Master of Strange Dao

If it were not for someone resolving it, the artifact would never have begun to awaken, and he would not have been able to awaken; the rage within his Divine Soul also would not have dissipated.

Having lost the power of the artifact, he slept again in the Southern Sea, his Divine Soul influenced by the anger of living beings, naturally affecting the celestial phenomena of the Southern Sea unintentionally.

The tribes of the Southern Sea were not wrong, after all. The continuous storms and harsh environment were indeed Ji Meng's responsibility.

His culpability was significant.

Now, gazing towards the northern land, he remained silent for a long time.

As he awakened, the artifact also began to regain its power; the Southern Sea should start to calm as well.

But he was hesitant about whether to retrieve the artifact or not.

His power had severely waned during the countless years of slumber.

He was now quite afraid to reclaim that artifact; those capable of resolving the rage of living beings, those who dared to do so, were individuals he wouldn't have dared to provoke back in the day.

Only those who had been scorched by the flames themselves truly knew how terrifying the fury of mortals could be.

"You should go back, as if you didn't know I had awoken," Ji Meng waved his hand, telling Ji Lian to leave.

The descendants of today, even unable to fully use the surname Ji Meng, he had more or less understood their situation.

"Ancestor..." Ji Lian quickly knelt to the ground.

"Stand up," Ji Meng commanded sharply, "When did the Ji family become grovelers?"

"Ancestor, I..."

"Go away, I don't blame you; you have already done well," he said.

Leaving those words behind, Ji Meng stepped forward, walking towards the sea.

The bird feathers on his arms began to dissipate, the bird claws slowly turned into human hands, and the dragon head slowly transformed into the face of a middle-aged man who had experienced the vicissitudes of life.

He donned a long robe and walked out of the sea, heading in the direction of Silver Lake.

The drizzling rain, like pairs of hands, brushed over his body.

He reached out to catch some rainwater, bearing the wash of the rain, and a faint smile appeared.

"Long time no see, you've also been under my influence, never resting properly. Now, you too can calm down; I owe you an apology," he said.

As Ji Meng spoke, the drizzling rain became even softer, and the breeze that blew was as gentle and delicate as a lover's touch, longing to touch yet hesitant.

Ji Meng walked in the rain, bearing the wash of the rainwater, the accumulated miasma and dust beginning to get washed away.

His energy plummeted to the First Tier, then climbed from the First Tier back up to the Seventh Tier before it finally stabilized.

"Alright, alright, I know you mean well, but I have slept far too long and my power is almost depleted. The recovery up to now is quite good; take it slowly, you don't need to exert yourself," he said.

"Rest assured, I won't take risks. I'm only going to see if it's still there, how well it has recovered. I don't intend on taking it; you know, I don't really care about that artifact. I just want to see if anyone will take it," he added.

The rain continued to fall, and Ji Meng walked in it, his exhaustion lessened somewhat; his complexion improved significantly.

Ji Meng waved towards the sky as he approached the land.

"You can leave; don't follow me onto the land. Someone might find out about me," he said.

With these words, the rain did not encroach further but stayed above the sea.

Ji Meng walked on the land, feeling the dense Gui Water Qi and sighed softly.

He was already sensing Silver Lake, the Galaxy once drawn down from the sky was still here.

En route, seeing this desolation, filled with demons and evils, Ji Meng was already prepared, but his face was still complex.

When he reached the edge of Silver Lake, looking out over the boundless Silver Lake and sensing the concealed vitality within, his gaze seemed to penetrate the lake's surface, seeing the living beings within Silver Lake.

After sensing briefly, he also sensed his artifact, lying in the deepest part of Silver Lake.

And the artifact was still in the midst of recovery, yet no one had taken it.

He thought for a moment, then continued north along the edge of Silver Lake, but he did not summon the artifact.

He no longer wanted to take it.

Countless years of slumber had been a lesson profound enough; relying on the artifact had ultimately led him to a lower path.

He did not want to walk the same road again.

And the first step was to never touch that artifact again.

Just leave it there, it was quite alright, probably no one would venture into the deepest parts of Silver Lake and take the artifact amidst the resistance of the living beings in the lake.

He walked a bit further as the moisture in the sky condensed, turning into a gentle, continuous rain.

Ji Meng stretched out his hand, touching the raindrops, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.

"Is someone coming ahead? Will I be in danger?"

The steady rain concealed Ji Meng's presence completely, shrouding his figure within it, his form slowly dissipating.

Tens of miles away, Yu Ziqing walked on the land, sensing the changes here.

The Little Bodhi Tree within him conveyed the sensation; life was beginning to recover here.

Despite the considerable distance, Yu Ziqing could sense the noticeably strengthening Silver Lake; yet curiously, life here was reviving.

He always felt there was something odd about this.

Logically, life should have been even more extinguished.

Moreover, it had started raining here, a warm, light rain that did not mix with the Xin Metal Qi, but was rich in the vibrant Gui Water Qi, endlessly nourishing the land and fostering life.

Tens of miles away, Ji Meng hovered mid-air; the rain obscured everything around him as he saw Yu Ziqing.

The moment he saw Yu Ziqing, a shiver ran through his heart and a tremendous fear surged.

It was as though he had returned to that year, witnessing the vast wildfire, feeling the moment when the fire of all beings scorched everything.

The inextinguishable flames, seemingly frail yet never ceasing, until it completely consumed him.

It was the first time in his life he had felt such overpowering and helpless terror.

And now, just by seeing Yu Ziqing, a burning pain emerged in his Divine Soul, even though his Divine Soul actually had no trace of fire Qi left.

"It's him! It's definitely him! He must be the one who alleviated the rage of all beings; no, not alleviated, their rage is within him.

Why?

Why wasn't he burned to death?"

As if sensing Ji Meng's fear, the gentle rain brushed over his body, soothing him gently, allowing him to calm down again.

Ji Meng rubbed his head, his Divine Soul still hurt, but not as much as before.

He knew the fire had dissipated and was no longer burning him, but his Divine Soul had endured the burning for far too long and had recorded that agony; even the slightest sensation would bring him the feeling of pain.

"You think he's trying to find the artifact?"

"Oh, you don't know either. How about I give him the artifact?"

"No no no, I don't want to repeat the same mistakes again, nor tread the same path; the first thing to do is to never rely on that artifact again."

"Alright, I'll listen to you; I'll just keep watching."

"But I think that as someone who dares to absorb the rage of all beings and hasn't been burnt to death, he surely disdains that artifact."

"You don't need to argue with me; you once tried to help me carry away that fire Qi, but you saw it too—it's impossible, even the waters of Silver Lake couldn't extinguish those flames."

"No, don't give random advice or test ideas; it's malicious. I won't summon that artifact; let it remain asleep in Silver Lake."

"However, you did mention something correct; I should meet him to understand why he isn't burnt to death and why I still feel the burning pain."