Chapter 563: Consciousness Dissolves, the Eighth Piece of Human Initiated Light

Chapter 563: Consciousness Dissolution, the Eighth Artifact, Humanity’s Enlightenment

“Join you? Why not have you join me!”

Qi Yuan gazed at the Void Realm Lord before him, his expression calm.

Ahead, countless “gazes” densely packed, each representing a powerful Yang God.

The number of these Yang Gods far exceeded those of the Six Heavens of the Immortal Realm.

A strange smile twisted the Void Realm Lord’s face: “Once, I too was like you… and in the end, did I not become a shadow within the Black Heaven?”

“What is the Black Heaven?” Qi Yuan asked.

“See those three thrones? If you pass us and behold those three thrones, perhaps you will know what the Black Heaven truly is!” The Void Realm Lord’s voice was eerie.

Countless eyes turned toward Qi Yuan in that moment.

Those gazes were cold, merciless, fervent, and obsessive.

Qi Yuan sensed countless black threads spreading through the darkness, embodying disorder and chaos.

He had a premonition: if those black threads touched him, he too would become like the Void Realm Lord, assimilated by the Black Heaven, turned into a denizen of the Black Earth.

Yet the blazing white light radiating from Humanity’s Enlightenment kept those black threads at bay.

This spared Qi Yuan from assimilation.

Qi Yuan looked toward the three thrones.

He saw that all the Yang Gods were like fireflies, specks of starlight, while the three thrones seated in the depths of darkness hung like blazing suns in the sky.

[The Three Illusions of Black Heaven: Yang God Third Layer, Heaven-Opening Realm—thrones born from the Black Earth, devoid of wisdom, devoid of true spirit.]

Heaven-Opening Realm?

Qi Yuan felt an inexplicable pressure.

The Yang God Third Layer: from the Myriad Things Realm to the Heaven-Opening Realm was a threshold.

The Heaven-Opening Realm meant the power to create life, to create worlds.

But to see the Three Illusions of Black Heaven, he first had to cross… this dense sea of Yang Gods.

“Surrender now. Lay down your resistance. You cannot win,” the Void Realm Lord said, his voice devoid of joy or sorrow.

Qi Yuan’s right eyebrow twitched wildly, signaling that this battle would be perilous beyond measure.

“Even if by some miracle you defeat us and gain an audience with the three thrones, how will you fight those three thrones?”

“Even if you overcome those three thrones, how will you fight the Black Heaven itself?”

In that moment, countless Yang Gods spoke as one, their voices vast, mechanical, and cold.

The mere sound made Qi Yuan’s mighty soul involuntarily dim.

Any other realm lord would likely have their soul trembling.

“A battle like this… I’ve never fought before. Since I condensed my stellar golden core, I’ve always been the one ganging up on others. Never did I expect to be the one surrounded today!”

Qi Yuan gripped Humanity’s Enlightenment, his expression also devoid of joy or sorrow, sacred and commanding.

He swept his gaze over the dense ranks of Yang Gods and realm lords, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes.

“Let me see… just where my limits truly lie!”

Primordial Devourer!

Deathly Radiance!

Absolute Adaptation!

Overwhelming Might!

In that moment, Qi Yuan unleashed his strongest form in this realm.

Under Absolute Adaptation, Qi Yuan was like a tiger charging into a pack of lions, beginning his slaughter.

“Stand in my way, and die!”

He still had some cunning: under Deathly Radiance, he did not resist the attacks of those realm lords but took them head-on.

His own strikes fell upon the weak.

Qi Yuan showed no fear, and the Yang Gods of the Black Heaven and Black Earth had no retreat either.

In response to Qi Yuan’s assault, three Yang Gods of the first layer and two of the second layer struck directly.

Crack!

In a single breath, the bodies of those five Yang Gods—majestic and mighty in the outside world—shattered instantly.

A flood of experience poured in, and Qi Yuan’s power increased slightly.

Primordial Devourer also took effect at that moment, devouring those five Yang Gods.

“Kill!”

A Myriad Things realm lord’s lightning rule struck Qi Yuan.

Qi Yuan’s body stiffened; his flesh and blood trembled in agony beyond description.

“You cannot kill me—I only grow stronger!”

Qi Yuan accelerated to his utmost, swiftly evading these Myriad Things realm lords, focusing solely on hunting ordinary Yang Gods.

Now, he could only hope that his Deathly Radiance and Absolute Adaptation were potent enough to let him slay enough Yang Gods, elevating his power to a terrifying level.

If so, he might have a sliver of a chance to turn the tide.

“Kill!”

Qi Yuan traded wounds for kills, slaying three more Yang Gods.

Now, ordinary Yang Gods were as fragile as paper in his eyes.

Only realm-lord-level Yang Gods exerted immense pressure on him.

Countless attacks rained down on Qi Yuan; without Deathly Radiance and Absolute Adaptation, he would have died long ago.

After all, the number of realm lords here was beyond imagination.

The Zhou Universe’s realm lords did not even amount to a tenth of those in the Black Heaven and Black Earth.

Thus, he faced not the terrifying experts of one universe, but… more than ten universes!

The slaughter continued.

The battle erupted.

Blood flowed endlessly.

Yet the blood spilled was Qi Yuan’s.

He could not recall when he had last endured such a high-intensity fight.

Still, his harvest was rich: vast experience, coupled with Primordial Devourer, steadily raised his power.

Boom!

The terrifying black water fell upon Qiyuan’s body.

Half his face was corroded, and his soul suddenly dimmed.

This black water law could corrode all things in the world, devouring everything.

Absolute Adaptation!

Devour the Progenitor!

Death’s Radiance!

A mighty reliance, resisting the black water law.

“Wait…”

Suddenly, Qiyuan’s expression froze.

“My consciousness… is dissolving.”

This dissolution was not caused by the Black Heaven’s invasion transforming him into black earth, but by the dual effect of Absolute Adaptation and Devour the Progenitor.

Absolute Adaptation represented the ultimate adaptation and survival.

Facing the attacks of these realm lords, even with his blood-lock cheat, Qiyuan could not actually lock it.

Because the attacks were too fierce, too frequent.

Absolute Adaptation was also adapting to these attacks, changing Qiyuan, dissolving his consciousness, reshaping him into… a machine that only knew slaughter.

Thus, it could better survive.

“Indeed, even if I fear no pain and care not for injuries, my consciousness still hinders my flesh!”

Qiyuan suddenly understood.

The injuries truly existed; even if he ignored them and was highly resistant, they would instinctively affect him, slowing his attack efficiency.

“If so, then… what does it matter to lack consciousness?”

Absolute Adaptation!

Devour the Progenitor!

Without consciousness, it meant that no matter how terrifying the injuries, they could not affect his battle.

As long as, in the end, he retained a spark of true spirit, perhaps… there might still be a chance for survival.

“Kill!”

“Devour!”

The slaughter continued, blood staining the Black Heaven… but it was Qiyuan’s blood.

The more Yang Gods he killed, the more Qiyuan dissolved, his consciousness growing fainter, dazed and confused.

He was like a mindless devouring behemoth, avoiding the strong and consuming the weak.

…

“It failed.”

Sheng’s face was full of sorrow. “Why did it fail?”

That Yang God of the Celestial Tribe coughed blood, in agony.

Three months had passed since Qiyuan stepped into the Black Heaven.

No one had expected that Qiyuan would actually slow the progress of that terrifying bubble devouring the Divine Tree Universe.

Gaining a respite, the Divine Tree Universe did not hesitate, pondering a way to break the deadlock.

At that moment, an avatar of the Void Realm Lord from the Zhou Universe descended.

He spoke: “Gather eight pieces of Human-Enlightened Light, and the Divine Tree Universe will have a glimmer of hope.”

These words filled all the Progenitors with joy, yet also some confusion.

In just a few hundred years, seven pieces of Human-Enlightened Light had been forged; the last one… should logically be made quickly.

But who knew, gathering all the power of the Divine Tree Universe… the eighth piece of Human-Enlightened Light… could not be forged no matter what.

Countless artificers went forward to die, including divine-level artificers, and even three Progenitor-level artificers chose to sacrifice themselves, just to witness Human-Enlightened Light.

Yet… the eighth piece of Human-Enlightened Light… could never succeed.

Failure!

Failure!

Constant failure!

“How to resolve this?” Sheng Nu’s face was full of bitterness.

The Divine Tree Universe had only five Progenitor-level artificers in total.

Now, three had chosen to sacrifice themselves to forge Human-Enlightened Light.

The remaining two were the youngest, Sheng Nu, and the oldest, Qi Yu.

The other Progenitor-level artificers chose death, leaving them to oversee the forging of Human-Enlightened Light.

“Why did it fail? Clearly… there was no mistake!” Qi Yu’s aged face was full of anguish.

Forging Human-Enlightened Light, having a divine-level artificer oversee it was actually sufficient.

Qi Yu had participated in the forging of Human-Enlightened Light three times, all successful.

This time, it could not succeed no matter what, and even cost the lives of three Progenitor-level artificers, while ordinary artificers numbered in the billions.

Yuan remained silent, lost in thought.

The other Progenitors were also agitated.

“Lord Qiyuan alone holds off the enemies in the Black Heaven, while we in the rear… cannot even forge a single Human-Enlightened Light? Outrageous! Where is the justice in this!” The hot-tempered bearded man wept as he spoke.

“Useless, we are all useless!”

“What use is complaining? Now we should think about how to actually forge it!”

“What is the eighth piece of Human-Enlightened Light? What is missing?”

“Is it some kind of condition?”

All the Progenitors discussed fervently, but could not say why.

Regarding Human-Enlightened Light, all they knew came from that Yang God of the Celestial Tribe.

And that Yang God… knew little about Human-Enlightened Light.

Yuan’s gaze shifted, and finally he gritted his teeth and said, “I will go seek an audience with the Void Realm Lord.”

At that moment, a majestic, illusory figure descended.

He stood in the sky, yet also directly before everyone in different positions.

No matter where He was, He was always directly ahead.

“Human-Enlightened Light… is not an ordinary luminous treasure.”

"The Radiant Marvel is a treasure of rules."

"And the Human-Enlightened Radiance... was forged from the primal rules that constructed the cosmos."

"I have spent ten thousand years in the Void Paradise analyzing the Divine Tree; the Divine Tree cosmos is composed of eight primal rules: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth, Thunder, Rain, and Cloud.

Now, seven types of Human-Enlightened Radiance have gathered; only Water is missing."

"As long as you find the final Water, the eighth Human-Enlightened Radiance will be forged."

"When all eight Human-Enlightened Radiances converge, perhaps... there may be a glimmer of hope."

All the Ancestral Gods felt a chill in their hearts.

Yuan stepped forward: "May I ask the Void Realm Lord, where... is Water?"

The Void Realm Lord's voice was ethereal: "I do not know either."

All exchanged bewildered glances.

The Water representing the primal rule... where exactly was it? And how to capture it, how to refine it into the eighth Human-Enlightened Radiance—none of them knew.

"Lord Realm Lord, how much longer can Lord Qi Yuan hold out in the Black Heaven?" Yuan asked again.

Everyone's heart clenched suddenly.

They too wished to know how Realm Lord Qi Yuan was faring.

The battle within the Black Heaven—how perilous and brutal must it be.

The Void Realm Lord raised his head and gazed toward the Void Sea.

His eyes fell upon the ever-expanding bubble, and a rare look of emotion flickered in them.

"Even I, upon entering the Black Heaven, would be assimilated in an instant. That he has held out this long... is already a miracle."

"I observe... his true spirit is dim, less than a ten-thousandth; perhaps... it could be extinguished in a snap of the fingers," the Void Realm Lord sighed.

In the realm of Heaven-Opening, He had traversed one hundred eight thousand three hundred twenty-seven epochs.

He had experienced over a hundred thousand cosmic restarts and destructions.

A being as unique as Qi Yuan, He had never encountered before.

"At any moment?" The other Ancestral Gods, upon hearing this, felt a sense of despair.

This meant that Qi Yuan could fail to hold on and fall here at any time.

If the eighth Human-Enlightened Radiance were not forged before Qi Yuan's fall to join the other seven, then... even if the eighth were created, it would be of no use.

"Void Realm Lord, what exactly is the Black Heaven?" Yuan asked.

The Void Realm Lord narrowed his eyes, his voice deep: "Where the Black Heaven exists, beneath it, all beings cannot conceive of its existence."

The meaning of this statement was simple.

In a world where the Black Heaven exists, mortals cannot imagine what the Black Heaven is.

It is as if there is a dog before you, but your consciousness is sealed; you only know it as Wangcai, and cannot associate it with being a dog.

Such is the existence of the Black Heaven.

"So no matter how we think, we can never know what the Black Heaven is?" Yuan was somewhat indignant.

This feeling of consciousness being sealed was very unpleasant.

Generally, the reason the hidden is powerful is because it is hidden and unknowable.

Once all information is known, the hidden becomes possible to overcome.

But now, this hidden thing has a seal on consciousness.

This means that wherever the hidden exists, no one can know of the hidden.

The Void Realm Lord extended three fingers: "I can take the beings of three worlds away from the Divine Tree."

The Divine Tree cosmos had long been infiltrated by the Black Heaven.

Even for a being like the Void Realm Lord, who was only a step away from breaking through to a higher level, he could only protect the beings of three realms.

"Thank you, Void Realm Lord!" Yuan bowed solemnly.

At least, even if the Divine Tree cosmos perishes, some beings... may have a place to dwell.

...

Within the Black Heaven.

Three Thrones sat aloft in the sky, their gazes mechanical, without sorrow or joy.

Below, the battle was especially brutal.

This slaughter was like a millstone grinding flesh.

The original Qi Yuan, at this moment, his consciousness was nearly dissolved, and he was no longer human in form.

The seven Human-Enlightened Radiances transformed into halos of rules, coiling around him.

And he was a mass of blood-red light, like a red hole draped in seven halos, devouring everything before him, everything in the world.

The three Thrones observed Qi Yuan, their expressions calm.

"His essence... is very strange."

"No being in the world has ever been able to devour Black Soil."

"It is somewhat similar to the Black Heaven."

"He... is about to open the heavens."

(End of this chapter)