some sense. Next time there’s a battle, you better call me.”

Lu Chao Chao nodded repeatedly, coaxing the Great Emperor Feng Du until he was satisfied.

“The Celestial Realm’s envoys just left. Follow me. That disciple of yours, Xian Ting, is barely conscious… You should prepare yourself.”

“Since ancient times, those stripped of their godhood by the Celestial Realm… you know…”

“They do not live long.”

Not even given the chance to become mortal.

Lu Chao Chao’s eyes turned red. She lowered her head, saying nothing, merely following the Great Emperor Feng Du in silence.

He led her past the Eighteen Levels of Hell, forming intricate seals multiple times, before reaching the deepest part of the Netherworld.

“Only the ruler of the Netherworld may enter this place. Here lies the Nether Heart. Since the Netherworld’s inception, it has existed, sustaining the entire realm.” Only the Great Emperor Feng Du could open this place, and only he knew of its location.

It was like an underground palace, with luminous pearls embedded in the walls, providing faint light.

At the center lay a flowing river—not of water, but of spiritual energy, shimmering like liquid light.

In the middle of the river, the energy converged around a small stone.

The stone emitted a dim glow, seemingly holding an immense power within.

“This is the Nether Heart,” the Great Emperor Feng Du gestured toward the tiny stone suspended in the spiritual currents.

On a jade platform by the riverbank lay a man clad in green robes, his dark hair spilling over the surface.

His lips were pallid, his once bright and ever-smiling eyes now shut. It was uncertain whether he was alive or dead.

“Zong Bai…” Lu Chao Chao whispered, stepping forward to grasp her eldest disciple’s hand.

His limbs were ice-cold, his life force so faint it was nearly undetectable.

Hearing her voice, his thick eyelashes quivered, struggling to open.

His clouded gaze cleared slightly upon seeing Lu Chao Chao.

He raised a trembling hand and clutched hers tightly. “Master… Master…” His voice spanned centuries, so much so that even the Great Emperor Feng Du looked away, unwilling to witness the scene.

“Being alive, Master… is wonderful,” he murmured weakly, his face adorned with a gentle smile.

“Was it worth it? Was it really worth sacrificing your future, your life?” Lu Chao Chao’s tears dripped onto his hand.

“You had already ascended, become the God of Judiciary in the Celestial Realm. Was it truly worth it for me?” Tears poured from her eyes.

A faint smile curled Zong Bai’s lips.

He struggled to lift his hand, wiping away her tears.

“Don’t cry… don’t cry…” Master mustn’t cry…

“It was worth it, all of it. As long as you live, everything is worth it. This grand world, we just want you to see it.”

“Master… live well…” His voice weakened, his eyelids drooping, unable to stay open.

As he finished speaking, he lost consciousness.

“Zong Bai, Zong Bai, wake up! Don’t sleep! I have returned—you cannot leave me!” Lu Chao Chao wept as she lay over him.

“His condition is much the same as Xian Ting’s.”

“Xing Hui and Sheng He are faring slightly better, but…” It was only a matter of time.

The Great Emperor Feng Du sighed lightly.

“Can they reincarnate? Can they return to the cycle?” Lu Chao Chao, eyes brimming with tears, asked.

The Great Emperor Feng Du shook his head. “Once godhood is stripped, a shattered divine soul cannot be restored.”

“If you look closely, you’ll see their stars in the heavens have already dimmed.”

“Mortals may be reborn, but gods… cannot defy this fate.”

“If they could, the balance of the world would crumble.”

Lu Chao Chao stared at Zong Bai’s unconscious figure, devastated. Was it truly irreversible?

She could feel his soul scattering bit by bit. She could not accept it.

She visited Xian Ting, Xing Hui, and Sheng He afterward.

Xian Ting was unconscious, while Xing Hui and Sheng He could still speak, though barely, forcing smiles to ease her worry.

A-Man looked grim, her recent sleep troubled.

She gave a wry smile. “That so-called father of mine appears in my dreams every night, trying to bond with me. It’s truly exasperating.”

He even used those dreams to vent about his grievances in the Celestial Realm.

Perhaps he just wanted his daughter to grow familiar with him.

Apparently, he had an old rival named Gan Tang.

He cursed Gan Tang every single night, so much so that A-Man’s ears nearly bled from hearing it.

He even made her promise never to worship the God of Four Seasons, his greatest nemesis. He vowed that once Han Chuan discovered where Gan Tang was hiding, he would personally exact revenge.

Lu Chao Chao stared at her, dumbfounded.

“How does he feel about you now?” she cautiously asked.

We never expected, when plotting against the Celestial Sovereign Yan Qing, that you would turn out to be his daughter!

A-Man curled her lip. “I think he genuinely had feelings for my mother.”

In his dreams, he often gazed at her face and wept.

The remorse in his eyes was suffocating.

He wanted to make amends but feared she would reject him, so he tiptoed around her in the dream realm.

The once mighty Celestial Sovereign Yan Qing now acted like a father desperately trying to win his daughter’s favor.

“He… really treats me as his daughter now.”

Lu Chao Chao let out a heavy breath. “That’s good. That’s good.” At least when A-Man’s true identity was revealed, Yan Qing wouldn’t go mad and kill his own daughter.

That night, Lu Chao Chao returned to the mortal realm.

She sat by a pond, gazing at the vast starry sky.

Her seven disciples’ stars, once bright, had long since dimmed. The ones representing Xian Ting and Zong Bai wavered, on the verge of falling.

“Is it truly irreversible?”

“I refuse to believe it.”

“I will defy fate and see for myself!”

She scooped up a handful of mud from the pond’s edge, sat cross-legged, and carefully began molding a clay figure.