The moon set and the Big Dipper hung low in the sky.

Chen Weichen made his way up the mountain, climbing over the high walls and concealing himself in the corner of the grand palace. The moonlight cast shadows of the flying eaves on the ground, crisscrossing like sharp teeth.

From time to time, guards or maidservants carrying lanterns passed by. The closer to the center, the quieter the surroundings became.

As the night deepened, the shadows disappeared.

Chen Weichen looked up and saw the stars and moon gradually fading.

A deep rumble came from the horizon, and dark clouds gathered. It was thunder.

The Demon Emperor's Palace was built against the mountain. At the entrance, two stone beasts crouched, surrounded by several small halls. Beyond the main gate was a long flight of steps leading up to an extremely high and magnificent palace with pointed roofs, towering pavilions, and countless upturned eaves.

From what he had seen along the way, the carved beams and painted rafters were truly as majestic as an imperial palace, yet still different.

The palaces of the human world emphasized balance, harmony, and moderation. Even if there were flying eaves and high towers, they were used as exquisite decorations.

Here, it was different. The eaves and rooftops were sharp and pointed, piercing straight into the sky. The decorative elements were also grotesque rocks, looking eerie and frightening in the night.

Soldiers lined up along the long steps, while maidservants stood respectfully to the side.

As the maidservants carrying lanterns hurried towards the main hall, their gauzy skirts fluttering with each step, they whispered, "The heavenly thunder is sounding. His Majesty is about to emerge from seclusion!"

Young Master Chen sighed softly—it was truly unfortunate timing for him to come out of seclusion now.

While everyone's attention was focused on the tightly closed bronze doors at the top of the long steps, he slipped away from the corner.

The higher he went up the mountain, the lighter the restraints of the Heavenly Dao became on him. At this point, he could already control his qi.

With a few leaps, he circled around the main hall, moving through the shadows, following the pull of the qi towards the direction where the Heavenly Dao's restraints were the lightest.

—After making a full circle, he arrived at the back of the main hall.

By now, the thunder clouds had gathered, and the stars and moon were obscured, leaving everything in pitch darkness. Occasionally, a few rooms in the palace emitted a faint light, making it extremely convenient for movement.

He lightly stepped on the eaves and walls, his exquisite brocade robes from the mortal world not hindering him in the slightest. Instead, they fluttered elegantly, the patterns on his sleeves shimmering like flowing water under the dim light. His entire being was like a light and thin fallen leaf in the autumn wind, floating through the window into the corridor.

Following the palace layout through a complex and winding path, he finally arrived silently at its core.

A deep and obscure aura gradually intensified. He concealed his entire body in the shadows at the corner of the wall, watching the person descending the spiral staircase.

The footsteps were extremely regular, and a deep purple robe trailed down the stone steps. The lamps on the walls lit up one by one, illuminating a face.

In terms of appearance, it was passable. However, the corners of the eyes were slightly upturned, fortunately suppressed by a hint of fierceness between the brows, preventing it from appearing frivolous. The light was not bright, so the color of the lips was unclear, but one could roughly tell that they should be a bit red, with a hint of gloomy allure.

The person walked down the stairs, and two veiled maidservants carrying lanterns bowed to him.

Chen Weichen held his breath and waited until the person's back disappeared at the end of the long corridor before ascending the spiral staircase.

The top of the staircase did not lead to a chamber. Instead, the palace was built against the mountain, and passing through a crescent-shaped archway brought him out onto the summit.

The mountain ranges stretched like the undulating spine of a giant python, and this was the highest point of that spine.

Chen Weichen walked forward and saw a mirror-like pond with no ripples.

By the spring, small flowers grew, their overlapping petals emitting a white glow like the bright moon, swaying gently in the night breeze, as if in a dream.

He slowly approached and discovered that the pond was only half there.

The other half, the other half—had been cleanly cut away, because on that side was a flat cliff and a vast abyss.

The pond reflected the flowers and the night sky, but as he stood very close, he couldn't see his own reflection.

Suddenly, with a drip, ripples appeared on the surface of the pond. Chen Weichen looked up at the sky and saw the purple qi in the Xingluo Abyss rising, swirling and condensing into a translucent water droplet that fell into the pond.

The Heavenly Dao's suppression on Chen Weichen had dwindled to an almost imperceptible thread. He closed his eyes, and all kinds of greed, delusion, sorrow, and joy surged in his heart. Finally, for a brief moment, he truly lived like any ordinary person in the mortal world.

However, the Xingluo Abyss was not a void like the Guixu, and time did not allow him to live for another moment.

This should be the spring of the Nine Nether Heavenly Spring, but the entire spring did not have the same aura as the Kaiyang Blood, Annihilation Incense or Jinxiu Ashes.

Young Master Chen was a bit perplexed for a moment. He picked a slender blade of grass from the shore and stirred the spring water, wondering if he needed to search for the essence of the spring water accumulated over many years at the bottom of the pool.

As a result, as soon as the grass blade entered the water, it immediately dissolved into wisps of black qi without a trace. The black qi spread along the grass blade, and if Chen Weichen hadn't let go quickly, it would have devoured his fingers.

He untied the jade belt that bound his hair and touched the water again. It remained intact.

The muffled thunder rumbled in the sky, but it seemed to be blocked by something and ultimately did not fall.

Lightning flashed intermittently in the churning clouds, reflecting on Chen Weichen's expressionless profile.

His fingertip slowly pointed towards the water surface. Just as his fingertip was about to touch the water, a voice sounded from behind him: "Have you thought it through?"

Chen Weichen stood up and turned his head to see the Demon Emperor, who had returned, leaning against the doorway with a hint of playfulness in his brows.

The thunder suddenly grew louder.

The Demon Emperor looked up at the sky with his arms crossed: "The Heavenly Dao doesn't want me to see you."

Chen Weichen glanced at him indifferently: "I don't want to either."

The Demon Emperor raised his eyebrows at him: "You came all the way here, yet you don't want to see me?"

Chen Weichen: "Why should I see you?"

"My surname is Xing, given name Qiu," the Demon Emperor sighed, talking to himself. "The day I was born was the start of autumn. As the autumn wind rose, myriad leaves withered and fell."

Chen Weichen had no intention of listening to him talk about these things and merely listened indifferently.

The Demon Emperor didn't seem to mind whether he had an audience or not: "I often think that being born at this time means I am destined to do great things."

Hearing these words, the bit of mischievousness in Chen Weichen's bones couldn't help but surface. He let out a soft scoff: "I was born on the Mid-Autumn Festival. According to you, what great things am I supposed to do then?"

"On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, families in the mortal world gather and reunite. You probably won't be able to do anything great. Living an ordinary life in the mortal world would be good enough for you."

Hearing this, Chen Weichen felt very satisfied: "That's good then. I'll believe you this once."

The Demon Emperor shook his head at him: "Lacking ambition."

Then he turned his head and surveyed the mountain summit: "Do you know what lies beyond the Xingluo Abyss?"

"I don't know."

"It is an unreachable place," the Demon Emperor said. "This world was born from chaos, and will eventually come to an end. This is where it ends, where you and I reside before birth and after death."

Chen Weichen remained silent, a hint of weariness in his expression.

"The immortal way across the Heavenly River believes that following the heavenly Dao can make one equal to the sun and moon. But as long as we live under the heavenly Dao, we are bound by its constraints and cannot attain immortality. Do you not wish for immortality?"

"I just find you annoying," Chen Weichen replied with a hint of nonchalance. "Why did I come to seek you out?"

"You are truly unpleasant," the Demon Emperor seemed greatly aggrieved. "I saw that your cultivation was on par with mine, and thought you were different from those who only know to kill me and seize my position, disturbing my peace. That's why I didn't kill you when you quietly came up the mountain without causing trouble, wanting to discuss the Dao with you - yet you find me annoying."

He scrutinized Chen Weichen again and exclaimed, "Your cultivation is quite strange. Why is that?"

According to the immortal way's classification, Chen Weichen was merely at the first level heavenly realm. His ominous fate created the illusion of profound cultivation, but in reality, his only combat power came from the sword in his hand—the transformed Ye Jiuya. His original cultivation was quite ordinary, so it was unsurprising for someone like the Demon Emperor to see through it.

Unexpectedly, after the Demon Emperor circled around him a few times and pondered for a while, he said, "I originally thought your realm was equal to mine, but now it seems it surpasses mine."

This was quite perplexing.