Chapter 989: Red Candle on the Back

Regarding divine power, although Xu Qing's understanding is limited, whether it is what he possesses or what he senses from other gods, he has seen quite a few and has also researched them himself.

He knows that divine power is different from origin; it is more ancient and is a power unique to the lineage of gods.

It can influence all things, can affect all living beings, and can cover the entire starry sky and even the thirty-six star rings.

Because this is the universe of gods.

At the same time, divine power is also divided into the level of qualification to use and the level of exclusive enjoyment. The former is sharing a divine power with other gods, competing with each other.

Only by devouring and plundering other gods who possess the same divine power can one reach the second level.

Becoming the only one in a certain divine power.

According to Xu Qing's previous understanding, those who reach this point are at least True Gods.

And divine power, in Xu Qing's previous understanding, does not seem to be divided into strong or weak, but into the degree of control, and... range!

Range is the focus of divine power.

But at that moment, this understanding was shaken in Xu Qing's mind.

Because at that instant, the aura emitted from the strange divine power intertwined by the three divine powers was terrifying to the extreme, surpassing everything, terrible to the extreme.

Sufficient for him to easily perceive the division of levels between strong and weak.

Xu Qing is not clear what this divine power is. He can only judge simply from the characteristics of Luck, Misfortune, and Purple Moon.

But clearly, this is not the time for exploration. Under the eruption of the candlelight, as his physical body sank and landed on the wick, wanting to extinguish this red candle...

In Xu Qing's sea of consciousness, the counterattack from the red candle's fire was also near-towering, the flames revealing madness, burning intensely.

This fire had to burn the three divine power threads, because Xu Qing had wrapped the strange divine power intertwined by these three divine power threads around his soul.

Resisting the candlelight.

Even so, the burning of Xu Qing's soul by the residual heat still existed.

The number of his soul threads became fewer and fewer, until only less than ten thousand remained...

Outside, he lost all his clothes, and his crimson physical body sat completely on the wick.

Boom!

With the landing, a heaven-shaking loud noise echoed earth-shakingly throughout this entire Boundary Source Secret Realm.

The candlelight, extinguished!

At this instant, the fire in Xu Qing's sea of consciousness vanished instantly. On the riddled ruins, the strange divine power intertwined by the three divine power threads also showed huge changes.

Vast divine power aura rose within, sweeping through Xu Qing's entire sea of consciousness.

And in the outside world, the same dramatic changes appeared the moment the candlelight was extinguished.

The afterglow passed, all stars vanished instantly, whether they were those collapsing stars seen with the naked eye or the pictures changed under the shadow eyes, they were all erased

The lingering light passes away, and all the stars vanish in unison; whether it is those collapsing stars once seen by the naked eye, or the paintings that changed under the shadow's gaze, at this instant, they are as if wiped away.

Disappearing along with them are those shadows; following the extinguishing of the candle flame, they vanish like smoke.

It is as if this entire illusion, because the candle flame is no more, has all become the past.

The entire world falls into pitch blackness.

It seems that even this World Source Secret Realm itself, at this moment, has disappeared without a trace.

After a long while, Xu Qing, who was sitting cross-legged in meditation, slowly opens his exhausted and bloodshot eyes.

The weakness of his soul causes him to feel a sense of dizziness.

And what his eyes behold is a sheet of darkness; he cannot see the distance, nor can he see what is near. This lightless world, even when gazed upon with his divine eyes, is void.

Even the candle beneath him is nowhere to be found.

Only a feeling of surviving a disaster rises in Xu Qing's heart.

"The candle flame is extinguished, the lingering shadows have vanished..."

Xu Qing mutters, raising his hand to touch his cuff; after touching that mask, his heart relaxes slightly.

This object is still here.

And as for this place, Xu Qing does not want to linger too long; he is not sure if the candle flame will reappear soon, or if everything in this secret realm will restore itself in the next moment.

So he swiftly takes out the secret realm token, about to open the return.

But just at this moment, Xu Qing's expression suddenly changes, and he turns his head abruptly.

Behind him is a void; apart from the pitch blackness, there is nothing else.

Yet Xu Qing's heart is extremely vigilant; just a moment ago, he faintly felt... the disappeared candle seemed to appear again.

"Not right!"

Xu Qing's right hand swiftly raises, pressing against his own bare back; upon this touch, the different tactile sensation coming from his fingertips causes Xu Qing's mind to ripple instantly.

The red candle has indeed not truly disappeared!

It does not know why, but it has actually imprinted itself on Xu Qing's back; in Xu Qing's perception, it is like a tattoo, occupying his entire back.

But fortunately, upon his investigation, he discovers that this candle appearing on his back is in an extinguished state.

Xu Qing frowns, many guesses rising in his heart, while simultaneously squeezing the token.

But... the token actually still has no reaction at all.

One must know that the token had a reaction before, it was just interrupted by the red candle's light.

But now, it is truly as if it has lost its connection with the World Source Secret Realm, completely becoming a useless object.

"World Source Secret Realm..."

Xu Qing's heart sinks, and he squeezes it again, continuing to try.

At the same time, outside this World Source Secret Realm, at the moment the candle flame extinguished, an astonishing change was also erupting.

The first thing to change was the huge jade slip where the World Source Secret Realm is located; this jade slip originally shone with light, looking full of treasure-light, but now, in an instant, it dims.

Following the dimming, the land where it is located also seems to have lost its nourishment, becoming cracked.

Looking out, cracks spread across the basin, and even some nearby mountain ranges collapse inexplicably, with rubble rolling down.

It is as if the spiritual energy has been drained.

So much so that the seal where the jade slip is located disperses because of this, allowing outside cultivators, even without holding a secret realm token, to clearly see through and see the location of the jade slip.

Thus, a sense of shock ripples through the Moyu cultivators who were entrenched nearby, using the spiritual energy of this place to cultivate; one by one, their minds are shaken, and they open their eyes to look, suspicion and horror rising in their hearts.

"The spiritual energy here has disappeared..."

"The seal of the World Source Secret Realm is also dissipating!"

"What happened!"

Amidst the ripples in everyone's minds, on the Tenth Sovereign Mountain, Lu Lingzi, who was sitting cross-legged in the hall at the summit, suddenly opens his eyes at this moment, his brows instantly furrowing.

Silently and soundlessly, his divine sense has already spread out, directly shrouding the place where the World Source Secret Realm is located, suppressing it downward.

Instantly, the heaven and earth around the World Source Secret Realm solidify, locking everything.

Immediately following, his divine sense swiftly merges into the jade slip; at the first moment of entering, even someone as formidable as the Empress feels a breeze in her mind.

She has naturally been to the World Source Secret Realm and knows the ins and outs of it.

But now, under her divine sense's inspection, this place is pitch black.

The red candle has disappeared, the stars have disappeared, everything has become void.

Only at the place of the original red candle, Xu Qing is sitting there cross-legged, holding the token she gave him, trying various methods to activate it...

This scene makes the Empress silent.

After a long while, her voice echoes in this void.

"What are you doing?"

Xu Qing's movements pause, surprise rising in his heart, and he looks up at the void in the distance.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!"

"There was an anomaly here earlier; I intended to use this jade slip to leave, but this jade slip... has failed."

Xu Qing stands up and cups his fists; he knows that since the Empress has come, it means he is out of trouble.

But the Empress, upon hearing Xu Qing's words, does not respond; until thoughts rise in Xu Qing's heart, he faintly seems to hear a sigh.

Subsequently, the Empress speaks.

"You really didn't listen to a word I said..."

"After you get out, come see me immediately!"

The moment these two sentences are transmitted, a vast power rolls in from the void, gathering on Xu Qing, emitting a booming roar and forming a huge vortex.

With one suction, it pulls Xu Qing into it, and the vortex disappears along with him.

Having sent Xu Qing away, the Empress's blurred figure appears in the void.

What appears here is only the body formed by her divine sense; at this moment, she gazes at the surroundings and finally shakes her head.

"I thought only his Senior Brother was troublesome, I didn't expect this Xu Qing to be the same."

The Empress takes a step and disappears into the void; when she appears, she is above the jade slip in the outside world. She raises her right hand and presses down, and instantly, this huge jade slip regains its luster.

The surrounding seals also form again.

Everything looks no different from before.

But if anyone could enter the interior of the jade slip, they would discover... the World Source Secret Realm has indeed disappeared.

However, the Empress naturally would not let such a thing happen, so very quickly, a decree was transmitted from the Tenth Sovereign Mountain.

The World Source Secret Realm lacks spiritual energy and will be closed for repairs for a hundred years, during which it will not be open to the public.

This World Source Secret Realm, from the perspective of ownership, now belongs to the Tenth Sovereign, so Lu Lingzi's decree here carries authority.

Even in these wartime times, when the World Source Secret Realm is included as a strategic resource, hindered by Lu Lingzi's recent promotion, no one would truly be pedantic about such matters.

As a Sovereign, these privileges naturally exist.

Of course, for the matters of the World Source Secret Realm to be completely covered up, the Empress still needs to handle some details.

And at this moment, Xu Qing appears somewhat uneasy on a plain a hundred miles away from the World Source Secret Realm.

The moment he appears, he immediately transforms into Xue Chenzi, then turns his head to gaze from afar at the World Source Secret Realm that is being resealed, hesitation in his heart.

On this trip, he cannot say for sure what the harvest is; seemingly he obtained the mask, but that eerie candle has been imprinted on his back.

At the same time, regarding adding trouble to the Empress, Xu Qing also feels apologetic in his heart; his personality is just like this, clear about gratitude and grudges, not wanting to owe others.

After a long while, he takes a deep breath.

"Then I will go help the Empress, and do my best to fulfill her wishes."

Xu Qing's body flickers, heading straight for the Tenth Sovereign Mountain.

On the way, his focus is placed on the strange Divine Authority within his body.

Luck, as the name implies.

Misfortune, the same.

And the Purple Moon Divine Authority belongs to shining upon all things under the purple moonlight, seeking flaws in life; once found, it can be invaded by poison prohibitions.

"Mastering luck, and also mastering the flaws of life."

"The Divine Authority formed by them merging together..."

Between heaven and earth, the speeding Xu Qing's body suddenly pauses; in mid-air, his breathing becomes slightly rapid, and a strange light appears in his eyes as a word emerges in his mind.

"Could it be... Fate?"