20demayo Chapter 1000: You finally showed up!
Chapter 1000: You finally showed up!
After safely escorting Xiao He and the others away, Gao Yao did not rush to venture deeper. He ordered Duan Wei to carefully select over a hundred of his most elite, loyal, and mentally strong personal guards, equipped with powerful bows, crossbows, swords, shields, grappling hooks, and other full gear, to accompany him once more into the underground palace. Returning to that weightless area, Gao Yao ordered the soldiers to use the ropes they carried to connect with each other and secure them to seemingly sturdy mural protrusions or ground crevices, forming safety ropes that facilitated movement and prevented anyone from accidentally drifting into the depths of the central crater.
After making preparations, Gao Yao began more systematic testing. He tried it himself and found that in this area, flying was not completely weightless, but rather a state where gravity was greatly reduced. The body could still feel a slight downward pull, but with just a light push off the ground or a swing of the limbs, it could easily generate thrust, taking a step that covered several meters, moving as nimbly as a bird.
If you remain still, your body will still fall very slowly, as if sinking into a viscous air, falling at a speed not much faster than a feather falling to the ground. This feeling is strange and defies common sense; it is neither in the sky nor on the ground, as if you are in a separate realm of laws.
As he tested the waters, he cautiously used the ropes and gentle pushes to gradually approach the massive celestial body at the center of the crater. The closer he got, the more pronounced the strange energy fluctuations became. At first, it was just a feeling, but when he was truly within dozens of steps of the celestial body, Gao Yao was horrified to discover that the energy fluctuations had become so dense that they were visible to the naked eye!
The surface of the celestial body wasn't entirely smooth; it was covered with countless fine and complex natural patterns, which now emitted a soft, flickering light, like breathing. In the space surrounding the celestial body, the light seemed slightly distorted, like the heat waves rising from asphalt on a summer's day, yet more stable and mysterious. A deep, almost inaudible, yet soul-stirring hum faintly emanated from it, as if this celestial body were alive, sleeping and breathing.
(Ding! High-concentration special energy source [Celestial Core] detected. Hidden quest triggered: [Choice of Civilization]. Quest objective: Destroy Celestial. Quest reward: 1 time travel opportunity, stable [World Passage] construction permission.)
Just as Gao Yao was intently observing the celestial star and was awestruck by its existence, the system notification sound that hadn't sounded for a long time and which he had almost regarded as a high-level inventory and attribute panel suddenly exploded in the depths of his mind!
The sudden notification, so shocking, left even Gao Yao, whose mind had been tempered to the rock, momentarily stunned. Since his arrival in this world, the system had been passively activated—rewarding him for completing tasks and earning points for altering historical points—more like a sophisticated tool.
This was the first time in countless years that the system had so clearly and proactively issued a mission with a specific objective and generous rewards! Moreover, these rewards... "One chance to travel through time," "Permission to construct a stable world portal"... each word was enough to stir up a tidal wave in his heart!
Suspended in weightlessness, Gao Yao's gaze was fixed on the celestial star radiating a hazy aura of energy, a storm raging within him like never before. Destroy it? What would that mean? This seemed like an opportunity given by the system, a key that might lead to a wider world, but what causes and risks lay hidden behind it?
Deep within the underground palace, the darkness seemed to have swallowed even time itself. The air was stagnant, carrying a chilling aura—a mixture of rock dust and some unknown metal—awakening from a thousand-year slumber. The only source of light came from the ancient altar above, where a celestial star floated suspended.
It wasn't as dazzling as ordinary stars; instead, it possessed a restrained beauty that was breathtaking. Its surface had a texture neither gold nor jade, with a faint, living glow flowing within its darkness, flickering like the slow, beating heart of a sleeping giant. As the light shifted, countless fine, spiderweb-like energy veins could be faintly seen surging silently within, containing unimaginable, immense power. This light shone on the cold bronze carvings surrounding it, and the long-faded ancient totems seemed to come alive, twisting and dancing, silently telling secrets lost in the long river of history.
Gao Yao stood alone before the altar, his dark imperial robes almost blending into the darkness under the dim light, with only the dragon patterns embroidered in gold occasionally reflecting a cold glint. His face was calm, like a still well, but deep within his eyes surged a tide far more complex than the underground palace itself.
Excitement, yes, an almost instinctive yearning for this extraordinary thing before him, quietly grew in his heart. After overcoming countless hardships and crossing the barriers of time, space, and power, he finally stood here, standing before this legendary miracle that could grant people eternal life.
"Immortality...and liberation..." Gao Yao's fingertips curled slightly inside his sleeve as he engaged in a silent yet intense internal struggle.
The system's demands, like a sword of Damocles, hang overhead. Achieving immortality for one's family through celestial means, conversely, requires destroying the very source of that hope in order to achieve personal transcendence.
This is a cruel paradox, a dilemma that can drive a person mad. Destroying Tianxing severs the path to immortality for one's family; preserving Tianxing for the sake of family means being trapped in this endless cycle forever, perhaps one day becoming unrecognizable like the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan over time. Is it to sacrifice one's family's eternity for one's own freedom and future, or to abandon transcendence and be permanently bound to this strange Tianxing and world for the sake of the slim hope of family's immortality?
Just as his heart was surging and his thoughts were tangled like a jumbled mess, a clear clapping sound, tinged with a hint of mockery and complexity, abruptly broke the deathly silence of the underground palace.
"Gao Yao, this really surprises me. I didn't expect you to actually show up here!"
The voice came from the shadows not far away, carrying a weariness that had traversed countless years, and an indescribable familiarity. Gao Yao suddenly looked up, all hesitation in his eyes instantly replaced by a sharp, hawk-like alertness.
Almost at the same instant he looked up, the battle-hardened guards standing around him were triggered like precise machinery, their movements perfectly synchronized. With a clang, all their weapons were drawn, their chilling gleam instantly illuminating the darkness. The breaths of all the soldiers merged into one, like a taut bowstring, locked onto the source of the sound.