Of course, Gu Changge had Jing Tianyun enter the Nightmare Demon Domain not to go in openly, but to secretly infiltrate it.
This time, the Heavenly Faction would suffer an unprecedented crisis. After much deliberation, Gu Changge decided to warn Wu Yue.
With his current identity, he could not meet Wu Yue directly.
Thus he thought of Jing Tianyun, having him take this object to the Nightmare Demon Domain.
From Gu Changge's understanding of Wu Yue, she would surely be able to guess his intention.
"However, perhaps I'm overthinking it. After so many years, Wu Yue cannot possibly have made no progress. A man absent for three days must be regarded with new eyes, let alone her..." Gu Changge's gaze held a trace of emotion.
His thoughts swirling, he still remembered when he first picked up Wu Yue; she was just a little beast, weak and sickly, abandoned by the Demon Clan, crouching beneath the desolate, dead ice plain, calmly awaiting her fate of becoming food for other demon beasts.
That day, a snowstorm filled the sky, heaven and earth pure white. Around the ice plain, many demon beasts came sniffing the scent, circling like wolves, staring intently at that nightmare beast, waiting for it to breathe its last.
The Nightmare Clan was a race that fed on nightmares, innately powerful in demonic force, and rarely strayed from their clan's space-time to fall into the Demon Domain.
And for ordinary demon beasts, a powerful race like the Nightmare Clan, even an inconspicuous little beast, possessed terrifying demonic force.
As its breath grew weaker, the demonic force leaking from its body increased, like drifting purple mist, gorgeous and enveloping the icy sky.
Like its life, born of heaven and earth, returning to heaven and earth after death.
The snowstorm grew stronger, and more and more demon beasts gathered.
All waited for the feast to begin.
Gu Changge didn't know what emotion had moved him then. Perhaps it was looking down and seeing that little beast's gaze as it awaited death, surprisingly calm, or perhaps a trace of pity and curiosity.
Perhaps he didn't understand why life was so fragile, or perhaps he simply found it interesting.
So he walked over, picked it up, "From now on, you will follow me..."
His thoughts returning, Gu Changge watched Jing Tianyun disappear, then sensed something briefly, detecting something that surprised him slightly.
"Mingkong came out of seclusion?"
"And smoothly broke through to the Dao Realms."
A smile emerged at the corner of his mouth.
He was not at all surprised by Yue Mingkong's breakthrough speed.
Because long before, Gu Changge had already noticed the peculiarity within Yue Mingkong's body. Moreover, the Grand Dream Return to Immortality that she had created herself contained profundities that even Dao Realms existences would find difficult to fathom.
And that was just a Dao method she had created while still in the Immortal Dao realm.
However, Gu Changge did not investigate deeply, nor did he press her, because in his view, since they were married, they must first learn to respect and trust each other.
Before, Gu Changge had never actively chosen to trust someone, but this time, he wanted to try trusting, starting with the people around him.
Of course, Gu Changge also knew that Yue Mingkong would definitely tell him everything.
Soon, ripples spread through the space-time before him, and Gu Changge stepped forward, disappearing in an instant.
At the same time, in the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, at Purple Mist Mountain.
"It's been so long, it seems the Master of Purple Mist Mountain still hasn't given us a satisfactory answer. Do you really think you can just delay and everything will be fine?"
In the great hall, a roiling purple mist gathered and dispersed, drifting erratically. A terrifying and strange aura permeated from within, as if thousands of demonic shadows stood towering.
And the words that came from it were even colder and more severe, chilling, as if the entire space-time were about to freeze.
Zi Wanhe's face broke out in cold sweat as he cupped his hands, "Everyone, it's not that I am deliberately delaying, but truly difficult to find out the whereabouts of Dao Prosperity. The vast Vast Expanse, across so many spaces and times, there is not a single territory or force called Dao Prosperity. It's as if a terrifying force has erased these two characters from the entire Vast Expanse."
"The Dreamghosts Clan has vast divine abilities and can do anything. Even you all cannot find the location of Dao Prosperity; for me to find it is even more impossible."
He was full of grievances inwardly.
He shouldn't have made that so-called deal with the Dreamghosts Clan back then; in the end, he was constrained and controlled, constantly living in fear.
If even the Dreamghosts Clan couldn't find Dao Prosperity, what made them think he could?
"The prophecy clearly stated that Dao Prosperity is related to the Heaven-Slaying Alliance. You are, after all, a high-ranking member of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance, yet you can't even find out such information."
From within the purple mist came a cold voice, seemingly somewhat angry.
Zi Wanhe was startled. The Dreamghosts Clan hadn't told him anything before; how would he know Dao Prosperity was related to the Heaven-Slaying Alliance?
Could they want him to go ask the Alliance Leader?
At this moment, the gaze within the purple mist seemed to perceive Zi Wanhe's thoughts, and said coldly, "Master of Purple Mist Mountain, this will be our last chance for you. If you still cannot do it, then don't blame us for breaking the agreement and carrying out the transaction."
As the words fell, at the center of Zi Wanhe's brow, a faint purple glyph seemed to come alive, turning bright and sparkling, and then began to writhe, as if about to drill into his sea of consciousness.
Zi Wanhe's face immediately showed terror and pain.
Even for an existence who had passed eight Heavenly Decline Tribulations like him, this terrible pain was hard to bear; cold sweat poured down, quickly soaking his robes.
If he let that glyph drill into his sea of consciousness, there was no telling what would happen.
The Dreamghosts Clan came and left just as quickly, giving Zi Wanhe no room to refuse, soon vanishing from this place.
Zi Wanhe also didn't know how the Dreamghosts Clan had infiltrated the Heaven-Slaying Alliance without a sound.
Could they truly live within the dreams of all beings?
"Such methods are truly overbearing and hateful. If I had been more cautious at the time of the deal and not agreed to the contract, why would I be suffering such restraints?" Zi Wanhe's expression was ugly, full of humiliation.
He, a lofty existence who had passed eight Heavenly Decline Tribulations, an influential figure overlooking all worlds of the Vast Expanse, when had he ever lived so subserviently, suffering torment?
And this was only because he had signed a trade contract with the other party, and his True Life was held in their hands.
"In the ancient records, there was once an era called the Era of Dream's Ashes, and the Dreamghosts Clan is suspected to be related to that era..."
"The one who initiated the Era of Dream's Ashes made all beings of the Vast Expanse live within dreams; even Ancestral Dao Realm existences couldn't distinguish illusion from reality. If the Dreamghosts Clan is truly connected to that person, it's not surprising they have such methods. I shouldn't have underestimated them back then..."
His expression flickered between dark and uncertain, somewhat regretful. If he had known this earlier, perhaps he could have found a countermeasure.
Unfortunately, by the time he understood, it was already too late.
Afterward, Zi Wanhe summoned several elders of Purple Mist Mountain, gave some instructions, then turned into a divine light and left Purple Mist Mountain.
He also didn't know whether Gu Changge was currently in the Heaven-Slaying Alliance. With the Immortal Dao Alliance's invitation ceremony day approaching, he had no idea which members of the Heaven-Slaying Alliance needed to go, or what their attitude was.
Even the Alliance of Righteous Unity had already sent many high-level members with congratulatory gifts in the past few days.
Or did the Heaven-Slaying Alliance have other plans?
"Forget it, what do these matters have to do with me? The urgent task now is to preserve my cultivation first." Zi Wanhe shook his head and sighed.
Because of the Dreamghosts Clan's matter, he was now swamped and had no mind to think about the Heaven-Slaying Alliance's affairs.
Even the few divine items in the Hall of War Merit that he craved, he had no time to accumulate war merits to exchange for.
If he couldn't resolve this deal with the Dreamghosts Clan, even if he didn't die, he would shed a layer of skin, and might even lose his cultivation.
"Speaking of which, why is the Dreamghosts Clan looking for Dao Prosperity? Is there something in Dao Prosperity they want to find?" Zi Wanhe pondered.
On the other side, Gu Changge, having once again returned to Dao Prosperity True World, did not immediately go to see Yue Mingkong and the others.
Because the moment he stepped into Dao Prosperity True World, the Ancestor of the Gu Family sensed his aura and sent a transmission, telling him to come to the Gu family first.
Gu Changge did not conceal his aura; besides the Ancestor of the Gu Family, the other Dao Realms existences currently in Dao Prosperity True World could more or less sense his arrival.
He thought for a moment, did not refuse, and with a step, returned to the Gu family estate where he had once stayed.
The Gu family remained prosperous and powerful, still the strongest family in present-day Dao Prosperity True World, bar none.
Besides Gu Changge, the Gu family had produced many individuals with profound fortune and dense blessings over the years.
Furthermore, with the Ancestor of the Gu Family—who appeared to have only Void Dao Realm cultivation but whose true strength was unfathomable—presiding over them, the Gu family's foundation was not on the same level as other clans and lineages at all.
"Demon Lord, do you know of the changes in Yue Mingkong?"
The Ancestor of the Gu Family was still lying on that rattan chair in the courtyard, looking very leisurely. Only after Gu Changge arrived did he slowly get up and pour him a cup of clear tea.
Gu Changge didn't mind his attitude and replied calmly, "I know some."
Regarding the changes in Yue Mingkong, he indeed knew, but not much.
Of course, he could directly probe into it, but if he did, although Yue Mingkong wouldn't mind, Gu Changge now could not afford not to care.
After all, Yue Mingkong was now his wife, not the tool person whose feelings he didn't need to consider in the past.
"Even you only know some?"
"You've changed quite a bit yourself..."
The Ancestor of the Gu Family smiled. Although he revered Gu Changge's identity as the Demon Lord, in a certain sense, Gu Changge was still a member of the Gu family, and his current body still carried the Gu family's bloodline.
However, he found it surprising that Gu Changge would say he only knew some.
With his power, was there anything in this world he didn't know?
It seemed he truly didn't want to make a move and probe into Yue Mingkong's secrets.
Gu Changge asked, "Did you call me here just to ask this?"
The Ancestor of the Gu Family looked at him and said, "Since you've returned, I naturally don't need to worry. I was only worried that Yue Mingkong might be affected, after all, her breakthrough to the Dao Realms this time involves the secrets of a past era."
"Which era?" Gu Changge raised an eyebrow, seeming a bit surprised.
The Ancestor of the Gu Family said in a deep voice, "The Era of Dream's Ashes."
The Era of Dream's Ashes was an era even more distant and ancient than the Black Calamity Era. In the history of the entire Vast Expanse, eras like the Era of Dream's Ashes and the Black Calamity Era were not few, but no era was as terrible as the Black Calamity Era, nor as strange as the Era of Dream's Ashes.
And because the Ancestor of the Gu Family had flipped through relevant records of this era in the Gu family's ancient texts, he knew some things about the Era of Dream's Ashes.
So after Yue Mingkong emerged from seclusion, he felt that the fluctuations of her aura were actually somewhat similar to some records of the Era of Dream's Ashes in the texts.
"The Era of Dream's Ashes, huh?" Gu Changge nodded slightly.
He hadn't carefully studied the history of the Vast Expanse, because if he wanted to know, he could probe and investigate through the River of Time at any moment.
And the instant the Ancestor of the Gu Family mentioned those four characters, Gu Changge's gaze instantly pierced through the vast ages, crossed countless epochs, and landed on a hazy, bizarre era that seemed buried and obscured by an unknown force.
Dense mist pervaded, as if stretching across all worlds; the entire space-time and universe seemed wrapped in boundless gray fog, completely drifting and isolated from the passage of time.
Gu Changge's brows furrowed.
It was actually the same kind of power as the Transcendence Codex again.
"I'm worried that during this seclusion in Dreaming Back to the Primordial Era, Yue Mingkong might have been contaminated by some strange auras, but I also hope it's just my overthinking." the Ancestor of the Gu Family said.
"With me here, Mingkong will be fine." Gu Changge nodded, retracting his gaze, not alerting the enemy, and continuing to probe no further.
Since the appearance of the Transcendence Codex, he had always had his suspicions, and then even Gu Xian'er began to touch the power of "taboo."
Now Yue Mingkong was also involved with the Era of Dream's Ashes?
It seemed it was just as he had thought—besides him, there were others scheming and plotting something.
He was waiting for the other party to reveal their flaws, while the other party had already laid bait, waiting for Gu Changge to take it.
"I just wonder, who among you will it be? Or all of you?"
Gu Changge's gaze was profound, his emotions not fluctuating much.
In truth, he had long had such speculations. Even if he could not use the power within the Land of Truth at the moment, obstructing his investigation was not an easy matter.
In the current Vast Expanse, could there really be such an existence?
After leaving the Gu family, Gu Changge's figure appeared in the center of the Divine Kingdom in Dao Prosperity True World. He gazed at the vast expanse of glorious palaces ahead and then stepped forward.
In the divine hall, a tall and slender figure sat quietly at the head, her head slightly bowed, her fair hand holding a memorial, as if reading something. At this moment, she also seemed to sense something.
She turned her head, and on her picturesque immortal face, a stunningly beautiful smile suddenly bloomed, "Changge..."
With that smile, the light of heaven dimmed, and even Gu Changge was dazed for a moment. In his heart that had long been unruffled, wave after wave of soft warmth surged up.
He walked over and gently held her in his arms.