Chapter Six: The Cavernous Abode

  Chen Xiao was stunned, her mind went blank.

  The woman in front of her, who was elegant and refined, yet playful and lively, was actually her own mother... she... she...

  Chen's heart was surging with emotions, feeling a bit at a loss, and couldn't find any words to accurately describe her feelings at that moment.

  When he was two years old, his mother, Zuǒ Qiū Xuě, disappeared without a trace. He had no impression of his mother in his mind at all. Moreover, since childhood, he had heard some bad rumors about his mother, and his grandfather avoided talking about it. Even if he yearned to understand his mother's past, he had to bury this feeling deeply in his heart.

  Yes, hidden in heart.

  Because he was afraid that his mother would really abandon him and his family, just like the rumors said, and elope with a young bachelor.

  He was afraid that if things were really like this, he would lose control of himself and go completely crazy.

  In these years, he has thought of his mother more than once and then forced himself to forget her. The pain and entanglement in it are unimaginable for others.

  "Baby son, seeing how young and beautiful your old mother is, are you surprised? Can't accept it?"

  A woman in a white dress smiled and winked: "Hey, if I were you, I wouldn't accept it either. Who let me have the art of preserving my youth?"

  "Alright, I don't have much time left." The woman in white paused for a moment, composed her smile and continued: "Son, listen carefully to what I'm about to say. You must remember it well in your heart, or else we mother and son may never meet again."

  When he heard this, Chen Xiao's heart shook and he woke up from his confused thoughts.

  A woman in white clothes, with a nostalgic look in her eyes, her face changing unpredictably, losing the liveliness and playfulness of just now, only leaving anger, helplessness, bitterness, resentment... and more.

  She said slowly: "I was caught by your uncle, they disagreed with me marrying your father, because I also wanted to maintain the reputation of their Zuoqiu family, they were willing to destroy the entire Chen family just to erase this shame."

  It turned out that mother didn't elope with someone, she was taken away by her uncle...

  Chen Yu felt as if he had shed the shackles that had bound him for over a decade, and his mood relaxed involuntarily. However, the next sentence made him unable to revel in joy, and his mood plummeted into an abyss of despair.

  It was actually the Zuqiu family where my mother is from that destroyed my Chen family?

  Chen Xiao's breathing was rapid, his chest felt like it had a massive boulder weighing on it, and with the intense ups and downs of his emotions, he almost fainted from dizziness.

  For over a decade, he had been pondering who was the murderer that annihilated his Chen family, and in his heart, he had made up his mind to eliminate all the culprits no matter how difficult or perilous it would be. However, he never expected that the truth would turn out to be so absurd and so cruel!

  "Son, you must be very angry. Mother is also very angry. Because mother had already cut off the relationship with Zuoqiu Shi and paid the due price, but they still won't let go of mother."

  Zuo Qiu Xue's voice became lower and heavier: "The reason is simple, your mother and father obtained an extraordinary treasure during a trip, look, it's this."

  Her jade-like hand pointed at the white light swirling around the jade pendant, and her eyes welled up with endless pain and hatred.

  Chen Ting raised his head and looked over, his eyes dull. At this moment, his thoughts had become numb, relying on the last bit of rationality to listen to Zuo Qiu Xue's words.

  "Have you heard of the He Tu? A mysterious painting from ancient times, through which many ancient gods and demons gained insight into their own paths, grasped the secrets of heaven, controlled the mysteries of the great way, and reached the pinnacle of the Tao. And it is precisely because of this that every time the He Tu appears, it is always accompanied by storms and bloodshed, causing turmoil in the three realms, unrest in the six paths, and a struggle for possession among the great gods, a scene like the end of the world, just thinking about it makes one shudder."

  "It's fortunate that the River Chart disappeared after the end of the ancient era, and the terrifying scene of demons dancing wildly and gods fighting chaotically has not been seen again until today. It's probably been over a million years already. If it weren't for my mother reading through our clan's classics when I was young, I wouldn't even know the name 'River Chart'."

  Zuo Qiu Xue's voice was low and melancholic, with a hint of nostalgia as she spoke.

  However, to Chen Yao, it sounded like an ancient and distant legend, not stirring up a single ripple in his heart. Something that happened millions of years ago was too far away for him to even generate a spark of interest.

  He only knew that the River Chart was a treasure, a treasure that could drive everyone crazy and kill each other.

  "In this jade pendant in front of you, a rubbing of the Hetu is hidden, and on it is a hint of the Hetu's imprint. Don't underestimate this hint, with it, one can completely find the hiding place of the Hetu, and the reason why our Chen family was destroyed and I was taken away is precisely because of this jade pendant!"

  Zuo Qiu Xue's next sentence was like a heavy bomb, completely stunning Chen Tai. His eyes were fixed on Yu Die, his gaze shocked.

  If he had thought of the River Chart as a distant story before, then at this moment he suddenly discovered that he was also fortunate enough to have a thread of cause and effect with the River Chart!

  He didn't know whether to feel fortunate or sad. He had already understood everything, the Chen family was exterminated, his mother left, his father disappeared... even his own name "Sweeping Star" was bestowed upon him by this jade pendant. If it weren't for fighting over it, how could his whole family have gone through so many tragedies?

  This is probably the innocent being wrongly accused, guilty by association!

  Chen Xiao let out a deep sigh in her heart and felt lost and uncertain.

  "It is said that this jade pendant is actually a cultivation cave of an ancient and mysterious demon, with its own heaven and earth inside, hiding many mysterious places, the River Chart being one of them, but it's the most precious treasure among them. Unfortunately, my mother has never entered it before, and only knows about these things."

  "You can evoke the spiritual imprint left by Niang, and you must have reached the Xiantian realm. You can make this jade pendant recognize its master, take it, and work hard!"

  The image of the woman in white gradually became dim, blurry, and seemed to be on the verge of shattering at any moment. Her voice also became urgent: "Son, you must remember that before you become stronger, never tell anyone about this jade pendant, including your younger brother. Otherwise, it will destroy all the hopes of our Chen family!"

  "Don't worry about Mother's safety, as long as your strength reaches the Heavenly Immortal realm, you can naturally meet with Mother."

  The white-robed woman's image, formed from the condensation of white light, thoroughly shattered and dispersed without a trace. The jade pendant hanging on her chest also returned to normal.

  The house fell back into darkness, and Chen Xiao only felt like he had a dream, but the sound that lingered in his heart and the jade pendant hanging on his chest told him that this was not a dream, it was real.

  He sat silently in the darkness for a long time, his lips trembling slightly as he whispered softly: "Don't worry, Mother, I'll definitely find you!"

  ……

  Chen Xiao lost his sleepiness, washed his face with cold water, and after his mind cleared up, he cast his gaze on the jade pendant in front of his chest.

  After all that had just happened, he finally understood that the reason he had been stuck in Santian San Chong for five years was because of this jade pendant.

  It silently absorbed its own true yuan, until today, the power reached saturation, and it awakened the spiritual imprint left by its mother, allowing it to see its mother's image, and also understand the things that had been puzzling it before.

  Chen Xiao was exhilarated, he finally understood that he wasn't a Sweeper Star at all, his qualifications weren't inferior either. Most importantly, he knew that his mother was still alive, and as long as he became stronger, he would be able to find her!

  Heavenly Realm?

  As long as I don't die, there will be a day when I can open the Purple Mansion, rush into the Yellow Court, condense the Golden Elixir of Yin and Yang, break through Nirvana, become a True Person of Mysterious Transformation, go through heavenly calamities to become an Earthly Immortal, understand the Great Way and ascend to the Realm of the Sages, and transform into a Heavenly Immortal!

  As long as I don't die, the enemies who killed my grandfather, destroyed my brother's right hand and slaughtered over a thousand of my Chen family clan will not escape!

  Chen Yu took a deep breath, her eyes firm and pure.

  "This jade pendant is actually a cave dwelling used by ancient gods and demons for cultivation, the River Chart manuscript is also inside, I don't know what mysteries are hidden within. According to my mother's words, the seal on the jade pendant has been lifted, my pre-heavenly realm cultivation can now be recognized by the immortal mansion, but whether it's true or false..."

  Chen Xiao remembered his mother Zuo Qiu Xue's words, hesitated for a moment, and resolutely gritted his teeth to separate a strand of true yuan from his body, pouring it into the jade pendant.

  A gentle glow burst forth from the surface of the jade pendant, swirling and coalescing into a mysterious black hole.

  Almost at the same time, an irresistible suction force surged out of the black hole. Chen Xun was caught off guard and didn't even have time to struggle before being sucked into the black hole.

  Buzz!

  The black hole collapsed inch by inch and disappeared.

  The whole room fell into darkness again, restored to its original state, only without Chen Tang's figure.

  ……

  Chen Xuan stood in a vast and majestic space, with the stars twinkling above her head like a swarm of fireflies, and a clear and sparkling silver light cascading down from the sky, as if in a dream.

  Underfoot is a soft and lush green grassland that stretches far away, seemingly endless.

  Alone standing under the starry night sky, surrounded by a halo of starlight like fireflies, as if placed in the wilderness, it seems so empty and ethereal.

  Is this the cave where that ancient demon cultivates?

  Chen Xiao looked around four times, but didn't find any building that could be called a cave mansion. He was puzzled and couldn't help but feel a sense of vigilance.

  The unknown is the root source of fear. Therefore, Chen Tang did not dare to move around randomly, and was extremely vigilant, carefully guarding against all directions.

  Standing still for a long time, Chen's legs had already gone numb. The surroundings were still quiet and soundless, as if there was no other living thing besides him.

  "Could it be that this cave doesn't exist at all?"

  Chen Xiao lay on his back in the grass, gazing up at the twinkling stars in the sky, lost in thought.

  No!

  In this vast space, there are not only dead objects, but also those stars, aren't they also revolving tirelessly like living things? The stars outside, how can they fly around like that?

  Realizing this, Chen Xiao widened her eyes and stared at the stars flying across the sky, observing them carefully.

  The sky is like a curtain, with countless stars scattered throughout, the trajectory of their movement is varied and unpredictable, each one different from the others, and their speed is also fast and slow. They draw complex and mysterious trajectories, whizzing by and disappearing into the distance.

  An ordinary person would have been dazzled by this scene, but Chen Yao was gradually becoming more and more fascinated.

  "With the myriad stars as brush tips, and the vast night sky as paper, where the brush falls, it seems chaotic and disorderly, but in reality, it is well-organized and harmonious. Not only does it ensure that each star revolves on its own, but also coexists peacefully, full of vitality and dynamism... truly beyond words..."

  Lost in thought, Chen Suo was completely unaware of the starlight sprinkling down from above, gradually gathering into a painting...

  ——