Chapter 85: The Demon Star Emerges into the World

He lay in the Thirty-Three Heavens for five hundred years... The false Lu Xue kept vigil by his side for five hundred years... I spent five hundred years searching for the scattered fragments of his original spirit.

In those five centuries, I witnessed the great floods of the fertile southern province, the tsunamis of the Eastern Sea—I received the celestial orders of the independent tribes, captured the three ferocious beasts Biyan, Taotie, and Qiongqi, healed countless people, and also "destroyed" countless hearts.

I traversed towering mountains and crossed endless rivers and lands. I visited the Execution Terrace at Mount Wu, now a lush and verdant woodland, yet still exuding a chilling air of death. I went to the Wu Mountain Cliff, where he and Lu Xue parted, waiting there alone for a very long time. I visited what was once the Wuling Realm, which became a territory of the fertile province of the heavens tens of thousands of years ago, now a peaceful land where the immortals live in harmony.

Seas turn to mulberry fields, but not a trace remains of him or her on Wu Mountain...

Five hundred years of searching yielded not the slightest sign of his original spirit, yet for five hundred years, he seemed ever near, neither gone nor present—in every place I wandered, in the distance, by my side, in dreams, in my heart... Five centuries may be but a moment for an immortal, but for a heart in search, it feels like forty thousand years.

In the Thirty-Three Heavens, the Celestial Emperor convened the Crown Prince Tiande, Second Prince Tiansheng, the High God Kaiyuan, the High God Wuxiang, and the assembly of immortal ministers for counsel.

“What are your thoughts, my beloved ministers, on the ‘True Deity of Great Sound’ about whom tales have spread in the mortal realm these last centuries?” the Celestial Emperor asked, his expression grave.

One immortal minister reported, “Your Majesty, it is said this deity possesses the power of rebirth. No one has heard his voice or seen his form, but he often saves mortals from calamity in silence. It is rumored that four hundred years ago, during the great drought, it was this deity who called forth the waters of the four seas to nourish the earth, bringing instant vitality and even reviving the dead.”

Another minister added, “There are also tales that this deity appeared after the passing of High God Yunxiao, and is Yunxiao reincarnated in fulfillment of a vow made in the heavens.”

“Impossible. Even if one could return from the dead, a spirit wholly dispersed cannot be reborn,” the Crown Prince Tiande said.

“Some say High God Yunxiao never truly passed, but transformed into the True Deity of Great Sound to benefit all,” another minister offered.

“Nonsense. Yunxiao’s divine body rests entombed on Mount Sumeru in the Thirty-Three Heavens,” the Celestial Emperor declared.

“I have heard that the True Deity of Great Sound is a beautiful woman, skilled in song and dance—when she dances, the winds and rains come in season; when she sings, the world knows peace.”

Heavenly Lord Guangfa, upon hearing this, nodded in agreement. “I myself have had an extraordinary encounter. My eldest son suffered from a stubborn illness, and all the famed physicians of the heavens were helpless. I learned of a divine healer on Mount Luojia in the mortal realm whose medicine could cure any disease. On the way there with my son, my carriage struck an old immortal in plain clothes carrying a bundle of herbs. In anger, I berated and struck him. The old immortal warned that I would face great disaster. I thought he cursed a high minister of the heavens and had him thrown in prison and tortured.

Arriving at the healer’s clinic, a young attendant said the healer was out delivering medicine and asked me to wait. As night fell, my son’s illness turned critical. The attendant said his master had not returned, describing him as the very old immortal I’d had flogged. I hurriedly ordered his release, but he had already been tortured to death. That night, my son died.

Grief-stricken, I was beside myself. The young attendant said I could save my son if I knelt before his master’s spirit for an hour in atonement, and swore never again to abuse the innocent or wield power unjustly. Sincerely repentant, I made the vow and knelt for an hour. When I looked up, both the attendant and the clinic were gone. My son lay on a mat, calling for food and water—he was alive, and completely healed!”

“Where is the healer’s body?” the Celestial Emperor asked.

“I returned to the prison to retrieve his remains for a proper burial, but the guards reported the body had vanished. To this day, I do not know if he is alive or dead. From this, I learned never again to wrong another, no matter my station. Perhaps the healer I met was the True Deity of Great Sound,” said Guangfa.

The ministers murmured among themselves. “Perhaps it really was the True Deity in disguise. The old immortal never died at all.” “But then, was it the old immortal who was the deity, or the young attendant?”

Tiande reported to the Emperor, “There is no record of such a deity in the heavenly registry. To claim the title of True Deity and act so mysteriously, even deceiving the discerning eyes of Lord Guangfa—surely this is the work of a demon, sowing confusion among the masses!”

Lord Beidou glanced at High God Wuxiang beside him, who sat serenely fanning himself, listening to the debate. “High God, should we mention the celestial omen of the Fiery Star in the Fetal Origin Realm?” Beidou whispered.

Wuxiang lazily replied, “Beidou, don’t you have an important matter to report? Speak of it here in the court, let us hear how weighty it is.”

Beidou ground his teeth in frustration. With a single sentence, Wuxiang had shifted onto him the secret he’d kept for five centuries. Forced into a corner, he had no choice but to report, “Your Majesty, five hundred years ago while stargazing, I observed a crimson star rising above the Fetal Origin Realm of the Grand Luminous Summit. It shone with a red glow, much like a blazing meteor. Over these five centuries, its radiance has only grown more intense, now clearly not an ordinary meteor, but a nascent divine star maturing with time.”

“I, too, thought it a mere meteor at the time,” the Celestial Emperor said.

Beidou exhaled in relief. “I believe this divine star may be the star of the True Deity of Great Sound. Five centuries ago, the Heavy Bright Star fell, and this one was born. There may be a profound connection.”

The Celestial Emperor fell silent, deep in thought. After a moment, he said, “We shall discuss this further later.”

Leaving the hall, he privately summoned the Crown Prince Tiande, Second Prince Tiansheng, High God Kaiyuan, High God Wuxiang, and High God Puhua for consultation.

The Emperor’s face was grave. “With the fall of the Heavy Bright, the Fiery Blaze arises. The Fiery Blaze Demon Star, weapon of chaos, could refine heaven and earth themselves—only the power of Heavy Bright can destroy it.”

The assembled gods exchanged uneasy glances.

The Emperor continued, “This is the prophecy of Nuwa, passed only from one Celestial Emperor to the next. This blazing star was born five hundred years ago, at the moment High God Yunxiao perished.”

“You mean this star is the Fiery Blaze Demon Star? That the death of Heavy Bright gave birth to the Fiery Blaze Demon King?” Kaiyuan inquired.

“I cannot be certain, so I have gathered you all. High God Wuxiang, you preside over the myriad phenomena of heaven and earth—can you see through the mystery?”

Wuxiang fanned himself languidly. “Best consult the Old Celestial Emperor and the God of Slaughter about that.”

Tiande shot him a look. “Both perished in the calamity forty thousand years ago; how do you propose we ask them? Kindly spare us your sarcasm.”

Wuxiang smiled, tapping his spotted bamboo fan. “With this fan, I truly have both wind and chill. As for how to ask, perhaps the Crown Prince can enlighten me.”

“How should I know!” Tiande retorted irritably.

“If the Fiery Blaze Demon Star is truly born, the refining of heaven and earth would mean utter doom—a catastrophe from which none would return,” said Kaiyuan.

“That so-called True Deity of Great Sound, sowing confusion, has even ensnared high ministers of the heavens—this must be the Fiery Blaze Demon Star. Before it escapes the Fetal Origin Realm and brings disaster, we must destroy it at once!” Tiande declared.

“And you are not concerned about killing the innocent?” Wuxiang asked.

“If we do not, and it becomes the Demon Star, all living beings will perish. Will you, High God, still be so carefree then?” Tiande replied.

“You speak well, Crown Prince. The matter concerns the survival of heaven and earth. Better to err and slay an innocent than to let calamity go unchallenged! Destroy the True Deity of Great Sound!” Puhua echoed.

Wuxiang nodded. “And who will carry out the execution? Puhua, will you do it?” He looked from Puhua to Tiande, fanning himself.

“I do not command the armies. Let the one who does be sent,” Puhua said.

Wuxiang spoke unhurriedly, “Does the High God mean to have Yunxiao climb from his coffin to do the task? Or perhaps send the Second Prince with troops? Or the Crown Prince himself?”

“Father, I urge caution. I have heard only of the True Deity of Great Sound’s deeds for the benefit of all. Yunxiao’s passing was a great calamity for the heavens—if the divine star was born in response to this, it should not be destroyed lightly. If it is indeed Heavy Bright reborn by vow, to kill it would be a grave sin. Besides, the star has not yet emerged from the Fetal Origin Realm,” Tiansheng said.

“What could be a greater calamity than the refining of heaven and earth?” Tiande pressed.

“I admire you, truly! If I do not now reveal the clues I possess, I will seem too idle by far,” Wuxiang said, snapping his fan shut.

“Oh? What clues do you have, High God Wuxiang?” the Emperor asked.

“I recently had nothing to occupy me,” Wuxiang began, glancing at Tiande, “so I paid a visit to High God Chunfeng and passed by Mount Yuzhu in the Southern Sea. The place is remarkable, full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers.”

“Is that so? Since it is in the Southern Sea, perhaps High God Chunfeng knows more?” the Emperor asked.

“Chunfeng is always eccentric, never concerning himself with serious matters. His mind is wholly occupied with his wayward son. Four centuries ago, at the time of the great disaster in the heavens, he, who is responsible for the seasons and agriculture, was sleeping on Flower Island playing with his son and flirting with the flower spirits. He is not to be relied upon,” Kaiyuan said with disdain.

“Indeed,” Wuxiang agreed with a smile.

“Could it be that the True Deity of Great Sound—the incarnation of the Fiery Blaze Demon Star—is hiding on Mount Yuzhu in the Southern Sea?” Puhua asked.

Wuxiang fell silent, fanning himself thoughtfully.

“Crown Prince, how do you propose we proceed?” the Emperor asked.

“We should surround and destroy them at once,” Tiande replied.

“Does this mean you will personally lead the campaign?” Wuxiang asked.

“I am still recovering from old wounds. My brother will take my place. Tiansheng, you will lead ten thousand heavenly soldiers to besiege Mount Yuzhu. If you encounter any immortals or gods, execute them on the spot.”

Tiansheng did not agree with Tiande’s plan and continued to plead, “If the immortals there truly are the Fiery Blaze Demon Star, I will not shrink from my duty. But with matters still unclear, how can we kill so recklessly?”

“Tiansheng! This cannot be delayed. We must destroy the Demon Star before it matures. When the Fiery Blaze Demon King is born, how will Heavy Bright destroy it? Will you rely on Yunxiao to climb from his coffin and do it?” Tiande retorted forcefully.

“Indeed! Well said!” Wuxiang agreed.

“High God... you...” Tiansheng could not fathom why, after the passing of High God Yunxiao, Wuxiang should yield to Tiande in everything, even siding with him when insulted.

“We shall proceed as the Crown Prince advises,” the Celestial Emperor decreed.