Chapter Eighty-Nine: The Fragmented Star Map, a Glimpse of Fate

A deep, ancient hum reverberated through the great hall, echoing as if from the dawn of time.

The Star Track Array, dormant for two thousand years, was suddenly ignited by the infusion of energy from eight spirit stones. Countless lines blazed with dazzling light, like awakened rivers of stars, beginning to swirl and flow slowly.

The vast surges of energy roiled within the hall, distorting the very fabric of space. My eyes, sharp as lightning, stayed fixed upon the heart of the array. According to my memory, when Elder Guixu had once restored nine spirit stones to their places, the core of the array would open a stable singularity in space.

Yet the scene before me was nothing like I anticipated.

Eight torrents of energy converged at the center, but as they neared the ninth, most crucial vacant node, they collided as if against an invisible barrier, instantly dissolving into chaos.

The entire array flickered erratically, its brilliance wild and unstable.

Above the hall, light and shadow wove together, casting a vast, incomplete star map across the vault. The map was strange and mesmerizing: countless phantom stars flickered in and out of existence, broken galaxies appeared and vanished, burning suns flared and dimmed, and even fragments of bizarre, unfamiliar warships from unknown civilizations flashed by.

The sheer density of information would drive any astronomer mad, but all the visions were shattered, twisted, ambiguous—like a television caught in static, unable to lock onto a clear channel.

I understood then.

The Star River Array had been activated, but without the pivotal ninth spirit stone—the “coordinate locator”—it could not fix the correct spatial marker. It was as if a compass had lost its destination, only able to snatch at random, chaotic fragments amid the endless currents of space and time.

“Only the last piece remains…”

My brows furrowed. I extended my hand, attempting to stabilize the array with the force of my Dao and to extrapolate clues to the ninth spirit stone.

But the moment my power touched the chaotic energy flow, it was repelled by an even greater, more unruly force of spatial law.

I staggered back, blood surging, unable to withstand the counterforce.

Forceful deduction was futile.

I waved my hand, dispelling the array’s energy and letting the eight spirit stones return to my grasp. The hall fell silent, as if the cataclysmic scene had never occurred.

I gazed at the eight stones in my palm, lost in thought.

What exactly was the ninth spirit stone—and where was it?

As the core of the array, it must be the most extraordinary and unique of them all, yet no clue came to mind. It was as if its existence had been deliberately erased from causality itself.

There was only one path left: to seek the records.

My gaze turned toward the depths of the Immortal Palace.

The Pavilion of Ten Thousand Scrolls in Penglai Immortal Palace.

There lay countless techniques, secrets, star maps, and ancient tomes.

I carefully stowed the eight spirit stones, then turned and walked toward the rear mountain.

The Pavilion of Ten Thousand Scrolls.

A wave of scents greeted me—ancient parchment, jade slips, and the faint fragrance of ink—filling me with a nostalgia long absent.

I stepped inside.

Within, the space was ingeniously expanded by spatial arrays; every level was stretched to its utmost. Rows of towering bookshelves stood like a forest, laden with scrolls, jade slips, animal hides, metal plates, and even glowing information blocks made from special crystals.

Any single artifact here would stir bloodshed in the ancient martial world, but my mind was not on such treasures.

I proceeded up the stairs, ascending level by level.

The first floor: histories and miscellany of the mundane realm.

The second: foundational cultivation methods and insights.

The third: arts of alchemy, forging, and array formation.

Within this vast library, I searched desperately for answers.

As I puzzled over the mystery, voices suddenly rang out crisply from outside the pavilion—Yi Yi and Little White calling.

“Father! Are you inside? We brought something good for you!”

Awakened from my reverie, I put away the jade slip and descended.

When I stepped out the tower door and saw the scene before me, I was momentarily stunned.

Emerging from the Pavilion, I found Yi Yi and Little White standing outside, brimming with excitement like two little girls eager to present a treasure.

“Father, look what we found!” Yi Yi held something out to me, offering it with delight.

It was a stone.

A fist-sized stone, shimmering with a dreamlike, rainbow-hued glassy glow. It had no fixed shape, seeming instead a solidified, flowing light. Most remarkable of all, I sensed from it an ineffable vitality.

It felt as if it was breathing, perceiving, resonating with all the world around it.

My gaze froze.

“Where did this come from?” My voice was dry with shock.

“It’s Little White’s treasure!” Yi Yi laughed, pointing to Little White beside her.

Little White scratched her head in embarrassment, her six bushy tails swaying uneasily behind her. “I… I found it on the island long ago. It was so shiny and pretty, I kept it in my cave. Today, while sorting things with Yi Yi, she said it looked a lot like the stones you showed us before, so we brought it for you to see.”

I took the stone, its warmth pulsing in my hand, as if I held a living heart.

Carefully, I infused it with my spiritual sense.

Little White, the six-tailed immortal fox who had spent six thousand lonely years on the immortal island, her heart pure as fresh snow—she had no idea what this stone was, simply loved it for its beauty. That most fundamental affection was, in truth, the only key to obtaining it!

I had scoured the world, searched every forbidden land, never imagining that the final, most crucial spirit stone had been quietly lying in my own sanctuary—within a cave on Penglai Immortal Island!

It was the greatest irony, the shadow cast by the lantern beneath its own flame.

Unable to hold back, I burst into laughter, filled with relief and wonder.

“I’ve found it… At last, I’ve found it!”