Chapter Ninety-Three: The Heavenly Gate Opens Again, Farewell to Blue Star

We made one last journey through every corner of Penglai Immortal Isle.

Yiyi returned to the chamber where she had first awakened and sat by the window in silence for a long time. Jiang Xiaobai went to the cave where she kept her collection of sparkling treasures and carefully rearranged every stone and shell inside.

As for me, I stood upon the Sea-Viewing Terrace and, one final time, bade farewell to this blue planet with my divine sense.

I saw human cities growing ever more prosperous, their technology advancing by leaps and bounds. I saw war and peace alternate upon the stage of the world, while life persisted with unyielding tenacity.

I also saw that the land in Africa where I had once summoned rain had since become an oasis, and the legend of the Rain Goddess was still being sung by later generations.

I even saw, in the ruins of Syria, the old woman descended from the orphan I had once saved, generations removed though she was, cradling her grandson as she told him a story of a guardian deity.

There was no regret in my heart, only a faint trace of melancholy.

“Is everything ready?” I asked softly.

“Yes.” Yiyi and Jiang Xiaobai came to my side and nodded heavily. Though reluctance lingered in their eyes, there was even more longing for the future, and resolve.

“Then let us go.”

The three of us turned into three streaks of flowing light and entered the Star River Palace one final time, and this time, with utter determination.

Within the great hall, the nine spirit stones still hovered quietly at their respective nodes, as if waiting for their true masters.

“This time, we will not fail again.”

Standing at the heart of the grand formation, I released the vast divine sense and power of my Divine Transformation stage without reservation.

“In the name of Jiang Xiuyuan, I command the Nine Stars: reopen the Heavenly Gate!”

I formed hand seals with both hands and uttered the true incantation. My voice was not loud, yet it seemed to contain the supreme principles of the cosmos, stirring the entire formation into resonance.

Buzz—

The nine spirit stones erupted at once with light a thousand, ten thousand times more intense than nine hundred years ago. The entire hall was drenched in brilliant gold.

No longer did I need Yiyi or Xiaobai to assist me; with my strength alone, I was enough to drive this magnificent array that bridged the cosmos.

Above the dome of the hall, that familiar, deep vortex of starlight appeared once more.

But this time, it was no illusion, no unstable ripple. It expanded and took shape with irresistible force, until at last it became a majestic Heavenly Gate a hundred zhang high, formed from endless stars and radiating an immense, boundless aura.

From beyond the gate came spiritual energy so dense it was almost suffocating, along with countless powerful, savage, ancient auras.

There, it was a true world of cultivation—one rich with spiritual energy, filled with mighty experts, endless sects, and a myriad of races vying for supremacy.

“Stay close to me.”

I turned back and gave my two daughters a faint smile.

Then I took the first step and entered the star-bright Heavenly Gate.

The instant I passed through, it felt as though I had crossed a thin veil of water.

The world before me opened wide at once.

No longer was it Earth’s gentle blue sky and drifting white clouds, but an unfamiliar expanse of heavens, boundless and resplendent with strange colors. Suspended in that sky were three suns of different sizes, casting light so brilliant that every detail of the land stood revealed.

Rich spiritual energy rushed at me from the air, so pure that every pore in my body seemed to open in delight.

Beneath my feet stretched an endless primeval mountain range, its peaks piercing the clouds, its ancient trees blotting out the sky. From time to time, enormous unknown beasts with ferocious auras flashed through the forest, their thunderous roars shaking the heavens.

Everything here brimmed with primal, wild, and formidable vitality.

“Wow...” Jiang Xiaobai could not help exclaiming, instinctively sensing the affinity this world held for her.

Yiyi also looked around curiously, her eyes shining with wonder.

Just then, the great Star River Heavenly Gate behind us, having fulfilled its purpose, slowly drew in its light, shrank into a point, and vanished without a trace.

Our connection to Earth was severed completely.

“Father, where are we going now?” Yiyi asked, looking up.

I raised my gaze toward this strange sky. My divine sense from the Divine Transformation stage had already sensed countless auras of varying strengths, scattered across every corner of this continent.

“Where?”

I looked into the distance, where sword light seemed to pierce the heavens, where grand cities stood, and where countless unknown things awaited our discovery.

“First, let us find a place and learn more about this new world.”

“Then we will explore this unknown land together, and search for any trace of Senior Guixu.”