"However," Yun Lintian paused for a moment. "The map is only part of it. The tablet mentions a 'First Key'—something hidden within the palace that controls its temporal laws."
Xiong Yu scowled. "More riddles."
But Long Chen's eyes lit up. "The map shows a central chamber—could that be where the key is?"
Yun Lintian studied the shifting pathways. "Possibly. But the palace won't let us reach it easily."
Tang Wei floated closer, his voice grave. "The Temporal Palace was once the Grand Palace of Origin—the seat of the Primordial Gods. If the key truly exists, it might be tied to the World Tree's fragments."
A heavy silence fell.
"It seems we have to enter the palace at all costs." Qian Jinglei spoke up.
Initially, she had no plan to enter the Temporal Palace as her goal had always been training Long Chen. However, the temptation of the secret of the ruins was too much to ignore.
"Uncle…" Xiong Ba looked at his uncle.
Xiong Yu didn't say anything but the look in his eyes was clear. He had already made a decision to enter the palace.
Nie Tong and Ling Xuan were no exception.
Yun Lintian examined the tablet for a long time and didn't find any clues further.
Yun Lintian turned his gaze back to Tang Wei, studying the liquid form of the ancient protector. "Since you were the protector of the Celestial Pavilion, you must have held a high position in the Sacred City."
Tang Wei's watery form rippled with a hint of pride. "Naturally. The Celestial Pavilion was the heart of the city's governance. As its protector, my authority was second only to the Primordial Gods themselves."
Yun Lintian's eyes sharpened. "Then how did you end up here? What happened after the World Tree fell?"
Tang Wei's form stilled, as if weighed down by the memories. When he spoke again, his voice carried the heaviness of millennia.
A single word, heavy with meaning.
"The World Tree was more than just the city's foundation—it was the source of order, the balance that kept everything in harmony. When it shattered..." His voice darkened. "The city descended into madness."
Yun Lintian remained silent, waiting.
Tang Wei continued, his tone grim. "Without the Tree's protection, the barriers that maintained peace collapsed. The strong preyed on the weak. Sects turned on each other. Even families betrayed their own—all for scraps of resources, for survival."
His liquid form trembled slightly, as if reliving the horror.
"My Celestial Pavilion became a target. We housed the city's greatest treasures, its most powerful artifacts. The five divine generals saw an opportunity—they led their forces against us, slaughtering my people one by one."
Long Qingxuan's grip on Yun Lintian's hand tightened. She had seen similar scenes in her own memories—the brutality of war, the collapse of civilization.
Tang Wei's voice grew quieter. "I was the last defender. I held the gates as long as I could, but..." He shook his head. "It wasn't enough."
"Then the Mirror Lake activated."
Yun Lintian's brows furrowed. "Activated? By whom?"
Tang Wei's form flickered uncertainly. "I don't know. The lake was always a prison—a place where the Creator sealed away the most dangerous beings. But that day, it... awakened. A force beyond comprehension pulled everything into its depths—the generals, their armies, even the remnants of my pavilion."
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"When I came to, I was already beneath the lake. The others... most perished quickly. Without the World Tree's energy, our divine power faded. We became mortals again—hungry, weak."
A bitter ripple passed through his watery body.
"Some turned to cannibalism. Others wasted away. I... chose a different path." He gestured to his liquid form. "The lake's divine water became my new body. A prison, but also salvation."
Silence fell over the group.
Qian Jinglei and the others exchanged uneasy glances. The fall of the Sacred City was far worse than any of them had imagined.
Tang Wei's watery form rippled as he continued, "After being trapped here, I had no way to see beyond the lake's boundaries. All I could witness were the unlucky cultivators who stumbled into these ruins and got sucked in."
Long Chen suddenly spoke up, his voice tight with curiosity. "Senior Tang, what happened to those cultivators? The ones who were pulled into the lake before us?"
Tang Wei let out a hollow laugh, his liquid shoulders shrugging. "Most couldn't endure the loneliness or the suppression of their cultivation. This place... it's a dead end. No exit. No hope. Many chose to end their own suffering rather than waste away."
A heavy silence fell over the group.
Long Chen, Ling Xuan, and Xiong Ba exchanged glances, their faces paling slightly. They had just realized how close they had come to sharing that fate—trapped forever in this prison, their power draining away until only despair remained.
Tang Wei looked at Long Chen meaningfully. "You three were fortunate. Had he not broken the lake's formations, you would have joined them."
Yun Lintian frowned slightly as he processed this. He then asked, "What about the Primordial Gods? Where were they before the fall of the Sacred City?"
Tang Wei spread his watery arms helplessly. "How would I know? The Primordial Gods were supreme existences—far beyond my reach. Their comings and goings were never something a mere protector like me could pry into."
He paused, then added, "Though... the God of Life would occasionally visit the World Tree. She seemed to have some connection to it."
Yun Lintian's breath hitched. His grip on Long Qingxuan's hand tightened imperceptibly.
"The God of Life?" he pressed, his voice carefully controlled. "Do you know her name?"
Tang Wei shook his head. "Only that her surname was Yun. Beyond that, even her true appearance was a mystery to most."
Yun Lintian and Long Qingxuan immediately locked eyes. There was no need to speak aloud—both were thinking the same thing.
Could this God of Life really be Yun Lintian's mother?
Qingqing's eyes lit up as she spoke. "Hey, isn't that your—"
Linlin quickly slapped a tiny paw over Qingqing's mouth before she could finish. "Shh!"
The sudden tension in the air didn't go unnoticed.
Qian Jinglei studied Yun Lintian's expression with quiet curiosity, while Xiong Yu frowned, sensing there was more to this revelation than met the eye.
Tang Wei, oblivious to the undercurrents, continued, "The God of Life was different from the other Primordial Gods. She rarely involved herself in the affairs of the Sacred City, except when it came to the World Tree. Some said she was its guardian. Others believed she was bound to it in some way."
He looked at Yun Lintian and said further. "So far, she was the only one I had seen before the city fell."