Chapter 419: Darkness Under the Lamp

Chapter 419: Blind Spot

Deep within the folds of dimensions—a downstream tributary of the River of Time.

Here, there is no matter, no space, only the flow of "concepts."

A river radiating a silvery-white light surges through the void. It is not water that flows within, but the rise and fall of countless civilizations and the fragmented memories of infinite souls.

Qin Feng, relying on the etherealization of his Void God Pulse, struggles to walk along the riverbank—the razor-thin edge between reality and history.

With every step, he endures immense resistance. It is the repulsion of the universe’s self-correcting force. Had he not the Prison-Suppressing God Bone to anchor his mass, or the Cold Abyss Brain to maintain absolute rationality, he would have long been lost in the endless foam of history.

Finally, he spots the node.

At the most turbulent vortex of the river, a palm-sized piece of brass-colored metal floats—the [Causality: Xuanhuang-like Copper].

It is rusted and unremarkable, yet any "wave of history" that attempts to wash over it is quelled the instant it draws near.

It represents "destiny."

Beside the copper shard sits a mysterious old man.

He wears a faded grey Daoist robe, holding a hookless fishing rod, casting his line into the River of Time.

Qin Feng halts, not daring to strike rashly.

For in his Cold Abyss Brain’s analysis, every metric of this old man reads as "???."

This implies the entity’s level of existence is not beneath his own, but perhaps... beyond the comprehension of this dimension.

"Young man, you have come too early."

The old man does not turn, his voice ancient and serene, as if spanning eons.

"This copper suppresses the 'fruit' of this timeline. Should you take it, causality will unravel, and the countless futures downstream will collapse."

Qin Feng gazes at the copper shard, his eyes resolute.

"The future is not a fixed destiny."

"If the future collapses because a single piece of copper is missing, then that future was fragile to begin with."

Qin Feng takes a step forward, his aura beginning to surge.

"I must forge the Body of the Universe; it is a necessary puzzle piece. If you stand in my way, senior, I must offend you."

The old man finally turns his head.

It is an utterly ordinary face, yet his eyes reflect the birth and death of the cosmos.

He looks at Qin Feng and suddenly smiles.

"Stand in your way? No."

"I have merely been waiting here for you."

"I am but... a lingering thought of the previous Master of the Universe."

Qin Feng’s pupils constrict.

The previous Master of the Universe?

The old man sets down his rod and points to the Xuanhuang-like Copper.

"This copper was my 'Causality Anchor' in those days. I failed, becoming the universe itself, leaving only this to suppress time."

"If you want it, take it."

"But consider well. To take it is to inherit the causality of 'maintaining cosmic order'."

"This weight is ten thousand times heavier than the Prison-Suppressing God Gold within you."

The old man stands, his form beginning to blur.

"Go. Complete the path I left unfinished."

"If you can reach the eighth step... perhaps we shall meet again."

With that, the old man dissipates entirely, turning into stardust that merges with the River of Time.

Only the fishing rod remains, transforming into a streak of light that drills into Qin Feng’s consciousness, becoming a "Time Mark" to protect his soul.

Qin Feng bows deeply toward the direction where the old man vanished.

"I have learned much."

Qin Feng reaches out and grasps the [Xuanhuang-like Copper].

This time, there is no violent resistance, no runaway energy.

The divine metal is as calm as common iron.

But as Qin Feng attempts to refine it, a sudden anomaly erupts.

BOOM!!!

Countless images flood his mind instantly.

These are the lines of causality of everyone he has killed, everyone he has saved, every soul he has ever touched.

Countless voices roar in his ears:

"You killed me... you must pay with your life..."

"Thank you for saving me... I must repay you..."

Good causes and evil fruits entangle his soul like a chaotic mess, attempting to drag him into the abyss of reincarnation.

"Causality?"

Qin Feng sits cross-legged by the river, his Cold Abyss Brain operating at its limit, maintaining absolute clarity.

"In my life, I, Qin Feng, act only to keep my heart clear."

"I kill those who deserve death, I save those who deserve life."

"My causality, I shall bear myself."

"Merge!"

Qin Feng presses the Xuanhuang-like Copper into his brow.

The divine metal turns into a stream of mysterious yellow energy, not merging with flesh or bone, but... with his very fate.

Deep within his soul, it constructs a "Xuanhuang Pagoda."

As the refinement progresses, Qin Feng’s aura becomes increasingly ethereal.

Where he once had to fight the resistance of the River of Time, he now seems to have become a part of the river itself.

The waves strike him and part automatically.

The past cannot shake him; the future cannot deceive him.

He is the sole coordinate of the "Now."

Three days later.

Qin Feng opens his eyes.

A deep, bronze-hued undertone had settled into the depths of his irises.

[Causality: Bronze of the Profound Yellow] — Refinement complete.

Acquired traits: [Immunity to All Laws], [Spacetime Anchor].

As Qin Feng stands now, even if someone were to travel back in time to slay him in his infancy, he would persist nonetheless. His causality has been locked by the Divine Metal, rendering him independent of the timeline.

This is the true meaning of "leaping beyond the Three Realms, existing outside the Five Elements."

"The sixth piece, finished."

Qin Feng rose, savoring the sensation—it did not grant him raw power, yet it rendered his very existence profoundly, undeniably "real."

"Only one remains."

"Chaos."

Qin Feng gazed at the final red dot on the star map.

It marked the most filthy, chaotic, and perilous corner of the universe—the Warp.

"The dining table of the Chaos God Tzeentch, I presume?"

"I hope you serve a hearty main course."

The seventh Primordial Divine Metal—[Chaos: Indeterminate Lead-Mercury].

Traits: Amorphous, Rule-warping, Probability Manipulation, Universal Evolution.

Deep within the Warp—the Maze of Many Changes.

Qin Feng tore through the barriers of the material universe, his physical form plunging directly into the Warp.

Here, the laws of physics held no dominion.

Up was down, and time flowed in reverse. A single step might span a thousand miles, or regress him into an infant. The sky was the color of iridescent vomit, and the ground was paved with a mosaic of screaming faces.

Yet, Qin Feng walked with steady resolve.

His Prison-Suppressing Divine Bones anchored his form, his Void Divine Meridians adapted to the space, his Cold Abyss Brain granted immunity to psychic corruption, his Undying Heart provided an infinite shield, and his Bronze Causality Body locked his state of being.

The blessing of these six Divine Metals turned him into an icebreaker in this sea of chaos, shattering every twisted rule that dared obstruct his path.

"Found you."

Qin Feng’s gaze pierced through layers of phantasmagoria, fixing upon the heart of the maze.

There sat a colossal crystal table, suspended in the void.

The table was laden with grotesque "delicacies": pulsing stars, shrieking souls, and... a mass of liquid metal that shifted incessantly, radiating a seven-colored glow.

[Chaos: Indeterminate Lead-Mercury].

Beside the table sat a towering figure.

It possessed the head of a vulture, draped in robes of kaleidoscopic hues, clutching a twisted staff in its talons.

It was the greatest of Tzeentch’s lieutenants—Kairos Fateweaver, the Lord of Change.

Note: Though a projection, within the home turf of the Warp, its power approached that of the true Chaos God itself.

Kairos possessed two heads, one gazing into the past, the other into the future.

At this moment, both heads turned to fix their gaze upon Qin Feng.

Left head: "You have arrived; this was foreseen."

Right head: "You shall not succeed; this was also foreseen."

Left head: "Your destiny ends here."

Right head: "Or perhaps, you shall become the new Chosen of Chaos."

Their voices overlapped, heavy with psychic interference and logical dissonance.

Qin Feng walked to the table, ignoring Kairos entirely, and reached out to seize the mass of lead-mercury.

"Foreseen my ass."

"I’m here to clear the table."

"How rude."

Kairos tapped its staff.

Divine Skill: Probability Manipulation.

"As you are now, the probability of you obtaining the Divine Metal is 0%."

"As you are now, the probability of your heart ceasing to beat is 100%."

Hum—!

An invisible, sinister ripple descended.

Qin Feng’s reaching hand froze in mid-air, as if ensnared by a thousand "possibilities of failure." His heart lurched, stuttering as if on the verge of silence.

This was a weapon of causality, capable of rewriting reality itself.

But the next second.

The Bronze of the Profound Yellow within Qin Feng pulsed.

"Causality? You dare play with causality in my presence?"

Qin Feng sneered. "I say I shall obtain it, and the probability becomes 100%."

"I say I shall not die, and the probability is likewise 100%."

Divine Ability: Causality—Fixed Fate.

A bronze-yellow radiance erupted from within Qin Feng, forcibly shattering the fog of probability woven by Kairos.

Qin Feng’s hand continued forward, firmly grasping the shifting Divine Metal.

"What?!"

Both of Kairos’s heads shrieked in unison.

"Impossible! In the Warp, I am the architect of the rules! How can you lock causality?!"

"Because my causality is harder than your life."

Qin Feng secured the metal and turned to face Kairos.

"Since you are so fond of calculating probabilities."

"Why don't you calculate how many seconds you have left to live?"

Kairos roared in fury; the Maze of Many Changes began to collapse, manifesting as a storm of magical fury that hammered down upon Qin Feng.

"I am the Lord of Change! I am the concept of immortality!"

Qin Feng did not evade.

He pressed the [Indeterminate Lead-Mercury] directly into his own chest.

Then, he clenched his fists.

The left hand held the abyss of ultimate cold, the right the furnace of searing copper.

The two fists converged as one.

A self-created fusion technique: Chaos: The Great Millstone.

Rumble—

A colossal grinding wheel forged of ice and fire manifested within the warp, spinning in reverse, dragging Carlos’s gargantuan form into its maw.

"The concept of immortality?"

"Then I shall grind you into dust until not even the concept remains!"

"Aaaah—!!!"

Carlos let out a shrill, harrowing shriek. His magic, his prophecies, his laws—all rendered impotent before such absolute force.

Ten seconds.

A mere ten seconds.

The Master of Change, who had struck terror into the hearts of countless civilizations, was ground by Qin Feng into raw, chaotic energy, dissipating into the void of the warp.

With the nuisance disposed of.

Qin Feng sat directly upon the crystal dining table and began to refine the final piece of divine metal.

Chaos: Indeterminate Quicksilver.

This was the most arduous to refine, for it possessed no fixed nature. It was metal, yet wood; water, yet fire; earth. It was the origin of all things, and the end of all things.

"Merge!"

Qin Feng mobilized the power of the six divine metals already within him, constructing a perfect cycle to trap the Indeterminate Quicksilver at its center.

The quicksilver transformed into a multicolored torrent, instantly seeping into every cell of Qin Feng’s body.

Its function was simple: fusion and evolution.

It acted as the perfect catalyst, binding the six distinct forces within him—gravity, space, energy, entropy, life, and causality—into a singular, inseparable whole.

No longer a mere patchwork, but a perfect unification.

Qin Feng’s body began to shift.

One moment it was solid metal, the next a roaring flame, then translucent, flowing water.

Finally, it settled into the form of a mortal man.

Yet, this flesh was no longer carbon-based.

It was a cosmic vessel.

Every cell contained the energy of a miniature galaxy.

Qin Feng opened his eyes.

Within them, two universes seemed to rotate.

Seven metals as one.

The Great Perfection.

He stood up, and the violent energy storms of the warp calmed automatically at his side.

His power now touched the very ceiling of the dimension.

"I feel... I could tear this universe apart with my bare hands."

Qin Feng clenched his fist, savoring the sensation of omnipotence.

But.

Just as he prepared to detonate the singularity within him and ascend to Lord of the Universe.

His movements froze.

A profound sense of absence welled up in his heart.

It was like a perfect puzzle, completed only to find the final piece missing from the center.

"Something is wrong."

Qin Feng’s brows locked together.

"Bones, flesh, meridians, brain, heart, causality, chaos... it seems perfect."

"But... where is the vessel for the soul?"

"A Lord of the Universe must possess not only a cosmic body, but a 'central will' to govern it."

"As I am now, I am merely a powerful container."

"Without that core, the moment I detonate the singularity, my consciousness will dissolve, becoming an unconscious Heavenly Dao."

He did not wish to be the Heavenly Dao.

He wished to be Qin Feng.

Just as Qin Feng was lost in doubt.

The seven divine metals within him suddenly resonated.

A cryptic guidance emerged in his mind.

It was not a red dot on a star map.

It was a coordinate... right beside him.

Qin Feng whipped his head around, looking toward the direction of the material universe.

To be precise, toward the direction of Holy Terra.

More accurately... toward the place he had passed countless times, yet never truly seen through.

"The eighth divine metal..."

Qin Feng’s voice held a trace of disbelief.

"It was never in the cosmic fringe, nor in the warp."

"It has been there all along."

Origin: Primordial Violet Gold.

Attributes: The beginning of all things, the vessel of will, the embodiment of authority.

Deep within the core of Holy Terra—the origin point of the human civilization’s spark.

Or rather, it was the very core of the planet known as "Earth"!

"Hidden in plain sight."

Qin Feng gave a wry smile, and then his eyes erupted with unprecedented brilliance.

"So, Earth itself is the final key."

"No wonder the human race, though weak, is always capable of birthing miracles."

"No wonder every race covets Terra."

"If that is the case..."

Qin Feng stepped out of the sub-space, rending the dimensions asunder, and warped instantly toward Terra.

"Time to go home."

"To reclaim my... crown."

The material universe, Holy Terra.

At this moment, humanity was immersed in the joy of a golden age.

Suddenly.

The space across the entire Terran system began to shudder violently.

It was not an earthquake, but a trembling of reality itself.

An indescribable, majestic aura descended from the void.

The intensity of that presence was such that stellar-class warships in orbit lost power, and the knees of every mighty warrior buckled against their will.

"Hostile attack?!"

Alarms blared throughout the Defense Command.

"No... it is not an attack."

The Speaker stood upon the palace balcony, trembling with fervor as he gazed at the heavens.

"It is the Venerable... no, it is a God!"

"He has returned!"

In the sky.

Qin Feng’s figure slowly materialized.

Standing there, the very fabric of space and time around him began to spontaneously manifest the elements of creation.

The seven divine metals shimmered behind him, forming seven halos of light, like a deity of creation.

He paid no heed to the prostrations of the masses.

His gaze pierced through the crust, looking deep into the planet’s core.

There.

A violet crystal core, radiating the breath of primordial chaos, was pulsing slowly.

As if waiting for its master to return.

"The eighth piece."

Qin Feng whispered.

"I have arrived."