“Why proclaim myself king?” Qianye wasn’t too interested.

“You might not know, but actually, you’ve already built something fitting of Evernight standards,” Song Zining said.

“You mean… Fort Continent?”

“Yes.”

“What does that have to do with the current situation?”

“If you join the Sacred Mountain, you will become a member of the Evernight Council. The Spider Queen has said so herself, even a supreme cannot decide everything. Even with Nighteye helping you, the two of you won’t be at an advantage if the others team up against you. How can humans feel at ease following you?”

The Spider Queen frowned but said nothing.

“I don’t want to be king…”

“It’s not about what you want at this point. There’s no escaping the current predicament. Have you not had enough of being taken advantage of? Why would you not take things into your own hands instead of letting those weaklings bully you?” Song Zining wasn’t holding back.

The Spider Queen said, “Becoming a supreme is no different from proclaiming yourself king.”

Song Zining said indifferently, “Qianye is the strongest among the supremes, and he will surely be able to suppress the Sacred Mountain in the future. Why then should he team up with you people and suffer the restraints?”

The Spider Queen sneered, “Of course, I know how strong he is, but it’ll be too excessive to say that the first drop of blood can suppress the Holy Mountain.”

Song Zining laughed. “Do supremes only see as far as the River of Blood? The river’s true secret is chaos! An energy that can contain anything and everything, the origin of all existence!”

The Spider Queen was somewhat shaken. Clearly, she did not know the true face of the first drop of blood. All she knew was that Qianye cultivated chaos origin power, an origin power on par with Andruil’s mirage moon origin power. She did not know how that origin power was related to the river.

“Qianye’s future is not as an expert of Evernight, but as a daybreak heavenly monarch! The heavenly monarch realm is but the beginning of the path. The only problem was that the environment here would make it difficult for him to progress. Now that the human race’s accelerated fortune is coming to an end, our lifespan will increase greatly. What’s stopping him from reaching the next level? Do you think being the leader of Evernight is so awesome?” Song Zining spoke rapidly and ruthlessly.

The Spider Queen was livid. “Daybreak and Evernight are two extremes of the spectrum. There’s no way to compare the two.”

“That might be true, but the path you people are on is wrong. Just because you cannot achieve certain things doesn’t mean Qianye cannot.”

The Spider Queen fell into deep thought instead of getting angry. “Then what is the path we should be taking?”

Song Zining was stunned. He glanced at the Spider Queen to make sure that she wasn’t joking.

After some hesitation, Song Zining said, “Every race has its own path. The path of an outsider can only be referenced but not copied. That’s why you’ll have to explore and figure out the true path—it will not drop down from the sky. For instance, the human race built a path for ordinary humans to contribute to the race by leveraging black stone, steam, and kinetic power. The immortal path is great, but not everyone can follow it.”

The Spider Queen listened attentively. “Thank you for the advice.”

Song Zining looked rather embarrassed. “I’m not the one who figured out this reasoning. It was a culmination of the knowledge of countless predecessors.”

Qianye still had no idea what he wanted to do after listening to all that.

Song Zining asked, “Qianye, did you figure out what your path was when you ascended to the heavenly monarch realm?”

“My path… let it be. That has nothing to do with the present.” Qianye shook his head.

Song Zining didn’t pressure him, either. Instead, he passed him a jade piece. “This is for you.”

Qianye picked up the yellowish piece of jade and found that it was a box that could be opened. A strange sensation came over him when the box entered his hands, almost as though something was resonating with his life.

“What is it?”

“Feather of Fortunate Omens, something Marshal Lin left for Prince Greensun before his passing. Monarch Zhang gave it to me without opening it, and I’m now handing it to you.”

“What is that thing? Why didn’t you guys open it?” Qianye was curious.

“This is a gift from Marshal Lin. Who would dare open it recklessly? After pondering, I think you are best suited to receive it.” Song Zining seemed to be suppressing his laughter.

Qianye was puzzled. He was just about to put away the jade container when it popped open. Countless feathers flew out from the box and entered Qianye’s body.

Qianye trembled all over. He then closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

The Spider Queen was startled. She wanted to reach out but Song Zining stopped her midway, shaking his head.

At this point, even the supremes of Evernight were wary of Lin Xitang. Since this was an item left behind by the man, even Rosnia—known for her unparalleled physique—wasn’t willing to touch it.

Song Zining waited in silence.

This wait lasted for an entire hour.

Seeing no signs that Qianye would wake up, the Spider Queen looked a bit anxious. Song Zining, on the other hand, was as unmoved as a mountain.

“Are you not afraid?” the Spider Queen asked. She found this supposed successor of Lin Xitang’s divination arts rather interesting.

“I won’t die, whether or not the Chronicle of Glory succeeds. I have nothing to fear.” Song Zining laughed.

The Spider Queen felt a bit angry but not enough to act up.

It was at this moment that Qianye suddenly opened his eyes. A drawn-out howl emerged from the heart of the void continent as he did so, almost as though some entity was responding to him.

Qianye glanced up at the sky, his gaze fixated at a faraway point. “Turns out there’s another realm above the ‘Pillars of Time.’ It’s called ‘Heaven.’”

Song Zining was shocked. “What did you say? Isn’t the ‘Pillars of Time’ the peak of the Art of Heaven’s Mystery? Wait, how do you know the art so well?”

Qianye laughed. “Didn’t you teach me back then?”

Song Zining thought back and recalled that he did indeed teach Qianye some basic principles. However, he never mentioned the name of the art at all.

He glanced at Qianye in puzzlement. “What did Marshal Lin tell you? What else is after the ‘Pillars of time?’”

Qianye didn’t reply. He merely stood with his hands behind his back, lost in his own thoughts. Song Zining had a lot of questions, but he had no choice but to keep it all bottled up. Other topics might be fine, but it just so happened that this was related to the Art of Heaven’s Mystery, the most profound art in the divination field. This curiosity was not easy to suppress.

Song Zining glanced at his palm, where a row of words was appearing. This was Empress Li’s handwriting.

“The Art of Heaven’s Mystery is an orthodox art left behind by Duke Xu Fu of Immortal Heaven. This… Marshal Lin managed to derive a new realm beyond its highest rank?!” Song Zining was shaken. “If that’s the case, why did he fall at the void continent? Who in this world can even kill him?”

At this point, Qianye sighed lightly and turned around. “I understand now.”

“What will you do?” the Spider Queen asked.

“I’m going to see Anwen right now. I have some things to discuss with him. Afterward, I will meet that emissary.”

The Spider Queen didn’t understand what was going on, but it was a good outcome that Qianye decided to get involved. So, she decided not to ask further. She flicked out several spider webs, making sure everyone had a thread attached to them. “Let me know when you’re ready, I’ll take you to the Hall of Fate.”

Qianye gazed toward a certain point in the void. He then flicked the web away with a smile and vanished.

( = )