Chapter 1019: Gathering of Stars

The Ancient Treasury of the Opera Path.

A pair of slender, jade-white feet stepped lightly onto the water, sending ripples spreading outward.

Her black dress swayed in the breeze like a rose dancing in a dim world. Liu Qingyan walked slowly forward across the shimmering lake, the only sound being the tinkling of her footsteps on the water.

A faint mist lingered over the lake. Liu Qingyan reached the very center and finally slowed to a stop.

She lifted her hem and bowed respectfully toward the void in front of her.

"Master, I’ve come to take you home."

Drip—

A single drop of water fell onto the lake surface.

Between the dark, heavy clouds, a hidden, bright moon slowly outlined itself. The pure white moonlight flowed like a clear spring, washing over every corner of this world and illuminating Liu Qingyan’s beautiful, gentle cheeks...

At the same time, a headless corpse slowly surfaced from beneath the lake.

It was the body of a woman. Her neck looked as if it had been severed by someone, the cut incredibly smooth, now seemingly frozen by the frost-like moonlight. She was draped in a simple gray robe, quiet and peaceful.

Between the hands folded over her chest, a playing card was clearly visible.

It depicted a figure shrouded in shadow, arms crossed over their chest, head bowed as if in repentance or sorrow...

It was a gray [JOKER].

Liu Qingyan pointed at the lake water, and a gray coffin rose from the bottom. The water slid off the surface of the coffin without leaving a single trace...

Liu Qingyan bowed deeply to the corpse, then picked it up and placed it neatly into the coffin.

After finishing, Liu Qingyan closed the coffin lid and hoisted it onto her back.

She walked step by step toward the shore.

Compared to the coffin, the young girl’s frame was somewhat petite, but Liu Qingyan didn't seem to struggle. Her black dress danced with her steps, and the faint mist circled her, as if veiling her in a mysterious shroud.

She lifted her hand gently, and a red thread extended from her, pointing toward a certain direction in the void...

"Master..."

"I’m taking you to find him."

The girl in the black dress, carrying the coffin, gradually vanished into the mist.

……

The Tian-Shu Domain.

The massive conference room was deathly silent.

The Master of the Heaven-Reaching Tower sat at the head of the table, his gaze sweeping slowly over everyone in the room. He said slowly:

"...Everyone, does no one have anything to say?"

Those sitting in this conference room now were all high-ranking officials within the Tian-Shu Domain. In the past, all important decisions related to the Tian-Shu Domain were made in this room...

And serious meetings like this were being held simultaneously in several other domains.

"The Silver King, is he trying to whitewash his reputation?" one person said in a deep voice. "He wants to brand himself as a hero of humanity to disrupt the hearts of the people in our domains?"

"If that’s the case, his methods are too clumsy."

"Besides that, he might have a deeper motive..."

Everyone fell into deep thought.

"Regardless, we cannot sit idly by, or we will fall into a passive position," another person mused. "The most critical issue now is that we must figure out what the Silver King wants to do..."

"We must also prepare for the worst."

"There are still a large number of civilians in the Wuji Domain. Once the Silver King really wants to start a war, those civilians will inevitably suffer... And as long as those civilians are there, we cannot launch a large-scale strike on the Wuji Domain."

"Didn't the Ruling Proxy Group take the 'Bridge' into the Wuji Domain before? Can we think of a way from that angle?"

"Assembling the 'Bridge' isn't that easy. After the Wuji Domain changed hands, the original members of the Ruling Proxy Group were either killed or went into hiding among the civilians... It’s not that simple to rebuild the 'Bridge'."

"It’s a pity we don't have enough manpower in the Wuji Domain, otherwise..."

Just as everyone was deliberating, a figure at the edge of the conference room suddenly stood up.

"I’ll go."

Everyone looked over. The one speaking was none other than one of the newly selected holders of the Heaven-Reaching Star position, the former Young Sect Master of the Esoteric Sect, Huai Mang.

The young man’s face was full of determination. He repeated himself:

"I am willing to go to the Wuji Domain to gather intelligence and, at the same time, organize the personnel scattered among the people to rebuild the 'Bridge' as soon as possible."

As soon as he stood up, the other Heaven-Reaching Star holders sitting nearby couldn't sit still. After exchanging glances and hesitating for a moment, they also stood up one after another...

"We’ll go together."

The Heaven-Reaching Star position contained the destiny of humanity; no matter what they did, their situation wouldn't be too dire... At the moment, they were indeed the best choice to head to the Wuji Domain.

The Master of the Heaven-Reaching Tower scanned the crowd and, after consulting with others, nodded slightly:

"Very well. Then you will act as the vanguard and secretly head to the Wuji Domain..."

The meeting ended quickly. As they walked out of the conference room, everyone was clearly worried. The Silver King’s move had left everyone baffled... but for some reason, they all had an ominous premonition.

The Young Sect Master followed behind the others, about to leave, when a voice came from behind:

"Huai Mang."

The Young Sect Master stopped. The one who called him was none other than the Master of the Heaven-Reaching Tower, the actual controller of the Tian-Shu Domain.

"I know why you want to go to the Wuji Domain," the Tower Master looked into his eyes and said earnestly. "But you must be clear: the brother of yours currently in the Wuji Domain... is very likely no longer himself. Don't do anything foolish."

The Young Sect Master’s heart jolted slightly. After a long silence, he nodded slightly:

"Yes, I know."

After warning the Young Sect Master, the Tower Master didn't linger. He walked alone through the long corridor toward the depths of the Heaven-Reaching Tower.

There was no one in the tower at this time. The Tower Master walked deep inside, the surroundings deathly silent. However, his mind was entirely focused on the Silver King’s plan, and he didn't notice that the environment around him was undergoing subtle changes...

The lights in the tower gradually dimmed. The bright corridor seemed endless, and faint opera singing drifted from the void, as if masking the Tower Master’s perception. Even as an Eighth-Rank, he didn't realize anything was wrong.

Perhaps because he had walked this path for too long, when the Tower Master suddenly came to his senses, the lights in the entire corridor exploded, and the surroundings plunged into total darkness!

His hair stood on end, and his Divine Path activated almost instantly, but the next moment, a warm palm was placed silently against the back of his head...

Crackle—crackle—

A faint sound of electricity rang out from behind him. A beam of light from above, like a spotlight, lit up in the darkness, projecting onto the space behind him.

There, a young man draped in an opera robe curled his lips into a faint smile...