Chapter 123: The Function of the Heaven-and-Earth Membrane, and Thus the Great Calamity of Heaven and Earth

Xihe and Changxi trudged with difficulty through Mount Buzhou; the oppressive presence of Pangu made every step a struggle, yet they could only grit their teeth and persevere.

On a stone stele before the mountain, they saw the Dao traces left by Di Jun and Taiyi; only then did they become certain that the Sun had a star god.

Although they had never seen the Dao of Taiyi and Di Jun, the feeling was like a mighty sun standing before their eyes, and it could not be mistaken.

"Older sister, do you really think the Wilderness is that wonderful? It makes two star gods linger and forget to return, dwelling long in the Wilderness."

Changxi tried to persuade Xihe to agree to roam the Wilderness with her; although there was an element of persuasion, the vibrant scenery also truly attracted her.

Such scenery cannot be seen on the Moon, whether on the Moon or in the whole starry sky; loneliness is forever an unchanging hue.

Xihe felt somewhat swayed, but she still remembered her earlier words and her own burden; she firmly refused, saying: "Do not thus damage your Dao-heart; we come from the starry sky and must ultimately return there— as heavenly gods, we must not forget our duty."

"If, because of playing around, we miss the heavenly timing, causing the seasons to go awry and leading to an imbalance of yin and yang between heaven and earth, then we would surely bear grave sin!"

Xihe's words were stern; Changxi felt they were somewhat making a mountain out of a molehill, yet could not refute, and only whispered beside her: "Aren't those two on the Sun also always out there? How can they be allowed while I cannot? Older sister, you truly lack flexibility!"

Xihe felt somewhat helpless, thinking to herself: The star gods of the Sun have set a bad example for the heavenly gods.

But seeing Changxi still carrying some emotion, her expression poor, she could only comfort her:

"Take heart, there will be a chance someday, but our current strength is low; merely regulating yin and yang already taxes us greatly— where would we find extra energy to roam the Wilderness?"

Most heavenly gods dwell in the starry sky, traditionally not interacting with the outside world; even the stars rarely go out, let alone the Wilderness.

In terms of life cultivation and Dao attainment, Xihe and Changxi are not inferior to Fuxi and Nüwa; unfortunately, their realms are worlds apart.

Xihe and Changxi are not even Great One Upper Gods now, simply because they have not obtained its method; on the Great Dao they cannot take a single step.

However, if they could understand the method to raise their realm, they could likewise attain the Heavenly Net Venerable God in a short time.

This is also the predicament of most heavenly gods today: lacking the method, they can only temper their life cultivation and comprehend the Dao over time, seeking to improve their Dao attainment.

Among the heavenly gods, those like Di Jun and Taiyi who early on roamed the Wilderness are ultimately only a few.

And those like the Azure Dragon and the Vermilion Bird, long-lived since birth, yet having settled in the Wilderness since ancient times, are only those two.

Changxi also understood this; her emotions eased a little, yet she still objected: "I don't know what means the Sun star god possesses, allowing it to remain in the Wilderness for so long and even suppress the Sun's fiery poison."

"Is it truly unafraid of yin-yang imbalance, inviting the Great Dao to mete out punishment if something goes wrong?"

Changxi's words evoked a resonance in Xihe; this is also the question that perplexes Xihe— according to common sense, even if the Sun's star god is somewhat stronger than them, the gap should not be this great.

How can they achieve a one-time solution, maintaining the Sun's condition for a long time so that the fiery poison does not erupt?

Know that this fiery poison, like the Moon's cold poison, arises from yin-yang changes; it is not so easily suppressed and maintained over a long period.

"Forget it, don't overthink; since we have confirmed the existence of the Sun star god, there will surely be a day we meet, and then we can ask a thing or two."

In Xihe's comfort, Changxi reluctantly set aside her prejudices, focused on coping with Mount Buzhou's pressure, and strove upward. In the starry sky, Di Jun, Qi, and others continually traversed, crossing one storm after another; the tumultuous innate spiritual qi, with the slightest fluctuation, would surge violently, forming all kinds of storms.

"The spiritual qi in the starry sky is far more violent than that in the Wilderness; with such intense fluctuations, the spiritual mechanisms would hardly be retained."

Fuxi, upon first traversing the starry sky, was shocked by this sight; although he had been to the starry sky before, watching Taiyi and Qi spar, he had never seen such a scene.

Di Jun, smiling, explained beside them: "The starry sky is vast and boundless, with no famous mountains or rivers to suppress the spiritual qi, and moreover it lies close to Chaos; it is the first gateway where Chaos currents transform into innate spiritual qi."

"The spiritual qi here retains a trace of Chaos, naturally making it much more turbulent; if near the celestial bodies of the Zhou Tian it is still somewhat better, otherwise it naturally falls into disorder."

Qi took some interest in this and asked: "Chaos currents transforming into innate spiritual qi? The starry sky is the first gateway? Please elaborate— this is the first time I've heard of this."

Taiyi, beside them, explained to Qi to dispel his doubts:

"In the Wilderness, most of the time you cannot see clearly, because the starry sky lies too near to Chaos; with attentive focus, you can naturally perceive things unknown to outsiders."

"Beyond the starry sky lies the membrane of heaven and earth, which protects the entire Wilderness world from erosion by Chaos."

"Those Chaos currents passing through the membrane of heaven and earth are partially filtered; what remains in the membrane is absorbed by it, becoming part of it."

"What is filtered out is the primordial innate spiritual qi, bearing a trace of Chaos' nature— just like the spiritual qi in the starry sky, it is violent and restless, hard to absorb."

"After the heavenly bodies constantly suppress and regulate it, it is then sent into the Wilderness, and then the heavenly canopy separating the starry sky from the Wilderness filters it once more— this is the innate spiritual qi of the present Wilderness."

"After regulation and two filtrations, the Chaos attributes are thoroughly refined, making them gentle and pure; thus they become much more stable and easier to absorb."

Seeing Qi understand these circumstances, Taiyi added: "If the Sun were not constantly moving in the starry sky, drawing ever nearer to the Wilderness and Chaos, we would not have discovered these things; although not of great use, it does count as gaining some insight."

"However, there is also a problem: when the membrane of heaven and earth filters the Chaos currents, the substances retained within it cause the membrane to become thicker."

"Although this makes the membrane more sturdy, the spiritual qi filtered out thereby is also greatly reduced."

"It seems only during a great heavenly catastrophe, when the entire Wilderness world experiences tremendous upheaval, can these membranes of heaven and earth be shattered, set flowing, then automatically heal and thin, after which the filtered spiritual qi will increase."

"My elder brother and I speculate that this might also be one of the causes of the outbreak of the Wilderness Great Calamity, though we are not entirely certain."

Including Qi, the three of them all wore expressions of shattered worldviews; they had never imagined that the Wilderness world still harbored such an unknown secret.

Upon reflection, Qi increasingly felt this made sense; after all, after each great calamity, the spiritual qi between heaven and earth becomes far more lively.

Previously Qi thought it was due to the dissipation of cause and effect between heaven and earth, countless beings dying, and heaven and earth reclaiming their origins; now it appears much more straightforward.

However, if that is indeed the case, then each Wilderness Great Calamity's such devastation of heaven and earth would also fully explain why heaven and earth continually drive the occurrence of great calamities.

(End of chapter)