Buzhou Mountain shattered. Pangu's spine, which had supported the sky since the creation of the Great Desolation, had broken. The Starry Sky fell, and the land shattered as heaven and earth started collapsing into one once more.
The Celestial River was disrupted and flowed onto the Great Desolation. Celestial Starwater was one of the top ten truewaters of heaven and earth and carried the power of the stars. Wherever it flowed, countless lives died. No other race felt this more than the human race.
After their tribulation at the hands of the Demon Clan, humanity had been pushed to the brink of extinction. In a few eons, they repopulated the land once more, but compared to the humanity of yore, they were several levels weaker.
Wutian had listened to Tongtian and ordered many humans to stay near Kunlun Mountain. As a result, their population remained small, and they focused on increasing their strength. Still, that didn't mean they were the only humans that survived the disaster.
Pockets of human settlements managed to survive and started to repopulate. However, they had lost the inheritance from their four human ancestors and lived like beasts. Without Laozi's Grand Purity Scripture or Wutian's martial arts, they could not improve their strength and remained at the bottom of the food chain.
Now, these human tribes suffered the most. Not just from the torrential floods resulting from the Celestial Starwater, but mountains and land masses floated up and crashed into the sky. The collision destroyed the stars, dimming the sky and unleashing a terrifying nova that pulverized the land even more.
All this happened in a few moments. If this continued, heaven and earth would return to chaos within the day.
The Saints of Heaven appeared and took action to halt the destruction of the Great Desolation.
Yuanshi summoned the Pangu Banner to halt the descending sky. Laozi brought out the Taiji Diagram in an attempt to push it back. Nuwa also appeared and used the Mountain and River Diagram to aid Laozi.
Redcloud Ancestor appeared next. Under his control, red clouds appeared and diverted the Celestial Starwater and suppressed the land from floating up, allowing all life on the land to sigh in relief.
Jieyin and Zhunti appeared next. It had taken some time due to the distance, but they still arrived quickly. Embarrassingly, they didn't have any suitable artifacts like Laozi, Yuanshi, and Nuwa to prop up the sky. They could only rely on their spells to delay the collapse of the sky.
"We managed to temporarily stop the sky from collapsing, but this isn't a long-term solution," Nuwa said.
Laozi nodded. "Junior Sister is correct. We need to find something to replace the broken pillar of heaven."
"Unfortunately, the West is too barren and does not contain any suitable materials," Jieyin said. If there were, he wouldn't mind using them. Replacing the heavenly pillar was of great merit and could bring prosperity faster to the West.
Redcloud Ancestor furrowed his brows, and hesitation appeared on his face.
"Daoist Redcloud, do you know anything?" Zhunti asked. "Repairing the pillar of heaven is of the utmost importance for the Great Desolation."
Redcloud Ancestor sighed. "I have a friend who lives in the North. He possesses the power of a peak Quasi-Saint, but he can't transform because his body is too powerful. Just his size alone is over a hundred thousand li. His four legs should be able to replace the heavenly pillar."
Upon hearing this, all the Saint's eyes lit up. Zhunti said, "Hurry and bring him over. We can't hesitate. What's one life compared to the whole Great Desolation?"
Redcloud Ancestor nodded with some melancholy, but he steeled his heart and prepared to fly northward. But before he could, Yuanshi spoke. "Wait."
All the Saints turned to him but saw him looking westward. They followed his line of sight and noticed it too. At the juncture between East and West, a tree sprouted out of the ground. The tree possessed bronze-colored bark and iron-colored leaves. It appeared small, but in a few breathes, it grew endlessly until it touched the sky. The trunk thickened until it was around a tenth of the base of Buzhou Mountain.
The Saints sensed the Starry Sky halt in its descent, disentangling from the land below. The tree's branches held the remaining stars in place, and the leaves glittered like stars.
"The world tree is propping up the Starry Sky, but it's not enough," Yuanshi said with a frown. He looked towards Redcloud Ancestor. "It seems that you still have to make the trip."
Redcloud Ancestor prepared to move, but just as he did, he stopped. He and the other Saints looked towards the North, where they saw a woman in red flying over. Behind her, four gigantic pillars followed.
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Tongtian sighed. She was currently with Lingbao next to the connate spiritual root. After the Allheaven Jianmu Tree started to grow and support heaven and earth from merging, the Way of Heaven took over and guided the Allheaven Jianmu Tree's growth.
Alas, the Allheaven Jianmu Tree wasn't enough to support the sky alone. It had not matured enough, and it seemed Xuangui needed to fulfill his original fate.
Tongtian's figure disappeared as she started to teleport to the North, leaving Lingbao to look after the Allheaven Jianmu Tree. Not long later, in the Darknorth Sea, she saw a massive turtle standing on its legs, looking up. The bottom half of the turtle's shell had completely risen above the water, and the legs were longer than the depth of the sea.
"Xuangui," Tongtian said.
Xuangui turned away from the sky and looked at Tongtian. "I finally know why I can't transform."
Tongtian wanted to smile, but she couldn't. How pitiful was Xuangui? He possessed a body stronger than the titans and was invincible in all the Great Desolation if you ignored the Saints. Yet, his fate was to be slaughtered, his legs turned into pillars to support the sky.
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"Go ahead, I'm ready," Xuangui said as he closed his eyes, ready to accept its fate.
"Wait," Tongtian said. Xuangui opened his eyes and looked at Tongtian with some confusion. "Although your body will be refined into four pillars to support the sky, you can still grab some benefits."
"What do you mean?" Xuangui asked as some spark returned to his eyes.
"If you willingly offer up your legs, endless merits will descend," Tongtian said.
"What use are merits if I'm dead?" Xuangui asked.
Tongtian shook her head. "Your body may die, but your soul will be reincarnated. The Underworld has formed, and all life that died can be reincarnated with a new life. As long as you cultivate back to the Quasi-Saint Realm, you can regain your memories. Even if you haven't awakened your memories, the Way of Heaven will continuously bestow merits upon you. In your new life, you won't need to be trapped in the North anymore!"
Xuangui turned silent before he met Tongtian’s gaze firmly. "Thank you. I hope we can be friends in the next life too."
He looked up at the sky once more. "The Way of Heaven above, I, Xuangui, offer my body to support the sky from collapsing into the ground!"
Because the Way of Heaven was busy with the collapsing sky, Xuangui's voice did not reach all of the Great Desolation. Golden lights emitted from his body. His body began to shrink, while his legs grew and thickened, becoming pillars. In the end, only a turtle shell and four pillars were left.
Tongtian sighed once more as she saw Xuangui's soul fly toward the Underworld. She waved her hand and stored the turtle shell, but she couldn't store the four pillars. Left with no choice, she carried the four pillars with her to Yuanshi.
"Third Sister?" Yuanshi called out.
Tongtian nodded. "Second Brother, you have the Qiankun Cauldron and reigned supreme in artificing. You should refine these into four heavenly pillars to support the Allheaven Jianmu Tree in supporting the sky.
Yuanshi nodded in understanding and waved his arm, taking out the Qiankun Cauldron. All the Saints looked at the Qiankun Cauldron with desire, but thinking about Yuanshi and Laozi's strength, hid them.
"Senior Brother, please wait," Nuwa said. She waved her hand, and several five-colored stones appeared in her hand. "While I was living in the chaotic boundary, I happened across these Five Element Chaos Stones. If you add them to the pillar, it should increase their strength."
Yuanshi nodded. The Qiankun Cauldron expanded several times, and the four pillars and Five Element Chaos Stones flew in. A gray and black flame lit under the Qiankun Cauldron, and Yuanshi started to refine the auxiliary heavenly pillars. During this process, the Saints continued to support the sky, aiding the Allheaven Jianmu Tree. They and Tongtian also observed Yuanshi.
"Daoist Tongtian should retreat, it's not safe for non-Saints," Zhunti suddenly said.
Tongtian's eyes cooled as she lightly glanced at Zhunti. "Junior Brother doesn't need to worry about my affairs."
Zhunti smiled like the embodiment of compassion and clapped his hands together. "Unfortunate, unfortunate. If Daoist Tongtian had stayed away, Daoist Redcloud would not have lost his chance to attain merits."
Tongtian's eyes cooled even more. Was he trying to sow discord with her and Redcloud Ancestor? "Since when have you cared so much about Daoist Redcloud's affairs?"
"Daoist Redcloud is my great benefactor," Zhunti said. "Had it not been for him, I would not have become Master's disciple."
Tongtian sneered. "What a great relationship you have with Daoist Redcloud. But why did you stand by when he was in danger?"
Zhunti was not perturbed by Tongtian's word. "Alas, I was in the West and could not sense Daoist Redcloud's situation. If I could, I would have come to his side as soon as possible."
"As soon as he died, right?" Tongtian pressed.
"Daoist Tongtian, are you questioning my character?" Zhunti asked, finally losing some of the compassion on his face.
"Yes, I am, Junior Brother," Tongtian said.
As the air between Tongtian and Zhunti turned tense, Yuanshi's voice echoed. "Enough."
Tongtian snorted and looked away.
"I'll give Daoist Yuanshi face and won't say anymore," Zhunti said as he closed his eyes and continued to support the sky.
At this time, Redcloud Ancestor spoke. "It's good that you took Xuangui's legs. Had it not been for Daoist Tongtian, there would be no Saint Redcloud today."
Zhunti's face stiffened for a brief moment, but he kept his smile and closed his eyes until they turned into crescents. Tongtian nodded toward Redcloud Ancestor and said. "You don't have to worry about Daoist Xuangui."
Tongtian didn't say anything more. Who knows if Jieyin and Zhunti would kidnap Xuangui's reincarnation and take him as a disciple? Xuangui would receive continuous merits, which would increase the West's prosperity.
Although Redcloud Ancestor didn't know what Tongtian planned, he still trusted Tongtian. Aside from Zhen Yuanzi, Redcloud Ancestor trusted Tongtian most of all the people he knew.
The Saints continued to support the sky while Yuanshi continued to refine Xuangui's legs. Finally, he finished. "Form!"
Four streams of light shot out of the Qiankun Cauldron toward the East, South, West, and North. When they landed at the edge of the Great Desolation, massive pillars only shorter than the Allheaven Jianmu Tree appeared.
Of note, Tongtian noticed that a stray piece of the Five Element Chaos Stone that had not been used had fallen out into the Great Desolation. She quietly made a note of where it fell and felt the changes in the Allheaven Jianmu Tree.
With the aid of the four additional heavenly pillars, the Allheaven Jianmu Tree successfully propped up the sky. The Saints stored their spells and artifacts once they detected the sky no longer falling. In fact, it started to rise, its stability more solid than when Buzhou Mountain was still the Heavenly Pillar. No longer could a force summon the Starry Sky so close to the land easily.
The Thirty-Three Heavens shifted until it was directly atop the Allheaven Jianmu Tree, while the Underworld shifted until it was connected to the roots. With this complete, the Great Desolation was separated into three realms: heaven, earth, and mortal.
Once the sky stabilized, the Way of Heaven bestowed merits.
The Way of Heaven used the essence of the Dragon Ancestor, Phoenix Ancestor, Qilin Ancestor, and Xuangui to strengthen the four supporting heavenly pillars. On the East Pillar of Heaven, the engraving of the Azure Dragon emerged; on the South Pillar of Heaven, the engraving of the Vermillion Bird emerged; on the West Pillar of Heaven, the engraving of the White Tiger emerged; on the North Pillar of Heaven, the engraving of the Black Tortoise emerged.
Then, the clouds of merits appeared above the Saints and Tongtian. To the Saints' shock, sixty percent flowed to Tongtian. Yuanshi received twenty-five percent of the merit. Nuwa gained five percent, and the last ten percent was split among the remaining Saints.
They didn't have time to question why Tongtian received so many merits as they turned their eyes toward the ownerless artifact. Predominantly the Titanslayer sword, but mostly the Chaos Bell.
Just as they were about to start to compete, a coercion emanated from the Allheaven Jianmu Tree. All the Saints recognize it was the consecration of a new Saint of Heaven. They turned toward Tongtian, but it wasn’t her who was ascending to Sainthood.
Like them, her expression was a frown but for a different reason.
From the direction of the Allheaven Jianmu Tree, a voice echoed through the Great Desolation.
"I am Lingbao, the Heavenly Venerable of Numinous Treasures! I am the master of the Allheaven Jianmu Tree, the Central Pillar of Heaven!"